"Rachel, are you sure you don't want to get some rest?" Bruce asked, gently placing a hand on my shoulder to get my attention.

I sighed and shook my head, a sheepish smile stretching across my features as I tilted my head back to be met with a kiss on the forehead, "Look who's talking."

"Well you've been staring off into the distance for a while now…" He took a seat next to me, leaving the statement to finish itself.

"You looked so focused, I didn't want to disturb you." I smirked and he cocked an eyebrow at my excuse. I'd come back to join him in the lab to keep him company even after everyone else seemed to try their hand at sleep.

"I can multitask for the most part." The hint of the smile that played across his lips faded as he continued, "You're worried." He stated, not as a question, but as a starting point if I chose to go with it.

I paused, deciding if I really wanted to have this conversation now. "…Yeah."

When I didn't elaborate, he nodded and stood, "I'm all ears if you want to talk." Placing a quick peck to my cheek, he crossed to the opposite side of the table where he'd left the holographic information he'd been working with suspended in the air.

It wasn't long before the thought made it out, "I know you're worried too. How do you just work through it like that?"

His hands shuffled through the transparent documents for a moment, eyes quickly flitting to the end of one before he stopped all together and looked at me. He seemed to be thinking for a moment before he drew a breath to answer, "I couldn't stop if I wanted to." He frowned, "In times of high stress my mind will keep going. If I don't focus the energy on something, it'll find another outlet."

"Won't you burn out that way?"

He nodded, "Sooner or later, yes." There was another quick pause as he worked to put his thoughts into words, "I think by now I probably would have if the issue only concerned me, but because it includes people I care about I have to keep working. I'd never forgive myself if I don't do absolutely everything I can while I can."

A quiet noise of recognition made its way from me as I nodded thoughtfully, "I know the feeling." I murmured.

After another lull, Bruce settled his internal debate and decided to voice his thoughts again, "You're worried about Eric too, right?"

I blinked, somewhat surprised that he'd chosen to bring Eric up and so calmly at that. Usually Hydra was a sore topic with him, which admittedly it still was judging by his face, but he still had chosen to ask about it for my sake. "Natasha and Clint think he's a threat."

"You don't?"

"No, I know he is, but…" I sighed heavily, knowing just how unrealistic I sounded, "I don't think he's all bad."

"He could have killed you." His eyebrows knit together in confusion.

"I don't think he wants to." I faltered under Bruce's look of absolute shock, aware that this was not the direction he expected the conversation to take. "He said he wanted our last encounter to be a message, so what would be the point if I'm supposed to die?"

"Does it matter, Rachel?" He ran a hand through his curly, dark hair before continuing, "He toyed with your life in the hospital and helped Hydra manipulate and potentially permanently damage parts of your brain. Maybe he just likes to play sick games." I could see the strain in his eyes as he bottled up the toxic mix of negativity he felt towards Hydra.

"I realize I sound crazy, but I don't think that's it. He is by no means innocent, but he has risked his own safety to help me on multiple occasions."

"If he's not manipulative, he's delusional. Either way, he is still dangerous. Maybe he's looking for someone who reminds him of his sister, but that doesn't excuse what he's done."

"It doesn't have to define him."

"I thought maybe you were apprehensive about seeing him again, not contemplating the morality of his actions." He stopped abruptly, taking a deep breath and composing himself, "I don't want you to get hurt again, or worse…"

I reached for his hand as he leaned against the table, placing mine over his as I met his gaze, "I won't let that happen if I can help it." The muscles in his hands tensed at that and I knew he was uneasy, "I know that's not what I should be saying, but it's true. Dr. Stens will be after you and Eric will be looking for me, not the others."

"Rachel –"

"I have to go too, Bruce. I wouldn't feel right sitting this one out."

He stared at me, saddened and worried, but ultimately nodding slowly, "I know you don't want to hurt anyone, none of us do, but please understand that sometimes it has to be done."

"It's also possible to help people if they want to be helped."

"That's a big if, but yes." He sighed, "I can empathize with pain, but I don't like him so I wouldn't be able to be unbiased in talking about him with you."

I squeezed his hand for reassurance and he turned his palm upwards so that he could hold my hand in his, "I'm worried, more than anything, about you, Bruce." I breathed, "They will try to kill you if they can't have you."

"They can try."

"But Madman actually hurt the Hulk's back last time."

"He did." His voice was calm as if he were talking about something normal, "The Other Guy doesn't forget people that make him angry and at this point he's livid. His strength only grows with his anger. I can't be sure, but I think Madman's strength might come from his size or could otherwise be fixed for the most part."

"You think that's how he works?"

At that he shrugged, tilting his head, "It's a theory."

"They've always got something up their sleeve." I warned.

"I'm sure they do, but I think we're all done playing games."

He seemed sure about his last statement, but I knew everything was beginning to wear on him. I knew he was tired and it was beginning to seep out in his stance, in his expression, even in his outlook. "Bruce, we should call it a night."

Sparing a glance towards the holographic images he'd been using, he shook his head, "I'll turn in soon, you go ahead."

"Well maybe I can help you?" I offered.

"There are more files I have yet to go through. If you'd like, maybe you could look for clues there?"

"Sure thing." I offered a small smile of which he returned before moving to the next table and pulling up the information he wanted me to go through.

There was an eye-glazing amount of account information and details concerning recent transactions from a plant meant to supply and dispose of radioactive and unstable materials. Details concerning old and new employees, disputes, lawsuits, missing supplies, improper disposals, sketchy sales, and so on were all presented in solid walls of text as I tried my best to read and reread the pages. A few times I felt my head dip before snapping back as I blinked to clear the drowsiness that was beginning to creep up on me.

I jerked awake, quickly bracing myself against the table nearest to me as I balanced myself atop the stool I'd been seated on. Grabbing the jacket that almost slipped from my shoulders I paused. I hadn't been wearing a jacket. With a quick look between myself and Bruce I realized that he'd draped his lab coat across my shoulders at some point when I'd fallen asleep at my station.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" I watched as he continued to work, only stopping to regard me.

A soft smile played on his lips, alleviating the look of exhaustion for a moment, "You looked peaceful."

There was a hint of sadness behind his statement, to which I nodded my understanding. I didn't always wake up from the nightmares and memories resurfacing, but it still wasn't unusual for me every now and then. Even he had trouble sleeping sometimes, I'd noticed.

"Ready to call it a night?"

He sighed, removing his classes to pinch the bridge of his nose and rub his eye before replacing them. "Yeah, I think so." With a quick gesture, he cleared the air of the information he'd been working with, "Goodnight, Jarvis."

"Goodnight, Dr. Banner and Ms. Brooke." The AI sounded before the lab went dark with only a few lights illuminating a path to exit the lab.

Quietly we made our way through the building and to Bruce's room since it was the closest to the lab. It wasn't long after changing into our pajamas and curling up before we each drifted off, too tired to remain awake after quick goodnight wishes.

"Usually this sort of thing is a simple trade, but I will be inspecting the weapons before we go just to be sure it's what we agreed on." Eric parked just outside of a gated facility and retrieved a small flash drive from his pocket, "This has instructions and information he needs, I want you to give it to him if everything checks out. I'll carry the briefcase with samples of Dr. Stern's work."

"Does Hydra not trust him?" I stored the flash drive in a small pocket and opened the door.

"He's a relatively new connection, so not very much." A shiny sports car roared into the parking lot followed by two SUVs, "Finally, I thought I'd have to fish him out of the club." Eric rolled his eyes before stepping out of the car. It was too dark for the men a few spaces away to see the irritated expression, but as he took a step forward he composed himself and a smile was on his face.

The man we were supposed to meet went ahead with two others while six men stayed behind with the two of us in the lobby. I followed Eric's lead and surrendered my gun to one of the guards before passing through a metal detector and scanner. Eric was waved over to the side with a guard asking about a dark spot on his image to which Eric withdrew a cell phone before we proceeded.

We were escorted by the man's personal guards to his office, two remaining inside of the room while the others waited outside. Obviously the lack of trust was mutual, but I didn't voice the thought as he greeted us with a wide smile, "Thank you so much for your flexibility, the time just slipped away from me this evening."

"Work hard, play hard." Eric smirked, his demeanor shifting to convey a relaxed and charming exterior, "I'm glad we caught you when we did, Adams." He snuck in a playful jab as he shook hands with the man who had previously been in the process of raising his blood alcohol level before Eric had given him a call.

"Please, call me Luke. It's about time we got on a first name basis." He looked to me and extended his hand, "And you?"

"Dawn." I shook his hand.

"Beautiful name."

"Thank you." I smiled politely as I extracted my hand from his.

He paused, letting his hand fall back to his side. "Make yourselves comfortable."

Eric nodded and I took a seat in a cushioned seat across the large desk in the room. Beside me, Eric decided to remain standing as he sat the heavily plated briefcase on the desk and waited for Luke to meet us again.

"Would either of you like a drink?" He offered, speaking over his shoulder as he poured himself a glass of a dark liquor he kept on a separate table off to the side.

"No, thank you." I declined, shifting my gaze to Eric in surprise when he accepted one for himself.

After the drinks were made, Luke returned to us and seated himself across from me at the desk. "If you change your mind, the offer still stands." He smiled and passed the second glass to Eric who took a sip.

I glanced between the two, shaking my head, "Maybe next time."

Shrugging, he looked to one of the men by the door and gestured for him to come forward. Without an exchange of words, the guard placed a briefcase before Luke of which he opened and Eric opened the one he'd brought. They then passed the briefcases to one another and began to inspect the materials within.

Eric removed a gun from the case, eyeing it carefully and weighing it in his grasp. "You mentioned a software and ammunition update?"

"I did. We've redone the biometric recognition and have had success with tranquilizing ammunition with varying strengths that can subdue the majority of threats you're likely to run into."

"The majority?"

"You and I both know the world is changing."

Eric nodded, placing the gun back in place as he continued to inspect the array of items within. "The rest is still in testing?" He sipped from his glass, keeping his attention on the contents in front of him.

"Correct." Luke confirmed. He looked up from the briefcase to address me again, "I've met Eric a few times before, but he's never had a partner. Are you new?"

I shrugged, "Relatively new, yes."

"Well if he gets bumped up to a new job, I hope I'll still see you from time to time. No offence to Eric of course."

Beside me I heard him scoff, "None taken."

"So, there are three versions of the serum?"

Eric shook his head, sipping from his glass again before setting it down, ice clinking as the liquid settled. "No, there's only one. You'll need one of your scientists to mix them correctly."

Luke rolled his eyes, openly expressing his annoyance. "There's no trust with you Hydra agents, huh?"

"Trust is hard to earn; a mistake in character judgement can get you killed."

The gravity of the statement didn't seem to register in Luke's mind. I honestly didn't think he knew just how telling those words were about the man he spoke so leisurely to.

"Must be tough to think that way all of the time." Luke continued in his oblivious way.

Another smile spread across Eric's face, "Well, I suppose not everyone does that. I can be a little too serious sometimes."

"You need to loosen up. Maybe next time, we can both go out and enjoy the night." He seemed to remember that he was in fact in the middle of a transaction, "So, does everything seem to check out?"

"So far, but we've heard a few whispers that you've been expanding? Some are saying suits, some say that you've gotten a hold of some vibranium?"

That seemed to sober him up a bit, "I've been flushing out some ideas, but nothing's concrete yet. Maybe we can work out another deal in the future, but that has nothing to do with tonight."

Eric drew a breath and clicked his tongue before exhaling like the next statement were something he was hesitant to bring up, "Actually, it does. You see, I'm supposed to come back with something new and none of this is really new. Understand?"

"Well, I'm sorry, but the arrangement was clear. I'm not too fond of last minute stipulations."

"And Hydra isn't fond of paying twice for the same tech."

Luke frowned, "Have your engineers look over it, you'll find that everything has been redesigned and updated."

After a moment and a long sip from his glass, Eric nodded and looked to me, "Will you go get the flash drive with the instructions?"

"Geez, you weren't joking about the trust thing." Luke laughed to himself.

"Sure." I stood, "I'll be back." I excused myself from the desk, picking up on Eric's choice of words.

The two guards by the door let me pass without issue, but the remaining six in the hallway turned their attention towards me immediately. Giving a polite nod of acknowledgement, I took long strides towards the door that would lead me away from the office, only stopping when one of the guards stepped in my path. I noticed one adjust an earpiece and knew they'd been signaled to stop me on my way out.

"Something wrong?" I decided to play dumb. Eric telling me to leave the room was not a good sign for Luke and I mustered a puzzled expression to mask my knowledge of that fact.

The guard wasn't having any part of my charade and drew his gun on me, aiming between my eyes, "Hands up."

An audible scuffle could be heard now followed by the crash and splintering of wood. If I had to guess, Eric had put someone through a table and was beyond subtly at this point. The guard in front of me didn't break eye contact with me while the other five rushed in the opposite direction to find themselves locked out of the room by the time they got to the handle.

Obliging to the demand, I slowly raised both hands. "Move." The guard motioned for me to go back to the office. Without a word I turned and made my way down the hall. One guard accessed the biometric scanner outside of the office and unlocked the door just as a gunshot sounded swiftly followed by the shattering of glass.

The doors were kicked open as the five guards poured into the room and stopped at the sight before them. Eric and Luke were at the broken floor to ceiling window with Eric gripping Luke's shirt and holding him precariously at the ledge. The two guards that had been in the room were incapacitated, one unconscious after being slammed into a table and the other suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest, opposite of the heart.

"Drop your weapon." The guard behind me pushed me forward with his demand, making sure that Eric would see the situation.

Eric remained where he was, looking to me while keeping Luke balanced at the edge of the window. "I don't need it." He tossed it so that it landed a few feet away and smirked as he leaned forward, holding Luke further off center at arm's length.

"Please – " Luke uttered before Eric loosened his grip so that he stumbled before catching him again.

"Shhh, it's not about you right now." Eric chided, still looking between me and the guard with the gun aimed at the back of my head.

"You think this is a game?" The guard behind me was alarmed, becoming upset with Eric's flippant disregard of the situation's gravity. "Pull him back or you'll be out of a partner."

"Pull that trigger and you'll be out of a job." He mocked.

I held my breath as my eyes widened, he wasn't showing any sign of backing down. My heart pounded away at the thought of my final moments being spent here, wasted over a spat involving upgraded weapons. "Eric." I was lost, I'd trusted him and he wasn't even worried.

"It's alright, Dawn." He didn't break eye contact for a long moment, urging for me to calm down despite my current predicament, "He's all talk."

"You've got until the count of three!" The guard stated firmly, pressing the gun to my head for emphasis.

I stilled once more, breath catching as I considered my options for the remaining seconds I had left. Eric's eyebrows rose expectantly, but he continued to keep his gaze trained on me instead of further antagonizing the guard behind me.

"One!"

It was then that it occurred to me, he taunted the guard for a reason. He wanted the guard to become angry and careless. Now it was my turn to act from where I stood. I could feel the gun pressed against my head so I knew exactly where the guard was, but more importantly, the exact area I needed to avoid if this were going to work.

"Two!"

I exhaled, allowing my shoulders to relax as I did so to seemingly come to terms with my inevitable end. As soon as my hands were closer to my body and level with my head, I spun offline quickly, grabbing the gun and guiding it upwards as I did so.

As the shot rang out I wrenched the firearm backwards against his fingers before he could regain his composure. To my surprise, he released the weapon, opting to bring the same arm down with an elbow narrowly missing my head. He followed swiftly with a kick aimed between my ribs which I'd managed to catch at the expense of my newly obtained weapon falling to the floor.

Although I stemmed the brunt of the blow, it did send my spine into the doorframe and pin me there. It was then that I felt the panic creep up again as I considered my options, glancing quickly from his foot to him. Adjusting my grip, I held his ankle firmly in place despite my aching diaphragm. The joint was too close for me to attack effectively, but in pinning me where I was he'd left himself open for attack as well. I tried desperately not to listen as I brought down my own elbow on his knee with as much strength as I could muster in my position, earning a pained yelp and my freedom from the doorframe.

"Stand down!" Luke cut in before the remaining guards could come to a conclusion on how to approach the situation. Two already had their sights trained on me and the remaining were focused on Eric. After a small pause and glance between themselves, they slowly lowered their weapons, keeping them at the ready by their sides.

"Good call." Eric took a step back and pulled Luke into a stable position in front of himself to act as a shield in case a guard decided to fire anyway. "Dawn, that was perfect."

I nodded, though my ears were ringing and aching from the gunshot. From the floor I could hear the guard curse us both as he cradled his knee, but I refused to look directly at him. He'd attacked us and I'd defended myself, though knowing he was only doing his job as well made it hard not to imagine myself in his shoes.

"Here, I want you to walk with him." Eric gestured for me to join him, waiting until we were shoulder to shoulder before stepping out from behind Luke so I could take his place.

Acting before I noticed something was amiss, Eric shoved Luke's larger frame into me hard enough to knock us both to the floor. Before Luke's body completely blocked my line of sight, I saw a flash of light from the spot of the floor I'd just left not more than ten seconds ago and then we were both met with the hard surface of the office floor. Luke swore at the top of his lungs, but if it were fear or surprise, I wasn't sure.

Eric was already in motion, withdrawing the knife he always kept hidden whenever he was away from the base which had been tucked behind the cell phone tonight. It was his favorite, undetectable by any conventional scan and incredibly sharp having been made from a dense combination of material for weight, coated in polycarbonate, and tipped with obsidian for a lethal edge. He dove, rolling back towards the desk and pausing just long enough to release his knife in the direction of the guard that had fired. The knife hit its mark with unwavering accuracy, making it clear that he was no longer going to spare lives.

I couldn't help sharing the shocked expression with the others in the room as we looked to the guard who'd lead me into the room. Eric's knife had embedded itself between his ribs at a slight angle, puncturing the lung or esophagus and causing the man to cough up blood as he tried to breathe. The adrenaline that had been coursing through his body only served to speed up the process as his heart pumped frantically, spilling more blood and soaking through his jacket in a matter of seconds.

From behind the desk, Eric emerged and fired off two shots with a gun Luke must have kept tucked away for protection before ducking back behind the desk as the remaining three guards fired fractions of a second too late. The two guards that had been on the unfortunate end of Eric's sights dropped, gone before they hit the floor. Beside me, Luke fished around in his pockets until he retrieved what looked to be his cell phone, punching in a short numerical code before the screen flashed with a red bar across the top. It was then that I noticed the crimson smudges his fingers left behind.

"Come on out, I deactivated the gun. No unauthorized users." Luke managed once the shock was gone. Slowly he tried to pick himself up, exposing to me the new wound under his shoulder blade. Strangely, he was pressing his palm just under the collarbone of that side and still coating his hand in blood. I finally looked down at myself and noticed the crimson stain across my torso. The bullet that hit Luke must have chipped a bone in him and come to rest in my side. It was that which had set Eric off.

"Stay where you are or I'll put you down next, Adams." Eric finally spoke from his spot behind the desk, his voice even and calm. "Dawn?" He called after a moment.

"I'm alright" I confirmed, though with three armed guards, I wasn't sure how long that would be true. "Eric –" I paused, unsure of how to warn him about the guards slowly making their way towards the closest side of the desk where his voice was emanating from.

"I know." He stated simply.

Like an all too real horror movie, I couldn't look away as the first guard to get too close was disarmed and slammed head first into the reinforced desk before acting as a dazed shield for Eric who left the safe spot behind the desk. The unfortunate man took two bullets to the chest from his fellow guards before being discarded by being shoved forward and into the arms of one of his coworkers.

Eric followed up quickly, engaging the guard who did not catch their fallen comrade. Without hesitation he withdrew his last knife, having stepped offline and stunning his opponent with a jab to the nerve bundles in the abdomen and bicep and made quick work of the man by tucking the blade he held under the man's arm before quickly drawing it upwards and severing the muscles of the axilla.

Distracted by the pain and no doubt unable to move freely, Eric took advantage of the man's state and clasped his hand over his victim's, guided it towards the guard remaining in front of them, and pulled the trigger. It was only in that last moment that I got a good look at Eric's face, eyes void of any sympathy and instead fueled by anger. Despite the hardened expression, his pupils were dilated slightly as if he were deeply focused on the task at hand, in his own space until he was finished. Pleas uttered from Luke and I, asking not to see anymore fell on deaf ears as Eric forced them both to turn by taking the man's balance as he ripped the gun away. In a flash, the last guard's life was extinguished as the obsidian blade was drawn against his throat in his fall.

He stayed in his spot for a moment, finally moving when he made a quick pass with the knife over his clothes before storing it away. Without a word he absentmindedly covered his bicep and examined the fresh blood that stained his hand before his eyes swept the room once more and came to rest on us. He must not have felt himself get clipped by a stray bullet, but he dismissed it almost as soon as it registered to him. "Can you stand?"

Quietly I nodded, unable to come up with words while my brain worked to process everything. He reached for me and I took his hand, allowing myself to be pulled to my feet. The shock of it all seemed to numb the pain I'd glimpsed earlier, but I knew to put pressure on my side. He didn't miss a beat, leaning down to grab Luke and pull him to his feet as soon as I was stable on my own.

"Lead the way." He stated, gripping Luke roughly by his injured shoulder and forcing him to walk past his fallen guards. "Let's see what you've been working on."

I drew a deep breath as my eyes flew open. It was dark with the only source of light coming from the city outside. Slowly, I stretched my arm out in search of Bruce, but I was met with nothing. Rolling fully to my side, I found him sitting on the edge of the bed.

He turned when he felt the bed move, "Rachel, did I wake you up?"

I shook my head and sat up, extending my arm to prop myself up, "No, I was dreaming." The recollection of how easily Eric could switch demeanors at the drop of a hat and how dangerous he really could be was unsettling, but for now I decided not to think too much on it, "What's wrong?"

The corners of his lips turned upwards slightly and he too shook his head, "The same thing, really."

"What was it about?"

"It was uh…nice at first." He began, "We'd had a while to just breathe and relax. It's just that, it didn't last long."

I moved so that I was kneeling behind him, gently wrapping my arms around him and listening with my head on his shoulder.

With a sigh he tilted his head slightly so that it came to rest next to mine as he continued, "I just need a good rest after this is over. Nothing Avengers related, just something at least close to normal, just for a little bit."

"What would you want to do?"

He thought for a moment, "Go somewhere where no one will know who we are, just relax and see what there is to see."

I pulled away a little to get a better look at his face, "We?"

After a short pause he nodded, "I would want you there, only if you wanted to be of course."

A small smile turned the corners of my lips and I leaned in to give him a soft kiss, "Only if I get to take new pictures."

He matched my smile for a moment before looking at me again, "What was your dream about?"

I frowned as everything replayed in my mind, "I remembered something actually. A lot, really. Does the name Luke Adams mean anything to you?"

AN: So it's been forever and I'm really sorry about that. I've had pieces of the last two chapters written out for a while, but I just never got around to finishing them up. I'm sorry about the uneven chapters, but this one was super long and I couldn't think of a spot to split it up. Anyway, thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed it so far.