Everyone watched as Jason bit into the slice of pizza. His eyes widened dramatically. "That... is the best thing I have ever tasted," he said, grabbing another slice.
"I'm still in shock you've never had a New York pizza before," Clint stated, confusion still on his face. "Well, he's tried it now, and agrees, like any normal person would," Tony said pointedly, looking at Natasha, who reacted in no way, "that it is a delicacy, and is amazing," he continued, helping himself to another slice.
They were all sitting on the sofas in the lounge area; the fire was lit, and everyone was relaxed. Well, everyone except for the agents stationed at every exit, not taking their eyes off of the two boys. Steve knew it was a necessary precaution, but he still didn't like it. It made sure everyone was still on edge, if only a little bit.
"How about we watch a movie?" Clint asked the room. Everyone agreed, so Clint grabbed the remote and switched on the TV.
After a few minutes of debate, they decided on Harry Potter, which Jason had also never seen. In fairness, Steve hadn't known much about the franchise until a few months ago, when Tony had forced him into watching it, and he had enjoyed it. Although, he had a good excuse for not knowing about it; he was in ice for 70 years. Jason was a teenager; his whole generation was crazy about the franchise. Plus, it was kind of hard to not know about it. It was literally everywhere.
So, it was surprising that he hadn't seen it. He said he'd heard vaguely about it, but never actually got into it. That would not sit with Tony or Clint, who, after questioning him vigorously about his past times and how he must be doing something really important or have no life if he hadn't seen Harry Potter, switched on to the first one so he would understand everything that was going on.
Just as they were about to press play, the lift doors made their 'ping' sound. Everyone turned to see Bruce walk into the room. He had been away working on an experiment with S.H.E.I.L.D and must have only gotten back.
Percy and Jason squinted as he walked towards him, weariness showing on their faces.
"Hey there, Bruce, you just back?" Clint asked as he came over to them. "Yeah, finished up about an hour ago. Knew you all would be here so thought I would join you," he replied sitting down beside Steve. It was at this moment he noticed Jason and Percy present in the room.
He tilted his head in question. "Who are you two?" he asked. Neither of the boys responded, just kept looking at him. Steve jumped in. "This is Percy," he said pointing at Percy, "and Jason," he continued, turning to Jason.
A knowing look appeared on Bruce's face. "Oh yes, Fury mentioned you both. I'm Bruce, nice to meet you," he said, reaching his hand out to them. After only a slight hesitation, Percy reached out to shake it, followed by Jason.
"Quite a firm grip you've got there," Bruce commented. "Thanks," was all Jason said, Percy not saying anything.
"Bruce is a world-renowned physicist, best known for his work on nuclear physics and gamma radiation. He is also an Avenger," Steve explained. Bruce nodded to them, going a little red.
The two boys raised an eyebrow at that description. "Awesome," Jason said. "You must be one of the only smart people around here," said Percy. "Excuse you but I'm pretty smart myself," Tony interjected.
"Really? You hadn't mentioned that before," Clint said sarcastically. They all laughed at that, apart from Tony who just huffed and went to get another drink.
"So is that what you do for the Avengers? You're the scientist? The 'smart one'?" Percy asked curiously after the laughter had subsided.
Bruce frowned at that, and the others went quiet. "Not exactly," he started. "What do you mean?" Jason asked.
"Well, I can sort of turn into a big, angry, green beast called The Hulk," he stated. Percy and Jason blinked. "You can what now?" Percy asked, dumbfounded.
Bruce laughed a little awkwardly. "It's kind of a long story, but basically, a few years ago, I was working on an experiment with some gamma radiation. It didn't go exactly as planned. Long story short, I'm now half human, half raging beast. That's how I help out with the Avengers. I'm both brains and muscle," he explained, reaching for a slice of pizza after he was done.
The two boys stared at him. "Huh," Percy said. "That's... actually really cool. An epic superpower."
Bruce stopped what he was doing and looked at him. "You think?"
"Definitely," Jason said honestly. "You're awesome, man." This took Bruce completely by surprise, but what made Steve really happy was the smile that appeared on his face.
They all knew how Bruce was not fond of his 'other half', and often liked to keep away from it as best he could, worried of how others would treat him, or if they would think of him differently. But the fact that two teenagers honestly thought of him not as a scary monster, but as a cool superhero? Steve knew how much that meant to him.
"Are we gonna watch this movie or not?" Tony asked in exasperation. "What are yous watching?" Bruce asked. "Well, nothing right now since you all insist on talking," Tony muttered.
"Okay, okay, stick Harry Potter on," Steve said, smiling. Bruce's face brightened. "Oh yes, I love Harry Potter," he said, getting comfortable.
"Jason's never seen it," Clint said, passing out bowls of popcorn. Bruce's eyes widened and he abruptly turned to Jason. "You've what?!" he exclaimed.
Jason through his hands up in exasperation and flopped back on the sofa. "What is so great about this movie that everyone is so shocked I've never seen it?"
Bruce stared at him. "Please tell me you've at least read the books." Jason looked at him blankly. "There are books?"
Bruce looked at him in further bewilderment. "How could you not know- okay that's it put this movie on now. This child has not lived yet."
Everyone apart from Jason laughed, who was still looking just as confused, as Clint finally pressed play and the movie began.
...
"So, he's a little British boy with a magic stick, and a magic rock," Jason summarised. Percy face palmed. "Dude, no. Well, yes, but you missed the entire point of the story. Harry discovers he's a wizard by realizing he has magic, then goes to a school for witches and wizards so he can learn how to use his magic and find the Philosopher's stone so he can defeat Voldemort."
Jason furrowed his eyebrows. "So, it's about lots of little British boys who have magic sticks and magic rocks." Percy groaned and fell back on the sofa. "You exhaust me, bro."
"Okay, I think it's time we all went to bed. It's 1.30am," Steve said, laughing a little at the boys banter. It was good to see them relaxed and having fun, but Steve was still worried. They kept making comments, like the mention of a summer camp that's teaching children to fight? And that they had both been a part of this for several years?
It seriously worried Steve. He was going to make sure that they found out what was really going on.
Jason stood up to stretch, yawning. "That sounds like a good idea." Steve looked over and saw the agents were immediately at attention at Jason's movement, raising their guns slightly. Steve frowned and waved them away as the rest of them stood up as well.
The agents lowered their guns but did not relax.
They all headed up to their bedrooms, Nat and Steve walking the two boys theirs.
"If you need anything, just say to Jarvis and he'll let us know," Nat said as they arrived at Percy and Jason's rooms. Jason frowned. "Jarvis?"
"Hello Jason, it is nice to meet you," a voice said in response. The two jumped and looked around but found no source of the voice. "Who was that?" Percy asked, still looking around for whoever spoke.
Steve chuckled. "That was Jarvis. He's an AI system Tony has installed." Jason frowned. "AI?"
"Artificial Intelligence," Natasha explained. "He's programmed throughout the building, so if you need anything, just ask him."
They didn't look convinced, but nodded nonetheless. "You've never heard of an AI before?" asked Tony, who had just been walking past and heard their conversation. "I've never even had a phone before," Jason said, casually.
Tony stopped in his tracks and looked at him for a long moment, then shook his head and headed to his room. "It's too late to deal with this right now," he said from down the hallway.
Steve shook his with a smile on his face. "Okay, we'll see you both tomorrow," he said. "Night," said Percy, his door closing. Jason gave them a nod, his door closing as well.
…...
"You will never be free of me, Perseus," a voice said.
Percy couldn't see anything around him. It was complete darkness. And all he could feel was heat. The most intense heat he had ever felt since...
He tried to call out, but his voice wouldn't work. Suddenly, flames burst through the darkness, and he was back there. The place he fought so desperately to leave behind. Tartarus.
He couldn't breathe, the toxic air engulfing his lungs. He fell to the ground, his hands cutting from the glass shards of sand. Then, as quickly as it came, it vanished.
The darkness surrounded him once more, but he could hear, and feel, something this time. Running water.
He started to hyperventilate. No, no, not again! He could feel the water rising, quickly reaching his neck, until he was fully submerged.
He tried to calm himself and suck a breath in, but water only filled his lungs. I can't breathe!
As he faded into darkness, all he could hear was her laughing. A laugh he thought he would never have to hear again.
...
His eyes sprang open as a scream escaped him. He looked around him, taking in deep, shaky breathes. He didn't recognise his surroundings, but it all came back to him quickly enough. The Avengers had kidnapped him and Jason, and he was in his room. Or, really his cell. No matter how much the Avengers tried to deny it, they were prisoners.
He slowed his breathing, and tried to take in a deep breath, but was interrupted by a sudden fit of coughing. It lasted for a good few seconds. He reached over to the glass of water sitting on his bedside table to sooth his now raw throat.
Weird. He didn't feel sick or anything, but that cough definitely took it out of him. It still didn't feel like it had completely gone, but the water seemed to take care of it mostly.
He checked the time on the clock also sitting on his bedside table, and saw it was almost 4.30am. He knew he wouldn't get back to sleep, and this wasn't far off when he usually got up anyway, so he decided to start his day. He turned on the lights then walked into the bathroom.
He startled when he looked in the mirror. His complexion was rather pale. Confused, he splashed some water on his face to see if it would help. As he put his hands under the tap, he felt a sudden stinging sensation on his hands. Hissing, he peered down at them. there looked to be faint red lines on his hands, almost gone thanks to the water. But they looked like they had been...No. That was just a dream.
He splashed the water on his face, and it did for the most part help bring a bit of colour back into his face, rejuvenating him. The whole 'healing water' thing really came in handy. Thanks dad.
After this, he walked back out into his room and up to the locked door.
"Ugh, Jarvis?" he asked the room, already feeling weird about this. "Yes, Mr Jackson. How may I assist you?" the room replied. "Ugh, can you let me out?" he asked a little more confidently after the rooms reply.
"I apologise, Mr Jackson, but I'm afraid I cannot permit you to be out of your room without supervision, and no one else is awake yet."
Percy sighed. He figured as much. Guess he could just workout in here until somebody else woke up. "Could you let me know when someone's up?" he asked, hopefully.
"Of course," the voice replied before going silent.
"Thanks," said Percy, feeling slightly awkward thanking something he couldn't see.
He headed into the middle of the room. It was quite spacious, so plenty of room to work with.
He dropped down to the floor and began doing push ups. Guess I'm gonna be here a while.
...
Steve got up slightly later than his usual hour. Normally he would get up around 5am, however after last night he was quite tired, and so got up shortly after 6am.
He headed down to the training hall, but was stopped by a voice addressing him.
"Mr Rodgers. I was asked to inform you that Mr Jackson is awake. May he be released into your custody?" Jarvis asked.
Steve frowned. Don't teenagers sleep in really late? "How long has he been awake?" he asked, curiously.
"Almost 2 hours, sir," was his reply. Steve's eyes widened in surprise. 2 hours? "Yes, that's fine, Jarvis. I'll watch him."
There was a silence, then he heard a door sliding open down the hallway he had come from. A few moments later, Percy came into view and they got into the lift together.
After a pause, Steve asked, "How come you were up so early?" Percy didn't look at him when he responded. "That's just the time I usually get up at. Can get more things done in the day that way."
Steve nodded. He understood that. "I always thought kids your age liked to sleep in as late as possible," he said, huffing a laugh.
Percy shrugged. "Probably, but I like working out and training early in the morning. It's more relaxing before everyone else gets up," he said, stepping out as the doors opened, Steve following behind.
"Does everyone train? And this early? At your summer camp, I mean," Steve asked. This might be a good chance to try and figure out more about this camp that they had mentioned.
"Yeah, they have to. Won't be ready prepared otherwise. It's expected. I've only made it this long because I train every day," Percy said this last part more to himself, probably not meant for Steve to hear, but he did. "You've only made it this long? What, you in constant danger or something?" he asked, trying to sound light-hearted.
Percy glanced at him. "Something like that," he said, stopping outside the training hall. That was not the response Steve was anticipating. And what did he mean by 'it's expected'? Did they get in trouble if they didn't do constant, brutal workouts, at all hours of the day?
Steve shook his head. He didn't like this at all. Fury might have been right when he said these kids might be a part of some 'secret child soldier organisation.' And they talked about it so casually! Like this was the normal life of a kid.
He would relay this back to the others later, but for now, he had an idea.
"Hey, how do you feel about trying out the pool? You seemed excited about it earlier," Steve suggested. He knew he said the right thing because Percy's face lit up, although he pretended to act only mildly interested.
"Yeah, sure, why not," he said, though he immediately started speed walking to the changing rooms. Steve hurried after him, chuckling softly.
"The entrance to the pool is right through there," he said," Steve said, gesturing to the end of the changing rooms. "And there's some extra swimming gear in that cabinet there. Take your pick. I'll be in the gym right beside, and there's a window so I can keep an eye on you or if you need anything."
Percy nodded his thanks and Steve left to head into the gym next door. A thought occurred to him that maybe he shouldn't have left Percy alone, but it quickly vanished when he saw not a minute later jumping into the pool.
Steve smiled and watched for a few moments as Percy started doing laps before beginning his own exercises.
...
Steve was so focused on his punching bag he didn't even notice the door opening. It was only when he sensed someone behind him that he turned with a strike aimed at the intruders neck. The person ducked, which was lucky, as it was Jason.
"Sorry," said Steve, "I didn't realise that was you. What are you doing here?"
"Jarvis said you and Percy were down, so the agents said it was okay I came down too, seeing as you would be here. They wouldn't let me out of their sight on the way down, though," he said, glaring at the agents still standing by the door.
Steve frowned. "It's okay, guys, I'll take it from here," he called over to them. They glanced at each other. "We'll be outside if anything happens," one said, before they both headed out the door.
Steve sighed. "Sorry about them, they're a little... antsy, around the two of you," Steve explained. Jason shrugged. "Fair enough. We did kind of destroy part of your flying spaceship, after all," Jason admitted.
Steve huffed a laugh. "Yeah, they may charge you for that, you know. How did you do it though?" he asked. Jason smirked. "Superpowers, man," he replied mysteriously, then asked, "Mind if I join you?" Steve stepped back from the bag, gesturing to it. "Be my guest."
Jason walked over and started wrapping his hands. Steve stood behind the bag to hold it as Jason took a stance, then began punching it.
Jason was strong. Of course, Steve knew that from their sparring session, but it was still impressive. He knew how to hit and fight, too, landing every blow exactly where he wanted. He must have been trained for years.
"So," Steve asked, grunting slightly at the force of the boys punches, "how long have you been in training for?" He tried to sound casual, but wasn't sure if it was working all that well.
"All my life, more so since I started going to camp," Jason said, still focused on the bag. Steve frowned. "From you were a child?"
"Pretty much," he said, still not looking at him.
So, if we're right, and they were apart of some organisation, that meant they recruited young kids!
He tried to get more information. "That's some dedication. What made you want to start so young?" Steve asked. "Didn't really want to, kind of had to," Jason muttered, frowning.
Steve's eyes widened slightly. So they were forced into something! And forced to fight!
"I'm surprised your parents would be happy with you doing something like that," he said. Since they didn't know who exactly Jason was, they had no information on his life or family history. So maybe a mention of them would stir something in the kid. Well, it did something.
Jason's hand slipped slightly, causing him to grunt at the discomfort caused by hitting the bag wrong, though he continued on acting as if nothing happened. Although Steve felt that his punches were definitely harder now.
"Mum's dead," he deadpanned. Steve jolted a little at that comment. "What about your dad?" He saw Jason's gaze harden. "Not around," he stated.
Well, now everything he said made more sense. When kids were left by their parents, willingly or not, there was a sense of hurt and abandonment left in the child, possibly leading to rebellion, or simply doing whatever you can to survive; in Jason's case, joining a child-soldier organisation.
But then again, Jason said he didn't want to join, which could mean he was kidnapped and forced to. Steve still wasn't getting the full story.
"I'm sorry," he said, "that must be rough." Jason stopped and looked at him for a moment before looking away and saying, "Yeah, it is."
After a moments silence, Jason turned back to the punching bag and said, "I mean it's not like I never met my dad. I saw him last summer, in fact."
That surprised Steve a little. "Does he know you're apart of this... summer camp?" he asked, sceptically. Jason scoffed. "He basically runs it," he said lowly. "Hey, I'm getting hungry. Think we could get some food?" he said suddenly, stepping over to the bench beside them, obviously changing the subject before Steve could even comprehend what he had said.
"Or are you gonna deprive us of that as well as our freedom," he muttered, so low Steve almost didn't catch it. "Hey, no we're not-"
"That's Percy getting out now," said Jason, cutting him off. They both looked over through the window to see Percy stepping out of the pool and heading to the changing rooms. Strangely he didn't look that wet, though Steve guessed that was probably because he couldn't see him that well from the other room.
When he looked back at Jason, he saw he was unwrapping his hands and fixing the bag after it's beating. Steve looked at him for a moment before doing the same, cleaning the one he ripped through earlier. He had a bad habit of doing that.
"Right, when Percy comes in here, we can head up to get breakfast and-"
"Did someone say breakfast? I'm starving," said Percy, who had just entered the room. How on earth had he gotten ready so fast? "Yeah, we were just about to head up. Anything in particular you guys want?" Steve asked as they headed to the door.
Jason and Percy looked at each other, giving a knowing look. "Have you ever tried," Percy began, a mischievous grin on his face, "blue waffles?"
Steve immediately felt scared.
...
Tony woke up feeling tired. He had gone to bed late last night and needed to get up early to continue work on some projects he's been working on. So, in a way, he expected the tiredness.
What he did not expect was to find a teenage boy in his kitchen cooking something that involved a lot of blue.
When he walked into the main lounge room of the tower, he saw Steve sitting on the sofa flicking through the TV, Clint and Jason engaged in conversation beside him – it looked like Clint was showing Jason some video game on a computer or something – and Bruce was calmly reading. Oh, and of course the traces of smoke coming from the kitchen. Wait smoke?!
He dashed towards the doorway and looked through, only to find Percy with a bunch of waffle iron's out pouring a bizarre blue mixture into them. Percy looked up at him with a smile and a "Morning," before focusing back on the mixture.
Tony couldn't even comprehend what he was seeing. He blinked a few times. Maybe I'm still asleep, and there isn't really a child in my kitchen making some probably poisoned concoction.
Yet, when he focused his attention back on the scene, it was still the same. Tony could not deal with this at this time of the morning. "Nope," he said, before walking out and joining the others on the sofa.
About 5 minutes later, Percy came out balancing multiple plates on his head, arms and hands. "If everyone would join me at the table," he said in a fake posh accent.
Jason got up immediately, with the others following suit. They all sat down, and Percy set down the plates in the most dramatic way possible.
He tossed some up in the air, before sliding the others across the table, where they landed perfectly in front of each person. The ones he threw up in the air he then caught before placing them down on each side of him, in front each recipient. "Breakfast, is served," he said with a dramatic bow.
"Show off," Jason muttered, but was quick to dive into his waffles. The others peered at theirs sceptically.
"What, you guys not hungry?" Percy asked. "No, it's not that, it's just-" Steve began.
"They're not poisoned are they?" Tony asked bluntly. He was not risking getting killed just because the kid cooked a... pretty amazing looking breakfast, if he was honest. Still, death by blue waffles was not the heroic ending he had in mind.
Steve did not agree with his forwardness, though, as he elbowed him in the ribs. "Ow," Tony mumbled. "I was just asking."
"You guys really don't trust me?" Percy asked innocently. Oh no. Tony knew how Steve was about getting these kids to trust them. This would definitely break him.
Sure enough, after a moment's hesitation, Steve picked up his fork and took a bite. His eyes lit up at once, and kept eating.
Pretty soon they were all delving into their breakfast, and all the plates were cleared. Well, except for one.
"Where's Natasha?" Bruce asked. "She got a call from Fury just before we all sat down. She should be out any minute," Clint said, still enjoying his food.
As if she was listening by the door, Natasha dashed in at that exact moment.
"We need to go," she said, looking at the Avengers. They all looked at her, concerned. "Why? What's wrong?" Clint asked standing up.
Suddenly, a large crash was heard outside, followed by the sound of people screaming. They all looked at Natasha for explanation.
She made eye contact with Clint, dead serious.
"We're under attack."