I'm sorry this has been delayed. There has been much going on that has not allowed much time for writing, and juggling two somewhat similar stories has been a little odd. Hopefully, neither is suffering and people will continue to read and review both (Pretty please? With Avengers on top?)
Stroll 3
Director Nick Fury and Agent Coulson had just finished their morning briefing in Fury's office when a tap sounded on the door. Fury opened the door to reveal Captain Steve Rogers patiently waiting.
"I wonder if I might have a moment of your time, Director Fury?" he asked
Fury motioned him inside, "Certainly, Captain. Come in."
Phil rose and started towards the door. "I'll head out, then."
"Actually," Steve turned to him, "I'd like to talk to you as well, if you have the time."
Phil looked at him, then at Fury. Fury shrugged.
"Sounds interesting," he commented, returning to his spot on the sofa.
Steve took one of the chairs in front of the desk. He remained silent for a few moments, searching for the words. Fury and Coulson looked at each other.
Finally, Fury cleared his throat. "Is this about my second in command?"
Captain Rogers looked up, surprise on his face. "Yes, sir. I don't know if you're aware,"
"I'm aware of everything that goes on around here, Captain Rogers," Fury interrupted.
"Of course you are, sir."
As Steve continued to search for the right words, Fury steepled his hands and leaned back in his chair, a small smile lifting the corners of his mouth.
"Are you trying to ask permission to court my daughter?"
While Coulson went into a fit of coughing, Rogers threw him a deer-in-the-headlights look for a few moments, then considered.
"I suppose I am, sir." He thought a few more moments. "Yes, sir, that's exactly what I'm doing. I know SHIELD probably has rules against fraternization, but I really don't want to feel like we're sneaking around behind your back."
Fury nodded at him. "Technically, dating within the same chain of command, which you two technically are, is strongly discouraged, though not explicitly forbidden. Practically, though, I know that is not realistic. We push men and women together, sometimes in limited spaces when we're on the helicarrier or on lock down at one of the bases under conditions that are either dull, daily routine or life and death chaos. In those circumstances, things are going to happen. Relationships can start, flourish, or end. I have no problem with those relationships, as long as they don't interfere with either party doing their jobs."
"That won't be a problem, sir. Maria and I are both deeply committed to SHIELD and it's mission," Steve assured him. "She doesn't care too much about what most people think about her, but the two of you are exceptions. Your opinions matter to her and I want you both to be okay with the two of us spending time together."
He looked to Coulson, then to Fury.
Nick rose and walked around his desk, hand outstretched to Steve, who rose to shake it.
"I appreciate you coming to me like this, Rogers. Since you're being straightforward, I'm going to be straight with you, too."
Rogers nodded at him. Fury tightened his grip and stepped close.
"Agent Hill is very important to me, both professionally and personally. She's built a lot of walls around herself emotionally and I think it's great that she's opening up to you. However, I want you to keep some things in mind. I've seen and done a lot of things over the years that still give me nightmares. Should you ever even think about hurting her, I would consider sharing some of those things with you. I also have bases in Antarctica and Siberia that always seem to be in need of new personnel for some reason. Do I make myself clear, Captain?"
"Yes, sir. Perfectly clear," Steve answered with a grin.
Phil rose and walked over to the two men and crossed his arms as he glared at Steve. "You're smiling, Captain. Do you think the Director is joking?"
"Oh, no. I have no doubt he means every word of it. I'm just glad to know that she has people in her life who care enough about her to make promises like that."
"Glad we understand each other," Fury told him.
As Steve turned to leave, the door chimed, then opened to reveal the topic of their conversation. She entered the room, looking at all three men, briefly studying each in turn.
"Why do you look like recruits caught trying to peek in the girls locker room?"
Steve grinned at her, Coulson found a spot in the floor that needed study, and Fury looked her straight in the face with an 'I-don't-know-what-you're-talking-about' look.
"I need to get to work, but I'll give you a call later," Steve told her, walking over and dropping a quick kiss on her cheek. "Hope you have a nice day, Maria."
He was gone before the shock wore off enough for her to move.
She carefully schooled her features as she turned to face the the other two men.
"I apologize, sir. I don't know what got into Captain Rogers."
"I do," Fury told her. "He just asked me for permission to court you, Agent Hill."
She opened her mouth to respond, but found the words wouldn't come. Finally, she managed to squeak out "Court me?"
Phil laughed at her obvious discomfort. "It's okay, sis. Dad gave his permission."
She sat in the chair that Steve had recently vacated and dropped her head into her hands. "I'm gonna kill him," she mumbled.
"Please don't," Fury told her, settling into another chair next to her, "I wouldn't want to have to bring you up on charges of damaging a valuable SHIELD asset."
"I just don't understand why he would do something like this," she told them.
"You seem to be saying that quite a bit where Rogers is concerned, Hill," Coulson commented.
"Yeah, I suppose I do," she admitted. "He confuses me."
"He's a product of his time, Hill. His dating experience is 70 years ago, when young ladies were usually living with their parents and a gentleman wanted their approval before taking her out."
"And he sees you as my father?" she asked, eyebrows raised.
"I think that he sees that you respect me and that I think very highly of you."
Fury's simple admission brought a lump to her throat and left her speechless once more.
"Okay," Coulson said, heading for the door. "It's time for me to get to work, too. This is getting way too weird."
Fury looked over at her. "Just one more thing. Be careful. I really don't want to see either one of you hurt. And I really don't want to have to send Captain Rogers to Siberia."
She looked confused, but just nodded, ready for this discussion to end.
He returned to the chair behind his desk, cleared his throat, and activated his data pad. "Okay. What's the newest intel you've received?"
Later that afternoon, Steve answered his phone, hoping that it was Maria. He probably should have discussed things with her before visiting Fury and he feared that she might be a little upset. He was still trying to decide if it would be better to contact her or to wait for her to initiate contact. Unfortunately, though, his phone showed that the call was from Pepper Potts. After an exchange of greetings, Pepper got to the purpose of the call.
"Tony and I are having a little get together next Saturday afternoon at the tower. Swimming, cooking out, drinks. Couple of dozen people, the Avengers team and dates. We were hoping you might be able to join us."
"As far as I know, we don't have anything planned."
"We?" Pepper jumped on the pronoun. "Is that 'we' as in SHIELD or 'we' as in you and a special someone, Steve?"
He felt himself grinning, but just replied, "Yes."
"Something in your voice tells me it's the latter."
"Very special," he agreed.
"How long has this been going on and why haven't we met her yet?" she asked.
"Probably a couple of months or so, but we're taking things slow. I'm pretty out of practice on the dating front and our work doesn't really allow for a whole lot of personal time," he told her.
"Our work?" she mused. "So she works for SHIELD, too?"
"Something like that," he admitted.
She laughed. "You're not giving me a whole lot of information, Steve."
"I'm not sure she's ready to go public with our relationship yet, Miss Potts. It's kind of complicated," he explained to her.
"I understand," she told him. "Meeting the friends and family can be pretty nerve wracking."
He grunted something that she took for agreement.
"Please let her know that she's more than welcome to join us as well, if you're both ready for that."
"Thank you, Miss Potts. I'll pass the invitation along," he assured her.
"So I'll see you next Saturday, if not before," she told him, "and if you can't make it, we'll understand."
They said their farewells and ended the call. Steve stood, considering, the thought of Maria in a bathing suit pasting a smile across his face.
Later that afternoon, he met Agent Coulson in the corridor. Phil gave him a slap on the shoulder.
"Glad to see you're still alive, Captain."
"Ummm. Glad to be alive, Agent Coulson." After a brief pause, he asked, "Is there some reason that I wouldn't be?"
"Agent Hill said something this morning about killing you," the other man informed him
Steve looked slightly sheepish. "Guess I probably should have spoken to her before I talked to Fury."
"Probably so," Coulson agreed. "But I think she'll probably forgive you. Eventually."
"How long do you think I should stay out of her way?" Rogers asked.
"Oh, a few years should get her past the worst of it."
"Years?"
"Maybe a little less. I think she likes you. Besides," Phil assured him with another slap on the shoulder, "You're a super soldier. I don't think even she can hurt you," he told him, heading down the hallway.
"Maybe not physically," Steve muttered under his breath.
That evening, Steve decided to track Maria down and gauge her mood. He didn't think it a very good indicator when he found her at the firing range. He watched her for a few minutes, admiring the intense concentration evident in every line of her svelte figure. Finally, she put her weapon down and removed her eye and ear protection. She looked over at him, acknowledging his presence before turning her attention to her target.
He walked over to stand next to her as she studied the number of kill shots.
"Nice groupings," he told her.
"Thanks."
After a few moment of silence, he laughed softly. "Usually, I hope that you're thinking about me, but I really hope you weren't just now."
She gave him a sidelong glance. "I'm going to plead the fifth on that one, Captain."
He pulled a chocolate bar out of his pocket and held it out to her. "Peace offering?"
She stood silently, eyeing the treat.
"Look, I'm sorry that I upset you this morning. I realize I probably should have spoken to you before I talked to Fury about us."
Putting a hand over his lips, she shook her head. "It's okay, Steve. I was a little pissed off at first. Actually, a lot pissed off, but Fury reminded me that your behaviors that I think of as old fashioned are a part of who you are, what make you special. Things that make you someone that I really like."
"You really like me?" he asked, grinning.
Rolling her eyes, she grinned back. "Yes, I really like you."
"Good, because I really like you, too. And I hope you'll still really like me after I tell you about what else I did today."
Her smile disappeared and she stepped back, giving him a questioning look.
"Pepper Potts called me. She and Stark are having a cook out and swimming party next Saturday afternoon and they would like for us to come."
"Us?"
"I didn't tell her your name," he hastened to assure her, "Just that I was kind of seeing someone."
She continued to stare at him.
"I told her you might not want to come. That we're taking things slowly and that you might not be ready for a public appearance."
"I don't really like parties much," she told him.
"Don't think of it as a party," he told her. "It's just some friends getting together for a little fun. She said the Avengers team would be there."
"And I really don't like Tony Stark very much," she added.
He shrugged. "I wouldn't consider him a close friend, but he has his good points. He did come through when it mattered. And Miss Potts likes him."
She nodded reluctantly. "Not sure what a nice person like her sees in him, but she does seem to love him." After looking at him for a few more moments, she moved closer and put her hands on his chest.
"This is important to you?"
"You're important to me," he corrected. "I would love to tell the whole world that we're dating, but not if you're not comfortable."
"Maybe not the whole world, yet, but I suppose we can go public with the Avengers," she agreed, sliding her arms around his neck and stretching up for a kiss.
He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her back.
"I'll take that for a start."
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