I don't own anything
A/N: sorry for the long delay. I got distracted, plus I had tons of tests this week, and I've got finals next week...it's sucky. But I hope you like this chapter I'm always open to suggestions. R&R please :)
Max liked to sleep in, that was the one thing he looked forward to in a day. He loved sleep. So naturally when someone shoved him off his bed onto the cold floor at five o' clock in the morning, he wasn't to happy.
"What the hell!" he yelled out into the dark room.
A bright light came and he could see Barton standing above him, "Time for training." he said, "Be ready in five minutes." Five minutes! What was wrong with these people! Max grumbled, let out a string of curses before staggering up.
"This is insanity." he snapped at Adam, who was wide awake, as he walked into the kitchen. He sat at the table reading a paper that read SHIELD Times.
"They let you sleep in. Most of the time they get agents up at four." Max groaned again letting his head hit the table. "Come on Max, you just need to get used to it. It's honestly not that bad." Max gave him a look out of the corner of his eye
"What do you know anyway? Have you worked for these crazy ass ninjas that have no grasp on the idea of a good nights rest?" Max didn't do mornings. He was snappy and rude, more than normal.
Adam nodded, "Actually yes, they saved my life and I owe them debt. Plus I really admire Fury, how he can keep hold of an entire organization and still keep his head."
"What!?" They both heard a shrill scream, Max lifted his head slowly to see who was making the table shake. Cassie was the first to be pushed in, half asleep, but fully angry. Next was Annie, whose hair was a frizzy mess around her head. It was now a midnight black and cut short to the nape of her neck. And last was Alanna who just yawned and didn't say anything else.
"Morning." Annie said with a tired smile.
Max grunted and Adam smiled, "Morning Annie."
Cassie stumbled to a seat at the table, "This is stupid," she groaned, "What are were even doing up this early?"
"Training." Adam responded putting down the paper, "We're training with Clint...Barton." He said after people sent him strange looks. Alanna sat quietly next to Max, and messed with a strand of her hair.
"When is this 'training'?" Max asked, wincing at the memory of yesterdays 'training'.
"Now." Barton replied from the door way "Come on, we start in the powers room."
Alanna stood up first, Max followed her. Why was she always so quiet? He asked himself, but he didn't get an answer.
OOOOooooOOOO
"You will complete your workout each day that range from physical, mental, and your mutant ability," Barton explained. "Since all of you are underage you will also be attending school~"
Cassie groaned. "School? B-but I don't like school."
Max rolled his eyes.
"Deal with it." Barton snapped "You will work with Mr. Stark and Dr. Banner for your education and Agent Romanoff and myself for physical. Thor will observe your lunch."
Alanna raised her hand, "But you forgot our mutant power." she said, her voice was short and tight. Nothing more than what needed to be said.
"Adam will work with each of you on that matter." Barton said.
Cassie snorted, "Oh great. Another idea for Mr. Perfect. Give him another merit badge why don't you." Adam looked down, Annie frowned and so did Alanna. Max stayed perfectly emotionless.
"Regardless. You will each report here at no later than six o' clock in the morning." Barton said, "Adam you can start, good luck. Oh and lunch is at noon, Tasha brought in some Chinese."
Everyone looked at Adam who kicked the ground with one foot, "We're going to work off into pairs," he said. "Just sparing, don't intentionally injure another teammate. Um...Max you're with Alanna, Annie...why don't you go to the punching bag and take out some anger. Cassie, you're with me." Max smirked to himself, this was going to be to easy.
Alanna faced him, "Ready?" she asked him. Max nodded and pulled the shadows into a whip ready to fight Alanna, but she was nowhere to be seen. Max looked frantically around for the girl.
BAM! He took a sharp hit to the jaw. Max stumbled backward in shock. Alanna stood in front of him with her hand balled into a fist, "Sorry?" she said.
"How did you~" Max started to ask, but was interrupted by a loud clap of thunder. Max jerked his head to where Cassie was covered with sparks of lighting, she had a odd smile on her face. Adam's eyes were wide, his face covered in soot and his hair standing up on end.
"Well they do say love has sparks." Max said standing up, "but I think that's going a little to far, don't you think?" Annie giggled from where she was punching a bag, well Max felt really sorry for the bag.
Cassie glared at him, "Do me a favor and shut your trap!"
"Trap?" Max mocked
"Trap!" Cassie shouted walking over to him. The air crackled like lightning, literally, and Cassie's fire-red hair was just that, fire. "Listen here bud. You are this close to having yourself shock full of lighting. So if you want to remain lightning free you'll keep your mouth shut, clear?"
"Crystal." Max drawled.
"That's it!" Cassie almost jumped on him, but Alanna grabbed her arm.
"Come on Cassie, it's not worth it." Cassie was still glaring at him burning holes in his skull.
"Don't fight," they heard Annie say. "I can't stand fighting."
Adam wasn't supposed to be in the secret files. He wasn't allowed, but he couldn't help himself. There was something about each of his new teammates that...well they sparked something. Pulling out the file it read
'Anneliese Gover'
Born: April 19, 1998
SHIELD Interaction: Caught attention when parents were~
"Adam!" He heard someone shout from down the hall, "Come on or you'll miss lunch." Adam fumbled with the files, but tucked them under his jacket.
"I-I'll be right there!" he shouted back, Adam wondered what was in those files. He wondered what was on his own file. Adam peeked around the corner before walking down the empty corridor. Something hard hit his shoulder.
"OW!" Someone shouted, as if a veil was pulled away Alanna sat on the floor rubbing her head.
"Sorry Alanna." Adam said offering her a hand, "Didn't see you." Alanna stared at his hand, but didn't take it and stood up on her own.
"I wouldn't expect you to. It's not like you've got super vision, sorry for running into you." Adam looked at her, causing Alanna to squirm under his steel gray eyes.
"You don't have to apologize." he said to her.
"Sorry!" she said very rushed.
Alanna blushed bright red and ducked her head when Adam said. "Why do you keep apologizing?" Alanna stuttered inaudible words and syllables.
"I...um. I-I-I...Lunch! I've got to go to lunch. B-bye Adam." Alanna walked down the hall, Adam stared after her. He'd definitely had to read her file.
Alanna cursed herself walking down the hall, what was wrong with her? She stuttered just because it was a cute boy, she shouldn't apologize so much! She should be more outgoing, She shouldn't be a waste of space! She shouldn't be~ by now Alanna was close to tears, she beat herself up like that most of the time.
"Stupid, stupid stupid." she said to herself.
"I couldn't agree more." said a dead voice that she recognized instantly. Max was walking next to her and she was so wrapped up in her own little world she hadn't even heard him.
Alanna jumped slightly and turned away from him, "So, Miss Invisaper, why are you here? Why did SHIELD call you in?" Max interrogated her.
"I-I don't know." Alanna said, she cursed some more. Can't she get through one day without stuttering? Apparently not.
"Well, I think you do. So until you tell me why SHIELD would call in a quiet useless kid like you I'm not leaving."
The words stung, but she didn't let him see it. If it was her mother she would have only gotten yelled at more and more. "I really don't know." she said quietly, "My mom works for SHIELD though. Maybe they found out and needed a last resort."
Max looked at her through his simple green eyes, "I don't believe you."
Alanna sighed, "Look, I know you don't have anything better to do, but can you just leave me alone?" She walked down the hallway, hoping that Max wouldn't follow her.
Her hopes were crushed when he asked again, "If you want to be alone so much why are you on this team?"
Alanna didn't have an answer to that.
Annie bounced back and forth on the balls of her feet as Adam was explaining how she could use her power to fight, "But I think over all you should learn how to use knives or a staff." He said after what seemed like a longer speech than a politician did.
Adam when into another long explanation about the usage knives, but Annie cut him off, "Adam, why am I learning to fight? Because, I don't...I don't think I could ever do that to someone."
Adam looked at her, stopping mid-speech, "Annie," he said slowly, "you have to. You have to fight, if you're stuck in a trap and your teammate is hurt you have to fight to protect them."
Annie fiddled with her hands, "Yeah, but they're still human right? There's good in everyone, it's just harder to see in some people than others." Adam stared at her more, disbelief etched on his face.
"Annie, look at me." her eyes were trained on the cold ground, "Annie." he said in a stern voice, "When you're in SHIELD, the people that protect you; they're your team. If one person can't pull that trigger or throw that knife, the entire team can end up dead Annie."
Annie flinched, "How do you know this?" she asked quietly, looking up at him with big, scared eyes.
Adam sighed "In San Frans~ You know what forget it, it's not important what happened, but Annie just learn to use one weapon that's all I'm asking for. That's all SHIELD is asking for."
"Okay," she said softly, "a staff."
The sun was setting slowly in the sky and Cassie was leaning against the railing of the ship, everyone else was busy with work. She licked her lips, what could happen here? She couldn't get into another place like last time. She couldn't let these people get close to her, they would only betray her.
But that girl, Annie with the pink hair, she was so much like...so similar it hurt. Cassie shut her eyes, trying to wipe the memories clear out of her mind. She was hard, she was a criminal...she was a killer. She just needed to get through this, only five years. Five years of free food, five years of a warm bed, and five years of no jail.
Cassie sighed and turned around so that her back was to the sun, she met the bored face of Max who looked at her strangely. "What you looking at?" she snapped at him.
Max shrugged and looked her straight in the eye, "A hormonally disturbed teenager." Cassie cocked one eyebrow, this kid had lip. She looked in his eyes, they were dead. No emotion, no feeling, no depression, no pain, just...nothing. It was almost scary, but nothing scared Cassandra LeBranch. Well almost nothing, but nobody knew about that almost.
"You know that chick, Ala what's her name? I think she's hiding something, but it isn't something big, she's got a home. She's got a mom. I hate her. She's got everything that I should have had." Max gripped onto the bars, his knuckles turning white.
"And you're telling me because...?" Cassie asked him.
Max turned to her "Because you know. You've been through these things, I can tell. It's the way you hold yourself, you've been kicked, broken, and have fallen to pieces." He looked back to the ocean and now set sun.
"Been to hell and back huh?" she asked. Max only nodded in response. "But you shouldn't hate her. She didn't do anything wrong." Max still didn't say anything, he didn't even move.
"So," Annie asked, "How old are you guys?" Max looked up from where he was messing with his leather jacket, Adam looked up from his poker game with Cassie, and Alanna looked up from her seat in the corner.
"Sixteen." Max replied.
"Seventeen." Cassie replied, slipping an ace out of her shoe.
"Almost Eighteen," Adam said.
"Fifteen." Alanna said quietly.
"Fourteen." Annie smiled, "You guys wanna play a game?" Max shook his head, Adam nodded and Cassie shrugged. "Okay, Lets play never have I ever."
"Never have I ever robbed a store." Adam said this as Cassie quickly took a shot of sugar.
"Really?" Adam asked.
"Really." Cassie replied, "Alright my turn, never have I ever...well, there's not much I haven't done. How about this, never have I ever seen Lilo and Stitch." Everyone ate sugar.
"What did you do your entire childhood?" Max asked her.
Cassie frowned "Survived on the streets and fought off people who tried to molest me. What did you do?"
Max glared at her through narrow eyes "Not die. My parents abandoned me once I figured out my powers. Just dumped me at the park, took me a while to realize that they we're coming back so I spent my life in a graveyard."
"Well that explains it," Adam muttered under his breath.
"What was that? Well what was your life-like Mr. Perfect?" Cassie snapped at him.
Adam stare went cold, "My parents were killed by this gang when I was a kid in New York. I was sent to a foster home and adopted by a scientist who experimented brutally on me until SHIELD rescued me."
Annie looked down, "My parents did that to," she said softly "To me, they hurt me. They didn't care. But it's cool now." Annie smiled, everyone stared.
Everyone had left, the only one left was Alanna she stared at the floor. "My mom ignores me," she said bravely to no one "She doesn't care about me, she yells at me. To ugly, to fat, to snappy, to quiet, to loud, she's never happy. My dad...I never knew him, he left when I was little. the only thing I have left of him is Dallas. He's my dog, dad got his mom, Minnie, and then she had a litter."
She sighed, then stood up. She didn't see Cassie standing in the corner of the room. She didn't see Max in the shadows. She didn't see Adam in the door way. She didn't see Annie in the hallway.
