Hey guys! I am currently out of school for Christmas break (and so are many of you), so definitely expect more frequent updates through to January-ish (2016) on this story. By the way-I am SO EXCITED this story (my first fan fiction) has 30 views/reads already! You guys are the best. Please keep reading/reviewing/favoriting, and Happy New Year!

The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
Washington, D.C.
May 3, 2015
6:00 p.m.

Taxi horns blared throughout D.C. The city was congested with afternoon traffic, pollution clogging the sun-streaked skyline. James greedily sucked it all in, relieved to be outside the stuffy museum. He folded his metal hand into his pocket subconsciously and turned a full 360, making sure he hadn't been followed. Nothing.

Finding nothing was usually worse than finding something. James felt like he was being watched. On his guard, he reached up with his real hand and tipped the bill of his cap lower over his face.

Time to lay low.

As if on cue, James' stomach growled like it was planning on devouring his t-shirt. He let out a hot breath and reached for his last granola bar, though he knew it wouldn't last him long. He needed a real meal and a cool drink to shut out the blistering heat of America's capitol. With that in mind, he headed East, farther away from the sun and towards the outer thoroughfares of D.C.

-30 MINUTES LATER-

The sun slumped lower on the horizon, an opaque ice cube melting into the fumes and lights of Washington. The day was coming to an end, and the sticky air condensed low to the street like a soupy fog.

"Shit..." James cursed quietly.
It wasn't going to be any easier to pick the lock to the deli in the dark. The damn thing had rusted shut a long time ago, though it certainly wasn't beyond his skill. James had found the deli after a half-hour of walking, during which time the side-alley entrance had become too dark for any passersby to see a break-in of any sort. James scrunched his eyebrows together and pressed his lips into a thin line, a rare form of expression. He jimmied the lock one more time, and with a final, satisfying click, the rusty token of victory slid off the door handle and clattered to the ground. James allowed himself a small smile and shoved the door open with his boot, one hand on the gun in his waistband just in case.

A rush of cool air blasted his hair out of his face in greeting, accompanied by a symphony of blissful aromas: freshly crushed mustard, marinading steak, and day-old bread. Not a single person was to be found inside the dingy homestyle deli.

"Я в раю..." James murmured. Then he smiled again, this time a little deeper, and immediately trooped on towards the bowels of the kitchen and the promise of food.

...

"Что ебать?" James held a clear plastic bottle filled with a foreign substance closer to his face in an effort to find out what he'd just spilled on his sandwich. There were some chinese symbols surrounding a picture of a rooster, and the word "Sriracha" written in an arc over the whole shebang.

"What's...Sriracha?" James thought to himself. "I can't even pronounce it in my head…"

After a moment's hesitation, James lifted the strange bottle to his nose and tentatively took a whiff.

"Hmm. Kinda spicy. I'll give it a try."

Perched on the counter next to the stove, James could see through the front windows to the street as well as the side door he'd recently broken through. No one was going to take him by surprise.

He crossed his legs underneath himself and took a huge bite out of his sandwich, just as a car flashed by the front door, headlights glaring into the small shop. James froze immediately, mid-chew and everything. Eventually, the van passed him by, but it seemed to struggle on as if it were missing actual tires. James swallowed hard, nervous tension building up fast. He lowered his eyebrows and retrieved the gun from his waistband, then flicked the safety off and carefully set it on the counter beside him.

"Shoulda done that five minutes ago." He thought.

For the rest of his time in the restaurant, James ate quickly and watched the entrances like a hawk. If there was ever a good time for HYDRA to assault him, now would be their best chance at taking him out. After contemplating this, James hopped off the counter and retrieved a chair from the main dining area. Even though he wasn't going sleep, he was definitely going to keep watch for his first night away from HYDRA. Besides, he needed time to formulate a getaway plan, and a hell of a good one at that.

Around 2:00 a.m., James had scraped together a relatively watertight plan for getting the hell out of the U.S. before he was shot to pieces. Unfortunately, he wasn't the only trained HYDRA assassin still awake at two in the morning. He wasn't the only super soldier awake then, either.

The first gunshots went off fifteen minutes later and without warning. Mixed with the deafening sound of bullets shredding through glass and metal, James swore he heard a motorcycle engine revving uphill.

Stark Tower
200 Park Avenue
Manhattan, NY
May 4, 2015
3:00 a.m.

"Yes! Yes! High five, ducky!" Tony yelled, a wrench in his left hand and grease smeared across his forehead. He had just taught Amber how to code, and she was already confident enough to hack into one of NASA's lead programs. Green text scrolled across the computer screen, detailing secret mission feedback, future launches, and current projects. It was beginning to look as though there was more than just water on Mars, and that Amber was way above average intelligence. They'd already breezed through hot-wiring cars and soldering irons a long time ago, and Amber had taken it all on like a pro. She also had a few matching streaks of grease smeared across her face from the time they'd spent under one of Tony's corvettes.

Amber flashed a shit-eating grin at her father and high-fived him with all the remaining strength in her tiny six year-old body. Dum-U chirped out a happy robot sound from nearby, where he was on standby with a fire extinguisher and extra fire blankets, just in case; Tony wasn't taking any chances.

"Dad! Look at this! I think it's a launch schedule!" Amber announced, positively ecstatic. "Oh! Is that Uncle Bruce?"

Tony furrowed his eyebrows and leaned in for a closer look.

"Well would you look at that." Tony said. Believe it or not, Bruce Banner was scheduled to make an appearance at a press conference the morning of May fifth, where new gamma radiation tech for the next Mars mission would be explained in fuller detail.

"And he didn't think to invite us." Tony said, a small smile playing on his lips as he looked over at his daughter.

"Does this mean I'm skipping school?" Amber asked, a hopeful look crossing her face.

"Amber, I'm absolutely positive they aren't teaching you enough about gamma radiation at school; so yes, but don't tell your mother."

Amber pumped a fist in the air in victory. "Yes!"

"But don't tell mom, right?"

"Right; don't tell mom." Amber agreed, zipping her lips and throwing away the key, a happy grin already wide on her face.

"Tell me what?" Pepper asked, arms crossed over her chest. She was leaning against the entrance to the lab as if she'd been there a few minutes.

"Security breach!" Amber exclaimed, hopping out of her chair to hide under the nearest table.

"Tony? Why is-" Pepper began.

"Don't look at me; it was her idea." Tony stated.

"Of course it was."