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Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from Marvel, only my OC's.
Chapter 4 - Operation Convince Brookes
That afternoon, Alexia was released from the hospital wing of the Helicarrier and taken to a room where she was given a glass of water and told to wait patiently. It was not long before Fury came barging in, quickly followed by the Avengers, who sat around her.
"So, Miss Brookes, you have been offered a place on the Avengers, I suggest you take it. After proving your abilities, they have agreed to the proposal," Fury announced bluntly.
Alexia blinked at him, surprised. She shouldn't have been, it was pretty obvious why she was there, but it was a shock all the same. She mulled it over in her mind. Joining the Avengers would mean a considerable pay rise; a permanent place to live that would need little maintenance and the opportunity to use her powers on a regular basis.
"Would I have to leave my fish behind?" She asked slowly.
"The Avengers tower has a personalized floor for each of us. You could bring your aquarium and add other breeds to the collection," Tony offered.
"They're not just a collection," she snapped slightly, "Would I still be working as a marine biologist or is this a permanent thing?"
"I think it would be hard to do both, but definitely not impossible. You'd have to drop your university, though, and have Stark Industries sponsor you instead," Steve answered honestly.
"Ok, no thanks," Lexy refused politely.
The whole room was in shock. They'd expected a bit of reluctance but she had refused so bluntly. Fury was not surprised but still sighed exasperatedly.
"Thank you for coming in, Miss Brookes. We'll drop you off in your neighbourhood," he said.
"There's no need. I'll just jump," Alexia replied, standing up.
"What?!" most of the Avengers exclaimed.
"If you were listening earlier, you would've heard that I have exceptional diving and swimming capabilities. Plus, the water won't hurt me," she explained vaguely.
They still looked unsure but when they saw the desperate look on her face, they backed off slightly. She smiled before navigating her way to the deck. There were a few agents running about but it was fairly empty. She saw the Avengers and Fury approaching behind her.
"Keep in touch, Nick," she smiled, waving, "Bye guys!"
They waved back weakly as she jumped off of the edge. As she fell, the brunette thought about her decision. It had been a once in a lifetime offer, but she just didn't feel that she fit the part. It's not that Lexy didn't like using her power for good, but using it to such a scale would put a strain on her life, especially without a lot of practice.
When she saw that she was rapidly growing closer to the water, she took control of it, preparing it for the impact. It still hurt a bit when she splashed into the river, but it was better than waiting for the Helicarrier to reach her street.
"Why did you just let her go after all that effort of proving us wrong?" Tony demanded irritably.
"She's still going to join. There's just no point in keeping her here when she obviously isn't going to agree based on mere persuasion," Fury explained.
"So how are you going to get her to become an Avenger?" Steve queried.
"Oh, I'm not. You are," he answered.
The entire team looked bemused. How on earth were they supposed to convince her if Director Fury couldn't?
"How exactly are we supposed to do that?" Bruce questioned.
"Show her what she's missing. Fight crime in that area, invite her to the Tower, visit her apartment, get to know her, I don't care. Just get on it," he ordered before walking off of the deck.
Alexia was feeding her fish when she heard a knock on the door. She opened it to see Tony, Clint and Steve standing in the hallway uncomfortably. She smiled faintly and opened the door wider to let them in.
"Hi! Um, why are you here?" She asked.
"We wanted to invite you to the Tower for dinner tonight," Tony stated.
"We're having shawarma," Clint added invitingly.
"Does that have fish in it?" Alexia questioned cautiously.
"It has meat but I don't think there's any fish," Steve answered.
"Ok! I'll come," she agreed happily.
"Great. I'll tell Jarvis," Tony said, picking up his phone and walking back into the hallway outside.
"Jarvis?"
"He's a computer that runs the Iron Man suit, Tony's house, the Tower and practically everything else to do with Stark Industries as well," Clint answered.
"J.A.R.V.I.S, it's an acronym for something; I don't know..."Steve responded, shrugging.
"Just a rather very intelligent system," Tony replied, swaggering in, phone still in hand.
"Cool! So what time should I come round?"
"How about 7?" Tony offered.
"Great, I'll be there," Lexy decided.
The three left and Tony began tapping on his phone again.
"Bruce? Be ready for company, step 1 of Operation Convince Brookes is on the go," he smirked.
That evening, after Alexia had stopped by at the Manhattan University of General Sciences to apologize for missing work, she changed into a slimming, emerald green dress and headed out to the Avengers Tower. She walked through the doors into a wide reception, where she was immediately pestered by security.
"Um, Mr Stark invited me over?" Lexy said.
The security guards looked at each other before sending her up. She entered the shiny elevator.
"Miss Brookes, I presume?" A disembodied voice greeted.
Lexy jumped at the sudden sound before smiling, realizing who it was.
"Yep. You're Jarvis, right?" She replied.
"Indeed. You are being sent to the 25th floor where the Avengers are waiting," Jarvis explained.
"Thanks, Jarvis," Lexy beamed.
"You're welcome Miss Brookes."
The voice stopped speaking as the elevator opened. Alexia saw what looked like a luxury suite, with a soft beige carpet, velvet curtains and a large mahogany table. On the table were lavishly decorated meals of meat and vegetables in a wrap. Around the table sat the Avengers, who stood up when they noticed her presence.
"Miss Brookes," Steve greeted politely.
"My name's Alexia, by the way," Lexy sighed.
"Right, Alexia," he repeated before motioning to the table, "Please, sit down."
She obeyed and sat between Thor and Bruce. The conversation seemed agreeable enough and the food was delicious, but then attention moved steadily towards her.
"So, Brookes," Tony started, "How far away do you have to be to hear an animal?"
"It's only aquatic animals and it's basically like with humans. If they're in the same room and they want to talk to me, they will. The thing is that, due to the fact that no one else can hear them, they can also shout from other rooms. That's why I could hear the goldfish," she explained. The group nodded.
"What's it like being a marine biologist?" Clint asked.
"It's fun! I don't like seeing the dead bodies of sea creatures but I guess it's like being a pathologist. As long as they died naturally, I might as well use them for research. I mainly compile data; I don't actually collect the specimens. Sometimes I teach classes or present lectures in the classrooms but I'm normally in my lab."
The group continued to ask questions for a while - everyone except Natasha, anyway. Afterwards, Alexia asked them some questions.
"How often do you need to, you know, assemble?" Lexy queried.
"Well we all hang out here most of the time to practice. Most of the things we do aren't very well-known seeing as we stop the disaster before it actually happens. That happens quite a lot, like once a week maybe. Actual apocalypse-style disasters are rare, maybe once or twice a year," Tony described.
Lexy nodded and continued to ask questions while eating her shawarma. After dinner, the team plus Alexia retired to the den, where they spoke for a while longer on the cream leather couches. By the time it was 9:00, Alexia was getting slightly bored of talking and asked Bruce and Tony if she could visit their labs. As a scientist, the amount of technology and data they have at their disposal was fascinating. They obliged and the group rised to floor 29, Bruce's lab.
In a building full of expensive items, it was not surprising that the lab had the newest computers and systems, but what was surprising was how neat the room was. The floor was tiled and completely clean. The walls were white and plain, with no stains or dirt to be seen. Machines were dotted across the lab, some being smaller than a human while others were twice a person's size. A gainsboro door no doubt led to a more private space for experimenting and Alexia dared not ask to see it. She was content at ogling at the heaven in front of her.
"Woah is that the newest design from Kumatsu Computers? I thought they hadn't released it yet," she exclaimed, practically jumping up and down in excitement.
"I've got some friends at KC who owed me some favours," Tony shrugged.
"Oh. My. God. This place is amazing," Alexia whispered in awe.
"Are you thinking of joining us, then?" Thor asked hopefully.
Clint groaned at the total lack of tactic while Tony slapped his hand to his face and Steve glared at the thunder god. Bruce frowned and Natasha remained unfazed. Alexia grew silent, suddenly realizing why they had invited her round and been so polite. She stared at Steve, disappointed, and turned away. Slowly, Lexy sighed and began walking towards the elevator.
"Alexia, wait," Steve tried, grabbing her arm.
Said woman opened her mouth to say something but couldn't find the words. She merely tugged her arm out of his grip and continued to the elevator, turning to see their regretful faces before the doors shut again.
So I uploaded the Spider-man story (or chapter 1 anyway). If you like Spider-man you can check it out but be warned that the characters are a fuse of Spectacular, Ultimate, Amazing and my own version of Spider-man. It's a Peter Parker x OC.
If you enjoyed, please follow, favorite and review. See you next chapter!