Chapter Three.

At Avenger Tower (originally Stark Tower).

The Avengers had agreed to keep in close range with one another. They all gathered in what was originally Stark Tower. But just because they kept together did not mean they trusted each other. One of their team members was Hydra, and that played with all their minds.

There was a partner system within the team; if anyone was going anywhere, it was with a partner. Bruce and Tony were paired together, Clint and Natasha, and Steve was currently single. This didn't settle well with everyone but until Thor returned it would have to be this way and Steve was the least suspicious of all anyway.

Tony had agreed to help put together the new SHIELD, this one without error. Any time he worked on the system, he had Hill over his shoulder.

The two master assassins, known for vigor and finesse, sat lazily across from each other on the couch in the main room. They were on leave for now, with SHIELD still repairing itself. Clint had both legs up on his side of the couch, and Natasha neatly folded one leg over the other while she rested her head on her hand. They shared a unique silence and only communicated through movements and eye glances; a blink for tired, a finger tap for hungry, a nose twitch for bad smell, and various other signs of communication they had developed from the time spent together as field partners over the years.

Bruce was currently resting on the other couch, so Tony went and joined Steve at the bar lounge. They both sat in silence for a while, trying to figure out if the other was Hydra or not, but it was pointless.

"Terrible, isn't it?" Tony tried at a conversation, keeping his voice loud enough for the two of them only, "You know, Hill might be messing with us."

At first Tony thought he wasn't going to get anywhere in this one-way conversation but Steve surprised him.

"I don't think this is a joking matter, Hill wouldn't have told us if she wasn't sure." Steve said, finally looking at Tony. The guy was tired; he had just come out of a firefight with Hydra before the Tri-carrier went down and now one of his trusted teammates turned out to be a part of the enemy.

Tony shrugged, "Yeah, I guess you're right." He could tell the Captain was troubled, having the most history with Hydra. He wished there was some way to end this suspense sooner.

"How's SHIELD coming along?" Steve asked absently, still slouched over the counter he was sitting at.

"Better, with fewer people working on the project it's easier to plug all the leaks. This time it should be fool-proof." Tony said, waving his hand in the air.

"How many people are working on the project?" Steve asked curiously, wondering how well put together this little team that was meant to rebuild SHIELD was. Tony thought for a moment, "I'm not authorized to certain information, apparently they don't trust me and I know why but this is the way they put it, 'Mr. Stark, you're level is not cleared for that information,' when I asked again about the Director." He shook his head, "What level? There are no more levels, SHILED is down!" He chuckled lightly, standing to get a drink, some water for the both of them, "I never even had a level."

Steve gave a half-smile. It was amusing but then his faced returned to its default expression of grief. "So there is a new Director?"

"Apparently," Stark assumed, thinking about it. He took a seat again, passing the water to Steve. "But no one here knows who it is, I don't even think Hill knows, which is just great." He shrugged, "And I thought Fury was the biggest secret-holder."

Steve knew the Fury was dead in Stark's mind. The only people who knew the former Director still lived was Natasha, Sam Wilson, Maria Hill, and himself. "You shouldn't joke like that, you might get in trouble."

"I'm already in trouble," Stark muttered before taking a sip of his water.

There was a thump on the roof, everyone looked up, even Banner stirred in his nap, waking up.

"Sir, Thor has just arrived." JARVIS announced to the entire room.

"Thank you, Jarvis."

"Great." Clint said faintly, looking over at Natasha. The two remained where they were.

"How are we going to break the news to him?" Bruce asked, getting up from the couch to join Tony and Steve who were already on their way out the door to greet Thor.

Clint answered first, "Let's tell him he can rule the world." He got looks from all his teammates. He bit the inside of his cheek, "It sounded funnier in my head."

"That joke is dead." Tony informed him before continuing his leave.

The welcoming party was instead greeted by the Asgardian. "My friends, it has been too long," he said smiling; glad to be reunited with his teammates. The three Avengers hesitated, sharing the same feeling of pain that hit each of them. They would have to break Thor's heart.

Steve was the brave one. "Thor we have bad news," the soldier began, interrupted by Thor. "Then speak quickly, Captain, what is this news?" Thor asked, bracing himself for the worst.

"We have a traitor among us." Steve finished.

"Traitor sounds harsh," Tony commented. He looked to Thor, "One of our team members is a double agent, a part of Hydra. You remember them?"

"Yes, how could I forget the stories… Who is it? I shall make them question why they ever considered joining forces with those of villainy.

"We don't know who it is," Bruce contributed to the conversation. Tony welcomed Thor inside, "C'mon buddy, we're all messed up in here."

The God of Thunder looked up at the sky before entry, "Oh what madness have I come to."

AN: It's a slow chapter because I've got to have it in there. It's weird, the way I wrote the story. Ending first and now I'm writing the beginning. So I know who the traitor is and really interested in what you guys think and theorize.

Thank you guys for your input, and since I don't have a lot of comments, I can address you guys here.

chills10124 - that's a good theory. Clint is a conflicted character and one of my favorites, we'll see.

ronniefranco8 - Thanks! here's an update, not the best but I promise it gets better :)

Desperate And Lonely - I'm glad you like it, I enjoy writing it.

SuperWhoPotterAvenge-X - First Clint, now Nat. One of the agents? oOoOoOo... Only time will tell.