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The ice crept slowly through her veins, attempting to evade anything that would halt their process of numbing, and she certainly lost any ability to feel her right leg. Vaguely, she could summon the memories to her head, gruesome images of what had taken place last night. Had it been last night? She couldn't remember; she just remembered how much pain she was in, how much she wished she would just die. There was a hole in her leg, as well as a shattered femur bone. She recalled that much, but only because she could still feel the tiny bits of bone grating against one another like grains of sand falling through an hourglass. How had he done that again? Magic, right? It was something that she was familiar with, but not something she could use in excess.

Carmen was like a premium package. She came with all of the great extras, but, alas, she was a pain in the ass to have to operate. Through her, Aimee could use a number of magic tricks, essentially. The use of flames was one of them, mostly due to the fact that it was the element Carmen embodied. She had three siblings, and they each controlled the others: water, earth, and wind. There was no need for lightning. Thor was made with that purpose. The flames were from the fires of Hell, a powerful and dark force used to destroy. It had no redeeming qualities about it, though it was useful. Another power Carmen held was the use of crystals. Those crystals were a color of her choice, which happened to be black, and they were practically indestructible. Only the power of other gods could shatter them.

There was also one other thing about the wolf, one of the things Aimee often hated the most about her. She seemed to give her this ability to have accelerated healing, as well as slow aging, physically. She was in her early forties, appeared as though she was still twenty. Perhaps the healing was tied with the youth, but she couldn't be sure. In those moments of burning, the urge to writhe about in agony, she could feel that healing power sluggishly reconnect the bone fragments. It ached, because even the tinier pieces of those pieces had to reconnect to one another in order to put the puzzle pieces of her femur back together again. It wasn't often that Carmen was so generous to her in healing a wound this horrid, but the wolf had made a deal with Odin and a wound like that would kill her if it wasn't treated quickly enough.

There was a thick murmur of voices in the room, penetrating her ears and clearing her head rather quickly. Unfortunately, she began to feel the pain even sharper as her leg healed than when it had been broken. At least some of the wind had numbed it at the time, but the fire in her veins burned off the morphine too quickly for there to be much effect. Lights blinded her eyes when she opened them; the darkness vanished so fast that it hurt, and she blinked multiple times to clear it away. The tart smell of a sanitized room lingered in the room and it made her nostrils tingle. She took a few deep breaths to steady herself, forcing her body to move and sit up so she could survey her surroundings. That took a few moments, and she felt a steadying hand on her back.

"Take it easy, Aim; you've been through hell…"

Aimee recognized the voice and it brought a smile to her face. She looked at the familiar features of good old Steve Rogers, "Well, I am honored. Captain America has come to visit little old me." Her tone was raspy and her throat was dry, possibly from inhaling dirt as she came crashing down on that road. Her lip was split, too, but even that could be from a number of things. She felt the bruises, most likely the cause of her pain when she moved.

Steve grinned dryly at her, remaining where he stood at her temporary bedside as the S.H.I.E.L.D. doctors wandered around her. "Yeah, well, I couldn't exactly stay in my apartment when they told me what happened. I think I got here faster than Agent Coulson did…"

"What happened to me? After getting my ass kicked, I mean…" She hated to admit it, but that's honestly what happened. She knew she had lost to Loki and she had lost badly to him. If she were to use Carmen's power, which generally gave her enhanced speed and strength, as well as coordination and reaction, then she probably would have won. She was against using it, though, and that was why she was here. Carmen was truly her only defense against that kind of magic, and she refused to use it.

Nick, who had been in the room, paced over to her and sighed, "You got your ass kicked all right. You were hardly conscious when Phil and I got to you. We rushed you to the nearest S.H.I.E.L.D. health facility and here you are. We thought you weren't going to wake up."

There was a bitter expression on her face, "Yeah. You and I both know she wouldn't have let it go that way. I've tried. There isn't anything I know of that could kill me and her both, except maybe…the others." She referred to Carmen's siblings; one of their hosts was a very good friend of hers, though such a term should be 'former good friend'. "Hell, I think if I did die, Carmen would bring me back to life on the spot."

Aimee rested her face in her hands, rubbing her temples gently to dissuade the sudden pain in her head from progressing. She wasn't so sure what would happen now. Honestly, with a man like that on the loose, there was little that they really could do without calling on a few select people. That sort of thing, in her mind, would most likely end in disaster. Granted, it would probably be the Earth's only chance of survival against Loki, whether it succeeded or not. She had absolutely no knowledge of Loki's plans. She didn't even get that much out of him when fighting him in the Jeep, which only aggravated her further. A nurse walked in and offered her water, which she generously accepted and wolfed down in a matter of seconds. It felt cool and relieving against her scratched esophagus.

There was a dead silence between the three of them. One question was assuredly on all of their minds:

What happened next?

Loki had disappeared with the cube, a master assassin, and their top scientist on the project. There were many evil things being done here, all of which would possibly end in failure or destruction for them. Aimee's mind wandered to the thought of an initiative that was shut down years ago. It had been something created like a backup plan in case this kind of thing happened, especially after recent visits, such as Thor's banishment to Earth and the metal alien that leveled a small town. She didn't believe Thor was at fault. Honestly, he probably saved more people than he harmed, but it still made people aware that Earth wasn't the only planet in the universe with inhabitants upon it. It was a terrifying thought to anyone normal, so that initiative had been drafted in case it happened again. However, it had been shot down by the Council and had never resurfaced.

"Nick…" Her tone was thoughtful, her mind still occupied with that initiative. "I know this is a long shot, but…with what just happened and with what I feel is about to happen…"

He smirked, "Are you suggesting the Avengers Initiative?"

She smiled a bit and nodded. "Yes. I know it was shut down and I know the Council won't be happy about it, but I don't give a shit at this point. What that man, Loki, just did is unacceptable. I hate losing. I'll beat him, hopefully without Carmen's powers. Although…he said he intended to rule us."

"Is something telling you he will come close to succeeding or will succeed?"

"Something along those lines, yes." Aimee tilted her head to the side. "His tone…when I spoke with him on that Jeep…it was serious, yet there were hints of childish want and neglect there. Something tells me S.H.I.E.L.D. alone won't stop him from trying."

Steve broke in, "Whoa, whoa, whoa. What's the Avengers Initiative?"

"I will explain that to you later. For now, get yourself cleaned up, Aimee." Nick told her, receiving a slightly confused expression. "I'm already ahead of you with the Avengers thing. The Council doesn't know it's the Avengers exactly, but I plan on telling them. It's just a response team. Natasha is getting Banner, Coulson is getting Stark, and since Rogers is here, that solves one problem."

"I presume I will be fetching someone else who has qualified for it?" When he didn't answer her and when his face fell grave, her frown deepened and her heart sunk. Just who was it that she was meant to be fetching? Apparently, it wouldn't be something she would take pleasure in doing. "Nick…who I am recruiting?"

He hesitated, "You are going to the outskirts of Manhattan to recruit the White Lily. You're being reunited with Gabriella Stark."

Aimee blanched. "No. No, I can't do that. You know I can't do that. Choose someone else, please. I am not stable enough to handle confronting her again."

"You don't have a choice. Make it strictly about business and you won't broach that painful subject with her." He paused, searching for a better argument. "If anyone in this agency can convince her to come here, it's you. She may hate you, loathe you, and wish you dead every second of the day, but you are the only one who she would listen to. Anyone else…and we all know she would deny."

She shook her head. "I am the only person in the world she despises with the fire of a thousand suns and I'm her recruiter. She's married, too. Her last name isn't Stark anymore… It's LeBeau."

"Look, I don't care right now." He said, clearly irritated with having to wait for these things to get rolling. "Just get her. I don't care if you drag her in kicking and screaming. Just recruit her."

Nick left the room, leaving the doctor to sign the release papers for the brunette. He clenched a brace around her upper thigh in order to keep it stable while it healed. A pair of crutches was also granted to her, support she didn't want, but support she was going to have to take whether she wanted to or not. She couldn't really walk on her own without causing any more damage or pain, though it would soon disappear. It would only take a few hours and she wished she could remain glued to that hospital bed, wallow in those memories of Gabriella, known as Bri to everyone, and herself. The images of the incident that had occurred between Aimee and Bri's son turned her vision red, sickening her as she limped idly outside.

There was a black SUV awaiting her and Steve assisted her in getting into the passenger seat. One of the other agents from S.H.I.E.L.D. sat in the driver's seat, prepared to take off. She glanced to Steve, "Where are you going?"

"I don't know." His lips pursed in confusion as he tried to conjure up the name of his destination. "It's called the…something. It's a ship?"

Aimee nodded, smiling, "Ah, yes. You'll see when you get there. I'll meet you there in a few hours. If I come back alive, that is."

"You'll be fine, Aim. Bri isn't insane."

"Yet."

She bid her farewell to the good friend and the other agent began driving. On the way, rain began to drizzle down upon the roads of the nice communities in thick, gray sheets. The tree branches bent beneath the weight of the water and the influence of the light wind rushing about. The clouds were a dark force above their heads, churning and curling around one another in intricate wisps of vapor. They could be beautiful at times, creating beautiful designs, patterns, and shapes to gaze at on a nicer day. However, these clouds sapped all of the sun from the world that was beneath them, drinking in all of the happiness that could possibly exist. There was the occasional set of parents watching their little one splash about in the warm rain puddles, but that only coursed pangs through her heart at an even harsher rate.

This was something she was far from inclined to do. It had been almost eight years since the incident, since the thing that had made her run away from the world in the first place. Of course, what she had done had been horrible to start with, but how Bri had reacted to it, while reasonable, did not help her emotions in the slightest. Hearing how much Bri hated her and wanted her dead, hearing those words come from her best friend's mouth herself, had sent her into a tailspin destined to dive straight down a very dark and a very deep hole. In the first couple years after the incident, she had been an absolute wreck. She had felt such remorse for what she had done that it tore her apart, but the words of her closest friend felt like having her heart ripped directly from her chest.

Whenever the subject was brought up to people, though it was something Aimee attempted to actively avoid, the same question often came up along with it: what had she done to deserve such hatred? It could have been a number of things, honestly, because she wasn't necessarily the greatest friend. Mentally and emotionally scarred, Aimee had not been the most stable thing on the planet at the time. However, Bri trusted her with her life, and the life of her oldest son. As she recounted the tale in her head, she found herself blocking away the most gruesome parts of the memories and only tried to reminisce in the better times. That day had gone so well, hadn't it? In the end, a life had been lost to her fangs and she had lost her best friend because of it. It was the reason she refused to use Carmen's "gifts" anymore.

If anyone tried asking her about what she did, she would immediately turn away from the subject, either ignored what was going on or just change the topic. She took a deep breath, reminding herself that she just needed to breathe and that everything would be okay. She was certainly scared, and that didn't even cover the beginnings of it. There was a plethora of emotions racing through her veins like horses in the Kentucky Derby. They were a blur, blending together in a concoction that was bound to trip, tumble, and pile up into one gigantic mess. The dirt was being churned by the hooves, sliced and kicked upwards, jumbling in the air only to land in an order that was not what it was to begin with. She had finally managed to compose herself over this and now she was being forced to recruit the one person in the world who loathed her.

The ride ended too soon, and the driver pulled to a stop in front of a simple house. It was white on the outside, gray shingles for the roof, red shutters around the windows, and a bright red door that stood out for blocks. The yard was well-kept and fenced, a beautiful shale walkway leading from the sidewalk to the door, which was surrounded by a various amount of bushes and flowers. They all drooped and flicked back and forth with the movement of the rain. It was pretty. Even the golden numbers of the house's address was as beautiful as it hung upon one of the support beams at the end of the shale walkway. For a split moment in her mind, she almost forgot it was the house of Bri and her husband, Remy.

Remy LeBeau was also known as Gambit from the X-Men and had been Bri's husband for around sixteen years, which was around the age their son would have been in the coming months. Remy had long forgiven Aimee of the deed she had done. He had managed to find her a few years ago, told her these things, and begged her to return. When she had said no, he had not objected and left her to carry on her business in peace. Tony, as in Tony Stark, had forgiven her as well. He didn't blame her for what she had done and even stood up for her, claiming she was defending the child as she knew how and it had merely gone wrong. She didn't know how to handle the power that was against her and leaned on the power inside of her to combat it.

Before exiting the car, she turned to look at the driver, "Do you know if Tony Stark is being brought in on this project?"

"As far as I know, Agent Coulson went to speak with him now before escorting Captain Rogers to the Helicarrier, ma'am." He hesitated a moment, "May I ask why?"

"Yes, you may. The woman I am about to go speak to is Tony Stark's sister." She furrowed her brow uncomfortably. "If Tony is being brought in on this, I wonder why they didn't send him to drag her there."

The man shrugged, "I am sure Director Fury has his reasons. They are reasons I am not really allowed to question, but I believe all will be revealed in due time, ma'am."

Debating on it for a few moments, she supposed he was right. Nick may have not wanted to tell her everything right now because she would refuse to assist him in whatever he needed her for. Things would become clear eventually, even if she wanted answers now and was unsettled with whatever he was planning for her. "Yeah, you're right. I will be back as soon as I can."

"You don't seem eager to be reunited with her." He said. "People have told me the two of you were good friends."

"Your keyword is 'were', kid."

Aimee carefully stepped out of the car and onto the soaked sidewalk, which had darkened with the water seeping into its pores. The crutches assisted her in reaching the gate of the fence, which she closed and locked behind her. Now that she was face with this, feelings of sudden queasiness washed over her beaten body and she didn't want to do it. It was almost a sense of foreboding that something bad was going to happen if she continued to walk along that shale path. There was an occasional 'click' as the foot of her crutch tapped against the stones. The water soaked her shoulders and most of her hair, but the electronic device strapped within the bag on her other shoulder was safe from damage.

'I sincerely wish this door was a trap…' She did, too. She wanted to ring the doorbell, and then be snatched up by some incredible trap meant to destroy the likes of her. It would be a fitting end to a monster like her, asking to enter this house especially after what she had done to the woman inside.

Tentatively, her hand reached out with one finger extended. She pressed down quickly on the small, white round button. She prayed that something would jump out and eat her. The button set of a chorus of bells, chiming in a melodious tune throughout the extension of the house. For a moment, there was nothing else after the bells had ended, except the echo of their tune within her head, and it was then that she heard footsteps. A number of thoughts went through her head. She could slip it through the mail-slot, leave it on the doorstep, or even hurl it through one of the windows. The last one would probably get her a severe reprimanding.

There was a cheery voice, one that struck her deeply because she had not heard it in so long, but she knew exactly who it was. She wondered if she would remember her, but there was no doubt that the woman would. Seven, even eight, years wouldn't do much damage to the memory. The door was opened and for a moment there was a welcoming grin. She was what was commonly known as a Ginger. Beautiful, carrot-colored hair that gleamed as it fell around her shoulders and stunning blue eyes that changed with whatever form of water she was using. There were many freckles, too, and they were one of her favorite features about her friend. That smile vanished, though, and the blue in her eyes darkened to a point as though it was storming.

Her name was Gabriella LeBeau, barely younger sister of Tony Stark and married to Gambit, also known as Remy LeBeau. She had, at one point a long while ago, been Aimee's best friend. There were no two beings in the world closer, and they had something that tied them together infinitely, whether one or the other liked it or not. While Aimee had Carmen, Bri had Carmen's counterpart, Tabitha. Tabitha was a massive cat, bearing saber fangs and no tail. She was brute force. A pale blue coat covered with many different shades of blue in the shapes of tribal markings as Carmen was. She was the embodiment of water, as well as healing.

Tabitha had been sealed within Bri to keep an eye on Carmen, as a type of babysitter should the wolf ever truly lose control and be let loose on the cities of the world. Nothing had truly ever escalated to that point. It was the cat's job to heal things, the opposite of Carmen. She could heal while Carmen destroyed. Those were their most separating traits. There were the other two, a bird of the wind and a puma of the earth, but neither Aimee nor Bri had ever met them. They didn't know if they had hosts or if they were just the massive beasts themselves. They didn't know if they would ever know at all, but it didn't matter to them. They had their own problems.

That smile had faded, and an icy tone had embedded itself into the redhead's voice, "What the hell do you want?"

Aimee could hear Remy ask from inside, "Love, who is that?"

For a moment, she was at a loss for words, her tongue not giving her anything to say. It seemed as though she was about to close the door, and she managed to force something out, "No! Stop…just wait."

Bri stood there impatiently, her weight leaning against one leg, her expression nearly murderous. "What do you want?"

"Look, I know you are angry at me and never wanted to see me again. I tried to make that happen, but Nick called me in." She paused a moment, watching her expression change slightly. "He's calling you in now, too."

"For what? I have a kid. I can't just leave her."

Aimee bit back, "If you don't hear me out, you may not have a family in the next week."

There was a stunned look upon her porcelain face and after a moment of harsh debate, she invited her former friend in. The door opened up into a large foyer, where it led into a room that acted as a dining room and a den. The ceiling stretched up about thirty feet where a chandelier, intricate and covered in beautiful crystals, hung down lower to illuminate the entire room. Remy was sitting upon one of the couches that were in that area. Another couch was opposite of him and there was a finely-designed coffee table in the center of it. There was a cup of dark liquid, which she assumed was coffee or tea, sitting upon the table. There was a ring of water around its base, either from heat or from cold.

Aimee hobbled over to the other couch on her one crutch and flopped down, flipping the bag into her lap and opening it up. Bri sat beside Remy, who had sat up and set down his book. He was suddenly interested by her appearance, considering he hadn't seen her for a number of years. She pulled the sleek black computer from the bag, yanking the screen from it and resetting it in the proper position. Punching in her code, the computer opened up with the information they would need. She set if on the coffee table and turned it around, sliding it over to them and then retreating back as she began to explain in a rather dead voice. Emotions would only make her stall.

"Yesterday, the main S.H.I.E.L.D. facility was invaded by a man named Loki. He is the brother of Thor and is from Asgard." She and Bri shared a knowing look. These were things they were already aware of, but there were still things they needed find out. "He came in through a portal created by the Tesseract, which was then stolen alongside Erik Selvig and Clint Barton."

"Hawkeye's been compromised?" Bri whispered, incredulous that she infinitely sharp man had been captured. "That's hard to believe…"

Aimee nodded sadly. "Yes. To say the least, whether Nick wants to admit this or not, we are reinstating the Avengers Initiative. We will be joined by Natasha Romanoff, Steve Rogers, and Bruce Banner. I am directly involved as well and, if we're lucky, Clint will be on our side soon. Nick wants you in on this too, Mrs. LeBeau. Don't ask me why, because I was only sent here to recruit you."

"Banner?" She ignored the last statement. "Will the Hulk be happy about coming?"

"Probably not, but we aren't using him for the Hulk." The brunette told them. As far as she had been told, the Hulk was not a part of the plan. Bruce was the one they needed, not his monster. "The Tesseract emits a low level of gamma radiation that is too weak for us alone to trace. No one knows that type of radiation like Bruce does. We are hoping to get him to find the cube for us so we can take it back from Loki. If we can't just take it back and kill him, the plan is to capture Loki."

Bri raised an eyebrow at her, "And what is Loki planning to do with the Tesseract? Did he do this to your leg, too?"

"That would be the problem; we don't know. He only told us he came burdened with a glorious purpose." She paused, nodding once. "Yes. I pursued him, fought him, and he shattered my femur bone with the same kind of magic Carmen and Tabitha can use. He is an Asgardian. It's not surprising. Carmen is almost finished healing it."

"She can heal?" Remy broke in for the first time.

"It's more like a form of regeneration, something self-sustaining to keep me and herself alive." Aimee gestured with her hands as though to emphasize certain things. "Carmen destroys; she does not heal, not that I know of. That's Tabitha's job."

There was a tense air about them as the creatures were mentioned. Aimee could understand why. Honestly, it had been because of Carmen that there was bad blood between her and Bri. Had the wolf not been embodied within her at that time or had remained dormant like she was supposed to, then maybe they would still be close friends. Aimee missed Bri's company though, but had come to befriend Steve out of the whole thing. Like Bri, he knew everything about her, because he had been open to helping her in her time of need. He was like her brother, just as Bri had once been her sister. She still considered her such, but would not breach the subject.

Aimee continued in something of a hurry, "I need you to look over this and call Nick with your decision. He really needs you on this one, just as he needs the rest of us."

Bri stared at her a long moment. "…Do you think the Avengers will work?"

"I don't know. It's impossible to say if we can all get along," which she knew would be hard enough to do with some, "but it is the best shot we have right now. Loki is ready to kill all of us and we aren't even ready to respond. The Avengers is just a response team."

Aimee stood and hobbled towards the door, leaving them to debate over what she had told them. There was an awkward silence as she left the house, left the information with them, and went back to the car. She got in, buckling down her seat belt and shutting the door. Her leg was nearly healed completely by this time, making it easier to move. It was still a bit painful, but she could at least walk on it by the time she was taken to a small plane, one of S.H.I.E.L.D.s designs. She was transported from the land to the Helicarrier, which rested on the open seas. One of the other agents disposed of her crutch as she carefully sauntered off of the tiny plane.

"Aimee!"

Turning her head to the side, she spotted Steve and it put a smile on her face, "Hey, Spangles." Over time, that had become her favorite nickname for the man. He was the Star Spangled Man with the Plan, after all, so she couldn't resist.

He glanced down at her leg. "That dog of yours is useful. To be walking around on it already is quite the miracle."

"That doesn't mean it doesn't hurt." She told him. "Is Bruce here already?"

He nodded. "He's inside. I was about to go in, but I thought I'd escort you there."

"Why, thank you," her tone was somewhat cheery, though they both knew she was only sarcastic.

The pair of them paced over to the door and slipped inside. Honestly, the inside of the Helicarrier was rather cozy, much like a house, but computers and many other gadgets overwhelmed the area. It was all something Aimee had already seen, and she almost laughed when Steve gazed about in wonder, as though he was a kid in a candy store. He walked around, leaving her side, and even tipped Nick for no reason. She rolled her eyes and shook her head, then looked around. Natasha was there and she nodded a greeting, but it was Bruce she was more interested in.

Aimee walked over to the man. "Bruce Banner, a pleasure to finally meet you."

He faced her, a look of surprise on his face. "Pleasure? You may not be saying that if things get out of hand."

"Trust me, Doctor…" Her voice was slightly somber. "I know that feeling just as much, if not more, than you do. It's a terror, isn't it; having their voice in your head all the time?"

A light went off in Bruce's head, and he seemed to recognize her. "Ah, yes, Aimee Serasio…the infamous Black Rose."

"I try not to be called that anymore." She shrugged. "But once labeled with a name, it does stick."

"Agreed. It is a pleasure to meet you. I've read a lot about you." He gave a half-hearted grin. "Maybe we could have Carmen and the Other Guy go at it some time for fun, eh?"

She chuckled. "She would love nothing more than an opponent who matches her power."

The Hulk could probably hold her off for a while, but there would be no doubt that Carmen would be victor in the end. Perhaps, in Bruce's mind, it would be logical to let the Hulk exhaust himself, see that he was outmatched, and go back into a hole never to return again. She knew that feeling all too well, but Tabitha was the only match for Carmen, and her host wanted nothing to do with them. Suddenly, the sharp beeping of a computer siren went off and one of the agents began to shout. He pointed at the computer screen and said it was a match for Loki. Aimee was half tempted to sneak a peek at the location then and there, and then run off to maim the man horridly herself.

Aimee heard a satisfied growl in the back of her head as Carmen invaded her mind,

'What pleasing thoughts…shall we go fulfill your inner wishes?'

She shook her head, 'Get out of my head, you monster.' She pushed the demon away and she went quietly, which worried her somewhat.

Nick called to her, "Aimee, go with Agent Romanoff and Captain Rogers. There is a nice dress waiting for you on the plane you will be taking. Put it on, put the listening device in your ear, go to Germany, and await further instruction."

Not having heard the first part of the conversation, before Nick had given her directions, she raised an eyebrow at him, "A dress? I despise dresses and you know that. What exactly do I need a dress for?"

The man gave a smirk. "You're going to a party."

She frowned, having to remind herself to breathe. "I hate you."