Tony's Girls
By: InitialA
Disclaimer: I don't own anything in the Marvel universe.
Steve heard something clattering in the kitchen. It was well after midnight, and no one was usually awake at this time. Curious, and on alert, he went to investigate.
To his surprise, the fridge was out of its normal place, and there was a light shining behind it. He walked around it. "Hey kiddo, isn't it a bit late for you?"
Cleo removed the screwdriver from between her teeth. "Hi, Uncle Steve. Couldn't sleep. Is Tyotia Natasha away?"
"For a few weeks, yeah."
"Are you worried about her? You're always wandering when she's gone."
"Not really. She can handle herself. It's just hard to sleep without her. What are you doing?"
Cleo grunted, twisting the screwdriver as hard as possible to fasten her project into place. "Motor silencer I've been working on. I'm testing it out here before I show the designs to Dad for the suit."
Steve rubbed the back of his neck. "I see. Any particular reason why the fridge?"
"It's noisy. And it'll freak everyone out when they think it's broken."
She gave each of the screws another twist, before leaning back and sighing in satisfaction. She brushed one red, errant curl behind her ear. "So. I'm still not tired, you're not going to sleep anytime soon. Want to play chess?" She grinned at her adoptive uncle.
Steve held out a hand to help her to her feet. "If you promise not to brag much when you win again."
"No can do, Uncle Sam."
He fought the urge to grimace. Now he had to deal with the nicknames from an eleven-year old as well.