Before everything happened, Matt had never been an early riser. It used to be that he'd set two alarm clocks and his mother would still have to get him up before he was late for school. On weekends it used to take nothing short of a cannon firing to get him up before noon. But working with SHIELD had gotten him in the unfortunate habit of getting up at six in the morning, even when he didn't have to.
As soon as he got back from his flight to Tibet (he was happy that no one said anything about the missing video camera), Fury had put him on a strict daily schedule. Meetings with SHIELD's scientists, training with his powers, getting his body into shape, meetings with one of SHIELD's counselors, online classes for his GED…He theorized later that they were keeping him busy to keep an eye on him.
He'd been with them for a month when Fury met with him and told him he was ready for field work, and told him about the Avengers Initiative. He was given the alias of Cyclone (it was explained to him that, until he was twenty-one, SHIELD didn't want to reveal his actual name to the public) and given special gear to wear while on duty (a black outfit that resembled what most SHIELD agents wore, but with a loose-fitting open insulated black jacket to keep him warm when he flew and black gloves to cover his missing finger tip). He was then introduced to several other people, some of whom had powers like him.
Tony Stark, a billionaire with an ego as big as his bank account, was a nice guy when his ego wasn't in the way. He was a little much at first (not to mention full of himself), but it wasn't hard to like him. And Matt couldn't deny that the guy's collection of Iron Man suits was pretty awesome.
Captain America seemed a little stiff at first (not to mention intimidating, as he towered over everyone but Thor), but he was an undeniably cool guy. Matt had been floored when he learned that Captain Rogers had actually fought in World War II, and had been frozen for almost seventy years. The veteran seemed to like Matt, and called his powers impressive…although Matt had deflated a little when he heard Steve asking Coulson why they'd brought a teenager to help fight Loki.
Thor, a prince from another world, had legitimately scared Matt when he first saw him. Then, when he heard that Matt was the only survivor of his friends (because of course Fury and Coulson had to tell all of the Avengers that), Thor had wrapped him in a big hug and given a talk about losing warriors in battle. A lot of it went over Matt's head (he wished for the first time in his life that he'd studied Norse mythology), but he'd been strangely comforted. Who knew that a guy who could control lightning was secretly a big teddy bear?
Dr. Banner had been really shy at first, almost like Andrew had been before they found the rock. Maybe that was why Matt had gotten close to him pretty fast. And why it was a total shock when he saw him become the Hulk for the first time. Despite that, the adult and teenager had remained friends after the Battle for New York. Banner had even laughed when, as Thor was leaving to take Loki back to Asgard, Matt had telekinetically made the guy slap himself. He'd gotten the stink eye from Sitwell for it, but he had no regrets.
He hadn't spent as much time with Black Widow or Hawkeye. Black Widow was easily the prettiest woman he'd ever seen (he was pretty sure that Casey would have slapped him if she'd seen how much he stared at her the first time they met). She was also smart enough to outwit Loki, could punch a man unconscious without messing up her hair, could pack a ridiculous amount of weapons into a skintight leather outfit with no pockets, and was arguably the deadliest spy on the planet. He knew that she wouldn't hurt him as long as he worked for SHIELD, but she scared him more than anyone else he'd met since he got his powers. Hawkeye he simply hadn't talked to much because the guy was under mind control for a while.
After the Battle (and the confirmation that Coulson had survived the stabbing and would make a full recovery), Stark had offered to let Dr. Banner and Matt move into Stark Tower. They'd both agreed; while it had needed a little repair work after the fight with the Chitauri, the tower (which Tony renamed Avengers Tower) was still an undeniably cool place to live. Though J.A.R.V.I.S. had taken some time to get used to…
Matt, after letting his thoughts wander for the last five minutes, couldn't go back to sleep. Despite it only being ten past six in the morning, he got out of bed. Mr. Stark ("Just Tony, kid.") had been nice enough to help him get some new clothes, and he grabbed a white shirt, blue sweatshirt and his jeans from the day before.
"Good morning, Mr. Garretty." J.A.R.V.I.S. greeted him. "I trust you slept well."
"Hey, J.A.R.V.I.S." The first morning, a bodiless voice greeting him as he walked into the sitting room had scared him so bad that he'd flown up to the ceiling before remembering who J.A.R.V.I.S. was. The A.I. had apologized for startling him, although he could have sworn that he'd sounded amused. Tony, when he saw the security footage of it later, had laughed for a solid minute.
Still not quite awake, Matt made his way to the kitchen. Tony wasn't up yet (shocker) but the coffee maker was ready to go (thankfully). He telekinetically opened the cabinet, then levitated a mug to the counter before filling it with coffee. He took a sip from it before adding a decent amount of sugar.
"Is the coffee to your liking, sir?" J.A.R.V.I.S. asked as Matt took a long sip.
"It's great, thanks." The coffee and mug were still fairly hot. He held the mug telekinetically while he made his way over to the window, watching the start of the sunrise.
Avengers Tower was more-or-less back in shape (Tony had promised bonuses to every construction worker willing to work overtime), but the city itself still had a lot of damage to fix and rubble to clean. He'd heard that Captain America had been working with the NYPD, SHIELD, and a few military people on SAR missions since the invasion.
His thoughts turned to the fight. As Cyclone, he'd basically been doing damage control, helping to keep the debris and the aliens away from the civilians. He'd flown all throughout the city (twice), had telekinetically thrown several cars at passing aliens (and sent a Chitauri through a billboard), and had helped keep Iron Man from going through the portal by telekinetically pulling him until the danger was passed. By the time it was over, he had a nosebleed (those, thankfully, were becoming more rare the more he used his powers), he was completely exhausted, and he'd never been so hungry in his life.
He laughed a little when he remembered his complete shock at how, during the shawarma lunch after the fight, Thor and Captain America had each eaten enough food to feed four people (their meals combined could have fed ten). Dr. Banner (who'd stopped being the Hulk shortly after the fight) had explained to him that they had higher metabolisms than most humans, but Matt had been convinced that they had rare tapeworms.
He drained half of the mug as he remembered the battle. He was flying around…avoiding getting hit with stray lasers, keeping his force shield up…Andrew, please stop!...
He jolted. That had come out of nowhere. He hadn't said that during the battle…at least, not that battle…
He took a breath. How had he not realized how similar his fight with Andrew had been with his fight in New York? People had been in danger, he'd barely been able to help, innocent people were being threatened by a madman...
He was startled by a shattering noise, and looked down. The mug sat in three pieces, the rest of his coffee having spilled onto the floor. He'd been so lost in thought that he'd lost his mental hold on the mug.
He swore at himself as he telekinetically lifted the pieces off of the floor and took them to the kitchen. At least no one saw that…he started to think as he entered the kitchen.
He stopped when he saw Dr. Banner sitting at the bar, drinking from a cup of what smelled like herbal tea. The doctor was watching him intently, and had clearly seen what had happened to the mug.
"Morning, Dr. Banner." Matt said as he lowered the pieces into the trash can.
"Morning." He replied. He gestured with his mug at the trash can. "Something on your mind?"
"I just forgot I was levitating the mug and I dropped it." He didn't look at Dr. Banner as he spoke. "I just lost control for a sec, it's fine."
"Matt," Banner spoke to him as he stood. "I might not have been…me during the fight, but I've seen your abilities before. Hell, I saw the security footage of you telekinetically throwing a Chitauri through a billboard. You've got incredible control…so what's on your mind?"
Matt didn't answer him. On a regular basis, Dr. Banner wore loose fitting clothes, had mussed hair, looked like he hadn't slept in a week, and often made Matt think of a cashier at a 7-11 at three a.m. Still, the guy was a brilliant scientist (albeit one with an unusual way of dealing with anger) and couldn't easily be fooled by a kid who only recently finished high school.
"It's nothing." He replied as he telekinetically grabbed a paper towel from the counter. He started walking into the living room to clean the spilt coffee, and could hear Dr. Banner slowly follow him. He expected the doctor to keep talking, but he said nothing until Matt had wiped up all of the coffee. When he did speak, though, his words surprised the teen.
"Has anyone ever told you anything about the Hulk?"
Matt simply shook his head as he levitated the wet paper towel into the trash can over in the kitchen. "No, but I saw the footage of what you did to Loki when you were…like that." He let out a breath. "I'm amazed he survived that."
"Asgardian strength, I guess. When…the other guy takes control, I can't really stop myself from doing things that are reckless or…regrettable. It takes a lot of control to keep myself from letting go at the wrong time. I'm better at it now then I was, but it isn't always easy. Scratch that…it's never easy."
Matt nodded as he got up and sat on a chair across from the sofa Dr. Banner was on. He remembered how the Hulk could tear through walls (and Chitauri) like it was nothing…and immediately decided that it was best for everyone that the weird rock hadn't given him and his friends super strength as well.
"And I got my powers alone, when I was an adult." Banner finished, and looked Matt in the eyes. "If it was that hard for me, I can't imagine how hard it was for you and friends."
The teen looked away. He should have known that, on a team full of geniuses who knew about his past, it would be hard to hide his feelings.
"You don't have to talk about it." Banner said, setting down his tea. "I won't force you to. But it might help."
He hadn't wanted to talk about it…at least he thought he hadn't. But words started spilling from his mouth before he knew it.
"What happened with the Chitauri a few days ago…I just realized that it…it was a lot like what happened in Seattle. With Andrew."
"Your cousin, right? The other kid who got powers?"
"Yeah." He admitted, nodding a little, eyes locked on the floor. He didn't notice when Dr. Banner left the sofa and walked over.
"I didn't realize it then, but…flying around, dodging attacks, trying to keep people from getting hurt, watching another person almost die…" Tony's almost death flashed through his mind, the moments of desperately trying to pull him away from the portal as blood flowed from his nose, and the blissful relief when the Hulk caught him and screamed at him until he woke up.
He started breathing heavily, and felt a hand on his shoulder. Banner, his eyes sympathetic, gave his shoulder a small squeeze before he let go. Matt took a deep breath.
"I know Andrew's death wasn't my fault…and I know there was stuff happening during the battle that I couldn't prevent. I thought I was doing better…The nightmares have stopped, the counselor said I was doing fine, I'm better with my powers than ever before…how do I start feeling normal again?"
Banner, sitting on the couch again, drummed his fingers on his mug before he answered the question.
"Kid…Matt…on this team, none of us are normal. Tony's a narcissistic billionaire in a metal suit, Cap's from a different time, Thor's the prince of Asgard, Natasha and Barton are professional spies, and I can turn into…well, you know." He looked Matt in the eyes again.
"We've all got baggage, some of it as bad as yours. What you're feeling right now…I can't promise that it'll ever go away. But it will get better. Trust me."
A smile, just a little one, worked its way onto the teens face. "You sound like Steve."
A nonplussed expression appeared on the doctor's face. "Is…is that something that Cap would say?"
Matt managed to laugh a little. "No, no…sorry. Steve Montogery. He was one of my friends. He…He got powers too."
Banner's eyes went wide for a second, likely remembering that there were three kids who got those powers. He cleared his throat. "...Well, then I'll take that as a compliment…It was a compliment, right?"
"Yeah."
The two were silent for a while, watching the sun fully rise. Despite the city still being a mess, Matt had to admit that it was a sight worth getting up early for. Banner, while still looking tired, seemed to agree.
The quiet was interrupted by the sound of the elevator. Matt turned and saw a familiar face. He was out of his uniform, wearing a simple gray shirt, jeans and a black hat that read "World War II Veteran", but it was undeniably Captain Rogers.
"Hey Cap." Banner greeted. Matt echoed the greeting. He thought it was because he'd never been that into history that he didn't know too much about Captain America, and thus he didn't fanboy over him like some of SHIELD's agents did (including Agent Coulson).
Captain Rogers returned their greetings and looked around. "Tony up yet?" He then paused when he saw the clock, as if realizing what silly question that was.
"No." Matt answered. "Is the Search and Rescue stuff done?"
"No." Cap sighed. "I'd still be helping them but Director Fury asked…actually ordered me to take a day off."
"Have you been working with them non stop for the last three days?" Matt said incredulously.
"The past three-and-a-half, actually." Cap nodded.
"Something tells me you need that break." Banner took another sip from his (now cold) tea.
Cap looked like he was about to argue, but there was no mistaking the circles under his eyes. He probably hadn't been sleeping much in the last few days.
Matt moved over to the couch and patted the cushion next to him. Cap took a breath and sat. He gave the teenager a look.
"So, Cyclone," he said, using his alias in a joking manner, "I'm still new to this century. What do kids your age do for fun?"
Matt thought for a minute, before remembering another gift Tony had given him when he moved in. "Have you ever played a video game?"
…
"Where are you? Where are you?" Cap shouted, practically standing up as his thumbs jammed at the controller buttons.
"You'll never find me!" Matt cackled as his thumbs flew.
"No, Cap, he's on the right! The right!" Banner shouted, trying to keep calm so the other guy wouldn't make an appearance.
None of them noticed a blinking Tony walk out of his room, or Black Widow and Hawkeye, who'd been silently watching the scene for the last five minutes.
"No, Steve, not that button!" Banner almost shouted.
Gunfire came from the TV. Matt smiled triumphantly as he set down the computer. Cap took a breath, sighing in defeat. Banner was visibly trying to calm down, and froze up when he saw that the three of them weren't alone.
"How long have you three been standing there?" He asked.
"Long enough." Agent Barton replied.
Tony looked very amused. "Cap, you're a war veteran. How do you lose at Halo?"
"What can I say?" Matt replied. "I've got skills."
Captain Rogers and Agent Romanoff shared a look before they both smirked.
"Yes, you do." Cap replied. An evil grin appeared on his face. "And now you get your prize."
"Which is?" Matt unwisely responded.
His eyes widened as Captain America got up and let the Black Widow take his seat and controller. She gave him a smirk as she restarted the game.
"You get to play Nat." Cap walked to the kitchen.
Matt was suddenly very scared.