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Thank you to WithinHerHeart for beta reading so quickly! :D


Chapter 7

Dahlia closed the file, rubbing the bridge of her nose tiredly. She had no idea there had been so much research into such a small cube; had no idea the energy could be used in so many different ways, for so many different reasons. More importantly, she'd had enough of the road blocks in the pages. Just what the hell was Phase 2, and what was the point in mentioning it, if didn't possess the clearance for it?

"God, my eyes are starting to burn," she mumbled, leaning back in the chair, "I can't read anymore. If I ever see Jane and Eric again, I'm going to tell them they need a holiday…" she eyed the man across from her closely, "So have you found anything?"

Bruce breathed out lowly. "Nothing definite if that's what you're looking for. I keep adjusting the calibrations on the spectrometers but so far, I can't get a lock on anything. The best I can hope for is the Captain and Agent Romanov bringing Loki back…"

Dahlia breathed out slowly before biting her bottom lip. "I hope they're okay…"

"You…care about them a lot, don't you?" Bruce commented, almost cautiously.

Dahlia couldn't help but smile. "Yeah, I mean Steve and Tasha – they are some of the first friends I made. I just…worry about what happens to them. I don't want them to get hurt, you know?"

"Yeah, I guess so. I mean that would, uh, suck…" Bruce agreed. He reached up to scratch the back of his neck; a question pushing past his lips before he could stop himself, "So how did you and Captain Rogers – a-and you and Agent Romanov – become so close?"

"Natasha and Clint – he's S.H.I.E.L.D's, uh, missing agent – were the some of the first people I met when I first arrived in S.H.I.E.L.D's custody. They didn't have to, but they reached out, offered to train me, and it just kind of grew from there I guess," Dahlia explained with a shrug. "With Steve, it was kind of an accident really. Fury had asked me to try and introduce Steve into the 21st century, and he of course, was less than happy with that idea. But to keep the boss man off my back, I used to just show up every few days and basically annoy Steve for a couple of hours. And when he'd finally gotten over his stubbornness, we actually started to enjoy each others company. I introduced him to some modern movies and technology, that sort of thing, and he listened to me. He's like, my big brother…"

"Big brother?" Bruce blinked surprised. He ignored the way his stomach jumped a little at the statement, "So, you and Steve aren't…"

"What? No," her nose wrinkled, "That's just, no, eww – not that Steve isn't attractive, but seriously, no. Nothing like that has ever happened between me and Steve Rogers. We are just very good friends, that's all."

"Oh, that's good then…" he nodded slowly, averting his gaze to the results purposely.

"Yeah, I guess so too," Dahlia hummed, eying him closely.

"Anyway, I'm sure they're fine," Bruce answered, shooting her a reassuring smile, "They're training for this kind of thing, right?"

"Yes, I know that. It's just…New Mexico…" she trailed off with a sigh.

"Are you going to tell me what happened in New Mexico?" he tilted his head curiously.

"Hmm, maybe later. If we're having a 'get-to-know-you' session, we should probably start with the basics before we delve into that particular bag of crazy," she laughed.

"Fine then," Bruce shrugged, "What's your favourite colour?"

"Green," Dahlia answered automatically. Her eyebrows furrowed when he choked back an almost bitter sounding laugh, ducking his head. "What?"

"Nothing, it's just…nothing…" he shook his head, and changed the subject, a wry smile now firmly in place, "Another question, what about family? I, uh, heard you talking to your sister, and I know a little about your father's research but, um…"

Dahlia hesitated. Family was a touchy subject, especially for her. She was prepared to evade the question, an excuse to change the subject once more balanced on the tip of her tongue – but Bruce was staring at her with those damned imploring eyes, much like Steve's had been when he had asked her the same question a few months before, and once again, she felt her resolve waver.

She sighed and reluctantly begun the explanation for the second time in her life: "First thing you should know, I don't get along with my parents. My mum is one of those country club upper class women, who grew up getting everything they wanted, with too much money and too much time to spare, and backdated views on how women should act in civilized company. As you know, my father is a radiation expert and has spent most of his life trying to create gamma ray weapons specifically, for the British Military Forces. He was completely obsessed with the possibilities, and it only got worse every time he failed – and he failed a lot. He didn't even seem to notice he had two daughters at all. My older sister, Calista, practically raised us both singlehandedly…"

"Oh…I'm sorry…" Bruce shifted awkwardly, regretting bringing up the seemingly innocent topic.

Dahlia smiled reassuringly, waving off the apology. "Its fine, I've pretty much got over it. I mean, I moved out years ago, and moved to another continent to make sure I could get on with my life. And I've done well so far. Besides, if it hadn't been for my father, I wouldn't have met most of the people I care about." She shrugged.

"Your father?"

"Oh, um, it was one of my dad's failed weapon creations that led to the events that brought me to S.H.I.E.L.D's attention," she responded vaguely, brushing a light brown bang behind her ear.

"What, are you saying your father caused your special talent," Bruce summarized, sounding almost ludicrous, like he couldn't believe it. He crossed his arms across his chest and rested against one of the work tables, "what exactly is it, your, uh, talent?"

Dahlia cleared her throat and began an awkward ramble. "It doesn't sound as bad as it actually is, but I can't always control it a-and I've tried, I really have, but just when I think I've got it handled, something happens and knocks me completely out of wack and, um…" she faltered slightly under Bruce's intense gaze, "…okay, I don't call it this – it sounds too sci-fi fantasy for my liking – but it really is the best word to describe it…S.H.I.E.L.D calls it telekinesis?"

"Telekinesis?" Bruce repeated dumbly.

"Well, really, I'm manipulating particles, but yeah, I can, uh, throw things across the room with my mind," Dahlia said nervously.

"Throw things…across the room…with your mind…"

"Seriously, are you just going to keep repeating the last thing I just said," she snapped, a spark of irritation flared up within her. She could see it in his face, the disbelief and the humour, and it drove her mad. It was always like this; never believing the damage that could be caused and it always ended badly. She struggled to calm herself, taking calming breaths, clenching and unclenching her hands.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I just…well, I was expecting something much worse than, um, telekinesis," Bruce chuckled with a forced amusement.

Dahlia's eyes narrowed. "I told you it's much worse than it sounds. I don't like it; I don't like what I'm capable of when I get angry or sad or hurt or jealous or scared," she hadn't realised she had closed the distance between them, until she was using the table to lean upon, closing the height difference between them. From this close proximity, she could see the specks of green in his surprised hazel eyes. "What I could do, what I have done, absolutely terrifies me, and I would appreciate it if you didn't act like it's some kind of bloody joke!"

She could see the unusual increase of green in his wide eyes; could feel the heated breath across her flustered skin. She struggled to not react to his presence.

Bruce closed his eyes briefly and tried to regulate his breathing, tried to lower his heart rate, but every intake of air caused his senses to overwhelm, and he could have to begin the process again. She was just too loud, too close, too everything. He licked his bottom lip nervously.

"I'm…" he tried to speak, but his voice came out squeaked and uneasy.

Dahlia was well aware of how close they were, and of how easy it would be to just close the distance between them – to kiss him. Her annoyance had ebbed away, leaving only the loud pounding of her escalated heart beat that was almost deafening in the silence of the lab. She should pull back, should put some distance between them, because now really wasn't the time and she was obviously making him uncomfortable –

The thought died when her eyes followed the trail of his tongue.

The crackle of the intercom above them interrupted whatever had just happened. Dahlia shuffled backwards, averting her gaze purposely, and Bruce ducked his head to focus on the spectrometer readings, clearing his throat loudly.

A monotone voice filled the tense silence. "Hostile 1 has been apprehended. Hostile 1 has been apprehended."

Through the glass window, heavily armed S.H.I.E.L.D agents marched in sync, surrounding a tall, armoured figure that Dahlia recognised only too well.

Loki glanced into the lab and a sinister grin crossed his handsome face. It was as if he were amused, as if he knew something was going to happen. Even though he was arrested, cuffed and guarded, totally at the mercy of S.H.I.E.L.D, it worried her immensely. She shivered involuntarily, wrapping her arms almost protectively around herself.

"Dahlia…" Bruce's voice was low, worried even, as if he feared that if he spoke too loudly, she might break. "Are you okay?"

Dahlia forced a smile to her face, one she hoped was convincing. "Yes, I-I'm fine. Just…let's go find the others, yeah?"

Bruce examined the woman closely, his uncertain stance showing that maybe he didn't quite believe it, but he didn't push the issue and she was grateful for it.

"Of course," he inclined his head, "lead the way."


A/N: And it is done for now! The next chapter will lead into the movie dialogue (pre-warning for spoilers, just in case) and will also have Dahlia meeting Tony and Thor – there may even be a couple of flashbacks of her part in New Mexico, but I'm not entirely sure yet.

If you have any prompts for Avengers stories, anything you want to see in print, I am open for requests. You can either send me a private message on here, or leave me a message on my tumblr: WhatIMustWrite