Faux Pas
Chapter Two
"In the middle of New York's traffic...Where everyone could see you, plain as day..."
Director Fury stood before Bridgette in the safety of Stark Tower. The girl stood at attention as best as she could, shoes being discarded since they were broken (another pair, gone), arms clasped behind her back and feet shoulder width apart. She kept her mouth shut, for the moment, while Director Fury read her the right act.
"This ruins any cover up you may have had in place before the Initiative and Loki attack, do you understand?" he demanded. Tony, Steve and Bruce were standing a distance behind her, all quiet. She released a hard breath and answered.
"Yes. I understand."
"You are now a target for others who may be wanting to hurt SHIELD or the Avengers. You've painted a bull's eye on your back, Smith." She nodded.
"I rather it be me," she answered honestly. "Rather I be the freak show than any of the others." Fury gave her a stern look and she shrugged. "Seriously. Isn't it better that it's me, someone with no past whatsoever? Instead of Stark, the billionaire. Steve, the time jumping solidier. Bruce, the tempermental scientist." She glanced over her shoulder. "No offense guys."
"None taken," assured the Captain. Fury's glare moved from Bridgette to the men past her shoulder, taking a step forward.
"But it wasn't just you, Smith." His glare landed on Bruce who looked up cautiously. Tony had received Bridgette's phone call and drove out to pick up the Ricochet and a doctor who was clutching the shreds of his clothing, the girl half hauling him so they could get into the vehicle with tinted windows as quickly as possible.
"Dr. Banner." Bridgette flinched, hoping that maybe somehow, the Director of SHIELD would over look the fact that Bruce went Hulk in the center of New York. Not likely.
"While Smith was busying fighting two ton trucks, you also Hulked out in clear viewing of the public," he continued. Bridgette had to fight a groan. Bruce gave a single nod, arms folded.
"Yes," he admitted. Bridgette steped forward to distract Fury from the doctor.
"Listen, it was my fault. I should've been faster-"
"You shouldn't have been involved in the first place," corrected Fury. A flash of irritation flooded her and she stepped forward again.
"In the first place? The kid was going to get hit!" she defended.
"And now you've given the public a clear look into the personal identity of one of the Avengers!" snapped Fury, turning back to her. "The public, the police are trying to get their hands on you all. Tony is already very open and forthcoming due to Stark Industries, what makes you think that you, or Dr. Banner could handle it?"
She stammered for a moment to regain her ground. "A-alright, fine! They got a look at me, so what? I wasn't going to stand by and let that boy's death make the six o'clock news! At least they saw me doing something good-I wasn't robbing a bank or anything!"
"You weren't." He turned to Bruce again. "But the Hulk doesn't always invoke the feeling of security, especially when he's tossing taxi cabs."
"Hey, listen now-"
"I understand-"
Nick Fury lifted his hands to silence the two Avengers. Bruce complied and Bridgette shut her mouth with a bit more difficulty, watching the director intensely. He took a deep breath. The Avengers Initiative was going to be the death of him. Wth the Council constantly on his back, the other realms daring to focus on Earth due to their interactions with the Tesseract, Stark's overall personality, Steve Rogers' place out of time, Bridgette's background with Hydra, and Dr. Banner's Hulk. He didn't have the time or the means to watch out for city rush hour backups due to the Hulk and Ricochet. Fury took another breath before continuing.
"You need to go off radar for awhile," he instructed. "Until this completely calms down."
"Off radar?" repeated Bridgette. Bruce gave a nod.
"Back to Calcutta?" he suggested. The girl's jaw dropped at the suggestion and before she could argue Fury shook his head, hands clasped behind his back again.
"Not quite, doctor," he corrected. "There's somewhere specifically I would like you both to go. Granted, I was hoping to send you there on better grounds, rather than an escape route." Bridgette huffed instead of looking sheepish and the doctor remained professionally neutral.
"Both of us?" asked Ricochet, brow furrowing in confusion.
"Yes, Smith. I know you and Dr. Banner work as something of a pair, and I've decided that it's safer for you two to be working together rather than apart," he explained.
"How sweet," snarked Tony, rolling his eyes. Bridgette gave a teasing glare over her shoulder, ignoring the flush of her cheeks.
"Shove it, Stark."
"Would love to, sweetheart."
"Ass hat-" Director Fury cleared his throat and Bridgette quieted the rest of her banter. Right. She was in trouble. He drew up one of Stark Industries computer screens and pulled up an image of some large estate. It was a lovely complex, lots of green open space along with minor forestry.
"This is Xavier's Institute for Gifted Youngsters," defined Fury. He tapped the screen and an image of a bald older gentleman in a wheel chair. "And this is the founder, Charles Xavier."
The two nodded, Bruce moving to stand beside the girl and to see the screen better. "All right, and what do you need us to do?"
"You will be acting as ambassadors, so to speak," continued Fury. "Xavier's school is for more than intellectually gifted students." Her ears perked at the suspicious undertone.
"More than intelligence?" she asked. "What could be more than intelligence?"
"Genetic mutation."
It seemed as if the entire room tensed at the words. Genetic mutations? What did he mean by that? Was it similar to Hydra? Experiments gone wrong?
"What do you mean by that, Director?" asked Dr. Banner. Fury tapped the screen and a directory of some sort expanded for them to see. A few rows of students, like a class roster. Just your simple every day kids, nothing odd about them.
"These are the students enrolled at the Institute, and each and every one of them have a genetic mutation of some kind," he went on. Bridgette shook her head, confused.
"What do you mean they have a mutation? Is this some kind of Hydra division or something? Are these kids in trouble?" she asked. Bruce glanced over at her, noticing her concern. He shyed a step closer so that their arms could brush and she gave him fleeting appreciative glance, focus back to Fury.
"No, it isn't like Hydra," he answered. "Professor Xavier takes in students who are born with genetic mutation. A type of haven from society. He's providing them shelter and an opportunity to better control their mutations."
"So why are we acting as ambassadors? What do you need us for?" asked Bruce. Fury wiped the screen clean for the moment, hands behind his back.
"Xavier is a very private individual and refuses to share any information involving his school and the students, which is of interest to SHIELD as they all are potential threats. Just like the rest of you," he added.
"So you want us to get you your information," guessed Banner. "You want us to spy."
"I would rest easier knowing that two of our men were on the inside, so to act as an extra defense against the public for the students, and in exchange, establish a trust with Professor Xavier and the Institute." Bridgette fidgeted, folding her arms.
"So why is this so difficult? I mean, why doesn't Xavier trust you already? Because you're super secret government?" she asked. "Why is this giving you so much trouble?"
He gave a hard sigh. "Xavier isn't particularly found of us because we are like the government, no matter how often I've said that we are seperate, and because of the Avengers."
Steve and Tony stepped forward in interest, the Captain speaking up. "Wait, why would they have a problem with us? We've just now heard of their institute."
"And equally disliked by society, thanks," added Tony. "What makes them better than us?"
"Xavier and the students don't exactly favor the Avengers because none of you were born with your abilities," said Fury. "Stark is all mechanical advancement, while the rest of you were created from science. Their argument is that none of you were born with super strength or any other oddities. You all chose to be the way you are."
Bruce sighed, removing his glasses so to set them on the nightstand. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he released another breath, sitting on the edge of his bed. Tomorrow they were going to leave for the institute. Fury had managed to make arrangements for the pair, and Xavier had agreed due to the commotion they had caused in the city. The Professor was understanding and sympathetic to their need to lay low for awhile. Whether or not Fury knew that playing the sympathy card would gain him access to the institute was another debate for another day.
Groaning, he flopped back onto the mattress, tired. He was ready to sleep, only wearing sweatpants and he ran his hands through his hair again, mussing the curls further. Covering his eyes with his arm, he debated sleeping as he was, half off the bed when there was a knock at his door. Fighting another groan, he looked over and half glared. If it was Tony he was not going to be happy. He was trying to mentally prepare himself for the flying he would be enduring in the morning, as it was definitely not his favorite way to travel. The last thing he needed was a science lab all nighter.
Scuffing his feet, he made his way over and opened the door.
"Listen Tony-" His words died in his throat when he had to angle his gaze downward to see the form of Bridgette Smith before him. She was wearing a tanktop and some sweatpants that were clearly too big for her. Her arms were crossed, cheeks a shade pink.
"Sorry to disappoint, not Tony," she teased. "A bit more clean shaven, and a heck of a lot cuter, in my opinion."
"O-obviously," he managed, heat creeping up the back of his neck. "Wh-what, ahem, what brings you here?" He knew she was staying at Stark Tower for the night to avoid anyone recognizing her if she tried to make her way to her apartment. He thought she went to bed earlier, using one of the many spare rooms the tower provided. What was she doing still up?
She shrugged, eyes lowered. "Mind if I bunk over?" His heart jumped at her words and he scarcely registered his body's movement as he stepped aside to allow her enterence.
"Not...not at all," he managed. Suddenly he was hyperly aware of the fact that he wasn't wearing a shirt and had to swallow the urge to grab something from his closet. His common sense returned, stating that Bridgette had seen him numerous times without a shirt due to his Hulk sessions. That his body wasn't new to her. The fact only made him blush a darker shade.
She stepped inside and looked around. "How do you like living here? Better than out in the woods, I hope?" she smiled. He gave a breath of a laugh as well.
"Yes, running water is a plus," he confirmed. There was a moment of awkward silence as the two simply stood, facing each other in his room. The seconds ticked by and Bridgette ruffled her hair.
"I-I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come over-you were probably working or something-I wasn't thinking-" she rambled as she moved to head for the door. His arm caught her waist, stilling her from continuing her escape. Of course she was nervous and unsure, they both were. About their relationship. About what they were comfortable with. About what they were allowed to do. Though Bridgette was much more forward with her general affection, as per her personality, there were moments when she would freeze, like now.
"It's all right," he reassured. "I was actually just about to go to bed." It felt so nice to have her body near his, even now in their partial embrace from him catching her to prevent her from leaving. The material of her shirt, the light grazing her own arms wrapping around his to keep steady. Simple touches that set both of their nerves alight with electricity. Blue eyes glanced tentatively up at him.
"You sure?" He leaned down and kissed her cheek lightly.
"Positive." She took a breath and nodded, the two turning to move toward the bed.
The bed itself wasn't anything special, Bruce didn't want anything extravagant like Tony favored. A simple bed that fulfilled it's purpose. Although it was mildly enhanced in strength, a just-in-case of a Hulk out due to a dream or anything of the sort. Unconscious Hulk outs were few and far between for the doctor, for which he was thankful. It was hard enough to keep a lid on the other guy when he was awake, let alone having to spend energy while sleeping. The two approached the bed that was neatly tucked in the corner of the room. As soon as they were standing beside the piece of furniture, the size of the bed suddenly dawned on the doctor.
"Ah..." he groaned. "I'm afraid it'll be...a bit snug." Bridgette laughed in agreement.
"Again, you sure you don't mind? You strike me as a bit of a bed hog," she smiled. He huffed, pretending to be offended as he tugged back the covers. To answer her question, he pulled her down as he took a seat, the springs creaking under their collective weight. He leaned close, their foreheads touching as he sighed, eyes closed.
"I'm tired, so please, no more questions," he begged. Bridgette gave a laugh and agreed, stealing a quick kiss, his hand resting at her waist. Keeping to her promise, she quickly settled under the covers, taking the space next to the wall. Exhausted, Bruce got up once more the go switch the lights off, padding back to his bed cautiously, not wanting to step on a stray pen or anything of the sort.
It was strange, sharing his bed with another. After so long of being unable to even be near people, the close contact was foriegn. He pulled the blankets up and over them, his head hitting the pillow with a satisfying thud. Their bodies were pinned to each other, so that he wouldn't roll off the edge and her hand rested on his waist as a preventative. His arm wrapped around her and she fit perfectly beneath his chin, her breaths soft against his chest. Brown eyes glanced down to see that she was already gone, softly snoring. Smiling to himself, he closed his eyes, sleep dragging him under all the quicker due to being entirely content.
REVIEW! A bit slow (and short, sorry), some info, some Bruce x Bridgette fluffiness! Yay! My favorite personally, lol. Your thoughts would be lovely as always! And I must say, it is so incredibly flattering to see some of my ol' faithful reviewers (you know who you are ;)) back for this story! It really means a lot and I appreciate each and every one of you! P.s. My X-Men knowledge is a scramble mess of the X-Men movies and the cartoon X-Men: Evolution, so please bear with me! Thanks!
Hope you enjoyed!