Chapter 2
By: MysticFantasy
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"Doctor, I better not hear anything I won't like." Nick Fury said as the doctor walked out of the room where the injured super soldier was recovering.
"I'm sorry to have to dissappoint you then sir." the doctor answered.
"What is it then?" Fury asked. "What's wrong with our super soldier?"
"The blow to the head was enough to cause a little damage, sir. I'm afraid Captain Rogers has amnesia."
"Say again." Tony declared, not wanting to believe what he just heard. "He has what?"
"Amnesia." the doctor said more firmly. "The injury he recieved to his head was more intense that we originally believed. He'd recieved it shortly after his mission on the weapons factory. He was missing the entire night and was unconscious during that time in freezing conditions with this injury. Had he been able to make it back sooner it could have been prevented but since he wasn't able to...This is the result."
"Will he recover from it soon?" Clint asked just wanting to know if his friend was going to be ok.
"On top of the other injuries he has, including the concussion, it's hard to say. Amnesia is one of the things you can't say if a full recovery is possible. The best thing that we can do for Captain Rogers is to help him try to remember things while he recovers. His memory could come back slowly, in pieces or possibly all at once. Just don't rush him into remembering or it'll send him into shock which is one of the last things he needs right now."
"Thank you doctor." Fury said dismissing the SHIELD doctor who walked away once he was released.
"So now what?" Tony asked.
"I can't believe I'm saying this but, you are going to be taking Steve's place while he's out of commission." Fury said.
"Say what?" Tony questioned.
"You're going to lead the Avengers until Steve is able to return to the team."
"You sure that's a good idea Fury?" Clint asked and got a light glare from Tony.
"We don't have any other choice right now." Fury replied. "Steve was picked to lead the team because he's lead a team into battle before and he has the most knowledge and experience with battle tactics and strategies. While he's out, Stark is going to lead the team. If Thor shows up any time soon fill him in on what's going on."
"He's not gonna like it." Clint said. "You know how Thor gets when he hears one of us is hurt."
"It's kinda cute though." Natasha said.
"Keep me posted on anything that changes." Fury said. "I'll get the doctor to give us some more information to help Rogers."
"We'll be here with him if you need us." Tony said as the director started to walk down the hallway.
"I'm gonna go find Bruce and let him know what's going on." Natasha said.
"Alright. We'll be here with the old man and his broken hip." Tony said trying to lighten the mood a bit.
"Very funny Stark." Natasha muttered half heartedly as she walked toward the lab where Bruce would most likely be.
"Think we should put a cane in there just to make her mad?" Clint suggested.
"No way. I can think of at least ten ways she can use that thing to kill us. Plus it would be kinda weird to explain to Steve." Tony replied.
"Good point." Clint agreed. "Alright then. Let's go introduce ourselves."
Tony nodded and followed the archer to the door. The two entered the room where they quickly spotted Steve sitting in his bed leaning against a few pillows. He'd been fingering the thick white bandages that were wrapped around his head, most likely wondering how it had ended up there, when they entered.
He looked at them curiously.
"Hey Steve, how you feeling?" Tony greeted standing a few feet away from the bed.
"Uh, fine I guess." Steve answered. "Do I know you?"
"Before you got that bump to the head, yes. I'm Tony Stark, one of your friends. This is Clint Barton, another one of your friends. We're here to visit you for a while and see how you're doing."
"Thanks." Steve said as the two sat down.
"You in any pain?" Clint asked.
"Just a little headache but it's nothing." Steve answered. "By any chance, do either of you know what happened to me?"
"Somewhat." Clint answered. "You work for the government, like me. You were sent on a mission to see if a rumored weapons factory existed. It did and somehow, while you were trying to make your way back here, you ran into some trouble and got hurt."
"What exactly do I do?" Steve questioned after hearing the story.
"You're a captain. Both in the army and the agency we work for." Clint answered. "You're a very skilled soldier and a lot of people look up to you and treat you with respect."
"And what is it that you two do?" Steve asked.
"I'm a regular field agent and expert marksman. Although I prefer archery." Clint explained.
"I'm a kinda business partner to the agency." Tony said. "I also help them with a few science projects every now and then."
"What is this agency that we work for?"
"It's kinda like espionage." Clint answered. "We go all over the world stopping a few crazy people who want to take over the world."
"Super heroes? Is that what you're saying we are?" Steve asked with a skeptic look.
"What would you say if I said yes?" Clint asked.
"I would wonder how it is that I'm the one who's getting his head checked." Steve answered.
Clint and Tony quickly glanced at each other with similar looks.
Steve Rogers didn't believe a word they were saying.
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"Did they say if he'll recover from it?" Bruce asked examining some materials from the destroyed factory that SHIELD had managed to salvage. He had to give it to Steve, when he wanted to destroy something he went above and beyond to do it. No doubt he had figured out a few things when he'd been fighting against Hydra.
"They said they're not sure." Natasha answered sitting on a chair. "Doctor said that it could have been prevented if Steve had managed to get back."
"I'd like to see the doctor get nailed in the head with a rock and walk away." Bruce declared. "He doesn't know that Steve was lucky he hadn't completely cracked his skull or something else. Had it been anyone else they would have died from the impact."
Natasha looked up when the door to the lab opened and Clint and Tony walked in.
"How's Steve?" Bruce asked pausing in his work.
"He says he's doing alright. Head hurts a little." Clint answered.
"Did he ask what was going on?" Natasha asked.
"Naturally." Tony answered. "We told him a few of the basic things, sugar coated it a little, and he thought that we were the one's who should be getting a catscan. Didn't believe a word we said."
"Classic amnesia behavior." Bruce said. "He'll believe what he wants to until his memories return or he gets solid evidence to support anything told to him."
"Fury won't allow that to happen." Clint stated sitting on top of a metal table. "He wants Steve to take it easy until he remembers who he is."
"He better remember everything soon." Tony declared. "I know I'm awesome at a lot of things but being the leader of a team isn't something I'm ready to add to my list. Steve's the one who's qualified for that. He's the war hero here."
"I think we can all agree on that." Natasha said with a little smirk on her face.
"So what does Fury want us to do in the meantime?" Bruce asked.
"Just to help Steve in any way that we can." Tony answered. "Visit him, talk to him, establish friendship with him again. Basically, we have to reintroduce ourselves to Steve and earn his trust and friendship all over again."
"It shouldn't be too hard. He basically trusted us right away from the moment we first met." Clint said recalling how Steve hadn't judged him in any way once he'd been freed from Loki's mind control. It only took one nod from Natasha and the captain was calling him a friend and brother in arms. Clint never once met anyone who had right away trusted him like that.
"With his mind the way it is, it may not be." Bruce pointed out. "Along with a few other things, Steve may not think the same way he did before. For instance, he was a shy gentlman before the accident. He may now act as social as Tony without feeling the least bit self conscious about anything."
"Maybe we should take him clubbing." Tony lightly joked.
"We could at least try to break him out a few habits he's stuck in." Clint suggested. "Getting him to not wake up before dawn every morning could be one of them."
"Learning technology." Tony mused.
"He's gotten the hang of a few things." Bruce pointed out.
"Wouldn't hurt to learn more." Tony said.
"You guys are horrible." Natasha said with a full smirk on her face. She did admit that it would be nice if Steve was a little less nervous around women. The poor guy acted like he would be silenced by any and all women if they weren't SHIELD agents.
"Well, either way, we have to get him to trust us again or else he's going to keep thinking we're a bunch of lunatics." Tony said.
"Let's just take it slow." Natasha suggested. "Earn his trust and friendship again. He's in a pretty fragile state and doesn't need too many things at once."
"Speaking of which, how are we going to explain this to Thor?" Bruce asked. "He's surely going to want to see Steve once he finds out what happened and he doesn't exactly make the quietest of entrances."
"Knowing Thor, he'll think it's some kind of evil magic." Tony said.
"The only thing we can do is keep Thor from barging in on Steve and explain exactly what's going on. Thor just bursting in might give Steve more reason to think that he's in the wrong place and might try to get away at the first chance he gets." Bruce said.
"Even the way he is, Steve can still kick all our a**es." Clint stated.