Um….hiiiiii…this is a touch awkward…

So, basically, after a few people messaged me asking if I was dead I figured I should make a quick re-appearance and probably explain my writing hiatus.

So, in actuality, this has NOT been a break from writing, rather, a break from THIS story. I have cranked out several original novels, or nearly completed a few. I also hit a roadblock (like, BAM) with this story and wrote the END of Super Power, Slums, and Sweethearts , as well as the beginings of TWO sequels, so DO NOT PANIC…PLEASE! I'm really very sorry about not letting ya'll know before dropping off the face of the Earth, but sometimes these things just happen. That said, here is a well awaited chapter 19! Yay!

Also, leave a comment answering THIS question….

Are you a Nightcrawler fan? (hehehe… :) )

Kyla left the ICU the way she had come in. Her years in the slum allowed her to recall the route out of the tangle of hallways and unmarked doors without much difficulty. It must have been sometime in the morning because she ran into a number of doctors as she went, most of them busily rushing around carrying bags and clipboards or pushing carts with medical gear laid out on them.

Kyla left through the double doors of the waiting room and into the small breezeway separating it from the tarmac outside. Kyla pushed open the door and stepped out, a sudden blast of cold air blowing back her hair as she stepped outside. She shivered. The only thing she could compare this to was once when she had been locked in a walk-in freezer for three hours. For the record, she had let herself get caught that time.

Kyla scanned the landing area, staying well behind the yellow caution line that paved the walking area around the outskirts of the tarmac. She wasn't really in the mood for getting hit by a landing fighter jet today. A number of crews of people were crowded around the grounded planes and helicopters, working on engines and training new pilots. There was an enormous amount of activity going on and Kyla felt slightly out of place as she wandered around with nothing to do. She figured that she should go see Fury, but where was he? Where was anything for that matter? Would alarms go off if she tried to open a door?

Kyla walked quickly out of the way as two men carrying a large crate ran past her on the footpath, nodding respectfully and disappearing from sight around the corner of the medical unit. Kyla shivered and wrapped her arms around herself, her bare arms frozen by the brisk wind and cold air. She decided to just walk into the first door she came across, hoping that it would somehow lead her to her next task. She wandered a little bit further down the path before cautiously pulling the handle of a large glass door. It opened and she stepped inside, finding herself in another breezeway. She walked across to the next door and entered into a plain-walled and concrete-floored hallway. Pipes and wiring lined the ceiling above her and bright overhead lights gave the impression of a harsh military presence to the hall.

Soldiers carrying guns were patrolling the halls, most of them passing right by her without a glace, but some of them pausing to look at her before continuing on their way. One man even stopped. He was an older man in his late forties. He was dressed in full uniform and carried an M16 held tightly in his hands.

"Hey, who are you?" He said in a voice that suggested a life-long smoker.

"Kyla. Kyla Amano…" Kyla said hurriedly, unsure if she had done something wrong. Reflexively her right hand tightened around the knife in her pocket.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't recognize you." He gave a curt nod and walked away, obviously off to do something terribly important.

"Okay then…" Kyla muttered to herself. She flipped a mental coin and decided to go left down the hall. Just for kicks she tried to open a few of the numerous unmarked doors along the walls, but all of them were locked. When she reached another intersection Kyla figured that maybe she should just wait and ask the next person she saw for directions. At least that way she wouldn't have to put up with the embarrassment of getting lost on her first day on the job. For the first time in several minutes she was alone in the halls, and without the low voices and echoing footsteps she found it to be eerily quiet. The four-way intersection of halls around her was silent as the grave. She leaned against a wall and sighed heavily. Her voice echoed through the halls and she shut up, years of practicing silence and stealth taking over.

There were about five minutes of silence and Kyla was beginning to wonder if she shouldn't just head off in some random direction. Then she heard footsteps. They were heavy and coming from someplace in the hall to her left. She stuck her head out to look but the hall took a sharp turn and she couldn't see who was approaching. The same way it did whenever she was on edge her heart started to pound. She put her right foot back for better balance and her hands slowly curled into tight fists. She didn't feel safe here.

The second the man ran into view she realized her concern was pointless. Partially because of the size of the man (she couldn't have fought him if she wanted to) and also his face. When he saw her he wasn't defensive like the guards, he was curious. Curious people are harmless.

He was blond haired and blue eyed. He wore a white t-shirt and grey sweatpants and he was jogging. At least that's what Kyla could make of it. She dropped her fists, somewhat embarrassed, and gave a curt nod, stepping aside to let him pass. She didn't think she had ever seen a man with more muscles before in her life, not even dealers' body guards could compare. Instead of passing by her, the man stopped and looked her up and down. Kyle gave a lopsided smile which he returned effortlessly. He was hansom when he smiled.

"Hey. You new here?" He asked. He was American.

"Yes." Kyla answered quickly. She chewed on her lower lip. The man suddenly put out a hand, making her jump back a little, but he ignored it.

"I'm Steve. Steve Rogers. You can call me Cap if you want."

"Kyla, Kyla Amano. You can call me Dart."

"Oh!" Steve said, giving her hand a firm shake. "You're the new Avenger Fury was talking about!"

"Um, yeah. Yeah I am." Kyla said, her smile getting more genuine. Okay, so this guy was probably an Avenger too. That meant she could trust him…right?

"Oh good, everyone was getting nervous that we lost you on your first day! Where are you headed?"

"I'm trying to find Director Fury. Have you seen him?"

"Hasn't he given you your quarters yet?"

"No."

"Uniform?"

"No."

"Introduced you to the team?"

"Nope."

"Geeze…Okay, I'll take you over there so you two can talk then I'll take you to meet the other guys, that sound good?"

It was somehow comforting to talk to Steve. He had the air of someone that knew exactly what needed to be done and the best way to make it happen. Kyla didn't feel like she had to do everything herself.

"That'd be nice, thanks." She said. She followed Steve back the way he had come jogging, having difficulty padding along with his long stride.

"So you have a power, right?" he suddenly asked.

"Fury didn't tell you?"

"I try not to read up on team members before I meet them. I draw my own conclusions."

"That's nice…"

"What?" Steve asked, obviously reading her expression.

"I don't like people knowing about me. It feels weird here…like everyone knows who I am and I have no idea who they are."

"I know what you mean."

Kyla looked up at him. He was facing forward while they walked, waiting for her to speak but clearly closing that branch of discussion.

"Yeah, I have a…a sort of…" She was momentarily lost for the right word. What was it that she had? A gift? A skill?

"An ability?" tried Steve.

"Yeah, an ability. I can climb up walls."

Steve looked down at her with raised eyebrows. "Really?"

"…and I can jump, and some other stuff."

Steve left that alone as they turned a corner. The hall ended and at the end was an elevator door. They walked up to it and Steve frowned at the two buttons, up and down. His hand froze a few times on its way to the button before finally pressing "up". Kyla frowned, but didn't ask. There was that awkward no, you talk first moment as they waited for the elevator, and Steve took the bullet just as the door opened.

"I don't like these things."

Kyla followed him in and the door closed behind her. Immediately the room began to rise and her stomach dropped.

"Yeah…I really don't like these…" Steve said again.

"Uh huh..." Kyla muttered. She tugged uncomfortably on her shirt and suddenly remembered something rather important.

"I've got nothing to wear but this…" she said. She was suddenly struck with the realization that she was covered with dirt, powder burns, and blood (more Clint's than hers). No wonder the guards had looked at her like slugs were coming out of her ears. She looked like a freaking axe murderer.

"Oh, yeah…huh."

Again hesitating on the buttons Steve pressed a blue one near the "down" arrow. The elevator stopped and Steve hit the "3".

"It's probably best if you don't make your first impression on the bridge crew wearing…that."

Kyla gave an appreciative grin. "Thanks."

"I don't know where your quarters are exactly but I think there's some spare clothes that'll fit you in the training room."

"Oh, okay. Thanks."

"No problem Miss Amano."

"Kyla…"

"Sorry. Kyla."

The elevator dropped them off at the third floor and Steve led the way down another maze of identically militaristic hallways. She did her best to not stare at him, but somehow she couldn't keep her eyes from wandering to the back of his head. This wasn't unusual for her, she never liked to leave any unfamiliar person out of her sight for long, but she had already established a sort of trust with Steve. She was simply intrigued by him. From the way he talked to the way he combed his hair, something about him was fundamentally different from everyone else she had met on the Helicarrier.

"Um, Captain?" she said, an uncharacteristic hesitation to her voice. Steve slowed his walk so that she was walking beside him and looked down at her.

"Yes?"

"What's your, uh..."

"Gift?"

"Yeah."

"I'm a supersoldier."

"Oh…" Kyla said, wondering if she was supposed to know what that meant.

"It means I'm super strong and can heal fast."

"That's gotta come in handy."

"You have no idea." He said with a grin. "It helped in the war."

"Where? Iraq?" Kyla asked.

"Germany."

Kyla opened her mouth to say something but didn't bother. She had gotten too many cryptic answers to questions in the last three days anyhow.

"Here we are." Steve said all of a sudden, walking over to a glass door and opening it. Kyla waited for him to go in but he just stood there, holding it open. He smiled and nodded his head to the room beyond. Kyla suddenly understood that he was holding the door open for her. She didn't know why, but somehow this gesture struck her. No one had ever held a door open for her in her life.

"Thanks." she said quietly, returning Steve's smile and walking into the room. It was a small room, no bigger than the waiting room of the med area had been. Another door way led into a much bigger room that appeared to house a large number of weight lifting machines and other workout equipment. Beside the door was a wall of cubbies, some with clothes in them, others with workout equipment and shoes.

Steve crossed over to this wall and pulled a few items of neatly folded clothes out of one of the top cubbies. He offered them to Kyla.

"I don't know how well these'll fit, but it's better than…" His eyes dropped to her bloody shirt and jeans.

"Yeah, I got ya." Kyla interjected with a smile.

"There's a bathroom over there you can change in." Steve added, pointing across the workout area to a closed door beyond. Kyla nodded walked through the doorway in the direction of the sparring ring. The floor was padded and slightly springy beneath her bare feet.

Emerging from the bathroom, she looked at herself in the full length mirror that hung on the wall by the sparring ring. The clothes, a tight-fitting and plain black jumpsuit, were a touch on the uncomfortable side, but she figured that she could get used to it. She wasn't overly thin or overweight and she really didn't care what people thought of her as long as she ditched the "ax-murderer" look.

"Sorry, but that's all we've got in your size." Steve said, walking up behind her. Kyla turned around to face him.

"No, it's fine." She said dismissively. She looked around him at the door. "So, where to next?"

"Uh, do you want to see your quarters? There's one bunkroom left on our level."

As the two headed for the door Kyla glanced over at Steve curiously.

"Our level?" she asked.

"Yes. Well, the Avengers' level anyway. Tony is very possessive."

"Possessive?"

"If you touch his coffee mug before nine a.m. he says he'll "put on the suit". Yes. He's very possessive."

Kyla couldn't hide her slight chuckle. Steve had just confirmed everything she had so far thought of the famous and internationally recognized billionaire. He was a complete and total man-child.

It was also clear to Kyla that Steve Rodgers didn't care much for Tony Stark. She thought about asking, but decided against it. Best not to ask too many questions this early on.

The pair of them headed down a number of intricate halls and rode in two elevators before arriving at a large metal door. They talked a little, and Kyla learned that Steve went by the code name "Captain America", and that he cringed slightly when she mentioned remembering a story about him as a child. He asked her very few questions, and for that she was thankful. She really wasn't in a mood to reopen old wounds. He asked her how Barton was feeling and if she was planning on staying in the Helicarrier or getting an apartment someplace. She told him that she didn't seem to have much choice, but that she wanted to stay on the Helicarrier. At least there she was guaranteed three meals a day. This seemed to confuse Steve a bit until he remembered when they had picked the young woman up.

"Well, don't worry about food here." He said, smiling as he opened the metal door in front of them. "I think the cooks here are trying to get us to gain weight."

Inside the room it was dark, and Steve felt around for a switch as Kyla stepped inside. When the fluorescent light came on she saw that the room was larger than her shack back in the slums. A twin-sized bed with a grey comforter and fluffy pillows was set against the right hand side wall and looked like it could be folded into the wall for more space. A small desk with a white lamp and flat-screened computer monitor were on the other side of the room and to the left were a closet and a door leading to an attached bathroom.

"This is nice." Kyla said, stepping further inside. Steve left the door open behind him and followed her in a ways.

"It's not much, but it has the essentials. Personally I spend most of my time in the gym or rec. room.

"No, really, this is bigger than where I lived…yesterday…" Kyla said slowly, drifting off as she realized the truthfulness of her own sentence. Steve gave her an odd look but didn't ask.

"Yes, well, feel free to search the computer for a map. It's voice activated…whatever that means…" he muttered, stepping outside. Kyla turned to face him.

"Hey, thanks for showing me around. I appreciate it."

Steve gave an uncomfortable smile and nodded. He hesitated, like he wanted to say something else, then left, disappearing around the corner and down the hall. The door shut automatically behind him with a "swoosh" and Kyla sighed heavily. She fell onto the small bed and closed her eyes.

24 Hours ago she had been running for her life from a bunch of mystery men, dragging another mysterious man along with her for no real reason…and now she was sitting on a bed on a freaking flying aircraft carrier going who-knows-where for who-knows-how-long.

Funny how situations change…