Hey ya'll, sorry it took me so long to update, I've been busy going to job interviews, I worked at one place for half a day to see how I would fit in, and I'm still waiting to hear back from them for their official word, and there's a few other places I'm waiting to hear back from. It's just been crazy, but here I am, updating again, and I hope you like this chapter. Minnie is starting to get more involved with what's going on with SHIELD and everything. Also, I know I said I'd have the new team member and the big problem in this chapter, but I think I'm going to hold off until the next chapter for at least the new team member. As for the big problem, I want that to be when everyone's in Canada again, so maybe the next chapter, maybe the chapter after. Anywhoo, I hope you like this!
Disclaimer: I'm pretty sure by now you guys know I don't own the Marvel characters.
"Hand!" Norman's voice boomed through the door and she frowned lightly before she stood up and walked into his office.
"You called sir?" she asked and he frowned.
"Why aren't you using the intercom?"
"Of course sir." she said and walked to her desk where she turned on the intercom. "What was it you needed sir?" she asked.
"Hand get in here." he barked and she stared at the intercom for a long moment before she stood up and walked into his office. "Hand, have you met Luke Cage?" Norman asked as he gestured to the man sitting across from him.
"We haven't officially met no." she said as she extended her hand. He shook it and Norman waved his hands around as if to say "Enough".
"Hand, did you contact the others?" he asked and she nodded.
"Yes sir," she said. "The meeting has been arranged for tomorrow afternoon, just like you requested."
"At the hospital?"
"Yes sir."
"Good, very good, leave us now." he ordered and she nodded before she walked back to the doorway. When she was settled at her desk again she started to work before there was a buzz at the intercom.
"Yes Mr. Osborn?"
"Is General Ross going to be there?"
"Yes sir." she said and he stopped talking, allowing her to get some work done. She had noticed that Norman had been acting a little oddly lately, however anytime she tried to ask him how he was feeling he would change the topic. Sure it wasn't her place to question the boss, but she couldn't help it if she felt a little concerned for him.
Interrogations became normal, training became routine and soon I had a perfectly good schedule going again. It was during one of my private training sessions where Natasha had brought in Steve to help teach me self defense when Phil Coulson walked into the gym. "There's a request to see you Minnie." he said as I blocked a punch Natasha threw at me. Steve was still iffy on the whole punching a girl thing.
"Okay." I said as Natasha stopped. "Now?" I asked and he nodded. I nodded as I took a towel and wiped my face off before hanging it around my neck. "Thanks guys." I smiled at them and they nodded.
"Come on Cap, let's work on your left hook." Natasha said and Steve looked at her with a frown.
"What's wrong with my left hook?" he asked. I smiled lightly as I walked along with Phil. A few people greeted me which I returned with a nod or a greeting of my own, until we got to my office.
"You coming in Phil?" I asked and he shook his head.
"I'll be right here." he replied and I nodded before I walked into the office. There waiting in my office was none other than Nick Fury himself.
"Sir." I said in surprise. He turned and looked at me and I smiled quickly. "It's good to see you." I said as I extended my hand. He shook it, his eye moving from my glove clad hand over my body and to my face.
"You've been training." he said and I nodded.
"I have." I replied and he gestured to my desk.
"Director," he said and I let out a small laugh.
"Can I get you anything Sir?" I asked.
"No, that girl Heather already dropped by, dropped you off a drink." he said pointing to my usual after training smoothie. I smiled lightly and noticed that he had a cup of coffee in front of him. I sat down behind the desk and took a sip of my smoothie before making a face.
"I don't care what Natasha says, there is no way that's normal." I said as I pushed it away.
"I see you're settling in." he said and I nodded. "I'd like to talk to you about what happened." he said and I cleared my throat.
"Did you not get my reports sir?" I asked and he shook his head.
"No I got the reports. I want to talk to you though." he continued and I sighed before I nodded.
"Yes sir." I said softly. I told him about that night, he listened and didn't make any comments until I finished. When I did he wordlessly held out his hand. I stared at it for a moment before I took one of my gloves off and I placed my hand in his. He pulled his hand away a moment later and I put the glove back on. Neither of us spoke for a moment before he cleared his throat.
"Stark and your husband haven't had any luck with the cure yet?" he asked and I shook my head.
"No sir." I said softly.
"I'd like to talk to you about a retrieval mission." he said and I nodded.
"What's the target sir?" I asked.
"There's a young man in New York who has had some experience with Norman Osborn who I feel would be a good addition to the team." he replied.
"Who do you think I should send?" I asked as I pulled out my notepad I used when I needed to take notes on things.
"I was thinking this would be a good first mission for the director of SHIELD." he replied and I looked up at him.
"You want me to go back to New York?" I asked and he nodded. I sighed as I laid down my pen. "The Government hasn't exactly been extending a open invitation to our organization."
"We still have a few friends who would do anything to help out the daughter of Agent Bluefox." he said and I smiled lightly.
"Is that why according to anyone who asks, I'm the director?" I asked. "My unknown political connections?"
"You would do the same thing in my shoes." he said and I nodded slowly.
"Yeah you're probably right." I said gently. "Okay just give me the information I need to know."
"Coulson has all the information you'll need. All you need to know for now is your flight leaves in an hour." he replied and I nodded. "I need to talk to Stark and your husband."
"Right away." I said and I walked to the door. "Phil," I said as I stepped outside the room. "Can you clear the hallways between my office and the elevator as well as blocking cameras in the halls and elevators?"
"Halls and elevators," he held up a small box with a button on it and pushed it making me smile. "The hallways have been cleared while you were in your office, I said Stark had set off a small chemical bomb turning the hallways blue and slippery due to boredom." he said and I continued to smile.
"Thank you Phil." I said before I opened the door all the way to the office and Director Fury stepped out, handing me my smoothie as he passed. I made a face and took another long drink from it. I gagged slightly and shuttered as Phil rolled his eyes.
"You get used to it." he informed me. We followed Fury to an elevator and stepped into it. "Minnie you'll need to decide on a team for picking this kid up." Phil said as he handed me a folder. I opened it and started to read his information.
"Peter Parker," I muttered as I read his real name. "God he's just a kid." I said looking up and Fury nodded.
"Keep reading." Phil told me as the elevator reached the ground floor.
"I thought they offed you." Tony said to Director Fury as we stepped out of the elevator.
"That's what you were supposed to think." he said simply.
"Is nothing I know True?!" Tony asked over dramatically.
"Oh hey Tony, if anyone asks, you set off a chemical bomb turning the hallway around my office blue about fifteen minutes ago." I said looking up from the file.
"I did? God I'm unoriginal." he grinned as the door behind him opened. Bruce and Dr. Selvig came in and Bruce looked between me, Phil and Director Fury before he walked over to me and planted a small kiss on my forehead.
I smiled gently and lightly touched his arm.
It just felt different now.
Everything did.
"Minnie?" Phil asked and I nodded.
"Sure, uh, Nat, Clint and Logan." I said and Director Fury looked at me curiously. "I want him in." I said and he nodded slowly.
"In what?" Bruce asked and I looked at him before smiling.
"We're going to talk to another agent a few hours away." I said. "We're taking the jet we should be back sometime tonight."
"Okay..." he said slowly.
"Coulson why don't you take Mrs. Banner to get everything she needs." Director Fury said rather than asked. Phil nodded and I smiled to Bruce before I quickly kissed his cheek. We had learned that if I kissed him quickly there were no problems. Coulson handed a file to Director Fury before we walked to the elevator and I looked at him.
"I need to stop at him and take a quick shower if we're going to do this." I told him.
"Of course." he replied. "I'll get the others. If you don't mind me asking, why Logan?" he asked and I shrugged.
"I read his file, I've trained with him here and there, and I trust his judgment." I said. "I'd like to see what he's like in the field."
"I understand. But do you think it's a good idea bringing him on when we're going to hopefully collect a new person?" he asked.
"I think we'll find out how he does under pressure." I said and he nodded.
"You're the boss." he shrugged and I smiled lightly as I looked at him.
Back in the lab Director Fury was handing the file over to Erik Selvig who took it and flipped it open. "Who is she?" he asked as he held the picture out to Tony.
"She doesn't look any older than Amanda. This the Agent they're going to talk to?" BRBRBr "No, that is the young girl responsible for Mrs. Banner's current condition. Her name is Anna Marie, though she goes by the name Rogue. There was an ad in the newspaper in North Salem stating that a group of doctors were working with the CDC were searching for a cure and if there was any Mutants who would volunteer DNA samples they could help with the cure." Director Fury explained as Bruce walked over to the table.
"You think they were the ones who created whatever it was that turned Minnie?" he asked as he looked at a picture of the young girl smiling nervously for the camera.
"I think they're a good place to start."
"Easy, save the cheerleader, save the world. And by world, I of course mean save the world from the Hulk, lest he and Minnie try making out again."
"Tony, I said-" he was cut off by Tony picking up a spray bottle full of water and spraying it directly in his face.
"No." Tony said in a stern voice. Bruce rolled his eyes and shook his head before he picked up a rag and took his glasses off.
"Well saving the cheerleader might not be so easy." Director Fury said.
"What's wrong, don't we know where she is? I can have her located in an hour."
"We know exactly where she is Tony. She signed up with the Registration act." Fury informed them and Tony's face fell.
"Right." he said slowly. "Okay new plan. We get the green guy out here and have him kidnap her." Tony said clapping his hands together with a grin.
"I'm not kidnapping anyone Tony." Bruce rolled his eyes.
"Not even the one person who would have the key to fixing your wife's genes and thus giving you back a life?" he asked and Bruce shook his head.
"No, because I know that Osborn had my father taken out of the mental hospital for a reason. We need his notes, we need the girl, but most of all, we need Hans Fleischer." he said and the three other men thought about that.
"Dr. Banner has a point."
"When Minnie and the rest of the team gets back I'm sure Logan will have a way to contact the girl, they were close." Fury said and the three men nodded.
"So how long are you here for?" Selvig asked and Fury looked at him.
"I'm not here Dr. Selvig." he said easily before he went to the elevator.
"I'm serious," Tony said as Fury walked away. "If we amp up the microwave we might be able to make some real changes here."
"Amp it up by how much Tony?" Erik asked.
"Well enough that the warranty would be invalid." he said and Bruce rolled his eyes at his friend.
We were flying to New York when Logan came out of the small bathroom looking a little green around the gills; he sat down in the seat across from me and rested his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. "Here," I touched his arm and he looked at me. I held out a water bottle and he took it from me, nodding to me and I looked back at my folder.
"What are you reading?" he asked and I looked back at him before I pulled a copy of it out of my bag and handed it to him.
"His name is Peter Parker. We're going to try to convince him to come back with us because he has information about Norman Osborn that we could use." I said and he looked through the file before looking at me.
"So if this is just a pickup why am I here?" he asked and I looked up at him.
"Excuse me?"
"I'm not going to bring anyone against their will." he said and I smiled gently.
"I don't expect you to." I informed him. "I brought you alone because A, if you're anything like me, I know you could use a break from the compound, B, my husband is busy, and C, I wanted to see how you work with the team."
"I'm not planning on joining any teams." he replied. "Might have asked me and saved yourself the trouble."
"There is a reason D," Phil said as he moved over to us. He handed me another file and I sighed as I read it. "Seems Osborn is onto little Peter Parker's secret, and there's a possibility we may need to fight for him."
"Luke Cage." I said as I handed the file over. "There's no substance from earth that can hurt him."
"And I'm not entirely from earth." Logan said making me frown and look at Phil.
"That wasn't in your file…" I said and Phil cleared his throat.
"We believe when Minnie and Bruce were in Nadine, Maine another asteroid hit Earth. Osborn and Madame Hydra were able to collect it and that it contained traces of adamantium. They were able to melt it down and create a small dagger, that's what they used to collect his DNA when he turned." Phil explained and I nodded.
"That makes sense." I said softly. A moment later Logan's three claws were extended, I stared at him for a moment before I looked down at the claws. I could see Natasha dig her elbow into Clint's side and they both watched the scene. "I'm guessing they're made of adamantium." I said and he nodded.
"His entire skeleton is covered in it." Phil informed me.
"Then I guess you're our backup plan Logan." I said to him.
"Thanks for the heads up." he said gruffly, not looking too happy about it, and I nodded.
"Yeah we hardly get one of those in this business." I said before turning to Phil. "What'd you tell Heather?"
"The truth." he replied simply. I nodded as I looked back at the file for Peter Parker and Logan looked through the file for Nick Cage.
When we got to New York the current Senator was waiting for us. "Senator Walsh," I said as we walked down the stairs towards her. She smiled as I approached her. "How nice to meet you."
"You must be Simone." she said as she extended her hand. I shook it, leaving my gloves on. "Hello Agent Coulson."
"Senator Walsh." he nodded. "Nice of you to follow through."
"Well it's not like I could turn down Agent Bluefox." she sighed before turning to me. "You have friends in very high places young lady."
"I know." I replied. "Thank you for following through." I said as the rest of the team walked down the stairs.
"You'll be taking my car." she pointed at the large black SUV parked to the side. "I'd have the fellow in the suit drive, he looks like a driver. No offence."
"None taken." Phil said with a nod as she handed me the keys.
"What do you say Phil, you up for driving?" I asked and he nodded. I tossed him the keys and he caught them easily.
"Young lady," she said to me and I looked at her. "Good luck. All of you. If I were you lot, I'd be in and out of here before Norman or his little team catches on that you're here." I nodded and she patted my shoulder before she turned and went back to her car. I went to the car she had lent us and I got into the passenger's seat.
"What's the address?" Phil asked and I looked at him.
"You know what Phil," I said thoughtfully. "Go to Stark Tower. There's something I need to pick up."
"Minnie, you know that's a bad idea." Natasha said quickly.
"You know as well as I do the board has been working alongside Norman and trying to stay on his good side," I said looking at her. "There are things in that building that Norman would kill and probably has killed to get his hands on. Things that we left behind last time around. Now, with Tony gone I'm the only one who has access to the penthouse and to Jarvis, with Jarvis' help I'll be invisible, I know I can do this I just need fifteen minutes." I said as I looked back at them, and then to Phil. "Please." I said softly.
"Stark Industries it is." Phil said as he started the car.
Oh dang, what's going to happen at Stark Industries?! Only I know! Mwahahahaa! =D Anyways, I hope you liked the chapter, like I said, Minnie is getting more involved and becoming more of a SHIELD Agent then she was before. I think the next chapter may start in Amanda's POV, I haven't done that in awhile. Please don't forget to review!