Queenie: Hello, dearies, just wanted to warn you know that is kind of like going to be a slow burn between Kaira and Steve. And he won't even be mentioned until like the end of chapter six.
Also I'm rethinking a lot of my HP Crossovers. Like I kind of want to pick different fandoms to cross my HP OCs with. Mostly because I don't want to repeat certain fandoms since I already did PJO crossovers with them. I'm keeping my HP/TVD/TO and PJO/TVD/TO crossovers because they start in different seasons and my HP/Supernatural and PJO/Supernatural because of the same reason. But as for my HP/True Blood crossover and HP/Twilight crossovers...I'm thinking about completely redoing them since I don't want to start back in season 1/the first movie. It...it just feels like I'm redoing my PJO crossovers that way. Especially with True Blood since I was going to pair Isadora with Eric.
So if you have any fandoms you'd like to suggest to me I would love to hear about them. I'll be keeping Isadora and Gillian...I just want to start thinking of other fandoms, so please give me suggestions. I need them.
Now, I hope you enjoy this new chapter, and I hope to have the others I've already finished up soon as well.
NO POV: (FOUR YEARS LATER)
Clint, who was using binoculars, sat on top one of the buildings in Manhattan as relief crews were trying to take care of the damage caused by all the freak weather. Fury wasn't convinced it was only an odd weather happening, so he sent off a team of agents here to see if they could find anything out of the ordinary. So far there was nothing. However, something caught his attention to the left. He turned his head seeing…Kaira Cortez walking with a group of teens down the streets. She appeared to be the oldest out of all of them.
Clint watched as they paused while looking to Kaira. He watched her lips moved, and he knew she had to be speaking another language since he couldn't read her lips to tell what she was saying. She then gestured for the teens to move out, and they separated from each other. Clint watched how they moved, and it was like they were a group of little soldiers on a mission. And they moved expertly. Blending into the crowd with no one but him noticing.
He saw Kaira look around for a moment, and he could see that her eyes lost the life they once had in them. She looked more mature as if she's seen things that were in people's worst nightmares. Suddenly her eyes snapped up towards him as if she knew he was up there. Though he wasn't sure how she could tell considering how high up he was. He stayed absolutely still hoping she wouldn't completely see him then brush it off. However, luck wasn't on his side. Kaira started moving away calmly though he knew that she was putting distance between her and him.
"Coulson, you'll never guess who I found while surveying Manhattan for anything weird." Clint said. "Kaira is here with a group of kids…and it looks as if they're looking for something too."
"Keep on her, Barton." Coulson said. "I'll be there soon with Romanoff."
"Understood." Clint replied.
KAIRA'S POV:
Why did they have to find me now of all times? After everything that's happened this is the last thing I need. I frowned knowing I needed to get the others out of here without bringing too much attention onto them. I just have to hope Barton didn't get too good a look at their faces. I spotted Will a few feet away, so I calmly moved through the crowd of relief workers too him. I placed my hand on his shoulder, so he turned to look at me.
"Start moving back to camp as calmly as possible." I said. "Possible threat in the area. Not the kind we can fight. I'll worry about the others. Don't go searching for them. If you meet someone along the way then have them move along."
Will just nodded not questioning me since I had been put in charge of this mission since his sister, Corissa, and many other head councilors were busy. He started calmly leaving the area while using the crowd as cover. I moved on while knowing I still needed to find five more half-bloods and one satyr. I kept my pace calm though moved my eyes swiftly through the crowds for any signs of them as I went. I spotted Travis and Conner together as they were about to turn down an alleyway. I managed to get to them beforehand. However, I kept walking, so to make it look as if I didn't know them.
"Area not safe." I said. "Head back to camp immediately."
They didn't even blink, but when I was so far away, they started moving in the direction of the bus station we had come in on. I found Sherman next, and even if he looked unpleased with having to move out, he left without too much of a fuss. I guess I should be grateful since he usually only listens to Mena. Though I didn't blame him for being upset. We were here for a very important reason. Moving out wasn't something I liked at all either. I sighed though kept moving. After getting Annabeth, who tried to kick up a fuss, out of here, all I had to find now was Percy and Grover.
"Where are you two?" I murmured to myself.
"Looking for someone?"
I froze before turning around to see Coulson and he was flanked by Romanoff and Barton. I mentally cursed in Greek.
"No one of importance." I replied then changed the subject. "Four years and you're still after me. Got nothing more important to do?"
Coulson didn't reply to my question as I tried to keep my body relaxed. If I was tense, they'd be able to tell I was lying. I just prayed to the gods that someone ran into Percy and Grover on the way back.
"You know what happened here, don't you, Miss Cortez?" Coulson asked.
"Yeah, some freaky weather happened." I replied. "Hurricanes, earthquakes, and hailstorms."
I shrugged as if I could care less, but I don't think Coulson bought my lie. I didn't think any of them did.
"What really happened here, Miss Cortez?" Coulson asked.
"How am I supposed to know?" I retorted. "I'm not all knowing. I'm just a teenage girl."
"We know for a fact that you're not just some teenage girl." Coulson said. "We can tell you've had training of some sort. We can also tell that you're here searching for something. Maybe something that created the destructive weather from a week ago."
I gave a short humorless chuckle as I crossed my arms over my chest. Of course they think I'm here looking for some kind of "device". Humans can't look beyond what's "humanly possible", which is why it's easy to hide the truth from them when something like this happens on such a big scale.
"I'm not here looking for something that caused the weather." I said. "Do you want to know what I'm looking for? I'm looking for bodies."
Barton and Romanoff exchanged a glance as Coulson's face remained impassive.
"Bodies?" He questioned.
"Yeah, the bodies of people who were in the middle of that weather." I said. "Friends…my brother. I want to make sure they get a proper burial, and not just continue laying around in rubble."
I needed to find my brother's body. Adrian had been a good kid, and he fought bravely in the battle. He deserves to be properly put to rest. If he isn't, his soul will be bound to earth without even a chance of moving on to the Underworld. The same went for Michael Yews whose body is also missing along with many others.
"Now, I'm not in the mood for our game of cat and mouse today." I said. "I lost people I love, and I want to make sure they're put to rest. Come back tomorrow or something."
I went to move on, but more agents moved in to circle me. I frowned really not wanting to have to fight my way out of this. However, I would if I absolutely had to.
"I'm sorry, Miss Cortez, but we have our orders to bring you in." Coulson said. "It's obvious to us that you know more about what happened here than you're letting on. We need to know if something like that will ever happen again, and how we can prevent it if it does."
As soon as the words left his mouth, I felt the amusement start to bubble up within me. I know it wasn't something to find humorous. However, it kind of was. Hearing humans wanted to prevent something like the Titan War was very humorous.
"It won't happen again." I said as I turned back to Coulson. "Well, maybe in another three-thousand years, but by then we'll be dead anyway. And even if it happened again next week, there isn't a damn thing you or your agency could do. It doesn't matter how many agents you have or how well trained they are, they haven't trained for anything like what happened here. That's all you need to know. Now out of my way."
"Miss Cortez, that's not an option." Coulson said. "I'm sorry."
I narrowed my eyes then glanced around at the agents to see who might be the weakest. The easiest one to take down to clear a path to get out of here. When seeing one looked a bit nervous and shaky, I knew I found my victim. I struck out with a round-the-house kick, and I hit him in a jaw. He dropped without too much of a fuss, and instead of hitting anyone else, I bolted through that small gap.
"We can't let her get away this time." I heard Coulson say. "Barton, Romanoff, neutralize her as soon as possible."
I continued running while knowing that I wouldn't be heading back to camp for a long time. Maybe not ever. I brought this on myself. I don't want it brought on them either. Especially not after the hades we all went through. As I was running, I saw Percy and Grover up ahead. I glanced back seeing that I had momentarily lost those agents. I didn't know how much time I had left before they caught up, so I knew I had to work fast. The boys spotted me when I was practically on top of them, and before they could say anything, I shoved into a nearby building.
"What the hades, Kaira?" Percy asked.
"No time to explain." I said. "You and Grover need to get back to camp. The area isn't safe anymore. You get out of here, you don't look back, and you don't come looking for me."
"What…Kaira, what's going on?" Grover asked.
I sighed knowing we didn't have that much time, so I couldn't explain all that's going on to them even though they deserve an explanation.
"Don't worry about what." I said. "Just get going, and act as casually and calm as possible. If you see me being pursued, you don't come to my aid. As far as everything is concerned, you don't know me. Now, go."
Percy opened his mouth to protest, but Grover, who saw I wouldn't budge, pulled on Percy's arm.
"We've got to go, Percy." Grover said. "You heard her."
Percy frowned obviously not wanting to leave me, but he finally nodded his head. I nodded to the both of them then waited a moment in the building as they left. I remained in place before moving to a different side of the building to exit. Once exiting, I was cut off by Romanoff and Barton.
"Kid, just come in with us." He said.
"So you can lock me up? Torture me for information?" I asked. "I'll pass."
Barton sighed while not looking as if he wanted to be doing any of this. Well, I didn't want to be putting up with any of this either.
"If you won't come along, we can always take your friends instead." Romanoff said. "As we speak, agents are surrounding the bus station that your friends are gathering at. And Agent Sitwell has his eyes on the two who you just spoke with too."
I tried to control a flinch when I heard that. I knew there was a chance that they'd find my friends, and if they followed them, they'd find the camp. If they took them into custody, they'd suffer for my own mistakes. I didn't' want to give in…but I'd rather it be me who took the fall for my own actions than my friends. And I would never in a million years want to bring danger to the camp. I'd never forgive myself for something like that.
"Fine." I said. "You've got me…but only if you leave them alone. You let them leave without following them, and I won't try to run. I give you my word."
"Is that all you want?"
I turned seeing Phil coming out from the building behind me. I nodded my head as I crossed my arms over my chest in an attempt to show how serious I am.
"My boss would be very interested to learn of your friend if they're anything like you." Phil said.
"Listen, they don't need to be worrying about the government looking into them." I said. "That freak storm took a lot from us. We just want to bury our dead, and then try to have things go back to normal. Don't make it where they have to look over their shoulders 24/7."
They'll already have to do that because of monsters, but Phil didn't have to know that. Besides, there's no point in adding more stress. Phil stared at me for a moment before he pressed a button on what looked like Bluetooth in his ear.
"Stand down." Phil said. "Return to base. We have who we came for….No, there is no need to pursue."
I let out a sigh of relief while not fighting when Barton took my arm albeit gently to move me along. I really hope everyone will be okay. I might not ever see them again after this, but as long as they don't have to deal with my mistakes…that will be enough for me.
NO POV:
Clint watched through a one-way mirror with Natasha and Phil as Kaira sat in one of the interrogation rooms with Jasper Sitwell trying to get answers out of her. She's ignored him for the most part, or give him smartass remarks. Even though she promised not to run, she wasn't giving up information either.
"I don't think she'll talk with anyone beside the person she thinks is in charge or one of us." Clint said. "I know Fury doesn't want to speak with her until we get more info out of her, but she isn't going to budge with Sitwell."
As he's been watching this interrogation, he's noticed that Kaira doesn't seem much like her usual self either. She hasn't smiled or grinned once. She hasn't been messing with Sitwell by giving half-cryptic remarks like she usually does with himself or Phil. She didn't look as if she was enjoying this at all, and she usually had the most fun when she got in very sticky situations. Clint knew all this because he's gotten to know her over the years.
"Do you think we should send Widow in there with her?" Phil asked.
"No." Clint said. "Nat is good with interrogation and manipulating people to get the answers she wants, but I have a feeling it won't work on Kaira. She's smart not just reckless like she pretends to be. She obviously knows how to keep her mouth shut."
"I have to agree." Natasha said. "I mean I can try something, but I don't think I'm the person to send in."
Phil looked thoughtful as he watched Sitwell fail again to get Kaira to open up about anything.
"Barton, you go in." Phil said to the archer. "Out of all of us, you're the most familiar with her."
Well, Clint supposed that was true. Sometimes he would pause in chasing her to strike up a conversation. He thought maybe gaining her trust first would be easier than just continuously running after her. He learned that she had dyslexia and that she kept getting kicked out of schools because of fights or she'd cause some kind of hazard without having to try. He learned that she knew her mother even if they weren't close. He learned a lot of things about her, but nothing that explained where she went when not at school and not running around when causing trouble.
"Alright." He said. "I'll give it a try."
Phil nodded before tapping the glass to let Sitwell know his time was up. The man grabbed his files before he left the room as Clint went to switch out with him. Clint stepped into the room with Kaira glancing at him.
"Hey, Kid." Clint said. "Mind if I take a seat?"
"You might as well." She replied.
Clint took the seat that Sitwell unoccupied, so he could sit across from Kaira.
"Been a while since we've gotten to talk." Clint said. "In fact, you disappeared off the grid there for a while."
"I was on vacation." Kaira replied. "Even a kleptomaniac like myself needs a break every once and a while."
Well, at least she was talking to him even if it was with sarcasm clearly coloring her tone. Clint sighed as he studied the girl…she looked broken…tired, and it was a look he hated to see on someone so young.
"I'm sorry…about your brother." Clint said. "And your friends."
Kaira was silent for a long moment as she stared at the table. She then looked up to meet Clint's eyes.
"Do you mean that?" She asked. "Are you really sorry? Or are you just saying that to get me to loosen up?"
"I mean it, Kid." Clint said sincerely. "I've lost people before, and I know how hard it can be."
"My brother's name was Adrian...he was only thirteen." Kaira said. "He always said he wanted to be like me…I didn't know why…still don't. I'm just some kleptomaniac who couldn't even stick around long enough to really get to know him. Not exactly a good role model or a good sister."
Kaira bit her lip remembering all those times Adrian tried to spend time with her, but she would just be gone in a few days. And she knew how precious family could be. She shouldn't have brushed him off. It was just that none of the families she's ever been with ever really cared for her since she caused so many problems. She supposes that's why she was so distant from him. She was so afraid that she'd mess up anyway, and he'd want nothing with her…so she kept away to begin with.
"And my friend…Twig…I worried him so much with all the trouble I usually get myself into." Kaira said. "He told me to be careful, and even though he was Mr. Play-It-Safe…he died…not me, and I never play it safe."
Clint looked closely at Kaira wondering if she had wished she had been the one to die. He knew that could be common with people who lose others in tragic circumstances. However, she was talking, which was good.
"Kid, can you tell us anything that happened out there?" Clint said. "During the storms. It obviously wasn't natural. Did someone use some kind of tech?"
Kaira rolled her eyes with an exasperated look on her face as if Clint's question seemed almost idiotic.
"No." Kaira said. "No kind of tech. There's no technology out there that could cause something like that."
Clint nodded his head while seeing this as progress. At least she was answering him.
"Then what caused that?" Clint asked.
Kaira didn't reply as she stared at him with a gaze that was unwavering in the slightest. Clint sighed wishing she'd budge at least a little bit. He opened his mouth to continue, but Kaira spoke first.
"Listen, I'm tired, so I'm going to be straight up with you." Kaira said she said as she looked him in the eyes. "You can ask me a million questions about where I've been living since I was twelve, who took care of me, and what the hades happened in Manhattan…but I'm not going to tell you anymore than I already have. So either let me go, or tell me exactly why you've been after me for so long."
Before Clint could answer the door opened with Fury stepping in with a folder tucked under his arm. Kaira sighed wondering who the hades this guy was.
"We'd like to recruit you, Miss Cortez." Fury said bluntly. "Barton, you're dismissed."
Clint nodded his head then stood up from the chair. He gave Kaira a reassuring smile before leaving the room. Fury promptly took the seat Clint had just gotten up from. Fury set the file out in front of Kaira.
"My name is Nick Fury, and I'm the director of this agency. Now, let me cut straight to case, Miss Cortez, so I don't waste either of our time." Fury said. "I have enough charges on you to lock you away for life and then add a hundred years onto it."
Kaira just blinked not seeming too shaken to hear about all that. In fact, she wasn't surprised at all, and she honestly didn't give a damn.
"Now, I can make all these charges go away." Fury said. "However, I need a few things from you. I need your word that you will join our agency, and I need a few answers. Now, I can promise you that whatever you tell me will not go on an official record in our database. If you wish, I will have the agents beyond the mirror leave, so it will only be you and me."
"Why do all this for me?" Kaira asked. "What do you gain?"
"A promising new recruit and information." Fury replied without missing a beat. "And information is worth more than gold in our profession, Miss Cortez."
It was silent for a very long moment as Kaira and Fury stared at each other unblinking.
"What kind of information do you want exactly?" She asked finally.
"Where have you been living all these years?" Fury asked. "And what caused all that damage in Manhattan."
Kaira sighed guessing it'd be less suspicious if she told them about the camp. Not what it really was, but the lie that most campers used when explaining where they go for summers. Besides, she can just give them a phone number that will be directed to Chiron, and he'll come up with something…to answer everything. She also didn't want them to go look for answers themselves since that might bring danger to the other campers. And now that the man in charge was here, she could give them a bit of information.
"Long Island…in a camp made for troubled youths." Kaira said. "I can give you a number if you want. You can ask your other questions there too. Ask for Mr. Brunner."
Fury pulled out a piece of paper from the file then a pen from his pocket. He gave both to Kaira who wrote down a number for him. The others watched from the other side of the glass while wondering if Kaira really was going to cooperate so easily now.
"Now, I need to know if you've ever been given any special training." Fury asked. "Some of the stuff you do seems too much for a normal teenage girl to do without being taught how to do it."
"I wasn't taught to be a thief if that's what you mean." Kaira said. "But the camp I went to had a lot of activities that most camps probably didn't have. I was taught hand-to-hand combat. I've also trained with certain weapons. I'm very nimble and my marksmanship is average. I've never taken a human life, but I'd know how to do it if the situation ever called for it."
"You were taught to kill people?" Fury asked with a quirked brow.
"No, I was taught how to survive." Kaira replied. "And the world is a cruel place, Director Fury. Full of cruel people. I was taught if I wanted to live, I'd have to fight for it…to fight tooth and nail for it."
Fury was silent for a moment as he continued to look at Kaira as she sat in her seat calmly. The look in her eyes clearly showed someone who had fought to survive…but also someone who looks as if they weren't sure surviving was worth having to live afterwards.
"You seem like you're tired, Miss Cortez." Fury said.
"Yes." Kaira replied. "I am. If you want me to join your agency then fine…I will. If want to lock me up instead, I won't care."
"Well, you won't be getting locked up today, Miss Cortez." Fury said. "As long as you follow my rules…you will become an agent. Maybe find something to live for while you're at it because it looks as if you've got nothing right now. So…will you join the Strategic Homeland International Enforcement Linguistic Division, or not?"
He held out his hand to her, and after a long moment of silence she reached out to shake his hand. She just hoped she wasn't making a deal with the devil.