"Aw man, we missed the costume party!"

SHIELD Helicarrier. Evening. Daphne

Sweating and exhausted, Daphne walked back towards her room, deciding to take a much needed shower, massaging her aching muscles. She received many strange glances from the nearby SHIELD agents. Though her exasperation was clear, she didn't expect many people to accept a mutant into their ranks so easily.

Daphne reached her room and quickly grabbed a towel, getting ready for a shower. She warmed up the water and got undressed, stepping under the soothing water. Humming to herself, she finished up ten minutes later. Feeling thoroughly refreshed, she got changed back into her plaid shirt and ripped jeans, forgetting that she didn't bring spare clothes with her.

She ambled down towards the kitchens, looking for a quick snack. She found a bunch of bananas and grapes. Really? This is all they have?

Sighing hungrily, she grabbed a banana and strolled to the bridge, hoping to annoy Phil some more. He makes it too easy. Daphne opened the doors leading to where she knew Coulson and Steve would be. They were standing side-by-side with their backs to her, and she traipsed over to them, hearing the end of their conversation.

"I mean, if it's not too much trouble," Phil added quickly. She giggled behind her hand, easily guessing what he was talking about.

"No, no. It's fine," Steve reassured him, looking slightly embarrassed.

However, Phil being Phil, carried on with his ramblings. "It's a vintage set. It took me a couple of years to collect them all. Near mint, slight foxing around the edges, but-"

"Alright Philly, you don't need to overwhelm him with your obsessive fangirling," Daphne teased him, peeling the banana and taking a bite of it.

Phil looked at her sharply, glaring - he seemed to be doing that a lot actually - while Steve just looked puzzled. "Fangirling? What's a fangirl?"

"A fangirl is what Phil is," she replied laughing. "A fangirl is the best type of person you can get. I'll explain another time. You have a lot to learn yet, il capitano." She clapped him on the shoulder as she said it. She quite enjoyed doing that.

Agent Jasper Sitwell intervened in the conversation. Daphne felt proud once she saw the slight bruising that marked around his face. He deserved it, she told herself - not for the first time. "We got a hit. Sixty-seven percent match... Wait, cross match, seventy-nine percent."

Phil went straight back into 'agent' mode. "Location?"

"Stuttgart, Germany. 28, Konigstrasse. He's not exactly hiding."

Nick Fury strode towards the group with a determined glint in his eyes. "Captain, Collins, you're up."

Steve nodded and left the room. Daphne was about to take her leave also, when Phil grabbed her arm. "I have something for you. Follow me."

She glanced down at the fruit in her hands worriedly. "Can I at least finish my banana?"

Phil rolled his eyes, leaving the room.

She walked behind him, curious at Phil's behavior. He led her towards the room where they kept all of the SHIELD, standard-issue uniform. Pulling out a black bag, he pushed it towards her, a small smirk on his face.

She handed him the half-eaten banana to take the bag, and warily opened it, pulling out a white piece of fabric. "Phil?"

"Well, you asked if you could get a cool superhero name, and every superhero has a proper uniform. So this is yours, if you want it, of course."

It was a catsuit, much like Natasha's, but white and it had golden swirls climbing up the legs towards the stomach of the suit, then curling around the arms. It seemed like it was shimmering almost. She was speechless, to say the least.

"Phil... Oh my God, I love it!" She squealed, hugging him tightly.

He was laughing fondly at her excitement.

"Now all I need is a superhero name and I'll be awesome!" She announced happily.

"Well, lucky for you, I've thought about that too," he told her, grinning proudly. She looked at him expectantly. "How about 'Mirage'? I mean, it fits you and your ability."

She stayed silent for a second. "Phil.. You are a true Saint among men! 'Mirage', I like it. I can see it now; Daphne Collins - Mirage."

He chuckled. "Now go and get ready." She hugged him once more before he left the room. She then realised that he took her banana with him. She pouted at the thought but cleared hunger from her mind.

She turned to face her uniform, grinning.

Mirage.

》》》》》》

Helicarrier. Steve's locker. Night. Steve

Steve walked into his locker room, approaching a steel cabinet. It opened as he reached it, revealing his Captain America suit with the famous Shield. He stood there in silence for a minute wondering what would come of this battle.

As he was getting changed, his thoughts trailed off to the woman, Daphne Collins. He considered what she might be able to do. Obviously it must be something extraordinary if SHIELD brought her in on this fight. He remembered what little information was about her in the file. It didn't elaborate on what she was capable of and said something about a 'mutant', but he was confused as to what that meant. He would have to ask her about that later.

While his mind was on the woman, he couldn't help but think how different she was to Peggy. They were both brunette and beautiful, but as far as similarities go, that was it. Peggy held herself like a soldier might, whereas Daphne seemed to have a more graceful and lithe posture. He didn't know how skilled she was in weaponry, so he couldn't judge her on that level. Their personalities were different, almost polar opposites, but they were the same in the aspect of doing the right thing and damning the consequences.

He felt a strange urge to learn more about the mysterious brunette. Hopefully, he would have an opportunity to build a friendship with her.

》》》》》》

SHIELD Quinjet. Night.

Steve, Daphne and Natasha were on their way to Stuttgart, Germany, preparing to face Loki; God of Mischief. Natasha was being pilot while the he and Agent Collins were gathering weapons, sat in a comfortable silence.

She was wearing a white catsuit which had golden swirls around her limbs. It looked alive to him, the swirls. They seemed to flow effortlessly around her body as she moved, engulfing her figure. It was then that he noticed her physique. She was quite small and slim, in a curvaceous way, but he could see that she was also muscular and strong. His mouth felt dry and he swallowed thickly at the form-fitting suit.

He quickly averted his eyes, feeling his face heat up when she glanced up at him. "How much further are we?" She asked in a clear voice which had a hint of a British lilt to it.

"We've entered German airspace. ETA five minutes," Agent Romanoff told her. She nodded, though looking edgy.

"Nervous?" He asked gently.

She met his eyes. "First time going against a God, so maybe just a tad." She chuckled and he soon joined in.

He noticed that she didn't have the necklace on like before. She probably didn't want to lose it, if capturing Loki happened to turn into a fight.

He thought for a moment. "If you don't mind me asking, what can you do? The file didn't say much about you."

She laughed quietly. "SHIELD likes to be all mysterious," she joked but didn't answer his question, opening her mouth then closing it, but he could see the cogs whirling in her mind as she attemped to provide him with a suitable answer.

"Well, I guess you could say that I have the ability of True Illusion. It's where I can make illusions become reality."

Steve must have made a confused facial expression because she tried to elaborate.

"Uh, for example, I can change people, places, locations, events just by thinking about it...Um, bring anything out of nowhere, make things vanish, muddle the senses, that kind of thing."

"Wow," he said, no other word being appropriate for that kind of power. He struggled to wrap his head around the idea that there were many people on Earth with amazing abilities - it was mostly unheard of back in his time.

"Yeah, but it's very difficult and I can't create too many powerful illusions at once," she fumbled, trying to make herself seem less significant. She obviously hated the attention on her.

"So, how did you get your abilities?" He inquired, wanting to know more about her. "Was it an experiment, like mine?" He briefly thought back to when he first became the icon Captain America.

She stuttered a bit, her eyes flashing with an emotion he couldn't place.

"Hey, it's okay. You don't need to tell me," he tried to calm her, wondering if he had overstepped his boundaries.

She seemed in deep thought for a few moments, seeming to decide whether to tell him something or not. "No, no, it's okay. Uhh, I was born with my 'powers'." She gestured quotation marks around the word 'powers'.

"That must be quite some gift, if it's been with you your whole life."

"It's not so much a gift, than a burden," she muttered, obviously thinking he couldn't hear her.

His eyebrows creased together. "I don't understand. A burden?"

The agent laughed without humour. "People who are born with extra abilities are known as 'mutants'."

Steve recognised that word. "Mutants. That was mentioned in the file."

Daphne nodded at him, but her eyes held a faraway expression. "Well, mutants are far from accepted on Earth." She sighed, and touched her scar lightly. She paused, making Steve think that she had finished speaking. "People don't like what they don't understand. Mutants carry something called the 'X gene' which can manifest into either physical differences or extra abilities, or maybe even both. We are proof of evolution, though humans believe that we are side effects."

She took a deep breath before continuing. "Humans see very few uses for us. Either they want us for weapons of mass destruction or they want us eradicated, there is no in between. There have been many political debates as to whether we should just be isolated from the whole of society altogether. In some ways, I understand where their fear is coming from. There are some dangerous mutants that use their advantage against normal people. But can a threat from the minority justify the punishment of all? That is what I don't agree on."

Steve stayed silent, thinking about how people could possibly kill others just for being born differently, then he remembered World War Two; people killed for being different. Of course, he had been bullied, in the past, for being smaller and weaker than the other boys around him, and could relate to what she was saying, easily.

"God, that was deep. Sorry the ranting monologue," she apologised, a tiny smile on her face.

Before he could reassure her, Romanoff turned around and informed them. "We're at the Gala." Steve noticed how her eyes flickered towards Daphne, and - for a second - he could see something similar to concern in her expression. The brief display of emotion was wiped clear immediately.

The ramp opened while they were in flight so they could get a good view of Loki. The Quinjet landed on a nearby roof so Steve and Daphne could find a way to get closer to the God.

"I'll stay here unless you need backup," Natasha told them.

They both nodded once and left to get to better vantage points. Daph started to climb down a fire escape when he grabbed hold of her arm. "Be careful, okay?"

"Okay... You be careful too."

"Always am," he smiled.

》》》》》》

Stuttgart Gala. Night. Daphne

Daphne got down from the fire escape and cautiously moved towards the back of the large crowd Loki had formed outside of the Gala hall. Police cars were strewn everywhere, smashed to pieces. Brilliant, just brilliant...

Loki was dressed in a type of golden armour with a weird, reindeer-looking helmet, holding a glowing scepter. Oh my God, we're dealing with a freaking psycho... Who dresses like that? Evil villain or not, that's a crime against fashion.

"Kneel before me!" He demanded the crowd of people. They disobeyed him and tried to run, but dozens of clones of Loki appeared, cutting off escape.

Crap, he's using illusions...

"I said KNEEL!" He bellowed. The crowd went silent and soon they were all kneeling before him.

Loki held his arms out, smiling widely. "Is this not simpler? Is this not your natural state? It's the unspoken truth of humanity, that you crave subjugation." Daphne used his little speech as an opportunity to move closer without being noticed. "The bright lure of freedom diminishes your life's joy in a mad scramble for power, for identity. You were made to be ruled. In the end, you will always kneel."

As the words echoed to every inch of the crowd, an elderly man slowly rose up, refusing to kneel to the power-hungry God.

"Not to men like you," he rasped out.

"There are no men like me."

"There are always men like you."

Loki turned, facing the rest of the crowd before placing his attention back to the man. "Look to your elder, people. Let him be an example."

Loki aimed the point of his scepter towards the man, the tip glowing blue as he prepared to kill him. Daphne tensed her muscles in anticipation. Come on, Cap.

The blue light of energy shot out of the scepter towards the man just as Captain America dived in front, blocking the shot away with his shield. Daphne then created a ball of golden energy and sent the blast towards Loki, catching him off guard and sending him onto his ass.

She ran up to Cap, standing next to him. "Aw man, we missed the costume party!" She whined, nudging Steve with her elbow, playfully.

He grinned and then faced Loki, who was picking himself up.

"You know, the last time I was in Germany and saw a man standing above everybody else, we ended up disagreeing."

"Ah, the soldier. A man out of time," he started. "And the mutant, an abomination that shouldn't exist."

"Thanks!" Daphne cheered. "I've always worried what crazy, narcissistic, power-hungry Gods thought of me, but now I can relax. Phew!" Sarcasm practically dripped off her words.

Loki glared, preparing to strike.

"And for the record, I'm not the one out of time," Steve warned him just as the Quinjet arrived, a machine gun aimed at the Norse God.

Natasha's voice boomed through the speaker. "Loki, drop the weapon and stand down."

Loki looked at the scepter quickly before blasting an energy bolt towards the Quinjet. Agent Romanoff maneuvered the jet, just dodging the blast, giving Cap time to throw his shield at Loki, knocking him down.

The God flung Steve to the ground as Daphne conjured up a version of herself in front of Loki. He noticed the clone and started fighting it, unaware of the real mutant until she grabbed him from behind, throwing away his magical spear and roundhouse kicking him in the face, making him stumble back.

"Looks like I'm beating you at your own game," she smirked, letting golden wisps circulate her fingers.

He retrieved his scepter and swiped it towards her. She managed to bend backwards and out of the way before it cut her throat. Daph unsheathed a translucent blade, making expert slices at Loki while avoiding his own until he unexpectedly swiped at her legs and blasted her backwards.

Captain then threw his shield at Loki, but he swatted it away, the two of them engaging in physical combat. The mutant woman couldn't help but admire the muscular super-soldier as he fought. Steve was using his boxing skills while Loki defended himself, managing to catch the soldier off guard to send him tumbling to the ground. Standing over him, Loki points the scepter's tip on his helmet.

"Kneel," the God commanded.

"Not today!" Steve grunted, lashing out at Loki with his leg while Daph appeared behind and smashed the hilt of her blade to the back of Loki's head.

They heard Natasha's voice over the comms system. "The guy's all over the place."

Suddenly, AC/DC's song Shoot To Thrill was echoing through the air and all three of them looked up to see Iron Man flying above.

"Agent Romanoff, did you miss me?'

Tony Stark then flew over towards them before blasting Loki back down to the ground. Stark landed next to Captain and Daphne and pulled out a vast range of weaponry from the suit.

"Make your move, Reindeer Games." Loki held up his hands in a sign of surrender, his armour vanishing while Daphne laughed at his nickname for the God of Mischief.

"Good move."

"Mr. Stark," Steve greeted tersely, nodding slightly.

"Captain," Iron Man returned the sentiment with the same amount of emotion. He then turned to the brunette. "Well, hello there! Tony Stark, at your service." He sounded like he was grinning.

She laughed at his flirtatious tone. "Daphne Collins."

"It's an absolute pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"I'm sure it is," she chuckled.

Daph then sauntered over to Loki and dragged him up by his collar, shoving him into the Quinjet. "Move it, Princess."

"She's hot when she gets feisty," she heard Tony mock-whisper to Steve, grinning.

Longest chapter yet, I think. Please let me know what you think. Love you all

-Jess xo