Thank you everyone for your support! I love all of you.

Nik1804: I'm glad you love it :) And thank you so much for pointing that out. I meant it as pus, as in the stuff that stuff that comes out of wounds when infected and stuff, but that only has one 's' haha. I just changed it to blood to avoid future confusion.

Lola: I'm super glad you think so! I hope you like what I have planned!

Fury requested an expert on the Hindu religion. Naturally, Natasha was determined to find the best. On her days off, which today was supposed to be, she slept in till eight in the morning. But to make up for the time difference, she woke up at three in the morning to call the professor within his office hours.

Professor Clark, an expert on theology currently teaching in New Delhi, was as stubborn as a mule. Not for all the money in SHIELD's numerous accounts would that man to fly to New York. She anticipated him being an easy asset to acquire, but he proved her wrong. Rarely was she proven wrong, so this was a blow to her confidence in her work. Turned out that Professor Clerk wasn't as greedy as she thought.

Bribery did not work and it was proven that Professor Clerk reacted poorly to blackmail through his past work with the intelligence agency. She decided to cut her losses and find someone else. SHIELD had numerous connections in India. There was bound to be a local theologian who was willing to keep their mouth shut. Or perhaps she should consider hiring a Pandit as her partner suggested. There was no better expert on the religion than a Hindu priest. In her experience, though, civilians had a hard time working for a powerful, obscure agency.

Natasha decided it was best to keep her options open and discuss with Fury at a later time.

It didn't make her day any better when Clint handed her a file of some woman five minutes after the infuriating phone call. Sure, Natasha lived and breathed her work, but she deserved a break every now and then. Especially after the alien fiasco three months ago. Studying a file on a woman who did not look like a threat was not how she planned to spend her morning.

Natasha closed the file, hiding the papers detailing the life of Saniya Ramakrishna. She almost felt sorry for the girl. Saniya was fairly ordinary, except for the few errors on her birth certificate and parents' immigration forms. If it weren't for Thor, she never would've been on their radar. But all the sympathy washed away when she remembered the trouble Thor was going through to be friends with her. If Fury caught one whiff of Thor breaking anything in his confidentiality agreement, there would be trouble for the Avenger.

"I will only repeat this one more time, Tony. Fury made it clear when he said that you cannot leave the tower," Pepper lectured.

Natasha looked over her shoulder. Pepper and Tony were having their daily fight. Tony always wanted to do something outside the tower while Pepper reminded him of the extensive contracts he signed. Natasha was fairly certain that Tony never had any intention to leave the tower; he knew what would happen if he did. He just liked to complain.

"But it's so boring here! I've been cooped up in a half-finished tower for weeks. I've been a good boy. I deserve a treat."

"You. Are. Not. Leaving."

Tony rolled his eyes. "What about in my suit? I'll fly out of sight. Just a quick five minute flight. What's the harm?"

Pepper glared. "The harm is that if you do, SHIELD claims all ownership of Stark Industries, including your designs. If that isn't incentive enough to keep you here, then I don't know what to say." She shook her head. "I still don't understand why you signed those papers."

Natasha jerked her head towards her room down the hall. "I have handcuffs in my room if you want to ensure he stays in one spot."

Tony winked. "Oh, you kinky girl." Pepper swatted him with her clipboard.

After Pepper politely declined, the two continued to fight about what the billionaire could or couldn't do. Bruce trudged from his room to the kitchen. He grabbed an apple and plopped in the chair in front of her. His eyes drooped half opened.

Natasha sipped her coffee. "I'm surprised you aren't still asleep in the lab," she commented.

He rubbed his eyes. "Pepper and Jarvis joined forces and made me sleep in an actual bed last night."

"Good," she replied. "How far have you gotten?"

Bruce yawned. "I've extracted the DNA, but I still have nothing to compare it to. The database Tony has covers only a portion of the population that submitted their DNA to a sort of agency. I doubt it matches any in such a small sample."

She tilted her head in thought. "I can arrange to give you access to SHIELD's main database. Fury will give you clearance."

"Or," Tony interjected, "I can hack into their database and give you access much more quickly than asking for permission." Pepper swatted him again and they were back to arguing.

Bruce glanced between the two. He sighed. "I think I'll do it the legal way. Thanks, Natasha."

The clock turned 8:00 and Thor barreled into the room. He grinned at everyone. "My friends, a good morning to all of you."

"Good morning, Thor," Pepper greeted with her typical cheerfulness. She scowled one last time at her boyfriend then stormed off to do more important things. Tony hid a smirk as he sank into the chair next to the assassin. He pulled out his phone and started tapping wildly on the screen. If she had to bet, he was doing something he would get into trouble for later.

As she inhaled her caffeine intake for the day, an idea popped into Natasha's head. It would be a good idea to see what her Asgardian teammate had gotten himself into as she was often the one who fixed the Avengers' mistakes.

"Thor," she called out with a grin that lulled many prime ministers and criminals into a false sense of security.

Thor didn't question her kindness. He returned her politeness with a smile. "Lady Natasha," he replied.

"I heard you found the best restaurant in all of New York."

Bruce snorted while Thor lit up like a lightbulb. "That is true. Do you wish to join me while I feast with Lady Saniya?"

"Who's Saniya?" she asked innocently.

"She's a waitress there," Bruce answered for him. "They're friends."

Natasha hardened her gaze. She considered asking how much his friend knew about the Avengers, about Thor, about... everything, but she figured she would find out soon enough. The Black Widow stood up with grace. "Let's get breakfast, Thor," she said, leaving no room for argument. But it's not like he would've argued with the suggestion in the first place.

The Asgardian beamed. He turned to Bruce. "Do you wish to join us? As a Midgardian saying goes, 'the more the merrier'!"

Bruce thought for a moment. "Sure, why not? Jarvis is still reconfiguring some programs in the lab so I have time to spare."

"The programs will be finished by the time you return, sir," Jarvis reported.

Tony lifted his head from his phone. "Reconfiguration? Why are you reconfiguring my things?"

Bruce rolled his eyes. "They were hard to navigate due to the layout and the information wasn't properly categorized. It's bothered me for so long until last night Jarvis suggested changing it to my liking." Tony's expression was close to murderous. Bruce held in a sigh. The last few weeks, Tony had been more stubborn than usual. Natasha diagnosed it as a textbook case of stir crazy. "You're the one who gave me my own computer to record my data. It's important that I'm able to use it."

Tony shook his head. "I'm so offended that you didn't like the program layout. I was the one who programmed it!" The billionaire brandished his phone at the scientist like a weapon. "I take all my compliments back; I hate your different perspective. Why can't you always think like me?"

Natasha scoffed. "You adore his different perspective, especially at moments like these when it conflicts with yours." Tony was about to argue but stopped when he concluded she was (once again) right. He dismissed them with a flick of the hand. All three Avengers tried to keep their eye rolling to a minimum as they left the kitchen.

Saniya gagged on the cherry stem. She spat it out in her hand and the slimy stem was immediately thrown into the trash.

Dorie plucked the stem from her lips. It was a perfect knot. She cheered in triumph.

"I thought you said you have never done this before," Saniya complained.

"I haven't," Dorie chirped, "but I read a step by step in a forum when I was twelve. It's not that hard once you read the instructions." She held out her palm. "Pay up."

Saniya pulled out two books from behind the counter. Dorie snatched them from her. "Not you best hiding place," she commented.

"Don't you dare insult it. You never looked there, so it did its job," Saniya defended.

Dorie rolled her eyes then dived back into her book. Nothing, not even an atomic bomb or all the trumpet players in the world combined, could distract her now.

The door chimed. Saniya looked to the entrance. A woman with short red hair walked into the restaurant. Her posture was perfect and her eyes were cold. Saniya felt herself heat up as her gaze landed on her. She pretended to be looking at the menus. Two seconds later, Bruce and Thor walked in. The three sat in a booth in the corner of the room, closest to the door.

Ugh. More people. It seemed like the days of Thor and Saniya —only Thor and Saniya— were over. It was a small matter of time until more of his friends showed up, slowly pushing her away until she was nothing more than a dot in the distance.

Many of her teachers and concerned parents voiced their worries about Saniya's selfish behavior towards friends. Despite her reluctance to admit it, they always brought up good points. She wanted them for herself and preferred to have all of her friends' attention. Over the years, she had grown from grabby and demanding to passive aggressive. It was in improvement, as she was able to hide her bitter feelings easier. But as she had discovered time and time again, being passive aggressive was not fun. This time, she would try to be open to sharing Thor's time. Try being the key word.

Saniya bounced towards the three and slid into the booth next to Thor. "Hi Thor, Bruce, and woman I have never met before." She took in the woman's tight features. "Are you Jane?"Thor looked horrified.

Thor looked horrified.

She held out her hand. Saniya shook it in a handshake that probably lasted a second too long. "My name's Natasha, not Jane," she said with a smirk. Saniya breathed out in relief. Natasha was too stiff for Thor. "You must be Saniya. I've heard a lot about you."

Her brain stuttered. Saniya kicked Thor under the table. "You have?"

Thor's eyebrows drew together. "But Lady Natasha, I haven't spoken to you about her until today."

Natasha kept her smirk. "I know."

He let out a nervous laugh. "Then how could you have heard a lot about her? I wanted you to find out her glorious personality for yourself." His eyes flickered everywhere in the restaurant but her. Turned out that Saniya wasn't the only one unnerved by Natasha.

"I know a lot of things, Thor. It's nothing you need to strain yourself about."

Bruce cleared his throat. "Should we have breakfast now?" he offered suddenly.

Saniya was grateful for a distraction. "Yes, breakfast is good. Thor, the usual?"

"Of course."

"Bruce?"

"Same thing as yesterday, please."

"Can do, doll. What do you want, Natasha?"

The red regarded her for a minute before examining her nails. "I will have nothing to eat."

"Are you sure?"

Natasha looked up from her nails. "I always am," she replied.

Leaving the intimidating woman behind, Saniya rushed to the kitchen. The cook, whose name she could never remember, went to work on the eggs and bacon. Right as she finished stirring a cup of chocolate milk for Thor, Bruce walked into the kitchen.

"Customers aren't allowed to be back here," she teased.

He ducked his head. "Sorry, I can go—"

She ushered him towards her. "I was joking. Nobody cares if you come in here or not." Bruce jammed his fingers in his pockets. His steps were hesitant, but he eventually made it to her side. "So, do you need anything?"

Bruce's lips quirked into a smile. It was a sweet smile, somewhat shy, but it made her feel fuzzy inside nevertheless. "I didn't want to do this in front of Natasha and Thor, but I have something you might want to see."

He pulled out a phone and pulled up a picture. Her hands flew to her mouth to muffle her laughter.

"Here's the proof you were wondering about," he announced.

The picture was of Bruce saran-wrapped to his bed. Everything below his head was wrapped in the thick layer of plastic. Several empty boxes of saran wrap sat on the dark carpet next to the bed. Bruce was clearly annoyed in the picture with his frowning mouth, flared nostrils, and... green eyes? She could have sworn his were brown.

"This is really amazing. I can't believe someone actually did this."

He sighed. "Trust me, this isn't the worst of what Tony does to us."

Her eyes sparkled. Bruce stared for a couple seconds then looked towards the ground. "What else has he done?" she asked. The appeal of meeting the infamous Tony was growing.

"Honestly, I think he has done every prank imaginable."

"I really doubt that," she replied. Bruce smiled again. Doubting him was becoming a habit. "My dad and I used to..." Saniya leaned against the counter. Crap. She quickly backtracked. Saniya didn't want to think about her father, let alone talk about him. "Nevermind. But it's impossible for him to have done every prank."

He shook his head. "Then he has done most of them. If you were in my shoes, you would be saying the same thing."

"I won't believe you until I have proof."

"As a man of science, I would be offended if you did."

Saniya placed the drinks on the tray. She balanced it with one hand, the other keeping it steady. "Come on. Thor's probably dying of thirst." With a quick nod of the head, the two left the kitchen. Thor eagerly grabbed his chocolate milk while she handed out drinks to Bruce and Natasha.

Saniya plopped down in the booth. "So, Natasha," the woman looked up with one eyebrow arched. "Are you a scientist like Bruce?"

Her red lips curved into an amused smirk. "No. I follow a different career path."

"What do you do?"

"I'm an assassin."

A chuckle escaped Saniya's lips, but it fell flat when she realized no one else was laughing. Thor looked shell-shocked. His eyes were as large as the moon and mouth hung open. Bruce's glass froze halfway to his mouth, his brown eyes flickering between the two women.

They snapped out of it when the door chimed open. The man from a couple nights ago —Dorie's neighbor— strutted in with his head held high. He sat in a booth on the other side of the room. Saniya couldn't recall his name, but she did remember slamming the door in his face. She spotted her co-worker resting in a booth, her legs high in the air and a book over her face. Dorie wasn't going to be much help.

"I'll help this guy really quick," she told the three.

Right as she stood up, Natasha grabbed her wrist. Her eyes examined the man's face. There was a spark of recognition. "How about you let your co-worker take care of him," she suggested.

Saniya tried to pry Natasha's fingers from her arm. "Dorie's stuck in her own world. It'll be three minutes. You won't even notice I'm gone."

Thor straightened himself. His hand fell to his hammer as he looked at the man. He scooted closer to her so that their shoulders were touching. There was no way she would leave the booth without him grabbing her first.

Her grip tightened. Natasha brought her face closer to hers. Saniya felt herself freeze at the cold expression on the woman's face. "You are important to Thor. By default, you are important to me. I do not want you to leave this table."

"Why? What is so wrong with that man that I can't serve him?"

"Trust me."

There was one thing Saniya hated: people telling her what to do without a good reason. Her parents used to do that a lot and it grated on Saniya's nerves. Doing the opposite of what Natasha wanted looked incredibly pleasing all of a sudden.

"I don't even know who you are," she blurted out. "I haven't known you for an hour and you're bossing me around. If you can't give me one good reason not to go over there, then I could not care less if you are the president. I will do my job." Saniya raised an eyebrow. "Do you have a good reason?"

Natasha remained silent for a few seconds the released her grip. "Not one that you would believe."

Saniya ducked under Thor's grasp. As she walked the small distance from their table to the man's, she grabbed a menu and ignored Bruce and Thor's urgent whispers.

Maybe she should've listened to her. Natasha didn't seem like someone to freak out over nothing, but the devil's advocate in her brain brought up the fact that she knew nothing about the woman. For all she knew, Natasha was a nutcase who liked to scare waitresses. If that was her plan, she succeeded. Saniya was thoroughly freaked out. This was worse than when she was walking home the day after Dorie and her were followed by the strange men.

"Hello, my name is Saniya. What can I get you to drink?" Saniya recited.

"My name is Christopher. We've met before."

She pointed her pen. "I remember. So, drink?"

Christopher drummed his fingers on the table. He bit the inside of his cheek. "The agent makes this much more difficult. I doubt she'll come willingly with me, anyway," he grumbled.

That did not sound like a drink order. "I'm sorry, but what are you talking about?" she asked.

His hand grabbed hers. Christopher was much more gentle than Natasha but it still sparked her adrenaline. "Sorry, dear. I like to talk to myself. It's a nasty habit." A remnant of an accent snuck into his voice. He cleared his throat and it was gone as soon as it appeared. "Should I do this fast? It might get messy, but all I have to do is grab her and leave."

"Christopher?" Saniya successfully tugged her hand away. He let her go but clasped her other hand.

Christopher tilted his head. "Fast it is."

He stood from the booth. Christopher was larger than her. Thor was the only person she met who would be taller than him. With a speed she thought was reserved for superman, he whipped out a gun from beneath his shirt. He pulled the trigger and Natasha fell to the ground, her own gun clattering to the tile.

Saniya felt her throat close up as she realized that someone was just shot. None of this felt real. Christopher aimed his gun right between Thor's eyes. It hit him but flattened against his forehead. A large bruise was forming already, but she didn't register that fact that Thor survived. All she knew was that her best friend was shot.

The only thing keeping her calm was the mantra of 'they aren't really dead' she kept repeating in her head.

Saniya jabbed a finger in his chest. "You are not getting away with that a second time," she vowed. Her voice shook against her command, but her point got across.

Before he could give his confused response, the earth spun in reverse. The bullets hopped back into the gun. Natasha was breathing again. Bruce didn't look as green and Thor was safe.

Now she finally understood the quote 'with great power came great responsibility'. Her trick, which she used for her own enjoyment of jumping off bridges and tall building, was the only thing standing between Christopher and the three. Saniya had the power to stop him and that was exactly what she was going to do.

"I doubt she'll come willingly with me, anyways."

"Why don't you just ask?" she suggested. He probably felt the tremor in her fingers.

Christopher grinned. His free hand cupped the side of her face. "Will you come with me?"

Absolutely not. "Yes."

Saniya wanted to slap herself. Going with him would keep Thor and Natasha alive, but she was sure to end up dead in a ditch. No, she did not want to go with him at all.

"Doll told me you were special like her. My car is out front." Christopher stood. He was graceful like a cat. It would have been admirable if she hadn't just seen him murder Natasha. There was no way she would ever forget her lifeless body.

He guided her to the door. Saniya called out a quick 'goodbye' and placed Dorie in charge. Bruce's panicked expression was the last thing she saw before Christopher placed her in the passenger seat of his illegally parked car. Even Bruce knew she was absolutely screwed. That didn't help her confidence in the situation.

"Wait!" Saniya fought her way out of the car. Christopher was too strong, though, as he easily kept her in place. "I changed my mind!"

He moved his shirt to reveal his gun. "No, you didn't."

This was her moment to be brave, to claim that she would never get into a car with a murderer. This was her chance to fight the bad guy and win, just like the superheroes in the movies. Exactly like the Avengers during the alien invasion. The only problem was that she wasn't a hero. She didn't have super strength or laser vision. The only she could do was go back in time by five seconds, which wasn't super helpful at escaping a madman.

Knowing that it was game over for her, she let herself be stuffed into the car.

As soon as Christopher sped away, Natasha, Thor, and Bruce ran out of the restaurant. Thor had his hammer lifted, though she didn't know what he expected to do with it. Natasha pushed his arm down and raised a cellphone to the side of her head. Before the car turned down the street she mouthed 'be ready'.

Good lord that woman was creepy.

"Where are we going?"

"The airport. There's a plane waiting for us." Christopher dialed a number into his phone. He brought it to his ear. "Doll, I found Saniya." A long pause. "I'm sure she's the right one. She never would've come with me if she wasn't. She must've known I am bringing her to you. You guys can feel that sort of stuff, right?"

Saniya didn't bother correcting him on her motives.

He smiled and nodded. She made out a woman's voice but couldn't understand the words. It was too muffled. Christopher handed her the device. "She wants to talk to you."

She pushed the phone back. "Well, I don't want to talk to her."

His eyebrows drew together. "Why don't you want to talk to your sister?"

Saniya leaned back in her seat. "I don't have—"

Neither had a chance to scream when a large black truck collided with Christopher's side. The metal crumpled in on itself, almost crushing him. The airbags inflated a millisecond later, saving Saniya's head from colliding with the dashboard. The ringing in her ears was so loud she barely made out the sound of the people yelling. Her face stung from the airbag's rough slap. Other than that, she felt relatively unbroken.

Christopher groaned against the steering wheel. His arm bent in an odd position. Saniya gagged when she saw the bone sticking out of his arm.

Her fingers fumbled with the seat belt. They were jello.

"Please, please unlock," she pleaded.

The seat belt answered her cries. She pushed the airbag back and leaned against the door. Someone opened it and she tumbled out. Saniya barely caught herself before hitting the pavement. A pair of boots stepped in front of her.

"Saniya Ramakrishna, we have a lot of questions for you."