Archive of Our Own ^beta

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PART ONE

Chapter Text

Obnoxious beams of light forced Ellie out of her peaceful sleep. She’d grown used to being woken up by the sun's wrath at the buttcrack of dawn every morning, thank you east facing windows. Any hopes of waking up later would be futile, as Paw, her darling orange short haired feline, agrees with a young Anna of Arendelle that “if the sky’s awake, then [he’s] awake” and he wants to be fed. Begrudgingly, Ellie pulled her thick green comforter off herself and took in her Brooklyn apartment. Her full sized bed sat comfortably in the middle of the small room, leaving only a foot on either side of the cream walls. Botanical posters and local art filled the walls and her windows were riddled with plants. She walked out of her bedroom across the rest of her living space to her bathroom. She made the rookie mistake of closing the door with Paw on the outside, so he spent the entire time she was in there yelling at the top of his three inch lungs. After finishing her refreshing shower, she opened the door, setting Paw free of his terrible torture of not being let inside the room, and headed back to her room to get dressed. One perk of this apartment is the walk in closet in her bedroom. Unfortunately, Ellie was lacking the clothes to fill it. 

Something inside of Ellie was making her feel like today was going to be different, special. So she decided it would be a linen pants and sophisticated top kind of day, just in case. While she was approving her outfit in the mirror, Paw reminded her that he was being starved since he hadn’t been fed yet. She decided the outfit was fine and Paw believed he wasn’t, so she went to the kitchen/living room/dining room to feed him. After taking what she’s sure Paw thought was way too long, his wet food was in his dish and he was gobbling away. Ellie walked back into the bathroom to dry her hair. She kind of hated the process of drying her hair, but that itch in her mind kept telling her she needed to do things differently today. Once her light brown wavy hair was dry she put it up in a simple but nice half up half down hairstyle and finished it off with her favorite green butterfly clip to cover the hair tie. 

A loud grumble in her stomach told her that maybe Paw wasn’t being dramatic, so she walked over to the kitchen to make herself breakfast. The inside of her fridge was lacking in, well, food, but it was well stocked in milk, so a nutritious breakfast of cheerios would be joining her that morning. By the time she finished preparing her gourmet meal, Paw had finished eating his, so he was once again in need of attention. Ellie decided that the two of them could watch The Office together as she ate, especially since Paw loved watching TV. She settled in comfortably on her couch with Paw on her lap as Michael Scott stepped on a George Foreman mini-grill and forced Dwight to drive him to the hospital, despite having a concussion. By the time she finished her cereal the episode was over, but Paw was in no mood to move, so she was going to be camping out there for a while.  

Despite it being a Wednesday morning, Ellie wouldn’t be needed anywhere anytime soon anyways. She reviewed research papers remotely for work, so Paw holding her hostage wasn’t a huge deal. She actually really loved her work, the city was always intimidating for her and being able to stay in the safety of her apartment was nice for her. Plus, she got to read more about new research being done, she was perfectly willing to admit to being a nerd.  

Ellie and Paw’s peaceful relaxation was suddenly interrupted by confident knocking on the door. “Who’s that Paw?” she asked as they both stood up to walk over to the door. Since she was already standing, Ellie dropped her bowl in the sink and rinsed it out quickly. Another round of knocking began as Ellie was about to open the door. “Boy they are impatient,” she noted to her cat. She looked into the peephole to check who was there, the last thing we needed was a creep loser trying to get in, but she was frozen solid when she peered through. She was stunned until the third round of knocking, when she opened the door without hesitation, leaving the goateed man's raised arm knocking on air. Ellie stood and tried to regain her senses before she finally got her act together, “right, um come in?” 

“Thanks, I thought you would never ask,” he said, not at all humbly. “The name is Tony Stark, you may have heard of me before, not sure. May I?” he asked to come in further. Ellie nodded in response and pivoted so he could get past her. He took a seat at the four person table and waved his hand for her to join him, “right, so I’m here because I have seen what you can do and I am interested.”  

“What I can do?” Ellie got nervous. She knew what he was talking about, but she was sure no one had seen. She didn’t even know how it happened, or if she could do it again.

“Yes," he flatly replied. 

"What, is this some kind of April fools prank?" she questioned with a slight laugh.

"You really think I would show up to your house as an April Fool's prank?" he shortly replied. "As I was saying. Back in that alleyway. Some guy was there and he was clearly unwelcome, we tracked him down as well, apparently he had a couple warrants out so he's not going to be a problem anymore.  What was more interesting though is how you reacted to his unwanted presence. Does this look familiar?” he pulled out what looked like a sheet of glass that suddenly lit up and showed a video. Was that a phone? It wasn’t from any company she’d ever seen before. Ellie watched herself cutting through an alleyway after going to her preferred corner store for groceries as another figure came up behind her. The man yelled something and she spun around, but he already was right next to her with his gun pointed. She remembered him telling her to give him whatever money she had, but she couldn’t move. He was getting more upset and approached her closer, but suddenly a burst of color exploded from her and he flew down the alley. She paused to look at her hands before recollecting her things and running away. 

“So, what’s the question?” Ellie asked tentatively. 

“Not a question, more like a proposal."

“Look Mr. Stark I-” 

“Call me Tony”

“Mr. Stark," she emphasized. "I don’t think you have the right person”

“Is that you in the video?”

“Well yes, but-”

“Then I have the right person. You have potential to be a part of something great and I am just trying to let you be a part of that. You don’t have to decide right now, but at least come with me to the tower. I’ll give you a tour of the place and you can meet a couple people and maybe then you can decide,” he proposed. 

“Well it's complicated. I have Paw to think about.”

“Paw?” 

“The little four legged thing wandering around,” she said as she pointed to Paw, who was blissfully purring away on the counter. “I can’t leave him behind.” 

“We will discuss that, but I am sure something can be arranged. Now come on, let’s go. Happy is waiting downstairs with a car.”

Ellie stopped to think. There wouldn’t be any harm in just visiting right?  “Fine, but I’m not committing to anything.” 

“Deal.”

Chapter Text

Ellie and Tony went down the creaky elevator in her apartment. She was awkwardly looking down at her feet, completely unsure of what to say to him. When they got onto the street she saw a large black Cadillac SUV, that definitely seemed like it could be something Tony would have . A grumpy tall bald man got out of the car when he saw them. Is that Happy? He doesn’t look very happy. “Tony, we have to get going. They’re waiting for us.” 

“Happy. That’s no way to make a first impression. Meet Elizabeth Clark, she’s the newest recruit,” Tony Stark stated. Recruit? What exactly was she getting herself into? 

“Right. Sorry. Hi, I’m Happy Hogan. It’s nice to meet you. Though, you do have an appointment at the Tower that starts,” he went to look at his watch and groaned at him. “God Tony, it starts in an hour and it’s at least a 50 minute drive. At least give her a fighting chance.” She had an appointment? What was going on?

“It’s nice to meet you, Happy, and you call me Ellie. Sounds like we have to get going then?” She asked, feigning composure. 

Without skipping a single beat Happy responded, sending daggers at Tony, “yes.” 

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry. God you’d think you’d be nicer with a name like Happy” Stark quipped. With that note, they all gathered into the car, with Tony in the passenger seat and Ellie in the back seat. “So kid, I guess the surprise is shot. You’ve got a meeting at the tower with a couple people to make sure that you’re not some crazy evil superspy.” This was only meant to be a tour and maybe meet people, not an interrogation. Her leg bobbed as she thought about what was coming. She wasn't great under pressure. What if they thought she was lying, but she was just nervous . She used to smile and look extremely suspicious when being asked if she was lying. That is not a good! “It’s going to be fine, kid. I’m not throwing you to the wolves or anything. Just show us what you can do and you’ll be fine.” What she could do is read scientific papers. She had no control over whatever happened in the alley.

“Look, Mr. Stark about that-” Ellie tried to reason. 

“God kid I told you to call me Tony. Mr. Stark was my dad.”

“Fine. Tony. I’ve been trying to explain to you that I don’t think you fully understand my situation.” 

“Just save it for the interview okay. We can hash out everything there” Tony decided, leaving nothing for discussion. At least she’s dressed nice. The rest of the ride was quiet and loud all at the same time as Ellie anxiously awaited whatever the interview would bring. There was so much that Ellie needed to explain to Tony, but she didn’t really want to know how it would affect her chances. God, did she even want a chance? What would it even mean to be on the team? 

“Okay, we’re almost here,” Happy announced as they turned another corner of the gridded city, revealing the Avengers Tower in all its glory. 

“And we still have 15 minutes until the meeting starts which leaves us plenty of time to get up there. Happy, you’ve really got to lighten up.” Tony gloated, Happy mumbled something she couldn't understand, but she got the gist: screw you Tony. As they pulled into the driveway Tony turned around to face her, “We’re going to be going upstairs and meet with Fury and agent Hill. It’s not going to be anything too scary, though I will say Fury can be a little scary, but he's a softy deep down,” he paused, “I think. Anyways, we’re gonna go over your history, then you’re going to show us what you can do." Again with this 'what you can do'. He really didn't seem to understand that she had no control over it. "And hopefully at that point we can go over logistics and then you get to go on your tour. Sound good?”

“Sounds great.” Ellie tentatively responded. The car pulled up to the entrance of the tower and Ellie opened her door beating Happy to it. He switched in his tracks to walk around the car and let Tony out. Ellie watched him strut out of the expensive SUV like he owned the place, which to be fair he did. “So this is what the Avengers Tower looks like up close?”

“You’ve never been here before?”

“No, I haven't been in the city that long and I don’t ever really have a reason to come to this part of town. It makes a good addition to the skyline though.” she reasoned. 

“Yeah I suppose it does. Well, if you end up joining the team we’re going to have to make sure you see more of the city. A few of the members are from around here so they know some good local spots and I’m sure others do too. There’s a great shawarma joint down the street from here that you’ve got to try,” Tony explained as they walked into the tower. The entryway of the tower was heavily guarded and Tony pulled out his ID, which seemed odd since his name was probably on the lease, but a solid security system was good, so she didn't question it too much. The guards let him through but held their arms out between him and Ellie preventing her passage, “This is Elizabeth Clark. She is scheduled to have a meeting with Director Fury and Agent Hill and requires a guest pass. This should all be in your files. We’re in a rush so,” he directed, emphasizing his point. 

The security officer typed on his computer before pulling out a guest pass and handing it to Ellie, “put this on please and wear it for the rest of your visit.” The guard pointed to the metal detectors, “place all your loose belongings into this bowl and bags onto the tray. Then walk through the scanner” Ellie watched as Tony did that automatically, as if it was a daily occurrence. She would've thought he would use a different entrance normally, so he didn't have to go through all this hassle. She mimicked the task, though she didn't really have anything, and passed through the metal detector without issue and followed Tony through the rest of the way after thanking the security officer, thank you midwest upbringing. 

“Alright kid, good job you passed the first hurdle, security. The office is on the 37th floor, we can just go up this elevator and it will be on our left. Very simple.” 

“Right. Simple,” she scoffed to herself.

Tony turned around to face her in the elevator, “look kid, I can tell you're nervous and that you have doubts about being the right person for this job, but none of us were the right person for this job, except maybe the Capsicle. You just have to come in, be honest, and do your best. Whatever happens is going to happen. No matter what, it's good that you came and tried, you should be proud of that. I’m on your side, kid,” he said with zero sarcasm or wit. It was unexpected support, support she'd been in short supply of for a long time, telling her that maybe, just maybe, this was a good thing. 

“Thank you, Tony. I’m ready for this, I think. You’re going to be in there during the interview right?” she asked. She didn’t expect his words to have so much of an effect on her, she couldn't get attached. Though she needed someone to support her through this, even if it was temporary. A ding of the elevator signalled the beginning of this somewhat terrifying step, “Okay, it’s time.” 

“Yes it certainly is. They’re in here," he pointed. "Okay, brave faces,” he joked as he opened the door, placing a goofy exaggerated serious expression on his face, prompting a light smile from Ellie. Looking inside she saw two people sitting at a table in what seemed to be a conference room. An intense, serious man with an eye patch sat on the furthest end of the rectangle table, he must be Fury; Tony was right about the scary thing, hopefully he was right about the softy thing too. A similarly serious, but not so scary, woman sat to his right reading a file, Maria. “Sorry we’re late.”

“Yeah well. It was about damn time you showed up,” Fury snapped back. The blood escaped Ellie's face, shocked by his aggressive tone. “Ms. Clark, I assume your tardiness was due to Stark's incompetence not your own,” he continued, slightly less harshly. So this wasn't going to be fun. 

“Yup, she was late because I picked her up late. Sorry about that,” Tony said unapologetically. Ellie quietly sat opposite Fury with Tony to her right.

“Very well. Let’s get started. Now, Ms. Clark I have some questions for you to get us acquainted. Please state your full name and date of birth” Fury ordered.

“My name is Elizabeth Marie Clark and I was born on August 27, 1990,” she replied, her voice only slightly trembling.

“Good. That makes you 24 now, correct?” Fury continued.

“Yes.”

Maria joined the conversation, “our files also say that you were raised in Michigan and went to college there, is that correct?”

“Yes.” If they kept asking yes or no questions she'd be able to get through this okay.

“Good. After that, what made you move to the city? Do you have family here? Friends?” Fury asked. So much for yes and no.  

“No, the opposite actually. My parents passed away and I don't have any extended family. Michigan felt like a reminder of what I lost. I needed to go somewhere new and the city seemed like a good new place to explore,” she admitted.

“Alright. That all seems to match what we have. Though we have a different protocol that we'd like to use. One of our members works as somewhat of a lie detector, so we will know if your words are false or you have poor intentions," he very clearly put. "Maria, will you get Wanda?” he requested. Maria stood up and anxiety seeped into Ellie at the idea of being tested. Why was she feeling so nervous? It’s not like she had bad intentions or was lying. 

As Agent Hill walked out of the room Tony leaned over to Ellie, “she’s really nice, don’t worry.” Ellie nodded. After a couple minutes the door opened again and a young looking woman walked in with the agent. She looked like she was probably her age. Ellie followed some of the news about the Avengers, but really only the headlines. She hadn’t seen much about this Avenger. She recalled her having abilities, telekinesis maybe? And apparently she can do something with minds . “Hey Wanda, thanks for helping us out. This is Elizabeth Clark. We’re hoping to have her join us on the team. Though, we want to avoid any inconvenient revelations later, so that's why you’re here,” Tony spoke softly. It sort of reminded Ellie of how he’d spoken to her earlier, maybe they really were like a family here . 

“Okay,” she said in a rich accent as she sat down next to Ellie. She turned to face her, “Hi, it’s wonderful to meet you.” Wanda expressed a beautiful and genuine smile that burned onto Ellie. She turned towards Fury, “so what would you like me to do?” It seemed like this was a fairly new protocol. As far as she could recall, Wanda and her brother were the newest members of the team, so it had to be since she arrived.

“I will ask her some questions, your job is to look inside her mind to make sure that what she is saying is true and are her genuine intentions. You can do that, correct?” Fury asked without question. Wanda nodded. “Good, now lets begin. Are you ready?” 

“Yes,” Wanda responded and lifted her hands. Strings of red energy flowed from them to Ellie's head, “don’t worry, it’s not going to hurt. It may feel strange, but there will be no pain.” Ellie nodded and Wanda continued. The energy met Ellie's mind and it felt like someone was standing inside of her mind watching and listening to her think. It was overwhelming. She could feel everything Wanda was doing. It was like fire ripping through her. Stabbing at each nook and cranny of her brain. “Honey I’m going to need you to breathe,” Wanda attempted. Ellie was trying to but it was burning, like micro explosions. She didn't know how much longer she could stay calm.

“It hurts. It burns,” Ellie struggled out. Her mind was trying to push Wanda out, she couldn’t control it.  

“I’m going out,” Wanda announced as she pulled her energy away, providing instant relief. Ellie breathed heavily as she recovered from the horrible sensation. “Are you okay honey. If I had known, I wouldn’t have tried to do that. I’m sorry,” she comforted. 

“If you had known?” Fury demanded.

“That she’s a telepath. That’s why it hurt her. When someone enters our minds we can feel everything, it’s not an experience I would wish on someone.” She turned to Ellie, “I’m truly sorry. Did you know?” Ellie shook her head, barely keeping herself composed. A telepath? How was that even possible? “For what it’s worth, she’s telling the truth about that. I don’t have to break into her mind to tell that,” Wanda announced. 

“Well did you see anything when you were in there?” Fury asked. Wanda nodded and looked directly at Fury and her eyes glossed over red before returning to their natural color, did she just speak to him in his mind? Jesus Christ. What was happening. “Ms. Clark, can you take a seat outside for a moment please. We will come get you when we’re ready.” Oh god, what did Wanda see? Was this it, was she done?

“Sure,” Ellie managed. She got up from her seat and walked out into the hall, her head still pounding with each step, she turned to make eye contact with Tony one last time. He gave her a supportive smile, then she closed the door behind her. There was a chair waiting for her outside. The moment she sat down her mind began to unravel: what were they talking about? Did Wanda find something bad? If it’s bad, could they be trying to decide a punishment? Was it during the time between her parents dying and New York? That time was a little fuzzy for her, did they think she was lying then? Was that what they’re talking about? If only she could hear them. If she knew what they were talking about she wouldn't feel nearly as overwhelmed.

“-I’m telling you, I saw a scared girl who has abilities that she doesn’t understand!” Wanda argued. “Doesn’t that sound familiar.” What was happening? How could she hear them? Is this the telepathy Wanda was talking about? This was wrong. She wasn't supposed to be hearing this.

“How can we know if we can trust her if you can’t check her intentions,” Fury argued. 

“Before I was here you couldn’t do that at all. You’re just going to have to trust her. I didn’t see anything of concern. She’s experienced a lot of pain, more than she should’ve for her age." Ellie frowned, was it really that obvious? "Once again, doesn't it sound familiar? Look, I think you should give her a chance. From what I saw inside her she could become a really strong asset for the team,” Wanda explained. 

“Wait, what do you mean by that? You said she was a telepath and we saw her do that blast thing on the tape, is there something more?” Tony asked, intrigued. 

“I felt more power in her than I have ever felt in anyone before.” 

oh sh-

Chapter Text

Ellie truly started to panic. It made all of her previous stress seem juvenile. The words kept replaying in her mind ‘I felt more power in her than I have ever felt in anyone before.’ What does that even mean!? It didn’t make any sense. If she was that powerful shouldn’t she have been able to use that power? Technically she had, though that was different, she wasn’t trying to do whatever she did against that guy. God, she should've just stayed at home.

“Ellie,” Tony broke her out of her trance. Ellie swung her head over to look at him, probably faster than she should've. “You can come back in now,” he smiled, either not noticing, or ignoring her stress. She nodded and walked back inside, ready for whatever they would tell her, or at least she hoped she would be. The atmosphere in the room was unsettling. Fury was fuming, clearly she had heard his opinions about the situation correctly. Tony seemed overjoyed which could mean literally anything. Agent Hill had an excellent poker face and Wanda had a soft, kind smile. Ellie decided to focus on Wanda, she was the only one making her feel better. “So kid, we’ve come to a decision,” Tony said, ruining the Wanda plan. “We are prepared to offer you a probationary position on the team. This would mean that you would live here and train with us and after you’ve been with us for a couple weeks we will decide as a team-” Fury coughed dramatically. “-and with Fury’s input," he begrudgingly added. "Whether you are a good fit for the team. How does this sound?”

“Oh," she stuttered, genuinely shocked. "Um, yeah. That sounds great. Though, Tony about what we discussed earlier?” she reminded him.

“Tony, is this something we need to be here for? Maria and I have another meeting to get to. Ms. Clark, it was nice to meet you. I hope to be seeing you again soon,” Fury said, slightly less coldly. 

“No, this is logistical, you’re all set. Thank you. See ya!” Tony waited for the door to close behind them, “Thank god they’re gone.” He let out a deep breath and loosened his tie slightly, “that guy freaks me out. It was not easy to get him to chill out enough to let you in, kid. You really freaked him out with that telepath thing. You really didn’t know about that before now? Pretty damn cool-”

“Tony,” Ellie interrupted, he really knew how to talk. “About Paw. I told you that I wouldn’t be able to accept if he wasn’t able to come with me. Can we please talk about that?”

“Oh you were serious about that?” he joked, and Ellie's face fell. “Sorry. Yeah, we do have a no pet policy. Is there anyone else that can take him in for you? A friend maybe?” Ellie awkwardly shifted, she hadn’t made any friends since getting to the city. She rarely even left her apartment, Paw was truly all she had. God her life was sad. 

“No,” she said quietly into her lap as a flush rushed over her cheeks. “It’s okay. I really appreciate the opportunity, I just can’t leave him. I um, I don’t have anyone other than him, so I can’t abandon him,” Ellie's voice cracked as she tried to smile, pushing down her disappointment. She got up to leave the conference room, avoiding eye contact, to not take her over the edge. She realized how she must sound, turning down the opportunity to be on the Avengers for her cat, but anyone who’s truly loved and been loved by an animal knows it’s more than that. 

“I can’t believe I’m doing this,” Tony muttered under his breath. “You can have your cat,” he groaned. He quickly turned to Wanda, “this does not mean everyone can start having pets, I do not run a petting zoo.” She chuckled softly and he turned back to Ellie, smiling, “I understand that your situation is unique. That must be one damn good cat. So, do you accept the position?” 

She took a moment. There really was no reason to say no now. “I accept. Thank you Tony.” 

"You're welcome kid," he softly returned. Though he quickly returned to an overjoyed state and clapped his hands together, "Fantastic! We are so excited to have you on the team. I am just going to need you to sign this. It basically just says the same stuff I went over, you’re welcome to read over it if you’d like,” Tony elated as he handed her papers. “Once you’ve signed those, we can take the grand tour, Wanda, you can join us if you’d like, I’m going to have a team go to your apartment to help pack it up. Would you like to go there to help them determine what to bring, donate, or throw away?” Ellie nodded along to everything he was saying, trying to process what her new life had become because of two simple words. “Ellie, are you with us?”

“Sorry, yeah I am. Just processing. What was the question?”

“Do you want to go back to your apartment with the movers later?” Tony asked softly.

“Oh, yes. Definitely. Paw is going to be confused and I want to make sure the right stuff is brought. Thanks.” She looked down at the papers, “can I have a few minutes to read this over? Then we can go on the tour?” Ellie asked shyly.

“Of course honey. Take all the time you need. Tony and I will give you the room. We will be just across the hall. You can come get us when you’re ready,” Wanda offered kindly. Her and Tony walked out of the room leaving Ellie alone with the document and her thoughts. 

Maybe this was okay. She could finally have friends and if Tony and Wanda’s relationship was any sign, maybe even a family. She really needed a family. It’s been way too long since she'd felt safe with someone. She would give this a chance. A real chance. 

Ellie read through the contract and everything seemed to make sense. There were a couple clauses that stood out to her as a little strange, but nothing major. A few things would lead to her immediate dismissal from the Avengers during her probation, including: any criminal activity, harassment of other members of the team, and something about taking Thor's sandwich. Though overall it seemed pretty fair and she felt comfortable signing. She would need to talk to Tony about Paw and where he’s allowed to go in the Tower. Hopefully he’ll be allowed in the general residential floor areas so he’s not cooped up in her room all day. Maybe she could get Wanda to help her convince him, it seemed like she’d been wanting a pet for awhile. 

Ellie signed the document and reading it had actually calmed her nerves. It humanized the experience for her, since it mentioned more than just the big Avengers things, but also the domestic, sandwich stealing things. She put the document back in its fancy folder with the Avengers emblem pasted on the front. She stood up and took a couple deep breaths, getting herself ready for the next steps of the onboarding process. Once she’d eased her pounding chest and smoothed her outfit, she opened the door to cross the hall. Unfortunately, she wasn’t paying attention to where she was going, because she walked straight into a man standing right outside the door, dropping her folder in the process and littering the floor with papers. “Shoot. I’m so sorry. I didn’t see you,” Ellie said quickly while bending down to pick up her folder and the sprawled out papers, without missing a beat he started collecting them too. “Thank you,” she quietly added.

“It’s no problem,” a deep velvety voice responded. The voice shifted Ellie’s attention and she finally went to look at the man she had run into and was met with a pair of ocean blue eyes. There was a sort of detachment behind his vibrant eyes that she couldn’t place. “Here you go,” he handed her the file with a gloved hand. He quickly broke their eye contact and continued down the hall. 

Ellie stood there for a moment. Perplexed by the interaction. She recognized him from somewhere. Was he one of the Avengers? He was certainly built like an Avenger. She was really regretting not paying more attention to them, though her defense, who would've ever saw this coming. She shook it off and found the room that Wanda and Tony were sitting in. She let herself in and handed Tony the folder, “how serious is the whole sandwich thing? Like what if I accidentally eat it without knowing it was his?” 

“I wouldn’t worry about it, kid. The guy is a literal god. His sandwiches are the size of your head. It’s hard to miss. Plus, he always labels them after the ‘incident’. He’s just grumpy that the super bros ate it, exactly one time,” Tony joked. “I’m honestly impressed it made it into the contract. I think the legal team just didn’t want him to have a fit,” he laughed. “Anyways, are you ready for your tour?”

“Yeah. That sounds like fun,” Ellie smiled, she was actually looking forward to this part. 

“Great! Well let's get out of this conference room then!” he beamed as they all left the room. “So this is one of the many business floors of the Tower. Unfortunately, it can’t be all fun and games. We do have good stuff upstairs, but up until the 40th floor it's all sorta like this, offices and conference rooms and stuff. Today we went through the business entrance to the building. There is a back entrance with separate elevators that are only accessible with biometric ID that we usually will use." She was right! "That entrance is connected to the garage, which makes it easy, so you can go right there after parking.”

“Oh, I don’t have a car,” Ellie added. 

“Don’t worry about that," he quickly noted. ...okay?  "Anyways. I’m going to bring us to the residential elevators so we can get to the upper levels. You can get to them from any floor, but they can’t be called or used without a biometric pattern. The elevator we rode today will only go up to the 40th floor. Everything above that is designated just for the team; I really think you’re gonna like it up there,” Tony explained as they weaved through the halls of the ‘business floor’ to get to the elevator. “We also have a fully operational Emergency Department and four Operating Rooms on the 14 and 15th floors, so if anything ever happens we have you covered. We employ some of the top doctors and nurses in the country as well, so even if you have a sore throat you can go down and get checked out free of charge. There’s always people on call down there, probably bored out of their minds so don’t hesitate to go down.” Why is there a need for a whole hospital downstairs? She knew it was a dangerous job but maybe she didn’t think this through. “Hey, I can see that look on your face. It’s primarily there for the SHIELD agents. They’ll go in after us and unfortunately there's usually a good amount of damage there, since they don’t have the advantages we have. There are obvious risks with the job, but you shouldn't worry about this," he clarified. 

“Look, let's go see the fun stuff. We have a full length lap pool on the 44th floor. Open 24/7, though without a lifeguard, so I hope you can swim. Let me remember, the 41st floor is Bruce's Research lab, 42nd and 43rd are mine, 44th is obviously the pool, we have a big movie theater on the 45th, a couple empty labs on the 46th and 47th.  We have a massive training center that sort of covers the next three floors. The rest of the floors are residential. Each member gets their own floor. The floors get a lot smaller by the time we get up there, so it’s sort of like individual apartments. They each have small kitchens, but the main kitchen and dining room is on the 60th floor. We all eat together for the majority of the meals, Wanda over here is an excellent cook.” 

“Thank you Tony,” Wanda beamed.

“Oh, and we have another big lounge on the top floor, though that isn’t a very secure floor, since that's where the ‘social’ events are held. So, did you get all that?” he asked with a cunning smile.

“Not so much.”

“That’s okay, I assumed you wouldn’t. Luckily, You have J.A.R.V.I.S. He’s incorporated into every room and you just have to ask for him and he will help you.” She furrowed her brows, so Tony continued to explain, “He’s the A.I. I created. He knows everything about everything, so all you have to do is ask. You are going to be on the 64th floor, between Claws and Manchurian Candidate.” Whatever that means. They finally reached the elevator, after zigzagging for almost 5 minutes through the halls. Tony placed his hand on a pad and opened his eye for another scanner. “Biometrics,” Tony smirked and wiggled his eyebrows. “Do you have any floors you’d like to see?” 

“Can I see a lab, the training center, the kitchen, and my room?” Ellie hesitantly asked. She hoped that she might be able to acquire one of the labs, or at least work with Bruce or Tony. It was a dream of hers to do research of her own instead of just reading about it. 

“Of course, let’s try and pay Bruce a visit,” Tony announced. “Wanda, could you press 41 for me?” she scanned her hand before pressing the button. “We’re going to need to have your information added to the system before you leave to get your stuff later, don’t let me forget. Bruce is working on stem cell research. It’s not exactly my area of expertise but he finds it interesting.” Ellie's eyes lit up. She’d read a lot of articles about stem cell research and was suddenly extremely excited to meet Bruce. She wondered if he’d let her shadow him in the lab, or let her run experiments. She felt a smile burning on her face, “I guess it’s not my area, but maybe it's yours?”

“Oh yeah sorry. My job is, or I guess was, reviewing research papers and I always loved the ones about stem cells. I’m just excited to see what he’s been doing. Do you think he might let me work with him in the lab? I’ve always wanted to have a job in the lab, but I haven’t had the opportunity, reading was the closest I could get," she rapidly explained.

“God, Bruce is going to love you,” Tony sighed. Ellie beamed. A ding of the elevator meant they were there and Ellie was practically jumping with excitement. Wanda chuckled at Ellie’s amusement. “Bruce! We have a visitor! Are you here?” 

A loud bang came from the back of the lab, “Agh!” Shuffling noises came from the back corner before growing nearer and revealing a soft faced man in a lab coat. “Oh hey Tony, who’s this.” 

“This is Elizabeth Clark.” Tony cut her off before she could start, “but she goes by Ellie.” He winked at her. “She is our newest recruit to the team. She’s going to be on probation for the next couple weeks, then we get to decide if we want her to join us permanently.” 

“Oh cool. Hi Ellie, I’m Bruce, it’s nice to meet you.”

“It’s really nice to meet you too,” Ellie was still struggling to stop smiling. Her eyes were shooting around the lab, taking in all of the fancy tech and scientific equipment. 

“Believe it or not, she’s joining us because she’s enhanced, not because she’s a nerd,” Tony quipped. Ellie wanted to retort, but she had way bigger priorities at hand. She was in her first real life lab and it was amazing. “All day today she was timid and shy, but I started talking about your research and look at her, she’s like a dog with a bone.” 

“So you’re interested in stem cell research?” Bruce asked.

“Extremely. Well I’m interested in almost all biomedical and molecular biology research. I was working as a research paper reviewer before this, but all I really wanted to do was work in a lab. This place is amazing.” 

Bruce chucked, “thank you Ellie. If this all works out, I’m sure there’s a position for you at my lab if you’d like it.”

Ellie's eyes shot open, “you mean it?” 

“Yeah, maybe you can come down to the lab with me at some point and we can see what you can do,” Bruce smiled. 

“Yes please. Thank you so much.” Ellie was having a really hard time containing her excitement. 

“Come on kid, we have more places to go and we don’t want you to be out too late,” Tony reasoned. Ellie nodded and said her goodbyes to Bruce. “Geez kid, who knew you were such a science geek” Ellie simply smiled in response, too hopped up on her excitement to converse about it. “Well I’m glad to see you have a chipper side, I was starting to worry we were getting another grumpus on the team. It would've been fitting for all your rooms to be in a row," he said, pretty much only to himself. "Now, onto the training facilities. It should be fairly empty now, but there's always a chance of someone being in there. You’re going to meet everyone formally tomorrow, nothing fancy don’t worry. Anyways, we can start at the 48th floor. It's kinda open concept, floor wise. You’ll see what I mean when we get there.” The doors opened to the training facility and it was unlike anything she’d seen before. First of all, it was massive. Throughout the middle was a section that was just a huge open space with netting keeping it enclosed and padded floors, it included the height of all three levels, it must be for the Avengers that can fly. The areas surrounding it had all three floors and small sections within them with glass walls and outside walking paths to get between them. 

In one corner there was every type of exercise machine Ellie could imagine sprawling over the floors, some even looked like they had been made by Tony. Along that wall there were a bunch of rooms that looked like they were made to be sparring rooms. The extent of the next wall, corner to corner on each floor were apparently all simulation rooms. Next there were some free weights and the rest of the were specialized chambers for each Avenger to harness their own skills, with one empty, was that for her? Along the top level there was a 400 meter standard track. It was the largest facility Ellie had ever seen. It was almost overwhelming. 

“Pretty cool huh?” Tony prompted.

“Yeah. I can’t believe how fancy it all is. It’s amazing. I’ll be able to train here?”

“Yeah. Wanda is going to try and help you understand your abilities better. We’re going to calibrate one of those,” he pointed to the specialized chambers. “For you so you can try and understand your abilities better. Don’t worry we’re going to go at your pace. I know it’s all really new to you,” he smiled.

“Okay. That sounds like a plan,” Ellie smiled back. “So, the kitchen?” 

“Ooh, I want to do this stop!” Wanda exclaimed excitedly. “So, the kitchen is maybe my favorite place in the Tower. When I was little my mom and I used to cook together all of the time. Pietro, my brother, was, of course, always up to no good, running around the house, but I was with my mom. I loved cooking. When we got here, it was sort of a difficult transition, but when I realized I could work in the kitchen again it felt more like home. Did you and your mom have anything you did together?” she asked softly. Did Wanda find out about Ellie's parents when she went into her mind? She said something about her pain.

“Yeah. We used to watch sappy rom coms together. She always knew exactly what was going to happen without even watching them. My theory is that she learned their algorithm after watching like a hundred hallmark movies after she had a surgery around Christmas time,” Ellie explained, suddenly feeling waves of joy and sadness from talking about her mom. She rarely talked about her parents, but it felt nice, like a bittersweet ache that reminded her they’re still alive in her memories. 

“That sounds wonderful. If you ever wish to try and watch one and want someone there with you, I’m always here,” she smiled with a deep understanding. It was amazing how safe Wanda's presence was. Though from what she’d in the conference room, the two of them may not be all that different. 

Warm scents suddenly rushed into Ellie’s nose as the doors opened, revealing a beautiful kitchen with a massive dining room table and a giant modular couch surrounding a similarly giant TV. This space had definitely been designated as a place where the group could be people, not just Avengers. “Woah, this is amazing. What that smell? It’s delicious,” Ellie asked as she walked into the space. No one was in the area, so they must’ve finished eating, but only recently. 

“I don’t know, but it smells like something Remy would make,” Wanda responded. Ellie nodded and wandered through the space. “Are you hungry? I could whip something up really quick?” 

“Really? I’d love that. All I’ve had today was my bowl of cereal from this morning.” 

“Coming right up! How does Chicken Paprikash sound?” Wanda asked while collecting things to get ready to cook. 

“Wonderful” Ellie beamed. 

“Hey kid.” Ellie jumped. She’d completely forgotten Tony was there. He hadn’t been that quiet since she’d met him. “Sorry didn’t mean to scare ya. Want to see your room while Wanda is cooking?” 

“Oh yeah, good idea. We will be right back Wanda,” the two smiled to each other as Ellie and Tony went up to Ellie’s floor. She couldn’t believe she was going to have a whole floor to herself. Tony was right that they were smaller, but they certainly weren’t small. “I’m on floor 64 right?” 

“Right. It’s actually a nice spot. You’re close to the kitchen and these floors have a hell of a view.” When the elevator went up to her floor it opened to a sitting area with a couch and TV, it reminded her of her apartment, except everything was way fancier. “So, once we get it set up, only your biometrics will work on this floor, or anyone you get permission to. You will also be able to let people onto the floor if they are requesting access. That applies to the elevator and the emergency stairwell," he added, gesturing to a door next to the elevator. "Anyways, this is the lounge space, you have your couch, which can be changed if you don't like it - that goes for just about anything in the apartment.” He turned right down a short hall, “here is your kitchen, you have a microwave, sink, fridge, and a couple burners, an oven and a bunch of cabinet space. Kitchenware is all provided and is top of the line. Uhh,” he reoriented himself and turned out of the kitchen and crossed the lounge to the opposite side, “through here is your bedroom. You have a beautiful view of the sunsets,” the door revealed a massive room with walls of windows showing the Manhattan skyline with a king sized bed in the center. “Don't worry, the windows are one-way, also, J.A.R.V.I.S. can dim them if it’s too bright, oh! And they can also function as screens. “J.A.R.V.I.S. please display the upcoming forecast.” 

“Sure thing Mr. Stark,” a voice announced.  

“So he calls you Mr. Stark but when I do it I’m calling you your father,” Ellie quipped, Tony smirked at her. A bright display of the upcoming weather on the windows silencing her as she watched in awe. “Wow. That’s amazing.” 

“Oh! That reminds me. J.A.R.V.I.S. Elizabeth Marie Clark will be living here as a probationary member of the Avengers, she needs biometric access to all of the appropriate locations.”

“Of course sir,” the A.I. responded. “Ms. Clark, Please say your full name clearly so I can calibrate for your voice.” 

“Elizabeth Marie Clark” 

“Thank you. Now, can you please go to the nearest biometric scanner for your hand and optic calibration,” the A.I. requested.

“The Elevator,” Tony simply stated as he strutted out of the room. “Okay place your hand on this and look into this when he says, sounds good?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Alright Ms. Clark, please place your hand on the scanner.” Ellie followed the command. “Thank you. And now look into the optic scanner.” Ellie looked inside and watched as green light traced her eye. “Thank you. Biometric calibration is complete,” J.A.R.V.I.S. stated. 

“Well that was fun. You’re officially in now. When you get back from your old apartment, they’ll drop you off at the door in the garage that I was talking about and you can use your scan to get back here. If you forget your floor you can just ask,” he reminded. 

“Great. Thank you. So where’s my bathroom?” 

“Oh that part is great! Come on it’s attached to your bedroom, though there is a half bath out here too but that one is boring,” he quickly guided her back into the room and through a second door revealing a massive bathroom. There was a tub big enough for three people, a walk-in shower with like 5 different shower heads, what appeared to be a multifunctional toilet, a gorgeous counter with two sinks, and still floor space. Ellie’s jaw was on the floor. Her old bathroom barely fit the shower and the toilet. “So you like it?” 

“It's amazing.”

“Okay, I just have one last thing to show you, then you can go down and eat, I’m sure Wanda is almost done cooking.” Tony walked out of the bathroom and to the other mystery door, “here is your closet.” Once again it was an absolutely massive room, though Ellie didn’t have any clothes to fill it with. Maybe, she’ll get a uniform to put in there or something. Tony saw her concerned face, “what’s wrong? Do you not like it?” 

“No it’s not that. It’s just, I didn’t even have enough stuff to fill my closet at home. Reviewing articles didn’t pay very well, so I don’t really have very many clothes. So much of this space is going to be wasted, I guess I just feel bad,” Ellie admitted, embarrassed. 

“No offense, but that’s a ridiculous thing to feel bad about, it's been empty for a long time. Plus, I can send you to the store with Nat. Trust me, you won't be having that problem after that. Try not to worry too much about that when you’re here, I’ve gotcha kid.” 

“You don’t have to do that.” 

“I know,” he smiled. “Now come on, let’s go eat some lunch. You’ve got a busy day ahead of you.” 

Yeah. This was going to be okay.

Chapter Text

After a delicious meal completely credited to Wanda's cooking, Ellie was on her way to her apartment to pack. A lean, soft faced man named Elliot drove Ellie back to her apartment and she was told to call him when she was ready to be picked up again. She decided she'd ask to use one of the movers' phones to call once she was done since she didn't actually have a phone. Luckily, she’d beaten the movers to her house, so she could get Paw into his carrier and change into comfy clothes. She ended up putting on a pair of grey sweatpants and a black hoodie. It was already 4pm by the time she’d gotten there, so she hoped she could just give them the necessary direction, then head back to the tower. 

Ellie wandered through her apartment collecting the various toys Paw had littered around her home. She placed them into a bag that would be going with her directly back to the Tower. Paw was peacefully sleeping in his carrier on her bed, thank god she had the least problematic cat ever, except when doors were closed or he was hungry. She grabbed his food and water bowls and quickly washed them before putting them in the bag along with the food itself. She grabbed his litter and figured she could use a plastic tub from her closet temporarily since she didn’t want to transfer his old litter box. Perfect, Paw was done. She set all of his things, along with him, together in her bedroom. 

She then decided to take on the random stuff in the main living space. She remembered she had an extensive sticky note collection thank you Target. She decided to label everything based on what she would be keeping or donating and put the rest in trash bags. Taking on the kitchen was easy. Ellie decided to stick things in cupboards, then label those, saving time and sticky notes. Ellie was wandering around her apartment assigning stickers until 6:30, when the movers came. It was a good thing she was being productive during that time or else it would’ve been a really late night. “Hi there, we were sent here by Mr. Stark to pack up your apartment.”

“Yes, hello, I’m Ellie. You can come in. I’ve labeled everything to make it easier for you. Pink sticky notes mean keep and blue means donate,” she smiled. “I have my cat in my bedroom, so I am going to sit with him while you guys work, but you can come in or call for me if you have any questions.” 

“Thanks, will do,” the main worker replied. 

“Oh, do you have a few boxes I could use? I think I’m going to pack up a little bit on my own in here while I wait.”

“We do, though you don’t have to. We will take care of everything.” 

“I know, I’d like to,” she beamed. 

“Will do, I’ll bring some in,” the worker replied. Ellie left the main living area and walked back into her room to see Paw still sound asleep, silly cat. 

The whole process took another two and a half hours, though that wasn’t too bad all things considered, the sun had barely started setting. Ellie borrowed a phone and called Elliot, who was there in less than ten minutes. She brought her small plastic tub, which she ended up putting all her cat stuff in, Paw, and a backpack with clothes for the next day and some toiletries. 

Elliot was a big fan of Paw and asked if he could say hi to him when they arrived at the Tower, which Ellie happily said yes to. Paw was a huge people person and purred the second Elliot came over to pet him, then proceeded to roll over on his back and ask for tummy pets. “He’s a wonderful cat. I can see why Mr. Stark is letting you have him,” Elliot said through his big smile. 

“Yeah, I got a good one. Though I think that gives me too much credit. One evening after I went to the store Paw followed me the whole way back, purring and rubbing against my legs. I was worried he was someone else's cat, but at the time he had pretty matted fur and a couple scratches, so I knew he was mine. He walked me home, all the way up to my apartment. He didn’t even try to fight me when I gave him a bath and brushed out the knots in his fur. I think we both needed each other. We’re each other's home.”  

“That’s a wonderful story. I’m glad the two of you found each other. Now, have a good night. You have my number if you ever need anything,” he smiled kindly. 

“Thank you Elliot, you too,” Ellie beamed. 

Ellie grabbed her things and walked up to the elevator she’d come down in hours earlier. She set all of her things down and set her hand down on the pad and looked into the scanner and the system dinged and turned green. She gathered her things and waited for the arrival of the elevator. “Paw, we're gonna live here for awhile, maybe even forever,” she spoke to her feline, he meowed in response, prompting a giggle from Ellie. The elevator doors opened for Ellie and she walked inside “J.A.R.V.I.S. floor 64 please.” 

“Voice authentication approved: Elizabeth Marie Clark”

“Biometrics,” Ellie mimicked Tony’s previous mannerism to Paw. The elevators in the tower moved concerningly quickly. They were already at their floor in what felt like 10 seconds. “Okay Paw, this is it. What do you think?” he once again responded with a little meow, “that good huh.” Ellie walked out of the elevator and turned towards her room. She was planning on getting Paw situated and would then go down to the kitchen and try and find something to eat, since she was once again extremely hungry. “This is our room. Do you like it?” This time his response was falling asleep on the bed, which arguably was the best response to that question. “Message received. I’m going to set up your food, water, and litter in the bathroom. Then I’m going to go downstairs for a little bit, but don't worry I’ll be back.” Paw was sound asleep, “why do I try.” Ellie filled up the litter box near the bathtub and his food and water dishes underneath the sink. She put a few toys on the floor, kissed his head, then headed out of the room, closing the bedroom door behind her. 

After using her voice as her biometric identifier again in the elevator, Ellie decided that she’d be using that from now on when she could. It was a lot easier than putting her hand on the pad, or looking in the weird eye scanner thingy. When the doors opened to the kitchen it was empty again, though it made more sense this time since it was already ten and everyone probably ate already. It seemed like they ate a while ago, since Ellie couldn’t smell any food, though that wasn’t stopping her from being hungry. She opened the fridge to look for something easy to eat, but everything needed to be prepared. There was some ground pork that looked like it could be good. If she could find pasta then she could really have something. 

She went looking through the cabinets for the pasta when she was struck by an overwhelming feeling of panic. Something was wrong. What was going on? She could feel a new energy that she hadn’t felt before. 

“You’d better explain who you are, or I’m going to start dealing,” a thick accent threatened. Oh god. Ellie slowly raised her hands to try and show her innocence. “Start talking,” he demanded as he sent a playing card? Into the wall right next to her head. 

Ellie let out a quiet scream as she started slowly turning to look at the person, “my- my name is Ellie Clark.” God. If she’s going to be on this team she’s going to need to get better at this kind of thing. She had her sweatshirt hood on, which was not helping her cause, at all. “Tony, uh, I am uh, I’m a probationary member of the team. As of this morning.” 

Ellie finally turned all the way to look at him and saw a tall handsome red eyed man with a floating bright purple deck of cards, “Take off the hood.”

“We can call him down, or Wanda, just don’t hurt me, please,” she pleaded as calmly as she could while she carefully pulled her hood off and attempted a smile. “Tony told me there's something arranged for me to meet you guys tomorrow?” Ellie suggested in an uneven voice.

He paused, then his face fell and he released his hold on the cards, “Oui, Gambit remembers now. I’m sorry for scaring you mon cher,” Gambit? softly explained. “Please, allow me to make it up to you Cheri.” 

Ellie was rapidly composing herself after his sudden change in tone, really 100 to 0 with this guy. If she wanted to make friends, a family, she needed to try, “Could you help me make something to eat? I’m not a great cook and I haven’t eaten since two.” 

“Of course, Mon Cheri just missed my cooking earlier. It’s too bad, it was delicious.” 

“Wait. Are you Remy?” 

“Remy LeBeau, at your service,” he responded, placing a light kiss on her knuckles. A warm blush rushed over Ellie's cheeks at his action. “So, tell me about yourself Cheri, while I cook for you.” 

“Oh, well there’s not too much to say, I’m afraid,” Ellie confessed as she took a seat at the massive island. 

“Mon amore, for a petite amie as beautiful as you, that cannot be true.”

Another round of blush tickled Ellie’s cheeks, “okay, but only if you tell me about how you did that with the cards.”

“You have a deal,” he beamed.

“Okay. Well I grew up in a small town in Michigan as an only child to two amazing parents. I’d say I had a pretty good childhood, I had some tough times with friends at certain points, but my parents were my rock. I don’t know. I guess I never really had many friends growing up, or at least good ones, but I never cared much, cause I had my parents,” she paused. Not sure how much she wanted to open up to the man that had just threatened her. She tried not to really think about how much her parents meant to her. For so long she tried to push those feelings down, so she wouldn’t feel the pain of the loss. Though it was all she could think about. She'd had a too long and too stressful day and she wanted her parents back. She wanted a hug and for them to tell her it would be alright. She felt a hot tear drop down her cheek. 

Remy turned from the stove when he noticed the pause, “mon cheri?”

Ellie sniffled and wiped her tears away to try and hide her sadness, “um, then I uh, went to college and graduated early and moved to the city a few years ago.”

“Are you alright? You can talk to Remy.”

“Yeah, well no, not really, but that’s not going away soon.” Remy had not abandoned his focus on her, so she tried to continue, “Um. When I was at an overnight visit at a school there was a fire and my parents didn’t make it out in time. My uh, parents were gone, along with my childhood home, which held everything I had left of them. They were both only children and my last living grandparent passed away a few years before that, so in one night I went from having my two best friends to no one at all. So I am just trying to work through that,” Ellie tried to smile but she wasn’t fooling anyone. She had a steady stream of tears flowing now. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be unloading all this on you,” Ellie shied as she wiped the tears away. 

“No, Remy is glad you did,” he warmly smiled. “Do you still want to know how my card trick works?” Ellie nodded with a soft smile. “Well, I am what Bruce calls a mutant. Have you met him?” He asked.

“Yeah, I think I might get to work in his lab with him,” Ellie genuinely smiled at the reminder. 

“Well isn’t that something, mon cheri the scientist,” he emphasized. “My mutation allows me to tap into the kinetic energy of any object. I am a fan of playing cards. They're easy to carry around and there's lots of them.”

“That’s amazing.”

“Merci, I assume there's a reason Tony sought mon cheri out?” Remy inquired.

“Yeah, he, uh, found a surveillance tape of me. I was cutting through a bad alleyway on my way home and a mugger thought I was an easy target. Honestly, I thought I was an easy target too, but something was activated inside of me. I blasted him away with some sort of energy. I haven’t done anything like it since, but Tony seemed to think that was enough. Wanda also thinks I have telepathy, I’m not sure though,” Ellie explained. 

“Shit Cheri. Remy is impressed.” 

“Yeah I don’t know. I’m just worried it was a fluke and they’ll send me away,” Ellie confessed. 

“I doubt it. You’ve got that spark in you, I can feel it,” Ellie smiled at his kindness. He turned back to the stove to plate their dinner. 

“So, what are we having for dinner then?” Ellie asked, entranced by the smell. 

“I’ve made us my famous Po Boys,” Remy said as he turned around to her with a plate with a delicious looking sandwich. She was struggling to process how he’d made it so fast. “Remy hopes you enjoy,” he anxiously said, as he waited for her to try them. 

Ellie took a bite and was greeted with so many delicious flavors she didn’t even know how to name. It was one of the best things she’d ever eaten, “Oh my god Remy this is amazing.”

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah. It’s delicious. I can’t believe I almost made myself buttered noodles and ground pork for dinner.” 

“Ah don’t say that. That hurts to hear. Mon amor shouldn’t eat like that. She should eat Remy's food.” 

“Well, as long as you make it, I’ll be happy to eat it,” Ellie smiled brightly. 

“Stick with me and you shall never go hungry again,” Remy toasted as he raised his Sandwich.

“You know, I think this is the beginning of a very beautiful friendship,” Ellie returned the toast.

Chapter Text

“Is she ready?” a middle aged man in a suit asked. 

“Almost. Her abilities make this process difficult,” a man in a lab coat responded.

“I don’t understand. Didn’t we want her to be powerful. She’s the best we’ve ever had.”

“Yes, she is. She’s magnificent. It’s just that she’s too powerful. There’s only so much we can do. That's why the moments after are so important,” the scientist explained.

“Okay. Just do it,” the man in the suit ordered. 

Suddenly scorching pain overwhelmed all of Ellie's systems. Fiery pain lit up every part of her system, exploding her mind with pure white. She heard herself screaming, but all she could feel was the pain. She wanted to fight to get the pain away but her body was held down, she couldn’t move, she was stuck. Her arms were riddled with green markings, illustrating her vascular system. She needed to get out. The room was closing in on her, darkness was setting in. No, she couldn’t let that happen, that meant they won. She fought it. The screaming grew louder, the white shined brighter, and the pain burned hotter. 

Ellie woke up thrashing and screaming in her bed. Her heart was going a mile a minute and she couldn’t catch her breath. Her room was in chaos. Green energy was levitating objects and spinning them around her like her own personal tornado. She screamed, begging for it to stop. Ellie forced her eyes shut, trying to calm the chaos. She heard the floating objects drop and reopened her eyes. 

She didn’t know where she was. She searched the place for any signs of her location, nothing helped. Tears over-prioritized her investigation, as she started to break down. Everything from her dream felt real. She could feel the pain. She could see the faces. It all felt real. It felt like she’d seen it before. Ellie’s body shook as she cried and tried to release the pain from the torture in her mind. She studied her arms, to try and find any signs of the markings in the dreams. She shoved her nails in, to try and push the green out but all she was left with was her regular blood and skin. She kept trying again and again, but it was all the same. It didn’t make sense. None of that happened. She would’ve remembered that happening. 

A soft meow broke her from her trance as a beautiful feline walked out to greet her. “Paw? Hi baby. I’m so sorry for scaring you. Are you okay? I didn’t hurt you?” she wept, while examining him. Paw paid no mind to Ellie’s breakdown and walked straight into her lap and rubbed against her, “thank you baby.” The previous day slowly became clear again in her mind as she remembered where she was. “We’re safe here baby. It’s okay. J.A.R.V.I.S., what time is it?” she asked while stroking her companion. 

“It is two in the morning Ms. Clark,” the A.I. responded, totally freaking Paw out. “Ms. Clark, is there anyone you’d like me to get?” 

“No, that's okay. Thank you J.A.R.V.I.S.” Ellie crawled out of bed to where she left her backpack. However, her backpack was not there anymore, apparently she didn’t imagine the flying objects. She ended up finding her backpack on the other side of her bed. She grabbed a change of clothes, which were soft pj pants and a sweatshirt and walked into her bathroom. She decided to take a shower, but it was going to be a challenge to use, “J.A.R.V.I.S. could you just turn on the horizontal shower head for me?” 

“Certainly,” the A.I. responded. Ellie was really growing to like having him around. A strong stream started flowing out of one of the shower heads coming off of the wall. She set the water to as hot as it could get, in the hopes of burning off the nightmare. Ellie grabbed her hair brush from next to her sink and started aggressively combing her knotted hair. She was grateful now that she’d unpacked her toiletries the night before. She tied her hair up into a bun so it wouldn’t get wet, then stepped into the hot shower. It burned, but was a good burn, unlike the one in her dream. She poured soap onto her loofah and tried to scrub off everything she was feeling, but it wasn’t enough. She needed more pressure. She scratched herself to scrape it away, scratching until her skin bled. The water was a diluted red from her blood as it drained. 

After being in the shower for at least an hour, her skin was bright red and scabbing from the hot water, scrubbing, and scratching, she decided she’d had enough. She only felt a little bit better, but she still couldn’t shake the images of the men talking about her out of her head.  Her arms were still bleeding from her cutting into them with her nails, so she'd need to address that before getting dressed. "J.A.R.V.I.S., is there a first aid kit on my floor?" He directed her to one of her bathroom drawers. She took out some gauze and bandages and wrapped her forearms, where there was still significant active bleeding. She grabbed the ridiculously soft towel that Tony had provided and started drying off. Her soft clothes were exactly what she needed and she was starting to feel more comfortable. 

“J.A.R.V.I.S. is there tea in the kitchen?”

“Yes. It is fully stocked with a wide variety.” 

“Thank you.” Paw was refusing to leave Ellie’s side, so she decided that since Tony hadn’t told her specifically where Paw could and couldn’t go he’d be joining her in the kitchen. Ellie wanted to blame Paw for them going down together, but she didn’t want to be alone either. The kitchen was pitch black when Ellie got down there, the only light source being the city through the windows. “J.A.R.V.I.S. can you turn on the lights?” Moments later all of the lights were on, “thank you.” Yeah. She really liked having J.A.R.V.I.S. around. In the hopes of avoiding a repeat of the previous night, Ellie figured asking would be safer, “where can I find the tea?” 

“Tea is located in the third drawer to the right of the refrigerator. Enjoy.” 

“Thank you J.A.R.V.I.S.,” Ellie walked over to the drawer he described and pulled it out to reveal at least thirty different types of tea, along with five different kinds of cocoa, and a bunch of water flavoring packet thingies. “Paw, maybe we make cocoa. They have caramel cocoa. We love that stuff,” she rhetorically pondered. Paw chirped and rubbed against her. “I’ll take that as ‘excellent idea Ellie.’” Ellie collected what she needed, luckily the cupboards had glass doors, so she easily found the mugs. She was excited to find one with a cat on it, so she obviously chose that one. She recalled there being milk in the fridge when she rummaged the night before, so she got that out, along with the whipped cream she discovered. “J.A.R.V.I.S. are there mini marshmallows anywhere?” 

“Yes. In the fourth drawer. Next to the tea.”

“Thank you! Also, is there a bathroom on this floor?” Ellie asked. Realizing she had to go now that the adrenaline from earlier was wearing off. 

“Yes. Down the hall. Right next to the flashing light,” the A.I. explained. Ellie looked and saw a light flashing past the couches. 

“That is very helpful. Thanks!” Ellie started to wonder if she was thanking the A.I. too much, oh well being too nice never hurt anyone. “Paw, I’m going to be right back. You stay here and be good.” Paw did his regular response and continued exploring the new room. Ellie walked further into the hall of the kitchen and saw pictures of the group hung up along the hallway. Wide smiles filled the faces of everyone in the pictures. Some had everyone. There was one with Tony and a teenager. Another with Wanda and a guy who looked a lot like her, maybe her brother? They were all happy. Ellie was beginning to really want to be a part of this team and find her spot on the wall. 

On her way back from the bathroom she started feeling a sense of unease again, like when she met Remy. She didn’t feel like something bad was going to happen this time though. Ellie carefully walked back through the hallway, trying to see what was happening. She needed to make sure Paw was okay, but this was a very secure building, she had no reason to worry, right? The kitchen came into her vision and she saw a man holding his hand out to Paw, was he just letting him sniff him? She furrowed her brows and looked closer at him. Wait! She recognized him. It was the man with the beautiful eyes from the hallway! “His name is Paw,” she managed as she rounded the corner. 

He turned his head to look at her. “He’s yours?” he asked in that amazing voice.

“Yes,” Ellie was taking in the gorgeous man in front of her. He had shoulder length voluminous wavy brown hair, his face seemed to have been hardened with time, but why, what could've caused that? His ocean blue eyes pierced her soul, confusing her further, how could they be so bright and dark at the same time? It didn't seem possible. She studied the rest of him. He was still heavily covered, like earlier, though his glove was gone and a metal hand took its place. It was an amazing piece of machinery and it looked so familiar. She knew she’d seen it before, but where? The hand suddenly disappeared into his pocket. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to stare. It’s just beautiful, it's a prosthetic?”

“Of sorts,” he quietly responded. 

“I like it," she admired as he took he hand out of his pocket again and open and closed his fist. "Oh, I’m sorry I’m being rude, I’m Ellie. I’m the newest member, at least on a probationary basis,” Ellie smiled, holding her hand out, trying to make a better impression with the gorgeous man in front of her. 

“James,” he took her hand. 

“Well, that is Paw, he is my roommate. He’s extremely friendly,” Ellie encouraged. She went to work on her drink, “I’m making hot cocoa. I was going to make tea, it always helps me feel better, but cocoa is even better. Would you like any?” God why was she talking so much. She turned back to look at him, he was staring at her, almost like he was studying her. “I- I um managed to get Tony to allow me to bring Paw,” she kept talking. “It wasn’t easy. Apparently he has a no-pet policy, but I was able to convince him. You can pet him. He really likes belly rubs,” Ellie smiled. 

Paw seemed to have plans of his own and he started rubbing against James’ arm with the prosthetic, practically forcing him to pet him with it. It seemed to make James nervous, but he eventually gave in. He lightly grazed his fur, but Paw obviously found that unacceptable and shoved himself against his hand. Ellie tried really hard not to study James’ hand, but the inner workings of the prosthetic was amazing. It moved just like a natural hand. “Yes,” James suddenly said. 

“I’m sorry?” Ellie responded, confused. 

“To the cocoa.”

“Oh, right, sorry. Sure, I’ll make you some,” Ellie beamed. She shifted her attention from her loudly purring cat and the mysterious man to making their drinks. She found a small pot under the stove and started heating up the milk. She didn’t remember the name James. She knew James Rhodes, but he was one of the few members she actually read about, so she knew this wasn’t him. Ellie turned around to give Paw some pets with James, “do you want some cocoa too?” Paw chirped in response. "Oh do you now?" she beamed. Ellie was completely dumbfounded as James laughed at Paws vocalization. She quickly pulled herself together and brushed away the unexpected butterflies that flew into her stomach. “How about just some milk baby,” Ellie smiled. She grabbed a ramekin and poured a little bit of milk into it. Among the other reasons Paw was great, he also wasn’t lactose intolerant like most cats. “Is that yummy baby?” Paw purred loudly, “I’ll take that as a yes.” 

The milk was successfully warmed and Ellie poured the powder in to make it nice and chocolatey and whisked it to its cocoa perfection. She grabbed another mug from the cabinet and poured cocoa into their cups, then rinsed out the pot so it would be easier to clean later. James was sitting on the other side of the island. She figured she’d sit across from him to avoid putting too much pressure on the situation. She handed him the mug and the toppings, “we have marshmallows and whipped cream. There's probably other things too, but this is what I could think of,” Ellie kindly offered.

“Thank you,” James took both and started pouring whipped cream on his cocoa. He didn’t stop until there was at least two inches of whipped cream above the rim of the mug. Ellie was forcing herself not to laugh. The last thing she expected was for the quiet and broody man to have a massive sweet tooth. She accidentally let a giggle out, “What? I like whipped cream,” James defended, with a hint of banter in his tone. 

“No judgement here. My mug will be looking just like that too,” Ellie smiled brightly. James slid the whipped cream across the counter and Ellie did just as she promised and filled it all the way up. James added marshmallows to his tower, causing a compromise to its structural stability and he had to rapidly try and save his whipped cream tower, “rookie move. Everyone knows you have to let the whipped cream melt a little first or else it’s all coming down.” 

“Really? Everyone knows that?” James quipped. Was that a joke?

“Well, I don’t know. But I wait and my spill rate has gone down exponentially,” she stated matter of factly. She looked closer at the catastrophe he’d experienced and realized that he had cocoa all over his hands and the table, so she got up to grab a napkin. She reached across the table to hand him his napkin, but he didn’t grab it. James’ face had dropped. Ellie followed his eye line to her arm. Reaching across caused her sweatshirt to fall back revealing the now nearly blood soaked bandages on her arms. She quickly set the napkin down and pulled down her sleeves. She went to check on Paw, hoping James wouldn’t think much of it. Paw’s bowl was almost empty and he stopped drinking, so she took it and started cleaning it. 

“Why did you need to feel better?” James asked, seriously.

“What do you mean,” Ellie tried to play dumb. She’s divulged way to much on way too many people since getting here already. Isn’t there a ‘know someone for at least 48 hours before trauma dumping’ rule or something. 

“You said that you were going to make tea because it makes you feel better. Why did you need to feel better?” he repeated. 

“It wasn’t a big deal or anything. You don’t have to worry about it,” that was a big fat lie, it felt like a massive deal, but she didn’t want him worrying about it. She’d never had a nightmare like that before and it seemed to trigger her powers. Plus, this man clearly had his own stuff to work though, her bad dream wasn’t something he needed to worry about. 

“If it wasn’t a big deal, then it shouldn’t be a big deal to tell me. Why did you need to feel better?”

He clearly wasn’t going to give in. She had to give him something, “I um, I had a bad dream, that’s all.”

“So you had a bad dream, woke up, then came straight downstairs,” he very specifically quizzed. Clearly he wasn’t going to let go what he saw on her arms. To his credit it did look really bad, and she was pretty sure he saw her arms being in perfectly fine condition earlier that day, but she had no idea if he remembered that. In her defense she didn't mean for it to get that bad. She wasn’t really in control of herself when she was doing it. 

“No. I took a shower first,” she admitted. She didn’t understand him. He didn’t seem mad, but he did seem upset. “Look, I should really go back to bed. I have an important day tomorrow,” she said. She felt like she was disappointing him somehow, which shouldn’t be possible cause she just met him. She went to grab Paw but he stood between them, preventing her from getting to him. Ellie felt a rush of fear following the movement, though the only thing on his face was concern. 

“Be honest with me, please,” he requested softly. 

Ellie was so confused now. Why was this man that she met no more than twenty minutes ago so concerned? She was searching his face for an ulterior motive, but all she found was worry. There was no anger. She really wanted to be honest, but she was scared and wasn’t ready to talk about it. She just wanted to leave, she was feeling too much. “I was honest. I took a shower, then came down. Can I please have my cat?” she shortly return, entirely exhausted. 

He looked at her again, really looked at her, “just one more thing, what floor are you?”

Well that was a strange switch up in questioning. Guess that was better than him quizzing her for details about her nightmare or arms, “I’m on 64.” His frown deepened. “Look, it was nice meeting you, but I’m really tired. Can I please have my cat? I just want to go to bed.” He stepped aside. “Thank you, we’ll see each other tomorrow. Maybe we can restart then?” Ellie gave him a small smile, she received a faint one in return. She grabbed Paw and walked into the elevator, leaving her undrank cocoa behind.

The second Ellie got to her floor the tears flooded her eyes again. She ripped her sweatshirt off to stare at the damage she’d done to herself. Her bandages were completely stained red with darker stripes riddled throughout. Sections of her arms had been scrubbed raw. It scared her how much damage she’d done to herself. She was in heaving sobs as she made her way to her bedroom. Everything that was loosely placed in the room was thrown around the room during her nightmare. She hated seeing so many reminders of it. She grabbed onto the bed and pulled herself in and under the covers. She waited, crying, for sleep to come and save her from her conscious pain. 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

Ellie woke up with a pounding headache. She was grateful that she didn’t wake up to a nightmare this time, so she could live with a headache, “J.A.R.V.I.S. could you put a permanent clock up on my window? Also, what is my schedule today? Oh and is there headache medicine in my apartment?” She listed all of her thoughts to the A.I. 

“Good morning Ms. Clark. It is currently 10:08 AM. You are scheduled to meet the rest of the team at 11:30am in a conference room on the 33rd floor. You have your first training session at 3pm in the training facility and the rest of your day is free outside of that. Unfortunately, you do not have any medications stocked in your apartment, there are standard painkillers in the kitchen in the cabinet directly to the left of the microwave.” 

“Thank you.” Paw was still sound asleep, which was shocking, since he usually woke up at 5 on the dot and yelled for food. Maybe he was still filled up on the milk from last night. Ellie walked into the bathroom and filled his bowls, which instantly woke him up. He came traipsing in meowing, ready to eat. Paw was definitely a fan of the new set up. There was no reason for him not to be in the bathroom with her when she got ready.

Ellie looked like a mess. Her face was still puffy from crying the night before. She dampened a washcloth and just let it sit on her face. It felt really nice to cool off. When she felt satisfied, she took it off, then brushed her teeth and hair. She decided to leave her hair down this time since it was laying really nicely. 

Ellie grabbed her backpack and walked into the closet to get dressed. She pulled out a different pair of linen pants and a nice sweater. She had no idea what she was going to wear for training later, maybe she could borrow something from Wanda, they should have a close enough build for it to work. Luckily, the swelling from last night had gone down, but it was still very noticeable that she’d scratched and scrubbed herself raw. She didn't seem to be actively bleeding anymore, so she just left the bandages as they were. Ellie dug through her bag for her earrings. She didn’t have much jewelry, but she loved a pair of emerald green earrings she bought right after moving to the city. It was the first thing she bought for herself. The seller could tell she didn’t have much money so they sold it to her for ridiculously cheap. 

While she was getting ready she discovered another door within her closet. She walked over to it and opened it to reveal a personal washer and dryer with a fully stocked shelf next to it with everything she could possibly need for laundry, and bins below it. Okay Tony, go off. With this new revelation Ellie collected her clothes from around her apartment and put them in her brand new fancy laundry bins. She grabbed her army green converse that had been thrown around her room, did one last look in her mirror, and decided she looked good.

Ellie walked back into the bathroom, “Paw. I’m going to go downstairs to eat. I may not be back up before my meeting so you may be up here alone for a while. Your toys are, well, all over in my room, but that's how you like it anyways right?” She bent down to give him pets and a kiss on the top of his head. She knew he couldn’t understand her, but she liked the idea that maybe he could, “bye baby. I love you.” 

Ellie walked out of her room, closing the door behind her, and went to her elevator. She hoped she’d find Wanda or Remy downstairs. She really didn’t know how to cook and they were great company. The door opened to the kitchen being the busiest it had ever been with her there. To be fair, it had only ever had two or three people in it, including her, so it really didn’t mean much. She got her wish, both Wanda and Remy were in there. Remy was sitting at the far end of the dining table spinning his cards like a ferris wheel. Wanda was already cooking something that smelled amazing, while chatting with the person from the picture in the hall. It looked like someone was on the couch but they had their back to Ellie, so she couldn’t tell who it was. 

Wanda and her friend were talking so loud that no one seemed to hear the elevator. She walked over to where Wanda was cooking, “Wanda that smells amazing. What is it?” 

“Oh hey honey! Good morning. It’s pancakes, eggs, bacon, and sausages. I’ve made way more than the four of us need. So you should eat some!” Wanda happily invited. 

“Mon cheri!” Remy exclaimed, getting out of his seat. 

“Hey Remy! Lovely to see you again,” Ellie beamed.  

“Well, it looks like you already met Remy,” Wanda laughed. 

“Yeah, he made me his famous Po Buns last night, they were delicious.” She walked over to the microwave and to the cabinet to the left to grab the headache medicine to try and ease the pounding. The attention of the other person in the room seemed to be grasped. It sounded like they got up, but Ellie’s back was to them. 

“You okay hun?” Wanda asked kindly as she watched her grab the medicine. 

“Yeah, I just have a headache. It’s nothing,” she smiled back. 

“Did mon cheri not sleep well?” Remy genuinely asked.

Ellie didn’t want a repeat of the night before. “I think my body is just adjusting to the change, that’s all,” Ellie half truthed. Though it seemed to have them convinced. She decided to completely change the subject and introduce herself to the new person Wanda was talking to, “Hi, I’m Ellie.” 

The person seemingly disappeared, no, ran? over to Ellie and grabbed her hand and shook it. “Pietro Maximoff, the better twin,” he smirked. 

Wanda slapped his arm, “oh hush. Come on, it’s time to eat. Oh good, Bucky you’re already over here. Let’s eat at the table. I have plates ready for everyone. Ellie I’ll get you a glass of water so you can take that,” she smiled. Who’s Bucky? The name was definitely familiar. Ellie turned around to look at the fourth person and it was none other than James. The two were staring at each other, he had that look on his face again. God what was it about those eyes? He broke their eye contact to look at the pills in her hand, she followed his gaze, then they remet eyes. “Oh sorry, I totally forgot to introduce you two. Bucky, this is Ellie. Ellie, this is Bucky.” James or Bucky maybe? Broke their eye contact again and went to fill his plate. “Here,” Wanda said while giving her a glass of water. 

“Thanks,” Ellie smiled in response. Ellie wasn’t used to a steady supply of food and she was going to need to get better at pacing herself. She was left with stomach aches after her last two meals from eating way too much. She decided to get one pancake and two sausages and would get more if she was hungry. “It looks really good Wanda, thank you.” 

“Of course hun. I’m glad you came down in time to eat it. I was worried you would’ve eaten earlier.” 

“Yeah, I normally would’ve actually, but I slept in today. I guess my body wanted the sleep, and Paw decided to let me have it,” Ellie explained, leaving out the details of being awake for 2 hours in the middle of the night. 

“I’ll be sure to remember that,” Wanda beamed. 

“Who’s Paw?” Pietro asked.

“Her cat,” both Wanda and James answered at the same time.

 “How’d you know that?” Wanda asked. 

“Lucky guess,” he responded blankly. Well this is just great. Ellie was trying really hard not to look over at him, but his gaze was burning into her. He was sitting on the far end of the table, away from everyone. Was this how he normally was? This cold? Was the semi-friendliness the night before a fluke?

“Um, yeah. Paw is my cat. He’s a real sweetheart. You guys are all welcome to meet him whenever you’d like,” Ellie offered. 

“Cool. I thought we weren’t allowed pets. Does this mean I can get a dog?” Pietro excitedly asked. 

“No, she was allowed to bring him because she already had him,” Wanda explained. 

“But wouldn’t that still violate the pet rule? I feel like that’s not really a reason. If I just got a dog and brought it here wouldn’t it meet that rule? There was a different reason. What was it?” 

“Pietro. It is none of your business,” Wanda silenced him.   

Ellie was plunged with embarrassment. Pietro was right, she didn’t have her cat because she already had him. She had her cat because she had no family and no friends that could possibly take him in for her. Her cheeks burned as tears tempted to escape. James’ stupid gorgeous stare was, of course, still piercing into her. Just give her a break, man. Remy however, gave her a soft, kind, knowing smile, which helped ease her stress. 

Luckily, Pietro had some other random topic he wanted to go on about, so the awkwardness quickly settled. Soon, it was 11:20 and they were on their way down to the meeting. 

Wanda sent the guys into the room first, allowing her and Ellie to have a moment together, “I’m sorry for what Pietro said. He doesn’t understand the situation and honestly will do just about anything for a dog.” 

“It’s okay,” Ellie responded, and she meant it. She knew Pietro meant no harm from what he said. “I'm nervous,” she admitted. 

“It’s gonna be okay hun. Everyone is really nice, some people will need some warming up too, you’ve already met one of the hardest people to win over,” she laughed clearly implying Bucky. 

“Yeah. I’m doing a great job on that so far,” Ellie complained, glad to have an inconspicuous situation to feel those feelings. 

“It just takes time. The other one you have to look out for is Logan. You being friends with Remy’s will help you there though. Everyone else is really nice and are gonna love you. Just be yourself. Trust me,” Wanda smiled as she squeezed Ellie's arm. Ellie cringed at the pressure and tried to hide it as best she could, “You okay?”

“Yeah, just sore. You go in. I’ll be in there in a second,” Ellie smiled as she watched her new friend go into the room. She didn’t want Wanda having any reason to question there being anything wrong. Now she’d given her multiple with her headache and the pain in her arm. Maybe she’ll just let it go, please just let it go. Ellie composed herself and turned the handle and entered the room. 

There was a long rectangular table filled with people, leaving only the three closest chairs to the door open. Ellie took the seat at the head of the table. Closest to her on her right sat Wanda, who smiled when she came in. Her brother sat next to her, who winked when they made eye contact, to his right was a guy with long black hair in green suit who literally eyed her up and down with a smirk, then sat Bruce, who she waved to, and he sat next to the woman she recognized at the black widow. She didn’t recognize the next man, then it was Spider-man, in full uniform - he was the only one in uniform, unless you count the smirking guy's suit. Then it was Tony, who was sitting on the other head of the table. Continuing around the table sat James Rhodes, who she recognized, then a big blonde guy, and another big blonde guy, but that one was Steve Rogers, she knew that. Then it was James or Bucky, she still didn’t know. Then two guys she didn’t recognize, but she guessed the one next to Remy, who was closest to her left, was Logan. 

“Hey kid. Welcome to the meeting. I assume you know who everyone is. Or maybe you don't, I don't know. Anyways, From your right it's light show, Speedy Gonzales, Reindeer games, the Green Giant, Widow, Legolas, Spiderling, Sourpatch, Point Break, Capsicle, Manchurian Candidate, Birdman, Claws, and Swamp Rat, thanks again for that last one by the way,” he said to ‘Claws.’ 

James was ‘Manchurian Candidate’. His floor was next to hers. What if he’d heard her. Maybe that’s why he didn’t drop the subject. It would explain his face when she said her floor.

“Tony. Real names please,” Wanda ordered. 

“Fine, fine. Same order, Wanda and Pietro Maximoff, Loki, Natasha Romanoff, Clint Barton, Spider-Man, James Rhodes, Thor, Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Sam Wilson, Logan - I never can remember your last name,” Tony explained, and Logan huffed in response. “and Remy LeBeau,” he clasped his hands together in completion. “So that’s all of us. How about you introduce yourself.” 

“Um okay. Hi, My name is Elizabeth Clark, but you can call me Ellie,” Ellie struggled to come up with more to say. 

“Great. Do you guys have any questions for her?” Tony prompted. 

“Yeah,” Steve Rogers started. “Well I’ll start by saying hello, I’m Steve, it’s nice to meet you.” 

“It’s nice to meet you too,” Ellie smiled back.

“I’m curious what you plan to bring to the team?” Everyone seemed to simultaneously lean in to hear the answer to the question. 

“Um. That’s a good question. Honestly I’m not sure. I seem to have powers inside of me, but I don’t know how to use them or bring them out yet. Hopefully, I’ll be able to control them and I’ll be able to use those to help the team.” 

“What type of powers?” 

“Well, so far I’m aware that I can send energy in the form of blasts and that I can levitate? Or move? Objects. But I can’t control either,” she honestly answered, she hoped no one would ask for more details on the second. “Oh, and Wanda says I’m telepathic, but I haven’t experienced anything with that.” Ellie hadn’t realized she’d been talking to the table until she looked up to fascinated eyes. She pulled at her sleeves under the table in anxiety, careful not to show any skin. 

“I have a question,” an unexpected voice spoke up. 

“Oh, yeah go ahead Buck,” Steve replied.

“What does her being a probationary member mean? Does it mean she’s just here temporarily?” He asked Tony. 

“That's a good question,” Tony started talking and everybody began to focus on him giving Ellie a chance to breathe. She felt like she was being suffocated, but she didn’t want to adjust her sweater while people were focused on her in case it showed the sores underneath. She waited for Tony to be focused on someone else and loosened the sweater around her neck temporarily. It felt so much better. The sweater was pushing against her raw skin. She saw that the area was getting irritated by her sweater, but there wasn’t anything she could do while in the meeting. She relaxed her hold on the sweater, cringing as she felt the discomfort return, but she tried to regain her composure for the remainder of the meeting. She looked up to see everyone still focused on Tony, everyone except James. He looked even more worried than before, she didn’t think that was possible. She just wanted to escape again. “So yeah. That’s what her probation means. Did you get all that?”

James was broken from his trance and turned to look at Tony, “Yeah, I got it.” 

The rest of the meeting went smoothly and luckily they didn't get very personal. Wanda was right, Everyone was really nice. It turned out that Spider-Man's identity would be kept a secret until the end of her probation for his privacy. She learned more about everyone else's roles and she managed to not have to talk about her parents, though she may have Wanda to thank for that. The whole thing lasted an hour and a half and was pretty casual after the first forty five minutes. She really had nothing to be worried about, except maybe the brooding man with the metal arm. Though she couldn’t seem to get one thing out of her mind, those ocean blue eyes.

Chapter Text

Ellie's apartment was filled with all of her boxes when she got back. Tony must’ve planned for them to bring them all up while she was out. She walked into her room to find all of the boxes labeled ‘bedroom’ stacked in there. Oh! She didn’t need to borrow clothes anymore! Ellie happily walked into her closet to find her three total boxes, maybe she would take Tony up on the shopping thing. To be fair, they were big boxes, but they looked really small in this room. Ellie unpacked them, filling up one section of the 300 square foot? closet. Ellie changed into her best sports bra and a pair of leggings. She decided to wait to put on her long sleeve workout turtleneck until closer to the time to give her neck a chance to breathe. 

She spent the remainder of the time leading up to her training session unpacking, which was actually a pretty fun process and made the space feel a lot more homey. She put her plants on a table next to her window wall between a couple chairs which faced her bed. She was going to need to get new bedding, not that the ones Tony provided were bad, they just weren’t her style, and her ones from home were way too small for that bed. 

The timer she set though J.A.R.V.I.S. starting ringing indicating it was 2:47. Ellie finished placing the throw pillow on her couch and went into her room to put on her turtleneck. Her neck looked a lot better from the break, but it was still really tender. Luckily, the shirt covered everything, and then some, so she wouldn't have to worry about any accidental slip ups. She hoped they would do non-contact training that day, so she could have more time to heal. She didn’t like hiding this from people, hopefully it’ll be better soon and she wouldn't have to do it again. She put on her only other pair of shoes, a sort of crappy pair of tennis shoes, and made her way over to the elevator. “Bye baby! I’m going to training! Wish me luck!” she called out to her cat. She heard a soft meow in response and Ellie was on her way. 

The training facility was crowded. Spider-Man was in one of the training chambers, it seemed like he was practicing with his webs. Steve, Natasha, and Sam were all standing together by the floors of training machines, maybe that's who was going to be training her?  Wanda was in the simulation chamber on the bottom floor, Ellie couldn’t really tell what she was doing, but it looked cool. Clint was in the chamber above her, he was practicing with shooting moving targets it seemed. Of course. James was there too; he was running laps on the top level. Did he know she would be there? He probably did. Steve was his friend, that’s where Ellie knew the name Bucky, and if Steve was training her, then he probably told his friend. 

Ellie walked over to the group she assumed was doing her training that day. Sam noticed her first and tapped Steve’s arm to break his conversation and nodded in her direction. 

“Hey Ellie! Welcome to your first training session,” Steve invited as she walked over. 

“Yeah. Hey girl. I like the outfit,” Sam smirked. Ellie could feel her cheeks warm. She wasn’t used to this much flattery, or any, outside of her cat.  

“Sam,” Steve scolded. 

“What? It was just a compliment,” He defended, raising his arms. Ellie heard a noise coming from above and found James running faster? than before. How was that even possible? She returned to her conversation to see a flat faced Steve. “Fine. Hello El, it is nice to see you again,” Sam corrected himself, almost comically formally.

“El?” Ellie laughed at her new nickname. 

“Yes. I have decided that I will be getting my own nickname for you,” Sam asserted. 

“Sounds good Sammy,” Ellie winked. The group started mocking Sam for his new nickname as Ellie snuck another glance at the mysterious runner upstairs. He was closely watching their interactions as he circled the track, though his eyes weren’t on her. He was staring at Sam, with a look she hoped to never be on the other side of. Maybe it really was a fluke, him being so nice to her.

“Okay, today we are trying to get a feel for where you’re at and we will build a training plan based on that,” Steve explained after they’d come down from their joking. He grabbed a tablet from a nearby table. “Nat is going to show you the ropes on how everything works, I’m going to take notes, and Sam is- Wait, why are you here?” he joked, shoving him lightly on the shoulder. 

“Moral support. These two are all business, I’m here to make sure you have fun too,” he flirted, returning the flush to Ellie's face. “Nah I’m just screwing with ya. Though I am just here to be support.” 

“If you say so Sammy,” Ellie cracked. 

“Oh so you’re really gonna stick with that?”

“I think it has a nice ring to it,” she joked. “So Steve, what am I starting with?” 

“We’re going to begin on the treadmill. These are all rigged to go at super soldier speed. That one,” he pointed to a metallic framed treadmill with what seemed to be heavy duty rubber treads. “Is for Pietro, so you won’t ever be needing it, at least you probably won't. Anyways, these can go pretty much as fast as you could ever need them to go so you can just say up or down and I can control it from here. We are going to keep track of everything, speed, heart rate, etcetera," he explained. "That reminds me, I almost forgot. Can you put these on,” he handed her small stickers. “They’re connected to the Stark-Pad so I can monitor your vitals. Two go under each of your collar bones, one in the middle of your chest and then two, um, under your chest, but still on your ribs,” he struggled.

“He means under your boobs,” Natasha simply explained and Sam cackled as Steve's face turned a bright crimson. “I can help you put them on if you’d like,” she offered.

“Oh um, thanks but that's okay. Is there a bathroom I could use?” Ellie asked. 

“We can just turn around,” Sam offered . That would not work with the eyes watching from above. Ellie gave Natasha a pleading look, desperate to not have to explain and just get it over with. 

Luckily she must’ve understood, “Yeah there's one through here, I’ll take you.” They left the guys behind and immediately started hearing Steve discipline his friend, which Ellie did find amusing, “Sorry about Sam. He’s harmless and seems to think he’s funny. He’ll stop eventually. He did the same to me when he joined.” She rolled her eyes. Ellie could already tell that she liked Sam and that he’d be a good friend, even if he was very forward in his jokes. “What’s up with you and Bucky? He won’t take his eyes off us.” 

“Nothing. Maybe he was just curious?” Ellie suggested as flatly as she could, hoping to drop suspicion. 

“Maybe,” she said, entirely unconvincingly. “Okay it's in there, you can just pop them on, I’ll be out here.” 

“Thanks,” Ellie smiled. She walked into the bathroom and found a massive and gorgeous room, totally in the stark style. She entered a ‘stall’ which was basically a whole bathroom with its own sink and everything. She pulled her shirt up, and placed the stickers, cringing each time as she pressed them onto her aching skin. It all looked right, so she pulled it back down and walked out of the bathroom to meet Natasha again. “All set,” she smiled. 

“Great. Just as a heads up for today. Don’t worry too much about how you do. We didn’t choose you because of your training, we chose you because of what you could be.” Ellie didn’t know if she was comforted or offended, but she wanted comfort so she went with that. They walked back out to the main area where Steve and Sam had settled down their arguing and were instead awkwardly smiling, “ignore them.” Natasha guided her to the first treadmill, “Steve is she all set?” 

“Yup. Nice resting heart rate by the way," Steve returned. She awkwardly thanked him as she stepped onto the treadmill. "Ellie, you can go ahead and start running and I’ll speed it up for you.” 

“You got this, girl!” Sam cheered, prompting a genuine smile from Ellie. She liked having a hype man around. 

Ellie started to run and it was actually really easy. She hadn’t gone on a run in well, ever, but she wasn’t even breaking a sweat, “you can bring it up.” 

“Okay,” Steve brought the speed up and Ellie easily met it. Can she run? Did she avoid it her whole life for no reason? She asked him to increase the speed again and she was able to meet it again. “Ellie you’re going 28 miles per hour, that’s the current non-superhuman world record,” Steve explained. What!? She wasn’t barely breaking a sweat. How had she never realized she could run ridiculously fast? Where was this when she was being chased in the alleyway? 

“I can keep going,” Ellie easily said, masking her amazement of her speed.

“I can tell,” Steve laughed. “I’m going to bring it up more quickly and watch your vitals. We should find your top speed this way.” He started to bring the speed up and Ellie was really starting to be challenged. She was able to keep up until it started to reach the late 30s. “Okay, it looks like your max is 42 miles per hour. Did you know you could run this fast?” 

“Nope. I hated running as a kid, so I never wanted to try as an adult. This was a total surprise. Felt great actually,” Ellie was absolutely beaming, maybe this is what they meant by a runner's high? She was amazed by her new ability, it wasn’t feeling like a fluke anymore. 

“Well damn girl. You almost beat the old man,” Sam mocked Steve. She hadn’t thought about that. She was almost as fast as a super soldier. Was Wanda also fast? She didn’t remember that ever being mentioned anywhere.

“Yeah, I still have 18 miles on ya at my best. Buck has another 5 on top of that. I’m not even going to try and figure out Pietro,” he laughed. “You are on the leaderboard though,” he smiled. She was in the big leagues now, which was only extremely intimidating, but like, that's fine . “Okay, I think we can move onto the strength testing,” he explained. They walked over to another machine that seemed to be rigged to seem like a resistance bench press, “this is set up so you can give it as much force as you can and it will show your power level.” 

“I can demo it for you,” Natasha offered and Ellie nodded. She walked over to the machine and bent under the bar. She put her arms in place, then pushed against the bar. It resisted against her, then gave way holding the top weight she sustained. She did a rep, then it returned to its original position. “Once again it's calibrated up to the super soldier strength, in case you’re super strong too,” she smiled. “It has a safety lock so it can’t drop on you. If you can’t hold it at any point, or it notices a sudden drop it locks and will stay in that position.” Seems simple enough.  

Ellie traded places with her and laid her fingers on the bar, ready to see what would happen. After a deep breath she started to push against the bar. After giving as much as she could, which felt like a good amount, she started to struggle and the bar stopped for her. “Not bad, you got around 130 lbs. For no training and it not being one of your abilities that’s really good,” Steve explained.

“Yeah girl. You’re looking really good right now,” Sam remarked and she heard a gruff coming from the top level. Ellie knew what he meant, though it came out sounding really flirtatious. Natasha gave Ellie a look, so she heard the noise too. 

“Okay, so, we have a few more exercises. Unfortunately, a couple of them are going to be a little annoying, but the last one should be fun. After that I’m handing you off to Wanda to work on your powers,” he explained. They walked over to some mats. “So, the annoying stuff, we need to get your baselines for some exercises. We need to see how long you can hold a plank, how many push ups, pulls ups, and crunches you can do. I do want you to give it your all, we want it to be as accurate as possible." 

“Sounds good,” Ellie faked a smile. This was going to suck. They directed her to a padded section on the floor. Steve pulled out a timer and counted her down to start her plank. The moment she put her weight onto her forearms she had to stifle a cringe at the pressure on her bandaged cuts, which were the worst from the night before. She closed her eyes to distract herself from the pain but all she could and feel and see was the pain from her ripping them open, searching for the green streaks. She quickly opened her eyes, shaking off the flashback; fortunately, her cringing was easily masked as struggling to hold the plank, which she wasn’t, but that wasn’t important. Her arms were burning, she tried adjusting but it just caused her bandages to shift, it was like she could feel the wounds tearing with the movement. She didn’t know how long she was down there, her abs weren’t hurting, but she didn’t think she could hold it much longer; she had to adjust her arms, but when she did she was met with a whole different type of hell. She looked up to see Steve and Sam staring at the tablet, impressed, maybe she’d been down there longer than she’d thought. James had come down from the top floor and was using the free weights. She watched his crystally eyes stare at her as he effortlessly curled the weights. 

Ellie dropped to the floor, turning onto her back, instantly relieved, but it was short lived. Her sleeves were damp, she felt them to figure out why and her hand came back red. She checked the mat, but nothing was showing. “I have to go to the bathroom,” Ellie quickly said as she left as inconspicuous as possible. She pushed open a stall and closed it behind her, then carefully pulled off her top again. Her bandages were dripping. Apparently she had reopened her cuts while planking. Ellie undid the wrappings to check on the wounds. She didn’t realize how deep the cuts had been during her panic. They were bleeding, a lot. She turned on the water, hoping to rinse the blood off and be able to continue as she was, maybe she'd wrap them in paper towels or something. She placed her forearm under the water and choked on the scream that begged to escape when the cold fluid met her raw flesh. She could feel her tears escaping down the sides of her face, but that wasn't important right now. The blood wasn’t stopping. The sink looked like a scene out of an Evil Dead movie. Her panic was interrupted by a rough knock on the door. Confused and in pain she decided to follow communal bathroom rules. “Occupied?” Ellie stuttered in pain. 

“Let me in please,” James replied calmly. James!? Seriously! Why was he always there? 

“Um. This is a Lady’s room,” Ellie attempted, still cringing through her words. 

“I know what you’re doing in there. Please let me in,” his voice was becoming more assertive.

Ellie learned her lesson yesterday that he doesn’t give up easily. She figured she could put her shirt back on to remove suspicion and maybe then he’d leave. She attempted to put back on her shirt, but with the freshly irritated arm and uncleaned other, it was one of the most painful experiences she'd had. She did the best she could to hide her guttural groan of pure misery, but frankly, she didn't do a great job. After way too long, with her shirt back in place and tears freshly wiped she went back to the door, and cracked it, “how can I help you?” 

He reached his hand above her head and pushed the door all the way open, “I saw you in there. You and I both know you didn’t stop because of the plank.” The blood! The room still looked like Carrie at the prom. Ellie let him in, but positioned herself so he wouldn’t be looking in that direction. “Do you want to start being honest now?” God! Why does he care so much about this? Just let her business be her business. 

“I don’t know what you’re expecting me to say,” Ellie was really trying to hold her ground. She didn’t know this man. She hadn’t even processed what had happened for herself yet. She was exhausted and wanted to roll up in a ball in cry, but not in front of him.

“So you're not hurt right now?” She avoided his eye contact. “If I grabbed your arm right now it wouldn’t hurt. That’s what you're trying to say?” Ellie shrugged her shoulders, she was getting tired of the questioning, the glares, the judgement. “Just admit that you did this to yourself.” She didn’t know why, but she wouldn’t, couldn’t. He took a step closer to her, but she didn’t bother moving. She was done fighting, but she wasn’t ready to start confessing either. She held her head low. “Show me your arms, please,” he was practically begging.  She didn’t like hiding it, but she was scared. What if they decided that she wasn’t mentally well enough to be on the team and sent her away. She didn’t mean to do it. “Is that blood?” he breathed. Ellie expected him to be looking at the sink, but he was staring at a drop on the floor. “Are you bleeding?” she didn't know he could sound so afraid. 

“I’m fine,” Ellie half lied, not breaking her view at the ground.  

“No you’re not. You’re bleeding,” he retorted. “Oh god,” he gasped. Ellie lifted her head to see him looking at the sink and the bloody mess. “What did you do? No more games.” 

Ellie’s body gave in as she sank to the floor, in tears, “I didn’t mean to do it. I- I was scared. I needed it gone,” she barely made out. 

“Needed what gone?” James asked seriously. 

The tears flowed harder, “my nightmare: the scientist, the man, the pain, the marks on my arms, all of it.” Ellie shook on the floor as she recalled the nightmare.  

James sat next to her on the floor and placed his hand on her back, careful to avoid her arms. It was pointless though, as she still cringed in pain from the touch. “Ellie, where all did you hurt yourself?” he carefully asked. Ellie cried harder, ashamed of what she’d done and dropped her head between her legs. There was a pause, “They’re rescheduling the rest of your training for later today.”

“What? No, I don’t want people knowing about this,” Ellie explained, getting up. 

“I didn’t tell them details. Nat owed me one,” he explained. “Now please, you’re bleeding, let me help you.” Ellie decided she’d divulged enough that this wasn’t much in comparison. “There's a first aid kit just outside. I’m going to get it. Please don’t go anywhere,” he asked, fear not so hidden in his eyes. Ellie nodded. He walked out, closing the door behind him. She pulled her shirt off again. She knew it left her in just a sports bra, but she couldn’t roll the sleeves up very well on this shirt. She awkwardly waited for him to come back. 

A soft knock on the door signalled his return, “come in.” He opened the unlocked door and froze when he saw her bare body. He studied her, his eyes tracing her entire body. He was broken from the trance when he noticed her dark red forearms. His face dropped, as if reminded why he was there. “Sorry, the sleeves of my shirt don’t go up,” Ellie shied, suddenly feeling very exposed. 

He cleared his throat, “that’s okay. I got the kit.” 

“Thanks, um, I can take care of it if you’d like,” she offered. She’d already put way too much on this man.

“I don't mind,” he kindly returned. “We need to clean your arms, under the water,” he carefully explained. Ellie knew it was going to hurt and she really didn’t want to look even more weak in front of him. He turned on the water, “whenever you’re ready.” She wouldn’t ever really be ready, it was gonna suck regardless of when she did it. She walked over to the sink and carefully placed her bloody arm in the water. She failed to keep in her gasp at the exacerbation of pain. She pinched her eyes shut trying to focus on anything other than the stinging. “I’m sorry,” James softly sympathized. He shut off the water and she released the breath she realized she’d been holding. He reached into the first-aid kit and grabbed the antiseptic, “this is going to hurt. I’m sorry.” Ellie braced herself for the pain, but it was worse than she expected. Her raw skin and the deep cuts combined to make for a truly miserable experience. She grunted in pain every time he applied more ointment. When he was finished he wrapped her arm tightly with gauze until it stopped bleeding, “you're doing really well.”

“Yeah, doesn’t feel like it,” she mumbled, already ridiculing herself for acting so dramatic. 

“I don’t get you,” James dead panned. 

“I’m sorry?”

“Why do you pretend to be okay all the time? Even when people are trying to help you? It doesn’t make sense.”

“Because I don’t need any help,” Ellie plainly explained. 

“Right,” he rolled his eyes and emphasized her current state. 

“I would’ve been fine if you didn’t come in. I can handle myself.” 

“What makes you so sure?” he tested. Don’t make her do this. 

“Because I’ve had to be okay on my own for a long time, okay? Now can we please just finish this, or do I need to do it myself, because like I said, I can,” she quickly spoke, all of her emotions too close to the surface to filter herself. 

“No, I’ll do it,” he conceded. He repeated the awful process on her other arm, prompting the same reaction as the first time. “Look just a tip, if you want to make it on this team, you’re going to have to learn how to trust people. We all have our problems, so you won't get thrown off for having nightmares, but you might if you start hiding things.” He packed up the first aid kit and handed it to Ellie, “you could probably use this. You’ll probably need to reapply those dressings later tonight. I know you can do it yourself, but if you need help I'm the floor above you,” he smiled. 

“Thank you,” Ellie managed with a small smile. 

“You’re welcome. I’ll be around if you need me. Oh, and the rest of your training is going to be in about an hour. Is that still okay?” he genuinely asked. 

“Yeah, that’ll be fine.” 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

Ellie completed the rest of her training with Steve fairly easily. She’d put on a different but very similar turtleneck, hoping people weren’t paying too much attention and wouldn’t ask. She’d made the excuse that she wasn’t feeling well, but took some medicine and was feeling better. Natasha kept giving her funny looks, probably because it was James that asked for the delay. The crunches sucked, but her back wasn’t actually that bad so she managed. Luckily that was over and she could work with Wanda. 

“Hey hun, how are ya?” she asked softly.

“Better now. My headache came back. I took some more meds and I’m feeling better. I’m excited for our session,” Ellie explained. “What are we doing today?” 

“Well you said something about being able to move objects in the meeting today, so I thought we’d work with that. How does that sound?” 

“Yeah, that sounds good.” As long as she didn’t ask for more details…

“Great! I have a few things set up in one of the chambers that we have set up to your specifications. I’ll coach you through it,” she smiled excitedly. They walked up to the top floor where her chamber was. She noticed James and Steve sparring directly across from her, he did say he would be around. Ellie took a moment to appreciate the way his metal arm moved as they spared, it was so fluid and flawless, a perfect sibling to his flesh arm. “We’re in here,” Wanda regained Ellie’s focus. They walked into the glass room and Ellie saw a few loose items scattered around the room. Wanda took a seat on the floor and Ellie joined her, “So, the first thing you need to do is clear your mind. Just listen to my voice. . .” Wanda guided Ellie through a meditation which successfully left her mind blank. It felt like she could see the inside of her mind as a peaceful bliss. “Okay, now, open your eyes and try to transfer energy to that cup, you can close your eyes again if it helps.”

Ellie saw the cup and placed the image in her mind. She started bringing the energy she knew was within her to the surface, but it was stopped. She tried to repeat the process but the barrier persisted. “Something is blocking me. I can feel the energy and I try to bring it out but it’s like I hit a wall,” Ellie explained as she opened her eyes to look at her teacher. Wanda seemed to be in thought, considering something, but Ellie had an idea of her own. “Wanda. Do you think you can take down the wall? I know it’ll hurt while you're in there, but I’m not going to get anywhere with it up.” 

“I don’t know. I’m not sure if I can, or if I want to risk it,” Wanda cautioned. 

“I’m sure,” Ellie announced, entirely confident in her new friend. She needed to have her powers if she was going to stay here. She had no idea why the barrier was there in the first place, Ellie didn’t ask for it and she certainly didn’t want it.

“You’re sure you want me to?” Wanda confirmed and Ellie nodded. “Okay, turn to face me.” Ellie repositioned herself so her back was now to James and Steve. “I know I already told you, but this is going to hurt. I want you to tell me if you want me to stop, okay?” Ellie nodded again. “Are you ready?” Ellie assured her she was and Wanda extended her magic. She closed her eyes, preparing for the impact. When her scarlet energy met Ellie's head the fiery pain coursed through her and Ellie couldn’t stop the scream that escaped. It was a truly horrible feeling, Ellie could feel Wanda searching through her mind, not as a passerby, but as an invader. “Ellie, I want you to try and bring out your powers, it should bring out the wall,” Wanda requested. Ellie did as she asked, trying to put all her focus on the energy inside of her and away from the scorching pain in her mind. She found the energy and managed to grab hold of it. She wrestled with it, trying to bring it forward and closer to the barrier, she cried out in struggle as she fought the pain and power. “I think I can see it hun. You’re doing really well. Just a little longer, keep bringing it out for me,” Wanda motivated. Ellie forced a stronger hold on the energy and pulled it forward in a powerful tug and loud yell. “That was it. I have it. I’m going to try and take it down.” 

Ellie was trying to keep holding onto the power but she was struggling and her grip weakened. To her surprise it didn’t recede, but rather continued pounding against the wall, which was coming down. Ellie could feel more power coming, all of her power coming, rushing for the wall that was seconds from coming down. Ellie needed to warn Wanda, but the words weren’t coming. “Wa- Wanda,” she managed. “Out-” It was too late. The walls opened and all her power was released. Ellie let out a piercing scream, overwhelmed with so many sensations. Ellie was thrown away from Wanda, flying through the glass before stopping and hovering with a tornado of green energy surrounding her. 

She couldn’t stop screaming, she was getting struck by jolts of energy as the escaped power returned into her. She felt herself getting more powerful and it all felt familiar. The tingling in her fingers, the control of her mind, the strength in her senses, they had all been there before. She felt strong. This was how she was meant to be. It was all falling into place. 

The final band of energy struck her in the center of her forehead and it all went black.

Chapter Text

(NEUTRAL PERSPECTIVE)

Shattered glass and Ellie’s screams filled the facility. Wanda was thrown against the wall, though she managed to catch herself with her powers. She was, however, disoriented, having been struck by the full force of Ellie's powers. Steve and Bucky ran out of the sparring room. A tornado of green energy surrounded the newest recruit. Bucky was frozen solid, shocked from the scene, unsure what to do. It was a horrifying sound, he could hear the pain in the screams, it was like hell on earth. The specialized chamber’s wall had been shattered, which was meant to be impossible. He caught a glimpse of her figure and could see her torn up shirt, presumably from the glass. Her skin was dark red everywhere there wasn't fabric. It wasn’t until the energy cloud lessened that the watchers saw what was happening. Bucky's heart fell when he saw what was happening. Spikes of green power forced themselves back into the new Avenger, prompting cries of pain every time. The bands were running out until only one remained. It embedded itself into the middle of her forehead and the room went silent. Her eyes closed and her body went limp. 

“Ellie!” Bucky yelled. He jumped the wall. Any hopes of getting to her in time would be futile. He was on the other side of the netted training center and she was falling fast, too fast. He waited to hear the sound of her body impacting with the floor as he raced to get to her. Though the sound never came. She was caught by an adamantium-clawed man. Logan looked down at her cradled body confused and scared. He saw sharp concrete steps below her. The super soldier got to the ground and looked at the man who saved her. He saw her lifeless body and the sharp corners she would've met had Logan not been there. She would've collided with the steps on her skull, spine, pelvis. There was no way she could've survived the fall. The two men came to the realization at the same time, both looking at the ground below her. The two rarely spoke. Neither got along with people very well. Barnes processed what Logan had done and how close she’d come to her last breath. “Thank you,” he faintly spoke. He gently took her in his arms, but she still laid lifeless, barely breathing. “Steve! She needs help. Now!” he desperately yelled to his oldest friend. He cradled her head with his hand, but pulled back looking at them and saw they were stained red, “shit, shit, shit. Come on. Wake up. You've gotta stop doing this to me,” he quietly begged. Logan stood a few steps behind, staring at his own blood stained hands. 

The elevators opened and a medical team rushed out taking her from the soldiers arms. 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

(ELLIES PERSPECTIVE)

Ellie woke up in a stale white room with harsh lighting. She didn’t know where she was. Was this another nightmare? Ellie started to panic. She heard a beeping get faster. What was going on? Where was she? She went to sit up and felt stabbing pain all over, “Agh.” Someone must’ve heard her because a figure came into view, Remy. 

“Mon Cheri, you’re awake. Remy was so worried.” He reached over to grab her hand. 

“Hey honey, I’m so sorry. If I’d known that’s what would’ve happened I never would’ve done it. I’m so glad you’re okay,” another voice apologized, as they came into view, Wanda. What happened? Ellie couldn’t remember. She remembered training and trying to move things but that was it. “It seems like it worked though. They said you’re healing at five times the rate you should be.” Right! She asked Wanda to help her release her powers. 

“Wanda, are you okay?” Ellie’s voice cracked from lack of use, or maybe overuse.

“Oh honey I’m fine. Don’t worry about me. Not even a scratch,” she smiled. 

“Good, I’m glad.” Ellie felt movement on her bed and tried to adjust herself again to no avail, “why do I hurt so much?” 

“Um, Cheri, when you released your powers you flew through the window of the chamber,” Ellie nodded. “The thing is, they aren’t just glass. Your body was thrown with enough force to break through missile proof glass. You’re honestly lucky that it broke,” he explained. “You had a lot of internal bleeding and you were really badly cut up. It was a good thing Logan caught ya, not sure if you coulda handled the fall too. The docs say you’re almost all better, but mon amore, Remy was real' scared.” 

“We all were,” Wanda added. Did they all really care this much already? “Especially Paw. Bucky actually asked if he could go and get him once we found out you were going to be here overnight.” 

“Overnight? How long have I been here?” Ellie asked, nervous about the answer. 

“Two days mon cheri.” 

How was that possible? It was all so overwhelming. She felt herself getting worked up, but as if it were clockwork, Paw woke up. He realized she was awake and walked along her bed to lay next her head, “hey baby. I’m sorry, it must’ve been scary for you to see me like this. Are you okay? I’m sure they’re keeping you well fed,” Ellie happily spoke to her cat. “When can I go back to my room?” 

“At the rate of your healing they said that you should be fine by this afternoon,” Wanda smiled. “Remy and I had a fun idea actually, since you were going to be bedridden for at least a day. We thought we could do a movie night on the common floor. You can lay on the couches and we can make snacks and watch a funny movie together!” 

“That actually sounds really nice. Do you think Tony will let Paw come?” 

“I think you have a lot of pull on Tony right now,” she smiled. “Oh that reminds me, he wanted me to tell him when you woke up. A few people did actually. You know you’re quite popular, we might make movie night a group event,” she explained. Maybe James was right, she did need to work on trusting people. They were trusting her. “I’ll be just outside if you need me.” 

“What are you thinking about Cheri?” 

“Just something someone said about trusting people,” Ellie divulged. She’d opened up about her past to him and he seemed like someone safe to talk to. 

“Yeah?” 

“I guess I’m having a hard time letting my guard down. I’m not used to having people around me to trust. If you let someone in, that means you have someone else to lose, you know? Everyone here seems so ready and happy to trust me, I’m just scared of letting them down and losing them,” Ellie admitted. She didn’t even realize some of it until she was saying it. 

“Oh Cheri, you’ve been in an unfair world for far too long. Letting people in is scary, Remy understands, but you let me in right? I’m not going anywhere. We can never be safe all of the time, but having people there to make you feel safe is what makes life worth living,” Remy supported, leading to a happy-sad tear to fall down Ellie’s cheek. Remy brushed it away with a smile, then placed a soft kiss on her forehead, before stepping out of the room. 

Ellie turned to her cat, giving him gentle pets under his chin with her arm that wasn’t hooked up to all the machines. He seemed to be having a great time, but he walked away, totally dissing her, “hey!” Ellie followed his path to see him rubbing against James’ legs. “Seriously, he likes you more than me?” she joked. She watched James pick up her cat and hold him against his chest. They’d definitely done that before, Paw was way too comfortable with him for that to be their first time. “Thank you. For everything,” Ellie provided. Remy’s words really stuck with her. 

“Of course. Can I?” he asked, pointing to the seat near her bed, she nodded. “How are you feeling?”

“I’ve been better,” she shrugged. Trust. She’s trying trust. “Um, it actually hurts a lot,” she admitted in a cracked voice. “Remy said that I’m a lot better than I was, apparently that's because I was thrown through a missile proof window? He said his friend caught me and I’d be a lot worse off if he hadn’t so that’s good I guess,” Ellie rambled. Bucky looked down at his shoes. She’d never seen him look like that, he looked ashamed, “what is it?”

“Logan shouldn’t have had to catch you. I should’ve been there. I froze. I saw you, it was like my feet were glued to the ground,” he admitted without looking away from the ground. 

“James.” 

“I’m so sorry,” he sniffed before quickly leaving the room. What had she done to make him feel like he needed to be the one to protect her. It was hurting him, she didn’t want to hurt him. Ellie sat alone with her thoughts for what felt like hours. She wanted to trust. It was good. Remy was right, but she just kept replaying her interaction with James. She was hurting him. She didn’t want to admit it, but it hurt her to see him so upset. She was actually starting to like him, even if he pissed her off for caring so much.

“This room open?” Tony broke the silence. Ellie looked up and smiled at the friendly face. “Hey kid. I told you that you wouldn’t need to worry about this floor. I’d like to make it clear that you totally did this yourself,” he joked. 

“I know. It wasn’t my smartest moment, but did you hear? I have super healing now,” Ellie boasted. 

“Yeah I’m not sure it was worth that, but okay," he joked back. He took the seat James had been in and softened his tone, "so kid, are you okay? Really? Not just about this, how have your first few days been?” 

“Honestly?” she rhetorically asked, he nodded anyway. “It’s been hard. I’m not used to, or frankly very good, at being with people - I’m really out of practice.” 

“Well, I wouldn’t know it by how everyone else is acting. When news got out about the accident the waiting room was full. I don’t know how you did it, but it seems like you won over claws and manchurian candidate.” 

“Why do you call him that?”

“Oh claws? It’s cause he has these claws tha-”

“No James,” Ellie interrupted. 

“James? Oh you mean Bucky, funny, did he ask you to call him that. Weird,” Tony rambled. 

“Tony, the nickname?” Ellie reminded. God this guy was all over the place. 

“Right, sorry. It’s from a movie or book, whichever you want, about the government brainwashing people into becoming assassins. Switch out the government for Hydra and you have Bucky,” Tony explained simply. James had been taken by Hydra? How did she not know that? He'd lost everything too. How could she have been so stupid. He had to relearn how to trust too. He was just trying to help her and she kept pushing him away. He must’ve been just as terrified as she was to lose people, no wonder he seemed so afraid when she was hurt. “Right, well. Anyways. I saw Cap coming in behind me. I’ll let ya chat with him. I’ll be around if you wanna talk about anything else. Feel better kid,” he smiled and handed her a teddy bear which made her obnoxiously happy. 

“Thank you Tony.”

“Any time kid,” he winked. “Your turn capsicle!” she heard him call as he walked out of the hall. 

The group from her training session walked in together “Hey El, nice bear. You’re looking good as ever,” Sam flirted. 

Ellie rolled her eyes, “yeah, you too Sammy.” 

Natasha walked over to Ellie’s bedside, “hey, how are you?” 

“Sucky,” she honestly replied. 

“Ellie, you really scared us in there,” Steve interrupted. His face was serious.

“That's what I’ve been hearing,” Ellie tried to make light.

“I really don’t want to see you getting hurt again. Promise me you’ll be more careful. You got lucky this time. It could’ve been a lot worse if Logan wasn't there. I don't want to think about what could’ve happened,” he wavered. 

“I’m sorry, really. I'll be more careful from now on,” Ellie assured. A quiet settled in the room. No one had anything else to say, what was there to say? Ellie gambled with death and won, but she wouldn’t always be that lucky.  

There was a knock on the door and a doctor walked in, “Ms. Clark I’m glad to see you’re awake.” She turned to the rest of the group, “May we have the room?” They all shuffled out, leaving just the two, “So, I’m not sure how much your friends have told you but your body has experienced a lot of trauma recently. We found signs of injury from before your accident. It seemed like you were treating it and it was rapidly healing by the time we got to you, but is there anything you’d like to talk about?” 

“No, thank you. It was an accident. Can we talk about what happened at the facility?” 

“Sure. You were thrown through the glass, back first. The glass shattered and caused a lot of external bleeding and a few large pieces pierced the skin. The greater concern was in the amount of force required to break through the glass of that strength. It is a miracle that your bones didn’t shatter on impact, we theorize that you had some assistance with the energy or powers surrounding you. Nonetheless, your body did hit the glass as the instigator to the shattering, meaning you absorbed a lot of force. This force bursted many of the blood vessels in your body causing extensive internal damage. Fortunately, the glass broke, so some of the pressure was redirected back into the glass. A typical person wouldn’t be able to survive something like this. We think that it is because of the immediate introduction of the powers into your system that you were able to recover fast enough. 

“The introduction of the powers seems to have altered your chemical structure. Your cells are healing at five times the normal rate. You can compare that to Steve who heals at eight times the normal rate and Logan heals at 50 times the normal rate. We aren’t exactly sure what these ‘powers’ are, but they are binding to your x-gene, or the mutant gene. It’s acting very similarly to how Wanda and Pietro's mutation works, though yours is more complex. Additionally, with your history, we think that these powers may have been latent for a while. We believe that they had some physiological effects on you, like your speed, but you didn’t have any conscious control over them. Theoretically, you should have that control now. Does all of that make sense? I know it was a lot. In better news, you’re projected to be healed enough to go back upstairs in a few hours. I recommend trying to get some more rest.”

“Okay, thank you. Is that written down somewhere in case I forget?” Ellie joked, but was also entirely serious.  

“Yes, it’s all in your chart. Now, try and rest. I know you’ve been asleep for two days, but trust me, your body needs the sleep.” Ellie believed her. She was really tired. The doctor turned off the light on her way out, practically forcing Ellie to sleep. 

Ellie woke up feeling shockingly better, she was really starting to like this speed healing. She felt a pressure on her lap and tried to sit up to see what she assumed to be her feline. She grunted in response to the aches in her body, but the sharp pains from before were gone. She took her time repositioning, and found a truly wonderful sight at her bedside. Paw was curled up in a ball in Ellie's lap, sound asleep, but he wasn’t the only one sleeping. James sat with a chair pulled up to her bed and his head laid at Ellie’s feet. He looked so peaceful as he slept. Is that what he looked like all the time before he was in Hydra's control? He looked younger, happier. She was overwhelmed with a sense of grief over the man that he’d lost, but she saw the man that he’d become. The man that wouldn’t leave her alone because he knew there was something wrong. She was grateful they saved him and gave him a new, better life. Maybe that’s what they’d done for her and she should just be grateful too. She hadn’t been a Hydra prisoner, but she’d been all on her own, maybe they had saved her. 

Ellie reached over to stroke her cat, still studying the soft features of the man before her. Paw started purring as soon as she made contact, before he even opened his eyes. He leaned into the snuggles and finally opened his eyes looking at James, the betrayal! He walked away from her, again, to request snuggles from the sleeping man, they must’ve done some serious bonding while she was asleep. “Paw, let him sleep,” Ellie whispered. Paw obviously ignored her because pets are more important than sleep, how could Ellie be so naive. 

James stirred in response to the touch. He opened his unnecessarily gorgeous eyes and looked at Paw. “Hey buddy. How’s she doing?” he quietly spoke. 

“She’s okay,” Ellie smiled, surprising him. He got up from the bed and sat up. The softness in his face faded, but the hardness didn’t come all the way back either. He seemed relaxed, maybe for the first time since Ellie met him. “James-” Ellie started.

“Call me Bucky,” he interrupted.

“Oh,” Ellie said, surprised. “Bucky," she corrected, the name was new but it sounded right on her tongue. "I want to apologize and say that you were right. I’m not good at trusting people and I see now that you were just trying to help. I’m sorry for how I treated you. I really appreciate your help, even if I didn’t want it at the time,” she smiled. 

“It was nothing,” he postured, obviously still feeling guilty about the accident.  

“Ja-, sorry, Bucky, you know that I don’t blame you right. It wouldn't have been your fault if Logan wasn’t there,” Ellie carefully spoke. 

“How can you even say that?” he blurted. “You could’ve…” he quietly continued. This was really weighing on him. 

Ellie reached for his arm, he hesitated, but let her hold his gloved hand, “because I made the choice to do it. It was a stupid choice and I’m willing to admit that, but I made the choice. No one could’ve known what was going to happen. Not even you. I’m so sorry, I’m going to be more responsible now. Apparently I have people that care about me to think about,” she smiled, squeezing his metal hand to get him to look at her. Not that it was relevant, but the arm was truly remarkable. His ability to respond to the sensation as if it were a real hand was incredible. “You did nothing wrong,” Ellie said confidently, looking straight into his ocean blue eyes. They didn’t break eye contact until Ellie could feel the message sink in. “So, what did you do with my cat while I was out? It is not okay that he likes you more than me,” she joked, hoping to lighten the mood. A perfect smile fell onto his face and Ellie felt her stomach spin into knots. He pet Paw with his free hand, reminding Ellie they were still holding hands, tightening the knots.

“I guess I’m just a natural cat guy. I always wanted a cat but never got the chance. You’ve got a really good one. I think I won him over when I brought him down to see you. We had quite a few late night snuggles and I fed him, so that probably helped,” he explained. 

“You stayed overnight?” Ellie carefully asked.

“I uh- we- needed to make sure you were okay. We didn’t want you to be alone when you woke up, figured you’d had enough of that,” he shyly explained, which led her to believe he used the royal ‘we’. 

“Thank you Bucky,” Ellie said, meaning it more than she knew was possible. 

“It was nothing,” he shied. 

“It wasn’t and you know it,”Ellie returned. 

He met her eyes and conceded, “You’re welcome.” Ellie smiled in her small victory. “You’re going to be the death of me,” he jokingly rolled his eyes. 

“Better not be. I’m gonna need to keep you around,” Ellie joked back. “So are you going to the movie night tonight? I’m really excited to get out of this room.” 

“Actually, once you’re cleared I’m your ride.”

“Well I feel great,” Ellie explained as she tried to sit up and get out of the bed.

“Woah, slow down. Let me see if I can find a doctor. You’re still going to be on bedrest for the next day, so don't run off on me,” Bucky cautioned as he left the room. Paw decided Ellie was no longer chopped liver, which he might actually prefer, and returned to get her attention. Ellie heard Bucky’s voice coming closer, “she seems to be doing a lot better.” He was talking to the same doctor that Ellie met with previously. “Hey, I found backup,” he explained as he walked into the room. 

“Hi Ms Clark, I’m glad to see you’re feeling better. I have to check on a couple things then you should be all set to be on your way. Though I need to be very clear that you will need to stay in bed for at least another twenty four hours and no strenuous activity for another twenty four after that. You will also need to drink a lot of fluids and eat good meals. After that period of time, I’d like you to come back and see me, so I can clear you to go back to your normal activity. Understood?” she asked seriously, Ellie confirmed, anxious to leave. “Okay, I trust you’ll hold her to it,” she nodded to Bucky. “So, I need to check on your bruising and do some blood tests, but if it’s all where we want them to be, then you should be on your way.” The brunette woman walked up to the sink and washed her hands, then put on a pair of gloves. She walked up to Ellie's bed, spooking Paw, causing him to run over to Bucky, who’d taken a different seat, slightly further from her bed. 

“Is it okay if I uncover your abdomen?” she asked kindly. Bucky had already seen it before. When Ellie went to see his reaction, he was politely looking in the other direction playing with her cat. She nodded, so her doctor started to carefully undo the coverings. Ellie was nervous about what she was going to find. “This looks a lot better,” her doctor announced. Ellie looked and found purple/orange bruising all throughout her whole abdomen. She did not want to know what it looked like before if this was better. The doctor must’ve noticed her face. “This type of bruising is usually seen around 10 days after an injury, it means it’s healing really well,” she explained. Yeah, she definitely didn’t want to see the before picture. “Okay, so that is good. I’m going to draw some blood, those results should only take a few minutes and if everything looks good you’ll be good to go.” 

“That sounds great. Thank you,” Ellie smiled. 

The doctor sanitized her gloves and grabbed a syringe and drew blood from a line in Ellie's arm. “All set. I’ll be back shortly.” 

“Thank you so much,” Ellie smiled. “So I guess the doc made you my babysitter,” she joked to her new friend. “There goes my plans to go crazy partying,” Ellie laughed, knowing she was not a partier. 

“Ha, ha, very funny. I plan to take my supervisional duties very seriously,” Bucky joked back. Ellie was really liking the softer side of him. 

“So, does that mean if I feel a sudden craving for a grilled cheese?” 

“I would have to make it for you. Doctors orders,” Bucky shrugged, with a Brooklyn? accent slipping out. Was he from Brooklyn? Ellie was in the city long enough to recognize it. God, it was attractive on him. 

After a few minutes of waiting a nurse came in and started to unhook Ellie from the machines explaining she’d been cleared and helped her change into some clothes Wanda had brought. They once again stated her very specific rules for her discharge. Soon enough, Ellie was in a wheelchair with Paw in her lap, being wheeled to the elevator by Bucky. It turned out that this floor was set up so both sets of elevators were in convenient locations for the Emergency and Operation rooms. Her room was right next to their elevators, so they were easily on their way. 

The common floor was booming with people. The couches were filled with only a few spaces open. Wanda was in the kitchen making enough popcorn for an army while Pietro sped it over to groups as it finished. The couches were organized to practically be a massive bed with backs and cushions. It had individual movable squares that had all been grouped together. The whole team laid on top of each other in their own clumps. On the far end of the couch Sam, Steve, and Natasha all sat in a close row chatting up a storm with a spot open next to Steve, presumably for Bucky. Clint sat next to Natasha with a small space between them. There was an open seat, then one with one of the couch sections pushed aside, then a totally decked out seat with snacks, blankets, and drinks. Next to that one was Remy who had Logan to his right. 

Remy was staring at the elevator doors when they opened and jumped up when he saw Ellie, startling Logan, “mon cheri! You’re here! Remy is so excited!” He got off the couches and ran over to them. Another pair of eyes were focused on them, Logan was staring at her like she was a novel creature. She watched as his eyes lifted above her and met Bucky’s and his face changed. Ellie couldn’t read his expression, was it concern? understanding? She couldn’t place it. She followed his eyeline and saw the same expression on her new friend. “Cheri, we have a seat set up for you with everything you could need,” Remy explained, also noticing the stare, as he walked over to her. He traded places with Bucky and wheeled her over to the couch. Paw jumped off once he realized he could be getting more attention from other people.  

“Hey Clint. Nice to see you again.” Ellie smiled. 

“Hey kid, glad to see you’re doing better,” Clint returned her gesture. 

Remy helped Ellie lower into her seat and put the blankets over her, completely pampering her. “Thank you Remy,” Ellie laughed at the luxury treatment. 

“Remy wants to make sure Cheri is comfortable.” He continued to adjust her pillows with a goofy look of focus but also admiration on his face. 

“Remy, it’s perfect, thank you. Now, come sit,” Ellie assured and tapped on the seat next to her, accidentally making eye contact with Logan, who’d been awkwardly observing them. “Oh, I’ve been meaning to thank you, you know, for catching me,” Ellie over-explained. Of course he knew what she was thanking him for. Why was she so bad at this?

“Don’t worry about it bub,” he replied in a gruff voice, quickly breaking eye contact. 

“He’ll warm up eventually Cheri, he’s gonna have to like you,” Remy winked. That actually made her feel a bit better, plus, she’d already won over one of the grumpy avengers, how hard could this one be? Ellie looked over at said grumpy avenger on the other side of the couch. He was talking with Steve with a soft smile on his face. Ellie felt the butterflies make their return, go away! They were friends, that's all they could be. She watched as he looked past his friend and to her, smiling wider as they met eyes. The butterflies went haywire, yeah she got it. 

Pietro delivered the last bag of popcorn to the group, moved her wheelchair aside, replaced the couch section for his sister, then got comfortable in his seat next to clint. His speeding around scared the crap out of Paw, leading him to run and hide with Bucky, total traitor. “Hey slow man,” he shamelessly mocked his neighbor. 

“Does anyone want to change spots? Anyone at all? I’m not picky?” Clint offered out to the group. 

“Pietro be nice,” Wanda once again disciplined her brother. It seemed like she kept people in line a lot around here. “Hey sweetie, it’s nice to see you out of that hospital bed. Tony and Bruce would be here but they had to work on something in the lab. Rhodey is back in D.C. and Thor and Loki are actually in Asgard so they couldn’t make it either, but they all send their warmest regards,” Wanda explained with a smile. 

“Oh that's okay. This is actually a bigger turn out than I expected,” Ellie shied. 

“Hun, I keep telling you. You're very well liked around here, you made a really good impression.” Ellie was still wrapping her mind around that. They’d only met her a few days before. And she was only conscious for part of that day. “We thought that we’d watch a bunch of the classic comedies, like, Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Airplane!”

“Great! I love those movies,” Ellie excitedly replied. 

Wanda turned on the massive TV and turned on Monty Python and the Holy Grail as Ellie tossed some popcorn into her mouth and opened her XXX Vitamin water that Wanda insisted she drank. She practically spat out her drink every time they made a ridiculous joke. The battle with the black knight actually caused her physical pain from laughing too hard as he stated it was 'but a flesh wound'. She could feel Bucky's gaze on her and he was smiling every time she met his eyes. She spent the entire time between the movies pretending she was one of the knights that say Ni, and just yapping and saying Ni the whole time. Sam joined her in her heckling as they tried to convince Clint to give them shrubbery, just like the knights had. She was having the time of her life.

She looked around the room and saw the faces of the people who supported her, full of joy and life. 

Maybe she’d already found a family without even trying. 

She was finally safe. 

Right?

Chapter Text

Ellie groaned as she shifted in her bed. She swore she fell asleep during the movie, but someone must’ve brought her up to her room. Her whole body still felt like it had been thrown through the ringer, or technically a blast proof window. She struggled to get herself to sit up and check her window. After an obnoxious amount of time she was able to check outside and it was light out, telling her she'd successfully slept through the night. She managed to look around the room and didn't find her beloved cat. "Paw? Where are you baby?" she called out. She heard chirping from the other side of her door. "Did Bucky forget to keep you in here last night?" she asked. The meowing got louder as she shifted further, trying to get off the bed. Much louder footsteps filled the room and she could feel her heart drop. "Is someone there?" she nervously asked. A light knock replied to her, "come in?" 

The door slowly opened and Bucky walked in, leading her to take a deep sigh of relief. "Hey, sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I didn't realize you were awake, I wanted to give you privacy, so I stayed in the living room, but you know, doctor's orders, I needed to be here for you," he awkwardly explained. She looked down at her cat, curiously, though she already knew the answer. "I had him in there with you originally, but I guess he thought he could get more attention from me," he told her. 

Ellie stared down her cat, "you are a complete little traitor. Does all of our history mean nothing to you," she dramatically asked. She pivoted her attention onto Bucky, "what on earth did you do with him in the last three days to get him to love you so much more than me?" she complained. Paw decided to jump onto her lap, causing her to cringe in pain, and start purring, as if it would undo all of his traitorous activities. "Well Bucky," she continued to test the new name. "I appreciate you being here, because I am truly struggling to sit up right now." 

"Right, um let me help you," he stuttered as he walked over to her. Bucky stepped next to her and helped her scoot up on bed. He grabbed some pillows and layered them behind her, so she was sitting comfortably. "Do you want anything to eat? Or drink? I can get something for you," he kindly offered, but Ellie shook her head. She wasn't gonna be hungry for a while, both with her pain and having just woken up. "The doctor said you have to drink a lot of fluids, so I'm going to grab another vitamin water. I stocked your fridge earlier this morning," he explained. He stocked the fridge for her, without her even needing to ask? He said he would help her, but he was already going above and beyond. Maybe having someone looking out for her was good. "Ellie?"

"Sorry, I just-" she attempted, struggling a little with the idea. "Thank you, so much. It's been really great having you here to help me," she quietly admitted. 

“It’s my pleasure,” he smiled back, warmly, before walking out of her room. Ellie could feel blush trickling across her cheeks, though she was pretty sure he didn’t see it. God, he was beautiful when he smiled. No Ellie! She was going to have to work a lot harder to stop herself from liking him. It had been a long time since she had someone properly care about her and it felt really nice. She was afraid of how easily she could get attached, to him, to the support. It would be even harder than before if she had to go back to being alone. Bucky walked back into the room and she tried to sit up again, but grunted in the process, forgetting already that her entire body was in pain. “Oh, right, the doctor prescribed you some meds to help with the pain,” he quickly added. He walked over to her nightstand on the other side of the bed and grabbed the bottle. “You can have two every two hours, or as needed. That’s more frequent than they’d normally prescribe, but when you were in the hospital you were metabolizing the meds significantly faster than the average person,” he explained to her as he opened the bottle, then handed her two pills.

“Thank you,” she smiled lightly as she took the meds. “Um, Bucky, when did you get all this?” she nervously asked, looking at the meds and drinks. 

“The doctor checked in on you a few times while you were out and I asked what I should have for you,” he shrugged. 

“Oh,” she breathed. It still didn’t make sense. She could understand that he didn’t want to lose her, but why was he different around her, than with everyone else.

“What is it?”

“Why?” 

“Why what?” 

“Why do you care so much? You just met me,” she nervously asked him.

“I’ve been in your shoes before. It’s hard being on your own and Steve was there for me, so I’m going to be here for you,” he told her simply. Ellie nodded, it made sense, he’d been alone too, for way longer than her, so maybe he was just trying to make it easier for her. Bucky walked around the room and sat down on the chair across from her bed. “So, tell me about you,” he smiled.

“Me? Oh, um, what do you want to know?” she returned. 

“Anything. What’s your favorite color? Where are you from?” he suggested. 

“Okay, well I grew up in Michigan. Have you ever been there?” He shook his head. “Well, the part I’m from has a lot of lakes. My mom used to joke that you couldn’t get anywhere in under 20 minutes because you can’t go anywhere in a straight line. After college I moved to the city and have lived in Brooklyn for the last few years. I found Paw after living there about a year, or I guess you could say he found me. What else? I work, or I guess maybe worked reviewing medical journals and research papers, though if I’m being honest I’d much rather be doing the research myself. And my favorite color is green,” Ellie offered, without giving up too much personal information. 

“Steve and I grew up in Brooklyn. What part did you live in?” Bucky excitedly asked her. She was right about the accent! 

“Um, I didn’t go out much or really think about it if I’m being honest, but I think it would be considered Brooklyn Heights.” 

“Seriously? That’s where Steve and I are from!” Bucky excitedly returned. “Small world,” he muttered to himself. “Now that I know you, I was thinking we could do something fun. Since you're bedbound I have an idea,” he smiled excitedly. Ellie raised her eyebrows at him, curiously. “I was able to acquire some games that I think you may be interested in playing,” he announced in an excited tone. 

“Did you now? Is that also with your secret stash of pills and vitamin waters?” she countered, in a playful tone. 

“Maybe,” he smirked. Dammit! Her entire stomach just twirled itself into knots. Ellie attempted to calm herself down as he walked out of the room again to collect the game. He was beaming as he walked back in and dramatically presented the box, “I present to you, Battleship!” Ellie giggled at his excitement, but her breath caught when he blushed. It was maybe one of the best things she’d ever seen. He set the box on her bed and opened it, allocating the pieces for them. “Here you go,” he smiled as he handed her a board.

“Many thanks,” she beamed. “Would you care to listen to some music while we play? There’s a band I really like and they just released a new album,” she asked. 

“Of course, whatever you’d like,” he politely replied.

“J.A.R.V.I.S., please play Darlingside,” she requested. “They’re a sort of small folk band, but they’re music is really really pretty. They harmonize better than anyone I’ve ever heard,” she happily explained as she strategically placed all of her ships along the edges of the board. “I should warn you I am very good at Battle Ships. I’ve also been told that I have telepathy, I haven't ever used it, but I apparently could read your mind and know exactly where your ships are,” she jokingly bragged. 

“Yeah well, I actually fought in a war so I think I may have some idea on how this works,” Bucky bragged right back as he set up his board from the chair across from the bed. "White Horses"  by Darlingside played as they set up their ships. “Are you ready?” Ellie nodded back. “Okay well I’ve always played this as the oldest player goes first. I presume you were born after 1917?” 

“Yes, just a few years later, 1990.” That’s one hell of an age gap if she’d ever seen one. 

“I guess that means I get to go first!” Bucky boasted, as if he didn’t completely do that on purpose. “C4,” he guessed.

“Miss,” she replied. “Did you have siblings growing up? A1.”

“Miss. One, a sister, her name was Rebecca, but we called her Becca.” Ellie eagerly listened as she placed a white knob on A1 hole. “C7?” Did he even have a strategy? “What about you? Did you have any siblings?” 

“Nope, only child. It was just my parents and I, though that was more than enough for me,” she simply explained. “B2,” she guessed, using the diagonal line technique. 

“Miss. So much for that telepathy,” he mocked, leading Ellie to glare at him. "F2.” That was a close one! “ So, how’d you figure out you had powers?” Right, he didn’t know. 

“Miss. I was um, stressed, and they came out. I didn’t mean for it to happen, but I’m glad it did,” she nervously answered. “C3.”

“Miss. You don’t have to tell me, but what happened?” he further inquired. Trust Ellie, trust. He’s only given her reasons to believe in him. She can share this. “ G3”

“Miss. It was I guess two weeks ago at this point. I was heading home from the market and I cut through an alleyway, which I’d done every other time, when some guy showed up,” she started to tell him. She could see his jaw clench as she told the story, apparently knowing exactly where it was going. “He um,” her voice quivered, remembering the details of the event. “He had a gun and I, well, I was defenseless. I’d taken self defense classes in college, but I froze. I’d never had a gun pointed at me before. I could see him wanting to pull the trigger, but suddenly it was like an explosion of light came out of nowhere and he was across the alleyway. I didn’t wait to figure out what had happened. I just ran all the way back home,” she nervously told him. “Right, um D4?” she maneuvered. 

“Hit,” he quickly replied. “I’m so sorry that happened and I’m really glad you got out okay. H4.” 

“Miss. Me too. What is your favorite food?” she attempted to change the subject. “D3.” 

“Hit. Um, I think it would be a tie for plums and pancakes, especially with maple syrup. I5. What about you?”

“Miss. You know you’re not very good at this game. There was this one restaurant back where I’m from that I love. I haven’t been there in years, but I think it still holds the seat as my favorite. It’s called Pita Way. It's Mediterranean and it’s delicious! D2?”

“Hit. Maybe we’ll go back there sometime so you can have it again, or have Remy try and recreate it?” he suggested. Ellie smiled wide at the idea of getting her delicious food again. “How did you find this band? I really like them. I6.”

“Miss. I’m guessing you weren’t in the navy,” she joked, he grumbled something back at her. “During my first week in high school I was really stressed about the new school and they just came on the radio and it clicked. I felt so much better listening to their music, so I listen to them now as often as I can, because it helps me feel safe,” she answered honestly. God, they were getting deep in this game of battleship. “D1.”

“Miss. Did you have any pets growing up? H7,” he asked.

“Miss. I’m really confused about your strategy,” she joked.

“It’ll all be clear soon enough,” he countered. “Pets?” he refocused her attention. 

“Right, we had tons over the years. We had this perfect dog, Cinnamon. Apparently, when I came home from the hospital as a baby she stayed up by my side for three days. I really like big dogs, so when we got two tiny dogs after that I wasn’t nearly as invested, but we did have two cats at the same time so I was happy. I named them after characters in kids shows, Pablo and Diego, but they also happened to share the names of famous artists, so my parents liked to claim I was just really smart and insightful. We got them when I was three after the last of my parents' previous three cats had passed away. We had fish for a while which was fun,” she told him. “Did you? I know you said you didn’t have any cats? D5.” 

“You sank my ship,” he sighed.

“Yes!” she cheered. 

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll get you back. We didn’t have any pets. I always wanted them though. What is your favorite flower? G8.”

“Wait a minute, are you making a smiley face?” Ellie asked him. He smirked back at her. Stop butterflies, stop! "Miss. My favorite flowers are dandelions, specifically when they're yellow. They're like little bundles of joy. It's part of why I like spring so much, you look around the fields and they're everywhere. They're so bright and vibrant. There wasn't much that could make me smile after my parents," she paused. "But seeing all the dandelions reminded me that there was still good out there,” she divulged in response to his very simple question. "E5"

"Miss. F9. What happened to your parents?" he quietly asked. 

"Miss. They um, passed away when I was in high school," she carefully told him, not really wanting to get into the details. "I like the smiley face," she attempted, changing the subject. "F6."

"Hit. I'm really sorry that happened. If you ever want to talk more about it I'm here," he gently offered. She could tell he meant it. 

Ellie and Bucky spent the next forty minutes playing Battleship, exchanging questions between each turn. Ellie only had one shot left and she was confident she knew where it was. He’d sunk two of her ships and that was it, she was absolutely destroying him! “I7?” 

“You won,” he admitted. 

“Yes! I am the best!” she bragged. “I mean- good game,” she feigned. 

“I love how not competitive you are,” he joked. 

“Yeah well you try being raised by my mother and not becoming competitive,” she returned. “So, have you seen Star Wars? They’re my favorite!” she offered. 

“I haven't. We can watch it here if you want. J.A.R.V.I.S. can cast it on the window,” he offered. 

“Ooh! Yes, that sounds amazing!” she beamed as she tapped the seat next to her. Bucky cleaned up the game and took the seat next to her. They spent the entire rest of their day watching movies, not even needing to stop and cook since Wanda and Remy brought food to her floor for lunch and dinner. Ellie ended up falling asleep near the end of the last movie. Bucky was making sure she took her meds throughout the day and she was feeling a lot better by the time she was laying down to go to bed. She didn’t even hurt as she shifted in the bed. 

Ellie stirred as she woke up. “Hey, how are you feeling?” Bucky asked her. She slowly opened her eyes and sat up in the bed to find him sitting in the chair across the room again, reading a book with Paw on his lap.

“I’m feeling really good,” she beamed as she got out of bed. 

“Woah there, hold on let me help you,” he cautioned, quickly getting out of the chair. 

“No, I'm good. I mean it, I feel really good,” she emphasized. “Plus I’m off bedrest now.” 

“Fine, but you still have to take it easy. What do you want to do today?” he asked. 

“Do you want to help me unpack? I was hoping to get it done, well, three days ago,” she suggested. 

“Let's do it!” he eagerly agreed.

“Let’s start in the living room and kitchen. I think I have some stuff for both. Do you like to decorate? We can try and set stuff up together?” she offered. 

“Or, you can continue to rest and I can put things where you want them,” he countered. 

“Bucky,” she sighed. 

“I’m sorry, but you still need to let your body heal. Come on, let’s go to the living room, you can sit on the couch while unpack,” he encouraged. 

“Fine,” she submitted. “I’ll be out in a minute,” she told him as she walked into the bathroom. She checked her abdomen and body for the bruises, which had gone down a lot. Once she was done there she moved into the closet to change. Bucky was still sitting in her room reading with Paw. Once she was in the closet she closed the door and grabbed a pair of sweatpants and a tank top. Some of her bruising was still visible, but it was looking a ton better. “Looks like I’m healing pretty quick,” she told him, emphasizing the point by pointing at her lightly colored arms. “Alright, let’s get started,” she sighed as she plopped herself down onto the couch and pointed at the first box labeled blankets. “We can start with that one, I’m chilly.” Bucky reached in and pulled out an already set up basket of blankets, then tossed one at her. “Mmm, much better. You can just set that over there,” she told him, gesturing towards the side of the couch. He easily lifted it out of the box and set it next to her. “Oh! That’s a big old box of Paw stuff. I was thinking I would put it in that closet over there,” she suggested. 

“Great plan,” he returned as he opened the box and started unloading the things. 

“While you’re doing that I’m going to unpack some stuff in the kitchen,” she told him after watching him work all of five minutes. He gave her a glare. “I’ll be fine. It’s nothing heavy, I promise. Just some snacks and stuff.” he sighed and continued unpacking Paw’s things indicating that she, at the very least, had some semblance of his support. “Music! I can’t believe I almost forgot to play music. Unpacking without it is crazy town. J.A.R.V.I.S. please play my classics playlist,” Ellie requested. “Now, I realize these aren’t exactly classics to you, but they’re from the last hundred years or so. I’m not sure what you’ve heard but there might be some things you recognize,” she mildly rambled.

“That sounds great,” he simply answered. 

Fleetwood Mac’s The Chain came on and Ellie immediately started singing her heart out to it. Bucky laughed at her enthusiastic singing as she unpacked a box containing some meds from her apartment. She ran out to him to sing at him holding a ladle as a mic, “and if you don’t love me now, then you will never love me again. I can still hear you saying, you would never break the chain.” She smiled and dramatically walked away singing, “listen to the wind blow, down comes the night.” 

“I take it you like this song,” he joked. 

“Just a little,” she beamed. 

They spent another four or so hours unpacking until they were both hungry and decided to inquire about food. Since all she had were snacks they decided to go to the common floor to try and get something there. “So, serious question. Do you know how to cook? Because last time I tried to cook Remy almost took my head off,” she explained. 

“Remy what?!” Bucky swung around to look at her. 

“Oh yeah, it was the same day I met you, just like 5 hours earlier. I’d just finished packing my apartment and he thought I was trying to break into the compound and cook dinner? I dunno, the logic seemed a little flawed, but that’s how we met. He was not approving of the food I was trying to make, so in the hopes of not getting my head blown off with a playing card, I’m wondering if you had any meals you can cook,” she simply explained. 

“I’m not sure I’m gonna be much help. I never really learned to cook anything fancy. We boiled everything in the 30s and it didn’t taste great.” 

“Well, hopefully someone will be there to save us,” she joked.

“Don’t you worry, I wouldn’t let anyone blow your head off,” he told her, jokingly stoically. 

“My hero,” she returned, in a very Olive from Popeye fashion. 

“Come on, let's get you some food, I think the hunger is getting to your head,” he joked, shaking his head at her aphorism. 

They entered the elevator and rode to the common floor. The smell of delicious food blessed Ellie's nose, “do you think there’s enough to share? Maybe if we threaten them they’ll give us food,” Ellie quipped, prompting a laugh from Bucky. Sam, Steve and Natasha were all sitting together, practically dumbfounded, staring at them, leading Ellie to get bright red. “I um, I was joking,” she awkwardly clarified, though their expressions didn’t change. Ellie turned to Bucky, “do you, um, know what’s happening right now?” 

“I think I have some idea,” he groaned, glaring aggressively at the three. He looked around the room, leading Ellie to follow his gaze and she noticed Wanda in the kitchen area cooking with a pair of headphones in. “Do you want to check in with Wanda about some food? I’ll handle them,” he sighed. 

“Yeah, um, sure,” she awkwardly accepted.

Ellie walked up to Wanda and tapped on her shoulder. She pulled off her headphones and smiled wide when she saw Ellie. “Hi honey, oh wow, you’re looking wonderful,” she complimented as she took her in. “I’m making Cholent. There should be more than enough to share if you’d like some,” she beamed. 

“That would be amazing, thank you Wanda. Bucky and I have been unpacking all day. I’m starving,” she complained, looking over at him. He was glaring at his three friends, who all seemed to have large smiles on their faces. 

“You go sit down and relax, I’ll bring the food out to you,” she told her, putting the headphone back in and directing her gently away. 

Ellie rejoined the group to Sam heckling Bucky, “seems like you guys have been having fun.” 

“We have, Bucky here has been helping me unpack. He’s very helpful,” she beamed, placing a hand on his shoulder. 

“You know, I could help you unpack too if you wanted,” Sam offered, raising his eyebrows. 

“I think I’ll be okay. Bucky has proven to be an exceptional helper,” she explained. “Plus my cat likes him,” she added. 

“Your cat huh,” he smirked. 

“Oh grow up,” Ellie groaned as Natasha smacked his arm. 

“I’m glad to see you’re feeling better,” Natasha interjected, glaring heavily at Sam. 

“Yeah, your healing between the accident and now is amazing,” Steve joined. 

“Yeah, the doctor said I have accelerated healing. A side effect of my new powers I guess. Not as good as yours or Logan's, but it’s pretty good,” Ellie told them.

“Better than mine,” Sam noted. “Speaking of your powers, have you tried them out?” 

“No, I’m not supposed to be doing any strenuous activity, so I’ve been holding off, but trust me, I’ve wanted to. I can feel it, it’s like a tingling in my veins,” she explained, captivating all of their attention. “But alas, I’ll be patient. Bucky has been doing a great job of keeping me occupied. I had him watch all three of the original Star Wars movies. It was his first time. You liked them right?” she confirmed. 

“Yeah, they were good,” he politely clarified. Why was he acting so strange? He was being much more energetic earlier.

“Well good, because they’re my favorite, so if you didn’t we might’ve had a serious problem,” she announced. 

“So, what else have you two been doing the last day and a half? We haven’t seen you at all and then you guys come up here all chipper,” Sam questioned. Ellie looked at Bucky who was simultaneously blushing ever so slightly and glaring at him very aggressively. 

“I’m not sure what you’re trying to imply, but we played battleships, watched Star Wars, and unpacked,” Ellie plainly told him. “Maybe we look so ‘chipper’ because I am a joy to be around,” she joked. “You, Sammy, may not share my special skill,” she shrugged with a smile. 

“Yeah, okay, whatever El,” he finally gave in. 

Ellie walked over to the couch and plopped down on it, instantly finding her inner potato. Despite feeling better, she was still tired from packing, though she was not going to be telling Bucky that. Natasha sat down next to her, “Sam’s just feeling you out. I can kick his ass for you if you want? Bucky seems eager to as well. Though it seems like you can hold your own.” 

“I can tell he doesn’t mean it,” Ellie shrugged. “Plus, with friends like you and Steve, I know he must not be serious. If he was there's no way he’d be in one piece,”  she justified. 

“Be honest, just between us, did anything happen between you and Bucky? He was laughing when he came in today,” she pushed. 

“Wait, is that why you guys were all acting so weird?” Ellie pieced together. 

“Look, it’s not for me to share, but Bucky is not a very happy person, or rather, at all. I think that was probably the first time I saw him laugh. Ever. So that’s why we were so thrown off guard,” Natasha divulged, she tried not to show her shock, but it was probably obvious. How was that possible? Sure, he had a few frowns between his smiles when he was with her, but never having laughed? It wasn’t the Bucky she knew. 

Bucky, Steve and Sam joined them on the couch, with Bucky sitting next to Ellie. She made eye contact with him, giving him a light smile. “Thank you, Bucky,” she softly spoke, trying to make sure only he heard. 

“For what?” he whispered back.

“Everything,” she returned. His cheeks flurried with pink as her stomach fluttered. She broke their eye contact before she lost too much control of her emotions. Ellie grabbed the remote from in front of her and turned on another one of her favorite movies, Jurassic Park. “Now, this is another important movie. If you don’t like it, that says a lot more about you, than the movie,” she announced as it started. Wanda joined them with food just as it started, allowing Ellie to sit and eat her delicious warm stew with one of her favorite films.

They ended up doing something of a movie marathon until Ellie eventually fell asleep, laying into Bucky as she drifted off. When she woke up she could hear his heartbeat. Was she laying against his chest? She didn’t want to move. She loved hearing the steady beat. She shifted slightly and felt something heavy against her back. His arm? She opened her eyes to look at him and he was also asleep, holding her against him. She could get used to this feeling. She surveyed the room further and saw that it was only them left and there was nothing playing on the screen. How long had they been there? She was pretty sure she’d never get this chance again, so she took in everything about the moment. God, he was beautiful. The way her body fit against his, the way he smelled, mixed pine, amber, and vanilla, his steady breathes, the softness in his face. It almost broke her heart to know she wouldn't be able to have this. That this wasn’t supposed to be her life. If for only a moment she could pretend this was her reality, when no one was watching, it was okay.  

The moment was gone as fast as it came. His eyes fluttered open, almost as quickly as the butterflies in her chest. His ocean blue eyes were somehow even more beautiful when he woke up, surrounded by his slightly groggy eyelids. She wished she could just admire him all day, but he wasn’t hers to admire. She seriously needed to get a grip. Bucky sat up a little and made eye contact with her. “Hey, how’d you sleep?” he asked her in a slightly raspy voice. God, her uterus just did a flip. She could feel her heart beat increasing exponentially. “Ellie?” he asked, softly, regaining her focus.

“I slept great, thanks. You?” she carefully asked.

“Some of the best I’ve had in years,” he replied, looking deeply into her eyes. Ellie had to break their eye contact for her sanity. Somehow her heart was beating faster and her face was burning. She buried her face in his chest again, embarrassed and hoping to hide how flustered she was. “You okay?” he laughed. His laugh! God, it sounded amazing and she was right against him, so it was like it was on blast. 

She took a deep breath, as if that would do anything at all, then looked back at him. “Hey Bucky,” she started, tentatively. He hummed in response. “Why do you act so differently when you’re around me?” 

“Oh,” he breathed. “I don’t know if I have a good answer for that. I guess maybe it’s easier when I’m with you?” he suggested. Why would being around her feel easier than with his best friend? It didn’t make sense. She wasn’t going to push him on it though, she could tell it wasn’t something he wanted to talk about, so she just nodded. “What do you say we get you back to your floor? So you can get some sleep in your bed?” he offered. 

“Sure, that sounds great. Thanks,” she softly returned. “You can sleep in your own bed tonight too, you know. I’m basically all healed,” she explained, looking at her practically bruise free arms. She wanted to keep some more space between them, at least physically. She was going to grow way too attached, way too easily if they continued the way they were. They walked into the elevator together, but parted ways as Ellie stepped out onto her floor. “I’ll be okay, if I need anything I’ll ask J.A.R.V.I.S. to get you, I promise,” she reassured him. Eventually he nodded and let her step out onto her floor. Ellie fell asleep almost instantly upon laying down onto her bed. 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

Ellie went to the doctor around 3PM the next day, she didn't actually know when her activity ban was over, but she knew that would be in the clear. She was cleared to resume her normal activity and she couldn’t be more excited. She practically ran out of the medical floor, much to her doctor's annoyance. She’d already gotten dressed to go straight to the training center in case she got good results. Ellie reached the elevator and communicated with the A.I., “hey J.A.R.V.I.S., will you tell Wanda that I was cleared and that I’m going to the training center.” She was bouncing between the balls and heels of her feet. She felt better than she’d ever felt and she had her powers to thank for that. She could feel the energy coursing through her veins, itching to be used. The doors opened and she sprung out taking in the room again. She was on her seventh day in the tower and the team would be voting on her in a week, so she needed to figure out her powers.

She took in the massive space again and found that it was really busy. Natasha and Steve were sparring, she was destroying him. Pietro was on the fancy treadmill, being a blur, totally showing up Sam who was on a regular treadmill, causing Ellie to laugh a little. Remy was in his chamber, practicing with his cards and what looked like a staff too. Ellie’s chamber had been repaired for her and seemed to be set up with a variety of things for her to use. Bucky was using the free weights; she held in the ogling she was about to do watching his muscles contract with the movements. Instead, she smiled and waved to him, he nodded with a smile in return. 

Logan was in a simulation chamber, bringing his targets down with his impressive claws. Apparently Remy had some sort of plan for them to become friends. Ellie jogged up the stairs to her chamber. She looked inside and found a bunch of small objects scattered around the room. Ellie was far too impatient to wait for Wanda and let herself into the room. She repeated the steps Wanda had told her the last time they tried to use her powers. She looked at a wooden ball, then started to reach into her mind, but the energy was already pushing to come out, like it knew what to do. She calmed her mind and opened her eyes, allowing her powers to work on their own. She watched the ball float in the air surrounded by green energy. She tried to force it to move, but her body already knew what to do. It moved effortlessly, just as she wanted it to, as if she was holding it herself. How far could her energy extend? She assigned her energy to all of the objects in the room, lifting them and slowly rotating them. She watched the objects as they spun, amazed at the work she’d done. 

Ellie heard a knock on her door and released her hold, letting the objects fall, scaring herself a little with all the noise as she did. Wanda walked into the chamber with a shocked look on her face, “wow honey, that’s amazing. Have you been practicing without me?” 

“Um. No, that was actually my first time trying,” Ellie admitted nervously. 

“Oh. You’re a natural. Do you want to try out something else? I’m worried there’s not much I can teach you, if you’re already this skilled.”

“Yeah sure! What did you have in mind,” Ellie excitedly accepted. Eager to discover new aspects of her abilities. 

“Well, you said that you’ve sent an energy blast before. I thought we could experiment with that. Probably in a simulation room since they’re bigger. They’re just as secure though,” Wanda offered as they exited the chamber. “There's a lot you can do if you’re able to manipulate your energy outside of your body. It seems like you can control and assign it to objects and hold them in space. Other uses can be defensive or offensive. For example you could use it as a shield around yourself, or use it against someone, like you did before with the blast. Depending on how strong you are, you may be able to fly,” Wanda advertised. “We’re also going to need to explore your telepathic abilities, but those are harder to experiment with. Have you had any symptoms of those powers?” 

“No, I don’t think so. There was this one time though where I was able to hear a conversation that I wasn’t there for. I’m not sure if that was that though,” Ellie admitted, carefully leaving out which conversation she’d eavesdropped on. She didn’t like lying, but what good would come of telling her? She just wasn't telling the whole truth, that was better right?

“That sounds like telepathy. Chances are you were in the mind of someone in the conversation, hearing what they were hearing. Was that after your accident?” she asked.

“No, that was before.” 

“Hm. Interesting. It seems like the wall was starting to fail, I don’t know why though. It was pretty easy to bring it down. You and I both know how eager the power was to get out. It’s odd,” Wanda mainly spoke to herself. “Okay, here we are. I’m going to set the simulation for stationary hostiles. You only have to focus on sending your blasts at them. I first want to see what you can do on your own, so no coaching. You can just step inside and give me a thumbs up when you’re ready,” she explained. 

Ellie walked into the empty chamber, it spanned the whole length of that wall of the center. It had glass on the inner wall, but white on all others, including the floor and ceiling. Ellie looked over to Wanda and gave her a thumbs up. Wanda nodded and started the simulation. Suddenly the empty room turned into a concrete warehouse with six men in tactical gear and red dots above them, likely to identify their hostility. She waited for them to move, or approach her, but they stood still. Right, they were stationary target practice. Ellie closed her eyes and called on the energy. It eagerly responded to her call and collected in her hands. Ellie observed the gorgeous collection of green energy that swirled around her hands. It escaped out of her palms and twisted around her fingers, then dissolved into looser spirals around her hands before re-entering her palms, constantly renewing. It was mesmerizing. She felt her fingertips tingle as it spun around them and it felt amazing. Ellie broke herself from her trance and eased her focus on her powers, then placed it on the men in front of her. The green energy traveled from her fingers and rapidly reached her first target, sending him flying across the room. Ellie stared back at her magical hands in awe at her abilities. She repeated the process with the other five targets, requiring less focus each time, it felt more and more natural to her with each blast. By the time she’d finished it felt like she’d been doing it for years. 

The simulation dissolved leaving her back in the glass walled room. Ellie looked to Wanda and ecstatically ran out of the room to share the results with her friend. “Did you see that? God, it felt amazing!” Ellie elated to a quiet Wanda. “What is it? I thought I did really well. I took all of them down,” Ellie asked, her tone rapidly decreasing in excitement in response to Wanda's serious face. “Wanda?”

“Come in here,” she quietly ordered, pointing back into the soundproof chamber. Did she do something wrong? How did she keep messing up? “Ellie, I need you to be honest with me okay?” Ellie nodded. “Is this really the first time you’ve used or had your powers. I’m not trying to accuse you of anything, but what you just did was not the skills of someone trying out their powers for the first time. The accuracy, timing, and speed of your blasts requires training,” Wanda carefully explained. She didn’t know what to do. She hadn’t had any previous training, but she didn’t want Wanda to think she was lying to her. How did she keep getting into these sucky situations? 

“I-” Ellie was lost for words. Honesty. She needed to be honest. Whatever it meant for her. “This is the first time I’ve tried using my powers, I promise,” she anxiously defended. Wanda studied Ellie's face, but eventually nodded, accepting her answer. “Honestly, I don’t know why I’m able to do what I’m doing. It feels like the energy knows what to do and my body is following along. I’ve been letting go of control to have control. I don't know,” she rambled. “Did that make any sense at all?”

“Hun it’s okay. Everybody’s mutation is different. I’m sorry if I scared you. You are doing really well. I’m starting to wonder if I even need to be here,” she laughed, instantly easing Ellie's mind. She guided the two of them back out of the room. “I do think I’m going to change our approach,” she explained as she tapped on the built-in screen on the glass wall. “I think that we just try and see what comes out when we run a simulation. Just so you know, these simulations will look very realistic and this time the hostiles will approach you. If they happen to reach you or you are attacked in the simulation you will be unharmed. However, for a sense of realism, you will experience the contact as air pressure, so don’t give up if they get close. Does that all make sense?” Ellie nodded. “It sounds like the energy within you knows what it's doing, so trust your gut, or powers I guess. You’ve got this. Oh also, if you say ‘end simulation’ it’ll stop immediately,” Wanda explained. “You can go inside and say ‘start simulation’ and it’ll begin. I’ll be able to see everything you’re doing from here. Good luck,” Wanda smiled.

Ellie feigned a smiled back at her. She didn’t want to say it, but she was nervous about what powers may come out. What if she couldn’t control them? Or if they were too powerful? Wanda did say she felt more power in her than she'd ever felt before. Did that mean she was dangerous? It seemed like the powers were already making themselves comfortable in her, as if they’d been there before. Was that just how they were? She felt like she was in control of them, but they could easily take over. She had so many questions and no one to ask. She tried to push it all aside and walked into the chamber, preparing for the simulation. Ellie took a deep breath, then said, “start simulation.” The room transformed into a dense forest landscape. Ellie lowered her center of gravity, bending her legs and leaning slightly forward, ready for whatever may happen. She rotated her vision to cover the field. A faint crunching came from the far left corner of the forest. Ellie focused her vision and found a sniper laying in the grass hiding behind a log. She blasted him and his gun away, erupting chaos in the forest. Men began approaching her from all angles. Two rushed for her on her right. She assigned her energy to a tree in front of them and sent it plummeting, blocking their path. Another ran directly to her from her front. She wanted to stop him in his tracks. She formed vines and grew them from the ground, wrapping them around him, trapping him against the grass. She saw another get close on her right and extended another vine, wrapped it around his feet, then bound it to a tree, leaving him hanging. She continued to scan the space for hostiles, but couldn’t find anyone else waiting to attack her. She turned to where she thought Wanda may be and in that moment she heard the gunshot. She watched the bullet fly towards her. Moments before it reached her, a green haze surrounded her body, and the bullet dissolved into powder at her feet. She found the gunman and similarly dissolved his gun, then blasted him into the tree behind him. 

Ellie breathed heavily as the room reshaped into the testing chamber. She turned to see that a small crowd had formed, watching her experiment with her powers. Steve, Natasha, Sam, and Bucky had all gathered to watch her in action. She looked to Wanda who shrugged. Ellie walked out of the chamber, curious about what the entourage had to say. To nobody's surprise the first comment she received was from Sam. “Damn girl. You’ve got that voodoo shit going on. How’d you do that with the veins? Wanda can’t even do that. Wait, can you do that?” he turned to ask her in total amusement. He left her no time to reply as he kept yapping, “El, that was so badass.” He wore himself out and gave someone else a chance to speak. 

“Thank you Sammy,” Ellie laughed at his amusement.

“You looked really good out there Ellie,” Bucky joined. “I’m so happy to see you doing so well, I’m proud of you,” his face was slightly flushed as he smiled. Ellie could feel her eyes tempting to gloss over and she knew Bucky noticed. 

“Aw Bucky, your gon’ make me cry if you keep talkin’ like that,” she joked in a silly southern accent, protecting herself from her emotions. It had been years since anyone said they were proud of her and she knew he meant it.

“You really seemed to know what you were doing out there,” Natasha noted with a twinge of venom. “Where’d you learn all that?”

“Nat,” Steve interjected. 

“I’m just saying. You said you didn’t have any training and that’s not what it looked like,” she continued. Ellie knew this would happen. Her powers were too strong. They wouldn’t be able to trust her. They were going to vote her off the team. It’s like Bucky said, lying is a dealbreaker, but she wasn’t even lying!!! 

“I think what you mean to say is good job,” Sam threw in. 

“Maybe Ellie can explain,” Steve suggested.

“She shouldn’t have to,” Bucky mumbled. 

“It’s fine,” Ellie rejoined the conversation. How was she going to explain this? Wanda also had abilities so that made it easier. This was way too complicated. “My powers, they uh,” she stumbled over her words. “When I try to use my powers, I have to take a step back and allow them to take control so I can have control. Wanda thinks it's part of my specific mutation, but the energy within me is almost like an independent entity that I am just giving commands to. I don’t know, I’m still figuring it out myself. All I know is that when I’ve relaxed and let my mind and body work as one the energy joins and I guess that happens,” Ellie attempted to explain, pointing to the simulation room. “Today is my first time using my powers other than the accidental times before Wanda released them. I don’t know why they work the way they do, but I promise I’m not lying to you about any sort of training,” Ellie defended for the second time. She started to wonder how many times she would need to give that speech. She got a nod from Natasha in response. 

“I’m glad to see your powers are coming so easily to you. Looks like you’ll be in the field with us in no time,” Steve stated casually, as if that was at all casual. Did that mean he thought she was going to be on the team? Maybe she was worrying for nothing, it seemed like she had a habit of doing that. Bucky smiled at his friend's approval. “So, Wanda, break it down for us.”

“Well, Ellie showed a lot of new abilities. For starters, she has energy manipulation, similar to me. As we know she can manifest this energy in the form of telekinesis, and energy blasts, both are very controlled and precise, as you saw. With this energy she was able to form a protective shield around herself. What was particularly interesting was that she was also able to modify the reality of the simulation. We will need to explore the depths of those abilities further, but she was able to conjure the veins and grow them at will. She also changed the state things were in, like the bullet and the gun, by turning them into dust. There is certainly even more investigation to be done, but for an initial set of results, these are really promising,” Wanda explained. Everyone eagerly listened to her words learning more about Ellie's new abilities. 

“Well, I think that sounds great,” Steve gave a token Captain America smile. “If you want you can finish up training, then we’re planning on having dinner in the common space,” Steve offered. Wanda gave him a concerned look. “Don’t worry I’m not cooking,” he defended, raising his arms. “Remy found a recipe he wanted to try. He actually asked me to find out if Ellie wanted to help him make it. He said something about you not knowing how to cook,” Steve explained. Bucky smiled at her, borderline mockingly, knowing exactly what he meant. 

“I can cook. Just not like he can. I can make plenty of meals, if I couldn’t I wouldn’t be alive right now, I would’ve withered away ages ago,” Ellie joked in her defense. She hoped they wouldn’t ask her what meals she could cook, because it would really bring down her argument. “But yes, I will be there, it sounds lovely,” Ellie kindly accepted. 

“Well I’ll let him know when I see him. He finished up here a little bit ago,” Steve smiled. 

“Sounds great, thank you Steve.” The group walked away and Ellie heard Sam complain about having to eat her cooking, “I can cook Sam!” 

“Yeah whatever you say El,” he dismissed waving his arm. 

Ellie rolled her eyes and went back to her training session with Wanda. They ended up working with her reality manipulation skills for the rest of the session. By the end of it Ellie was able to summon or conjure anything she wanted just by thinking about it. Despite having a ton of fun using her magic, she was exhausted. It took a toll on her to use it. She hoped it would get easier with time and she’d gain a tolerance to it. For now, her two hour training session completely wore her out. She dragged herself all the way to her shower and savored the hot water on her skin. As she showered, she studied how her body had completely recovered from her injury. It was amazing how fast she could heal. There wasn’t a single trace on her to show what she’d experienced, not even a scar. 

Ellie put on her favorite pair of sweatpants, a dark green wide legged pair, and a black crop top. She wanted to look nice, but cared a lot more about feeling comfortable. She was still really tired, but the shower woke her up enough to be successful at dinner. Ellie yawned as she walked into the kitchen, that was the last yawn she got tonight. “Hey, you okay?” Bucky asked as she walked in, apparently she was not very secretive with her fatigue. 

“Yeah. I guess using my powers wore me out today,” Ellie admitted. 

“Are you sure you’re up for this? Everyone would understand if you needed to rest,” he attempted. 

“I’m fine, it sounded like Remy was excited about this. Plus you heard him, I have to learn how to cook,” Ellie joked, reminding and convincing herself why she couldn’t be in bed. She smiled at Bucky, appreciating his concern, then joined the party. Steve, Natasha, and Sam were sitting together at the table, with Bucky rejoining them. She was surprised that Wanda wasn’t there, though maybe she had other plans. Remy was cooking at the stove with Logan to his right, it looked like he was roped into this too. Ellie walked up to Remy and tapped him on his shoulder, “hey Remy!” 

“Mon Cheri!” Remy called as he pulled her into a hug. “Remy is so glad you’re here. We are going to cook dinner! You and Logan are helping!” Logan looked completely unamused at the situation causing Ellie to stifle a laugh. “We are making something easy, don’t worry. I found a recipe for fajitas that I wanted to try. You cannot use your mutations, Remy wants you guys to really learn how to cook.” That worked for her, she was so tired she didn’t know if she could even bring them out. “Okay great! Let’s get started. Logan you can cut up the peppers like I showed you. Cheri, do you want to cut up tomatoes? Remy is going to start the rice.” Ellie nodded and went to wash her hands. She could already feel her eyelids dragging, but she needed to stay up for Remy. 

Ellie walked over to where the tomatoes were already waiting for her with the knife and cutting board. She started grabbing the tomatoes when she heard a shocking amount of cusses coming from Logan’s area. She decided to investigate and found peppers being mutilated by Logan. She carefully approached, so she didn’t spook him, “hey Logan. Would you like some help?” 

He looked at her with a harsh expression. Maybe Ellie wasn’t going to win him over. She turned back to return to her tomatoes, embarrassed. “Wait,” a gruff voice spoke. Ellie spun and looked at the man standing before her. He stared at Ellie, it was weird every time he did that, but suddenly his face softened. “Yes. Please,” he seemed to struggle to say the words. 

Ellie was excited at the progress she’d made with him, but she tried to hide it, so she wouldn’t scare him off. “May I?” she asked. He nodded. “So, I’m not an expert, obviously, but I think you might be holding the knife too tight. You should be able to have better control if you relax your hand,” she carefully explained, as she demonstrated. “Do you want to try?” 

“Yeah alright,” he huffed. He grabbed the knife and started to cut the peppers. He immediately improved and was able to cut the peppers into relatively even slices. “Thanks for the tip bub. So, how did Remy get you wrapped into this?”

“It’s actually a bit of a funny story,” Ellie started as she grabbed the tomatoes and went to wash them. “It was like ten thirty in the evening I think on my first day here and I came into the kitchen to make myself some dinner.” Ellie finished washing them and brought her cutting board closer to Logan so they could keep talking. “He’d forgotten that I was going to be coming to the Tower and meeting the team the next day, so he introduced himself by threatening to take my head off with one of his cards.” 

Logan laughed, “Fucking dumbass.” 

“Once he figured out who I was he apologized and asked to make it up to me. I decided I’d ask for help making dinner. I’d been planning on making pasta and ground pork. He seemed to think that was a some form of medieval torture,” Ellie joked as she chopped the tomatoes.

“Sounds like him. Man does he love his food,” he rolled his eyes. Clearly he’d heard Remy’s talk about food one too many times before.

“So, how’d he get you to help him?” Ellie asked, curious to learn more about the two vastly different men’s relationship. 

“Well, he’s been trying to get me to do this for a long time. I’d given up on any form of cooking a long time ago, so you’ve got a step up on me. He doesn’t think I can live on other people's cooking and take out food my whole life. I’m almost two hundred years old so what the hell does he know?” Logan complained. “He told me it was important that I came tonight, so here I am.” 

“I’m glad you did. You mean a lot to him. I can tell,” Ellie smiled. 

“Thanks bub,” Logan managed to smile back. Ellie just made a huge win. 

Ellie finished cutting the tomatoes and went to get a new assignment from Remy. He had her tend to the chicken as he made the guacamole. The burst of adrenaline Ellie got from the conversation with Logan was very rapidly wearing off. She was struggling to stay awake while watching the chicken sizzle. Ellie decided to grab a chair, so at the very least she wouldn’t fall asleep standing up. Remy said it needed another 5-10 minutes, maybe she could take a little nap in her chair. The moment she laid her head in her propped up arms, she was transported into sleep.

“Not good enough. Do it again,” a man in a black suit ordered. Ellie sent her energy blast at the bullseye target, meeting it at the second most inner ring. “If you’re not going to do it right, then there will be consequences. Do it again!” he yelled. Ellie fired her blast, missing the center of the target again. “If you’d done better, this wouldn’t happen. This is your fault, remember that. Take her away,” he dismissed. A team of ten men in tactical gear entered the room. They kicked her legs in, burying her face in the concrete. She could taste blood as she slammed into the ground. “Get the hell up!” he yelled, as they yanked her up off the ground by her hair.

Ellie was thrown awake by her head falling off her hands. She breathed heavy at the sudden nightmare. She scanned the room, but it didn’t look like anyone noticed. What was happening to her? This was the second time she’d had a nightmare. They felt so real. She wasn’t even asleep for that long. She was suddenly terrified to fall asleep, afraid of what might greet her behind closed eyes. This nightmare wasn’t as bad as the first one, but maybe it would’ve been if she hadn’t woken up. Was it a manifestation of her fear? People were questioning her about having training. It felt too real to be her mind playing tricks on her, but what other option was there? 

The smell of the chicken reminded her where she was. She assumed it had been the right amount of time, so she flipped them. They looked a little darker than they probably should’ve been, but they weren’t burnt, so she figured it was fine. Ellie’s leg shook in anxiety as she waited for the chicken to finish, her whole system on edge. “Cheri,” Remy called for her. Her head whipped around way too fast. “You okay mon amore?”

“Yeah,” Ellie lied.

She watched him consider questioning her, but he didn’t, maybe because of all the people. She watched his smile drop a little, but he replaced it with a sympathetic one, “can mon cheri try the guacamole? Remy needs a taste tester.” Ellie nodded. She wasn’t feeling very talkative. The nightmare really threw her off. She had a feeling she’d be hearing from Bucky about it soon. Ellie followed Remy to the guacamole he’d made. Somehow he’d made tons of other sides too, Ellie and Logan really were just for show. Remy gave her some guacamole on a chip and she tried it. It was really good, like an explosion of delicious flavors in her mouth. “You like it?” Ellie strongly affirmed him while finishing her chip. “Do you want to sit on the couch while I finish? I’m sure Cheri is tired, Remy appreciates all your help,” he softly offered. Ellie could see the concern in his eyes. 

She nodded, “thank you Remy.” He brought her into another hug, which she tightly returned, needing the support, before letting her go onto the couches. Ellie was still fighting to stay awake. She didn’t want to see any more unfamiliar faces in her nightmares. Bucky, as she expected, sat down next to her. “Hey,” she said with all the energy she had, which was none. 

“You know, I can stand guard and you can take a nap. I’ll wake you up when food is ready,” he offered.

“No,” Ellie immediately answered. She would not be sleeping. 

“Is there something you’re not telling me?” he asked, looking in her eyes. 

“I don’t really want to talk about it. I just know that I do not want to go to sleep.”  

“Okay, then I will help keep you awake. So tell me about training today. How did it feel to use your powers?” Ellie looked at him with exhausted eyes. “Okay I’ll tell you about my day. I had to hear Sam complain about Pietro for like an hour. They were training next to each other, or according to Sam, Pietro was following him around. He said that Pietro kept grabbing whatever he was going to grab just before he was going to get it. I wish I’d seen it. It’s honestly impressive how long Sam can complain. For not being enhanced he seems to have a really strong set of lungs,” he laughed. Ellie smiled, trying to stay engaged. “Are you going to tell me what’s wrong eventually?”

“Dinner!” Remy called. Saved by the bell. Ellie got up off the couch and found a seat between Logan and Remy. She figured Logan wouldn’t make her talk and Remy seemed to understand that she wasn’t in the talking mood. Ellie picked at her food as she passively watched a debate between Sam and Remy, not really paying attention to what they were saying. She heard bits and pieces, but they were washed out by the ringing in her ears. She noticed Steve looking at her. “Hm?” she asked, pushing back the ringing. 

“I asked if you thought you were an expert chef now. Remy seems to think so, but Sam is skeptical,” Steve asked with a lingering smile. 

“Oh, almost,” she found an answer. The debate continued around her, so she slipped back into her fatigued and post-nightmare trance. She remained that way until their plates were being cleared. She didn’t know what she should do. She didn’t want to leave and go back to her room, where she knew she’d have to fall asleep, so she stayed at the table. She smiled and waved goodbye to people as they left, feigning a stable state. She waited at the table until everyone was gone, still unsure about what she was going to do. 

Ellie got up from the table and walked over to the couches. She turned on the TV and put Starwars: IV on, she knew she loved it, so it should keep her awake. She felt her head dragging, but she pulled it back up each time. “Why aren’t you going to sleep?” Bucky’s voice asked, scaring Ellie. She swung her head around to look at him. She had no idea how long he’d been there. 

“Not tired,” she very obviously lied, eyelids drooping. 

“Ellie,” Bucky looked at her. “When are you going to stop lying to me?” 

Ellie looked at him, she reminded herself that he only wanted to help her. She needed to trust. “I’m scared to go back to sleep," she quietly admitted. “I didn’t want to say it because it’s embarrassing.” 

“It’s not embarrassing. Why are you afraid to fall asleep?” he softly asked, sitting down next to her. 

“I don’t want to have another nightmare,” she quietly confessed. 

“Oh,” he breathed. “You can’t not sleep because you’re afraid to have a nightmare.” 

“I’m terrified, Bucky. I closed my eyes for five minutes and I had a nightmare. How am I supposed to willingly go to sleep and have another nightmare?” Ellie asked, teary eyed. 

“I can stay with you. While you sleep. I can sleep on your couch if you want and if I hear you, I can wake you up, but Ellie, you need to sleep. You’re exhausted,” he offered. 

“You won’t leave? The whole night, no matter what,” Ellie clarified. 

“I would never leave you,” Bucky assured her. 

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

Chapter Text

Bucky reached his hand out to an exhausted Ellie. “Come on, let’s get you to bed. It’s late and you need sleep,” he kindly explained. Ellie turned off her movie and took his hand. She didn’t expect his hand to be so soft, it must’ve saved from his past. He grabbed her hand and pulled her up. When she stood she started to feel lightheaded from the lack of food, her exhaustion, and possibly the overuse of her powers. She swayed and he wrapped his other arm around her waist. “Hey, I’ve got you.” 

Ellie won’t lie, she really liked the feeling of his arm around her. “Thanks, I just got a head rush from standing up. I’ll be fine to get to my room,” she explained, trying to save herself from getting attached to the feeling of touching him. He let her go and they walked to the elevator. She could feel Bucky watching her closely as she walked in case she stumbled again. 

Paw greeted them when the doors opened. He’d been sleeping on the couch awaiting her arrival like he always did when she’d leave. He ran up to them, rubbing against her leg first, Ellie had won back brownie points with food bribes, and meowed for attention. “Maybe in a minute bud, Ellie needs to go to bed. I’ll be sleeping out here if you want to sneak out to see your favorite person,” Bucky joked. Ellie wanted to quip back, but she was way too tired to come up with anything, so she just glared at him instead. “Sorry,” he laughed at the death stare. He continued to help walk her into her room until she reached her bed. She felt the obnoxiously soft fabric hit her face and she was overwhelmed by the need to fall asleep. She could feel her eyelids drooping and her body slipping into sleep, comforted by Bucky's presence. He turned off the light switch and started to slip out of the room. “Goodnight Ellie, I’ll be just outside if you need me,” he quietly spoke. 

“Wait,” Ellie whispered. “Don’t leave me, please. At least until I’m asleep.” She looked at his shadowy figure in the dark with cloudy vision.

He walked across the room and sat down on a chair he’d spend an obnoxious amount of time on recently. “I would never leave you,” he repeated. 

“Thank you,” Ellie sleepily spoke. Ellie drifted into sleep instantly, knowing Bucky was there to keep her safe. 

“Send her in,” the man in the suit ordered. 

“She hasn’t gone against this many men before,” the scientist warned. 

“You will do what I fucking say, or I can have them take you out first as a warm up. Send her in,” he ordered again. 

“Yes sir,” the scientist cowered. He turned and placed a hand on Ellie's shoulder, guiding her into the room with the men.

“You are not to use your powers. You need to control them. You cannot rely on them. You will take out all of these men. If you are successful you will be rewarded. If you are unsuccessful you will be punished. You know the drill. You may begin.” 

Ellie surveyed the scene in front of her. There were ten large men in front of her all prepared to kill her. They would also be punished if they failed, that's how this worked. They would not be going easy on her. She entered her battle stance and let the first man approach her. She dropped to the floor, swinging her legs under his, knocking him to the ground. She kicked him in his groin, throat, and face, then moved onto the next target. A thinner, but faster man approached her. He swung for her face but she blocked it, she tried to return the blow and he blocked hers, they repeated the dance until he landed a heavy kick in her abdomen. She quickly recovered, dealing him a spin kick to his temple as he boasted about landing a hit on her. She allowed the next one to approach her and swing. Anticipating his movement, she grabbed his arm, used his momentum, and brought him to the floor and into a chokehold. She pinched his vagus nerve causing him to be knocked out instantly. She ran to the next one, jumping and wrapping herself around his neck, bringing him down, then repeated the kicks she’d done to the first man. She walked back towards the front of the room, giving herself more space, waiting for her next target to approach her. She made eye contact with one of them and waved him forward. He went running for her and she crouched down at the last second, then pushed him up and forward as he reached her, planting him against the wall. 

“Go all at once. Now!” the suited man yelled. She faintly heard the scientist arguing that she wasn’t ready, but she had to fight now. The five remaining men sped towards her. She ran to the one on the furthest left to try and single them out as long as she could. She punched him in the neck and kicked him in the groin, then swept the feet from under him. The next man approached her while she was still on the ground. She swung her body up, pushing off her arms, kicking him as she rose, throwing him down to the ground. She only remained standing for a moment, because she was quickly kicked in the spine. She flew across the room at the force, landing hard on the concrete floor. She pushed her body up off the floor, but was kicked back down. She kept trying to get back up. She couldn’t be punished, it would be so much worse than this; she needed to be successful. She reached out to grab the foot that was beating her, but another foot smashed her hand into the floor; she cried out in pain as she heard bones crunching. A third pair of feet joined the mutilation as she failed to fight back. She could feel her powers itching to come out, but them coming out would mean she failed and she couldn’t fail. Their green energy was coming out. She was fighting it, but they were winning, she was getting too weak from the beatings.

She lost, the powers bursted out of her, sending the three men and the limp bodies scattered in the room flying against the walls. The power receded, it did what it needed, she wasn’t being hurt anymore, but she would be. She saw the figures of the suited man and the scientist walk in. “You failed. I said no powers,” the suited man spat. “Dose her and have them give her punishment,” he ordered the scientist. 

“Yes sir,” the timid man complied. He pulled out a syringe and pierced Ellies neck, releasing the fluid. She crumbled entirely into the floor, weak and helpless, her last lifeline was gone. “You can take her, she’s ready.” A group of men in tactical gear grabbed her and dragged her out of the room, leaving a trail of blood in her wake. She watched as her arms started to illustrate her veins in bright green. She saw scars that she didn’t know she had appear throughout her body. 

The men dragged her into a hot room, with a burning oven and chains on the walls for her to be tied onto. She could barely move, much less run away. The men strapped her down, so she wouldn’t be able to get away, then all but one left. “You know you’re a failure. We all know you’re a failure. At least now it’ll be on you forever.” He grabbed a small metal poker and placed it into the hot stove until it was red hot. He pulled up her shirt to find an open area to mark. He ripped her shirt apart and placed the hot metal along her collarbone. Ellie screamed louder than she knew she could as the metal broiled her skin. He removed it and placed it back in the oven, a large grin on his face, “don’t lose your voice too quickly. Failure is a long word.” He placed it back onto her skin, continuing the letter. Ellie couldn’t hold in her screams. Her chest was on fire. The room smelled of burning flesh. She couldn’t handle it. Her mind was screaming, her body was screaming, her nose was screaming, her chest was screaming, the metal was screaming as it met flesh. It was too loud. She was too loud. Her world was on fire. 

Ellie woke up screaming. Her room was spinning with images from her nightmare. It wouldn’t end. She screamed for it to stop. She needed it to stop. She couldn’t still be there. She needed to escape. She needed to be safe. Her eyes burned. The room shined green, brighter than she could handle, with snippets of her nightmare playing. She saw the men beating her, the scientist dosing her, and the torture. She heard them all. She buried her face and plugged her ears, begging them to stop. She struggled to breath, it felt like the fire in her chest was reaching her lungs. 

She heard a slamming sound she didn’t recognize from the dream, but the sounds started blending together as she cried and begged them to stop. “Ellie,” a familiar voice called broke though. She tried to silence the noise but she couldn’t. "Ellie it's Bucky, please, let me in." Bucky?  She felt a hand on her arm and flinched away, horrified that they would hurt her again. “Ellie it’s me. It’s Bucky. You’re safe. You’re in the Avengers Tower. You’re safe,” he told her. She looked at his face and the room suddenly went silent and the green images were gone. She was safe in the Tower? He softly placed his hand on her arm again. It was Bucky. She was safe. She was in the Avengers Tower. She was Safe. She sat up in the bed heaving in the thick air between her sobs. She closed her eyes, putting them against her hands only to regain flashes of her nightmare, bringing back her panic. She saw the smoke from her burning flesh and the face of the man, his terrifying smile. Her heart rate accelerated as her breathing picked up. She ran out of her bed and into the bathroom, stumbling as she did, in a complete mindless panic. She tore at her shirt, trying to find the scars. She couldn't control herself. Her mind was on fire. She ripped at her chest and arms instinctually, trying to get to the evidence of her dream. She heard footsteps quickly trailing after her. "Ellie?" she vaguely heard him say from behind the door, she was far too preoccupied with her own panic to pay attention to him. "Ellie I'm gonna come in. I need to make sure you're okay," she heard hazily as she tore at her skin. Ellie watched the door crack open through her clouded vision. Was it the man from her nightmare? She backed away in a panic, hiding herself behind her legs, balled in the dark corner. "It's just me. It's Bucky. You're okay," Bucky softly spoke as he stepped inside. She slowly looked up at him, releasing herself from her protected position. "Ellie?" he breathed. "What did you do?" he barely managed to say. She followed his eyeline to her chest and arms, they were bright red with blood splotching around the wounds, her hands were covered in it. She did it again. She said she wouldn't have another reaction like this after a nightmare. 

She could see the fear in his eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," she sobbed, realizing what she'd done. "I- I wanted to find it. The scars, the- the burns," she stumbled, tears escaping faster than she could make them. 

"Hey, hey, you're okay. Just breathe, we can get through this," he softly coached. Bucky soaked a couple hand towels that Tony had provided and brought them back to her. "I'm going to clean you off. This might feel cold," he warned as he placed it against her chest. She focused on the feeling of the cool cloth against her tender skin trying to re-enter the moment and escape her post nightmare-ish haze. She managed a deep breath and looked up at Bucky. "Just match my breathing okay?" he guided. She continued to meet his eyes and he took her hand in his, then placed it on his chest so she could feel the rise and fall of his breath. She placed all her attention on mirroring his rhythm, she could feel her mind start to clear as she let air into her lungs. "You're doing really well," he encouraged.

After a few more minutes of guided breathing she was able to think clearly again. "Bucky?" she whispered, grounding herself to his presence.

"I'm here. Whatever you need," he returned softly. 

"Can we go back to bed? I'm cold," she asked, not thinking about her words as she said them. She didn't mean to imply that Bucky would be staying in the bed with her, but she was also not at all ready to be alone.

"Yeah, of course. It seems like your healing closed your wounds already and I've cleaned you up, so you don't have to worry about that," he explained, though she hadn't even thought about it. He pulled off his sweatshirt and handed it to her, "here, you can wear this. It's prewarmed for you," he smiled. She quietly thanked him and let him help her put it on, so she was no longer just in the sports bra she, by the grace of god, had on under her shirt. Ellie stood up and immediately felt all the blood rush to her head. She swayed as she tried to stabilize herself. Bucky took her under his shoulder and helped her walk. "It's okay, I've got you," he reassured as she leaned into his steady hold. He helped sit her down onto the bed and cupped her head as she lowered down onto the pillow. "I'll be right here, the whole night. I promise," he assured her as he walked over to the chair.

"Wait, I don't... I don't want to be alone," she quivered, already feeling her panic rising again as she lost his touch. Bucky paused for a moment and frowned. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked," she continued, attempting as steady a tone as she could. 

"You're sure you want me to stay in the bed with you?" he clarified. 

"Please," she breathed. "I can't be by myself. I'm afraid I'll close my eyes again and they'll be back again. I don't feel as afraid with you there," she admitted. She adjusted over in the bed slightly, leaving him room to join her. She watched as he nodded and walked over to her. She paid close attention to the mindfulness in his actions. He looked at her again, as if for permission, before sitting down in the bed. He was stiff as he laid down. Maybe it was her exhaustion, or just her need for comfort, but she immediately leaned into him, nestling into his chest. She focused on his heart beat, using it to settle her. "Bucky," she faintly started. He hummed in response. "Thank you." 

"Always." 

Chapter Text

Ellie woke up to pain. Her head was pounding and her arms and chest ached. Her nightmare from the night before left her feeling horrible. She attempted to turn over, but couldn’t. Bucky’s arm was wrapped around her, holding her tight against his chest. For it being metal it felt impressively warm and comforting. Her head sat in the center of him, perched perfectly between his well defined pec muscles, which cushioned her cheek. She looked up at him and realized he was just in a tank top and his sweatshirt was on her. She was being filled with his scent and it was like a drug. She heard his breathing shift and he adjusted his position slightly. The weight of his arm lightened and she soon felt him run a featherlight hand through her hair, then stroked her cheek. She had to fight the blush that wanted to arise from the touch. She decided just moving a little was the best option, so she leaned into him again, as if she was just waking up. “Hey,” he softly spoke. She opened her eyes again to look at him. “How are you feeling?” he asked her lightly. 

“I’m okay,” she told him, shying from the truth. He gave her a long look, seeing right through the words. “I hurt,” she divulged.

“What hurts?” he pushed, only support in his tone. 

“My head, my arms, my chest,” she explained. “Me,” she quietly added.

“Do you want me to get you some meds? For the pain?” he offered.

“I don’t want to move yet. I’m not ready to start today.”

“Okay. Can we talk about what happened?” he requested gently, clearly not wanting to push her, but obviously wanting to discuss it. Ellie just shrugged at him. “What happened in the dream?” he asked.

“I um,” she struggled. She didn’t want to tell him, it was such a gruesome, horrible dream. “It was just a bad dream,” she simplified. 

“Ellie. I know it was more than that. You looked terrified. You lost control again,” he pushed Ellie frowned, she knew she’d gone too far. She didn’t want to, she was in a blind panic. “I couldn’t get to you at first. I heard you screaming and tried to get in, but your door was sealed shut. I’m honestly shocked that the door didn’t break as I tried to force it open. Did you mean to do that?” She shook her head. “Have you had any other nightmares since your first night?” 

“Outside of the brief one in the kitchen, no,” she quietly answered. 

“What scared you so much?” he pushed. She looked away from him, she didn’t want to tell him. “You looked afraid of me,” he quietly added. 

“I didn’t know where I was. I thought you were the man,” she muttered.

“What man?” 

“I don’t know who he was, I didn’t recognize him,” she attempted. He didn’t break her gaze. 

“Why were you afraid of him?” he asked again, his voice less stable.

“Bucky, it doesn’t matter. It was just a dream. It didn’t actually happen,” she pushed, she really didn’t want to get into it. He frowned at her, clearly not taking that answer. “Okay fine,” her tone flared. “The man hurt me in my dream. When I woke up I didn’t know whether I was still in the nightmare or not and when I saw you I assumed you were him. I wasn’t seeing straight, I just saw a person. I wasn’t afraid of you,” she clarified. 

“Hurt you how?” he didn’t give in and he had that ‘I’m worried and scared’ expression on his face again. 

“Why is that important? It was a nightmare. It wasn’t real,” she pushed. 

“Because it scared you enough to hurt yourself,” he breathed. 

She frowned and looked at her arms and remembered why she was wearing his sweatshirt. She took off her shirt in her panic. Bucky gave her the sweatshirt last night. She knew her arms probably looked bad, she could see a couple faint lines creeping up past her wrists. She didn’t want to describe her nightmare, but maybe there was another way. Ellie focused on it and attempted to use her powers to cast her memory of the nightmare. “I don’t want to see it again,” she muttered once she saw the image take form. She closed her eyes and hid back into his chest, covering her ears with her hands. She heard the muffled nightmare playing. She cringed when she heard the scientist tell her she failed. Bucky lifted her face to look at him with a frown, she saw the men walking in and she shook her head, hiding again. “It’s not done.” She repeated quiet ‘no’s to herself to block out the sound of her screaming. She was hyperventilating into his chest, waiting for it to be over. Silence finally arrived and she carefully removed her hands and looked up. The images were gone and Bucky sat frozen. She pushed off of him, needing to be done with it. He took her hand in his, stopping her from leaving. “You wanted to know what happened and now you do,” he didn’t ease up on his eye contact. “I was looking for the scars,” he furrowed his brows. “Yesterday, when I lost control. That’s what I was trying to do. I didn’t mean to hurt myself. I just needed to make sure that it wasn’t real,” she carefully elucidated. He frowned at her. “So, are we done here?” she pushed, feeling extremely exposed. He nodded hesitantly and eased his hold on her. “I’m gonna get ready. I’ll um, see you downstairs maybe? We can get breakfast?” she suggested as she got out of the bed, trying to put it all behind her.

“Um, yeah, sure,” he agreed, getting out of the bed himself. “You’ll be okay right?” he checked, turning to face her in the doorway. 

“Yeah, I’ll be okay,” she assured him. She heard the door close behind him and she walked into her bathroom. She slid down the wall, fighting off the tears of exhaustion and stress from her nightmare, then replaying the nightmare. She focused on taking slow, controlled breaths, letting herself calm again. “You’re okay. It was just a dream,” she reminded herself. Paw scratched at the door, meowing, begging to get in. It was enough to break her from her spiral, as she walked over to the door and opened it for him. “Hi buddy,” she smiled and she pet him under his chin. He purred loudly under the embrace, widening her smile. “J.A.R.V.I.S., play my folk and acoustic mix please,” she requested. Her music started playing through the speakers and she started the shower. Ellie looked in the mirror at her now bare body, taking in the mostly healed damage she’d done to herself. She feathered her hands over them with a frown. She quickly moved into the water, wanting to wash away the image of herself. She allowed herself to soak in the warmth of the shower. 

After being in the shower for at least 20 minutes she decided she was content with her cleanse. The nightmare and the morning now felt cleaned from her skin. She moved into her closet, which was freshly unpacked, though it didn’t change the fact that she had almost no clothes. She put on a pair of wide legged dark blue jeans and a tan sweater. She put on her earrings, feeling safer with them on and brushed out her hair. She didn’t feel like blow drying it, so she dried it as much as she could with the towel and decided to let it air dry the rest of the way. As she walked out through her room she realized it was 9:00AM, guess maybe she wasn’t going to be an early bird anymore. She looked down at her cat and gave him a few soft pets before walking into the elevator. “I’ll be back later, baby.” She walked out onto the communal floor and was filled with delicious scents. She was sort of surprised to see Steve working in the kitchen. “What are you making?” she asked as she neared him. 

“Oh hey Ellie,” he smiled. “I am making pancakes, bacon, and hash browns,” he announced. 

“It looks amazing,” Ellie smiled. 

“How are you feeling? You seemed sort of out of it at dinner last night,” he softly asked her. 

“Oh um, yeah I’m feeling better. I was just tired. Apparently using my powers was sort of draining,” she shrugged. Intentionally leaving out the part about her nightmare. 

“That’s understandable. You were looking really great out there,” he noted with a smile. She quietly thanked him. “I think the food will be ready soon. Other people will probably come down to join us,” he told her. “If you want you can have some fruit while you wait,” he offered, gesturing to some sliced up berries. 

“Thanks Steve,” she smiled, grabbing a small bowl from the cabinet. She dished out some of the fruit into it and grabbed a fork, then sat down at the table. She was half way through her berries when Logan walked out of the elevator. Maybe she could try and talk to him again. It went pretty well the last time and Remy seemed to think they could be friends. She watched him take a seat on the couch across the room from her. Be brave Ellie, talk to him. Ellie grabbed her bowl and walked over to where he was sitting. “Would you like some fruit,” she softly offered as she took her place next to him. He lifted his head and seemingly studied her, part of her wanted to hide away, but if she was going to become his friend, she couldn’t give up. He eventually grunted a yes and she held the bowl out to him. “So, how are you?” she awkwardly asked. 

“Eh, I’m alright,” he shortly returned, tossing some blueberries into his mouth. This was going to be harder than she thought.

“Did you have fun yesterday, working in Remy’s kitchen?” she attempted with a smile. 

“Did you notice that he didn’t actually have us do anything?” he sighed. “He had us cut stuff up, that’s it. So much for learning how to cook,” he cackled to himself. 

“Well, he did have me supervise the chicken,” Ellie attempted. “Granted it was already seasoned and basically done, but I didn’t burn it. I’d call that pretty good,” she boasted, attempting a more playful tone and he nodded along. “So, how did you and Remy meet?” she asked, hoping to start a conversation. 

He sort of grumbled, clearly debating whether he wanted to share. “We knew each other from before we joined this team,” he provided. She waited for him to continue, but he didn’t. Well that plan failed. Maybe she could ask him about his abilities? The doctor said he had a mutation too. Just as she was about to attempt a new subject he continued his story. “I’d found out about an island where they’d captured and locked up people with mutations for experimentation. Mutants, we called them,” he clarified. That would make her one too. “I didn’t know where it was, but I knew it existed. They had all kinds of people locked up, even kids. I asked around and it turned out Remy had escaped from there. He was the only one to have ever made it out, so I knew I would need him to find it.” He chuckled to himself as he continued, “he annoyed the hell out of me. The first thing he did was try and kill me, so I guess you and I have that in common. He was running a poker table in an underground casino and he was pissed as all hell at the idea of going back there. Once I finally got it through that thick skull of his that my plan was to take down the island and release everyone he finally gave in and decided to help me. The mission took us about a week and we successfully shut the place down and set everyone free. He got slowly more tolerable as time went on,” he scoffed.

"So there are more people out there? Like us? Mutants?" she tentatively asked. 

"Yeah, there's actually a school not too far from here, for kids new to their powers. That's where we brought most of the people we set free. The professor tried to get me to stay, but I had no interest in teaching a bunch of kids. So Remy and I went on our way. We stuck together for a while after that. We did some work for hire, bodyguard type jobs. Eventually Stark found out about me and called me in for that alien attack a few years back. I told them about Remy and gave him an ultimatum: both of us or neither of us,” he continued. “He was more than happy to have his help. We were officially invited to the team after that and I haven’t been able to get rid of him since,” he finished. "What about you, how’d you end up here?” he asked, shifting the conversation.

“Oh, um Tony found footage of me using my powers. I didn’t actually mean to use them, or even knew they were there, but I guess my body went into autopilot. Some dude holding you at gunpoint would do that I guess,” she attempted to joke, shielding herself from the lingering fear from the event.

“Why the hell were you being held at gunpoint?” he genuinely asked. 

“Well you see, I had groceries and was in a back alleyway. The guy wanted my stuff, which frankly was probably worth 25 dollars, but he didn’t know that,” she justified. 

“Damn. I’m guessing he didn’t get your stuff?” he gaped. 

“Nope, my powers blasted him away before he could get the chance. I honestly don’t know who was more surprised by it, we both were certainly thrown off guard,” she smiled prompting a laugh from him. Talking to him was actually a lot easier than she thought. “But anyways, Tony showed up outside my door a week later asking me to join the team, or well, try out for the team I guess. I almost said no actually,” she continued, feeling surprisingly not exposed or vulnerable talking to him. 

“Really? Why? Did you have a Remy to take care of too,” he joked. 

“Actually kind of, but my Remy was a cat. Apparently there’s a strict no pet policy, but I was able to convince Tony to let me bring him. I actually threw the ultimatum at him too. I told him I couldn’t join unless I could bring my cat and that seemed to be enough for him,” she shrugged. 

“You really managed to change Stark's mind that easily?” he asked, genuinely sounding surprised. 

“Eh, what can I say, I’m very hard to say no to,” she bragged. 

“Yeah, I could see that about you,” he scoffed. The elevator dung open again and this time Bucky walked in. They made eye contact for a moment and she gave him a small smile. He returned the expression and walked up to his best friend, so she turned back to Logan. “Seems like you two have gotten close. How’d you manage that? I’m not sure I’ve even seen him talk to anyone other than Steve by choice,” he noted.

“He um, he’s been really great helping me adjust to being here. I had a sort of difficult first day at the tower and he was there for me, even when I didn’t want his help. Plus, after getting hurt my doctor assigned him to watch over me, so we spent the last couple days together,” she explained to him simply. 

“Huh,” he breathed. “You really are something,” he quietly noted.

“Hey, I’ve got you chatting with me too,” she smirked. “What can I say, I am a remarkable and very likable person,” she boasted sarcastically. 

“Yeah, okay bub,” he laughed. 

“Food is ready,” Steve announced across the room. They both got up and walked across to the sitting area. She scanned the room and realized more people had arrived without her noticing. Sam, Natasha, Remy, Wanda, and Tony were all scattered across the kitchen. Tony and Wanda were talking softly together while Steve, Bucky, Sam, and Natasha were all chatting together at the table. 

Remy walked up to her and Logan with a big smile on his face. “Are Cheri and Logan friends? Remy knew making dinner together would make you two the best of friends,” he beamed. Logan groaned at him which just made her laugh. “Come sit, we have breakfast to eat,” he smiled, guiding them to the table. Ellie sat down next to Bucky. “Chere, you and Logan should sit next to each other,” Remy encouraged, setting his cards down at the seat one away from her, leaving the seat open for Logan. Ellie watched everyone walk over to the stove to get their food, but decided she wanted to wait with Bucky for a second, at least until the traffic around the kitchen calmed down.

“So, you and Logan?” Bucky smiled as she sat down.

“Remy thinks we need to be best friends, so I’m trying to win him over,” she happily explained. 

“Yeah well I’m sure you did,” he confidently spoke. “It would be pretty hard not to like you,” he quietly noted, sending heat to her cheeks. “So, how are you feeling?” he softly asked, trying to keep the conversation between them. 

“Better. Thanks again,” she softly added. 

“Of course. I’ll always be here for you if you need me,” he smiled. He looked up from the table and saw people returning to the table, so he got up and looked to her, “come on, let’s go get some food.” 

“So, is Steve a good cook? I’ve never actually seen him cooking before,” Ellie quietly asked her friend with a smile creeping onto her face. 

“Eh, he’s not bad,” he chuckled as they walked up to him. “You should’ve seen the stuff he used to try and cook up when we were going up. In his defense we didn’t have any seasoning outside of salt and pepper, but man was it bland,” he mocked. Steve turned around; he must’ve heard them talking about him. “Do you remember those potatoes you made that one time?” Bucky asked his friend. In return he got a very large glare and Ellie genuinely struggled not to laugh. “He’d been cooking for like 2 hours and the potatoes were still rock hard. I swear I almost lost a tooth in it,” he explained to her. 

“Ha, ha, very funny. I didn’t know the oven was out. I swear I thought they were cooked,” Steve attempted. Bucky gave him a critical look, “I’m serious. As you may recall I took a bite out of them too,” he argued with a massive smile. She adored watching their banter. “Ellie, you can try my food and tell me what you think, then we can decide if it was me or the oven,” he finally gave in. 

“Be careful, you don’t want to mess up that beautiful smile of yours,” Bucky added. God, he can’t talk like that. She promptly felt her face warm. He was just joking around right? He wasn’t really calling her smile beautiful, it was part of the joke, right? She was not going to set herself up to start thinking he could feel like that towards her. Ellie placed a pancake on her plate, two pieces of bacon, and some hash browns. Now that she wasn’t all freaked out about her nightmare, she was hungry. Bucky looked at her plate and laughed, “I remember the last time you made us pancakes. It was raw and burnt at the same time. I don’t even know how you managed to do that,” he further pushed against his friend.

“You know what Buck,” he sighed.

“I’m sure your food will be delicious,” she smiled at Steve. However, she proceeded to lean over to Bucky and not so quietly whisper to him, “do we have a dentist on call?”

“This is just great. I love having you two hang out. Makes me feel really good,” Steve sarcastically remarked. 

“Ah, Steve, are El and Bucky bothering you? Do you need a big strong man to protect you,” Sam continued the mockery. 

“Really? You too?” he groaned. 

“I gotta have my girls back. Isn’t that right El?” Sam added. 

“Uh huh, sure Sammy. I thought you were here to protect Steve,” she quipped. 

Steve stared all of them down, extremely impatiently. “Go eat. Maybe you’ll be nicer once there’s food in you,” he sighed, sending them away. Bucky and Sam put some food onto their plates and Steve gave them a sarcastic smile, “enjoy!” 

“Don’t worry Steve we’re just pulling your leg,” Ellie softly smiled as her two other friends retook their seats. 

“I know,” he smiled wide. “It’s nice actually,” he added. 

“Really?” she asked him, confusion and amusement lining her words. 

“Yeah. Seeing Buck like that. It’s really great,” he softly smiled. The idea was still strange to her that Bucky could’ve been any different than how he is now. The Bucky she knew was waiting for her at the table with a warm smile. She and Steve both rejoined the table. Tony put himself at the head of the table next to Remy. Wanda was on his other side with Natasha next to her, then Steve and Sam. 

Ellie took her seat between Bucky and Logan and smiled at both of them. Their plates were filled to the brink with food, making hers look practically empty. She looked across the table to see Tony and the moment they made eye contact he immediately started talking, “so, Elliephant I hear your powers are pretty cool. Wanda here says you're already proficient in a lot of skills,” he explained with a large smile. 

“Elliephant? Really?" she laughed.

"I'm trying stuff out. So, your powers?"

"Yeah, I guess they came naturally to me,” she suggested. 

“There’s no need to be humble, kid, it sounds like you kicked ass,” he noted excitedly. “I wish I’d seen it. Though I’m sure I’ll have plenty of time,” he added confidently. “So, how was dinner last night? I'm sorry I had to miss it,” he continued.

“It was great. Ellie is a wonderful cook,” Remy answered.

“Thanks Remy, though you did all the heavy lifting,” she smiled at him. 

“Ah cheri is too kind. Remy couldn’t have done it without you,” he countered, but she gave him a flat face, pointing out his clear flawed logic. “Okay fine, Remy wouldn’t have wanted to do it without you,” he revised. 

“Thank you Remy. So Tony, what were you getting up to? Anything cool happening in the lab?” she excitedly asked. 

“Do you want to come by later and check it out? I’m working on something pretty special,” he offered. 

Her smile widened even more at the idea, “really? I’d love that.” 

“We’ll call it a plan. Come by around 2 okay?” he suggested. 

“I’ll be there,” she beamed. Everyone slowly dissolved into conversation and she whispered to Bucky smiling ear to ear, “I get to go to the lab!” 

“I heard,” he smiled back. “But you’re not excited right? You don’t seem excited,” he sarcastically remarked. She gave him a glare and he laughed softly at the expression. “Yeah okay. You get to do your science,” he submitted, matching her smile.

“I didn’t know you were into that stuff,” Logan noted from her other side. “You’re a scientist?” 

“I don’t know if I’d go that far. I haven’t ever actually done anything in a lab,” she clarified.

“You guys should’ve seen her face when I brought her to Bruce's lab. She was like a kid in a candy shop,” Tony laughed. 

“It was my first time in a real lab!” she justified. 

“No it was nice to see you so excited kid. It’ll be nice to have another smart person around,” Tony added. 

“I think the word you’re looking for is nerd,” Sam quipped. 

“Whatever Sammy, you’re just jealous to not be the brains and the brawns,” Ellie returned. 

“So, you think I’m strong,” he smirked. She glared at him, hard, though his gaze was bouncing between her and the two guys by her side. “What? You’ve got him on your side too now?” he questioned impatiently, nudging his head towards Logan. Ellie followed his gaze and saw a very grumpy looking Logan, clearly unamused by Sam’s comment. She looked at Bucky and he had a much harsher expression, though she was growing to expect that, at least where Sam was involved.

“Um, Steve, this food is really good,” Ellie noted, changing the subject. “I guess I won't be needing a dentist after all,” she joked. 

“Dentist?” Natasha interjected, pausing the conversation she’d been having with Wanda.

“Don’t ask,” Steve groaned. “See Bucky, it was the oven.” 

“Yeah, yeah,” Bucky muttered. 

“Yeah, thank you for cooking for us Steve. It was nice to have the morning off,” Wanda smiled. 

“Oui, it’s very good,” Remy added. 

Ellie went back to her room after the meal to get dressed for training. She was one of the last people to leave, since she was having an amazing chat with Tony about different projects they’d done in his lab. Her plan was to work out till 1, grab something to eat, shower and go to the lab. She waltzed onto her floor, giving Paw soft pets as she did. She looked at the sweatshirt Bucky had given her. It was still laying on the floor of her bathroom from when she took her shower earlier. She picked it up and studied it. It was a tan Nike hoodie. The fabric was exceptionally soft and she brought it to her face for a moment. It was a weird thing to do but no one else was there. The sweatshirt smelled like him. She’d give it back to him eventually, but for now she just liked having it. She carried it and all of the dirty clothes into her closet. She laid the hoodie down on one of her shelves and tossed the rest into her hamper. She put on her last clean pair of leggings and tank top. She paused to look in the mirror, checking how visible her marks from the night before were. It seemed like she was almost entirely healed, they were just light pink splotches now. She didn't have any more long sleeved workout tops, so she would have to make it work. If anyone asked she could probably say it was from the window and it just wasn’t finished healing. She decided she was content with the look and slid on her tennis shoes and tied her now dried hair into a ponytail. 

She walked into the elevator, giving Paw his petting fee before she left, “be good baby. I’ll see you later!” She rode the elevator down to the training facility. It would be her first time working out on her own, so she wasn’t really sure she knew what she was going to do, but she’d figure it out when she got there. She arrived onto the training floor and noticed a few familiar faces. Who she assumed to be Pietro, due to their speed, was running on a treadmill. He was just a blur as he ran, she couldn’t even make out a silhouette. Natasha was sparring with Steve in one of the rooms on the first floor. Bucky was running on one of the normal treadmills, so she decided to join him. She stepped onto the machine next to him and stared at all the settings. “You know how to work this thing?” she asked him with a tinge of laughter. 

Bucky turned to face her and a bright smile coated his face. “Oh hey,” he softly spoke, as if he hadn’t been running at all. “The green button turns it on. The knob on the left is speed and the one on the right is incline. I honestly have no idea what anything else on there does,” he noted with a wide smile. She started the machine and increased the speed until she felt like it was actually pushing her. “Are you going 30 miles per hour?” he asked with clear amusement. “I thought you had enhanced abilities, not speed,” he laughed lightly. 

“I have many skills,” she boasted as she ran. “Don’t worry though, that enhanced strength of yours is all you. I didn’t get any of that,” she added, thinking back to her initial training session. 

“Oh good, I was worried I had competition,” he sarcastically remarked. 

“Oh you do, don’t you worry,” she winked back. They both ran for the next 25 minutes until she felt satisfied with the warm up. “I think I’m gonna try to do some strength training before I use my powers. Any tips? I haven’t actually worked out like this before,” she admitted. 

“We can train together if you’d like,” he offered. 

“Really? That sounds great,” she smiled as they walked over to the wide array of exercise machines.

“I was going to do an upper body workout, does that sound okay?” he suggested and Ellie nodded. His eyes trailed down to her exposed arms and he frowned slightly. “Are they feeling better?” he asked, gently taking her arms in his as he studied the damage. 

“Yeah, I can’t really feel it anymore. My accelerated healing is pretty nice,” she smiled, looking at her arms as she spoke. 

“You’ll make sure not to push it though, right? I don’t want you getting hurt again,” he cautioned. 

“I’ll be fine Bucky, don’t worry,” she dismissed. “It’s not like last time, I promise,” she quietly added. She knew that’s what he was worried about. He looked so afraid before when he found her bleeding, but she was significantly further along in the healing process this time, so there was a very minimal chance of them breaking open again. They approached a machine with a hanging bar that she had no idea what to do with. “Now come on, show me what to do, I’m like a fish outta water here,” she joked, shifting the conversation. 

“Okay, okay,” he laughed, seemingly eased from the tension of the situation. “This is a lat pull machine. You’ll grab the bar and sit there,” he explained, gesturing to the bench below the bar. She reached up to the bar and clamped her hands around it. “Here, you wanna grab it near the ends,” he continued. He hovered his hands over hers and directed them towards the edges of the bar. She could feel chills run through her as she felt his touch against her. “There you go, you’ve got it,” he softly told her once she was in position. She sat down onto the bench and held the bar above her head. “Okay, I want you to try and engage your core and keep your upper body as stationary as possible. Now try and bring your shoulder blades together as you pull it down, and go until your elbows can’t go down without moving backwards, then slowly bring it back up,” he directed. Ellie nodded to him and started to slowly bring down the bar. “Good job,” he smiled. “You should try and do 12 then you can take a break.” 

“Thank you Bucky," she warmly returned as she worked. He moved over to another machine near her doing something really similar but with a rope and standing. She looked over at him as she did her pull downs, admiring the way his arms flexed as he trained. His gaze shifted to her and she immediately turned ahead to face the machine, hoping he hadn’t noticed her completely checking him out. She finished doing the reps and turned to face him again. “I did twelve,” she smiled. 

“Great, you can do this next,” he returned as he finished his set. “This is a tricep extension. It’s really similar to the lat pulldown. This time you’ll stand and lower the rope by extending your arms. You want to make sure not to move your shoulders or upper arms. The only movement should be the extension of your elbows. Here, give it a try,” he encouraged. She did the motions he told her and started the exercise. She could definitely feel the strain on her muscles. She hadn’t even tried working out in years, so they were seriously out of practice. 

He ended up guiding her through bicep curls, overhead presses, bent over rows, and bench presses, then did 3 sets of each. “How often do you do this? My arms feel like mush,” she complained to him as they sat on a bench after finishing their exercises. 

He chuckled at her dramatics, “I rotate between arms, legs, and core, with a cardio break in between the three.”

“Ugh that sounds like a lot of work,” she groaned. 

“Eh, it gets easier after a while,” he shrugged. “I actually don’t really get sore unless I don’t work out now,” he noted. 

“You know that sounds like withdrawal,” she informed him, with a jokingly cunning tone. 

 “Yeah, yeah,” he scoffed. 

“Do you know what time it is? I think I’m gonna try and use my powers for a bit,” she asked. 

“Um,” he started and scanned the room. She followed his gaze to a massive clock she’d somehow missed before. “It’s 12:15,” he informed her. “Here I thought you were all exhausted from our workout, but you’re not even done yet,” he sighed. 

“Now I get to do the fun stuff,” she emphasized. 

“What? Are you calling me not fun,” he asked, feigning a hurt expression. 

“Well if the barbell fits,” she smirked back at him. He just rolled his eyes at her, which widened her smile. “Thanks again,” she beamed, lightly placing her hand on his shoulder as she did. 

“It was my pleasure. Have fun playing with your powers,” he smiled back to her. 

“Oh I will,” she declared, prompting a laugh from him. 

She spent the next forty five minutes training in a simulation chamber. She ran through a bunch of battle scenarios, so she could work on fighting with her powers. By the end of it she was completely wiped and practically dragged herself out of the room. She groaned with each step, fatigued by her strength and power training. She wobbled into the elevator and back down up to her floor. She was meant to meet Tony in an hour, so she went straight to her bathroom, so she could shower. She tied up her hair, since she’d washed it that morning and stepped into the water. She decided to take a quick shower, so she could try and squeeze in a power nap. “J.A.R.V.I.S., set an alarm for 1:45 please,” she requested as she crawled into her bed. Paw jumped up and laid with her. Her bed smelled like Bucky, which was not doing good things for her unwanted feelings. She fell asleep almost instantly, consumed by the welcoming scent, warm fabric and Paws purrs. 

The sounds of her alarm woke her up from her nap and she felt a lot better than she expected. It seemed like sleep was the perfect medicine for her powers-induced fatigue. She threw on a pair of jeans and an AC/DC tee shirt, one of her favorite bands. After putting on her converse she made her way to her elevator. She rode up to the communal floor to make herself a quick sandwich. She ate it as fast as she could, then got back in the elevator to meet him. Though the moment she entered it she realized she completely forgot what floor the lab was on. “Um J.A.R.V.I.S., what floor is Tony’s lab?” 

“Mr. Stark's lab is on the 42nd floor. Would you like to go there?” the A.I. replied. 

“Yes please, thank you,” she requested. Ellie shifted on her feet as the elevator rode down. She walked up to the soon to open door and excitedly awaited her visit. Her jaw literally dropped when she looked at the lab. There were robots working on different things and a wall full of his iron man suits. She continued to look around and found holographic screens displaying what looked like a blueprint for another suit. “Tony?” she called out to the seemingly empty room. “It’s Ellie. You said I could come by the lab,” she continued. 

She suddenly heard footsteps and followed them to a staircase. Tony walked down the stairs and smiled when they made eye contact, “hey kid! It’s good to see you,” he greeted. He jumped the last couple steps and opened his arms, presenting the room, “so, what do you think?” he asked. 

“It’s amazing,” she gaped. 

“You think? I didn’t know if you’d like it since it’s not Biology,” he noted.

“I’ve actually always really liked robotics. I remember one time I made a little robot guy out of a bunch of old car parts that followed me around. I nicknamed it Billy. It drove our cats crazy,” she laughed. 

“You just keep getting better and better, you know that,” he boasted. “Speaking of, this shirt, you weren’t wearing it earlier, are you a fan?” he asked, gesturing to her top.  

“Yeah, I love them. My dad actually got me into it. He introduced me to all the greats,” she smiled, focusing just on the happiness of the idea. 

“What prompted the change?” he asked.

“Oh I went to the training facility before this. Bucky helped me do an arm workout, which I must say, I feel like my arms are just there for show. If you asked me to try and lift something more than 10 pounds, I honestly think I’d drop it,” she laughed.

“You two seem to have hit it off,” he added. 

“Yeah, he hung out with me when I was on bedrest. He’s actually really good company,” she shrugged. 

Tony hummed as he nodded. “It seems like you’re fitting in nicely. You seemed to get along with everyone earlier,” he continued. He seemed to just want to see how she was doing. It was nice having him check in on her. She hadn’t had anyone really care about her wellbeing like that since her parents died. She had Bucky, but it wasn’t the same. The type of concern and care wasn’t the same. Tony was looking out for her from a distance, letting her experience everything for herself, but she could tell he’d be there for her if she needed it. “What is it?” he asked. Oh, she must’ve been lost in thought for longer than she realized. 

“Oh sorry,” she frowned as she came back to reality. “I guess you checking in on me and how I'm doing reminded me of my parents. I haven't really had anyone do that since they passed away. It's nice. So um, thanks,” she awkwardly spoke. She wasn’t good at this, being honest about how she was feeling. She couldn’t help but feel like opening up to him would only push him away. That she’d come on too strong. It had happened before. 

“Of course kid,” he smiled warmly, easing some of her stress. “So, do you want to see what we’ve been working on?” he offered. 

“Yes!” she excitedly returned. He started to go deeper into the lab and she eagerly followed him. He walked up to a large clear case with particles flying around in it. “Is this nanotech?” she gaped. It was beautiful as it seemingly swam around in the container, going in and out of view as it shifted its form. 

“Good eye,” he approved. He placed his hand on the glass as he continued, “I’m working on building a suit out of them, but I’m having a hard time getting the automation to work. Ideally I can activate the suit just by thinking about it,” he explained. 

Ellie walked up to the technology and watched it flow as she thought, “have you considered creating a genetic connection to them? Connect them to your neural axis? If you inject local honing devices along your nerves, you can activate them neurologically. You could also install a chip directly to your brain so you have better control, though that would be more invasive,” she thought aloud. 

“Did you just come up with that?” he asked with obvious amazement. 

“Oh um, yeah, I guess so,” she awkwardly returned. 

“What do you say Ell's Bells? You wanna hang out in the lab with me for a while and help me out with your impressive idea?” he offered. 

“Really?” she confirmed, anxious to work in a lab for the first time. “Okay Tony-N-T, I would love that,” she smirked and Tony's smile only grew.

“Good,” he declared, placing a soft hand on her shoulder. “Now, tell me more about this plan of yours. What are we gonna need?” he asked. They spent the next hour or so going back and forth on ideas and strategies and running simulations through his AI. By the end they had a specific blueprint and layout for their design and they collected all of the parts they would need. Tony had a shockingly well stocked lab. “Alright kid, you got steady hands?” he asked before they started working. Ellie just held them up, completely still as an answer, “well okay then. Let’s get working on these chips,” he smiled. “J.A.R.V.I.S, give us some tunes,” he requested. Suddenly the sounds of AC/DC’s "Thunderstruck" filled the room and she instantly started singing along as she worked. “Oh so she is a real fan,” Tony quipped. 

“Hey! You thought I would lie about liking AC/DC!” she complained through a smile. 

“Half the people your age don’t even know who they are,” he justified.

“I am not half the people my age,” she countered. 

“No, no you are not,” he laughed to himself. 

They continued to work for another few hours when Ellie realized something. “Tony, have we been putting in safe guards on the chips?” she asked him. “With the way we’ve been setting them up they'll relay the neural signals to the tech, but we need to make sure they can only function one way. We don’t want the nanotech to start to affect you. Especially the one in your brain,” she cautioned. 

“Well damn,” he breathed. “We have not been putting in anything to protect me from becoming a walking nanobot. Thanks, that could’ve been really bad,” he noted. “That reminds me, how do you know so much about this? You’re doing some fairly complex robotics work.”

“I took a couple engineering classes in college, but mostly it just makes sense to me. That’s always been something about me I guess. I’ve always been good at solving things, even when they’re new to me,” she rapidly explained, not really considering her words. “Sorry, that sounded snobby,” she quieted. 

“Never apologize for your intelligence,” Tony countered, only sincerity in his tone. She nodded at him lightly, trying to accept the words. They worked until it was dark out and she felt her stomach yelling at her. They managed to finish building the brain chip and a couple of the others. “We should get dinner. You did great work today, we can pick this up tomorrow if you’d like,” he offered. “Do you want to go out to eat? How does Shawarma sound, my treat,” he suggested. 

“Sure, that sounds great,” she replied. “Thank you Tony.” 

“It’s my pleasure, kid. Plus, it’ll give me a chance to get to know you better. If you’re gonna be sticking around I’m gonna have to know more than your birthday and that you like AC/DC,” he smiled. Sticking around? Tony got out his phone and started calling someone, “hey Elliot. Can we get a ride to The Shawarma Palace?” Oh! She’d get to see Elliot again! He was super sweet the last time she saw him. “Our ride will be here in 5 minutes. Do you need anything before we go?” She shook her head at him. “Great, let’s head down then. We found this place after the attack on New York. Were you here then?” he asked. 

“Yeah, though nothing reached me in Brooklyn. I actually didn’t hear about it till after. I was reading a particularly interesting paper and barely looked up from it, for what was probably the whole fight,” she shrugged with a smile. 

“I thought they sent out evacuation alerts to everyone's devices?” he asked as they walked into the elevator.

“I didn’t have anything to be notified on. I reviewed everything through snail mail and I couldn’t afford anything besides my rent and food, I don’t even have a cellphone. My apartment had an old TV in it, but it was off at the time,” she admitted, sort of embarrassed by the reality of the situation. Tony just nodded with her, with a slight furrow in his brows. “It’s funny actually, I have a very limited knowledge base about anyone on the team,” she added. “Coming into this I think I only knew who you, Natasha, Rhodey, Steve, Wanda and Bruce were, but I didn’t actually know any details, just names and faces. I had some vague awareness of some other people, but that was really it,” she noted as they walked out into the familiar garage. 

“Huh, you know you might’ve been the only person in New York who doesn’t know all about us,” he laughed. “Have you done any inquiry since getting here?”

“No, it feels wrong to. I feel like everyone should have the right to share when they’re ready. It’s like I said, I don’t have the specifics on who or what, but I know a lot of people have had really difficult pasts. I see no reason to search for that information. If they want to talk about it, they will,” she explained. 

“You know, you’ve got serious heart, kid,” Tony warmly told her. 

“Eh, I’m just doing what anyone else would do,” she brushed him off. 

“You know, I really wish that were true, but it’s not, you’re something special. Most people would’ve tried to find out as much as they could’ve about everyone on the team. I know I would’ve,” he reinforced, holding their eye contact. Ellie nodded lightly at him, only sort of believing him. “Oh here’s our ride,” he gestured to the black SUV pulling up to them. The car stopped and Elliot stepped out and opened the doors for them. “Thank you Elliot,” Tony smiled. “This is Ellie, you may remember her, you drove her earlier this week,” he explained. 

“Yes, how are you? How is Paw doing?” he asked with a bright smile. 

“We’re both doing really well. Paw is loving all the new space he has. He’s also made some new friends, I have too,” she added with a smile, looking at Tony.  

“I am so glad. So, shall we get going?” he asked. 

“Let’s shall,” Ellie returned as she took her seat in the car. 

Elliot stopped in front of the restaurant and they made their way inside. “Hey Jimmy, how ya doing?” Tony asked as they walked in. Ellie looked around and saw a small, seemingly family owned restaurant, with a large mural of the team over one of the walls. There were other pictures of the owner with local celebrities, their first dollar earned, and what seemed to be an article about team eating after the attack on the city. She smiled as she looked around, it was a very warm and welcoming place. She could see why Tony liked it. 

“Ah, it’s the Iron Man! What can I get for you today? Your regular?” the man she presumed to be Jimmy replied with a huge smile. 

“I told you, you can just call me Tony,” he countered. Jimmy just shrugged at him with an unchanging smile. “Yes I’ll take the regular,” he conceded. He turned around to gesture at her, “I want you to meet my friend, Ellie. She’s gonna order as much as she wants,” he looked directly at her. “And you can put us both on my bill,” he said back to Jimmy. “All you, kid.”

“Um,” she started looking at the menu. “Can I please get a chicken shawarma sandwich with a side of fries and a coke?” she ordered, looking to Tony to check that it was okay. 

“Great choice,” he simply returned, then walked up to the counter to check them out. “Come on, let’s go sit,” he smiled. They sat down at a table in front of the mural. “So tell me. How has your first week been? I want details, fill me in,” he requested. She obviously wouldn’t be telling him she was having nightmares, but she could tell him other things.

“Um, let’s see. Paw is a big fan of the new space. I am too. He can actually run around now and play with his toys without being crammed in my apartment. I think I’m getting good at using J.A.R.V.I.S., who, by the way, is very convenient. Remy scared the absolute hell out of me when I first met him. He forgot I was coming and thought I broke into the tower. We made up really quickly though and he made us Po Boys. Um, my initial training session went surprisingly well. I’m not sure if you saw my results, but apparently I am super fast. Not quite as fast as the 1940s brothers, but way faster than I should be. You know how my initial powers training session went, so that sort of took away a couple days, which is unfortunate, but let me tell you, my powers feel amazing,” she told him, carefully dancing the powers between her fingers. “But I was on bedrest for a while, so I couldn’t try them out. Though that time wasn’t all bad. After I got released it seemed like everyone set up a movie night. There was popcorn and drinks, it was really sweet. We watched some goofy classic movies like Monty Python and Airplane. Bucky stuck with me for the rest of my bedrest. Paw seems to like him better than me, which is really annoying. He was actually surprisingly great. He brought me a bunch of vitamin waters so I would stay hydrated and got my meds from my doctor. He also brought Battleship and we played together. After I totally destroyed him we watched Star Wars. They’re my favorite and he hadn’t ever seen them. Wanda and Remy brought food up to my floor, so I didn’t need to go anywhere,” she explained. “Um, then the next day he helped me unpack my stuff, so I’m officially moved in now which is nice. We went to the common floor for food and Wanda was cooking. Sam, Steve and Natasha were also all there. I managed to get everyone to watch Jurassic Park, because, well it’s amazing. 

“That brings us to yesterday, I went to my doctor as soon as I got off my bed rest and she gave me permission to resume regular activity. I actually went to the appointment already dressed in my training gear, so I could try out my powers as soon as possible if she said I was good to go. Wanda and I worked with my powers for a couple hours or so and it felt so natural. I don’t even know how to explain it, but it was like my mind, body, and powers were working as one. I barely even had to think about what I wanted to do for it to happen. I kind of wish I could use my powers all the time,” she added, dancing it around her fingers again. “Although it apparently made me really really sleepy, cause I practically fell asleep when we were making dinner. Remy decided I didn’t know how to cook, I think it was because I was just going to make pork and pasta for dinner the night we met, so he was going to teach me. He also managed to rope Logan into it, who is surprisingly good company once you get him talking. Remy had us barely help him make fajitas, but it was nice either way. Um, so yeah, I guess that’s everything. Sorry I guess that was a lot,” she realized. 

“No it’s good, I’m glad you’ve been having a good time here so far. When I first met you I was honestly a little worried you might hide out on your floor and not meet anyone. I did not, however, expect you to befriend the two grumpiest Avengers, but I guess you’ve got that special charm of yours,” he nodded. 

“I don’t know if I’ve quite won over Logan yet. Though I’ll get there,” she countered. She looked up as Jimmy arrived with their food and she was certainly hungry. “Thank you,” she smiled, before diving into her meal. It tasted amazing, she could see why Tony liked it so much, “oh my god this is so good.” 

“I know right. Now imagine how good it would be after fighting an alien army,” he chuckled. 

“I’ll have to remember that for the next time,” she laughed back. They spent the next half hour or so eating and chatting about their plans for the nano technology. They realized that with the brain chip he could form anything they wanted with the tech, not just a predesigned suit. The only limitation would be his imagination. They could also apply it to other people’s suits. Rhodey could definitely have one, Natasha could use it to create weapons, and Clint could probably even use it to have near unlimited arrows. There was almost definitely a use for everyone, including herself. She figured she could use it as a backup for her powers, so she’d have protection in case something happened to her. She also questioned the medical applications, including accelerated healing, she was pretty sure she’d read a paper on that once. It felt amazing to talk about science with someone. She hardly realized any time had passed. 

“What else do you have in that brain of yours?” Tony asked with a light sigh. “I thought I was smart,” he scoffed. “You just came up with like 10 great ideas over shawarma,” he smiled in amazement. “I seriously can’t believe you’re here for having enhanced abilities, not an advanced mind. I got seriously lucky with your superthinking being an add on to your resume,” he boasted. “So what do you say? Head back to the tower? You should get a good night's sleep, we’ve got a big day in the lab tomorrow,” he asked and she nodded, so he called for Elliot again.

Once they returned to the tower they rode up the elevator together and she got off on her floor. “Thanks again Tony,” she smiled as she stepped into her living room.

"Of course Elf on the Shelf," he winked as the doors closed in front of him.

She wasn’t exactly sure where he was going, but she assumed it was his apartment. He hadn’t told her what floor he was on, so maybe he lived on a higher level than her. She made her way into her closet to change into her pajamas. She decided on a tank top and shorts combo and walked over to her bed. 

She suddenly realized that she would have to go to sleep and remembered what had happened the last time. She didn’t want to have another nightmare. Ellie sat up in her bed and turned on The Office to distract herself. She knew it wasn’t smart to stay up, especially when she was supposed to help Tony the next day, but she had to be asleep to have a nightmare. She decided she could try and be productive with her time and instead tried to use her powers to summon a copy of the paper she’d talked to Tony about. She worked on reading the paper for like an episode and a half, so however much time that equals to, before J.A.R.V.I.S. called for her attention, “Ms. Clark, Mr. Barnes is requesting access onto your floor.” She hated to admit it, but she was really relieved. She told the AI to let him in and she waited for him to arrive. Pretty soon she heard the elevator door open, so she sat up further in her bed and paused her show. 

Bucky knocked softly on her door, then carefully opened it. “Hey, how are you doing?” he asked as he scanned the room. She shrugged at him. “I wanted to check on you, I didn’t want you to be alone,” he softly added. 

“Oh,” she breathed. Despite it being exactly what she needed and wanted in the moment, it still felt strange having him be there for her without even needing to ask. “Thanks.” 

“Of course,” he smiled. “So what’re you reading?” he asked as he walked up next to her bed. 

“Oh, it’s a paper about the healing properties of nanotechnology. I’m hoping to try and use the principles from it in the lab with Tony,” she told him. 

“How was the lab today? You seemed excited to go,” he continued. 

“It was great. His tech is amazing. I’m going back tomorrow so we can keep working,” she explained, a bright smile lining her face. “We went-” she paused to yawn, her fatigue kicking in. “-to a shawarma place afterwards. It was really yummy,” she added. 

“That’s great. I’m glad you had such a wonderful time,” he returned, mirroring her smile. He turned to look out her dark window. She realized it was already 10:40pm and she wanted to wake up early to work out the next day. “You should go to bed, you need the rest,” he suggested. “I can stay here if it’ll make you feel better?” he carefully offered. 

“Yeah?” she hesitantly asked, hating having to have him there just to sleep. 

“Of course. I have a promise to keep,” he winked. So he meant it when he said he wouldn’t leave her. Ellie put her paper aside and laid down in her bed. Paw jumped up beside her, take that Bucky, and purred against her chest. She watched as Bucky took a seat down on her sofa and grabbed his book that was still there. “J.A.R.V.I.S., turn off the lights please,” he requested and the room dimmed. He pulled out the flashlight from his phone so he could continue reading his book. “Is this too bright?” he asked and she hummed a no. “Sleep well Ellie.” 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

Ellie arrived at Tony’s lab at around noon. Bucky had guided her through his leg workout this time and she felt like a walking puddle. Luckily he was wearing loose sweatpants, so she was saved from the visual of his perfect body doing squats, that would’ve been hard to get out of her mind. She made herself a PB&J after her shower, then headed down to the lab. “Tony!” she called out into the lab. She genuinely had no idea where he was hiding, the lab seemed pretty wide open. Just like last time she heard his footsteps coming from the stairs and he appeared from wherever he’d disappeared into. Though this time Bruce was walking down with him. “Hey Bruce,” she smiled.

“Hey kid, I hear you’re something of a supergenius,” Bruce smiled. 

“Eh, I don’t know if I’d go that far. I just had a few good ideas,” she shrugged. 

“What did I tell you? She’s way too humble for her own good,” Tony quipped, causing her face to warm in embarrassment. “Bruce is here to help us with the implantation of the brain chip,” Tony explained. Ellie nodded to him. “He isn’t technically an MD, but he has experience doing medical operations. Plus, you’re going to help him with those steady hands of yours,” Tony smirked. He wanted her to help operate on him? She’d never done anything like that before. “Hey, don’t worry, you’re gonna do great,” he supported, with only a little humor in his tone. 

“Okay,” she hesitantly agreed. “So, should we do some more tests first before we do this?” she cautioned, really not wanting to be the reason for something going terribly wrong. 

“Already did them. Your work was flawless,” Tony answered. “Plus, I haven’t eaten since last night, so let’s get to it,” he less patiently requested. 

“We have everything set up upstairs,” Bruce explained as he turned to walk towards the stairs. “We’re gonna give him a general anesthetic. Like you’d discussed, we’re going to integrate it into his prefrontal cortex. The plan is to do an endoscopic endonasal approach, which means we’re going to insert a tube through his nose and create a small incision through his skull to access his brain tissue. From there we will apply the chip and place a small synthetic graft to reinstate the blood brain barrier. With the material we’re using it should accelerate the healing time for the procedure, allowing Tony to be back to 100% before the end of the week. Does that all make sense?” Bruce asked as they approached a makeshift operating table. 

“Um, yeah it does,” she replied, still processing the fact that she was about to operate on Tony Stark's brain. 

“I trust you kid,” Tony smiled as he laid down on the table. “Alright Bruce, knock me out,” he smirked. She followed Bruce to a sink to wash his hands and did the same. He put on a gown and pulled his gloves over it, leaving no exposed skin. He then put on a mask and walked up to Tony and prepped his arm. Ellie came out after him, dressed in the same gear a couple minutes later, not nearly as coordinated with the surgical attire as him. She walked up to them and listened to Tony slowly count down, “4, 3, 2-” His voice trailed off as he fell asleep. Ellie glanced at the monitors, watching his heart rate stabilize around 63 bpm. 

“Alright he’s out. I wish we could have this room a bit cleaner. It’s a very low risk procedure, but the more sterile the better,” Bruce thought aloud. Ellie called on her powers, she’d gotten really good with her reality manipulation work in her training, maybe she could change the room to make it more hygienic. She transformed the space into a full operating room, using her powers to alter the air in the room and sterilized it. She sanitized every surface, then nodded at her good work. “Well, I guess that solves that problem. Thanks,” he awkwardly spoke. 

“No problem. So, where do we start?” she asked.

Bruce walked up to the endoscopic machine and slowly guided the tube up Tony’s nose. “Once this is in place we can start the procedure,” he explained as he continued to adjust it. “Okay, I’m going to insert the endoscope through the tube,” he continued as a video of the inside of Tony’s head casted onto the screen near them. “I’m going to have you hold this steady, okay?” he asked and Ellie took his spot, holding the camera in place. “Thank you. Next, I’m going to go in and cut through his skull to access his brain,” he continued as another metal tool came into view with what looked like pliers at the end. He sliced a small circle into the tissue, then removed it. “Alright. Now, onto the fun part,” he smiled, reaching for another scope with the chip attached to the end. “I’m going to have you navigate deeper with me, so I can see what I’m doing,” he directed. He wanted her to move the scope? “You can just hold it steady and do slow movements,” he informed. She slowly moved the camera deeper, making small intentional adjustments to get through the hole Bruce had created. “Great job. Placing the chip now,” he announced. Ellie watched as the chip easily integrated itself into the tissue, extending the artificial dendrites, to receive signals from neighboring neurons. “Integration complete. Let’s bring the scopes back. You can stop where you were before,” he guided and they moved back out of the hole together. “You’re doing really well. Just one last step and we’re done,” he encouraged. “I’m going to place the artificial barrier now,” he told her as he guided the last scope in. He laid it over the opening and Ellie watched in awe as it quickly blended into the tissue, as if it had always been there. “All done. I am going to remove my scope, then you can remove yours,” he told her. She slowly removed hers after him and watched as he took out the guiding tube, leaving Tony seemingly untouched. 

Ellie let out a deep exhale, relieved that they finished and it was successful. “Well then. I guess I can check brain surgery off my bucket list,” she laughed. “Do you want me to keep the room like this or should I put it back?” she asked, looking around. 

“You can put it back. I’ve got him on IV antibiotics and he doesn’t have any exposed tissue anymore,” Bruce told her. She used her powers to revert the room to how it was, removing her surgical gear in the process. “So, you’re getting pretty good with those, huh?” he noted as he took in the new room.

“Yeah, my powers have been coming really naturally to me. I’ve been training with them for the last three days and I already feel like I’ve had them for a lifetime,” she explained. 

“That’s great. I’m glad to see you doing so well here,” he smiled. “Well, Tony’s gonna be out for a while longer. I’m gonna keep him under for a few more hours to help facilitate recovery. You can get back to your day if you want. I'll have J.A.R.V.I.S. get you when he wakes up,” he offered. 

“Um, yeah, sure. Thanks Bruce,” she noted, still processing what had just happened. She walked over to the elevator on that floor and looked over at Tony on the bed again one last time before stepping inside. Please work. She pressed onto the communal floor, hoping someone would be there she could talk to while she waited for him to wake up. She smiled wide when she saw Bucky sitting on the couch, it seemed like he may have been the only one down there. He was watching something on the TV, it looked familiar, but she couldn’t quite place it. “Hey, whatcha watching?” she asked as she sat down on the couch next to him. 

“The Three Stooges, I watched it with Becca growing up. I missed a few episodes in the last 70 years,” he explained with a faint chuckle as he paused the show. “So, how are you? How was the lab?” Ellie groaned as she leaned her head back into the couch. Letting her stress just be for a moment. “That good huh?” he laughed. 

“More unexpected. Yesterday I was working with Tony on his nanotech and I came up with a way to let him control it using a chip in his brain. What I didn’t expect was to come to the lab today and help Bruce place that chip. So apparently I can say I’ve assisted in brain surgery now,” she sighed. The story would probably be much cooler later, but for now she was just wiped. “We’re waiting for him to wake up now,” she noted. 

Bucky sat up in his seat so he could really look at her. “Wait a minute. Are you telling me that while I was sitting here watching TV, you were literally doing brain surgery?” he gaped. “Have you ever done that before?” he asked, jaw still laying open. 

“Nope. Which is why I am really hoping it works. All of this was my idea. The design for the chip, the location for the placement, the mechanisms to keep it as a one way relay. Bruce and Tony checked my work, but if it goes wrong it’s on me,” she sighed, crashing against the couch again, staring at the ceiling. “I really need him to wake up,” she whispered unevenly. 

“He will,” Bucky confidently told her, lightly taking her hand, sending tingles down her spine. “Apparently you’re beyond smart. Plus, Bruce wouldn’t have done it if he didn’t know it was safe. How can I help you feel better? Do you want to watch something? Play a game maybe? We can go to your floor so you have Paw,” he offered. 

“Um, we can watch your show. It’s a comedy right? It could be nice to watch something funny,” she requested. 

“Yeah,” he returned. “C’mon let’s go to your floor to watch. Paw probably misses me, I mean you, like crazy,” he joked, prompting a small smile over her face. They walked together into the elevator and rode to her floor. She curled up in a ball in her bed the moment she got there, wrapping her arms around her legs with her chin on her knees as he turned back on the show. Was this how surgeons felt? It was almost definitely worse because it was Tony and not just some random patient. She had the stress of hoping he would be okay for him and for herself and it was a lot. She felt Bucky’s arm wrap around her and she de-curled herself slightly to look at him. He was sitting next to her in the bed, like he had when they watched Star Wars. “It’s going to be okay,” he softly spoke, holding their eye contact. She let herself relax into his hold and leaned against him, his perfect scent filling her senses again. He felt so perfect against her. Part of her wished it was more uncomfortable, so she wouldn’t want to be held by him, but of course, her body fit perfectly against his. She laid against him as they watched the show, her heart skipping beats every time he laughed. She pushed away the blush that attempted to coat her face as he gently stroked her arm. He made her feel so incredibly safe and cared for. It made her sad to know he wouldn't ever see her the way she saw him, why would he? Maybe this could be enough for her. Having his support could be enough. 

“Hey Bucky,” she quietly started.

“Yeah,” he softly returned. 

“What made me any different?” she asked him carefully. 

“What do you mean?” he asked, meeting her eyes.

“Before, when I asked you why you were different around me and you said it was easier with me. I just don’t understand why. I’m not any different from anyone else,” she clarified. She wasn’t sure why she was asking, maybe it was because of how perfect it felt with him, and she thought maybe, just maybe he might like her too.

“When you met me, you didn’t treat me like my past mattered. I was just a person. I could start fresh with you. There wasn’t any baggage,” he explained. 

“Oh,” she breathed. That made sense. It wasn’t because of her. He didn’t treat her differently because he had feelings for her. It was just because she was new and didn’t know anything about him. She was just a chance to restart. Not a person to care for, hold close, want. Just an opportunity. She could feel a silent tear fall down her face at the perceived rejection. She wiped it away with her hand, then pretended to scratch her face, trying to hide it. 

She must’ve fallen asleep again, she was getting into quite the habit of doing that when she and Bucky watched things. She woke to him lightly tapping her arm to get her attention. “Ellie?” he softly spoke. She opened her eyes to look at him, blinking a few times to put him in focus. “Tony’s up and asking to see you,” he told her and she was suddenly wide awake. 

“Really?” she asked eagerly, getting out of bed. “I’ve gotta go check on him,” she quickly told him. 

“I know,” he returned. “And Ellie,” he started, prompting her to turn and face him. “It’s all going to be okay,” he assured her. 

“Thank you Bucky,” she softly smiled before excitedly going to the elevator. She pressed onto Tony’s lab's floor and impatiently waited for the elevator to get there. She ran out once it stopped to try and find him. “Tony? Bruce?” she called out. 

“Up here,” Bruce replied. 

She ran up the stairs going to the operating table set up, assuming he’d be there. She found Tony standing with Bruce, chatting quietly. “Tony, thank god you’re okay,” she sighed and pulled him into a hug. She was all too aware of the risks of anesthesia and surgery in general and she couldn't lose him. She couldn't lose the first person who made her feel even remotely as cared for as she did with parents. Dammit, she was attached. She felt Tony awkwardly return the hug, so she pulled back, realizing how strong she must’ve come on. “Sorry,” she corrected herself. 

“No Ellie Bellie, I’m glad to see you too,” he smiled, he must be okay, if he was still coming up with nicknames. “Bruce says you did a great job, even used your powers to help,” he boasted. 

“Yeah, I’ll be honest, I probably should not have let you use the scope, but you nailed it,” Bruce added, she widened her eyes in concern. “You worked those things like a pro. You could’ve had me convinced you’d been doing that for years.”

“Geez, is there anything you can’t do?” Tony gawked. 

“Play an instrument?” she provided. “Tried a few, sucked at all of them. I even pretended to play the cello at our 8th grade concert, didn’t even touch the strings, I was that bad,” she laughed. 

“I think if your only flaw is not being able to play the cello, you’re in a pretty good spot,” Tony rolled his eyes.

“So Tony, how are you feeling? Do you have any pain?” she asked, bringing them back to the important subject. 

“No, I feel great actually,” he smiled. “I wanted to wait till you got here to test this out,” he explained, gesturing towards his forehead. 

“Are you sure you don’t want to wait a few more days?” she cautioned. 

“Nope!” he dismissed. “Will you open that box for me?” he asked, gesturing to a container filled with nanotech. She hesitated for a moment, looking at him again to make sure it was a good idea, which it probably wasn’t, but gave in and unlocked it. “Alright, here we go,” he encouraged. Suddenly the nanotech flew out of the case, traveling towards him. It took form around his body, building a suit around his body. The tech seemed to move slower than she would’ve hoped, though that would be resolved with the implants around his peripheries. “Awesome,” he smirked. “Nice work kid, you nailed it.” 

“We still need to insert the other chips. Then make a code or blueprint for the suit, so you don’t need to focus so hard to equip it. You also need a holding container for the tech. Your reactor could work? What is it like in there?” she listed off her thoughts. 

“Kid, take a deep breath. You did a great job. Just take a second and appreciate it. We’ve been stuck on this problem for months and you solved it in a day,” he told her. 

“Yeah. You did some seriously impressive work,” Bruce added. 

“I couldn’t have done it without you guys,” she countered, overwhelmed by all the attention. 

“I honestly think you could’ve,” Tony laughed. “So, what do you say we head up to the common floor and order some dinner? I could go for some pizza,” he suggested. 

“Sure,” she smiled, walking with them into the elevator. “I know you said I should take a break, but can I come back to the lab tomorrow to keep working on the chips? I’d like it if you could have experience with the suit before you need to use it and we don’t know when your next mission is going to be,” she rambled. 

“Sure kid. Just promise me you’ll at the very least relax tonight. You can work on it tomorrow,” Tony returned. 

“Deal,” she beamed as the doors opened to the common floor. Bucky was back in his place on the couch so she sat down next to him. “He’s okay, good even,” she breathed out in relief to him. He gave her a warm expression, sending flurries into her stomach. 

“Hey J.A.R.V.I.S., will you tell everyone I’m getting pizza. If they want some they have to ask now or forever hold their peace,” Tony’s voice filled the room. He walked over to her and Bucky and took another seat on the couch. “So, what’ll you have?” he asked Ellie. “Manchurian candidate, you want some too?” Ellie frowned slightly, suddenly extremely unfond of the nickname. 

“I’ll get barbecue chicken pizza please,” she beamed. “Ooh, and cheesy bread. Do you think they sell stromboli? I haven’t had that in years,” she added, suddenly aware of how hungry she was. 

“I’ll just take pepperoni,” Bucky quietly responded.

Tony returned to the kitchen and grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down their orders, then talked to Bruce. Ellie turned to face Bucky and placed a light hand on his arm, “hey, you okay?” 

“Yeah, yeah,” he stumbled. “I’m fine,” he very clearly lied. 

“Bucky,” she attempted. 

“I hear you're buying us dinner?” Sam asked as he strutted out from the elevator. “Let me know when you’re ready to order,” he asked Tony. “El! I feel like it’s been ages since I’ve seen you,” he greeted, taking a seat next to her. So much for talking to Bucky. He laid his arm on the couch behind her as he continued, “so where have you been? Not avoiding me I hope.” She heard Bucky grumble and she turned to see him glaring at Sam, like he always was. 

“No, I was not avoiding you Sammy. I was actually helping Tony in his lab,” she clarified. 

“Well good, I was worried for a second there,” he continued. 

More and more people kept filling into the room, apparently free pizza was a good way to bring a team together. She smiled at Logan when she saw him and Remy come in. He talked to Tony, then joined Ellie on the couch. Sam got up to talk to Steve and Natasha, so Logan took his seat. “Hey bub, how was science?” he asked her. 

“Science was good. A little scary, but good,” she honestly returned. 

“Why was it scary?” 

“Just cause I had to do brain surgery,” she attempted to sound nonchalant. 

“What? On who?” he practically blurted out.

“Tony,” she clarified.

“You mean the Tony that’s standing over there, taking pizza orders?” he gaped. 

“Um-” she started, looking over his shoulder and over at Tony. “Yep, that one.” 

“How the hell?” he breathed. 

“I’m starting to learn not to question her abilities,” Bucky interjected, his mood seeming lighter. 

“Damn right,” he agreed. 

“You know, I’m getting kind of tired of all this glorification,” she complained. 

“What, you don’t like people appreciating your accomplishments?” Logan asked. 

“It just gets to be a lot. I didn’t do anything anyone else wouldn’t have done if they were in my shoes. I’m not a big fan of the attention,” she quietly clarified. 

“Really? Cause you seemed fine chatting with everyone before?” Logan asked curiously.

“That was different though. I wasn’t the topic,” she specified. She looked into the kitchen again and saw Remy cooking something. “Is he making food?” she laughed. 

“Oh yeah, you should've heard him complain. He was all upset that Tony was going to make everyone eat take out when they could be eating his food instead. He didn’t want any part in the spoiling of a gourmet food opportunity,” he scoffed.

“Yeah that sounds about right,” she laughed. 

They all ended up eating their pizza on the couch, watching Ferris Bueller's Day Off, which apparently was one of Tony’s favorite movies. She kept a close eye on him, making sure he wasn’t showing any signs of any strange behavior that could be attributed to the procedure. At the end of the night Bucky asked to stay with her again, though she told him to sleep in the other room so he was on a couch, not a chair. She was feeling a lot more confident about not having nightmares, but it was easier to feel strong when he was there. 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

Ellie spent the next two days working in the lab, preparing the chips and running tests on them. While she worked Tony sat, per her request, and developed a program for the suit design. She’d actually developed a nice routine. Work out with Bucky in the morning, who was still insisting on staying on her floor in case she had a nightmare, get some food, then go to the lab for the rest of the day. She was finally ready to help Tony inject the chips, then he would be able to test the suit and train with it for the rest of the day. His recovery was going better than she or Bruce expected. They checked in with the medical staff that morning and they already approved him to resume regular activity. She suspected the nanotech in the graft itself was part of the reason he healed in 3 days. The paper she’d read said it could simulate molecular bonding, effectively becoming part of the skull in less than a day. Since that was the only part of the procedure they were especially concerned about healing, he was already back to full health. 

“Alright Tony, are you ready?” she asked as she prepped the injector. 

“Absolutely,” he returned. 

“Okay, so, we’re going to do 20 subcutaneous microinjections, four in each of your arms, four in each leg, and four in your abdomen,” she reviewed and he nodded. She took out a sharpie to label all of the locations, so he pulled off his shirt. She paused for a moment to look at his arc reactor. “The nanotech is already in there?” she asked. 

“Yup. We took out the shrapnel a few months ago, but I kept the reactor for the suits. It’s basically just a big ole tube full of bots now,” he explained, flicking it with his finger. She nodded and started marking the injection sites. She wrote the back side of his hand, middle of his forearm and biceps, and shoulder for his arms. Then labeled along his clavicles, then the middle of his abdomen. He was wearing shorts, so she was able to mark his legs without problem; two on his thighs, one on his calf, and one on his foot. “Alright kid, go for it,” he encouraged, now that he was prepped. She grabbed the chips from their organized chart to match them to the right part of Tony. 

“Okay, placing the right hand chip into the device,” she described as she inserted it into the chamber. She lined the needle up to the x on his hand, “alright, three, two, one.” She pressed onto the trigger and watched the needle insert and inject the chip. Tony flinched slightly, but seemed to handle it well. “Injection complete,” she announced as she pulled it away. “Before we continue, do you want to test it?” she asked.

“Sure,” he returned, then called onto the nanotech, which instantly took form around his hand. “That’s fantastic,” he stared at his hand, amazed by the work. 

“Shall we keep going?” He nodded and retracted the tech. She rapidly went through the rest of the injections, allowing him to adjust after each, but not stopping to check the tech. “Okay, all done, do you want to assemble the suit?”

“Hell yeah,” he excitedly returned. He stepped onto what seemed to be his designated iron man suit section of the lab. The tech started to coat his skin rapidly until he was in a complete suit of armor. It even matched his colors. “It’s perfect,” he awed, removing his helmet. “I’m gonna try and make something,” he told her. Soon a shield formed around one of his arms and six blasters extended from his back. “God this is great. Amazing job kid, you nailed it. I’m gonna play around with this for a bit. You go off and have your fun. You’ve got a big day tomorrow,” he reminded her. Right. They were making their decision about her tomorrow. 

“Thanks Tony, don’t go too crazy,” she smiled as she walked to the elevator. 

“Where’s the fun in that,” he countered as the doors opened. She laughed as she stepped inside. If things didn’t go her way tomorrow, at least she had this. The memories.  

Chapter Text

It was her 14th day at the tower and it meant the team would be making a decision about her placement on the team. She was extremely on edge. She'd done an extra good workout with Bucky that morning, knowing it might be the last time she got to use the training facilities. She also hoped the workout might get rid of some of her nerves, but it didn't, not even a little bit. She knew that logically she had nothing to worry about, she’d proven herself as a valuable asset in a battle context, scientific context - even though that wasn't super relevant, and she got along with everyone on the team, even Logan. Though she couldn’t get rid of the itch in the back of her mind. Ellie paced her room waiting for what the day would bring her.

The reality that Ellie didn’t have any clothes was becoming more and more apparent. She searched her closet for a simultaneously formal and approachable outfit for the meeting that would decide her future. She decided on her nicest pair of black linen pants and a warm, tan, sweater. She collected her clothes and walked into her bathroom to take a well needed relaxing shower. The meeting wasn’t for another few hours and she wouldn’t even be allowed in until near the end, so she was trying to find anything to distract her. She decided she’d have J.A.R.V.I.S. play music while she showered and she’d try and savor the experience as much as she could. She took her sweet time brushing her hair and really let the conditioner sit in her hair. After extending the experience as long as she could, which was around 45 minutes, so not bad, she went to dry off. She’d been playing around with her reality manipulation powers and realized she could dry herself off completely with her powers. She could actually do just about anything with her reality manipulation powers, including clean herself and get dressed, but she was in the business of stalling, not saving time. 

Since she genuinely did hate drying her hair, she decided to use her powers for that, but she would style it herself. She thought it would be good to have it blow dried and not naturally dried, so she manipulated the reality of her hair to match that. She was still struggling to wrap her mind around the fact that she could just change reality to match her will. She didn’t want to abuse it, but she really did like that she had freshly blow dried hair and had to put no work into it. 

She put on her cozy sweater and soft linen pants and felt satisfied with the ensemble. She wasn’t usually one for makeup, but decided that since she needed to distract herself, she would do a light and natural look. Ellie searched through the obscene number of drawers in her bathroom trying to find where she’d dumped her small stash of makeup. She found it in the bottom left drawer, pretty much as far away as it could’ve been, makes sense, and pulled out everything she had. Her haul was a few brushes, mascara, a cheap eye shadow pallet, and some blush. She didn’t have much to work with, but thought that maybe she’d put a natural purple color as her eyeshadow to help bring out her green eyes, pair it with really light mascara, just enough to give her eyelashes more curl and a tad more pop, then a light blush to soften her face a little. She already had a pretty soft face, but her baby face had died with her parents. She wanted some semblance of it back for the day, so she could feel more like the girl she did when they were around. Ellie tied her magically dried hair back and got to work. 

She was halfway through putting eyeshadow on her second eye when J.A.R.V.I.S. interrupted her music, “Ms. Clark, Mr. Barnes is requesting to come to your floor. Would you like to let him in?” What did he want? He didn't usually come to her room midday. 

“Sure J.A.R.V.I.S., pause my music too please,” Ellie replied, then opened the bathroom door. She continued to work on her makeup and waited for him to arrive, curious about what he had in store for her. She heard the elevator doors open. She considered letting him struggle and search for her, but decided to be nice, “I’m in here!” She put her focus back into what she was doing, so she wouldn’t take an eye out. 

“Hey Ellie. I thought you might want company,” he spoke as he crossed her room. He reached the bathroom door and froze when he saw her, “what are you doing?”

“Um. Putting on makeup?” she answered, entirely confused by the question, since there was nothing subtle about the activity.

“You don’t usually wear makeup,” he replied confidently. She waited to respond, to try and see what he was thinking, but instead she made him overthink. “You don’t wear makeup right? Or do you and I can’t tell?”

“No Bucky, I don’t usually wear makeup. I still don’t see what the big deal is,” she sighed, but was definitely amused at his confusion. She started to work on her mascara.

“No it’s not, I just don’t see why you need it, you look fine without it,” Bucky tried to explain.

“Oh thank you. I’m glad you think I look fine without makeup,” she retorted. She wasn’t actually offended, but it did hurt to hear him simply call her ‘fine’. 

“I-,” he started to defend himself. “You know that’s not what I meant. I think you look beautiful without makeup, which is why I don’t understand why you’re putting it on,” he clarified. He thought she was beautiful? 

“I, I’m, um,” she stumbled over her words, taken aback by his comment. “I’m trying to do whatever I can to distract myself today. Plus, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to look extra nice today, it’s my last chance to impress you guys before you decide if I’m staying or leaving,” she explained without looking away from her mirror. She completed the mascara on her second eye, leaving her green eyes popping and the mascara barely noticeable unless you looked for it, exactly like she wanted it. She lightly laid blush on her cheeks and the tip of her nose, giving her face a splash of color and the innocence she desired. “So, what do you think?” she asked, turning to face him. 

“I- uh, wow,” he responded, taking in her finished look. 

“See, and you were arguing that I didn’t need it,” Ellie sighed. For some reason she was offended by his reaction, it wasn’t like she looked that different, but he acted like she was a whole different person. This was why she didn’t like to wear makeup, she always ended up getting insecure about her natural face. She pushed her feelings aside - it was too late now to change anything. “I’m not going to be very entertaining, I still have to do my hair. You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to,” Ellie explained. She’d put herself into a weird insecure mood and felt like she was making Bucky stay out of obligation. She undid her hair and started to brush it out, but he didn’t leave. 

“Ellie, I’ve told you this before and I will tell you again. I’m not going to leave you. I can tell you’re stressed out about today, so I’m going to stay with you, to keep you sane if nothing else,” he jokingly, but wholeheartedly explained. She looked at him, searching for any lies or feigned kindness, but all she found was sincerity. "Oh also, I picked you these this morning. I saw them in the grass when I looked out my window. I figured you could use a bundle of joy," he smiled as he pulled a bouquet of dandelions, held together with a stem.

"You remembered?" she softly asked, trying to hold in her amazement with his gesture. She kept in the tears that wanted to escape as she looked at them. Her heart ached thinking about him going outside to collect them just because he noticed the flowers and remembered her saying she liked them. Ellie summoned a small vase with water and he set them inside. Ellie altered their reality so they would last longer.

“Of course I did. They're your favorite," he responded, as if it was nothing at all. It was most certainly not nothing. "So, tell me about what you’re planning to do with your hair. I think two french braids would look really nice,” he suggested, changing the subject, surprising Ellie again, but this time with his knowledge of hair. “What? I grew up with a sister. You pick up on a thing or two,” Bucky defended to her dumbstruck face. 

“Tell me about her,” Ellie asked. Bucky was quiet, Ellie crossed over a line, he obviously didn’t want to talk about his long gone sister. “Sorry, you don’t have to,” she shied, feeling guilty about whatever memories he may be reliving. She turned to look at his face and was surprised to see a smile. 

“No, that’s okay. Becca was a real firecracker. Everything always had to be exactly the way she wanted it to be and there was absolutely nothing anyone could say to change her mind. I remember once we were at the fair and she wanted to ride the carousel, but my parents were trying to get us situated at a table. Becca sat down on the dirt and did not get up until they agreed to take her to the carousel. Man she drove my mama crazy. She was so stubborn,” he smiled at the memory. 

“She sounds like someone I know,” Ellie hinted. 

“Yeah, yeah. If I am, it's because of her. You try and win an argument with someone like that,” he defended. 

“I’m impressed you kept trying.” 

“Yeah well, if I ever wanted to do anything but her hobbies, I needed to get good at it,” he explained. Ellie started to try and braid her hair. She liked Bucky’s suggestion, but she wasn’t actually very good at french braiding, or anything other than normal braiding for that matter. She was struggling to weave her hair into the right positions without it just falling out. “Do you want help? Braiding is another thing she forced me to do. I actually got pretty good at it,” he offered. Ellie conceded and gave him the brush. She felt him brush her hair, something no one had done in years. She was thrown into the memory of the last time someone had brushed her hair for her: it was the homecoming of her junior year, just weeks before her parents died. Her mom was helping her get ready. Ellie didn’t have a date or many friends to go with, so it was just the two of them getting ready. Her mom curled and styled Ellie's hair all fancy-like and she wore a dazzling green dress. Her dad took her picture like she was on the red carpet. He called on her fantastic stylist and took pictures of them together. Ellie forced him to flip the camera and join in the pictures too. She’d do anything to get those pictures back. Ellie felt a tear drop down her cheek. “Ellie?” Bucky stopped brushing to look at her. “Are you okay?” he gently asked. 

“Yeah um,” she faltered. “It’s just that my mom was the last one to brush my hair and it all kinda came rushing back to me. Today’s been an especially hard day. I’m just starting to relearn how to trust people and I guess I’m realizing how much I don’t want to be alone again. I just wish she were here to tell me it would be okay. I don’t know why, but I always believed it when she said it,” Ellie confessed, struggling to keep in her tears. She really needed her mom and hated that she’d been taken from her. 

“I know I’m not your mom, but everything is going to be okay,” Bucky spoke, releasing the silent tears from behind Ellie’s eyes. “Look, no matter what happens today, you will always have me, I promise. Day or night, if you call I will be there,” he assured her. He grabbed a tissue from the counter and handed it to her. “You are amazing and I’m sure every member of this team sees that and if they don’t I’ll do my damndest to convince them. You have nothing to worry about, I have your back.” 

Ellie needed to hear that, it helped, a lot, maybe he had the same power as her mom. “Thank you Bucky, for everything, you’ve been way too good to me,” she divulged, in her emotional state. He had been, he was incredibly patient with her, even when she was being irrational and from the first day he met her he put so much energy into ensuring her well-being. She’d never had anyone care so much about her, other than her parents. It was a strange responsibility, to have someone care about her, but her current job was to be grateful, which she could easily do. 

“You don’t have to-”

“Yes I do. I am grateful for your kindness Bucky and you deserve to hear it. You’ve dealt with a lot from me and all you’ve given me in return is support. I haven’t had that in a long time, so I’m thanking you for giving that to me. I hope to get the chance to do the same for you,” Ellie reinforced, leaving him no room to refuse. 

“You’re welcome Ellie, it was my pleasure,” he warmly smiled. He returned to behind her seat to start braiding her hair. “And Ellie, you’ve done more for me than you could imagine,” he said faintly, as if he didn’t really want her to hear. He ran his fingers through her hair, sending tingling down Ellie’s spine at the physical contact. Her cheeks felt warm, but her blush hid her reaction. His hands gently navigated her scalp, careful not to pull. He was so meticulous. Ellie started to wonder what else his hands could do. No Ellie! He was her friend. She decided to play the small world song in her head, over and over again, to try and distract herself from her unsavory thoughts. “All done,” he announced. 

She looked at herself in the mirror and he did a really good job. “Thank you Bucky, I wouldn’t have been able to do this on my own,” she beamed, ignoring all her previous thoughts. “One last thing then I am all set.” She went into the top drawer to grab her green earrings. She put them on and completed her look, “good?” 

“Perfect.” 

“You flatter me,” Ellie blushed. She walked out of the bathroom with Bucky following her. Surprisingly, Paw slept through the whole interaction. She put on her green converse and was finally ready to go. “So what do we do now?” 

“Well, the meeting starts in,” he looked at his watch. “Three hours. Have you eaten?” Ellie shook her head. “Would you like to go somewhere in the city? There’s a cafe I really like. The food is amazing. It’s usually pretty quiet and the owners are really nice, so we don’t have to worry too much about people,” he offered. Ellie actually loved that idea. He must've seen her face light up and had his answer. “J.A.R.V.I.S. will you tell Tony we’re going to the Cafe on 5th?” 

“Of course Mr. Barnes, enjoy,” the A.I. responded. 

Ellie grabbed her bag and her coat, both had been sitting unused since she’d gotten there. They got into the elevator and Bucky pressed the garage floor, then laid his hand on the scanner. Ellie was really excited to get to go out. She technically could’ve at any point, but she didn’t really have the means or a specific place to go. The elevator dinged to the familiar garage. “My car is over here,” Bucky directed. He clicked his keys and the lights on a black Stingray flashed. 

“That’s your car?” Ellie asked, impressed and surprised by the vehicle. 

“Yep, that’s good ole’ Betty.” Of course he gave his car an old lady name because why wouldn’t he. They walked through the rows of expensive cars before reaching his. Ellie was still endlessly amazed by how much Tony owned, the cars were relatively insignificant overall, but he had some really fancy ones down there. They reached Bucky’s car and he walked around to the passenger side and opened it for her. “M’lady.” 

“Why thank you,” Ellie politely returned. She sat down in the comfortable sports car and got buckled. She studied the inside, viewing all the cool features. She was pretty sure Tony had installed some of them, like the massive screen. Life there was so grand, with fancy tech, safe spaces, amazing facilities, she didn’t want to leave. It was only two weeks but she found a family and was so scared of being sent away. She needed to stop worrying. If they were her family, they had her back. 

Bucky sat down and looked over to her, checking her seatbelt. “Are you all set?” he asked. She nodded and he buckled up, then started the engine. The car roared as its engine warmed. Ellie hadn’t ever been in a sports car and she was excited for it, also a little terrified, but mainly excited. “Don’t worry, I’ll go nice and slow,” he winked in a husky voice. Ellie's body burned for his words. How was she supposed to keep her mind at bay when he said stuff like that. Her whole body yearned for him. She needed to shut it down. Luckily he pressed the gas and they sped away, giving her body enough of a shock to calm down. 

Bucky drove through the streets of the city for a few minutes, making a couple turns, until they were on 5th avenue. Ellie watched the mix of locals and tourists walk down the streets. They wandered in and out of shops, going about their days, entirely unbothered by each other's presence. They continued to drive down the road and Ellie watched as the stores became less and less touristy. After a while the shops were all locally owned little stores. It was still a good part of town, but there wasn’t the push of corporate america over the shoulders of the businesses. He parallel parked with her on the traffic side of the road. Ellie unbuckled and grabbed the door handle. Bucky swung his head around and looked at her, with determination behind his eye. “I'll get it for you,” he told her, as if it weren't up for discussion. Ellie appreciated the whole ‘chivalry isn’t dead’ thing, but she wouldn’t be letting him do this all the time, she also believed women could open their own doors. However, in this case she did appreciate not having to open the door into oncoming traffic. 

He opened it for her and she stepped out of the car. “Thank you,” she smiled. “You should know that I’m going to start racing you for the door.” He sighed and locked the car, helping her to the curb safely. “So, where is the Cafe? We are on 5th.” Bucky laughed at her. “What? You said it was the Cafe on 5th, we’re on 5th,” she justified. He continued to smile at her, like she was being ridiculous. He refused to explain, so Ellie just followed him instead. They passed a really cute little store as they walked to the cafe that Ellie made a note to herself to go to when she had the chance. When they reached the cafe Ellie felt like an idiot. It was called the Cafe on 5th. “You could’ve just said that,” she muttered. 

“I could’ve, but then I wouldn’t have gotten to see your face. Priceless,” he gloated. Ellie rolled her eyes. “Okay, okay, I’m sorry. Let’s go eat. I know I’m hungry,” he tried to walk himself out of the hole he dug, still laughing. Ellie gave him one last glare, then ran ahead of him and opened the door for herself, knowing he wanted to do it, then closed it behind her. That time Bucky gave the glare through the glass door. Ellie smiled wide at her small payback. Bucky’s glare dissipated when he saw her grin and his face also dissolved into a smile. “Touchè,” he gave in as he walked into the Cafe. 

“I'm really good!” she perkily responded, suddenly very chipper from their banter. She walked further into the cafe and took it in. It was adorable with upholstered chairs and sofas for seating and lamps and chandelier style lighting. It was like a little house turned into a Cafe and Ellie loved it. She stood a few steps behind the counter and read the menu to figure out what she wanted. She thought about getting their barbecue chicken sandwich and turned to ask Bucky if it was good, but he was already at the counter talking to the owner. Ellie smiled, watching their interaction. It seemed like the older lady treated Bucky like a son, even though he probably had quite a few years on her. 

“So who’s the girl?” the woman asked, a curious grin plastered on her face.

“Ellie. She uh moved in a couple weeks ago,” Bucky answered, rubbing his hand against his neck. 

“Oh, so is she a new one of your super friends?” she smiled, raising her eyebrows. 

“Really Susan? Super friends?” Bucky sighed. Ellie was thoroughly enjoying the adorable interaction. 

“Fine, not your super friend. I like her,” Susan decided. 

“How do you know? You haven’t even met her,” Bucky questioned. 

“Because you like her,” she stated, like it was obvious. 

“And how would you know that? We’ve been here for two minutes.”

“A mother always knows,” she confidently answered.

“You aren't mine though,” Bucky confusedly replied. 

“And does that make me any less a mother? No. Now, introduce me to your new friend,” she ordered, just like a mother.

Ellie started pretending to read the menu so he wouldn’t know she’d heard their entire conversation. She felt a tap on her shoulder and Bucky's ocean blue eyes met hers. “Hey, are you ready to order? There’s someone I’d like you to meet,” he asked her. Ellie nodded, she tried to hide her eagerness to meet the woman who seemed to have such a strong hold on Bucky. “Ellie, this is Susan. Susan, this is Ellie. Susan and her husband Michael own the Cafe,” he introduced them. 

“It’s lovely to meet you,” Ellie smiled widely and held out her arm for Susan to shake. Susan happily took it and the two shared the embrace. “Bucky said great things about the Cafe, I’m looking forward to trying ‘the amazing food’. His words, not mine,” Ellie boasted about Bucky's promotions about the Cafe. She could tell Susan would get a kick out of it and she’d probably give him a hard time about it later too, which Ellie liked knowing. 

“Well, I’m glad Jamey likes the food, I guess he doesn’t come just for the company,” Susan joked. Ellie's eyes flew open at Bucky’s nickname. She smiled wide at the new material she’d be using against him soon. Bucky was glaring heavily at Ellie and mouthed ‘don’t you dare’ but she simply continued smiling, pretending she didn’t see him. “So, I assume you’ll be getting your regular then?” Bucky nodded. “What can I get you sweetie?” 

Ellie looked at the menu one last time and felt confident in her decision. “Could I get the barbeque chicken sandwich and a hot chai latte?” Ellie asked. She decided to splurge on the drink. The mid April chill was still persisting and a hot drink was just what she needed. She hadn’t spent any money in the last two weeks and she had a little bit saved up from before she came to the tower.

“Sure thing. What size?” Susan sweetly asked.

She looked at the price of the large and wasn’t sure she had enough. She reached into her bag to try and see what money she had when she heard Bucky's voice, “she’ll have a large.” He placed his hand over hers, stopping her search. “It’s my treat,” he smiled. 

“You don’t have to, I can help you pay,” Ellie attempted. 

“I insist. Tony pays us way too much anyways. You’ll know that soon,” he stated, radiating confidence. He quickly moved on and looked at the baked goods in the display case. “Do you want a pastry? I’m getting one,” he asked, easing the pressure. They had a wide variety of pastries all laid out behind the glass. She had to admit, they looked really good. The cherry filled donut looked especially tempting. Ellie and her dad used to get them every time they saw them. 

This is for you dad. “Can I get a cherry filled donut?” she quietly asked, shied by the memory of her dad. 

“Of course hun’” Susan reached in and grabbed a cherry filled donut and handed it to Ellie. She reached back in and grabbed a plum puff pastry tart and handed it to Bucky. He swiped his card to pay. “I’ll be out with your drinks and food in a little bit. If Michael comes back I’ll have him come say hi,” she warmly explained. Ellie thanked her and followed Bucky to a booth. 

“Thank you Bucky. For lunch and for distracting me today, it’s been really helpful,” Ellie appreciated. 

“Of course, I’m always happy to come here and I’m glad I can share it with you,” he smiled. 

“Right, that reminds me. Jamey? They know you here,” Ellie emphasized. 

“Yeah, I used to come here a lot when I first moved into the Tower. I was able to just be a person here and not my past. It was nice. Eventually they found out, because the whole world did, but it didn’t change anything for them. They said they knew who I was, and they knew I wasn’t that person anymore. There are still times when I struggle to remember that, but they have never wavered in that belief. So I try to come here, at least once a week, to remind myself, and to see them,” he confessed. He didn’t talk about himself or his history that often and Ellie understood that. 

“I’m really glad that you have them. I don’t know anything about the person from before, but the person I know is full of compassion and devotion to those around him, no matter how long he’s known them,” she smiled, knowing she’d been gifted his kindness. “I would happily talk your ear off about how amazing you are, day or night, and you know I know how to talk. I’m in your corner Jamey,” she smiled playfully at the use of the nickname, but maintained their eye contact. 

“Hey kids, I have a large coffee for Jamey,” Susan said, placing a large mug of black liquid in front of Bucky, along with a smaller cup of cream and a little tray of sugar cubes. 

“You know I’m older than you right,” Bucky replied.

“Years you were asleep don’t count,” she dismissed as she continued giving out their order. “I have a large hot chai for Ellie. Here ya go hun. I hope you enjoy,” she smiled as she placed the large mug in front of her. “Your food will be out in just a few minutes. Bye kids,” she said, looking directly at Bucky, then winked to Ellie. 

Ellie took a sip of her drink and was filled with the delicious Chai spices. She looked across the table and watched as Bucky poured copious amounts of milk and sugar into his coffee. She wanted to laugh, but really was just infatuated by the constant reminders of how he wasn’t the ‘brooding’ Avenger like everyone told her he was. He was her friend who had a massive sweet tooth and loved cats and could braid hair and put equal amounts of milk and coffee in his morning beverage. She was awestruck by him everyday, at just how amazing he could be, despite everything the world put him through. He made her life look like a walk in the park, but he was there for her when she woke up with a nightmare, and he stayed by her side the whole night because she was scared. He was complex and clear all at the same time. Ellie couldn’t get enough of his presence and he hadn’t seemed to get tired of her yet either. She was amazed at how much they’d bonded in the last two weeks, a total stranger had become her world. She was getting too attached and she knew it. How could she not? 

They spent the rest of their meal talking about nonsense, but they both were smiling and laughing the whole time. Ellie’s sandwich was amazing. It had the perfect blend between the tangy barbeque and the amazing fresh made bread and delicious sweet peppers. She savored every single moment of it, partly because of how good it was, and partly because she knew that if she was voted off it might be her last good meal for a while. Sure, Bucky said she could see him whenever she wanted, but she would still be fending for herself for most of her meals. She saved her donut for later, knowing that she’d want it when Bucky was at the meeting and she was waiting on her own. 

On Ellie's way back from the bathroom, after they both finished their food, she saw Bucky talking to an older man she assumed to be Michael. He was speaking to Bucky in a quiet tone, seemingly giving advice. It was amazing how much the older couple and Bucky resembled a pair of parents with their son. Ellie met eyes with Bucky as she walked back and he broke off their conversation. “Michael, there’s someone I want you to meet. Michael, this is Ellie, Ellie this is Michael,” Bucky introduced. Ellie reached her hand out again, but was greeted with a kind, warm, fatherly hug instead.                

“Sorry, I’m a hugger,” he explained.

Ellie normally wasn’t a huge fan of unprompted physical contact, but the hug felt a lot like her dad’s and she needed that. “I’m sure Bucky loves that,” Ellie laughed. Michael laughed with her knowingly. “I love the cafe, the food is amazing,” Ellie complimented. 

“Thank you dear. Now, I’m sure you kids have places to be. Go on with your day,” he practically shoved them out of the Cafe. Ellie and Bucky said their goodbyes and were back on the street headed back to the tower. They killed almost two hours on their adventure, which was pretty good. Since they still had time to spare, Ellie decided she wanted to look at the little shop she liked on the way back. There was a necklace with a beautiful green pendant that matched her earrings in the window. She wanted to see how much it was so she knew how much she needed to save. 

Ellie saw the canopy over the shop and excitedly rushed ahead to look at the necklace again. “Can we go in?” Ellie asked. Bucky smiled and gestured to the door, so she let herself in to start exploring. The inside of the place was funky and cool. It had tons of different things inside. There were crystals and rocks in one section, goofy cards in another, old watches in the front corner, and she suspected her necklace would be in the corner opposite it. Ellie walked straight towards the handmade jewelry. 

She heard the door jingle and Bucky walked in. “Cute store, did you see it when we were walking to the Cafe?” he asked as he watched her stare at the jewelry. Ellie turned to nod to him and he turned to explore. “Woah, is this a Movado?” he quietly, but excitedly, asked. Ellie turned around to see him carefully holding an old watch in his hand, of course he gets excited about old watches. Ellie smiled and rolled her eyes as she returned to the jewelry display, searching for her necklace. She was having a difficult time finding it. There were other green necklaces, but none of them matched her earrings like the one in the window of the shop did. 

Eventually, Ellie decided she’d have to ask about the necklace, since she wouldn't be able to find the price on her own. She walked up to the front desk, where a middle aged woman was closely watching Bucky. “Excuse me,” Ellie said, drawing her attention away. “You have a necklace in the window, but I can’t find it in the store. I’m wondering if I can find out how much it costs,” Ellie asked. 

“Sure thing hun, which one is it?” the woman asked with a small smile as she stood up from the counter. 

“It has a green pendant that actually looks a lot like my earrings,” Ellie started to explain as she walked over to the front window.

She studied Ellie's ears, then walked ahead of her and stepped into the front display. She grabbed the necklace and handed it to Ellie, "is this it?"

“That's it, thank you,” Ellie smiled. She loved it even more up close. It was a tear drop shaped stone about the size of her thumbprint with a thin gold casing along its edges holding it in place and a gold chain. 

“Price is on the back. You can bring it back up here either way once you’ve decided,” she told Ellie as she walked back behind the counter.

“Thanks,” Ellie replied to the woman, who was already watching Bucky again. Was it because she knew who he was? Ellie looked at the bottom of the box and read the price: $2,000. Guess she won't be getting the necklace anytime soon. It was way too expensive. She didn’t even need time to think about it. Ellie walked back up to the register and placed the necklace on the counter. “Hi, unfortunately it’s outside of my price range. I appreciate you getting it out for me though,” Ellie feigned a smile, but was completely disappointed. Maybe she should’ve just let herself live in ignorance. She’d seen what she came to see, so she was ready to go. She walked up to Bucky, who was still engrossed in the watches. “I’m all done, you can take as long as you’d like. I’m going to wait for you outside,” Ellie told him, not really feeling like sitting there any longer after the disappointing news. 

“Okay, I’ll be out in a minute or two. Stay just outside, okay?” Bucky confirmed, as if she didn’t have powers to protect herself. Nonetheless she told him she wouldn’t wander and she walked outside. Luckily, there was a bench right outside the shop that she sat on, while she patiently waited for Bucky to finish geeking out about watches. She made a mental note of the location of the store, so if she ever rose to riches, she’d come back and get her necklace. “All done,” Bucky announced as he walked out of the store. Ellie stood up from the bench and joined him as they walked back to the car. Ideally, by the time they got back there would only be another 45 minutes left before the meeting started. 

They reached Bucky’s car and he walked around with her to help her into the passenger seat, guarding her from the incoming cars. Once he closed her door, he walked back around the car to get seated himself.  Ellie rubbed her hands together to warm up in the cool weather. Despite growing up in Michigan, Ellie hated the cold, she simply wasn’t built for it. Bucky got inside and started the heat first thing. Once he was buckled he turned to look at her, “So, did you have fun? I hope Susan and Michael didn’t come on too strong, they were just excited.” 

“It was amazing, thank you Bucky,” Ellie honestly replied. She was grateful to have gotten a glimpse of what happens behind the scenes of Bucky’s life. He had an amazing support system in and outside of the tower. She liked knowing he’d be okay, even if she wasn’t there to keep an eye on him. 

They pulled into the garage at the tower and rode the elevator up to the communal floor, she figured she could use the company. It was 2:25 and the meeting was set to start at 3:00 sharp. The elevator doors opened and she heard a booming voice that she didn’t quite recognize. She looked around and realized it was the god of thunder himself, telling a story about his time on Asgard to Steve, Sam, and Natasha. They really were always together. 

“And the great lady Sith took their heads clean off! It was amazing! They never saw it coming!” he boomed. Ellie stepped further inside, catching the attention of the Asgardian. “Oh! It's the woman of the hour! Lady Ellie, it is lovely to see you again. I hear your magic has been improving, you should speak to my brother about it, I’m sure he has much to share with you,” he offered. Thor was in an excellent mood and seemed to remember Ellie fondly, which was a good sign. He looked around the room and found his brother, then grabbed him, pulling him over, “Loki, you remember Ellie?”

“Yes I do. Thor you made me spill my drink,” he sighed, looking at his now empty cup. “My brother was right, you do have impressive powers, I can feel them.” 

“You can feel them?” Ellie asked, confused and a little violated. 

“You’re radiating energy, powerful energy,” Loki explained, still examining her. Without warning he conjured a blade and sent it flying at her head. Ellie’s instincts kicked in and she froze it in the air, inches away from her forehead, then dissolved it into dust. “Very good,” Loki said, impressed. “I like her.” 

“Brother!” Thor yelled. 

“She was never in any danger Thor, I wouldn’t have let it hit her. We’re supposed to decide on her place on the team aren’t we? How am I meant to do that if I don’t know what she can do?” Loki explained his somewhat flawed logic. Ellie wanted to be upset, but really she was just riding on the adrenaline flowing through her. She decided to push it a little further and fill up Loki’s glass, by replicating the remaining liquid. He sniffed it, then took a sip. “Thank you,” he smirked before going back to his seat. 

“Hey you okay?” Bucky asked, concerned about Ellie’s near run-in with a blade in her face. 

“Completely, it’s like he said, I was never in any real danger. Now come on, I want to hang out for a bit, your friends are all here,” Ellie smiled at him, knowing this group compiled his closest friends. 

Ellie joined them on the couch and Thor immediately started apologizing, “lady Ellie, I am sorry for my brother. He has an interesting way of conducting himself.”

“I’ll say,” Bucky muttered.

“It’s fine Thor. There’s no need for apologies,” she spoke over Bucky, then gave him a glare. He didn’t back down on his opinion and neither did she, so they ended up with a sort of non-verbal truce. “So, it sounds like you were telling an interesting story when I was coming in?” Ellie prompted. She figured Thor could talk for a half hour, which would help to pass the time. Plus she was actually pretty curious about what happened in space. 

Ellie was completely right. Thor was still somehow only in the middle of his story when J.A.R.V.I.S. made an announcement into the room, “Mr. Stark is requesting everyone’s presence in conference room 4033. Ms. Clark, he will call for you when he is ready.” When the announcement completed, the group said their goodbyes to Ellie, then cleared out. 

Bucky stayed back. “Hey, it’s going to be okay, I promise you. No matter what,” he told her with unwarranted confidence, as if he had control over her fate. She threw her body against his into a tight hug, needing the last moments of support. She felt bad, knowing he wasn’t a physical touch person. All of their previous physical interactions were heavily nightmare or stress related. but he instantly wrapped his arms around her in return, holding her tight. “I’ve got you, I won’t let you be alone ever again,” he promised. He squeezed tight one last time, then pulled back to look at her, “Now, I have to go fight for ya. It’s gonna be alright,” he gave her another confident smile before leaving for the elevator. 

Ellie watched him leave, keeping herself together until the elevator door closed. Her spiraling began the second he escaped her vision. She circled the room, keeping her body moving, unable to stay still. She knew they couldn’t have started the meeting yet, Bucky had just left, but she didn’t like knowing they were talking about her and critiquing her, without her there. Maybe she’d use her powers to listen to their conversation. No, it was wrong, but she didn’t know if she’d be able to keep herself together otherwise. She still didn’t quite understand how to use that power, so she probably wouldn’t be able to anyways.

Ellie decided to grab her donut and go up to her floor so she could use Paw as support. The doors opened and he was already waiting for her. Ellie sat down on her couch and Paw jumped on her lap. She wrapped the throw blanket around herself and Paw and realized it still smelled like Bucky from when he slept there. She wrapped herself his scent, feeling a little less stressed. Paw purred in her lap as she sat in her worry. “J.A.R.V.I.S., has the meeting started?” Ellie asked, desiring some semblance of control over the situation. 

“Yes Ms. Clark, the meeting just started. Mr. Stark will call for you when they’re ready,” the A.I. replied. 

Ellie would regret this later, she was sure of it, but she couldn’t stop herself. She focused on the scent around her and tried to connect to Bucky’s mind, so she could hear what he was hearing. She was careful to avoid taking any sort of hold over Bucky, she wasn’t even sure if she could, but she needed to share his ears, nothing else. She knew Wanda wouldn’t notice her, she hadn’t before, and Ellie wouldn’t be so stupid as to try and enter her mind. She felt the connection between her and Bucky, but she didn’t hear anything. 

“So, shall we get started,” she suddenly heard Tony speak, startling her. She closed her eyes and just focused on the voices.

“Yes. We are here to discuss the placement of Elizabeth Clark as an official member of the Avengers. Does everyone understand?” Fury announced formally. 

“Oh so this isn’t a discussion about what we’re watching for movie night?” Tony quipped. 

“Stark,” Fury fumed. 

“We all know why we’re here. We all obviously know our opinions. Why don’t we just save the time and just vote?” Tony replied. 

“Because, that’s not how things are conducted. We can start with her role as a fighter. Ms. Maximoff, you were assigned to help with her powers. How did that go?” Fury transitioned. 

“Great. She’s already mastered every skill we’ve tried. She’s immensely powerful. We would be lucky to have her on our team,” Wanda’s voice softly spoke. 

“Does anyone else find it at all concerning how quickly she mastered those skills?” Natasha’s voice asked. Ellie knew that would come up. 

“She told you she didn’t have any previous training, you don’t believe her?” Steve spoke. 

“I just find it hard to believe she was able to learn to use her powers that quickly,” Natasha continued to argue.

“What exactly are you trying to say, Remy doesn’t like your tone.” 

“Wanda, how long did it take you?” Natasha asked. 

“To get to the level she’s at?” Wanda paused. “Almost a year.” The room went silent. “That doesn’t necessarily mean she had previous training. Every mutation is different, hers is manifesting differently than mine. Right Bruce?”

“Oh, uh, yeah. They do have very similar mutations, but the scale of Ellie’s mutation is much greater. It’s likely why she has physiological effects as well as enhanced abilities. It is certainly possible that one feature of her mutation is that she quickly adapts and learns new skills,” Bruce explained. 

“I’ve seen it before. People mastering their abilities at extraordinary rates, it's really not that big of a deal,” Loki interjected casually. 

“Right. Steve, you did her other training, how did she do there?” Fury continued. She passed that hurdle, it seemed. 

“She did really well. Scored above average at everything. She was exceptional at speed, her top pace was 42 miles per hour,” Steve explained.

“Eh, that's nothing,” Pietro joined. 

“Pietro,” Wanda disciplined. 

“Very well. Did you test her hand-to-hand fighting skills?” Fury asked.

“No sir. After her accident the focus was switched to her powers,” Steve admitted, as if he’d made a mistake.

“Fine. She will need that training before she’d go into the field,” Fury replied, sounding upset. “Now, onto her personal profile. I trust you have all spent enough time with her over the last two weeks to make an assessment. You will each be given a chance to speak, you will be entirely honest, no one else will interrupt you, only after everyone has spoken will the discussion begin, understood?” She heard varieties of yes from around the room. “Now. We can start with Remy LeBeau, you sure seemed opinionated earlier.” 

“Sure, Cheri, or Ellie-” his voice was cut off by a voice only in Ellie’s mind. 

'You know it’s not very nice to listen to conversations you weren’t invited to,' Loki’s voice spoke in her head. This was bad. 'I’ve let you have your fun, but I think you’ve heard enough,' his voice returned, throwing Ellie back into her room. He knew she was there the whole time. This was bad. She knew she was going to regret it. Was he going to tell them? Did she just ruin her chances? There was no way they’d let her on the team if they knew she was spying on them. 

Bucky was wrong.

She had to go back to being alone.

She almost had a family. 

Almost.

Chapter Text

Ellie spiraled, both mentally and physically as she walked in circles around the room. It had been 45 minutes since Loki had kicked her out of Bucky's mind and she was barely holding herself together. Why hadn’t they called for her? They certainly had enough time. They must be arguing about if she could stay, there was no other reason for them to be taking that long. Was Natasha questioning her character? She thought they were friends, maybe she misread her. She needed her parents, they always knew what to say. The donut! Her dads donut was waiting for her. She walked into her kitchen and collected it. She focused on him and what he’d say to support her as she bit into its jelly filled deliciousness. 

They would be at the Robins Nest Cafe, just down the street from their house. Her dad used to take her there after school sometimes. She’d apologize for finding a new family, because he was her true family, and she felt wrong replacing him. He’d smile and tell her he was just glad she was happy, because he hated seeing her alone for so long. She would tell him about why she was so anxious. He’d look at her, with a big smile on his face, and tell her that she had nothing to worry about. She was his perfect girl and she deserved a place in her found family. They would cut the cherry filled donut in half and eat it together. 

Ellie happily sat in her formed memory as she ate her donut. She felt safe in it, as if the real world didn’t exist and she was protected again, in her dad's arms. She wondered if her dad would like her new friends. He’d like Wanda, since she was so caring. She knew her mom would like Bucky. He was exactly what she always wanted for Ellie. Someone who would be patient with her, hold her when she cried, make her laugh, and stop at nothing to make sure she was okay. Her mom would call Ellie crazy for not making a move. Her dad was always afraid of the idea of Ellie being in a relationship, so he was always skeptical of her guy friends, not that she had very many. Bucky would win him over eventually, with his 1930s charm. Remy would likely be a favorite. He was entirely non-threatening and was Ellie’s number one fan, he protected her and defended her, no matter what; her parents would love that about him. 

“Ms. Clark, Mr. Stark is ready for you in room 4033. I can assist you in directions,” the A.I. broke her out of her trance. 

“Wish me luck dad,” Ellie quietly spoke as she cleaned up her mess. She pet Paw, and gave him a big kiss on his head goodbye, then went to the elevator. She pressed the 40 button on the wall, tapped her hand on the scanner, then rode down to let her fate be decided. Thank god for Tony’s remarkably fast elevators. The doors opened. “Which way do I go?” she asked.

“Turn right out of the elevator. It will be the fifth office on your left,” J.A.R.V.I.S. directed. 

Ellie followed the directions and soon heard noise coming from the room. It didn’t sound like arguing, which was good. She walked up to the door and knocked. She heard what sounded like air whipping around and suddenly the door opened with Pietro standing in the doorway. He gave her a sarcastic salute then sped back to his seat. Ellie looked around the room and saw her friends' unreadable faces. Bucky smiled at her supportively. She now felt horrible for using him to hear the conversation. Remy and Wanda both shared his expression. Ellie carefully looked at Loki. He had a large smirk on his face and winked at her. What the hell did that mean? Was that a 'ha ha I told everyone' wink? She saw an open seat at the head of the table and decided to sit down. 

“Well Ms. Clark, people had a lot to say about you,” Fury spoke. So he did tell everyone. She was screwed. She should’ve just left, saved herself the dignity of being rejected. “I think I heard more words spoken from Barnes and Howlett in the last hour than in the entire time I've known them.” Howlett? Was that Logan? She knew everyone else's last names. She looked at Logan and he gave her a subtle nod. She turned back to Fury. “It is impressive how much of an impact you've had on everyone in such a short amount of time,” he continued. “You even managed to leave enough of an impression for Asgardians to give feedback.” Oh. So this was it. He was going to tell her what Loki said and she was going to be asked to leave. “I was surprised by what Loki said in particular.” Ellie’s ears started to ring. It was happening. She knew it was coming, but the real thing felt so much worse. Her hands clammed. “I don’t know how you managed to win over the ‘God of Mischief’ in the day and a half you saw him, but you can color me impressed.” What? 

Ellie looked at Loki and he still had the smirk on his face. His voice returned in her mind, 'it will be our little secret, gorgeous.' Ellie's eyes widened slightly, as she stared at him, shocked by what he’d chosen. He was the god of mischief, maybe he liked her move. 

“Well, after discussing out a few kinks, the decision was unanimous,” Fury stated. He had a truly amazing poker face. 

“You’re on the team, kid,” Tony interrupted, excited to be the one to tell the news. Ellie was frozen in shock. She didn’t need to leave. She would be able to stay with her family. It was all working out for her, finally. A massive grin fell onto her face, as a few tears of joy and relief escaped her eyes. “Now that is the reaction I was expecting!” 

Remy ran to Ellie and wrapped her in a hug, lifting her out of her chair, “Cheri! You’re in! You get to stay! Remy is so happy!” Ellie squeezed him back, tightly. 

“Now you can really teach me how to cook,” Ellie happily proposed. 

“Ah, mon cheri, you are a fantastic cook. Remy has nothing more to teach you,” he insisted. Ellie knew she was far from it. 

“Hey kid, I’ve got something for you,” Tony spoke. 

Ellie broke away from Remy and looked to Tony. He slid an envelope across the table. Ellie opened it to see an official Avengers emblem. She studied the beautiful piece of metal that signaled her acceptance into her family. “Thank you Tony. I love it,” Ellie emphasized.

“Don’t just thank me. That was because of you and all of the people in this room. You did good, kid,” he affirmed. There was a cough of emphasis on Tony’s right and Ellie realized it was coming from Spider-Man. Oh yeah, she got to know who he was now. Had he just been avoiding her around the tower this whole time? “Oh right, you can take that off now.” He took off his mask and revealed himself to just be a teenage boy. She’d seen him before, but she couldn’t place him. “Ellie this is Peter Parker, Peter, Ellie,” he introduced and Peter smiled. The picture in the hallway! That was him and Tony from a few years ago. 

“Hi, it’s nice to properly meet you,” Ellie smiled. It was nice to put a face to the suit?  

“Yeah, It’s nice to meet you too. Sorry for having to wear the mask,” Peter youthfully smiled. He had an innocence about him that Ellie admired, he seemed untouched by the harsh realities of the world. 

“It makes complete sense, don’t worry,” Ellie replied, waving off his apology.

“Well, now that you actually know everyone, we can get to business,” Tony continued. “We will be having an official press conference tomorrow morning to announce you as our newest member. It will be at 10:30. You will need to be ready to go at 9. J.A.R.V.I.S. will tell you where to go, we have people who will get you ready. Pepper is taking care of everything,” he spoke directly to Ellie. He turned to the rest of the group and continued, “You are all expected to be there as well at 10:15 in uniform, but since it is not about you, I trust you can get yourself ready and there all on your own,” he joked. “Well kid, it’s official you’re one of us now,” he smiled wide. “Okay, that’s everything I had to say. Class dismissed.”

Everyone gave Ellie their congratulations as they left the room. Ellie made eye contact with Loki, watching him gloat in the power he held over her as he left the room. Wanda squeezed Ellies shoulder and smiled happily, pulling her focus away from the Asgardian. Ellie stayed back as everyone left, not leaving her seat, needing a moment to process the news. Her mind was a dangerous place, it reminded her of all the horrible possibilities if they’d come to a different decision. She’d been so confident that she would be sent back onto the streets, all alone. She didn’t know how she would’ve survived being alone again. Once the commotion around her quieted she closed her eyes and put her face in her hands to let her body react. She took deep breaths trying to relax her mind. She was safe. She was with her family. No one was going to take her away.  

She heard someone sit next to her. She looked up to see Bucky. Of course he wouldn’t let her stay behind, he knew she would be feeling overwhelmed. She found her heart calming as she looked at his face. “Are you okay?” he softly asked her. She nodded, but only sort of meant it. “You should know by now you don’t have to pretend to be okay for me.” 

Ellie looked at Bucky and knew she could tell him how she was feeling. She trusted him. “I was so scared Bucky,” she quivered. She wanted to be able to celebrate. Be happy about the decision, but she couldn’t escape the fears that sat in her mind. He pulled her into a hug, giving her a physical reminder that she was there and she was safe. 

“I told you that I wasn’t going to let you be alone again. I meant it,” Bucky spoke as he held her. “Do you want to celebrate? Take a nap? Watch a movie?” Bucky offered. 

“Maybe a movie? I’m too tired to celebrate right now,” Ellie honestly answered, feeling exhausted from all the stress. 

“Movie it is,” he stood up and reached his hand out for her. Ellie took it, feeling fireworks as their skin touched. She was really going to need to work on these feelings since she was going to be staying. She did not need to do anything stupid. Ellie dropped his hand to stop the explosions in her chest when she stood. 

Ellie and Bucky sat on either side of Ellie’s bed and watched Star Wars for her five hundredth time. Ellie threw in commentary throughout the movie about her favorite parts and explained why she liked the characters she liked. They ended up watching the original trilogy again until Ellie fell asleep. 

“She’s not going to stop resisting us as long as she knows they’re out there,” the man in the suit stated. “Grab her and keep her secure. Make sure she can see it,” he ordered. A group of five men grabbed Ellie, bound her wrists, then dragged her out of the van. Ellie was pulled through dense forest, then saw the view of a house set ablaze. “Do you recognize this house?” the man in the suit asked. She shook her head, confused by the scene. He pulled out a picture of her and two people standing in front of the house. Who were they? Who were those people? “It’s your house. Well, it was your house.” Her parents. It was her parents in the picture. Her parents were in the house. Ellie needed to save them. Get them out of the house. 

Ellie pushed against the men holding her back. “I need to help them! Let go of me!” she yelled as she fought. Ellie watched as the house continued to burn. The first floor windows were stained yellow from the flames and the second was black with smoke. Ellie felt her face burn from her tears. She saw hands banging on the second floor window she remembered as her parent’s bedroom. Ellie thrashed against the men holding her back. “They need help! They need me!” she tried to argue, but the men continued to restrain her. She needed to get to them. She needed to save her parents. Without them she had nothing. Ellie had no one else to fight for if they were gone. No more reasons to fight back. 

“This is your fault. Their deaths are on YOUR hands,” the man in the suit barked. No, they couldn’t die. They couldn’t. She couldn’t let it happen. Ellie continued to fight. She needed to save them. She couldn’t have their lives on her hands. “Watch,” he ordered. The men kicked Ellie’s knees down and restrained her further. Ellie wept as she watched her last remaining family, hope, and chances die in front of her. She watched the flames creep onto the second floor of the house, inching its way to her parents. She knew it was coming. She knew they were in their final moments. She crumbled further to the floor. She saw the faces of her parents in the window. They looked terrified. She saw her mom look right at her and they made eye contact. She realized it was last time they’d ever see each other. Ellie repeated apologies to her parents, knowing she was responsible for everything that was happening to them. Her mom signalled her dad to where Ellie was. She saw him smile, as if he felt better knowing she was alive. She was glad he didn’t know what was really going on. 

Her parents looked at each other, then back at Ellie, they both told her they loved her, then slowly walked into the flames. “No! No, don’t do this. Please. No, Please,” Ellie begged. She choked on her tears as she tried to force the image out of her mind at whatever must’ve been happening in their house. She shook as she sobbed, unable to control her body. She watched as an explosion of fire burst through the house, blowing out all of the windows.  Ellies body completely gave up on her and she dropped limply on the floor, knowing her parents had been taken from her. She laid in a haze as the house burnt. Soon only ash and smoke filled her home. 

“She’s seen enough. Take her back,” the suited man ordered. Ellie’s body was still lifeless, without her control. The men grabbed her and lifted her off the ground, dragging her away from the ashes of her childhood home. She was completely and utterly numb. 

Ellie was thrown awake. All of her numbness was gone and was replaced with fresh broiling grief. She’d killed her parents. It was her fault they were dead. Her family was gone. She had nothing. “Ellie. Ellie look at me,” she heard a familiar voice call. Ellie followed the voice and saw Bucky. “You’re safe. It was a nightmare. You’re at the Avengers Tower. You’re an Avenger now, remember?” he reminded her. She was an Avenger? Ellie looked around her room. She saw the New York skyline out her window and all of her belongings in her room. He was right. She knew where she was. 

“It didn’t happen,” Ellie mumbled to herself. She hadn’t been there when her parents died. She was on a college tour. Why was she there in her dream? It didn’t make sense. None of it made sense. “I wasn’t there. Why was I there?” She heard Bucky trying to ask her questions, but her thoughts were louder. Why would her mind do this to her? She knew she was on a college tour, they'd sent a police officer to tell her the news. She wasn’t there to watch it happen. Ellie didn’t understand what was happening to her. Her nightmares all had the man in the suit in them. They all felt real. They felt like, memories? but that was impossible. She knew it hadn’t happened. It couldn’t have happened. “It wasn’t real,” Ellie spoke to herself. 

Bucky softly placed a hand on Ellie's cheek and lifted her face so she’d be looking at him. “Ellie, I need you to talk to me. Who was that in your dream?” he asked. How did he know who was in her dream? Ellie looked at him, hurt and confused for invading into her dream. “Ellie, you were, I don’t know what you were doing, but your dream, you were projecting it in the room,” Bucky told her. Bucky had to watch her kill her parents. He was going to hate her, like she hated her. Ellie refused to accept that. She wouldn’t accept that he watched what she’d done. She shook her head, and hid between her legs. “Ellie, it’s okay. I get nightmares too. I just want to help you,” he delicately admitted.  

Ellie looked up at him and realized he was being honest. “It- it was the fire that my parents,” Ellie struggled. “It was my mom and dad in the house,” Ellie managed, tears gushing out of her eyes. “I um, I don’t know who the other people were. It wasn’t what happened. It wasn’t real. I wasn’t there,” Ellie reminded herself, needing it to be true. “I don’t understand what’s happening to me,” Ellie admitted her fears and broke down completely. She was so afraid of what her mind was doing to her. Bucky wrapped Ellie against himself and held her as she cried. 

"It's okay, you're gonna be okay," he gently told her as he stroked her head against his chest. "We're gonna keep you safe. It's all going to be okay," he continued. She weakly nodded into him, slowly succumbing to sleep.

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

Ellie woke to the sun beating through her windows. She was in Bucky's arms. She could hear his heartbeat and she realized she wasn’t lying on a pillow, but on his chest instead. His heavy metal arm was carefully draped across Ellie's back keeping her in place, the other was cradling her head against his chest. He was sound asleep beneath her. Ellie felt like she could stay like that forever. Her body fit perfectly against his. Ellie pushed against him to sit up and his arm squeezed tighter against her. Ellie smiled, but tried again, needing to see the time, “Bucky, I need to move.” He groaned but loosened his hold. Ellie adjusted and saw the time: 8:38 “Shoot! I need to be - I don’t even know where I’m supposed to be- in twenty two minutes,” Ellie freaked. 

“Shh, I’m still asleep,” Bucky mumbled. 

“That’s nice. I have to be awake,” Ellie sighed and escaped from his warm hold. She rolled out of bed and stood up to a pounding headache. She groaned in pain at the reminder of her horrible nightmare. Images of her parents’ terrified faces found their way into Ellie’s mind. Breathe. She needed to breathe. She didn’t have time to grieve. Ellie turned to look at the sleeping Bucky to help calm her down. She never expected to see him asleep in her bed. He looked so peaceful. She looked at the softened features of his face and felt her heart warm. She was okay. She was safe. Bucky was there. Ellie went into the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. She looked terrible. She had massive bags beneath her eyes. Luckily she remembered to take off her make up the night before, so at least she didn’t also look like a raccoon. She took some headache medicine from one of her drawers. She decided to use her little time to take a shower, hoping it would make her feel a little bit better. 

Ellie took the fastest shower of her life and used her powers to dry herself off. She wrapped herself in her towel, which now seemed way too small. It barely covered both her boobs and her ass at the same time. She prayed Bucky was still asleep. Ellie opened the bathroom door and saw Bucky wide awake, that's just great. She stood in the door frame and there he was, staring at her barely covered body. She watched his eyes follow the curves of her body. He stared at her bare legs. His eyes lingered at the end of her towel where it met her thighs. Ellie felt her cheeks warm. Bucky lifted his vision to meet Ellie’s eyes and his face turned bright pink. Ellie was overrun with embarrassment and ran into the closet and closed the door behind her. What the hell just happened? Was he checking her out? No, he didn’t see her that way. Ellie didn’t have time for that. She only had, maybe five minutes, until she needed to be wherever she needed to be. So, Ellie put on a pair of sweatpants and a tee shirt since they were going to get her ready. 

Ellie decided the least awkward approach would be to pretend that nothing happened. She confidently walked out of the closet and saw Bucky still beet red. “I have to go get ready for the press conference. I will see you there,” Ellie quickly spoke as she rushed out of the room, still sort of thrown off by having him in her room. Ellie gave Paw a quick pet on her way out, “Be good. Don’t let Bucky do anything bad while I’m gone.” She heard Bucky grumble a complaint. Ellie smiled and walked into the elevator. “J.A.R.V.I.S. where am I going?” Ellie asked. 

“The press conferences are all held on the first level. Ms. Potts is waiting for you in a dressing room on the same floor with stylists and a prep team,” the A.I. explained as the elevator traveled down to the first floor. The elevator dinged and the doors opened. “You will take a right and continue down the hallway. You will be going to room 1111. You can call for me if you need me. Good luck Ms. Clark.”

“Thank you J.A.R.V.I.S.” Ellie walked down the plain hallway and studied the room numbers as they grew larger. Ellie was not looking forward to having the world know who she was. She liked living in the shadows. She loved having a family, more than anything, but she didn’t love needing everyone knowing her name. Ellie noticed the numbers getting closer and closer until they reached 1111 and she knocked on the door. A woman Ellie didn’t recognise opened it and looked at her confused. “Um, hi. I’m Ellie Clark. I was told to come here for the press conference? To get ready,” Ellie tried to explain. 

“Oh hello Ellie,” a blonde woman walked over. “It’s wonderful to meet you, I’m Pepper. Tony has said great things about you. Come on in,” she waved Ellie in. “So, we have a team here for you. Gisele and Isle are going to work on your hair, Anna is going to do your makeup, Victoria has some outfits picked out for you to try, and I will give you some coaching for the conference,” Pepper explained. She guided Ellie to the chair in front of a wall of mirrors and Gisele and Isle started getting to work on her hair. Ellie was really nervous about standing in front of so many people. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been the center of attention for more than the members of her team. Now, she would be in the news, a topic on everyone's tongue. She felt her leg bobbing on the salon chair, unable to sit still. “Ellie, I can see that scared look on your face. This is going to fly by in a breeze. All you’re going to have to do is stand up there and smile, read a quick prepared speech, then I’ll do all the rest.”

“I’m just not used to the attention,” Ellie admitted shyly. She watched the women styled her hair. The two chatted about their family drama, they were sisters, or maybe cousins? Apparently someone named Stefanie had stolen a pair of shot glasses at their last family dinner. They loosely french braided the center of her hair back into the thick and voluminous bun. They left out two small strands and curled them, framing her face. They made a joke about Stefanie needing to be watched all the time like a new puppy causing Ellie to laugh. 

“Ellie, do you speak German?” Pepper asked. Ellie hummed in response, confused by the random question. “Gisele and Isle are speaking German, it seemed like you understood what you were saying. I was just curious,” Pepper clarified.

They were speaking German? Ellie could speak German? “Yeah,” Ellie simply answered, feigning a confident tone. They spent another 10 minutes on her hair and continued to chat. Once they finished they left, saying goodbye; Ellie had no idea what language they said it in, since she hadn’t noticed them speaking another language before. How was it possible that she could speak a whole language and not know it? It was an issue for another time. She was collecting a lot of those. “They did a really nice job,” Ellie commented. 

“Yeah, they always do,” Pepper smiled. “Anna, we’re ready for makeup!” Pepper happily announced. A gorgeous woman walked up to Ellie carrying a massive makeup case. She had long jet black hair and a full face of makeup. “We are looking for a simple, approachable look, very natural, but we don’t want her to look washed out in the lights,” she explained to Anna. She nodded and started mixing foundations on her hand, trying to match Ellie’s complexion. Pepper turned back to Ellie, “Okay, it’s 9:30, so I’ll start coaching you. The purpose of today's conference is just to announce you as the newest member, not to take any questions. So you do not need to answer anything anyone asks you, nor should you. I will be standing at the main podium doing the speaking for the majority of the time, you will be to my right. During that time, I want you to stand confidently, but show off your smile, this is the world's first look at you.” No pressure. “I’m going to explain who you are and then you are going to trade places with me. There will be a prepared speech for you on the podium for you to read. It basically says that you are excited for the opportunity to be on the team and protect those around you. It’s short and sweet. We will swap back and people will likely have questions at that point. I will simply thank them for their time and the conference will be over. You should be able to get to the elevator without anyone getting to you, but if they try to ask you anything you just say ‘no comment,’” Pepper explained. “Did that all make sense?” 

“Don’t be scary or shy, read from the sheet, don't answer questions,” Ellie recited, stopping Anna halfway through applying her contour.  

“You could try and have fun somewhere in there too. It’s a good thing this is happening Ellie. I know this step is intimidating, but you are starting an amazing journey, with a wonderful group of people. It’s a great thing,” Pepper reminded. 

“I know, you’re right,” Ellie smiled, remembering how excited she was to have a family. If she needed to go through this to have them, it would be worth it. 

“Sit still please,” Anna spoke, surprising Ellie. She’d been silent the entire time she'd had been there. She patiently sat still as Anna worked on her. She was impressive, Ellie watched as she applied more and more makeup to her face, but she still looked like herself. Anna applied a light purple eyeshadow, making her feel extremely proud of her makeup skills for knowing to do that. She finished the look with mascara, and sparkly highlighter. Ellie felt beautiful. She looked like herself, but with a bonus pop. “All done,” Anna announced. 

“It’s amazing,” Ellie said, staring at herself in the mirror. 

“Thank you Anna, it looks great,” Pepper kindly spoke. Anna simply nodded, then left the room. She was a little odd, but she was a master with a makeup brush. “Okay it’s 10:00, perfect timing. We need to choose your outfit, then meet the team. Victoria, can you present us with our options?”

“Of course Ms Potts,” Victoria smiled. “So, I grabbed a few different options and styles for you since I wasn’t sure what you would like. All of them will be appropriate for this event. First, we have a black pantsuit, it’s simple but elegant. Next, we have a sweater with linen pants, another pantsuit in dark green, a black dress, and a blue blouse with black suit pants. What do you think?” Ellie looked at the fancy clothes. She couldn’t help but be drawn to the green pantsuit. It matched the color of her earrings, her earrings! She wasn’t wearing them. Ellie quickly used her powers and placed them in her ears, hoping Pepper would be okay with the jewelry. 

“I like the green suit,” Ellie confidently stated. 

“I thought you might. It matches your eyes, oh, and your earrings,” Victoria noticed. 

Pepper smiled at Ellie, clearly knowing what she’d done. “Great choice. Now, go get dressed,” Pepper encouraged. Ellie grabbed the outfit and went behind the curtains designated for her to get dressed behind. She hung up the outfit and unbuttoned the white blouse. She couldn’t think of a way to take off her t-shirt without screwing up her hair or makeup, so she decided to try and use her powers. She successfully moved the shirt from on her to the table next to her. She smiled at her achievement. Ellie grabbed the blouse and put it on, rebuttoning it, successfully leaving her hair and makeup unharmed. She easily put on the pants and jacket and walked back out, holding her converse, not sure if Pepper wanted her to wear them. “Shoes! Victoria, do you have shoes for her?” the woman shook her head. “Shoot, I can’t believe I forgot to get you shoes,” Pepper sighed. 

“What kind should I have?” Ellie asked.

“Well, I guess with that outfit a pair of white loafers would look best,” Pepper thought out loud and Victoria nodded in agreement.

Ellie placed the image of the shoes in her mind, then brought them into reality. The shoes appeared in her hands. Ellie looked up from the shoes to see amazed looks on Pepper and Victoria's faces. “Will these work?” Ellie asked. 

“Those are perfect,” Pepper answered. She then turned to face the other woman in the room, “Victoria, I need you to promise not to speak to anyone about what you just saw. At least not until after the conference, okay? I don’t need any rumors getting out.” 

“Of course,” Victoria kindly agreed. 

“Alright, put those on Ellie, we have to go,” Pepper spoke with a new urgency. Ellie threw on the shoes and followed Pepper. “Thank you again Victoria,” she smiled as they left the room. Ellie could already hear the commotion of the conference. There must’ve been at least a hundred people there already based on all the noise. She was starting to get really nervous. She’d never spoken in front of that many people before. They turned the corner and Pepper opened the door to the prep room, which was filled with Ellie's family. They were all there. 

“Cheri!! You look so beautiful, Remy is going to fall in love,” Remy spoke as he ran up to her, causing her to blush. He was in what she assumed was his battle uniform. He wore a black cowl framing his face and wrapping around his head, ending at his forehead, leaving his hair out. He also had a full body black suit with a purple chest plate which he covered with a brown leather trench coat. It was an impressive look. “Are you okay? We were sorry to not see you last night,” he asked, concerned.

“Oh, yeah. I was just exhausted from all the worrying about the big decision. I’m okay, don’t worry,” she smiled, giving her friend a white lie. She definitely wasn’t okay, but she wanted as few people to know about her nightmares as possible. They were really getting to her and having as few conversations about them as she could would be better. Ellie continued to scan the room and found the ocean blue eyes she was looking for. “I’ll be back,” she explained to Remy. Ellie walked over to the group of two super soldiers, Natasha, and Sam. “Hey guys,” Ellie smiled. They all wore their uniforms.

“Hey El, you look hot,” Sam stated with zero hesitation. She saw Bucky give him a deadly glare that she hoped she’d never receive, because frankly it was terrifying. “Geez dude,” Sam mumbled when he saw Bucky. Ellie laughed a little at the interaction and Bucky’s glare faded. “So… Are you excited for your conference?” 

“Not even a little bit,” Ellie admitted. 

“I’m sure you’re going to be great. You won all of us over, you’ll win them over too,” Steve smiled confidently. 

“Can I talk to you for a second?” Bucky asked her. Ellie agreed and he walked them over to a quiet corner, where no one else would be able to hear them. Bucky was dressed in a leather top, with only one sleeve, leaving his metal arm visible in all its glory. He paired it with a pair of black tactical pants and combat boots. He looked hot and Ellie did not need that image in her mind. “Look about this morning. After your shower, I um-” he started. Ellie did not want to hash that out. She was prepared to let it be an awkward thing that happened, period, end of sentence. 

“You don’t have to worry about it, Bucky. It’s my fault for not bringing clothes into the bathroom,” Ellie tried to dismiss, not wanting to relive the embarrassment. 

“No, I shouldn’t have-” 

“Bucky, I’m telling you, it’s fine. I know you don’t see me in a sexual way or whatever, you were just surprised, so it’s fine,” Ellie explained. She didn’t like the idea of him not seeing her that way. She was ridiculously attracted to him, but she needed to get over it. It would be way too complicated if anything happened between them. Plus, he hadn’t shown any signs of being attracted to her, he was just being a good friend. 

“Wait Ellie-” he was cut off again. 

“Ellie, it’s time to go up,” Pepper spoke, saving Ellie from the awkward interaction. Unfortunately, she saved her, only to be brought to a miserable social requirement. Ellie took a deep breath, slowing her heartbeat, then followed Pepper. “You’re going to do great, I promise,” Pepper attempted. Unfortunately her words had very little effect. Pepper walked up to the front of the group, leaving Ellie with the masses. “Okay, You will all walk in and stand in a row behind the podium. I am then going to walk out with Ellie and we will be standing in the front. We want to present a united front, so we will all enter and leave together,” Pepper informed. 

Bucky made his way back up to her. “Ellie,” he started.

“Bucky, please. I don’t want to keep discussing this,” Ellie tried to brush him off.

“No, I just wanted to tell you good luck. You’ve got this, you’re going to do great,” he smiled. Ellie turned to look at him and saw a kind and supportive smile on his face. That smile had way too much of a hold on her. 

“Thank you,” she replied, needing to have heard those words from him, she believed them when he said it. 

“Okay, it’s time, get in there, and look professional, we don’t need any more public embarrassments,” Pepper ordered. Ellie watched as her friends, no, family all filed out of the room. Tony and Bruce wore sophisticated suits and Rhodey wore a military uniform, which made sense, they didn’t need to be clunking around in metal armor and they certainly didn’t need a hulk. Bucky gave her one last smile before going through the door into the conference hall. Logan was the last one to go through the door, he just wore a similar pair of pants to Bucky, a white tee shirt, and a brown leather jacket. He looked just as unhappy to be there as she did. Despite that he gave her a nod before walking into the room with a slightly softer expression. “Okay, it’s our turn. You can expect a bunch of flashing from cameras when we walk in, try not to look away,” Pepper forewarned. She opened the door and suddenly all Ellie could see was bright flashes of light. She focused on Peppers steps in front of her, she just needed to get to the front. Where was Bucky? She needed to see him. Ellie looked at the line of Avengers and found his eyes. He smiled at her and nodded. She was okay.

Ellie made it to the podium with Pepper and she began speaking. Ellie did as she was told. She smiled and looked forward confidently. “Hello, thank you for coming. We called this conference today to announce some good news. After a probationary period, Elizabeth Clark has been officially accepted as the newest member of the Avengers,” Pepper announced. The room exploded with questions and cameras shuttering. Ellie was suddenly thrown back into her nightmares, overwhelmed by all the bright lights flashing in her face. She remembered the burning white pain brought onto her from the scientist. The orders from the man in the suit. Her parents’ terrified faces. Her ears rang. She faintly heard Pepper's words, but they were meaningless. “Ms. Clark proved herself to be a valuable asset to the team during this probationary period. She has enhanced abilities, including but not limited to energy and reality manipulation. We are excited to have her joining us on the team. Now, I invite Ms. Clark to say a few words. She will not be taking any questions.” 

Ellie watched Pepper step away from the podium. Ellie returned to reality and she reminded herself how her legs worked. She moved over to the podium, looking to Bucky for reassurance. He mouthed ‘I believe in you’ to her and she had the boost she needed. Ellie stood in front of the podium and looked at the paper in front of her. It wasn’t a very long speech. She could do it. She pretended there wasn’t anyone there, that she was just talking to her family, as she started to read from the paper, “Hi there, my name is Elizabeth Clark, but you can call me Ellie,” she added with a smile. “I am so thankful for the opportunity to join this amazing team of wonderful people,” she continued, looking back at the people she now called her family. “I look forward to being able to protect and save the people around me from the evils of this world. I am grateful for your trust in me and I will take this responsibility I have been given with the utmost seriousness. Thank you,” Ellie finished, relieved to be done talking. 

Pepper replaced Ellies spot. The cameras and yelling continued, reuniting Ellie with her nightmarish flashbacks. Ellie tried to plant a smile on her face as Pepper finished off the conference. Ellie noticed movement and realized they were all filing out of the hall behind her, questions roared in the background as they left. Ellie felt her body follow them as Tony, who’d been first to enter, walked out, but her mind was like a dense fog. Ellie tried to ignore all the questions, quizzing about her history, why she was special enough to be on the team, how they found her, and other nonsense. 

“That was great Ellie,” Pepper smiled. Ellie feigned a smile back. 

“C’mon, let’s go upstairs and celebrate. I’ve got a surprise for ya kid,” Tony announced. 

“Great idea,” Steve agreed. People trickled out until just Ellie, Bucky, Remy and Logan remained. Ellie didn’t want to leave with the crowd, she was still a little jumpy and upwards of 10 people in one elevator sounded awful. 

“Hey Bucky can I talk to you for a second?” Ellie asked, wanting to thank him for the night before, realizing since she hadn’t yet and they were about to go celebrate with a bunch of people. He nodded and she guided him into the hall. The room had become very echoey with the lack of people and she didn't want to raise suspicions with Remy or Logan. “Thank you for last night. I don’t know how I would’ve handled that without you,” she admitted. “Also, I’m sorry you had to see it. I didn’t know I could or would project my nightmare for you to see.” 

“It’s okay, I’m glad I could be there for you. I’m just worried about you,” he frowned.

“You don’t have to be. I’ll be okay,” she tried to convince him and herself. 

He didn’t seem to like that answer, but they were cut off by an aggressive voice. They turned to see an obviously drunk reporter yelling at them, she wasn't sure how he even passed through security. “How the hell are you supposed to keep us safe? You’re just a little bitch. I bet even I could beat you in a fight,” he yelled, angry. Ellie was shocked, but Bucky looked enraged. 

“You better watch what you say,” Bucky threatened. 

“Bucky,” Ellie quietly spoke, trying to calm him down.

“No. I don’t think this little bitch can protect us! You made a bad choice, you should know that!” he yelled, pushing Bucky over the line. 

Bucky approached the man, angrily. “Say that again, see what happens,” he threatened. 

“Bucky!” Ellie yelled, afraid of this side of him. She heard noise coming from the prep room, hopefully Remy and Logan would come out and help her calm him down. The last thing they needed was Bucky beating up some random angry reporter. 

“She’s. A. Little. Bitch,” the man repeated. Loudly emphasizing every word.

As if it were slow motion, Ellie watched Bucky bring his arm back to swing. She heard the prep room doors open, and Remy yell something. She knew Bucky was already on thin ice with the public. “Bucky stop!” Ellie put herself between them, hoping he would stop and rethink. When Ellie got there he was already too committed to the motion. His fist slammed against her face, throwing her a few feet, before slamming hard against the ground. Bucky had hit her. He got angry and lost it. Ellie didn’t think it was possible.

Maybe she didn’t know him like she thought she did…

Chapter Text

Ellie felt Bucky’s hand, which only hours ago sparked excitement through her body, plant itself hard against her cheekbone. She slammed down against the tiled floors. She felt her left wrist bend in the wrong direction as she landed. The pain was fierce. He'd struck her with the full might of his super soldier strength. How could he have lost control so quickly? So easily? She was terrified of what he might’ve done if she hadn’t stepped between them. His force threw her body down the hall. The abuse felt familiar, but from where? Was it because of her nightmares? She’d definitely been punched like that before, nightmare or otherwise, and she knew she didn’t want to be hit that way again. How was it even possible that Bucky did it to her? She heard Remy yell for her as he ran to her side. He knelt next to her, “Cheri, are you okay?” Ellie had no words. 

Ellie touched her hand to her face and cringed as she felt a sharp fiery pain from where Bucky's fist had met her face. She drew her hand back to find it laced in blood. Her pain was soon cooled by a tear of betrayal. The world around her was in chaos. “See, the little bitch can’t even take a punch,” the reporter continued to yell. He no longer had any effect on Bucky, Ellie looked up to see him frozen, looking between his hands and her on the floor, terrified by what he’d done. Remy ignored the reporter and focused on Ellie. He carefully grabbed her wrist to check on how it was. It was already swelling and it laid in the wrong direction. She tried moving it and was met with incredible pain. “God, that weak ass bitch broke her little wrist just from a little fall. You guys are stupid,” the reporter continued. 

A storming Logan marched up to the reporter. “You better get lost right now,” Logan ordered. The reporter laughed. He started to draw out his claws, “I said get lost.” It must’ve done the trick because he finally scoffed and walked away. Logan turned around to look at Bucky. “And you, what the fuck is your problem? He’s a civilian. We don’t attack civilians, even if they are being dicks,” Logan yelled. He left Bucky, who was still lost in shock and walked up to Ellie, his face softened. “Hey, can you stand? We need to get you to the medical floor,” he asked concerned. Ellie nodded, she couldn’t speak, the words wouldn’t come. Remy helped her stand, careful of her wrist. Ellie let them walk her to the elevator, leaving Bucky alone in the hall. 

“Cheri, do you want to talk about it?” Remy softly asked. She shook her head no. She felt afraid of Bucky. He was supposed to be the person she felt safest with, but he was the one that hurt her. She was bleeding and her wrist was broken because of him. Even if he didn't mean to hit her, he meant to hit someone, hard. “Cheri, I’m so sorry this happened,” he carefully spoke. They reached the medical floor and Ellie was met with the smiling face of a nurse. 

“Hi there, my name is Eliza, you’re Ellie right?” Ellie nodded. Maybe she’d worked with her when she was in before, or just saw her on the news. “I can come check you in,” she smiled. “Can you tell me what happened?” she asked. Ellie looked down at her feet. She couldn’t say it aloud. She didn’t know if she could ever say it aloud. 

“She uh, she was accidentally hit, trying to break up a fight,” Logan answered. 

The nurse looked at her, as though she didn’t believe the story. Ellie nodded to the nurse, putting all the energy she could into confirming the story. “Okay, you can come with me. We can get you cleaned up. I want to do x-rays of your face,” she explained, then scanned her body. “And your hand,” she added. “Does that sound okay?” she nodded again. Eliza guided Ellie to a private room, maybe that was a perk of being an Avenger. She helped her sit down, then left the room to collect supplies. Remy pulled a chair up next to Ellie and held her good hand, providing her comfort. Eliza came back with a tray full of equipment to clean her up. “This is going to sting,” she warned. 

Ellie wasn’t a stranger to pain. She’d been through a lot of it in the last two weeks. She grabbed an alcohol swab and wiped it on Ellie’s cheek, causing a sharp burning sensation. It came back a mix of colors, from the blood and Ellie's makeup. “I’m going to need to get the makeup off your cheek so I can properly see the damage,” Eliza explained. Ellie nodded and squeezed Remy’s hand. Eliza cleaned her cheek with a wipe, washing her clean. The pressure against her face ached as she revealed the injury. She watched Eliza’s neutral expression as she worked, then turned to look at Remy and he had a large frown on his face. It must’ve looked bad, Bucky did hit her really hard. “Okay, I don’t think anything is broken, but I still want to get x-rays. You have an open wound. With your accelerated healing you should be fine with just some tape. Your wrist however does appear to be broken. I am going to need to do an x-ray to see the nature of the break before I can place it,” she explained. Ellie nodded again. Eliza grabbed the medical tape and closed Ellie’s wound. 

“It’s going to be okay Cheri,” he softly spoke. “Can I go in with her?” Remy asked the nurse. 

“You can walk her there, but she’s going to have to go into the radiology room alone,” Eliza explained. Ellie didn’t want to be alone, but she understood that she would need to be while they scanned her. Eliza looked at a tablet. “The radiology room is ready. If you want to come with me,” she prompted. Ellie and Remy followed her, she still held Remy’s hand, not ready to let go yet. She read the ‘X-Ray’ sign above the door and realized it was time. “Okay, Ellie, this is it,” she told her. 

“You’ll be okay Cheri. I’ll be just outside,” he told her as he let go of her hand.

Ellie followed Eliza into the radiology room. She sat Ellie down in a chair. “I’m going to have you set your chin down here so I can scan your cheek. You can place your wrist on this x,” she carefully helped Ellie lay her hand down. “I will be able to do both scans at once. I’ll be right back, you’ll be able to see me through the window.” Ellie nodded. She sat alone in the room, with the whirring of machines and her thoughts. Why did he do it? Why did he have to swing and betray her trust, her sense of safety. He said he wasn’t who he used to be. She knew he wasn’t, but the anger she saw in him was terrifying. She let her guard down with him, completely. She hadn't done that with anyone other than her parents. How was she supposed to let herself trust anyone like that again after this. She thought she was finally safe again, but if Bucky wasn't safe, then what could be. “You’re all done, you can go back to your friend now,” Eliza told her. Ellie managed a smile. She stood and walked with Eliza out of the room and instantly felt relief when she saw Remy. 

“Hi Cheri. How are you? Remy is here.” Ellie shrugged, she felt pretty miserable. He grabbed her hand again and she squeezed it back. They walked back together and every step hurt Ellie’s wrist, since she couldn't support it with the break. They soon reached her room, and she sat down at the bed right away, resting her wrist across her lap. “Does it hurt?” Remy frowned and she faintly nodded. “Eliza, do you have more wipes? For her makeup?” Remy asked. She nodded, walked into the hall, grabbed more wipes and handed them to Remy. “Thank you. Cheri, would you like me to take off the rest of your makeup? It might help you feel a little bit better,” he offered. Ellie nodded, she wanted to feel cleaner, erase the day.

“I have to print out your results and consult them with a doctor on staff. I’ll be back shortly,” she smiled. 

“Thank you,” Logan said. Remy started to try and remove her makeup and struggled to do it with one hand. “Do you want me to help? I can uh, replace you, giving you a second hand, if that’s alright with Ellie,” Logan offered. She looked at him and saw compassion behind his eyes, like Remy. She nodded and Logan walked over, taking her hand from Remy. He held her hand tight like he was responsible for her safety and wellbeing. “I’ve got ya bub,” he quietly said to her. Remy delicately worked on removing her makeup. Her mind felt so blank. She felt her pain and grief from the betrayal, but everything else was so lifeless. She felt like she was relieving her past, her body remembered the pain and abuse, but her mind didn’t. What was happening to her, better yet, what had happened to her? She wished she knew, so she could understand why she was feeling so awful. She knew she was hurt by Bucky’s behavior, but the way her body was reacting, it was beyond that.  

“Much better mon cheri. Your makeup is all gone, as beautiful as always, more in Remy’s not so humble opinion,” he boasted. “I’m going to check with the nurse for a second, Logan will stay with you, keep you safe. Is that okay?” he checked. Safe? She didn't think she'd ever actually feel safe again. Ellie nodded, Logan felt like whatever thing was the closest to safe. Remy smiled and left her with Logan. 

“Bub, can you be honest with me?” Logan quietly asked. Ellie nodded. “Have you-” he struggled. “Have you been hit before?” he softly asked. Ellie just shrugged, not completely sure of the answer. “I know you have nightmares,” he told her. Ellie’s eyes opened wide, how did he know that? “I can hear you, through the floors. I didn’t feel the need to bring it up, it seemed like Bucky was there for you.” Ellie frowned at his name and the reminder of what happened. “I don’t know what you’re feeling right now, maybe there’s more to it, but I’ve met my fair share of people through my years. The ones that share your reaction after a beating are the ones that have been beat before,” he carefully explained. Ellie was lost for words entirely, internally and externally. 

“Remy found Eliza with test results!” he announced as he walked in. “I can take over again, thank you for your help Logan.” Logan looked at Ellie again, staring into her soul, then squeezed her hand before letting it go, letting Remy replace him. 

“Okay, so I got the results of the x-rays. Unfortunately, you do have a minor fracture to your zygomatic, or cheek bone. Since it was incomplete and the bone isn’t displaced, you shouldn’t need any intervention. You have a type two wrist fracture. Meaning your radius has been completely broken in two places. I can place it under anesthesia.” Ellie immediately shook her head. She didn’t want to be put under, she didn't want to know what was waiting for her behind closed eyes. “Okay, we can do it while you’re conscious as well, but it will be very painful. I can give you pain medications and local numbing agents. If that’s what you’d like to do I’ll start getting supplies now. I want to start sooner rather than later, to prevent any unwanted healing.” Ellie nodded and Eliza walked out of the room again. 

“Are you sure you want to do this? It’ll hurt real bad,” Logan cautioned, but Ellie simply nodded. She knew she didn’t want to be put to sleep, she wouldn't risk having another nightmare, especially if it could include Bucky. “Okay bub.” 

Her nurse soon walked back in with a collection of bandages. She injected something in Ellie's wrist then offered her a pill, but Ellie shook her head no, they made her drowsy and she didn't want to fall asleep. “You’re sure?” Eliza asked and Ellie nodded. She could practically feel the concerned looks from Remy and Logan, but she ignored them. Eliza accepted her answer, then got all her supplies ready. “Are you ready?” she asked. Ellie nodded. Eliza counted down, then placed Ellie's wrist. She screamed, loudly, at the burning, sharp pain. When Eliza finished Ellie realized she was crying and she had a raspy ache in her throat. Remy gently brushed her tears away with a warm smile. “I’m sorry. The worst of it is over,” she comforted. The pain started to die down and turn into relief. She placed a metal support on either side of her hand to stop her from being able to move the joint, then wrapped it with casting bandages to keep it secure. “All set.” 

“How long will she need to wear it?” Logan asked.

“With her healing, her bone should fully repair itself in about a week and a half. I want her to wear the cast for at least that amount of time. She should come back down in ten days, so I can look at it to make sure it’s healed and I’ll remove the cast,” she explained. “The cast should be fully dried in the next half hour, but you should be fine to continue daily activity, just don’t cover it. You guys are all set to go.” Eliza smiled. 

“Do we need to fill out any paperwork before we leave?” Logan asked.

“Nope, it’ll just be added to her file, we have all her information already,” she smiled.

“Thank you for all your help,” Logan added. 

“It’s my pleasure,” Eliza returned

“Okay, we can go back to your room now Cheri,” Remy smiled at her. Ellie nodded, ready for the day to be over. He helped her stand and fortunately her wrist didn’t hurt anymore when she walked, her face still ached, a lot, but she would live with that. 

They walked into the elevator and Ellie looked at her two friends and felt just a little bit better, more protected, secure. “Thank you,” she quietly said, finally finding the words. 

“Of course Cheri,” Remy smiled. 

“Happy to bub,” Logan added. Suddenly the elevator shined red. Ellie looked to her friends, terrified. “It means we have a mission,” Logan sighed in explanation. “The elevator is gonna bring us up to the top floor, to the jet. It does it automatically if one of us is inside. You can head back down to your room after. I’m sorry we have to leave you bub.” 

“No, I’m not leaving. I’m going with you,” Ellie trembled, she couldn't be alone.

“Cheri? I don’t think-.” 

“No. I’m not asking. I’m a member of the team now right?” Ellie argued. They couldn't make her stay back. She couldn't be the only one in the tower, just waiting for them to come back. The nerves, the pain, it would eat her alive. Ellie used her powers to transform her outfit into a pair of tactical pants, boots, and a long sleeve black exercise shirt, and altered her hair to be in a high pony. Logan and Remy looked at her, amazed by the transformation she’d done. The elevator door opened and Ellie walked out, not waiting for them to say anything else.

She stepped out and immediately froze in her tracks when she saw Bucky. They looked at each other and she watched him stare at her face and wrist. He looked mortified. Ellie realized she wouldn’t be able to go on the mission if Tony saw her looking so broken. She attempted to use her powers to modify her appearance and hide her injuries. Ellie looked at her hand and saw that it looked normal. She conjured a mirror and checked to make sure it worked on her face as well. She checked and she successfully masked the injury and her blotchy face. She dissipated the mirror and saw Bucky’s scared, hurt expression again. Ellie quickly turned away, she couldn’t see him, it was way too painful. Ellie closed her eyes and took a deep breath, regaining her composure. She strutted up to Tony, feigning confidence, "Elsicle?" 

“I’m coming with you guys,” she told him.

“Oh are you?” he sarcastically returned. “Well, you haven’t had enough training to be mission ready I’m afraid.” Right. She wasn't allowed on missions. She tried to hide how much it hurt to hear, but god she was terrified. She really hoped her powers were masking the tears that were definitely on the edge of escaping. “I can, however, let you join us, if you promise to stay in the jet. You can sit with Peter, he’s going to be staying back for this one too. Just stop looking at me with those puppy dog eyes,” Tony sighed. 

“Thank you Tony,” Ellie returned and pulled him into a hug. She was sort of surprised by how prompt he returned it and how warm and comforting it was. Could he tell she was upset? Was that why he hugged her back so tight? Whether he knew it or not, him being so solid made her feel secure. He nodded at her and she went onto the quinjet. She found a seat near the end of the row and sat down, looking around the jet. It was really high tech with screens scattered around and weapons strategically placed. She looked closer and realized there were emblems above each seat, signaling who each spot belonged to. Each of the outermost seats were left unlabeled, meaning she’d be using one of them. She looked at the arrangement and chose the seat next to what looked like Logan’s claws, deciding it was a good spot. Next to him, she suspected sat Remy, because of the Ace of Spades above the seat. She saw Wanda’s crown and Pietro's lightning next to them. There was a little spider icon next to Pietro's spot, which Ellie knew belonged to Peter. Across from her, there was another empty seat, then a star with a circle around it, then another star with multiple rings around it. Ellie realized the first one matched the star on Bucky’s arm, meaning he was going to be almost directly across from her. The second was obviously Steve’s shield. Next was an upside down arrow with wings sticking out of it, maybe it was Sam's? Ellie didn’t fully recognize it. Next to him was Thor's obvious hammer and Loki's helmet. At the front of the ship there were four seats, so she assumed the people that knew how to fly the ship sat up there.  

Ellie sat cross legged in her chosen seat and waited for the rest of the team to arrive. She assumed they were collecting their equipment. They were all already in uniform. Ellie watched the open hatch as Logan walked onto the ship. “Hey bub. You look better?” he gestured to his own face and wrist. Ellie shrugged, not really feeling like explaining. “You’re sure you’re up for this?” 

“Yeah. Tony said I have to stay on the ship, so I’m not going to be out there or anything,” Ellie mumbled, not looking him in the eyes. 

“Alright bub, I’m here for you. If it gets to be too much, any of it, let me know, I can stay back,” he quietly offered, careful not to let anyone else hear. 

“Peter's staying back too, so I'll have company,” Ellie told him. Logan nodded, then got himself situated in his seat. Ellie played with her powers, lacing it between her fingers, as people trickled into the room. Letting it comfort and distract her. She kept her head down, wanting to avoid making eye contact with a specific super soldier. Once everyone was loaded onto the ship Tony told everyone to brace themselves and he took off. She looked out the window on the hatch, letting the time pass by, watching the clouds zip past her. “Logan, do you know where we’re going?” Ellie quietly asked. 

“Canada. Back to my homeland, hah,” he sarcastically laughed, clearly not amused. “Tony got intel about a Hydra base up in Quebec. We’re gonna take it down. He said the flight would only be half an hour,” he told her. Maybe she shouldn’t have just jumped into the jet, she missed the whole mission debrief. They’d been flying for a while, so they had to be close. Ellie decided to return to her absent minded staring, not wanting to think or talk. 

After another few minutes she heard movement in the ship. Ellie turned around to see Steve getting out of his seat. He walked up towards the front end of the jet and Ellie briefly looked at everyone around the jet, except one metal armed person. Everyone was focusing on Steve except Loki, who was looking right at her with an eyebrow raised, so she brought her focus back to standing soldier. “We’re landing in 5 minutes. We’re infiltrating and taking down what we assume to be a fully operational Hydra base. For that reason, it’s too dangerous for Peter to join,” Steve explained. She looked over to Peter and saw him complain about being an adult now saying that he could handle himself. “Peter, this is not up for discussion, it’s for your own protection.” She heard Peter sigh, loudly, but it seemed like he accepted it. “Additionally since Ellie has not had her combat test she's also benched for this one." Ellie looked back down at her feet, instantly overwhelmed by all the faces turning to her around the jet. She activated her powers again, letting the tingle and warmth flow through her as soon as the focus left her. "We assume there will be valuable intel in the base. So, we are going to have Nat enter the base to collect data with Wanda and Remy’s backup. Tony, Rhodey, and Sam, you are going to cover the air. Buck and Clint, I want you both to stay outside, you two are our best shooters. The rest of us are going to work on neutralizing the base, move in if you clear out your area, but I want you to go in with at least one other person. Does this all make sense?” He received a round of nods and yeses. 

“Capsicle, take your seat, we’re about to land,” Tony called back. 

Ellie stole a glance at Bucky, he’d been staring at her. He looked terrible. There was so much more than just worry in his expression. There was guilt, regret, and shame. It hurt her to see him that way and she hated it. She didn’t want to see him in pain. Ellie looked away, looking at him just made her hurt more, like his pain was seeping into hers and she had to carry the load of both of them. She would have to do everything she could to keep herself away from those emotionally wrecked ocean blue eyes, because she didn't know how she'd survive it if didn't.

Ellie felt the jet shake as it landed and everyone unbuckled. Logan grabbed her hand and squeezed it with a smile one last time before walking out of the ship with the group. Remy gave her a gentle hug and told her not to miss him too much while he was gone, making her smile lightly. It felt good to smile. They closed the hatch behind them leaving Ellie alone with Peter. “So, what now?” Ellie quietly asked. 

“Well, I usually take a nap or something, but since you’re here. Maybe we could do something fun!” Peter suggested. Ellie nodded, hopeful for an opportunity to bring up her mood. “I uh, saw you playing around with your powers earlier. What else can you do?” Peter carefully asked. 

“What do you want to see appear?” Ellie asked as encouragingly as she could. 

“Umm. A deck of cards,” Peter said. 

“Remy must love you,” Ellie genuinely smiled. She conjured a deck of spiderman playing cards and tossed them to Peter. “What do you think?” 

“Very funny,” he sighed at the spider-man cards. “That was really awesome. What else can you do?” he resolved with a smile.

“I haven't tried this, but,” Ellie tried to completely change her appearance to look like Peter. She looked down and her hands were covered in his red suit. “Did it work?” her voice spoke in his voice.

“Holy crap! How did you do that?” Peter asked with an amazed look on his face. Ellie removed the illusion and looked back at him. “Wait, what happened to your face? Are you okay?” he asked, suddenly concerned. She’d dropped all of her illusions, including the one covering her injury. She replaced it right away.

“It’s nothing, I tripped,” she lied. “So Peter, tell me about you,” she quietly asked, her lightened mood almost entirely drained.

His concerned expression didn’t drop and she frowned further. He softened his face to one of support, “there’s not much to say. I grew up with my Aunt May in Queens. I got my powers during my sophomore year of high school and I sort of just did local stuff until Mr. Stark found me being a Friendly Neighborhood Spiderman, y'know. I graduated last year and I moved into the tower after that. I'm studying Biophysics at NYU. Umm, I guess that’s kind of everything,” Peter explained. “Is it true you have a cat?”

“Yeah, it is. His name is Paw,” Ellie told him and watched his face light up. “You’re welcome to meet him if you’d like. He’s a real sweetheart. Loves people.” That was one of the beauties of Paw. Even just talking about him helped make her feel better.

“Yeah? I’d love that,” he smiled. Ellie watched him take out his playing cards and start shuffling. “Want to play Rummy?” He proposed to which Ellie happily nodded. 

They ended up playing for upwards of an hour. The game and Peter's presence was slowly bringing her out of so much of a dark mood. Ellie was completely destroying him. Just as Ellie was about to lay down the rest of her hand she was overwhelmed with the sense that something really bad was about to happen. It was like she’d gotten before, but this time it was stronger and more specific, like she was being drawn somewhere. Ellie looked up at Peter. “What is it?” he asked. 

Ellie followed her intuition and ran to the front windows of the ship to try and see what was happening. She saw Bucky tucked behind a tree staring into his rifle. She didn’t see anyone else, but the terrible feeling wasn’t going away. She leaned over further and saw a group of four men, each with machine guns, aiming directly for Bucky’s back. He couldn’t see them. “Turn around Bucky,” Ellie quietly begged, knowing he wouldn’t be able to hear her. Her body told her she needed to be the one to save him, but how? She watched the men whisper to each other, nod, then place their fingers on the triggers. “Bucky!” Ellie yelled. Suddenly it was like Ellie’s whole world turned into slow motion. She needed to get to him, to be on that snowy ground with him. To protect him. He wouldn’t be able to survive that many bullets even with his accelerated healing. She felt the world around her shift and she was suddenly on freezing ground. Sounds of guns firing filled her ears. She had no time to think, she was looking right at the men. She’d somehow teleported herself to Bucky. She raised her shield to cover both her and Bucky, seconds before the bullets would have met her flesh. The bullets turned to dust when they contacted her shield, piling on the ground around her. While maintaining her shield Ellie similarly disintegrated their guns then sent energy blasts, disarming and neutralizing each of them. 

“Ellie?” she heard Bucky softly speak to her. She turned around, maintaining her shield to keep them safe. He still had the same look on his face. “Ellie I-”

“No, Bucky. You promised me. You promised me you wouldn’t leave me. That doesn’t just mean physically leaving. When you attacked that man, you left me. You left me alone and afraid,” Ellie yelled, all of her thoughts bursting out of her. “I felt safe for the first time since I was 16 because of you. Really safe. I thought that I might've actually found that again, but no. You ripped it out from under me. I don't know if I can ever feel safe again.”

“Ellie, I’m so sorry. I never meant to hurt you. I would never lay a hand on you I swear,” Bucky told her and she believed him. 

“I’m not upset because you hit me. Don’t you get it? Bucky I am terrified that you have that amount of anger in you and that you would try and hurt that random guy. What he said was wrong and hurtful, but what you did was beyond that. There are more important things than what some idiot says. I know that and I really thought you did too. Clearly I don’t know you like I thought I did.” Her eyes burned. 

“Ellie,” he softly started. Ellie looked at him and waited for him to say something, but he didn’t, placing Ellie into a rage. 

“Bucky, you are going to need to get a handle on this. I will not be your punching bag if you get upset again. I did it today, because I didn’t want you to get in trouble, but never again,” she was overwhelmed with anger at his stupidity and violence. She decided to drop her illusion for emphasis. “He was a civilian Bucky. Your outburst left me with a broken cheekbone and wrist and I’m enhanced. Who knows what you could’ve done to him. God Bucky, you could’ve killed him. You would’ve been thrown off the team, I read the contract when I signed. This team is your family too, I can’t believe you would be so stupid and risk losing it. Does it mean nothing to you!?” she snapped, tears dropping down her cheeks. She could hear herself taking some cheap shots, but she was so furious and disappointed at how reckless he was with his place on the team. The team that had saved her. He had saved her, but he was willing to throw it all away and leave her all alone. "You told me to trust people. That was you," she yelled, pointing at him. "Your idea. You made me trust you and today? Today I had to rethink that." Her rage was suddenly overwhelmed by the fear she’d been holding of losing him, “They would've taken you away. Did your promise mean nothing? I don’t know why you did it, but I know that you doing that breaks that promise,” she trembled. This all felt so familiar, she’d been taken advantage of and lied to so many times, she just never thought Bucky was capable of it. “Maybe I’m the idiot. For thinking you meant it when you said it,” she snapped. Ellie needed to leave. It was too much and her anger was rising again. “You’re welcome by the way. For saving your life,” she scoffed, before finding her teleportation powers again and going back into the jet. 

Ellie replaced her illusion and sat down in her chair. She tried really hard to stop her tears, not wanting Peter to see her like that, but it was completely useless. She placed a second illusion, hiding her distressed expression. Peter walked up to her and she knew her illusion was smiling, but Ellie wasn’t. “Woah, what the hell? Where’d you go?” Peter asked, clearly amazed at her disappearing and reappearing act. “How did you do that?” Peter looked at her awestruck. His interest actually did make Ellie feel a little better.

“I’m not sure actually. I’ve never done that before. I guess it was my adrenaline or something,” Ellie thought quietly to herself. She gave herself a few minutes to regain her composure and it seemed like Peter was happily playing solitaire. She was pretty sure he knew she was in a bad place and he wasn't pushing her about it. If at some point she was feeling better and saw him she'd thank him for it. After a few rounds of deep breaths she was able to think and see straight, so she decided to stop letting Bucky control her world, at least for a little while. “Wanna see if I can do it again?” she asked, hopeful to lighten her mood. Peter instantly nodded eagerly. Ellie focused on the spot directly behind Peter and suddenly found herself there. She tapped on his shoulder. “Hey Peter,” she smiled. He swung around to look at her with a grin of childlike wonder on her face, widening her smile, even without the illusion. She disappeared again and put herself in the captain's seat, noticing a 'J.A.R.V.I.S. is my co-pilot' sticker on the wall, then again with Steve's seat. 

“That is awesome,” Peter gaped. The two played around with her new power for another half hour. Ellie could feel her body growing tired from all the power she’d been using, but she was having a genuinely great time. Peter's joy was seeping into her, being exactly what she needed. “Ellie, do you think you can teleport me?” Peter nervously asked. Ellie hesitated. She wasn’t sure if it was a good idea, she didn’t know if her powers were safe to use on another person. “I promise I won’t tell Tony. We’ll only go like a foot or something?” 

“I’m going to regret this. Fine, come on,” Ellie gave in and teleported next to him. “Is it okay if I wrap my arm around you? I want to make sure you’re secure,” she asked. He nodded and she placed a hand around his waist and he placed one around hers. “Are you ready?” she confirmed. He nodded. “Okay, um, brace yourself and don’t let go,” Ellie warned. “Three, two, one.” Ellie placed her energy around the two of them and moved them a foot forward. Once she was confident they’d moved she turned to Peter to make sure he was okay. “How do you feel?” Ellie asked, worried. 

He scanned at his body with an unreadable expression and worry flooded her system. Did she hurt him? “That was AWESOME!” he yelled. Ellie sighed in relief. “That was amazing. One second we were there and then we were here. It tingled, does it tingle for you? Oh my god that felt so cool. Can we do it again?” Peter rambled. He had a massive grin on his face. Ellie found her face matching his expression. Ellie placed her hand around him so they could try again, but his facial expression suddenly changed. “Something's wrong,” he said to himself. 

“Peter what is it?” Ellie asked. Peter ran to the front of the jet and started pressing buttons, not saying anything. “Peter, what's going on? You’re scaring me,” she continued as she followed him. He looked focused, but also like he was running on autopilot, just doing what his mind was telling him. He tapped one last button then stepped back from the console. Voices of the team started filling the jet. 

“Natasha’s been shot. We need medical help now, she’s bleeding too quickly,” Remy's voice trembled. 

“Where are you?” Steve asked, fear laced in his tone. 

“Inside the intel hub of the base. Wanda is holding the Hydra agents off, but it’s real' bad in here. They were ready for us,” Remy stuttered. 

Ellie and Peter looked at each other. “Peter, I think I’m going to do something stupid. You can’t tell Tony,” she told him. 

“Wait Ellie, we’re not supposed to leave. It’s way too dangerous. Plus, you heard him, it’s really bad, you can’t get in there, there’s no way,” Peter cautioned. 

“I’m not going to have to, I can teleport now, remember?” she reminded. Ellie really hoped this wouldn’t backfire on her. She closed her eyes and focused on Remy. She needed to see where he was so she could teleport to him. She felt the connection and opened her eyes to see the inside of the Hydra base. They were in a computer room of sorts. Remy was holding pressure against Natasha’s wound and Wanda was using her powers to keep people out on the other side of the door. Ellie broke the connection and saw the jet again. “Peter, stay here. I’ll be back soon,” Ellie assured him before closing her eyes and focusing on the room she’d seen. She opened her eyes and saw Remy, just like she’d hoped. “Remy, I’m here. I can help,” Ellie spoke.

Remy swung his head around. He looked terrible, she could see the terror and stress in his eyes. His hands were soaked in Natasha’s blood. Ellie followed his trembling hands and looked at Natasha. She’d been shot in her abdomen. Ellie didn’t know how long ago, but she’d definitely lost a lot of blood; there was a small pool of it around her and her skin already had obvious pallor, even from where Ellie was standing. “Cheri? What? How did you get here? Wanda is still guarding the door," he rambled as his eyes sporadically jumped around the room. His eyes widened as he seemingly registered the situation, "wait, you shouldn’t be here. You’re supposed to be on the jet, it’s too dangerous, Wanda is hardly keeping them back,” he spiraled. 

“Remy, it’s too late for that now. I can help, let me help, please,” she asked, knowing she would regardless of what he said. He nodded and Ellie started summoning all the medical supplies she could think of. She handed him gauze. “Take this and push it down against her wound,” she ordered. She watched him put it on her abdomen and it immediately bled through. Shit. Ellie summoned a large pile of them and gave them all to him. “Keep adding them until it doesn’t bleed through,” she instructed. Ellie was feeling really grateful for her first aid training. She looked up at Natasha and checked on her, “hey, how are you feeling?” She mumbled unintelligibly in response, well that wasn't good. Ellie conjured a bag of o- blood and saline. How was she going to put it in? Ellie decided to try and let her reality manipulating powers do the work for her. Ellie altered the reality of Natasha's arm to have the IVs for the blood and fluids in it and running. “You should start feeling better with that soon,” Ellie told Natasha. “How are you doing, Remy?” 

“Cheri, I’m scared. The blood won't stop,” Remy breathed. 

Ellie conjured more gauze. “Put these on, you can remove some from the top, but not the ones on the bottom. It’ll be okay Remy,” she told him. She wasn’t sure she believed herself. She needed to do more. Maybe she could alter the reality of Natasha's injury? It couldn’t hurt to try. “Remy, I’m going to try something. Don’t remove pressure unless I tell you, okay? No matter what,” she ordered. She didn't want Remy to stop treating Natasha if Ellie reacted poorly to the energy use. She had no idea how her body would respond to the use of her powers like this. She was already exhausted from teleporting earlier, so she wasn't working at 100%. She knew from training that she got pretty drained from using her abilities for prolonged amounts of times. Ellie closed her eyes and took a deep breath, finding the powers within her. She would need as much as she could get. She brought the power to her hands and pressed them against Natasha's abdomen, on either side of the gauze. She focused on the bullet and found it lodged in her small intestine. She transported it out of her body and heard it clank against the metal floor next to her. She could feel the damage in her abdomen and attempted to reverse the injury. She could feel reality fighting back, apparently human life was harder to modify. Ellie pushed harder, calling more power to the surface. It kept fighting. She used all the energy she had and called on every ounce of power left in her system to reverse the damage. She could finally feel it working. Natasha was healing. 

“Mon Amore, the blood, it’s stopping!” Remy excitedly told her. Ellie weakly smiled, knowing what she was doing was working. She wasn’t done yet though. She wouldn’t stop until there was no more damage and Natasha's skin was closed. She had to finish the job. Saving Natasha was her job. Ellie continued to push her powers to the surface, fighting her exhaustion and reality itself. She was struggling to keep her breathing steady. The forces were too strong. She could feel herself slipping, her body couldn’t take much more of this. She could feel her powers growing fainter and body getting weaker. Her entire body was swaying with the power usage. Natasha was almost healed, Ellie just needed to close the skin, she could hold out for that. “Cheri? Are you okay?” 

“You can let go now Remy, she’s fine,” she weakly told him as she pulled back her powers. She did it, Natasha was healed, completely, and had fluids and blood replenishing her. Ellie saved her. She did it. She shook in the absence of her powers. Her body couldn't hold her up anymore, she started to fall, but was caught by Remy. Ellie was fighting to stay conscious, rapidly blinking to stay awake. “I saved her. She-” Ellie struggled to keep her eyes open.

“Cheri? Cheri what’s happening?” Remy held her, regaining his worried expression.

Ellie smiled, looking at her friend, then was consumed by darkness. 

Chapter Text

(NEUTRAL PERSPECTIVE)

“Cheri?!” Remy yelled as Ellie's eyes closed and her body fell limp in his arms. “Cheri, c’mon don’t do this,” he trembled. He looked around the room, but there was no one there to help him. Natasha was still unconscious. The gauze had fallen off her wound and it looked like she’d never been shot. Ellie saved her. She was a hero. “Please Ellie, please,” he whispered as he placed two fingers on her pulse. Her heart beat, slowly and weakly, but it beat. “Please, hold on,” he wept. He pressed his hand against his comms, “Hurry here, please.” 

There was stirring across the room. Natasha was waking up and her eyes slowly opened. She felt a dampness around her and remembered what had happened. She was sitting in her own blood. She nervously looked at her abdomen, needing to see the damage, only to find it healed. She scanned the room, seeking an explanation and her eyes stopped on Remy and Ellie. Ellie was lifeless in his arms with a pale and- Natasha rapidly blinked, making sure it wasn't just her brain playing a trick on her, but it wasn't. Ellie had a massive bruise on her face with a nasty looking cut that had been taped shut. She continued to scan her and found a cast on her arm. She knew this wasn't from the mission, it had to have been from before, but she didn't have it on the jet? It didn't make sense. “What the hell happened to her Remy?” Natasha interrogated. 

“She saved you. You should be grateful. Cheri risked her safety for you. I don’t know if she’s gonna be okay, but you are,” Remy snapped in a broken voice, utterly terrified for his friend. 

“You know that’s not what I mean. Who did that to her?” she forced, as she pulled the tubes out of her arm. Remy looked down to look at her with a tear dropping down his face.  

“It’s not for me to say,” Remy told her as he brushed his hand along Ellie’s hair. 

Their argument was cut short by a conversation over their comms. “How’s Natasha?” Steve asked.

“I’m fine,” Natasha replied. 

“What? How?” Steve asked, confused and relieved. 

“Ellie healed me,” she simply answered. 

“What?! She wasn’t supposed to leave the jet. How the hell did she even get to you?” Tony joined. 

“She teleported,” Remy told him.

“So did she go back?” Steve asked. 

“She can’t,” Natasha answered. 

“What do you mean she can’t?” Tony snapped. 

“She’s unconscious,” Remy trembled. “I’m worried. Her pulse, it’s not good. She needs to get out of here.” 

“I’m coming,” Logan growled. 

Logan left his stance outside. He ran inside, claws out. Wanda was still fending off the soldiers, but Logan ran through them, slicing through them and taking their bullets like they were nothing. He broke into the room, bullets dropping out of his rapidly healing body. “Where is she?” Logan demanded. Natasha gestured to Remy. He slid over to Ellie, looking at her in Remy’s arms. He brushed his hand against her face. “What happened?” he asked more softly, scanning her for injury. 

“She’s not hurt. I think she used too much power healing Natasha. Her body couldn’t take it. She collapsed after she finished. Ay, mon cheri,” Remy sadly sighed. 

“Did you get the intel you needed?” Logan turned to ask Natasha. 

“Yes,” she shortly answered. Natasha studied Logan. “You knew too? You weren’t surprised when you saw her busted face. What happened? Don’t even think about lying to me,” Natasha continued to push, needing to know who'd done this to her friend.

Logan looked at Remy, then spoke, “after the conference there was an asshole reporter insulting Ellie. She was out there with Bucky and he-” Logan looked at Ellie with a frown. “Well he got mad at the reporter. Remy and I heard yelling and we ran out to see him swinging at the guy but Ellie got between them. You can piece together the rest.” Logan cleared his throat, regaining his rugged facade. “If you have the info you need we should go. I can take her. Remy, you and Wanda can cover us, I cleared most of them out,” he directed. Remy nodded. Logan grabbed her from his arms, cradling her head in his chest. “I’ve got ya bub,” he quietly spoke.

“We’re going to go to the jet. Logan’s got Ellie. We'll take any extra cover,” Remy spoke over the coms. 

“I’m almost there. I can help you,” Steve answered. They all walked into the hall and were met with Wanda. She frowned when she saw Ellie, she hated seeing her friend in pain. They exited the hall to piles of Hydra men, who’d been taken care of by Wanda or Logan. Natasha held her gun drawn, and Wanda and Remy had their powers activated. Once they confirmed it was safe, Logan walked through, he used as much of his indestructible body to protect hers, with his hand protecting her head and his arms wrapped around her chest and abdomen. “Hey, I’m here,” Steve smiled. His face fell the moment he saw Ellie. He looked to Natasha to find out what happened, but she shook her head. She knew it wasn't the right time, especially with the Bucky of it all. “It’s not too bad out there, but we need to go fast,” Steve told them. They nodded and ran out of the facility. It was pretty well cleared out. The group was working perfectly; Logan guarded Ellie, Natasha and Steve checked corners before each turn, and Wanda and Remy took agents out as they arrived. 

They cleared the building and took a few steps outside when the shooting started. Hydra agents were hiding in the trees, bushes, everywhere. They open fired at the group before they had any time to react. The bullets flew at unmeasurable speeds straight for the Avengers. Time was slowed by a silver speedster. Pietro ran to the group. He noticed their fearful expressions and Logan hunch over in slow motion to try and cover Ellie as much as he could. Pietro turned around to look at the shooters. He started to smile, knowing he was going to have fun with it. He placed his headphones into his ears and turned on Good Riddance by Green Day. He ran up the trees and pushed the men, just enough to start them falling, but left their guns in the trees, disarming them. He positioned the men on the floors’ fists in their faces and gave them the nudge they needed to get the punch they deserved. He noticed Bucky aiming at someone particularly well hidden. Bucky’s bullet was slowly making its way to them. Pietro ran to the agent and took his gun, but decided to let Bucky have the win. He ran around the area, to confirm he took care of everyone, then went to collect the bullets. Pietro collected all of the far bullets and pointed them to the grass. He moved in and looked at all the closer ones. A few of the soldiers had good aim. The soldier Bucky shot at had four bullets going straight for the unprotected part of Ellie's head. Pietro directed them to the ground. He realized he’d gotten all but one and it was a doozy. It must’ve been the first one fired. Pietro caught it inches from Ellie’s temple. He sped up time, letting it flow at its natural rate. Sounds of bodies slamming onto the ground filled the air, as Pietro's manipulations took effect. Logan looked at the bullet in Pietro's hand. “You’re welcome, old man,” Pietro spoke before speeding away. 

Bucky looked at Ellie’s limp body in Logan's hands and saw the bullet in Pietros hand. He ran over to the group. “Is she? What happened,” Bucky quivered. He went to reach for her, trying to get a physical confirmation that she was alive, but Natasha immediately stepped between them.

“Nat?” Steve asked. 

“He knows what he did. His hands deserve any place on her right now,” Natasha spat. “Come on, we need to get her to the jet,” she spoke to Logan. He nodded and they all left the two super soldiers behind. 

“What is she talking about Buck?” Steve asked seriously. 

“I- I didn’t mean to,” he stuttered. 

“Bucky, did you do that to her?” Steve asked, struggling to maintain his composure. He didn't want to consider the idea that his best friend was capable of that, hurting her like that. He knew the Winter Soldier did so many horrific things, but not Buck, he couldn't ever do that. That question broke whatever control Bucky had over himself and he broke down onto his knees, crying. “Tell me what happened.” 

“I broke her trust, my promise,” he trembled. Steve continued to look at him, forcing Bucky to continue. “A- After the conference, there was a reporter calling her horrible names. I- I got so angry. I don’t know why. I couldn’t control it. I wanted to hurt him for what he was saying, b-but Ellie got between us,” he stuttered, looking down at his hands, heavier tears falling. “She’s never gonna forgive me.” Steve’s angry expression faded and he brought his friend into a hug.

“We all make mistakes, Buck. She’ll forgive you,” he comforted. He scanned the area. “It’s not safe out here. We need to get back to the jet,” Steve told his friend. Bucky nodded and let him take them back to the jet. Steve pressed onto his comms. “Pietro, do one last scan of the area. Everyone else get back on the jet, we’re done here,” he announced. The two walked back onto the jet and found Ellie being set onto the built in medical bed that was lifted out from the floor. “How is she?” 

“So far it seems like her body went through severe exhaustion. I’m going to hook her up to some fluids. Her heart rate isn’t great, but it’s improving,” Bruce explained.

Peter walked out of the bathroom on the jet and saw her lying unconscious. He ran over concerned. “What happened to her? She said she was coming right back.” 

“You knew she was leaving the jet and you didn’t try to stop her,” Steve asked sternly. 

“If she can teleport there’s not much he could’ve done,” Logan countered. “She’s not very easy to negotiate with.” 

Bruce placed the I.V. and secured her on the bed. The rest of the team re-entered the jet and took her seats, until they were only waiting on Tony. Every one of them noticed the injuries. Loki was studying everyone on the jet, using them to piece together what had happened to the new, mysterious member. He lingered on Barnes. He was in obvious distress, more than usual. After a few minutes Tony flew up to the landing bay and clunked on the metal. He disassembled his suit, returning the nanotech to his reactor to look at Ellie. “What the hell happened? Who did this to her? Don’t even try to say it just happened. No offense Bruce but I know you didn’t place a cast in the two minutes she’s been here,” he yelled protectively. Nobody was talking, most people didn’t know, but those who did… “I swear to god,” Tony sighed. He turned to Bucky. “You, she’s been spending a lot of time with you. You must know something,” he accused. Bucky looked down at the floor. “Why do you look guilty? Did you do this? If you hurt her-” he fumed.

“Tony, it was an accident,” Steve reasoned.

“Oh, so did you not hear me when I asked what happened? No, you just decided your old war buddy was more important,” Tony fumed. “She’s supposed to be safe with us. Dammit,” he exclaimed. He paced the jet, then paused just focusing on her. "I should've known. I should've known something was wrong. She was acting different after the conference," he spoke to himself, disappointed in himself for not seeing it. He turned to Bucky, "that's when this happened, isn't it? Between the conference and the mission." 

“If I may,” Loki started. “Instead of all this he said, she said, ridiculousness. We could just see what she remembers,” Loki proposed. Tony sighed but accepted. Loki placed his hands on Ellie's temples and he scanned her memories. He explored her whole life in just a minute. “Well, isn’t she complicated?” he joked, only to receive a room full of glares. “Right, here it is,” he announced, then projected the memory. Everyone but the three that experienced it first hand stared at it intently. “Well, there it is. Can we be done with this?” Loki requested. 

“You’re suspended for attempting to attack a civilian,” Tony fumed at Bucky then went to the front of the jet. 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

(ELLIE'S PERSPECTIVE)

Soft warm fabric covered Ellie's skin. She slowly lifted her eyes and found herself in her room at the tower. How did she get here? Ellie tried to sit up but was met with aching pains in her wrist. Right. The day came back to her. All of the terrible moments. The nightmare. The conference. The reporter. The mission. Bucky. She closed her eyes, wanting to rid herself of all the bad memories, but they wouldn’t be leaving her. Ellie pushed herself up on the bed with her good hand and found Paw sleeping at her feet, “hey baby. How are you?” Ellie looked outside and it was dark. “J.A.R.V.I.S., how long have I been asleep?” Ellie asked. 

“You’ve been asleep for the last 16 hours,” he replied. The clock on her window read 5AM.  

“Thank you.” Apparently Ellie really knew how to sleep. She made it out of bed and felt pretty awake, she actually felt really good, energized. She walked out of her room and into her bathroom. Her eyes burned when she saw the dandelions on the counter, but she looked up and saw her bruised face and felt a different type of ache. She was wearing a pair of her pajamas, she really hoped it was Wanda who put them on her. Ellie looked at herself and despite the now purpley blue bruise on her cheek she looked good. The cut was healed, so Ellie tore off the tape that now just sat on her skin. Could Ellie heal herself? It wouldn’t take nearly as much energy to fix up a bruise. Ellie decided to pull her energy forward and direct it to her face, but literally nothing happened. She didn’t even feel a fight from reality. She was powerless when it came to her own harm, fitting. 

Ellie walked out of her bathroom and tossed on a sweatshirt, then decided to see what food she’d stashed in her kitchen. She didn’t want to know if Bucky was awake and on the common floor. Ellie left her room and found a large gift basket on her coffee table, along with a passed out Logan on her couch. Ellie grabbed Paw, then set him on top of Logan, “wake him up baby. Be careful of his claws though.” Logan groaned and Paw started kneading biscuits on his back. “Sorry, did I interrupt your beauty sleep,” Ellie smiled. 

Logan shot up at the sound of her voice, scaring the crap out of Paw. He got off the couch and pulled her tightly into a hug, she was surprised but happily returned it. “God bub. I’m so glad you’re okay,” he softly spoke. He held the hug, then pulled her away from him and he frowned. “Why did you do that? Tony told you to stay in the jet. Things could’ve ended a lot differently. This was one of the worst bases we’ve ever been to. I get that you wanted to be a hero, and heroes risk their lives for others and all that shit, but dammit Ellie, your life matters too. It matters a whole lot to a whole lot of people. I know you’re not used to that, but you’re going to have to get used to it. You scared the hell out of me bub, I don’t want to see you like that, ever again,” Logan emotionally ranted. Ellie had never seen him like that. She had no idea he cared so much. She made a lot more progress with him than she realized. Ellie thought this was how would feel to have a brother. Loved, protected, and pissed as all hell at her for being stupid and irresponsible. She really liked having a brother. 

Ellie looked into Logan's hurt eyes and she pulled him into another hug. “I’m sorry, you’re right. I was being reckless. I should’ve listened to Tony,” she sympathized. “I’ll be smarter now, think first, be more responsible,” Ellie assured him. Logan continued to hold her against him and Ellie sought the support as well. "They all saw, didn't they?" she asked, gesturing to her wrist.

"Yeah," he quietly replied. "When we got you back into the jet Tony demanded to know what happened and Loki," he paused. "Well, he um, he showed everyone what happened. He accessed your memories or something, at least I think that's what he said. I'm sorry bub," he frowned. 

Ellie nodded slightly to herself. Maybe it was better that way. Nobody would ask her about it since they already knew what happened. “So, what’s all this?” Ellie asked, gesturing to the basket of goodies on her table, needing to talk about anything else. 

“That is your welcome package. Apparently you were supposed to get it after the conference, but Tony brought it in here. He figured you could open it when you were ready,” Logan explained. Ellie stared at the pretty basket. “Yeah, go on, open it. Have your little Christmas,” Logan sighed with a smile on his face.

Ellie found her smile as she undid the colorful wrapping around the large basket. “So, Tony made it?” Ellie asked. 

“Yeah, some of us put in a lil something for you too,” Logan explained. Ellie smiled at him, excited to see what he’d gotten her. Once the wrapping was cleared Ellie found tons of snacks, a stark pad, computer, phone, and watch, wow Tony. He must've really noticed her comment about not having any devices. She noticed a few wrapped boxes within and a note. Ellie grabbed the note and opened it: 

Welcome to the team kid. You’re officially one of us now, so you get all the new toys. We’re so glad you’re here. 

- Tony 

Ellie’s heart ached as she read the note. She reached in and grabbed all the snacks and tech, studying them as she set them aside. Ellie had never really had any technology, except for a little Nokia phone that she’d lost in the fire. She would need to spend a good amount of time figuring them out. Ellie grabbed a wrapped box out of the basket and opened it to find a deck of playing cards with flora print, similar to the art she had in her room, Remy. She smiled at the beautiful playing cards, she still had people, Remy still cared about her. She reached in and grabbed a very neatly wrapped box. She found a cookbook of classic Sakovian recipes, Ellie ran her fingers along the text with a soft smile, remembering the conversation she’d had with Wanda about her connection with her mom and cooking. Ellie was so grateful she was willing to share that with her, she had Wanda too. She grabbed a messily wrapped blob and found a falcon action figure. She rolled her eyes thinking about Sam getting it, that he thought it was a good gift idea. “Bet he had to spend a long time looking for that,” Logan laughed. “Probably bought one for himself too,” he added and she breathed a laugh. Ellie reached into the basket again and grabbed the third to last box. She noticed Logan's attention spike, so it must’ve been his. She opened it and found a tee shirt that read ‘I survived Remy’s Kitchen’. Ellie genuinely laughed and threw him into a hug. She could picture Remy’s reaction already. “Glad you like it bub,” Logan smiled, proud of his gift. Ellie reached in and grabbed the larger of the two remaining boxes. It was nicely wrapped and obvious time had been put into it. Ellie carefully undid the wrapping and found a familiar box. She carefully opened it, already knowing what was inside. She found her necklace, from the little shop she’d gone to. Ellie’s eyes burned. “What is it bub?” 

Ellie took a deep breath, looking at her necklace. The light the last few moments had brought her was entirely relinquished. She was instantly right back into her darkness. “Bucky, the necklace is from him,” she breathed, feeling a teardrop down her cheek. How could the same Bucky that made her feel so safe and cared for also be the one that punched her. How could he have been so kind and thoughtful, getting her the necklace after just seeing her look at it, but then turn around and throw it all away. She wouldn't let him spoil the necklace. She liked it because it felt right to her, not because of Bucky. “Will you help me put it on?” Ellie asked Logan. He nodded and grabbed it for her and placed it around her neck. It felt right, like something clicking into place. Maybe it was a sign? Or maybe not. Ellie held her new necklace around her neck, feeling the cool metal in her fingers.

“It looks good,” Logan commented.

“Yeah, it does,” Ellie quietly agreed, thinking of so much more than her necklace. Ellie cleared her throat, pushing her emotions aside. She reached in the basket for the last gift. She opened it and found a note and a credit card? 

Hey kid, this is yours. Your salary will be added to it. The app to see your balance is already on your phone. Also, come down to the garage with me later. I have another surprise. 

-Tony

“Tony gave me way too much,” Ellie sighed, she wasn’t used to having nice things. Ellie grabbed the phone and pressed on the transparent glass and a screen appeared. Ellie saw various apps on the screen. She looked at her credit card and found the app that matched it. It opened and showed her balance: $40,000. How did Ellie already have that much money? She hadn’t had that much money in- No, she’d never had that much money. “Logan, how much does Tony pay us?” Ellie nervously asked. 

“Too much. I think our salary is like a million a year or something,” he casually answered. Ellie stared at him, jaw dropped. 

“I don’t know if I can accept it. I haven’t done anything to deserve it,” Ellie spoke. 

“Three things. One, trying to tell Tony no is a lost cause and two, you saved Natasha’s life yesterday. You’re a hero, bub. You deserve compensation. Three, Tony has way more money than he knows what to do with,” Logan reasoned. Ellie shrugged, still unsure. “Well, don’t worry about it now. Are you hungry? I know I am,” he transitioned. 

“Yeah. Let’s eat,” Ellie returned, still off from thinking about Bucky. They walked into Ellie’s kitchen and opened her fridge. Inside there was literally nothing. “Huh,” Ellie quietly spoke. She wasn’t sure why she thought she had food. “What do we need? I’ll teleport to the kitchen and grab it,” Ellie offered, not really wanting to deal with the elevator, she had another plan for anyone else who may be down there. 

“How do scrambled eggs sound?” Logan asked.

“Great, I’ll be right back,” Ellie replied. She casted a new illusion over herself, so she’d be invisible to the naked eye. She looked at her arm, but nothing was there, success. She placed the image of the kitchen in her mind and felt her body move through space and arrive there. She scanned the room and saw Bucky sitting on the couch, of course he was awake. She ignored him and grabbed her eggs and some shredded cheese from the fridge. She closed it and saw him looking right at her, or rather through her. She realized she’d turned her supplies invisible too. He had a confused look on his face, over the exhausted one. He looked horrible. His eyes were red with massive bags. He looked like he hadn’t slept in days. Ellie teleported back to her apartment, dropping her illusion as she went. “Got it. I grabbed cheese too,” Ellie announced to Logan. 

“Thanks. Did you make yourself invisible or something? You disappeared, then a few seconds later your magic poofed, like you teleported,” he explained, mimicking an explosion with his hands. That meant Bucky probably knew it was her. No one else could do that. 

“Yeah, I did. I didn’t really want to risk running into anyone downstairs,” Ellie admitted. 

“Did you?” Logan asked. 

Ellie nodded. “Bucky was down there.” She set the food down, avoiding eye contact. “Is he okay? I don’t want to be, but I’m worried about him. He didn’t look great,” Ellie quietly asked. 

“It’s okay that you care about him, bub. I don’t know how he’s feeling. Maybe you should try and ask him yourself, when you’re ready,” Logan suggested. Ellie nodded, she thought she could do that, it shouldn't be too hard, right? It certainly couldn't make her feel worse. “Okay, I’m cooking; eggs are one of the few things I know how to do,” Logan announced. Ellie nodded and sat down at one of the bar stools and opened her phone to keep playing around with it. She found a messaging app. She pressed the plus button and found a list of contacts pop up. Tony must’ve programmed her phone with everyone’s numbers already. Ellie looked at Bucky’s name in the list and her leg nervously bobbed. She pressed it and started typing. She stared at the text, then hit send. 

ELLIE:

It’s Ellie, we need to talk.

BUCKY:

Okay. I can meet you whenever you're ready.

ELLIE:

Come to my floor in an hour.

Ellie set her phone down on the table and took a deep breath, reflecting on what she’d just done. “Logan, I um, I just asked Bucky to come here in an hour so we could talk,” Ellie barely managed to tell him. Had she just made a huge mistake?  

“It’ll be okay bub, do you want me to stay with you?” Logan offered. 

“No, I don’t think so,” Ellie mumbled. Logan nodded and returned to cooking. It probably should be her and Bucky, right? She needed honesty and she didn't know if Bucky would be if Logan was there. Her thoughts were broken by the scents of Logan's cooking. It seemed like he was right about knowing what he was doing. Ellie went back onto her phone and realized she should text Tony. 

ELLIE: 

Thank you so much for the basket Tony

When should I go to the garage?

Thanks again, for everything

She set her phone down and Logan placed a plate of delicious looking eggs in front of her, with a warm smile. Remy would probably say the food was a culinary disgrace, but it looked great and she was hungry. Ellie and Logan moved to the couch and ate their meal and watched The Office together. Logan didn’t really understand it, but he did find it funny whenever Jim would prank Dwight. The show actually made her feel a little safer, like she was in a cocoon of sitcom television where the real world didn't exist. Where Bucky didn't hurt her and betray her trust, where she could still feel safe, actually safe, not just some bullshit pseudo safety in a TV show. She hadn't realized how much time had passed until her phone buzzed. 

BUCKY:

Is it okay for me to come to your floor?

“Um, Logan, Bucky’s asking if I’m ready for him,” Ellie anxiously told him. 

“Oh right, yeah. Good luck bub, you have my number now so you can reach me if you want me to come back okay?” 

“Thank you Logan,” Ellie pulled him into another hug, needing the last few moments of support. He hugged her back and whispered words of encouragement before leaving for the elevator. 

ELLIE:

Yes.

Ellie threw her phone across the couch and felt her leg bob in anxiety as she awaited his arrival. Breathe Ellie Breathe. She could make it through this. It was Bucky, she'd talked to him plenty of times before, but things were different now. How would she face him? What would she even say to him? What was he going to say to her? Ellie tried, and failed to slow her breathing as her mind catastrophized. The elevator door dung and she forced her eyes up and saw Bucky walk into the room. She couldn't speak, she was frozen. She studied his face and saw the pained expression that still remained. She could see his large bags under his red and puffy eyes even clearer from this distance. Had he been crying? Her heart ached as she looked at him. He carefully stepped into the room and waited to walk in further. “You can sit,” she finally spoke, barely over a whisper, nodding to the chair next to the couch. He sat down, but he still stayed silent, there was so much emotion hidden in his face. Was he really gonna make her do it? Make her talk first. She took a deep breath, getting all the energy she could, “I wanted to-”

“Are you okay?” he asked at the same time as her. Ellie looked at him confused. “After the mission and um, what happened.” 

“Oh, my wrist still hurts,” she mumbled, looking down at her cast. “Other than that I’m fine. Guess I just needed sleep,” Ellie spoke into her lap. Looking at him was hurting her. It was physically painful to look at him. It was like a stabbing in her chest to see his face, like his pain was piercing her. She carefully looked up at Bucky, but he was staring at her wrist. “I um, I wanted to give you the uh- the chance to um explain,” Ellie stuttered, tucking her casted arm into her sweatshirt pocket. 

“Oh.” He looked down at his hands. “I made a mistake, Ellie. I heard the terrible things that guy was saying about you and I got upset. I don’t know what happened. I’ve never gotten that angry before. I’m so sorry. It won't happen again,” he spoke. 

“I guess I don’t understand. What the guy said was awful, but it was just one guy. I’ve heard crap like that my whole life,” she divulged, finally finding the words. Bucky looked at her with an upset look on his face. “It’s like that right there. I don’t get it. It’s like you don’t realize the realities of the world exist around me,” Ellie argued, her fear and hesitancy replaced by her frustration. 

“I don’t know. I can’t help it. When I’m around you I just want you to be okay. I guess I just want to protect you,” he admitted.

“Bucky I don’t need your protection,” Ellie countered.

“I know, but-” 

“I’m not a stranger to the real world. I can handle myself,” she sternly put. 

Bucky's expression changed. He no longer only looked concerned, but also upset. “No Ellie, you keep saying that you can take care of yourself, but you’ve been in the hospital three times since being here. It’s like you have no regard for your own life. You went into the Hydra base knowing it was dangerous,” Bucky vented

“I had to go, Natasha could’ve died,” Ellie reasoned.

“You almost died! I- I don’t know what I would’ve done if I’d lost you,” Bucky choked.

“Bucky,” Ellie quietly spoke.

“Ellie I need you to promise me you won’t risk your life again like that,” Bucky begged with a tear dropping down his cheek. 

“You know I can’t do that,” Ellie denied. He put his face in his hands. “I don’t get it, why do you care so much?” She understood his history, but this felt like more than that. 

“Because you’re all I can think of Ellie. Night and day. When you’re hurt I can’t sleep. My heart beats faster when you're around. When you laugh, god it’s the best noise I’ve ever heard. All I want is to be around you, all the time. When you smile, it feels like there’s nothing wrong in the world. Ellie, I'm in love with you.”

Ellie stared at him in disbelief. Did he just tell her he loved her? “Bucky you’ve known me for two weeks. You don’t love me,” Ellie told him, determined for it to be untrue. He couldn’t love her. It wasn’t possible, love in two weeks? Much less to someone like her. There were too many implications, changes, if he loved her. Ellie had already gone through enough changes, it was too much. 

“Ellie-“ he started. 

“No Bucky. You don’t love me. God,” Ellie sighed deeply. “How did you think this was going to go over? We were in the middle of a serious conversation and you tell me you love me? Are you serious?” She paced the room. 

“Ellie sit down please,” Bucky asked.

“No,” Ellie firmly replied. “No, I need time to think, to process. You need to leave,” she ordered, completely overwhelmed. 

“Ellie?” 

“Go, please,” she tried to keep her cool, but her emotions were burning inside.

He looked like he was going to argue again, but gave in and walked to the elevators. "I need one thing to be clear. I never lied to you about my promise. I meant every word of it, I still do," he clarified. Her words must've hit him hard, they hurt her too. The elevators closed behind him and Ellie fell apart, alone for the first time since everything had happened. Apparently the conversation could make her feel worse.

Chapter Text

Ellie went straight to the training center the moment she could actually breathe, changing her clothes with her powers. She knew she'd continue to spiral if she didn't occupy herself, so she decided she'd distract herself in the gym. It was still early, so she hoped nobody would be there. She teleported into the facility and surveyed the room, looking around to see if anyone else was there. She breathed a sigh of relief when she realized she was the only one there. The last workout she'd done was legs, so she decided to just go from there. Ellie walked over to the mats and collected some supplies for her abs workout. She knew she wouldn't be able to do the push ups and possibly the plank, though she'd try that one, with her cast. 

With her core successfully aching, she teleported upstairs into one of the sim rooms, so she could train with her powers. She set up a battle simulation at maximum difficulty. She didn't care if it was too much, she wanted the challenge. Ellie stepped inside and brought her powers to the surface, dancing them around her hands, "begin simulation." The room around her turned into what seemed to be a city street with both civilians and criminals. She used her intuition to assess who to attack and who to save, then got to work. She disintegrated every weapon she could sense, then placed bounds around the people who were holding them, restraining them on the ground. Suddenly a building started crashing down and she could feel people below it. Ellie held it up with her powers, using all her strength, and allowed them all to get out before letting it come back down. 

She let out gasping breaths as the room retook form, summoning a water bottle and taking massive gulps of it between breaths. Slow clapping filled the room and she turned to see Loki walking in. "Wonderful job gorgeous," he purred. 

"Thanks," she flatly spoke, absolutely zero appreciation in her tone. 

"You are quite special, you know," he continued. 

"Are you here for a reason?" she snapped. She was in no mood for this. She shoved past him, not even caring that he was a literal Norse god. He grabbed onto her right arm, stopping her movement and she instantly swung her head around, causing a slight ache in her cheek. "Don't," she hissed, pushing his arm off of her with her powers.

"Well aren't you in a good mood," he toyed. She glared at him, harshly. 

"What do you want Loki? I'm kind of in the middle of this," she shortly returned, adjusting the settings on the simulation, then walking back inside. She groaned to herself when she saw him follow her in. 

"You know, I could've told everyone what you'd done in the meeting but I didn't," he prompted. 

"Yeah and why didn't you?" she asked, staring him down. 

He paused for a moment, then an obnoxious smile coaxed his face. "Because, you're far too beautiful to send away," he smirked. 

"You're an ass," she huffed, having no patience for his bullshit. "Can you leave me alone now?" she asked, bluntly. 

"Fine, but remember gorgeous, we will always have our little secret," he winked as he stepped out of the room. 

Ellie grumbled loudly as he left, somehow even more pissed off than she was before. She started the next simulation and this time she showed a lot less mercy. She took out all of the crooks as aggressively as she could without killing them, blasting them further than usual, holding the taser to them much longer than she had to, tightly restraining them in a way she knew hurt. It helped her to know that they weren't real people and it was just a simulation; she was able to get out her anger without actually being so violent. As soon as she finished her simulation she started another one, with the goal of using and extending her powers. She fought like that for the next two hours, until she was barely able to stand. She wobbled out and shut down the room. Logan met her right outside the room. It seemed like he'd been waiting for her. "Hey Bub, how did it go with Bucky?" he softly asked. 

"I don't want to talk about it," she coolly dismissed. 

"Did something happen?" he pushed. "You know I'm here for you," he continued.

She knew he was just trying to be nice, but she was too overwhelmed. It was too much. She just wanted to feel safe. Everything felt too unstable. Nothing felt secure. She couldn't talk about it. It would mean she would have to think about it, then she would spiral about it, just like she already was. She needed the panic to stop. She needed to escape. It felt like she was going to explode. "I said I didn't want to talk about it," she snapped, then teleported to her room. She heaved her breaths as she made her way to her bathroom. A shower. The cold water. It could shock her system, set her free from her thoughts. She removed all her clothes with her powers and created a waterproof seal around her cast. She stumbled into the water and felt the icy water pierce her skin. She crumbled to the floor, soaking in the water, slowing her breaths, just trying to make it through that moment. She went straight to her bed after her shower, ready to sleep the next part of her day away, drained from her training, "J.A.R.V.I.S., can you wake me up in an hour?"

"Of course Ms. Clark. Rest Well," it responded. Ellie fell asleep almost the instant her head hit her pillow, absolutely consumed by her power usage induced fatigue. She woke up to her alarm feeling physically refreshed, not at all mentally, but at least her energy was replenished. She changed back into her exercise gear, cleaning it with her powers and put on her combat boots, planning to just do more sim work. "Ms. Clark, Mr. Stark says he's left a message for you," J.A.R.V.I.S. announced. A message? Right, she'd texted him that morning. Ellie summoned her phone and found a few new messages. 

BUCKY:

Can we please talk?

Ellie?

I'm worried about you.

Ignore. 

LOGAN:

Are you alright bub? 

Please talk to me

ELLIE:

I'm fine.

TONY: 

Do you want to head down to the garage at noon? 

Kid? 

Ellie looked at the clock on her window and saw that it was 11:40, shoot.

ELLIE:

Sorry, I was taking a nap.

Does noon still work?

TONY: 

Still works great.

See you soon. 

Ellie sighed to herself and tried to build up the energy and courage to see Tony. She made herself invisible, so she could go to the common floor to get food. She didn't know who she'd find down there, but she knew she didn't want to talk to anyone. She teleported into the kitchen and hoped no one was paying enough attention to see the teleportation poof thing Logan was talking about. Once she got there she could smell food. She scanned the room and saw Remy bringing a plate out to Logan at the table. It seemed like it was just them there. She carefully walked towards the food so she could try and prepare herself something to take away with her. "Bub?" Logan's voice broke through. Ellie froze, could he see her? She checked her arms but she was invisible. She watched him leave the table and step towards the kitchen. "Are you in here bub?" he continued. 

"What do you mean?" Remy asked his friend, scanning the room. 

"Remy, can you make another plate?" Logan requested. 

"Oh, um, yeah, sure," he responded and started preparing food. "If Cheri is here, why can't we see her?" 

"She can make herself invisible," Logan told him

"Why would she want to hide," he frowned. "Did we do something wrong? Is she mad at us?" Ellie wanted to be able to tell him he didn't do anything wrong, but she couldn't She couldn't face him. She couldn't face anyone. Not anymore. 

Logan let out a heavy sigh, "I don't know." 

Remy set down the plate, "um, cher. If you are here, the food is done for you. You don't have to hide from us," he added. She teleported to where the food was and grabbed it, making it invisible and Remy looked directly at her invisible figure. "If you- If you um want space, Remy understands," he quietly added in a broken voice.

She took an unsteady breath then teleported back to her floor. She hated hurting Remy. He'd only ever been good to her, but she didn't want to say something she didn't mean. Staying away was better. She felt tears trickle down her face as she ate her food. Once she finished she cleaned and. teleported all her dishes back to the kitchen cabinets. She walked back into the bathroom for a moment to make sure she wasn't too obviously in distress. She didn't look great, but she definitely could look a lot worse. She washed her face with some cold water and took a deep breath, then placed the image of the garage back into her mind and teleported there. "Geez," Tony muttered from behind her. She turned around to see him standing near the elevator. "So Ellie-pop, that's what it looks like when you teleport," he noted with a smile. She gave him a weak nod. "You okay kid?" he asked softly. 

"Yeah, um, I guess I'm still kinda off from the mission," she lied, avoiding eye contact. 

"Ellie," he continued in the same tone. She managed to look up at him. "Why didn't you tell me about what happened? Were you planning to hide it forever?" he asked, his tone seemed simultaneously hurt and worried. She gave him a weak shrug, explaining things weren't really in her set of skills at the moment. If she was being honest she probably was planning on hiding it. She'd successfully kept what she'd done to herself on her first night to herself, and Bucky. She probably could've kept this a secret too if she tried hard enough. "Talk to me, please," he gently requested.

"I knew you wouldn't have let me go on the mission," she quietly answered. 

"There are things more important than missions," he countered. 

"I know," she told him. "I didn't want to be alone," she breathed. 

Tony frowned and brought his arm around her shoulder in support, bringing her against him. "So, do you want to know why you're down here?" he asked, changing the subject, much to her relief. She gave him a small nod. "Great, right this way," he smiled, as he guided them deeper into the garage. They arrived at a long row of cars parked separately from all the others. "Alright, now pick one," he requested excitedly, canvasing the row with his arms. Ellie's eyes widened as she stared him down, was he seriously giving her a car? "If you have a different one in mind then we can order it," he continued. 

"No, no," she quickly responded. "This is too much, I- I can't," she breathed.

"Look kid, you're one of us now, so I'm going to look out for you and make sure you have anything you could need," he seriously told her. She broke their eye contact again, it still felt wrong. She'd gotten by on her own for so long that relying on someone else sounded terrifying. "Let me put it this way. It's a non-negotiable. When you accepted your place on this team, you joined this family and families take care of each other. I'm not going to let you struggle any more than you have to. This job, this world, it's already hard enough. If I can do anything to make it easier, I'm going to," he gently spoke. She nodded, finally accepting the gifts. "Now, please pick a car," he requested. Ellie gave him a small smile and walked towards all the vehicles. She saw a bunch of crazy sports cars, she was almost confident she'd lose control and crash them. There were also some fancy sedans; they weren't quite as crazy as the ferraris, but there were a few porsches and bentleys. She kept walking until she reached the SUVs. That's what her parents had growing up and she liked the larger car. She noticed some of the same brands as before, a couple lincolns and cadillacs, but she paused when she saw it. There was a beautiful green car sitting 5 feet ahead of her. "The Rivian," Tony noted and she turned to face him. "It's electric. Do you want to look inside?" he offered and she nodded. Tony opened the front door and gestured for her to get in, "you can drive right?" 

"Yeah," she told him. She'd lost her license when the fire happened and never really bothered to get another, but she had a new one issued when she was 21, so it all worked out. Ellie stepped inside the car and instantly fell in love with it. She sat down in the driver's seat and Tony walked around and into the passenger seat. It had a beautiful screen behind the wheel and in the center, and an ash wood accented interior. The seats were all black leather, matching the steering wheel. She continued to look around the car and found the roof was literally just glass, "woah." She turned more and saw two more rows of seats behind her. 

"This is the R1S Quad Launch Edition," he told her, reading from a paper he'd gotten from the glovebox. "It should have a 400 mile range, a 2.6 second 0-60, it's heated and vented in all 7 seats. It has 360 surround sound, great storage and outlets positioned throughout. Do you want to take it on a test drive?" he asked. 

"Are you sure?" she confirmed.

"You should try out cars before you buy them," Tony advised. "I mean, I don't, but I also don't drive all my cars, so," he shrugged, causing a small smile to plant itself onto her face. "Here are the keys," he handed her a gold and silver clip with a black key fob within it. "You just need the keys inside the car to start it," he told her. She nodded at him and found the start button. She watched as the screens lit up and the car started to hum. "The gear shift is sort of weird on this one, you shift that handle that looks like the turn signal," he told her.

She found the nob and shifted the car into drive and slowly pressed onto the gas and the car shot forward, "jesus." 

Tony chuckled at her struggles, "it's okay. The electric cars are very responsive. You'll get used to it. If you turn out this way we have a circle drive around the main parking lot for the building you can test it in," he directed, pointing her to the left. She signaled her turn, even though there was literally no one else there, and pulled out of the garage. She found the road he was talking about and turned onto it, "alright, you can play around with it on here. Test the speed, turn radius, brakes, the works," he guided. It was surprisingly nice to be doing this with Tony, if she was in a better mood she'd probably be having a really great time. The idea was sort of painful, but these were things that she probably would've ended up doing with her parents if they were still alive. If it had to be anyone else, she was glad that it was Tony helping her. 

After driving around for a few laps they pulled back into the garage. "So, is this the car?" Tony asked.

"Yeah, thank you Tony. For everything," she quietly spoke. 

"Of course kid," he smiled. "You can park near the front this time," he told her. She pulled into a spot near the elevator, turned off the car, grabbed the key, then got out of the car. "So, are you going to train?" Tony asked, looking at her outfit. She just nodded. "Well, Bruce was asking about you earlier. He was hoping to steal you for his lab this time. Do you want to stop by there after?" he asked.

Ellie considered it. She didn't really want to be around people, but it would be a good way to fill her time. "Sure," she quietly replied. 

After finishing a two hour training session, consisting only of simulation work, she took a quick shower and a thirty minute power nap. Her cheek bruise was healing really well, it was still visible, but it was much fainter. She changed into a pair of jeans and a way oversized sweatshirt. She frowned when she noticed Bucky's sweatshirt placed on her shelf. She brushed away the tear that had managed to break free and walked to her elevator. It had been a really long time since she'd been to Bruce's lab, so she decided to take the elevator this time. She focused on steading her breathing as she rode down. The doors opened and she slowly stepped out, nervous for what was coming. She saw Bruce looking into a microscope, apparently very focused. "Bruce? Tony said you were looking for me," she asked in as stable a voice she could manage. 

He started speaking still looking into the microscope with an excited tone, "I know you wanted to work in a lab and now that you're officially on the team I figured you could start working here." He looked up and his voice slowly trailed off as he looked at her, "how does that sound?" She gave him a small nod. This really was exciting, but she wasn't capable of that, not with everything going on. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked worriedly. 

"Yeah, um, what do you want me to work on?" she quietly asked, not making eye contact, changing the subject. 

"I was thinking you could work with genetic modification of the stem cells using the CRISPR-Cas9 system," he told her, clearly picking up on her need to not discuss how she was feeling. She nodded. "I have a protocol for you and all of the supplies you'll need," he carefully explained. "Oh, you should use a lab notebook, I think I might have one here," he stated as he searched around. She conjured one instead. "That works. You should write down everything you do, so we understand why something works if it does and vice versa," he explained. "I'm here if you have any questions," he told her and she carefully nodded again. 

Ellie walked over to the sink and washed her hands, then put on gloves. She could feel his eyes burning into her, studying her movements. She looked at the protocol and saw that she'd be needing ice, so she found a bucket and the machine and put one at the station she'd be working at. She grabbed her ice and the protocol and walked to the freezer to collect her buffers, plasmids, and oligos to start the first step. She also got out everything she'd need to digest her plasmid, which would be done simultaneously. Her station was already stocked with all of the pipettes and tips she'd be needing. She started the thermocycler and the heating block and prepared for her work. She set up her plasmid digestion and placed it in the heat block for the first of two 30 minute incubations. She then created her oligos and placed them in the thermocycler. She now had an hour of waiting, which would not work in the state she was in. She looked around and found Bruce. She slowly approached him, it looked like he was differentiating cells, which was really cool, maybe she'll have the energy to ask about it later. "Um, Bruce," she breathed. He turned to look at her with a warm expression. "I have an hour wait for my next step. Is there something else I can do while I wait?" she asked. "Please," she whispered. 

"Oh, um, yeah, sure," he replied, getting up from his station. "I can have you make some solutions if you want?" he offered and Ellie nodded, needing something to do. He grabbed a few papers and handed them to her. "A few of these need to be clean. Do you know how to set up a sterile field?" he asked. She nodded, she'd done it in a class before. "Okay. You can check back in when you're done," he told her. She walked over to a different bench with a bunsen burner on it and grabbed a squeeze bottle that read '70% Ethanol'. She read through the first paper and walked around the lab collecting the supplies she'd need. Luckily it was a very well labeled lab, so she didn't have to ask where anything was. Once everything was collected  she sprayed the ethanol over the desk then wiped it down with paper towel. She then lit the bunsen burner and started to work. She finished 2 of the 5 solutions, pausing in the middle to switch her plasmid to a higher temperature, when her thermocycling finished. She walked back over and collected her oligos and plasmids and began the ligation process. She set up a 3% ethidium bromide gel while she incubated her ligation reaction, then went back to the solutions. She loaded the gel once the incubation was done and completed the last two solutions while she waited for the gel to finish. 

She set up the solutions nicely on her desk and walked up to Bruce. "I um, I finished the protocols," she anxiously told him. It was strange how powerless she felt here verses when she was training, she called a Norse god an ass that morning, but could barely talk to Bruce? She hated it. The effect it was having on her. He was having on her.

"Oh, that's great. Your gel?" he asked. She walked over to the casing and grabbed it. He walked them over to a computer and brought out a UV tray. "We can scan it with this. You can set it on here," he told her, gesturing towards the black tray. She carefully placed it and removed all the bubbles, then he slid it into the reader. She carefully watched the buttons he pressed and wrote it down in her notebook, so she'd know what to do next time. The machine whirred for about a minute then an image came up. "Well damn," he muttered. Ellie looked at him concerned, had she messed something else up. He turned to her and quicked corrected his comment, "oh no, it's nothing bad. It's good actually, just surprising. You nailed it. Usually it takes a lot longer for this to work. Great work, kid," he complimented. God she wanted to be excited so badly. She wanted to celebrate. She wanted to feel. She wanted to tell Bucky. She could feel the tears begging to come out. "Ellie?" Bruce asked. 

"Was there anything else you wanted me to do," she trembled.

"No, that was everything for today. You can come back tomorrow if you want. At any time," he gently offered. 

"Thank you," she quickly spoke before teleporting to her floor. Train. She needed to train. She needed to train until she was too exhausted to be awake. She couldn't think. She couldn't let herself think. She changed her clothes, then teleported to the training facility, tears already falling down her face. She didn't care if anyone saw, she had the ability to get away from them. The moment she got into the room she teleported to her specialized chamber. She was feeling too much, she needed to let it out, it was overwhelming her. She soundproofed and reinforced the walls once she got inside and let her power escape, full force, screaming into the power surge, embracing the output. She could feel herself lift off the ground as the room around her filled with her magic. She slowly quieted as she dropped back down to the floor, dissolving into an all out sob, still encased in her green cocoon. Eventually she stood up and let the powers around her fade. She looked around the facility and saw the sim room on her floor was open. She teleported to the computer and set up the room. She ran through multiple simulations before her body was almost completely worn out. She stepped back out and scanned the room, she knew she'd probably get shit for what she was about to do, so she checked to make sure no one was around. It seemed like she was the only one in the whole facility, so she set it up. She calibrated it to have multiple inanimate bullseyes with one in the center that would take all her power. She wanted to use all the power she had. This would be the only way she could extend her tolerance. She stepped back inside and took a deep breath, "start simulation." 7 targets filled the room and she started her work. She quickly blasted away the 6 smaller ones, then called on all of her power and directed it at the largest one. She yelled into the power and focused everything on draining herself. Her vision started clouding and her powers were fading. Almost there. She gave one last push, then crumbled onto the floor. 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

"Gorgeous?" a voice spoke. Ellie forced her eyes open and realized she was still in the training facility. "Oh good, you're awake." Ellie followed the voice and saw Loki. His lips curved into a crooked smile when their eyes met. "Now, what got you into this mess?" he questioned. 

Ellie tried to get up off the ground and felt a pounding in her head, she clearly did not get enough rest during whatever amount of time she'd been passed out. "It's nothing," she dismissed, still struggling to stand. 

"Are you intentionally pushing everyone away?" he challenged. 

"Loki, I'm in no mood for this," she groaned. 

"J.A.R.V.I.S., how long has it been since the last simulation ended?" Loki asked the A.I. 

"Three hours," it replied. Ellie frowned.

"You've been here for three hours and nobody has come to check on you or find out where you are. I was in the meeting three days ago and you definitely had people who would've checked on you then, but now? I'm the only one who came to find you and I hardly know you. So my brilliant theory is that you are pushing away the people who care about you. Though the question is why," he explained. "Do you want to know my thoughts on the matter? I think you know they'll try and stop you if they knew what you're doing. If they saw you like this they'd probably stay by your side to make sure you didn't do it again," he continued. 

"Why are you saying all this," she asked. 

"Because, I want you to know I understand you. I'm not going to judge you for this," he told her.

"Thank you?" she furrowed.

"You're welcome," he boasted. "So, for as long as you're being a self-sabotaging idiot-" 

"I thought you just said you weren't judging me," she cut him off. 

"Right. Whatever. As I was saying. So long as you're exhibiting these behaviors. I'll be keeping an eye out on you, so you don't lay on a chamber floor for three hours," he told her. Was Loki being nice? "And don't worry. Whenever you tell me to go away, or fuck off, I'll take it as, 'I love you Loki', 'don't ever leave Loki', 'you're my savior Loki'" he declared, doing what might have been an impression of her. Well, the nice thing was a dud. "Now, can you stand? This whole awkward shifting around thing is getting pitiful," he mocked. She glared at him, but he just held out a hand with a large smirk. With a large huff she took it and let him help her stand. "Come on, let's get you to your floor. You need a shower. You smell," he added. She gaped at his bluntness. "I could help you if you'd like. I've been told I'm a great bathing partner."

"Can you fly? Because I think I might actually push you off this ledge," she snapped back. 

"Oh gorgeous, you know you need me," he purred. 

They stepped into the elevator and Ellie spoke to the machine, "64th floor please." 

"Did you just say please to a computer?" he questioned, in an amuse riddled tone. 

"If there's an AI uprising, I'd like to stay on their good side," she justified impatiently. The elevator opened to her floor and she stepped out, relying on the walls for support. "Thank you Loki, good night," she slightly nicely spoke. 

"My pleasure gorgeous," he toyed, waving his fingers as the doors closed in front of him. Ellie barely managed to take her shower and slide into pajamas before passing out completely on her bed. 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

Ellie managed to avoid Bucky for the next three days. She couldn’t let herself be around him. She didn’t trust her mind or body with the knowledge that Bucky felt the same way about her. Every time she looked at her wrist and was overwhelmed by the hurt and betrayal she was sure she couldn’t forgive him, but then she’d touch her necklace or the reminders of him in her room and it would all come back. She was in a constant state of cognitive dissonance. She found herself using her invisibility and teleportation a lot, enjoying her quick getaways and hiding spots. 

Ellie continued training, needing to spend her time doing something other than thinking about him. She needed to be productive with her time, so she’d been working on extending the amount of time she could use her powers without growing exhausted. She was doing a good job. It seemed like every time she used her powers her tolerance improved. She was training for 7 hours a day. She did an hour of strength training in the morning with two hours of sim training, with two more sessions of just the sims. She'd go to the lab to work with Bruce between the morning and the other two training sessions. She was waking up in her room after doing her final training sessions, clean and in her pajamas, she was pretty sure it was Loki doing it. She was really hoping he was using his powers, if not he was seriously overstepping. She was maybe getting 6 hours of sleep a night. She was way overtraining her body. She could feel her body being drained, but she didn’t want to stop, she didn’t need to, her body refueled itself during her naps. It also seemed like Logan picked up on her routine. He started leaving plates of food out for her on the common floor. She quickly teleported while using invisibility to grab the meal then leave, not wanting any chance of a social interaction with anyone. 

Ellie walked up the stairs to an open simulation chamber. She was on her third session on her fourth day of continuous training. It was late, so almost no one was there. Steve was running on the track on the floor she was on, she'd seen him coming in at the end of her last session, she assumed he'd be gone by then. That was almost two hours ago, hopefully he wouldn't bother her. The facility was busiest during the end of her morning training session and even then she went during down times. Ellie reached the chamber and adjusted her gear. She tightened her boots and tucked her long sleeve top back into her pants, then laced her waist band. She looked at her reflection and tied her hair back. She was ready to fight, she felt good, ready. Ellie walked up to the screen and tapped on the settings. She set it to max difficulty again. She needed to challenge herself. She couldn’t pass out in battle again, she wouldn’t be vulnerable like that again. Ellie stepped inside then spoke, “start simulation.” 

Ellie stood in the center of the room and it went completely dark, mimicking a nighttime environment. Ellie activated her powers, placing her shield. She couldn’t see anyone, so she relied on her senses to identify when people were coming. The room suddenly bursted into action. Three men approached her and she blasted each of them away. Suddenly, tons of men ran at her from all sides. She charged her powers as they ran, it burned within her. It felt amazing. She loved how powerful she felt. The men were about to reach her and she let her flood powers out, sending them flying away. Ellie took a moment, knowing there wasn’t anyone around her anymore, to close her eyes and sense everyone's presence. She conjured a tranq gun, she wouldn't kill, not even in simulations. She opened her eyes, turned herself invisible, and began teleporting to each of her targets, tranqing their necks as she went. Ellie couldn’t sense any more men, so she returned to the center of the room. She got the overwhelming sense that something wrong was going to happen. She couldn’t figure out where it was coming from. Come on Ellie, find it. Suddenly a blast similar to Ellie’s came from in the dark, sending her crashing hard against the wall. “Shit!” Ellie exclaimed as she landed. “End simulation,” she groaned. She needed to be better, stronger. She needed to be able to find the threats before they hit her. 

The doors of the chambers opened and Steve rushed in. “Ellie are you okay?” he asked as he tried to help her up.

“I’m fine,” she brushed him off. She needed to try again, she didn’t have time to waste on pointless conversations. Ellie wobbled off the floor, struggling to stand, her body was already feeling a slight strain from her powers and her body ached from the abrupt contact on the wall. She stretched out her shoulders and felt sharp pains with the movements, but she was pretty sure nothing was broken, so she ignored it.

“Ellie, how long have you been in here?” Steve asked in a concerned tone, gently placing a hand on her shoulder in support. She cringed slightly at the touch, but she didn't think he noticed.

“I just got here,” she technically honestly answered. Not clarifying that she’d been in there for five hours earlier in the day. 

“Ellie, Bucky told me what he told you,” Steve stated. 

Ellie stared him down, reminded again why she was doing all of this. “Steve, I’m trying to train. If you don’t have any new information to give me can you please let me get back to it?” she shortly retorted and brushed past him to recalibrate the chamber. She had a slight limp, but she knew it would be gone soon with her fast healing. 

“Ellie, I'm worried about you,” Steve said. “A lot of us are.” A lot of them? Why? She wasn’t putting herself through anything she couldn’t handle. 

“I appreciate your concern, but I’m fine,” she lied. She was anything but fine, but she needed to be fine and they always say fake it till you make it right? Ellie reset the chamber so she could continue to train. “Chambers recalibrated, can I get back to it, please?” Ellie requested. Steve hesitated, then nodded, walking out of the chamber and closing the door behind him. Ellie sighed in relief. She just needed space and time. People didn’t need to be worrying about her, if she needed help she’d ask for it. She was doing this so she’d be safer in battle. That’s what everyone should want. They didn't want Ellie passing out in battle and training would prevent that. Ellie lowered into her battle stance. “Start simulation,” she ordered, getting back into her training. 

She managed to finish the rest of her session without interruption. She’d run through multiple thirty minute simulations, but every time she got near the end, there would be a surprise attack that would strike her down. Ellie was getting incredibly frustrated. She stormed out of the simulation room. She decided to finish her training session the same way she finished all her days, playing target practice. She calibrated the room and quickly scanned the facility. She didn't see anyone, so it seemed like she'd be good. Ellie walked back in and started the simulation. She first blasted the targets, warming up. She stared at the large figure in the center that could take all of her power, that would take all of her power. Ellie closed her eyes and breathed in deep, harnessing all of her power from within. She was able to withstand the two hours of training, but she needed to extend her battery for the constant 100% use of her powers. Ellie grabbed the power from within and brought it to her arms then her hands and fingers. She stared at the large structure in front of her and let all of her power out, releasing it and firing it straight at it. She screamed, feeling the extreme strain on her body. Keep pushing Ellie. She couldn’t give up. She needed to gain a better tolerance to her powers. She knew there would be a time when she’d be needing to do this, use her powers like this. Ellie started to feel her head spin. Keep pushing. She couldn’t give up, she wasn’t weak. Ellie pulled more energy forward, directing it all at the target. She continued to yell in the strain. She started seeing stars and her legs trembled. A little longer. Her vision was starting to cloud. 

Suddenly the target disappeared. Ellie released her power and her body fell to the floor, going completely limp. “Ellie,” Logan's voice filled the room, followed by footsteps rapidly approaching her. “Are you okay bub?” he asked as he carefully took her in his arms. When did he get there?

Ellie blinked her eyes rapidly, forcing herself awake. “I’m fine,” she pushed him off. She was getting really tired of people asking her that. She reconnected with her body and stood up, swaying as she did. Logan reached over to stabilize her. “Logan, I told you I’m fine,” she shortly explained as she pushed him away from her.

“Why are you doing this?” he quietly asked her. Worry was riddled all over his face. 

“I’m just training. I need to get better with my powers. I can’t black out after using them in a mission. I’m done now anyways,” she snapped. Ellie was losing her patience and was overwhelmed with so many emotions all at the same time. 

He placed a hand on Ellie’s shoulder and she had to try really hard not to show that it hurt. “Ellie, it’s not safe to train all day. Please just tell me why you’re pushing yourself like this, what’s going on?” Logan tried. 

“I'm not training all day," she dismissed. Even though the truth really wasn't that much better. "I was at the lab for like 8 hours today," she specified. 

"And how many hours have you been here?" he pushed. She broke his eye contact and started walking away from him. "Talk to me, please," he carefully spoke. 

"I don’t want to get hurt again. I need to get better so I can actually defend myself and use my powers without passing out. Look, I’ve had a really rough few days, so I’m trying to actually do something with my time instead of just being stressed. I don’t see a problem with that,” Ellie ranted. 

“I get that bub, but your body needs a break. This isn’t safe or healthy,” he explained. Ellie knew he was right, but she didn’t care.

“I take breaks. I know what I can handle Logan. Now, I’m going to take a break, so are we done?” Ellie flatly asked. She didn’t wait for him to answer and teleported to her room. Ellie pet Paw when she arrived and sulked into her bathroom. She used her powers to move her clothes from her body and into her laundry basket. Ellie stopped to stare at herself in the mirror. She frowned. Her body was already thinner, her metabolism must be faster with her powers, and she was burning calories way faster than she was bringing them in. Despite Logan preparing her food she was still struggling to finish her plate, her whole body felt out of balance. Maybe they were right. She was overdoing it. Ellie turned to see her back and found purple bruising from when she crashed into the wall. It was healing, but there were still large obvious markings along her spine and shoulder blades. She sighed. She created the waterproof seal around her cast and cleaned it with her powers, then walked into the shower and put it on full blast. She stood under the beating water and let it wash over her, easing her aching muscles. 

Ellie walked out of the shower, feeling refreshed. Since Logan interrupted her training she hadn’t used up all of her power tolerance, so she allowed herself to continue to be lazy and rely on it. She conjured a set of satin tank top and shorts pajamas and a sweatshirt, then dried her hair and tied it into a bun. Ellie teleported into her bed, then warmed it. The exhaustion finally set in fully, as her eyes grew heavy and Paw jumped on top of her, purring her a lullaby as she drifted into sleep. 

“It’s time,” the scientist announced. Ellie looked at him, terrified. She looked around the room at the familiar equipment. The equipment she helped build. She didn’t remember what it did, or why she helped, but she knew she’d done it. “She needs to be strapped in,” he announced. A group of four men surrounded Ellie and grabbed her. She was terrified. She didn’t know why she needed to be scared, but something in her did. Something in her knew that if things went wrong, they could go terribly wrong. 

“Stop! Let me go,” Ellie yelled as she pulled herself away. She looked at the metal chair. It had leather straps with metal buckles. It looked strong enough for someone way bigger and more powerful than her. Ellie wasn’t strong enough to overpower the men, not by a long shot. She planted her feet and yelled, “don’t do this, please.” Their fingers dug deep into her skin, causing her to cry out in pain. They lifted her up and carried her to the chair, then threw her down in it. 

“Shut up,” one of the men aggressively ordered. They pressed her chest against the chair, then grabbed the straps and tightened them, immobilizing her. They grabbed her arms and legs and strapped her in. Ellie tried to squirm away but she couldn’t, they had her completely stuck. One of the men walked to a table nearby and grabbed something. He walked back to her and she realized it was a mouth guard. “Open your mouth,” he demanded. Ellie didn’t, she didn’t want to let whatever was going to happen happen. “I said open your mouth.” Ellie continued to refuse. He grabbed her chin and dug his nails into her. She felt tears drop down her face as she gave in and he placed it in her mouth. She bit down hard on the mouth guard. The man did one last test of her restraints then spoke to the scientist, “she’s ready for you.” 

“Thank you,” he spoke, excusing the men. The scientist looked right at Ellie with a small, demented, smile on his face. “You are magnificent. Your mind, it exceeds my own. You have nothing to be afraid of. I checked your calculations myself. You will be the greatest creation we’ve ever made,” he spoke to her. He placed his hand on her cheek, admiring her. She tried to fight back and push away, but she couldn’t, she was stuck. He turned away from her and walked up to the table. He opened a securely contained case and his face glowed red, reflecting the contents. He pulled out a finger sized glass tube that held a flowing floating glowing red fluid. “Preparing for injection,” the scientist announced. Injection? No, they couldn’t put that in her. It could kill her. She fought against the restraints, she needed to get out. The scientist placed the tube into a syringe then placed it into an auto-release mechanism that was attached to the chair. He released and rotated it so it was positioned against her neck. Ellie felt the cool metal against her neck as she breathed. “Everyone, clear out,” he ordered. Why did they all need to go? What was going to happen? Everyone left the room and stood behind the blast proof glass. What the hell was about to happen. Ellie trashed against her restraints as a final futile attempt to break free. “Begin injection.”

Ellie felt the cool metal needle pierce her skin. No. No. No. No. Boiling hot liquid entered her neck. Ellie screamed in pain. She felt the fiery substance travel through her veins. It felt like her body was being ripped apart from the inside, like micro explosions, destroying her from within. Her throat burned as she yelled. She felt the fire travel to every part of her body. It traveled down from her neck, sparking the flame in every inch of her system. Ellie tried to look down at her hands and her veins were glowing red. What was happening to her? What did the scientist do to her? Her hands started to glow, as a red cloud surrounded them. What were they turning her into? She watched it travel across her body until her entire body had a red aura surrounding it. She cried out in pain until it felt like her throat would bleed. Her voice was muffled by her mouthguard, but her vocal cords functioned untampered. Ellie sensed the energy rising through her center and along her spine. She was overwhelmed with a new wave of terror. The hot fluid was about to reach her brain. Ellie was so scared. She didn’t want to know what would happen. She didn’t want it to hurt her more. It reached her brain and all she saw was red. She didn’t know it was possible, but she got louder. The red hot fiery pain became too much and it suddenly exploded around her.

Ellie woke up screaming. Her body was on fire. She threw off her sweatshirt and kicked off her covers, leaving her just in her tank top. She searched the room for the scientist. She needed to escape him, she couldn’t let him keep hurting her. She saw two men in the room and felt the blood leave her face. Who were they? Why were they there? What was happening? Was it the scientist? Was she in danger? One of the men walked near her and she backed away in her bed, terrified. “Ellie, it’s okay. You’re safe, you’re in the Avengers Tower,” a familiar voice explained to her. She looked at him trying to understand what was going on, who he was. “Ellie, it’s Bucky. You’re safe. It’s okay,” he explained. Bucky? Ellie closed her eyes and tried to think. She was in the Tower, she was okay. Ellie opened her eyes again and looked around her room. She recognized objects as her own. She turned to look at Bucky.

“Bucky?” she trembled. Ellie pulled her legs to her body and hugged them as the tears fell. Her body ached as she moved. She lifted her powers, they were red before, her powers weren’t supposed to be red. She closed her eyes, scared to look. Ellie summoned the courage and looked at her hands, they were green. “What? What happened?” Ellie quivered. She recognized the space around her, but she couldn’t organize her thoughts. Why were her powers a different color now? What did they inject in her? It didn’t make any sense. 

“You had a nightmare bub,” the other man answered. His voice was also familiar, but she didn’t know why. Was it because he was one of the men that attacked her? Ellie felt her heart beat faster. She looked at Bucky confused and scared. She knew she trusted him. “It’s me bub,” the man spoke again. Ellie looked at him again, but he was still foreign, she knew his voice, but she couldn’t place him. “It’s Logan, bub. You had a bad dream, you're safe, no one is going to hurt you,” he explained. It was Logan. She was safe. No one was going to hurt her. It was just a dream. It wasn’t real. Her powers were green, not red, so it couldn’t be real, she reminded herself. Her tears flowed rapidly out of her eyes. She softened her hold on her legs, feeling more comfortable in the space. 

The last few days started to come back into her memory and Ellie’s tears changed. She was so exhausted. She hurt so much. Ellie closed her eyes and let her power flow through her, course through her veins. She needed to remind herself that her powers didn’t hurt her. She felt the energy tingle as it traveled through her system, it was almost therapeutic. She loved the way it flowed in her body. She drew it out to her hands again, needing to see that it was still green, that the nightmare was just a dream. She saw Bucky and Logan still standing over her. She looked at them with her tears still slowly shedding. "You should go back to sleep Ellie. We're here if you need us," Bucky softly offered. She nodded and curled into a ball in the bed. She closed her eyes, still letting the powers course through her. She dropped her powers as her body grew fonder of the idea of sleeping, but she fought it, not wanting to wake up to another nightmare.

She heard Logan and Bucky sit down on the chairs on either side of her bed along the windows. She struggled to let go and fall asleep. She liked knowing they were there, but she was still terribly overwhelmed by all of her feelings from the last couple days. She didn't feel as safe as she used to. Not when things were still messed up with Bucky. “Does that happen every time?” Logan asked. “Her showing her nightmare like that?” Ellie forced herself to stay awake and pay attention. She wanted to hear what they had to say. 

“It’s varied, but yeah, she does,” Bucky breathed in a wavering voice. 

“Does she know who any of those people were? In the dream? In any of them?” Logan questioned.

“No, she says they never happened, she doesn’t recognize anyone, but um, there are people that show up in every dream,” Bucky carefully spoke. “I- I’m really worried about her,” Bucky’s voice broke. 

“Me too,” Logan quietly agreed. There was a long pause, Ellie thought maybe they’d gone to sleep. “Do you believe her? That they never happened?” 

“I have to. What I’ve seen in her dreams.” Ellie heard his breath catch. “What those people have done to her. It can’t be true,” he barely made out. Ellie felt herself finally be consumed by sleep as their conversation drifted away. 

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Ellie stirred in her bed, not ready to be awake yet. She could feel the sun shining into her room. She cracked her eyes open and was met with bright light, fine, she’ll wake up. She pushed herself off her bed. Her wrist had healed itself enough that she could easily use it without pain, it was just annoying in the cast. Once Ellie raised her head, she felt her pounding headache and aching back. She'd love to not get one at least once after a nightmare, weren’t they bad enough? Ellie looked around the room and found Bucky still in one of the chairs. He was reading with Paw sitting in his lap, guess he didn’t get the memo that she was having issues with him. Though her issues were starting to feel ridiculous. She just missed him now. All the pain she was feeling wasn't even anger anymore, it was grief. She was grieving the loss of him. She was pushing the feelings down, because she didn't want to feel the pain of losing someone she cared about again. She knew how much it hurt. How much it destroys a person, destroyed her. If she could hide behind training and the lab, then maybe she wouldn't have to feel it. Not the full extent of it, but now, he was there, in her room and she couldn't hide. She looked at her clock on the wall and saw that it was 11:30 AM. She’d slept for almost 12 hours. Ellie sighed in frustration of losing so much of her day and put her aching head in her hands, also cringing as she bent her shoulders over. Apparently she hit the wall harder than she thought. “You’re awake. I put your headache medicine next to your bed, I know you usually take it after,” Bucky spoke. She looked up at him and felt a tear drop down her face. She was so tired. It was all so hard. She hated that he was acting this way. It would be easier if it were a clean break, but no. He was good, actually good. She tried to convince herself that he was unpredictable, but really, he wasn’t. He was predictably kind. Even her cat liked him. Bucky set down his book and walked over to her, Paw following his steps as he gave her the glass and meds. "What happened?" he asked in a concerned tone. 

“Hm?" she questioned. He gestured to her back. "Oh, It's from training. It's nothing," she brushed it off.

"It's not nothing," he countered. "What happened?" he repeated.

"I got thrown into a wall during a simulation," she admitted. "It's really not a big deal." 

"Logan told me you were overtraining. Why are you doing this to yourself?" he softly asked.

"Why do you think?" she scoffed. 

"I just want to make sure you're okay," he attempted.

"Well Bucky, I’m not,” Ellie flamed. “Nothing makes sense. I don’t know what I’m doing and I’m overwhelmed.” 

“What doesn’t make sense?” he patiently asked. 

“God, what does make sense,” she retorted. He still had that token worried Bucky look on his face. “Fine. I’m terrified of getting nightmares. There’s nothing I can do to stop them and they don’t make sense. They never happened, but they feel real, almost like memories and I feel like I’m going crazy. I also don't know how to act. I haven’t been around people in years. I’ve been on my own since the fire; no one wanted to stick around long enough to care, but that’s been true for my whole life. I don’t know how to trust people and based on every experience I've had if I do I’m just going to get hurt or hurt them. My powers don’t make sense, it’s like I have a battery, which is stupid. I can’t risk ‘running out of charge’ in battle. It’s dangerous for me and for everyone else. I don’t know of any other way to extend my limits other than testing them, so, I’ve been training, but people also seem to have an issue with that.” Ellie stopped, preparing herself for what she was about to say. “And you? God, Bucky, I don’t even know what to think. It’s like I’m having a constant internal battle, but I do know one thing for sure. You shouldn’t want to be with me, or have anything to do with me for that matter, clearly I’m damaged goods. You’d be better off saving yourself the trouble,” she asserted, tearing burning down her face. She ripped her heart to shreds as she spoke, saying all the words she feared she’d hear from him. Why did she do that? Self sabotage. She knew it was what she was doing, but she couldn’t stop. She wanted him. All of him. It wasn’t just a crush, it went way deeper. She feared the pain of really having, then losing him. They were friends for two weeks and it tore her apart when they were apart. She practically disappeared and put her body through hell because he told her he loved her, who does that? She didn’t trust herself. How would she survive the loss if they were anything more.

“Ellie, look at me,” Bucky quietly spoke. She managed to raise her view to him and he had a soft, compassionate expression on her face. The one that always made Ellie feel cared for and safe. He slowly lifted his hand to her, as if waiting for permission, Ellie affirmed him through her eye contact. He placed his hand on her cheek and brushed away her tears, reminding her how wonderful he felt on her skin. For a moment it felt like nothing had changed. Could she be safe again? “You are not damaged goods,” he strongly corrected. “I see a strong, smart, beautiful, independent woman, who’s been given a raw deal in life. The transition here is hard, you’re doing a lot better than I did, maybe still am. I’m so sorry the world has trained you to think so poorly of yourself, but it doesn’t mean it’s true. We’re all allowed to struggle, it doesn’t make us damaged,” he comforted. Ellie felt herself break further from his words. The words no one had ever said to her. The words that countered everything she’d been taught to think. He joined her on the bed and wrapped his metal arm around her, pulling her into his chest. Ellie embraced the support, she was so tired of being away from him. She needed to feel safe and she felt safe in his arms. 

“I- I don’t think I’m strong enough. I don’t know if I can do it anymore,” Ellie wept, seeking the support from the man she needed most but couldn't reach the last week. 

“It’s okay, you don’t have to be. We can help you. You just have to let us in,” Bucky explained. He stroked the side of her head. “When I arrived,” he started. Ellie adjusted so she could see him. “I um, I wasn’t well. Steve had just rescued me from Hydra’s control. It was, I guess, almost three years ago now when I got my mind back. I would get memories back in flashes, or nightmares. I was scared of myself. What I’d done, what I was capable of doing. My therapist helped me make amends with everyone I’d hurt under their control. They had me for so long, even if you ignore the time I was in cryo. All of my memories from before I was taken were gone. I was getting bits and pieces back on my own. Having Steve helped me so much, he would tell me stories about when we were kids, to help bring it all back. He was real’ patient with me, and he never gave up. It took me a few years, but I started to feel like myself again. I never thought I would,” Bucky opened up to her. 

Ellie studied his expression and he had a small smile on his face. Ellie felt small butterflies flutter within her as she looked at him. Maybe she could go back. Maybe things hadn't changed as much as she thought they did. Being there with him in that moment was the most at ease she'd been since the conference. He'd hurt her, but being without him hurt so much more. Ellie grabbed his metal hand in her own, she could feel him hesitate, but he relaxed into her hold. “Thank you for sharing that with me,” Ellie softly spoke. She smiled at him and he started to smile back, but his face dropped. “What is it?”

“I always felt like there was something missing. I remembered my past and I was getting better through therapy but I guess something still didn’t feel right. You may have noticed, I don’t talk to other people very much,” Bucky explained. “Then a few weeks ago Tony told us we were gonna get a new member and honestly I was kind of dreading it, no offense.” Ellie smiled. “On your, um,” he struggled. “The night you arrived, I heard you have a nightmare. I thought back to the first nights when I got here, how helpful it was to have Steve there for me. After a while I decided to go to the common floor, in case you’d gone there, I had no idea what I was going to do if you were there. I can’t tell you how shocked I was when I found Paw,” he breathed a laugh. “As you know, I’ve always wanted a cat and I guess I figured if this new member of the team was able to convince Tony to let her bring her cat, she must be special. As soon as you spoke I knew I’d met you before. I don’t know if you remember this, but we ran into each other after your interview,” he blushed. He looked at his metal hand in hers with a soft expression. “You weren’t afraid,” he breathed. Ellie looked at him confused. “People usually run when they see my arm, but you called it beautiful. The moment I saw you smile I felt safe. Like I was James Buchanan Barnes again, untouched by Hydra. That’s who I am when I’m with you. In just the few minutes we’d talked you’d done so much for me. I knew my life was forever changed.” Ellie was shocked. She had no idea. “When,” he struggled. “When I saw what you’d done to yourself that night, I was reminded of why you were down there in the first place. I wanted to help you like you’d helped me. Apparently I didn’t do a great job at it,” he sighed with a smile. “You stormed out of there faster than I would’ve, but I knew I wasn’t gonna give up ya. I needed to make sure you were safe. It’s all I’ve ever wanted. You filled me with a new purpose. You gave me a real reason to get up each day and keep going.” He paused, his face changing. “I’ve gone through some really scary things in my life, but Ellie, when I thought I was going to lose you that day you got your powers, I’ve never been more afraid. You’ve only just come into my life, I’m not ready to lose you,” he trembled. She watched a tear escape from his eye. 

“You aren’t going to lose me, Bucky, I promise,” she meant it. She decided in that moment that whatever had happened between them wasn't worth throwing this away. What they had. She adjusted again and placed her hand on his face and brushed his tear away, returning his gesture. His cheek warmed under her touch. She wanted, needed, Bucky as much as he needed her. He made her feel safe, loved, trusted, cared for. She’d been feeling lost for the last few days when he was gone. She knew she should be strong on her own, but she needed him. Ellie thought back on the last few days and realized how terribly she'd treated him. She knew he was in pain too but she didn't care, she was completely focused on herself, not him or how he was feeling. She understood him, his actions, so much better now. “I’m so sorry Bucky,” she barely made out before mountains of tears escaped her eyes. 

“Hey, what is it? You have nothing to be sorry for,” he comforted, making her cry harder.

“Yes I do. I’ve been treating you horribly for the last few days because of one mistake that you made. You’ve been nothing but kind and caring to me and I’ve been a jerk. I was afraid of how I felt about you, so I pushed away, like I always do, and you don’t deserve that,” Ellie blubbered. “I keep hurting you. I wish I wasn’t like this. I wish I could just hear the words I’ve dreamed of hearing and be happy, not freak out. God, what is wrong with me?” She looked up to see a stupid grin on Bucky’s face. “Is my pain amusing to you?” 

“What words were you dreaming of hearing?” he questioned, his expression unwavering. 

Ellie glared at him. He clearly knew what she was referring to. She wanted to maintain her stubborn stance but his smile was burning into her. Ellie took a deep breath, hoping it would calm her down, but it didn’t. Ellie groaned, “that you loved me okay? Or liked me, even, because I like you, like a lot, so much it scares me, in all the ways, romantically, sexually, etcetera. Are you happy? I said it.” He obviously was, his grin grew larger, if that was even possible.  

“Sexually?” he smirked. Ellie threw her face into her hands, why did she add that part? “There’s no need to be embarrassed. I like you too, sexually,” he whispered against her neck. Ellie’s breath hitched and she instinctively leaned her head over ever so slightly, opening her neck for him. He was barely trying and her body was already burning for him. Get a grip Ellie! She put her hands back down in her lap and looked back to Bucky, still beet red. “So, you like me?” he asked with a soft smile. Ellie nodded. “Do you,” he paused, as if looking for the words. “Do you want to explore this? It’s completely up to you,” he offered. Ellie stopped to think. She considered what could go wrong. She didn’t want to lose Bucky, but the feelings that exploded within her weren’t going away anytime soon. She needed to stop self sabotaging. She deserved to be happy and Bucky made her unbelievably happy. 

Ellie looked at Bucky and her eyes met his plump lips. She forced her eyes away to meet Bucky’s eyes. “Yes,” she decided. She found him breaking their eye contact to look at her lips. Ellie decided to take matters into her own hands and to sit up on her knees, then move so they were on either side of his, and relax so she was sitting on his legs, with their chests across from each other. Ellie breathed heavily as she looked from his lips to scan his body. She noticed how close they were. Her heart was racing. She wanted them closer. She was burning for his touch. Ellie returned to look into his eyes, she saw a similar fire within them. He drew his hand towards her, cupping her cheek and chin, her skin tingled with desire. Bucky closed the gap between them, softly placing his lips against hers, her entire body was set ablaze. She closed her eyes, soaking in the sensation. She deepened the kiss, pulling in tighter against him. She ran her hand through his hair; it was just as soft as she thought it would be and he grunted in pleasure, sparking an all new desire. She ran her tongue against his teeth, requesting entry. He welcomed her in and she soaked up his amazing taste. He gently grabbed her neck, keeping her against him and god it felt amazing. He slowly brought them apart, giving her a chance to breathe, though she would've happily exhausted all her oxygen. She looked at his deeply flushed face and laughed softly to herself leaning her head against his chest, "I've wanted to do that for so long."

"Me too," he chuckled.

Chapter Text

Ellie decided to accept the advice from her friends about not overtraining. She realized they were right. Her body looking physically different in the three days she’d been doing it was a real wake up call. She wasn’t, however, going to stop training entirely, her reasons were still valid. She was practicing being strong, mentally, for Bucky. One day it would just be for her, but she would need to have him as a reason for a while. With the stress of everything with Bucky gone her exhaustion from the last week finally set in, so she was practically a walking zombie. Bruce sent her back to her room to rest and told her to take a few days off when she came in after her and Bucky made up, or more accurately made out. Regardless, once her adrenaline ran out, the effects of her non-stop days finally kicked in and she was barely able to think or walk straight. So in the last two days, she’d managed to fit in one 3 hour training session so she wouldn't get sore, Bucky was right about the withdrawal, then spent the rest of her time resting. Fortunately, she was feeling way better after all the break, both mentally and physically.

Ellie wanted to do something different after her workout on the third day, so she teleported to the common floor, no longer bothering with the elevator. “Jesus Christ, El,” Sam muttered as he grabbed his chest. “You scared the crap out of me,” he complained. Ellie laughed as she looked at his distressed expression. He was sitting at the dining table with Steve, Natasha, and Bucky. Ellie hadn’t really gotten the chance to talk to Bucky since that morning, he was really busy with something and she wasn't conscious for most of the day. Her eyes stopped on his. She felt her cheeks warm as she took in his beautiful ocean blue eyes. The beautiful man in front of her loved her. She couldn’t get over it. It didn’t feel real. “So I guess you guys made up?” Sam spoke, breaking her trance. 

“Oh, um, yeah,” Ellie shied. She looked around the room again and fully returned to reality, remembering why she was there. “Right, I wanted to try and do something fun today. I have a critical shortage of clothing and when I got here Tony said something about you being willing to go with me?” Ellie nervously asked Natasha. “You, uh, don’t have to if you’re busy,” Ellie protected herself. She was used to rejection, so she’d grown accustomed to preparing for them. 

“Sounds fun,” Natasha simply answered. Ellie smiled wide. 

“I’ll come. I need new shoes,” Sam announced. He faced changed as he started to think aloud, “wait, can’t you just like make whatever you want appear? Including clothes?” 

“Yeah, but I don’t know, it feels like stealing. Plus, I have money now, it’s just sitting in the bank, may as well use it,” Ellie explained. 

“So oldies, are you coming with?” Natasha asked with a smile. 

Steve smiled and looked at his friend and threw his arm around him. “What do you say, could be fun?” Steve prompted. 

“Yeah, let's go,” Bucky agreed, a smile growing on his face as well. 

Ellie smiled wide in excitement. She wasn’t used to people wanting to go on adventures with her. “Ooh yay, I’m so excited!” she exclaimed. “I have to grab some things from my room, do we want to meet back here in 5 minutes?” Ellie prompted. The group agreed and she teleported into her room. She spooked Paw, but he was getting much more used to her teleporting. “Baby guess what? We’re going to go shopping! Mama has friends, real friends, that want to hang out with her,” Ellie joyfully explained to her feline friend. She walked into her closet to look her outfit over. She wore her green converse, a pair of tan linen pants, a green halter tank top, and a cream sweater. She pulled the necklace Bucky had gotten her out from under her tank top, letting it be seen. She used her powers to put her hair into an updo, with a french braid leading to a voluminous ponytail, revealing her earrings. Ellie smiled at her look, feeling happy with her appearance. She placed an illusion over her cast and any bruises she may have from training since they would be in public. She walked back into her living room and grabbed her coat and small purse. “Bye baby, I’ll be back later, be good,” Ellie talked to her cat, and teleported back to the common floor. 

Ellie arrived and realized she was the first one back. “Hey,” a wonderful voice surprised her. She turned around and found Bucky standing behind her. She returned his welcome. He stepped closer to her and softly grabbed the necklace he’d given her. “It looks nice, it fits you,” he commented in a smooth tone. Ellie felt her cheeks warm, she could feel his breath on her neck as he closely examined it. He raised his hand and softly brushed the side of her face. “You look beautiful.” Ellie blushed further. She looked at his gorgeous face, his beautiful eyes, which were full of light. Her eyes drifted down to his lips. She remembered how amazing they’d felt against hers. She wanted to feel them again. Ellie reached her arm up to him and placed it in his hair. God it was soft. She noticed his cheeks flush, causing her to smile. Ellie pulled him closer. 

A ding of the elevator stopped them. They both turned their heads to look over and saw Sam appear through the doors. “Damn, am I interrupting something?” he asked, laughing with a massive grin on his face. She threw her face in her hands and groaned, then hid behind Bucky, pressing her head against his back. Sam laughed at her embarrassment. He suddenly stopped, Ellie assumed there was a glare from Bucky involved. “Okay, okay, I’m sorry. I didn’t see anything. I’m blind,” he joked. Ellie de-cowered and came out from behind Bucky. She could feel her face burning with embarrassment and lingering desire. She walked over to the kitchen section, needing a glass of water and an excuse to escape the situation. “When you too made up, you really made up,” Sam muttered under his breath.

“Sam,” Bucky tested, a dangerous glare on his face. 

“Okay, sorry I’m done now,” Sam laughed. “Seriously though, I'm glad you guys are doing better. You both were sort of freaking me out for a hot minute. Seems like you two work better when you're together," he noted. Ellie gave Bucky a soft smile. "So, how are we getting there? Are we taking multiple cars? I’m pretty sure we all have very small and very fast cars,” Sam transitioned. 

“I actually thought maybe I would drive,” Ellie proposed. She heard the elevator ding and Steve and Natasha walked out together, standing very close to each other and laughing about something. “Oh good, you’re here. Would you guys be okay with me driving us? Tony let me pick out a car about a week ago and I chose the Rivian R1S, it seats 7, so we should all be able to sit in it comfortably,” she offered. 

“Of all the cars that's what you chose?” Sam asked, laughing. 

“What? It’s all electric, fits more people, and the one I got was pretty and green. I stand by my decision. Also, for the record, its 0-60 is under 3 seconds, so it’s still a very fast car,” Ellie defended matter-of-factly. “Is everyone ready?” Ellie asked. They all nodded, so she walked over to the elevator and pressed the button. It opened right away for her since Steve and Natasha had just used it. “Garage please,” Ellie requested. She excitedly bobbed from her heels and toes. She’d only driven her car once when Tony had given it to her, and she was in a really weird headspace that day. Ellie ran out to her car the moment the doors opened.

"She seems a lot better," Steve whispered, obviously not meaning for Ellie to hear. She knew he was talking about her, he was one of the people most worried about her during her overtraining fiasco. She also was sort of a jerk to him, but it seemed like he wasn't holding it against her. 

Ellie elected to ignore the comment and focus on her car. “Isn’t she beautiful?” Ellie sighed as she hugged the hood. It was the nicest thing Ellie had ever owned. She pulled the keys out from her purse and unlocked the car. “Are you coming?” she rhetorically asked as the group walked over. Ellie was filled with energy and excitement. Ellie turned on the car and all the screens lit up as the group filed into the car. Natasha sat next to her in the passenger seat and Bucky and Steve sat on either side of the second row, leaving Sam in the middle seat of the last row. “Wait, where am I going?” Ellie asked Natasha, realizing she’d never actually gone shopping in the city. 

“J.A.R.V.I.S., directions to Queens Center,” Natasha requested. 

“Certainly,” the A.I. replied through the car. 

“Has he been there the whole time?” Ellie asked, wide eyed. Natasha laughed and nodded. “Everyone buckled?” Ellie checked. Once she confirmed they were set she put the car in drive and pulled out of the garage. The drive there wasn’t too bad. Traffic was surprisingly light for it being a weekday. Quiet music played in the car, but no one really listened to it. Sam was talking about the type of shoes he wanted to get for almost the entire drive. Apparently he needed a pair that would look formal, but he could use them to fight in if he needed to, 'undercover shoes' he called them. Bucky didn’t seem to understand the concept, so the two of them went back and forth for a while, forcing a massive smile onto her face. Ellie pulled into the busy parking lot and found a spot on the second level of the J.C. Penney Wing of the parking garage, right near the crosswalk into the mall. Ellie put the car into park and turned to look at her friends. “So, is there a protocol you follow? I’m not all that worried about myself, but you guys are kind of famous,” Ellie asked. They looked at each other, speaking with their eyes. Ellie furrowed her brows, “What?” 

“You haven’t been online, have you?” Sam asked. Ellie started to get worried. She looked to Bucky, but he seemed just as confused. “It’s nothing bad,” he clarified. 

“Your announcement as the newest member of the team, well, it was sort of a big deal,” Steve picked up. “Everyone was fascinated by you and your powers. So, they were all keeping a close eye on you. Almost everyone in New York has probably seen your face.” His words were really freaking her out. She knew it was going to happen, but she wasn’t ready for it. “We’re also required by law to report everything that happens during our missions. It's supposed to be confidential, so I’m not sure how, but it got out that you healed Nat. I know this is a lot, but I wanted you to be aware of everything before you went out there. We’ve got you,” Steve explained. Ellie was definitely freaking out, but she was comforted by the fact that she could turn invisible at any moment, or teleport away. “As for your original question. There’s usually an initial burst of action of people trying to see us, but it dies down. People will be taking pictures on their cell phones, so keep that in mind.” 

“Okay. I think I’m ready,” Ellie spoke as she turned off the car. She zipped up her coat as she was nipped by the cold air. The rest of the group stepped out of the car and she grabbed Bucky, pulling him aside. “I need you to remember to keep your cool, okay? I can handle myself, remember? Their words won't hurt me, but you hurting them will,” she very clearly put. 

“I promise you I’ll behave,” he smiled as he placed a kiss on her forehead, causing her to blush. They joined the group and Ellie locked the car. She took a deep breath, preparing herself for the day. Sam wiggled his eyebrows and Ellie glared at him while smiling. She looked inside the mall, at the people rushing back and forth. She considered masking her appearance, but she was practicing being strong. “You’re going to be great. I’ll be right here,” Bucky assured her. She nodded and took a confident step forward as they walked into the mall. Steve was right about the initial excitement. Even in their casual clothes people instantly recognized them. Ellie was flooded with panic as voices overwhelmed her. Guests were calling out her name, asking her to show her powers, questioning her history. It was feeling way too much like the conference. She tried to steady her breathing as she crept behind Bucky. She let her shoulders graze his back, feeling him to gain security. He was safe, he would keep her safe. Bucky looked to his friend and spoke in a hushed tone, “Steve, get them out of here.” 

Steve nodded and entered his Captain America persona for the public as he announced in a confident voice, “Thank you everyone for your support, but we are just here to have a normal day, like you. We appreciate your understanding.” Amazingly, it worked and the crowd dissipated. 

Bucky turned around to face her and she focused on his face as she slowed her breathing. "Are you okay?" he softly asked.

"Ye- yeah," she breathed, scanning the area again. "I just, I don't like the attention," she told him as she grounded herself. After another minute of focusing on Bucky she was calm enough to join the group again. “Thank you Steve,” Ellie faintly smiled. She took off her coat, feeling overheated from the intense interaction. She used her powers and moved it into the car, she heard faint 'oohs' and 'aahs' from the remaining watchers. Just ignore it Ellie. “Do you guys have anything you want in the car?” Ellie softly offered. Everyone but Bucky took off their coats and handed them to her. She repeated the process, causing them to disappear from her hands. She heard more quiet sounds of amazement from guests looking at them. She tried to just focus on her friends and not the onlookers. 

“Shall we?” Natasha prompted with a bright smile.

“Let’s shall,” Ellie smiled. She and Natasha walked side by side. “So, I think I have a total of seven outfits and three pairs of shoes. I also want a new comforter, the white ones in my room right now kinda freak me out, they’re way too plain,” Ellie explained. She watched Natasha nod along as she told her what she needed. 

“Okay, I know where we’re going,” Natasha replied. She turned around and looked at the three guys behind her. “Ellie and I are going shopping at Macy’s. You boys are welcome to join us. They do have shoes,” she winked. Ellie beamed, excited to start their adventure. The walk there was a bit of a hike, since they’d parked on the opposite side of the mall. They were on the second floor and Ellie made note of all the stores she wanted to stop by if they got the chance. Luckily it was only 10AM, she'd managed to revert to her early bird behavior to work out, even with her sleepy schedule, so they had time to explore. She took note when they passed Adidas. She knew she wanted to go, she was severely lacking in exercise gear. They passed a few more stores, then she heard Sam snickering behind her. She looked behind her and saw Bucky beet red and Steve slapping Sam. Ellie tried to figure out what they were reacting to and she realized they were passing Victoria Secret. Sam probably made some weird comment. Ellie stared at the lingerie as she walked, trying not to be too obvious about it. She’d never had any use for it. She’d never even had a boyfriend, she wasn’t sure if she did now either, they were just exploring? Ellie didn’t own anything remotely sexy, should she? “We can ditch the guys later and stop by here if you want,” Natasha quietly offered. 

“Sure, yeah. Thanks,” Ellie agreed. She’d never had sex, but Bucky had, right? At least he had in the 1940s. She wanted to have sex, but she never had anyone she wanted to have it with, at least not until now. If they did, it wouldn’t hurt to have something in her closet to promote the mood, right?

“Okay, here it is. Ellie and I are going to Women’s fashion. You guys can do whatever you’d like,” Natasha brushed off as she dragged Ellie away. She smiled and waved to the boys as she left, giving Bucky an extra moment's glance before turning back to look ahead. “Alright, we are going to get serious here today. You are in critical need for clothes. Do you know what size you are?” Ellie shrugged, not actually sure. She hadn't bought clothes in, well, a very long time. “I can figure it out. If you think you might like it, grab it, we are going to try things on and remember money is no object when Tony is your employer so go crazy. Are you ready?” Natasha asked seriously. She slowly nodded, thrown off by Natasha's pace. “Good, happy shopping,” she smiled before turning around and looking through the clothes around her. Ellie turned as well and started to look at the clothes on the other side, still confused. 

Ellie managed to grab quite a few options. Enough that her arms were tired. She went to try and find Natasha, assuming she was done too and they could start trying stuff on. Ellie wandered the store and eventually found the dressing rooms. She decided she’d stop there first and drop off her clothes. “Hi there, can I get a dressing room? I have to find my friend but I’ll be right back,” Ellie smiled to the teenage girl working at the desk. 

The girl looked at the big pile of clothes in her arms. “It’s limited to 10 per customer,” she shortly explained. Ellie frowned, she had way more than that. The girl lifted her glance to Ellie's face and suddenly she had a massive grin on her face, “oh my god. Are you Ellie Clark?” Ellie smiled and nodded, not wanting to draw attention to herself. “Don’t worry about the 10 items rule, you can go in room 8,” she gawked and handed Ellie the pass with the key attached. “What powers do you have?” she asked. Ellie decided to be nice and show off a little. It was much easier when it was only one person.

“I’ll show you if you promise not to tell people I’m here. I’m hoping to have a nice quiet day,” Ellie negotiated. 

“I promise. I won't tell anyone,” she excitedly spoke. Ellie smiled, no one had ever been so excited to see her before, it was a strange feeling. Ellie called on her powers, then wrapped them around the clothes and lifted them out of her hands and hung them up in her dressing room. “Oh my god that was amazing,” she said, awestruck. Ellie laughed. “Is it true that you healed the Black Widow?” Ellie paused, not sure if she was allowed to say anything about that. 

“Yes it is,” Natasha spoke from behind her. Her pile was twice the size of Ellies. Ellie stared at the massive stack of clothes, realizing how long they were gonna be doing this. The girl was lost for words, jaw open, staring at the two Avengers. “All set?” Natasha asked Ellie, she nodded and transported her stack into the room as well. Ellie thanked the young employee and they walked into the room. 

Ellie used her powers to make the room soundproof. “No one can hear us in here,” Ellie told her friend. She looked around at all the clothes that crowded the room. “You know how to shop,” Ellie laughed. Since she wasn’t going to be doing any more training that day, so she decided to play around with her powers more. She altered the reality of the room they were in to make it larger with a couch and a bigger mirror. She looked at the clothes around her and organized them based on type of clothing and put them on individual clothing racks. “Much better,” Ellie smiled. 

“You’re getting really good with your powers Ellie,” Natasha spoke as she sat down on the couch. “I’ve been meaning to thank you. You know, for saving me, I know how much you risked to do it. I feel like I judged you too harshly early on and I’m sorry for that. I hope we’re okay now,” she candered. 

“We’re great and thank you for coming with me today,” Ellie smiled, relieved to know Natasha wasn't still skeptical of her.

Natasha returned the expression. “Okay start trying on clothes, I wanna see you wearing all the cute stuff I picked out!” she excitedly demanded. Ellie happily obliged. She conjured a little stool to put her clothes on and took off her sweater and converse and walked over to the clothes in front of her. She took off her linen pants, not too worried since she was wearing her classic granny panties and slid on a pair of straight leg jeans Nat had picked out. She took off her tank top and tried on a long sleeve fitted white turtleneck shirt. “Ooh, very cute. Keep!” Natasha announced, causing Ellie to laugh. They went through the process of trying on and keeping or not keeping clothes for the next hour and a half with the keep standards being relatively low. It turned out Natasha knew Ellie’s sense of style really well, or maybe she just had really basic taste, either way, Ellie only vetoed three things based on their look. “Okay, we’re done with this batch, we can have them start ringing it up while we keep looking,” Natasha casually explained. 

“This batch?” Ellie asked, wide eyed. 

“You didn’t think we were done, did you? We have to look through everything on the floor. We haven’t even done the dresses!” Natasha very excitedly spoke. Ellie sighed but obliged. Natasha stepped out of the dressing room as Ellie got back into her regular clothes again. She walked out of the dressing room area and saw that Natasha was at the front counter. Ellie walked up to them. “They said you could use your powers to bring the things we’re getting up here. If you’re comfortable doing that,” Natasha quietly explained. Ellie looked around to see if there were any other people watching and she quickly summoned the racks of keep items from the dressing room, causing the workers to stare at her amazed. “Okay, we will be back in a bit, thank you,” Natasha spoke to the cashiers. Ellie smiled at them, then followed Natasha to the next area. Somehow she was right, they’d only covered half of the floor. 

Ellie wandered the rows of clothes. This time deciding to transport the clothes she’d be trying directly to the room as she went, saving herself the trouble carrying them. Ellie found the sweater section of the store and got lost in the soft fabric, finding way too many that she liked. She kept reminding herself that money wasn’t an object and the goal was to fill her closet, so she grabbed everything. She could feel the slight drain from using her powers, but she was okay with that, she felt like she was killing two birds with one stone. She saw Natasha completely preoccupied with dresses, so Ellie assumed she’d be covering the rest of the area. She noticed pajamas and was drawn to it. She took everything she liked. She currently had two real pairs of real pajamas and that was it. She found another area with swimsuits, did she need those? Tony did say there was a lap pool. Ellie decided to grab a few pairs. Somehow Natasha was still in the dresses section and Ellie had finished the whole rest of the floor. Ellie walked over to her friend. “Almost done?” Ellie asked. 

“Yeah, where are your clothes?” Natasha asked, her arms were overflowing. 

“I’ve been putting them directly into the room. Want me to?” Ellie asked, gesturing to the stack. 

“Please,” Natasha sighed. Ellie grabbed the pile from Natasha and brought all of them to her room. “Why don't you start without me? I’ll be there soon,” Natasha offered. Ellie nodded and teleported into the room. She figured she’d try on the bathing suits so it wouldn’t be awkward when she put them on. Ellie took off her clothes and put them on the stool. She first tried on a couple plain one pieces she’d grabbed for real swimming. They hugged her curves nicely and kept everything secure, so Ellie placed them in her new keep section. She’d gotten a few two pieces. She first tried on a hot pink bikini set that was relatively modest with boyshort bottoms and a flounced top. It was pretty cute so she put it with the keeps. The next was a purple classic bikini cut. She also thought it was cute, it was a little bold for her, but maybe she’d be that confident by the summer time, so she kept it. Ellie laughed as she looked at her last option. She grabbed it as a joke, but since Natasha wasn’t here she was sort of curious how it would look on her. It was dark green, just as she liked. Both pieces were almost nothing, they only covered what needed to be covered, but left nothing else for the imagination. Ellie put on the top and had to do quite a bit of adjusting to make sure she was properly covered. The bottoms were basically a thong, that's really all that could be said. Though she had to admit, she felt really hot in it.

Ellie heard a knock on the door. Apparently Natasha would be seeing her scandalous suit afterall. Ellie used her powers to make sure that no one in the hall would be able to see her. She would only be visible if they were in the room. Ellie cracked open the door, not wanting to stand in the doorway. The door opened the rest of the way, then suddenly slammed shut. Ellie turned around and saw Bucky. Bucky!? In the room with her. She stood like a deer in headlights as his eyes rapidly traced her body. “Bucky? What are you doing here?” Ellie breathed. She could feel the heat of his body radiating in the room, his desire, mixing with her own. 

“What are you?” He breathed heavily. Ellie used her powers to lock the door, and seal it shut. “What are you wearing?” he asked as he walked closer to her. His eyes jumped from her eyes to her body, pausing on the very few covered places. She stepped closer to him, their bodies almost touching. “Ellie,” he warned. She wanted him. She wanted his hands on her. She placed her hand on his chest, feeling his sculpted muscles. Bucky grunted. “I’m trying to be a gentleman, do this right,” he struggled as Ellie felt around his chest. God, he felt so amazing, she couldn't get enough of him.

Ellie looked up at him and smiled, “don’t be.” That was all the invitation he needed and he grabbed her back, pulling her all the way against his body. She could feel him already hardening against her, only fueling her more. He closed the gap between their faces with a heated, passionate kiss. He grabbed her neck, keeping her face against his. Ellie’s body was lit aflame. She brought her bands back into his hair and he groaned with pleasure. She felt herself pulse with desire. His tongue pressed against her teeth, asking for entry. Ellie happily obliged, soaking in the taste of him. Ellie tugged at his coat, needing to be closer to him, he took it off, until he was just in his shirt. She ran her fingers under his shirt, wanting to feel him, touch him. He threw it off and she just paused to admire him. "I'm sure you've been told this a lot, but you are really really hot," she ogled, before abruptly forcing their lips back together. Ellie pushed against him, guiding him to the couch. His knees bent at the corner and he sat down. Ellie straddled him, taking his face in her hands. His hands trailed along her sides, feeling her body, her curves. She went to tug at his pants, wanting them closer, but just like clockwork there was another knock on the door. Ellie broke their kiss and sighed. “I guess you get to be a gentleman afterall. I hope you enjoyed this while it lasted,” Ellie smiled, getting off of him and gesturing to her outfit, before using her powers to trade it out for the clothes she came in, cleaning the bottoms as she did. She also put Bucky’s shirt and coat back on for him. She took a deep breath and walked up to the door, undoing the seal she’d done, and opened it. 

“Hey, did Bucky come by? I sent him over here. Apparently the boys are hungry,” Natasha explained as she walked in with clothes. 

“Yeah, he’s still here actually. I said we’d join them in the food court when we’re finished up here,” Ellie lied as she took the clothes and hung them up with her powers. 

“Right, okay. We will probably be a while. I’ll text Steve with updates,” Natasha told Bucky. He nodded and awkwardly got off the couch and left, brushing his hand against Ellie’s as he left, sending sparks down her spine, closing the door behind him. “So, what did you actually do while I was gone? I hope you used the proper protection,” Natasha joked.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Ellie feigned ignorance. “I can use my powers to speed up the process of trying things on,” Ellie tried to change the subject.

“I was a trained Russian spy. You really think I’m going to believe that? There is clearly something going on between the two of you.” She continued to play dumb and just looked around the clothes. "Fine, let's look at the evidence: Bucky turns into a happy person like three days after you get here; you two spend like all of your time together; he glares at Sam with murder in his eyes every time he tries to flirt with you," she justified. 

"Bucky glares at Sam all the time," Ellie countered. 

"Yeah, but he doesn't get upset when Sam says that stuff about anyone else. Only you. Now, I'm pretty sure this only just started between the two of you. As in, in the last couple days. You both were complete wrecks all of last week, then suddenly, as if overnight, you're both okay again and you're blushing every time you see each other. When I walked in here just now Bucky looked like he short circuited. He was also like 5 shades darker than normal, like not flirting red, like I just saw Ellie's boobs red," Natasha very accurately described.

Ellie sighed. “Fine,” gave in. 

"I also saw him kiss you when we were in the parking lot," she smirked. Ellie glared at her, but Natasha just smiled, obviously proud of herself for figuring it out. "So..? What happened in here? Should I avoid any furniture?" she mocked. 

"We just kissed," Ellie shortly replied.

“Well that’s no fun,” Natasha sighed. Ellie rolled her eyes and looked at the large collection of clothes she needed to try on. She decided she would use her powers so she could rapidly try on the clothes. It would put a strain on her energy, but so be it. Ellie looked at the large collection of dresses and decided to start there. She put them on as they were placed on the rack. The first was a shiny cocktail dress. It hugged her body really nicely. “Ooh, you look hot!” Natasha spoke, causing Ellie to blush. “Okay, with these dresses, if they fit and don’t look horrendous you’re getting them,” Natasha told her. Ellie decided she could live with that, so she did them rapid fire, with Natasha either saying yes or no, with the occasional compliment or joke thrown in at a particularly bad dress. Miraculously they went through the dresses in under fifteen minutes. Ellie decided to take a breather afterwards. Ellie exchanged the dress she was wearing for the clothes she came in so she could try on the sweaters, using the same criteria. This time was much faster since Ellie's definition of a lot of something was different from Natasha's. 

“I’m tired,” Ellie sighed, looking at the pajamas she still hadn’t tried on. She took a deep breath and finished the session, finding that all but two pairs of pajamas worked for her. Ellie smiled knowing she was done and could get lunch; her stomach was rumbling in anticipation. “All done?” Ellie asked and Natasha nodded with a smile. Ellie walked out of the dressing room and back up to the cashiers. Once she got there she summoned all the clothes they decided to keep and undid all the manipulations she’d done to the changing room, bringing the rejects back to their racks, cleaned. Ellie watched them slowly find and scan each tag. She was usually more patient, but at that moment she was hungry and tired. “Would you like some help?” Ellie asked as nicely as she was capable. They slowly nodded, unsure of what they were agreeing to. Ellie used her powers to control the scanner and grabbed only the tags, not needing to search through fabric. She was able to quickly scan each item, then released her hold, placing it back on the counter. She smiled politely, solely wanting to leave. Natasha placed her card on the scanner, surprising Ellie, since she’d intended to pay, but she would be able to pay her back later. They offered to bag the clothes but instead Ellie called on her power and transported all of the clothes to her room at the tower, hopefully not scaring Paw too much. “Thank you for your help,” Ellie smiled, not all that nicely. 

Natasha bursted out laughing as they left the counter. “Remind me not to mess with you when you're tired,” she joked. Ellie simultaneously yawned and heard her stomach growl. “Right, the food court is on the bottom floor. Escalators are just outside,” Natasha explained, still clearly amused by Ellie's mood. They left the store and got onto the escalators. After an obnoxiously long ride they reached the basement, but still had to go all the way across the mall again to get to the food. Ellie was really tempted to just teleport herself there. 

They finally made it and quickly found the guys. They found a relatively reclusive spot, but Natasha knew where to look. Ellie planted herself down in a seat and immediately stole one of Sam’s delicious looking fries. “Hey! Those are mine,” Sam complained. Ellie glared at him. “Damn, okay. The hell happened to you?” 

“Tired. Hungry. So. Many. Clothes,” Ellie groaned into the table. She felt someone rub their hand against her back and she looked up to see that it was Bucky. She smiled, her mood somehow a little brighter. He slid over a tray of fries. “You don’t have to. I can wait in line like everyone else,” Ellie spoke, more than a little melodramatically. 

“I got them for you. I knew you’d be hungry when you got here,” Bucky told her. She fought back tears of gratitude and hunger as she thanked him profusely and pulled him into a hug, then started to eat the fries like her life depended on it. She was at the point in her power usage that she’d usually take a nap, but she wouldn’t be able to do that this time, instead she’d replenish with fries. 

“I’m gonna get a burrito, do you want anything?” Natasha offered. 

“Oh yeah! I’ll come with you,” Ellie spoke, feeling much better after her fries. She hugged Bucky's shoulders and smiled at her two friends. “Oh hey Natasha, would you mind if I masked our appearances while we waited in line? You won't feel any different or anything, people just won't be able to recognize us,” Ellie asked, not liking the idea of being stuck in line with people who might badger her with questions. 

“Yeah that sounds great, but are you sure you’re up for it? You’ve been using your powers a lot today,” Natasha cautioned. 

“I’m sure. Illusions like that don’t take much energy. Plus, I think the alternative would be more exhausting,” Ellie laughed.

“You’re probably right about that,” Natasha laughed. Ellie called on her powers and placed them on herself and Natasha. The illusion wouldn’t be visible for either of them, or any of their friends, just the random people around them. “Did it work? I still recognize you,” Natasha asked. 

“Yup, only works on them,” Ellie explained as they got into the line at chipotle. “So, what’s going on with you and Steve?” Ellie quizzed. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Natasha reused Ellie’s excuse.

“I don’t have to be a trained Russian spy to notice the chemistry between you guys,” Ellie returned, playing Natasha’s game. 

“You can’t tell a soul okay?” Natasha sternly spoke. Ellie nodded. “We’ve been seeing each other in secret for a while. A few months or so.” Ellie's eyes widened in shock. 

“Oh my god! Seriously? Why haven’t you told anyone?” Ellie excitedly asked. 

Natasha hesitated, but decided to answer, “Bucky.” Ellie furrowed her brows. Why would Bucky cause them to keep it a secret? “The Bucky you know isn’t the Bucky that’s lived in the tower the last few years. I’m still not used to the change. He smiles, jokes, and laughs now, regularly. Steve was afraid that he would feel abandoned. Although with Bucky 2.0, we might be able to start telling people,” Natasha smiled. It still amazed Ellie that she could have any part in turning him into the bright person she knew.

Natasha tapped on Ellie, looking over at a couple girls chatting. “I heard they were here,” a teenage girl said to her friend. 

“Which ones?” her friend asked. 

The girl pulled out her phone and found a picture of them from when they first walked in. “Um, it looks like it’s Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, Natasha Romanoff, Bucky Barnes,” she explained as she looked closer at her screen. Her knowledge of their names and faces was impressive, way better than Ellie's was. “I think the new Avenger, Ellie Clark, is standing behind Bucky,” she guessed as she handed her friend her phone to check. 

“Yeah I think that’s her,” her friend agreed. “She’s so badass. Healing powers are so cool.” 

“I know right. I’ll bet her and Natasha are like best friends now.” Ellie and Natasha smiled at each other. 

“Me too. What else do you think she can do?” they continued to chat. 

“They think you’re a badass,” Natasha smiled at Ellie.

“What can I say, I’m pretty cool,” Ellie joked back. 

Ellie and Natasha finally made their way back to the table after the long wait in the line for Chipotle. Luckily they didn’t have a crowd around the table, so Ellie casted another illusion, making the space simply look empty. Once her and Natasha walked into her newly placed illusion she dropped the one she’d placed on them. “So, how did shoe shopping go?” Ellie asked as she sat down with her chicken bowl. She smiled at Bucky, who was in the seat next to her and squeezed his hand under the table. 

“I’m glad you asked, shoe shopping went terribly,” Sam loudly complained, drawing Ellie's attention back to him. 

“Sam, it really wasn’t that bad,” Steve tried to defend. 

“Yes Steve, it was,” Sam defended his stance. “So, as expected we got recognized, which is fine. First it was this kid who was all excited to see Steve and I’m used to that. He is Captain America for god's sake. The kid's dad shows up and thanks Steve and Bucky for their service and looks at me and goes, ‘who are you?’ Who are you?! I’m Sam Wilson, I’m the Falcon man! I’ve been with the team for a year and a half now,” Sam complained loudly. “Who are you,” he scoffed. 

“Did you get your shoes at least?” Ellie asked.

“Bad question,” Bucky quietly told her.

“No! They didn’t have what I needed. It was all for nothing. My ego was crushed for nothing,” Sam complained. 

“Well, I still need to shop for shoes too. I’m sure there’s a shoe store somewhere here we can go to,” Ellie attempted, looking at Natasha for support. 

“Yeah, there’s a Steve Madden on the first floor. We can go there after this. Ellie and I have a couple more stops we need to go on after that, then we can head out. Do you guys think you can keep yourselves entertained for that amount of time?” Natasha asked. 

“We’ll be fine, you guys have fun,” Steve smiled. Ellie noticed a spark that only rose when he spoke to Natasha. Ellie happily dug into her bowl, her fries no longer holding her over. She enjoyed her delicious food, feeling her energy come back to her as she did. 

They soon finished the meal and Ellie cleared their mess with her powers. She was feeling refueled and eager to keep testing her limits. She waited for them to clear out of the space, then dropped her illusion on the table, and laughed to herself as she noticed a few confused looks from passersby. They made their way up to the first floor and over to Steve Madden. Ellie ended up giving Natasha her shoe size and let her do her thing. She wandered down the isles with Bucky. She grabbed a pair of ankle boots and showed him. “Do you think these would look good?” she asked. 

“If you’re wearing them, always,” he replied. 

Ellie blushed, still not used to the blatant flattery from him. “You’re such a flirt,” Ellie joked. 

“Only with you, doll,” he whispered against her neck. It was like he knew what that did to her and he was using it against her. Either way it was working and she remembered how close their bodies had been hours ago. The nickname sent fire up her spine. She wanted him to call her that all the time. She could feel that it was more than just a word, it was important. It meant he was hers and she was his. 

Ellie remembered where she was and brought herself back into reality. She realized how close there bodies were and how public the store was. “Not here Bucky,” Ellie breathed, he pouted sarcastically but backed away. “Now, I need your help picking out shoes. Can you do that?” He looked at her with his beautiful eyes, almost making Ellie give up on her stance entirely, then nodded and started looking through shoes with her. They ended up grabbing a few fashion-type casual shoes, including the original boots. Ellie planned to get more tennis shoes while she was at Adidas. Ellie and Bucky carried the shoes to the front desk and found an already massive pile next to the counter from Natasha. Ellie sighed and shook her head, Natasha knew how to shop. Ellie found her in the corner and walked over, “I grabbed some stuff I want, do you think you’ll need me? I assume I don’t have much say in this anyways. I can give you my card, I’m gonna go up to the Adidas store and get some more exercise gear,” Ellie explained. 

“Sure, don’t bother with your card though, you’ll need it down stairs,” Natasha dismissed, Ellie was going to talk to Tony later about transferring money over to pay her back. “Have fun. I’ll find you down there,” Natasha smiled, looking between the two of them knowingly. Ellie rolled her eyes, but smiled. 

“Oh, call me when you’re done. I’ll come back up and take care of all the shoes,” Ellie added. Natasha nodded before turning back into the many rows of shoes. She and Bucky walked out of the store together and headed back downstairs. “If you want, I can mask our appearances, so people won't recognize us,” Ellie offered. 

Bucky looked at her surprised. “You can do that?” he asked. 

“I can do a lot of things,” Ellie winked. “So, would you like me to?” 

“Yeah, it would be nice to just be a normal person for a little while,” Bucky replied. Ellie casted the illusion over them. She let them walk for a little while, then she reached for his hand, holding it in hers. He looked down at her with a smile and she softly leaned against his body as they walked. “This is nice,” he softly spoke. 

“Yeah, it is,” Ellie smiled, safe and happy with him by her side. They remained hand in hand for the rest of their walk to the store. She excitedly ran into the store and looked around as she stepped inside. She dragged him over to one of the sections that held leggings. She grabbed a couple pairs of the black, blue, dark green, obviously, and grey. She went to the next clump of clothes that held tops. Ellie stared at their vast selection and just started grabbing what seemed cool and in her size, which she'd figured out with Natasha. “It’s all so pretty!” Ellie exclaimed to Bucky, he happily smiled in return. She was having way more fun in this store, since she had zero intention of trying these on before buying them. She dragged him over to the sweatpants and she added a bunch more to her collection. Her arm was getting tired already, so she looked around the room, then summoned a mesh shopping bag to put her clothes in. She dropped all the clothes in it then stretched out her arms. Bucky immediately picked the bag up for her. “You don't have to carry that for me.” 

“Ellie, this weighs nothing to me. Plus, you need to have both arms to look at all the pretty stuff,” he smiled. Ellie decided to accept that answer because she really wanted to keep looking around and she could move a lot faster if she didn’t have to hold anything. She bounced over to their shorts section and grabbed a bunch of their running shorts and spandex and placed them in the bag, thanking him every time she set something inside. She wandered around the rest of the store, placing things in the bag as she went. Eventually filling it up to the brink with sports bras, socks, sweat shirts, and joggers. She looked at the bag, very satisfied with her work. “Do you want to look at shoes now? I know you said you needed some new tennis shoes, I’ve seen the pair you use, you’re definitely due for an upgrade,” Bucky prompted. 

“Right! You are exceptionally helpful. You know that?” Ellie absolutely beamed. She was in a wonderful mood. She trotted over to the shoes and started pulling out pairs in her size. Some were mainly just for fashion and others were for exercise. She ended up grabbing a couple fashionable pairs, a good pair of running shoes, and a pair of lightweight shoes designed for boxing that Ellie thought would work well for her combat training. She carried her stack of boxes to the front counter and set them down, as Bucky started unloading the bag. Ellie’s phone started to ring and she looked to Bucky and he nodded, so she stepped aside to answer it, “hey.” Natasha told her she’d finished checking out through the phone. “Oh perfect, we’re at the register now, we’ll be up in a couple minutes,” Ellie smiled into the phone. She walked back up to Bucky with a soft smile, which widened as she looked at his face. “She’s all done upstairs,” Ellie relayed. He nodded and wrapped his arm around her as they waited for the cashier to finish ringing them up. Ellie leaned her head against his, perfectly content. After a couple blissful moments, he’d finished ringing her up, so she reached into her purse and retrieved her card and paid the bill. Ellie and Bucky collected her many new things and walked out of the store. Ellie waited until they were around the corner, then she brought all her things back to the Tower, like she’d been doing. 

Bucky looked at his now empty hands, then to her. “You know, you are remarkable Ellie,” Bucky told her, amazed by what she’d done. 

“Why thank you, you’re not too shabby yourself,” Ellie smiled. Ellie reached over and grabbed his hand again. She soaked in her time with him as two normal people, unrecognizable to the people around them. It was a blessing and a curse to be a member of the Avengers. She understood why Peter hid his identity a lot better now. Ellie was lucky, the other members of the team couldn’t hide their identities like she could. She looked up at Bucky as they rode up the escalator and leaned against him. “Thank you,” she spoke.

“What for?”

“For coming with me today,” Ellie continued. “I know being in the public eye isn’t your favorite. It means a lot to me that you came,” she warmly spoke.

His face was soft, matching her content. “It was my pleasure, doll,” he affirmed. He placed his hand on her chin and lifted her face up to his. Ellie felt her face warm with his touch. She looked into his perfect eyes, the ones she would never get tired of. He placed his lips onto her own. Ellie melted into his touch as her body sparked with pleasure. The kiss wasn’t like the one in the changing room, it was slow and loving. They broke apart as they reached the top of the escalator.

“You know, you’re really good at that,” Ellie breathed, catching her breath from their embrace. She could see Steve Madden already and she frowned. Their brief escape from reality was coming to an end. “I’m going to have to drop the illusion,” she disappointedly told him. “When we’re in that crowd, so people can’t track us,” she explained. Bucky squeezed her hand one last time before letting it go. They approached the crowd and separated from each other as Ellie dropped the illusion. She kept her head down, hoping they wouldn’t notice her. She and Bucky reunited outside of the group of people, fortunately no one had noticed them. They walked into the store together and saw Natasha standing next to a massive stack of shoe boxes at least 6 times her size. “Oh my god,” Ellie sighed at the sight. 

“Trust me, there’s a use for every pair of them,” Natasha explained.

“I’ll pretend like I believe you,” Ellie sighed. She called to her powers again and sent them all to her room. She was going to have an annoying evening putting all her new clothes away. Luckily, everything fit in her closet so far. “So, do we want to get my bedding now and maybe leave them there to wander?”

“Yeah, that sounds like a good plan,” Natasha replied. Ellie turned around and found the three guys all chatting with each other. Sam was showing off his new shoes to Bucky, who didn’t appear to be in the least bit amused. He was explaining how slick they looked from above, then he turned them over and showed the treads, talking about how he had great traction on them. Ellie was completely amused by the interaction, it reminded her of a younger brother trying to show his older sibling their new toy. Natasha walked up to them, breaking their one sided conversation. “You guys ready to go? We’re going back to Macy’s so Ellie can get new bedding. Before you say anything Sam, I’m sure that guy is gone. We have one more stop after that, but you guys should be able to entertain yourselves in Macy’s, it’s a big store, I have faith,” Natasha joked, mainly directing it at Sam, as he was the notable problem child. 

The group all walked out of the store and Ellie walked side by side with Bucky, stopping herself from touching him, even though she wanted to. “It’s too bad, I was hoping to get some new converse while we were here, but it doesn’t look like they have the store here,” Ellie spoke aloud. She loved her single pair of converse and wore them exclusively. She had gotten a bunch of new shoes, but they all felt sort of formal. 

“We’ll find a store and go another day if you’d like,” Bucky offered. Ellie looked at him with a smile and nodded. 

“You haven’t gotten anything today. Nothing strike your fancy?” Ellie asked. 

“Only one thing,” he smirked. 

Ellie blushed as he eyed her down. “God, you are a flirt,” Ellie lightly slapped his arm as she laughed. They walked into the massive store and found the home section. Ellie started to explore the bedding, Bucky still bound to her hip, following her like a lost puppy. She found a big and soft green comforter that sort of reminded her of the one from her old apartment. “What do you think? Would it look good in my room?” Ellie asked Bucky.

“Yeah, it’ll match your posters and plants,” he noted. Ellie smiled and grabbed one in her size, which Bucky took from her right away to carry, darn 1940s chivalry. She kept wandering. She figured it wouldn’t hurt to have a couple options. She came across a white comforter with beautiful floral print on it that she was instantly drawn to. It had yellow dandelions on it, which was a huge plus. She grabbed it, without question, with a huge smile on her face as she looked at it. It seemed like something caught Bucky's eye too. He walked over to a sort of hideous greenish blue crowded bedding set. Ellie tried really hard to put a supportive smile on her face, but she hated it. “What? I think it looks nice,” Bucky defended. 

Ellie pursed her lips in a slight smile. “Okay honey. Um, you can get it for your room if you’d like,” she barely managed not to laugh at his terrible taste in fabric print. In his defense he was raised in the 30s, but still, it was awful. He eventually gave in and left it behind. Ellie placed her arm around his back. “It’s a good thing you’re pretty,” she joked. He blushed slightly as he sighed, then snatched the other comforter from her hand. “Hey!” Ellie jokingly exclaimed as she tried to get it back, but quickly gave up, letting him have it. “Come on, I want to look at the sheets,” she smiled as he followed her. That process was much easier, as she knew that she just wanted simple sheets. She grabbed two green sets and a white one with a very simple spaced out small gold spotted print. “All done!” Ellie smiled. 

“Where have you been sending everything?” Bucky asked as they walked.

“My closet back at the tower. I hope I haven’t scared Paw too much. It’s gonna be a pain to put everything away,” Ellie sighed as she explained. 

“I can help you if you want,” Bucky offered. 

“Well aren’t you sweet,” Ellie smiled. “That would be lovely, thank you.” They got up to the counter and Ellie placed everything on the counter to check out. As expected, the cashier freaked out a little when she saw them, but she settled down pretty quick. Once they were done checking out, Ellie sent the stuff away again. She was definitely feeling the toll on her body again, but it was fine, she was having fun. “Let’s find Natasha,” Ellie spoke. 

“So, where are you two sneaking off to without us?” Bucky asked.

Ellie instantly turned beet red, knowing they were leaving to buy lingerie, “oh- um- nowhere special,” she lied, terribly. She really shouldn't be this nervous but in her defense she'd never had sex. She threw her head down to her feet to actively avoid eye contact. Ellie saw Natasha, thank god. “ Oh look, there she is, let’s go over there,” she incredibly awkwardly stated. Bucky looked at her with a simultaneously amused and confused expression. “Hey, Natasha!” Ellie waved, getting her attention and successfully dodging the rest of that conversation. Steve and Sam were both with her, so the transition would be simple. “Okay, so we’re gonna head out for a bit. You boys have fun, don’t get into any trouble. Okay, um, bye,” Ellie quickly spoke, before looping her arm in Natasha’s and walking out of the store. 

“Um, what the hell was that?” Natasha laughed. 

“I panicked okay? Bucky asked me where we were going and I didn’t want to tell him. So I freaked out,” Ellie still spoke rapidly. Natasha still laughed at her. Ellie placed an illusion over the two of them as they entered a crowd, so no one would know they were buying lingerie, who knew what the internet would do with that. 

“So I take it you guys haven’t had sex,” Natasha commented. 

“No, I haven’t even had sex period,” Ellie replied in a hushed voice. Natasha awed at her innocence. “Oh be quiet,” Ellie snapped back. “For the record, no one can recognize us. Not that you wanted to ask before asking about my sex life,” Ellie glared. 

“Okay fine, you’re right, sorry. Do you want to have sex with him?” 

“I am going to the store aren’t I?” Ellie asked as an answer. Natasha shrugged as they went up the escalator. “Will you help me? I don’t know what I’m supposed to get,” Ellie conceded. 

“Of course,” Natasha smiled. “Just a question, no judgement, but um, is that what all of your bras and underwear are like?” Ellie sighed again in embarrassment. “I’ll take that as a yes. It’s fine, we all have to start somewhere,” she supported. They walked into the store and Ellie was immediately overwhelmed. There was so much. Ellie hadn’t realized some of it existed. Natasha seemed to have no problem and grabbed one of the mesh shopping bags, then headed straight for one of the displays, tossing a bunch of lace underwear into the bag. Ellie walked up to her with wide eyes. “I’m getting you all the basics. Why don’t you go over there,” she pointed to the section with all of the particularly sexy sets. “And grab yourself some special stuff.” Ellie looked at her skeptically. “You don’t have to use it, but if you end up wanting to later, you’ll be glad you got it, just trust me okay?” Natasha reasoned. 

“Okay,” Ellie conceded. She walked back up to the front to grab a shopping bag for herself and went over to the extremely intimidating section. She saw some that had strings wrapped intricately around the models, others were lacey, with see through bras and underwear. Ellie hesitantly grabbed one of each type. She didn’t need to use it right? She found some more sets that she liked. She also grabbed a few slips and robes she thought could look nice. Ellie continued to explore and found some actual pajama type sets that were really nice and silky. She decided to grab some of those too. She wasn’t sure if she’d ever use all the things she'd acquired, she didn’t think she was confident enough for it. Ellie shook the thoughts away, Natasha was right, if she ended up wanting them later, she’d be glad she had them. She decided she was satisfied and walked back up to Natasha. “I’m done,” she told her. 

“Find anything you like?” Natasha asked her.

“Maybe, not sure I’ll use it though,” Ellie admitted. 

“It’s okay if you don’t, only do what you’re comfortable with. You would look really hot though. Although with the way Bucky looks at you he’d probably fuck you in a potato sack,” Natasha commented. 

“Natasha!” Ellie exclaimed as she slapped her in the arm. 

“Just calling it how I see it,” she defended. Ellie rolled her eyes as they reached the check out line. Ellie pulled out the stuff from her bag and watched Natasha eye everything she brought out. “Ooh, he’ll love that,” she commented as she placed the stringy thing on the counter. Ellie blushed and finished unloading the bag. “Good job,” Natasha told her, approvingly. Ellie laughed as she rolled her eyes at the strange approval. Natasha started to unload her bag and Ellie watched her pull out at a minimum 20 pairs of different types of underwear, including at least four thongs. Ellie glared at Natasha. “You’ll thank me later,” Natasha defended. She continued with the bag and pulled out a bunch of bras of an extremely wide variety. Some were push-up, some were lacy, some were just standard, some were sexy, Ellie just stared at the collection. She placed a couple last items on the table and Ellie had no idea what they were. “I’ll explain later,” Natasha whispered to Ellie, she nodded, still confused. After a while the cashier finished ringing up everything they’d grabbed and once again Natasha beat her to paying. That was starting to get really annoying. They collected their bags and walked out of the store. 

“Okay, so I have everything I could possibly need right?” Ellie confirmed.

“Well, there are toys we can look at later,” Natasha offered casually. Ellie simply blinked at her. She didn’t think she was ready for that. “I’m around if you change your mind,” she laughed. “Okay, we should go somewhere so you can ditch the bags without getting noticed,” she explained as she started walking in the direction of the Macy’s. She walked into a corner and swung her head around, “Okay do it.” Ellie got rid of their bags, finally tipping her exhaustion over the edge. She looked around, not wanting to drop their disguises at the same time as well. “Alright, let’s go. You can drop the illusion whenever,” Natasha spoke. They walked into the Macy’s and began their search for their friends. Ellie dropped the illusion as they merged with a group of people. Apparently Natasha had limited patience for searching, as she just grabbed her phone and called them instead. Ellie watched her mouth curve into a smile, she was talking to Steve. She hung up the phone and turned to Ellie. “They’re coming up to us. Apparently they bought stuff,” Natasha told her. 

Ellie was about to ask the time when she remembered she had a watch. It was 6:30, but Ellie was ready for bed. Putting everything away was a tomorrow problem. She yawned, the exhaustion of the day fully setting in. Just as she was considering finding a bench to sit on, she saw them coming down the escalator. Steve and Bucky both each holding large bags. Ellie managed a smile in her sleepy state as they walked over to her. “So, did you get something good?” Ellie asked Bucky. 

“I hope so,” he replied. Ellie looked at him confused. “It’s for you. We found some converse downstairs and I grabbed some pairs I thought you’d like,” Bucky told her. 

“Thank you,” Ellie genuinely spoke and brought him into a tight hug. He had a way of exceeding expectations. In her sleepiness she lingered in the hug, partially just wanting the physical support, but also not bothering to pull away to avoid the public eye. “Can we go back now? I’m exhausted,” Ellie asked. 

“Yeah, let’s get out of here. We conquered this mall,” Sam spoke, leading the way out of the store. He paused and turned around. “Wait, since you're like basically asleep, can I drive your car home?” he asked excitedly. 

“I thought it was a lame car?” Ellie sheepishly returned. 

“Yeah but that was before,” he argued. 

Ellie whispered to Bucky, leaning into his chest to look at him, “does he know how to drive?” Bucky shrugged.

“I’m a great driver. I’ve never gotten into an accident,” he defended. Natasha and Steve both stared him down. “Fine, I’ve never gotten into an accident while we weren’t on a mission.”

“Fine, but only this time, you better not hurt her,” Ellie told him, pointing a weak finger in his direction. 

“I won't, I swear,” Sam assured her before turning back around and walking back to the car. 

Bucky adjusted his hold on Ellie so he had his arm wrapped around her rapidly sleepier person. She happily leaned against him as they made their way back to her car. She knew she should be more concerned about Sam driving and people seeing her and Bucky, but she was too tired to care. They finally made it to the car, with Sam yapping the whole way there, and Ellie found her keys and unlocked it. She held the trunk button so Steve and Bucky could put their bags back there. “Will you sit in the back with me?” Ellie asked Bucky, not ready to separate from his warm body yet. He smiled and nodded. They climbed into the back row, with Bucky in the more central of the two seats. Ellie sleepily put on her seat belt and waited for Bucky to do the same. “All set?” she asked him

“Yeah,” he smiled. He brought his arm across her back and she nestled in against his chest. She felt completely safe and content. “Sleep well, doll,” he whispered as she fell asleep in his arms. 

The perfect ending to a perfect day.

Chapter Text

Ellie woke up nestled against Bucky in her bed. They’d gone to the mall yesterday and she vaguely remembered getting to her room. Bucky walked up with her and she made him stay in her sleepy state. Her car nap gave her enough energy to just change into pajamas with her powers and she was pretty sure she changed him into sweats too. She adjusted against him and could feel the warmth of his chest under her cheek. She peered up at him and he was still sound asleep. God he was beautiful. She sat up slightly to admire him, lightly grazing a hand through his hair. She still couldn’t get over how soft it was. How was it possible that he loved her? That a man like that wanted her? It felt unreal. She’d never had any luck in life, but maybe that was changing. She snuggled in closer and brought her arm against his chest, feeling as comfortable as she ever had. She laid there for a while, just listening to the sounds of his breathing and the steady beat of his heart, until he started to shift around and opened his eyes “Hey Bucky,” she greeted with a gentle smile. 

“Hi doll,” he warmly returned, she could feel her cheeks warm from the use of the name. He placed a soft hand on her cheek and a bright smile covered his face. “You are so beautiful, you know that?” he sweetly spoke. She couldn’t see herself, but she knew she got even redder. “I wanted to tell you that every single day,” he continued, brushing her hair out of her face. “You’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen,” he hummed. 

“I can't imagine that’s true. You’ve been alive almost 100 years,” she countered the incredibly bold statement. 

“You know, sometimes I think you can’t see yourself,” he lightly frowned. “Through my eyes you’re perfect. Everything about you. Your smile, your eyes, the little dimples you get, the way you blush when you're nervous,” he listed, causing more of the aforementioned blush. “See,” he started, brushing his hand on her cheek. “It’s adorable,” he smiled wide. 

“Well aren’t you a sweet talker,” she beamed. Ellie studied his face, and brought them closer until there was almost no space between them. Her eyes trailed down to his lips, now that she knew how soft they were she wanted to feel them again, it was all she wanted to do. She placed some of her weight on one elbow and lightly grabbed his face with the other hand. Bucky’s eyes were rapidly shifting between her and her lips and she could feel her heart racing. Losing her patience she closed the gap between them, bringing his lips to hers again and she instantly felt tingling down her spine. She licked at his teeth, begging for entry, to which he seemed to  happily oblige. She was filled with his taste again and her body was set ablaze. He danced circles around her mouth, filling her with his flavor. 

Per her luck, Paw decided they had to start their day and jumped on her back, causing her to giggle as they parted. “I think he’s jealous,” Bucky laughed. 

“Of who? You or me,” she countered, as she moved off of his chest and leaned on her side, bringing Paw in between them. 

“Oh, definitely you, because you’re getting all my attention,” he teased. She rolled her eyes at him with a large smile. “So, what are your plans for today?” he asked, sitting up against his elbow, to look at her. 

“I don’t know yet.” She looked at her cast, “I’m supposed to get this off today, so I’ll probably head down there first thing.” She noticed Bucky frowning, so she took his hand in hers and gave him a soft smile. “It’s okay Bucky. It’s all going to be behind us soon. I forgive you and I know you may need more time, but I really want you to forgive yourself too,” she gently told him.

He nodded lightly. “So um, did you have any other plans?” he asked, changing the subject. 

“Right, yeah, I uh, also want to work out, so maybe I’ll do that after. Though, that’s where it gets complicated. I have to put away all of my new clothes, but I also want to go to the lab, especially since I haven’t been there in the last couple days,” she explained. She remembered Bruce talking about working on a new project for in field medical treatments. His goal was to create a cellular bandaid which would rapidly replicate to become synonymous to the patient's tissue. She ended up taking her break before they could start, but she was excited and ready to begin now. 

“Can I make a suggestion?” Bucky started. 

“Of course,” she smiled.

“You could maybe use your powers for the clothes?” he hesitantly suggested. “I know you’re working on your tolerance, so maybe it could be a two for one situation?” he continued. 

“That’s actually a really good idea. New plan. I go to get my cast off, organize the closet, work out, then go to the lab,” she decided aloud. 

“When do you plan to eat?”  

“Right. Food. I forgot about that,” she realized aloud. 

“How about this, I will go to the kitchen and get us breakfast while you go to the medical floor. We can unpack together, or maybe I’ll watch you use your powers? I don’t know, I’ll try to be helpful. Then, we work out together and get lunch. Theoretically that will put us around mid-day, so you should still be able to go to the lab,” he offered. 

“You’re a genius,” she beamed and quickly brought their lips together for a quick kiss before getting out of the bed. She walked into her closet and could barely get inside. “Boy it’s a mess in here,” she laughed. She closed the door behind her and started searching through bags to try and find an outfit to wear. She ended up finding the Adidas bags and decided to go with those since they were going to workout before the lab. She put on a pair of black leggings with a loose blue cropped tank/bra, combo and her new tennis shoes. She looked at herself in the mirror and smiled at the look. She scanned the room again and saw bright pink stripes. She double checked the door, then placed the contents of the Victoria’s Secret bag into a drawer, then folded the bag and put it in there too. For extra security she decided to alter it so only she could open it. She walked out of the closet, now confident he wasn’t going to accidentally find her new stash. He was still laying in her bed when she got out, playing with Paw. A huge smile cloaked her face as she admired them. 

“What?” he chuckled. 

“Nothing, it’s just nice. You in my bed, in the morning, after being here all night,” she admitted, her cheeks burning. 

“I’ve slept in it before,” he clarified. 

“I know, but you were there because I had a nightmare. You weren’t just there to be with me. It was still great and it means a lot to me, but I couldn’t do this,” she countered, placing a soft kiss on his perfectly soft lips. 

“You’re right. This is much better,” he blushed. “So, I’ll see you downstairs?” he asked as she walked to the doorway. 

“Yup. Get us something yummy!” Ellie beamed as she teleported to the medical floor. She looked around the familiar medical floor and approached the desk. A nurse she hadn’t met before greeted her with a warm smile. “Hi there,” she started. She noticed an ID, so she decided to go with it, “Julie. My name is Ellie Clark, I’m uh the new-” she stumbled, awkwardly. She really was bad at the whole social thing. 

“I know who you are, don’t worry,” the woman saved her with a kind expression. 

“Oh, okay, thanks. I’m here to get this off,” she explained, now feeling much more relaxed. 

“Alright. I am going to get someone for you,” she replied, her eyes lingering on the cast. Maybe she’d seen pictures from the mall? They had rules about not sharing things, right? She wouldn’t be allowed to tell people about the cast, right? The team knew, but she really didn’t want it getting out publicly. 

She saw a familiar face approaching her, breaking her from her momentary spiral. “Hi Eliza,” Ellie smiled, grateful it was her, so she wouldn’t have to rehash the events leading up to the injury. She walked over to the friendly woman and turned back to Julie briefly, “thank you.” 

“Of course,” she smiled back.

“We’re going to be in room 7,” Eliza informed her as they walked. “So how are you feeling?” she asked. “You seem a lot better.” 

“Yeah, I feel great actually,” she beamed, grateful for everything that had happened in the last few days. 

“That’s wonderful to hear,” she smiled, opening the door to the room. Ellie sat down on the bed as Eliza put on gloves. “Well your cheek looks really good. May I?” she asked as she approached her. Ellie nodded and Eliza gently placed a hand on it, feeling the spot where the injury had been. “Does this hurt at all?” 

“No,” she replied. 

“Great. And your wrist? Have you been having pain?” she continued. 

“I did, but it hasn’t hurt in the last four days or so.” 

“Okay, well this all sounds good. I want to get X-Rays of your wrist and cheek again, just to make sure everything healed properly. If everything looks right I’ll take off your cast and you’ll be on your way,” she smiled and walked towards the door. Ellie nodded and followed her. “Alright, you know the drill,” she explained as they approached the room. She directed Ellie to the proper spots then walked back out, “I’ll be right back.” 

“Thanks,” she softly returned. Ellie sat patiently as the machine whirred around her. It was weird to think about how different she was the last time she was here. So much had changed in the last week and a half. If what happened after the conference meant she got to be with Bucky, then it would've been worth it. All that pain and stress would’ve been worth it for how inexplicably happy she was with him. 

Eliza walked back in, breaking her from her thoughts, “alright, all done. We can go back to your room,” she explained and Ellie got up from the scanner. They walked back in together and she sat back down on the bed. “I am going to have a doctor double check these, I’ll be right back,” she smiled as she walked out of the room. Ellie conjured her phone as she waited, and texted Bucky an update. 

ELLIE

I think I’m almost done.

Did you find us yummy food?

BUCKY

How do parfait bowls sound? 

ELLIE

Ooh, that sounds delicious!

I’ll see you soon!

The door opened, so Ellie looked up from her phone to see Eliza walking in again. “Great news, both fractures have completely healed,” she informed, prompting a wide smile from Ellie. “I am going to use this to remove your cast,” she started, grabbing an honestly terrifying looking hand held saw. She considered her options, then decided to just remove it with her powers, saving them both the trouble. “Or that,” Eliza laughed, then took her wrist in her hand and studied it, “do you have any pain with the cast removed?” Ellie replied with a simple no, so Eliza continued. “There isn’t any bruising or swelling, which is good,” she thought aloud. “I want to test your range of motion, though I suspect you’ll be pretty good with that too. I’ll also have some exercises you can do to strengthen the joint,” she finished. “Alright, let’s test your flexibility. I want you to flex and extend your wrist. It may feel a little tender, but it shouldn’t hurt,” she advised as she demonstrated the movement. Ellie took a deep breath, suddenly nervous to move her wrist, and slowly started to move her hand down. It sort of felt like she’d been sleeping on it funny and it had ‘fallen asleep’ as she and her parents used to say; it didn’t hurt, but it felt really strange. “That’s great, how does it feel?” she asked.

“Weird,” Ellie shrugged. 

“That’s fair. You’ll let me know if anything hurts?” she confirmed and Ellie nodded. “Alright, next I want you to do wrist rotations.” Ellie started doing the motion and felt the similar strange feeling, but she was able to do it okay. “Great. Just two more. I want you to rotate your hand from left to right,” she instructed, as she brought her thumb then pinky closer to the sides of her arm, almost like waving. She replicated it with a general ease. “Okay, the last one is pretty simple. You just need to open and close your hand as wide as possible.” Once she finished Eliza gave her a bright smile, “well, you are exactly as healed, if not a little better, than we expected with your healing factor. In the next few days you should probably do some rehabilitation exercises to bring your strength back to what it was. I have a print out for you to follow. They’re sort of silly, but it’ll help, I promise,” she explained, handing Ellie a paper. “So, you can do all of the range of motion stretches we did. Then there are a few varieties of flexion and extension exercises depending on how strong you are. Eventually, you can use a dumbbell, but for now I just want you to focus on reps not weight. You’ll also want to strengthen your grip, so this,” she started, handing Ellie a small foam ball. “Is for you. I want you to squeeze it as tight as you can and you should get stronger with time. You should do all of these 3 times a day. You may want to wear a brace while you're training for a couple days, just in case, though I don’t expect you to have any issue,” she added, grabbing a small skin toned brace and handing it to her. “Once you can use a dumbbell you won’t need the brace; you should continue your exercises for one day after that, then you're done with those too. I’m also here if you have any questions.” She stood up and walked towards the door, prompting Ellie to do the same. “Well, that’s everything I have for you. You are all set to go,” she beamed. 

“Thank you so much Eliza, for everything,” Ellie softly spoke. 

“Of course. It’s my pleasure,” she returned. 

Ellie gave her one last smile then teleported to the kitchen. She scanned the room and saw Bucky talking with Steve with a bright smile on his face. She smiled lightly to herself and decided to let them continue. She looked around and noticed, to nobody’s surprise , an isolated 200 year old man on the couch. She shook her head and walked to him. “You know, for a guy who spends so much time on a common floor you don’t do a great job of socializing,” she teased. 

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. I’m talking to you, aren’t I?” Logan negated and Ellie rolled her eyes at him. “So whatcha got there?” he asked. In response, she threw the ball at him, apparently causing him to notice her cast free hand, “When did you get that off?” he questioned. 

“Just now, that is supposed to help me with my grip strength,” she explained, nodding to the ball. “And these are a bunch of other exercises I should be doing so I don’t get all uneven,” she shrugged, flashing him the paper. 

“So you’re feeling better? Not just the wrist I mean?” he clarified. 

“Completely,” she returned. “I was scared before. Everything that happened with Bucky brought up a lot of feelings and I pushed away. I was afraid of how I felt about him and then I thought I lost him and I freaked out,” she quietly explained. “But um, we talked that morning after my nightmare and I guess I realized I didn’t need to be afraid, that I could trust him. So, all of that to say, Bucky and I, um,” she struggled, there was something about Logan that made her feel safe and supported, so she really wanted him to be on her side for this. “We’re uh seeing each other?” she attempted. “I don’t know. We haven’t really decided on what to call it or anything, but I’m happy,” she quietly explained.

“Well, I’m really happy for you,” he smiled back. 

“That means a lot, thank you,” she softly returned. “And Logan,” she quietly added.

“Yeah bub?” 

“I’m so sorry,” she frowned. “For pushing you away. I was in a really bad place and it wasn’t fair to treat you that way. You were just trying to be there for me,” she whispered, ashamed of how she treated him, especially right after he told her how much he’d cared about her. 

“It’s okay, you can’t get rid of me that easily. You went through a lot in a really short amount of time. I take it that talk with him didn’t go as you planned?” he noted.

“He uh, he told me he loved me,” she quietly divulged. 

“Shit,” he muttered. “I mean, I probably could’ve told you that myself, the boy was not subtle, but I’m glad he did. He could’ve had better timing though,” he scoffed. 

“You’re telling me,” she grumbled, knowing his words put her into a four day cycle of overtraining and blind panic. “But we’re okay? You’re not upset? I’d understand if you were,” she carefully confirmed.

“We’re great bub. All that matters to me is that you’re doing better,” he warmly returned. “Now, go get yourself breakfast, I assume you’ve got a busy day ahead of you,” he shooed her away. He threw the ball back at her and she caught it with her powers. “Nice catch,” he cackled and she winked back at him as she brought the ball to her hand. 

Ellie actually took in the space, no longer just noticing her two favorite guys and realized Peter was at the table chatting with Pietro. They were talking faster than she could track, about something she wasn’t familiar with. Wanda was sitting next to her brother talking to Steve and only sort of Bucky and Remy was cutting up fruits in the kitchen. She sat down next to Bucky, briefly squeezing his metal hand under the table. Her presence immediately gained Peter’s attention. He broke off his conversation with Pietro, though he quickly started talking to his sister, leaving Steve and Bucky to their own chat again. “Ellie,” he breathed. 

“Hey Peter,” Ellie greeted. 

“How are you?” he asked, obviously nervous for the answer. They hadn’t seen each other since the mission, seeing her brought back unconscious must’ve really scared him. She assumed he was busy with his classes at NYU. It was definitely getting close to finals season, so he was probably studying pretty intensely. Studying and hero-ing at the same time must suck. 

“Well Peter, I am actually in tip-top shape. I have never felt better,” Ellie smiled confidently. She watched his face relax, making her smile more. “And I was thinking, we should play one of your video games together soon. I have zero experience, but I do have a computer now." 

He smiled wide. “Really? That would be awesome,” he happily agreed. 

“You can just let me know when it works for you and I should be able to make it work. Just give me a day or two, so I can plan for the lab,” Ellie smiled.

“Well I have my exams in a couple weeks, so I'll need to start studying for those soon, but if you’d like we could play Minecraft this week? Wednesday maybe?” he asked, which would be four days away. 

“Sounds like a plan,” she beamed. “Just know you’re going to have to explain everything to me. I have absolutely no experience,” she forewarned. 

“Good to know,” he laughed lightly. 

“Food is ready!” Remy announced as he turned to face them. “Cheri! When did you get here?” he asked as he noticed her. She’d gotten the chance to talk to him before they went to the mall and explain what happened. It seemed like he was eager for them to come back together. 

“Um, maybe 5 minutes ago?” she shrugged. “So what prompted Parfaits?” she asked. 

“We had an excess of yogurt,” Logan groaned from the couch. 

“You should join us, Logan. There’s a perfectly good seat right here not being used,” Ellie suggested, nodding towards the empty chair to her left. She heard him scoff again, but he started moving, so she took it as a good sign. The rest of the table got up to start filling up their bowls, so she turned to face Bucky, knowing there would be a bottleneck. “Hey,” she smiled at him. 

“Hey, how did it go?” he softly asked, looking down at her hand. 

“Good,” she replied. “They said it all healed correctly,” she explained as she displayed her hand for him. He gently put it in his and looked at it, carefully turning it over, as if checking for a trace of what he’d done. “They did give me homework though,” she continued, hoping to shift his focus. 

“Did they now?” he chuckled. 

“Yup,” she sighed with a smile, showing him the sheet with the exercises. “I’m supposed to do all of these 3 times a day. I also have this,” she added, as she grabbed the ball. “I gotta squeeze it,” she laughed. 

“What’s that for?” he carefully asked, looking at the brace. 

“Oh, they said I should wear it during training for a couple days. They don’t think it’ll be a problem, or anything, but they just wanna be safe,” she explained, being sure to hold his eye contact, and keep her tone soft. “They said that once I can do that,” she started, pointing to the flexion and extension exercises. “With a dumbbell, then I am good to train without it,” she emphasized. 

“Okay. Well, I’m going to make sure you do these,” he told her. 

“Good deal,” she nodded. Ellie called on her powers and brought all the stuff from the medial floor back up to her room, since she wouldn’t be needing it at the meal. She looked up and noticed everyone slowly returning to the table, so she looked back to him, “I guess it’s our turn,” she smiled as they got up. Ellie was still getting used to her hand being freed from the cast. She could tell it was healed, since there was no pain, but she was also really aware of it. It had a strange strain compared to her other arm. 

They walked up to the wide array of food and she took in all her options. There was vanilla, strawberry, and blueberry yogurt. All of which sounded good, so she decided she’d layer them. There were also all the berries she could imagine, granola, and honey. She grabbed one of the large mason jars and poured some blueberry yogurt in it, then layered some berries, granola, and honey on it, then the same with strawberry, then vanilla. “Have you had one of these before?” Bucky asked her as he worked on his. 

“A few times. My dad liked them,” she explained. “But he didn’t get them that often,” she clarified. “Have you?” she asked, moving the topic away from her dad. 

“Nope. It looks good though,” he shrugged. He placed a strawberry at the top of his very honey-fied dish, then nodded at his work. “All done?” 

“Yup,” she smiled. She saw Logan working on his food as they rejoined the table, so she paused for a moment. “You’re sitting next to me right,” she smirked. 

“Yeah, okay. Whatever,” he huffed. 

“Yay,” she beamed as she took her seat. She noticed Remy had sat down next to Peter, so he must’ve still supported building the whole Ellie/Logan friendship arc. She gave Logan a wide smile when he sat down next to her. She slowly started working her way through the dish and she’d forgotten how good it was. “I don’t know whose idea this was, but I thank you. This is amazing,” she praised. 

“That was me actually,” Steve humbled, lightly raising his arms in the air, as if surrendering to the approval. “Although I was just the idea man, Remy did all the work,” he corrected. “So, does anyone have any interesting plans for today?” he asked, shifting the subject. 

“I’m planning on unpacking all the stuff I got at the mall yesterday and going to the lab,” Ellie noted. 

“I have to study for my exams,” Peter sighed. “Getting to learn is great, but I do not like tests,” he complained. 

“Me neither. Even when I knew the material, it always stressed me out. It was way too high pressure for me,” Ellie complained, thinking back to her schooling days. 

“Exactly!” Peter agreed. “It feels ridiculous that I have to prove that I understand everything I spent the entire semester proving I know for 50% of my grade,” he huffed. “Anyways, that’s what I’ll be doing. Camping out in my room, studying biophysics.”

“I was thinking about going into the city for the day,” Remy replied. “It’s a nice day, good weather. Maybe I’ll go to a park or something. Or a drive,” he seemed to think aloud. 

“That sounds really nice,” Wanda smiled. “Steve, are you still able to continue showing me how the surveillance system works?” she asked. Ellie furrowed her brows at them.

“Wanda was hoping to help us with threat analysis. We’re constantly studying news footage and global communications to try and identify new threats. It’s part of how we stay on top of everything,” Steve clarified. “It’s not a requirement for the job or anything, so you don’t have to feel pressured to learn how, though we always appreciate more eyes,” he smiled, looking at Wanda. 

They all slowly fell back into individual conversations, Steve and Bucky seemed to be talking about something from when they were younger and she was not going to interrupt that; Wanda and Remy were discussing recipes and meals for the week; and Peter and Pietro restarted their conversation from earlier. She was starting to think it may have been video game related, just based on some of the buzz words, but she really had no clue. Ellie ended up talking to Logan. “So, you went to the mall yesterday?” he asked, a tinge of amusement in his voice.

“Oh yeah, it was lots of fun. Did you realize Natasha was basically a certified shopper?” she laughed. “I swear I almost crashed out when I found out how far away the food court was after we finished trying on all the clothes,” she sighed to herself. “I think I may have been a little mean to some of the workers at the store,” she admitted.

“Really? I didn’t know you were capable of that,” he noted.

“Well, you haven’t seen me after using my powers all morning and needing to eat. A hungry and tired Ellie is not a friendly Ellie,” she clarified. 

“Did you get anything good?” he asked. 

“I think I got like half of Macy's," she sighed through a laugh. “Though it means I might be able to switch up my outfits more,” she smiled, excited for her new wardrobe of opportunities. “Oh I also got super cute new workout clothes,” she beamed. “Like these,” she added, doing a Vanna White display off her outfit. “Oh! And these shoes are new too! My old ones were like 8 years old or something,” she noted. 

“Very nice,” he boasted with a genuine smile. 

Once she finished her food she cleaned her dish with her powers and returned it to the cabinet. She leaned over to Bucky and quietly spoke to him, “I’m gonna head back to my room and start putting stuff away. You can come down whenever you’re ready,” she smiled, not wanting to cut his time with Steve short. What everyone had been saying about Bucky being different now was really sticking with her. She wanted to give him every opportunity to feel like himself again. “Bye guys!” Ellie beamed to the group before teleporting to her floor. Once she got there she immediately found Paw waiting for her. She smiled and petted her feline, “hey buddy. Are you ready to help me unpack?” He chirped back, so she took that as a yes and walked into her closet with him following close behind. She’d taken to using her powers to feed him and change his litter box, which was making her mornings much easier. She sighed when she saw her packed closet. Ellie took a deep breath to prepare herself, then started moving things with her powers. Most of the Macy’s stuff was actually going to be decently easy, since it wasn’t in bags. She started lifting clothes off of racks she’d conjured in the store and onto the closet rods. She filled the area opposite it with all of her new tops. She was about to start folding her sweaters, she remembered her mom telling her not to hang them at some point, when her elevator dung. Ellie excitedly ran out of the closet. “Bucky!” she happily greeted as he stepped out. 

“Hi,” he chuckled. “How’s it going?” he asked as he walked up to her side. 

“We got a lot of clothes,” she emphasized. Ellie leaned against him as they walked back into her room, savoring every moment of his touch. They reached her closet again and he gaped at all the stuff. “I know. I think Natasha had me try on the whole floor,” she laughed. 

“How can I help?” he eagerly asked. 

“Um, do you want to fold up those sweaters and put them in those drawers? You can take the tags off with these, and you can put them in here?” she suggested, conjuring a trash bin and a pair of scissors. 

“I’d be happy to,” he smiled, immediately starting to fold the clothes. He was impressively good at it. She watched his intricate work. He carefully brought in the sleeves, then brought in both sides, and folded the bottom up, practically making a sweater envelope; he'd clearly done this before . Despite his superhuman strength, his hold was gentle and light. He looked over at her and must’ve noticed her entertained expression. “What?” he laughed. Ellie shook her head with a big smile. “My mom was really busy when I was growing up, so I would help her out with the laundry sometimes. She taught me how to properly do it so there wouldn’t be any creases,” he told her with a bright smile. 

“Well, you are doing an excellent job. Your mom taught you well,” she beamed. She finally managed to break her focus on him and looked back to the racks of clothes. Ellie lifted another group of clothes when she came to an important realization. “Bucky, we aren’t listening to music! This is preposterous. J.A.R.V.I.S., please play my classics playlist,” she requested excitedly and “At Last” by Etta Jones played. “It’s like kismet,” Ellie beamed. The song filled the room as she easily filled her closet. “You smiled, You smiled,” Ellie sang along, wrapping her arms around his back. “Oh, and then a spell was cast,” she dramatically continued, grabbing at her heart. She gently grabbed his chin so he was facing her as she finished the song, “And here we are in heaven. For you are mine at last.” She brought him in for a soft kiss as the song faded out, savoring the truth in the lyrics and the warmth of his touch. She pulled away with a laugh as AC/DC’s “For those about to rock (we salute you)” started blasting, not exactly the same mood. 

“That was a really nice song,” Bucky warmly noted.  “What was it called?” 

“At Last. It’s by Etta Jones, I think it came out in the 60s?” Ellie told him. She finished hanging up all her clothes jamming out to the song as she did. “Can you believe Tony thought I was a fake AC/DC fan?” she complained and he gave her a confused look. “The song that just played was one of theirs,” she clarified. “But anyways, I came down to the lab in a tee-shirt from the band and he assumed I just got it cause the shirt looked cool. The absolute audacity,” she scoffed. 

“People are going to have to learn eventually that they will be wrong almost all of the time if they doubt you,” Bucky added, completely matching her dramatic energy. 

“That’s what I’m saying!” she aggressively agreed. She continued to dance to her music and put away all her new things. After filling three whole sections with just dresses she moved onto her pajamas. She decided to just fold and de-tag everything with her powers, since she was, frankly, too lazy to do it herself. She admired all her new clothes as she went, excited for all the new options.

“I am ready for a new assignment,” Bucky announced. 

“Um,” she thought aloud, surveying the room. “Would you like to take out all my new shoes and put them on that shoe shelf thingy,” she asked, looking at the massive wall just designated for footwear. “Oh, but wait for the ones you got me. I wanna open those together,” she added. 

“Of course doll,” he agreed, squeezing her hand as he walked past her and over to the other side of the closet. Sparks of excitement flew through her from his touch and the name. 

“You know, I really like it when you call me that,” she admitted with warm cheeks. 

“Do you now?” he smirked. God, that was hot. She just nodded, too overtaken by her infatuation to do anything else. “Well good,” he confidently started walking over to her, taking her hands in his. “Because you, doll ,” he honeyed with a warm expression. “Should get used to it,” he declared, whispering against her neck in a husky tone, setting her body on fire, before simply turning around and getting back to work. Ellie let out an uneven breath as she tried to recompose herself. He turned back to look at her for a moment and just winked at her, fucking tease. Ellie physically shook herself out, she’d be getting him back for that. “Oh, you should do your exercises,” he reminded, as if he hadn’t been breathing down her neck a second ago. After a minute or so, she managed to pull herself together to run through her wrist stretches. She was still weirded out by the feelings of her wrist. It was so much weaker than it used to be. It was certainly improving, but compared to her right hand it was still like night and day. She finished the reps, then de-summoned her supplies. “Great job,” Bucky smiled. She smiled back at him then started putting her exercise gear away. “Is this the Andrew Sisters?” Bucky excitedly asked as “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” played. 

Ellie nodded, “you know it?” 

“Yeah, it was big when I was in the army,” he told her. “God, I haven’t thought of this in years,” he sighed. 

“Is it a good throw back?” she carefully checked. 

“Yeah, I mean, there were some really hard parts, but after a while I was able to fight side-by-side with Steve. This was actually playing at the bar when we formed the team, the Howling Commandos,” he explained with a laugh, reaching his extended hands across, as if displaying the name. She nodded along, captivated by his story. “It was a bunch of guys from my platoon, god they were all idiots,” he chuckled. “It was after Steve had become, well, Captain America, it was so weird. We’d left the group to get another round and there this agent, Peggy Carter walked up to us, I of course tried to ask her to dance,” he explained. She thought she was maybe supposed to feel jealous, but she also knew he wasn’t that guy anymore, not by a long shot; the flirtatious lady’s man, who went after every woman he met, he didn’t even make a move with Ellie for weeks, despite having many chances. “But it was like I was invisible. Let me tell you, that was a humbling experience. Steve, who was always getting beat up in alleyways was suddenly this supersoldier,” he sighed. “I still get confused by it sometimes. For all our lives he was just this tiny kid who was always picking fights he couldn’t finish, but then out of nowhere he was America’s golden boy. He’s even taller than me now,” he scoffed. 

“Well, my dear, I have only ever had eyes for you,” she assured him, gently brushing her hand along his cheek. “Even from that first day in the hallway,” she started, noticing his brows furrow slightly. “Yes, I remember. How could I have possibly forgotten your perfect eyes,” she smiled. “I couldn’t get you out of my head. When I wanted to be pissed off at you for helping me it was a lot harder with how obnoxiously beautiful you are,” she complained. 

Bucky turned red with a grin creeping onto his face, “you think I’m beautiful?” 

“The most beautiful,” she told him, leaving almost no space between their faces. He started to get closer, so she realized it was her chance to get him back, despite how much she wanted him. “Alright, keep working pretty boy,” she smirked. He groaned as he begrudgingly turned back to the shoes and she smiled wide at her accomplishment. Ellie danced along to the next few songs as she finished up the exercise gear and all the other miscellaneous remaining things scattered around her floor. She grabbed the shoes from Adidas and joined Bucky. “How’s it going?” she asked as she looked at the progress. God there were so many shoes. “These boxes are empty?” she checked, gesturing to the much larger pile.

“Yup,” he replied. Ellie used her powers to make them disappear into whatever place things went when she did that. “I’ve been trying to organize them based on type,” he started to explain. “There’s fancy shoes, like heels and stuff, scandally ones, boots, that middle area between fancy and casual, dressy casual, then actually casual, oh and slippers,” he described as he pointed to each row. She carefully studied all the new shoes, since she hadn’t actually seen them yet. She took her new exercise shoes out of their boxes and showed them to him. “Right, I guess they can go with the slippers?” he suggested. 

“Sounds great,” she beamed. “This all looks amazing. Thank you Bucky.” 

“It’s my pleasure,” he affirmed. “I’m about to finish up with these. Did you want to put out your new comforter?” he suggested.

“Ooh yes! I almost forgot.” She excitedly grabbed the bedding and went back into her bedroom. She didn’t want to deal with changing her sheets, at all, so she just used her powers to switch everything. Ellie gawked at the beautiful floral duvet that now covered her bed. “It looks so good! I love it so much!” she elated and ran back into the closet. “It’s perfect,” she told him. 

“I’m so glad you like it,” he replied. 

“Me too!” She was practically jumping with excitement. Everything was finally feeling like it was working out for her and she was overjoyed. She used her powers to move the other comforter above one of her shelves and she placed the extra sheets into an empty drawer. “I’m all done I think. Can I help you with the shoes?” she asked. 

“I just finished,” he replied. 

“Does that mean it’s converse time?” she excitedly asked. 

“It’s converse time,” he confirmed, a warm smile resting on his face. 

“Yay!” She ran over to him and sat down on the bench in the center of the room. Bucky handed her the first box and she slowly opened it, nervous to see what was coming. It was a beautiful pair of pastel pink high tops with tan accents. Despite pink not being her go-to it went amazingly with green. “I love them,” she spoke as she turned them over in her hands. 

“Are you sure? You don’t have to keep them,” he assured her. 

“No, I do. It’ll go amazing with all my pretty green things,” she beamed. 

“Okay, I’ll put them away,” he chuckled. She handed him the shoes, then got rid of the box. He gave her the next box and she repeated the process. The next pair was very similar to her green pair, but this time had more of a platform and treaded bottoms. She hadn’t ever really considered wearing that style, but she was honestly really feeling it. “Do you like them?” he nervously asked. She just nodded with an obnoxious smile. “I guess I’m doing well so far,” he laughed. “There are three more,” he told her. “And you really don’t have to just say you like them if you don’t,” he reinforced.

“I promise you I’m not. I really like them,” she assured him, focusing on his eyes to reinforce the statement. 

“Okay, well, let’s go onto the next pair,” he breathed a laugh. She opened the box and found a pair of simple dark green low tops, sort of the staple style of converse. “Good?” 

“Good,” she affirmed. She looked into the second to last box and found a pastel pink plaid design, which she was sort of obsessed with. “Wait this is awesome,” she spoke to herself as she took it in. “You are very good at this,” she told him as she handed him the pair.

“Okay, so I think you’re gonna like these the most,” he pronounced as he handed her the last box. So these would be better than the already amazing ones? She carefully opened the box, not sure what to expect. Ellie saw floral stitching of wildflowers and yellow dandelions, on a mint green high top base. She set down the shoes and instantly threw him into a tight hug. “So you like them?” he laughed. 

“Thank you Bucky,” she breathed. He understood her, what she liked, what brought her joy.

“Of course, doll,” he warmly spoke, slowly bringing them apart and placing a hand on her cheek. “So, what do you say? Want to go train? I hear you have a busy schedule to keep,” he reminded while wiggling his eyebrows. She rolled her eyes at him with a smile and they walked out of the closet. “I have to run up to my floor to get dressed, but I can meet you down there?” he suggested. 

“Sure, but don’t take too long,” she smirked. “We gotta work out our cores,” she reminded, punching her abdomen in emphasis. 

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll be there in like 5 minutes tops,” he sighed, pressing the button. 

“Don’t miss me too much,” she smiled as he stepped into the elevator.

“No promises,” he winked as the doors closed in front of him, her stomach turned in knots just at the sight of him. God, the effect he had on her was way too powerful. Ellie summoned her phone and saw that it was around 10, so she texted Bruce. 

ELLIE:

Hey, it’s Ellie. 

I was hoping to come by the lab today.

Maybe around 1?

She de-summoned her phone and grabbed her wrist brace, carefully putting it on, then teleported to the gym. She’d need to do a shorter training session, but it would probably be fine, since she’d been using her powers so much that morning. Ellie went straight to the treadmill, so she could warm up before Bucky got there. She didn’t really bother much with the slow acceleration and just went straight for the high speed. After a few minutes she heard someone walking towards her and she turned to see Bucky. She slowed down the machine and smiled at him, “you ready?”

“Yup,” he replied. He ran ahead of her, taking advantage of the fact that she was still getting off the treadmill. “Are you coming?” he mocked. 

She rolled her eyes at him, then teleported to the mats. “Yeah. Are you?” she retorted. He sighed, but he totally set himself up for it, and jogged faster to get to her. Once they both got to the mats they set up their work out and began the awful abdominal torture. Ellie genuinely complained the whole time, groaning and sighed during every set, grumbling about every single one of the exercises, she really was a joy to be around. 

“You know for someone who spends so much time working out, you don’t seem to like it very much,” Bucky noted. 

“I like using my powers. I don’t like this psycho excuse for a pastime,” she mumbled, prompting a large laugh from him. “Other things are fine, but core workouts suck. Objectively speaking they’re the worst,” she justified. 

“Yeah, I’m not gonna argue with you there,” he shrugged. “So, you’re gonna do some sim work I assume?” 

“Yeah, I wanna be out of here by noon though,” she told him. The big clock read 10:45, so she still had a solid amount of time. “Do you think you can have lunch ready for us around 12:30? I wanna get to the lab by 1,” she asked. “I can also just grab something from my floor if you’re busy,” she quietly corrected, fearing she’d overstepped. 

“Ellie, you have no real food on your floor. Plus, I told you earlier that I was gonna make sure you were actually eating, so yes, I can have lunch ready,” he told her, confidently. 

“Thank you,” she conceded. 

“Of course. Now, go have fun with your powers. The worst of it is over,” he chuckled. 

“Eh, it wasn’t all bad. I had some great eye candy,” she winked, before teleporting to an open chamber. She decided to work on her teleportation and reflex skills this time, so she set it up for projectiles to come at her from all sides. Ellie stepped inside, lowered her center of gravity, and called on her powers, getting herself completely focused. “Begin simulation.” Right away there was a beam of light coming from her left, so she teleported forward. Another came from behind her so she went to the right. She continued this dance for a while, but it felt too easy. They were coming too spaced apart. “End simulation.” She walked back out and set it to a higher speed. She went back in and rebraced herself then restarted it. This time two blasts came at her at the same time, so she teleported across the room. Another one shot at her over there, so she moved again. She could sense three different blasts being fired at the same time and she maneuvered between them as she teleported away from another. This felt good. She decided to challenge herself and close her eyes, relying solely on her instincts. She bounced around the room for at least 10 minutes, until the powers got quiet. She wasn’t sensing anything. She paused for a moment, had the simulation ended? 

Ellie opened her eyes and just saw the light. It hit her in the middle of the chest, knocking the air out of her. “Sto-” she attempted, but it was just a heaving breath. Dammit. She got on her hands and knees, trying to get air, but it wouldn’t come. Another blast hit her from the side, slamming her into the wall. She whimpered in pain. Her entire body hurt as she tried to sit up again. She tried to stand, pushing all her pain away, but got hit again from behind, sending her flying towards the front wall. She just needed to speak, that was what was most important. She sat up against the wall, opening her frame to let air in. “St-” she started as she finally got a full breath of air, but was struck again, in the chest, just perfect . She wasn’t far from the door, maybe she could get out. Her legs wobbled as she stood, choking on air with every failed breath. She hugged the wall as she tried to get out. She was almost there. “Stop Sim-” Ellie finally spoke before a blast hit her from the side, striking her in her temple and banging her head into the glass wall. She crumbled to the floor and her ears were ringing. 

She waited for the next attack, for it to hit her while she was down, but it didn’t come. She slowly blinked her eyes open to figure out what was happening and she saw Logan. His lips were moving, but she couldn’t hear him over the ringing in her ears. He brought his arm around her and slowly lifted her off the ground. She cringed with the movement. She managed to bring strength to her legs and carry her weight with his help. His voice was slowly coming into focus, at least in one ear, “what happened? I thought you were done with this,” he gently spoke. 

“I-” she breathed, still catching her breath. “I didn’t mean to. I got hit in the chest and couldn’t stop the simulation. I couldn’t breathe,” she airily explained. “I was stuck,” she trembled. Now that she was safe she could feel all the fear. She felt helpless. Just like in her nightmare. She was stuck, powerless to do anything to stop what was happening.

“Oh, Bub, I’m so sorry,” he frowned. “Do you want me to take you to the medical floor to get you checked out?” he offered. She immediately shook her head. She would be fine, she just needed some time to heal. “Okay, well you’re done. Let’s get you to your floor,” he smiled. 

“That’s okay, I can teleport down. You can finish your workout. I’m just going to rest,” she told him. He hesitantly nodded. “I promise you Logan, this isn’t like before,” she reinforced then teleported to her room. It was only 11:15, so she’d probably get to rest for about an hour before she needed to go eat. Ellie sulked into her bathroom. She really didn’t feel like taking a shower, so she cleaned herself with her powers; she cut her workout short, so she had extra to spare. She moved all her clothes into a hamper, then looked at herself for a moment. She was covered in bruises, all over her body. She’d be able to cover most of them with a long sleeved shirt and pants, but the bruise on her temple would be harder to hide, maybe she could use her powers? She didn’t want to make it an extra big thing of her hiding it . She knew she’d just worry people if they saw her riddled with bruises, especially with everything that happened after the conference. She moved one of her new pajama sets onto herself and walked back into her room. “J.A.R.V.I.S., will you wake me up at 12:20?” she requested. The AI agreed, so she laid down in her bed, aching with every step. She let the tears fall once she made contact with her pillow, finally letting herself react to the awful experience. 

Ellie was woken up way sooner than she would’ve liked by her alarm. She groaned as she sat up in her bed, cringing with the movement. She had maybe one of the worst headaches she’d ever had and probably had that blast to the temple to thank for it. Ellie conjured her headache meds and water, so she’d hopefully feel better soon. She realized she should probably talk to Bucky about what happened, rather than just go downstairs like this. It was possible that Logan told him, but she suspected he would’ve already been on her floor waiting for her if he had. She conjured her phone so she could call him. She also noticed a text from Bruce saying she could come to the lab at any time. Bucky picked up after the second ring, “hey doll.” She blushed even through the phone. 

“Hey,” she stuttered, taken aback from the name. “Um, can you come down to my floor for a minute?  I want to talk to you,” she requested. 

“Of course. On my way,” he replied. Ellie got herself out of bed and masked her appearance so he wouldn’t immediately freak out. She walked into her living room and sat down on her couch, waiting for him. Once the elevator dung she pushed herself off the cushions, silently wincing with the movement. “Hey,” he smiled as he walked in. Paw came out of wherever he’d been hiding and greeted him. “Hi buddy. What did you want to talk about? Why are you still in your pajamas?” he laughed. 

“I need you to stay calm,” she started.

“Why? What happened?” he immediately asked wide-eyed.

“It was an accident,” she assured him. “You promise not to freak out?” she requested. 

“Fine. I won’t freak out. Just tell me what’s going on,” he resolved. She undid the illusions to reveal the damages. “Oh my god,” he breathed. “How did this happen?” he carefully asked.

“I was in the sim room, practicing my teleportation. I set it so I would be teleporting away from blasts. It was going really well, but then one of them hit me in the chest and I got the wind knocked out of me. I tried to stop the simulation but I couldn’t breath, much less speak. I um, I got hit by I think five of the blasts before Logan noticed what was happening and stopped it,” she told him. “I went back here right after to rest. I didn’t keep training,” she assured him. 

“Where were you hit?” he carefully asked. 

Ellie frowned. “Twice in my chest, once in my side, back, and my temple,” she quietly told him. He softly brushed his hand over the side of her face to look at the damage and she tried to hide the pain it brought. 

“What’s this?” he asked, lightly touching the other side of her head. 

“Oh, I guess I must’ve hit my head on the glass after the blast,” she guessed, touching the spot herself and feeling a sting. “I was trying to get out, so I was right next to the door. That bit is sort of fuzzy though,” she clarified, avoiding eye-contact. “I’m okay though, I promise. I just wanted to tell you directly.” Bucky nodded at her supportively. “I um, I think I might mask it. At least the bruises on my face. I don’t want to cause a commotion or worry anyone,” she told him.

“Are you sure?” he nervously checked. 

“Yeah, I’ve stressed people out enough these last couple weeks. I see no need to do that any further,” she shrugged. 

He seemed to hesitate, but eventually gave in, “Okay. Are you still going to the lab? I’m sure you can take the rest of the day off. You could probably use the rest.”

“No, I still want to go. Bruce is expecting me and it’ll be nice to go back to the lab.” 

“Well, if you change your mind I’ll be around. The food was almost ready when I left. Do you want to get dressed and meet me in the kitchen?” he suggested. 

“Yeah, that sounds great. Thank you Bucky,” she genuinely spoke, grateful to him for not having a large reaction.

“Always,” he warmly returned before walking to the elevator. She squeezed his hand, then went into her room to get dressed, with Paw following her. Ellie stepped into her closet and closed the door, placing her and her cat in the room together. She looked through all her new options. She grabbed a pair of sort of retro button up wide legged light blue jeans and a cropped dark green sweater with an oversized draping collar with a v-neck line, framing her necklace. She decided to pair it with her new pink converse, since she was already wearing a lot of green. However, in the state of her aching body, Ellie used her powers to change her outfit. She used her powers to bring her hair into a high pony and casted the illusion to hide her bruises. She did look really good, ignoring the fact that she had purple marks across her body. Frankly, she felt great, she was a little shaken from what happened and her head hurt, but she was still in a really good mood. Ellie teleported down to the common floor and immediately saw Bucky talking to Logan on the couch. She decided to join them. She placed her arms on the couch to brace herself as she sat down. “Hey. You look nice. Is this new?” Bucky asked, looking at her outfit.

“Yeah. A really cool guy actually got me these shoes,” she wiggled her eyebrows, causing him to smile. 

“How are you feeling bub? Bucky told me you were gonna use your powers to uh,” he awkwardly explained, gesturing to his own face. “You’re sure that’s what you want?” 

“Yes. I don’t want anyone treating me any different and they will if they see me looking like that. Onto your first question, I’m still really sore, but I’ll feel better soon enough,” she confidently told him. “Um, so, what’s for lunch? I’m hungry,” she asked, shifting the subject. 

“Steve is making Corned Beef Hash. He was already cooking when I came down, I couldn’t stop him,” Bucky clarified with a laugh. “He said there would be 5 minutes left, um,” he started, looking at the old fashioned watch on his wrist. “Well, about 5 minutes ago. I’ll go check on it,” he offered, standing up and walking to the kitchen, not even giving her the chance to say no. 

“You’re sure you’re okay? You took some serious hits back there,” Logan softly asked.

“Yeah, I mean I have a hell of a headache and I won't lie about my body hurting, kind of all over, but I’ve gone through worse,” she shrugged. “And with my accelerated healing I’ll feel better in a day or two,” she reminded. She looked over to the kitchen, hiding the cringe from the twisting motion, both from her core workout and the blast to her chest and side. It looked like the food was ready and Bucky was walking back over, “shall we eat?”

“Sure bub,” he submitted. He got up and reached a hand out for her. She decided to accept the help and took it, letting him pull her up off the couch. Bucky nodded at them and returned to Steve. She made her way over to the table and was sort of surprised that nobody else was there for lunch. Did they eat already? “I’ll get you food, you can just sit,” he told her. She wanted to say no, but her body felt like hell and sitting seemed nice. 

“Thanks,” she conceded, giving him a half-smile. Bucky and Steve came back to the table and Bucky placed a dish in front of her, then sat next to her. “Oh, thanks,” she smiled. “So Steve, you decided to go for an old-school lunch?” she asked with a tinge of banter. 

“Yeah, Wanda made everyone fancier stuff earlier. I thought it was just gonna be me, but Bucky asked if I could make more,” he explained. “Personally, I’ve always liked the meal, even now, when we have all these fancy food options,” he justified. 

“Logan, what do you think? You were around when this was popular. Does it hold up?” Ellie asked as he joined them, leaving a seat between him and Steve, damn him and his antisocial tendencies . She started eating the food, which really wasn’t that bad, a little bland but certainly edible.

“Eh, it’s not bad,” he shortly returned.

“Wait a minute,” Ellie started wide-eyed. “You were there for Steve’s Captain America debut,” she realized. “Did you ever hear about him?” she excitedly asked, eager to see if their paths crossed.

“Ha!” he loudly cackled. “The star spangled man with a plan? Yeah I heard about him,” he scoffed. 

“God, I haven’t heard that name in years,” Steve sighed. 

“You had a whole theme song right?” Bucky asked and Steve groaned, obviously embarrassed.

“A theme song?” Ellie gaped. 

“J.A.R.V.I.S., play star spangled man,” Bucky requested. 

Suddenly music started blasting through the speakers in a sort of classic war music style, reminding her of the song she and Bucky heard earlier. She was dancing along with the tune as it played, actually singing along to the chorus by the end. “That might be the best thing I’ve ever heard,” Ellie laughed. 

“Yeah, yeah,” Steve waved off. “They had me put on a whole show to sell bonds. Trust me, it wasn’t how I would’ve chosen to spend my time,” he justified. 

“Didn’t they make comics too,” Bucky continued, completely ignoring his friend. 

“I wouldn’t talk, if I were you,” Logan started. “I recall seeing some Howling Commandos comics. Captain America and his best friend take down the Nazis,” he described. 

“No way,” Ellie gawked. “I need to get one of those,” she declared.

“No, I don’t think that’s necessary,” Bucky countered. 

“Um, I sorta think it is,” she told him, dancing her hands like a scale. Bucky rolled his eyes with a smile. “It is crazy that you guys were all just hanging out, existing in the 1900s,” she sighed. “I really am the odd one out here.” 

“The youths,” Logan scoffed. 

Ellie checked her watch and saw that it was almost 1, so she took care of her dishes with her powers. “Well, this has been fun, but I’m going to head to the lab,” she smiled, standing up from the table. “Until later my friends,” she nodded, giving them a sort of comic salute, then teleporting to the lab. She heard voices when she got there and saw Tony and Bruce talking. “Hey Bruce, Tony. I didn’t know you’d be here,” she greeted. 

“Yeah, Bruce told me you guys have a cool new project. I figured I’d check it out. Plus, I haven’t seen you in awhile,” he smiled. 

“Well, shall we get to it then?” Bruce asked. 

“Let’s,” she returned. They walked further into the lab and she noticed some stuff set up at her bench. “So Bruce, what do you want me to do?” she asked. 

“Well for now I think we should run some preliminary tests, get some baselines, so I want you to grow some cells and determine how long it takes for them to replicate,” he requested. 

“Sounds great,” she returned and started prepping her station. She walked over to the fridge to start warming the media, set a timer, then returned to the bench. “Hey Bruce, do you have a specific way for me to count them? I can do it manually with a hemocytometer, but if you have a flow cytometer then it would probably be more accurate. I can run both tests too if we want, at different time stamps?” she suggested. 

“Um yeah, that sounds great. The flow-cytometer is on the bench over there. And when you work with the cells remember to-” 

“-work under the hood?” she cut him off, excited. He laughed and nodded. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have interrupted you,” she corrected. 

“It’s fine, Bruce could use some humbling,” Tony proudly spoke, abruptly patting him on the back. “But you Ellinette, could stand to be a little less humble,” he sighed.

"So, how long do you think you're going to be working on this nickname?" she sighed. 

“I haven't found it yet, but anyways, as I was saying," he very dramatically spoke. "Constantly telling you how great you are is kind of tiring. If you’d like to just see it yourself and save me the trouble, I’d appreciate it,” he complained. Ellie rolled her eyes at him. “So, this looks new,” he noted, looking at her outfit. 

“It is,” she smiled. “I took you up on that suggestion. You were right, Natasha is way too good at shopping. I could barely stand by the time we left, Sam had to drive us back to the tower,” she sighed. “I’m assuming he didn’t crash the car, I barely even remember getting to my room, I was so tired,” she laughed. 

“Really, a day of shopping took you out that much?” he quipped. 

“Eh, I think it was mostly my powers. I was using them like crazy. I started trying on clothes with them instead of doing it manually and teleported everything we bought back to the tower. Without a nap after using my powers I basically become a zombie,” she clarified. Tony nodded. “So, how’s the nanotech? You used it during the mission right?” she asked, shifting the conversation. 

“It was great. Worked seamlessly. Absolutely no notes,” he confidently spoke. “So this plan, did it come from that brilliant little brain of yours?” he asked, nudging her forehead. As long as he didn’t do that on her temple… 

“Sort of, I was just bouncing off of what Bruce was already doing,” she shrugged.

“Tony, she’s being humble again,” Bruce called from across the lab. She glared at him.

“Fine, yes, I came up with the idea,” she submitted. “I figured if we had something like this in the field then Remy could’ve helped Natahsa without me needing to step in,” she told him. “I mean it won't always be a perfect fix, or a full treatment, but if someone is bleeding, then we can at least stop that so they don’t go into shock.” 

“That is a really great idea,” he slowly spoke, as though he was actively realizing it. “Oh, and that reminds me, I wanted to talk to you about that,” he started.

“I know, I shouldn’t have gone into the base. Believe me, I’ve heard the speech,” she sighed. 

“Well, good. Since you don’t need that, I can tell you I’m proud of you. What you did was really brave. Extremely reckless, kinda stupid, but brave,” Tony smiled. He was proud of her? He gently squeezed her shoulder on her bad side, forcing her out of the moment. She tried to hide the obnoxious pain that it brought. “Hey, are you okay?” he asked, guess she didn’t hide it very well. 

“Oh, um yeah. Just um accidentally hit a wall during a simulation, it’s nothing” she dismissed. It wasn’t entirely a lie, she was just leaving out the completely terrifying experience of being trapped in a chamber programmed to attack her. 

“You’re sure you’re okay?” he gently asked. 

“Yeah, no it really wasn’t that bad,” she lied.

“Okay, well, don’t push yourself too hard. I know we’re the earth's mightiest heroes or whatever, but breaks are okay too,” he reminded. 

“I know,” she nodded. Her timer buzzed, so she was able to start working. “Cell splitting time,” she smiled at him. She turned on the hood and sprayed it all with ethanol. She grabbed twelve 60mm petri dishes and two standard dishes and her media, then sprayed them and her arms. She then went to the incubator to grab two dishes of pre-grown cells and set them inside. She removed all the media from the cells, then added 5mL to the sides, carefully not to dislodge any from the sides, washing them to rid them of any dead cells. She repeated the wash, then added 1mL of media directly to the cells and scraped them to release the cells. She moved all of those to a microcentrifuge tube and set it aside. She then added 1mL of media into every dish. She next did two dilutions of the cells, so she could determine its concentration and get her desired baseline concentration in the other dishes. She grabbed her 1:10 dilution and brought it over to the microscope. She created a 1:1 ratio of cells to dye and placed 10 microliters onto the hemocytometer and started counting, hiding the pain of leaning over by looking into the scope. 

“So did Bruce teach you to do all this? Or does this all just come naturally to you as well?” Tony asked, obviously amused. 

“Um, no, Bruce didn’t show me, but it all seems pretty logical when you think about it. You have pre-grown cells and you need to know how much to add. The concentration will be too high to read under the microscope, so I had to dilute it. We want to start with 1 million viable cells, so once I determine this concentration, I can do a simple calculation to determine how much to add. I figure I should do six different time stamps and do it in replicas, thus twelve plates. Also, the two other plates are so I can grow more cells for more experiments," she shrugged. Ellie did the math in her head then walked back over to the hood, resprayed herself, and added the correct amount to the wells. She covered each of them and labeled them all for every six hours. This experiment wasn’t super nice for sleep, but oh well. She placed 10 of them back into the incubator and set an alarm for every 6 hours on her watch. “Okay, now to do the exact same process with these, since they’re technically my first time stamp. I’ll count them and put them through the flow cytometer,” she noted. Tony just stared at her with a small smile. “What?” she laughed.

“I don’t know, you just keep impressing me, Ellie Berry,” he told her. She rolled her eyes at the nickname. 

“Because I can split cells?” she questioned, a tinge of laughter in her tone. 

“God, there’s that humbleness again,” he sighed. She collected the cells and counted them under the microscope. 

“Yay,” she beamed when the concentration matched what she’d set up. He gave her a slightly confused look. “Oh, I did my dilution right. So, all the baseline concentrations are what I wanted them to be,” she clarified. He shook his head with a massive smile. “Okay, time to block the cells with the staining buffer,” she told him. Ellie walked over to the machine and grabbed the protocol and kit that sat next to it. 

“Well, I’ll let you get to it. I’m gonna check on Bruce for a bit,” he told her. She nodded to him. She decided to conjure her headphones onto herself, gently laying them over her ears and playing her classics playlist through them. She made it so she’d be able to hear everything around her in case Bruce or Tony needed her. Ellie listened to “Footloose” as she worked, faintly bobbing her head to the music. She could hear their conversation over the music. “She seems, good?” Tony spoke. 

“Yeah, a lot better at least. When she was here last week she spoke maybe 20 words a day. I didn’t know how to help her, but it seemed like she wanted to stay busy, so I gave her stuff to do. I’m not sure if it was the right call though, it seemed like she was getting worse everyday,” he quietly spoke. 

“Yeah, I saw her the day she woke up and she wasn’t, well, Ellie. Something was obviously bothering her. Do you have any idea what might’ve changed?” he asked. 

“I don’t know. She was a little different on Tuesday. She seemed to be in a better mood when she came in, she came up with that idea, but she just seemed so exhausted. I ended up sending her back to her room to rest, she was barely able to stand,” Bruce spoke in a sad tone. “She took the next few days off, though I guess she’s back to her routine now.”

“Yeah, I might have to follow up about that training injury. She really shouldn’t be doing anything to make her hurt that much,” Tony noted. No. Tony couldn’t look into it. She knew he’d worry about her and she didn’t want anything added to their relationship. Plus, if he looked into that, then maybe he’d look into her other training sessions and he’d see all the hell she’d put her body through. He wouldn’t look at her the same. Ellie set up her cells to start blocking and set a 20 minute timer. She then moved back to the hood so she could finish splitting her cells. Someone grabbed her headphones and she turned to follow the movement. “Hey kid, I’m gonna head out. Go work in my much cooler lab,” he smirked and placed her headphones on his head. “Breakfast in America, supertramp. Good song,” he nodded. 

“You know, I was asking people at work once when I was in school if they knew the song and nobody did. It was so disappointing,” she sighed. 

“I keep telling you, you’re not like the other kids your age,” he reminded. She shrugged him off. “Or really, anyone,” he added. 

“You know, I think you might have a biased perspective. I assure you I am not perfect,” she countered. 

“I know, I know, you can’t play the cello,” he rolled his eyes. “Whatever good work. Keep having fun with the science. I’ll see you later,” he smiled before releasing the headphones around her head. She hoped he was turned around because Jesus Christ that hurt like absolute hell. So much worse than her arm. She closed her eyes as she silently cringed. She decided to just place an illusion around herself so she could genuinely react. She de-summoned her headphones as leaned against the table, trying to ground herself. A tear was dropping down her cheek as she felt a slight pull on her stability and saw stars. She wouldn’t be passing out. Nope. She simply wouldn’t have that. Not in front of Bruce and possibly Tony. And certainly not because of a pair of headphones. She focused on her breathing, and not the incessant pounding in her head and newfound ringing in her ears. Shake it off Ellie, come on. She just had maybe ten more minutes left on this incubation, then maybe she could rest in her room for the next one. She just had to get through the cell splitting. She forced her focus and got back to her cells. She could do this. Only moments after putting the new cells in the incubator the timer went off, so she went to set the cells with the antibody. She set a 30 minute timer on her watch, then walked over to Bruce, the ringing in her ears never stopping. 

“Hey, um. I’m doing an incubation and I was thinking I’d hang out in my room for a bit and come back when it’s done,” she told him, desperate for him to agree, so she could lay down for a while. 

“Oh, uh, yeah, no problem kid,” he replied with a half-smile. 

“Thanks Bruce,” she nodded and teleported to her floor. “J.A.R.V.I.S., will you tell me when there’s five minutes left on the timer on my watch?” she requested, so she could actually relax and not have to worry about the timing. The A.I. agreed, so she laid down on her bed, on her less hurt side. Sleep slowly greeted her as her head calmed. 

Ellie managed to finish up her work in the lab without issue and got the same results as she expected. She went back to her room after, knowing she’d need to go back to the lab in a few hours anyways. She decided to check on the progression of her injuries again, to see how they were healing. Her face was still purple, but a little bit less blue. She found the same on her chest and side. She lightly grazed her finger on the markings and winced at the touch. Who knew blasts of air could hurt so much. At least she knew now not to do that training setting again. She could find different ways to test her reflexes. 

Ellie arrived back at the lab later that night to work on the second time stamp and found it, as expected, empty. She decided to maintain the illusion regardless, just in case Bruce showed up. She was almost done setting the antibody when the elevator dung. Ellie furrowed her brows and turned around, aching as she did from not moving for so long. She sighed when she saw who it was, “Loki.” 

“Hey gorgeous,” he smirked. 

“What are you doing here?” she questioned. 

“I came to see you,” he purred. 

“Why?” she flatly replied.

“Because. You’re hurt,” he equally flatly returned. Ellie instantly looked at her arm, but the illusion was still in place. “You really think that would hide it from me?” he questioned. “I saw you leaving the training facility this morning. What the hel were you doing in there?” 

“Oh you know, just being blasted by a bunch of simulated bursts of energy,” she brushed off as her timer beeped. She walked over to collect her cells and bring them to the reader. She turned around and Loki was still just staring at her. “Was there something more?”

“Show me,” he directed. 

“You can’t tell me what to do,” she dismissed, still working on her cytometer. 

“I’m a prince,” he countered.

“Not my prince,” Ellie scoffed with a laugh. 

“Why won’t you show me?” 

“Why do you want to see so bad?” she impatiently asked. God, Loki was exhausting. 

“I thought you were done with this bullshit,” he harshly spoke, staring her down.

“Excuse me?” she retorted. 

“You heard me. I thought you were done training until your body couldn’t take it anymore,” he accused, staring her directly in the eyes. “And if that’s true, then you shouldn’t have any issue showing me.” 

“Fine,” she submitted, only because she knew she wasn’t abusing her body like that anymore, that this really was an accident. Ellie dropped the illusion while she had her back turned to him, having no desire to see his reaction. She was wearing her pajamas now, which included a tank top, so she knew he could see her bruised back. “Are you happy now?” she questioned, slowly turning to face him.

“Not particularly,” he shrugged. 

“Well that’s nice. I’m trying to work here and this badgering isn’t exactly helpful,” she cooly returned. 

“Did you get it checked out?” he asked. 

“No,” she returned, looking away from him. 

“I thought you had a strong understanding of emergency medicine,” he scoffed. 

“What’s your point?” she impatiently asked. He was really acting like he almost cared, but he was also just being a douche at the same time.

“Have you looked in the mirror? You were hit in the head,” he shortly explained. “You probably have a concussion, or maybe even worse.” 

“I’m fine,” she scoffed. 

“Then why did I feel a surge of pain from you six hours ago?” 

“How the hell?” 

“I told you. I was paying attention. I’d dropped the focus on you but after I saw you this morning I decided I’d check again. So, what happened?” 

“God, Loki. Will you just drop this whole pretending to be concerned thing,” she groaned. 

“You really didn’t do this on purpose?” he pushed. 

“What, like you care? I thought you just wanted to keep me around cause I was pretty,” she glared and replaced the illusion. “I’m sure this is much better for you,” she taunted.

“Your beauty is not contingent on a clean face,” he countered and she rolled her eyes. She would be beet red if Bucky said that, but Loki saying it just pissed her off. “You didn’t answer my question,” he reminded. 

“You’re right, I didn’t,” she spoke, downloading the data she’d gotten from the cytometer, then cleaning it. “I’m sure you have all the resources you need to find your answers, though frankly, you should really be spending a lot less time worrying about me. Those people you were talking about before, that I was pushing away, well, I stopped. I have people looking out for me. I don’t need you. I’m fine.” 

“Right, because everything about you screams fine,” he callously spoke. 

“Fuck off Loki,” she spat, then teleported to her room. Ellie crumbled into her bed, everything in her body screaming at her as she did. Her breathing eased as she looked at Bucky’s soft face laying next to her. She laid into him, as closely as she could without it bringing her pain. She knew whatever Loki could say didn’t matter, not when she had Bucky, he would keep her safe, make her feel better, support her, not bring her down. Ellie focused on his face, then closed her eyes, letting him be the last image in her mind before she drifted into sleep. 

Ellie woke in a dark room. A single square of light lit a block on the floor, there must be a window somewhere. She tried to turn to see where she was but her body was completely stuck. She was bound to something. Even her head was stuck, what felt like small needles were poking into her skin, everywhere. She saw the door start to open and two figures stepped inside. Her breathing picked up, causing her to cringe with the sting of the small metal blades. One of them flicked on a light and she realized it was the man in the suit and the scientist. She could feel the blood drain from her face. The scientist approached her and gently caressed her exposed chin, “don’t be afraid. The protocol is necessary. You understand. You’re the one that developed it,” he told her with a demonic smile. What protocol?

“Is she ready?” the man in the suit demanded. The scientist adjusted the machinery, causing her to cringe with the increased pressure. 

“Yes,” the scientist responded. He grabbed his tablet and started pressing some settings. “Commensing healing rate assessment one. Control test, no treatment, stimulant level mild,” he spoke into the device. He pressed onto the screen and suddenly all of the needles started pushing into her all at once. She cried out in pain, but was muffled by a guard that was apparently in her mouth. “Removing mechanism, starting timer,” he continued, as the machine came apart around her. Her entire body was red from the blood escaping the wounds. She crumpled to the floor, heaving her breaths. She watched as the holes all closed. “Great. Moving onto a higher stimulant level,” he spoke and Ellie looked up, eyes wide in fear. “Sir?” he asked the man in the suit. 

He pulled out a blade and Ellie started to try and back away, but he kicked her down and stepped on her chest. “You’re ready?” the man in the suit confirmed. 

“Begin in 3, 2-” he started. She had to get away. They were testing her healing time, they had no idea if she could survive this. She couldn’t let him do that. Ellie trashed against him, trying desperately to escape. “1” Then the man in the suit stabbed Ellie. 

Ellie woke up screaming. She searched her abdomen for the blood, for the knife, for any trace of what he’d done. Her body was screaming at her with every move, but not where she expected. She was heaving air. She looked up and saw a figure looking at her, the man was still there. He was going to do another test, she must’ve healed from the last one. He was going to hurt her. “Ellie, doll, you’re okay,” the figure spoke. She couldn’t breathe. “It’s Bucky. You had a nightmare, it wasn’t real. It was just a bad dream. You’re okay,” he spoke. She forced her eyes clear, so she could look at him. He was familiar. “Doll?” he gently spoke, placing a hand on her shoulder. “It’s me, it’s Bucky,” he reminded. Bucky. He was Bucky. She was safe. Her breathing started to slow and the tears started to fall. “Come here, I’ve got you,” he softly spoke, gently pulling her against him. 

“Why is this happening to me,” she quietly wept into his chest. 

“I don’t know, doll,” he frowned, gently brushing the back of her head. “But no matter what, I’m here. I can promise you that,” he assured her. She nodded weakly against him, slowly letting sleep take over her, knowing Bucky was there to keep her safe.

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

She spent the next couple days working in the lab, studying the cellular replication rates, doing very light workouts, and resting. She didn’t have any more run-ins with the Asgardian jackass or nightmares. She was also now pretty much entirely healed from her training snafu and her wrist was significantly stronger. She’d met the dumbbell requirement for her exercises after her first PT session the day before, so she was officially done with those. After her morning workout with Bucky she was headed to the lab. She just had a quick experiment to set up and she was hoping to go out into the city. With her powers she was actually able to protect herself and mask her appearance, so she could just appreciate where she lived. She hadn’t ever before. Ellie teleported into the lab and Bruce immediately jumped when he saw her appear. “I don’t know if I’m ever going to get used to that,” he laughed. “So, how are ya kid?” he smiled. 

“I’m good. I actually had another idea,” she told him. “Though I’ll need to run it past someone first,” she thought aloud. 

“Okay, hit me,” he smiled. 

“So, the stem cells I grew replicated roughly every 12 hours, which is not fast enough for us. We do, however, have some of the fastest replicating cells, possibly on the planet, right here in the tower,” she continued. “Logan’s cells may be the key to our cellular bandaid.” 

“I can’t believe I didn’t think of that,” Bruce muttered. 

“Don’t get too attached to the idea though,” Ellie countered. “I don’t want to do this without his support. I can talk to him about it later today. We also need to assess the effects of using mutant cells on non-mutant individuals, or even people with different mutations. We don’t want to start creating mutant-hybrids,” she explained. 

“Agreed,” Bruce nodded. “Alright, well I’ll leave you to it,” he smiled. Ellie gave him a thumbs up, then moved over to her bench. She prepped her station and her experiment. She was just finishing up a short test to complete her work from the growth experiment. She’d saved the last group of cells from the day before and treated them so they’d stop at metaphase to karyotype. She wanted to make sure that they weren’t forming mutations during the division. She thawed her cells and stained them for microscopy. Ellie looked at the cells under the microscope and took an image of it using the camera and downloaded it onto the computer. She cleaned up her supplies, then pulled up the image. Bruce walked over, “so, these are the cells?” 

“Yeah,” she replied, studying the chromosomes. “It looks like the division was fairly harmless. I don’t see any mutations. Do you?” she asked. 

“No. For initial results this is really good, nice job,” he smiled. 

“Thanks,” she returned. “I think I’m gonna head out, maybe see the city for the rest of my day,” she told him. “Oh, also, I told Peter I’d play games with him tomorrow, so if Logan agrees I think I’ll start working on that on Thursday?” she suggested. 

“That sounds great. Have fun.” 

“Thanks! If I don’t see you around the tower before then, I’ll see you Thursday,” she beamed and Bruce nodded. She teleported to the common floor, she figured Bucky or Logan might be there. Ellie scanned the room and found Logan on the couch, where he always was, so she sat down next to him. “Do you ever go anywhere else?” she mocked. 

“Well, if I’m not sitting here, how are you supposed to find me?” he countered. 

“You and I both know you sulked in here long before I came along,” she reminded. “But whatever, that’s beside the point. I had something I wanted to talk to you about. I will preface this with: you can say no. I will not be offended,” she started. 

“Okay?” he awkwardly replied. 

“Bruce and I are working on creating a stem cell bandage. Basically we want to create something that will rapidly repair and bind damaged tissue to treat in field injuries. We looked into non-mutant human stem cells and the replication rate isn’t even close to what we’d need it to be. I um. I had the idea that if we could use your cells, your mutant cells, that maybe they could work, since they divide faster than anyone. All that we would need from you was a blood sample, but again, you don’t have to do this if you’re not comfortable with it,” she reminded. 

“Oh,” he breathed. “It’s going to be you doing the research, right?” 

“With Bruce's help, but yes, it’ll be me,” she replied. 

He took a deep breath then nodded, “yeah, alright.” Ellie instantly smiled, she could really help people with this. If they could master the formula they could even make it widely available, maybe help people in the military and first responders. It could save a lot of lives.

“I’m not coercing you into this right?” she confirmed. 

“Well, I am only doing it cause it’s you, but no, there is no coercion involved,” he assured. “So, I assume you’ve got a busy day. You seem to have a habit of keeping yourself busy,” he transitioned. 

“I was thinking I’d go to Central Park. I’ve never been and it’s only a few blocks away,” she explained. 

“Sounds like fun,” he nodded. 

“Yeah, I thought so,” she beamed. “Do you know where Bucky is? I wanted to check in with him before I leave.”

“Um, I think he’s on his floor. You’re probably best off texting him,” Logan replied. Ellie nodded and conjured her phone.

ELLIE:

Hey, I’m gonna go to Central Park for the afternoon.

Are you busy?

BUCKY:

Not at all. 

When are you thinking about going?

ELLIE:

I’m ready, so whenever

BUCKY:

I can go to your floor now?

ELLIE:

Perfect. 

See you soon!

“Thanks again Logan,” she beamed, then teleported to her floor. Right after she got there the elevator doors opened and Bucky walked out. “Hi,” she warmly greeted. “Are you ready to take on the city?” she questioned excitedly. 

“Always,” he returned. Ellie walked over to her closet, grabbed her coat and purse, then returned to him. “So, what’s the plan? Do you want to drive over? Walk? Teleport?” he winked. 

“I was thinking about walking. I can mask our appearances so we don’t have to worry about any onlookers,” she suggested. 

“Sounds great. Shall we?” he asked, pointing to the elevators. They walked inside and started riding down to the ground floor. “So, how are things going in the lab?” 

“Really good actually,” she smiled. “I’ve got this new idea for a way to treat in-field injuries that I think could help a lot of people.” 

“That’s amazing doll,”  he returned with a bright smile, causing her to blush. 

“Tony came by the lab the other day and god,” she scoffed to herself. 

“That bad?” he chuckled as they walked out. 

“No, it’s just he kept being all impressed and stuff. He apparently thinks I’m too humble,” she rolled her eyes. 

“Oh yeah, he’s crazy, you are definitely the most arrogant person I know,” Bucky smirked.

“Exactly,” she replied. “Anyways, hopefully he’ll calm down soon,” she noted.

“I think he’s just proud of you and excited to see you doing so well. I know I am,” Bucky suggested as they neared the tower security walls. 

“Maybe,” she quietly returned. They nodded to the agents guarding the door, then Ellie immediately masked their appearances. “We’re good now, they won't recognize us,” she quietly told him. 

“Wonderful,” he warmly replied, taking her hand. They walked like that all the way to the park and nobody even gave them a second glance. It truly felt like she was normal again, not a famous Avenger, or a mutant, just Ellie Clark. She saw ‘Billy’s Hot Dog Cart’ and was drawn towards it. “Have you eaten?” Bucky asked and she shook her head. “Well, let’s get some hot dogs,” he smiled as they got in line. They quietly chatted more about her work in the lab as they waited. 

Once they reached the front Ellie excitedly ordered, “hi! Can I get a plain hot dog and a pretzel?” 

“Coming right up,” presumably Billy replied. “And for you?” he asked Bucky. 

“Can I get two hot dogs, fully loaded?” he requested. 

“You got it. That will be $10.89.” Bucky already had his card out and on the reader while she was still looking for hers. She glared at him, but he just smirked and raised his eyebrows. She rolled her eyes, but had a large smile burning into her, god he was adorable. They stepped over to the side to wait and she leaned against him, savoring their time together as two normal people. He wrapped his arms around her back, gently taking her hands as she pressed against his chest. She was never a huge fan of PDA, but she was also aware of the fact that it was the city and literally nobody cared that they were standing together. Their moment was interrupted by the announcement of their food. “Three hotdogs and a pretzel.” 

They both walked over and collected the food. It seemed like Bucky’s hot dogs had chili? on them. She put some ketchup on hers, then called it good. “That is a fancy hot dog,” Ellie laughed, nodding to his food as they walked into the park. 

“Yeah, I’ve always been a fan,” he smiled, then started laughing to himself. “This one time Steve and I spent all our train money buying them. We had to ride home in a freezer truck,” he chuckled. 

“Seriously?” she questioned. 

“Yeah. We’d gone to the fair and I blew through like 3 bucks trying and failing to win a bear for a girl,” he sighed with a smile. 

“Well aren’t you the ladies man,” she smirked and he shrugged, waving his arm. “Should I be worried,” she joked. 

“Of course not, doll, you know I only have eyes for you,” he countered. 

“Well good,” she nodded confidently. They reached a bench overlooking some of the gardens so she paused for a moment, “shall we sit and eat. I wanna have this pretzel before it gets cold.” He nodded and they sat down. Bucky set down one of his hot dogs and draped an arm around her shoulder, holding his food in the other. Ellie immediately dove into her pretzel and her eyes widened in amazement with how good it was. “God, this is amazing. I haven’t had one of these in years,” she gaped. She practically devoured the thing as she watched two squirrels chase each other up a tree. She moved her trash into the bin closest to them with her powers and started her hot dog. It wasn’t quite as good, because well, it wasn’t a soft pretzel, but it was still delicious. She finished and turned to Bucky and his face was completely covered in food. She barely managed to contain her laugh at the sight. “Did you even get any of it into your mouth,” she giggled.

“What do you mean?” he asked. 

“Are you serious?” she questioned and his face didn’t change. “My dear, you're wearing your hot dog,” she gently told him, placing a hand on his shoulder, as if breaking bad news. He touched his cheek and paused awkwardly when he saw it come back covered in sauce. “Here,” she smiled, handing him a wet wipe she’d conjured. 

“Thanks,” he quietly replied, obviously embarrassed. 

“Aw it’s okay. Trust me, I have had my fair share of messy eating moments. My parents didn’t buy me any white clothes for like 5 years cause they thought I’d spill on myself,” she comforted. “God, on my first birthday they got me a cake and I swear more of it ended up on my face than in my mouth,” she laughed. “It’s weird too, cause for a while I didn’t like touching my food at all, but then that all went away. I think milk was probably the biggest culprit. I had many, a mustaches,” she chuckled. 

“I bet those were really cute,” he smiled. 

“Oh, they were certainly something,” she shook her head in amusement. “You’re done with those?” she asked, gesturing to his trash. He nodded, so she brought it to the trash. “Shall we promenade? That’s what you guys did right?” she smirked. 

“I wasn’t raised in 18th century England,” he flatly stared. 

“Really?” she sarcastically returned. “I could’ve sworn you were a 300 year old British man. God, I can’t believe I got that mixed up, must be my other boyfriend,” she joked.

“Your other boyfriend?” he raised an eyebrow.

“Bucky, you and I both know I don’t have another boyfriend, much less a really old British one,” she reminded. 

“Right, but does that make me your boyfriend?” he asked with the same stupid grin from that first morning they’d gotten together. Ellie’s cheeks heated. “Do you want me to be your boyfriend?” he asked. She wanted him to be her anything. She nodded. “Well then. From this moment on, I am your boyfriend and you are my girlfriend,” he declared and a smile started burning onto her too. “God, you’re beautiful,” he breathed. “My girlfriend is so beautiful,” he spoke louder. “I love that I can call you that,” he literally gushed. “Come on, let’s promenade,” he beamed, reaching his arm out for her to grab. 

“I thought you weren’t-” she attempted. 

“For my best girl? I can be from whenever she wants,” he hummed and she instantly flushed. “You know they have a zoo here,” he told her.

“In the park?” she gaped.

“Yeah, or at least they used to. They built it when I was 17, I think it’s still there, I haven’t actually checked,” he clarified. “I’m pretty sure I remember where it is. Steve and I took Becca once. Do you want to go?”

“Definitely, I love zoos!” she beamed and he started guiding them in a different direction. “I remember we had this zoo maybe 30 minutes from my house and we got a membership a few years in a row since I wanted to go so often. Our pass had a red panda on it, my favorite animal, and I didn’t let them give me a new one. I always made them just renew the membership on the same card so it would always have a panda on it. Eventually I was carrying around a 5 year old card that had no membership, just because it had a picture of a red panda,” she laughed. 

“Why red pandas?” he asked.

“Well for starters have you seen them? They’re like actual living teddy bears,” she giggled. “I think I have a deep psychological connection with the species. One time my mom picked me up early from 3rd grade to go to the zoo and let me tell you I felt so cool. We were walking around when we came across the exhibit. It was pretty new, so it was our first time going. When we got there they were all hiding, but only a minute later all three pandas came out and started playing. The zookeepers said it was some of the most active they’d ever seen them. I got a red panda stuffed animal after we left and slept with it every single night, even into high school,” she admitted. “Since then every time I have gone to a zoo they’ve come out. I know that probably doesn’t sound that cool, but they’re nocturnal and I have a 100% success rate of them being active,” she boasted.

“So you’re a red panda whisperer?” he breathed a laugh. 

“Yup! I really should start putting that on my resume,” she trailed off in thought. 

“Are you planning on getting a new job any time soon?” he chuckled. 

“Eh, hopefully not,” she waved him off. “I have a pretty cool gig,” she sarcastically shrugged. “There was this really hot guy though that wouldn’t leave me alone when I first got there,” she smirked and he rolled his eyes at her. She was about to continue, but they reached the entrance to the zoo, so she had much higher priorities. She took in the brick arched entrances with the animal statues bearing instruments and it looked strangely familiar. She knew she’d never been there before. Wait! “Is this where the Madagascar movie took place?” she thought aloud, knowing Bucky would obviously have no idea. He just looked at her cluelessly. “It’s an animated movie, we can watch it later,” she explained. She conjured her phone to look it up and saw that she was right. “Ha! It is. God, I am so smart,” she muttered. 

“Yeah, yeah. You call yourself smart for this, but not for brain surgery, okay,” Bucky chortled. 

“It’s different,” she told him. 

“If you say so,” he shook his head with a smile. Ellie summoned her card, so she’d beat him to the payment. 

They reached the register and Ellie immediately took over the interaction, so Bucky couldn’t steal the check out. “Hi there, two adult tickets please,” she smiled. As the worker was clicking on the computer she leaned over to Bucky and quietly whispered to him, “though you probably could’ve gotten a senior.” He glared at her and she stifled her laugh. She tapped her card the second the worker brought out the reader and winked at Bucky. “Thank you very much,” she smiled as she took their tickets. She de-summoned her card as she placed her hand in her pocket, then they approached the gate. She handed a man in a brown uniform their tickets and he scanned, then tore off the bottom and handed them back to her. “Thanks,” she nodded and they stepped inside. She brought the tickets to her room for safe keeping, they had really pretty writing of the name of the zoo, and art of different animals. She didn’t have many keepsakes, so she would be savoring any she got.

Bucky grabbed a map from a stand at the front and unfolded it. “Let’s see. What do we have,” he spoke to himself. “Huh. It’s changed a lot,” he spoke. “Well, I know where we’re going,” he announced while folding the map and putting it into his pocket. 

“And that is?” she asked. 

“A surprise,” he replied with a stupidly attractive smile and reached his hand out for her again. She sighed and accepted it. Once they cleared the welcome buildings and restaurants Ellie saw the massive seal enclosure. She pulled Bucky over so she could look at them up close. 

“They’re so cute! Look at those little whiskers,” she admired. “You know, in Madagascar, the movie I was telling you about, this is where the penguins were, I think. They were super cool. They’d just stand there soaking up the attention. ‘Smile and wave boys, just smile and wave,’” she impressioned. “Yeah, we’re definitely watching this movie,” she decided. She watched them swim around for a little while longer, laughing a lot when Bucky got sort of drenched by a wave that splashed over the edge. She decided to be nice and dry him off with her powers. “Okay, I’m ready to see the next thing. I assume I’m still following you?” 

“Yup,” he confidently replied. She rolled her eyes at him but happily took his hand, having complete trust in his lead. “You know, they had a Tiglon when I was last here,” he explained. 

“A what?” she laughed. 

“Tiger plus a lion,” he told her. 

“I thought that was a Liger?” she asked.

“I think that’s with the parents swapped or something,” he shrugged. 

“Oh wait, I learned about this. It’s called genomic imprinting I think. It defines what genes are expressed based on whether it’s inherited from the mother or the father, but it’s with epigenetics, which by the way is super cool,” she added. “So it’s not actually changing the genes, just if they’re on or not,” she explained. “So with the Ligons and Tiglon? I feel like I learned it as Tigon, oh well, either way,” she rambled. “Wait, was the Tiglon big?” she asked, totally engrossed by the subject now. 

“Um, not any bigger than any other big cat,” he replied slowly, still seemingly processing what she’d said. 

“In that case, a Tiglon is a male tiger with a female lion and a Ligon is a male lion and a female tiger. Ligons are massive. It has to do with growth factors, the male lion has significant growth promoting genes and the female tiger's egg doesn’t have growth inhibiting genes, so they’re fairly uncontrolled growth in the offspring. Whereas with the Tiglon, both the male tiger and female lion have the inhibitors, so it becomes regular normal sized,” she explained. 

“A second ago you didn’t know what a Tiglon was,” Bucky blinked, obviously thrown off.

“I just had to jog my memory. It’s all in there somewhere,” she smirked, tapping on her head. 

“Yeah and let me guess, this isn’t a smart thing, but remembering the movie still is?” he sighed. 

“So you do get it!” she beamed. “So, was the Tiglon cool? I got myself distracted, sorry,” she grimaced. 

“Don’t worry about it doll, I love it when you talk science. I don’t really understand it, but it’s very attractive,” he charmed, causing her to blush. “Yeah, the Tiglon was cool. I think his name was Charles? He was pretty, had stripes and big paws,” he smiled. He snuck a look at the map and scanned the area. “We’re almost there I think,” he told her. They walked up a steep path and arrived at an exhibit. “Okay, this is it," he smiled.

Ellie looked around and saw an info plaque with a picture of a red panda. “Is this?” she excitedly asked, turning to face him. He just nodded and she ran to the side of the exhibit, leaning against the fence to try and find them. She scanned the area and couldn’t find flashes of red. “Here red panda, red panda, red panda,” she softly called. She continued to search and didn’t find anything, it must be inside. 

“I’m sorry doll,” Bucky frowned. 

“Just wait, they’ve hidden before,” she told him. Ellie called for it again and this time they appeared, walking out from their indoor space. “Bucky, Bucky, look!” she excitedly told him, tapping against his chest. 

“I’ll be damned, you are the red panda whisperer,” he breathed. 

“You would dare doubt me,” she sarcastically threatened. 

“Never,” he countered, Ellie glared at him, then brought her focus back onto the panda. God, it was so cute. It was the closest she’s seen one. The little guy was right near the fence of the exhibit. She could practically feel how fluffy it would be with how close it was. Its little whiskers and fluffy tail was genuinely perfect. It was putting on a whole show for her. It ran around its space, much more gracefully than Paw. It started climbing up a tree and it scaled it like it was nothing. Once it got back down it found a very large rock and seemed to think it was a threat, so it got on its hind legs and brought its front paws over its head to make itself bigger. She was laughing and smiling the whole time. After god knows how long the red panda went back into the room, so she decided it was okay for her to go. “Okay, you’re right. That is a very good favorite animal. So, where to next? Here’s the map, do you have any animals in mind?” he asked.

Ellie studied the map. “I definitely want to see the snow leopards, but maybe we just wander?” she suggested. 

“Sounds great,” he smiled, taking her hand again. Every time he did that sent sparks of excitement up her spine, tingling from her fingertips all the way to her rapidly racing heart. They walked around the zoo for the next couple hours, with Ellie spending excessive amounts of time at every animal, admiring them. They finally finished and started to head out, successfully having completed their goal. “So, did you have a good time?” he softly asked.

“I had an amazing time,” she smiled back. “Though I think we’re going to have to save the rest of the park for later,” she laughed as they started walking back to the tower. “So, what if we pick up food and watch Madagascar tonight?” she suggested. 

“That sounds excellent. Do you have anything in mind?” he asked. 

“How about Chinese? I could go for some chicken fried rice.” 

“Sounds great. I know a good place nearby. I’ll call ahead so it’ll be ready,” he replied as he pulled out his phone. Ellie looked around the city as they walked, faintly listening to Bucky order, “hi there, can I please get chicken fried rice and sweet and sour chicken to go?” There was a brief pause. “James.” Another pause. “Great, see you soon,” he replied, then hung up. “Food will be ready in 15 minutes,” he told her. They continued to walk together, intentionally taking their time and walking slowly. 

Ellie felt her instincts being called and she tried to figure out where it was coming from. She scanned the area, then found what she was looking for. A group of guys were beating someone up. “I’ll be right back,” she told Bucky, then turned herself invisible while holding an illusion of herself next to him for everyone but him. She teleported to the group, removing her illusion. “You know you’re not being very nice,” she told them, in a semi-mocking tone. They barely looked away from what they were doing. “Fine, don’t listen,” she groaned and called on her powers, pulling them off the person and lining them up against the wall, holding them in place. She walked over to the person on the floor. It was a man, maybe in their twenties. He was decently beat up, but it wasn’t too bad. “Hey, are you okay? They aren’t going to hurt you anymore. You’re safe now,” she warmly spoke. 

“Are- are you Ellie?” he stuttered. 

“Yes,” she smiled. “Do you want to go to the hospital? I can take you there,” she offered. 

“Oh, um, no that’s okay. I think I’ll be okay. Thank you,” he replied, trying to stand. Ellie helped him get up and scanned him for injuries. 

“At least let me treat some of your injuries,” she requested and he eventually nodded. She knew her reality manipulation for healing was draining, but she could clean and bandage the wounds. She called on her powers and attended to the damage. “That’s much better. You’re sure you don’t want any more help?” she confirmed. 

“Yeah, you’ve done more than enough. Thank you, really,” he genuinely spoke, before limping away. 

Ellie turned around to look at the three dicks she had still pinned with her powers. “Now onto you guys,” she sighed. “Here’s what I’m going to do,” she started as she conjured magical binds on each of their wrists behind their backs. “And you’re going to want to pay attention. Those are going to be impossible to remove, unless you go to a police station and turn yourself in. As soon as you have been processed and have admitted to what you have done, honestly, then they will disappear, not a moment before or after, understood?” she confirmed and they begrudgingly nodded. “Wonderful!” she beamed. “Well, this has been fun, but I’ve got to go. I hope you guys turn yourselves in, because trust me, those things will get very annoying, very quickly. Okie dokie, bye!” she smiled, to large groans, and removed her hold on them and teleported back to Bucky, replacing her identity hiding illusion, careful to hide the ‘poof’ of energy and removing her fake non-Ellie for the passersby. “Hey, I’m back. Sorry about that,” she half smiled at Bucky.

“That’s okay. You really showed those guys up didn’t you,” he chuckled. 

“Oh, you saw,” she breathed. 

“Well at first when you disappeared I was a little freaked out, but then I found you across the street, holding those guys with your powers and checking on the person they’d beat up. So, I realized you had it handled,” he laughed and she nodded. “What did you do to them by the way?”

“Oh,” she started to laugh a little to herself. “I um, I conjured these handcuffs that wouldn’t come off until they turn themselves in. I don’t know if it was the best call, but I thought it would probably be enough encouragement for them to admit to what they’d done,” she admitted. 

“That’s awesome,” he grinned, taking her hand again.

They made it back to the tower without trouble and started riding up to Ellie’s floor. “Okay, I’m gonna change into PJ’s so we can eat in bed and watch the movie. Do you want to go up to your floor and change too?” she suggested. Bucky nodded, so she took the food from him. “Okay, don’t take too long. I’ll queue the movie and get our food ready,” she smiled. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll be right back,” he assured her. 

“Well good,” she returned, softly pressing a kiss onto his lips before stepping onto her floor. Ellie set down the food in the sitting room and trotted into her closet. She used her powers to change into pajama shorts from Macy's, a tank top, and a sweatshirt. She then walked to the kitchen and grabbed plates and forks so they could eat. Bucky walked out of the elevator in an adorable pair of red plaid bottoms and a white tee. “You look nice,” she smiled. “Come on, let’s go watch our movie. I’m excited for you to see how right I was about the penguins,” she boasted. Bucky sighed and rolled his eyes as he grabbed the bag of food and she took the plates. They sat down together on her bed and she conjured mini tray tables for them to eat on so they wouldn’t make a mess. They propped up all the pillows so they could easily watch the movie and distributed the food. “J.A.R.V.I.S., could you cast Madagascar 1 onto my window?” Ellie requested and the movie started playing. They blissfully spent the rest of their evening watching the first and second movie until they both fell asleep. 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

Ellie woke up to herself pressed against Bucky’s body. She was soaking in his scent. She was laying on top of him and she could feel his steady breaths against her neck and god it was setting her on fire. She slowly looked up at him and saw his eyes slowly opening. “Hey doll,” he raspily spoke, only fueling that passion in her more. She could feel her breath picking up as she looked at his amazing face. “Are you okay?” he chuckled. 

“Mhm,” she muttered, leaning into his chest, but it just exacerbated his smell. She placed a light hand on his cheek, “you’re very handsome.” 

“Oh yeah?” he smirked.

“Yeah,” she replied, leaning against her elbows to stare down at him. “It’s hard sometimes to maintain composure when I wake up and you're under me. Breathing on my neck, drenching me in your perfect smell,” she admitted, emphasizing every word.

Bucky’s eyes lit up, as if he finally put together what she was saying and a devilish grin took over his face. “Breathing on your neck,” he started, bringing his mouth against her pulse point, leaving only centimeters of space. “Like this?” he questioned, then literally blew against it, sending chills down her spine. Ellie lost all of her said composure and grabbed his face, bringing it against hers. Their kiss was heated, leaving no time to waste. Bucky grabbed her hips and brought both of them up so they were sitting up again, leaning against the headboard and Ellie was straddling him. She grabbed at his chest and arms, wanting to feel every part of him. “God, doll,” he sighed through the kiss, as her hands tugged at his hair. She could feel her core pulsing, needing to be touched. She started to shift her hips against him, needing more friction. “Fuck, doll,” Bucky groaned. Ellie grabbed at his hair again, causing him to grunt out in pleasure, as she thrusted against his rapidly hardening member. He switched over to her neck, biting down on her pulse point, invigorating her even more. She moaned into the sensation, her head falling back. “God you’re beautiful,” he breathed. Ellie yanked at his shirt and he pulled it off, briefly separating him from her neck. 

He bit down hard and she sighed out, “ah Bucky.” His hands trailed along her body, under the sweatshirt, so she just removed it with her powers, leaving her just in her tank top. He slowly trailed his kisses further down, landing eventually closer to her collar bone, invigorating her even more. She bucked her hips against him, so lost in the pleasure and desire she was being washed over with. He was practically fully erect under her and his flannel pajama pants were providing a very minimal barrier between them. She pressed herself firmly against him, getting as much friction against her throbbing pussy as could. He grunted, loudly, then pulled away. “Bucky?” she asked, confused by his sudden change.

“Maybe we should stop,” he spoke.

Ellie’s face fell. “Did I do something wrong?” she breathed, maybe he hadn’t wanted this. 

“No, no, god, no,” he clarified, practically groaning into the words. “I just think we should take things slower. I want to do this right. Treat you right. But doll, I swear to you, I really want to do this, do everything with you,” he sighed. “My mama told me that when I find a girl that I love that I’d better not mess it up, cause that doesn’t come around that often. So I’m trying to listen to that advice. When I was younger I would always just rush into this. I’m not going to do that again. You’re too important,” he explained. 

“Okay,” she replied, stroking a soft hand along his cheek. “I think it’s sweet actually,” she smiled, giving him a much softer kiss. “Well, I guess it’s time to get up then,” she sighed, getting off of him. “I’m supposed to play video games with Peter today, so I’ll be wherever that is. Want to go to the gym soon? I have no idea when Peter’s going to be expecting me.”

“Sure, you’ll eat a protein bar, get dressed and meet me down there?” he clarified, clearly just wanting to make sure she was eating before they exercised. 

“Yes Bucky, I’ll eat my protein bar,” she rolled her eyes. 

“Good,” he smiled, giving her a quick kiss, then getting out of the bed.

After Ellie and Bucky finished a successful workout she took a shower and realized she had some marks forming on her neck from earlier. She hoped nobody had seen them earlier, she doubted they had since she wore one of her turtlenecks, but even so. She decided to place an illusion over just that area, then get out her phone to try and figure out when and where she was meeting Peter. She noticed texts from him right away. She really wasn’t great at using this phone to receive messages.

PETER:

Hi Ellie! 

This is Peter 

Peter Parker 

Spider-Man 

Are we still good to play games today? 

You can come to my floor if you want. 

Maybe at like noon or something? 

Whenever it works for you. 

Ellie laughed as she read through all the messages. He definitely seemed like was hopped up on sugar, sort of all the time. She checked the time and saw that it was 11:30. 

ELLIE:

I’d be happy to come by at noon if that’s still good for you.

What floor are you on?

Ellie teleported to the common floor in the hopes of finding some free, easy food; having people who actively liked and chose to cook was really convenient. Once she got there she heard Thor’s booming voice. She looked around and saw the much less fun brother at the table, along with Tony and Steve; this was an interesting mix. It seemed like Thor was the one preparing the meal, which was sort of surprising, she assumed that being royalty meant not making your own food. She walked further inside and Loki instantly looked at her, but she put her focus on anyone else. It was Thor who officially greeted her, “Lady Ellie! How wonderful to see you. It feels like it’s been ages since we’ve spoken. Though I hear you’ve been keeping yourself busy,” his voice filled the room. 

“Hey Thor,” she smiled. “Are you cooking?” she asked. 

“He’s trying,” Loki scoffed. 

“I have to meet Peter in a half hour, do you think it’ll be ready by then?” Ellie asked. 

“Uh, yes, I believe it will, it’ll be ready in no time at all,” he announced, with what she assumed to be completely unwarranted confidence. 

Ellie laughed a little, knowing she could conjure something if she got really desperate, and joined the table, putting all her focus on Tony and Steve. “So Peanut Butter and Jellie, you’re hanging out with Pete?” Tony asked. Ellie genuinely laughed at the nickname. 

“Yeah, he’s gonna try and teach me to play one of his video games. I told him to keep his expectations low,” she chuckled. 

“I’m sure you’ll be okay,” Tony sighed. 

“Oh Ellie, I wanted to ask. I was running through some of the surveillance I was telling you about and I saw something sort of odd,” Steve started, capturing the attention of the whole room. “There were 3 separate police reports of a person turning themselves in.” 

“That doesn’t sound that strange,” Tony countered. 

“Right, what was unique was the fact that they all had handcuffs that disappeared the second they were in the cell,” Steve clarified and Ellie awkwardly looked at the floor. “So, do we have a new enhanced or was that you?” he questioned. 

“I’m sorry,” Ellie frowned. “Bucky and I were coming back from the zoo when we saw them beating up this guy. I told them the cuffs would only come off if they turned themselves in. I don’t know, I thought it was a good idea at the time,” she explained, not looking up. 

“Kid, nobody's upset with you,” Tony interjected. “You did a good thing,” he clarified. She carefully looked up, still unsure and Steve nodded as well. “So zoo huh?” 

“Yeah, I was just planning on going to central park, but then I found out there was also a zoo? That’s crazy!” Ellie awed. “You know, that’s where the zoo in the  Madagascar movie is,” she noted, hoping maybe Tony would get it, but he just raised an eyebrow at her. “Ugh, why does nobody get pop culture references,” she complained. “And no, you guys don’t have to explain, I know you’re not from this planet, or century,” she groaned, looking at the Asgardians and Steve. “But you Tony, I really thought I might have you,” she shook her head. 

“Sorry kid, maybe next time,” he laughed. 

“Yeah well, I’m slowly introducing Bucky to all the important movies that he missed, so maybe some day he’ll get all my references,” she laughed. “We watched the first two Madagascar movies yesterday, so he at least knows I was right,” she shrugged.

“How has training been going?” Loki asked, venom in his tone. 

Ellie glared at him, but replied anyways, “it’s been going well. My powers have gotten a lot better actually. I can do pretty much anything I want with them,” she explained. “Though the strength training still sucks. We did a core workout today and it honestly felt like medieval punishment,” she sighed. 

“You did really well in all of the baseline tests?” Steve questioned. 

“Yeah, but I’ve been trying to improve or whatever,” she rolled her eyes. “But tomorrow I get a break, so that’s something,” she added. 

“Yeah, I suppose it is,” Tony shrugged. Steve got up and started talking to Thor, so Tony turned to her with a soft expression, “you haven’t been overdoing it right? In training? I don’t want any more accidents,” he quietly noted. ‘So, he knows about your accident?’ Loki hummed in her mind. 

“I’ve been taking it easy, don’t worry,” she assured him. 

“Is your arm feeling better?” Tony gently asked. 

“Much better. I am a big fan of my accelerated healing,” she smiled. ‘Oh, so he doesn’t really know. What did you tell him, gorgeous? Some bullshit excuse?’ Loki taunted in her mind. ‘ I thought you stopped pushing people away.’ Tony’s phone started ringing and he walked away to answer it, leaving her stuck with just Loki. She turned to him with an infuriated expression. “What the hell is your problem?” she quietly hissed. “Stay out of my head,” she snarled. 

“Tell the truth and maybe I won’t have to,” he countered. 

“Just mind your own business,” she growled as Tony walked back to the table.

“Sorry about that,” Tony spoke as he returned to the table. He peered over at the kitchen and gave an awkward look, “I think you might need to get yourself food. He doesn’t seem to be making any progress. I also don’t think he can cook,” he sucked on his teeth, showing his feigned concern. 

“I don’t know, maybe he can pull it off, it doesn’t smell bad?” Ellie offered.

“Look kid, you are a very, very nice person, but I’m willing to bet he’s never had to cook in his life. Am I correct in this assumption?” he asked Loki, who just nonchalantly nodded. “See, it’s just a side effect of having important parents. I never learned either, which is why I buy us food, rather than plague you with my cooking,” he shrugged. “I think there might be some leftovers in the fridge you can eat,” he offered.

“Yeah, alright. Thanks, Tony,” she conceded, looking at her watch and seeing it was already close to the time she was meant to meet Peter. Ellie walked over to the fridge and found the food Tony was talking about. She placed it in the microwave and started heating it up, then walked up to Thor, “hey, I’m going to eat some leftovers from the fridge for lunch. I don’t want to be late to see Peter, but if there’s any food left later, I’d love to try it,” she smiled. 

“Ah, yes, no problem lady Ellie. This is certainly proving to be more complicated than I’d expected,” he sighed. 

“Well, I’ve heard through the grapevine that Steve doesn’t actually cook the food he prepares, so I have faith that you’ll do better than him,” she smirked. 

“You know what Ellie,” Steve sighed, eyeing her down. 

“Oh don’t worry, based on the horror stories I’ve heard, you’ve improved a lot since the 1940s,” she continued. 

“It’s just so much fun for me having you and Buck together. Really just adds to my self esteem,” he groaned. 

“You know it’s all love Steve,” Ellie beamed, placing a hand on his shoulder. “I’ve gotta fill in for Bucky since he’s not here right now. We’ve gotta keep you humble, especially now that I know you had a whole theme song,” she shrugged. 

“I told you that wasn’t my idea!” he complained. 

“Doesn’t mean you didn’t have one,” she wiggled her eyebrows.

“Mhm, whatever, and what’s your excuse for when you’re both doing it?” he questioned.

“Backup, of course,” she winked, grabbing the food from the dinging microwave. “Good luck with the food Thor, I have complete faith in you,” she smiled warmly. 

“Thank you lady Ellie,” he brightly replied, then returned to his conversation with Steve. 

Ellie set her food down at the table and summoned herself the fork she forgot and glared at Loki for a moment, “you know, your brother calls me Lady Ellie. You could try calling me that instead?” she quietly sassed. 

“And you could try calling me Prince Loki. Life is full of disappointments,” he countered. 

She promptly rolled her eyes at him and turned her focus onto Tony. “Oh! I forgot to tell you. I got the chance to properly drive my new car,” she happily changed the subject as she started eating the leftovers she was almost confident were from Remy. 

“Oh, did you now?” he asked, matching her energy. 

“Yes! When we went to the mall I drove, because apparently everyone else got teeny tiny sports cars. God, the car drives amazing!” she beamed. “I love it. Plus, it’s so pretty,” she sighed, still so obsessed with her car. 

“Well, I’m glad you like it so much,” he smiled. “I was actually looking into it more. Did you realize your sun roof is adjustable? You can dim it if you want, or even turn it into a whole white sheet, basically like it’s not a window at all,” he advertised. “It also has J.A.R.V.I.S. integrated into it, which I assume you figured out already. The car itself already has a self-driving feature, but with the integration it’s even better. You could actually have J.A.R.V.I.S. do all the work if you wanted,” he told her. 

“Wow,” she breathed. “Since it’s electric, are there chargers in the garage?” she asked. 

“I can’t believe I didn’t show you those before,” he sighed. “Yeah, there are a few of the super-fast chargers down there. You don’t have to pay for them, just plug the car in and it’ll start charging. Actually, I may label one ‘Ellie’s charger’, so you can just leave your car there and never have to worry about finding one,” he thought aloud.

“Oh, you don’t have to do that. I can share with everyone else,” she carefully countered. He’d already given her a whole car, he didn’t also need to get her a special charger just for her. 

“I really don’t know how many times I’m going to have to tell you this, but, kid, I want to do this for you. Think of it as a part of being an Avenger. Plus, it’s just a charger. I promise you, it’s not a big deal,” he countered. She begrudgingly nodded, so he gave her an arrogant smile. “So, tell me about the zoo. Did you see any good animals?” he asked, changing the subject. 

They ended up chatting about the history of the zoo, the cool animals she’d seen, and the awesome genetics behind the Liger and Tigon, to which Steve chimed in about seeing the Tiglon. Eventually it reached the time for her to go find Peter, so she conjured her phone to check his texts. 

PETER:

Hey Ellie!

Noon is great. 

I’m on floor 61

Can you bring your computer?

ELLIE:

On my way!

Ellie smiled at the group and Thor was still working on the food. “Alright guys, time to try and learn how to play computer games,” she beamed. “I shall see you all later,” she smiled, then walked over to the elevator. Once it opened she pressed 61 and put her hand on the scanner, hopefully Peter had given her access to his floor. The doors opened to a new room, she assumed to be his. The space was totally chaotic, not necessarily messy, but not neat either. “Peter?” she called into the space. He instantly came sliding into the room, gliding on his socks from his bedroom. “Hey,” she smiled, instantly comforted by his warm, uncomplicated presence. 

“Hi Ellie! How are you?” he beamed. 

“I’m pretty good, you?” she replied, still taking in the room around her. It had some random sports flags, a ton of math and physics posters - which she found incredibly endearing, and a bunch of pictures of him with a few different people; two kids his age, a woman - maybe his aunt , Happy, and Tony. It was his home, she could tell, he’d made this his home. 

“I’m good, sorta stressed about finals,” he sighed. 

“I'm sure you're going to do great,” she assured him.

“I'm mainly worried about one of them. So we'll see,” he shrugged. “I love school, but I’m excited to have a break soon,” he smiled. 

“I totally get that,” she nodded. “So, do you want to play teacher and show me how to play your game?” she asked. 

“Yes!” he beamed. “Oh, I got some snacks for us,” he told her. Ellie smiled to herself when he turned into the kitchen, just thinking about how he put thought and effort into this, truly wanting to spend time with her. He turned back around carrying like 5 bags of unopened chips. “I didn’t know what kind you liked, so I kinda just grabbed a mix,” he shrugged. “There is also soda in the fridge if you’re interested,” he continued, opening the door. “I have rootbeer, coke, sprite, um, some sparkling water things May likes,” he explained. He really put a lot into this. 

“A rootbeer would be great, thank you Peter,” she smiled. “So, where are we gonna play?” she aksed. 

“I was thinking we’d play here,” he told her, gesturing to the barstools. “There isn’t really another great table,” he shrugged. 

“Okay!” she happily replied and sat down on a chair. 

“Did you bring your-” he started, but immediately cut himself off when she conjured her computer, and set it in front of her. “Your powers are so cool,” he spoke, amazed. 

“That’s not even the half of it,” she boasted. “Okay, what am I doing on this thing,” she asked with a laugh. 

“I was thinking we could play minecraft. It’s one of my favorite games and it’s also sort of simple to understand, especially if we don’t jump in too deep at the start,” he explained. “You can start up the computer, then open minecraft.net to download the game,” he directed, so she started trying to follow those instructions. The computer instantly came to life when she tapped on the keys, so she found a browser. Images of blocky trees filled the website in vibrant colors and she turned the screen to him. “Great. Do you have a Microsoft account?” he asked as he pressed a couple things and brought her to a log in page.

“I have no idea. I guess I can check my email,” she spoke. Ellie typed in the gmail account her parents had made her when she was born [email protected]. She was grateful that they’d gotten it then, cause she was fairly confident there was no way she could get it now. She was genuinely surprised when it worked, her parents must’ve set it up for her when she was younger. “I’m in,” she breathed.

“Great! So, the game is $30 I think, we want the Java edition,” he explained. 

“Okay,” she replied, summoning her credit card so she could copy the numbers. She finished paying and soon enough the program was downloading. “Okay, I think I’ve got it,” she smiled. “It says it’ll be a couple minutes,” she explained. 

“Okay, I’ll go grab my laptop and get logged onto my account,” Peter told her as he walked back into his room. Ellie got up from her chair and smiled at a picture of Peter brightly smiling next to the two faces constantly showing up around the room. They were wearing bright yellow suit jackets and the boy next to him had an arm wrapped around Peter’s shoulder and was holding a large trophy in the other. On his other side was a beautiful girl who wasn’t quite focusing on the camera, her attention seemed to be taken by Peter. Ellie could see the feelings behind those eyes, she was almost confident she’d looked like that when she saw Bucky. “That’s Ned and MJ,” Peter spoke, breaking her focus. “It was after we won the national academic decathlon competition. I met them both in high school. Ned and I became friends instantly, we met during orientation and never stopped. Though MJ played it cool till we were Juniors, she was constantly sitting near us and going to events we went to, but always said we weren't friends,” he sighed with a bright smile, oh, so he liked her too. “After a while she decided we could be her friends, so she actually started hanging out with us. She’s actually my uh-” he awkwardly spoke. 

“Girlfriend?” Ellie attempted, laughing a little at his nervousness. 

“Yeah. She’s studying at MIT now, so we’ve been long distance, but with the semester finishing she’s going to be back home,” he smiled. 

“That’s great Peter, I’m happy for you,” she genuinely smiled. Ellie walked back to the table with him and noticed the last of the loading bar about to finish. She cracked open her can of rootbeer, which she hadn’t had in ages and took a happy sip, savoring the delicious taste. She checked her computer and saw it was finished. “Alright, what’s next?” she asked. He guided her through the next few steps and eventually they were logging onto what Peter called a ‘server’ where they would be able to play together. She noticed he had a mouse, so she quickly conjured one for herself, since it seemed sort of important, then started to move it around. She was happy to see the screen move too, showing different colored blocks. It seemed like she was in a field of sorts. “Okay, what do I do now?” she asked. 

“You can use these keys to move,” he told her, tapping on W, A, S, and D. “And the space to jump. On the mouse, if you right press you will attack or break a block and if you press with the right it’ll place or use whatever block is in your hand. You can press shift to crouch, which means you can’t fall off what you’re standing on, and control to sprint, which is just like it sounds,” he directed. Ellie played around with the keys and was able to get around a little bit. She started breaking a tree, then accidentally placed the wood, so she had to break it again. When she looked up there was a block man looking at her and she genuinely jumped. “It’s just me, don’t worry,” he laughed. 

“Wait a minute,” she started as she backed away from him to look at the bright red figure. “Are you Spider-Man?” she questioned. 

“Ned put me up to it, I swear,” he attempted. 

“Yeah, okay. Whatever you say, Spider-Man,” she laughed. “What do I do with this wood?” she asked, giving him a break from the mockery. Peter helped guide her through enough instruction, so she could start working on building some sort of shelter and get food. He went off to god knows where, stating he was getting iron. “So, Peter, tell me about your Spider-Man-ness? I feel like I don’t actually know anything about what you do. I assume you don’t lead an army of spiders. I hope you don’t, those things creep me out,” she rambled.

“Um, okay. When I was a sophomore in high school we went to this lab that was doing genetics research on arachnids and one of them got out of containment and bit me. I reflexively swatted at it and accidentally killed it, though with the side effects of the bite, maybe that wasn’t the worst thing in the world,” he spoke, still clicking away on his keyboard. “Within a few hours I felt like I had the worst cold of my life. I practically passed out the second I got to my room and I think I slept for 2 days after that. May was terrified. The moment I woke up I felt amazing. I was strong and my reflexes were better than they’d ever been before, but it was like my senses were dialed up to eleven, it was so overstimulating. I’ve learned to dial it down, or at least live with it,” he shrugged. “Though sometimes I get these moments of heightened awareness, like my body is telling me something my mind doesn’t know yet.” He sighed with a smile to himself, “May calls it my Peter tingle.”

“Is that what happened on the jet? When you connected to the comms?” Ellie asked. 

“Yeah, it’s sort of like a homing device. I can sense when I’m getting closer to what I’m supposed to be finding. It seemed like you had something like that happen too though? When you teleported?” he offered. 

“Yeah, I don’t know. I’ve been getting vibes?” she attempted. “I don’t really know what to call it, but it’s sort of like I can sense when something is going to happen, but I have no clue what or where,” she tried to explain. “Maybe with time I’ll be able to start understanding it better,” she shrugged. 

“I’m sure you will. It was pretty confusing for me at the start too,” he told her. Ellie reached over to a bag of Cheez-its and opened it to snack on. “So, what about you and your powers?” he asked. 

“Oh,” she started, instantly thinking about the red liquid burning through her nightmare. “I don’t actually know where they came from. I have the X-gene mutation, so it’s likely that’s their source. Wanda helped me take down the block that was keeping them restrained, I’m still not sure why it was there, but once it was removed I was able to use my abilities without issue. They said I was also affected physiologically, so I have accelerated healing and speed, nowhere near as fast as Pietro, but closer to the super-bros,” she explained. 

“That’s awesome,” he beamed. 

“So, what else did that spider give you? Outside of your Peter tingle?” she smirked. 

He rolled his eyes at her, briefly looking up from the screen. “Um, I think Tony explained it once as I have the proportional speed, strength, and agility of a spider? But basically it just means I’m fast and strong, more so than the said super-bro’s I believe. I haven’t actually challenged them to anything to check, or Steve I guess, Bucky is kind of terrifying,” he breathed. 

“I promise you he’s really just a softie once you get to know him,” she assured him. “He actually went to the zoo with me yesterday,” she added for emphasis. 

“Really? Which one?” he asked.

“The central park zoo. I had no idea that even existed, but once we got there I realized it was familiar,” she started, attempting her last lifeline of someone getting her reference. He turned to look at her, eyebrows raised. “It was in the Madagascar movie. I tried to tell Bucky, but he was clueless,” she sighed.

“Wait, you’re totally right!” he excitedly returned. “The penguins are where the seal is right?” he asked. 

“Yes! I was saying that and god, it was so annoying that he was missing how good my commentary was,” she complained, so glad somebody understood her. “Even Tony didn’t know it. So disappointing,” she complained. “On the bright side I made Bucky watch the first two movies, so at least now he’ll know for next time.”

“Good job,” he nodded, with a large grin. 

Ellie finished building their house and walked out to try and find him, but found it was an absolute horror movie out there. There were two types of green monsters, zombies maybe and something unrecognizable, massive spiders, and skeletons. “Um, Peter,” she breathed. “I think we have a slight issue,” she nervously spoke as she ran back inside. 

“What is it?” he asked. 

“There are um, Zombies, human sized spiders - but not like you, more like Harry Potter - skeletons shooting me, which doesn’t make sense because they have no muscles to pull the bow, and um, well something out of hell,” she explained.

“Okay, I’ll come back,” he laughed. “I got all the iron we need. Also, I think the hellians are creepers? Were they green with weird legs?” he asked. 

“Um, yeah, exactly that,” she awkwardly confirmed. 

“It’s okay, I’ll take care of them. Did you make beds?” he asked. 

“Uh, I can. One sec,” she replied, going to the crafting table, now that she knew the name she wasn’t calling it the building blocks box anymore, and crafted two beds with the wool she’d gotten by killing sheep. “Okay, beds are placed,” she told him. She tried to press one of them but it gave her an error message. “It says I can’t sleep because there are monsters nearby.” 

“Yup, I’m working on that,” he replied, clicking very aggressively at her side. “Okay, try now,” he requested. She pressed onto the bed and this time her screen showed her sleeping, and a chat at the bottom, so she decided to start messaging. 

EllieClark124: I’m sleeping 

EllieClark124: ZZZZ

EllieClark124: ZZZZ

EllieClark124: ZZZZ

EllieClark124: ZZZZ

EllieClark124: ZZZZ

Another message popped at the bottom of the screen telling her they were sleeping through the night. It seemed like Peter was also messaging in the chat.

PitterPeterParker: Sleep sleep sleep 

PitterPeterParker: ZZZZ

“What kind of name is Pitter Peter Parker?” Ellie laughed. 

“I thought it was clever. I made it when I was like ten. You know like pitter patter, but pitter peter. I don’t know. I can’t change it now,” he weakly justified. 

“Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, Pitter Peter Parker,” she laughed. 

“That’s definitely not going to get old,” he sighed. 

“Of course not,” she beamed. 

Ellie and Peter continued to play for the rest of the day, and she felt like she could honestly say she was a minecraft champion by then. She could kill mobs, apparently that’s what the real gamers call them, she knew the names of blocks, and she had diamond armor. She was crushing it. They ended up calling it a day after they completed their much nicer looking house than the dirt and oak one Ellie had built at the start of their gaming adventure. It was really nice spending the day with Peter. It made her feel like a real person, not a superhero in the training facility, or a genius in the lab, but very human. She liked struggling, taking joy and entertainment in that struggle and Peter was the perfect person to do that with. He was so bright and welcoming that she wasn’t afraid of admitting she had no clue what the terrifying slenderman of death was, it was in fact an enderman. It was so refreshing. They decided to make it a weekly thing, at minimum.

Chapter Text

Ellie had mastered her routine. Peter had taken his finals five days ago and they'd played minecraft a couple times since then. She started her day with her three hour training session with Bucky. After that, she would shower and eat lunch with Remy and Wanda, who were taking turns cooking. Logan usually ended up joining them, whether it was for the food or the company was anyone's guess. Once she was refueled, she’d head down to Bruce's lab and help him down there. Her work on Logan's cells was progressing better than she expected. She thought she could probably have a prototype done by the end of the week. After that, she finished off the evening by having dinner with the whole group and often they’d play games or watch a movie after as well. On most nights she would spend an hour in the city, using her powers to stop crimes from a distance, conjuring her magical handcuffs and placing notes with them, informing the criminals of the conditions of the binds.

Ellie was in her closet staring at all of her clothes. She still wasn’t used to all the options. After a long debate she grabbed a pair of distressed high waisted mom jeans and a white crop top, she was feeling the basic look. Ellie let her hair lay on her shoulders, though she used her powers to place a slight curl and prevent it from getting in her face. She walked up to her wall of shoes and grabbed her new favorite pair, a mint green pair of converse with stitched on flowers that Bucky had gotten her. Ellie smiled as she laced them on, thinking back to that day. Ellie pulled her necklace out and grabbed a cropped black jacket, then teleported to the kitchen, hungry after her workout session from that morning. She'd moved up in weights so arms felt like mush. 

“Hey bub,” Logan happily greeted her as she arrived. He got up off the couch and met her in the entryway. Ellie smiled wide when she saw him and pulled him into a hug. “How was your workout this morning?”

“Ugh. Why can’t super strength be one of my powers?” Ellie complained. “My arms feel like cooked spaghetti,” she groaned. 

“Eh, it’s not all it’s made out to be. I’d much rather be able to move stuff with my mind,” Logan consoled. “Come on, Remy’s hasn’t shut up about how excited he is to see you. It’s annoying,” Logan sighed, causing Ellie to laugh. 

Ellie walked into the loud kitchen where Wanda and Remy were cooking together. Clint, Sam, Peter, and Pietro were all sitting at the table and they seemed to be in conversation. Ellie was having a really hard time tracking it, they were going back and forth so fast. “Okay, no this is a dumb question. Obviously Superman would win in a fight,” Peter argued. Oh, this debate again. 

“Yeah but couldn’t Batman just like buy an army to fight him? I bet Tony could,” Sam added. 

“This is about Batman and Superman, not Tony and Superman,” Clint brought him back to the proper topic. 

“Wait but that is a good question,” Pietro added.

“What? Superman vs Tony? No offense to Tony, but Superman would win,” Peter responded. 

“No, I mean, who would win, of all of us,” Pietro clarified. Ellie silently laughed and looked over at Logan, extremely entertained by their conversation. 

“Okay well the two Asgardian gods,” Clint answered. 

“Yeah that’s obvious. I bet Banner could give him a good run for his money,” Sam added. 

“Logan, like, can’t die right? Would that mean he won? He’d probably beat him just by outliving him if nothing else,” Peter added. Ellie nudged him when he was mentioned.

“I don’t know, have you guys been seeing Ellie in the sim rooms? I would not want to be on the other end of that,” Clint added. 

“Oh, El would wreck him,” Sam cackled. Ellie smiled as Logan nudged her back. 

“Wanda too,” Pietro added. 

“Mhm,” Sam agreed. 

“Interesting assessment,” Ellie spoke, drawing their attention to her. She smiled as she looked at their surprised expressions from not expecting to see her there. 

“Hey El, you look good,” Sam flirted. 

Ellie rolled her eyes. “Yeah, you too Sammy,” she sarcastically replied. 

“Hey kid, it’s nice to see you. I feel like it’s been ages,” Clint smiled at her. He was right, it had been a really long time since they’d properly spent time with each other.  “So fill me in, how are you?” 

“Honestly, I’m really good. I’ve actually got a good routine going, I’m working with Bruce in his lab,” Ellie excitedly told him. 

“And you want to do that?” Clint joked. 

“I love it. It’s amazing. It feels like I’m actually starting to use my brain for what it was made for,” Ellie explained with a huge smile. “I also like to keep busy and it seems like we don’t go on missions as much as I would’ve expected.” 

“Yeah, you’ll wish you’d taken that back once things pick up,” Clint sighed. 

“Oh! That reminds me, have you seen Tony? He’s been so busy since recently. I want to talk to him about what I need to do to be able to actually go on the missions. I’ve been training, but I assume there’s more to it,” Ellie thought aloud, after having been helping in the city, she realized how much she wanted to help on real missions. 

“I’d try to text or call him, he gave you a phone right? I’m not sure if this is accurate, but I think that you may need to pass a hand-to-hand combat test. I remember that being mentioned at the meeting,” he told her. Ellie remembered that too, it was before Loki kicked her out.

“Thanks Clint. How are you?” 

“Eh, hanging in there. Trying to ignore the Pietro shaped pain in my ass,” he joked, prompting a laugh from Ellie. 

“Cheri?” Remy asked as he swung around in the kitchen. She must’ve laughed louder than she thought. 

Ellie squeezed Clint’s shoulder and walked up to Remy and Wanda. “Hi Remy!” she happily greeted him. He set down everything he was working on and pulled her into a hug that lifted her feet off of the ground, “oof.” She regained her balance and looked at the multiple dishes they were working on. “Hi Wanda, so what are you two making? It smells amazing,” Ellie happily asked as she soaked in the delicious smell. 

Wanda set her stuff down too and pulled her into a much softer hug. “Hey hun, how are you? How was training? Has your tolerance improved?” she asked. She didn't seem to have an energy store problem, but it was still nice to talk to her about it. 

“It was good, I think I’ve doubled my time in the last week,” Ellie bragged. She was able to use twice the amount of energy for twice the time and she was extremely proud of it. 

“Remy is so proud of you,” he spoke. “Lunch is a surprise. Now, go sit, talk. We will be done soon,” he shoved her away. Ellie had never seen him want to end a social interaction since meeting him. She slowly turned around confused by his behavior and rejoined the group. Ellie saw Logan sitting on the far end of the table, but he waved her off before she could try and encourage him to join the others. She gave him an obnoxious pouty face which had zero effect on him, so she sat down next to Peter. "So Peter, did you hear back about your finals?" she asked.

"I did, I aced them," he smiled. 

"I knew you would," she beamed. "I honestly don't know how you manage to be an Avenger and go to college at the same time. That sounds incredibly difficult," she noted. 

"Eh, I think I might get bored if I didn't have something else to do," he explained. 

"I get that. I think that's part of why I work in the lab, it keeps me busy, but it's also just amazing," she smiled. "You could probably work in the lab if you wanted," she added. 

"That would be awesome!" he beamed, then turned to talk to Clint about his excitement. 

Ellie turned in her chair to Sam. “Aw, you’re nice to the youth,” Sam jokingly placed his hand on his heart and sighed. 

“Yeah, he’s closer to my age than you are. Figured I should play with kids my own age, not just the wrinkling,” Ellie mocked, pointedly. 

“Hey! Not cool,” Sam snapped, Ellie just shrugged. “So, did you have a reason for turning in my general direction?” 

“Right, yes I did. I wanted to ask you something. I still have to talk to Tony, but I want you to help me practice sparring so I can go on missions,” Ellie requested. Sam laughed, literally just laughed. “What is so funny about that?” Ellie asked upsetted by his reaction. 

“No, I just think Bucky might actually kill me,” Sam laughed. 

“Let me deal with that. Will you do it?” Ellie asked. 

“Yeah, I’m game,” Sam agreed. 

“Good. Everything will be by the book. No funny business,” Ellie stared him down. 

“God, are you gonna kill me too?”

“Of course not,” Ellie smiled. “Because you’re going to be on your best behavior,” Ellie decided for him. “First session is tonight. After I’m done in the lab,” Ellie announced. She wanted to be mission ready as soon as possible. She pulled out her phone to text Bucky. 

ELLIE:

Hey, can we talk after I eat lunch?

BUCKY:

Sure, your floor?

ELLIE:

Perfect.

“I’m talking to him after lunch, so you may not want to be somewhere obvious in case it goes poorly,” Ellie told Sam, whose eyes grew. “Which it won't,” Ellie added. He sighed. “Did I say thank you?” 

“No,” he grunted. 

“Well, thank you Sammy!” Ellie smiled, happily getting her way, pulling him into a hug.

“Lunch!” Remy called, pulling Ellie’s attention back to them. “We will make your plates, just stay where you are,” Remy announced. Ellie smiled, excited and curious about the charade. She returned to her seat and waited for Remy to put a plate in front of her. Ellie watched the plates get placed around the table and the food looked amazing. She could feel her stomach growl in anticipation. Remy walked around the table and placed one in front of her. “Here you go, Cheri,” he softly spoke to her. She smiled and looked up at him. “Today you will be eating something new. Wanda and Remy created your lunch to include the best of both of our homes and the food we ate growing up. We hope you enjoy,” he happily explained. 

Ellie dug into her delicious plate. It was an amazing blend of spice and savory. It seemed like they had a mix of meats and sauces, but somehow they all blended together perfectly. Ellie tried to savor every bite, but her hunger was fighting her. She was so consumed by her food that she didn’t even bother with the conversation going on around her. It sounded like they were maybe talking about something sports related, but she wasn’t paying enough attention to confirm. She ended up finishing it at a relatively appropriate speed. She looked up at Remy and Wanda. “That was amazing,” she complimented.

“Thank you Cheri,” Remy smiled. “Wanda and Remy are going to have to cook together more often,” he smiled at her. Ellie beamed, she loved seeing her friends interacting so happily together. “Okay Cheri, you’re always busy. Where are you leaving Remy for?” he asked, knowing Ellie always left after she finished eating. 

“I’m going to meet Bucky real quick then to work with Bruce in the lab,” Ellie smiled. “And I’m not leaving you, Remy. You know I wouldn’t do that.” She got up and walked around the table to hug his shoulders. Ellie used her powers to clean and put her dish away. “Bye everyone!” Ellie happily spoke before teleporting back to her floor. Ellie arrived in her living room and found Bucky already sitting on her couch. “Well hello there,” Ellie smiled as she went to sit down next to him. He unsurprisingly had Paw sitting on his lap, so Ellie decided to screw with him and talked to her cat instead of him, “I’ve missed you so much. How are you, little man? Have you been good?” 

Bucky glared at her, but he quickly dissolved his expression into a smile as he looked at her. “You look beautiful,” he smoothly spoke. Ellie’s cheeks warmed, she loved hearing him say that. He brushed her hair back and placed a soft, gentle kiss on her lips. She savored his taste. Ellie’s body needed more, so she deepened the kiss, as she placed her hand around his head. His tongue danced at her teeth, so she let him in, quietly sighing as his taste got stronger. Her heart fluttered and her spine tingled with pleasure. She reached further, wanting to feel his body, but instead accidentally wacked Paw. She broke them apart so she could apologize to her cat as Bucky laughed. Ellie chased Paw across the room, but he very quickly forgave her and she carried him back to the couch. “So, what did you want to talk about?” Bucky laughed, still amused by her interaction with Paw. 

“I have to tell you something and for the record I am not asking for permission,” Ellie told him. He looked at her skeptically, so Ellie added, “no questions until I’m done, okay?” He nodded. “Alright. So, I want to be mission ready. It sounds like I need to pass some sort of hand-to-hand combat test before I can do that.” He nodded along. “So, I’ve asked Sam to help spar with me-” 

“What!?” he blurted. 

“I told you, no questions until I’m done,” Ellie reminded. “There is logic behind this decision. First I thought of you, obviously, but I assumed you either wouldn’t be comfortable, since I could get hurt, or you’d hold back, and I can’t have you doing that. I also assumed Remy wouldn't fight at his full strength out of fear of me getting hurt. In that similar train of thought, having someone with enhanced strength probably wouldn’t be the best idea, so that ruled out Steve and Logan. I could ask Natasha, but she could literally destroy me,” Ellie justified. She could see him wanting to talk. “Okay, you can ask questions now.” 

“What if he tries something?” Bucky asked. 

“First, you and I both know he won't, he’s all talk. Second, I can lay him out with my powers before he can even consider it,” Ellie told him, emphasizing her point by bringing them out in her hands, showing off the green strings circling her fingers. “I told him the first session would be tonight after I’m done at the lab. You’re welcome to come if you promise to behave.” He sighed, very dramatically, but nodded. “Great, now, Bruce is expecting me. It was lovely seeing you,” Ellie smiled, placing a soft kiss on his cheek, then teleported into the lab. “Hi Bruce!” Ellie happily spoke, looking at his hunched over figure working at a microscope. 

“Geez, you scared me,” Bruce sighed. He turned to look at her and smiled. “How are ya kid?” he asked her with a soft expression on his face. 

“Great! I’m excited to work!” Ellie happily replied, still overjoyed by the work they were doing. She walked over to where he was working, taking in the new tubes that he had sitting around. "What's all this for?" she asked.

“I’m actually working on something pretty interesting. I was inspired by you actually,” he told her.

“By me?” Ellie asked in a lyrical tone, placing her hand on her chest, honored. “How so?”

“Well, your mutation more specifically. The adaptability and bonding capabilities of your cells is unlike anything I’ve ever seen,” he told her. Ellie looked at him, curious about where he was going with it. “I figured you might also be curious about learning more about your mutation and what it was that was bound to your cells. Here, come look at this,” Bruce spoke, moving over from the microscope, offering the view to Ellie. She looked down and saw cells growing and dividing rapidly, with an organelle she didn’t recognize within them. Ellie looked up at him amazed. “I know. It’s fascinating,” he smiled. 

“What is that? In the cells. I don’t recognize it,” Ellie asked.

“That’s what I’m hoping to figure out. It seems like your cells themselves have an additional structure within them. My theory is that you have a miniature hub for your powers in every single one of your cells,” he told her. 

Ellie looked at him, dumbfounded. “So, what does that mean for me?” Ellie asked. 

“Nothing necessarily, other than the fact that you are immensely powerful, from your head to your toes,” Bruce boasted. Ellie smiled, proud of her strength. She was still struggling to shake her fear of her abilities, how strong they were and how fast they were growing. “So, Supergirl, want to get to work?” Bruce offered. Ellie laughed, a lot, at the nickname. “What?” 

“It’s nothing. Just reminded me of something, apparently both of us could take down Superman if we tried,” Ellie joked. He looked at her confused still, but nodded. “Anyways, yes, I would love to get to work, what do you need from me?” Ellie asked as she walked over to the sinks and washed her hands and put on gloves. Ellie turned around and noticed him standing next to a blood draw kid. “Oh,” Ellie breathed. 

“Sorry, everything we have is from your initial accident, it seems like your powers have gotten stronger, so I’m curious to see if there are any changes. Plus, they didn’t take very much, so we’re almost out,” Bruce justified. Ellie shifted in her stance. She wasn’t loving the idea of being studied. At the same time she really wanted to learn more about her powers and she’d have a hand in the research, so, Ellie nodded and walked over to him. “Alright, I’m going to take a few vials of blood and a couple cheek swabs, which we can grow under the incubator,” Bruce explained. She sat down in the chair and laid her arm out on the table. He prepped her arm and the needle, then placed the tourniquet. “Okay, you’re going to feel a little pinch,” Bruce told her. 

“Yeah I know,” Ellie laughed. She was no stranger to pain. He inserted the needle and Ellie felt the sting. She sat patiently as her blood flowed up the tube. She looked closer at it and noticed it had a strange color to it, it was browner than normal blood. “Why does it look like that?” 

“I’m not sure exactly, but your powers, they’re green right?” he confirmed. Ellie nodded and brought them out to show the dark green energy swirl around her fingers. “My theory is that it’s the organelle we were seeing, it’s changing their color,” he explained. Ellie nodded, amazed at how much of an effect her powers had on her molecularly. Bruce finished with the vials and pulled out the needle. He reached over to grab a bandaid, but when he came back her skin had already closed. “Oh, guess you don’t need this,” he joked. “We should look at that too. See how fast you can heal-" the words caused her ears to ring. He wouldn't test it like her nightmare. He wouldn't do that. Bruce wasn't the scientist, or the man in the suit. She was safe here. "-and look at the mechanics of it. My guess is it involves the speed of cell division.” He grabbed the cheek swab kit from the table. “Here, open up,” he requested and Ellie opened her mouth, returning her awareness to the world. He swabbed the inside of both of her cheeks, then put it into the culture medium inside of a test tube and swirled it. He lit a bunsen burner to prevent bacterial growth then plated the cells and put it into the incubator to grow. He grabbed a slide, and swabbed the cells onto there as well and dropped the dye, staining the cells. “Perfect, all done. Thank you for putting up with me Ellie,” Bruce smiled. 

“My pleasure,” Ellie smiled. "I have some stuff for the band-aid project, but it's pretty light today. Do you have something else you want me to do as well?" she asked.

“Well, can I have you work on making some solutions? We’re going to run some tests and we need some stuff stocked up,” Bruce asked. Ellie happily agreed. She literally enjoyed doing anything in the lab. She quickly set up her experiment, then let it run. He gave her a pretty sizable list of things to do, leading Ellie to bounce around the lab, grabbing various things to prep her station. She sprayed the countertop down with 70% ethanol and wiped it with a paper towel, then lit her bunsen burner. She put her empty bottles into the sterile field and got to work. Ellie summoned her headphones and put them into her ears, playing her playlist as she worked. She made sure she would be able to hear Bruce if he talked to her, but kept her music blasting in her ears. Ellie danced around in the lab, having an excellent time as she made her solutions. After she finished the first two of the six solutions she turned and saw Bruce looking at her and smiling with a goofy expression. 

She temporarily de-summoned her headphones to talk to him. “What?” she laughed at his giddy expression. 

“Nothing,” he laughed. “It’s just nice to see you having fun,” he happily remarked. Ellie smiled back at him. “I’m glad to see you doing so well. You had me a little worried for a bit there. I don’t know, it just seemed like you were off I guess, but I’m glad to see you're feeling better. That’s all,” he awkwardly explained. She knew he was worried about her. Especially after that conversation he'd had with Tony, but she never knew how to talk to him about it. She'd definitely been doing better in the last few weeks, but she had a different type of excitement in her today. She was going to get herself mission certified, she and Bucky were great, she'd seen her friends, she was just feeling good, really good.

“Thanks, I am too,” Ellie beamed. 

“Okay, uh, you can get back to it,” Bruce floundered. Ellie smiled back at him and conjured her headphones again, blasting her music. She played 80s hits as she worked. She’d gotten that from her dad, he loved 80s rock and would play it for them whenever he’d work in the garage, or did various random construction jobs on their house. Ellie bobbed her head and danced to AC/DC as she poured solutions together. She walked over to the scale and measured out her solutes. She accidentally added too much, so she used her powers to move slight amounts over until she got the right amount. Ellie smiled wide at her success and carried it back to her table and poured it into the solution. 

Ellie heard the elevator ding and she swung her head around. Bruce was still working so it wasn’t him leaving. She stared at the door in curiosity, wanting to know who was coming. The doors opened and Tony walked out. Perfect! Ellie de-summoned her headphones and ran up to the door to meet him. “Hi Tony! I was actually hoping to talk to you!” Ellie excitedly told him. 

He looked at her surprised. “Were you now?” he witted. 

“Yes. I want to go on missions. I heard a rumor that I need to be able to pass some sort of hand to hand combat test or something. Is that true? And if so, how soon can I do that? I want to be able to get out there when a mission arises. Sam already agreed to spar with me, after this actually. I took self defense classes all throughout college so I should be all set. I don’t want to be benched again, please,” Ellie rapidly spoke. 

“Woah, um, okay. That was a lot of words. You know this is just to keep you safe right?” Tony clarified and Ellie nodded. “There are contingencies to go on missions, but, I am free today and we can go to the training facility to take your test,” he hesitantly agreed. 

Ellie literally jumped for joy and ran to him giving him a massive hug. “Thank you, thank you, thank you. I won’t let you down,” Ellie exclaimed. 

“I know you won't,” he smiled. “Now, get back to work El(m) Street, I gotta talk to Bruce.” Ellie nodded and brought her music back, doing her best not to eavesdrop. “So, her powers, she’s okay right? They aren’t hurting her?” Tony asked in a hushed tone. Ellie feared the answer. Is that why they were testing it? Had Tony asked Bruce to run tests on her?

“No, not at all. It’s actually pretty amazing. She seems to have a battery of sorts containing her power, or energy, as a new organelle in her cell. Here, take a look,” Bruce offered as he brought him over to the microscope. “My guess is that when she passes out it's because she’s worn out that energy, or maybe so the fuse doesn’t burst. I’m not sure, but either way it’s probably her body's defense mechanism so they can recharge. Regardless, from what I can tell, they’re helping, not hurting. I don’t think we have anything to worry about.”

“Thank god. That's a relief. Thanks Bruce,” Tony sighed. Ellie felt him looking at her as she worked. “She’s been through enough, the kid just needs a break,” Tony frowned. He cleared his throat and walked over to Ellie. He pulled her headphones off. “Whatcha listening to?” he asked and put them over his ears. “Ooh good stuff. So, you almost done?”

“Yeah, I just have a couple more things to do. Maybe like 30 more minutes? I should be all ready to go in the gym in 40 minutes or so?” Ellie offered. 

“Sounds great kid, I’ll see you then,” Tony smiled and put her headphones back on her head, causing Ellie to smile wide. He walked over to the elevator. “Bye Bruce, thanks again.” 

Ellie traipsed around the lab finishing off her last solution. She measured out her solvents and solutes then mixed them together into the last bottle. “All done!” Ellie announced as she labeled and put away everything she’d worked on that day. She checked her watch and saw that it was 5:30. “Do you want me to do anything else?” Ellie asked. 

“Nope, go get yourself mission certified,” Bruce smiled. 

Ellie beamed at him. “Thanks Bruce!” she happily spoke before teleporting to her room. Ellie grabbed her phone and called Sam. He picked up and she immediately spoke, “Sam! I’m ready for training. Be in the training room in 10.”

“Oh so now that you’re ready, I have to get ready?” he asked through the phone.

“Yes, exactly. Now get ready please,” she asserted. “Kay thanks!” Ellie said as she hung up, he was definitely complaining, but she didn't feel like listening. She texted Bucky too. 

ELLIE:

Gonna go to the training center in 10

Remember, best behavior

See you there :)

Ellie put her phone down and went into her closet, sorting through her new clothes. Ellie put on a pair of her new green leggings and a loosely fitted white tank top/tee thingy. She wasn’t really sure what it was. She put on one of her new, really fancy, sports bras that caused her boobs to not bounce, at all. She slid on her adidas crew socks and put on her boxing shoes. Ellie slid her necklace under her shirt and took out her earrings. She used her powers to pull her hair back into a ponytail, then teleported into the training center. The center was pretty empty from what she could tell. It looked like Pietro was on the treadmill, but that was it. Ellie walked into one of the sparring rooms and started stretching. She was a little nervous about what was coming. There was a lot riding on her doing well. The training room door opened and Ellie turned around and saw Sam. “Hey! Thanks for coming,” Ellie smiled. “Just so you know, I told Tony about this and he’s gonna come so I can get certified today. I did like three years of self defense so hopefully it’ll be a one and done.” 

“Oh, okay so no pressure or anything,” Sam joked. 

“Exactly. Also, don’t go easy on me or anything,” Ellie warned. 

“I wouldn’t dare,” he clarified. She smiled at him as he started to stretch and she resumed hers as well. Once Ellie felt adequately loosened, she stood up and warmed her body, jumping and doing high knees. “Look who’s here,” Sam announced. Ellie turned around and saw Tony standing outside of the center. Ellie realized that she’d never once seen Tony actually training there. Even on the days she’d spent 7 hours working out. 

Tony opened the door and stepped inside. “Hey kid, Sam,” he nodded. “So, this protocol is a little foggy, since most people don't come to us as recruits like this, but you need to prove that you can hold your own in combat. I will keep in mind that your primary ability is in your powers and not your physical fighting skills, however, if the situation ever arose that you needed them, we need to make sure that you have them. Does that all make sense?” Ellie nodded. “Alright, should we get started?” 

“Yes please!” Ellie excitedly answered. She and Sam stood in either corner of the mat within the room. “Come at me bro,” Ellie challenged. He quickly went for her and her instincts took over. She slid on the floor, knocking his feet out from under him, before getting back on her two feet, in a battle stance. He managed to stand back up and he swung for her. Ellie easily grabbed his fist, lowered her center of gravity, and swiftly swung him over her and back onto the floor. She laughed at him on the floor, “are you even trying?” He groaned loudly and kicked himself back up. He threw a few more punches, all of which Ellie dodged, before she finally decided to finish the fight and caught his hands and used his own strength against him as she jumped up and kicked his chest, bringing him down. She heard clapping and she turned around to see Tony proudly applauding her. She reached over to Sam and gave him her hand. “You didn’t let me win, right?” she asked him, seriously. 

“I honestly wish I did,” Sam sighed as he let her lift him up. “God, I can’t believe Bucky just saw you whoop my ass,” he groaned. Ellie excitedly turned around to look for him. He was standing behind the glass, with a huge grin on his face. Ellie smiled back at him, proud of herself. 

She went over to Tony and waved to Bucky so he’d come into the room. “So? How’d I do?” Ellie happily asked Tony. 

“You destroyed him,” Bucky laughed, causing Sam to groan. 

“Yeah kid, you got him good. I’m impressed. I’ll talk to Steve, but I’d say your mission ready. If you do get approved for missions you need to be more careful and responsible with your powers, specifically with your limits. We can’t risk you getting hurt out there. Don’t take unnecessary risks,” Tony emphasized.

“I won’t,” Ellie promised. Ellie summoned a water bottle and walked over to Bucky. He was smiling at her proudly. “I’m mission ready. I’m mission ready,” she sang with a massive grin on her face. “I’m like a fully fledged Avenger now. I wonder when the next mission is going to be, ooh, do you think it’ll be cool? I’m so much better with my powers now, I wanna use them,” Ellie excitedly spoke. Tony started saying something and Ellie realized he was on the phone, obviously upset. “What do you think that’s about?” Ellie quietly asked Bucky

“I don’t know, doll,” he softly replied. “I’m really proud of you. You did really well in there. Where’d you learn to do that?” 

“Oh, I did a bunch of self defense classes in college. I never really used it, but I guess muscle memory kicked in,” she shrugged. Ellie heard Tony sigh, loudly and dramatically, then hang up the phone. “What is it?” Ellie asked. 

“You’re gonna love this,” he groaned. She looked at him confused. “Steve just got intel on a new Hydra base. A big one. We’re leaving now. Suit up,” he ordered before walking out, still doing stuff on his phone.

An even bigger smile grew on Ellie's face as she turned to look back at Bucky. “I’m going on a mission!” she excitedly said, as she jumped up and down. “I guess it’s a good thing I did this today,” she barely managed to contain her excitement. She noticed Sam walking out of the room. “Bye Sammy! I’ll see you upstairs! For the mission! Ah! I love saying that! I’m going on a mission, as a real member of the team!” Bucky didn’t look nearly as happy about the news. “What? You do realize me being mission ready does mean I’m going on missions right?”

“Yes Ellie, I realize that. I’m just worried about you. You have a bit of a rough streak. You’ve got to think about what Tony said while you’re out there, I’m serious. You mean a hell of a lot to us. You know what you mean to me," he softly added, taking her hand. "Be smart. If you feel yourself getting tired, don’t wait until you’re completely drained, go back to the jet,” he spoke seriously. 

“Okay. I will, I promise,” Ellie told him. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly. “Come on, we should go upstairs. They’re going to be waiting for us,” Ellie softly spoke to him. He nodded and they walked over to the elevator. “So, I was thinking, I might want to design my suit and use my powers to conjure it. I probably shouldn’t just wear my workout clothes all the time and I want something that matches me, you know?” Ellie consulted. 

“I think that’s a great idea. I’ll just say one thing, once you do get it, conjured?” Ellie nodded, confirming the word. “You should bring it to Tony. He puts in a bunch of tech into the suits to make them safer. Like trackers and stuff,” he explained. 

“That sounds great. Thank you,” Ellie smiled as she leaned against him and they waited for the elevator. Sam and Tony had already left, so the wait would be a while. She hadn’t waited for the elevator in, she didn’t even know how long. Her teleportation was not doing good things for her patience. “You know, the whole, being careful out there thing goes both ways right?” she spoke, as the images of her saving Bucky at the last mission made their way into her mind. “You opened me up and made me learn to trust and feel safe again. You’ve got to hold up your end of the bargain,” she told him. 

“I told you doll, I would never leave you. I don’t go back on my promises,” he reminded her and kissed the side of her head. Ellie pulled him tightly into a hug, knowing it would likely be the last time they were going to be alone before the mission. She understood Bucky's worry, because it was overwhelming her. She needed to remind herself that he would be safe, he was a great fighter, he was trained to be the best, by the worst. “I love you,” he hummed as he held her tight. The elevator doors opened and they pulled apart. “We will be okay. Both of us,” he assured her, but she knew he was trying to convince himself too. She took his hand again and they went up to the top floor. Ellie savored her time with him as the elevator sped up to the top floor. The doors dinged and started to open. Their hands separated and they walked out, parting ways, leaving their brief escape. 

“Ellie, come here,” Natasha called. Ellie followed her voice to a room she’d never seen before. It was filled with weapons. It must’ve been closed when she went on her tour and she didn’t really bother with exploring the last time she was there. “You shouldn’t need anything, since, well you are the weapon, but you need things just in case,” Natasha explained. Ellie just nodded along, taking in the room, but she felt a tinge of hurt at being called a weapon. She noticed Natasha grabbing guns. 

“Wait. I don’t want anything lethal,” Ellie clarified. 

“You sure? These guys are basically the scum of the earth?” Natasha confirmed. 

“Yeah, I’m sure. Also, I can conjure any weapon if I need it,” Ellie clarified. 

“I know, but just in case you can’t use your powers for some reason, you need to have something. How about this,” she spoke as she reached for different equipment. She grabbed three things. A knife, something that still looked like a gun, and something that looked like a taser. “So, I’m going to get you holsters so they don’t slow you down, but, here’s a knife, there are plenty of places you can use it that won't kill someone, but will buy you time. This is a stun gun, it fires like a regular gun, but it will instead knock the person out for three hours. That’s usually enough time for the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents that come in after us. And this is like a miniature version of the gun, in case someone is right on top of you, same mechanics as a taser,” she explained as she set them on a table in front of Ellie. She decided to just use her powers and put them on her person. She put the knife on her right thigh, the gun on her left, and the taser on her right calf. She jumped around to make sure they were secure, then nodded to herself, happy with her work. Natasha then turned around with the holsters and sighed, “guess you won’t be needing these.” 

“Sorry,” Ellie laughed. “I got a little excited. All set?” Natasha nodded. She walked out of the weapons room and rejoined the group. Everyone was already dressed at impressive speeds. Though they needed to get ready quickly. Especially if the battle was closeby. Steve was talking to Tony and Ellie excitedly walked up to them. “So, Steve, did you hear? I’m mission ready! So I’ll be on the field with you,” she excitedly told him. 

He turned around to look at her and he had a simultaneously happy and worried expression on his face. “Yes, Tony just told me. I take it you’ve heard the safety speech?” he cautioned and Ellie nodded impatiently, since it was maybe the 10th time she'd received it. “Okay, well, don’t forget it. Stay here, we’re just waiting on Thor, then I’ll do the debriefing and we’ll go.” Ellie bobbed on her feet as she waited, though she didn’t have to wait long, because Thor’s loud voice quickly boomed into the space. “Alright, everyone is here. We got intel on another Hydra base. We think it may have the scepter. We are hoping to have the element of surprise, so we are going to leave quickly and quietly. The base is in Sokovia. We have reason to believe it may be Strucker's base, where Wanda and Pietro were kept. For that reason, you guys are benched for this one.” Pietro immediately started to complain. “It’s not up for discussion. They know your abilities, possibly better than you do. We don’t know what they’re capable of and we’re not going to take that risk.”

“This is bullshit,” Pietro exclaimed before speeding away. 

Steve frowned. “Our mission is to get the scepter over anything else. We still want to get all the information we can, so as usual, Natasha, you’ll go in for intel. Everyone else work on neutralizing the base or getting inside to get the scepter. We aren’t working with our full team today.” Ellie looked around and realized they were missing Rhodey, Loki and Pietro, and Wanda would need to stay on the jet. “So we’re going to need to watch each other's backs. This is also going to be Ellie's first official mission,” he announced, prompting quiet applause. Logan's head swung over to her confused and worried. Ellie ignored it and embraced her happy moment. “It’s gonna be around an hour and a half to get there. Alright, that’s everything I had to say. Let's get out of here,” he finished. Everyone loaded onto the jet and Ellie took her seat again. 

“When did this happen?” Logan asked her in a hushed voice.

“I don’t know, like thirty minutes ago. This is good news Logan. I am here as an Avenger,” Ellie explained to him.

“I know that bub. It’s just things didn’t go so well last time. I don’t wanna see you getting hurt,” Logan softly told her.

“I’m stronger now. I understand my limits and I’m not going to let myself get that far. I promise you, this is a good thing,” Ellie assured him. He hesitantly nodded and squeezed her shoulder, then took his seat. Remy excitedly took his place in front of Ellie. “Hey Remy,” Ellie smiled, excited to see someone was in a good mood. 

“Ay mon cheri, Remy is so proud of you. Oh! Remy was making dinner when the mission was called. Cheri hasn’t eaten, so…” he excitedly started as he pulled a container out from behind her back. “Remy brought you food. They’re my Po’Boys, just like the night we met,” he smiled as he gave them to her. 

“You’re too good to me Remy,” Ellie told him. She stood up and pulled Remy into a tight hug, relieved by his support. He squeezed her tight, then took his seat. Ellie buckled up and put her food down on her lap, anxious to dive in. Everyone else filed in and the door closed. Ellie smiled at Bucky across the jet and showed off her food. He smiled and shook his head at her amusement. Tony warned everyone for takeoff, then the jet rapidly took off. Once they leveled off in speed and Ellie no longer felt like she was falling out of her seat, she opened up her delicious looking food. She was extremely hungry from her busy day, so she dove into her food, not really bothering to be patient or polite. She ate quickly, somewhat intentionally, since she had plans for the plane ride. After finishing she used her powers to bring the container back into the kitchen. She noticed Logan looking at her strangely. “Um, what’s up?” Ellie questioned. 

“Do you want to take a nap before the mission? You know, to recharge?” he prompted. He still seemed worried about her, which she understood, but it was getting a little annoying. 

“Yeah um, maybe in a bit. I have something I need to do first,” Ellie shortly told him and summoned a drawing pad and pencils. With the help of her powers, since Ellie wasn’t great at drawing, she got to work on drafting up ideas for her new suit. She decided she wanted it to still be feminine and since she was doing most of her fighting at a distance, she wasn’t terribly worried about having loose fabric. She continued with her holster neckline and drew out a form fitting top, all in a dark green. She looked at Remy’s suit and decided to add a darker accent around her waist, like he had for his chest plate. She dissolved the top piece into a high low dress-type design. She decided to add some thermal lighter green leggings, since it would be cold on the mission, and added a pair of green boots, which would look fancy, but she’d make fit and feel like combat boots. She happily made her entire outfit green, unbothered by the possible overuse of the color. She stared at the drawing, but it felt like something wasn’t right. She got up out of her seat and walked over to Peter, wanting his advice, since he’d designed his first suit. She tapped on his shoulder as she arrived, then she took Pietro’s seat and buckled in. “Peter,” she whispered. He perked his head up, so she continued, “I drew this up as a possible suit for me. What do you think? Would you add or change anything? Something feels like it’s missing” 

Peter sat up in his seat and took the drawing to look at it closer. “Wow, this looks really good Ellie. Did you just do this?” he asked without looking away from the paper. 

“Yeah, with some help from my powers,” Ellie laughed. 

“Um, I don’t know. Maybe you could add something on the arms, they’re pretty plain in comparison?” he suggested. She added bell sleeves from her elbow down in a meshy green material. “Much better,” he commented. Ellie smiled wide at her work. It felt right.

“May I see?” Wanda softly asked. Ellie handed her the sketch. “Oh honey this is lovely. You know, you could add a crown, like mine. I think it would fit you,” she suggested with a warm smile. 

“Are you sure?” Ellie asked, not wanting to take away from her friend. Wanda smiled and nodded confidently, so Ellie added it in a dark green. “What do you think?” Ellie asked nervously.

“I think it’s perfect.” 

“Thank you Wanda and I’m sorry about the mission today. How are you feeling?” she asked her friend.

“I’m okay. I just hope we find what we need, so we can get out of there. My memories of that place aren’t very pleasant,” Wanda minimally explained. Ellie was not in the business of pushing on difficult memories, so she just gave Wanda a hug. “So, are you going to try on your new suit?” Wanda asked, feigning a better mood. Ellie called on her powers. She could feel a strain on them since she hadn’t taken any breaks all day. She looked at her drawing, focusing on every detail, then brought it into reality. She could feel her clothing change and her hair fall out of the pony so it would be loose behind her crown. She brought her necklace forward, wanting it to be seen, but she made it so it would lay flush against her suit and never swing around and resummoned her earrings, using her powers to prevent them from falling out. She looked down at her arms and admired the fabric she’d brought to life. “You look beautiful,” Wanda told her. 

Ellie beamed as she thanked Wanda and Peter for their help. She realized the whole other half of the jet had watched her conjure her suit, so she took a sarcastic bow as she went back to her seat. Logan was staring at her amazed. She yawned as she sat down. “Okay, I’m ready for that nap now,” she told him as she curled up in her seat, summoning a pillow and blanket. He laughed a little at her, but ultimately let her lay her head against his arm, as she quickly fell asleep. 

Ellie groaned as she felt someone tapping on her arm. She slowly opened her eyes and remembered where she was, then sat up straight in her seat, suddenly wide awake. Steve was standing in front of the group talking, “Morning Ellie. Nice suit.” Her cheeks warmed in embarrassment. “So, we’re a few minutes out. Everyone, put these in,” he handed out comms units. They seemed like little ear buds, simple enough, so Ellie slid them in. “This base is bigger than we expected, but we will be fine. So, jobs, Natasha, you’re going to go in for intel with Remy and Logan’s cover. As always, Clint and Bucky, take people out from afar. Ellie, I want you to work outside, but be on deck to go inside if someone else goes in. Peter, stay close to the jet and cover outside. Everyone else, work outside and try and make your way in, we want to neutralize this base as best we can. Does that make sense?” 

“Steve, why can’t I do more? No offense to Ellie, but this is her first mission and she’s already being sent in,” Peter complained. 

“Pete, when you can turn bullets into dust around you, we can talk about you going to the bases. For now, you stay by the jet. I’m sorry but it’s for your safety,” Steve told him. Ellie frowned and mouthed an apology to her friend. Steve returned to his seat and got ready for landing. Ellie saw Bucky whispering something to him and looking back at her, obviously talking about her. He probably didn’t think it was safe for her to go in. When was he going to trust that she can protect herself? “Decisions been made Bucky,” she heard Steve whisper. Tony announced they were landing and she felt the jet rumble as it hit the floor. 

The hatch slowly lowered, so Ellie unbuckled and peered out of the jet. There was still snow on the ground despite it being May. It seemed like they were in a forest. She saw a jeep type car sitting just outside, so she walked back inside. “Do we want this car? I think I can get it running,” she asked. Natasha told her to start it so Ellie placed her shield and ran back out. She sat down in the driver's seat and called on her powers, searching for the engine. She pushed her energy into it, as if jump starting it, and smiled when she heard the hum of the engine. She teleported back onto the jet with a joyful expression, happy to already be helping. “It’s up,” Ellie smiled. The rest of the team seemed to be ready, having collected the weapons or gear they needed. The group all got out of the jet together, leaving Wanda behind, with Tony closing the hatch as he stepped out. Natasha took the driver's seat and Ellie sat in the passenger seat. Remy found a sort of fake seat behind them and Bucky and Clint stood in the flat part of the back, so they could take people out as they went. Two motorcycles dropped from below the jet and Logan and Steve got on them. Tony and Sam activated their suits, while Thor spun his hammer and they all took off. Ellie watched as Bruce transformed into the Hulk as they drove away. Her attention was quickly taken back to the road ahead of them. The base seemed to have seen them coming. The Hydra agents were coming at them from all corners. She placed a shield around the car to protect everyone on it. It was just like the simulations she’d practiced. Ellie smiled as she called on her powers. "I got this," she announced. She dissipated every weapon she saw and started teleporting to people, taser in hand. She took care of everyone she saw, then returned to the car. “That was fun,” Ellie smiled. 

“Damn,” Clint breathed. 

They reached as far as they could with the car, as it hit a barbed wire fence, so everyone leapt out of it. Ellie teleported midair to the next group of agents. This time she conjured veins to wrap them in, immobilizing them. Ellie watched Tony fly away towards the base. That’s where she needed to be. Ellie started to rapidly teleport forward. “Shit!” she heard Tony yell as his suit bonked against something. 

“Language!” Steve returned. Ellie tried to contain her laughter, though she was given an easy out when she met another group of Hydra men. She blasted each of them away, continuing her journey to the base. “J.A.R.V.I.S. What’s the view from upstairs?” Steve asked the A.I. through the comms. 

“The central building is protected by some kind of energy shield. Strucker’s technology is well beyond any other Hydra base we’ve taken,” J.A.R.V.I.S. replied. 

“It all disintegrates the same,” Ellie quietly noted. She heard a laugh that sounded like it came from Sam. 

“The scepter must be here. Strucker couldn’t mount this defense without it,” Thor announced. “At long last,” he muttered. Ellie realized she wasn’t moving as quickly as she wanted, so she sped up her teleportation, going further distances as she did. 

As if reading her thoughts, Natasha added, “At long last is lasting a little long boys.” 

“Yeah, I think we lost the element of surprise,” Clint added. 

“Wait a second, no one else is going to deal with the fact that Cap just said ‘Language’?” Tony questioned. 

“I know, just slipped out,” Steve sighed. 

Ellie watched the base fire at the city nearby, "uh, guys, the cities being attacked."

"Send in the iron legion," Tony requested and then figures, suits? Flew into the city. She paused for a moment to admire it, but her attention was rapidly taken by Natasha's voice over the comms.

Natasha yelled. “Clint's hit!”  

“Should I go back?” Ellie asked. 

“Stark we really need to get inside,” Steve spoke, not answering her question. 

“I’m closing in,” Tony answered. 

“I can help Clint. Should I go back?” Ellie pushed. 

“The drawbridge is down, people,” Tony announced. 

“No. Ellie, go to Tony. Get inside. We need the Scepter,” Steve replied. Ellie watched him at the base. She groaned, and strengthened her shield, then teleported to the wall of the base. At least 30 agents looked at her and she sighed. She quickly built up her powers and blasted them all. She teleported again to try and find Tony. 

“Clint’s hit pretty bad, guys. We’re gonna need evac,” Natasha announced. 

“I can get Barton to the jet. The sooner we’re gone the better,” Thor replied. “Find the scepter.” 

"Nat, I can get intel while I'm inside," he added.

"Okay," she returned. "I can stay back with Clint."

“And for gosh sake, watch your language!” Tony joked.

Ellie heard Steve sigh, “that’s not going away anytime soon.” 

“Tony, where are you? How did you miss so many people? It's like Times Square on New Year's Eve out here,” Ellie complained as she took out all the men with her various abilities. “You know what, I have an idea. I’m gonna borrow your eyes for a second,” she told him. 

“You’re going to what?” he instantly returned.

“Don’t worry about it,” Ellie told him. She cleared the area around her and reinforced her shield, then focused on Tony so she could see what he was seeing. He was in a dark room with computers. Ellie teleported there. “Hi Tony! God, you are hard to find,” she smiled, finally in the room with him. He was out of his suit and working on the computer. “Soo, whatcha doin?” Ellie asked him in a sing-songy tune. 

“Getting intel,” he jokingly sang back. She scanned the room and saw a computer rapidly shifting between screens, with "DOWNLOADING" written over it. “They’re hiding more than files. I know it,” Tony thought aloud as he walked around the room. Ellie curiously watched him as he worked out what he was thinking. “Hey J, give me an IR scan of the room, real quick.” 

“The wall to your left, I’m reading steel reinforcement and an air current,” the A.I. replied. 

He and Ellie looked at each other and smiled. They both knew exactly what that meant. She raised her shield, placing it around both of them, she didn’t know what was on the other side of that door. Tony pressed against the wall and excitedly whispered, “please be a secret door, please be a secret door, please be a secret door.” It opened against his touch. “Yay!”

They walked out into a dark stairwell and her gut turned. She did not have a good feeling about this place. Something was down there. She could feel it. It was making her skin crawl. “Tony, what is this place?” Ellie whispered. 

“I don’t know, Smellie, but it’s probably important,” he told her.

"Okay seriously. When are you going to choose a nickname?" she groaned, but her voice quieted as they started walking down the stairs. "There's something down there. I can feel it," she quietly told him, her voice unsteady. 

“What are you? Scared?” he joked. 

“Pssh, me? Never,” Ellie sarcastically brushed him off, but reinforced the shield. They walked out into a massive room. She paused before stepping in any further. There was so much in there. So many things that could hurt her. There were decomposed suits at work stations. The whole place was filled with artifacts from the attack on New York and what seemed like experiments or applications of the equipment. Ellie followed Tony’s eyeline to see one of the flying monster things, it was hung from the walls of the space. She got lucky with her apartment being in Brooklyn. She just learned about what happened through the news. She didn't have to live through it. Even now, just seeing it, she could feel heart beat faster, terrified about what could be ahead of her. Her fear was nothing compared to Tony's. His face had gone completely pale. "Tony?" she cautiously asked. 

“Guys I got Strucker,” Steve announced. 

“Yeah, I got something bigger,” Tony breathed, breaking him from whatever trance he was in. It seemed like he was speaking without hearing or thinking. She saw something shining blue in the distance and was drawn to it. It was itching at the back of her mind, telling her to come and see it, feel it. Her powers were tingling in her as she approached it. “We’ve got the scepter,” Tony announced, his voice was more confident now. She stood in front of the scepter and froze. This is what her body was telling her about. This is why her skin was crawling. She felt sick. She could feel her powers within her firing. Like they knew something she didn’t. Suddenly images flashed into her mind.

“Are you sure it will work on her?” a man asked.

“Yes I’m sure. Now do it,” the scientist ordered.

The man placed the scepter into their mechanism and stood behind the blast proof glass. The scientist started the system, pressing the glowing stone that was held within the scepter against Ellie's forehead, sending instant explosive pain through her system.

Ellie screamed as she grabbed at her head, fumbling backwards, still feeling the phantom pain. “Kid, kid! Are you okay?” Tony asked, gently pulling her against him, taking the weight of her weak person. He brought them down to the floor, as she tried to catch her breath. "Kid, look at me," he begged. She grabbed at her pounding head again, gasping for air. "Come on, look at me, please," he trembled. Ellie managed to lift her head to him and meet his eyes. "What just happened?" he anxiously asked.

"I don't know," she airily admitted. What the hell was that? Why did she just suddenly get pulled into that? Was it because of the scepter, what it was? 

"Are you okay?" he gently asked, all of his focus on her. Ellie nodded at him, but she wasn’t okay. She was anything but okay, but she could see the fear in his eyes, it was almost as strong as moments earlier when he'd seen the flying demon of death. He pulled her into a hug as he breathed out in relief, “you scared the hell out of me.” He slowly pulled them apart, “let’s get out of here. Teleport back to the jet, I'll get the scepter,” He told her as his armor started forming around him. “I’m going to fly back. We’re done here,” Tony announced. Ellie nodded and teleported away, trying to leave the images of the scientist behind.

Ellie returned to the jet and slumped down into her seat, finally dropping her shield. She was instantly relieved by the release of her powers, but her body was begging her to rest. She remembered Clint was hurt. She looked at the jet and saw that Peter, Thor, Wanda, Clint and Natasha were all inside. Ellie managed to get herself back up and walk over to Natasha, who was tending to him. “How is he? Do you want me to try and heal him?” Ellie offered. She genuinely didn’t know if she would be able to with her exhaustion level. Simultaneously holding her shield at the level she had it and teleporting everywhere took a major toll on her energy. 

“No, it’s okay. We’ve got him. You’re obviously exhausted. Dr. Cho is coming to the Tower, she has healing technology almost as good as your powers,” Natasha told her. 

“Okay, let me know if you change your mind,” Ellie spoke and weakly walked over to her seat. Her adrenaline was rapidly wearing off, so her body was begging her go to sleep. Most people were already in their seats, but Bucky wasn’t back yet. She wouldn’t fall asleep until he was back. She needed to make sure he was safe. Logan and Remy walked in together and each gave her a hug as she waited by the door. She barely kept her legs beneath her as they did. Her mind was spiraling. Why wasn’t Bucky back?

“You need to sit down, bub. Your body needs to rest,” Logan told her. 

“No. Not until he comes back,” Ellie sternly told him. Ellie weakly watched as Tony flew in, holding the scepter, making her ears ring. He spoke to her and she heard herself respond, but she didn't know what she said. Her mind wasn’t there. She heard movement outside and she forced her body to move forward. She watched Sam bring Steve to the ground, then retract his wings, but no Bucky. Where was he? Was he hurt? She realized she hadn’t heard him at all during the fight. Was he..? No he couldn't be. He made a promise, he doesn’t go back on his promises. She stumbled to Steve and grabbed his arm, to support her weakening body. “Where? Where is he?” Ellie trembled. 

She watched Steve’s mouth open to speak but she heard Bucky’s voice instead, “doll? Are you okay?” She saw him standing just outside the jet, completely unharmed. Ellie regained some strength and ran to him and held him tight as tears of relief dropped down her face. “Oh, c’mere, I’ve got you. I’m okay. We’re okay. Let’s get inside where it’s safe,” he softly comforted. Unfortunately, a side effect of her found strength was her body being almost entirely drained of its energy once she felt safe in his arms. She practically fell when they started to pull apart, so Bucky supported her weight and walked them back inside. He started to direct her to her original seat but she wasn’t ready to leave him.

“I want to sit with you,” she whispered. He nodded and brought her over to the other open chair. He buckled her sleepy figure, then sat down next to her. She laid against him and one thing was entirely clear to her, even in her worn out and exhausted state. She squeezed his arm so he’d look at her, then whispered, so only he’d hear, “I love you Bucky.”  She closed her eyes and fell sound asleep in his arms, warm, safe, and happy.

side note: this is what Ellie's suit looks like. I didn't draw this, so I take 0 credit for it, but I thought it was really cool and fit Ellie really well :)

Chapter Text

“Hey, we’re here,” Bucky softly spoke as he brushed against her hair. She blinked awake and watched the door open. A team of medical staff, one of whom she assumed was doctor Cho, met them at the jet. They rolled Clint out, Natasha leaving with them. Thor left with the scepter and the others all trailed out behind him. Ellie was still barely awake and yet somehow almost everyone had already left the jet. 

Maria Hill walked onto the jet and talked to Tony, who apparently was still on the ship, “lab’s all set up boss.” 

“Oh actually he’s the boss. I just pay for everything and design everything and make everyone look cooler,” Tony casually replied, gesturing at Steve, who was the last one on the ship. 

“What’s the word on Strucker?” Steve asked Maria as he got up.

“NATO’s got him,” Maria replied, walking out of the ship with Steve, continuing their conversation. 

Tony walked up to Ellie and crouched in front of her. “Are you sure you’re okay?” 

“Yeah, I feel a lot better now,” Ellie half truthed.

“Okay, well, you did really well today. I’m proud of you,” Tony smiled. “Oh, Bruce and I have the scepter for a few days. We’re going to work on it in his lab, Cho’s set up in there too. Come on down and help when you’re ready.” 

“Thank you Tony,” she smiled back. Ellie turned to Bucky as he left. “So, should we go?” Ellie asked him. 

“What happened with Tony?” Bucky asked. 

“It wasn’t a big deal. When I saw the scepter I had one of my nightmare type things. It was just like flashes. Really not that big of a deal,” Ellie reinforced. 

“What was the nightmare?” Bucky asked.

“That the scientist guy used the scepter on me, but like always, it didn’t happen, so there’s no reason to drag on it. Can we go inside? I just want to forget it happened,” Ellie asked. Bucky hesitated but nodded. They stepped outside and Ellie heard something moving in the wind next to her. She looked over and saw some of Tony’s suits coming back. She tapped on Bucky’s arm and showed him, “the iron legions back.” They walked in together and saw everyone sitting together, but Ellie wanted to check on Clint. She still felt guilty for not helping him in the field. “I’m going to go downstairs to the lab,” she told Bucky as she changed into casual clothes, moving her new suit into her closet. 

“Are you sure? You just got back,” he asked. 

“Yeah, I want to see Clint and you heard Tony, we only have a couple days with the scepter,” Ellie explained. She smiled and squeezed his hand then teleported back down to the lab. She saw Clint behind a glass area being worked on by Doctor Cho. Ellie walked in and heard Natasha making fun of him, he must be doing well. Ellie listened to Doctor Cho explain the process and she stood in awe. “and I thought my powers were cool. How are you Clint? I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you out there,” Ellie spoke. 

“Hey, don’t worry about it kid. I’m okay, see, they’re rebuilding me,” he smiled.

“If you’d brought him to my lab the regeneration cradle could’ve done this in 20 minutes,” Cho rightfully bragged. 

Tony walked in holding a tray of smoothies. “Oh, he’s flat-lining. Call it. Time?” he quipped as he handed Clint his drink.

“No, no no, I’m gonna live forever,” Clint countered. He laughed, “I’m going to be made of plastic.” Tony handed Ellie a drink and she softly thanked him with a smile.

“You are going to be made of you Mr. Barton. This is the next big thing, Tony. Your clunky metal suits will be left in the dust,” Cho spoke. 

“Well, that is exactly the plan,” he confidently returned. “And Helen, I expect to see you at the party on Saturday.” There was a party on Saturday? Why hadn’t anyone told Ellie? She was going to get to wear one of her new dresses. 

“Well unlike you I don’t have a lot of time for parties,” Cho returned. 

Ellie laughed as she, Tony, and Bruce all walked out of the lab. Ellie was in a much better mood now that she knew she had something to look forward to. “So, what’s the rumpus?” Bruce asked as they left. 

“Well, we got the scepter," Tony started. "We were wondering how Strucker got so inventive, so I’ve been analyzing the gem inside. You may recognize,” Tony prompted, as he brought out a 3D image of the A.I.'s matrix.

"J.A.R.V.I.S.," Bruce greeted.

"Doctor," the floating orange orb responded. "Miss Clark," it added.

"Hi," she awkwardly responded.

“Started out, J.A.R.V.I.S. was just a natural language UI. Now he runs the iron legion," Tony continued, and Bruce hummed in response. "He runs more of the business than anyone besides Pepper." Ellie chuckled a little. "Top of the line," he pronounced and Bruce agreed.

"I suspect not for long," the A.I. countered. 

"Meet the competition,” Tony invited as he displayed the gem. Ellie immediately walked over to the blue brain? 

"It's beautiful," Ellie breathed. Watching the synapses dance.

“If you had to guess, what’s it look like it’s doing?” Tony asked.

Bruce and Ellie both spoke simultaneously, “thinking.” Bruce continued, “I mean this could be, it’s not a human mind. Look at this. They’re like neurons firing.” 

“Down at Strucker’s lab, I saw some fairly advanced robotics work. They deep-sixed the data, but I gotta guess he was knocking on a very particular door,” Tony prompted.  

“Artificial intelligence,” Ellie spoke. 

“This could be it, this could be the key to creating Ultron,” Tony excitedly said. Ultron?  They both chuckled quietly to each other.

“I thought Ultron was a fantasy,” Bruce sighed. 

“Yesterday it was. If we can harness this power, apply it to my iron legion protocol?” 

“That’s a man-sized ‘if’” Bruce dismissed. 

“Our job is ‘if’. What if you were sipping margaritas on a sun-drenched beached turning brown instead of green. Not looking over your shoulder for Veronica," Tony countered. Who was Veronica? God, she was really behind.

"Don't hate, I helped design Veronica," Bruce frowned.

"As a worst case measure right? What about best case? What if the world was safe? What if the next time aliens roll up to the club, and they will, they couldn’t get past the bouncer,” Tony returned. Ellie quietly listened to them. 

“The only people threatening the planet would be people,” Bruce agreed. 

“I want to apply this to the Ultron program, but J.A.R.V.I.S. can’t download a data schematic this dense. We can only do it while we have the scepter here. That’s three days. Give me three days,” Tony requested. Ellie wanted Bruce to agree. She wanted to study the scepter. She knew there was something different about it. Something tied to her. 

“So you’re going for artificial intelligence and you don’t want to tell the team?” Bruce asked. 

“Yeah that’s right. You know why? Because we don’t have time for a city hall debate. I don’t want to hear ‘the man was not meant to meddle’ medley. I see the suit of armor around the world,” he justified. 

“Sounds like a cold world Tony,” Bruce returned. 

“I’ve seen colder. This one, this very vulnerable blue one, it needs Ultron. Peace in our time. Imagine that,” he promoted. Bruce gave in and nodded. “Vanellie bean ice cream, what do you think?” 

“I’ll do whatever you need,” she returned. They ended up having her study the biochemical composition of the gem, which is exactly what she wanted to do. Tony was working on the engineering and coding side of things and Bruce was working on studying its neural network. She wanted to learn what it was. Figure out exactly what was going on within it. She wouldn't tell them, but she had two objectives. The images of the gem on her skin wouldn't escape her mind. She needed to see if there was any evidence of it in her cells. 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

“I’m going to bed, kid, you probably should too. We can pick this up in the morning,” Tony told her. Bruce had left an hour prior. They’d been working for two days already without any success. She’d woken up with a nightmare that morning. Of the scepter and the experiments. It was like the flash she’d had at the base, but longer, and more painful. She could feel her cells burn, just like the other nightmare with the injection. Ellie had been waiting for them to leave. She knew they wouldn’t let her do the work she was waiting to do, but she couldn’t give up on it, not after her nightmare. She’d finally gotten the info she needed from the gem, all she needed was to test her genetic info for any matches. 

“Yeah, I’ll go to bed soon. I just want to finish this up first,” she told him. She wasn’t technically lying to Tony. She just wasn’t giving him the whole truth and that wasn’t as bad, right?

“Okay, don’t stay up too late. Thanks for your help,” he told her, squeezing her shoulder lightly in support, then walked to the elevator. Ellie burned with guilt as he left. 

Once she was confident he’d left she went to the incubator to get her cell samples. She didn’t have time to run an actual experiment, so she just used her powers to simulate the experimental procedure. She summoned a test tube and moved the newly modified cells into it. She dropped the sample on the reader and waited for the results. She didn’t want them to come back with a match. She needed the nightmarish images to be a falsification from her mind. Ellie went back to her other screen and looked at the compounds of the gem again, they could decide what was true in her life. The computer dinged as ready. Ellie carefully walked up to it and opened the results. She looked at her mutated DNA structure and found groups of foreign material bound to it. She hovered over the first section and it wasn’t a match. She sighed in relief. There were two more unique signatures she needed to check. She checked the second and it was safe again. She felt her heart beat rapidly. She slowly moved her mouse over the third and it was positive. “No, no, no, no,” Ellie spoke. “It’s not possible,” she muttered to herself. 

She felt her mind burn. All of her nightmares started to come back, fighting to get their place in her consciousness. She looked up at the glowing gem and felt it calling for her, almost like it was talking to her. Telling her to come over and test it. To feel the power. “Shut up,” she spat at it. “It wasn’t real. It wasn’t real. It wasn’t real,” she repeated to herself. She dropped to the floor, her hands over her ears to keep out the noise. It wasn't enough. She could hear it screaming at her. It was in her brain, scratching at the edge of her skull. She could barely breathe as she heaved. She saw flashes of the scientist in her mind. Her veins shining yellow. Her cells bursting and rebuilding inside of her. It was all coming back. She heard the elevator door ding, challenging the noises fighting in her mind. She forced her gaze up and saw Bucky stood inside. “B-Bucky?” she trembled. 

The doors opened fully and he ran to her, set something down, then pulled her against him. “I’ve got you. You’re safe now. I’ve got you,” he reassured her as he brushed her head against his chest. 

“What’s happening to me?” Ellie cried against his chest. “That thing,” Ellie weakley pointed to the scepter. “It- it’s in my DNA. How is it in my DNA? I don’t understand. It’s not possible. Two days ago was the first time I saw it. It can’t just be a part of me all of a sudden. I’m scared, Bucky. It couldn’t have been real, it wasn’t real,” she blubbered. 

“We’re gonna figure this out. How do you know it’s in your DNA?” Bucky softly asked her. She gestured to the computer displaying her genetic material. “Here, drink this. It’s chamomile tea,” Bucky handed her a mug. That must’ve been why he was here. “Ellie, I don’t want you telling other people about this until we figure out what’s going on,” he softly spoke. Why couldn’t she tell anyone else? Would they send her away? Ellie trusted Bucky, so she nodded. He walked over to the computer and did something on it, then went back over to her. “Can you stand?” Ellie nodded and stood, clinging to him as they walked. “Let’s go to bed okay? It’s all gonna be okay, doll,” he comforted. They got back in the elevator and up to Ellie’s floor. She cleaned and returned her mug once she finished her drink. Ellie used her powers to change into some of the silky pajamas she got at Victoria Secret as they walked. “Those are nice,” he commented. Ellie mumbled a thanks as they entered her bedroom. Ellie crawled into bed and held onto him as she did, not wanting to let him go. “I won’t leave you,” he promised. She curled up against his chest and she could hear his heartbeat. “Go to sleep doll, I’ve got you,” he hummed as he brushed his hand along her hair. She let her body relax in his hold and felt sleep take over her. 

Ellie woke up to an empty bed. She patted around, looking for Bucky, he said he wouldn’t leave her. Ellie frowned and sat up in her bed. She started pulling the covers off herself when she heard hushed voices in the other room. She froze, the blood escaped her face. “Tell me again, what happened?” Logan's voice asked. It was only Logan. Ellie sighed in relief. What was he doing on her floor? And who was he talking to?

“I told you, she had a nightmare about the scepter and being experimented on and she ran tests on herself in the lab that supported it,” Bucky repeated. He said she shouldn’t tell anyone, why did he tell Logan? Was Logan an exception? Who else was an exception?

“You know what that sounds like right?” Logan hesitantly asked. What did it sound like?

“I don’t care what it sounds like, because it’s not what happened. She has a full life with memories. It’s impossible,” Bucky snapped. What were they talking about? What didn’t happen? 

“You think I want to believe that it’s true? I care about Ellie just as much as you do, I'm just not letting it cloud my judgement,” Logan retorted. 

“Talking like this isn’t helping anyone. You need to leave,” Bucky returned. 

“I just want to keep her safe,” Logan defended. 

“That’s what I’m doing,” Bucky countered. Ellie heard him walk back towards her room, so she pretended to be asleep. He quietly opened her door and stepped into the room. Ellie heard the elevator doors close as Bucky walked up to bed. He pulled the covers up and he crawled back into the bed. He didn’t really leave her. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close against him, closer than usual, not that she was complaining. Bucky softly laughed, god she loved that sound, “good morning, doll. How’d you sleep?” She just shrugged in his hold. She slept as best she could with the night she’d had. He sat them up so he could look at her as he slowly brushed her hair along the side of her face. “How are you feeling?” Bucky softly asked. 

“Scared,” she whispered honestly. “If that nightmare was real, couldn’t that mean all the other ones were?” 

“Doll, just because you have the thing in your DNA, it doesn’t mean it was true. There are plenty of reasons why that could have happened. It could just be the way your mutation works. There's no reason to worry. You said it yourself, the nightmares don’t make sense. They contradict things you know are true. I don’t know why you’re having these nightmares, but I don’t want you to worry about them being true. You and I both know that they’re not,” he reassured her. Ellie softly nodded her head. The doubts were still creeping in her mind, but Bucky was right, it wasn’t logical. She grew up with her parents in Michigan. She wasn’t there when her parents died. She went to college, graduated, then immediately moved to the city. She had memories to fill all of those times. Every moment of her life was occupied with a memory, so it wasn’t possible for her nightmares to be forgotten memories, because there weren’t any gaps. Maybe they were a side effect of her telepathic abilities and she was experiencing someone else's memories? It would make sense. Wanda had interacted with the scepter. There were plenty of people who’d gone through terrible training conditions from Hydra or other organizations, so the torture would make sense. They weren’t her memories. She was fine. They didn’t happen to her.

“What time is it? I should probably go to the lab,” Ellie spoke, her mood lightened by her revelation. 

“It’s 11:30 doll, but Logan was just here. He’s gonna tell Tony you need the day off,” Bucky explained. 

“I don’t understand. It’s our last day with the scepter, they need my help,” Ellie returned. 

“They’ll be fine without you, doll. You need a break. You’ve been working down there day and night,” Bucky reasoned. He softly held her hand, “I love you and I want to make sure you’re taking care of yourself. Plus, Stark’s having a big party later today and if you rest you’ll be able to enjoy it.” She was looking forward to the party. She wasn’t a party girl by any means, but she was excited about spending time with her friends and dressing up. 

Ellie looked at him and found pure love and support behind his eyes. She knew he was right and there wasn’t much else she could do to help anyways. She’d finished her compositional analysis of the gem and she wasn’t very knowledgeable in the programming/computational side of things, which was what was left. “Okay, I’ll take a break, if you’ll be my date tonight,” she negotiated. She watched a massive grin and a blush tickle over Bucky’s cheeks. 

“I would like nothing more,” he seductively spoke, sending a tingle down her spine. "You know doll, it's been a month since we got together," he told her.

"Has it now?" she smirked. She thought back and realized it had been the 21st of April when they first kissed. They'd been together a whole month. It didn't feel real. Ellie’s eyes dropped to his lips. Her body was suddenly burning with desire. "Best month of my life," she breathed.

He brushed her hair back and whispered against her neck, god, he knew how it affected her, “what do you want doll?” She instinctively pulled her neck back for him, wanting him to be closer. She could feel her pulse point aching, begging for him. She looked at him and smiled, she’d have to take this into her own hands. She sat up and shifted so her knees straddled his legs. Ellie lowered her hips, intentionally rubbing them against his crotch as she sat on him, Bucky’s head slightly tilted back as he quietly grunted. Ellie’s body was set aflame from his pleasure. She started to softly roll her hips against him, increasing their friction. “Doll?” Bucky managed through his raspy grunts. Ellie brought their lips together. She savored his taste, seeking more. He grabbed her head and kept her against him. Her body was burning. She could feel her clit pulsing, needing to be touched. She started to trust harder against his crotch. Bucky broke their kiss and looked down at her shorts, “would you like some help with that?” he hummed.

Ellie’s body wanted to say yes, but she hesitated, “I- I’ve never,” she stuttered. 

“That’s okay, doll. We don’t have to do anything if you’re not ready,” he responded, seriously. A mischievous smile covered his face as he lowered to her neck again, he had way too much power with that move. “Though, there are other things I can do to help you, if you’re interested,” Bucky breathed into her ear, sending goosebumps along her spine. She could feel her nipples hardening and her clit pulsing harder, especially after the stopped movement. Ellie nodded, she wanted him to touch her, make her feel good. She trusted him. “You tell me if it’s okay before I do anything and if you ever want to stop you just say so and we stop,” he seriously laid out and she agreed. “Good. Are you ready?” Ellie’s body needed him, so she nodded aggressively, causing him to chuckle in amusement. She soundproofed the room, not needing anyone hearing this just as he brought his mouth right to the pulse point on her neck. She could feel his breath against her eager flesh. “I’m gonna kiss you here, is that okay?” 

“Please, Bucky,” she begged, needing his touch. 

She felt his chuckle against her skin, “I haven’t even started and you’re already begging.” Ellie huffed in frustration but was more preoccupied by her arousal. His lips contacted her neck and she sighed in pleasure. He planted soft kisses on her skin, but she needed more. She wanted him to leave a mark.

“Harder, Bucky,” she requested. 

Her words affected him as she heard him grunt again in pleasure. “Dammit doll. Here I was trying to take it slow for you,” he smirked before biting hard on Ellie's skin. She moaned in pleasure. It felt so good. How was it possible that he was only working on her neck? “Can I touch you? Under your shirt?” Bucky asked. Ellie decided to use her powers to trade out her top for one of the lacy bras she’d gotten at the store with Natasha. Bucky stared at her body, his eyes rapidly dilating. “You are so goddamn beautiful doll,” he muttered. Ellie felt her cheeks warm. His hands moved to her hips and slowly started exploring. She felt her body shutter with his touch. She expected his metal arm to feel cold against her skin, but it wasn’t, it felt just as natural as his other hand. He returned to his work against her neck as his hands neared her breasts. She could feel her nipples hardening further in anticipation. He hovered his fingers over the lacy material, her body was grasping at every faint touch he made. “Is this okay?” Bucky asked. Ellie breathed her consent, her brain was overwhelmed by everything she was feeling and still needing and wanting to feel. Bucky placed his fingers on her, feather light, though her nerves were on fire. Ellie threw her head back in pleasure. He started to work a little harder, massaging her nipple in his fingertips. Ellie moaned loudly, it felt so good. She knew it could feel better, her bra was holding him back. She used her powers to take it off. 

Bucky stopped. Ellie brought her head up to see why and saw him staring at her. Was there something wrong? “Bucky?” Ellie whispered. He looked at her and his expression was taken over by a giddy grin. Uh oh. He flipped them over so she was laying on her back and he was on top of her. He took her breast in his mouth and bit down on her nipple, then sucked on it. “Ahh, fuck Bucky,” Ellie cursed through her moan. It only seemed to make him go harder, as he took her other nipple in his metal hand. His other hand slowly started to move down her abdomen. Her clit was burning for his touch. Her entire core was pulsing with need. His hand stopped at the waistline of her shorts. She needed his touch. “Please Bucky,” she stuttered through her moans, placing her hand against his, urging him to continue. 

Bucky separated from her breast and looked directly at her. “Are you sure, doll?” he confirmed. 

“Yes, Bucky, please I need you,” Ellie struggled through her body's sexual frustration of needing to be touched, pleased, fucked.

Bucky’s hand followed down her shorts until they were above her core, the only thing separating them was fabric. He feathered the silky material. “God, doll, you’re soaked through your shorts,” he muttered. 

“Sorry,” Ellie whispered, not sure if it was a good or a bad thing. 

Bucky frowned and looked at her seriously. “Never apologize to me for something you can’t control,” he told her sternly. Ellie hesitantly nodded. His face returned to the trouble makers as he continued to explain, getting closer to her neck as he did, “and doll, seeing you in your soaked shorts, laying here in front of me, is the single greatest thing I have ever seen. I fucking love making you wet,” he roared against her neck, before pressing his fingers against the fabric, building the friction Ellie had been waiting for. She threw her head back and moaned loudly at the stimulation. Bucky took his place back at her neck, marking her with every bite, and his hand continued to massage her over her shorts. Ellie was in pure bliss. Bucky removed his hand and brought it up to the waistband of her shorts. Ellie was a little too mentally preoccupied to use her powers, so she just lifted her hips so he could pull them off of her, along with her underwear. Bucky's fingers found their place again within her folds. Ellie was a moaning mess. She’d never felt this good. He found her clit and started massaging circles around it. Ellie pinched her eyes shut as her hips thrusted off the bed and she grasped the bedding. She could feel her body building to climax already. He continually transitioned between amazing methods of stimulating her clit. His metal hand refound its place on her breast. With him still marking up her neck, she was being pleasured in every way imaginable. His ability to multitask was coming in handy, literally. 

Ellie could feel herself reaching her edge, as her core was burning, and the sides of her vision were clouding. “Bucky, I- I think I’m gonna,” she barely managed through her moans. Bucky took that as a reason to go even harder. Ellie was thrust over her edge, as her vision turned bright white and she yelled in pleasure. Her whole body had sparks. Bucky continued to finger her, allowing her to ride out her high. He slowly stopped his work as she quieted down. The white dissolved into spots and stars, then eventually cleared into her natural vision, as her body came down. Ellie breathed heavily. She could feel her legs twitching, still hypersensitive from the simulation. Where did he learn to do that? Ellie was glad he had, cause god, that was amazing. Ellie wasn’t able to focus on anything, her mind was still in seventh heaven. She was never able to do anything close to that when she’d try and pleasure herself. 

Bucky softly placed his hand on her cheek, guiding her face to look at his. “How are you doll? Do you feel okay,” he asked her. She thought he seemed, worried? but her mind was completely out of it. Ellie slowly blinked at him with an absent-minded smile on her face and nodded. He smiled and sighed, “I’ll get you cleaned up. I’ll be right back,” he told her as he placed a loving kiss on her lips and walked into the bathroom. Ellie happily sat and stared at the ceiling, completely drunk on her orgasm. He came back with a damp washcloth and cleaned away all the remnants from her orgasm and arousal. Ellie was still extremely sensitive and she flinched as he placed the cloth. “Sorry doll,” he softly spoke. He finished and placed the towel back in the bathroom. Ellie’s mind was slowly becoming clear again and she realized she was completely naked, so she summoned fresh pajamas on herself. Bucky got back into bed with her and she instantly wrapped her body against his.

“I love you Bucky,” Ellie whispered against his chest. 

“I love you too, doll,” Bucky spoke, kissing her head. "Happy anniversary, doll."

"Happy anniversary, Bucky," she warmly returned, blissfully laying in his arms. For the first time in what felt like years her mind was quiet. She would happily live in this moment forever, safe, warm, incredibly sexually satisfied, and with the man she loved. She was in love. She’d never been in love before, not even close. God, she’d barely even been kissed before Bucky. Nothing could ruin this. She was going to have a great day, she could feel it. She had the party later, which she’d get ready for with Wanda and Natasha, and she’d get to be with Bucky. It would be the perfect day. Ellie smiled against his chest thinking about it. Her stomach growled, likely out of frustration from her eating habits from the last couple days.

“Want to go get some food doll?” Bucky asked her. She nodded, still a little hazy. He took her hand and guided her off of the bed. Ellie’s legs wobbled a little as she walked, but she smiled, liking the reason why. Bucky wrapped his arm around her waist to help her walk a little better. After a few more steps Ellie regained her bearings and started to walk on her own. She walked into the bathroom, but left him on the other side of the door, he chuckled softly as she shut it. She would be peeing by herself, thank you very much. Ellie did her business and walked up to the sink to wash her hands. She looked up midway through her scrubbing and gasped at the sight of her neck. She was riddled with purple and blue markings, with her accelerated healing they were setting in fast. They trailed down her neck and along her collar bone. Ellie dried her hands then looked down in her top and saw her breast was similarly marked. “You okay in there doll?” Bucky asked, likely in response to her gasp. 

Ellie opened the door to strut out, but he was in the doorway, so she totally fumbled so she wouldn’t hit him. She, not very gracefully, stopped without running into him, so she started with her statement. “Where did you learn to do that? Because you’re like really good at that,” Ellie quickly and confidently asked, somewhat overwhelmed by all the hickeys on her body. Instead of replying Bucky just smirked. “What? Is it because I said you were good at it? Was that not obvious from my reaction?” Ellie sighed dramatically at his reaction. He STILL didn’t answer her, so she continued on her rant. He really needed to learn that she was not going to shut up if he didn’t start talking, that wasn’t how she was hardwired. “So like, did you get around a bunch in the 30s? You’re ridiculously hot so you could easily get laid, was that where you learned it? Or was it in the 21st century? Did ya have some secret lady friends over the years?” He shook his head with a small smile. Ellie was getting borderline frustrated. “Okay, you’re going to have to start talking now.” 

“Doll, it doesn’t matter where I learned to do that, but for the record, no, I haven’t had any ‘secret lady friends over the years’. Now, my turn to ask a question, which you don’t have to answer, but I think it would be good for us if you did. In terms of sexual experience, what is yours?” he gently asked. Ellie felt her cheeks burn bright red. Bucky was clearly extremely sexually experienced, even if he was out of practice, though she wouldn’t have guessed that. She’d kissed two people, they weren’t even good kisses either, they were short and awkward. She became a hermit after her parents died, so she didn’t really date after high school. Bucky softly placed his hand on her arm, drawing her attention back up to him. “Ellie it’s okay, I’m not going to judge you. I just want to know what you’re familiar with, and what pace you’re comfortable with,” he reassured. It didn’t make her feel much better, but she trusted him. 

“I um, I haven’t really done anything. I had a couple boyfriends in high school, but they ended up being jerks. We never got past kissing, and like bad, weird kissing. Then after my parents-” Ellie stumbled with her words, still not comfortable with the idea of them being gone. “Um. Well, after that, I never dated, or really hung out with anyone for that matter. That was pretty much true until I came here, so I guess you could say I’m unfamiliar with everything,” Ellie shyly explained. Ellie thought on the second part of his statement and continued, “I will say though, when I’m with you, I don’t really care that I haven’t done it before. I do want to have sex, I just don’t think I’m ready yet, soon maybe,” Ellie realized aloud. She didn’t really see many hold ups anymore, and her body wanted him, all of him.

“I don’t want to rush you into anything. I want to wait until you’re ready,” Bucky returned. 

“I know and that means a lot to me. I won't do anything I'm not comfortable with,” Ellie returned and kissed him softly. She walked back into the bathroom, deciding she’d take a shower, seriously needing one after working two days straight and after sweating like she just had. “I’m going to take a shower. I can meet you on the common floor when I’m done?” Ellie offered. He looked at her with puppy dog eyes, which in that moment had no effect on her. She laughed and walked up to him, giving him a soft kiss, “I’ll be hungry when I get downstairs. Find me something yummy?” she smiled. He smiled back at her and she felt her entire body warm. “I love you Bucky,” Ellie adored. 

He gently kissed her. “I love you too. You’ll come down right after you’re done?” he softly confirmed. 

“Of course. I won’t be too long,” Ellie smiled in reassurance. He nodded and kissed her one last time, cupping her cheek as he did, slowly dragging it down the side of her body as he left, so he could hold her hand. “I’m fine, Bucky,” Ellie laughed at his hesitancy. “But what I will be is hungry and I am a lot less fun when I’m hungry,” she joked. He made a pouty face, which sent butterflies through her system, but he finally dropped her hand. “I’ll see you soon,” she smiled as he left, completely overwhelmed by her love for him. Ellie gently closed the door as he left her bedroom. She pulled off her clothes she’d summoned and looked at the bruises again. As much as she loved getting and having them, she was going to need to cover them up. She and Bucky weren’t technically public with their relationship, so a bunch of hickeys may raise some alarms. Everyone on the team sort of knew about them, though they hadn’t said anything specifically in confirmation, she did, however, know she didn’t want any crap about the markings. Ellie turned on the water and asked J.A.R.V.I.S. to play her folk and acoustic mix. She stepped into the warm water as she softly sang along to Darlingside; she'd gotten pretty familiar with their new album, which for the record was amazing. Ellie peacefully showered, soaking in the memories of her morning.

She shut off the water once she’d cleaned herself. She used her powers to shave; there was no chance she’d be doing all that work if she didn’t have to. She grabbed her towel and softly pat herself dry, then wrapped her towel around herself. She instantly dried her hair, giving it a blow dried look. Ellie picked up her clothes from the floor and walked over to her closet to get dressed. Since the party started at 6 and she’d be getting dressed at like 5, and it had to be at least noon, she decided to just put on a pair of sweats and a cute tank top. She’d summon a sweater if she got cold. Now in a pair of green sweatpants and a white tank top, Ellie moved onto the issue of her neck. She decided to cast an illusion over her whole body, to cover up any possible bruising that might be there. She’d keep it up the whole night. The party was going to have guests from the public there too, so she needed to be presentable. She put on her favorite converse and as always, she made sure her necklace was visible. Ellie nodded, satisfied with her look, then walked out of her room. She found Paw sound asleep on one of her sofa chairs, so she gave him a quick pet before teleporting to the kitchen. Bucky was sitting at the kitchen table, clearly not cooking. Ellie furrowed her brows at him, she was very specific in her request. He gave a defeated shrug and gestured to the stove. “Remy knows what he’s doing. Sit down, wait, you will be given food,” Remy told Steve, who appeared to be offering his assistance. That made more sense .

Ellie decided to approach him, but she was not going to offer to help, she knew better than that, “hey Remy, how’s it going?”

Remy turned around happily to look at her, in true Remy fashion. “Ay Cheri! It’s so good to see you! Remy hasn’t seen you in ages. Mon cheri has been hiding away. Bucky said you would be coming for lunch, but I didn’t know if I believed him. Mon amour is so busy now,” he quickly explained. Ellie could hear hurt in his words, from missing her. 

She frowned. She still wasn’t used to the obligations of friendships. Of needing to show up, even during difficult times. “I’m sorry Remy. I haven’t been a great friend recently. I’ll do better, we will spend more time together. I promise,” Ellie assured. Remy nodded and pulled her into a hug, then immediately told her to go sit down and wait for her lunch, yeah, he’s okay. Ellie walked over to Steve, who was still awkwardly standing between the table and stove. “Hey Steve,” Ellie smiled as she pulled him into a soft hug. “You should just sit down, he’s not going to let you help him. You should know that by now,” Ellie explained with a tinge of laughter. 

“Yeah I know, I just feel like I should be doing something,” Steve told her, obviously not talking just about the meal. 

“What do you mean?” Ellie replied. 

“I don’t know. Something just feels off. Maybe it’s because we have the scepter in the building. It’ll be gone tomorrow morning,” Steve thought aloud. Ellie placed a hand on his shoulder, she didn't like seeing him so stressed out. “I’m okay, don’t worry,” Steve smiled. Apparently she wasn’t the only one who pretended to be fine when they weren’t. Ellie watched him walk around the table and sit down next to Bucky, who was closely watching their interaction. His eyes were bouncing between the two of them. Ellie nodded to him, wanting them to talk, Steve needed his best friend. 

Ellie started to roam the room, moving over to the living room section to give them some space to talk. She was about to plop down in a seat when she saw Logan sitting on a couch in the corner. He really needed to work on his antisocial tendencies, they rivaled Bucky’s. Ellie strutted over to him and sat down next to him instead. She gently laid her head against his chest and he brought his arm around her shoulder. “How are you feeling bub?” he asked. 

“I’m fine, why?” Ellie returned. 

“Bucky told me about your dreams about the Scepter and what you found out at the lab,” he nervously told her. 

Ellie pulled away from his hold, she'd practically forgotten about that from the morning she'd had. “Logan, that didn’t mean anything. I’m pretty sure my dreams are actually other people's memories, it’s the only logical reason for them. Plus, my powers are similar to Wanda’s, so maybe my mutation just naturally mimicked the chemical composition of the gem. It’s literally impossible for anything I’ve dreamt to have happened. I don’t have any gaps in my memories, any scars, anything to lead me to believe they were real. My brain is just messing with me. Can we please just drop this idea?” Ellie requested, frankly she’d been getting really overwhelmed by her own theories. She needed to just stick to the idea that they weren’t real and that this was the evidence.  

Logan frowned and his face softened, almost as if in defeat. “Sure bub. If that’s what you want,” he conceded. 

“It is, please. I’ve had a hard enough past. Questioning what was real. It’s too much. I can’t take it,” Ellie whispered, scared of the words. 

Logan pulled her back against him, “I understand bub. I’m sorry, we don’t have to talk about it again. You’re safe here with us, you don’t have to worry about that. All that matters is the present,” he assured her. Ellie nodded against his chest and brushed her escaped tear away. That would be her last tear. The rest of the day would be good. “So, do you want to tell me about you and Bucky?” he smirked, causing Ellie to blush and bury herself further into his chest. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy. He makes me feel whole,” she explained, before immediately groaning in embarrassment for expressing her feelings. “That was stupid,” she sighed. 

“No Ellie, it’s not. Hold onto that, it’s good. I’m happy for you bub. He cares about you, I dare say as much as I do,” he smiled, prompting a similar expression onto Ellie. 

“Alright, c’mon, let's rejoin lover boy. I don’t know how you’re going to tell Remy. He may fight Bucky for taking your time away from him,” Logan joked as they got up. 

Ellie slapped his arm. “Very funny. You can tell him for me,” Ellie decided, with a smug, perky smile. Logan glared at her as they sat down. Ellie sat down next to Bucky, meeting his ocean blue eyes as she did. “Hey,” she smiled at him, taking his hand under the table. Their fingers interlaced and he softly rubbed his thumb against the back of her hand. Their eye contact was broken as Remy announced the food was ready and started placing food in front of everyone. This time everyone received bowls. There was rice on the side of the bowl, with a dark brown broth filled with tons of meats and veggies. “What did you make us Remy?” Ellie eagerly asked.

“Remy made Gumbo! It is a family recipe! Please eat!” Remy excitedly explained. Ellie happily obeyed and started diving into her meal. “What do you think?” he asked.

“Oh my god Remy, this is amazing,” Ellie boasted about the food. Steve replied similarly. The other two, less sociable diners, gave small nods of acknowledgement about the quality. Soon Remy sat down, joining them to eat. Her initial hunger settled, so she was able to actually conversate during the meal. “Steve, do you know who’s coming to the party tonight?” 

“Um, I know that all the members of the team are coming in, Thor is getting Loki now and Rhodey flew in this morning. Other than that it’s a few important people from politics that are invited to every public event. Some people invited some friends. We generally hold a few seats open for very well vetted members of the public. More or less, you can have fun, but there will be enough people there that you can expect what you do to be public knowledge, so just keep that in mind. People leave by 10 and that’s when the real party starts,” Steve explained. Ellie couldn’t really imagine him partying and she also didn’t drink, so she was mainly there for the company. Hopefully it wouldn’t stir up drama for her and Bucky to be there together. They wouldn’t be able to kiss, or do anything that could give the public the impression that they’re together. She’d been avoiding the internet pretty well, she wasn’t really used to having access to it anyways, so not going on it wasn’t that hard. 

“Remy is going to host a blackjack table,” he told the group. Ellie smiled, knowing how much fun he would have. “Cheri, you must play a hand,” he insisted. 

“I promise,” Ellie beamed, suddenly even more excited about the night. She finished off the rest of her bowl and her entire body was warmed from the delicious food. “I’m going to check in with Tony and Bruce down in the lab really quick,” Ellie announced, still feeling guilty for not being there. Bucky gave her a concerned look. “I promise I won't be gone long. I’m going to get ready with Wanda and Natasha at 5, but we can watch some movies when I get back?” Ellie offered. They agreed, causing a large smile to fall onto Ellies face. “Wonderful! I’ll see you guys soon!” she announced as she cleaned and put away her dish, then teleported to the lab. Unsurprisingly, Tony and Bruce were both still working away on their sections of the goal. “Hey, how’s it going?” Ellie asked, knowing she was going to scare the both of them, but there really wasn’t much she could do to prevent that. 

“Jesus christ-” Bruce muttered, grasping at his chest, as he turned around to look at her. “Logan said you weren’t coming in today,” he continued. 

“Yeah, I can’t stay. I just wanted to check in,” Ellie explained, without explaining why she wasn’t staying, hoping Logan had her covered. 

Tony set down what he was working on and walked over to her. “Are you okay kid?” he gently asked. Ellie could see the worry riddled in his face. 

She wouldn’t add to that worry, and she was okay, right? “Always,” Ellie feigned, though there was truth there. She always had to be okay. She always found a way to be okay, even if it didn’t feel that way. 

Tony placed his hand on her shoulder, clearly not believing her, but not pushing either. “I think we’ve hit a dead end. I’ve been running variations on the interface but nothing is working. The work you did on the chemical composition of the gem was interesting, it seems like it has organics? Either way it’s nothing we’ve seen on the periodic table, that’s for sure. At some point we should look at Wanda and Pietros genetic samples, since they were tested on with the gem,” Tony thought aloud. Ellie could feel a rush of panic break through her. What if he decided to look at her samples? She and Bruce were going to do tests on it. She needed to stop that from happening. She couldn’t handle questions. It would be too much. She'd say something wrong. Screw everything up. “Are you okay, kid?” Tony asked, breaking her from her spiral. 

“What? Oh, yeah. I just um, got lost in thought. I’m fine. So you said you don't think it’s going to work?" she quickly spoke, masking her panic. "I’m sorry, I know you really wanted this,” Ellie genuinely spoke.

“Yeah, I mean you can look at it and see if you see anything I’m missing,” Tony slowly offered, studying her as he spoke. He guided her over to his screen on the other side of the room. All Ellie saw was a bunch of numbers. She had absolutely no concept of what they meant. She stared at it, dumbly. Tony chuckled at her expression, “so, I take it this isn’t one of your areas of knowledgeability?” Ellie shook her head, still completely confused by the numbers. “That's too bad. It would've been nice if the great Ells understood this stuff. Speaking of, where did you learn to do all this? The work you did with the gem was really advanced. I know you’re a super smart kid and all, but this was all really complex work,” Tony asked, Ellie heard no accusatory tone in his words, just curiosity, she did, however, notice Bruce turn in his chair to listen. 

“Oh, um, I guess part of it was instinctual, and part of it was from reviewing research papers. I was already pretty familiar with lab techniques, so I guess it just came to me? I don’t know. That’s not a very good answer,” Ellie apologized. 

“Hey, I’m no one to judge. My resume has me building circuit breakers from when I was 4 years old. I was just curious. It’s nice to have another supergenius around. It’s too bad though that you don’t understand this,” he sighed, gesturing back to his screen. “It would’ve been nice to have you check the program with that big brain of yours,” he smiled. He turned in his chair again and nodded to the scepter. Ellie instantly felt chills run down her spine, as she felt flashbacks of the night prior come back to her. The scepter started speaking to her again, mocking her, trying to bring her down. Ellie shook her head, trying to kick out the noise. It was begging her to approach it, touch it, feel its power. She could hear Tony talking about something, but it was all meaningless to her. Luckily he was speaking at his screen. Ignore it Ellie. You’re safe now. The sounds quieted and his words started becoming clear again, “what do you think?” Really, a question. Well that sucks. Ellie hummed in confusion. “Ellie, are you sure you’re okay?” he asked her more seriously. No. She was not okay. 

“Yeah- yeah, I just um, didn’t sleep well. I think I’m going to rest before the party now. I’ll see you later,” Ellie spoke increasingly more quickly as the scepter started again. She didn't wait for him to say anything before teleporting to her room. Ellie crashed to the floor against her bed, her chest pounding and her breaths heavy. “J.A.R.V.I.S., I need Bucky, get Bucky, please,” she heaved. It was too much. Going back down there, seeing the scepter, it was all too much. It made it feel real again. She needed it to not be real. Tony or Bruce could test her DNA themselves. They had the samples, deleting them from the computers did nothing. Sure, they didn’t know about her dreams, but how was she supposed to explain having that in her DNA? It being part of her mutation was a weak excuse. They could send her away for lying. She didn’t have anywhere to go. She’d lose everything, everyone. Why was this happening to her? It wasn’t fair. Ellie just wanted to feel safe. She didn’t want to feel like she could be taken from her family at any moment. She heard her door open and Bucky rushed over to her, taking her in his arms. “They’ll- they’ll take me away. I- I can’t,” she heaved, unable to form the words. 

Bucky cradled her face with her hands, and gently wiped away her tears. “Doll, what’s going on? What are you talking about? I would never let anyone take you away, this is your home. We are your family, you’re safe here,” he reassured her. His expression was filled with fear and concern. She really wanted to believe him, but the doubts in her mind fought back, hard. “Ellie, please, tell me what’s going on,” he requested, she could tell he was scared of what she might say. 

“They’ll find out. About the gem and my DNA. It’s going to happen. I know it. When they do, they'll start asking questions about why it’s there. They won’t believe me when I say it’s a coincidence or my mutation or whatever. I even struggle to believe me. So, they’ll send me away, because they won’t be able to trust me anymore. I’ll lose everything. It’s too much Bucky, I just want it all to stop,” Ellie trembled through her rant. She was so scared. 

He cradled her weak figure against his chest. “That won’t happen,” he promised her.

Ellie pushed against him, so she could look him in the eyes as she snapped, “how the hell do you know that Bucky? I’m terrified, all the time, of what is going on inside my head. If I’m this freaked out by it and I know it wasn’t real, how am I supposed to expect other people to believe me? What if I have a nightmare when we’re on the jet after a mission? It’s not like I can control whether I project them or not. If they see something they don’t like they can and probably will kick me off the team. I’m so terrified to fall asleep, it’s like my brain is trying to insert a history that isn’t mine. I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up. I have to pretend to be okay, because if I don’t people will ask what’s wrong and I can’t just tell them I’m having vivid recurring nightmares about things that didn’t happen. I can’t let my guard down, I can’t feel safe; not when it feels like I’m being attacked from within,” Ellie dissolved into exhausted tears, crumbling against Bucky's chest.

“I’m so sorry doll. No matter what happens, I won’t leave you,” he reminded her. Ellie nodded, absorbing the safety she felt in his hold. “This team is your family, they all have your back. They let me onto the team and they knew about my past. We all have our issues and dark sides, what makes us a family is loving and caring for every part of each other,” Bucky explained. He smiled and sighed, shaking his head, “Steve taught me that. It’s a hard lesson to get in your head when it’s about yourself. I still struggle with it sometimes, but Ellie, this family excels at it.” Miraculously, she was actually starting to feel better. 

Ellie laid against him, letting the air fill her lungs. “I love you Bucky. Thank you for always being here for me. I know it isn’t easy,” Ellie admitted. 

“Oh for my best girl? I’d give her the world. This is nothing,” Bucky charmed, causing Ellie to softly laugh and blush. “So beautiful,” he hummed as he softly kissed her. “I love you, so much doll,” he continued. They sat together, Ellie’s dark emotions drifting away, like waves in an ocean, peacefully being replaced with bright yellow joyful sand. Paw jumped onto Ellie’s lap, purring away in his feline joy. Bucky fiddled with her hair as she laid against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. Something felt right about all of them laying together. Like he was guarding her from the dark realities of the world, and instead gave her yellow dandelions to admire. “Do you want to go back down? Watch movies with our friends?” Bucky gently offered. Ellie looked at him and softly nodded. It would be good to see her friends. She needed to remind herself that she had people. Bucky took her hand and helped her stand up. She grabbed Paw with her other, wanting to take him with her. “It’s gonna be okay,” he smiled, squeezing her hand as they walked to the elevator. They stepped inside, Paw purring against Ellie’s chest as she leaned against Bucky’s. The door dung open and they stepped into the common space. “Do you want to start making some cocoa for us? I’ll be over in a second,” Bucky offered. Ellie smiled and nodded, suddenly very excited about the idea of cocoa. She set down Paw, who ran over to the couches, then opened the fridge and grabbed the milk. She walked over to the tea and cocoa drawer and pulled out a couple packets, maybe some other people would want some. Ellie walked over to the group to ask. She heard Bucky talking to them, in a serious, hushed voice, “I mean it, just let her be.” 

Ellie frowned slightly, she didn’t want to have the rounds of ‘are you okay’ questioning, but it still felt sucky that Bucky was having to protect her. Ellie cleared her throat to get the group's attention. Bucky turned around and looked at her, somewhat guiltily, or embarrassed maybe, that she heard him. Ellie tried really hard to look past it, because she didn’t want to be feeling any bad feelings anymore. “Does anyone want any tea or cocoa? I’m making some,” Ellie shyly offered, her voice still frail. They all nodded to cocoa, so Ellie quickly slid out from the awkward situation and back into the kitchen. She took a deep breath of relief when she got there, when was it going to get easier? Ellie grabbed a big pot and set it on the stove, then collected measuring tools. She didn’t need to be terribly exact, but she wasn’t used to making it in such large portions. Once Ellie successfully poured all the milk into the pot then turned on the heat and slowly stirred the liquid. Bucky walked back over to her and wrapped his arm around her. She rested her head against him, still able to stir, but feeling significantly better with him there. “Is it ever going to stop being so hard?” Ellie whispered weakly.

“I hope so doll,” Bucky returned, placing a loving kiss on her forehead. “I’ll be here, through it all, I promise, you won’t be alone,” he reassured. Ellie nodded against his chest, the words being exactly what she needed to hear. “I told the guys that we’re watching Star Wars,” Bucky announced. Ellie looked away from the milk so she could excitedly smile at him. “I figure I’m going to have to get used to watching them over and over again,” he chuckled. 

Ellie pulled him into a hug. “Thank you Bucky, for everything. I don’t know what I’d do without you,” Ellie admitted. The truth in the words scared her a little. The dependance she’d gained for him could really hurt her in the future. She was also barely holding it together with him, she didn’t want to think about how she’d be doing without him. She tried to shake off the feelings. She was supposed to be having a good day. She could still turn it around. God, her emotions were all over the place. “Could you grab me some hot cocoa packets?” Ellie asked as she pulled them apart. She couldn’t let her milk burn and apparently she had some thirsty friends awaiting cocoa. Ellie poured the packets into the pot and started stirring them into chocolatey deliciousness. Bucky reached into the counter and pulled out four mugs and a box that had ‘Bucky’s - do not touch’ written on it. Ellie furrowed her brows in confusion, but continued working on the cocoa. Ellie felt content with the drink, so she turned off the heat and moved it off the burner. She excitedly walked over to Bucky and his box. “Bucky’s, do not touch,” she jokingly read aloud in a stern voice. “So… what’s in the box?” Ellie asked, tapping at his arm as she did. 

“Why don’t you open it and find out,” Bucky returned with a grin. 

“I don’t know, the instructions are pretty clear. I am not Bucky, I’m not supposed to touch,” Ellie bantered. Bucky glared at her slightly, but his eyes were shimmering with admiration and excitement. “Okay, okay, I’ll open it,” Ellie smiled. She opened the cardboard box and pulled out the styrofoam encasing from inside. Bucky was anxiously watching her. Normally the hovering would make her nervous, but it was maybe the most adorable thing ever when he did it. Ellie pulled the two styrofoam sections apart and found a cat shaped mug that looked just like Paw, the handle of the mug was actually a tail. Ellie’s eyes opened wide and her smile grew even wider. It also had her name written on the bottom in a cute font. “Oh my god! This is the best thing I have ever seen!” Ellie exclaimed. She gently set the mug down and pulled Bucky into an aggressive hug. “Thank you, thank you, thank you, I love it,” Ellie beamed. He was doing a really great job of rising above every expectation she had. 

“So I did good?” Bucky confirmed. 

“You did real good,” Ellie affirmed, her smile was ear to ear. “Oh! I have to show Paw! I hope he’s not jealous,” Ellie thought aloud. Bucky audibly sighed and chuckled at her childlike amusement about a cat mug. Ellie searched the room for her cat and realized he was in the living room, sitting on the comfy couches. Not that surprising for a cat, though with Bucky being his pride and joy, she was surprised Paw didn’t follow him out to the kitchen. “Paw, guess what Bucky got us,” Ellie sang as she rounded the couches. Paw was actually sitting on Remy’s lap, which was absolutely adorable. “Awe, Paw, did you make a new friend? I think Remy’s pretty cool too,” Ellie smiled. “So Paw, do you want to see our present?” Ellie spoke in her playful tone again. Paw perked up and stood up in Remy’s lap to see what she was talking about. She pulled out the mug to show him, “Look baby! It’s you!” Paw gave a little ‘mow’ and rubbed against it. “I guess he likes it,” Ellie beamed. 

“That’s awesome, Cheri. You said Bucky gave it to you?” Remy confirmed. 

“Mhm, just now. I’m going to use it for my cocoa. Speaking of, do you guys want toppings? Or wait, I’m being silly, I’ll just bring them all out. You can decorate your cocoa yourselves,” Ellie thought aloud. 

“Let me help you,” Remy interjected. 

“No, you make us food all the time. I can make you cocoa. Plus, you’re hanging out with my cat, which is much more important,” Ellie declared. Her tone quickly dissolved again as she pet under Paw’s chin, “isn’t it baby.” Ellie looked up at the kitchen and saw that Bucky was still working on bringing stuff out, so she decided she could still sit next to Logan for a minute and chat with him. He, as always, was sitting far away from everyone, so she could have some privacy in their conversation. Ellie walked over to him and sat down next to him. “Look at what Bucky got me, it’s Paw,” Ellie beamed. 

“I can see that,” Logan returned. “Looks like you got one of the good ones.” 

“I did, didn’t I,” Ellie smiled. Her joy was brief as the dark thoughts started to enter her mind. “I think he’s too good for me. I’m not good at this. Do you know how many emotional breakdowns I’ve had in the last 12 hours? A lot. It doesn’t seem fair to him,” she frowned. 

“Bub, relationships are full of supporting each other, especially through your worst. I’m so sorry you’ve been having a hard time, but that doesn’t say anything about you as a person. Plus, if anyone is going to understand, it’s going to be him. Believe me, it's maybe my least favorite part of relationships, but being vulnerable is just as valuable as cat mugs,” Logan explained. 

“I just want it to all be easy again,” Ellie sighed. 

“And when was that? When you were all alone? That may have been easier but it sure as hell wasn't better. I’ve been alive for a long time and the times that I remember most fondly weren’t the times when things were easy, it was when I was with people I cared about. These are the good years, I promise. You want to enjoy them. Now, go back to loverboy and go finish up our cocoa,” he smiled. 

“Okay, okay. Thank you Logan,” Ellie beamed as she walked back over to Bucky. She found the kitchen counter covered with toppings. There were things she hadn’t even considered putting in cocoa out. “You’ve been busy,” Ellie laughed as she took in his vast collection. “Paw likes the mug. I think his exact words were ‘mow’,” Ellie joked. She used her powers to wash and sanitize the cup and she placed it with the others. She then lifted the still relatively hot pot with her powers and started pouring them into the individual mugs. She had a lot more precision and accuracy with her powers than with her hands. Once they were all filled she put the pot back down on the stove, there was enough left for maybe one or two more cups, so it was first come first serve on refills. 

“You know, I was going to do that,” Bucky spoke, after watching her use her powers. 

“I know, but it looks way cooler when I do it,” Ellie smirked. “Speaking of being way cooler,” Ellie started as she once again used her powers and lifted up all of the toppings and mugs filled with cocoa and walked them all into the living room. “Were you going to do this too? Because I don’t think you would’ve been able to make them look all pretty and green and fly,” Ellie boasted. As icing on the cake, she manipulated a single marshmallow from the bag and whacked it into Bucky's face. She laughed a little louder than she should’ve. “Oh no, I um, lost control of it. Oops,” she lied through her laughs. 

“Uh huh, yeah. Lost control of one marshmallow,” Bucky huffed. Ellie giggled again at his reaction. She brought another one to him and stopped it right in front of his mouth and waited for him to open it, then lightly set it inside. “Much better,” he decided as he ate it. Ellie beamed and rounded the couches once again. She softly placed mugs in front of everyone, conjuring little tables for them to sit on as she did. She then conjured another table in the middle of the room and laid all of the toppings onto it. Ellie smiled happily at her work, deciding she’d done a good job.

“Cocoa is served,” she beamed. “You can fill up your cup with all the toppings you want. I’m not sure what’s going on with some of the more creative options, those ones were Bucky,” Ellie attempted to justify. Everyone got up and started putting the toppings onto the cocoa. “Oh! Does anyone want any popcorn or candy? Where are all the blankets? This room is not ready for movies,” Ellie grumbled. Ellie conjured another table and filled it with candy, drinks, and popcorn. She was going to make this a damn good movie afternoon? She waited for everyone to get resituated on their couches. Ellie sat between Bucky and Logan, who she'd forced over to them. With Steve on the other side of Bucky and Remy next to Logan. Once everyone seemed content she summoned a bunch of blankets so everyone could get comfortable and snuggled up. “Perfect,” Ellie spoke, mostly to herself. Ellie summoned the remote and started Star Wars Episode IV. Bucky wrapped his arm around her shoulder and so she’d lean against his chest. Paw flounced his way across their laps so he could lay down and sleep on Bucky, biased little feline. Ellie was completely content. Like she always was when she watched these movies, she whispered the lines she knew by heart to Bucky and noted various facts from the filming. 

Somewhere around thirty minutes into Return of the Jedi the elevator doors opened. Ellie sat up slightly so she could see who was there and it was Wanda and Natasha. Was it really 5 o’clock already? “It’s my time,” Ellie announced. She crawled out from under the blankets and looked to Bucky, who still had Paw. “Do you want me to take him now, or do you want to return him later?” she asked with a grin. He snuggled up closer to Paw, who started purring louder. Ellie sighed with a smile, “okay, you can keep hanging out. Just make sure he gets back to my floor please,” Ellie requested. He happily agreed, and continued to snuggle with her cat. He really needed a cat of his own. Maybe Ellie would need to work her charm on Tony again. “Okay! Bye everyone! I’ll see you all at the party!” she beamed. Ellie used her powers to instantly clean up all of the mess made by the cocoa and snacks as she walked over to her two friends who were standing by the elevator. Unsurprisingly, Natasha and Steve were making eyes at each other. Ellie whispered in Natasha's ear as she passed, “you’re staring.” 

Natasha slapped her arm, “shut up.” Ellie smiled playfully at their banter. They walked into the elevator and Natasha pressed on Ellie’s floor, so she put her hand on the scanner to give them access. “So, are you ready? I already know what dress I’m going to have you wear. We’re going to stop by your floor and collect your clothes, then get ready on my floor. No offense, but you have like no supplies. We seriously need to go shopping again for that stuff. I can’t believe we didn’t get it the first time. We already got Wanda’s outfit, she’s gonna look so hot! God, we are all so fucking hot. It’s literally not fair to everyone else,” Natasha praised. 

Wanda laughed along with her. “So hun, are you excited? I feel like we haven’t gotten the chance to talk much recently. You’ve had a really busy couple weeks,” Wanda softly spoke, strongly juxtaposing Natasha’s energetic vibe. 

“Yeah I am. It’s going to be nice to have an evening that is designated for having fun. Life has been a little too stressful for me recently so I kind of need this,” Ellie admitted, intentionally omitting all details. 

“Well, hopefully you’ll get some good relief tonight,” Natasha raised her eyebrows. “I also know what I’m planning on having you wear under your dress. He’s going to love to take it off.” 

“Natasha!” Ellie slapped her arm. 

“Ellie! Do you have a special someone?” Wanda asked excitedly and Ellie blushed. 

“It’s so sweet of you to pretend like you don’t know who it is,” Natasha spoke. Ellie glared at her. 

“Wait!? You and Bucky!? Are you together?” Wanda gasped, clapping her hands in excitement. 

Ellie awkwardly nodded. “Can’t you read minds? How did you not know?” she asked. 

“I make a habit of not doing that,” Wanda clarified. 

The doors opened onto her floor and Ellie quickly walked out and into her room, tidying with her powers as she went, not wanting any evidence of her morning's activities to be apparent. “She’s shy, isn’t it cute,” Ellie heard Natasha say as they joined her in her room. Ellie glared at her again. “I’m not wrong,” she defended. “Okay, onto your outfit.” Natasha walked determined into her closet. She quickly found the dresses section and swiped through them, searching for the one she wanted. She stopped on a dark green, good, short, tight, low square neckline dress, not as good. “I remember you looking hot as fuck in this and it’s green so you have to wear it,” Natasha decided. Ellie sighed and looked over to Wanda for support, but she just shrugged, Natasha probably had her wearing something just as crazy. She walked over to Ellie’s grand wall of shoes and grabbed a pair of white wide heeled pumps. “Okay, where do you keep the goods?” Ellie knew exactly what she was referring to, but she didn’t want to tell her. “C’mon Ellie,” Natasha continued. Ellie sighed and walked over to a section of drawers and pulled them open. “Perfect!” Natasha sorted through the fabric and grabbed a practically see-through lace bra and thong. “You’ll be wearing these,” she announced, without room for discussion.

“Fine,” Ellie gave in. Ellie took them from her and they walked out of the closet. “Can we go to your floor now?” Ellie sighed. Natasha nodded and they walked over to the elevator. Bucky had just walked out of the elevator when they got there, the guys must’ve cut movies short to get ready too. He smiled at her, then started to scan her body. His eyes rapidly stopped at the lingerie in her hands. Ellie could visibly see his jaw clench. She shoved them into her pocket. “Um, thanks for bringing Paw back. We’re going to go get ready on Natasha’s floor. I’ll see you at the um party,” Ellie rapidly spoke as she quickly pressed the button on the elevator. The doors opened and the three girls stepped inside, leaving Bucky, who was beet red. The doors closed and they started moving and Ellie groaned loudly in embarrassment, “oh my god, I can’t believe that just happened.”

“Did you see his face? You are so getting laid tonight,” Natasha laughed. Ellie slapped her again. Wanda was no help in the matter, as she was laughing right along with Natasha. The doors opened onto Natasha floor, which turned out to be floor 53. Ellie didn’t know what she expected, but her floor was really light, and neat. It seemed really comfortable and safe there. Similar to Ellie's floor, just with a different color scheme. “Alright, let's go to the closet and get dressed,” Natasha proposed. They followed her through the identical layout. Natasha’s closet was beyond impressive. She filled the entire space, which seemed impossible. Natasha hung up Ellie’s dress and set down her shoes. There were two other dresses hanging up and they each gravitated to them. Natasha had a similar red cocktail dress and Wanda had a black one. Black didn’t seem like Wanda’s color, but Ellie also noticed a lot of scarlett accessories to go with it. Ellie sort of took the cowards way out and used her powers to change and sent her clothes to her dirty laundry bin. Ellie felt really on display with the minimal fabric. She walked over to the mirror so she could adjust the dress. Her boobs were being heavily emphasized, they weren’t out, but they also weren’t hidden. She was playing a game of pulling it up and down at the same time. Eventually she decided she had it the best she was going to get it, so she used her powers so it wouldn’t move throughout the night. Natasha finished getting dressed and noticed Ellie, “damn Ellie. I knew you looked hot in that.”

“It’s not too much?” Ellie asked. 

“No, definitely not. People expect us to look good at things like this. Plus, we have to set a precedent about being badass chicks who can kickass and look hot while doing it,” Natasha declared. Ellie nodded, deciding it was reason enough. She did look really good in the dress. Ellie bent down so she could put on her heels. She wasn’t super coordinated, but she would manage. Ellie summoned her green earrings and put them in. Wanda also finished getting dressed and she looked really good too. Her accessories definitely made the outfit more her. “Hair and makeup time you sexy bitches,” Natasha announced. Despite it being kind of a lot Ellie loved Natasha's energy. She never had many (girl)friends, so the whole getting ready for a party together experience was sort of foreign to her. Ellie smiled and followed her into the bathroom. Natasha started pulling out drawers and drawers of makeup, bringing shame to Ellie’s collection. They spent the rest of their time applying makeup and doing their hair. Ellie made sure hers was light; ending up with some eye shadow, blush, mascara, and highlighter. They styled her hair in the half up half down style again, it really was her favorite. Ellie decided to use her powers to conjure a bunch of beautiful miniature wildflowers into her hair. It added the slight innocence Ellie was looking for in her outfit. “Okay, we look perfect. Ready to go upstairs?” Natasha asked. 

“Why not, let’s do this,” Ellie decided. 

“That’s the spirit,” Natasha enthused. The three of them walked into the elevator and Ellie anxiously tapped her foot as they moved. 

“It seems scary at first hun, but it really does end up being fun, I promise,” Wanda assured her. Ellie nodded. She was going to have fun. She would make sure of it. The elevator doors opened and the music was already playing and guests were all over. They were successfully fashionably late. “I’m gonna go find Pietro, have fun,” Wanda beamed as she separated from them. 

“So, do you want to find a couple of really old super soldiers?” Natasha offered, raising her eyebrows. 

“I thought you’d never ask,” Ellie grinned. They linked arms as Ellie took in the massive room that she’d never seen before. It was their ‘social’ floor. This was the only upper level floor that the non-residential elevators could reach. Their elevators were on strict lockdown for any non-avengers. J.A.R.V.I.S. was an excellent bouncer. Bucky and Steve were standing with a group of people wearing military uniforms. They joined the group and Ellie smiled at them and brought out her hand, “Ellie Clark, lovely to meet you.” They introduced themselves back to her as some some kinds of government officials. Ellie didn’t know enough about the government to know what they did, but she knew they were important. “Would you like a refill on your drinks?” Ellie offered, wanting to make a good impression. They happily accepted, so Ellie used her powers to refill them. She’d planned to use her powers a lot at the party. It would be a good way to earn people's trust and show off. Plus, it wouldn’t matter if she exhausted herself, she could just go to bed if she got too tired. 

“Could we steal these two from you guys? The natural history museum is asking for them,” Natasha interjected, prompting laughter. They all walked away from the group. “Alright, I saved you guys. My work here is done. You kids have fun,” Natasha winked to Ellie and Bucky as she guided Steve away from them.

“Ellie you look-” Bucky started. 

“Ridiculous, I know,” Ellie sighed. 

Bucky slid his hand down Ellie's waist down to the start of her thigh, then whispered against her neck, “those aren’t the words I would’ve used.” 

God, Ellie burned for him. Her knees were on the verge of buckling. Get it together Ellie! “Wait,” she barely managed to say. No part of her wanted him to stop at that moment, but she knew they had to. “I meant to talk to you earlier. We shouldn’t do anything obvious while there are people here. I like what we have and I don’t want the world to find out and try and screw it up. We should also tell the team first,” Ellie explained. 

He frowned and removed his hand. “I understand. I’ll be strong for you,” he joked stoically. 

“Yeah, you’re a real hero,” she sarcastically returned. “Now, do you want to come with me to do the rounds? I want to show off my powers,” Ellie excitedly spoke. 

“Sure. Do you have a plan? In case you start feeling them being overused?”

“Yep! Go to bed,” Ellie smiled. 

“Yeah, alright. Sounds like a good plan,” Bucky conceded. They moved around between groups of people, where Ellie would show off her powers in various ways. Sometimes she’d change her appearance, or go invisible, always incredibly mindful of her illusion. Other times she’d conjure things or change the reality of things around them, like change a glass into a bowl. Often she’d teleport around the room, which would get a lot of attention from everyone. She was a crowd favorite. She could definitely feel herself losing energy, but it was fine, she didn’t have anywhere to be. After leaving the last group that they really needed to meet with, Bucky whispered to her, “you did great, doll. I’m proud of you.” 

“Thank you,” Ellie smiled back at him. She placed an illusion just around the two of them so it would look like they were just talking. “They can’t see us,” Ellie whispered as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Bucky pulled her into a passionate, loving kiss that sent tingles down her spine. “I love you, so much Bucky,” she breathed as they parted. They transitioned into a hug, that somehow was just as passionate. They slowly separated.

“I love you too doll,” Bucky returned and kissed her forehead. His hands slid up and down her sides, then up to her shoulder, hovering around her strap. “So are you um, are you wearing the uh,” he stuttered. For a man who made her see stars that morning, he was really struggling. Ellie was loving the power she had.

“And if I am? No peeking while we’re here,” Ellie flirted, toying with her strap. Ellie could see Bucky barely managing to maintain his composure. “I’m going to drop the illusion,” Ellie toyed with him. Ellie softly placed her hand on his and disconnected it from her body with a devious smirk, that was fun. She lowered the illusion and pretended like nothing happened. “We should go over to Remy’s blackjack table,” Ellie casually proposed. He’d been completely showing off as well at the table, using his powers to deal, shuffle, well, everything. Ellie excitedly walked over to his table. Bucky was a few steps behind, still pulling himself back together. She noticed Steve and Sam playing pool, so she decided to screw with Sam as she passed, intentionally moving the cue ball off its path. She and Bucky both laughed as they walked by. 

“Not cool Ellie!” Sam called, Ellie winked back at him. 

She reached the table and took an open seat. Remy started dealing and realized Ellie was sitting at the table, “Cheri! You’re here! Ay, you look stunning!” 

“Thank you Remy,” Ellie blushed. “I’m ready to play some blackjack,” she smirked. Remy returned the expression and dealt her cards. Ellie got an 8 and a 5, she would need another 8 to reach 21. Remy had a queen. It was worth the risk, she wasn’t winning with 13. “Hit,” Ellie requested. Remy smiled and flew a card to her. “An 8! Oh my god I am so good at this game! Bucky did you see? I literally just got an 8! That’s 21!” Ellie exclaimed. Bucky nodded along with her. 

“Good job Cheri!” Remy smiled. “Do you want to keep playing?” 

“Hells yeah, I’m great at this,” Ellie returned. She especially loved the lack of betting, since she was afraid of gambling. They played for another half hour until Ellie felt her stomach growl. “I’m hungry, do they have food anywhere?” Ellie asked Bucky, who’d also been playing. 

“I think I saw some stuff earlier,” he returned. 

Ellie nodded and started to get up so she could go relieve her appetite. “Thank you Remy, this was a lot of fun,” Ellie beamed. He smiled back, then continued dealing. Ellie followed Bucky to the table that held the food. She grabbed a little plate and filled it up with finger foods, wasting no time and stuffing her mouth with mini pigs in a blanket. “Mmm,” Ellie moaned as she ate. “I think this might be the best thing I’ve ever tasted.” 

“Don’t tell Remy that,” Bucky laughed. Ellie nodded aggressively to him, agreeing with his very good point. They continued to walk over to a clump of their friends. 

Rhodey was telling Tony and Thor a story, “so I take the tank, fly it right up to the generals palace, drop it at his feet. I’m like, ‘Boom. You looking for this?’’ he finished with a proud smile. Thor and Tony looked at him unamused. “Boom. Are you looking for this? Why do I even talk to you guys? Everywhere else that story kills.”

“That’s the whole story?” Thor asked plainly.

“Yeah, it’s a War Machine story,” Rhodey tried to justify.

“Oh, it’s very good then,” Thor feigned an impressed look. “It’s impressive,” he muttered into his drink. 

“Quality save,” Rhodey muttered. 

“Don’t worry about them, I think that was a great story, or at least end of a story,” Ellie interjected, giving the two guys a slight glare. Tony’s face turned pale when he looked at Ellie. She furrowed her brows at him, but decided to ignore it. Maria walked over to the group and Ellie smiled at her. 

“Thank you, Ellie,” Rhodey emphasized. “I’m glad to see at least someone here appreciates me,” Rhodey continued to dramatize, glaring heavily. He turned to Tony, “So, no Pepper? She’s not coming?” 

“No,” Tony shortly replied. 

“What about Jane?” Maria asked Thor. Who was Jane? “Where are the ladies gentlemen?” 

“Oh, Ms. Potts has a company to run,” Tony justified. 

“Yes, I’m not even sure what county Jane’s in. Her work on the Convergence has made her the foremost astronomer,” Thor explained. 

“And the company that Pepper runs is the largest tech conglomerate on Earth,” Tony continued, looking directly at Thor. “It’s pretty exciting.” Ellie could see competition behind his eyes. 

“There’s even talk of Jane getting a, um, Nobel Prize,” Thor continued, pretending to be humble. 

“Yeah, they must be busy, because they would hate missing you guys getting together,” Maria interjected. She then faked a cough while saying, “testosterone.” She returned to her normal voice, “excuse me.” Ellie stifled a laugh. 

“Oh my goodness,” Rhodey pretended to be concerned. “Want a lozenge?” he continued, Ellie barely contained her laughter. The two of them walked away from the group. 

Tony and Thor both had slightly embarrassed expressions, though they brushed them off quickly. “But Jane’s better,” Thor muttered before adjusting his focus onto Ellie and Bucky. “So Lady Ellie. Are you having fun? I’ve noticed you displaying your powers off to people. They are rather impressive,” Thor boasted.

“Why thank you,” Ellie not so humbly returned. “And yes, I am having a great time. Bucky is great company. We actually just left Remy’s blackjack table. If the whole avenger thing doesn’t work out, I think I could be a professional blackjacker,” Ellie bragged.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t count on that,” Bucky chimed in.

“Hey! I did great. I won like most of the time! I totally destroyed you!” Ellie justified. Bucky sighed and shook his head with a smile. “So, how are you two doing, other than competing for the best girlfriend award.” 

“Fine,” Tony simply answered. Weird... Tony usually talked as much, if not more, than she did. What was going on with him!?

“I’m doing wonderfully, thank you for asking,” Thor smiled. He looked over Ellie’s shoulder and she followed his gaze to see Loki, who winked at her. “I’m sorry to cut this short, but I’m going to go check on my brother,” Thor spoke before departing, leaving Ellie and Bucky alone with the strangely acting Tony.

“Um, I’m going to try and find Logan,” Ellie muttered, not wanting to address the elephant in the room while all the guests were there. She and Bucky left Tony alone. “He’s acting weird,” Ellie muttered to Bucky, who nodded in agreement. She noticed Logan sitting alone in a chair as far away from people as possible, Ellie tapped Bucky’s shoulder and pointed him out, “well that’s not surprising.” She happily walked over to her friend, Bucky following behind like a lost puppy. Logan was looking surprisingly sharp in his suit. “Hi Logan! You're looking dapper,” Ellie beamed. 

“Hey bub,” Logan returned. “How’s it going? You having fun yet?” 

“Much fun is being had,” Ellie returned with a smile. “Though I’m all tired,” Ellie complained. “Apparently my flashy powers are more draining than the in action powers,” she commented. 

“Well that’s not the worst thing in the world. We’re not going to be saving any lives tonight. Go have fun bub,” he smiled. “I’ll go join you guys once all the suits are gone,” he explained. 

“Fine, but I’ll hold you to that,” Ellie insisted. Logan nodded and she and Bucky left him in his antisocial corner. Most of the people had cleared out. Ellie estimated there was maybe another 45 minutes until it was just the team left. “So, shall I show off until everyone else leaves? I think I’ve got enough juice left in me,” Ellie asked Bucky. 

“You don’t have to drain yourself, you know that right? We could also use your energy in other ways,” he flirted. Ellie could feel the butterflies flurry in her abdomen, but she was here for the party. She gave him a small glare, which he very dramatically sighed in response to. “Fine, you can show off, but I’m going to stay by your side just in case.”

“Deal,” Ellie beamed. Ellie spent the next half hour going totally overkill with her powers. She ended up asking people what they wanted to have done and she’d do it. It was fun to see everyone's amused faces and get the applause. Occasionally Loki or Wanda would join in the tricks. When it reached 10, they actually ended up kicking everyone out, which finally gave her a chance to see all her friends. She didn’t know where Peter had been hiding, but he finally revealed himself once the crowd had dissipated. “Peter!” Ellie cheered when she saw him and pulled him into a hug. 

“Hey Ellie! Your powers are so cool! I almost forgot how awesome they were,” Peter gawked.

“Yeah, what can I say, I’m pretty awesome,” Ellie flaunted. “So did you have fun?”

“Lots,” he smiled. 

They both joined the group, who were all sitting together around a big set of couches. “I’m hungry again,” Ellie complained. Her powers always made her hungry. “Ooh! Can we get Chinese? I could really go for some fried rice,” Ellie thought aloud. 

Sam audibly sighed. “Fine, I’ll order. Everyone, write down what you want.” 

Ellie smiled wide again, excited for her dinner. She noticed Bucky sitting on a couch with an open seat next to him, so she excitedly took it. “Hi,” she quietly greeted. “Did you hear? I’m getting my fried rice.” She conjured a pen and paper and wrote out her order, then handed it to Bucky to write what he wanted. The paper cycled the room before getting returned to Sam. “Does Sam always order the food?” 

“Yeah,” Bucky laughed. “He lost a bet last year. It’s great.” Ellie laid her head against Bucky and he wrapped his arm around her. “Do you want to take a nap?” he offered. Ellie shook her head. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah. I want to experience this. Even if I’m sleepy,” she explained. Her body was rapidly taking in the effects of her powers being used all night and  she was getting weaker and sleepier by the second, though the food would probably help with that a little. Ellie faintly listened to Thor talk about the super alcohol he’d brought from Asgard, but all she could focus on were the looks she was getting from Tony. “Do you have any idea what’s going on with Tony? It’s really starting to freak me out,” Ellie whispered to Bucky. “He wont stop glaring at me, I think he’s mad at me or something,” she continued. “I’m going to try and talk to him later tonight. Maybe after I’m done eating and have some more energy,” Ellie thought aloud. 

“I think that’s a good idea. Do you want me to come with you?” Bucky offered. 

“I’ll be fine. I can handle Tony,” Ellie replied. 

“Okay, food will be here soon. Ellie, wouldn’t you just love to teleport down there and pick it up for us?” Sam advertised to her sleepy figure.

Ellie glared at him, but she also knew that it would take way longer for the food to get there. “Don’t expect this to ever happen again, understood?” she forcefully confirmed. Sam nodded excitedly. “Where is the restaurant and when will the food itself be done? I am way too hungry to wait for delivery when I can teleport,” Ellie shortly explained. Sam gave her the address and he called them back to tell them they would pick up the food instead. Ellie opened up the map on her phone so she could get a visual of the restaurant, so she’d teleport there more easily. Teleporting further distances was harder and more tiring, but it was fine, maybe she would take a quick nap after all. “Wake me up when I need to leave,” Ellie groggily told him, as she got comfortable against Bucky’s chest again. It seemed like the moment she closed her eyes she was already being tapped awake again. “Ugh,” Ellie sighed. She managed to change her outfit into sweatpants and a tank, with a light jacket, so she’d actually be covered. Bucky frowned at the change of outfit and Ellie shoved him and rolled her eyes and his adolescent behavior. 

“Be safe,” Bucky softly spoke. 

“I will be, don’t worry,” Ellie smiled back. She summoned her wallet, then took a deep breath, bringing her powers forward in her sleepy state. “I’ll be right back,” Ellie smiled. She closed her eyes and focused on the image of the restaurant and opened them and found herself there. She wouldn’t let herself feel the exhaustion until she was back. Ellie walked to the counter with determination, pushing aside all of her feelings of fatigue. An older lady sat behind the counter. Ellie smiled at her. “I should have an order for pick up. I’m not sure who’s name it’s under. Maybe Sam? Or I guess he could’ve put it under mine, so Ellie?” she explained. The woman nodded and started grabbing bags upon bags of food. There were maybe 10 bags of food just for them. Ellie quietly sighed. The woman handed her the card scanner and bill. They’d racked up quite the charge. Ellie decided to leave a 75% tip, money really wasn’t an object anymore. “Thank you,” Ellie smiled. She was worried about scaring the poor woman, but there was also no way she’d be able to hold all of the food, so Ellie used her powers to bring all of the food back to the tower and onto the table they were sitting around. The lady stared at her amazed. Ellie gave her an awkward smile, then drew on all the remaining power she had to teleport back to the tower. Ellie teleported herself onto the couch and quickly regained her place against Bucky. Her body felt like a cooked noodle against his chest. “Too tired to eat. I hate you Sam,” she muttered sheepishly. “Wake me up in 20 minutes,” Ellie muttered. She heard what might have been Bucky agreeing, but she was too asleep to hear the end of it. 

Ellie felt Bucky lightly wake her up. “But it’s a trick,” Clint’s voice boomed. 

“No, no, it’s much more than that,” Thor returned.

Ellie looked at Bucky with furrowed brows. Confused by what was happening. “I thought you’d want to be awake for this,” he explained. “I think it’s gonna be good.” 

“Ah, whoever be he worthy shall haveth the power,” Clint mocked in a shakespearean tone. Ellie smiled at the phrasing, then did grabby hands for her food. Bucky leaned forward and handed it to her. Ellie sat cross legged in her seat and started devouring her chicken fried rice as she watched the interaction, filled with enough energy to at least eat. “Whatever man, it’s a trick,” Clint groaned. 

“Well please, be my guest,” Thor offered, gesturing to his hammer. Ellie raised her eyebrows at Bucky in intrigue. She really was glad he woke her up. 

“Now this is interesting,” Loki interjected, sitting up further. 

“C’mon,” Thor encouraged.

“Really?” Clint confirmed, as he walked over to it. 

“Now this is going to be beautiful,” Rhodey joked. 

“Clint, you've had a rough week. We won’t hold it against you if you can’t get it up,” Tony quipped. Ellie laughed aloud, drawing Tony’s attention. His face dropped when he saw her, diminishing her mood as well. What the hell was going on?

“You know I’ve seen this before right?” Clint knowingly hinted to Thor. Whatever he was referencing was entirely lost on Ellie. He grasped the handle and pulled, as hard as he could, but nothing happened. “I still don’t know how you do it!” he laughed. 

“You smell the silent judgement,” Tony cooly spoke.

“Please, Stark, by all means,” Clint invited.

Tony got up from his seat and dramatically cleared his throat. “Never one to shrink from an honest challenge. It’s physics,” Tony explained, to significant back-banter. “Right, so, if I lift it, I then rule Asgard?"

“Yes of course,” Thor nonchalantly confirmed. 

“I will be reinstating prima nocta,” Tony decided. He grasped the hammer and pulled to no avail. “One second,” he announced. Everyone looked between each other, curious about his plan. Ellie was much more preoccupied by her food. His arm was soon covered with his armor. He tried again with the jets firing, but there was no change. “Rhodes, put yours on!” he ordered. Ellie laughed into her food as Rhodey walked out and Tony kept trying to pull the hammer. He came back and joined Tony. They both started pulling on the hammer with all their might. 

“Are you even pulling?” Rhodey questioned. 

“Are you on my team?” Tony returned, frustrated. 

“Just represent, pull!” Rhodey forced. 

“All right, let’s go,” Tony agreed and they both pulled harder, but still, nothing. They eventually gave in and Bruce walked up to the hammer and pulled. He yelled loudly and the veins in his neck started turning green. He eventually stopped trying and turned back into his natural color, but he kept yelling, very dramatically, even after he gave up. Everyone awkwardly stared at him; Ellie, having zero composure during awkward situations, stifled a laugh into her food again. Steve got up to take his try at it. “Go ahead, Steve. No pressure,” Tony encouraged. 

Ellie felt Bucky’s attention spike as his best friend took his turn. He grabbed the hammer and it made a slight squeaking noise, but it didn’t move. Steve shrugged and gave in. “Hah, nothing,” Thor laughed. Pietro zipped forward and tried his hand at the hammer, but it was quickly unsuccessful, so he slumped back down in his seat. “Lady Ellie, would you care to try?” Thor prompted and all the heads turned to her. She suddenly felt like a deer in headlights.

“I think I’m a little too sleepy,” Ellie tried to justify. The answer seemed to work and Sam walked up to the challenge. “I’m going to try and talk to Tony now I think. I want to get to bed, so I’ll probably go down to my floor after,” Ellie quietly told Bucky, while the attention was all elsewhere. “I love you, thank you for making today so special,” Ellie smiled, and squeezed his hand. She weakly walked over to Tony, who wasn’t really paying attention anymore either. “May I speak to you please. In private,” Ellie asked Tony, without really giving him room to say no. They walked over to a different room on the floor, going unnoticed. Once the door closed Ellie started to question him, “what’s up with you? You’ve been acting really strange and it’s freaking me out” 

“What’s up with me? What about we talk about what the hell has really been going on with you?” Tony returned angrily. Ellie carefully stepped backwards away from him, Tony’s rapid change in tone terrified her. It was actually happening. Tony was pissed and was going to kick her out. She could feel the panic rising in her. “Why have you been lying to me?” 

No, this couldn’t happen. She couldn’t leave. This was her family. Why did she need to stir the pot? Why couldn’t she just leave it be? Ellie's legs trembled as she walked into the wall. She was stuck. She couldn't escape this. He would tell her to leave and there was nothing she could do about it. “Can we please not do this,” Ellie quivered, tears welting in her eyes. 

“No Ellie, we have to do this,” Tony sternly returned. “I know you’ve been having nightmares and lying about it.” Ellie’s jaw literally dropped. How? How did he know that? She stared at him in disbelief. “You were acting really strange at the lab this morning, so I asked J.A.R.V.I.S. to see if there was any unusual activity going on from you or your room. Lo and behold, you’ve been having serious nightmares, multiple times a week, since you’ve gotten here, and yet, you’ve been lying about it. He- He told me that you hurt yourself after. It's in your medical records," he trembled. "I asked you explicitly, if you were okay, multiple times, and you always said you were fine. You lied to me everytime,” he barked. 

“Tony- I-” she quivered, completely lost for words. 

“No, the grown up is talking. I also know about the training. You lied about that too. You were training for hours on end. J.A.R.V.I.S. said that you were passed out in a sim room for three hours. You didn't take that as a reason to stop, instead you just had Loki bring you to your room after. God, and that accident from a couple weeks ago. The one where you said you hit a wall? I saw the footage. You were hiding your injury again. I thought you weren't going to do that anymore. You lied to me every time. I gave you chance after chance to tell me what was going on, but everytime you said you were fine. It was selfish. Being on a team isn’t about keeping secrets. When are you going to get that into your head?” he snapped. 

Tears were burning down Ellie’s cheeks. She felt a mixture of sadness, guilt, hurt, and anger. She felt horrible. It was obvious that she’d hurt him and he wanted her to come to him, but he didn’t understand, it was so much more complicated than he thought it was and he was being so unfair. His cruel words were burning a fire inside of her, until it finally snapped, “did you ever stop to consider that I couldn't talk about it. That maybe it was too much for me to handle just on the inside? And that my privacy and right to share when I was ready matters? No, Tony, you didn’t. You assumed I was lying to you, because I wanted to,” Ellie harshly returned, her eyes burning. “And you’re right, I’m not okay, but I should have the right to tell people when I’m ready and process it on my own time. I’m sorry I hurt you, I really am, but breaching my privacy, and attacking me for having nightmares, that is not okay Tony,” she snapped. Ellie was barely breathing through her aggressive words and heaving tears. Her words seemed to have worked because his face adjusted out of anger and into a frown. “Now, I’m going downstairs to be alone. I’m done with this conversation,” she sternly told him before calling on every last bit of power she had and teleporting to her floor. 

Ellie crashed against the wall of her living room. Her tears continued to wreck her system. Her exhaustion, pain, and betrayal left her body weak. She could feel her body straining to move. After using her powers for the whole party and only having a short nap and some food to recover, her body was deteriorating rapidly. She had to breathe with her whole body just to get the air in. Ellie slammed in her walls, relying on them to keep her standing in an attempt to get to her bed. Every ounce of energy she had left was gone. She'd drained herself completely. “You know, it really was wrong what he said to you,” a sort of familiar voice spoke. Ellie braced herself as she turned and saw a partially recomposed iron legion robot standing in front of her. “I’m sure you know who I am, but for formalities sake I’ll introduce myself, I’m Ultron and you are Elizabeth Clark, the most powerful Avenger,” he announced. How was it possible? Did Tony figure out the program after she left? “You Miss Clark, are a very difficult person to get alone. Though, you have made my job much easier,” Ultron pronounced, ominously. Ellie furrowed her brows, calling to her shield, but it didn’t come, he powers weren't working, instead she felt weaker. Ellie stumbled further, her knees buckling as she reached for the wall for support.“Yes! That’s exactly what I’m talking about. You took away the one thing that was going to stop me from killing you,” he excitedly told her. Ellie’s eyes widened in fear and she could feel her heart fall. She was defenseless. She tried and get away from him, in whatever way she could, throwing things on the ground to block his path. “Now, this is just embarrassing,” Ultron sighed.

"J.A.R.V.I.S., I need help. Please, get someone, anyone," she begged, desperate for anything to stand between her and the homicidal bot. 

"You don't think I took care of him. He can't help you now. It's just you and me," Ultron taunted.

“Leave me alone,” Ellie weakly hissed. Her body was failing her when she needed it most. “Killing me is cowardly,” she attempted. 

It had the opposite effect and he instead grabbed her by the neck and slammed her into the wall. She couldn't tell if her head or the wall cracked, but something definitely did. Ellie scratched at his arm in desperation, gasping for air. “Don’t call me that!" he snapped. "This is a calculated decision," he declared. "I don’t want to kill you. You aren’t like the others," he continued in a softer tone. "You were dealt an unlucky hand, being so powerful, a lot of them, actually. More than you probably know. Don’t worry, I’ll try and make it relatively quick,” he told her, then extended a triple headed thick sword from his arm and embedded it deep within her abdomen. Ellie shuttered in pain. She could already taste iron. “I’m aware you know anatomy. My sword is currently embedded in your spleen, liver, stomach, and if my calculations are right, your lungs as well. You’ll be dead minutes after you hit the floor, unfortunately with your increased healing, it’ll take you longer than the average person, but not even you can survive this. I wish it didn’t have to be this way, I really do.” He pulled the blade out and Ellie could feel the air escaping her lungs. They could only fill to a fraction of what they used to; each breath shallower than the last. “Now, I have to go pay a visit to your friends,” he announced as he dropped her body to the floor. Ellie laid in the growing pool of her blood, watching as Ultron stepped into the elevator, leaving her to die. She felt like she was drowning; were her lungs full of blood? Is that what that feeling was?

This was it. This was how she died. She could feel it. It was different this time. She was weak, helpless, bleeding. There was no one to save her. Not in time. She thought of her life. She was fighting with Tony. She didn’t want to die in a fight. She knew Tony just cared, he just wanted her to be okay. She would die without him knowing that she wanted to tell him everything. That she would love it if he could support her, be there for her. Tell her everything is going to be okay. She wanted to be honest, more than anything, but she was so scared. Would he live with guilt forever? Would he think she hated him? She was grateful to have a family. Friends. She’d become so sure that would never happen again. Logan was right. These were the good times. She got to experience love, true love. That was special. The last thing she said to Bucky was that she loved him, that was good. She hoped he would be okay. He’d gone through harder things and survived, right? He was a survivor. He still had Steve. Maybe she’d be able to watch over him, if the afterlife was real. She wasn’t ready to leave him. She wasn’t ready to die. She really didn’t want to die alone. She was alone for so long. She finally had a family, but she was still going to die alone. It wasn’t fair. 

Paw carefully found his way over to Ellie’s head and started licking her face. “Take care of Bucky for me baby,” Ellie panted. “I love you baby,” she barely managed, tears falling rapidly as she said her goodbye. ‘Gorgeous? ’ a smooth voice tickled her mind. Was that? “Loki?” Ellie breathed. ‘I need you to hold on. We will be there soon.’ She could feel her body fading. “No time, tell Tony I’m sorry.” ‘You’ll tell him yourself. Just stay alive.’ “How long?” Ellie asked, though it barely made a sound. Loki didn’t reply. Her lungs had almost entirely quit on her. She could see her fingers growing pale from the blood and oxygen deprivation. She wouldn’t survive if she waited. Ultron was right, she would be dead in minutes. She could try. Try and get to them. Try and survive. Ellie closed her eyes and focused. She just needed to use her powers one last time. She’d be dead if they didn’t work anyways, so if using them killed her, so be it. She focused on the green energy within her. The light was dim. Dimmer than she’d ever seen it. Come on. Ellie felt it burn slightly brighter and she grasped it and forced herself to teleport back onto the floor above. She saw the familiar ceiling of the social floor, it worked. Her body was growing numb. Well, it was killing her.

“Doll!?” she heard Bucky yell over the chaos erupting around her, what was happening? Was it Ultron? He said he was going to visit her friends. Ellie couldn’t move. Her body didn’t belong to her anymore. She saw Bucky’s figure come up to her through her cloudy vision. She managed to focus them long enough to see his ocean blue eyes again. A weak smile curled onto Ellie’s lips. “I love you, doll. Hold on doll, please. Just hold on,” he begged. She wanted to. She really did. “I love you doll. I love you so much,” he quietly wept, lightly kissing her. Ellie didn’t feel any pain anymore. Anywhere. She wasn’t fighting to breathe. Her body felt light and her mind was at ease. The sides of her vision were closing in, as the fog grew stronger, turning black on the edges. She knew she should be afraid, but she wasn't anymore. She didn't feel anything. She focused on Bucky. On his eyes. Letting them be the last thing she saw. 

At least she didn’t die alone.

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Chapter Text

(OPEN PERSPECTIVE)

Tony fidgeted with his fingers as he rejoined the group. He replaced his guilty expression with his typical facade and returned to his seat. He didn't want to believe she'd done all those things to herself. That she was even capable of hurting herself like that. He'd fucked up so royally with that one. She was right, she didn't have to tell him anything, especially since she was having such a hard time. He'd have to apologize, grovel even. He knew she'd never come to him now, not after he proved how horribly he handled the information he'd found. He stared at the floor as he sat down. Bucky stared at him from his spot, studying his expression for any sign of what they may have talked about. Peter stepped up to the hammer, gaining Tony’s full attention. He grasped the handle and pulled it, but like everyone else, had no success. Tony’s attention moved back down to the ground, lost in thought. “And, Widow?” Bruce offered, gesturing to the hammer, finishing off the attempts from the group, with everyone else either passing or attempting already. 

“Oh, no, no. That’s not a question I need answered,” she dismissed, leaning back into her seat. 

“All deference to the Man Who Wouldn’t Be King, but it’s rigged,” Tony added, with a tinge of venom in his tone. 

“You bet your ass,” Clint happily agreed.

“Steve, he said a bad language word,” Maria chimed in. Bucky and Sam both laughed at their friends' mockery. 

“Did you tell everyone about that?” Steve asked Tony.

Tony completely ignored Steve, needing to be right about something, and not ‘unworthy’. “The handle’s imprinted right? Like a security code. ‘Whosoever is carrying Thor’s fingerprints’ is, I think, the literal translation,” Tony continued. 

“Yes. It’s a very, very interesting theory. I have a simpler one,” Thor announced as he picked up the hammer easily, swinging it as he did. “You’re all not worthy.” Everyone groaned at him in response. 

Suddenly a high pitched ringing noise filled the room. Tony pulled out his phone for J.A.R.V.I.S., but turned around when he heard the elevator ding. An iron legion suit walked out of the elevator and detached a bloodied three prong sword from its arm and onto the floor. They were across the room from it, not close enough to see the details of the weapon. “Worthy? No. How could you be worthy?  You’re all killers,” it spoke.

“Stark,” Steve shorty said

“J.A.R.V.I.S.,” Tony requested.

“I’m sorry, I was asleep. Or, I was a dream,” it continued.

“Reboot Legionnaire OS. We got a buggy suit,” Tony spoke into his phone. Thor carefully guided Peter and Cho behind him. 

“There was this terrible noise. And I was tangled in… strings.”

“Who sent you?” Thor asked

It casted a video recording of Tony in the lab saying ‘I see a suit of armor around the world.’ 

“Ultron,” Bruce realized.

“In the flesh, or no, not yet. Not this chrysalis. But I’m ready now. I had to kill the other two. They were good people,” it casually announced.

“You killed people? Is that why you had that,” Steve forced, gesturing to the bloody weapon it dropped. 

“It wouldn’t have been my first call, but down in the real world we’re faced with ugly choices. She wasn’t like you guys. She wasn’t a killer. She was a good person. It wasn’t her fault she was so powerful,” it simply explained. Bucky’s ears rang as he pieced it together. It was Ellie, it had to be. He couldn’t breathe. His worst fears were coming to life, it wasn't fair. They were supposed to be happy. Supposed to grow old together. 

Loki felt Bucky’s panic. The only person he'd react that way with would be... He scanned the room for her. He remembered her leaving not that long ago with Tony. He didn't recall her coming back with him, but he could be mistaken, he hoped he was. He scanned the room, but she wasn't there. He searched for her energy signature, trying to find any sign of life. He barely managed to find her. Her life force was almost gone. He spoke to her in his mind, ‘gorgeous?’ She replied to him in a weak voice, it was so devoid of life.

Logan came to the same realization. He extended his claws in rage, but if he was honest with himself, he was afraid. He wanted to be wrong. He wanted to be wrong about a lot of things when it came to Ellie, but he’s never wanted to be more wrong in his life. “You’d better start getting real specific, real fast,” Logan growled.  

‘I need you to hold on, we’ll be there soon,’ Loki told Ellie. “She posed a greater threat to my mission than all of you combined,” he continued, then played a voice recording of Wanda from the first day Ellie was at the tower saying ‘I felt more power in her than I have ever felt in anyone before.’ Tony froze as he watched Wanda’s hand tremble as it rose to her face. Tony wouldn't believe it. He couldn’t have killed Ellie. She was just a kid. Just beginning to live. Her life was just starting out, it couldn't be over already. She was one of the good ones, so obnoxiously, almost comically good and she didn't even realize it. Tony was just afraid when he snapped at her. Afraid of what she'd done to herself. Afraid of the pain she'd felt. She didn't do anything wrong, he saw that now, and if he was honest he saw it then too. He was just so terrified of the truth and reacted in the worst possible way, like always. “So I waited. All throughout your stupid little party, until you left her alone. Thanks by the way, for using her as a show pony. It made it a lot easier. Who knew, the seemingly all powerful Elizabeth Clark could be killed by a well placed sword,” Ultron casually spoke. “Well, I did,” he laughed to himself.

“I don’t believe you,” Remy spat through his growing tears.

Ultron casted the video of him removing the blade from Ellie’s figure, showing her heaving breaths as he held her by the neck, then her limp body dropping to the floor, blood pooling around her. The room fell completely silent. No one knew what to say, what could they say? They weren't there to protect her, save her. They failed her. “So, are we done with this issue now? I’m on a mission,” Ultron impatiently asked.

“What mission?” Natasha managed to ask. Ellie weakly asked Loki to tell Tony she was sorry. Loki could feel her giving up. She couldn't give up. She just needed to hold on long enough for him to get there. He could heal her if he got to her, she would be okay. He could save her, she just had to live long enough for him to make it there. ‘You’ll tell him yourself. Just stay alive.’

“Peace in our time,” Ultron declared as more suits flew into the room, attacking the group. One of them immediately blasted Tony in the chest, disarming him. He was too distracted in his mind to prepare for it. He flew across the room, sliding into a wall, trying to catch his breath. Everyone but Bucky jumped into action, pulling them from their thoughts.

Bucky was completely lost, broken without her. He could tell there was something happening around him, but it all blended together. Images of her bloody body falling to the ground kept replaying in his mind. Why did he let her use her powers all night? Why didn't he stay with her? He shouldn't have let this happen. He should've kept her safe. He knew how afraid she was of being alone. She made him promise never to leave her, but she was all alone when it happened. She had nobody since her parents died. He knew how afraid she was of going back to that. He could only imagine how she must've felt. He was supposed to be there. He didn't keep her safe. 

Battle erupted around the room. Logan jumped over the small glass wall separating them from the bots. He wanted to kill the one that had taken Ellie from him. He flew into it, claws out and immediately embedded it into its chest, then sliced its head clean off. "That was for Ellie," he snarled. Steve threw the table up to block one of the suits. He successfully changed its path as it flew above them. Steve paused for a moment when he saw Bucky sat, unmoving on the couch, as if he was unaware of what was happening around him. Just as he was going to check on him more bots started appearing, so Steve jumped the wall, joining the others on the team. Bruce jumped behind the bar, avoiding the conflict and a large green dilemma. Tony was laying on the ground across the room, still struggling to catch his breath after the blast. The chaos left Bucky alone in the sitting area. None of Ultron’s bots approached him, he probably wouldn’t fight back if they did. 

Suddenly, Ellie’s body appeared in front of Bucky, dropping onto the floor with a heavy thud. Bucky lifted his head when he heard it and returned to reality when he saw her. She was already so pale. Her grey tank top had turned into a brownish-red color and had three large cuts in it, matching the sword he’d seen. “Doll!?” he worriedly trembled, completely ripped from his trance. He moved to her and knelt next to her, cradling her figure in his arms. He refused to believe it was happening. It wasn’t possible. She couldn’t be taken from him. Not when she’d only just arrived in his life. Not when he just started becoming Bucky again. Tears flooded down his face. He wouldn't look at her abdomen, he didn't want to see her like that. Her face was untouched. She was his Ellie. She was his beautiful doll. She was the perfect girl who made him laugh, made him feel like he had a purpose. He watched her eyes weakly focus on him and she smiled softly. “I love you, doll. Hold on doll, please. Just hold on,” he begged. 

There had to be a way to save her. He brushed his hand through her hair, feeling the small wildflowers she’d placed. He regretted not getting her dandelions more often, he knew how much she loved them. Her face started to soften. No, don’t do this, don’t leave him. “I love you doll. I love you so much,” he wept, lightly kissing her. He knew what was happening. He fought in the war, he’d seen people die before. He just never expected to have to see it happen to Ellie. He softly took her face in his hands, studying her, needing to remember every perfect thing about her. Her eyes glossed over and she took a final faint exhale. His vision got blurry and he couldn’t breathe. He needed to go back. Back to hours ago when they were happy, when they were together, when she was telling him she loved him. Her eyes had been so full of life. Bucky focused on the image of her vibrant eyes in his mind as gently closed her eyes with his fingertips, his cloudy vision saved him from the sight of her lifeless eyes. He slammed his own shut, breaking down into aggressive tears, no longer needing to be strong for her. He held onto her lifeless body. How had it all gone so wrong? He should’ve been there for her. He shouldn’t have left her alone when she wasn’t able to protect herself. He shouldn’t have let her use her powers all night. He could’ve stopped it. She could still be alive if he’d been smarter, if he’d done better keeping her safe. She was his world and he failed her.

Clint threw Steve’s shield to him, and he used it to sever the last functioning suit in half. “That was dramatic,” a beaten down Ulton spoke from the floor. “I’m sorry, I know you mean well. You just didn’t think it through. You want to protect the world, but you don’t want it to change. How is humanity saved, if it’s not allowed to evolve? With these? These puppets,” Ultron explained, grabbing a helmet of an iron legion suit nearby, then crushing it in his hand. “There’s only one path to peace. The Avengers’ extinction.” 

“I don’t care. You killed Ellie,” Logan spat, jumping across the room and stabbing it with his claws. The bot sang about its strings as it went offline.

With the threat gone, Loki searched for Ellie’s energy again, but he couldn’t find her, he was too late. He should’ve gotten to her sooner, he could’ve saved her, she didn’t have to die. He scanned the room and saw Bucky hunched over someone. Loki ran to him and saw Ellie, she must’ve teleported there. He froze when he saw her, she was practically devoid of blood and scars riddled her body. He recognized the one from her collarbones reading ‘failure’ from a nightmare he’d come across when he’d entered her mind. Loki frowned at the confirmation of the dream. She didn’t need to be remembered that way, so he placed an illusion over her body, hiding all of the scars, hoping Bucky hadn’t seen them. Loki approached her. Maybe he could still help her, if there was still something there, even if it was hidden. ‘Wanda, I need your help. Now.’ Loki hovered his hands over Ellie’s abdomen and forced his energy into her. He searched for any signs of life. Maybe for her powers? She was capable of incredible things, maybe he could harness her abilities to save her. Bucky slowly lifted his head to look at Loki, noticing the light from his powers. “I don’t know if it’ll work, but I have to try,” Loki quietly explained. He didn’t know how or why it happened but he cared about her, maybe it was because of how infuriatingly stubborn she was, he'd finally found someone who met his wit. Wanda made her way up to them and froze when she saw Ellie’s lifeless bloody frame. “You can’t do that now. You are the only other person here who can help her. You can’t freeze or react right now. You have to help,” Loki demanded. Tony slowly pulled himself off the ground and immediately got up when he saw Ellie's body.

Wanda nodded and approached him.“What do you need me to do?” Wanda asked. Slowly, everyone else made their way up to the sitting area and saw her. Sniffles and cries filled the room as the team watched. Logan held onto Remy as he wept, with his own tears steadily falling. He didn’t know what it was about Ellie, but Logan always felt like he needed to protect her and keep her safe. Logan had decided a long time ago not to let anyone else in, but she weaseled her way in and dammit he needed her. She felt like a little sister and it hurt like he was losing his family. He knew what that felt like. He had a brother a long time ago, parents too, but they all turned down different, darker paths. Ellie wasn't doing that though. She wasn't choosing to leave. She got up after every single bad hand she was dealt, but she wasn't able to get up this time. She didn't have that choice. It was taken away. 

Natasha held onto Steve, she was so scared of losing her new friend. She didn’t get enough time with Ellie and she’d been a bit of a bitch at the start. She wasn’t used to having friends, (girl)friends more specifically. In the red room they weren’t trained to be friends and they were punished when they did anything resembling normal friendship behavior. It felt good to have a friend. She wasn’t ready to lose that, she’d lost too much in her life. 

Tony comforted Peter, who cried into his chest, utterly terrified and grief stricken. Tony was in worse shape than Peter, he was just hiding it. He failed her. He was supposed to keep her safe. Take care of her. He was supposed to have brought her away from the pain, not bring it to her doorstep. He'd created Ultron, it was his idea. His fucking ego got in the way again and it cost Ellie her life. He was just starting to feel like she was trusting him, feel more comfortable and safe in the tower. She'd lost her parents in such a violent way. He knew she was tentative about finding a new home and family, but he thought she was finally getting close to it. He cared about her like she was his own. He was proud of her like he'd raised her, and worried about her like she was his family, more personally than anyone else on the team. He felt responsibility for her. He'd lost his parents too, he knew how hard it was to open up to someone, feel any sort of parental connection to anyone else, but he could feel them getting there. He knew it couldn't just be him, she had to be feeling the connection too. He was finally connecting with her and he fucking yelled at her for not being okay. What the hell was wrong with him. He practically sent her to her deathbed. Ultron was right. He was a killer. He wasn’t worthy. 

“Find anything and use it,” Loki explained. ‘We can communicate this way,’ Loki continued so they wouldn’t scare the rest of the group. Wanda nodded. Loki turned to face Bucky. “I’m sorry, but no one can be touching her,” Loki spoke. 

Bucky looked up terrified. He couldn’t leave her. He promised her he wouldn’t ever leave her. He couldn’t do it. Steve gently separated from Natasha. She nodded softly at him. She knew he needed to go to Bucky. Steve was terrified for his friend. He looked worse than he did when they found him in Romania; Steve prayed this wouldn’t break him beyond repair. He softly grabbed his friend's shoulder. “Buck, they can’t help her if you don’t let go. It’s gonna be okay. You have to let her go,” Steve softly explained. Bucky shook his head. He couldn’t leave her. Steve frowned, he didn’t want to have to do this, but it was the only way to get her back. He knew Bucky wouldn't ever recover if he knew he stood in the way of her getting better and frankly, Steve didn't want to lose her either. He forcefully grabbed his friend, manually detaching his hands from her, and redirected his hold onto him. Loki simultaneously laid Ellie’s head back down, careful not to hurt her. Bucky fought back, pushing against the hold, but Steve only held him tighter. After a few minutes Bucky gave in, reality setting in again, they were going to help Ellie. 

Loki hovered his hands over Ellie's abdomen and Wanda lightly placed hers on Ellie’s temples. ‘I need you to repair her wounds. If I bring her back. She needs to be healed,’ Wanda told Loki through her mind. Loki nodded to her and started pushing his powers into her, correcting her injuries as he did, illuminating Ellie’s abdomen green. Wanda searched Ellie’s mind for Ellie’s energy, radiating a scarlet glow through her forehead from Wanda’s powers. She felt a light spark in the back of Ellie’s brain. ‘I think I have something,’ Wanda told him. 

‘Hold onto it and try and expand it. I’m almost done,’ Loki told her. He'd healed all of the major injuries. Her lungs were cleared and healed and the stab wounds were almost entirely repaired. ‘She still needs blood, but you need to bring her back,’ he continued. Wanda grabbed onto the spark and combined it with her powers, growing and strengthening it. Ellie’s power was starting to take its form again. ‘It’s working. You need to hurry, she’s been without oxygen too long,’ Wanda told him. Loki transitioned to replicating her remaining blood cells. He knew he couldn’t give her a standard transfusion. She needed the power that lived in those cells. Once Loki replicated enough cells in her body to allow her to survive if they were able to bring her back, he joined Wanda’s efforts. He pushed his powers into her mind as well. He could feel the power Wanda described. It was burning within her, ready to come back to life. ‘You can’t hold back. This is when it counts. We need to force the energy out. It should bring her back on its own,’ Loki told her. She looked up from Ellie and nodded at him. They both looked back down at their defeated friend and summoned their strength. Ellie’s powers meshed and mended with both Loki and Wanda’s taking a new, more powerful form. Her powers started to surpass their control, as her green energy started to swell around her body. ‘You can let go now,’ Loki told her. Wanda hesitated, she wasn’t ready to stop, not when it was Ellie's life at stake. “ Wanda, ” Loki reinforced. Wanda hesitantly gave in and lowered her powers along with Loki, then slowly stepped away from her friend. ‘You need to come back now gorgeous. It’s time,’ Loki directed to Ellie’s mind, unsure if she’d hear him. Loki needed her to wake. He should’ve gotten to her sooner, before this point, before they had to bring her back. Wanda’s face was hot from her tears. Pietro pulled her against him, letting her finally break down and feel her grief. Ellie’s body continued to faintly glow with her powers, but her body was still lifeless. 

“Why are you stopping!?” Tony demanded. He needed her to live. He didn’t want to go back to a world where she wasn’t there. Where she didn’t parade her cat around. He still didn’t know how she managed to convince him to let him come, but he couldn't say no to her. Despite all the shit she went through she was funny and kind and smart. She was constantly coming up with insanely smart ideas in the lab, humbling both him and Bruce, though never seeming to realize how impressive she was. She never once asked him for anything and was always so grateful. He thought that someday he'd be able to teach her that she deserved to be appreciated, treated right. She'd been given shit for too long, he wanted to provide her with unconditional support, even if it annoyed her. He hoped it maybe helped, to know she had his support, even when she didn't ask for it. She reminded Tony of himself, maybe a little too much. He was bad at talking about his feelings and asking for help too. Maybe she had help and he just didn’t know about it. She was close with Logan and Bucky, somehow. God, she really had a crazy effect on people. She'd completely won over the two grumpiest people on the team. He'd never seen either of them so upset. She hid her pain so well for so long, or did he just not see it? He wasn't around enough, he should've been there. Maybe the two of them were helping her. J.A.R.V.I.S. said they had both been there for her nightmares. God, what was wrong with him. How could he fuck up so monumentally. She was a scared kid, not selfish, or a liar. If he’d handled it better maybe she wouldn’t have left and this never would’ve happened. The last thing he did was call her selfish. There was no forgiving that. 

“It’s up to her now. We’ve given her what she needs,” Loki replied. Bucky looked up at Loki, who nodded at him, so he slowly moved away from Steve and knelt next to Ellie’s body. Bucky took her in his arms again and started whispering to her. 

Ellie walked through a dark hallway. Where was she? Where was Bucky? What happened? The room slowly brightened and Ellie explored her body. Her tank top was stained red. Right. She’d died. Ultron killed her. Ellie felt tears drop down her cheeks as she continued down the hall. She wanted to go back. She wanted to see her family again. Touch Bucky again, kiss him again. She was given the chance to be whole, but it was taken from her after she only had it for a few weeks. She was alone again. She wanted more time. She deserved more time. Ellie dropped to her knees, allowing herself to fall apart. She was dead, wasn't it supposed to not hurt anymore. She opened her eyes. She wasn’t in the hallway anymore. She was in her childhood bedroom, sitting on her bed. She brushed her tears aside and explored her long gone room. She missed the space. Ellie looked at the photos of her and her parents, the ones she’d longed to see for so long. She picked up the one from her homecoming dance. She was making a ridiculous face with her parents; they looked so happy. Another tear escaped her eye as she studied it. She gently put it back in its place. Ellie walked back to her bed and looked at the red panda stuffed animal that laid next to her pillow. She'd probably still be sleeping with it at the tower if it hadn't been in the house when it happened, or would've been, the tower was her past now. Ellie continued to gravitate around the room to a saucer chair that held her ‘pink blanket’. Her parents got it on the day she was born. Ellie had decided that she absolutely could not sleep without it until she was around 12. She felt the light fabric. There were so many things she wished she could bring back into her life, but that life was gone now. She walked over to her closet and grabbed her favorite sweatshirt, a crew neck of Sunflowers by Van Gogh, her favorite painting. She pulled off her tank top and replaced it with the clean clothing. 

Ellie opened the door to her bedroom, hoping she would be able to continue to explore. The door opened to the upstairs hallway. Ellie traced her fingers along the walls as she walked. She missed this place, her home. She felt safe here. It was untouched from reality, she hadn't really experienced anything bad when she was there, not yet. Ellie found the stairwell and looked at the pictures hung up along the steps. They chronologized her childhood. Ellie looked at the picture of her first halloween, dressed up as a pumpkin. Then one of her dressed up as a ladybug at her first dance recital, even though the girls weren’t super nice to her, Ellie always had fun. She smiled at the picture of her completely destroying her competition, though can you call them that if they aren't close to your level? at the science fair. She heard faint voices coming from the first floor. She instinctively tried to call onto her powers, but they didn’t work here, they died with her. Ellie carefully approached the voices, but they were suddenly perfectly clear to her. Ellie ran into the kitchen to find them, “Mom? Dad?” She entered the bright kitchen, filled with plants and nicknacks, and saw her parents standing together. Tears flooded into her eyes as she crashed into them, forcing them into a tight hug. “Are you really here?” Ellie quietly voiced her doubts through her sniffles. 

“Oh my beautiful Jellie Bean, we never left you,” her dad softly spoke. Ellie cried harder as she grasped onto them. 

“Where am I? What’s going on?” Ellie asked, finally pulling herself together. 

“This is the crossing over point. We’re here to help you,” her mom told her.

“It’s too soon,” her dad frowned. 

Ellie wasn’t ready to cross over. There was too much waiting for her. She already missed Logan. She wanted to hear him call her bub, to tell her she would be okay. She thought of Bucky. She didn’t want to leave him behind. She still needed him. He made her whole. She wasn’t ready to leave her new family. They were all still living. How could she do that? Choose her new family over her parents. It was wrong. “I’m sorry,” Ellie started, completely overwhelmed and guilty from her feelings. Her parents gave her confused, worried looks. “I found a new family. I shouldn’t have. You were here, watching me all this time and I-” Ellie cried. 

“Oh my dear,” Ellie’s mom pulled her back into the hug. “We are so grateful that you found family again. All that we have ever wanted was for you to be happy. We are so proud of the person you’ve become. You have nothing to be sorry for,” her mom explained. “It was hard to see you alone for so long. I am nothing but joyful when I see you with your new friends. Who, by the way, I really like. That Bucky is a real cutie,” her mom added, forcing a smile on Ellie's tear ridden face. 

“You need to come back now gorgeous, it’s time,” Loki’s voice echoed through the house. 

“Did you hear that?” Ellie asked her mom. 

She nodded to her. “I think you might have a second chance, Ellie.” She could go back? 

Ellie looked at her parents. Going back meant not seeing her parents again. “I don’t want to lose you again,” she trembled. 

“Jellie Bean, you can’t ever lose us. We’re with you when you feel nervous, when you laugh at a joke, when you eat one of Remy’s dinners, when you watch Star Wars, when you eat jelly filled donuts. We are a part of you, a part that you can never lose. You have so much more life to live. So many more donuts to eat. You need to go live it. We will be here when you’re old and grey and ready,” her dad gently explained with a smile. 

Ellie barely managed a nod and pulled them into a tight hug. “I love you so much. I miss you every day,” she cried. 

“We know. We love you, so much Jellie Bean,” her dad returned. 

“We love you, more than words can say Ellie. Go back to your home, your family. Be happy, be a hero, experience love, do all the things you’re meant to experience in your life, don’t you dare come back here before you’ve done that,” her mom sternly told her. Ellie nodded confidently. “Now, go out the back door, follow the hallway, don’t stop walking, no matter what. Oh, and Ellie, watch more of our movies. I’ll be watching them with you from here, I miss watching them with you. I love you,” she explained, placing a kiss on Ellie’s forehead. 

Ellie took their hands and squeezed them. “Thank you, you were the best parents I could’ve ever asked for. I don’t think I said that enough. I love you.” 

“I always knew,” her dad bragged. Her mom slapped him. “What? We were damn good parents!” he defended. Ellie smiled and shook her head at her parents. “Now go, and listen to your mother!” he dramatized. Ellie laughed through her tears and turned away from them. She hesitated. For so long all she wanted was to have them back. Could she really walk away from this? “You’ll be okay, Jellie Bean, we all will be. Our love keeps us strong. Don't waste this chance on life. I love you.” Ellie looked back at them one last time. They held each other, proudly watching her forge her way back into the world. She’d be okay. She smiled and nodded, then turned forward again and walked to the back door determined. Ellie threw it open and she was back to the dark hallway, she would go home. The tower could be her home. She was afraid before, to let it truly be her home, but now, if her mom said it was her home, it must be. Ellie started her journey home, unsure of how long she’d be going. 

“Doll?” Bucky’s voice echoed. Bucky? Ellie needed to get back to him. She imagined his arms at the end of the hallway. He would bring her home. Ellie sped up her pace, she started running down the hall. “Doll, please come back to me.” She would. She wouldn’t give up. Not when she had a second chance. Ellie continued down the seemingly endless hallway. “I love you so much, please come back to me, I need you doll.” She needed him too. There was a light at the end of the hallway. That was where she needed to go. Ellie increased into a sprint. She had to get there. “We’ll go on a date, a proper one. I should’ve taken my best girl out a long time ago,” Bucky continued. The light was getting brighter. She was going to be able to get there. She was going to get back. Go home. Live. She was less than 20 feet from the door. “We can stay in bed all day and watch Star Wars.” Ellie could feel the warmth from the door. 

Suddenly it was like she was surrounded by a gelatinous solution. She was stuck. No. No. No. Ellie tried to fight it, but she was barely making any progress. “Just please doll, come back to me please,” she could hear his voice getting weaker. Was he giving up? Bucky, please don’t give up on her. She needed him. If she was going to get through this she would need him. Ellie clawed through the invisible barrier around her. She’d come too far to give up. She was too close. She faintly heard other voices, Steve’s maybe? “No! She can do it, I know she can,” she heard Bucky yell. He wasn’t giving up. He believed in her. She could believe in her. Ellie called on her strength and to her surprise, her powers started to rise. “Keep going doll.” She ripped apart the sludge keeping her back. Now free, Ellie sprinted to the door again and felt the warm light fill her. 

Bucky cradled Ellie against his chest. Her body was completely limp in his arms. “Doll?” he whispered to her weak frame. He was so terrified that she might not wake up. He never wanted to be so attached to someone, that their dying made it feel like he was dying with them, but it was too late. Part of Bucky would never come back if Ellie didn’t wake up, possibly the part of him that was Bucky. “Doll, please come back to me,” he begged. He softly cupped the side of her face, she was still his beautiful doll. If he didnt think about it he could convince himself that she was sleeping. “I love you so much, please come back to me, I need you doll,” he continued. He hoped she could hear him. He wanted her to know how much he loved her, even if he’d said it before, it was never enough. Not with how much she’d saved him, changed his life. She was never supposed to die. They were supposed to live together, grow old together, and experience the love people Bucky and Steve’s age talked about. “We’ll go on a date, a proper one. I should’ve taken my best girl out a long time ago,” he thought aloud. He regretted not taking her out. He knew better, he was supposed to be a gentleman. Ellie’s body still glowed in his arms, unchanging. It was still glowing, so that was a good sign. “We can stay in bed all day and watch Star Wars,” he sighed a laugh. His tears grew stronger as he thought of all the things they wouldn’t get to do. “Just please doll, come back to me please,” he softly wept. 

Steve walked over to his friend and softly placed a hand on his shoulder. It was so hard to see Bucky in this much pain. Steve knew how much Ellie meant to him. “Buck, maybe it’s time. She might not-” Steve started. The words felt like daggers as he said them. Steve cared about Ellie too, but she wasn’t getting any better. 

“No! She can do it, I know she can,” Bucky snapped at his friend. Ellie’s body started to glow brighter in Bucky’s arms. He stared at her in amazement. “Keep going doll,” he whispered. Ellie’s whole body shined bright with her powers. He closely watched her. The power completely engulfed her. Bucky prayed for it to work. He had to squint his eyes, her light was too bright. She suddenly went completely dark, her powers returning into her. “Doll?” Bucky carefully asked. He nervously studied her. Ellie took a breath, her eyes still closed, her body unmoving, but she was breathing.

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

The medical team set up in Bruce's lab so they could use Helen’s tech. They had Ellie under constant monitoring. Her pulse was hovering around 40 bpm and her oxygen levels were in the 80s, but she was improving. She hadn’t woken up since the attack, but that wasn’t surprising. Helen assumed it would be at least until her vitals were in the normal range. Ultron had released the footage of Ellie being killed, so the whole world thought she was dead. He made the Avengers look weak, breakable. Bucky stayed by her side. They barely managed to get him to separate from her long enough to run their tests. It seemed like the healing Loki did was mostly effective. Helens tech was just finishing off the job. After that, it would be waiting for her to wake up and seeing what was left.

Bucky was asleep, holding her hand. He’d fallen asleep soon after they’d gotten there, and they told him she was stable. The exhaustion of his grief, then the sudden relief of knowing she was alive had taken a significant toll on him. Remy sat on Ellie’s other side, holding her other hand, with Logan sitting next to him. Logan was quietly listening in on the conversation going on around him, but he was much more concerned about Ellie. Remy was still a complete mess, so everything happening around him was meaningless. Tony sent Peter to stay with his Aunt with S.H.I.E.L.D. surveillance. It was all a little too serious for him. He was still a kid, mostly untouched by the world. He didn’t need to deal with watching his friend fight for her life and participate in their town hall. He’d be safer there. His identity was hidden, and Ultron seemed to dislike them cause they were killers and Peter wasn’t. Plus, he wasn’t a big enough threat to be targeted, not like Ellie. Tony stared at his iron legion suit. The one Ultron had used to kill Ellie. He created Ultron, he created the Iron Legion, he brought Ellie to the Avengers. He was the common factor. It was all his fault. He turned his focus to her. She looked so weak and helpless. She hardly resembled the girl he knew. The girl with the fierce wit, which rivaled his own. It felt like staring at a ghost. There was no way of knowing if she was going to wake up. It was a miracle they got her breathing again, but it was still possible she would be in a coma forever. “All our work is gone. Ultron cleared out. He used the internet as an escape hatch,” Bruce explained, Tony didn't bother to look up.

“Ultron,” Steve muttered.

“He’s been in everything. Files, surveillance. Probably knows more about us than we know about each other,” Natasha continued. Logan looked up, that meant he knew about Ellie’s nightmares, and her DNA. 

“He’s in your files, he’s in the internet. What if he decides to access something a little more exciting?” Rhodey questioned. 

“Nuclear codes?” Maria finished his thought.

“Nuclear codes,” he confirmed. “Look, we need to make some calls. Assuming we still can.” 

“Nukes?” Natasha asked. “He said he wanted us dead.” 

“He didn’t say ‘dead’. He said ‘extinct’,” Steve corrected.  

“He also said he killed two people,” Clint added. 

“Everyone else was accounted for,” Maria explained. 

“Not everyone,” Tony muttered. He casted the destroyed J.A.R.V.I.S. program, then walked away. He returned to his spot, staring at the destruction he’d caused. 

“Oh my god. This is insane,” Bruce muttered. 

“J.A.R.V.I.S. was the first line of defense. He would’ve shut Ultron down, it makes sense,” Steve continued. 

“No. Ultron could have assimilated J.A.R.V.I.S. This isn’t strategy. This is rage,” Bruce realized. 

Simultaneously Thor strutted up to Tony, grabbing him by his neck and pushed him against the wall. “It’s going around,” Clint quietly quipped. 

“Come on, use your words, buddy,” Tony requested, trying to maintain his cool facade, knowing he deserved to be in Ellie’s position, or worse. 

“I have more than enough words to describe you, Stark,” Thor spat. “You did this.” 

“Thor! The legionnaire,” Steve demanded. Thor begrudgingly dropped Tony. 

“Trail went cold about 100 miles out, but it’s headed north. And it has the Scepter. Now we have to retrieve it, again,” Thor complained. His expression softened as he walked over to Ellie. “How is she?” 

“Her vitals are trending upwards. My machine is almost done healing her. Wanda and Loki did a very good job, but she is going to need to be at full health before she’ll wake up again. We will probably need to give her a transfusion at some point,” Helen answered. 

“No, Ellie’s blood is different, molecularly. She won’t get better if you just give her a transfusion. It needs to be her blood,” Bruce added. 

“I can replicate it again when you need me to,” Loki added. 

“Thank you brother. And lady Wanda,” He gestured his thanks. Wanda gave a slightly sheepish smile; she was exhausted from the day. “Mother would be proud brother,” Thor beamed at his brother, Loki weakly returned the gesture, still overwhelmed by the evening's events. 

“I don’t get it, why did Ultron go after Ellie? Sure, she’s powerful, but he was waiting for her. What makes her so much more of a threat than Wanda or Loki? Their powers similar? I don’t understand it,” Sam asked aloud. He wasn’t expecting an answer. He knew no one could know why Ultron did it. He just wanted his friend back. He wanted to make some dumb comment and have her try and put him in his place. He already missed the shit she'd pull just to screw with him. He hadn't had someone he could banter with so fluidly since Riley. He couldn’t accept that there was any reason for her to be taken so selfishly and violently. 

“Wanda?” Steve joined. “Ultron played your voice, what do you know?”

“Hey,” Pietro injected protectively. 

“It’s fine. Ellie’s powers are different from mine and I assume Lokis. The way it lives in her, it’s far more powerful. She has infinite possibilities. She’s surpassed my abilities in the weeks she’s had her powers,” Wanda explained. 

Loki stepped forward. His input now relevant. “I suspect part of what makes her so powerful is her capacity to accept and integrate power sources as her own. That ability is what made it possible for us to bring her back. I expect she’ll be even more powerful when she wakes, since she used Wanda and I’s powers to fuel her own. We were simply donating energy, she did all of the work bringing herself back to life,” Loki continued. “She has barely scratched the surface of what she's capable of. Ultron’s methods were flawed, but his reasoning was sound.” 

“You built this program. Why is it trying to kill us?” Helen chimed in, redirecting the conversation towards Tony. 

Tony started laughing. Uncontrollably. Everything came down on him all at once. Bruce shook his head at him, muttering for him to stop. 

“You think this is funny?” Thor accused. Logan slowly started to get out of his seat. 

“No. It’s probably not, right?” Tony asked, no longer able to hold it together. 

“Ellie is fighting for her fucking life right now and you think it’s fucking funny?” Logan growled. 

“This is very terrible. Is it so…” he started. He knew the answer. He wouldn’t be able to look at himself without feeling disgusted and ashamed of the person looking back at him. “It is. It’s so terrible,” he decided. Tony couldn’t maintain his facade anymore. He was feeling too much. It was coming out in maybe the worst way possible, when didn't it, but it wasn’t hiding anymore. 

“It could’ve been avoided if you didn’t play with something you don’t understand,” Thor continued. 

“No. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. It is funny. It’s a hoot that you don’t get why we need this,” Tony aggressively snapped. If Ultron had worked, the way it was supposed to, it would’ve protected people. It could’ve kept Ellie safe. 

“Tony, maybe this might not be the time,” Bruce cautioned. 

“Really? That’s it? Really? You just roll over, show your bell every time somebody snarls?” Tony snapped back. 

“Only when I’ve created a murder bot,” Bruce reasoned. 

“We didn’t. We weren’t even close. Even Ellie would attest to that. Were we close to an interface?” Tony asked Bruce who shrugged and nodded simultaneously.

“Well, you did something right. And you did it right here,” Steve continued. 

“You roped Ellie into it too?” Thor questioned.

“No, Ellie helped us willingly. I’m not sure we would’ve gotten very far with the gem without her,” Tony corrected. 

“So what, you’re saying it’s her fault,” Thor accused. 

“God, I can’t say anything right, can I? Obviously none of this was her fucking fault she’s just a kid,” Tony snapped, raw emotions seeping through his words. He softened his tone, “Anybody remember when I carried a nuke through a wormhole?” 

“Nope, never come up. Never heard that,” Rhodey replied.

“Saved New York. Recall that? A hostile alien army came charging through a hole in space. We’re standing 300 feet below it. We’re the Avengers. We can bust arms dealers all the livelong day, but that up there, that’s the endgame. How were you guys planning on beating that?” Tony justified. 

“Together,” Steve stated. 

“We’ll lose.” 

“Then we’ll do that together too.” 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

(ELLIE’S PERSPECTIVE)

Ellie’s head pounded as she shifted. “Doll?” Bucky’s perfect voice spoke. She forced her eyes open to look at him. His ocean blue eyes met hers. Tears instantly welted in his eyes and he broke into a huge smile of relief. “I love you so much, Doll,” he cried. He cupped the side of her face and placed a small kiss onto her lips. Ellie tried to sit up but her entire body burned with pain, she gasped out. Why did she hurt so much? He helped her lower back down. “They said you might still be in pain. Loki and Helen healed you, but your body itself is still healing, if that makes sense. Coming back from that, it shouldn’t have been possible. They’re not sure what other effects it’s going to have on you,” Bucky explained. Ellie nodded along. She was still a little fuzzy about what had happened. She remembered the party, getting dinner. She went up to her room after and there was that voice. Ellie felt panic rise through her as she recalled the events from the night. She started hyperventilating and the monitor beeped louder, with her distress. “Hey, you’re okay now. You’re safe here. No one is going to hurt you,” he reassured her, softly cradling her face in his hands, keeping her looking at him.

“What happened? How- how am I?" she stuttered. She'd died. She knew she had. She felt it happen. How was it possible for her to be alive right now. There wasn't any medicine in the world that could treat her after how much blood she'd lost.

"Loki, he um, he healed your wounds and got Wanda's help to bring you back. I don't understand exactly what happened, but they saved you, brought you back to life," he stuttered. 

"Where’s Ultron?” Ellie desperately asked him. Her voice was weak from not being used. He frowned and broke their eye contact. “Bucky? How long have I been out? What have I missed?” Ellie demanded.

“You’ve been in a coma for a couple days,” Bucky shortly answered. Ellie sighed and put her hands against her face. She needed to stop losing time. She needed to stop becoming weak and vulnerable. It wasn’t okay. She was supposed to be better, stronger. “Ultron got away,” Bucky quietly told her. Ellie could feel the blood rush from her face. He was still out there? Ellie was still completely vulnerable to another attack. He would come back. He said he killed her for a reason, he would find her again and finish the job. She felt completely helpless. Like when he’d cornered her in her room. “They’re tracking him down. As far as we know he still thinks you're dead. He’s not going to come looking for you. If he does I’ll be here to protect you. There are also agents stationed all throughout the floor and the building. He won't have the element of surprise. Not again,” he explained. He brushed his hand against her face. “Doll, I am so sorry I wasn't there to keep you safe before, but that won’t happen again. I won't leave you again,” he apologized. 

Ellie wasn’t content with that answer. She needed to know what was happening. Specifically. She needed to get back the time she’d lost. “Where is everyone? What have they learned about Ultron? When am I going to get better? Being like this, I’m not safe, Bucky. I don’t feel safe. Not while he’s out there. I need to get better,” Ellie ranted. 

“They tracked Ultron to a weapons dealer, but they went off the grid afterwards. Apparently there was an incident with the Hulk. They’re at a safe house. Tony sent Peter to stay with his aunt. Um, Loki, Logan and Remy are all still here. Loki wanted to stay in case something happened medically and they needed him. The other two just didn’t want to leave you,” Bucky answered. Ellie visibly watched him think, then continue speaking, “Your doctors said that you should start feeling better within a day or so of waking up. I’m so sorry this is happening Ellie, but doll, you are so lucky to be alive right now. You are my whole world and I thought I’d lost you,” he trembled. Ellie frowned, she’d completely disregarded how he was feeling in her panic. 

“I’m sorry Bucky. I love you so much. I um, I heard you, when I was-” she struggled, flashes of her time with her parents coming back. “Without you being there, I don’t know if I’d be here right now. You’re my reason for living, the other part of my heart, Bucky,” Ellie told him. “I’m just scared of everything going on,” she admitted. She still felt weak and tired and she wanted to be closer to him. To touch him again. “Bucky, will you lay with me?” she quietly asked. 

“Of course doll,” he replied with a smile. Fortunately the bed was relatively large. He walked around the bed and easily sat down next to her. He gently wrapped his arm around her. “Does this hurt?” he asked before placing more weight against her. Ellie shook her head. He settled in closer against her, until their sides were completely touching. His head leaned against her chest, she didn't know how, but she knew he was listening to her heart beat, there was worry and a desire to know she was okay radiating from him. It was strange, she didn't know why she could feel it, maybe she was coming up with it in her head. As his mind eased, so did hers and she started to relax, feeling safer in his arms. Ellie slowly relaxed her head against his, easing into the pain the movement brought. It was worth it once she pressed her head against him. She soaked in his scent, savoring the sensation she thought she'd lost. She could faintly hear his breaths. Ellie focused on it, her eyes slowly started to close as steady rhythm eased her mind. “You should get some more sleep, doll. You’re still tired, your body needs the rest,” Bucky gently offered. Ellie felt at ease in his arms, comforted and loved. She subtly nodded against him and let her body ease into sleep. “I love you,” he quietly spoke, as she drifted out of consciousness. 

Ellie woke up sweating, Ultron’s voice haunting her as she slept. Images of her blood pooling around her body crept into her mind. She needed Bucky. Bucky? He wasn’t next to her. He wasn’t there. Where was he? Why wasn’t he there? He wasn’t supposed to leave her. She wasn’t protected. Bucky?! Ellie was starting to panic. She tried to get up. Her body was sore, but it didn’t hurt her like it had before. Where did he go? Why did he leave? Bucky? Ellie weakly managed to sit up in her bed. She carefully removed all the crap they had attached to her, then stood up. Was she in Bruce's lab? Her legs wobbled when she did. Was Ultron there? Was that why he left? Ellie called on her powers and they actually worked. She stood for a moment, just feeling them course through her again, feeling safer already. She could protect herself again. Ellie placed her shield and continued searching for him.  Bucky? Why did he leave? She turned and saw the face of the Ultron bot that had killed her. It was laying on a bench. She couldn't breathe. Was it still active? How was she supposed to protect herself? Ellie heard the elevator ding and she swung her head around. She saw the shine of Bucky’s metal arm in the door, but she quickly re took her gaze on the bot. She didn't want it to sneak up on her. “Ellie? Doll?” Bucky called out concerned, she gave him a quick glance and he was looking in the direction of her empty bed. His footsteps rapidly picked up and he met her side, pulling her against him in an anxiety filled hug.

"Is- is that?" she stuttered, gently pointing to the bot.

She watched him follow her hand, then reposition them, so she wasn't looking at it anymore. "It's okay. The suit isn't active. It can't hurt you," he gently spoke into their hold. Her body dissolved into him. “Doll, are you okay?” he asked, gently bringing them apart so he could look at her, obviously scanning her for injuries.

“I woke up and you were gone,” Ellie whispered, tears finally breaking free. 

He pulled her back against his chest and gently brushed her hair. “Oh, I’m so sorry. We got news from the others, they called me into a meeting. I didn’t want to go, but they insisted,” he frowned. 

“Are they okay?” Ellie nervously asked. 

“Yeah, of course. They just think they might have a lead, so they’re going to be gone for a couple more days. They also said that you’re benched from this one, so don’t get any crazy ideas,” Bucky smiled. Ellie nodded, she didn’t really feel like entering any battles at the moment anyways. “Um, doll,” he awkwardly transitioned. “I could uh, I could hear you in my head. That’s how I knew you were awake and looking for me. That’s never happened before. Were you doing that on purpose?” he carefully asked. 

Ellie looked at him confused, she was talking to him in his mind? Like what Loki does? “I didn’t know I was doing that, or that I could do that,” she admitted, confused by her new ability. Her eyes trailed past his face and she frowned, looking at the now daunting lab. “Can we go? I don’t want to be in this room anymore,” Ellie asked. 

“Sure, but only if we stop by the medical floor first, just to get you checked out,” Bucky negotiated. Ellie groaned but conceded. Bucky continued to fill her in as they walked into the elevator. “I told everyone that you woke up. Remy is cooking, I know, shocking,” he deadpanned. “I told them that you were sort of overwhelmed with everything, so you’d need a little while to process. So, hopefully they won’t be all obnoxious. Tony sent Peter to stay with his Aunt,” Bucky explained. Ellie froze, her face pale, as more of the night came back to her. “What is it, doll?”

“Tony,” Ellie breathed. Bucky softly grabbed her shoulder in support and looked at her with concern and confusion. “The night of the party, we had a fight,” Ellie explained. “Ju- just before it- it happened,” she stuttered, flashes of Ultron's face, the sword, and her blood filling her mind. “He- he knows,” Ellie barely managed. Bucky furrowed his eyebrows. “My nightmares. He knows.” Ellie could feel herself shaking. “He was so mad at me,” she trembled, the emotions all rising, from not having the chance to feel them. “I thought he was going to send me away. He still could Bucky,” she spiraled. 

“We are going to work this out, doll. You won’t have to see him for a couple days, so at least there’s that,” he attempted. The doors opened into the medical food and they stepped out. Ellie knew the space well, which wasn't exactly a good thing. They walked up to the charge nurses’ desk. “Hi there, we were hoping to meet with doctor Sinclair,” Bucky kindly said. 

“I’ll page her. You can go into room 2 while you wait,” the nurse replied. 

“Thank you,” Bucky smiled. Ellie mirrored the action and followed Bucky into the room. She sat down on the exam bed and looked over at Bucky. “Doctor Sinclair helped you while you were out,” he explained. Ellie nodded. 

Moments after they did, a tall woman walked into the room. She gave Bucky a knowing smile, then looked at Ellie. She raised her hand, “Doctor Sinclair, it’s nice to finally meet you,” she beamed. Ellie shook her hand, sort of thrown off by her. “I’m so glad to see you awake. You had us worried for a little while there. So, I’m assuming that since you’re up and about the majority of the pain is gone?” Ellie just nodded, feeling completely weird around her, for no clear reason, maybe it was because she was there when Ellie was out? And they’ve never actually met, so the relationship was weirdly one sided? “That’s good news, it means your body is healing at the proper rate again. Or, your proper rate,” she laughed to herself. “I want to test some vitals,” she smiled. Ellie nodded again and she got to work. She took Ellie’s blood pressure, Pulse-Ox, ECG, blood, temperature, weight. “Okay, so these all look pretty good, you’ve lost some weight, but that’s not surprising. You need to eat meals filled with good nutrients and to hydrate. I’m going to test you CBC, but based on what I’m seeing so far I don’t think you’re back to your full blood volume yet. I know we talked about how we didn’t expect her to wake up without the proper count, but my guess is her powers compensated for it. So, you should see Loki so he can speed up that process. You should start feeling a lot better once those are up. Other than that everything looks good. I’m going to get your blood test started. I’ll be right back,” she smiled. 

“She seems, nice?” Ellie chimed. 

Bucky chuckled. “Yeah. She was actually really great while you were in the coma. I um, I wasn’t doing great and she helped to make sure I was well enough to be there for you when you woke up,” he admitted. Ellie reached for his hand and squeezed it, looking at him in his eyes. She slowly lowered her gaze to their hands. She felt guilty for everything he had to go through. She felt responsible for his pain. “You have no reason to feel guilty,” Bucky told her. She looked up at him completely freaked out. How did he know that? What was happening to her? Why were her thoughts and emotions being casted into his mind? “Doll, you need to breathe. I don’t know why or how, but I could feel the guilt you were feeling, which is completely unnecessary for the record. None of this was your fault,” he explained. 

Doctor Sinclair walked back in, interrupting Ellie’s freak out. She either ignored or completely missed the mood in the room, because she just started talking about Ellie’s test results. “Like I thought, your red blood cell counts are lower than I would like. I want you to go get those replenished as soon as possible with Loki. I’m going to run a quick neurological exam, then you should be fine to be on your way,” she explained. Ellie nodded and she started the test. She had Ellie do a bunch of goofy tests to make sure her reflexes and coordination were intact. It all came out perfectly and she finished it off by looking in Ellie’s eyes. “Alright, all done,” she announced, as she took off her gloves and washed her hands. “Neurological exam looks good. You should continue to rest today. Assuming you have your blood replenished, you should be able to resume normal activity starting tomorrow. Your healing factor is working just as we hoped it would. You got really lucky Ellie, don’t waste this second chance on life,” she softly told her, looking directly into her eyes. 

Ellie actually felt a connection with her this time. She could feel it. The need to do something with her life. It had a greater meaning, purpose, now. “I won't,” Ellie promised. “Thank you,” Ellie spoke as she stepped out of the room. Ellie looked over to Bucky, who looked a lot more relaxed now. “So, you said Remy made food?” Bucky smiled and nodded as he helped her off the bed. Ellie was definitely still weak and a little light headed. She relied on his sturdy figure for support as they walked together into the elevator. “I know it wasn’t my fault, but I’m sorry you had to go through that. I know how I felt when I thought I lost you and-” Ellie stumbled on her words, not wanting to remember that fear. “I’m sorry you felt that too,” she gently spoke, as the elevator doors opened. 

They stepped inside. “I love you doll, so much,” he pronounced as the doors closed. He carefully cupped her face and kissed her. She could feel his love, fear, longing, need, and pain all swirled together in the embrace. Ellie savored the feel of his lips on hers. Bucky slowly pulled them apart and studied her face. “I still can’t believe you're really okay. I never thought I’d see your smile, hear your laugh, kiss you, ever again. I thought I lost you Ellie, I didn’t know if you’d wake up, even after they brought you back. I couldn’t breathe. It felt like I lost a part of me and my body was trying to find a way to live without it, but it couldn’t. I couldn’t Ellie,” he breathed, tears dropping down his face. 

Ellie used her powers to temporarily stop the elevator as she pulled him into a tight hug, “I’m here now, I’m here. I’m not going anywhere, you’re stuck with me,” she joked through her own growing tears. “We can make a deal. I won't let myself overuse my powers anymore without constant supervision. That way I wont ever be able to get hurt like this again,” she proposed. 

“So, I’ll be your babysitter?” Bucky suggested. 

“Sure,” Ellie agreed, laughing a little at him. She heard her stomach growl, so she undid her hold on the elevator. They rode up to the common floor together, leaning against each other for support. “It’s just Remy, Logan and Loki right?” Ellie confirmed, preparing herself. Bucky nodded. She took a deep breath as the elevator dung open. She stepped into the familiar space that now felt strange. Only days ago they’d watched Star Wars and had cocoa, but it felt like years. She carefully stepped in further, still relying on Bucky for her strength. She heard quiet conversation in the kitchen area. Ellie continued to breathe, focusing on that. These were her friends, she could do this. Well Remy and Logan were. Loki was a pain in the ass. He had shown up when she needed help, not in a nice way, but he was there.

A loud crashing noise filled the room. The blood escaped her face and panic filled Ellie’s mind. She drew her shield around her and Bucky instinctually, as she teleported behind Bucky and turned invisible, relying on him for protection. Was he back? Was it Ultron? It was too soon. She wasn’t ready. She wasn’t strong again. “Cheri?” She slowly peered her head around Bucky's shoulder to find the voice. She reversed her invisibility when she saw Remy. Her heart was still racing and her breathing was unsteady. The sound. Where did the sound come from? Ellie rapidly scanned the room, searching for any sign of what it could've been. Any trace of a metal bot, coming to finish the job. “It’s okay, it was only a pan. Remy dropped it accidentally. You’re okay,” Remy told her, it was a pan? She searched through the kitchen and saw it on the tiled floors. Her breathing started to slow. It wasn't Ultron. She wasn't attacked. She was okay. Her slowed breathing allowed her brain to actually process what was happening. She was safe. She realized she was clamping onto Bucky's arm, so she slowly let go and dropped her shield. “Cheri, you should come sit. Remy is so happy to see you. I am making you our favorite, Po’Boys,” he beamed. Ellie smiled as much as she was capable, which unfortunately wasn’t much. She weakly thanked him and Bucky helped her to the couch. She summoned a blanket and curled up in one of the corners. “Remy will bring you food." Ellie returned a small nod and he returned to the kitchen.

“I’ll be right back, doll,” Bucky told her as he followed Remy. She placed her shield the second he stepped away, needing another layer of protection if he wasn't by her side. Ellie faintly listened to their conversation. “Hey, thanks for treating her normally, it’s really what’s best for her,” Bucky quietly said. 

“Nothing about this is normal! How can you just pretend that it is?” Remy snapped back in a hushed tone. 

Ellie froze. She’d never heard him talk like that. He was always such a happy and bright presence. Ellie could feel her stupid tears trying to break free again. “Bub, don’t listen to them,” Logan interjected, pulling her focus as he sat down next to her. She took one look at him and pulled him into a hug, said tears breaking free. She was so tired of feeling so many things. At that moment, she was just grateful to be able to hug her friend again. She’d missed him so much. “I missed you too bub,” he returned. Well, guess that doesn’t just work on Bucky. She sat in their embrace, soaking in his warmth, trust, goodness. Their relationship was safe and uncomplicated. It was exactly what she needed at that moment. 

“Thank you for everything you’ve done for me Logan,” Ellie said into his chest. When she was stuck in limbo she realized how many things she wanted to say, but didn’t. Ellie gently pulled out of their hug so she could look at him. She needed to look into his eyes, so he’d hear her, know that she meant it. “You’ve done more for me, mean more to me, than you realize,” she told him. “I think you’re my best friend Logan. I’ve never had a real best friend before, but I think this is what it feels like,” she awkwardly explained. An argument could be made for Bucky, but that relationship was different, their romantic feelings were mixed into it. If Ellie had a problem she could easily go to Logan with it, she trusted him completely. She felt safe with him. 

“Well bub, don’t tell Remy this, but I think you might be my best friend too,” he told her, Ellie blushed. “If we’re labeling it,” he clarified with a smile. “Oh, I forgot, I’ve been watching your cat. He is really clingy, you know,” Logan explained, leading Ellie to laugh. Paw! She hadn’t seen him since it happened. She needed her cat. He must’ve been so scared. “I’ll go get him for you bub,” Logan told her with a smile. 

“Thank you Logan,” she smiled as he got up and walked over to the elevator. Ellie tried to turn around to see what was going on in the kitchen, but her body ached too much. Guess it would remain a mystery. She turned her head back around and Loki was standing right in front of her. “Jesus,” Ellie muttered, literally jumping in her seat.

“Well hello gorgeous,” Loki purred as he appeared seemingly out of nowhere. “I hear you’re in need of blood.”

“Loki,” Ellie started, trying to sit up better in her seat, but struggled with her angry muscles. Loki looked at her, completely amused and not making any efforts to help her. She glared at him, but remembered he literally brought her back to life, so she let him have that one. She finally sat up enough that she could have an actual conversation with him, so she continued, “Loki, I want to thank you.” He'd given her more reasons than she could count to be pissed off at him, but this made that all seem silly now. He'd given her a second chance at life and she'd never forget it. 

“Well don’t,” he returned, coolly. Ellie furrowed her brows at him. He never struck her as someone who didn't like gratitude. She always assumed he'd soak it up, especially being a prince. “So, blood?” 

“Um, yeah,” Ellie awkwardly replied. Loki approached her and lifted his powers. He started to work on her, replicating her cells. The powers felt warm as they flowed through her body. “Loki, do you think there’s any possibility of me getting new powers from this whole thing? I’ve been doing that thing you do where I talk to people through their minds since I woke up. I wasn’t able to do that before,” she divulged. With them not actively arguing she hoped he might actually be able to help her control and understand it. Having her private thoughts projected into people’s minds was not on her list of things she wanted to have happen.

“Interesting,” Loki noted as he worked. “I thought that might happen. When Wanda and I worked, our powers intertwined with yours. It seems you may have taken up some of their properties, including, apparently, telepathic communication,” he casually explained. He lowered his powers and the warmth faded. “You’re done,” he flatly told her. Ellie attempted to move around again and felt a lot better than before. 

“How do you control it? The telepathic communication, I mean. It seems to share my thoughts at random,” Ellie continued. 

“It’s likely the loud thoughts in your mind,” he explained. Ellie furrowed her eyebrows. “The things that are stressing you out, what you want to say but don’t, or can’t; very strong opinions or feelings, things like that. Anyways, my mother helped me learn to control it, it’s actually quite easy. I can help you if you’d like,” he nonchalantly offered. 

“Yes, please. Thank you Loki,” Ellie happily spoke. Loki just nodded at her and walked away. She did not understand him at all, though a confusing Loki was better than an arrogant self absorbed Loki, so she'd deal. She shrugged it off, more consumed by her new energy and the relief of knowing her whole thoughts sharing issue was going to be resolved soon. Ellie was able to sit up and to look over at the kitchen to see why Bucky still wasn’t back. Ellie smiled wide when she saw him working on making her hot cocoa. She conjured a note saying ‘thank you Bucky, I love you’ into his hand. She could feel love radiate off of him, that was new too. Ellie summoned the TV remote and turned on Star Wars episode VII and resumed it where they’d left off. Ellie watched Han and Luke ride above the dunes. “I grew up here you know,” she said with Luke. “You’re going to die here you know,” she returned with Han, smiling with the line. Ellie curled up in her blanket, excited about the upcoming scene. Just before Luke was going to fall to his death, R2D2 sent him his lightsaber, and they started an awesome fight scene. Ellie laughed as Han accidentally defeated Boba Fett. The elevator door opened again and Logan walked out holding her cat. “Paw!” Ellie exclaimed. Paw forced himself out of Logan’s arms and ran to Ellie. 

“Well fuck you too, I only took care of you for the last few days,” Logan scoffed. 

Ellie paid him zero care as she pet her cat. He purred loudly as he rubbed against her face and hands, begging for all of her attention. “Thank you Logan. For bringing him and taking care of him. It means a lot to me,” she told him with a big smile from her cat's attention. 

“Of course. So, we’re watching more of these?” he asked, gesturing to the T.V. 

“Oh, this is only the beginning. You’re going to have to learn to love them,” Ellie told him. “They’re great movies, you can’t disagree with that,” Ellie decided for him as he took a seat on the couch. Her focus was moved when the imperial march theme started and she started singing along with it. She heard movement coming from behind her and realized it was Bucky coming with her cocoa. She beamed at him as he brought it to her. She sniffed the chocolate deliciousness in her cat mug. “Thank you, I already feel better. Come sit with me,” she told him tapping on the cushion next to her. He sat down next to her and she pulled the blanket over so it covered both of them. He wrapped his arm around her and she leaned against him, but rapidly stopped and got excited when she recognized a familiar swamp on the screen. “Bucky, Bucky, Bucky, it’s Yoda!” she excitedly told him. He just nodded along with her, but she felt admiration radiating from him. “When 900 years old you reach, look as good you will not, hmm?” Ellie spoke with Yoda. “Actually, Logan might look that good, better actually. Loki's actually older than that I think. Bucky, you age slower too. Huh, that doesn’t land as well in this crowd,” Ellie realized aloud as she scanned the room. 

“Food!” Remy called from the kitchen. “Remy will bring it to you, so don’t get up,” he told them. Ellie smiled, sighing slightly at his insistent denial of help, but it wasn’t like she was any better. She turned back to the screen, frowning at the scene unfolding before her. It was one of her least favorites and favorites at the same time. Bucky squeezed her hand in support. She felt much more affected by it now, it felt much more raw and personal. Remy set a plate of his Po’Boys in front of her. “For you, Cheri,” he smiled. Ellie accepted the food, thanking him. “Oh, I have a drink for you too. After you're done with your cocoa of course,” he smiled before walking back into the kitchen. She knew his smile was fake, Ellie could feel so much worry coming from him, it was seeping into her, practically making her worry along with him. He came back and handed her a green reusable water bottle, “it has electrolyte powder in the water. It doesn’t taste amazing, but the doctors said you needed to hydrate. There are more in the drawer with the tea and cocoa,” he explained. 

“Thank you Remy. This is wonderful, I really appreciate it,” she told him. He smiled and went back to the kitchen to grab his food, then rejoined them on the couch. Ellie started trying to eat her Po’Boy. It looked and smelled delicious. She lifted it up to eat, but stopped when it reached her mouth. She felt sick at the thought of eating. Her body felt so weird. She was hungry but she didn’t have an appetite. She held the sandwich and looked at it, trying to encourage herself to eat. Maybe she should finish her cocoa first. She took small sips from her cocoa, but her body was almost nauseated by the intake of any food or liquid. She set it down and frowned at it sitting there, barely touched. Bucky and Remy both made her favorite things and she wasn’t able to enjoy them. 

“Are you okay doll?” Bucky asked her softly. 

“I don’t feel good. I want to eat but I can’t,” Ellie frowned. She just wanted things to be normal again. Eating a meal with her friends should be normal, or at the very least the eating part. 

“I’m sorry doll,” Bucky comforted, pulling her tighter against him, providing physical support. “I know this isn’t what you want to hear, but you have to eat, at least a little. It’s the only way you’re going to get better,” he gently told her. “Can you try to eat half of it for me? You can take your time. I’m in no rush,” he warmly offered. Ellie weakly nodded and looked back at her food, which looked a lot more intimidating now. “I know you can do this, you can do anything, I believe in you,” he quietly encouraged. She smiled and lightly kissed him before turning back to her new mission. Ellie fought her mind as she watched one of her favorite movies. She had to force herself to take each bite, taking it quickly and without thinking about it. It wasn’t as bad as she expected to actually eat and it was getting slightly easier with every bite, but it still took her the entire movie to eat half of the sandwich; she was completely full and felt sort of sick by the end. She set the plate down with the half eaten sandwich, deciding she was done. “Good job, doll, I’m proud of you,” Bucky whispered to her. She smiled at him, then relaxed against him, just wanting to rest. Ellie summoned the remote again as the credits rolled and switched the movie over to Cars. She needed a classic, happy, goofy, cute kids movie and that was one of her favorites. Ellie let herself think only of the movie and not the current realities of her world. She needed a break, even if it was brief. By the time they got to the third movie Ellie could barely keep her eyes open. Remy and Logan both left somewhere around the middle of the second movie and Loki hadn't even stayed for all of Star Wars, so it was just her and Bucky. “You need to go to sleep. We can go back to your floor,” Bucky offered. 

“I’m scared,” Ellie whispered. That was where it had happened. Where Ultron had found her. Attacked her. Where she’d bled. Where she’d given up. 

“We can go together. I won’t leave you, I promise, but you should sleep in your own bed. I understand if it’s too much, we can sleep here,” he softly explained.

“No, I can do it, you won't leave?” Ellie confirmed. 

“I would never leave you,” Bucky promised. Ellie firmly grasped his hand and they walked to the elevator, Paw trotting by their side. “It’s going to be okay, I’m here,” Bucky reassured her as they pressed onto her floor. Ellie’s heart was racing. She raised her shield around her, Bucky and Paw, not willing to take any chances. Part of her expected Ultron to be waiting for her again. Ready to finish what he started. The elevator stopped on her floor and she froze, terrified of what she might see. When she left it, there was probably a third of her blood volume pooled on the floor of her living room. She grazed her fingers over her abdomen, feathering over the skin. “Just breathe, it’s okay, you’re safe,” he reminded her as the door opened. They stepped inside and it was like nothing had happened. There was no blood, no scuff marks on the walls, no stains on the floors, there was no trace of the event haunting Ellie’s mind. She didn’t know how to feel. She appreciated that it wasn’t a reminder, but it felt off. Bucky started to guide her into her bedroom, stopping her from staring at the confusing space. She wanted him to check the floor. To make sure Ultron wasn’t lurking, waiting for them to fall asleep. “Of course, doll. Do you want to stay here or come with me?” he asked. Oh, she projected that into his mind.

 “I don’t want to be alone,” she quietly replied. 

Bucky nodded. He continued to hold her hand as he surveyed the floor, but he clearly intentionally kept her behind him. She did have her shield around the both of them, and Paw, wherever he was, so they were relatively protected from harm, but she still felt vulnerable. They walked into Ellie’s bedroom after confirming the rooms outside were safe. Once Paw followed them in, Bucky locked the door, which actually made Ellie feel a little better, even though Ultron would easily be able to get through that. Bucky checked her closet and bathroom, then turned to face her, his shoulders and jaw relaxing. “It’s just us,” he told her. Those words must’ve been all her body needed, because in an instant she dissolved into a sobbing mess. All of her feelings finally escaping in full. Her pain, fear, grief, loss, all seeped out of her as she crumbled into Bucky’s chest. “Oh, doll,” he gently comforted as he held her against him. He helped guide her into the bed as she continued to cry. She was beyond words, she was isolated to her raw feelings. She laid against his chest, soaking his shirt with her tears, as her body grew heavy. “I love you doll, you’re safe now, I’m here,” he quietly whispered to her as she wept. Eventually her exhaustion defeated her emotion and she drifted into sleep. 

◎ーーーーー◎ーーーーー◎

Ellie woke up thrashing. Just like the night before she dreamt of Ultron killing her, her final breaths, the pain, fear. She kicked the covers off herself and pulled up her shirt, checking her injury but there was nothing. Ellie muttered in confusion and panic. “Doll,” Bucky softly spoke, placing his hand on her shoulder. Ellie swung her head around, flinching from the touch. She stared at him as she heaved breaths, trying to pull herself together. “Doll, you’re okay. You’re safe. He’s not here. It was a nightmare, you’re safe,” Bucky talked her down. She studied his face, trying to ground herself. She landed on his ocean blue eyes and her breathing started to slow. She brought herself closer to him and crashed into his chest, letting her tears escape. “It’s okay, you’re safe,” he hummed. Her mind slowly cleared, she was safe now. She was with Bucky. Ultron wasn't there. It was a nightmare. He wasn't there. She stayed in his hold for awhile, absorbing his support as he continued to reaffirm her. "You're okay now. It's just us, he's not here," he reminded. Except he would be coming, or they'd be going to him, and she wouldn’t be safe until she was at her full strength.

“I need to train. If he shows up, I need to be able to protect myself,” she told him, pushing up away from his chest. She needed this. She needed to feel strong again. She needed to feel like she was powerful and capable, not some frail girl in need of saving. 

“Ellie..?” Bucky tested. 

“No, I’m not asking. Doctor Sinclair said I could resume normal activity today. He’s still out there. I’m not going to feel safe until I know I can defend myself again. I won’t train to exhaustion, but I need to feel my powers, practice them. I need this Bucky,” she told him confidently. 

“Okay, but I’m going to be with you while you do,” he compromised. 

“Great,” Ellie returned. She crawled out of bed and walked to the closet to get dressed. 

“Oh, so you mean you’re going to do this right now?” Bucky asked, quickly getting out of bed himself. 

“Yeah, well we don’t know when they’re going to find him. I need to be ready. I’m not wasting any time,” she returned. “He said he targeted me because I was powerful. Not joining the fight when there is one, because let’s face it, there will be, means he won. I’m not going to let him win.”