Shadows of the Past

Part 15

When you land back at the Tower all you want to do is go home, eat something, shower and lay on your bed.  You had napped on the jet but you were still exhausted, mostly mentally.  Unfortunately, rest was the last thing you were likely to get.

As soon as the jet landed, it was surrounded by agents who quickly took Petrov into custody.  Fury, Stark and Steve were waiting at the end of the ramp and they greeted you briefly before leading you to the conference room. 

When you got there, you were joined by the rest of the Avengers.  The debrief took hours and felt even longer.  The three of you first recounted the mission in exact detail then answered question after question.  Although everyone counted the original information gathering mission a success, the fact that Pierce was there didn’t sit well with anyone.  Hill told everyone all the information that her team had been able to dig up on Pierce, unfortunately it wasn’t much more then you knew already. 

The meeting ended with everyone being assigned something to help with the next step forward.  You were tasked with continuing your research into the Hydra base, compiling all the new information and running backgrounds on the other members.  You all got up and went in different directions, Steve walked up behind you and put his hand on your shoulder.

“You did pretty good out there, Y/N.  We were all impressed with how you were able to find Petrov after he escaped,” he said with a smile.

“Yea... I had to make up for him getting out in the first place,” you said feeling ashamed.

“That could have happened to anyone, what’s important is that you didn’t lose your head.  You stayed focused and were able to get the mission back on track,” he told you. 

“Thanks, mom,” you said with a smile. 

He rolled his eyes and you laughed, “I’m really never going to get rid of that nickname, am I?”

“Nope,” you said with a huge smile. 

“Hmmm,” he hummed as you continued walking.  “So, I probably shouldn’t tell you the fridge in the Kitchen is stocked if you want anything to eat and you can stay in the room next to me again tonight.”

You can’t help but giggle, “You’re the best...”

“Don’t” he says.

“I wasn’t gonna,” you joke.

You head straight for the room first, you throw your bag on the couch and jump into the shower.  You close your eyes, standing under the water and think about the last few days.  Loki’s nightmare and your conversation afterwards, he had been so open and honest, you felt guilty for how you treated him when you first met.  What a horrible waste of energy, you had spent so much time hating him.

You thought about your fight with Sarah, you had scared her into lying to you without even realizing it.  Of course she couldn’t tell you about Loki, you had made that impossible. 

Your mind wanders to the mission, how excited you were to be part of the team again.  You had impressed everyone and that felt amazing, you couldn’t wait to keep digging and help plan the next stage of the mission. 

When you finish you dry yourself off and see the mark on your arm.  You think back to Loki and how he had hurt you.  The bruise is still very visible and you make a note to wear a hoodie until it has healed.  You don’t want to have to explain what happened to everyone and you had already sorted it out with him.  You comb your wet hair and can’t help but giggle when you think back to Nat offering to send the Hulk after Loki.  Once dressed you push your bag onto the floor and lay on the couch for a few minutes.