Running Out » Quicksilver

chapter fourteen

14 x not so good at getting together

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The plane ride felt longer than four hours, and every couple of minutes, Pietro was almost certain to voice that feeling. It got to a point where Coulson finally came back and sat with us, and when he did, Pietro bombarded him with questions.

I was surprised at how patient the director was to answer them all.

It started with "How do you know Stark?" which led to a story about Coulson babysitting the billionaire when he went through a rebellious stage (he had been dying, apparently). Then, it went to, "How long have you been in charge of SHIELD?" which led to a story about the fall of SHIELD, an agency named Hydra, and how Coulson had actually died.

From the tense look on Pietro's face as soon as death was mentioned, I got a feeling that hit too close to home- though I couldn't imagine why. I had given him a curious look before Coulson had continued.

Apparently his being brought back to life was painstaking, but at the end of it all, it made him a very trustworthy man. He even admitted that the Avengers actually weren't supposed to know he was alive . . . "But Stark's a hacker, and can't keep his hands to himself, so here we are," Coulson had shrugged dismissively.

"It does not bother you that your secret is known by them?" Pietro had asked curiously.

"No, not really," Coulson had said. "There are worse people. Besides, I know none of them will say anything."

Then came stories about the first joining of the Avengers; how a one-eyed man named Fury had assisted them in some fight against a giant robot (the name Ultron came up again; apparently he was the evil robot), and even some stories of Coulson with his own team. Apparently, one of his own was an Inhuman.

At the end of the ride (no matter how long it may have been), I felt very educated, and also very exhausted.

Though by far the best thing was the fact that we were landing on an air carrier that was flying (the infamous helicarrier) and Pietro and I were both rushed inside, Coulson tagging along as we ducked into the nearest door.

"This helicarrier," Pietro said slowly, following after Coulson, sharp eyes darting everywhere as we went past agents of all kinds, "it is big."

"Big seems like an understatement, Road Runner," I mused.

"It's definitely huge," Coulson agreed. "Very functional though, and that is the point. I personally prefer the Bus . . . but that's a story for another time."

"He is full of the stories," Pietro whispered to me.

I poked him in the ribs, smiling slightly. "It's not a bad thing," I whispered back.

He raised his hands defensively; "I did not say it was!"

We hit a large, open area then, full of machinery and more agents moving about. From the looks of it, it was the helicarrier's version of a cockpit; it had a ginormous window overlooking the clouds in the front of the space. Coulson briefly went and talked to the person at the high-tech wheel, and I was watching his back when I felt someone tap my shoulder.

I turned in time to see Clint with a smile on his face. "Hey, shorty," he greeted. He was decked in his Hawkeye uniform still, though his quiver and bow were absent. "Speedy," he said, nodding at Pietro. "Glad to see you both made it in one piece."

"Oh, you know, we try," I smirked.

"Where is Wanda?" Pietro asked quickly.

"She's a few doors down from here," Clint answered, nodding in the appropriate direction. That was all he really had to say, before Pietro was gone. He gave me a curious look, but before he could ask me anything, Pietro had reappeared, kissed the top of my head, and was gone again.