Avengers: Daughters

Nineteen: Tony POV

So I've been stuck for ideas lately so I've decided to do a filler chapter and then I'm going to write out the plot for the rest of the book. I've got a general idea of what I want to happen, I just need more detail to write it all!

Tap. Tap. Tap. Bruce's fingers drum against the table and I have to restrain myself from slapping him. Stop, I tell myself, it's his way of coping. Wouldn't want to make him angry.

We're sat around a table in an official Avengers meeting. We haven't had one of these in years. Hell, it's like we haven't been a team in years. Sometimes Fury called us up to do a mission as the Avengers - all together - but afterwards, we either had an awkward dinner or went our separate ways. It's been like that since the girls fell apart. Now we're all back together, minus Natasha, and I'm longing for the simpler days where we were all friends and we didn't have to worry about our damn kids.

"Has anyone heard from Nat?" Steve breaks the silence. I look at him, wondering what I ever saw in him. I used to like him. Daydream about him, sometimes. His eyes were a focal point of my dreams but now, it's clear that they're just tired and dull, circled in red. From crying?

"No, not yet. But I'm still hoping for some news soon. Agents are trying to track her down," Clint says. "I- sorry, Thor, you okay?"

We all glance at the god, confused, as he's staring straight ahead, unblinking. Finally he looks at us, frowning. "Heimdall sent me a message. We may have more trouble on our hands. Loki has been spotted in a gas station with four teenage girls."

"I'm going to kill Ruby," I growl. She knows how dangerous Loki is. They all do and they're working with him.

"Tony, we need to find out why they ran away first. And where Natasha went." Steve says quickly.

"We know why. They're irresponsible and reckless. Like their parents."

"Do not insult a princess of Asgard and my daughter!" Thor yells.

"Stark, that's out of line," Clint says in a quiet but dangerous voice.

"It's true. It's the goddamn truth. Accept it. Our daughters take after us. They dive into danger with no backup, they think they're heroes and they are wild. They can't be controlled. And don't give me that look, Barnes. Your daughter might be good on the outside but she's your daughter. You brought her up as a hero. Someone who has to save the world. Don't you think the pressure of that might get to her someday?"

We all fall silent. I picture Ruby's smug smile as she hacks into our databases and despite of my anger at her, my heart pounds. She might be in danger. No. I'll save her. We're superheroes; that's what we do. We save people.

"I need to find Ally," Clint mutters. "She doesn't do well on her own. She needs someone to guide her."

"She has Ruby," Bruce reminds him. "Remember how close they were when they were little?"

"Their personalities clash, Doctor," Steve says. "Like mine and Tony's did."

I chuckle to myself. If my daughter is anything like me, she'll see the advantages of being opposite to someone. The passion that comes out of arguing is unparalleled.

"Tony?" Bruce looks at me, a smile on his face.

"Just thinking about Rubes," I say. Then clear my throat. "First mission: find Tasha. Then, we find our daughters."