I Dare You

Running Tests

When the pair had woken the next morning, Steve was quick to usher Maj out of the house. The young woman was nervous enough as it was but knew it was something that needed to be done. She felt lucky to have Steve with her. Though quiet that morning, he was a pillar of strength. His presence was enough to ease some of the tension she felt.

As they entered the tower, JARVIS was quick to greet them. The AI was kind enough to inform them of Bruce's whereabouts. With knowing glances, the two made their way to the labs. It was the only place Bruce would be. In all the time Maj had known him, Bruce was a grade-A workaholic. The man needed damn near catastrophic events to pull him away from his projects. The man in question was found looking through a microscope, a mug and notepad beside him. Maj slowed her pace to let Steve take the lead.

"Doctor Banner." The man jumped before removing his glasses and facing the pair. Steve gave him a small smile. "Sorry. We were wondering if you had a bit of time."

The scientist looked between the two. "Did something happen? Another break-in?"

Steve glanced to the brunette, eyebrows raised. She hadn't gotten the chance to tell him about that incident. It wasn't that she planned not to, but after what happened, it took the back seat. "No. Um, something else did." With the man's attention, Maj retold the events of the previous night.

"They were levitated off the ground and dropped more forcefully than they should have?" Maj nodded. "I'm glad you're here then. With everything that's happened, I think we should run some tests. Adding this new incident, it seems that you're the catalyst."

"You think I had something to do with all that? But how?"

Bruce placed a hand on her shoulder. "We'll figure it out."

The tests took a bit over two hours to complete and by the time they were over, Maj was exhausted. She had stumbled over to the cot in the corner and laid down, not bothering to pay attention to the conversation between Bruce and Steve. She'd find out later, especially since both men were worried. She knew it would take some time for Bruce to come to his conclusions.

A gentle prod woke the young woman up. As she glanced around the lab, she saw that Steve was nowhere to be found. Bruce gave her a small smile before he returned to his desk. Rubbing her eyes, she brought her legs over the side. "Where's Steve?"

"He went to grab you some food. You've been asleep for a few hours."

"Oh. Did you figure anything out?"

"Just a bit. Did you want me to wait for Steve to get here or did you want the information now?"

"Does he already know?"

"Yes. But you seem to respond better to him."

Maj gave him a pointed look and shrugged. Sure she realised she had grown a lot closer to Steve, but Bruce was someone she trusted wholeheartedly. They all were. Still, in that moment, she promised herself that she wouldn't freak out. Not about this. She would listen to it all without allowing her fear to take over. "Uh, you can tell me. I'll be fine. Promise."

Bruce observed her for a moment before removing his glasses. "We think Loki did something to you."

"When he took me?"

"Yes. Whatever he did altered you. Gave you some form of abilities. Your blood cells were nothing like normal cells. The erythrocytes lacked the iron necessary but nothing has been damaged. I also noticed that they went through moments of lightning before going dense once again."

"So... what?" Her brows furrowed. She didn't quite understand what he meant. Maj thought back to her time with Loki. "He said I had yet to be unlocked. I don't think he did this to me."