𝐀𝐕𝐀𝐓𝐀𝐑 - MCU

IV. AVENGERS INITIATIVE #2

IV. AVENGERS INITIATIVE #2
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Luna was nodding off in her chair when agent Romanoff returned, flanked on either side by two men Luna instantly recognized. One was tall and broad-shouldered, wearing blue jeans and a simple shirt with a blue flannel to protect against the cold. He had short, blond hair and the bone structure of a Greek god, and despite being around a hundred years old, Steve Rogers looked around thirty.

On the other side walked another man, considerably shorter than Steve Rogers, but by no means short. Bruce Banner had a deep tan and a light scruff on his face. His shaggy dark hair was starting to go a deep gray as well, despite the fact he couldn't have been much older than forty. He had glasses perched on his nose and a pencil tucked behind his ear.

While Steve stood freely in the space, his back straight and arms at his side, Dr Banner was hunched slightly and his hands fidgeted uselessly in front of him. Romanoff pointed out some of the features in the room as she led them inside, ending the short tour by pointing out their newest team member napping uncomfortably in a chair.

She seemed young, a teenager, with brown hair, and her nose spotted with freckles. She wasn't wearing very official-looking clothing, just jeans and a My Chemical Romance shirt with a black leather jacket that definitely seemed too big on her.

For the first time since boarding the helicarrier, Steve seemed unsure. Still, he walked up to the table and sat on the other side of the girl. He cleared his throat, then did so again when she didn't react. Luna opened her eyes to see Captain America looking at her. She quickly took her feet off the table and straightened up. She noticed Dr Banner still hanging around near the door with agent Romanoff, looking around nervously.

"Captain—Rogers—Mister—America—Sir... Hello," Luna said. She waved at him.

"Steve is fine," he replied, returning her awkward wave.

"I'm Luna," she said finally and held out her hand for him to shake. "It's awesome to meet you."

"Likewise," he said. "Agent Romanoff told me what you did today to show up on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s radar."

"Please, I don't think I can take another lecture on responsibility and maturity today. Especially not from Captain America," she said.

"No," he said with a smile. "I was gonna say it was impressive. Taking on those bigger than you, even if it was kinda irresponsible."

"There it is," she replied, but a smile ghosted her lips.

An apologetic look crossed his face. "You are aware what we're here to do, right?"

"Sure. Take out Loki, take his scepter, secure the tesseract. Should be fun."

"It'll be dangerous. And you're young, a kid—"

"Don't even start," Luna interrupted. "I know I'm young, okay, but I've had these powers for so long now and I've never understood why, or what I'm supposed to do with them. Maybe I'm suppose to save the world," she shrugged.

"Okay," Steve said so casually that Luna had to do a double-take to make sure she heard him right. "I get it. Just make sure to stick together. You're new to this, so don't be afraid to ask for help."

Luna stared at him silently for a moment, bit by bit understanding why her gran admired this man so much. "Thanks, Steve."

Dr Banner pulled out a chair, not the one immediately beside Luna, but the one next to it, and sat down. He greeted the girl shortly with a handshake.

"Dr Banner," Luna said with a look of admiration. "I'm sure you hear this all the time, but I'm a huge fan."

"You..." he mumbled with a concerned frown, "are? Most people kind of... hate me."