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Chapter Four The Bartons
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"The news is loving you guys," Zatanna heard the voice of Maria Hill say through the video-com aboard the quinjet. "Nobody else is. There's been no official call for Banner's arrest but it's in the air."
The Avengers had managed to regroup after the battle, yet many were still disoriented. Tony was one of the only ones still in the right of mind, "The Stark Relief Foundation?"
"Already on the scene," she said to him. "How's the team?"
Tony glanced at his friends. They were all silent, many still terrified of their memories and fantasies. Zatanna sat in a corner of the quinjet with her knees to her chest and pain encrypted upon her face. She had dry tear stains across her cheeks and her nose was running causing her to sniffle every few seconds.
The brunette man sighed, "Everyone's... We took a hit. We'll shake it off."
The former S.H.I️.E.L.D. agent nodded, "Well, for now, I'd stay in stealth mode and stay away from here."
Tony raised an eyebrow, "So, run and hide?"
"Until we can find Ultron, I don't have a lot else to offer," Maria said. Tony nodded and glanced at his team members. "Neither do we."
He ended the call and stood up. He approached Clint, who was flying the quinjet and asked, "Hey, you wanna switch out?"
Clint shook his head, "No, I'm good. If you wanna get some kip, now's a good time because we're still a few hours out."
"Few hours from where?" Tony questioned. Clint kept his eyes on the sky, "A safe house."
An hour later, only Thor had regained his state of mind, yet still wore a sullen expression. Natasha, although weak, made her way to her best friend. Zatanna was still in the corner when she approached her. She sat down in front of her with a thud. Zatanna didn't even realize she was there until her eyes shifted. Natasha forced a small smile, "Hey, Zee."
Zatanna stayed quiet in fear, that if she talked, her voice would break. Natasha sighed, "Zee, do you remember when I first joined S.H.I️.E.L.D. and I didn't know anyone? You were the first one who talked to me, you made me feel welcome. You made me feel at home. You're my best friend, Zatanna, I need you to snap out of it. Please, Zee..." Zatanna looked down, her form hadn't changed. "You once told me that home is where your family is; if that really is true I need you to come back to me. Because, you're stuck with me. You and I are family; we're sisters, Zatanna."
