Tigress ➳ An Avengers Fanfic (Book 1 of the Scepter Chronicles)

2

        A loud banging on the door had me jumping out of bed. 

        "Get up now, you useless girls!" the Headmistress hissed. The other girls quickly got up and dressed, whispering confusedly among each other. 

        "Headmistress, what's going on?" a small voice asked form outside. 

        "People are here," she snapped, rushing down the hall and knocking on doors. 

        We all stared at each other, shocked. Another family? So soon? 

        With questions running through my head, I slipped out of my pajamas and held up my ruined dress. I sighed. That was the nicest thing I had. Running my fingers through my hair, I pulled out a pair of jeans and a white sweater. I threw them on and rushed into the bathroom. 

        I had a ring of purple, black, and blue around one eye, bringing out the violet color of my eyes. Yes, my eyes were violet. I thought they were strange. Leah thought they were cool. 

        Cringing at my reflection, I brushed my teeth and splashed water on my face. I opened a drawer and rummaged through its contents. Great, I sighed in my head. Who took the makeup? I knew that going out without makeup covering the bruise on my eye would earn me another beating. 

        I slammed the drawer and covered my face with my hands. Biting the inside of my cheek, I left the bathroom and went back to my room. The other girls stood there in pretty dresses with pins in their hair and makeup on their faces. 

        "Which one of you idiots took the makeup?" I snapped. They just smirked at me. 

        "Oops!" One of the girls feigned sympathy. "Did I do that? Sorry, Caly, I just can't remember where I put it." They laughed. 

        Bumping into me on the way out of the room, one of them sneered at me. "Freak," she taunted, closing the door. 

        I groaned, digging a pair of brown combat boots out from the corner of the room and shoving my feet into them. 

        I opened the door and peeked outside, sprinting down the hall and into the room where the other kids waited impatiently. I squeezed into line next to the kids my age just as the Headmistress graced us with her presence. Note the sarcasm. Following closely behind her were three people, all dressed in black. One man even had an eye patch. 

        Warning bells instantly went off in my head. The woman with scarlet red hair looked down the row of us. She stepped forward, the man with the brown hair moving in sync with her. 

        They stalked down the row, looking us over closely. The man with the eye patch watched them carefully. The woman stopped in front of me. 

        "What happened to your eye?" she asked, frowning at it. She was about my height, with bright green eyes and ivory skin. 

        I froze, glancing at the Headmistress, who glared at me in return. She quickly moved forward, placing her hand on the woman's shoulder. The woman was quick to shrug her touch off, making me force back a smile. 

        "She fell down the stairs," the Headmistress told her, forcing a laugh. "Such a klutz." 

        She introduced the redhead to the other kids, but the knowing glance the woman sent in my direction told me she hadn't believed a word the Headmistress had said. 

        When they finished meeting the others, the brown-haired man whispered something into the woman's ear. She nodded and turned to the other man with the eye patch. Together, the three of them walked out of the room. 

        "I'll be with you in just a moment," the Headmistress called. She turned to me and grabbed my hair, yanking my head back so I was forced to look in her beady eyes. 

        "Do you know what the punishment is for not covering that up, girl?" she hissed, her sour breath fanning my face. She grinned wickedly, showing her crooked teeth. The kids next to me stood still, staring at the wall or their shoes. She raised her arm, fist clenched, ready to strike. 

        But a voice interrupted her. "You lay a hand on her, and I'm calling the cops." 

        The Headmistress whirled around, fist still raised, looking straight into the eyes of the brown-haired man, whom I decided to call Brownie. 

        "Let her go," he said forcefully. The Headmistress didn't budge. Suddenly, the redhead stepped forward, brandishing a gun and aiming it straight at the Headmistress's head. Her eyes widened, and my heart sped up. 

        "Let. Her. Go," the woman said with a dangerously calm tone, her stance unwavering. 

        I thought for sure the Headmistress was going to let me go. Either that, or piss her pants. 

        Nope. 

        Instead, she tightened her grip on my hair and chucked me into the wall. My head slammed back into the wall as I slid to the ground, black spots swimming in my vision. 

        The redhead dropped her gun and threw herself at the Headmistress. She landed a punch to her face, snapping her head back. In a blur, the woman twisted around and threw the Headmistress to the ground. 

        I could barely make out Brownie walking towards me through my hazy vision. He scooped me up swiftly and turned to the redhead, whom I deemed Ninja Woman. 

        "I've got her. Let's go," he said, but he sounded distant, almost like he was under water. 

        Ninja Woman was crouched over the Headmistress. "We're taking her. If we find you hurting any of these children ever again, we will hunt you down," she said threateningly. 

        Wait. They're taking me? My heart was racing. I was getting out of here! I wanted to scream with excitement, but I couldn't move. My limbs felt like they were filled with lead, and I could barely keep my eyes open. 

        "Hang in there, kiddo," Eye Patch Man murmured to me. 

        I really need to learn their names, I thought. Brownie smirked down at me as he walked out of the orphanage. 

        "I said that out loud, didn't I," I slurred, and Brownie chuckled. 

        "My name's Clint," he said. He nodded his head at Ninja Woman. "That's Natasha. And Nick Fury." Both of them nodded at me, Natasha giving me a tiny smile.

      "What's your name?" she asked as we made our way through the alleys. But right as I looked over at her and opened my mouth to answer, I blacked out.