Kill Your Mind ⋙ Avengers

t h i r t e e n

[E D I T E D]

KILL YOUR MIND
❝life is simply a mix of mayhem and magnolias, so embrace this gentle riot and gather flowers along the way.❞

13. Fatal Foreshadowing

IT HAD HIT THE THREE-MONTH MARK, when the Avengers Tower was finally open to the public again. Katherine had continued to be missing, not even SHIELD had managed to find her location, and so Elizabeth had eventually asked Tony for a helping hand. The man had agreed, understanding the importance that the child held to Elizabeth, but both had to wait an evening for Jarvis to scan the national CCTV footage. Tony Stark missed his parties. It had been a miracle that the billionaire had refrained from hosting one the day Elizabeth arrived so no one, in their right mind, had the restraint to deny Tony's plans. They couldn't even if they had intended to. He'd planned it an hour in advance, much like the man usually does, and had quickly notified his colleagues of this as people began to show up. He'd been smart about it. He knew that the Avengers couldn't cause a scene about his extravagant party when people around them could hear. So, no one could say much about it.

Steve was hectic. He was unimpressed by the whole idea and was uncertain on Elizabeth being invited. Of course, Tony had invited the girl. She was his favourite out of them all and it would be a shame not to have her there with him but Steve didn't see it that way. In Steve's eyes, inviting Elizabeth Tyler was a risk to the public. He trusted the girl to a certain extent. He knew she wouldn't try to attack anyone in the Tower who she knew but they'd yet to see how she socialised around new people. With her history, Steve knew from first-hand experience that hurting someone could be very easy when you don't know who they were. As usual, he'd gone to Natasha Romanoff for support.

Natasha, however, was calm about the whole situation, much unlike Steve, and she actually seemed to enjoy the idea of a night off. She trusted her strength and capabilities to be able to incapacitate a teenage girl so didn't see the problem with letting her roam around and meet new people as long as someone was by her side at all times. Tony had blanched at this, arguing that Elizabeth should be allowed some time to herself where she can socialise without restrictions, but Steve refused to be moved from the girl's side. Thor had gone to Asgard the week previous, stating he must speak to Odin about current news, and hadn't returned, so the Tower only had Tony, Steve and Natasha to fight back Elizabeth if things went south as Clint was on a mission and Bruce was at a New Orleans science convention. This put Steve on edge even more.

But the time came where they had to show their faces. Natasha had gone to collect Elizabeth, volunteering immediately, and Tony had swanned off to get a drink so Steve continued to awkwardly stand by the bar.

Elizabeth hadn't expected to be invited. In all honesty, she'd heard about the plans but hadn't really given it much thought. She'd heard them arguing over if she should be allowed out and, after hearing only Tony stand up for her, assumed that they'd come to a negative conclusion. This was why when Natasha knocked on her door, she was still in her jogging bottoms and Shield issued tank top. Her room was a mess, as well. She'd been reading the whole evening but was finding it difficult to actually find a book she enjoyed so her floor was covered in discarded novels. Natasha simply raised an eyebrow at the mess, both the condition of herself and the room, and sighed impatiently.