The Man My Father Always Talked About • A CAPTAIN AMERICA STORY

3

~3~

     Clara and Bruce spent hours setting everything up the way they'd need it for when they tracked the cube. At first, Bruce was surprised at how the young woman took charge, but grew used to it after around the third diagnostics test. Early into their search, Natasha had whisked Clara away for a mission.

"Why does Fury want me to go?" Clara asked, her black sneakers echoing through the halls and her and Natasha walked to a jet. "I'm not necessarily capable of fighting and apprehending a god." Sure, she was capable of fighting. After SHIELD decided Tony wasn't a fit for their Avengers cause, Natasha still believed Clara had potential. If she was physically trained, the combination of her strength and mind would turn Clara into a great recruit for SHIELD. The lessons lasted only a few months before Natasha was sent to Russia for a mission.

"Fury thinks someone with a background like yours need to go along in case Loki's scepter or anything he has can be studied as soon as possible." Natasha answered.

"Background like mine?" Clara asked. "Last I checked Nat, I've never dealt with mythological weapons before."

"You read the file. At least you have some knowledge." As they boarded the jet, Clara noticed someone already in the back? ready to leave.

"Captain," she smiled and she walked up to him.

"Miss Stark," he greeted.

"Oh please," Clara started. "Don't call me 'miss.' It makes me feel old." A hint of embarrassment filled Steve's eyes before he nervously chuckled.

"Well I know what that feels like," Steve smirked slightly, making Clara laugh at his little joke. They buckled into the back of the jet as Natasha began to fly it. The two sat across from each other in silence before Clara spoke up.

"So..." Clara started. "We're going after a god. Never thought I'd say that." She said, gaining a slight smile from the captain.

"I've dealt with this thing before. It's not exactly a walk in the park." Steve said over the sound of the rushing winds from outside. The higher they got, the more hard it was for Clara to hear Steve. Maybe it was the nerves of being so high up, or the living butterflies in her stomach as she talked to her childhood hero.

"So you've dealt with this thing before? The tesseract?" Clara asked. Of course she knew the answer, but she wanted to make smalltalk.

"Thought it was gone for good when I crashed the plan into the ice," Steve answered, his voice quieter than before, though still load enough for her to hear.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean..." Clara started, knowing it would be a rough subject for him.

"Don't be. I'm just getting used to everything." He gave her a reassuring look.

"You should make a journal or something. Help keep track of everything new," Clara suggested.

"I might just have to that." Steve smiled, making Clara do the same. After a good thirty minutes after take off, they were finally in Germany.

"Cap'n, you're up." Nat yelled from the front.

Steve unbuckled himself from the seat and got ready to jump. "Duty calls," he said, just about to make the leap before Clara stopped him.

"Hey Cap?" Clara said as he started to exit the jet. He turned around and saw her holding his shield. "You might need this," she smirked. He nodded a 'thank you' and jumped out.

Clara moved up to the front and watched the commotion going down. She gripped the armrest or her seat tightly in her hand as she watched Loki fight Steve. Relief filled the brunette when she saw all the civilians were gone and out fo harms way, but she watched as Loki pushed Steve down with his staff. He had the upper hand.