FENRIR ※ Tony Stark [2]

3 - FIXING

WHEN ANGIE WALKED into the refurnished interrogation room, three pairs of eyes shifted to her curiously. Even the toddler in his mother's arms seemed to stop his happy babbling.

They had been confined in this base for so long, it wasn't like visitors flocked to see them. Thinking about it made Angie sad; this underground facility was no place for a family.

The children's interest in her didn't last long though, and they soon returned to playing around in a corner. Clint's wife — Laura, was her name — looked slightly apprehensive as Angie came to sit next to her.

It wasn't like the Harpy had rehearsed this, she didn't really know how to approach her and so she just stuck to the basics "Hello, Laura," she began hesitantly "My name is Angie. I'm a friend of Clint's."

Laura's anxiousness didn't really waver but she placed the toddler on a highchair nearby before turning back to the Jötnar "I... yes, I know who you are. I just wasn't expecting you to come in here."

Angie cocked an eyebrow curiously "Really?"

Laura's traits softened for the first time since she entered the room "You're the Harpy, aren't you? You fought with my husband during the Battle of New York?"

"That's right."

"Director Fury told me they found you yesterday."

Angie bit her lip uneasily "Right. Of course he did."

Although she was keeping a straight face, Laura's sad smile betrayed just how drained she truly felt "Did you hear about what happened while you were gone?"

"Every last bit."

"Then you know you should be careful once you leave the base."

"I know..." Angie admitted dejectedly "But forget about me. How are you and the children doing?"

Laura's eyes immediately began to glisten and Angie almost regretted asking the question "I can't complain," Clint's wife said in one breath "The agents provide us with everything we need. They did their best to make us feel at home."

She blinked a few times to hide her fluster but it's not like Angie was buying it in the first place. No parent should have to see their children locked in an old spy base; even if it was for their own safety.

Against her own expectation, Angie placed a comforting hand on the woman's arm "Do you know how long you're supposed to stay hidden?"

Laura shook her head "They brought us in here indefinitely. It's not safe for us out there, not while Clint is still in prison... can you believe it? He risked his life saving the world and they locked him up like... like he's some sort of criminal!"

Angie said nothing, she couldn't bare to even face the poor woman and kept her eyes riveted to her knees instead.

I know... I can't believe it either.

"But the worse part of all this..." Laura's voice cracked "Is that his own teammates arrested him. I welcomed Tony Stark into my own home when he needed shelter and... and he threw my husband in jail!"

Her eyes welled up with tears and she instinctively covered them with the palm of her hands.

She sounded utterly heartbroken and her words felt like a slap in the face. It churned Angie's insides to think that Tony could've done something like this. After all of Fury's explanations, she still couldn't believe the Avengers had reached such a miserable point... and most of all, that Tony could've turned his back on the team like this.