A Bolt from the Blue

Chapter 6

Loki had escaped, Thor had disappeared along with the glass cage, agent Coulson was dead and everyone's determination was down. Stark, much to Steve and Bucky's surprise, was the one who was grieving Coulson the most. But it somewhat made sense, of every person on board, Tony Stark was the only one who was a civilian. Saving the world, he knew; but losing a comrade was a feeling he was stranger with until now.

Agent Romanoff was fine. Bucky had arrived just in time to distract Dr. Banner's alter ego with rifle shots and give Romanoff a way out. Thor had then intervened, leaving the room where chaos had just happened heavily quiet. Bucky had barely had time to reach the corner where Romanoff was secluded that he found she had already gone. He later heard she had gone after the compromised agent and subdued him.

Steve had listened closely to his best friend's every word; and part of him, while picturing agent Romanoff fighting off who he had only seen break out on a screen so far, made him resent Dr. Banner. Not for who he was, but for yielding to anger and putting her in harm along the way. He wished he could have gone check on her and perhaps even soothed the anguish or the fright if she felt any, but he was immediately caught up by two reminders. First, he wasn't anyone that had earned the right to be that kind of person to her; and second, she had been alone with agent Barton since she had neutralized him.

He went on to check on Tony Stark to omit –and somehow mend— his incapability to do so with the woman whose face roused his deepest feelings and instincts.

Once the conversation ended, Steve discovered a new side of Stark which he endeavored to conceal behind false-pretenses and feigned nonchalance. A way to protect himself probably, and which he respected by not digging further. At this moment, Steve saw what the world saw in Stark: a man of iron and a man of heart— although Tony himself hadn't realized it fully yet. He carried uncertainties and prejudices which blurred his vision of himself and therefore his relationship with others.

They figured where Loki would hit next and decided the best way to stop it would be by acting together –without Fury. The trust was just gone.

Steve informed Bucky then proceeded to find a pilot he could trust. Agent Romanoff was the first person to pop in his mind. He walked along the corridor to the room where Barton was being held captive. As he stopped by the door, he caught a glimpse of them through the little window. He froze and dwelled on the sight before him a little longer than he normally should. Agent Romanoff was seated next to Barton who was now untied. They were not saying a word but it was evident from where he was standing that they didn't need any to communicate. Their silence was doing the entire job. His expression probably saddened so he looked away, clearing his throat. He then knocked on the door to make his presence known –which made Romanoff get up on her feet right away—then he opened the door. Barton volunteered to fly the jet and Romanoff convinced him he was no longer a threat with a single, confident nod of the head.

The battle in New York followed and soon Thor then Banner arrived. Together, they sort of became this group of remarkable people Fury had talked about. The Avengers.

"Call it, captain," Stark said simply, symbolically passing the authority to him. Bucky stared with a pleased expression.

For Steve, the exercise was comfortable as an old shoe. Seventy years had gone by, but here he was handed out the position he had earned back in the 1940s. For the first time, it felt like being at home. He thought strategically, sent Stark to restrain the perimeter, Thor to block the passage, Barton, and Bucky on the roofs as lookouts.

Agent Romanoff was standing a few feet away, patiently waiting for her orders.

"You and me, we stay here on the ground, keep the fighting here," he said.