The Rules of Living with the Avengers

9. Don't invite the whole of SHIELD to your eighteenth birthday party

I am watching Steve make breakfast, whilst Natasha sips her coffee, when I hear a familiar voice. "Ellie!"

"Aunty Pepper!" I leap up and hug my aunt. She laughs.

"They been treating you that bad?" She says and I laugh as well, breaking apart.

"No we've been getting along fine. Are you back in town now?" I ask.

"Just for your birthday then I'll be leaving the day after. So two days."

"when's it your birthday?" Steve hands me a plate of pancakes. Blueberry..my favourite. I smile at him.

"Tomorrow. I'm having a party," I add. Pepper sighs.

"God help us all."

***

I wake up to a terrible singing. "Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you!" Tony screeches.

"Happy day of birth to Sister Ellie!" Thor joins in.

"Happy birthday to you," Pepper finishes and hands me a big pile of presents. "Happy eighteenth, darling."

"Happy...ugh...it's my birthday. I'm getting old." I say but take the presents. Clint comes to sit by me on the bed then Natasha sits on the bed too, shoving him out of the way. Bruce and Steve hover awkwardly until Pepper sits down then they sit on the very edge. Tony kneels on the floor, elbows on my bed and eating my bacon.

"Here's a present from I, first!" Thor yells and I laugh and take it. It's wrapped in yellow paper but there's a singed part. "I accidentally hit the wrapping paper with thunder."

It's a gold sceptre with green glowing light emitting from the crystal ball at the end. "Uh- thanks, Pointbreak. What is it?"

"It is a sceptre. It has magical powers from Asgard. Loki suggested it and I had Heimdall make it for me."

"Again. What does it do?" I pick it up and it starts to hum. "Woah, um, it's buzzing."

Thor gives me a huge smile. "It lets you see what you truly want, where it is and it shows you your deepest regrets sometimes," he says.

"Wow." I say. "I'll be using that when I'm bored."

"Do not use it as a toy, Sister Ellie. It must be taken as a weapon, not as a plaything."

"Okay..." I grin and put it down carefully. Ha. I have a weapon now. Clint passes me a present that's so obvious I laugh. It's a bow and when I say thanks to Clint it suddenly activates.

"Hello, ma'am, what kind of arrow would you like?" It says in a smooth British tone and I stare at it.

"Uh, plastic?" I say awkwardly. A compartment in the bow opens and a plastic arrow falls out. "Thanks...Hawk, how did I deactivate it before I accidentally shoot Thor?"

"Are you sure you want to shoot Thor?" The bow says.

"No! Don't shoot Thor! Owner override." I say.

"Tell it to shut down." Clint explains.

"Shut down," I say and the bow stays quiet for a while. I put that by my sceptre. Two weapons! Natasha passes me a soft package. I unwrap the most beautiful black clothes I've ever seen. A leather jacket, a pair of skinny jeans, a cropped top made out of some stretchy material and a long dress. "Oh my God. They're gorgeous!" I squeal.

"Thought you'd like them. Agents always need fighting clothes," she says with a smile. "Also the dress is really pretty."

"Yeah, it is," I fold it up neatly and put it on my bow and sceptre. Bruce is next, looking pleased with himself.