The Seventh Avenger: Playing With Fire

Chapter 2: An Unwelcome Surprise

          It's only an hour after the Bartons leave for the airport that Lydia finds herself sitting in her living room. Curled up on the sofa, she aimlessly flicks through the channels with the remote in one hand, and Zeus' head underneath the other. He purrs loudly at his careful ministrations, his small body pressing further against her side. He had jumped up beside her the moment that she had sat down, nudging his head against her arm until she had given in to his demands, and proceeded to pet him.

          She sighs as she comes across yet another Christmas film. Having watched more than enough of them in the past week, she sighs and turns the television off altogether. Chucking the remote to the side, she uses her now free hand to run it down her tired face. She isn't exactly feeling the festive spirit that the rest of the world currently possesses.

          She lets out another sigh as her eyes fall to the pile of mail on the coffee table. Among the few Christmas cards that she has received this year, are bills that she hasn't had the heart to look at yet. The recent letter from her landlord sticks out like sore thumb though, the black words printed across the page taunting her as she stares at them;

          Dear Miss Hathaway,

          You are hereby notified that your rent is 14 days past due. You will be given five additional days to pay all rent due. This letter is your notification that if rent is not received by the 17th of December 2013, eviction proceedings will be initiated against you. As stated in your lease-

          Her heart thumps with dread as she reads each word, and she has to squeeze her eyes shut to keep the tears at bay. The money that Clint and Laura have given to her as a gift will cover this late fee, but what would she do next time? She can't rely on her relatives to pay her bills, even though she knows Clint would be more than happy to help. The money that she had saved from when she had worked for SHIELD had been swallowed whole by her ongoing bills. What government grants that she is eligible for don't help much- living in the city isn't cheap. She had gotten so desperate that she had been forced to sell her beloved Spyder. That day had been utterly heartbreaking, and she still hasn't told Tony what she had done.

          Merely days after the battle, Ava had commented on the free perks that the Avengers would undoubtedly receive for their valiant efforts in saving the city. But she couldn't have been more wrong. Being an Avenger hadn't gotten Lydia anything but nightmares and stress for the past few months. She and her teammates had risked their lives to save the city, but they haven't received a damn thing in return.

          Deep down, she knows that the world doesn't work like that. A part of her feels guilty for even thinking such a thing, but she can't help it. The press continues to hound on her and her teammates, with most stations and articles casting them in a negative light. Some still try to pinpoint the blame on them, even though the truth is the complete opposite; more people would have died under Loki's reign. The Avengers had been trying to save the people; not bring them any harm.

          She has to disguise herself whenever she does leave her apartment, something that she had quickly learned to do after first venturing outside days after the battle. It hadn't taken long for a mob of both excited and angry people to swarm her, the flashes off phones going off in her face, and a million different questions being shouted to her all at once. It had all been overwhelming, and she had been quick to flee the scene. She still wakes up in the middle of the night, her throat hoarse from screaming as the memories of the battle dance behind her eyes. She never knows if or when her landlord will decide to kick her out of the apartment for not being able to pay rent. Every job application has been a failure, with many businesses still being closed for renovations, due to buildings being destroyed during The Incident. And it's not like she can use her real name on the applications anyway.