No Second Guesses, No Regrets (A Captain America/Avengers Fan Fiction)

Chapter 4 - First Dance

Taryn sat on the exam table and Rogers stood by her as they waited for the doctor to come in. "How are you feeling?"

"Eh... my head hurts, but better than it was. I just hope Wanda is OK. We were overwhelmed, but I'm pretty sure those were some of Thornfeld's men. My abilities weren't as sharp, neither were Wanda's ... I think they had some sort of dampening tech or something..."

"Well, that would explain it. If that is the stuff Thornfeld is selling, we need to put a stop to it."

She nodded and the doctor came back in looking at her x-rays. "Well the good news is that nothing is broken. You don't have a concussion, but you'll have a good knot for a little while. Try to keep some ice on it when you can, and just take it easy. Light exercise is ok, but nothing strenuous for at least a week. Let me know if you have any issues, okay?"

"Thank you doctor, I'll make sure she takes it easy."

She raised a brow at him as she hopped off the table and headed out the door. "You're going to make sure, huh? Planning to tie me down, or something?"

He flushed crimson. "No, I just want to make sure you heal well."

"Uh, huh..." she changed the subject. "How is Wanda?"

"She's still unconscious. The doctor is hopeful she'll wake soon."

"Well, that's good. I can't help feel responsible, though."

"Taryn, you did what you could. Especially since we suspect dampening technology..."

She realized they were at her door. "I know, I just care... you know?"

More than you possibly could know, he thought to himself. "I understand. We're a team and thus watch out for each other. Well, try to get some rest and let me know if you need anything, okay?"

She nodded and he gently touched her arm. She sensed something more, but he hesitated and nodded sharply, and headed back down the hall.

Taryn entered her room and peeled her outfit off of her and headed for a long, hot shower. She felt so much better as she let the hot water wash over her and she stood under the stream for a good 10 minutes.

She washed her hair gently and cleaned herself up and by the time she got out of the shower, she was relaxed and very tired. Blowing her hair dry, she decided to pack it in, no matter if it was late afternoon or not.

The next morning, Taryn set her Kindle down on the end table next to her and looked out her window. The sun was just rising over the rolling hills and she had already been up for an hour. Taryn couldn't sleep after yesterday's events and Wanda getting injured. She sighed, knowing that would be just the first of many encounters they would have with an enemy. She needed to relax and open her mind and find her focus again.

Rising from the sofa, she retrieved a pair of black leggings, tank top and her sneakers, dressed and made her way through the complex to one of the smaller exercise rooms. Opening the door, she was quietly relieved to find it empty. Taryn needed to relax in her own way so she plugged her MP3 player into the stereo system and classical music began to play. Taryn moved to the middle of the floor and stretched and flexed. Taking a classic pose she began to dance gracefully around the room. Dancing was the only connection to the past that remained. She was training to be a dancer before she was classified as gifted by SHIELD. Gifted was an interesting term for it, she thought. Feeling like she was a freak as a kid because she could hear other children's thoughts. She knew when teachers were going to pull surprise quizzes so she studied and always aced them. Her teachers thought she was cheating but couldn't figure out how. Then the other abilities began to manifest. The telekinesis, the mind reading, the unusual strength. None of it made sense and even her parents didn't want to deal with it after a while. That was when SHIELD came in and offered to take her in, teach her and classify her, keep her out of mainstream society. She tried not to be bitter about it because they did help her control her abilities, but she missed a normal life. She resigned herself to the fact that she would never have one.