Into the Ring

Chapter One-Welcome Back

(And a welcome back to you, sweet readers!)

*Three Years Later*

My heart is beating about as fast as I'm spinning the two rings around my finger. I stare out the jet windows at the changing landscape, so different from where I just was. I pause and look down at the rings with nostalgia staining my tongue. A smile curves my lips up when I fiddle with the bottom shining silver band with the little A on it and then the little spider on the other. Mercy whines quietly and sits up, setting her big head on my knee. A smile pulls at my lips as I reach out and massage her soft ear.

"You need to calm down. Even I can hear your heartbeat." Natasha tells me calmly as she flies. I wiggle in the chair next to her and she turns on autopilot, then turns to face me. A moment passes with her searching jade eyes on mine before I sigh.

"It's been three months," I tell her green eyes as she suppresses a smile.

"I've been gone longer. This was your chance to stretch your legs, Jo, and you did extremely well." She reassures me and the sincerity coming off her is so sweet it makes me feel bad. "What's bothering you?" Natasha pushes slightly, knowing I'm not telling her something. My eyes roll.

"Are you forgetting I didn't exactly have permission to leave? And how adamant everyone was that I shouldn't have?" She raises an eyebrow.

"Everyone?" She repeats and I deflate slightly in surrender. She was on my side, mostly. "You're over eighteen and legally allowed to make your own decisions. The team has no hold on you, Jo." I fix her with an incredulous glare and her lips twitch. "Other than affection." Sighing, I press my lips together.

"Right. And that has no hold on me." I sass and her lips quirk up further. "This is the longest I've been away from everyone since we met." I preface and her head cocks slightly.

"And you're afraid they've adopted another wayward orphan with a bad attitude?" She poses and I snort.

"No. Just...I don't know how they're going to react. You're not worried they'll be pissed at you for finding me and not dragging me back?"

Natasha shakes her head. "You're overthinking this. It's something you had to do. I'm sure they'll have seen that by now. Besides, they won't be mad at me for looking after you."

"Right, because that's what we were doing as we snuck in and out of Hydra bases. I was just your charge." I respond with attitude. Natasha leans back in her chair and flicks out imaginary dirt from under her fingernails. Her eyes don't waver from mine.

"I'm not about to tell them what we were doing. I'll let them think what they assume. Thought I'd taught you that already." She combats quietly and that's when I know she's done with the conversation unless I bring new information to the table.

"I don't like being unsure of where I stand with the team." With my family. Her eyes consider me before she nods, pats my knee, and turns back to the windows.

"Well, we're going to find out soon." We look out the front and I see the facility down below us as Natasha lowers the jet. My stomach becomes more knotted. Three months ago, I decided I wanted to see how I'd fare without the team at my back. Figure out what I wanted, what I could do, who I wanted to be. Natasha endorsed this and most everyone else objected, so I made the decision to slip out in the middle of the night. With Mercy. On one of the team's jets. It took Natasha a week to find me and she stuck by my side for the duration. Three months of working with Wanda and Vision in the European sect of the Avengers ensued and I learned a lot. But I missed the rest of my family. "You're projecting." Natasha reminds me with a soft smile and I quickly reign in my emotions. I'm thankful Nat and Mercy stayed with me, or else the world might've swallowed me. Nat's hand grabs mine as the jet shivers with the landing before we both stand. "It'll be fine." She assures me and pulls the lever for the door. The three of us walk over to the door as it opens and I squeeze Natasha's hand a little harder.