"We make a pretty good team, don't we?" Bucky spoke, a small smile on his face as he glanced up at Rowan through his long dark hair.
"Even with Sam, hey?" Rowan questioned, returning his smile.
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Chapter Seventeen
"After recent events, we are asking you to consider joining the Avengers initiative." Rowan looked down at the giant pile of files that Tony and Steve had set in front of her. She chewed on her lip, did she really want to dive back in? She was lost when she wasn't working...at least when Bucky wasn't around.
"I-I don't know-"
"Rowan, you have worked with me. You are a young woman, you know how this all works. Our newest edition to the team, Wanda Maximoff. She doesn't know how it works, she has no one relate too and-"
"Is this like a club, why are you taking like that, Steve?" Rowan asked, a smirk on her lips as she raised an eyebrow, opening the file and glancing over the names. Watching Steve in the corner of her eye, shake his head at the young woman.
AVENGERS INITIATIVE MEMBERS:
TONY STARK STEVE ROGERS NATASHA ROMANOFF THOR ODINSON JAMES RHODES SAM WILSON WANDA MAXIMOFF VISION/JARVIS
Rowan looked up at Steve, eyebrow raised. "Sams on the team?"
"Yes" Steve answered and the girl smirked, biting her lip.
"Well, I guess the boys are back in business?" Rowan spoke, smirking.
"Only if you join, Rowan" Rowan bit her lip again, this time a nervous bite. Bucky had only phoned her two weeks ago, to check in, to let her know she was okay. He hadn't come to visit nor did he plan to, he probably wouldn't. He had too much heat on him already.
Rowan would never admit it, especially to herself, but she missed Bucky...like a lot. And she needed a distraction. What better distraction than joining the Avengers? That definitely would keep her busy, at-least for awhile. "Okay, Steve, I'll become an Avenger. But, Tony better be paying me...nicely."
"I'm sure he will" Steve spoke, a large toothy grin on his face, Rowan took a deep breath. The guilt, it had gotten to her.
"Steve?" Rowan spoke, and Steve's eyebrows furrowed at the change of tone in her voice, going from ecstatic to sad and broken.
"Yeah, what's wrong Rowan?" Steve questioned his eyebrows furrowing even more when she looked back up at him with tears in her eyes. "Rowan, are you...okay?"
"I'm sorry Steve." Rowan wanted to tell him, god she wanted to tell him so bad.
"For what? Rowan, what's going on?" Steve grabbed the girls shoulders, gently pulling her to face him and she let out a deep and broken breath.
"Steve..." Rowan bit her lip, bringing herself to look into those ocean blue eyes. "I've seen Bucky."
Rowan watched as Steve's Eyebrows furrowed, dropping his hands from her shoulders, taking a step back. "W-what are you talking about, Rowan?"
"It-I, oh god, he didn't want me to tell you Steve, but I-"
"Rowan, stop. Take a deep breath" Rowan hadn't even known she was crying until Steve grabbed her shoulders again, she hadn't realized she started to hyperventilate. She couldn't imagine a life if Steve, hated her or didn't trust her.
Rowan took a deep breath closing her eyes. "When I was in Italy, he showed up to my apartment, something about Hydra hunting him down. B-but to make long story short; I helped him."
"Good, that's good Rowan." Steve spoke, giving her a small smile. "Rowan, if he didn't want me to know. I can only hope that when he's ready he will come to me."
Rowan looked at Steve her eyebrows furrowing. "I-I don't understand"
Now, she was laughing and it was Steve's turn to shake his head, looking down at the girl, confused. "After all these years...70 years...You, and James. You still trust the others judgment?"
Steve smiled looking up, almost as if he was deep in thought, and he was. He was thinking back to growing up with Bucky, every single memory hitting him all at once. "Yes, I'll trust his judgment...until the end of the line."
"Do you trust anybody else as much as James?" Rowan questioned and Steve's eyes landed back on her, a smile on his face.
"Sam Wilson" Steve said and Rowan nodded.
"Good choice."
"Natasha Romanoff"
"Even better choice" Rowan spoke, nodding, a smirk on her lips.
"And you, Rowan. You're like a little sister to me, or perhaps what I assume having a sister would be like, sometimes you're a pain, and it's stressful always looking over my shoulder to make sure you're okay...but I trust you and your judgement more than anyone. You always look at every situation as a human. No matter what shield did to you, they still couldn't rip the humanity away from you" Rowan was looking up at Steve with tears in her eyes, no one had ever spoke so kindly to her before, or said such kind things. "That's why I always hope to have you on my team, Rowan. Just like Sam, you guys aren't perfect soldiers, but good people and that is so much more important than anything else."
"Steve..." Rowan spoke softly, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand, looking at the older man with a smile. "Thank you."
"Anytime kid" Steve tossed his arm over the younger girls shoulder, dragging her to walk through the compound with him. "So, he must've taken a liking to you than?"
Rowan bit her lip, a blush growing onto her cheeks and Steve couldn't help but smirk, looking down at the girl. "Oh boy...."
"Maybe I should just get ready to meet the rest of the Avengers or at least the ones I don't know" Rowan offered, trying to suppress the smile that tried to grow on her face.
"Sure, we can....but, we are definitely having this conversation later, young lady" Steve spoke grabbing the door handle, and pointing a stern finger at Rowan, who rolled her eyes.
"Sure, sure. Whatever you say grandpa" Rowan spoke, smirking as Steve shone his head, disappointed.
