Avengers: Divided We Fall

Strengthened Resolve

The jet touched down in Vienna in what seemed like the blink of an eye. Dean reasoned that it must have gone quickly because he was dreading his arrival so much. It reminded him of summer breaks when he was a kid in school. The start of a new school year always seemed to rush to him while the end of one took its time.

"Welcome to Vienna, Mr. Allen," Natasha said as she walked up to him and embraced him.

Dean took a step back and took in her conservative dark purple blazer and skirt. "You look like one of the ladies who lunch," Dean laughed.

"Yeah, I was going for something subtle and non-threatening."

"Well, you couldn't look less like a trained assassin right now."

Natasha grinned. "I'm glad you're here, Dean."

Dean offered his arm and the two of them walked off of the landing pad together. Silence quickly took over, which caused them both to feel uncomfortable. They'd always been on the same side of things in the past. What if Dean decided he didn't agree with the Accords, even after the meeting that was supposed to clarify things for him?

"I talked to Steve," Dean finally said in order to break the quiet.

"Yeah, I saw him at the funeral." She went silent for a few moments. "He's not signing the Accords."

Dean looked at Natasha's profile. "Tell me something, Nat. And tell me honestly."

"Yeah?"

"What's motivating you to go along with The Accords the most."

Without hesitation, Natasha said, "because the Avengers are my family. It's like I said to Steve. Staying together is more important than how we stay together."

"So you're not motivated by the laws themselves?" Dean questioned.

"To an extent. I do think we need to win back the trust of the people. And I understand that compromise is often a part of life. This is just another compromise." She paused. "What are you thinking about it? You've been pretty hush-hush since everything blew up the other day."

"I don't want to go against any of you. I feel the same way you do; we're a family. A big, dysfunctional family. And the thought of having to be at odds with any of you makes me feel so sad. Plus, there are more serious threats out there right now that Thor's dealing with and investigating. How effective would all of us be if we were too busy dividing ourselves to do anything about it?"

Natasha nodded her head emphatically as they entered the large building through the roof access. "I think that's all the more reason for all of us to just sign The Accords. The family stays together and we get the governments of the world off of our backs so that we can stop whatever is coming. It'll be easier to do that if we aren't fugitives of the law."

They took an elevator to the floor below them and when they stepped out, Dean could hear Tony's voice from down the hall. A grin spread across his face in spite of himself. Tony's energy had that affect on him. They walked into the large conference room, to Dean's surprise, Tony wasn't the first person he noticed.

Seated at the table were three of The Four. Reed Richards stood first and reached for Dean's hand. "You must be Lumen," he said.

Dean felt a wave of sorrow and guilt hit him like he'd just fallen into an icy lake. He looked at Reed's bloodshot eyes and could see that the man hadn't slept much. He couldn't blame him. "It's very nice to meet you, Reed," he offered before turning to the woman at his side. "And you must be Susan Storm."

"Just Sue, please," the woman said as she shook his hand. "It's very nice to meet you." From Sue he picked up a sense of apprehension that was just bubbling under being fear. The look in her eyes and her expression didn't betray this; she presented herself as cheerful and social.