"SO, BASICALLY," TONY RECAPPED after the Cap, "basically what Capsicle here means to say is that we aren't really ordering you, a small-time hairdresser, into rooming with the evillest supervillain of the universe who is also immortal and slightly...
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09. I stole them
Dr. Bruce Banner could solve every mathematical, physical and possibly even bio-chemical problem (including various sub-disciplines of the sciences) in the world, at least technically. He could not, however, solve the problem of how his throat lost his voice, how his arm lost its hold on his coat and how his eyes began to blink nervously.
All because of Natasha Romanoff.
The Black Widow, female, is considered the most venomous spider in North America. The venom of the black widow spider is 15 times as toxic as the venom of the prairie rattlesnake.
Not that Black Widow, he chided himself as he ran a shaky hand over his face. He walked in, gulping. There was no need to confirm the safehouse. Natasha was here and he could see Clint (shooting daggers at him from beside her) too. The woman who opened the door looked young for managing a safehouse but he had seen younger S.H.I.E.L.D. agents.
Like always he could feel his skin crawling at the disgust he felt at everything related to S.H.I.E.L.D. except right now his face was pink with shameful apology. He stopped in front of Natasha, foot nervously tapping, hands deep inside his pockets. Why did he feel so horrible when she had betrayed him? And yet, it felt a lot like he had.
Natasha stared back with a steely gaze and a whole minute passed with extreme discomfort until she walked to the couch, taking care to sit as far away from Loki as the space made possible.
That was when Bruce saw the God of Lies, sitting smugly on the couch and a part of his brain welcomed the terrifying distraction. It was as if his grey cells kicked back into working. He opened and closed his mouth like a goldfish, pointing at Loki and then looking at Clint, Natasha and the other woman.
He didn't even look back as he bolted towards the door.
"It's alright," Clint drawled lazily, shooting an arrow that caught the cloth on Bruce's shirt, pinning his arm to the door frame. "He hasn't hypnotized us or anything. He physically can't. Tony's got him under control. He's on the team."
"That's exactly what a hypnotized person would say," Bruce struggled with the arrow, trying to get free. "Let me go or you'll see what happens when I get anxious and-and it's not pretty."
Natasha's voice was emotionless when she spoke, "As much as it pains me to admit it, Loki is on the team."
He stopped struggling and looked at everyone, "Are you guys crazy? Have you forgotten what he's capable of? There's no way..."
Loki got up and Bruce flinched visibly, walking several steps backwards, "Ah, Dr. Banner, I am extremely pleased you remember me. I must say everyone in this room is at least a percentage crazy and it takes time adjusting to this—" he wrinkled his nose as he dramatically looked around the apartment, "—but believe me, I have reformed. I am—how do I put it—a most goody-two-shoes, boring, crime-fighter like my br-Thor. It sucks but don't worry, I'll get back in character the second I can."
