Girl At War

Recovery - 32

"Wait wait wait, hold on. Was that... Eloyse?"

"No." Came the prompt answer in the direction she'd gone. Tony scrambled to his feet, upsetting his makeshift table in the process. 

"You get back in bed!" he hollered, tripping over a log and falling flat. The answer that drifted back was totally Eloyse.

"Save your breath!"

Tony picked himself up and dusted off. He glared at the log. "Your fault.." He growled, kicking it with his sandal feet. With a high-pitched, angry yelp, he plopped down on the log and nursed his toe.

"What's the matter? Stub your toe?" Natasha's purr came from a few feet away. Tony glowered towards her. She was leaning against a tree, arms crossed. A half-eaten apple was in one hand. She chuckled and ambled away. 

"Hey!" Tony hopped to one foot. "What about Eloyse?"

"I don't know. What about her?" Natasha innocently batted her eyelashes and meandered off. Tony muttered some uncomplimentary words under his breath. Just then unaware Steve came strolling by. Tony caught his arm.

"What's up with Eloyse?"

"Eloyse? Oh! Nat said she woke up and took off. She couldn't keep her down. I thought I just heard her. She didn't tell you?" He turned to go before remembering something, "Oh yea! Clint was wondering if you could get the kid's bracelets off. He don't like them."

"He don't like them?" Tony snorted. "What about her?"

*********************

When Tony walked onto the jet, he was startled to see the whole team gathered around a center point. He nudged through them, finding Clint and Eloyse at the center. Clint had a pencil and paper, and was carefully drawing according to what Eloyse told him.

"What are you doing?" Tony stood in front of Natasha. The assassin merely sidestepped, too interested to bother with Tony. 

"Drawing." Eloyse replied. She thoughtfully paused, "Well, he's drawing."

"I can see that." Tony grumbled.

"It's blueprints." Steve helpfully added. "She was captured a while back and saw blueprints for this. Now she's drawing them out for us."

"What are they for?" 

"Tach Aria Yelkan," Eloyse answered without looking.

"The weapon." Bruce translated. No other explanation was needed; it was what they were after. He looked excited. Wanda, sitting in the pilot's seat and kicking her legs, smiled. Eloyse continued her careful instruction of where Clint was to draw. When Tony asked why Eloyse wasn't drawing, Eloyse explained she couldn't draw real well. Silence broken only by the pencil scratching reigned in the small jet. Occasionally Eloyse would speak up, telling Clint what to do. Otherwise she just showed him, pointing where the next pencil stroke should go. After what seemed forever, Eloyse inspected the drawing. She frowned. Taking the pencil from Clint, she wrote in beautiful handwriting three words across the top, then sat back with a contented nod. 

"That's it."

Bruce and Tony crowded closer. Steve gently pulled the paper from Clint's grasp, holding it closer for them all to examine. "What's Tach Aria Yelkan?"

"Weapon of the High Ones." Eloyse rose, stretching a little. Bruce glanced towards her when she headed for the door. 

"You take it easy." He admonished. "You should be in bed, not out roaming around."

Eloyse faintly smiled, giving Bruce a tiny nod. Playing, she braced her feet and slid down the ramp leading outside. Reaching the soft grass, she skipped away.