➸ 2013
📍AVENGERS TOWER
A Year After The Battle of New York
╰─────────╯
"Sloppy."
Bang.
"Worthless."
Bang.
"Nothing."
Bang.
"You have no place in this worl—"
"That floor is very expensive, if you dent it, you're paying the expenses." he pauses. "Hey, that rhymed."
Galina's head snapped up from where she sat in the middle of the training gym to find Tony standing right ahead of her with crossed arms and a teasing looking on his face.
"Sorry." she mumbles before sliding the pointe shoe onto her padded foot. "These are new, I needed to soften the box."
"You need to soften how hard you bang into my floor." he quips, taking a couple of steps towards her.
Galina gave him a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes with a shake of her head before focusing on tying the ribbons around her ankle.
It's been hard to adjust to the "free" lifestyle this past year.
The minute that she made her long drawn out confession about everything HYDRA and the Red Room, everything changed.
She's never understood the metaphor of someone "turning into a ghost" when bad news was given to them until that meeting with Fury who she made swear not to tell anyone except for the proper channels — anyone being the Avengers.
And he hasn't — I mean, his secrets have secrets, he's the ultimate spy. This is an easy one to keep...somewhat.
But once she had spilled the truth, the second it left her mouth, the horrors didn't stop.
For the first time ever she had nightmares — even flashbacks.
She isn't sure which is worse: living with the assassin organizations or having to bear the memories from said organizations....and feeling real guilt.
Tony's expression dropped into one of minor worry, almost a frown on the billionaire's face. "You doing okay, kid?" he asks wearily.
"Yeah, i'm fine." she breathed out, standing up on her feet and bouncing up and down on her toes to loosen the shank of the shoe. "Anything you needed?"
"Just came here to remind you about the press conference later." he informed, beginning to walk backwards. "Make sure you dress presentable — none of those raggedy garments, please. I don't need people thinking that I don't put clothes on your back. It'll make me look like a fake billionaire"
Galina chuckled at this, fondly shaking her head. "No promises."
This past year, despite their initial little quarrels in the beginning, Galina and Tony have gotten close, growing a father-daughter bond.
Both of the heavy ego'd Avengers believed that they knew everything, until they ended up teaching one another the things that they didn't.
"I mean, seriously, I've mistaken you for one of those hobos that beg outside of the building, not a resid—"
"Okay!" she exclaims. "I'll dress nice."
Tony smiled at her from where he now stood in the sliding doorway of the training room before that smile became weary. "You sure you're doing okay, kiddo?"
She broke eye contact and instead rose to her feet, rolling up and down en pointe as she looked at herself in the mirror. "I will be."
...
"Ms. Kuznetsov, Aspen would like to know if he can visit?" JARVIS's robotic voice alerted her.
"Tell him that he can and also tell him that he can stop asking to visit. He basically lives on my floor anyways."
The sound of the elevator beeping and the doors opening echoed through the spaced out living room.
"Well it's called being polite, GiGi." he sets down the pizza box on the coffee table. "You should try it sometime."
"Ooh, hard pass." she opens up the box and grabs a slice and Aspen does the same after he sits down beside her. "And stop calling me that dumb nickname, we talked about this."
Aspen Xavier was Galina's first ever friend.
He had ended up moving into the tower at the same exact time as her and since they're only a year apart, they clicked.
Though Galina was stubborn and pushed him away the first couple of months, Aspen was persistent which resulted into the establishment of best friends....though the lines were being blurred.
"Nah. I wanna introduce you to a new show." he stated as he took a bite, switching the topic.
"God, don't let it be another Glee-like show." she exasperated.
"What?! You love Glee!"
"It's too music-y.." she then grimaced. "That's not a word, is it?"
"It's definitely not."
"Oh fuck you!" she kicked him. "Are we gonna talk about the words that you've made up?"
"I'm suddenly deaf and can't hear a word that you're saying." he joked.
"You really put the "ass" in Aspen." she rolled her eyes and continued chewing on her pizza as she focused on her Bad Girls Club re-runs playing on the TV in front of her.
Aspen just smiled to himself and stared at her momentarily; admiring the slope of her nose, the golden freckles that littered her face, her long lashes, and sharp jawline—
"I can feel you staring." she grinned before slowly looking over at him, his cheeks ever so slightly pink. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." he quickly squeaked out and grabbed the remote.
"Excuse you!" she gasped.
"I'm introducing you to a new show, remember?" he clicked through various TV networks until he stopped.
The show was not in color, but in black and white.
"What the hell is this? Why is there no color?"
"It's called a sitcom. This one is 'I Love Lucy'."
And so, she sat back and watched the show. She acted uninterested and bored but truly, she'll never go back to watching Bad Girls Club again.
On that day she established that sitcoms are her new favorite thing.
"Oh, and also." Aspen began to dig around in his jacket pocket before pulling out a small baggie. This contained a plant-like grainy green substance — he holds it up with a cheeky grin. "Wanna get high?"
Galina's eyebrows drew up onto her forehead in shock. "Where the hell did you get that from?"
"I kind of just...found it?"
"Found it where?" she questioned slowly as the bag dangled in between his fingertips.
"Let's just say that the homeless population in New York makes up for good entrepreneurship." he cryptically responds, cracking open the bag. "Shall we?"
...
THE LAB
There was still a couple of hours before the conference, the effects of the cannabis now only reducing to relaxation.
"Terminatorrrr." Galina said in a sing songy tune as she entered Tony's lab, hobbling around enthusiastically.
He sighed heavily. "Zip it, Deetz. I need to be focused." his hands swipe around the digital object.
She glanced around at the holographic robotic design, bewildered. "I'm confused, why are you making more Iron Men?"
"That's where you're wrong, Hermione. I have a vision."
"That's a new one." she said, referring to the nickname.
Tony swipes off of the hologram and turns around to face her. "Think about it." he turns her around by her shoulders and leads her to another spot in the lab. "A suit of armor around the world..."
"Okay..?" she trailed off.
"JARVIS, open up B15A."
"On it, boss."
A containment began to open in front of them revealing a robot that seems to be a work in progress.
"I'm gonna call it an Iron Legionnaire." he lets go of her shoulders and pranced around to stand in front of her awaiting for her to say something.
"I'm gonna be completely truthful with you right now...i'm still very lost."
"Sweet Jesus, you can read minds — how are you even remotely confused right now?"
"You're right I can read minds but the last time I was in your mind..." she shuddered. "Scary scary place."
Tony rolled his eyes heavily. "That's on you for venturing through my head without permish."
"Permish?— you know what nevermind. What am I looking at right now?"
"Oh right." he smiles widely at his design. "This is the future. This is what'll protect the world when the Avengers croak."
"But robots are unreliable."
"You're unreliable." he countered sassily. "I'm also working on an AI — it'll replicate JARVIS."
"Yet how many times have I saved your ass? Are we gonna talk about how the lab almost exploded a month ag—"
"It was an accident!"
"An accident that almost killed me!"
"I'm not arguing with you anymore, Deetz. I simply just wanted to show you my brilliant ideas but you're ungrateful."
"Does your "science bro" know of this "brilliant idea", Anthony." she crossed her arms with raised brows. "About the AI?"
His eyes squinted for a moment. "If I tell you the truth will you promise not to throw me through a window again?"
"You psychotic bitch, you didn't tell him!—"
"Hear me out—"
"—because you know that he wouldn't approve—"
"—I didn't tell him because then things would get—"
"—he's less impulsive than you are, Tony! He'll be against it just like I am. I call you Terminator for a reason—"
"I'm not telling him!"
Galina gave him a dumbfounded look.
"Not yet anyways..." he scratched the back of his neck and sauntered across the room to sit down on a lab table.
"This is stupid."
"So you may say." he chuckles lightly before getting into a much more serious mood. "Do you see what i'm trying to get at here? We need more protection because god forbid there's a much bigger threat in the future. The eight of us can't face that on our own. Hell, we were barely able to face Loki. We need more, so that when we're gone, we're confident that Earth is protected."
And Galina understood what he was saying...but soon her mind will be changed.
Suddenly, Tony began to sniff the air dramatically and wafting a hand through the atmosphere.
"Are you high?"
...
PRESS CONFERENCE
So many flashing lights.
So many reporters.
So many people.
Galina sat in between Aspen and Natasha around the long table that faced out into the mini crowd.
"You okay?" Natasha asks, a gentle hand coming up to rub the young girl's shoulder.
She exhales a long breath, wringing her hands on her lap nervously. "I have no idea."
"Good afternoon, everybody." Tony Stark, the ever so flamboyant man bolstered. "Today we're just gonna be answering some of your questions — maybe even revealing our deepest darkest secrets, ain't that right, Cap?" he slammed a hand down on Bruce's shoulder to which the doctor shrugged off with a tight smile.
"Maybe not the deepest darkest secrets."
The reporters and journalists began to chatter, raising hands to get their question asked.
"Mm, i'm gonna pick you." Tony pointed to a blonde journalist, the chatter calming down.
The blondie stands up with a smile. "Thank you, Mr. Stark. My name is Cindy West, and my question is actually for Ms. Kuznetsov."
"Oh, great, me first." she mutters sarcastically and sat up straighter which caused the room to chuckle.
"What is it like being the youngest on the team? I mean, you've only recently just turned eighteen but when the Battle of New York happened, you were seventeen. I can't imagine how that must've been for you especially knowing that you single handily saved your teammates on numerous occasions."
Galina brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and pondered her words. "Well, I'm not the only teenager on the team, there's Aspen as well." she pointed out. "Natasha, Tony, Steve, Bruce, Clint, and the Odinson siblings who are unfortunately off world today, are definitely like adoptive parents for the two of us." the room lightly laughs. "Having them by my side for the Battle of New York definitely calmed any anxiety I felt."
Question after question were answered for the next hour. Whether it was a journalist asking Bruce about his studies on gamma radiation, or a journalist getting nosey on Steve's nonexistent love life.
Unfortunately, the purpose of the press conference had completely changed into something entirely different.
"I don't really have time for romance." he says stoically, rubbing a hand behind his neck. "Too busy saving the world."
"Okay, we're gonna be taking one last question — make it good." Tony remarks before pointing to a young man in the audience. "You, sir."
"Thanks Mr. Stark." the tall man stood up with an almost cocky smile on his face. Galina could immediately detect something off with his energy. "My question is for Agent Kuznetsov actually."
"Oh, I'm not an agent." she corrects softly, eyes darting around almost awkwardly.
"Right..." he trailed with a corked brow. "Anyway, I feel like there's a lot of miscommunication in the media from where you came from and how you got your psychic abilities. Care to explain?"
Fury had prepared Galina for this in that meeting that they held.
The two came up with a cover story to not only tell the rest of the Avengers, but to present to the public as well.
"Um, well.." she began. "My powers came from my mother being involved in illegal experimentation when she was pregnant with me. MK Ultra, it was called." she continued, swallowing thickly. "I was put into an orphanage when I was born and then when my abilities surfaced, SHIELD have had their eyes on me since then."
Obviously there was more to the cover story than this — if it was that basic, none of the Avengers would buy it.
Obviously, there was a certain Russian spy on the team that was suspicious of it.
"Right.." he hums, face curling up in faux confusion. "Did the orphanage send you to make an attempt on Director Nick Fury's life too?"
A couple of gasps echoed throughout the room.
The assassination attempt was not entirely public knowledge. The only way that this man could've known about it was through paying off someone within SHIELD.
Galina's jaw clenched momentarily before she quickly recovered. "That's all noise in the media as well, sir. I did no such thing." she lied.
"Ah, so you're telling me that you aren't a highly skilled and trained assassin, Rose Widow?"
"Alright, get him out of here." Tony demanded, rising to his feet and flicking his hand towards the direction of the journalist which caused for security to immediately usher towards the man.
Everything began to spiral into chaos as everyone, even her own team looked at her almost sideways.
"Isn't it true that you're actually an illegal alien, Актив?" he continued on with his spiel as he was dragged out [ "Asset" ]. "A Russian spy just like your mentor, Natalia Romanova?!"
Obviously, it was abundantly clear that Galina was Russian...but the Russian spy part just like Natasha is what spooked them.
Romanoff looked at the girl with furrowed brows, suspicious eyes."What is he talking about?"
She refused to make eye contact and stayed silent...just as the room remained silent.