15 x let's go ride in a jet
>>
The quinjet was packed with Avengers, which is to say that the usual few of us who could fly were inside, too. This was because there was a last-minute briefing that needed to be done . . . also because it was easier to rush into the jet and just go that it was to allow Tony any kind of time to get out.
Needless to say, it was a tight fit. It would've been even tighter if we'd had Bruce, Natasha, and Thor, and it was with that in mind that I was biting my tongue and doing my best not to complain of close quarters.
I was leaning against a part of one of the inner arches, Pietro hovering around me, when Vision spoke up, hushing all of our minor conversations. "Where is it we are going?"
Wanda was the one to engage in a follow up question soon after, "And what are we doing?" At this, she looked to me, arching a brow inquisitively.
"I volunteer Megan to explain," Bucky said, and just like that, all eyes were on me.
I shot Bucky an annoyed look. "Thanks, Buck. I really appreciate the spotlight."
He shrugged, opting for silence, though a slight smirk tugged at his lips before his face features resorted to the same expectant expression as everyone else's.
I sighed, reaching subtly toward Pietro and grabbing his hand. His thumb brushed over my knuckles automatically before he squeezed my hand, the action helping me to calm enough to collect my thoughts and focus on a starting point. "Okay. Red Skull contacted us when we were trying to contact you guys," I said, looking pointedly at Tony, Steve, and Rhodey, "and proceeded to play on Bucky's nerves long enough that JARVIS picked up a trace on their location."
Tony interrupted me then, "I'm already there in your story, shortstop," he said from his position in the jet, his face plate down. Apparently he'd been doing his own research while everyone else was talking. "Anything else of import you'd like to add, or what?"
"Depends, did anyone want to know what it took to get everyone to show up in the same place?" I asked, arching a brow as I looked around the jet.
"Mad leadership skills via Megan," Peter volunteered. He and Evangeline were seated in one corner of the plane, both of them with expressions on their faces much akin to children at Christmas -- something that hadn't changed since they'd boarded the quinjet.
"Megan has leadership skills?" Sam asked teasingly, flashing me a jesting smile. "Who'd've thought."
"Me," Wanda volunteered, raising a hand. Vision was nodding from beside her.
"Same," Evangeline said, still grinning broadly. I was beginning to wonder if her cheeks were going to start hurting.
"I think Meg does rather well leading," Steve agreed.
"I was just joking," Sam said then, spreading his arms and giving everyone a pointed look. "No need to jump down my throat all at once."
"I didn't," Tony pointed out.
"No, because you're off in la la land doing who knows what," Rhodey pointed out, rolling his eyes. His face plate had been up since I had seen him, and he was surveying all of us with slight amusement since boarding.
"Probably playing Tetris, or something," I retorted sarcastically.
"Better than Galaga," Tony remarked then, before his face plate finally came up. "No, I was double checking our location."
"And why is that?" Steve asked.
"Because what J got said that Skully's in Alaska," Tony informed all of us. "I was making sure that wasn't a farse."
"Where in Alaska?" Ev asked curiously, as Peter mumbled, "I've never been to Alaska."
"Way up north," Tony said. "Way in the Arctic Circle north. Also, did you know that Alaska is called 'the last frontier'?"
Bucky snorted. "By who?"
Tony was silent for a split second, before, "The internet."
"Great answer," Pietro said, giving Stark a look that conveyed how unimpressed he was. "Even I know the information on the internet had to come from somewhere."
"Yeah, well, did you want me to do a paper on the history of Alaska while we fly there? What're you expecting from me, here, Sonic?" Tony asked.
"Not a lot," Pietro said dryly.
"Pietro," Wanda scolded. "There is no reason to be mean to Stark right now."
Steve chuckled so quietly I almost didn't hear it, and when I looked to him, he was shaking his head to himself. "'Right now' . . ."
Sam and Bucky were also suppressing smiles -- that is, Sam was trying to hide his. Bucky was full on grinning in amusement, even when Tony did look at him, he kept on smiling.
"I'm so glad today was somehow declared 'teammates gang up on Tony day,'" Tony said sarcastically, heading back up to the cockpit. He'd had JARVIS piloting us the moment we'd taken off, so he could come back and be with the team for a moment . . . apparently now was a good time to take a break from us. As he passed Rhodey he said, "And don't think I didn't hear you laughing, Iron Patriot."
Rhodey coughed, before indignantly correcting, "War Machine!"
"Oh, you settled on War Machine?" Peter asked from his seat. "I liked that better than Iron Patriot."
"Me too," Ev volunteered.
"See!" Rhodey said loudly before following after Tony, back toward the cockpit.
Silence fell over the rest of us for a moment, before Steve said, "The color scheme was a bit disconcerting for Iron Patriot . . . so far as that goes."
Bucky scoffed. "You just don't like that someone else looked like a flag."
Steve gave Bucky an indignant look. "Why should I care if someone else decides to dress patriotically? It's not like I've copyrighted the colors red white and blue."
"May as well have," Wanda noted in amusement.
"You are Captain America," Vision said.
"Aww, how cute," I said, looking up at Pietro and winking, "they finish each other's sentences."
Now he looked torn between being an overprotective big brother, and being his usual teasing self with me. His eyes darted rapidly between the android and me, before I watched his chest rise and fall in an almost resigned sigh. He smiled then, releasing my hand to wrap an arm around my waist. "Was that something you were interested in pursuing?"
"I don't think that's the kind of thing that you achieve with practice," Sam said.
Ev spoke up immediately, "You'd be wrong, then. Peter and I have it to a 't'."
Before anyone could make any sort of suggestive comment at that, I shot them all a warning look, eyes flickering to gold in the process. A comment visibly died on Sam's tongue, while Vision clamped his mouth shut so quickly his mouth nearly clicked. I turned back to Ev and Peter with a friendly look, "Want to demonstrate?"
"Happy to oblige," Peter agreed, smiling somewhat at me, though he was giving the others wary looks, as though he wasn't so sure how this party trick would go over.
"Go for it," Steve said. "We've got about a hour left to kill on this jet . . . we'll take any entertainment we can get."
"So long as it's not arguing," Wanda added.
Peter seemed to relax at that, and with a glance at Evangeline, they both nodded. "Okay," Ev said, "which of us--"
"Did you want to go first?" Peter finished for her, smiling proudly as he glanced at his red-haired friend.
Most of us were already smiling after that one, and honestly, I was relieved. I'd take anything as tension relief at that point. As the two of them kept at it, I leaned into Pietro, taking a slow breath and letting it go as I relaxed.
When he spoke, it was quiet enough that only I could hear him. "Remember," he whispered, "everything is going to be okay."
I wished I could whole-heartedly believe him. But, I could say, in all honesty, "I trust you." I looked up at him with a small smile then, and he pressed a fast kiss to my head.