6 weeks after Sienna's disappearance
The air was getting colder, the day slowly slipping away. Night was coming, and everyone's coats seemed like petty defense against the chilliness.
Maybe it was the weather, or maybe it was just that feeling.
Cold.
The Avengers, Coulson's team, Fury, Layla, Hill, and a younger boy were all there. The winter air in Washington DC didn't help lighten the mood, not did it offer any comfort. All it did was whisper through the leaves, as it had done for thousands of years.
The wind moved some of the fresh dirt, as well as the flower's petals that lay on the grave. They were all various colors; deep reds, pale pinks, even the faintest of blue. And white roses. Her favorite kind.
The headstone itself was bland, un-original.
Sienna I. Firman
1990 - 2013
"A fighting soul will finally be
granted an eternal rest."
It was a sad memorial to the woman, but it was better than nothing. They had fulfilled her wishes anyway. The grave next to her's read David Firman.
Inside the casket, they'd put one of her old suits inside, as well as two of her knives. She'd been buried with her sword, as the Celtic traditions of old had done.
They'd hired a pastor to say a few words as workers buried the casket. But other than that, no one said anything. It was a dead silence, and the pastor found this odd. There were no tears, no talking. It seemed these people had prepared for this kind of grief.
So after all was said, the casket buried and the flowers tossed, the young boy came up. No one particular knew who he was, all he said was his name was 'Zack'. For some reason, Fury notified the kid to come.
He couldn't have been older then 11, with dark hair and dark skin. His accent suggested Morocco, but it was slowly slipping. The boy had been in the US for a bit.
So this Zack came up, gently setting down two peppermint candies next to the headstone. He didn't even look at the eyes that followed him, just returned back to his spot next to Fury.
So the small crowd stood there, looking at the grave of the fallen Avenger. And as the wind whispered in their ears, they greeted it with silence.
Sienna Firman was really dead.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Night had fallen on DC. Coulson's team had gone back to the Bus with orders to return to the Academy to await orders and to meet up with Coulson, who wasn't allowed at the funeral due to the Avengers being there.
Fury and Hill returned to the Triskelion for the next day's work, with the young boy in tow.
As for the Avengers, for some odd reason they thought a hoodie and a few baseball caps would conceal their identities, and went out to do a proper wake in remembrance of Sienna. Layla tagged along, not needing anything to conceal herself because, to be frank, she wasn't famous.
If you aren't familiar with what a wake is, it's quite simple to explain. You tell stories of the dead person, good memories and bad, all while drinking excessively. This usually ended up with people getting thrown out of bars, and later with lawsuits, but that's a different story.
So, the seven people sat at the back of the room, the bad bustling with sounds of laughing, raised voices, and the occasional crash. Each one had been provided with beers(Tony brought his precious scotch).
Silence. That thing had been going around a lot lately. Just quiet, nothing to say. Or maybe it was there were things to say, but everyone seemed in denial. That was its purpose, for nothing to be said. To wallow away in their own minds with just their thoughts. It was torture.
For those who knew of the anomaly, they pictured Sienna's death long, because they would interrogate her. Then they'd open her up, scoop out vital organs and blood, maybe all while she was still alive.
For those oblivious to the Tesseract inside of her, the imagine so many different deaths. Strangulation, shooting, drowning, poison, dehydration.....the list was endless. What was their friend going through? What was happening to her? Why was she dead in the first place?
Layla, who had been informed about the anomaly, was on the brink of tears. Sienna's bloody face kept flashing through her mind. Layla had let her go. She had given her the rope bullets, the ICER. Everybody was blaming Tony or Steve, when really, Sienna came to her first.
It was all her fault.
So Layla looked at her drink, sloshing it at bit. A drop slashed on the floor, but she didn't care. She felt like killing the glass.
Maybe it was to hold back the tears, maybe it was to diffuse the tension, but Layla opened her mouth," I have a story about Sienna.....if were still doing the wake thing."
She was met by eyes and even more quiet, but she just decided to do the thing she did best; ramble.
"It was maybe a Tuesday, little after the New York incident. I was my clumsy self, as per usual, always been clumsy...."
Layla Renning tripped on the floor. The very first day on the Helicarrier as chief weapon's designer and she had already tripped over nothing. She chastised herself, picking up her glasses and putting them back on. She got on her knees, blinking a bit before picking her books and tablet back up.
So of course, this was the perfect stereotypical time for a group of young men to walk by.
One wolf-whistled, probably looking in the wrong spots, and the others laughed at her. They'd probably seen the whole falling thing, only to annoyed her about it.
SHIELD agents were supposed to be poised and sleek, not anything like she was. Klutzy and still getting used to her long legs, long torso, long arms, even long nose. The only reason she'd gotten into SHIELD was because she was a genius; a superior genius.
But still, she had to remind herself that these small minded peers were not worth her time.
So she brushed it off. She didn't see the group of agents again till the next week. She was again walking, when she recognized one of the three. Layla ducked her head down, in an effort not to be noticed by him. But the agent bumped into her, again knocking all her books down.
Thus would happen every few days. Then came the day when 'Klutz' was spelled out on her lab floor in beads, which again caused her to fall. Then the trip wire. Then the whipped cream on the floor.
But one particular day, when Layla somehow skillfully made it into her lab without catastrophe, three familiar agents were at her door. Each had various sets of bruises, and each were vary eager to apologize.
After they left, a very smug Sienna Firman walked in, wondering if Layla could modify an old pistol. She didn't even mention the blood on her knuckles or slight rip on the side of her shirt.
A few laughs went around the table as Layla took a sip of her drink, smiling to herself.
"I would tell a story," Thor's voice boomed," But all we did was beat each other up."
More laughs as the archer of the group spoke.
"She never did like bullies," Clint Barton mused, tracing the rim of his drink," I have another story. This goes way back to when she was just a skinny thing, sixteen maybe."
Sienna had been punching that bag for hours, her wraps in her hand wearing off. Clint had come in the room, watching her on her form. She had started out nice, but her punches were getting weaker by the second. Sweat had drenched her, and her breathing was not consistent at all.
"Take a break." He said," You've beat that up enough today. Water break then some push-ups."
But Si just kept punching it. She gulped a bit," No sir. I'd like to keep hitting things."
Barton raised an eyebrow," Sir? We're very formal today. Push-ups."
She set her jaw. She was angry for some reason. She gave a few more hits, then just pulled out a knife from her belt and sliced the thing right open. Sand poured out as she dropped down on the ground, barely able to hold her weight during push-ups.
Clint sighed, dropping down next to her and doing the same exercise," Do I really have to show my favoritism for you and ask what's wrong, or are you going to tell me?"
Sienna kept going up," Densher won't shut up about Romanoff shooting me. As if he could do any better."
"In truth he probably could have," Barton answered, ignoring the look she was giving him," But Densher a dic-"
"He's a jerk." She said, cutting him off,"And one day I'm going to be better than him."
"That's the spirit." Clint got up to his feet, Sienna following the action," Now, clean up all that sand."
"She eventually did save Erik Densher's life. Shot a sniper who had his eye on him. Gave him the middle finger to. I couldn't be happier." The archer smirked.
"Sienna cussing?" Stark mockingly made a dramatic gesture," The nerve."
"I know," Clint shrugged," So Metal Man, any stories? It is a wake."
Tony took a sip of his drink, swallowing," Oh, well we first met at my place. Very....abruptly is a good word to describe it. She was very high boots, leather, and in a sour mood."
"Sir, there is a woman to see you." JARVIS voice echoed in the lab. But Stark was transfixed by the new element he had created.
"Tell them to wait. Tell them the baby's definitely not mine-"
"Sir, she's on the other side of the glass."
Stark looked up through his pretty much demolished lab. A tall women, dressed head to toe in leather and Gucci. And a SHIELD badge.
"JARVIS don't let her in." He said. He really didn't want to talk to anymore SHIELD agents, talking with Coulson earlier was enough.
The woman didn't even look at Stark, just typed in a combination. Something flashed red, and Stark smirked. He'd changed the code after the last Agent left.
He have a very sarcastic smile, looking away from her and taking out pliers. Now to insert it into the arc reactor....
"Sir.." JARVIS went on, and the billionaire looked up, ready to snap at the program when he saw the women again. She had pulled off her very expensive looking boot, took the very sharp heel of it, and rammed it against the glass.
Shatters were heard as the agent stepped through the floor of broken glass, dusting a few of the shards off her shoulders with one hand and putting her boot back on with the other.
"Holy shi-" Stark was cut off as the woman held out her badge.
"Agent Firman with the Strategic Homeland I-"
"Yada," Tony throws his hands up," You know how much that is? That was a few inches thick. What's that even made out of?"
"Vibranium heels. Indestructible." She fakes smiles," I'm here to inform you that Vanko's still alive. Get to your Expo now."
Stark to a step back as Agent Firman raised her eyebrow," What do you mean he's alive? How-"
"Hammer is my best guess. And he's at your expo, right now giving a presentation. I suggest you get your pretty little self into one of your suits and go save the world." She purses her lips, turning around a bit.
"You think I'm pretty?" He says, very sarcastically. The woman glares, muttering something about billionaires under her breath.
He quickly recovers his lost ground," First of all, do you even have sufficient evidence he's alive? Second, you're in the middle of me making a scientific breakthrough. Third, are you even going to pay for the glass?"
She sighs," Please, I'm asking nicely for you to interrupt your opponent's demonstration in the name of saving a portion of humanity. As for the glass, it's already a mess in here. I severed the cameras' feed, so I guess it was just another accident."
Tony points to the broken glass," That's asking nicely?"
The woman keeps a placid face, stepping forward a bit. She raises up her hands, quickly stepping on Stark's foot. Then grabbing his arm, the agent kicks his own feet out from under him. He falls, but her grip on his arm keeps his upper body from touching the ground.
She leans down a bit, her nails digging a bit into Tony's arm," Put the suit on, and show the world the hero the media makes you out to be. Don't disappoint me."
She let's him drop the last few inches, simply walking over the broken glass to the stairs," Better see you there then."
Tony picks himself up, groaning a bit," Does SHIELD include 'Must be rude and threatening' in the job discription?"
She just keeps walking up the stairs," Dang billionaires."
"Sounds a lot like Sienna." Bruce takes a sip of his water(he's switched from alcohol a few minutes prior).
Stark shrugs," After that, we met a few more times for interviews for the consultation process and I just continued to tick her off."
Natasha rolls her eyes," Like it that's a rare occurrence."
Tony looks at the redhead," You intending something sweetheart?"
She gives him a small smirk, looking at Steve," Any stories you've got?"
Steve looks up from his glass, not feeling intoxicated at all, unlike the rest of the group," Oh well, it a few months after New York, we were waiting for this big shot corrupt politician to come out of a building. There happened to be a small café outside of his hotel, and we were doing recon...."
"Favorite color?" Sienna asks, staring at the menu, tapping her foot against the pavement. She bites her lip, still not able to decide on anything.
"And don't say red, white, or blue." She adds playfully as she puts the paper down.
Steve shrugged, "To be honest, I've always been a blue kinda guy."
Her smile grows a little wider, "Of course you are. I like purple, but white is slowly growing in me."
"What kind of person likes white?," He questions, "It's not even technically a color."
"Well Mr. Art Major," Sienna says, eyes slowly scanning the building, "I like it. Big deal."
He sighs, shaking his head," Next question?"
"Favorite season?"
Steve keeps looking at the table as he answers, "Spring. Not to cold, not to hot. Everything's growing again."
Sienna crosses her legs, readjusting herself to face Steve on the other side of the small table," Fall. Not to cold, not hot. Everything's dying."
He raises an eyebrow," That's optimistic."
"It's actually pessimistic," She chastises him on his sarcasm," but it's a nice time. Sweaters, scarves, boots come back into season....."
"Okay okay, it's not all horrible. Next."
"Food?"
He shrugs again," Never really thought about that. Sorta a pasta guy."
She nods," Bread and cheese fondue for me. I was in Germany once, wonderful restaurant .....Steve why are you so red-faced?"
Sure enough, Steve was blushing profusely. Sienna eyebrows knit together, a little confused.
"Nothing," the solider, looking back at the menu, directing the conversation away,"I think I'm going to go with the tuna sandwich."
But she was still very confused," Steve, why does bread and fondue make you blush?"
He bit his lip, facing away from Sienna," No reason."
She sighed," Your a horrible liar," She kicked him under the table," Tell me."
"Nope."
Another kick.
Sienna rolled her eyes," Bread."
No reaction.
"Fondue?"
The red crept back into his cheeks as Sienna smirked," What is it with you and liquid cheese?"
Steve was about to answer when her eyes narrowed," Target's on the move."
He looked over at the entrance of the building, seeing the suspect to come out. Steve gets up causally, taking his coat off the seat and begins moving.
"Hey-" He walks around the corner before Sienna can see him blush again. Keeping his eye on the target as he continues to walk behind him, a good twenty feet away. Steve looks behind him, not seeing his partner.
Did she take a back way?
He shakes his head, almost a hundred percent sure Sienna is somewhere is the crowd, blending in.
Steve trails the man for at least a half-mile down the busy sidewalk, still not able to spot Si. He continues walking when his phone starts ringing.
Fumbling with the stupid thing, he quickly looks at the caller ID. Scowling when he sees the name Firman, he answer as quickly as he can while still tracking the target.
"Where are you?" Steve asks, trying to keep his voice down.
"I'm still at the café stupid."
"Why are you there! I've been trailing this guy-"
Steve hears her let out a breath of slight frustration," I threw a tracker on him as soon as I saw him. Stalking is so old school Rogers. If you would've listened instead of running off, you would've known that. Oh, and fondue."
He shakes his head, fighting off a smile as he turns around," Sneaky-"
"Steve, I can literally hear you blushing through the phone."
Of course, the Captain mentioned nothing about the fondue to his friends. He only empathized the part about him running off for no particular reason when she had it all handled. She always had it handled.
Clint smirked at the story," She pulled that trick on me in Bangladesh. Sneaker of a girl she is."
The group fell dead silent. Clint looked around at everyone, not realizing what had made then quiet.
"What?" He questioned, and no one dared answer him. But Barton was smart enough to find out what he'd said.
He leaned back, shaking his head, angery," What, should I have said 'was'? C'mon guys, you know she not dead."
Still silence, and he was growing more tense by the second," That funeral was just a petty one to distract the council. You don't honestly believe she's dead?"
The alcohol was effecting him, but that was really an excuse. Clint knew she was alive, or so he thought.
"You've got to be kidding me!" Barton's voice raised.
Natasha sighed, gently touching her partners arm to try to calm him down," Hey-"
But the archer was mad, in almost disbelief," No Tasha, you know she's alive. Don't you?"
Her solemn eyes seemed to answer for her, and Tony spoke up a bit," Look, you've known her the longest, and we understand if it's a little hard for you-"
"No Stark, you didn't watch her grow up. That kid has gone through hell and back. I've watched her drag herself out from burning buildings, bombs, shot multiple times, she's been freaking stabbed in the heart and still recovered-"
"Barton," Bruce had put his glass down, looking at the man," People pass. It's okay to have a little grief. I know it's hard."
Clint stands up," No, you didn't train her. You didn't help bandage up her wounds. She's probably out there now, trying to get home."
Thor and Layla were in the back, just consuming more alcohol as the tension grew. The whole group had stopped laughing, watching the small skirmish going on.
Barton was clenches his fists, the beer making his head swim," So your all just giving up? Your giving up on your friend, on your teammate?"
Bruce hung his head as Tony grabbed his hair," We all saw her video. She told us to move on-"
Clint slammed his hand on the table," I give a damn what she said. She didn't know what was going to happen, she couldn't guess all of this. Her sisters, the kidnapping....."
The archer but his tongue, stopping before he said 'anomaly', but he continued," What if one of us disappeared like that? Would she just sit and proclaim them dead?"
Everyone's eyes were on Barton, except Layla, who had stared to cry and was looking at the floor. Steve started to open his mouth, but shut it at soon as he thought out what he was going to say.
Clint, ever true to his alias, saw Cap retract his words," C'mon Rogers, you know I'm right."
Steve took a second to think, before answering," I entirely agree with you-"
"Not you to!" Stark exclaimed, and Natasha grimaced.
Clint looked at the redhead, eyes begging her to side with him. She just shook her head, hands grasping her glass tightly. Barton searched for anyone who would agreed with him, but he was met with glares and averted gazes.
He swallowed, setting his jaw in anger," Unbelievable. Un-freaking believable."
Clint grabbed his coat off the seat, and Natasha tried to reach out to him. He shrugged her off. He stomped out, bumping into people as he made his way out of the bar.
Steve went to get up, but Tony waved him down," Don't. He needs to let off steam."
But he got up anyway," I'd rather not stay here and listen to you all say she's dead."
"But she IS!" Stark shot up suddenly, jostling the table and everyone's drinks," People die in this world. I know you cared about her; all of us did. But people die, it's the way of life. I know she didn't deserve it and I know it's hard but she's gone!"
"Shut up!" Layla screamed.
Everyone looked at the blonde, who's face was red and tear streaked. Her lips were quivering, and the poor girl was just shaking. She let a for more tears slide before getting up and running out.
Steve eyes hardened on Tony," She's not dead."
And he followed Layla out.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The last four people scattered quickly after that.
Natasha was tried and drunk; naturally she took a cab to her hotel. She didn't stumble into her room, she was to well trained for that, but she was still pretty dang tired. As she closed the door, she flopped on the bed.
She threw her heels off into some random corner, then just sat there. It was all catching up to her. She let every emotion flood in for one moment, seemingly frozen.
Natasha heard a very faint, silent sound. She had stopped taking brushing her hair, now staring at the mirror for any sudden movements. No more came, and she fiddled with her bangs a bit, still wary of the quiet hotel room.
The sounds of Budapest's streets were muffled through the walls, but Natasha could make out the faint breathing of a female. She continued to act natural, putting her hair up in ponytail.
That's when she saw the blur of dark hair in the corner.
She whipped around, pulling out her pistol as the figure showed herself. Natasha barely got a glimpse of the girl, but she fit the profile of a Red Room agent.
Before the younger girl could do anything, the Russian had put three bullets in her gut. The sounds of the bangs echoed off the walls as the girl fell. Natasha stepped forward, pistol still aimed at the dying agent.
"Я не собираюсь возвращаться. Вы не можете заставить меня вернуться." She said, hands trembling. I'm not going back, you can't make go back.
The girl lying on the ground was coughing up blood, clutching her gut. Pure confusion flickered in her eyes. She was in pain, so much pain.
"ЩИТ ........ Я ЩИТ." She whispered, tears pooling up in her eyes as the girl struggled to get away from Natasha.
Meanwhile, the redhead lowered her gun. The girl was with SHIELD, probably looking for Barton. She was sure she was a KGB agent. Natasha had shot the wrong person.
She dropped her gun, not sure what to do. Meanwhile, the girl was practically vomiting blood, the carpet becoming a stained crimson underneath her.
The door seemed to fly open, Clint Barton dropping multiple groceries and looking at Natasha," I heard shots-"
She simply pointed to the dying girl on the ground. Clint averted his gaze away from her, immediately dropping to the ground as soon as he saw the girl.
"Firman," He exclaimed, looking frantically around. He grabbed a sheet off the bed, then pointed to Natasha," Grab my bag, I have an IV in there as well as a basic stitching kit. Then call the ambulance."
The woman wasted no time as Barton pressed the sheet to Sienna's stomach to slow the bleeding.
Natasha opened her eyes, not realizing she had become misty eyed. The first thing she did when she saw Sienna was try to kill her. It was a miracle the younger girl actually forgave her.
She laid down on the bed, so tired and intoxicated. Frustration. That's what she felt the most. And pain. An intense, emotional pain. The kind of pain that leaves you empty, a pain that takes away your oxygen. It seems take everything you have and leave with regret and sorrow. It won't let you breathe, or think, or even fathom anything.
It was a confused pain. Something that leaves you wanting to know why it's there or when it came. But it only let's you wallow in remorse and agony. And you don't know why.
So she closed her eyes, unable to swallow. Her stomach hurt, everything seemed to hurt in some way. His is not the harsh, swift pain that she expected. This is the kind that stays with you for years.
When you realize you will never see that person again.
<><>}>>£~><><><><
My gosh this chapter was long
So many flashbacks, so many words....
Schools draining me. It sucks, as per usual.
Welp, enjoy it.
Love you all and happy reading!
Xoxo,
The writer