"We need you to come in," Agent Coulson said sharply as soon as Agent Romanoff answered.
"I'm working," Natasha replied as clearly as she could with her hands tied behind her back and a dozen armed Russian soldiers around her. "You can't just—"
"Loki has Barton under control," Coulson interrupted. Judging from the silence that followed, he knew he got to her.
"Alright," The Black Widow relented. "Just let me take care of these idiots first."
Coulson hummed idly as Natasha completely destroyed her laughingly deluded captors. He could hear their thuds on the floor as they fell unconscious, then the silence that was filled only with the click of her heels against the floor.
"So where's Barton now?" Natasha asked calmly.
"We don't know. But he's alive. We'll fill you in completely when you get back. And we need you to talk to someone— we have his file here." Coulson glanced down at the few lines of text on the tablet in front of him, which was all the information they could get on the boy. File was stretching the term.
"A new recruit?" Natasha's curiosity was piqued. It wasn't often the Fury chose new people to join.
"Yes. After that, you need to get the big guy."
"Coulson, you know Tony trusts me as far as he can throw me," Natasha said skeptically.
"Oh we've got Stark," Coulson assured her. "You get the big guy."
He could hear her curse loudly in Russian as he hung up the phone.
[] [] [] [] []
The Titan war was over, and Annabeth was sitting cross-legged on the sand of the beach of Montauk. She had been reluctant to butt into Percy's special Monatauk time with his mom, but both Percy and Sally had insisted.
"Please, Wise Girl?" Percy had asked with those baby seal eyes. So naturally Annabeth couldn't resist, and brought Daedalus' laptop down to the beach with her. She wasn't afraid of it getting wet either; it was waterproof. And fireproof. And sand proof. And sledge hammer proof. And—
"ARGH!" Annabeth spluttered through the massive wave that had suddenly completely doused her. Even though her laptop was waterproof, she most certainly wasn't. "PERSEUS JACKSON!"
But the Son of Poseidon was underwater. A massive water hand rose from the sea and wiggled its giant fingers at her before making a giant finger gun and squirting water at her. Annabeth ducked and rolled to the side, the wet sand sticking to her Camp Half Blood shirt like glitter to glue.
Percy rose out of the sea and skipped over to her, giggling like a schoolgirl.
"Hey, Wise Girl! You got a little sand on you," He chirped innocently.
"Seaweed Brain!" Annabeth screeched and tackled him. They wrestled for a few seconds before Annabeth gained the upper hand and straddled his stomach, knife to throat. Both of them could hardly breathe through the laughter (and the sand that had gotten in their mouths).
"I win," Annabeth said cheerfully after spitting out grains to the side. Percy stuck his tongue out at her when their playful squabble was suddenly interrupted.
"Percy!" Sally said, smiling at her son. "You have a visitor here."
The two glanced over to where Sally stood with another woman. She was somewhat taller than Sally, with dark red hair and green eyes and a black suit and a gun at her side. Her eyes glimmered almost predatorial-like, as if she was seizing up the pair.
Annabeth scrambled up and brushed the sand off her clothes, sending it showering down on Percy. She adjusted her grip on her knife. She didn't trust this woman. The woman could very well be an empousa.
"Perseus Jackson?" The woman asked. She reminded Annabeth of a sort of friendly rabid wolf, after the initial empousa vibe. And she knew Percy's full name. No one but monsters did.
Percy nodded, tensing as well.
"And you are...?"
"Annabeth Chase," Annabeth introduced. Hmm, the woman didn't know her name. Maybe not a monster
"Miss Chase." The woman nodded in greeting. "I'm here under orders," she continued. "Would you prefer to talk here? Or go inside?"
"Here's fine," Annabeth answered. Natasha looked Annabeth Chase over and did a double take. Something was off about her....
Compared to Perseus, Annabeth wasn't much. She was shorter than the boy and had long, curly golden hair that was matted with seawater and sand. Her shirt was orange, worn, thin and very well loved. In her current stance, blinking drops of water from her lashes, Annabeth looked like the least formidable human in the world. But she could see, in the 16 year old's eyes, that Annabeth knew what she was doing, and had been through a lot for her age. She was a leader but could take directions, and had a good, strong, independent will. Natasha could respect that.
Plus, she was holding a knife.
Then she realized what was off about Annabeth (well, besides the knife). She had seen the girl before. There was no doubt about it. Even though it had been years and the memory was fuzzy, Natasha clearly remembered the face of the seven year old that was running down the highway with two other companions. She had seen a brief glance of their faces before she zipped by in the car. Their thin, desperate expressions looked warily at her car as it nearly ran them over. But she couldn't stop to help them— at the time she was in a chase with an her assassination target.
She hadn't even processed they were children before she was speeding away. Not a single drop of remorse ran through her heart.
But now one of them was here, and she could make things right. Fury would just have to deal with it.
Natasha realized they were waiting for her to speak, and she cleared her throat to cover the silence.
"I am Agent Romanoff, agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.," Natasha began. "And I'm here to recruit you... both... to our team."
"I don't do sports," said Percy. Natasha glanced at Percy. Her attention was originally captured by the girl, but now she took notice of the original recruit.
He was darkly tanned like he spent most of his time on the beach. Which, from where they were currently standing, Natasha assumed she was correct. He had messy black hair, but in a cute messy way, like the teenagers Natasha had met that thought they were 'cool'. But Perseus didn't give off the arrogant vibe, and something in his eyes confirmed that fact. She could tell he was a troublemaker and had a mischievous light about him, but also looked as strong willed and brave as Annabeth. So far, Natasha could tell why Fury wanted him on the team. So far.
Percy took Agent Romanoff's silence as a judgemental one and cleared his throat awkwardly.
"You said you were recruiting for a team?" He clarified.
Natasha allowed the faintest of smiles. "Not a sports team," she said. "A team of heroes. To protect the world."
"Again?" Percy asked. Annabeth looked at him sharply, but her face was still a calm, polite mask.
Natasha leaned forward ever so slightly, her curiosity captured. "What do you mean, again?"
"That's classified information that may or may not be disclosed later, depending on the results of this conversation," Annabeth replied firmly. "I think we'll let you talk first, as it's only fair. You came to us, so explain your mission."
Natasha held Annabeth's gaze with a certain degree of respect. The girl was smarter than she looked, Natasha mused.
"My mission, as you call it, is to recruit you to S.H.I.E.L.D.—"
"I don't use shields," Percy interjected.
Natasha exhaled through her nose. "S.H.I.E.L.D. stands for Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division. It—"
"What?" Percy asked, dumbfounded. "No wonder you have an acronym for it!"
"Let Agent Romanoff finish!" Annabeth reprimanded Percy sharply. Sally, who was watching them from the cabin, smiled.
Percy had the decency to look embarrassed.
"As I was saying," Natasha continued calmly. "It's an agency that normally does not recruit sixteen year olds when the stakes are so high. But I'm assuming you're not normal sixteen year olds?"
Percy opened his mouth to speak, but Annabeth stopped him.
"It was a rhetorical question," she muttered.
"Our Director wishes for me to recruit you to S.H.I.E.L.D. If you accept, there will be more details filled in later."
"What do you mean, the stakes are so high?" Annabeth inquired.
Natasha allowed another thin smile. "That is classified as a part of the details that are filled in later."
"But it's unethical to request help for something if the people don't know what they are accepting," Annabeth stated simply. "That's the primary basis of deception. Do you have is solid proof that we can trust you?"
Natasha internally smiled, but on the outside, her expression didn't change. Annabeth would've made a good spy. She knew she didn't make a mistake when deciding to include Annabeth.
"Whether or not you believe you can trust me is your own decision," Natasha finally said. "And the stakes are, in your own words, classified information that may or may not be disclosed later, depending on the results of this conversation."
"But the result of the conversation depends on the information given, doesn't it?" Annabeth shot back immediately. "If I am correct, this Director of yours could use our help quite a lot, and it may be a loss if we refuse. We have every right to refuse, but that decision remains to be seen. And you have the power to influence us, if you play it correctly."
"Curiosity is a virtue that does well to be pursued."
"It doesn't matter if I'm curious," Annabeth retorted. "Personal gain is a uselessly powerful influence that is best ignored, or else to suffer dire consequences."
The two held each other's gaze, neither breaking first. Natasha realized she was on the losing side. If they refused, then nothing would happen for them and S.H.I.E.L.D. would crumble. If they agreed, then their lives would be changed, possibly forever, but for a greater cause. But because she was the one that requested help, she couldn't make the decisions. She only hoped that the two would see what was best.
Annabeth knew what the other woman was thinking. And she could tell that their help would be greatly appreciated. The lazy and selfish part of herself insisted that they had done enough for the world, and that it was everyone else's turn. But her hero instincts kicked in and she internally sighed.
"What do you think?" Percy asked in Greek. Annabeth nodded.
"I think we should do it. And hey, there's nothing to lose. Nothing at stake for us."
"Besides our lives," Percy grumbled, but assented. "We'll do it."