•••
"Hey! Why did you call ahead?" I grinned, running out of the house to give Nat a hug. The assassin gladly returned it, laughing at my cheery attitude.
"I've missed your weirdly energetic morning self"
"I'm high on coffee, Nathanael is still not sleeping in his bed and I want to die"
"I'm sure that's not true"
I gave her a look.
"Okay with your child track record that is definitely true"
I groaned, pulling her towards the house, "why can't we have well behaved kids. I know Clint's genes don't help, Lila has definitely inherited his supersight thing which was a bitch when she was younger, and Cooper was just an asshole when I tried to put him to bed. It seems like Nathanael is a Mini Cooper (hehe) and I don't want to go through that again"
Nat laughed as we walked through the door, patting my shoulder amicably, "you should've known my namesake was going to be a troublemaker"
"True - Okay I blame this on you"
"How's that fair?"
"Don't question it" I sighed, collapsing on to the kitchen stool, picking up my half-drunk coffee and sipping it enthusiastically.
•••
"I'm awake now, talk to me"
Nat sighed, shifting uncomfortably in her seat.
"Did you see the news this morning?"
I shook my head, gesturing for her to go on.
"Steve took us on a mission, Sam Wanda Pietro and I, to find that guy Rumlow that we've been tracking for almost 6 months now. We heard word that he was in Nigeria, so we went over there to do some recon. They hit the Infectious Diseases lab to steal a weaponised virus"
"Oh lord, did he get it?"
Nat shook her head, continuing with her story. "It was a big fight and they managed to escape into the crowds. Sam and I managed to get the vial back, but the Rumlow guy went and blew himself up"
I covered my mouth in shock, Nat's tone encompassing her guilt.
"Wanda used her powers to contain it but she lost control. She blew up the side of a building, Grace"
"Is she okay?" I asked frantically, searching Nat's face for clues.
"She's been put on lockdown in a safe house. People really don't like her at the moment"
"But it wasn't her fault! Who put her there?"
"Tony"
"Son of a bitch"
I whipped out my phone, angrily punching in Tony's number. Nat murmured something about finding Clint, before leaving me alone.
•••
"Oi! I live in a safe house! They're my children, so please explain why you've locked Wanda up"
"Grace I'm really not in the mood for this" Tony sighed, his exhausted voice making me feel slightly guilty.
"Too bad. I would like to know why she's on house arrest"
"She blew up a building -"
"By accident. She's still learning to control her powers - Pietro too - it's not fair punishing her for something that she couldn't control"
"I'm trying to protect her. A lot of people are very unhappy with her at the moment - she's not technically a US citizen-"
"Oh, yes she is! Adopted by yours truly thank you very much. both of them are now legally citizens under the Barton name"
"It's not safe for her out there"
"Can you at least tell me where she is? I'll personally escort her and Pietro back home"
"Grace I really can't do that"
"Bastard"
"Vision is keeping them company, and everyone is still dipping in and out of headquarters, she doesn't even know they're stuck there yet. Cut me some slack here"
"You can't keep them locked up in there!"
"It's a stressful time, just -" he paused for a few seconds, " Grace I've got to go"
"No you don't mister"
He hung up on me, causing me to let out a little growl of rage.
"Little bitch"
Clint and Nat entered the room slowly.
"Is it safe?" Clint asked jokingly, noticing my frustration.
"Unless your name is Tony Stark" I replied sarcastically.
"About that" Nat said, "I've just been called to HQ"
"If Wanda is there, give her this? Tell her to hide it - I have a feeling Tony won't want her having contact with anyone. Pietro as well"
Nat nodded, accepting the burner phone from my outstretched hand.
"Why do you have that on you?" Clint asked, wrapping his arm around my waist.
"Fury" I shrugged nonchalantly, leaning into his touch, "there's quite a few of them hidden around in his 'survival packages'. I swear he hides a new one every time he visits"
The two of them laughed, Nat walking over to us to pull us both into a hug.
"I'll see you around"