You sat in the lab across the workstation from Bruce, fighting the strong urge to drum your fingers on the steel tabletop. You had been sitting there silently for over an hour, waiting for the doctor to finish the project that he was working on. He had promised to be only a few minutes when you had arrived, but now your patience was wearing thin. You cleared your throat, trying to get his attention, but subtle methods clearly weren't working.

"You look so sexy in that lab coat, Bruce."

His head shot up so quickly that his glasses nearly fell from his face, and his eyes were so wide that you thought they might actually pop out of his skull. "What did you...I'm sorry, I...I didn't mean to...I didn't..." he stammered, removing his now crooked glasses and refusing to make eye contact.

"Banner, I'm messing with you," you chuckled, hopping down off from the chair, "but I'm surprised that you even heard me. You really get in the zone, don't you?"

"Yeah, sorry, (Y/N). I can be done," he sighed with a shrug and a small smile, "I'm done."

"If you don't have time for this, it's okay, really. I'm still not even sure if this is a good idea."

"I always have time for you, (Y/N), and yes, we need to work on this. Come on, let's go." Bruce reached up and took your hand in his and led you to the door, looking back for just a second before nodding to himself and turning out the lights.

~~~

It was already close to midnight by the time Bruce had allowed you to pull him away from the lab, and despite your fatigue you felt wired and anxious about what he was asking you to do. Your abilities of water-bending were known to the team and used on several missions in the past few weeks alone. However, your ability to blood-bend had been successfully kept a secret until Bruce happened to see it in your file during your years with HYDRA before you joined SHIELD and now the Avengers.

In the world of superpowers, blood-bending was a dark and highly dangerous skill, perhaps one of the most dangerous that a person could possess. You had used it to win a fair share of battles while on HYDRA's side, but you had refused to continue once SHIELD had accepted you. It wasn't to say that they didn't want you to use it, however. They considered you to be their most powerful weapon, second only to the quiet man standing in the elevator with you now.

"I just wish I could make it go away, you know?" Your voice was barely a whisper, feeling vulnerable as your thoughts raced and your contempt for yourself began to grow. "What am I saying? Of course you know."

Bruce only nodded wordlessly, watching you with concern and empathy as you continued.

"I worry that I could lose control of it. I trained my skill for years, working night and day to perfect it, make it work faster, make it efficient."

You were halted when the elevator stopped and the doors opened, revealing Clint and Natasha just returning from a late-night sparring session. "What are you kids doing up so late?" Clint smirked, stepping inside, dancing around you while you pushed past to exit. "Hey, careful, kids. I've heard that the worst place to Hulk-out is in the bedroom."

Noticing the redness creeping up Bruce's neck and into his cheeks, you turned back to Clint and slowly looked up and down at him, raising an eyebrow as if in judgment of his suggestive appearance. "We aren't covered in sweat with messy sex-hair, Barton. Can't say the same for you two."

Clint frantically looked to Nat and back to you, but she had no offering other than a small smile and to keep her gaze lowered to the floor. She enjoyed seeing him being called out on his inappropriate jokes that most didn't find particularly funny.

"What? We didn't! Nat, tell her!"

The doors began to close before he could defend himself any further, but before they closed you gave him a smile and a small wave, "sorry, Clint, can't hear you!" You heard a small bang on the door from within, and you could just imagine him trying to beat it open again so he could set you straight before the rumors began to swirl.

"Why can't two people spend time together without it turning into a sex thing?"

"Because the people in this tower are nothing but overgrown children, Bruce. Don't worry about it, okay?"

"Still," he groaned, opening the door to the training room and holding it for you, "even if we were doing anything, they would be the last people to find out." He gently put his hand on the small of your back and directed you towards one of the benches, joining you to sit and finish your conversation before going to work. "Continue what you were saying back there."

"I know you've done research on this, Bruce. You know how it works."

He slowly nodded his head and brought his hand up to his cheek, rubbing it slowly as he spoke, "yes, but if you can blood-bend without a full moon, you're amongst the most powerful benders, is that correct? That kind of control takes years of training, so why are you so worried that you'll lose it?"

"Because now I'm around people that I care about. With HYDRA, that wasn't an issue."

"Okay," he said with a deep breath, "when do you feel like you are most at risk?"

"When I'm scared, I suppose."

Bruce looked down at his hands and watched as his skin began to change to his green hue, holding them up so that you could see. His eyes were sad, as they usually were when he needed to transform, knowing the feelings and pain that the change brought him, but he was willing to do this to help you see that you weren't going to hurt him or anyone else on the team. The seams of his shirt began to tear as you jumped up and away from him.

"Bruce, this isn't what I thought you meant by working on this! This is a bad idea!"

"Focus on what you feel, (Y/N)," he growled in a deep voice that echoed throughout the room, "you should be afraid."

"I'm not afraid of you, Bruce. I know you aren't going to hurt me."

The transformation was almost complete, with his breathing quickening and his growl becoming deeper and more ominous, "are you sure?"

With your hands raised in front of you, you backed away towards the door, but you had only made it a few feet before the Hulk raised his own hand and slapped you back against the training mat. You felt your anxiety building as your body hit the ground, having barely enough time to stand before he knocked you down again, this time with more force; maybe he really was going to try to hurt you, thinking himself invincible.

"Doctor Banner, please," you panted, "I don't want to do this to you."

He slammed his fists on the ground and growled loud enough to hurt your ears; the floor shook beneath you and equipment fell from their supports on the walls and ceiling. Even when you were on a mission with the Hulk, you could recognize Bruce in his face; now you weren't sure if you could, either from your own fear or his own determination. "Stop!" you yelled, to no effect. You could feel your own power surging through you, and as you feared, it was becoming stronger than you had ever felt before now that you had this level of danger right in front of you with no one to help.

The Hulk paused and shook his head, huffing and groaning, looking like he was in pain. You tried to stop yourself, but you were terrified and couldn't stop both your power and your fear; it was too much for you. Knowing that the only way to stop this was through you, with him not listening, you pulled yourself up and ran towards him as if to attack, hoping that the Hulk would retaliate.

He did. And it would take nearly a week before you woke again.

~~~

"Clint's hit!" Natasha yelled over the comms, rushing to his side despite the barrage of fire in her direction. "I could use a little backup over here, if anyone has a minute!"

"I'm almost there," you called back, ducking behind trees with your weapon drawn, trying your best to not bring attention to yourself. "Hey, Cap, I think we're outnumbered! Steve, come in!"

"I'm bringing Cap back to the jet," Tony replied, "he took a hit. He'll be okay, but he's out, guys."

With Natasha and Clint only a few feet away now, you dove towards her, staying low and pushing yourself up against her back to guard her as she tended to Clint's wounds. "We need to fall back, we're getting hammered out here. If I cover you, can you get him to the jet?"

"I don't think so. Have you ever tried to lift this guy?" she snickered.

"Have you?"

"He looks small but he's really-ugh!" Natasha didn't finish, knocked back and into you by a hit to her shoulder. You spun around and gasped at the amount of bleeding coming from the wound, immediately pressing your weight into it to try to stop it.

"Alright, that's it," you mumbled to yourself, now angry and feeling your power building inside of you. If Bruce were here, he and Tony could easily finish this, but he was still feeling too guilty to be around you. Tony was with Steve, and you now had two injured teammates bleeding in front of you. It had to be you, and it had to be final. "Dammit, I don't want to do this."

Raising your hand in front of you, you stood and focused on the small group of assailants ahead, shifting the blood within their bodies, draining it from their hearts to stop the beating, to stop their breathing, to stop them once and for all. "Tony, I need you to come for Nat and Clint. I'm going to finish this." Your voice had turned cold and you felt nothing; it was a sensation that you would be haunted by for weeks after this, but that didn't matter. This was your job now, and your team needed you to do it.

Methodically working your way through the woods and into the HYDRA base, you took them down, sometimes ten at a time. You were powerful, you were unstoppable, and just a bit frightening. When you had finished them off, you stood silently and motionless, your hands still raised but trembling slightly as your emotions came flooding back to you.

"(Y/N), let's go," Tony called out from behind you, finally finding you again after getting the rest of the team to safety. "Hey, (Y/N), let's..." he trailed away, looking at the motionless bodies in front of you. "Holy shit."

"Language," you whispered shakily, as your tears finally began to flow and you accepted the pain that you fully believed you deserved.

~~~

"Has she come out of her room at all?" Bruce asked from his station, not looking at Tony though he knew that his friend was staring back and rightfully upset.

"Have you gone to see her at all?"

"I can't."

Tony threw down his tool onto the table, not caring that he had just broken it into pieces, angrily crossing his arms over his chest and turning towards the doctor. "Bruce, I never thought that I would say this to you, but for a genius, you are a complete idiot."

"I know," he sighed, "I know. I thought I knew how to help her and I just made things worse."

Stark shook his head and laughed to himself, disbelieving that Bruce could be so clueless. "Wow, you're actually a lot dumber than I thought."

~~~

Tony had been the first to try to make you feel better, bringing your favorite take-out for dinner and hanging out in your room to watch a movie before Steve came knocking on your door. He readily hopped up on your bed to join the two of you, finding yourself squished between them, barely enough room to eat, much less move or breathe. Only moments after finally finding a comfortable spot, Clint and Natasha walked in, carrying your favorite dessert.

"You guys can't fit up here," you warned, pointing out the lack of space. "Don't even try it."

"There's room on your lap," Clint said with a wink, "I can totally fit there."

"Maybe if you guys weren't late, Barton, you could've had a better spot," Steve mocked, "but I'm sure you two had better things to do."

"(Y/N), you didn't! Did you tell him that we...that Nat and I..."

You dug your elbow into Steve's side and hushed his low giggle, "I don't know what you're talking about, Clint. But there's no way you're sitting on my lap."

"Fine. Nat, pull up some floor with me."

Natasha gave him an amused look and crawled up onto the bed, tucking her legs underneath herself and curling to fit comfortably in the small area that was left next to Tony's feet. "I'm good, thanks." She reached down and pushed a foot to the side with a disgusted expression, "Stark, keep those nasty things off me, I'm trying to eat."

As Clint grumbled and accepted his fate to sit on the floor, Tony leaned in close to whisper in your ear, "you know that we're okay with this, right? Steve thinks it's pretty cool, even though he probably wouldn't admit it. Personally, I think it's totally badass."

"Thanks, Tony," you said quietly, leaning your head onto his shoulder to watch what was left of your movie. "I think you're totally badass, yourself."

When the end of the movie came, Nat had to wake Clint and Tony had begun to doze off. Steve gave you a quick hug before heading towards the door, but it opened before he could lay a hand on it. "Hey, Bruce. We were just about to leave, but come on in. I think you were missed."

"(Y/N), can I join you?" he asked sheepishly, looking nervous with everyone watching him.

"Of course you can." You stood to walk the rest of your team out, sharing quick hugs and words of thanks as each of them left. It was a relief to know that your actions on the field and knowing what you were capable of didn't sway them from being your friends, and that they were supportive of you still. Even though this brought you comfort, the one person whose opinion mattered the most to you had yet to say if he was okay with it too.

"I'm...I'm sorry that my plan...didn't work so well," he said shyly, not making eye contact and walking towards your window. "It got a little out of control. And I'm sorry that I wasn't there yesterday to help you."

"It's not your job to take care of me, Bruce. You don't have to be sorry."

"But I want to take care of you." His voice trailed away and he stood silent for several minutes, looking out onto the city below. His mouth opened a few times to say something, but then closed again when he changed his mind. When he finally found his words, they were so quiet that you had to stand closer to hear him. "There's no future with me."

"I know that," you agreed, "do you really think there's one with me?" Bruce turned to look at you for the first time, his face on the brink of a smile, but fading as quickly as it came the longer he looked at you and let his logical mind take him from the moment. "I mean, come on, Banner. What are we going to do? Run off together and make a bunch of blood-bending gamma babies?"

You had finally broken through, smiling as he laughed with a genuine sound that you easily joined with until tears built in your eyes. When the sound eventually stopped, he took a deep breath and grabbed your hand with a firm squeeze.

"How about we start with dinner first?"