────── ✼✼✼ ──────

────── ✼✼✼ ──────

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏𝟎
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐑𝐔𝐍𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐘 𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐍

────── ✼✼✼ ──────

When the world around her returned to normal, Charlie found herself standing in front of the Maximoff twins in the middle of a nearby town. It wasn't long after that when Pietro went back to comforting his sister before the Barton girl turned her back to them and let out a long sigh. Charlie wanted nothing more than to be back at Avengers Tower training with her father and Natasha but she knew those moments were going to be scarce from here on out.

As annoyance continued to fill every inch of her body, Charlie turned around to face Pietro and Wanda once again, only to see them looking back at her with panicked looks on their faces. The three of them just stared at each other before the Barton girl let out another long breath while running her hands down the side of her face.

"So, since you two are calling the shots now, what's next?" the blonde questioned the siblings as she sat down on a crate across from the two of them and crossed her arms over her chest.

"We need to get out of here," Wanda responded in a worried tone, causing her brother to try and comfort her once again as if she could break at any moment.

"You're joking, right? You both helped Ultron and now you want to run away?" Charlie asked with a quirked eyebrow, only to receive blank looks in response to her question.

The Barton girl couldn't help but let out another annoyed sigh as she rubbed her hands down the sides of her cheeks. As soon as she was able to calm herself down as much as she could, Charlie got to her feet and turned toward what she hoped was the center of town.

"Fine, you two can run. I'm gonna try to find a way to contact my dad or any of the other Avengers and fix the problem you helped create," the archer told them as she walked past them without even glancing over at them. The Barton girl barely made it ten steps away from them before she was hit by a gust of wind and Pietro appeared in her path. The two of them had a staredown for what felt like an eternity as Wanda walked over and stood beside her brother.

"What do you expect us to do?" the telekinetic questioned, causing Charlie to break her gaze away from the speedster to look at his sister.

"You both played a part in what's happening and helped Ultron with his plan up until now. What I expect is for you to help fix your mistake."

"And why would we want to help Stark?" Wanda scoffed as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"For just one second would you forget about Tony! I lost people too but I wouldn't punish the entire world for one person's actions!" the archer snapped, causing the Maximoff girl to take a step back while her brother continued to watch Charlie with a blank look on his face. The Barton girl's eyes continued to move between the siblings before they landed on Pietro without thinking. "From this point forward, it's your choice. You can continue with your life, or you can become someone who matters."

After staring at the speedster for a moment longer, Charlie pushed Pietro out of her way and resumed walking toward the city. Once again, she didn't get very far before she was greeted by another gust of wind and the Maximoff twins back in her path. The archer was about to continue her rant but quickly stopped herself when she noticed both of them staring at her with determination in their eyes.

"How do you suppose we find your heroes?" Wanda questioned, making the blonde girl realize she hadn't fully thought that part through.

"Honestly, I don't know. Maybe a phone?" Charlie responded then placed her fingers on the bridge of her nose before muttering, "it would be easier if I had my earpiece."

As soon as the words left her mouth, a smirk formed on the speedster's face before he reached into his pocket and pulled out a familiar device. Charlie just stared at her communicator for a long moment before she looked up to meet Pietro's gaze. Without waiting for an explanation, the Barton girl grabbed the object from him and placed it in her ear then turned it on.

"I got a private jet taking off across town," Natasha's voice filled the young archer's ears, causing a small smile to form on the latter's face, "no manifest. That could be him."

"That's not him," Charlie said into the comms with as much confidence as she could muster while she tried to ignore the Maximoff twins' eyes boring into her.

"Charlie?" Clint responded with shock and relief in his voice after hearing his daughter's voice, "how did you-"

"That isn't important right now. All that matters is that I'm back and ready to help." the girl interrupted her father before glancing back at Pietro and Wanda, "where should w-I meet you?"

The correction caused the siblings to send her a confused look before the Barton girl shook her head. With everything going on at that moment, Charlie knew that wasn't the time to announce the Maximoff twins switching sides.

"For now just stay put until one of us can come get you," the Barton man told his daughter before his eyes landed on a certain vehicle traveling along the freeway, "there. It's a truck from the lab. Right above you, Cap. On the loop by the bridge. It's them. You got three with the Cradle, one in the cab. I could take out the driver."

"Negative. If that truck crashes, the gem could level the city. We need to draw out Ultron," Steve responded, causing Charlie's blood to run cold after hearing the new information about the stone, "and it's good to have you back, Charlie."

────── ✼✼✼ ──────

After waiting for a location for about ten minutes, Pietro began to quickly pace back and forth in front of the two girls at a speed that was barely human. Both Charlie and Wanda watched his movements to the best of their ability before he sat down between them with a loud sigh. The Barton girl fought back a laugh at his childish antics as she looked up at him to find him watching her with an irritated look in his eyes.

"Still think you're part of their team?" the speedster asked with a little edge in his voice, causing the archer's smile to fall as she quirked an eyebrow at him.

"I never said I was officially on their team. I was just helping them out with Ultron," Charlie explained to him while Wanda watched their interaction with a curious look on her face, "you just need to be patient."

"They aren't going to call us," Pietro sighed before placing his head in his hands and staring at the horizon in front of him, once again, the Barton girl had to fight not to laugh at his actions.

"Pietro was never patient, not even before his enhancement," Wanda spoke for the first time in a long time before the Barton girl caught the hint of mischief in her eyes.

Before Pietro could respond to his sister's comment, Steve's voice came through the comm in her ear as he called out her name. Charlie's hand instantly shot up into the air, making Pietro and Wanda instantly stop talking as the former listened to the Rogers man's message coming through. "Still wanna get in on some of the action, Barton?"

"I'm a little busy right now," Clint responded with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"Not you," Steve said before hesitating for a short moment, "I meant Barton Jr."

"'Barton Jr.' I like that," Natasha laughed before it was followed by the sound of a motorcycle engine, "I think I'm gonna use it from now on."

"Please don't," Charlie sighed, receiving confused looks from the Maximoff twins before the young archer continued speaking, "just give me somewhere to meet you."

"See the train?" the Man Out of Time asked right as one zoomed past them at an unbelievable speed.

"Please tell me the driver just needs to get home for dinner."

"Wish that was the case. But I don't know how you're gonna get on it."

"I'll find a way."

As soon as the train finished rushing past them, the Barton girl looked over at the Maximoff twins, only to find them staring back at her with anticipation in their eyes. A small sigh passed over her lips as her eyes landed on the speedster before she used her thumb to gesture toward where the train was a few seconds ago. "We need to get to the train."

The only response she received from Pietro was a smug smile before the world around Charlie became a blur and a rush of wind hit her face. Once the initial shock passed, the Barton girl managed to make out the speedster's face, only to find Pietro sending a smirk her way. No matter how many times the Barton girl experienced the Maximoff boy running her around, it would never cease to amaze her.

Just as quickly as it started, Pietro soon stopped on the train and gently set down the archer on her feet before he rushed back to get his sister. In a blink of an eye, the Maximoff twins were standing in front of Charlie. It wasn't long after that when Pietro sped down the aisle of the train and toward where Ultron was fighting Captain America. As soon as he reached the metal man, the speedster punched Ultron in the face and knocked him away from Steve, who was struggling to stand up. With the nine-foot robot distracted, Wanda was able to use her telekinesis to pull the railings in front of Ultron and block his path toward her brother.

"Welcome to the party," Steve muttered to Charlie as he tossed her a bow and a quiver full of arrows after getting to his feet before his attention landed back on the Maximoff twins, "didn't think you would bring crashers."

A sheepish grin appeared on the Barton girl's face as she placed her quiver on her back before looking back up at the Man Out of Time. "I'm just full of surprises today."

"Please, don't do this," Ultron pleaded with Wanda, drawing Steve's and Charlie's attention back to the situation at hand to see the metal man facing Wanda with what seemed like betrayal in his artificial eyes.

"What choice do we have?" the brunette girl responded without a hint of remorse in her voice.

Ultron's eyes began to glow brighter than ever in response to the telekinetic before he moved his attention back toward Pietro. A small wave of panic washed over Charlie when she heard the familiar sound of his blaster warming up before she launched an arrow at the nine-foot robot. Her eyes never left the projectile as it soared through the air and landed in the center of Ultron's chest. When the metal man went to remove it, the Barton girl pressed a button on her bow, making the arrow electrocute him before he fell off the train.

Silence surrounded them as they stared at where the metal man once stood then Charlie turned her attention back to Steve. She studied the shocked look on the man's face for a short moment before a small smile made its way onto hers.

"Told you there was more to them," the young archer shouted over the wind, drawing the Man Out of Time's attention to her before she continued to speak, "a person's past doesn't define their future. You of all people should know that."

After rolling his eyes at the Barton girl, Steve turned and ran to the front of the train with the Maximoff twins and Charlie following after him. The Rogers man shouted into his communicator to tell Clint and Natasha that they lost Ultron as the four of them continued to rush through the train cars. But when the blonde girl heard her father's response, all the positive emotions she was feeling vanished as quickly as they came.

"Cap, you see Nat?"

"If you have the package, get it to Stark! Go!" Steve responded to the master archer while avoiding Charlie's eyes.

"Do you have eyes on Nat?" Clint repeated while trying to hide the shakiness of his voice.

"Go!"

After hearing shouting from her father through the comms, the young archer looked out the window to see the Quinjet fly off. Charlie watched the plane until it was out of sight before she turned her attention back to Steve. It took everything within her not to scream at the Man Out of Time as she stood next to the Maximoff twins and waited for their next orders.

"Civilians in our path," he stated, causing Pietro to run off before Charlie or Wanda could even blink.

"Steve," the Barton girl said in a tone just above a whisper, drawing the man's attention to her as she let out a shaky breath, "what about Nat?"

"I'm sorry," the Rogers man told her before he turned around and used his shield to block debris from coming onto the train.

Steve's efforts seemed to be effective, only for a large piece of brick from a building to collide with his prized possession, causing him to fly back into another train car. That caused the Barton girl to turn her attention to Wanda, just to find a panicked look beginning to form on the Maximoff girl's face. Charlie instantly placed her hand on the telekinetic's shoulder without an ounce of hesitation before the brunette girl's eyes landed on the archer.

"What do I do?" Wanda questioned while trying her best to keep her emotions at bay.

Charlie's mouth stayed sealed shut as her brain worked on overdrive before she decided there was only one way for this to end. "You need to stop the train."

As soon as the blonde girl's words registered in her head, Wanda sent her a small nod before taking another deep breath. A red mist soon began to surround her hands after she calmed herself then she shot her hands out towards the floor of the train. Not a moment passed before the large vehicle began to slow until it gradually came to a stop. As soon as the train fully stopped, the two girls went to help get all the civilians off the train and out of any more danger. Once the last person was off, they jumped out of the train and rushed over to Pietro, who was sitting and panting on the ground nearby. Charlie stood back a bit to let the siblings check the other while her eyes scanned over both of them for any sign of injury.

"I'm fine. I just need to take a minute," the speedster told his sister before she and Charlie let out small chuckles.

The Barton girl's smile quickly faded when she spotted Steve marching toward them. Without thinking, Charlie took a few steps forward and placed herself between the Maximoff twins and the Man Out of Time. Her attention never left the Rogers man as he carefully pushed through the crowd of civilians with an unreadable expression on his face before he came to a stop in front of the three of them. "I'm very tempted not to give you one."

"The Cradle. Did you get it?" Wanda said, completely ignoring the anger practically radiating off of Captain America as she stood up at her full height.

"Stark will take care of it," was all Steve said in response, causing the color to drain from the telekinetic's face.

"No. He won't."

"You don't know what you're talking about. Stark's not crazy," the Man Out of Time told the Maximoff girl before the former let out a sigh and stood up straighter than humanly possible.

"He will do anything to make things right," Wanda responded before she and Steve had a staredown while Charlie watched their interaction from Pietro's side.

Their glaring contest continued for what felt like an eternity before the Rogers man turned away from them and brought his hand up to his earpiece. "Stark, come in. Stark. Anyone on comms?"

"Ultron can't tell the difference between saving the world and destroying it," the brunette girl continued, drawing Steve's attention back to her while she stared at him with a determined look on her face, "where do you think he gets that?"

────── ✼✼✼ ──────

────── ✼✼✼ ──────