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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟑
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐄𝐃𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐋 𝐌𝐀𝐆𝐈𝐂

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After walking alone through the snowy landscape for a short amount of time, Charlie came across the Jeep that she, Clint, and Natasha left behind. She quickly tossed her bow and quiver into the passenger seat before jumping into the driver seat and using it to get back to the Quinjet. Her eyes stayed glued onto the white forest as she drove in silence, occasionally glancing into the trees to see if she could spot the speedster they encountered. When she was greeted by nothing but trees and snow, The Bridger girl pressed on the pedal a bit harder so she wouldn't hold up their return to the Tower. As soon as she made it back to the jet, Charlie abandoned the Jeep and boarded the flying vehicle, taking one of the empty seats at the back of the plane.

The Avengers and their teammate-in-training soon began their journey back to New York in silence with different expressions plastered on each of their faces. When the lack of noise became too much to bear, Charlie started to fiddle with her fingers in her lap while keeping her eyes glued to Clint, who was lying on a med-table a few feet away from her. Her head was so busy with the thoughts of losing her mentor that she failed to notice Steve walking toward her until he was sitting in the seat next to her.

"You know he'll be okay," the Man Out of Time said, causing Charlie to glance up at him before her eyes landed back on the Barton man.

"Doesn't make watching him easier," she muttered while attempting to hide the fear that was once again bubbling up inside her before she let out a long sigh, "I should have done more."

"This isn't your fault, Charlie. Things like this happen."

"I know but-"

"This was your first mission and you did great," the blonde man interrupted her before she could argue any further.

A somewhat comfortable silence surrounded the two of them as Charlie went back to watching Clint. It wasn't long after that when the Bridger girl looked back up at Steve to find his eyes scanning over the mark on her neck. Charlie unconsciously brought her hand up to trace the bruise with her fingers before she let out a quiet sigh. "One of the enhanced pinned me to a tree."

"How'd you get him off of you?" the Rogers man asked with a hint of concern in his voice that seemed to go unnoticed by the young girl next to him.

"I used one of the tasers Nat gave me."

"Nice," the woman in question said with a smile as she walked away from her partner's side and over to Bruce. Charlie's attention fell back on her intertwined fingers as the spy and the scientist had a private conversation before the redheaded woman looked up at Thor. "Thor, report on Hulk."

"The gates of Hell are filled with the screams of his victims," the God of Thunder announced with a giant grin on his face. He instantly received looks of disapproval from his teammates in response while Charlie stared up at him with wide eyes. When he realized his mistake, the smile on his face became much smaller before he turned around to give Bruce his full attention.

"But not the screams of the dead, of course," he continued in an attempt to save himself while his hands awkwardly fiddled with his treasured hammer, "no, no, wounded screams. Mainly whimpering, a great deal of complaining, and tales of sprained deltoids and...gout."

Charlie managed to suppress an eye roll as a sigh passed over her lips. It wasn't long after that when her attention fell back on her hands and resumed fidgeting with her fingers. Despite a few of the Avengers proceeding with their conversation, the Bridger girl chose to tune it out. Her mind continued to run ramped with the thoughts of Clint and the unidentified speedster from Sokovia. It definitely wasn't how she expected her first mission to go.

Another silent moment passed before she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. That caused her to look up to find Tony leaving the pilot's seat and making his way toward Bruce. Charlie just watched the two geniuses as they had an inaudible conversation before her attention moved back to Steve. The Man Out of Time was still sitting next to her in silence with his eyes glued to Thor as he studied Loki's scepter.

"Never thought I'd see it firsthand," Charlie muttered without thinking while keeping her eyes glued to the golden object.

"The scepter?" Steve questioned with a confused look plastered on his face as his attention moved away from the artifact in question to stare at the young girl sitting next to him.

"Clint had me start my training by researching everything I could on all the people and things you and the rest of the Avengers faced. I found myself drawn to learning about Loki the most because the Battle of New York was the main reason I decided to join S.H.I.E.L.D. three years ago. I always went back to the articles and files about him and..." the Bridger girl hesitated for a moment as she thought about the other villain she would research. It wasn't until she saw the hint of interest in Steve's eyes that she knew she needed to continue. "The Winter Soldier."

In response to his old friend's alias, Steve's entire body stiffened a bit before the curious look on his face turned emotionless. An awkward silence soon surrounded the pair, making Charlie squirm in her seat in a poor attempt to take her mind off her discomfort. It wasn't long after that when the Man Out of Time seemed to snap out of his daze.

"Learn anything useful about the Winter Soldier?" the Rogers man questioned, breaking the silence while keeping his eyes from looking directly at the girl sitting next to him.

"Just what I've been told by Nat and what I've read in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s files and at the Smithsonian."

"And your conclusion?"

Charlie sat there for a moment while trying her best to hide the confusion that began flowing through her veins. Her thoughts seemed to be on overdrive as she tried to remember everything she read about the Winter Soldier before she finally registered he was truly asking. The Bridger girl hesitated for a moment as she studied the man sitting next to her. It wasn't long after that when his persona of Captain America seemed to slowly fade before she found herself staring at the man before the serum. The man who just wanted to be able to help people and the man who thought he failed his friend.

"I think that he isn't the only one everyone should be blaming. His mind was corrupted by HYDRA and he didn't have complete control over his actions," Charlie finally told Steve as she watched a hint of shock flash across his face before she continued her explanation, "I think he's lost in his own head and needs help being found."

The Man Out of Time just stared at the Bridger girl for another long moment before she caught  Tony's chair moving once again. The two of them watched as he walked over to Thor, causing Steve to send Charlie a small nod and go to join his two teammates. The young archer kept her eyes on the three of them as they had a conversation for another minute or two before she let out another sigh and looked out the window to see Avengers Tower in the distance.

Another five minutes passed before they landed on a platform at the Tower. As soon as the ramp opened, four women rushed onto the jet and pushed the table Clint was lying on toward the building. Charlie's eyes followed them until they reached another woman who was waiting for them closer to the doors before they all made their way inside. Once she knew Clint was being taken care of, the Bridger girl began to gather her and her mentor's things.

It wasn't long after that when she overheard Steve talking to Maria Hill about the enhanced they encountered back in Sokovia. Despite knowing Clint would want her to mind her own business, Charlie's curiosity managed to get the better of her. As soon as she finished gathering her stuff, the Bridger girl began to slowly pack up Clint's belongings in order for her to hear as much of their conversation as possible.

"Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. Twins," the brunette woman told the Man Out of Time as her eyes scanned over the tablet in her hands, "orphaned at ten when a shell collapsed their apartment building. Sokovia's had a rough history. It's nowhere special, but it's on the way to everywhere special."

Right as Agent Hill stopped speaking, the two of them stopped at the exit of the Quinjet before Steve turned his attention to Charlie and gestured for her to follow. The Bridger girl forced herself to push away the excitement that was beginning to course through her veins as she quickly grabbed both her and Clint's quivers and bows before joining the Man Out of Time as he and Agent Hill proceeded into Avengers Tower.

"Their abilities?"

"He's got increased metabolism and improved thermal homeostasis. Her thing is neuroelectric interfacing, telekinesis, and mental manipulation."

As Charlie took in all the information the brunette woman was providing them, Steve looked at one of Fury's top agents in confusion. It wasn't long after Maria finished explaining when the Bridger girl realized the Man Out of Time never responded. That caused Charlie to look up at the Rogers man to find him staring back at the two women with a lost look on his face.

"He's fast and she's weird," the young girl simplified for the blonde man while trying to hide the small smile threatening to make its way onto her face.

Steve instantly shot her a thankful look in response before he gestured for her to go into the elevator. After the two of them were in the lift, the Man Out of Time turned back around to face Hill once again and finish their conversation. "Well, they're gonna show up again."

"Agreed," the brunette woman responded before she went back to reading the information from the tablet in her hands, "file says they volunteered for Strucker's experiments. It's nuts."

"Right. What kind of monster would let a German scientist experiment on them to protect their country?"

Charlie tried hard not to laugh at his comment as the doors closed before the blonde man pressed one of the buttons on the wall. As the two of them traveled up through the building in comfortable silence, a thought occurred to the girl then she looked up at the man next to her.

"There is one difference between what they did and what you did," the Bridger girl told him, causing Steve to glance down at her with a hint of curiosity in his eyes before she continued speaking, "we're not at war."

"They are."

Charlie opened her mouth to respond, only for her to immediately close it again when she realized he wasn't wrong. The way Pietro looked at her back in Sokovia was like nothing she'd ever seen before. The speedster looked as if she was the one who destroyed his home and took everything he cared about away from him when she wasn't even remotely involved. Her train of thought was soon derailed when the elevator doors opened to reveal a huge lounge.

It wasn't long after that when the elevator doors opened and the Bridger girl followed Steve into the most expensive-looking room she'd ever seen. Charlie's eyes traveled around the area in amazement as she walked down a set of crystal-clear stairs. The smile on her face never faded as she continued to look around the room before Tony and Bruce walked past her. Charlie's current stare caused the Stark man to laugh, making the young girl snap out of her daze.

After putting away her and Clint's bows and quivers, Charlie walked past the two geniuses and into the medical room to see how her mentor was doing. Natasha sent her a smile the moment she stepped into the large room before her attention turned toward the doctor. It wasn't long after that when the young archer's attention landed on Clint, who seemed to be in a lot of discomfort no matter how much he tried to hide it.

"Are you sure he's going to be okay?" the redheaded spy asked from her seat next to her partner as a mischievous look formed on her face, "pretending to need this guy really brings the team together."

"There's no possibility for deterioration," Dr. Cho answered her in a serious tone as she continued to look over the machine in front of her, "the nano-molecular functionality is instantaneous. His cells don't know they're bonding with simulacra."

"She's creating tissue," Bruce repeated her words in a much simpler way, causing a wave of relief to wash over Charlie as she let out a quiet sigh before her eyes returned to watching the medical equipment work its magic.

While Charlie kept her attention glued to the Barton man, Dr. Cho continued to explain what exactly her machine was doing to Bruce and Natasha. No matter how interested in the machine and what it did, the Bridger girl was more concerned about her mentor and his well-being. Dr. Cho's explanation continued for another moment before the door opened to reveal Tony walking into the room with a tray of drinks in his hands.

"He's flat-lining. Call it. Time?"

"No, no, no," Clint grunted as Tony handed him and the two women sitting beside him their drinks, "I'm gonna live forever. I'm gonna be made of plastic."

"You'll be made of you, Mr. Barton," Dr. Cho corrected him while trying to hide the amusement that was threatening to escape her, "your own girlfriend won't be able to tell the difference."

"I don't have a girlfriend."

"That I can't fix," she teased the master archer before turning around so that she was fully facing the Stark man, "this is the next thing, Tony. Your clunky metal suits are gonna be left in the dust."

"That is exactly the plan. And, Helen, I expect to see you at the party on Saturday," the brunette told the doctor before his eyes landed on the young blonde sitting beside the Barton man, "you too, Squirt."

"You know we're basically the same height, right?" Charlie responded with a playful smirk on her face, causing Tony to roll his eyes at her before he turned his attention back to Dr. Cho to hear her answer.

"Unlike you, I don't have a lot of time for parties," she responded then hesitated for a moment before her eyes left the clipboard in her hands to look at the billionaire, "will Thor be there?"

A small smile formed on Charlie's face once she registered what the woman was truly asking before the girl took a sip of her drink. After sending the doctor a small nod in response, Tony left the room to join Bruce in their lab without even trying to hide the giant grin on his face. Once he was out of sight, the Bridger girl turned her full attention back to her injured mentor, only to find him staring back at her with a small smile on his face.

"You should go on Saturday."

"You haven't been to many of them. What's so special about this party?"

"Nothing special. Just a chance to hang out with the Avengers and meet James Rhodes and Sam Wilson."

Charlie almost choked on her drink as soon as she heard those two names before her eyes landed back on Clint and Natasha. Her two mentors were watching her with amused looks on their faces before the redhead spy leaned forward on her knees and continued the conversation. "So, are you going?"

"Yes, I'm going!"

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