Can't Handle This
Chapter 20
If nothing else, S.H.I.E.L.D. was highly efficient. In a matter of two days, various agents had contacted all of Natasha’s affiliates and friends to alert them of the accident. Since most of her acquaintances were under S.H.I.E.L.D. authority, they were able to be flown in to New York to hear what really happened: She had been attacked by a hostile force.
Toni sat in one of the uncomfortable agency chairs in Agent Schaefer’s office. Next to her, Tony looked even more uncomfortable, but it was more of an emotional discomfort instead of a physical one.
“Is something vrong, Herr Stark?” Schaefer asked with his thick German accent.
He nodded. “Yeah, this office belonged to a different agent. One that I was particularly fond of.”
“Ah yes, ze late Agent Coulson.”
Tony flinched slightly and sighed. “Yes, Coulson.”
The agent nodded and organized his stack of papers for the third time since they’ve sat down. “Vell, let’s get down to business,” he said fairly formally. “You did not alert ze Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division that you had taken in a civilian into your home, and zerefore broke zree violations in ze handbook.”
“Look, Fritz-“
“My name is not Fritz,” he said, clearly annoyed. “You will refer to me as Agent Schaefer, and nothing else.”
“-she’s my daughter. I figured she didn’t need some kind of formal introduction.”
“But you also have zree other teenagers residing in Avengers’ Tower, no?”
“Yes, but-“
“Zat is a clear violation of ze Code of Conduct of which you are required to follow as a part of ze Strategic Homeland Intervention and-“
“Look, I don’t know if you know this, but there is an acronym-“
“Zat is not the point, Herr Stark!” Agent Schaefer shouted. “Because of your ignorance, one of your teammates has fallen!”
No one in the room dared to speak. An uncomfortable silence filled the area and made Antoinette feel more uncomfortable than before.
“Now,” the young agent started as he brushed some of his brown hair back. “I read in ze report zat this young lady claims to be your daughter.”
“I am,” Toni said confidently.
“She is,” Tony added.
“We don’t know zat,” Schaefer replied. “Ve vill be doing an extensive DNA test to make sure. And as for ze others-“
“They stay,” Tony said as he leaned forward as if he was in the middle of making a business deal. “I won’t take no for an answer.”
“Vat compels you to say so, Herr Stark?”
Tony folded his hands, a sign that Toni learned that he knew his argument could not be outmatched. “Well for one, those three are my daughter’s best friends. Actually, I take that back, they’re her family. Two, Dr. Banner has taken a fatherly interest in the youngest that doesn’t have a home or a family. Three, they’re as much of the team as my assistant Pepper Potts is. If you force them to leave, you’ll have to force her too, and she’s the only one that can, as you claim, control my ‘irrational behavior.’”
Schaefer nodded as he processed the data. “I understand, Herr Stark,” he finally said after a minute of pure silence. “But I’d like to make sure zat ze kleine is truly homeless. I vill run a manner of tests on her.”
****
“Now, say ‘ah.’”
Pamplemousse opened her mouth wide and stared at the agent in front of her. “Ah…” she droned.
Agent Schaefer looked down the ten year-old’s throat with a flashlight. “Mmhm,” he muttered to himself. “Sehr gute. You seem to be very healthy, meine kleine.”
Pamplemousse’s eyes went wide. “What?” she asked nervously.
“You’re healthy,” he repeated. “Vhy do you seem so afraid of zat?”
“You talk funny,” she said almost shyly. “Not like Loki funny, but…funny.”
“I don’t sink I understand, meine kleine. Vat do you mean?”
“Who’s Mine Climb?” she asked.
Schaefer chuckled and patted her head. “I said ‘meine kleine.’ It’s German for ‘my little one.’”
“Oh,” she said after a moment of silence. “You can call me by my name.”
“Und vat vould zat be?”
“Pamplemousse!” she said excitedly.
“Isn’t zat French for ‘grapefruit?’”
****
“So there’s a new guy running our show? Why weren’t we told?”
Fury sighed. “Because we had to make sure he was the right guy for the job, Agent Barton. And I don’t think you’re the one to talk about a lack of information. Just when were you planning on telling me that Tony Stark’s daughter and her little buddies were living with you guys?”
Clint shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down at the floor. “I’m sorry, Director. None of us saw the relevance of-”
“I don’t care, Agent Barton,” Fury said smoothly. “It’s over and done with. Go with everyone else back home. You guys need each other now more than ever.”
****
Bruce was falling asleep in the uncomfortable hospital chair. He had been awake for hours, just waiting for the doctor to say whether or not she was going to slip out of limbo.
“It’s all up in the air right now. She really could go either way at this point. We’ll just have to wait and see if she manages to come out of this coma.”
Bruce shook his head. He didn’t want to think about what the doctor had said to him. At the moment, he was more concerned about what the doctor was going to say to him.
Toni sat in one of the uncomfortable agency chairs in Agent Schaefer’s office. Next to her, Tony looked even more uncomfortable, but it was more of an emotional discomfort instead of a physical one.
“Is something vrong, Herr Stark?” Schaefer asked with his thick German accent.
He nodded. “Yeah, this office belonged to a different agent. One that I was particularly fond of.”
“Ah yes, ze late Agent Coulson.”
Tony flinched slightly and sighed. “Yes, Coulson.”
The agent nodded and organized his stack of papers for the third time since they’ve sat down. “Vell, let’s get down to business,” he said fairly formally. “You did not alert ze Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division that you had taken in a civilian into your home, and zerefore broke zree violations in ze handbook.”
“Look, Fritz-“
“My name is not Fritz,” he said, clearly annoyed. “You will refer to me as Agent Schaefer, and nothing else.”
“-she’s my daughter. I figured she didn’t need some kind of formal introduction.”
“But you also have zree other teenagers residing in Avengers’ Tower, no?”
“Yes, but-“
“Zat is a clear violation of ze Code of Conduct of which you are required to follow as a part of ze Strategic Homeland Intervention and-“
“Look, I don’t know if you know this, but there is an acronym-“
“Zat is not the point, Herr Stark!” Agent Schaefer shouted. “Because of your ignorance, one of your teammates has fallen!”
No one in the room dared to speak. An uncomfortable silence filled the area and made Antoinette feel more uncomfortable than before.
“Now,” the young agent started as he brushed some of his brown hair back. “I read in ze report zat this young lady claims to be your daughter.”
“I am,” Toni said confidently.
“She is,” Tony added.
“We don’t know zat,” Schaefer replied. “Ve vill be doing an extensive DNA test to make sure. And as for ze others-“
“They stay,” Tony said as he leaned forward as if he was in the middle of making a business deal. “I won’t take no for an answer.”
“Vat compels you to say so, Herr Stark?”
Tony folded his hands, a sign that Toni learned that he knew his argument could not be outmatched. “Well for one, those three are my daughter’s best friends. Actually, I take that back, they’re her family. Two, Dr. Banner has taken a fatherly interest in the youngest that doesn’t have a home or a family. Three, they’re as much of the team as my assistant Pepper Potts is. If you force them to leave, you’ll have to force her too, and she’s the only one that can, as you claim, control my ‘irrational behavior.’”
Schaefer nodded as he processed the data. “I understand, Herr Stark,” he finally said after a minute of pure silence. “But I’d like to make sure zat ze kleine is truly homeless. I vill run a manner of tests on her.”
****
“Now, say ‘ah.’”
Pamplemousse opened her mouth wide and stared at the agent in front of her. “Ah…” she droned.
Agent Schaefer looked down the ten year-old’s throat with a flashlight. “Mmhm,” he muttered to himself. “Sehr gute. You seem to be very healthy, meine kleine.”
Pamplemousse’s eyes went wide. “What?” she asked nervously.
“You’re healthy,” he repeated. “Vhy do you seem so afraid of zat?”
“You talk funny,” she said almost shyly. “Not like Loki funny, but…funny.”
“I don’t sink I understand, meine kleine. Vat do you mean?”
“Who’s Mine Climb?” she asked.
Schaefer chuckled and patted her head. “I said ‘meine kleine.’ It’s German for ‘my little one.’”
“Oh,” she said after a moment of silence. “You can call me by my name.”
“Und vat vould zat be?”
“Pamplemousse!” she said excitedly.
“Isn’t zat French for ‘grapefruit?’”
****
“So there’s a new guy running our show? Why weren’t we told?”
Fury sighed. “Because we had to make sure he was the right guy for the job, Agent Barton. And I don’t think you’re the one to talk about a lack of information. Just when were you planning on telling me that Tony Stark’s daughter and her little buddies were living with you guys?”
Clint shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down at the floor. “I’m sorry, Director. None of us saw the relevance of-”
“I don’t care, Agent Barton,” Fury said smoothly. “It’s over and done with. Go with everyone else back home. You guys need each other now more than ever.”
****
Bruce was falling asleep in the uncomfortable hospital chair. He had been awake for hours, just waiting for the doctor to say whether or not she was going to slip out of limbo.
“It’s all up in the air right now. She really could go either way at this point. We’ll just have to wait and see if she manages to come out of this coma.”
Bruce shook his head. He didn’t want to think about what the doctor had said to him. At the moment, he was more concerned about what the doctor was going to say to him.
Chapter 28 is sad because Cj says "Let's just say I've got red in my ledger and I physically cannot wipe it out.". That's sad because Natasha says that in Avengers.
10/17/16