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Post by Snowglobe18 on Nov 29, 2015 20:49:42 GMT -7
Teresa smirks to herself when the second mercenary slams back against the wall of the elevator. See? being kept in secret was always a good thing, it meant that they weren't actually expecting her. Just Bucky. But here she was helping him out.
This Hammer guy really was a persistent bastard. Especially when he was sending so many teams to Stark Tower but it wasn't going to be as easy as he thought it would be. Possibly a quick smash and grab perhaps? Well they really had picked the wrong tower to break in too because it was, and would be, guarded from idiots who thought they could get their hands on everything. Teresa hated guys like that and that's why she was only too happy to help Bucky out and to stop these assholes from getting any further than they already had.
She grunted under her breath when the two remaining guys dodged the arrow and then started firing but they were going after Bucky and by the looks of it, even he was having trouble making sure he didn't get shot. They were definitely better than the ones that had come across them in the room down the corridor. Even she saw that they were much better fighters.
She heard him yell for an arrow and she, of course, was only too happy to help out. Teresa pulled back the string and let the arrow go. It soared through the air towards the two that were firing at Bucky.
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Post by Ray on Nov 29, 2015 21:18:22 GMT -7
She looses the arrow automatically, and the gunfire halts. The two mercenaries watch, eyes blown wide, for the short few seconds that the repulsor arrow sails through the air. They duck their heads, avoiding the lethal blow, and the blast slams against the back wall. The elevator gives a painful creak, and Bucky steps out carefully from behind his makeshift shield. With a sudden lurch, the elevator drops until only the upper halves of the two remaining mercenaries are visible. One grabs the other by the jacket, mission completely forgotten as fear finally sets in. The elevator continues to groan an irritating metallic whine. The exposed cabins strain against the tension, struggling to keep the cart aloft.
Bucky takes two casual steps forward, lifting his rifle to his shoulder. The mercenaries snap their heads towards him, and Bucky aligns his eye down the length of the barrel.
He pulls the trigger, once, and the bullet snaps the exposed cable. With a grinding scream from the failing brakes, the elevator plunges into the dark, 100-story shaft, sparks flying. Bucky lowers the rifle and listens for a long second, until he hears the very distant, but very clear, sound of the elevator hitting rock bottom.
"We're taking the stairs." Bucky says aloud, turning on a heel to walk back the way they'd come.
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Post by Snowglobe18 on Nov 29, 2015 21:46:19 GMT -7
Teresa watches as the arrow moves closer to the two mercenaries and can't help but hope it hits where it's meant too. They duck their heads and the blast hits the back wall and she is so glad that she isn't in that elevator because it was going to give way at any moment. All it needed was a push.
Bucky seemed to know that because the next thing she saw was him stepping into her line of sight and shooting the cable and then the elevator disappeared from view. Teresa held her hand up in a sarcastic wave until Bucky then said that they were going to be taking the stairs. How very cheesy of him. She even had to scoff at what he said.
Teresa looked around where they were before she followed after him. There couldn't be many more, surely. Although with mercenaries they seemed to double in numbers no matter how many there was of them originally. It made it very hard to keep track of how many there were but surely they had to be coming to the end of them.
"JARVIS" she called out and looked towards the ceiling. "How is the other aircraft fairing?" she said and continued to walk after Bucky. They hadn't heard anything about the other aircraft, only that one had been shot down and was causing quite a mess. This was something she didn't want to have to clean up.
Surely this amount of trouble, it would alert SHIELD. Or were they too busy trying to cause trouble for the rest of the world. It was probably a good thing that they weren't here. There was enough men in black, they didn't need anymore causing them trouble especially when she was pretty sure they didn't know Bucky was here. But that was another thought for another day, right now they needed to get rid of the rest of the guys on the roof.
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Post by Ray on Nov 29, 2015 22:18:57 GMT -7
"It's being rather difficult, ma'am. The Mach 14 has...met an untimely fate over Time's Square." JARVIS replies. His voice seems to follow them down the hallway, coming from nowhere in particular but all around them. Bucky hates it. It's one of the reasons why he had the damn thing disconnected in Steve's apartment. The damn thing could be helpful, sure, now more than ever, but sometimes it gets on his goddamn nerves.
"Stark won't be happy." He mutters, throwing open the door to the stairwell, allowing Teresa to exit first.
"Indeed not, sir." JARVIS continues, it's voice carrying on even as they climb the stairs, the echo making it even more frustrating. "However, the Mach 27 has destroyed the helicopter's air cannon so mission success should be imminent."
"Good." Bucky sighs out, deciding against asking how many damn robots Stark has at her disposal. He doesn't think he wants to know. Tony is obsessive, that much is clear.
"I'm sensing movement on the floor above you two." JARVIS chimes back, changing the subject.
"Got it."
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Post by Snowglobe18 on Nov 29, 2015 22:40:49 GMT -7
Some how Teresa actually expected to hear something like that but not about the fact that one of the suits had met an untimely death over Times Square. Even she knows that Stark won't be happy, but the sounds of it these were her pride and joy.
She hated to think it but her shoulder was starting to play up. Teresa definitely was going to need to take something for it when she got home, so far she had managed to use it but even so she could shoot through the pain. She then came to realise that he opened the door and let her go through first. "Such a gentleman" she teased at him before heading up the stairs.
Well at least they were almost clear of the second helicopter, maybe now this Hammer guy would think twice before he messed with Stark tower especially if this was the resistance he was going to be met with if he tried it again. Teresa was pretty sure that if Hammer did try again then she wouldn't be here when he did. After all it had only really been a flying visit to see Steve but ended up helping Bucky out with this.
When JARVIS said there was movement on the floor above them she made sure that she still had hold of her bow. Well more like Tony's bow but all the same she had acquired it for the time being. It was still the hottest thing she had seen. And she would keep saying that until Tony actually made her one. It made using a bow that much easier but she did have to admit that her shoulder was aching, not like the pain she had felt previously more like a different type of pain.
How many more of them were here? Surely they had to be nearing the end of mercenaries by now.
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Post by Ray on Nov 29, 2015 23:01:08 GMT -7
Bucky smiles a little to himself at Teresa's tease. It's been a long goddamn time since anyone had called him a gentlemen. Hell, he doesn't even think it's happened once in this century. Steve might be a punk, but he's not that much of a sap, and Nat... Well Nat called him a lot of different things.
They reach the landing of the next floor, and Bucky reaches out a hand to halt Teresa before she rushes in. Carefully, he opens the metal door only a crack, and presses his ear close.
Nearby, he can hear feet stomping, the recognizable sound of heavy objects hitting the ground, the faint whispers of conversation. He lets the door close, sealing off any sound from the stairwell. "JARVIS, what floor is this?" He asks aloud, but still keeps his voice hushed.
As if picking up the cue, JARVIS replies almost as quietly. "The first floor of Tony's living quarters, sir."
"This whole place is hers, why does she need multiple floors to live on." Bucky mutters to himself, before releasing a long sigh. "Alright." He sets the automatic rifle against the wall, no longer needing it. Shooting up Stark's lab was one thing, but marching into her house, more or less, with full intention on destruction was something else entirely. Tony is already going to have his scalp for her destroyed robot. "Body shots only." Bucky tells Teresa in hushed tones, glancing back at her. "And wear these." He tugs a pair of dark blue tinted glasses from the back pocket of his pants, holding them out towards her. They resemble Barton's, the kind the guy never seemed to be without before he left SHIELD on a permanent basis. "I found them in Stark's lab. If they're what I think they are, you'll want them." Bucky explains loosely. "JARVIS," he continues, focusing his blue eyes back upon the door. "Blackout."
The lights in the stairwell shut up with a resounding thud, the darkness penetrating. Bucky takes a second, adjusting to the black as his eyes resume their icy blue glow. The moment passes, and Bucky pulls the door open slowly and silently and slips in to Tony's apartment.
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Post by Snowglobe18 on Nov 30, 2015 8:39:30 GMT -7
They reached the next floor and she halts when he puts his hand out to stop her from going in. Right now she was following his lead. Teresa watched as he listened and she bit down on her lip before looking around. How many floors were actually in this building? She had been on one of the upper floors the day after Halloween for the party that they had come too but she had never really considered just how many floors there might actually be in this damn building, until now of course.
If she looked surprised when JARVIS said that this was the first floor of Tony's living quarters then she really wasn't. Some how it seemed like it fit in with Tony Stark. Hell if her floors looked as good as Steve's apartment then Teresa was sure that even she would have multiple floors too.
Teresa nodded when Bucky said only to take body shots. She really would try her best to keep the damage as minimal as she could but if any of them duck just like the two idiots in the elevator did then there was really nothing that she could do. But she really would try her best.
She pushed her eyebrows together when Bucky handed her a pair of glasses and was going to ask why she would need them when Bucky said to Jarvis blackout. Teresa quickly put the glasses on and as soon as she did the whole stairwell went dark but she could see and couldn't help but smile. Night vision. Oh she definitely could do with these too. But the last thing she wanted to do was get an ego but she had to admit that with the hot-rod red bow and these glasses, she was starting to feel like a badass.
Teresa watched as Bucky pulled the door open and moved into the apartment. She took a deep breath in before softly letting it out and following him into the room. Making sure that her foot work was light and she didn't make a noise. This was the second time tonight that she was so glad she didn't have heels on, they probably would've heard her coming from floors away if that had been the case.
She found a spot for herself and pulled the string back on the bow, ready to let the arrow go. Body shots only, Bucky's voice popped up in her head.
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Post by Ray on Nov 30, 2015 12:28:14 GMT -7
"What the hell happened to the lights?" Someone yells within the apartment. All around them are the familiar clicks of safeties switching off, the chaotic search otherwise halted.
Even in the pitch blackness, Bucky can see just how different Tony's apartment is to Steve's. The furniture is modern and could be minimalist, if Tony didn't collect so much. There's a fully stocked bar within twenty feet of the darkened elevator doors, which says plenty all on its own. Bucky crouches here, using the half-metal half-wood structure for cover as he scans the rest of the area. A solid column, as wide and imposing as the arc reactor a floor below, stretches from floor to ceiling and beyond, a black, spiral staircase wrapping up and around it's length to the secondary level. Bucky assumes, from the strange architectural placement, that its the other half of the chamber Stark's remotely-controlled suits had used as a quick exit. Only Tony would pretend that it's a normal structural necessity, rather than building something a little more subtle.
"Who's there!" The same voice as before shouts, closer now. Bucky crouches lower and waits, listening to the steady footsteps of suspicious mercenaries all around them.
He counts five based on hearing only, including the one standing stock still by an abstract sculpture he saw on the way in.
Easy enough.
"Someone get the lights working again." The mercenary, their leader most likely, yells when only silence greets him. The man is only a few feet from the other side of the bar, close enough that Bucky can hear the squeak of his boots on the polished hard-wood floor. There are grunts of replies from all around the apartment, none close enough to worry about. "I don't get paid enough for this shit." The mercenary grumbles to himself, coming to a halt. Bucky rises quietly to his feet, balancing on the toes of his boots, and lunges over the bar. He uses the momentum to his advantage, and kicks both legs out as his body vaults forward, thighs wrapping around the mercenary's neck. His body weight crushes the man down to the ground, snapping his neck with a simple jerk of his hips, and Bucky rolls away before the mercenary's head even cracks against the floor.
He takes cover, once more, behind the circle of couches.
"Huh?" Another intruder mumbles, having heard the accompanying thump. "Boss?" He says, louder, walking out into the living room.
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Post by Snowglobe18 on Nov 30, 2015 12:56:40 GMT -7
Teresa couldn't help but smirk at the fact that JARVIS had been the one to take out the lights, after Bucky had commanded it of course. But also she finds it hilarious because of the fact that they had been the first ones to take down the lights and now they're complaining about the fact that the lights had gone back off. There was no pleasing some people.
They couldn't have both and walk away with whatever it was they were looking for, which she guessed was to do with the suits that the mercenary had said in the room downstairs.
Bucky took out the first guy and she waited as the other one came out. Her hand not shaking an inch as she held the string back, waiting. Watching. She was actually thankful that she had been given the glasses because she would have found this a hell of a lot harder. She couldn't see in the dark like Bucky or any of the supernatural things that she had come across so these really did come in handy.
Teresa then pulled the string and the arrow soared through the air and hit the guy in the body. She smirked to herself once more and watched as it worked it's magic. She then moved back into her spot and waited for the next guy to come along. The glasses giving her perfect vision of the room. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to high five Bucky or kissing him for grabbing the glasses but either way they were working like a charm and was helping her out because she could see the man that she just shot with the arrow but he couldn't see her.
She looked in the direction of where Bucky had been and nodded once, whether he actually picked it up or not really was another thing.
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Post by Ray on Nov 30, 2015 13:22:26 GMT -7
The repulsor arrow hits the mercenary like a brick, knocking him clear off his feet. His back slams into the granite sculpture, something that looks vaguely like a flame suspended in air, and it -along with him- goes tumbling to the ground. It shatters across the hard wood floor into a hundred different pieces, causing enough noise to make stealth impossible.
Bucky doesn't mind all too much. He wasn't built to be a spy.
The remaining three mercenaries come running out from different areas of the apartment, night vision goggles newly strapped to their heads and automatic rifles at the ready. They start shooting as soon as they walk into the room, bullets piercing couch cushions, blasting through drywall, shattering bottles on the bar. Bucky rushes out from his hiding position, swiftly turning into black smoke in order to dance around the rapid fire. He reappears just behind the closest mercenary, grabbing him from behind and disappearing into ash once more. There's a second of pause, before a sudden loud yell of panic erupts over the loud pounding of gunfire. The mercenary flies across the room from seemingly out of nowhere, body barreling into another intruder with two echoing oomphs and a hard thud as they crash into a wall. An abstract panting of Iron Man drops from the wall right onto their heads.
The third stops shooting long enough to look over, confusion and surprise getting the best of him.
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Post by Snowglobe18 on Nov 30, 2015 13:42:44 GMT -7
Teresa smirked to herself when she heard something shattering. She did say that she would try her hardest to not make any mess in the apartment, apart from the mess that the arrows would cause to the bodies, even if she had actually said it to herself in the end but the whole meaning was pretty much the same.
It wasn't actually her fault if they were standing so close to things.
The three final mercenaries joined them in the living room and shots ring out and one actually narrowly missed her but then slowly the gunfire starts to stop until there is just one and even that stops in the end. She looked out from her own hiding space and saw that he wasn't looking in her direction so she despatched an arrow and it too hit him. Knocking him clean off his feet, he slams into something too and she huffed out a breath before she relaxed her arms.
Was it all over now? Had they got the last three mercenaries or was there more and they just didn't know about it? God she hoped that wasn't the case because she was more than eager to have a drink. Sure she had been drinking the night before but she thought that this actually called for her to have some more tonight.
More of her dark hair had fallen around her face and she reached up and pushed it out of her way before she leaned her back against the wall. They had, hopefully, got rid of the mercenaries and maybe this Hammer guy would actually get the hint that Stark Tower was protected and that Bucky wouldn't make it easy for them to take the stuff. Mostly because Tony would have his head.
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Post by Ray on Nov 30, 2015 14:28:54 GMT -7
Bucky walks across the living room, searching for shadows or lurking figures or anything. But the apartment is finally silent now. Even the crashes and explosions outside had ceased their tremors. Bucky rolls his shoulder loosely, coming to a halt in the middle of the room. "JARVIS." He says aloud. His voice is even and strong, no sign of being winded by the multiple floors of combat he's endured. "Tell me we're done."
A quiet chirp from the ceiling greets him. "Running a motion sweep of the Tower." JARVIS replies, finally sounding like an actual damn robot. Bucky turns on a heel, and walks with casual ease towards the bar. "No motion detected. Congratulations, Mister Barnes. Mission success." The lights flick on overhead, and for the first time they're both able to see the actual destruction of this little mission. Tony's apartment is a mess, to put it simply. The couches are nearly torn to shreds and several pieces of no-doubt expensive art destroyed carelessly. But Bucky just shakes it off. It could have been worse. Stark has the money, and he doubts this is the first time this has happened to her.
Bucky grabs the last intact bottle of liquor, something Spanish, and pours a glass.
"Get me Justin Hammer." Bucky orders, sliding the glass towards Teresa, but keeping the bottle for himself.
"As you wish." A holographic screen appears out of nowhere in the middle of the destroyed living room, and Bucky turns slowly to look back it, lifting the lip of the bottle to his mouth. It's sickly sweet, and he cringes as he walks back towards the buffering screen. Three sharp beeps blare. "I'm afraid he's not answering."
"Make him." Bucky grunts, coming to a halt a few feet away from the huge, sheer screen sitting in thin air.
"Hacking through his desktop firewall." JARVIS replies, as if that was perfectly reasonable.
An image flickers across the screen; riddled with static at first, until the video suddenly sharpens. The vantage point only gives Bucky a shot of khaki-adorned legs, pacing back and forth across the field of view.
"What do you mean you can't get them on the comm?" A man yells. Bucky recognizes the voice immediately, but waits, patiently, drinking more from the bottle. "I don't give a SHIT if they ran into trouble, did they get the suits?" Hammer is screaming into a phone. "You don't know? YOU DON'T KNOW? Well...WHAT AM I PAYING YOU FOR."
Bucky clears his throat courteously, lowering the bottle back down to his side. The pacing on the screen suddenly ceases, and silent reigns for a long moment.
"What...what the hell..." Hammer blubbers, quickly moving towards the screen. He swoops down, and a face suddenly appears in the camera's view. His neatly trimmed brown hair is swooped out of his face, but looks like it's seen better days. A pair of black rimmed glasses sit low on a pointed nose; that, paired with the dumbfounded expression on his face, makes him look more like a cartoon character than a weapons manufacturer who just organized a heist on Stark Tower. Bucky gives him a tight-lipped, sarcastic smile. "What the hell is this. A virus? CINDY!" He screams off camera.
"Justin Hammer?" Bucky asks, taking a step towards the screen. Hammer swings his eyes back to him, mouth open dumbly.
"Yeah." He replies, drawing the word out long suspiciously.
"Rough night?" Bucky arches a dark brow.
Hammer fumbles for his chair before slowly sinking in to it. "What's it to you?" He scrunches up his nose, giving Bucky a once over. "WHO are you?"
"JARVIS," Bucky says aloud to the computer, lifting the bottle towards his mouth. "Show him some of the footage."
Immediately, a series of boxes pop up across the screen; videos from that night's assault on the tower. Videos of Bucky taking down the six mercenaries in the hallway outside of the lab. Videos of the elevator crashing down into an abyss. Videos of Teresa firing off her repulsor bow. And one particular video of the Iron Man suits blasting a helicopter right out of the sky. Bucky allows himself a long, well-deserved swallow.
Justin gapes at the videos, brown eyes flicking back and forth from one to the next. Sweat forms on his brow thickly.
"What are you...Stark's wonder twins?" Hammer swallows out, trying to save face. JARVIS removes the security footage from the screen abruptly.
"Something like that." Bucky retorts, blinking slowly at the camera. "Point is." He sets the bottle down into the crook of the couch, between arm and cushion, before looking back at the screen. His face changes subtly but certainly; eyes darkening and expression losing any trace of amusement. "Fuck with us again and I'll kill you." His voice is smooth, the statement simple and without embellishment, but it's his look that makes Hammer's eyes go wide. "End call." Bucky grunts. The camera cuts, and the screen vanishes from the air.
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Post by Snowglobe18 on Nov 30, 2015 15:10:02 GMT -7
Teresa was actually thankful for the fact that it had gone quiet and she moved out from behind her spot. Then Jarvis confirmed that everything was done and that there was no more mercenaries. That was the best thing she heard since the start of it. She put the bow down and started to rub at her shoulder. That might have been the best bow she has ever used but that didn't mean her shoulder would get off lightly.
The lights went on and she removed the glasses and put them in her back pocket before she took the glass and drank some of the liquid in it. She smiled at Bucky before looking around the room. It was a complete mess but at least most of the stuff was still in the building. Tony Stark should be thankful that they even done anything at all. But she had to admit that that was the best thing she had done in a while and was pretty damn proud of herself that she had helped out. Especially when she didn't have to, Teresa could've easily stayed in the apartment and let Bucky sort all of this out himself but no she was damn well adamant that she was going to help him and was happy that she did.
Teresa looked over at the holographic screen and scoffed under her breath when she heard someone yelling to some poor soul about information on the suits, which by the way he didn't get thanks to them.
Bucky then started talking to him and she gave a slight wave to the guy and watched the videos of what happened between the both of them that night and looked pretty damn impressed with how she looked with the repulsor bow. She really did need to get one of the damn things mostly because it helped with her shoulder, even if it was now aching like hell.
Teresa finished up the rest of her drink by the time that Bucky had given the last warning and she smirked at the look on Hammer's face. Mostly because she knew that Bucky would actually kill him if he sent anymore against them. The chat then cut out and she took a deep breath before rubbing at her shoulder. "Well I have to say this is going to be one of those nights I'm not going to forget for a while" she then looked around the room once more and winced at the sight. They weren't going to have to clean all of this up, right?
The drink that Bucky had given her hadn't stopped the adrenaline running through her, her heart was still pounding in her chest and her cheeks were tinted a slight pink but this was one of the best work outs she's had in a while. Maybe it was said adrenaline that stopped her from thinking about the fact that she had killed people but at the moment she just didn't want to think about it, no right now she was just thankful that it was over.
Teresa pulled the tie out of her hair and let her dark hair fall around her shoulders before she pulled it up, once more, and into a messy bun at the back of her head.
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Post by Ray on Nov 30, 2015 18:04:34 GMT -7
Bucky snatches the bottle from the couch, while simultaneously undoing the latches on his leather jacket. He might have pushed his luck with that final statement, might have given himself more trouble than he really needs. If Hammer just happens to tell the wrong person about what he'd seen, who he'd seen, than shitty mercenaries with bad aim are going to be the least of his worries. He wouldn't put it behind Hammer to do something like that. Bucky barely knows the guy, and he can already say for damn fact that Hammer is a pain in the ass.
But from the looks of this place, at least he's a scared pain in the ass.
Bucky takes a swig from the bottle, his leather jacket hanging open lazily as he steps back towards where Teresa is standing. The corners of his mouth pull upwards in a smile as he drinks, and he drops the bottle away and swallows down hard with his lips still curled. He bobs his head a little in agreement, setting the liquor back onto the splintered bar. "Well you did good." He admits, turning his head to look towards her. "So hopefully the memory won't be too awful."
Truth is, for a kid from Connecticut who's only training is running through the woods and hanging out in Barton's shithole of an apartment, she did pretty damn well. She was calm, collected, and took down three intruders all on her own without putting herself in needless danger. Even Steve can't say the same for most of his missions.
Then again, Steve wouldn't be Steve if he wasn't a reckless son of a bitch.
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Post by Snowglobe18 on Nov 30, 2015 18:30:25 GMT -7
Teresa watches as he undoes the latches on his leather jacket before looking away and biting on her lip. There was no denying it. Bucky was hot in any year but he was Steve's and she had Graeme at home. Which was where Teresa really needed to be getting back too.
She looked around the room and couldn't help but wince at the amount of damage that had been caused here and she would have to get out of here before Stark turns back up and cuts her head off. Teresa looks up when she sees Bucky out the corner of her eyes and couldn't help but smile and then said in a smug tone. "Was that a compliment? I think that was a compliment" she said and bit down on her lip before laughing.
In honesty she actually felt pretty good, but the adrenaline was making her want to jump off the top of the building, quite literally, but she was going to have to hold off on that one. "The memory definitely isn't going to be awful" she admitted and smiled at him before looking around the room once more "But I'm not going to be cleaning any of this mess up" she said and put her hands into the front pockets of her jeans to stop them from shaking.
If this was what it took to sort her shoulder out then she was happy to have been here when they attacked. "Thank," she said and looked back over at him "For letting me tag along, most people would've made me stay behind and sorted it out themselves" Barton would've definitely have been one of them. So she was grateful for him letting her come along.
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