The Guide To Moving On

Chapter 8 - Herding Cats

Fury's POV

*RING RING* *RING RING*

I groaned as I turned over in my bed. I reached over to my nightstand and picked up my buzzing phone off of it. I glanced at the time before I answered the call; 3:00 am. This better be good, or someone is going to pay for it, I thought before answering the call.

*During the Phone call*

Fury: Hello?

Agent Coulson: Boss, I have news. We have received locations on all of the Avenger recruits.

Fury: Then why aren't you and your team on a plane to get them!?

Agent Coulson: They are spread out over large distances. In places, we aren't authorized to be in.

Fury: Then get authorization! This is months of planning, it is not going to get scrapped over some authorization issues.

Agent Coulson: Sir, it is not that easy, trust me I have tried. My team and I aren't going to get in. We can't use the jets without running the risk of being shot right out of the sky. We can't risk that.

Fury: Fine, you have 12 hours to be back here.

*End Phone Call*

Urgh. Why is it so hard to get this initiative off of the ground? It seems that everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. The Captain wasn't cooperating and all of the others are spread out across the world.

This whole recruiting process has been like herding cats. It's impossible. My phone buzzed on the table. What now!?

Turns out it was from Agent Romanoff, the only one that is being slightly cooperative. She texted me to let me know that she was on her way with the Captain and that he agreed to the mission.

Finally, something that was going right today. It was then that I had an idea. Agent Romanoff has a very specific skillset and she can get people to agree to almost anything, I have seen her do it.

If I sent her and Captain to get all of the Avengers, it might work. Why hadn't I thought of this before? I rushed back over to my computer and used the tracker to pin the coordinates of the others.

Clint Barton is on his farm in Missouri, Bruce Banner is in New Delhi and Tony Stark is in his tower in downtown New York. Right, as soon as those two get back they are getting their first assignment; Avenger Recruitment.

Steve's POV

We have been driving for an hour now and I am still trying to wrap my head around the events of this morning. I woke up to shouting and I remember rushing out towards the sound. When I got there I saw Agent Romanoff fighting some guy. It all happened so quickly and it was enough to make my head spin.

The most concerning part are the fact that she said it happened all the time. That's not normal, it shouldn't be normal.

I decided to break the awkward silence that had started when we entered the car.

"So, Agent Romanoff, where are you from?" I asked, trying to start up some kind of conversation and learn a little about my future teammate.

"Russia and can you stop calling me an agent. It makes me feel so generic." She replied coldly. Ok, maybe this will be harder than I thought.

"What do you want me to call you then?" I asked quizzically.

"Natasha, Nat, Romanoff, whatever you like, just not an agent. Although, most people that don't know me call me the Black Widow." She replied, keeping her eyes trained on the road. Black Widow? What does that mean?

"Black Widow?" I inquired. I had heard her talk about it last night but she didn't explain that bit to me.

"It is my alter ego. The program I was in, that is what it was called and the best recruit earned the title of Black Widow. I was that person, so now I go by it." she answered matter-of-factly.

"Right, good to know." I was about to continue when her phone rang, interrupting me. She picked it up and put it on speaker.

*During Phone Call*

Natasha: Fury, what can I do for you?

Fury: Are you and the Captain almost back?

Natasha: Yes, we will be there in about half an hour. Why?

Fury: Well, there has been a change of plans. We need you and Cap to recruit the other members due to some complications on our end.

Natasha: Fine, where do you want us first?

Fury: Go and get Clint first, he is at his farm. He took the week off, but it is going to have to be cut short. As soon as the team is ready we have some urgent business to attend to, and as you know, time is of the essence.

Natasha: Ok, we are on our way now.

*End Call*

"Who is Clint again?" I asked. I could vaguely remember that he was a part of the Avengers Initiative, but I couldn't remember much else.

"Clint Barton, also known as Hawkeye, has a specific skill set with archery. He has never missed a target in all of the time I have known him." She answered, taking a sharp left turn, nearly throwing me off my balance.

"How long have you known him for?" I asked, regaining my balance and trying to get as much information on this guy as possible.

"Roughly 10 or so years. In that time we have done a lot together and we are pretty close. He works for SHIELD and is aware of the initiative so it shouldn't take too long." She said as she turned again.

30 minutes later we arrived at a small airport. It was nearly deserted and I looked at her questionably. She must have caught onto my confusion because she started explaining what this place was.

"Welcome to the SHIELD airport on the outskirts of New York. We will be taking a jet to Missouri from here." She explained, scanning her fingerprint at the gate. We drove in and she directed the car towards one of the sheds, that must have the jet we are taking in it.

Sure enough, the door opened and a small jet stood proudly in the middle. It didn't look that much different to the ones I am used to, but the thought of being in a jet after what happened last time was overwhelming.

We got out of the car and I followed Natasha towards the entrance to the jet. She must have noticed my discomfort because she placed a hand on my shoulder as she guided me inside the plan.

"The last time I was on one of these, I ended up trapped in the ice for 70 years," I said taking a deep breath as we entered.

"Don't worry Captain, I am flying this thing and I am going to make sure that we have a safe trip, ok?" She replied soothingly. Something about her made me want to trust her and her flying skills. Something that I couldn't quite put my finger on.

"Buckle up Captain, we are about to take off," Natasha informed as she sat in the pilot seat and started flicking switches. I guess this is it.