Angel Of Darkness

13: Meaningless Midnight Chatter

The Next Morning

I stand on the balcony and watch as the sun rises over the city, last night went well. Me and Clint got called hackers about sixty million times which was quite entertaining. I ate a few slices of pizza and checked out what food there was in the kitchen while listening to them recount missions and make small chat back an forth. I knew that they were really watching my every move but were trying to play it off casually. I didn't mind, they have no reason to trust me and I have no reason to trust them.

"Ashely, we need to go get your wing checked out now," Agent Romanoff says from behind me and I snap out of my trance. I pull my eyes away from the sunrise and follow her to the elevator and watch as it takes us down to the basement level. I step out after her and ignore the sinking feeling in my gut. They aren't going to hurt me, she promised. Granted she might be lying, what if she was lying? I could be marching blindly to my death.

"How are you feeling Ashely?" Dr.Banner asks and I snap my self out of it for the second time today.

"It feels stiff and sore, quite honestly I'm not used to sleeping with them out sir. I usually switched their forms before bed on the rare occasion that I did let them out." I say as my left wing stretches out a little bit.

"I'm sure you'll get used to it, maybe sleep on your stomach so that they don't have any weight on them." He suggests while changing the bandages quickly. I nod my head absently, yeah except i'm not going to be sleeping anytime soon. "Alright and we're done, I think that the more sleep you get the faster this will heal." I nod my head silently once again and wonder how this man is so willing to help me. I'm a freak of nature and here he is trying to help me heal. Pure humans are such a strange sub set of our species.

"Thank you doctor, I'll be sure to do so." I say as I hop up from the examination table and retreat towards the door, Agent Romanoff looks from me to the doctor before giving me a small smile.

"Go ahead, I'm going to stay back with Bruce for a minute or two." She says softly and I nod my head before retreating to the elevator. Once inside I stare at all of the buttons trying to figure out where to go.

"Hey Jarvis ?" I ask in a small voice as I try and figure out where to look or if he'll even reply.

"Yes miss-"

"Please call me Ashely, I like it better than my first name, I'm sorry I didn't mean to cut you off that was rude of me." I say quickly and fiddle as I wait for the AI's reply.

"That is quite alright Miss Ashely, how can I help you? You seem lost, I can take you to the main floor if you so please." He says kindly in his crisp british voice and I can't help but smile a little bit.

"Yeah that would be nice Jarvis, thank you." I say softly as I lean up against the elevator wall and feel the elevator moving up wards. The quiet hum of acdc music in the elevator makes me smile. Only Tony, I think sarcastically as the doors open I step out and make my way back to my room avoiding the people who are milling about.

Once back in my room I take a seat on the small reading nook and look out over the city. After a hour or two of watching the tiny ant like people move around beneath me I stand up and inspect the book shelf. Whoever stocked it has fairly decent taste, there's a nice mix of new popular books and old classics. With a small smile I pull one of my favorite books off of the shelf. "The Chronicles of Narnia" with a small smile I sit back down on my book nook and read silently. Sure because of my memory I could tell you every word from the front cover to the back cover but its satisfying to sit and flip the pages while allowing my self the ability to get lost in the pages.

_Midnight_

I stand up and stretch my sore back out listening to the sickening pops of joints moving before walking out of my bedroom silently. Once I reach the kitchen I'm surprised to see Dr. Banner pouring him self a cup of something that is not coffee. He turns around and almost drops his cup when he sees me.

"How long have you been standing there? And what did I tell you about needing to sleep if you ever want the wing to heal?" He asks in a snappy tone before closing his eyes and taking a few deep breaths. "Sorry, I'll pour you a cup of tea and you can come hang out with me in the lab." He says as he turns around and pulls another mug out of a cabinet and starts pouring some boiling water into it carefully.

"But Mr.Stark-" I start to say in an attempt to protest.

"Is away on a business meeting with Pepper." He says and hands me a mug of hot water with a floating leaf bag in it.

"What does tea taste like?" I ask softly as I follow Dr.Banner back to the elevator.

"Try it, I think you'll like it. Its a lot smoother than coffee and doesn't need to be drowned in creamer and sugar to make it drinkable." He says as he jams a button on the elevator and we sink downwards.

Dr.Banner and I had spent hours switching between silence and talking about his work as a doctor. I had told him about how my brother had wanted to go to Calcutta and help heal people. He had told me about what it was like there. About how kind and thankful the people were when their loved ones starting feeling better. I had told him about how I made him read large medical books and how I made him keep up to date on current events while trying my best to teach him about the past. He had laughed and asked me if Alex even paid attention to me trying to teach him. I laughed and said it was pretty fifty fifty if he was listening to me or not.

Dr.Banner had fallen asleep on his work table sometime around three in the morning and I've been reading through his work file ever since. Of course I've been referencing the words and lingo that he uses against Google and against Jarvis when I get lost so that I can continue reading. He's quite interested in my wings and in my sudden hearing. Coming up with theories before studying my blood cells and either trashing the theory or adding upon it. When six o'clock rolled around I got up silently and made my way to the elevator and pushed the button for the main floor. I make a cup of hot tea like I saw him make it and place it on the counter with a sticky note next to it that says "Thanks for keeping me company Doc, I'm pretty sure that this is right if not then at least I can say that I attempted. Jarvis then comes over the intercom and tells me that Dr.Banner is on his way up.

For the rest of the day I stay locked up in my room reading and watching silly little humans live their lives below me.

The rest of the week follows this schedule, I wander the building at night and lock my self away in my room during the day. When I had gone down to the lab to talk to Banner I had found Mr.Stark. He ended up telling me about his suit and I helped him figure out why his jet propulsion boot things weren't working. After that he called me a genius and started telling me all about his suits. I didn't have the heart to tell him that I didn't know what he was talking about. When I meat Thor in the kitchen he was sitting with a box of pop tarts at the counter top. I had sat next to him silently and listened to him tell me of his home planet and the earthling whom he loves. He told me his fears about his brother before bidding me goodnight and walking away leaving me alone to process the idea of there being not only other planets but other realms. I had met Captain in the gym and he told me about the horrors that war has thrust upon him. He told me of the love he has for a woman who is now old enough to be his grandmother and his best friend who died at his hand. We swapped stories of the pressures of leading and how to escape from them. This schedule continued on for awhile until it feel into a stead rhythm. Someone is always up, wether from habit or nightmares I never asked fearing the answer.