Arcs Collide

Chapter 19: A Meeting of Tension and Annoyance

Summary: The team meeting begins and already few of the team want to take their shot at the so called 'assistants'

Tony and most of the team were already in the conference room, sitting and waiting for the rest of the team and "the assistants" to arrive.

Tony had spent the previous night helping his fiancée calm down after she had to give the Rogues a tour as one of the team leaders. Of course, not before he cashed in on Carol's end of her lost bet—she made one heck of a spaghetti.

But now it was time to focus on the matter at hand. Knowing who was about to be part of this meeting and what they had done to Tony in the past, the new team had no intention of allowing them any access to him.

Unfortunately, as part of the deal, for the duration of team meetings like this, the restriction orders he had against the Rogues (Rhodey's and Carol's idea) were being temporarily lifted.

The massive table in the conference room could easily seat at least 30 people. One side of the table was rounded so it wouldn't have a head, while the other end had a sharp edge with space for two seats.

Right now, at the head of the table sat Rhodey, and on his right was Carol. At a ninety-degree angle from Carol, Tony was seated. Next to him, with her feet on the table, sat Jessica Jones, followed by the rest of the Defenders and the Guardians in the chair lines.

Across from him and on Rhodey's left sat Yelena Belova, with Scott Lang right next to her. After those two sat Hope Van Dyne and Doctor Strange, with Vision on either side of them. Then came Daisy, Sharon, and T'Challa.

But if that wasn't enough, around the room closer to the walls were other people. Some were there to hear what was about to be said, some because they believed they had something to contribute to the discussion, and some had their own reasons for being there.

Behind Scott and Hope sat Hank Pym, his face in its permanent frown, which reminded Tony that today was finally the day he, Hank, and Hope were finishing "Project Dimensional Fishing."

Behind Rhodey and Carol sat three people: Nick Fury, Phil Coulson, and Rosalind Price.

Finally, there was a large group sitting behind Tony, whispering among themselves—the Young Avengers. Spider-Man, Iron Legacy, Ms. Marvel, Kate Bishop, America Chavez, and finally, Shuri. All of those with masks and secret identities were wearing them, not wishing to expose their secrets to the criminals joining them.

The group of kids shouldn't actually be here, but they insisted on staying for a few reasons. The first reason Tony could agree with—they pointed out there was a chance they would have to fight too, and it would be smart to make sure they had all the facts if it came to that.

The second reason Tony tried to discourage but was massively outvoted by the rest of the team (and when he said outvoted, he meant ignored by everyone else). The Young Avengers wanted to make sure their favorite mentor (their words, not his) wasn't attacked by the criminals.

Tony was slightly worried about the children's reaction if Rogers was stupid enough to try to force his way to him. He knew Peter wanted a chance to punch the former American idol with all his strength, which would probably kill the old soldier. Kate wanted to take Barton down for destroying the admiration she once had for him. And that was just the grudges among the kids—he didn't want to open the can of Jess's issues with Maximoff.

All in all, the seating arrangement was intentional to keep the Rogues away from Tony, Yelena, and Scott because, as they were seated now, from the only available places for the criminals, they would have to bend their necks in an awkward position to look straight at the three of them and would have to walk past some scary, powerful individuals to lay a hand on them.