The World We Live In

After a week of being trapped in the tower, Matilda was getting pretty pissed off. There were multiple ideas being thrown around, but no one could agree on one. Some suggested going after Loki without her. Others thought that Matilda should be bait. Needless to say Clint and Sam shot that one down real fast. Then other's thought that before any plan could be made more information was needed.

Once again we were all in the tech center sitting around the table, throwing out ideas. Well they were throwing out ideas. She was bored and cranky.

"I must get word on Loki's confinement," Thor said.

For Thor to get word on Loki he would have to return to Asgard. "We can't risk you not being here if he attacks," Cap said.

"Sir, there seems to be an issue in the main lobby," JARVIS spoke.

"How is anyone even here? We're on lock down. Can't security take care of it?"

"You sent security home. The only one who remains here is Norman, who lives in a residential room on the main floor. Sir, she is instant on seeing Thor."

"Psycho fan?" Tony asked,

"No, she claims to be a friend of Thor's and a goddess of war."

"Sif," Thor concluded.

Tony brought up a screen, seeing Norman, the doorman, leaning back a sword aiming towards him. Thor ran down the stairs ignoring the elevator to the lobby. "Lady Sif there is no need for such violence," he said, when got up there. She lowered her weapon and turn to Thor.

"Thor, it is good to see you are well. Unfortunately I'm not here for mere visitation. Loki has escaped," she said, getting straight to the point.

Thor sighed. "We were just speaking of that possibility. Come with me. We must speak with the others. He led her up to the tech center. "Lady Sif, welcome to Stark Tower, where my brothers and sisters in vengeance reside for the most part." He gestured to Bruce. "This is Dr. Bruce Banner, a man of science."

"He also turns into a totally awesome giant green rage monster," Tony piped up.

Sif's eyes widened somewhat.

"No need to worry, I've got the other guy, the Hulk, under control," Bruce said. He winced, when he said Hulk.

"Have you been cursed?" Sif asked.

"No, it was an accident. I- I did this to myself."

Matilda put a hand on his shoulder and gave him a slight reassuring smile.

Tony was next. "Tony Stark," he introduced himself, "Genius, millionaire, Ironman."

"The man next to Bruce Steve Rogers, Captain America and our leader in battle."

"Nice to meet you Ma'am," he said.

"The quiet brooding one is Clint Barton. He's an excellent archer with the eyes of a hawk."

Clint gave a quiet nod. Matilda looked at him and moved his arms from, where they were crossed over his chest and grabbed one of his hands, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Our newest member, Lady Matilda Knight."

"Call me Tilly or Tilda, your choice. I'm a telepath."

"Lady Matilda had been given the task of helping both Steve and I adapt to this world."

"Lady Matilda's daughter Samantha has been gifted with the power of healing," Thor continued.

Sam nodded.

"Lady Romanov is the woman with red hair monitoring the screens on the wall. She is trained in the art of death and as lethal as a black widow spider."

Natasha didn't even acknowledge Sif.

It is an honor to be in the presence of such great warriors," Sif said.

"The honor is ours," Matilda said.

"It would be best if we got back on topic," Steve said, "Sif?"

"Yes, my apologies. Loki has managed to escape. His muzzle was removed for his daily meal. The guard forgot his ear protectors and was tricked into releasing him. We have not a clue, where he went, but considering his obsession with defeating Thor we believe that he came here."

"He has been entering Tilly's dreams," Steve said.

"He has?"

"Keeps asking me why I waste my time, when I have so much potential, and says I will be his queen," Matilda repeated again.

"Sounds like Loki, but what would he need you for? He's had the power to obtain a vast amount of soldiers."

"He already has and he's using the one thing they have in common, they all want her," Tony pointed his pen at Matilda.

"Samantha and I have been going over Matilda's test results," Bruce said.

"What?" she asked.

"Bruce told me about your eyes changing color. It's been something I've been looking into for a while," Sam fessed up.

"You have?"

"It's happened quite a few times. I've just never brought it up." Before Matilda could say something, Sam continued. "We think that it's part of a transformation into something more something even more powerful than you are now. Like… Like…"

"Like when the other guy comes out, just without the actual other being," Bruce said.

"The problem is we don't know how strong you are and what triggers it," Sam said.

"If we could induce an episode, then maybe we could figure it out."

"I am confused as to what this means," Sif said.

"If Loki manages to get to her and control her and gain her access to that other level, then he would have a power that we have no chance of contending with."

"Just keeps getting fucking better," Matilda grumbled.

"Then let's go induce an episode shall we," Tony said.

"We need the equip-" Bruce started then stopped as realization slapped him in the face. "You figured this out before."

"Your interest didn't get peaked when she blacked out on my floor?"

"Alright. Here's the plan. Matilda, you're gonna try to block out your other sense since it seemed to work once. Bruce, Sam and I are going to get the monitoring equipment set up."

"Spidey keep checking on Loki's status. Clint, you monitor your hen. Cap you monitor security. Blondie, Sif… You do whatever Cap tells you."

"Since when did Tony become captain?" Steve asked.

"Bruce, you said you got my test results. Then what am I? What are we?" she included Sam, even though she was only a half.

"I'm still not sure. Your DNA is different, but it seems to be more than mutations. I can't tell you definitively yet."

"Thank you Bruce."

Matilda got up went to her room. Clint went over to the monitors. "Well, you decided to trust her and look where that got us," Natasha said.

"Had we not trusted her, we wouldn't have figured out that Loki was after her."

"If she hadn't come here he wouldn't have found her."

"Why are you acting like this?"

"Listen I don't have time for this. I'm trying to figure out what exactly Loki's move is gonna be. You should go watch Knight. Someone needs to be there in case this little experiment goes bad."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means what if like the Bruce she's no longer in control."

"They-"

"They speculated. You need to let how you feel about her mess up your judgment."

Clint just left. He decided to blow off some steam he was gonna let a few arrows fly. That's exactly what he did.

Matilda had changed and was watching Clint. He hit the target dead center every time. On one arrow Matilda just barely moved it. Clint turned to look at her.

"What did the bug say?" she asked walking up behind him.

"Nothing that helps us, so nothing important," he said, turning around to face her.

"Are you okay with all of this?" he asked.

"Been through worse. Remember? Are you worried?" she asked.

"Not if you aren't," he said.

"Then let's go. They're ready," she said beginning to walk towards the door way.

He walked up to her spun her around and kissed her.

She pulled back. "Don't kiss me like that, like you expect something bad to happen. You can do that after something bad has happened."

She walked into the training room, and sat down Indian style in the middle of it. "everything is wireless, so you can go whenever," Tony said.

She began to choke down on that sixth sense. She felt every slip and tried to close off each crack, but slowly it began to slip more and more, until finally she began to fade into darkness. Sam and Bruce were carefully monitoring her brain activity, while Tony was focusing on the energy readings around her. Clint was watching for any sign of the change. Steve was pacing and Natasha was just watching. The two Asgardians, were still in the tech center discussing what could and should be done to Loki.

Surely enough there was a slight change, before passing out, Matilda's power spiked. Her eyes barely turned before her lids shut. Sam and Clint went down to her. Sam put a hand on her mother's forehead and closed her eyes. Ten seconds later, Matilda was up.

"Well?"

"Your energy outputs increased greatly. My assumption is that this other form is to help you channel it cause you can't do it in this one. Problem is you're over whelmed before it can happen."

Bruce had walked over in time to hear, Sam's idea. "It's the only thing that truly makes sense at the moment."

"Do we have a plan yet?" Matilda asked.

"I think we do," Cap said, "We manage to get this other form or whatever out then it would seem that Loki doesn't have a chance."

"So what do we do?" Clint asked.

"We try everything."



Matilda was tired. She had been thoroughly poked, prodded, tested, pissed off, examined and through a ton of tests and exercises. She was sitting in the lab on a cot. Everyone else had run off to update Fury, but she stayed, too tired to care about the S.H.I.E.L.D. director.

"I don't understand Clint's infatuation with you," Natasha said.

"I don't understand why you're here, so I guess we're even," Matilda cracked an eye open. "You gonna kill me?"

"No, it's not like I'd be able to."

"Then what the hell do you want?"

"I want to know what you think is gonna happen, when you leave?"

"I have no intentions of leaving."

"You don't age. You haven't in years. You mean to tell me you're going to stick around and deprive Clint of a semi normal life after S.H.I.E.L.D?"

Matilda didn't show how Natasha's words affected her.

"You're going to sit and watch as he grows old, withers away and dies?"

"It's up to him."

"No it's not. It's never been. All of your husbands died before they could get old."

"I used them for the money," Matilda responded. Internally there was a 'some of' added on before the them.

"And what are you using Clint for? Safety?"

"Not using him." Matilda's anger was building up inside.

"That's it," Nat continued. Matilda gritted her teeth in frustration and balled her fists at her sides.

"I know you don't trust me. You don't have to, but I'm surprised you're losing your trust in him."

"He's compromised. He's ruined. He loves you. He'll be even more ruined, when you flee. You can try to act as if you won't, but I know better. You try to be a good person Matilda. You know that for Clint a normal life isn't possible in general. The problem is that you're selfish. You know that you should've never gotten close to him, but you did anyways. You know that now you're committed because you as foolish as it sounds are in love with him too, but because YOU don't want to watch him grow old, because it would hurt YOU, you'll leave. It'll ruin him. He'll either fall apart or close off and it'll be all your fault."

"YOU KNOW NOTHING OF WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO SIT AND SLOWLY WATCH EVERYONE YOU CARE ABOUT DIE!" Matilda screamed. Her eyes changed, the irises turning silver, and her pupils narrowing to slits before dilating back to normal. Her hair became a mixture of black silver and mostly white. Her face completely changed and while before she seemed tough, this time she seemed delicate almost, but strong.

Natasha smirked.

"You- You- Oh my god!" Matilda said.

While Matilda confusedly tried to make sense of how everything had just happened. She was overwhelmed, not like before, but enough to be out of it. Natasha pulled out a small stick and snapped it causing it to expand. Before Matilda thought to take notice of the Russian, it was already pressed to her chest and turning back into its original scepter form.

"You are my queen now," Loki said, returning to his original form. He tossed her suit at her, which he had brought with him. "Change, quickly, we must leave before the others come to check on you."