Title: Assumptions and Miscommunications
Author: Alysia
Category: Crossover
Summary: After being ridiculed for his lack of love life, Steve agrees to approach the next woman he sees, Daisy is that girl.
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters familiar to Marvel. For parts of this story, I did look up episode transcripts. If the words were in the show, they obviously aren't mine. I will try to remember to make note of any transcripts as I update.
Author's Note: This is set after season 2 of AOS, but there are a few changes to things. Banner didn't immediately leave after Avengers: Age of Ultron. He is still with the group, as is Thor.
Chapter 1
It was a rare occurrence, all of the Avengers being in New York at the same time when there was no threat to the world. They started their night at Stark Tower, but Thor wanted to go out for a drink and take in the night life of the city, claiming that he didn't think he'd ever get enough of it. Instead of going to the swanky place that Tony Stark suggested, the group talked him into a 'normal' place, which he compromised by insisting they sit in the VIP section.
"Since you refuse to do anything with the blonde, at least open yourself up for other opportunities," the Black Widow prodded.
The blonde? Sharon? "What is wrong with Sharon?" Sam Wilson asked his friend after a pause. When Steve avoided his eyes, he turned to the pretty redhead at the table for an answer. Since she appeared to be Steve's self-appointed love guru, surely she would know what was going on.
Natasha Romanoff smirked. "Sharon is related to none other than Peggy Carter. Steve feels that if he started a relationship with her, he wouldn't know if it was Sharon he wanted or if it would be him trying to capture the chance he lost with Peggy."
Sam turned back to Steve with an appraising look. Given his situation, he couldn't really blame him for thinking such. Despite the fact that his friend had recently seen Peggy Carter, he still wasn't able to let go of the memory of her and had vehemently denied the possibility of anything growing with Sharon.
"I don't see why you feel it necessary to try and set me up," Steve Rogers sighed as he stared down at his bottle of beer. He was quite fine on his own.
"You mean other than the fact that I was your first kiss since the 1940's?" Natasha asked.
Tony arched an eyebrow over hearing that story. "Aww, are you guys in love?" He watched Steve's face turn an interesting shade of pink and it only spurred him on. "That's sweet. Oh, we could call you guys Captain Widow. I'd ship it."
Almost everyone at the table found amusement in his comment, even Natasha found a smirk. Everyone other than Steve and Bruce Banner. Both found little amusement in the conversation, though for different reasons.
Natasha leaned forward. "In all seriousness though, Steve, don't you ever feel the need to just…let go? You know, meet someone, spend the night with them and then return to the real world the next day?"
"No," he denied flatly. He frowned at his table mates. Didn't they know him at all?
"Look, it's not a bad thing," Clint Barnes spoke up to Steve. "People do it all the time."
Steve inclined his head. "Maybe so, but I don't believe in it." He'd never been a 'wham bam thank you ma'am' type and he certainly wasn't going to start now.
She didn't know how he did it, living such a celibate life. She couldn't do it. Every so often, she needed a release, and since she had no partner to speak of, she wasn't opposed to a no strings attached arrangement. "Okay, fine, I'll make you a deal," Natasha said after a moment. "I will leave you alone if you approach someone tonight."
Steve was one of her closest friends. She may not acknowledge it, but she knew that he sometimes still struggled with adjusting to the modern world. She'd taken it upon herself to help him through it. When she first spoke of finding him a girlfriend, it was done in a teasing manner. The more time that passed though, the more she realized it was a good idea. Whether he realized it or not, Steve still held onto a certain ideal when it came to potential partners, and it was something he hadn't yet found. It was part of the reason why she insisted on helping him.
"I already told you, I'm not going to take some dame home tonight," Steve denied. He looked around the table for support, but most of them seemed keen to the idea that Natasha had. Only Thor and Banner seemed to sympathize with him, but even then, they didn't speak up.
"I didn't mean for sex," Natasha denied. "If you approach someone tonight and strike up a conversation I will leave you alone about dates for the next month."
"If I'm going out of my way to approach an unknown woman, you could at least give me two months," the man lost to time said.
"Don't push your luck," she replied.
He rolled his eyes. "Fine, so I approach someone and strike up a conversation and you'll leave me alone for a full month?"
"That's the deal."
"I don't know, Nat. I think we should all have a say in who he chooses…" Clint suggested.
"Yeah, I bet you would, but that wasn't part of the arrangement." Steve stood up from the lounge area and looked around at the women that surrounded them. While he found quite a few of them attractive upon first glance, none of them drove home the desire to talk to them.
"Oh, what about that one?" Tony asked, singling someone out. The group followed his line of sight.
Natasha gave consideration to the option, but finally shook her head. "He's probably not going to find someone up here in the VIP section."
Banner spoke then. "Why not?"
"Because chances are the women up here are high maintenance and Steve won't be comfortable with a woman like that," Sam explained.
"She is rather pretty," Banner observed, looking at someone else.
Steve was so busy listening to the group discuss, debate and dismiss the various women that loitered around them, he missed when Thor moved away from the group.
Natasha shook her head after a moment. "Everything she has on is a designer label." While the woman didn't appear to hold the same snobbish air that a majority of the women around them did, she doubted it would be a match made in heaven.
Tony nodded along with Widow's words. "Steve would go broke trying to maintain that lifestyle."
"You all do realize that nothing you say will have any influence over my decision, right?" Steve asked but watched in amazement when he was seemingly ignored as his friends continued to discuss things amongst themselves. He looked around the table and noticed Thor's absence. He eyed the area and discovered his friend standing at the railing, looking into the crowd below. "Can you believe them?"
"Ah, I have discovered her."
"Not you too…" Steve mumbled. When Thor refused to move his eyes, Steve grudgingly admitted he was curious about the Asgardian's choice. Never once had he seen Thor ogle women the way that most men did. He was very happy and content in his relationship with Jane and his eyes never wandered. However, seeing his friend staring at someone so intently, caught his notice. Sighing in defeat, he tried to find the woman that captured the God of Thunder's interest. "Okay, who?"
Knowing it would be rude to point, Thor explained her positioning. "The maid standing at the end of the bar, dark hair, black dress."
Steve easily discovered the woman Thor spoke of. How could Thor possibly decide on her? Her back was towards them. Though he had to admit it was a nice back. Whomever she was, she was in very nice shape. "Really? You don't even know what she looks like."
"Tis not about appearance, my friend. She is special," Thor claimed confidently.
"Of all the women in here, why settle on her?" Steve asked.
A slight frown pulled at the god's mouth. "There is something about her," he explained. "I can…feel her from here."
He could feel her? What did that mean? Steve eyed the woman, seeing nothing spectacular about her. "You can feel her?" He asked. "Feel her how? Is there something that Jane needs to be concerned about?"
"My feelings for Jane are as they have always been and she has no reason to doubt my loyalty," Thor explained, missing the teasing tone in Steve's voice. "This woman, she is strong. I cannot explain it better than that, except to say that of all the women in attendance this night, she is your equal," he explained, clapping his friend on the shoulder.
Taking a sip of her martini, Daisy Johnson looked around uncomfortably. How had she gotten to this place? Once upon a time, she had frequented bars and clubs. Once upon a time, she would have been in her element. However, in the past half an hour, she'd been overlooked multiple times. Had her time with SHIELD run her down so much that no one would approach her?
She should have known it was a stupid idea to leave the base. Consecutive days off were practically non-existent, so when Coulson gave her several, she'd decided to travel and see Cal again. The idea had sounded so perfect when she'd thought of it. However, after seeing him for a second time, she was beginning to realize that she was doing nothing more than torturing herself. And then there'd been the less than pleasant confrontation with Lincoln before he left SHIELD without a look backwards. The fallout from both situations, left her feeling despondent. When Mack returned to the base, she decided to take advantage of the rest of the time off that Coulson had given her. It was then that she decided to dress up and take some time for herself. Dressing up, she decided to go out, get drunk and try to meet a guy that wasn't a complete psychopath. And if she and said non-psychopath fell into bed together, then who was she to complain?
It had been so long since she'd had any sort of love in her life. She supposed that once upon a time, she and Miles had a form of puppy love. They'd been a good couple for a while, until she outgrew him. Her last experience with him left a bad taste in her mouth and it was months before she was ready to put herself out there again. And then there'd been Ward…
Letting out a sigh, she forced herself not to go down that dark path.
Of course, there was Lincoln Campbell. They'd shared a few moments together over the past few months, but his decision not to stay at the base or even help Joey made her realize that he probably wasn't the best person to pursue. She didn't exactly blame him for wanting to keep to himself, but his unwillingness to help had certainly opened her eyes. There was also the fact that even when they were getting to know one another in Afterlife, he didn't give her the same butterflies she'd felt with Miles and even Ward, or the person Ward had pretended to be.
"Excuse me, miss?"
About damn time! For a while there, she'd been worried that she had lost her touch. Pasting a thousand-watt smile on her face, she turned to the man that spoke to her. "Yes?" However, any other words were forgotten when she realized who was speaking to her. Why would Captain America single her out? She knew she was pretty enough, but Steve Rogers taking an interest in her? No, it had to be a prank. Maybe Ashton Kutcher was somewhere in the building filming the whole thing? She felt the stain of embarrassment flush across her cheeks and silently prayed that she wouldn't come off sounding like some fangirl.
"Hi, my name's Steve Rogers," he began, watching her nod. "I can disappoint you in ways that you've never imagined." His words were rushed, but easily understandable.
She let out a laugh over his words. If he was coming on to her, it was the worst pick-up line ever. If only he knew the many ways she'd been disappointed in the last year and a half… "I appreciate the candidness, Captain." She held out her hand to him. "Daisy Johnson."
"Call me Steve." He shook her hand politely and dropped it. "May I buy you another drink?" When she accepted the offer, he signaled for the bartender. "Another martini for her and I'll have a Crown and Coke." The pair waited until they were served their drinks before turning back to their conversation.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome." He fell quiet for a moment, feeling so far out of his element. "So, what are you doing here tonight?"
"Oh, uh, you know…hunting elephants," Daisy supplied teasingly. She watched him blush and look away. "You don't do this often, do you?" She experienced the sensation of being watched and cast a quick look around. From the corner of her eyes, she noticed they were being watched. She didn't turn her head to look, but from her peripheral, she could see the long blonde hair and drool worthy arms. She was fan-girl enough to know Thor when she saw him. And she could only assume that if Thor was present, one or more of the Avengers were with him.
"Is it that obvious?" He asked.
Daisy nibbled on her bottom lip. "A little, yes," she admitted quietly. His shoulders appeared to droop then and she felt bad for being the cause of it. Instead of letting him close in on himself, she spoke once again. "If you're so uncomfortable around women, why approach me at all?"
Did he dare tell her the truth? Would that offend her? She didn't appear to be easily offended given her teasing, but what if he was wrong? "Oh, well, you see…"
"Does this have anything to do with your friends peering at us from the balcony?" She asked when he hesitated. She watched the mortification take over his facial features and took pity on him. "Just…please tell me you didn't approach me because of a bet."
"It wasn't a bet, it was more of an…understanding. See, my friend, Nat," he watched her eyes widen when she realized he meant the Black Widow. "Yes, that Nat, has taken an interest in my love life, or rather, lack thereof. She has taken it upon herself to try and find me a girlfriend."
"And I was her choice?" Daisy interrupted, unable to help herself. The Black Widow singled her out?
He shook his head in negative. "No. No, she promised me that if I approached someone here, she would stop her machinations of setting me up for the next thirty days."
Daisy pursed her lips. She knew it was too good to be true. "Ah, and I'm the unfortunate soul you chose?"
Steve winced. "Actually, you were Thor's." He watched her quirk one eyebrow up in response.
Thor chose her? She could work with that. "Oh. Uh, but not yours?" She asked.
"No, it…I…I'm sorry, I didn't mean any offence. I did agree with Thor's suggestion, I wouldn't have talked to you if I didn't…Should I not have said anything?"
Listening to him stumble over his words and then second guess himself had her taking the liberty of finding his hand and squeezing it in compassion before letting it go. "You're lucky that I have no insecurities," she admitted. "Well, if I'm going to help you convince your friends that you've done what you set out to do, I may as well make it convincing." She moved closer to him and gave him all of her attention. "Tell me about yourself, Steve."
Back at the table, Natasha, Tony, Sam and Clint continued to debate over potential matches for Steve.
"Blondes, everyone knows that blondes have more fun," Tony spoke. He knew from personal experience, there'd been many blondes in his life.
Sam shook his head. "Really? Tell me, does your girl know you feel that way?"
"I would never-" Tony started, only be interrupted by the Black Widow.
"He'll choose a brunette," Natasha voiced.
Clint frowned at her. "What makes you say that?"
"It's his preferred type," she shrugged.
The archer shook his head. "He has a type?" In all the time that he'd known Steve, his comrade had never mentioned a girl, let alone brought one around.
After considering Natasha's suggestion, Sam pursed his lips. "Look at Peggy Carter."
Clint snorted in amusement. "You're basing this on her hair color? Did it never occur to you that her personality may have had something to do with it?"
The Black Widow shook her head. "He'll go for a brunette," she repeated.
"You all realize that Steve is gone, right?" Banner broke in finally. He'd noticed Steve's conversation with Thor before he made his way downstairs without so much as a look backwards.
His observation brought all conversation to a stop.
"You can all rest easy," Thor shared. "Steve has found his match."
Natasha and Clint immediately jumped from their chairs and joined Thor at the balcony. They followed Thor's line of sight and easily found Steve chatting with a brunette. "Ha, I told you she'd be a brunette," Natasha preened.
His eyes ran the length of her body. "She's cute," Clint observed. He wouldn't have considered her in the same class as Cindy Crawford, but she was pretty. "Oh, she's laughing."
"Now is she laughing at something he said or laughing at him?" Tony asked from the table.
"Be nice, Tony," Natasha chastised.
As Steve told her about himself, she ignored everything she'd ever heard about him. It was nice to hear things from his point of view. When he'd asked about her past, she told him what she could without mentioning her Inhuman status and SHIELD. She made sure to leave her parents out all together as there could possibly be no sane way to explain the situation without all the other stuff.
She finished her second drink and was feeling a happy, little buzz. Standing up, Daisy held her hand out to him. "Dance with me?"
"I uh, I really don't dance," Steve replied.
The brunette pulled her hand back. "You don't dance or you can't dance?" She tilted her head and studied him. She'd read about him, his experiences back during the war and she'd seen plenty of news footage of the man before her. She didn't understand how he could be so confident and cool as Captain America but be so unsure of himself as Steve Rogers.
"Both."
"Well, tonight, you do," she excused. She grabbed his hand without invitation and began pulling him towards the dance floor.
His eyes widened when he realized where she was attempting to pull him. "Daisy, what are you doing?"
When he began pulling her to a stop, she turned to face him. "You're dancing with me."
"What about the part where I said I couldn't dance?"
She shook her head. "I never get to go out anymore." Unless SHIELD missions counted. "I had a drink, a cute blonde chatted me up and now I want to dance with said cute blonde."
Cute blonde? Was she talking about him? His lips pulled back in a smile, unable to help himself. "I still can't dance," he reminded her.
"Come on, Steve, live a little. Everyone out there is going to be too busy dancing to watch you. Just…follow my lead." He may not be able to dance, but she could and she knew she could get him moving if he gave her a chance.
"Are we still watching Steve-o-vision?" Tony asked Clint, Natasha and Sam as they continued to stare out to the floor below them.
"She's…is he actually out on the dance floor?" Clint asked, ignoring Tony.
Sam smirked as he watched his friend. The unknown woman had spun around and backed her backside into Steve's front. He watched as she placed both of his hands on her waist before she began swaying to the beat of the music. Damn, this girl was good. Even from a distance, his friend appeared uncomfortable, but began moving along with her.
"He's dancing?" Banner asked looking between the three of them.
Clint shrugged. "I guess, I mean if you count that as dancing."
"It's not," Sam was quick to clarify. Steve's partner may be dancing, but Steve wasn't.
"He looks like he's in pain," Natasha said softly, causing both Sam and Clint to look closer at the pair. She watched both men look to Steve and his companion and chuckle in amusement. "What?"
"He's in pain all right," Sam snorted.
Reading into the meaning behind his words, she scrunched her nose.
When the song changed, Daisy glanced at Steve over her shoulder. "You doing okay?" She'd noticed that during their dance Steve started to put distance between their bodies. Had she pushed him too far?
He nodded his head in a jerky manner.
"Tremors."
Upon hearing Mack's nickname for her, she spun around to find her partner standing a few feet away from them. She immediately stopped dancing, the smile on her face dimmed.
Sensing the change in her mood, Steve also stopped moving. He looked to the man Daisy was staring at. She didn't appear distressed to see this man, but she certainly wasn't happy. He looked back to his dance partner. "Tremors?" That was a strange nickname.
Daisy blushed. "Yeah," she mumbled, not bothering to give him an explanation over it. "Steve, this is my partner, Mack. Mack, this is Steve Rogers," she introduced.
Taking notice that Steve still had a hand resting on Daisy's waist, Mack looked to her with a single arched eyebrow before turning back to Steve with a smile. "Nice to meet you," he said.
Having caught the look of amusement, he realized why and quickly removed his hand from her waist. "Likewise." He looked down at Daisy. "So, partner? You a cop or something?"
She offered him a strained smile. "Or something," she muttered before clearing her throat and turning to Mack. "Mack, what are you doing here?" She was supposed to have time off and if she wasn't currently brushed up against Steve Rogers, she wouldn't feel nearly so putout. Mack wouldn't have come to fetch her if it wasn't an emergency and she knew her time with Steve was quickly coming to a close.
Turning back to his partner, he scratched his temple. "Something's happened. Jemma's gone."
She frowned. "Gone?"
Aware that things needed to remain secretive he coughed. "Monolith,"
Daisy's eyes widened.
"Yeah," Mack sighed. "Boss needs you back. Bobbi is waiting for us."
A flash of disappointment surged through her. Turning back to Steve she smiled sadly. "I'm sorry, Steve. Duty calls."
He offered her an understanding smile. "Of course."
"Thank you for tonight." Moving closer to him she placed a sweet kiss on his lips. She knew she was taking liberties, but Steve Rogers had chatted her up and the alcohol she'd consumed made her slightly braver! Though nothing would most likely come from it, it would be a nice memory to have. "I've really enjoyed spending time with you."
The moment her lips touched his, he'd been so unprepared that he froze. It was only a momentary reaction before he relaxed. Before he realized it, his lips formed against hers and when she pulled away, he felt a dash of hope. While he certainly wasn't comfortable with public displays of affection, he found himself relaxing around her. Doing his best to ignore her partner, he looked to her. "Would I be too forward if I asked for your phone number?"
Daisy smiled. "Not at all." She recited the digits for him as she watched him put it into his phone.
"Daisy, we really need to go," Mack reminded her, feeling bad for interrupting her night.
She nodded at him, watching him step away. "Uh, sometimes I tend to go dark so if you call or text and I don't immediately respond, just know that I will. I hope that I put on a good enough show for your friends, seeing as how they were pretty much watching us the entire time." She watched him blush and she giggled. "I'm sorry, Steve, but I really have to leave." She turned away from him slowly and made her way in the direction that Mack went. Meeting her partner at the door, he held it open for her as they stepped into the night air.
"So, Captain America, huh?"
She preened. "I know, right?!"
He laughed upon seeing her so light hearted. After the things she'd been through the last few weeks, she deserved some happiness. "He seemed to really dig you."
"Well, what he knew of me, anyway," she allowed. They hadn't had a chance to really speak about personal matters.
"I'm sorry I had to pull you away," he apologized.
"Me too," she replied with a sigh of resignation.
After separating from Daisy, Steve returned to his friends. He'd easily noticed Clint's absence but thought nothing of it as his friends ribbed him for spending time with a girl, only for her to leave the club with another guy. He'd endured it good naturedly and then the subject was changed.
Hours later, the Avengers had returned to the tower. Tony, Banner and Thor were the first ones to excuse themselves for the night. Once the group fell to three, the subject of his time with Daisy came back up in conversation.
"I still can't believe that you did that," Natasha said. "I offered because I didn't think you would actually do it."
Steve smirked at her. "But I did, and it is a well-deserved month off from your match making."
"You think you'll see her again?" Sam asked.
Captain America could only shake his head. "I don't know, but I did manage to get her number."
"And you didn't mention it earlier?" The black man asked.
Natasha arched her eyebrow at Steve as he shrugged nonchalantly. "Really? So…maybe I'll be stopping my match making for a bit longer than a month…?" He really had been full of surprises that evening. If she'd been shocked that he actually approached someone, she was floored when Daisy had managed to get him onto the dance floor. Up until then, it was something no one else had been able to persuade him to do. And then that kiss? She knew how Steve felt about public displays of affection and the fact that he hadn't pulled away from her spoke volumes to the former assassin.
Steve smiled. "Maybe," he allowed. When he approached Daisy under Thor's advisement, he hadn't been sure what to expect from her. She was much prettier than he'd first excused. However, it was her lack of gushing over him that really struck a chord with him. It could be difficult talking with someone when they were starstruck over meeting Captain America and then fawn all over him. Unlike most women he'd been introduced to, Daisy seemed more interested in the man than the moniker. He'd enjoyed their time together immensely and looked forward to getting to know her better.
"Oh, hey," Nat greeted when Clint walked into the room. "Where were you?"
Clint sat down on the couch and turned to Steve. "I thought there was something familiar about the man she left with, so I followed them back to her hotel."
Steve sat up from his comfortable lounge. "Clint, you had no right."
"Familiar how?" The redhead asked.
Ignoring the protest and question, he continued on with his story. "And then I followed them to an abandoned building where they went up to the roof and flew away in a small jet with a SHIELD insignia on the side of it."