I'm new to the Avengers. Just saw the movie. Wow. This is after.

Risks

Sleep would be good. She knew she needed to sleep. Her body longed for it, but her mind seemed to fight it, fearing the nightmares it often brought.

Agent Maria Hill looked at the clock again and sighed. It seemed that tonight, her mind had won the battle again. She threw back the covers and sat up. It wasn't the first time she had gone an extended period without sleep and it wouldn't be the last. Working for SHIELD, it was almost a requirement of the job. Grabbing a quick shower and a fresh uniform, she ventured out into the corridor.

Since Loki's attack a short time back, there was plenty of work to be done. Repair crews were working around the clock on almost every area of the helicarrier. Progress was being made, but it was going slower than she liked.

She was pleased to note that some of the smaller areas were complete or nearly so. Those crews could be moved to other, more damaged areas.

"How much longer until we're back to normal operations here?" she asked the foreman at one of the busier sites.

"Wish I could tell you, Agent Hill," he responded.

"Try."

"Few days, maybe. More likely, another week or so. We keep finding more damage the more we take apart and we're stretched so thin right now, with all the work going on and the people we..."

He left the sentence hanging.

"Lost," she finished for him. "We just weren't prepared for this magnitude of damage to our ship or our crew," she murmured.

After a few moments of silence, she nodded to him.

"Carry on."

She continued her route through the crippled carrier, making notes of progress made and work still needed. When she felt herself starting to flag, she headed for the kitchen, knowing a cup of coffee would give her a boost.

Waiting for the pot to finish brewing, she closed her eyes for a moment, savoring the rich aroma.

"Out terrorizing the repair crews again, Agent Hill?" a deep voice rumbled near her ear.

She jumped.

'Really need that coffee if I'm letting people sneak up on me like that,' she thought to herself.

"Fury," she acknowledged him. "Just checking to see where we stand. I hate feeling so...vulnerable."

He nodded in agreement, filled his cup from the freshly brewed pot, then held it out towards her. She picked up a cup and allowed him to fill hers as well.

"I feel the same way, but I don't think that hounding them day in and day out is going to speed up things. They're going as quickly as they safely can."

"I know. So, why are you wandering about at this hour?" she asked, "And which areas have you already visited tonight?"

He glared at her for a moment, then started back to the hallway.

"Come with me and we can compare notes."

Side by side, they completed a circuit of the ship finally ending up in Nick Fury's office.

With a heavy sigh, Maria sank to the sofa as Fury took the chair behind his desk. He looked over at her, concern on his face.

"Not sleeping well?"

"Not very." She returned his look. "You?"

He ignored her question. "The doctor could probably give you something to help."

"You, too."

"If either of us would bother to ask."

"There is that," she agreed. "Not likely to happen, though, is it?"

"Not likely."

After a brief silence, he cleared his throat and changed the subject.

"So, overall, where do you think we need to focus to make sure we're prepared for the next time."

She pulled out the notes she had taken, mentioning a few items and ideas she had, listening to his feedback and his thoughts on plans to return operations to normal as soon as possible. After reading a portion of a report to her, he looked over for her response, only to find her slumped back on the sofa, eyes closed and breathing slow and steady. He studied her for a few moment, noting the fading bruises on her face and the dark circles under her eyes.

Smiling, he rose and walked over to a closet, retrieving a blanket he kept there for the nights he spent sleeping on that same sofa. As he spread it over her, she stirred slightly. He reached out and brushed a lock of hair out of her face. He straightened, looked down at her again, then returned to his seat.

A short time later, his reading was interrupted by a soft cry. He looked over to see her tossing her head, caught in the throes of a nightmare. He walked over and sat down next to her, reaching out to touch her shoulder. She came awake suddenly, swinging a fist that he was barely able to catch before she connected with his jaw.

"Hill. It's okay. You're safe," he told her.

She looked to him, eyes wide with fear. He could see her pulse pounding in her throat.

"You're all right. You're safe," he said again. "It was only a dream."

"If only that's all it was," he heard her say softly.

She pulled her hand from his grasp and covered her face, drawing her knees up to her chest.

Fury wrapped his arms around her. She stiffened, trying to pull away, but he held firm. Finally, she relaxed, leaning into his embrace. The tears came, softly at first, then shaking her whole body. He continued to hold her until the storm passed and she drifted back into sleep.

With a bit of careful maneuvering, he slid around so that they were both stretched out on the sofa, Fury on the edge, Maria carefully tucked between him and the back of the couch. Her head resting on his shoulder, she sighed softly. Fury looked at the top of her head for a moment, then pulled the blanket over both of them.

'The things I do to help an agent get a good night's sleep,' he thought.

'Any agent?' the voice in his head said.

'Shut up,' he told the voice in his head, and closed his eyes.

When his internal alarm woke him a few hours later, he took a moment to take stock of his surroundings. The office couch was familiar. The warm body curled up next to him wasn't. Memories of the previous night surfaced and he opened his eye to look at the source of that warmth. She looked better, the dark circles of the night before faded and her face relaxed in sleep.

As he watched, her own internal alarm seemed to go off and she jerked awake, raising her head as her eyes darted to his face.

"Director Fury"

He sat up as she threw her leg across him, trying to climb over him. Their heads met with a solid 'thunk' and she sat down hard, straddling his lap. He grabbed at her waist to steady her while she found herself grabbing his shoulders.

"I'm so sorry, sir. I don't know what happened, sir. It won't happen again, sir," she found herself rambling. Then her eyes caught his, and she found herself unable to speak, suddenly aware of his hands on her and hers on him.

He stared at her a moment, then licked his lips and cleared his throat.

"Agent Hill...Maria...I've taken many...risks...in my life...but this may be the biggest ever..."

He leaned closer, watching her, looking for any sign that his advance was unwelcome. She stared back, not breathing, as his lips came closer. Finally, she nodded and leaned forward, closing the gap between them. Her arms slid around his neck and the kiss deepened, his arms pulling her closer.

A computer voice interrupted.

"Director Fury, Agent Stills is here for your meeting."

Maria jumped from the couch, nervously straightening her uniform and brushing her hair back. Fury stood and handed her the blanket, pointing to the closet. As she stuffed it away, he adjusted his own uniform.

"Behind the desk," he muttered, crossing the room to sit behind said desk.

She picked up her notepad from the floor and threw him a confused look. He always greeted his visitors at the door. He raised an eyebrow and cut a glance to the sofa. She blushed, suddenly understanding his predicament.

After another moment for them to both collect themselves, he hit a button on his desk to open the door.

"Come in, Agent Stills. Have a seat."

He looked at Maria.

"Thank you, Agent Hill."

"Thank you."

She nodded and turned to leave. She stopped and turned back.

"Oh, and about that 'risk'? I'd certainly be interested in discussing that with you further."

He smiled.

"I'll look forward to that, Agent Hill."

"Likewise, sir."

Really liked Hill. Not much here featuring her. Not sure how you feel about this pairing, but I think it could work. Maybe.