Author's Note: Well, it's certainly been a while… but I promised to finish this eventually, and I try to keep my promises.

Just a note: the timelines are weird in the story – it's definitely after Ironman 3 and Cap America 2, but it takes certain liberties. I, however, have faith in your abilities to 'roll with it', so to say:) Also, if you are watching Agents of SHIELD, this does have some spoilers for the first season. You have been warned.

She Will Be Loved

"Tap on my window, knock on my door.

I want to make you feel beautiful."

It was a well-known fact in Stark –Avengers- Tower that Steve liked to take in strays.

And really, it was his only vice. The rest of the team figured, if they could all put up with Natasha sneaking up on people, Bruce's sleepwalking, Thor's pop-tart addiction, Tony's snark, and especially, Clint's inclination to pretend that he was romantically involved with Steve for funny press photos when they decided to venture out in public… Well, then Steve could bring in a stray animal to feed every few weeks. After all, Tony had more than enough money, and the team –though some of them would never admit it- enjoyed having a new presence in the building for a day or so until Steve could get it adopted by a friendly family.

After all, who wouldn't adopt a dog from Captain America?

However, no one could quite believe their eyes when, one late winter day, Steve came running into the lab where Tony and Bruce were working, bearing not a sad little dog or cat but the limp form of a young woman.

Though the Captain could never truly be out of breath – a side effect of the serum – he was very distressed as he lay the brunette on the cot that the scientists kept in the lab in case of emergencies. She was extremely pale, and on closer inspection, not breathing.

"Help her!" Steve gasped, feeling for a pulse.

Tony jumped into action first, rushing over and instantly determining she had a bad case of hypothermia; how long had she been in the cold?

"Quick, we've got to get her out of these clothes," he urged, already tugging at her shoes. Steve hesitated, fighting his old-fashioned sense of decorum. "She'll die if you don't, Cap," Tony said, "we'll leave her bra and underwear on, but we need to warm her up!"

The taller man reluctantly grabbed the girl's bag, letting its contents spill on the floor as he started working on her button-down top.

Bruce finally spoke up. "JARVIS," he began tightly. "Would you be so kind as to call Natasha and Ms. Foster downstairs? Tell them we have a.. well, um, a situation, I suppose." He turned to Tony. "I'll go get some blankets, okay?"

The billionaire nodded, not sparing him a second glance. "Come on, Cap, hurry."

"How do you know so much about this?" Steve questioned, pulling the tank top over the head of curls.

Tony shrugged. "After the Mandarin, felt like it was something to know. Do you know CPR?" Steve blinked with a blank expression at the quick change of topic.

"I do," Jane Foster declared quietly, moving over to the cot. "Is there a pulse?"

"Yes, ma'am," Steve replied.

Natasha entered the room a few seconds later, wrapping her long, red hair into a messy bun. She reached them quickly. "Move, Stark. I need to get at her stomach. If she's hypothermic, then we need to start warming her core before getting to the extremities." There was a small pause. "She is –was SHIELD. Use the computers, find her. If she's HYDRA, we need to know."

Tony started, staring at the assassin in surprise. "How the hell did you-"

Natasha's eyes flashed to the ground, where the woman's bag had fallen. A gun and a laptop were visible, but then Tony saw where the ex-agent was looking. There, tucked halfway behind the gun, was a SHIELD pin, almost brand new. "She's nostalgic, that's a weakness; keep it in mind. Hopefully, she was just a new agent when it all happened, and not some… well, let's just say I won't be very welcoming."

"JARVIS, run a search on the SHIELD database, see if she comes up," Tony ordered, jogging to grab his laptop. "I'll dig a little deeper. Cap, bring me that laptop in Jane Hydra Doe's bag for me, would you?"

Steve shifted under Tony's gaze. "Um, are you sure that's even legal?" He wondered. "I mean, it's not right to just go through her personal things-"

"And if she's a HYDRA agent?" Natasha interrupted. "A suicide bomber? Captain.. Steve, we're all dead."

The Captain conceded, gathering the items back into the bag and carrying it over to Tony. The billionaire accepted it wordlessly, his fingers barely stopping for an instant.

"She's breathing," Jane ventured to the group. "What do you want me to do next?"

Natasha was still firmly rubbing the girl's stomach, carefully avoiding the two – new, she noticed -bullet scars. "Go upstairs," she replied, her voice serious and hard. "Finish your exercises; your fiancé doesn't want you to be defenseless. He'll be back from Asgard in a couple of days, and I intend to keep my word despite interruptions." Jane head dropped a little, and Steve cleared his throat, looking at Natasha. The redhead quickly caught on. "I'm sorry, Jane," she apologized, quickly changing her tune at the scientist's hurt gaze. "Just a little stressed. You did a wonderful job, thank you."

Jane gave her instructor a small smile, quietly exiting the room. The shy woman nodded to Bruce as he entered, heaps of blankets piled in his arms. Setting them down next to Natasha, he retreated quickly to help Tony with the electronic search.

Instructing the men not to look, Natasha quickly stripped off the girl's bra and underwear, wrapping her in the blankets with the efficiency of someone who had done this same thing many times before. Natasha quietly acknowledged her Russian heritage for a moment, before it became too painful and she locked it back in the mental box she always kept it in.

"Her name is Skye," Tony announced triumphantly. "No last name; orphaned very young. Level one agent when SHIELD went down."

"She was last working with a classified team," Bruce added. "Odd for a new agent, hm? No information on her other teammates, but the reports are signed off by… May?"

Natasha thought for a moment, then nodded. "Melinda May. Good agent. Last I heard, though, she had been assigned to push papers. By choice, actually." The other three Avengers looked at her curiously. "We do some things we're not proud of in the field," she clarified softly. "Sometimes, it's making hard choices. And sometimes, people can't take the guilt."

Not wanting to meet anyone's eyes, she leaned over the girl. "Skye?" she asked, trying to keep her voice as comforting as possible. "Skye, can you hear me?"

The girl moaned restlessly, fidgeting at the sound of her name.

"AC."

Steve and Bruce locked eyes, confusion playing across their features. Air conditioning?

Almost against his will, Tony chuckled. "Maybe I forgot to pay my Heating and Cooling bill," he quipped.

"… Coulson?"

The smile wiped itself off his face faster than the word could leave the girl's lips.

The four Avengers stared in shock at the young woman lying in front of them. Coulson? Phil Coulson?

How could she possibly know Coulson?

Tony nearly knocked over his chair in his haste to leave the room; after a few seconds, Bruce followed him. Steve stood up, unmoving, not sure what to do.

"Call Clint, please," the redhead asked him tiredly from her spot next to the girl. "He'll want to get over here as soon as possible."

Steve grabbed his cell phone from his pocket, but hesitated, instead walking over to Natasha. He reached out a hand to squeeze her shoulder, but found that he didn't have it in him to touch her right now. But that didn't mean he was a total coward.

"Are you alright?" he asked. "Stark's a bit of a drama queen, but we all know you knew him the longest. Is there anything-"

"Call Clint," she repeated firmly, turning away from him. Steve quickly let his hand drop, and exited the room.

Bruce found Tony on the couch in his office, head in his hands.

"Okay?" he asked softly, carefully calculating which seat to take, and eventually deciding to sit across from the billionaire. He leaned back against the couch, exhausted. After all, the six of them had recently been put on the path of dealing with each other. Now there was an unknown variable in the mix; an unknown variable that knew the name of a man that had been long dead before she joined SHIELD.

"I guess," Tony replied, waving a hand in a noncommittal motion.

Bruce tried to smile and failed, his facial expression instead coming out as a grimace. "She knows Coulson."

The last word that fell from his lips broke a little, but Tony pretended not to notice. Instead, he met the scientist's eyes with a determination that scared him a little. "No, that's impossible," he declared.

"Just impossible."

AAA

The first sound Skye heard was the thump thump thump of someone pacing. It was a familiar noise; Coulson loved to pace when he was agitated, or had an important decision to make.

The pacing had increased lately, too. With Coulson being named Director of 'whatever SHIELD was left', he had been wracking his brain to figure out a way to reintroduce himself to the six people that needed to see him alive the most – The Avengers.

Finally, they had landed on an airfield outside New York City, and Skye had convinced Simmons to take the bus with her into the city. They all needed a break, and even though Simmons vetoed the clubbing idea, they had gone to a bar to let loose for a few hours. Then she lost track of Jemma, then she found herself outside, then she had gotten lost…

Now she was here. Wherever here was.

The brunette, wary of her surroundings, opened her eyes one by one. She was in a bedroom, a ridiculously nice bedroom. There was a huge window to her right, and she was wrapped tightly in a bunch of blankets… naked. She was naked.

And then Skye began to hyperventilate.

Suddenly, there was a presence beside her that she hadn't felt before. A gorgeous, fit redhead sat down on the bed where she was lying. "Skye? You've got to calm down," the redhead said gently.

Skye scooted away from the woman, nearly falling off the bed. "Who the hell are you?" she shrieked. "Did you take my clothes off? Why am I here? You should know, there are some very scary people out there looking for me, and if you hurt me they are going to be very angry."

A warm chuckle came from the doorway. "You were right Tash, she's terrifying."

The brunette stared at the man as he walked a few steps into the room. "You're Tony Stark!" she said disbelievingly; Tony nodded in response. "AndTash.. Like Natasha?" The redhead couldn't help but give a small smile at the girl's facial expression. "Holy shit, you're Natasha Romanoff!"

"Guilty," Natasha said wryly. The girl certainly didn't seem like a HYDRA agent.

Skye collapsed back onto the bed, and then began to laugh. "This is just great; AC's gonna kill me." Suddenly, she sat up. "Tell me something?" She asked meekly. "Please don't tell me like, Captain America took my clothes off?"

"Not exactly, sweetheart," Tony replied in all seriousness. Skye sighed in relief. Then, a mischievous twinkle appeared in the billionaire's eyes. "I helped, too."

Natasha smiled again as Skye dramatically pulled the covers over her eyes. "My life's over," she moaned. "I'm done for!" After a few moments, she peered back over at Natasha. "Speaking of clothes, though…"

"Yeah, we have some for you right here," the assassin replied, "but good luck getting Stark out of the room."

Skye considered this for a moment. "But I'm all alone in, like, a totally new environment. Can you give me a freebie?"

Both women turned to Tony, who beamed back at them. "I'll go," he promised. "But I want one thing in return."

Natasha rolled her eyes. "Stark, I'm not-"

"Kiss me?" He pleaded, with greatly exaggerated, wide eyes. Skye could tell this sort of thing had happened before. Natasha snorted, but motioned him forward. He more or less ran over to her side. She reached up, but instead of bringing him down toward her, she yanked him backward by his dark hair. He yelped.

"Don't make deals with me, Stark," she requested pleasantly. "It's unattractive." The billionaire playboy nodded frantically. When she released him, he quickly left the room.

An echo of: "Eventually, Tasha, you'll admit you love me!" sounded through the room, and Natasha let out a genuine laugh.

Skye grinned widely from her spot beneath the covers. "I ship it," she muttered.

"What's that?" Natasha asked curiously.

"Nothing!" Skye squeaked. "Clothes?"

The redhead handed her a pile that consisted of black skinny jeans, a burgundy top, and a flowing, grey sweater. Her dry bra and underwear were included, and she took them gratefully. "Thanks."

"No problem, but I do have a few questions," Natasha began. Skye motioned for her to go on, in the process of pulling on the jeans. "Alright, so we know you were a SHIELD agent, and we know your name and your level, but we wanted to make sure of your… allegiances."

Skye nearly dropped the shirt. "You… you think I'm HYDRA? Oh god, hell no!" she exclaimed. "Agent Romanoff, you've got to believe me; I mean, my SO was, but I would never-"

"Your SO?" Natasha questioned.

"Grant Ward," she replied. "Pardon my French, but he's a fucking asshole, Agent Romanoff."

Natasha's nose scrunched up in distaste, a rare show of revulsion. "Ward? I never liked him."

Skye laughed, though there was no humor in it. "I wish I had your instincts… I liked him," she admitted.

Natasha recognized a sore spot, and carefully avoided it. She wasn't good at comforting – exploiting weaknesses, yes. Comforting, no. "What about the rest of your team?"

Skye jumped on the new track in the conversation. "Melinda May, Leo Fitz, and Jemma Simmons. Agent Tripp? Oh, and you're going to love this one-"

Just then, Bruce ran full-tilt into the room. "Unmarked van," he gasped. "Weapons inside. Could be an attack."

Skye's eyes lit up, but before she could get a word in edgewise, but the Avengers had left the room, and all she was left with was a curt –"Stay here"- from Natasha Romanoff. She heard the lock turn from the outside.

Natasha Romanoff, Skye mused, sitting on the bed. Who'd have thought?

AAA

Bruce and Natasha met Clint and Tony in the foyer, just as the makeshift doorbell they had set up went off. They all stared at the door.

"An enemy that rings the doorbell?" Clint wondered, pulling an arrow from his quiver. "Either stupid, confident, or both. I'll get a good vantage point," he added, heading for the corner nearest the door.

"Doctor, you should probably go upstairs," Natasha cautioned. "I doubt a Hulk is going to be necessary. Switch with Steve outside our guest's room?"

Bruce nodded, taking the elevator. Natasha nodded at Tony, and went to get the door.

What she found was unexpected.

A bow and arrow hit the floor.

Natasha stared and stared some more at the man facing her.

"You're dead," Tony choked from behind her. "You're dead."

More silence.

"Please don't be dead," Clint whispered from next to her, reaching out. Natasha started. How long had she been staring?

A very much alive Phil Coulson smiled cautiously at them from a foot away. "Clint. Natasha. Stark. I'm… so glad to see you."

Apparently that was the last straw for Clint, who stepped forward and enveloped his old SO in a tight hug, nearly crying in relief to feel a solid body underneath his arms.

Tony stepped forward, clapping the agent on the shoulder in greeting. "Agent. Should've known a demi-god couldn't keep you down. You still gonna make good on that Supernanny threat?"

Coulson couldn't fight the laughter that bubbled up in his chest. "If you make me, Stark, I've got no problem with it."

The billionaire smiled, finally noticing the four people standing awkwardly behind Coulson. "Hey guys," he greeted casually, winking at the younger woman who was obviously barely containing her excitement. "Tony Stark. And you all are?"

Before they could response, Natasha did for them. "Agents Fitz, Simmons, Tripp, and it's a pleasure to see you again, Melinda."

"Thank you, Natasha," May responded warmly. "You as well."

Coulson seemed a tad wary now. "Natasha?"

Natasha stared straight past him, at May. "I believe you're missing an agent? She's upstairs."

Fury's right hand man seemed to lose five years of worry off his face. "I'd like to see her, if you'll show me the way," he requested. Clint and Tony exchanged looks; there was something there, more than Agent to Agent.

"I'll take you," Clint volunteering. He led the group toward the elevator, where Tony and Natasha could hear the sounds of Steve's surprise and, seconds later, elation.

"You okay?" He asked, gently reaching out and rubbing her shoulder.

Natasha didn't take her eyes off the open door. "How did we not know?" she asked finally.

Tony shrugged. "I don't know. But we can't focus on that, Natasha, because he's alive. And that's huge, that's important." He took a deep breath. "I… I've felt so much guilt, Tash, and now I feel like everything will work out. We can pull through this, I know we can. You're the strongest person I've ever known."

Natasha, looked up at him, and for a moment, he though he could see a tear in her eye. "Thank you… Tony," she said carefully.

Tony nodded, and then Stark was back. "Let's go, milady, don't want to miss the explanations! I bet you homemade breakfast for a week that Clint will cry."

"You're on," she shot back, turning and making for the elevator. Tony smiled to himself, before tucking his hands in his pockets and sauntering after her.

Explanations lasted well into the night, and it did not go unnoticed that Coulson didn't leave Skye's side once. Many looks were traded amongst Avengers. Natasha had made peace with her friend quickly and privately, and both walked away with smiles on their faces. The ex-SHIELD team members were offered beds for the night, and they were received gratefully. When morning broke, however, it was time for them to part ways.

"Thank you for taking care of us, especially Skye," Coulson told Tony and Steve.

Steve nodded. "She means a lot to you. And so she means a lot to us. Please, our door's always open. You're welcome any time you want."

Tony pressed a device into his hand. "Contact us whenever. It's getting pretty boring around here," he joked.

Bruce had packed a suitcase of lab equipment for Jemma and Fitz, handing it over carefully. "Do some good, okay?" he shook both of their hands.

Jemma, however, decided a handshake wasn't enough. She threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. "You too, Doctor Banner," she said loudly. "You know," she added in a whisper, "you're no monster."

"It's Bruce, Jemma, and thank you," he replied, hugging her back.

As Tripp, Clint, and May traded last minute training tips, Skye approached Natasha. "Thanks again, Agent Romanoff, for everything." She paused. "Especially the clothes; they're really cute."

The redhead hesitated. "It's Natasha," she replied finally. "And you're welcome."

The brunette nodded nervously, then waved and backed away slowly.

"Oh, and Skye?" Natasha added.

"Yes?"

Natasha took a step forward. "Grant Ward didn't deserve you," she stated, her tone leaving no room for argument. "There are some men that do, but he did not. You're beautiful and smart, and you have a good sense of right and wrong. Better than a lot of the rest of us SHIELD agents. You'll be loved, one day, by the right man, that'll make you feel like you're all the things that I know you are."

Skye blinked, shocking and touched. "That means a lot, Agent – Natasha. And you?" Skye gathered her courage. "Have you been loved by the right man?"

Natasha granted the girl a small smile. "Maybe, Skye." She glanced at the door. "Your team's ready to go. See you around."

"See you around," Skye confirmed.

The last she heard of Skye was the girl's awed voice as she confided in Agent Coulson "I think I'm actually friends with Natasha Romanoff!" . She allowed her team to gather around her, nodding to Coulson's team as they left. Clint caught her gaze, and a certainty passed between the two master assassins of the Avengers.

Maybe Stark was right. Maybe everything was going to be okay.

AAA

An unknown amount of time later…

Thor allowed himself a small smirk of victory as the Avengers quickly and efficiently took down the group of escaped prisoners. It was almost natural now, for them, this whole saving the world thing.

Steve and Clint were corralling the group into the helicarrier that would take them back to The Cube, and the Hulk, he knew, had gone back to the Quinjet, planning on "de-stressing" himself. However, Tony and Natasha were not in sight.

In hindsight, it wasn't a huge surprise. Those two were thicker than thieves nowadays, what with Clint running off with Coulson's team for three months and Natasha helping to run Stark Industries. However, Thor was more than surprised when he finally caught sight of them.

Tony had taken a dark-haired man by the arm, yanking him out of the line of prisoners. Thor could only watch from a distance as Natasha came over to the pair, and with no warning, examined her fist before sending the man to the ground with her strength alone.

'There's a reason we are all a little afraid of Lady Natasha," Thor thought idly as he quickly flew over to see what all the commotion was about.

"-was for the eye candy comment, really Ward, you should know better," the redhead finished as he arrived, with her arms crossed and glaring at the man so unforgivingly that it was easy to tell she believed he was no better than the dirt beneath her boots.

Tony grinned smugly from under his faceplate (at this stage in the game, Thor could just tell) offering a hand to help the man up. He took it suspiciously, pulling himself off the ground, obviously in pain. "You know," Ironman ventured, with a casual air that negated the way he allowed his companion to punch the man, "it was really not too difficult to hack into the old SHIELD files, and distribute copies of that training video. You know the one? Where Agent Romanoff here" –his voice turned ice cold- "kicks your ass?"

Thor was even more confused. "Is there trouble here, Man of Iron?" he asked, treading carefully.

"This is Grant Ward," Natasha hissed.

Everything clicked.

"Oh!" Thor exclaimed, his eyes brightening. Ward looked up in surprise at the cheerful tone. There was a bit of hope in his eyes that hadn't been there seconds before. Of course, the hope was present until Thor punched him hard enough in the gut to give him six broken ribs and a bruised kidney.

"Listen to me," Thor commanded, kneeling next to the Hydra agent. "No man lies to a wonderful group of people such as your team. Lady Skye is, as I am sure you are aware, a lovely young woman. No man would be caught dead making rude, condescending comments about women, especially a woman who bested him many times in combat, and despite her checkered past, has more integrity of which he could ever dream." Thor paused, looking down at Ward almost sadly. "Therefore, I must conclude you are not a man, and are unfit to be treated as one. Get thee from my sight."

Grant Ward looked suitably terrified, scampering off into line despite the many injuries he possessed.

Thor's two companions simply stared at him, shock written across their features. Tony lifted a hand, obviously waiting for a high-five. Thor remembered this human concept –Bruce and Tony had taught him Midgard culture while Jane had taken defense lessons- and reached up to meet him.

"Let's get out of here," Tony said, starting to walk toward the Quinjet.

Natasha, however, smiled coldly. "Hold on." With that, she walked over to Ward again. Despite him flinching away from her, she didn't touch him, merely whispering a single sentence in his ear. His shoulders slumped dramatically, as if the spirit had been beat out of him.

The assassin rejoined their group. Thor studied her face. "I am guessing you will not reveal what you told him," the god figured.

Natasha glanced up at him, a snarl still painted across her face. "You'd be guessing correctly."

Tony sighed. "Let's go home, okay? Hopefully, Steve will lay off the human strays for a while; they're too complicated."

Thor agreed. He enjoyed Coulson's team, when he finally got the chance to meet them, but he quite liked things the way things were when it was just the Avengers. When all he had to worry about was learning about what made them all who they are. Learning how to love them.

Home. That sounded good.

AAA

Hope you enjoyed! Sometimes it takes an outside influence to bring people closer together.

Please review if you liked it; let me know if you liked/hated the AOS cameo. Hopefully I have another one coming soon! Above all, thank you all for reading!