2 Chapter

How all of the Avengers act when they can relax, as well as Leah getting a surprise from her employer, Tony Stark. Also a slight emergency.

"Stark is going to kill me."

"And why would that be?" he asked her as he parked the car in the tower's underground car-park.

"The time is... 2:00 pm. I was supposed to be here at least 5 hours ago."

"Did you do it intentionally?"

"Of course," Leah grinned, overtaking him to the elevator. "Pepper wouldn't mind me being late, but Tony sure will." They both waited for the elevator, not looking at each other.

"I still don't see why he made this big ugly thing in the middle of Manhattan."

"Tony is a diva. He likes being better than anyone else. You haven't noticed that before?"

"I suppose I have," Steve smiled, stepping into the lift as well as her, pushing the appropriate floor number.

"You're not going to the same floor as me?"

"I'm off to the recreational part of the tower. That's where all of us hang out. Except for Bruce, he's always in the lab."

"Is he still trying to cure himself?"

"I think he is. I don't ask him about it, it's a touchy subject."

"All of you have really touchy subjects. I notice it when I see you guys sometimes. Is it compulsory?"

"It sure helps when you're trying to save the world."

"I guess you're right." Leah frowned and put a hand on the rail behind her. "Well, I guess that this is your floor."

"You could come in and meet everyone officially-"

"I have work to do, Steve. Maybe later." He exited the lift reluctantly, saluting her goodbye.

 

"Did you guys knew that she worked here?"

"Who worked here?" Clint was busy mashing buttons along with Thor on the Xbox, both concentrating on the game.

"Leah."

"I did. Tony's secretary, isn't she?" Natasha was sitting on the armchair of the couch, beside Hawkeye. "I've talked to her a bit before."

"So have I," piped up Bruce, who looked up from his laptop with his glasses on askew. "Sciencey stuff."

"What about you guys?"

"Busy, right, now," mumbled the god, now obviously an addict to video games. "Beating Clint."

"No, you aren't!"

"How long have they been on this thing?" Captain asked the other agent.

"Since a few hours ago. It was Barton's idea when Thor was provoking him. They keep having rematches, and this one has been going on for..." She checked her watch. "An hour, at least."

"Wow. Who's winning?"

"It's a tie so far. So why were you asking about Stark's secretary for, anyway?"

"I bumped into her in Brooklyn. We went for coffee."

"No, you just cheated, you oaf!"

"Cannot stand to lose, can you, Agent?"

"Shut up! And what was this I hear about coffee?" Clint turned around to face Steve. "Has our widdle Stevie found a new love interest?"

"No, we're just friends."

"For now," said Bruce, looking up once again and revealing his talent for waggling eyebrows. 

"Guys, I was just asking whether you knew that she worked here."

"I did. She understands a lot about us, which is strange. For a human."

"Not surprising, you know. You haven't had that much experience with us," said Dr. Banner, rolling his eyes. He was right, though. He was a god.

 

"You're finally here." Leah stepped into the top floor of Stark Tower, mainly to see Pepper Potts pouring herself a drink form the bar as Tony Stark relaxed on the couch.

"Oh, Ms. Potts, I thought you weren't back until-"

"No need to make excuses. You've already done the work that needed to be done."

"So, have Wenshu Dynasty decided to sign with Stark Industries?"

"Yes, they have," replied Tony, lifting his head up to look at her. "And with a very good deal."

"I told you she was the best person we should hire. NOT who you had in mind."

"Don't bring that up. In fact, I believe that we made that a private-"

"It's not private that you wanted to hire a assistant who was able to-"

"Anyway, Leah," said Iron Man, glaring at Pepper. "We wanted to say that you can take the next few days off."

"In fact, I think that you should spend that time with the rest of the team. Here."

"Here. But why do you-?"

"You're going to be working here for quite a while, so you're going to have to put with them. So why not get to know them?"

"So will you be taking over the rest of the Wenshu deal, Pepper?"

"It's practically done, thanks to you. Now I believe, that the others are downstairs waiting for you." The girl stood there, just outside of the lift doors.

"So I can go?"

"Yes."

"Right now?"

"Yes. I still expect you to be here every day till the end of this week. In fact, the team were planning on going to get shawarma this Thursday. On behalf of them, I'm inviting you." Tony shooed her. "Now go. They're waiting."

 

She cautiously tapped a foot against the elevator wall and began humming nervously. The entire Avengers team, well, minus Tony, was literally meters away and she was going to properly meet them.

Of course, she had talked to nearly all of them at least once, except for Clint. 

'Captain America, here I come.'

She stepped on the outside of the lift once the doors opened, praying to God that she wouldn't somehow screw it all up.

"Er, hello?" Steve was the first person to turn around, smiling when he saw that it was Leah.

"Hey guys, the temporary member of our team is here."

"Hello, science buddy!" yelled Bruce, waving at her. She waved back slowly.

"Guys, get off the Xbox, that's just impolite."

"So, close, to winning!" muttered Thor, face screwed up in concentration.

"Be done soon." Natasha sighed.

"Too bad." She stood up, quickly strode over to the console and turned it off.

"What are you doing!?" yelled the god, standing up from the couch. "This is an outrage, I was winning!"

"Calm down, big guy," said Cap, walking over so he could put a hand on his shoulder. "It's just a game, you don't need to get worked up about it."

"I am sorry. It was impolite of me to act like that in front of a lady, er, ladies. I apologize."

"Hey, it's fine," said Leah, rubbing the back of her neck. There was a small silence.

"That's a pretty normal occurrence with us," said Clint, standing up and looking at her. "I suggest that you get used to it."

 

And so, at the end of that all, that was how they ended up seated and crowded around a table, playing Monopoly. 

Steve ended up being the car, Bruce the top hat, Thor the iron, Natasha the dog, Clint the ship and Leah the horse and rider.

The god was only just beginning to get the concept of the game, and it was surprisingly funny watching him trying to win when he didn't even know what to do. Once, she caught Hawkeye taking a hundred Monopoly dollars from Thor with a wink.

"Clint, what are you doing?" she asked casually, staring at him. The others stared at him too, and he immediately stopped attempting to fit the bill into his pile of money.

"Uh, what?"

"You just took a bribe from Thor so that you would show him how to play the game and win."

"Pssh, no I didn't."

"Yeah you did. I saw it too," said Dr. Banner, taking the ill-begotten money from his hands. "Haha, it's mine now!"

"Actually, no." Natasha took it from him and put it into the bank. "I'm the bank, remember? That's illegal."

"Aww, c'mon, give it back, Tash."

"No way." She crossed her arms and smiled. "It's mine now." The agent sat back in his chair and began sulking.

"Hey, where'd my money go?"

"Your money's still there," said Captain nonchalantly, tapping his fingers on the table innocently.

"You took my money! Give it back."

"I didn't take your money."

"Yeah you did!"

"Even I saw you take it, Rogersson."

"Then how come Leah suddenly has more money than the rest of us?" 

 

They were all spread out on the floor when Tony busted in, and the first thought that ran through Leah's mind was,

'Wow, we look like children about to go have Nap Time...'

"We have a distress call and... You guys look like you are going to sleep."

"Do we have to go save the world?"

"It is rather important, Bruce."

"Negh, what is it this time?" moaned Hawkeye, rolling over.

"Loki's minions."

"My brother is in Asgard."

"Not anymore. He's out there, wrecking havoc in downtown Manhattan. So can we get going, before he causes some serious damage?"

"Never thought that I would see you serious," muttered Black Widow, standing up and stretching. "O.K then, let's get going."

"Thor would like to go to sleep."

"Thor is allowed to refer to himself in third person?" questioned Steve, also standing up.

"When he is tired," mumbled the god. Captain helped him up, then looked back at Leah, who had already sat herself back at the table.

"We'll see you in a while."

"See you later." She waved them goodbye as they all left to go get ready for battle. In a way, she was quite proud of herself for predicting the escape of Loki. And strangely, this lead her to thinking of Brittany.

About 10 minutes later, her phone vibrated in her pocket, frightening her and she quickly pulled it out.

'Guess that I found your number first. I heard that Captain and his team are fighting downtown. Don't you wish you were there?'

'Leave me alone...'

'I'm on the bad side...'...

 

"Have you guys ever wondered how all of us fit into this elevator?" questioned Bruce, who was currently being squished into the corner behind Thor.

All of them had gone to their separate floors to get ready and into their battle attire. Dr. Banner had only changed into a pair of baggy black track pants, and looked like the most casual out of all of them.

"You know, I've never thought about that. Especially not when we're supposed to be worrying about an upcoming battle."

"I just wanted to bring it up because- Thor, can you get off of me? Ow, your hammer's in my side."

"Apologies, Banner, but Stark is taking up all of the room."

"There'd be more room if I blasted you through the wall," replied Tony nonchalantly, standing his ground.

"Actually, Tony, you're the one squishing us."

"Look, we'll be on the garage floor soon, so stop complaining."

"Easy for you to say," muttered Black Widow, who was also being slowly compacted into the lift wall.

When the elevator doors finally opened, they stepped out quickly, Bruce calling for a time-out so that he could catch his breath.

"We do not have time for breathers, friend. We must go."

"How are we getting there?" The question from Hawkeye stopped Iron Man.

"That's right, half of you guys can't fly. Wait. I have a solution. Follow me." The other Avengers warily followed him, not knowing just how many tricks he had up his sleeve.

"Be it a plane?" asked Thor, rather suspicious of the things himself.

"Don't worry, we'll be on the ground this time around. See, look. Here it is."

What it was exactly was unknown. It was a mixture of a tank, a Lamborghini and the Batmobile.

"Can I ask what it is exactly?" said Captain cautiously, circling it.

"It's something that me and S.H.I.E.L.D have been working on. They came up with some concept plans and then I built it. Come on, hop in. The doors are around the back. I'll drive." Even Natasha and Clint, who were used to these sorts of things, were reluctant to climb in the back of the van/Batmobile/Lamborghini.