#junior shield program

Chapter 11 | AO3 | Kate enjoys a surprise lunch with other recruits and meets a younger girl of the program before things take a dramatic turn when a transfer is seemingly approved. Steve talks with the team about taking on a big responsibility, only to have his efforts be brought to a halt when Fury informs him of the news.

Chapter 12 | AO3 | Time passes and Steve finds himself still in the dark regarding Oriah recruit Katelyn Sanders while trying to distract himself with his SHIELD duties. Elsewhere, Kate’s training is advancing and she has settled into a new routine. However, a higher up within SHIELD see a new opportunity with her training, and a new operation is put into play.

Chapter 13 | AO3 | Two months after SHIELD activates a new operation, things take a dramatic turn and SHIELD’s Centurion installation finds itself dealing with a monster of its own making. Elsewhere, the avengers deal with a minor SHIELD related crisis before taking some leisure time, only to find a surprise waiting for them within Stark Tower.

Chapter 14 | AO3 | The team finds themselves in a situation that catches them all off guard when Katelyn Sanders shows up at the Tower unannounced bloody and out of sorts. The event puts the team at odds as they discuss what to do with the teenager. In the meantime however, each member of the team seeks to get better acquainted with the SHIELD recruit.

Chapter 15 | AO3 | A few days following Katelyn Sanders’ arrival at the Tower, the team is still working out the kinks with their new teenage guest. Ground rules set, the team remains on their toes as all is quiet from SHIELD, and Kate is deciding who she can trust. The day seems to be going well, that is until a surprise visit causes tension to rise between Kate and the team.

Chapter 16 | AO3 | While the team finds themselves growing more and more comfortable with Katelyn, meanwhile at Oriah, Doctor Gordon begins talks on what is to be done regarding their compromised asset. Director Fury confronts Steve about the incident regarding the recruit, and Kate further explores the potential relationships she may or may not build with this team of people who are harboring her.

Chapter 17 | AO3 | Following a tense discussion the night before, Steve avoids a potential confrontation with Katelyn and makes himself scarce for the morning. Natasha takes the teenager out into the city for a time, and later Tony gives the Captain some study materials in preparation for the future. Steve ponders some hard questions regarding Kate’s future at the Tower and Natasha does a little digging into the teenager’s past.

Chapter 18 | AO3 | Kate receives some surprise visitors at the Tower thanks to the combined efforts of the team and Natasha’s digging into the teenager’s past. However following the success of the day, the atmosphere takes an unexpected turn later in the evening.

Chapter 19 | AO3 | Steve speaks with Director Fury about SHIELD recruit Katelyn Sanders and they both come to a temporary resolution. The Captain takes the information to the team to discuss the future regarding the recruit at the Tower; meanwhile Kate briefly revisits her past while talking with an old friend.

Chapter 20 | AO3 | Following an agreement made with Director Fury, the team is given another week with Kate. Pepper Potts meets the SHIELD recruit for the first time, and Kate is set up in one of the spare suites. Sanders ultimately finds herself in a position where she has to start considering whether or not she will ultimately trust the team with her past and closely-held secrets which could change the course of her life.

Present Day (P1) | AO3 | Kate reflects on her first few weeks with the team and mulls over how things could have been different, as well as longs for the simplicity of those years in her childhood.

Chapter 21 | AO3 | A couple weeks pass and Kate finds herself warming up to the team. Required to have regular check-ins with Agent Hill at SHIELD, the teen begins to feel the pressure on multiple fronts to make decisions regarding not only her fate, but the fate of others.

Chapter 22 | AO3 | While the team is sent on another mission concerning Oriah, Kate is forced to mull over the reality of her current situation even more so. Steve talks with some of the team about his waning trust for SHIELD and their methods, and later finds something out about Katelyn.

Chapter 23 | AO3 | Kate takes a step in trusting Steve with potentially sensitive information concerning the Oriah program, and SHIELD continues its hunt for the illusive organization.

Chapter 24 | AO3 | Following another potential breakthrough in the hunt for the mysterious organization taking superpowered children, Kate reveals one of her secrets to the team.

Chapter 25 | AO3 | In light of the events of the previous day, the team as well as Kate are on edge. Steve continues to search for a compromise on the teenager’s behalf; meanwhile Natasha begins putting together a plan on the quiet.

Chapter 26 | AO3 | The Bakers are approached by SHIELD regarding Katelyn Sanders’ situation, and Steve struggles with the final decisions.

Chapter 27 | AO3 | Kate adjusts to the arrangement put together by SHIELD, and finds herself in a situation she never thought she’d be in. New developments are made in the Oriah operation by Natasha and Clint.

Chapter 28 | AO3 | An incident occurs with the Bakers. Meanwhile, a breakthrough is made in the Oriah Operation, and further details about the mysterious organization taking children with supernatural abilities come to light.

Chapter 29 | AO3 | In light of the changes made to SHIELD’s previous arrangement with the Bakers, Kate finds herself struggling to get back into normal routine. Steve reenlists Tony and Bruce to investigate Kate’s past in the Oriah program.

Chapter 30 | AO3 | Steve makes a discovery revolving around the arrangement SHIELD made with the Baker family and in discussion with the team, puts together a plan involving Sanders.

Chapter 31 | AO3 | Director Fury confronts the team regarding their plan and they come to an agreement. However despite the upfront appearance everyone portrays, all have their doubts.

Chapter 32 | AO3 | Kate finds herself strengthening the bonds with the team in the weeks following the agreement made with SHIELD. Fury makes a proposition to Kate which causes her to reevaluate her future with SHIELD.

Chapter 33 | AO3 | Settling into a loose routine, Kate shares details regarding her ability, and takes steps towards further understanding the team. Building these relationships aren’t without their hiccups however.

Chapter 34 | AO3 | While Kate continues to wrestle with this new reality she’s living in, Tony Stark discovers her new outlet. Steve takes a chance in bringing Kate along on a low-risk assignment and the teen uncovers details about her past.

Chapter 35 | AO3 | Following the SHIELD assignment, the team finds themselves processing the findings. Kate looks for answers on her own and comes to a decision regarding her future with the team, a decision Steve has to come to terms with.

Chapter 36 | AO3 | Steve enlists the advice of his teammates, as well as a new found ally in Doctor Melvin Kline - a former Oriah employee - in discussing Kate’s interests for her future.

Chapter 37 | AO3 | Kate finds herself thrust into an agreement with SHIELD that she isn’t sure she’s entirely prepared for, and Steve seeks to get as many compromises as he can from Fury. A part of Kate’s past comes back, threatening everything and everyone she has begun to care for.

Turning the frying pan over I quickly nudged all of the eggs off and onto the plate with a spatula. Setting the pan back down onto the burner I quickly took the plate to the island, setting it next to the plate of bacon.

“Breakfast!” I yell, breathing out quietly after speaking. Leaning back against the counter next to the stove I let my eyes close momentarily.

Even if I did sleep over the past several days, its safe to assume the sleep I’ve been getting hasn’t done much help.

“Good morning,” I cleared my throat before speaking, turning with a small smile as Danielle, Bladen, and Nadia walk in. “Avery still asleep?” Adjusting my stance I quickly turned, grabbing a spare plate off the counter before going to collect the toast from the toaster.

“Yeah, believe it or not, it didn’t take as long this time.” Dani gives a small shrug before flashing a quick and brief smile.

“Thank you,” I sigh, placing the plate down onto the counter before resting my hands along the edge, meeting her eyes.

“How was it yesterday?” Bladen asks, his arms loosely crossing on the counter surface as he took a seat at one of the stools at the island opposite me.

I was quiet for several seconds, meeting his eyes before looking away momentarily.

“We’re working on it.”

“How’s your team?” Nadia.

“Holding it together. Best they can.” I nod, turning as I took a deep breath before opening the fridge, grabbing both the apple juice and orange juice. I take in a quiet breath, turning to place both on the counter before I began collecting glasses from the cabinet next to the fridge. “Lunch is in the fridge. I just put together some sandwiches. Dinner is leftovers from last night.” I explain, meeting the eyes of the three in front of me before setting down a small stack of plates at the end of the island from where the food was, silverware already next to said stack.

“When will you be back?”

The voice caused my eyes to snap over to the edge of the room where the hall was, seeing Antonio holding his stuffed lion, rubbing his eyes groggily with his spare hand.

Damn it. I was hoping to get out before too many noticed my absence.

I smile gently before quietly walking over to him.

“Well,” I grunt, picking him up. “I’ll be heading back tonight, but you’ll be fast asleep by the time I get home. So you’ll see me tomorrow.” I explain gently, combing some of the curls out of the way of his eyes before setting him down on the stool next to Bladen.

I exchange a small glance with Bladen, who caught on not a second later.

“Let’s get you some food buddy.” He smirks, grabbing one of the plates before getting the spoon, collecting a small portion of eggs.

“I don’t like toast.” Antonio mumbles, copying Bladen’s previous position with his arms crossed on the island surface.

I smile, meeting Danielle’s eyes for a moment.

“You like toast, Nio. It’s the crust you don’t like.” Nadia chuckles, meanwhile getting a plate for herself too.

I gesture towards the sliding door and Danielle nods before walking over. I could feel her a few feet behind me as I opened the door and stepped out onto the small shaded patio. Closing it behind me I took a few steps to the side before lowering to sit on the edge of the bench against the exterior wall.

“You sure you’re okay w-”

“We talked about this,” Dani mutters, cutting me off.

I pause, lips still parted before I gave a small nod. Swallowing I glanced out at the fenced yard briefly.

“Things aren’t looking good… are they,” Her expression was calm but her eyes said otherwise. There was a fear there. She was scared.

Hell, so was I. I was scared shitless… Like I would admit that.

“It’s only been a week since-… It happened. We’re working on it, Dani.” I explain quietly.

She is silent before nodding, bringing a hand to the back of her head as she scratched gently, her long black curly hair falling around her shoulders as she pulled some of it forward.

“I- think I know what you’re going, I get that you need some time alone that you haven’t got.”

“You sure you’ll be okay here?”

“You leave us here all the time for the raids, K.” Dani breathes a small laugh before nodding. “We’ll be fine.”

I clench my jaw briefly in response before nodding.

I guess she’s right. I hadn’t really had any time to myself since- since this all happened.

“Will you let the others know?” I turn, my brow knit gently as I met her eyes.

“Course,” She nods.

“I don’t want any of you leaving the house,” My voice was firm but still a bit gentle. “Keep the gate locked, you can be in the backyard but I don’t want any of you treading too far. It’s not safe out there right now.”

“I’ll keep em reeled in.” She held up her pinky with a smirk, other fingers loosely closed in a fist.

Feeling a small smile cross my face I reciprocate the gesture, locking her pinky finger with mine briefly before dropping the hand and getting to my feet.

“For Avery, I uh, didn’t write out a list but I usually feed her-”

“Twice before noon, two to three times after. Couple healthy snacks somewhere in there, and she takes a few naps during the day. Diaper changes vary. I know, I live here too ya know.” She grins.

Closing my eyes for a moment I subtly roll them seconds later before nodding.

“Fair, enough.” I breathe before shaking my head, pulling her into a tight hug.

“Be safe… Make good decisions.” She sighs, her voice light but-… still serious.

My eyes were unfocused, gazing through the sliding door and into the kitchen where everyone was.

No promises there, Dani.

My pace was rather quick as I made my way across the courtyard-like area in front of one of the science and technology buildings in Wakanda… where I used to meet up with Shuri. During last night’s meeting, I got permission through Okoye to come by again.

I meet her eyes as I come to a stop outside the building, seeing her waiting there along with Jaman, and two others, part of the Dora Milaje.

“Sorry this was on such short notice.” I mumble, exchanging a small glance with Jaman, giving a nod before meeting the General’s eyes.

She just gives a small shake of her head before glancing over towards Jaman.

“Worse things have happened.” She responds.

“Nice sarcasm.” I nod, breathing out.

“Hmm,” Her eyebrows shot up for a moment before falling as she gestured to Jaman, causing him to come forward several feet.

“Thank you,” I mumble, holding out a hand.

She met my eyes once again before glancing down, taking my hands a few moments later to shake it.

“You’re welcome.” She responds before glancing out towards the area less populated with buildings, where I was headed. “Stay as long as you need.”

“Won’t be here too long, but thank you.” I give the briefest of smiles before meeting Jaman’s eyes yet again with a friendly gaze.

Okoye gestured to her comrades seconds later and departed, leaving me alone with Jaman.

“Hey,” He smiles, taking a couple steps closer.

I pull together a smile for him before stepping forward to hug him tightly.

“I know you want to be alone, but I thought I’d say hello when you got here.”

“I’m glad you did,” I breathe, eyes closed before I step away, meeting his eyes with a smile. “It’s good to see you.”

“Likewise,” He smiles gently before his eyes glanced towards the direction I was heading - out of the city. “Let me know if you need anything.”

“I will, thank you.” I grasped his forearm gently for a moment.

He was being so understanding. Despite the guilt I felt, I know he didn’t blame me for any of this. He was suffering, just as I was… As we all were.

He eyes me calmly for a few seconds before nodding in response, gesturing out with his free hand.

It was a trip I had taken a million times. I could do it blindfolded. As I came to a stop at the top of the hill, I felt my chest tighten up at the sight. It looked the same, but-… Something wasn’t right. Most of the plant-life was dead, decayed… The quaint little hut appeared abandoned; only a few goats remained, and one cow.

Clenching my jaw I took a deep breath before stepping forward, picking up a light pace as I made my way down the hill.

It took longer than it usually did when I would walk this same path time and time again. When I would scramble to get my head on straight and my ducks in a row before getting down to that damned hut and retarded goats. Then it felt like a few seconds. But right now it’s taking a century.

I came to a stop as I got to the bottom of the hill, hesitating a moment as I evaluated what animals were left before my eyes met the hut. My feet were moving before I gave them permission to and suddenly I was at the door of the small shelter, the familiar smell hitting my nose like a truck as I closed my eyes for a moment, almost startled at the smell.

It was faint, but strong enough; familiar… comforting. My eyes burned as I quickly blinked the sensation away.

I stepped into the doorway, taking in the small space. Nothing had been touched. Everything was the same from the last time I saw it. The makeshift bed on the floor to the left, a blanket tousled and thrown in a ball on top of it. Other small belongings and quirky objects were about the space as well.

My eyes catch something brightly colored and I glanced back towards the bed, seeing something by the blanket.

My feet carry me into the space and I reach out, grabbing the object half hidden by the blanket before pulling it into view, smiling.

Fritt Bar. Damn, I remember tossing this in here a week ago. Surprised one of the kids didn’t snatch it.

Closing my hand around it I shake my head before exiting the hut, going to my usual spot before sitting down against the exterior wall.

It was quiet. It was never quiet. There were always crickets, maybe some cicadas… But it was quiet. And the space around me felt more empty and unnatural than ever.

“I’m- sorry all this happened… ” The words left my mouth before I could realize I was talking to no one. I was alone.

I clench my jaw briefly before giving the smallest shake of my head, the Fritt bar being lightly turned in my hands as I thought.

“…I’m gonna fix this. I promise.”

The burning feeling came over me as my eyes watered and I quickly shook my head, blinking away what tears were to form. Breathing out, my shoulders sag and I lean back against the exterior wall, my eyes meeting the sky.

What are you upset about. We’re going to fix this… We have to.

My eyes turn out towards the trees and body of water ahead and my mind begins to wander. Wander to-… Too many things. Like how this all even happened. …How the hell did I even get here… How did any of this happen?

A Week Later…

“Coffee Machine.” 

“What?”

“A coffee machine,” Clint repeats, his arms loosely crossed as he met Natasha’s eyes. “Come on, you don’t think having one built into the quinjet would be helpful? It’s 4am, I could use a cup. These rescue/raid missions take a toll.”

Steve remained quiet as he glanced between the two of them. Clint was correct. It was around 4 in the morning. A SHIELD team had located a facility where they were positive more of these kids were being held. Thanks to the interrogation of one of the hostiles they brought in, this facility was located.

It had been a week since Steve’s first mission regarding this operation and Natasha informed him that they usually don’t get this lucky in finding such facility locations so close together in a time frame, not to mention getting any of these people to give up such information. “What’d you think, Cap? Coffee machine?” Steve met Clint’s eyes at the archer’s question before pulling together a small smile.

“Wouldn’t be against it.” He responds, his hands resting on the belt of his tactical suit as Clint gestured to him with a nod before turning.

“Anything from Hill yet?” Barton calls over to the team leader.

“Nothing yet, sir.” Chaves responds.

“Why the caution?” Steve asks, his eyes meeting Natasha’s as the conversation between the team leader and Clint carried on. 

“Considering we found this location with such ease, we have to be careful. There’ve been instances when they’ve rigged entire buildings or evacuated them. Hill’s getting a satellite heat signature read on the building.” Natasha explains. 

Steve gives the smallest nod in response before glancing about the small safehouse once again. He wouldn’t really call it a safehouse, more of a trailer since it was the closest thing they could find and stay in close vicinity of the building without being suspicious. 

Within the small space they had the cloaked quinjet parked at the end, the ramp lowered for easier access from the back of the trailer, and many portable systems and a small crew to work them within the trailer. Steve was standing at the edge between the trailer and the quinjet ramp while Nat and Clint were somewhat inside the jet looking at some of the monitors within it. Gold Team was bouncing back and worth getting things ready for a potential raid. 

“Sir, excuse me.” 

Steve’s brow knitted almost immediately as he heard a voice and turned, his eyes shooting down to a girl holding out a tablet to him. “Message from Agent Hill,” She adds, holding it out to him.

His lips parted slightly as he eyed her with confusion. Kate. From Oriah. She wasn’t even an adult, what on earth was she doing there.

“Katelyn,” Steve greets quietly, extending a hand for the tablet as she gave him a very brief smile before giving nod of confirmation. 

“Captain Rogers,” She let go of the tablet as he took it, meeting his eyes for a moment.

“Thank you,” He finally gives her a brief smile, his opposite hand finding the tablet as he raised it to eye the information. Kate walked away seconds later and Steve gave her another brief confused look before shaking his head, turning back to see Clint in the jet. Steve made his way up the ramp, catching the attention of the agent. 

“Hey, what’s that” Clint paused his conversation with Nat to look over at Rogers.

“From Hill,” He responds, handing the tablet over to Clint. 

The archer took the device, eyeing it briefly as he skimmed through it.

“Ah, damn it.” He grumbles before passing it to Natasha. “God forbid we get some really good intel”

Natasha’s expression turned concerned as she read the report over.

“No heat signatures…” 

“He couldn’t have been lying,” Steve’s brow knit together once he processed the information more thoroughly. “He said there would be children here; and that his people wouldn’t suspect anything.” Considering SHIELD has a state of the art lie detector, it was extremely unlikely he’d give them false intel. Unless he really told the truth but had been given false information.

“There’s no way they could have moved the kids so quickly,” Clint furthers. “Something’s off. Chaves?” Steve turns his head to see the leader of Gold team turn to meet the archer’s eyes. “We need to get a team in there now, get a full scan of the building, they could still be hiding somewhere,”

“Sir,” He gives a nod before turning to the rest of the team. 

“Should we go?” Steve met Natasha’s eyes momentarily.

“Think it’d be wise.” Clint’s voice lowered a bit as he was looking a ways behind Steve towards where the tech team was. 

This building was much different from the last one Steve had encountered. As opposed to what had seemed to be some kind of medical or hospital institution, this was an old factory building. Much of the building was open but there were several sublevels underneath the open ground level. 

This location seemed different. Steve noticed how the open areas of the building were built up and contained temporary halls as well as rooms. From a high level you would be able to see down into the built up areas that were separated sporadically, almost like a maze. Some rooms accommodated constructed cells most likely used to house these kids with abilities. 

Further into the facility was a large garage area as well as a hall that led towards other rooms that were original to the building.

“This place is huge, best we split up.” Clint suddenly stops, pulling Steve from his thoughts as he glanced over at his teammate. 

“I agree,” Natasha responds, a few feet from Barton. “Chaves,” She turned her eyes turned to the team leader, gesturing for the hall farther down as he gave a nod.

“Fischer and Reese- Agent Barton.” Chaves calls over, ushering two men forward. “Walsh, Arnold and Khan I want you with Captain Rogers. The rest of your double back. I want that mess of a maze completely cleared.” 

Steve’s eyes dotted about as Gold Team dispersed and the three men approached him.

“Captain,” One gave a nod, his firearm lowered in front of him as he came to a stop. 

“Hey Rogers you good takin the garage?” Steve turned his eyes up as Clint called over to him.

“Got it covered,” He responds before his eyes turned towards the three men at his side. Giving them a nod, Steve’s gaze met the opening towards the garage.

Since they had entered the building, Steve had picked up on many details; things he couldn’t have come up with solely with his previous knowledge of his first operation a week ago. These kids were kept in horrible conditions. With Natasha’s words in mind regarding this organization’s desire to break these individual’s wills and spirits, it seems they had built up extensive knowledge regarding how to handle each individual. Some cages had thicker bars and more reinforcement and others were mesh wire or perhaps bullet proof glass. 

Once inside the large garage, Steve’s eyebrows furrowed with caution as he slowed to a stop. Shipping containers. Dozens of them to be precise. They lined the walls and there were a few isles of them stacked down the long garage corridor. 

Letting his eyes roam the area he finally continued walking in further. Approaching the first row of containers, Steve takes his shield off of his back, finding the first clamp on the side of the container. Taking a moment to aim he swung the shield quickly, effectively breaking the lock on the door before moving to the next one a bit lower. 

Meanwhile the three members of Gold Team were taking pliers to the other locks on the other side of the door. 

Steve takes a few steps back, evaluating the door as the men went about breaking the other locks. 

“Whenever you’re ready, Captain.” Khan speaks up, gripping the container door handle while Walsh and Arnold had the other.

Steve’s eyes meet Khan’s before he gave a small nod.

“Open it.”

Walsh gave a nod to the others as they reciprocate the gesture before tugging at the doors. The metal doors ground across the cement flooring as the dim lighting of the garage spilled into the container space.

Steve jumps a bit at what he sees and takes several steps closer to the opening before stopping. 

“Hawkeye we got one.” Arnold speaks up, his fingers coming to the com device on his neck. 

Steve takes several steps into the container, his steps slow and precise as he approached the individual lying on the ground. She wasn’t moving. 

“They alive?” Clint’s voice sounds over the comms as Steve knelt down.

He reaches out; his hand halting for a moment before he placed two fingers against her neck. Nothing. Steve closed his eyes for a moment before meeting Walsh’s eyes, giving a shake of his head.

“Negative.”

Clint’s sigh is heard before he mumbled something inaudible. “Same here. We found a couple. None alive yet.”

“Clint, this garage is filled to the brim with shipping containers.” Steve speaks up, letting his eyes leave the container to view the opposite row. “We found this girl in one of them. The others might have these individuals as well.”

“How many are there?”

Steve sighed before getting to his feet, walking out into the isle before giving the room a once over. Thinking for a moment Steve shook his head before putting his fingers to the comm.

“At least four dozen, probably more. It’ll take a while to get them all checked. Chaves, you mind if I borrow a few more of your boys?” 

“Roger that Cap’n. I’ll send some your way.”

Steve nods quietly to himself before lowering the hand, turning to see Khan draping a blanket that had previously been on the floor over the still individual. Walsh stood beside him quietly. Remaining quiet himself, Steve eyed the man as he got to his feet before meeting the Captain’s eyes.

“Chaves is sending some more guys over. We should be able to get most of these open pretty quick.”

“Hey guys,” Natasha’s voice suddenly sounds over the comms and Steve pauses as he was about to walk to the next container.

“Nat?” Clint questions, waiting for something as Steve was.

“Found some more…” Her voice seemed off to Steve as his eyes dot about the floor.

“How many?” Steve asks, his brows knit as his eyes briefly spotted the corpse in the container. “I- don’t know how many, jus- you better get down here.” She explains.

Steve gives the littlest of nods before turning his eyes to his small group.

“We got this Cap’n,” Arnold responds, waving a hand for him to leave.

Giving a nod of confirmation to the soldier Steve’s eyes turn to the entrance for the main part of the building where he spots several men from Gold Team heading for them. His hand comes to the comm on his throat as he began walking towards them.

“Alright I’m on my way. Where are you?” 

Natasha and Chaves had reached the lower levels of the building. Steve wasn’t sure what he had expected when he got down there but he doubted that anything could have fully prepared him. 

Romanoff had sent out her message from an area off the boiler room. A compartment in the floor was where they dumped the bodies. More than two dozen corpses littered the area, some burned and others killed by other means.

The team had since returned to the trailer and quinjet. It was around 7am now and Team Charlie had arrived to help with cleanup; collecting the bodies and bringing them back to SHIELD for analysis. Along with Team Charlie came a small scientific team from the Oriah program incase of any complications. Agents were walking about the area around the facility. The intelligence team was logging things unrelated to this particular mission. 

Steve was standing quietly as Natasha explains the findings. Present through hologram, Agent Hill was standing next to another agent Steve didn’t recognize. 

“Any leads? Possibly something regarding the shipping containers, Captain?”

Steve lifts his head a bit as she called on him and Steve gave a small shake of his head.

“No direct leads or manifest, but it looks as if they may be transporting these kids by means of shipping containers. Whether or not that includes various types of freight transport, we’re unsure.” Steve explains.

Hill hesitates any sort of response before giving a curt nod. 

“Agent Keller, get me visuals surrounding that building for the last several months, I want to know if any trucks transporting shipping containers were seen in the area,”

The agent who had appeared gives a brief nod before disappearing from view.

“We’ll get on that. For the time being cleanup the site and get back here”

“Copy that.” Clint responds, giving a lazy two-finger salute before ending the chat. “Guess that’s that fellas. Lets get this done.” He sighs, walking down the ramp before heading towards the Gold team leader who was talking with his group.

Steve watches for only a moment before his eyes met the ground. 

“Sometimes we get lucky,” Natasha suddenly speaks up, causing Steve to glance in her direction. “Other times… Not so much,” She gives a somewhat empathetic smile that was gone not a second later. 

Steve remains quiet as she touched his shoulder before exiting the jet, heading past the trailer towards where the scientific team was. The ground surrounding them was occupied by a few rows of bodies covered by white tarps. 

Steve quickly looks away, giving the smallest sigh before rubbing the back of his head for a moment. If they had gotten there just a couple days sooner… 

While Steve’s attention was essentially on the floor, around a dozen feet away, down in the trailer, there was a pair of eyes on him. It didn’t take long for the captain to notice as he lifted his head, letting his eyes meet the opposite side of the jet before he turned to look towards the trailer openly, meeting the eyes of the Oriah recruit he had met a week ago.

Her expression was quite blank, but a slight narrow of her eyes almost gave the impression that she was trying to figure out Steve’s own expression and current energy.

Steve’s brow knit gently as she didn’t seem entirely bothered at him noticing her as she continued to meet his eyes for several more seconds before they hesitantly dropped and she turned back to her current work. 

Steve let his eyes linger for only a moment before he shook his head with a sigh, getting to his feet before heading off to where Clint and Natasha had gone. 

The mission had wrapped several hours ago, and Steve was still thinking over everything that happened. It was unsettling how the majority of everyone else seemed almost unbothered. Not that they were unsympathetic regarding the morning’s events; Clint appeared the most grief-stricken, where as Gold Team and Team Charlie were keeping their emotions bottled up, something that was understandable. Natasha on the other hand, was hiding any emotional bruising, which didn’t surprise Steve once he took the time to think it over. 

He was… pretty much on his own in finding a way to cope with this. While everyone else had seen this before, he hadn’t. 

“Cap’n” 

Steve’s head snapped up to meet Clint’s eyes as he was a couple lockers down, in the process of getting ready to leave.

“You alright?”

Steve had gotten out of his suit and put on civilian clothes, but once his mind started to revisit everything, he got lost in his thoughts.

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine” Steve nods slowly, letting his eyes fall before he gave Clint a more confident nod and met the archer’s eyes. “It’s just a lot to take in,”

“I get it… First time’s always pretty difficult,” Barton responds quietly, taking his jacket from the locker before closing and locking it. “If you need some time, you should let Hill know.”

“No, I’m alright” Steve makes clear, taking his leather jacket from the locker as well as his motorcycle keys before closing the compartment. 

Clint eyed Steve quietly as the captain got himself together, fully realizing while Steve was probably more affected by this mission’s outcome than most of the agents, he was probably going to be the most persistent in getting back out there.

Once the two avengers left the locker room, they both made their way to the garage. Clint had been speaking to Steve for the majority of the trip down and while he was somewhat listening to Clint talk about how they would find more of these kids and get a successful mission soon, Steve was preoccupied with other thoughts concerning the same topic.

“I hope you’re still coming by for drinks later,” 

Steve felt his eyes shoot upwards as he met Natasha’s gaze. She was leaning against a car in the garage as they approached.

“Uh, yeah… yeah I am,” He gives a brief smile and a nod as both him and Clint came to a stop near the car.

“Listen, we don’t have any further leads right now. So it may be awhile before we get any further progress for Oriah,” Clint turned and was talking a little quieter as Steve met his eyes.

“If you have anything you wanna discuss, we’re open” Natasha adds, having since opened the driver’s side door. 

Steve hesitated any kind of response as his eyes went from Natasha and then back to Clint before giving a small nod.

“I think I’m gonna hang back here,” His words were a bit hesitant as he let out a slow breath before meeting Natasha’s confused expression.

“Purpose?”

“Just wanna get my hands on some information. I’ll catch a ride and meet you guys at the Tower in a few hours,” Considering the information was on the Helicarrier, he’d need to catch a ride with someone.

“Steve, if you’re going to confront Hill for information I guarantee you won’t get far. Save it for tomorrow,” Natasha’s words went through Steve mind, but didn’t do much to change his overall plans. Her expression remained somewhat neutral but a level of care was present in her eyes.

Steve was quiet for a moment before he let his eyes dot between his two friends.

“It can’t wait,” Steve gave a small shake of his head, having made up his mind as Clint put a hand on his shoulder for a moment as a means of support.

“You need anything let us know,” Barton makes clear, meeting the captain’s eyes before he made his way towards the passenger side door. 

“I will,” Steve gave Clint a small brief smile before meeting Natasha’s eyes, giving her a small nod before turning and heading back towards the doors into the SHIELD facility.

Before Clint got all the way into the car he met Natasha’s eyes over the roof sceptically. 

“You think he’s alright?” The archer asked.

Natasha gave a small nod before getting into the car, meeting Clint’s eyes a few seconds later as he did the same. 

“He’ll be alright. If anything this’ll probably drive him to commit more to the program,”

“For better or for worse though,” Clint gave a small shake of his head, his eyes zoned out on the dashboard. “He sees this a lot differently than you and me,”

Natasha was quiet as she took in her friend’s words before giving a small nod in agreement. He had a point. Steve viewed most of SHIELD from the perspective of an outsider despite how much he had integrated into the organization as an agent and an avenger. 

“I’m just worried he’ll start digging and then find something morally controversial,” Clint breathes with tense amusement. “These kids don’t have any other option, but… He’s right to question what they potentially do behind closed doors…”

It definitely would have been smarter on Steve’s part to stay on the Helicarrier if he was having thoughts about discussing the morning’s mission with the Deputy Director of SHIELD, Agent Hill. But of course, Steve managed to write out a report on the carrier, discuss the overall findings with both SHIELD teams and his two avenger teammates, catch a quinjet back to a ground base in New York, get back into civilian wear, and almost depart from SHIELD business for the day before realizing he wasn’t ready to depart from SHIELD business for the day- and had unfinished business on the Helicarrier currently hovering over the state of Virginia. 

While Steve had to ultimately run across the base to catch a quinjet heading for the Carrier, he managed to get back there in under an hour. 

The time had flown by quite quickly when Steve made his way onto the bridge. His eyes finding the dozens of computers and agents roaming, as well as Agent Maria Hill who was standing near the large table with the SHIELD logo carefully engraved into the glass top. 

She appeared distracted with ordering people about left and right, not noticing Steve as he walked up and stood by quietly for a moment as she was in conversation with another agent. It only took a few seconds before she noticed Steve standing by idly.

Steve’s hands came to rest upon his belt patiently until the agent that Hill had been speaking to walked away and Steve eagerly jumped forward to get a word in. 

“Agent Hill,”

“One moment Captain,” Hill didn’t miss a beat as she pulled aside an Agent who proceeded to try and walk by her, handing him a small stack of paperwork.

“Get all of these copied and filed, I want the report tomorrow,”

“Yes ma’am” 

Steve clenched his jaw momentarily as the Agent quickly departed and Hill headed down the main walkway on the bridge.

“Something I can do for you Captain?” Hill asks, not turning as she voiced her question, causing Steve to quickly head after her. He had been waiting for most of the afternoon to get out what he needed to say.

“The assignment we just finished. There were over three dozen people there, children, we’re just- going to let all that go?” His brow was knit firmly as he follows her.

“We’re not letting anything go, Rogers. There’s nothing we can do for them except to continue doing our jobs. We’ll keep digging and we’ll find the people in charge,”

“There was someone on that assignment,” Steve tries, his hands finding his belt as he stood off to the side. “Someone I met last week, what was she doing th-”

“Sanders? What’s your point?” Hill was obviously not in the mood as she quickly went about the various screens a few feet in front of the table of the main controls, tapping here and there before sliding a large dial. 

“Proceed in our decent, Ford. Keep the shields up,”

“Yes ma’am” 

“Hill what is she doing out in the field so early?” Steve finally cuts in, his hand moving forward to get her attention. “She looked no older than a teenager. And I imagine you have others like her doing similar work.”

“And some are of that age, yes.” She responds, her expression hard to read as she turned to meet Steve’s eyes. “This particular individual was only working behind the scenes. Nothing too complicated. These individuals also need some exposure to how these operations work. You also need some exposure by the looks of it,” She adds, turning away for a moment as she put her attention on one of the touch screens of the main control panels. 

Steve clenches his jaw, his eyes shooting to the ground momentarily as he thought things over. If he was being honest with himself he wasn’t sure what information he wanted out of Hill.

“I want to talk to one of them,” He suddenly speaks up. 

His words caused Maria to pause her actions before she turned, her brow knit as she met his eyes.

“I’m sorry?”

“I want to meet another one of these kids,” Steve repeats, his arms crossing loosely as Hill gave the smallest of smiles. 

“You don’t have the clearance for that, Captain.” 

“I’m level 7.” Steve reminds her, his brows knit.

She shakes her head before turning. “This a different kind of clearance,”

“Alright well where can I get the clearance I need?” Steve lets his arms fall as he follows her, Hill walking down the aisle way and towards the large windows ahead.

“You’re not going to let this go and I can’t have you coming around everyday hounding so you’ll have to take it up with Fury. He should be in his office now, don’t waste his time, Rogers.”

“I won’t Hill,” Steve huffs before turning, his eyes fixated on the hallway to the left as he departed from the bridge. 

Meanwhile…

“I heard the mission wasn’t successful,” Fury starts, his eyes meeting that of Doctor Gordon, lead scientist for the Oriah program over a hologram call. The windows of Fury’s office that gave way to a skyview from the Helicarrier were blacked out, leaving the room dimly lit, the only light coming from the hologram projection. 

“In a manner of speaking perhaps. But I believe our team can still salvage something from the operation. The deceased subjects coming in will provide us with more data.” Doctor Gordon explains, his hands clasped comfortably in front of him. 

“Sanders was on this one,” Fury adds, his eyes having been on his desk before he turned them up to meet Gordon’s. “I assume we’re still on track for her testing, but did the findings affect her in anyway? 

“Not that I could perceive, sir. Subject A1 has a thick skin, I’m sure that everything’s fine.”

Fury’s expression didn’t falter as he processed the scientist’s words. While he understood that Gordon in particular preferred to relate to the recruits by their numbers and the pronoun ‘they’, Fury preferred to do otherwise. 

“We both know she’s of the utmost importance to this program. If we can’t get her in the field, the council won’t be hasty to consider allowing other recruits on live assignments.”

“A very valuable asset, director, truly, I agree with you. There is unlimited potential however I don’t believe such exposure going forward is going to be beneficial as of yet, we need to conduct more tests and solidify a spot at the location in Canada for more advanced training. Live assignments is not something I would advice at this time.”

“I respectfully disagree. She’s kept on a short leash; you don’t loosen it now and again and you’ll have a bigger problem on your hands, I guarantee it.” Fury’s attention diverts away as he sees a blinking dial on the hologram portion of the desk face appear.

“ …I understand, sir.” 

“Excuse me, Gordon, I have to take this.” Fury turned his eyes up to meet the scientist’s and he gave a small nod before the hologram message ended and it got quiet. “Agent Hill,” Fury starts, leaning back in his chair for a moment as the black out covers began to go down, letting the daylight into his office.

“Sir, Captain Rogers is on his way to your office. I’m afraid he’s got some questions that I’m not answering clearly enough.” 

Fury almost chuckles, closing out a couple files that were present on the desk hologram before nodding to himself.

“Thank you for the heads up, Hill. Did Rogers make any further points regarding his opinion on Oriah?”

“He seems particularly interested in speaking with any recruits in person, as well as getting more clearance into the program. He also had another opportunity to speak with Sanders on this past assignment.”

“Did he,” Fury responds lightly, his hands coming to rest clasped in his lap. “I can’t imagine he derived any sensitive information from her,”

“No, but if he continues to have such opportunities I can’t say for sure,” Hill furthers.

Fury was quiet for a moment before he sighed, sitting upright in his chair before directing his attention back to his desktop. 

“Thank you Agent Hill, I’ll have a word with him,”

“Yes sir,” 

Tapping the dial with a finger, Fury ended the call, turning his eyes up to the entrance to his office which was now open. 

Almost on cue, Captain Rogers entered.

“Fury, can I have a word?” Steve starts, his hands coming to rest on his belt. 

“You may,” Fury had risen from his chair, walking around it to lean against the front, a few feet from Steve. “Hill informed me that you have some requests regarding this program as well as its members.”

“I’ve been told I don’t have the clearance for just about all the answers to the questions I have, for starters.” Steve sighs, adjusting his stance as he stood straighter. 

“Well i’m sure you’ve been briefed on this before, while you are level 7, there are more specific requirements to make clearances into other programs at this level. Overall, as a level 7 agent, you are aware that the Oriah program exists. If your level was any lower, you would not be.”

“What do I need to do to get clearance then, Nick.” Steve’s patience was starting to falter. 

“It’s not as easy as getting a promotion on the basis of hard work for one,” Fury responds, seemingly amused by Steve’s words. “Your perception of this program already appears to be negative, which is why I may or may not be holding off the potential for you to gain access to more of this operation.”

Steve remained quiet for a moment as he evaluated Fury’s words, understanding how his following comments may ultimately decide how successful he may be in getting what he wants from this conversation.

“The recruit on this past assignment was a teenager,” The captain finally says, causing Fury to stand up straight, no longer leaning on his desk.

“A strictly behind the scenes job as you witnessed.”

“Yeah, well there were a lot of things I witnessed on that mission that no kid- hell not even an adult should have to witness, Nick.” Steve mutters, his expression darkening only slightly as Fury gave a nod and a small sigh.

“I will take responsibility for her exposure on that assignment. But you have to remember that all of these recruits have most likely seen such things before. None of them are being forced to partake in assignments.”

Steve let his eyes fall after a few seconds before letting one had fall from his belt. 

“So… It seems you spoke with Sanders again,” His hands behind his back comfortably, Fury made his way back around his desk and to his chair. 

Steve’s brow knit, his lips parting only slightly as he thought over his words. 

“I did,” He responds.

“You find out what you needed from her?” The director rested his hands on his desk as he sat down, meeting the captain’s eyes as he was standing quite still a few feet from the front of the desk.

“You worried I’ll hear something I shouldn’t?” Steve tries, his hands coming to rest on his belt as he felt a smile tug at his lips. Something was off, Steve could tell. While the director seemed to be unbothered by the fact that Steve was sticking his nose where it shouldn’t be regarding this operation, it was obvious something wasn’t right. 

“Not at all, Captain” Fury responds lightly, his expression overall calm as he evaluated Steve’s demeanour. “Aside from the fact that you don’t have the level of clearance to have communications with the recruits, there’s nothing that you need to concern yourself with.” 

Steve let his eyes fall as he clenched his jaw, remaining quiet despite the growing desire he had to speak up. Unless there was something to hide, why be so secretive. 

“Hill made me aware of the fact that you want to have another chat. I can’t permit you to have further communications with Sanders, but what are your thoughts on another recruit?” Steve’s eyes returned up as Fury rose from his desk, his own eyes on a small device, most likely a phone as he took a few steps closer before stopping a couple feet from Steve.

“I thought I didn’t have clearance,” Steve raises an eyebrow, his tone somewhat playful in a professional manner as Fury sighed.

“You don’t. But, I suppose I could make an exception, given you’re paranoia. That’s not a promise however. Recruits are kept on a strict schedule so I’ll need to speak with the lead scientist for the division.”

“And Katelyn? Why not her. Surely it seems more logical for me to restrict my contact to only one recruit as opposed to increasing that number,” Steve’s curious expression caused Fury to clench his jaw before giving a tense nod. 

“I know for a fact that her schedule will not permit any further interaction.”

“You know her schedule personally, and not the other recruits... Funny. What’s special about her?” Steve tries, the smallest hint of a smile on his face as Fury’s fell more.

“Is there anything more that you need, Rogers?” The director finally asks.

“No… Not at the moment anyway,” Steve responds, giving a small nod before he began to take a couple steps backwards. “Thank you for your time,” Meeting the director’s eyes once more, Steve turned and exited his office.

It was late in the afternoon by the time Steve got to Stark Tower, which was still under minor construction in some areas. Tony Stark had a knack for having things rebuilt only for him to decide later on he didn’t like it and to have the construction teams break it all down and start over again. 

While there was a large communal area under construction as well as a large hanger for an aircraft of sorts, the team had a private communal area several floors above this area. This is where they had a relatively large communal area which had the appearance of an open concept house in a way; kitchen, dining area, living area, bar, etc. The floors above this area consisted of private rooms and bedrooms.

Walking into the building, Steve’s eyes met the elevator as it opened a few seconds before he  got to it. 

“Captain Rogers,” Jarvis. Tony’s AI, or artificial intelligence.

“Jarvis,” Steve gives a small nod, acknowledging the voice as he walked into the elevator and turned, letting his hands slide into his pockets as the doors closed.

“Mr. Stark requested that I direct you to communal floor A,”

“Sounds good,” Steve gives a small smile as he felt the floor jolt and the lift began to rise.

Less than a minute later Steve’s eyes dotted up as the elevator doors opened and he took a few steps forward into the large space. 

“There he is!” The captain’s head jerked somewhat quickly as Tony Stark approached him from the left, somewhat behind him, as he patted his shoulder momentarily before heading over to where Natasha was sitting at the bar, Clint a few feet from her talking to scientist Bruce Banner.

Pretty much most of the team was present, well- except for Thor, who had off-world activities that needed attending to. 

“Was worried you weren’t gonna show for a while there,” Tony throws the comment over his shoulder as he took a seat at the bar and Steve gave a small nod of understanding before shrugging.

“Got caught up in some work,”

“By work you mean snoopin around SHIELD?” The Stark shoots back, laughing over his drink while Natasha shot Steve a look of amusement.

“Had to give him somethin, Steve” She chuckles, holding a beer that was loosely sitting on her leg.

“How’d it go?” Clint had since turned his attention away from Bruce who was also looking in Steve’s direction.

“Let him walk in the door first,” Natasha breathes, setting her beer on the bar counter before gesturing to a stool for Steve to sit down.

Removing his leather jacket, Steve kept it in hand as he approached the team members, taking a seat on Natasha’s right. 

Seconds later Tony slid a beer across the counter to him and Steve stopped it with ease, giving Tony a small smile and a nod of thanks before opening it. 

“So how’d it go?” Clint laughs, leaning over the bar slightly to see Steve around Natasha. “Details, I’m curious how far you managed to get before being turned away,”

Steve was quiet a moment as he took a small sip from the beer in his hands before glancing in Clint’s direction.

“I spoke with Hill, she didn’t really answer any questions so she sent me to Fury who… sort of answered some questions.”

“Indirectly?” Natasha tries, getting a nod from Steve as he set his beer back on the counter.

“You took it right to the top,” Clint laughs, causing Steve to give a small roll of his eyes.

He wouldn’t have to take this to the top if someone would just be honest with him.

“I only got little details from Mr. and Mrs. Smith here but what is this whole venture you’re undertaking,” The question caused Steve to glance across the bar and at Tony before giving a small sigh.

“This operation SHIELD has me working on now… I’m not exactly thrilled with it.” Steve explains a little quieter as he took another long drink of his beer, letting the hand that was holding it fall into his lap.

“Name?” 

Steve met Tony’s eyes for a moment before he glanced in Nat and Clint’s direction. What the hell. What could they do, fire him?

“Oriah” Steve responds, his voice still on the downlow as Tony gave a slow nod, taking in the word Steve had shared.

“What does this operation entail?” Bruce’s question caused Steve to glance over, past Natasha to where Bruce was, opposite Clint behind the bar.

“Steve,” Natasha gave subtle warning glance as he had turned his attention.

“It’s fine.” Clint breathes a small laugh, nudging Natasha who shook her head with some amusement. 

Steve hesitated his words, trying to put together a simple and quick explanation of what was on his mind.

“Oriah is a SHIELD program that-... rescues kids and young adults with supernatural abilities” Steve explains, meeting Tony’s eyes before letting his gaze dot over to Bruce. 

“Mm hm… Sketchy so far,” Tony mumbles, a hand on his chin as Steve gave a small huff and a nod. 

“Where’s the problem?” Bruce asks hesitantly, seeing Steve’s expression was full of concern.

“They get rescued and trained to be potential agents”

“SHIELD has child soldiers” Tony immediately blurts out, setting his drink down hard on the counter before throwing a hand up.

“Tony that’s not entirely true,”

“How would you word it, Natasha?” Steve turns to meet her eyes, his tone careful but he was trying to hide his annoyance at her defending SHIELD’s controversial actions.

“There are circumstances under which these kids receive agent training. If there is any family for any given child, the kids are rehabilitated so they can readily control any abilities they may have before they are sent home,” She explains carefully.

“I think Cap’s a little more worried about the kids without family, Ms Romanoff” Tony smirks, turning his gaze from her and then back to Steve. 

“So it’s bothering you, they’re discretion regarding the program?” Bruce asks hesitantly, receiving a nod in response from Steve.

“Fury said he’d find a recruit that I can talk to,” Steve says quietly, his eyes turning down to the drink in his hand momentarily, causing a couple heads to turn.

“Fury’s letting you talk to one of them.” Clint responds, almost like he was wanting clarification. 

“I mean I already did a couple times, the same recruit actually, but he says he’ll try to find another one I can talk to,”

“You do realize he’ll probably find one who won’t give you anything, right?” Natasha let some amusement appear in her expression, causing Steve to nod.

“You talked to a recruit already though,” Steve met the archer’s eyes for a moment before nodding. 

“She was on the mission this morning actually,” Steve nods to the side, noticing how Clint moved in his stool as he spoke.

“Oh, the girl who gave us the tablet on Hill’s heat readings,” 

“Yeah, I spoke to her last week at Oriah’s base upstate.”

“Why not just see about talking to her again,” Tony nods with his drink in hand, causing Steve to nod in response before giving a shrug.

“I tried that, but Fury said her schedule wouldn’t allow that…. There’s something different about her I think,” Steve ends up mumbling at the end. “Fury made it clear she would not be an option, but that he could have someone see to it to get a recruit for a conversation. He seemed to not know the schedules of others…”

“Ohh, you think she’s special?” Tony leans over the bar slightly with curious amusement while Steve gave a small role of his eyes and shrugged.

“I don’t know,”

“What’s her name, I can do a little magic,” Tony pulled out his phone seconds later, causing Steve to turn a confused look towards the Stark while Natasha spoke up.

“Tony- no,” She utters, her brow knit as she let out a tired sigh.

“Name, Cap?” Tony only met Steve’s eyes, causing the Captain to hesitate a response.

Steve let his eyes fall momentarily before he glanced towards Natasha and Clint, one of which was giving him a subtly warning look. That being Natasha. Letting his eyes fall away Steve breathed out quietly before glancing up at Tony again.

“Katelyn Sanders.” Steve felt Natasha’s burning gaze fall as she mumbles under her breath, causing Clint to laugh.

“Spelling on the first name?” Tony mumbles, his eyes on the device in his hands as he was typing about.

“K-a-t-e-l-y-n” Steve furthers, his brow knit with some curiosity and hesitation to what Tony may or may not find now that this was happening.

“And you know the spelling how?” At Natasha’s question Steve clenched his jaw before meeting her eyes for a split second. 

When he didn’t respond Clint let out a bit of a laugh, his hand coming down on the bar counter. 

“I thought you were taking a little too long finishing your report. You were snooping!” Barton cackles, causing Steve to sigh before giving a small nod.

“I was curious…. I can access most of the files on the recruits. Just their basic SHIELD files, nothing regarding any of their abilities - just info on physical attributes, age, eye and hair color, all that… At first when I went looking for her file I kept coming up empty, no search results. “

“Like she was hidden in the system.” Clint furthers, giving the smallest of nods as he took in Steve’s words.

“Once I finally found it, I couldn’t even look at it. It was completely sealed.” Steve finishes, his voice lowering as his eyes dotted from Clint to Natasha.

“I must say- I am intrigued,” Tony’s eyes shot up over his phone momentarily as he met the captain’s eyes when he turned. “Jarvis, lets try to keep this discreet this time round,” Tony calls out, his attention on his phone as he did a couple last things.

“Will do sir,”

“I’ll let you know Cap,” Tony looked up to meet Steve’s eyes one more, who gave a small nod in response.

“Thank you,” While Tony could push buttons sometimes, his intelligence and skill always proved to be an asset. 

“No problem, now if you'll excuse me, I have some other things that need attending to,” He holds his drink out as he departed.

“See you guys later tonight. Banner you comin?”

“Yeah I’ll be down,” Bruce called, his gaze seemingly lost on the counter before he glanced up at Steve. “... You think SHIELD’s treating these kids a certain way?” 

Meeting the doctor’s eyes Steve gave the smallest shrug. While he didn’t want to jump the gun, SHIELD wasn’t exactly sweet and innocent to begin with.

“Maybe, I dunno” He sighs, shaking his head before taking another drink from his beer. “They’re being extremely tight-lipped about it, and if there’s nothing to hide I don’t see the point” 

Giving a small nod, Bruce met Steve’s eyes once more before pushing off the counter.

“Let me know how it goes,” 

“I will,” Steve gives a nod as the Doctor departed for the elevator, leaving Clint and Natasha, both of whom were eyeing Steve.

“You do realize with some patience you can get your answers,” Romanoff makes clear, obviously a little annoyed at Steve’s actions.

“Well with a little patience I can also get answers from Tony in a fraction of the time,” Steve mumbles over his beer quietly, almost as if he was hoping she wouldn’t hear his comment as Clint wheezed.

“Man you do realize you may be getting paranoid over nothing,” Barton makes clear, the amusement clear in his expression Steve shrugged.

“I hope so but… I doubt it”

BANG BANG BANG

Kate’s eyes snap open, the noise echoing throughout her room as someone proceeded to hit the door again to alert her of them entering. 

She quickly pushed herself up off the bed, turning her eyes towards the door as it was pushed open and two individuals walked in. 

“Lets go.” He nodded to the way out.

She pushed up off of the bed before walking towards him. Her hands subconsciously raised and he locked on cuffs before directing her out of the room. Walking down the hall, her eyes were on the floor mostly. There wasn’t anything new to look at. 

As usual, around once a month she ate meals with other recruits. She was unsure as to why. Other recruits ate meals in the cafeteria normally. She ate alone, mostly because her training didn’t leave much time for meals throughout the day. Eating only slowed her down, so she usually received the essential nutrients from an IV pump or through other means. She had light foods on occasion if she didn’t have training the following day.

As they got closer to one of the elevators, her eyes lifted to see Doctor Gordon waiting. 

“You know the drill. No talking to anyone. Eat something and then report back.” Gordon states, barely looking at her before he scanned his badge next to the elevator door and pressed the up button.

Walking into the elevator, Kate’s eyes were down before the doors closed behind them. The two individuals who had retrieved her from her room were still behind her, a hand was still gripping her shoulder - the one who had directed her about the halls.

When the elevator came to a stop, Kate felt the hand leave her shoulder as one of the men left the elevator, the other walking in front of her to remove the cuffs.

She was quiet as they ushered her out and down the hall a few feet before they left her there and headed back for the elevator.

Kate stood there for a moment, alone in the hall as different employees walked to and fro down the hallway. 

Clenching her jaw, Kate crossed her arms before heading down the hall. As she came to the end of it, the space opened up into the cafeteria. The sound of chatter picked up as Kate entered the space and made a beeline for the end of the line. She quickly grabbed a tray and looked up to meet the eyes of the employee standing there ready to take ID cards from the recruits.

She didn’t have one. As soon as the man’s eyes met hers, realization came over his face and he nodded for her to go.

Kate tried to keep her head down as she went through the line, grabbing some tiny portions of random food before exiting the line. At the beverage counter, Kate quickly grabbed a bottled water, mug, and snatched a random tea bag from the boxes available. She then found a table with no one sitting at it and set her tray down. 

She didn’t like sitting in the cafeteria. There were way too many people, and there were extra staff - armed staff - in the room because she was there. 

Ripping open the small package, Kate removed the tea bag before placing it into her mug. Taking the water bottle, she poured half of it before placing it next to her tray. Might as well let it steep now, then heat it later. There was a small line near the microwave.

Kate quickly went to work on her food. She needed to eat quickly. 

…. Okay, that wasn’t entirely necessary. But Gordon would find an excuse to get angry, so best hurry to avoid retribution.

Kate had been with SHIELD for a long time. It was a little blurry every now and then, but she could put a timeline together in her head if she had the right headspace to think about it. She knew most of the employees, at least the ones that worked with her, and had her schedule down. However something had changed more recently, and she was unsure as to what was going on. Doctor Gordon was rushing a lot. He was more anxious and seemed as if he wanted to get to a certain point in her training before something else could take place.

The sound of the elevator opening caused Kate to tense up immediately.

Crap. They’re coming to get her already. Had fifteen minutes gone by that quickly? There was no way.

Kate tilted her head only slightly. Agent Hill was coming. Weird. She didn’t usually visit the cafeteria out of the blue, unless she had superiors with her. There was someone else. Someone she didn’t recognize. A man. 

Kate was quiet as she picked at some of her food, zoning out the chatter of the room as she tried to pick up on Hill’s voice. She seemed to be telling this man about the facility. After a few seconds, Kate heard a quiet ringing. A phone. 

Moments later Agent Hill walked away and Kate shot a quick glance over, seeing the man standing there alone, looking a bit lost. Weird. Why was he here? Time for bad decision making. 

Collecting her mug, Kate got up from her seat and headed towards the microwave. She got a quick glance at the man who was standing there evaluating the room. As she drew closer he seemed to eye her in particular. 

Who was he? Dirty blond hair, blue eyes, strong build… Most likely a field agent. However there was something different about him, he didn’t seem like the normal field agents that visit the facility.

Kate felt her hand gripping the mug tighten as she proceeded to walk closer to him.

Great, he’s standing in front of the microwave. What could make the day better than having to speak to an unfamiliar, and most likely green agent. Gordon would have her head.

“Excuse me sir,” Kate cleared her throat and gestured to the wall behind him where the microwave was sitting.

At her words, the man quickly turned to see he was blocking the appliance and moved out of the way, giving her a small smile. 

Kate tried to be respectful, but also avoid eye contact. She shouldn’t be talking with anyone to begin with.

Placing the mug into the microwave she closed the door and put a time on the keypad before pressing the start button. The device began to hum as the table within started to slowly spin. 

Kate hesitantly turned her eyes, seeing the man looking out over the room at the other recruits. By his posture, he seemed a bit uneasy, but also curious and observant. He was definitely new. But why was he here? She hadn’t seen Agent Hill take anyone on a tour of the facility except higher up agents, the council- or whatever the Director of SHIELD called them. She had seen them before visiting once. They wanted to see her in particular since she’s supposed to be of great importance to SHIELD’s future field wor-

Kate’s eyes dot towards the microwave as she felt eyes on her. The man was eyeing her. He was trying to be discreet… key word being trying. She waited a moment to see if he was planning on engaging in conversation or if he was just curious. Perhaps he already knew who she was. 

Kate clenched her jaw after a moment, her focus on this man next to her as she waited for the microwave to finish heating her tea this century. How long did she even put it in for.

He was wearing a sort of all black tactical suit. It was different from others she had seen. There was a star on his chest and faint stripes. He stood very straight and seemed pretty attentive; probably from a military background. 

“Excuse me, miss?”

Damn it. 

Kate turned quickly, her hands already having gone behind her back as she adjusted her posture.

“Sir?” She responds, her eyes meeting his. She could tell almost immediately how he was hesitant to speak up. 

“You’re a recruit for Oriah correct?” He looked very hesitant, but his voice was pretty confident. His approach was very different from pretty much every individual from SHIELD she had encountered previously. All agents addressed her from a position of authority, however he was talking to her like you would a random stranger you stop on the side of the road to ask for directions. 

“Yes sir, I am.” Kate nodded in response to his question, trying to mask some of her own hesitation while talking to him. “What’s your name?” 

Ok he definitely didn’t know who she was. While no one really told Kate what her stake was in SHIELD, she knew she was treated much differently from other recruits. They held her in high regard, she was valuable. They had plans for how she would serve SHIELD in the future. This man obviously wasn’t aware of that. Which was kind of amusing for some reason.

“Katelyn, or just- Kate.” That sounded weird coming out of her mouth. She hadn’t said her name out loud in- a while. Hell, she hadn’t really spoken out loud in a while either, so that was an interesting change.

“Alright Kate, I’m Captain Steve Rogers.” The now named stranger held out a hand and Kate froze.

What the hell? This guy was a riot. He really had no idea about this program did he?

It took several seconds, but Kate finally held out a hand and shook his. 

“Wondered if you could answer a couple questions? I’m a little new here.” He chuckled.

No kidding. 

Kate gave him a small nod as he smiled. He was a little nervous. He was hiding it well, but still. She could tell, no supernatural abilities needed. Wait- she needed to say something in response.

“I -uh, yes sir, Captain.” She dropped her hand from his before turning them behind her back. 

A beeping filled the air and Kate paid it no mind as she eyed the Captain. 

“How uh, how long have you been here?” He asked. 

Kate was quiet for only a moment while thinking over her answer. She was somewhat sure, but needed to give him the impression that she was pretty certain. If she was unsure, it might set off alarm bells.

“Coming up on three years, Captain.” Kate gave him a nod, making sure to remain standing attentively while answering his questions.

“That considered a long time?” Captain Rogers asked, bringing his hands up to rest on his belt. He did the action so smoothly and without thought, it was almost like he did it subconsciously. His posture relaxed a bit, but remained straight. He was getting more comfortable.

“Not necessarily.” Kate responded, eyeing him calmly. “I guarantee there could be individuals who have been here longer, but I suppose it’s longer than most of the recruits here.” 

Emphasis on that statement. She couldn’t really think of anyone who had been there longer than she was, not of the top of her head at least. There were some, no doubt about that. But Oriah was fairly new when she got there. It was small, private, and not on the large scale that it was now. 

“And with the training you’ve received. It’s been beneficial? Have you found it helpful?” Captain Rogers asked. 

Kate clenched her jaw at the question, taking a moment to just stare at his curious and almost innocent expression. 

“I- suppose so, sir.” Kate says, still watching him as she calmed her confused appearance.

For the first time in a while, Kate was at a loss for what to do - Who the hell was this guy? No one talked to her like that. He was obviously very new to this program- hell, maybe even SHIELD. Why did he have to pick her? She'd get into so much trouble for this later.

“Captain Rogers, a word.”

Crap. Agent Hill. 

Kate quickly adjusted her stance and almost went rigid as she stood straighter, her hands tightening behind her back as she unfocused her eyes from Captain Rogers.

The Captain had turned away from her and was eyeing the Deputy Director of SHIELD when she turned to look at Kate.

“Sanders you can go, I apologize.” Agent Hill waved a hand, giving her permission to leave.

“It’s not a problem, ma’am.” Kate quickly nodded before turning to the Captain. “Sir,” She gave him a curt nod and waited a moment for a response. 

Captain Rogers gave her a small smile before nodding in response. That’s- one way to dismiss an inferior non-agent er- recruit. 

Kate quickly turned and grabbed her tea from the microwave before heading for her table. She took a seat, remaining very attentive and straight in her posture. Until they left the room, Kate wanted to remain vigilant.

“If you’re done breaking protocol, I have to get a report back to the director. I’ll escort you out.” Agent Hill spoke. 

Kate’s brow knit as she turned only slightly to see the Captain following Agent Hill. Seconds later the man turned and Kate’s head shot back towards the table, but she could still tell his eyes were on her before he left the room. 

Kate slowly looked back over towards where they had disappeared. Odd. Wait-... Damn it.

Her eyes shooting towards the clock, Kate noticed it was past her time to be in the cafeteria. Gulping down her now lukewarm tea, Kate threw the remains of her meal into the trash before she headed towards the hall opposite of where Captain Rogers and Agent Hill left. 

Gordon wouldn’t be happy.

Doctor Gordon wasn’t anywhere to be seen once Kate returned from her meal. In fact, he wasn’t around for the rest of the day until later that night when he entered her room. 

Kate was sitting in the chair near the desk in her room when Gordon walked in.

“You’re going on assignment soon.” He says, standing with his arms crossed in the doorway. “By order of Director Fury. The date is undecided so you’ll be off any major training for the next several days.”

Kate was quiet, listening as she met his eyes. She rarely ever acknowledged him verbally. He was very…. Disconnected. Kept her in a more isolated mindset actually, which probably proved easier for her other handlers, Gordon being her main handler. 

“You will most likely be with other SHIELD recruits who are not part of Oriah, but with another program. You are not to communicate with them for any purpose, unless it is instructed to you by an agent. You will only speak if absolutely necessary, understood?”

Kate kept her mouth shut, but blinked her eyes once and looked down.

“Good… Soon we won’t be dealing with these surprise requests from the Director. You’ll be on to more advanced training and I can further my research. You mess this up, and you’ll regret it.” He muttered towards the end of his explanation before turning to leave.

Kate’s eyes remained on the ground as the Doctor went to leave, only to stop and turn to look at her.

“I was informed that you spoke to someone today during your meal block.” 

Kate clenched his jaw at his statement. Well shit. Nice going, Kate. Really nailed it this time.

While he worded it in a curious manner, Kate waited to see if he would add. 

“A Captain. What did he want?”

“He wanted to know about Oriah. He was new.” Kate responded, meeting Gordon’s eyes for a moment as he nodded in response.

“I was told you did well to steer him off.” 

“I did what I could, sir.” Kate answered.

“Good.” 

And with that the door was shut, and Kate was alone again. 

Well… That went better than expected. He was pretty lenient. 

But that aside, she had an assignment. It wasn’t entirely uncommon. Within the last several months, the Director had been ordering Gordon to send her on assignments. Something about getting exposure to mission work. The Director seemed to have a clear idea in his head about when and where he wanted Kate to be working. All of which Gordon was against. He had a clear picture in his head about what Kate was for. She was essentially his most significant project at the moment, and had been for a while. 

Getting up from the chair, Kate went to the bed and sat down. Collecting her thoughts for a moment she breathed out quietly before lying down. Hopefully this assignment will go well. If she kept her head down and followed orders, there shouldn’t be a problem.

“Sanders, you good with computers?” Agent Watson, her superior, called over to her.

Kate looked up from what she was doing and gave a nod. 

“Yes sir,”

“Alright. I need you to find the digital copies of these files and transfer them over to Oriah’s server. Someone misplaced them.” He added, looking over a stack of files in his hands for a moment before he looked to the agents sitting on her left. “Hand those over to Sanders,”

Kate waited for a moment as the files got passed over to her. She took them, not making eye contact with either of the two boys next to her before placing the stack of files on her right.

The week went by slowly, as she didn’t have much to do and only partook in some minor training until a mission was approved. She was sent later at night and they arrived early the next morning. It was around 4am at the moment, and she was in a small trailer near the point of interest for the assignment, which ended up being one for Oriah. 

There were two teams of agents, as well as a few higher ranking agents that she hadn’t seen yet. A curtain blocked view outside the open trailer, the ramp on the other side. She was certain there was a quinjet parked on the other side of the curtain. As a few agents were walking to and fro between locations, she sometimes got a view outside. It was still very dark out, but she could make out some things. 

Turning her attention down, Kate grabbed one of the files off the top of the stack before placing it in front of her. She perused the information on the front of the file for a moment before she looked up at the computer. The easiest method was probably to look for the code labeled on the file. It would search most of the database, but would only bring up files with similar codes. Considering she had the last several digits to work with, it probably wouldn’t take more than a few minutes per file. 

“Hey have you seen who’s on this mission yet?” The boy next to her spoke up, causing Kate’s eyes to dot in their direction for only a moment. 

“No, but I heard an avenger was going to be here.” A boy with blond hair on the end responded, causing the one next to her to turn.

“Shut up - seriously? I’m so throwing this in Bethany’s face when we get back if that’s true. She’ll be so pissed.”

“Stop the chatter, get to work.” Watson snaps, causing the two next to her to quickly look down at their work. They were mostly on monitor duty, making sure com systems remained up and there was no interference.

Kate was sure that they were simply there to get some experience working in the field. They seemed eager and excited. It was a little refreshing but also a bit distracting and nerve wracking. They were chatty, most likely friends.

“Sanders,” Kate’s head snapped up at Agent Watson speaking up and she stopped what she was doing.

“Sir?”

“You’re working quietly. Why don’t you take this over to the team in the jet. Agent Hill sent in some readings for the area.” He held out a tablet and Kate quickly took it before standing. She caught sight of the boys looking at her with surprise.

Kate walked towards the end of the trailer and pulled the curtain back, almost freezing in place when she spotted Captain Rogers of all people standing on the ramp of the quinjet, looking out at the building ahead. He didn’t seem to notice her at first.

Kate swallowed and breathed out quietly before walking towards him. 

“Sir, excuse me.” Kate spoke up.

It didn’t take the Captain more than a second before he turned and looked at her. Confusion, then realization and surprise came across his face and he remained quiet.

“Message from Agent Hill.” Kate explained before holding out the tablet.

The Captain looked at a loss for words and seemed to grow more confused by her before he pulled together a smile. 

“Katelyn,” He greeted quietly before taking the tablet from her, not even looking at it. 

“Captain Rogers,” She nodded in response and gave him a small smile, returning her hands behind her back. She looked briefly up the ramp to see two agents, one of which had a quiver on his back, was eyeing her. He smirked after a couple seconds before he looked back towards a hologram map at the front of the jet.

“Thank you,” He gave her a nod while holding the tablet up a little higher.

At his words Kate turned and headed back for the trailer. Closing the curtain behind her, Kate returned to her seat and original job of sorting out files.

“Dude, that was Captain America. He knows your name?”

The question caused Kate to turn and eye the boy next to her. Captain America? The- world war two hero? Wrong century pal. 

“Captain Rogers,” Kate states in response. Gordon’s words echoed in her ears briefly until it was interrupted by the boy once again.

“No- he’s an avenger, Captain America. I saw two others up inside the jet too. Can’t believe there’s three avengers on this mission with us. You should’ve asked for his autograph or something!” The boy laughed.

Kate was quiet as her brow knitted. She turned back to the file in front of her and picked it up, the boy’s words coming back to her. Autograph… Why would she ask for his written name?

“I’m Jared,” He adds, leaning closer to her, almost like he was trying to keep his voice down before he gave her a small smile. “Hey, are you new or somethin? I haven’t seen you around campus before” He turned, looking at her as she proceeded to look through the first file.

Gordon said not to engage in conversation with anyone unless an agent addressed her. Jared wasn’t getting the message.

“You a transfer?” Jared shut up. 

“She’s from that facility upstate.” The boy further down, on the other side of Jared spoke up. His statement caused Kate’s eyes to shoot over to them for a split second before they returned to the file in front of her. “Am I right, Sanders? They have the people with powers stored up there or something.”

“Shit, no way. So you came from one of these places like they’re raiding right now. You have superpowers. Can you like- shoot fireballs or turn invisible or something?” Jared asked, sitting up straighter in his seat with curiosity.

“No.” Kate responds, her eyes double checking the code on the face of the file before she looked up at the digital list.

“What about flying? Can you fly?”

“I’m not authorized to disclose that information.” Kate responds, her eyes on the screen as she continued to go through the files.

“I get that. You’re superiors probably keep that all underwraps, but I’m pretty trustworthy, so you can tell me.” Jared gives her a small smile and Kate continues to ignore him.

This was going to be a long day.

It had been a few hours, and eventually Agent Watson smacked Jared in the back of the head with a rolled up file to get him to shut up. Thank you Agent Watson.

The teams had returned from the building and Kate noticed them all walking back and forth from the jet. By the look of things, and by conversations she had overheard, it didn’t go well.

Captain Rogers was visible up in the jet, along with others. One of the agents who had entered the trailer left the curtain open; Kate could easily see out towards the jet. 

While the agents seemed occupied with getting things sorted out, Captain Rogers was mostly quiet and seemed to be lost in thought. 

In the past few hours, Kate had finished organizing the stack of files digitally in SHIELD’s database, and moved them all to Oriah’s server. Now Kate was just on standby in case Agent Watson needed her to do something. He was giving the Jared kid and his friend most of the work to do. 

Glancing towards the opening on her right, at the end of the trailer, Kate noticed Captain Rogers sitting down, his gazed zoned out. A red-haired woman was standing near him, talking quietly before she touched his shoulder and left the jet, heading out of view towards the building ahead.

Kate watched as the Captain looked towards the open space between the trailer and jet, towards the building. Whatever he looked at seemed to affect him as he quickly looked away and closed his eyes for a moment, breathing out. 

Kate continued to eye him quietly. By his expression he seemed pretty upset. They must have killed everyone again. If he was new to this, chances are he wasn’t used to seeing dozens of dead children. It was a common occurrence with the warehouse. Which is what anyone who had been taken by the organization called it, just ‘the warehouse’, usually because those were the buildings they kept the kidnapped children in. SHIELD didn’t call it that however. They didn’t really have a name for it. 

Kate realized seconds later Captain Rogers was eyeing her. He must’ve felt her watching him. He didn’t seem unsettled at finding her watching him, but continued to eye her with what appeared to be curiosity, and Kate did the same. 

She hadn’t seen someone act so… dispirited by the findings of one of these missions. Ok- getting weird now. Stop staring at the man.

Kate looked down and back at the screen, letting her eyes graze the words on the screen as a cover for thinking about her little staring contest. Seconds later she saw movement out of the corner of her eye and glanced over to see Captain Rogers on his feet before he disappeared from view, having walked down the ramp and towards the building’s open courtyard. 

“These all alphabetized, Sanders?” The question caused Kate to quickly look over at Agent Watson as he approached and Kate gave him a nod.

“Yes sir,” She picked up the stack, holding it out for him.

“Good work,” He gave her a quick smile before quickly walking away.

Kate slouched over in her chair only slightly before returning her eyes to the screen, seconds later letting them shift towards the opening of the trail outside. 

The assignment only lasted a few more hours before they started sending small teams back to base. The trailer was hooked back up to a vehicle and brought back to New York. By the time Kate got back to Oriah’s facility, it was around noon. Enough time for Gordon to put her through some quick training. Overall the day proved tiresome, making it just a little easier to fall asleep. 

The next couple days were prep for a trial. The differences between her training and trials was that training was done in preparations for trials. 

By means of the various training sessions she was undergoing so far, she wasn’t excited for this trial. Whatever it was.

“Okay. Levels are stable?” Gordon’s words caused Kate to come back to the present, her eyes dotting around the floor while one of Gordon’s colleagues was putting wireless-capable stickers on her so that the team in the other room could monitor her vitals while she was training.

“Good to go, sir.” The man responded before walking back towards the door. 

Kate’s eyes met the three men in front of her, waiting patiently for the session to start. Some SHIELD field agents worked with Oriah recruits when they were not needed for assignments. However, Kate noticed it was usually the same guys she worked with. She wasn’t sure if they enjoyed beating her up, or if that was just part of the job description for them. The training session either landed on one end of the spectrum or the other. They beat her down, or she beats them down. 

“Alright, get ready guys. A1 needs proper preparation for tomorrow’s trial. No holding back.” Gordon spoke into the intercom on the other side of the glass. It was not reflective, so they could see through it. 

A1… Yeah. Maybe normal names are going out of style.

Kate backs up a few steps, her eyes dotting from one man to the others. 

They all turned, eyeing her as they spread out around the room. It was a medium sized space, more long and rectangular as opposed to square and open.

Kate felt her hands close into shallow fists as her eyes snapped between the individuals now stalking towards her slowly, anticipating any movement. 

BEEP BEEP BEEP

Kate’s eyes jerked over to the emergency door as it opened and- Agent Hill walked in. Why-... What was she doing here?

Immediately the three men backed off as the Deputy Director entered the room.

“Gordon, we need to postpone this training session for another time.” She calls, walking towards the far wall where Gordon was with half a dozen other scientists and doctors, all ready to take notes on the now interrupted training. 

“I need to borrow Sanders.”

“Agent Hill, could you have interrupted this session in a more professional fashion?” Gordon almost seethed as he opened the door, allowing Hill to walk in as he closed it behind her.

Kate watched through the glass as they began talking. Gordon was furious, she could tell. 

Why did Agent Hill need her… What could possibly validate cutting off a training session before a trial. 

Letting her eyes meet the glass again she watched as Gordon angrily threw something down onto the desk at the front of the room before he walked toward the door. Opening it, his frustrated gaze met Kate’s as he ushered her over.

“You’re going with Agent Hill. I don’t want you giving her any trouble. Follow instructions so you can get back here quickly.” He mutters before jerking his hand around for her to move. Kate quickly backed up, allowing him to walk further into the training space. Hill followed not far behind as she met Kate’s eyes.

“Sanders, I need you for a small assignment.” She stated, her tone quite professional.

Kate was quiet for only a moment before she gave a nod. 

“Yes, ma’am.”

Agent Hill met the doctor’s eyes for a moment before she put a hand on Kate’s shoulder and ushered her to the main exit door of the training room.

“I’ll debrief you on the situation later.”

“Yeah, you do that.” Gordon muttered, watching them leave.

Once the door closed and Kate was alone with Agent Hill in the hall, she felt herself relaxing only slightly. Hill was very professional, but had a warmer aura than Gordon did. 

They got into a car and drove to another SHIELD facility. Kate had visited this one before. The windows of the vehicle were darkly tinted, however Kate could still see outside. She tried not to focus too much on that however. She kept quiet and her eyes down. 

This SHIELD base was in the state of New York. That she knew. When she met with the Director on occasion, she got hints throughout the facility that they were in New York. Mostly because 90% of the license plates in the hanger had new york plates. Due to the length of the drive, Kate figured the Oriah facility was also in New York.

She hadn’t met with the Director of SHIELD for a few months. He usually made sure to check in on her regularly. Why, she never understood. He wasn’t exactly an emotional or passionate person, however he always asked her genuine questions about how she was doing and whether her training was going well. Kind of like that Captain Rogers fellow. 

As they walked into a large office, Kate’s eyes briefly searched the space before she looked towards the desk where Director Fury was, standing near his window while eyeing the view.

“Thank you, Agent Hill.” He spoke up before turning, his eyes meeting his Deputy before they landed on Kate.

“Sir,” She gave a nod before touching Kate’s shoulder only slightly to usher her forward. 

Once Agent Hill left, Kate took a couple steps closer, her hands coming behind her back.

“You wanted to see me, sir?” Kate cleared her throat before speaking up hesitantly. There was a little more uncertainty in her voice than she would have liked, but it didn’t seem to faze the director.

“I did.” He responded, his eyes still outside as he was barely facing her. 

Kate remained where she was, eyeing the Director with only a hint of curiosity. 

He was unlike anyone she had ever met at SHIELD. Again- other than that Captain Rogers fellow. That one was just a little weird. But Director Fury talked to her very casually. He’d talk about little random things from the day if he felt like it. It always confused Kate, as she was only really ever addressed if it was a question Gordon needed her to answer, or something else from the employees at Oriah. Otherwise she never engaged in conversation.

“Your training is going well?” He asked.

“Yes sir.” Kate responded, watching as Director Fury’s hand that was resting on the glass dropped before he turned to face her. 

“You’ve seen Captain Rogers a couple times now, haven’t you?” 

… Well shit. 

Kate clenched her jaw, her posture tensing as she hesitated her answer before she gave a nod.

“I have, sir.”

“He’s taken a particular interest in you?” That was a question. He was asking her what she thought.

“I believe he is new.” Kate responds while watching Fury walk towards his desk. “If I am not mistaken, sir.” “You’re not.” He looked up to meet her eyes for a moment before he opened a file on his desk. “What’s your opinion on him, Sanders?” 

She wasn’t completely surprised at him asking questions. But-... This was rather odd.

“He doesn’t seem like a threat, sir. If that’s what you’re inquiring about.” Kate stated, watching as the Director gave a bit of a chuckle at her words.

“He has requested to speak with an Oriah recruit. He did not specify you, not at first. But I would like to send you to speak with him.”

“Sir?” Kate couldn’t help but express her confusion.

So this Captain Rogers fellow wasn’t done yet. What else could he possibly want to know?

“You will be going to Stark Tower, in the city. There Rogers will want to ask you some questions about the program.”

“You’d like me to simply answer his questions, sir?” Kate adjusted her hands so they were clasped in front of her as the Director continued.

“Yes. However, I will warn you. He will try to make it personal. He wants to know exactly how you feel, and what your training in particular is like. You are to steer him off of these questions.”

Why would this guy want to know about her situation in particular? What was he so interested in? She wanted to ask, but kept her mouth shut. Director Fury wouldn’t mind her asking the questions, but he’d most likely steer her off of them. 

“Another thing,” The Director’s words caused Kate to straighten her posture as she met his eyes. “While you are there, you may encounter Tony Stark, and some other agents. Stark is…” The Director’s words almost caused Kate to raise an eyebrow. His tone almost indicated a light warning of sorts. “He’s a bit much. He might pester you a bit, just hold your ground and he’ll lose interest. My other two agents will also be leaving on assignment, so there's a chance you will encounter them. However I don’t believe either of them should pose any trouble to you.”

Kate listened quietly as Fury went on to explain the building layout as well as other aspects of her visit. It was in the heart of the city. While she wouldn’t be outside for long, it was nerve wracking to think about. 

“Also,” Kate clenched her jaw as Fury looked up from the file and met her eyes. “Captain Rogers is… a bit unique. He may be uncertain as to what kinds of questions he wants to ask, just go along.”

“Will do, sir.” Kate nodded.

The meeting with Captain Rogers was… interesting. He was really the most interesting person she had met who worked for SHIELD. He was so unlike the stoic, unsympathetic agents she usually encountered. 

He had a big heart. She could tell. She almost felt bad for him. How did he wind up with this organization? His ideals clashed with most of SHIELDs - he just seemed out of place.

During the whole- interview of sorts, she just froze up. She was expecting personal questions, but at the level that he was questioning her, he seemed exceptionally concerned and she froze up and got extremely nervous. He just tried to calm her and assure her that she was safe. Getting comforted made her uncomfortable to begin with. The ‘S’ in SHIELD didn’t exactly stand for sympathetic.

As a result of her visit to the city, Gordon was even more furious. Once she got back from the interview, Gordon put her through more training. 

Once it was over, they took her to a back room for physical evaluation. Everything hurt. Her body felt like it had one giant pulse, causing a shooting pain to race through her muscles.

She was on autopilot. She couldn’t think outside of what she was hearing and seeing, her eyes zoned out at the opposite wall.

“Doctor would you like us to record data fo-”

“Just get the basic readings down. Until I have this subject up in our new training facility, we are not going to rest. Understood?” Gordon. 

A pinch was felt in her hand as an IV was attached. There were employees doing other tasks, specifics she didn’t notice as her eyes were unfocused.

“Any visible injuries?”

“None, sir. Although there appears to be deep muscle damage from-”

“Administer an Epinephrine injection, I want her ready by tomorrow for the next trial.”

That word. It was familiar. 

“S-Sir, this kind of damage needs at least a week to hea-”

“We don’t have time for this. Get the Epinephrine, give a high dose. I want the subject ready tomorrow.”

Tomorrow. A trial. 

There was movement around her and something cold and wet was felt on her arm before there was a pinch, and something cool was injected.

Not seconds later she tensed in the chair, her pupils blown wide before her breathing began to spike erratically. 

The next several minutes were a blur. She was moved down halls and through corridors before she was placed onto something soft, but still firm. Her bed. The door was shut and there was silence. It was pitch back.

A heart beat… Her heart beat. It was loud as it pounded rapidly in her chest. Her breath was light and quick. She could feel cold beads of sweat on her forehead as they slid down past her ears, into her hair, down the back of her neck.

There was nothing but the sound of her own heartbeat and hyperventilating. 

“I brought you some contraband,” Captain Rogers cracked a small nervous smile while holding out candy.

Captain Rogers was something of a blessing and a curse. She had known this man for no more than hours, combined that is. Having seen him on a number of occasions, with every visit, he seemed to cause her, as well as himself, more trouble.

“Figured it’d be a little treat to make up for everything a few days ago,” The Captain gave a small shrug before lightly tossing it to her. 

She caught it gracefully and let her eyes fall to look the food over. 

“Candy.” Kate mumbled, letting her eyes meet the Captain’s as he gave an eager nod.

“Watermelon, hope you don’t mind. I would’ve brought options but I didn’t want them catching me,” Kate watched as he raised his hands in a surrendering fashion before he let them fall, sliding back in his chair.

He was very comfortable. In an obvious enough manner that he was most likely trying to tell her she could relax too.

She wanted to. But it was hard to drop her guard at the moment. A lot had happened recently, and she was tired. 

He was the first person she had seen and heard since the trial several days ago. They had tossed her back into her room and left her there for a few days. The private time wasn’t bad. The silence though… That was another story. 

Looking over the candy, Kate pulled the wrapper off carefully before examining the lollipop a little closer. 

She could see Captain Rogers eyeing her warmly while she looked the food over. She didn’t mean to be rude, but… She had to take precautions. While she didn’t think he necessarily wanted to harm her, there was no guarantee that he still wasn’t after something. There was always a motive. 

After confirming the candy was safe, Kate put it in her mouth hesitantly and evaluated the taste. It was interesting, and made her lips pucker a bit. It was a little tart, but extremely sweet. Kate, manners.

Quickly removing the candy from her mouth, Kate pulled together a small smile.

“Thank you,” Her eyes fell and met the wrapper loosely in her free hand before she met his eyes again.

“Yeah, you’re welcome.” He gave her a small smile, but his eyes quickly diverted away from hers, and Kate felt him looking her over. There was concern on his face, and his body language seemed to change as the seconds went by.

Kate let her eyes meet the lollipop again and she went to put it back into her mouth when the Captain spoke up.

“Are you alright?” His tone was-... gentle, but almost worried too. His voice was quiet in volume.

Kate paused her actions, knowing she had to answer him. 

“Yes sir, I am.” Kate gave a nod before placing the candy back into her mouth for only a moment. She didn’t even meet his eyes. Well that sure sounded convincing. Nice going. 

Removing the lollipop  once more Kate opened her mouth to speak, hesitating her words for a moment.

“My training is advanced, but I’m capable of handling the off days,” She met his eyes, only to see Captain Rogers not buying the shit she was selling.

He didn’t believe her. Hell she wouldn’t believe her either if she heard that half assed response. I can handle the off days? Yeah, that may work for a receptionist dealing with nasty customers. 

“That Walter guy was a little rough.” He tries, seeming to watch her responses and reactions carefully. She wasn’t lying to herself. While he had this sort of innocent, gullible vibe about him, he was weirdly - at the same time - incredibly hard to lie to. 

Walter. Yeah, Walter was one of the newer agents working with the Oriah recruits. They were probably trying to harden him up by making him beat up recruits.

“He was only doing what he was told,” Kate gave a small shrug before meeting the Captain’s eyes. She displaced some confidence best she could. “He’s okay.”

Looking back down at her lollipop for a moment, Kate racked her brain for more to say. What could she say? What could possibly reassure him that everything was fine and dandy when-... 

If she didn’t steer him off… Gordon would be pissed. 

“Must be different from your normal desserts huh?” The light-hearted comment made Kate snap from her thoughts rather quickly as she looked up at him.

What did he say? Something about dessert?

“Dessert?” Kate found herself saying. Wait- He was asking about normal desserts. Crap- that was not the best response.

“Fruit…” Captain Rogers responded, his eyes having narrowed just barely while he looked at her. “Gordon says fruit is served as dessert for the recruits.” He explained, watching her closely.

Kate felt her eyes widen involuntarily before she quickly looked down.

Quick say something. Don’t just sit there like a statue.

“O-Of course, yeah… Sorry, sir.” Kate stuttered out, her eyes still exploring the oh so very interesting floor. Because what else could one possibly be looking at other than the very interesting floor. 

“I just forgot. I usually don’t get- dessert.” Kate’s statement trailed off into a mumble as she felt herself growing smaller.

Let’s just rent a bulldozer to make this grave a little deeper. Why the hell not. 

“... Kate,” The Captain spoke up in a more gentle tone and Kate felt herself grow even smaller. “Do you usually eat meals with other recruits?” He asked. The question came more clearly. Still gentle, but direct. 

Kate closed her eyes for only a moment before they involuntarily shot over to the window. Just keep digging that hole deeper. Nothing to lose.

“Its ok, you can tell me. Just between us,” 

“I don’t.” Kate finally stated, a look of defeat on her face.

“You eat alone,” Captain Rogers nodded and sat up just a fraction at hearing her response. His posture seemed to relax once again before he leaned forward a bit, his elbows on his knees. “In here?”

Nodding in response, Kate forced herself to meet his eyes once again. 

“I- most of my nutrients come from an IV pump.” 

Lets just upchuck all this classified information.

“I usually get light foods on days where I don’t have trials or testing. That way it won’t affect my performance.”

All the while Captain Rogers was listening closely. 

“These trials that they give you. Are they normally- like that.” His voice lowered and Kate felt herself tense only slightly at the tone of his voice. It shifted only slightly, but she could sense the irritation.

The longer the conversation went one, the more Kate wanted to speak up. Why- she didn’t know. He wanted her to spill all these details about how she was treated, and while her better judgement screamed for her not to… Something told her she had to.

“Not always.” Kate responded, her gaze turning towards the window.

It was reflective glass… That she knew. It looked like a mirror, but she knew it wasn’t.

“Don’t worry about that, I made sure no one was over there when I came in.” The Captain’s words caused Kate’s eyes to drop before she looked over at him. “I’m talking with the Director,” 

Oh great. He took it right to the top. This man wasn’t wasting any time.

“I want to see about getting this training you’re undergoing sorted out.”

“S-Sir, I don’t-”

“Kate, I don’t mean to make you uncomfortable by being bothered by the treatment they’re giving you, but I’m not going to stand by while knowingly letting it happen.” His tone was sincere and almost a little scolding to be honest. 

Kate clenched her jaw, her pointer and thumb twirling the lollipop gently before she shook her head lightly.

“Sir, with respect I wish you hadn’t interfered.” She spoke up quietly, hesitating to meet his eyes as she thought over her words.

“Because they’ll punish you for it.” Captain Rogers nodded to himself, and while there was a hint of question in his voice he appeared to have already made up his mind. 

Pfft, yeah pretty much.

“N-No, I mean- it just complicates things. They’ll change my schedule around and flip everything on its head to try and lose you.” Kate met his eyes, her brow knit together as she shook her head. “Not to mention they’ll put you on their watchlist.” Kate uttered, trying not to roll her eyes as she put the lollipop into her mouth. 

Gordon saw everyone as a threat to his work. If they did anything that inconvenienced him, they’d be marked a permanent threat to his work. 

“Watchlist,” Captain Rogers’ tone turned confused.

This grave is going to be so deep, it’s starting to become a hazard.

“Metaphorical.” Kate stated after taking the lollipop from her mouth. “They talk about you sometimes.”

Indeed. She knew they talked about him. While she didn’t hear too much directly. She heard the other employees discussing how the Captain was interfering with Gordon’s very precise schedule with several visits he made to the facility.

“Anyone in particular, or just some of the employees…” The Captain trailed off.

Kate was amused by his tone. He was curious, but also sounded like he was trying to hide that curiosity.

“My uh, my handler… Doctor Gordon.” Kate responded, her voice growing quieter on identifying the man. 

“So he’s your handler.” Captain Rogers stated, realization having come across his face. 

Kate was quiet for a moment as he rubbed a hand over his face before giving a small nod. Perhaps he was realizing that he wasn’t going unnoticed now at the facility. 

“He doesn’t like me does he?” The Captain’s light tone caused Kate to look up and meet his eyes, noticing the small smile on his face.

She hesitated her response as she found herself breaking a small smile as well before she shook her head.

“Not really no.” She mumbled gently.

“I figured as much… Ever since I started looking into this program, everyone seems to be getting pretty annoyed with me.” As the Captain explained his realizations to her, she watched closely as he adjusted his seat, getting more comfortable again as he rested forward on his elbows.

“Usually that means you’re on the right track… right?” 

At her words, Kate felt her smile fall and she quickly looked down at the ground.

It appears there is a death wish in order.

“Yeah… Yeah it does.” The Captain gave her a small nod and a gente smile. “I like hearing you say what’s on your mind,” 

Kate forced herself to meet his eyes when he leaned forward a bit, probably in hopes to get her attention.

“I’m not gonna let them punish you for that.”

“Sir, you don’t need to worry about me,” Kate finally stated, sitting a little straighter as she got herself in order.

Kate noticed Captain Rogers mirror the action, a sign he was really invested into the conversation.

“With respect, from the perspective of someone who doesn’t fully understand how Gordon does things, it may seem questionable, but its for my ability.”

Captain Rogers was quiet in response to her words for several seconds, his gaze turning towards the ground. 

Kate clenched her jaw in response, unsure as to what he might say. She didn’t know why this man had suddenly dropped out of the sky and into SHIELD’s lap, but she couldn’t help but repeat the evident thought in her head that this guy was different. 

One Week Later… 

It was late morning, and Kate was doing a demonstration for another SHIELD program. She was to use her ability for a series of performances. Director Fury requested that Kate be used for the demonstration. Gordon didn’t like it. Shocker.

The team of agents coming to witness the demonstration were of a science division. Gordon was very specific about what kind of agents he invited into Oriah, it was probably a very small and advanced group of people. They would be sworn to secrecy, and whatever they saw during such a performance, or viewing, they had to keep to themselves. 

Kate was standing in the shade of one of the smaller buildings outside. While pretty much all of the Oriah facility was underground, there were areas above ground. That aside, she wasn’t even at the Oriah facility. She was back at the SHIELD base in New York; the presentation being held on a large field. 

No one had arrived yet, and Kate was waiting with a batch of armed guards and one of SHIELD’s fitness coaches. While she was always held on a short leash, Gordon was being a bit lenient in how others saw her at this base. He put a couple armed guards on her. A SHIELD agent who also worked as a fitness coach at the new york base was nearby getting the field set. The agent was unnamed until Kate saw his face and recognized him as Agent Watson, from her last field assignment. He wasn’t as strict with her as other agents she worked with on assignments were, which was nice. 

The agent was preparing the field for the presentation. It looked like a sports field. SHIELD must have sports teams that compete against each other like the military does.

Gordon wouldn’t be attending the event, and was at another facility. She was a little out of sorts when she heard him mention how he wanted to move her to a different facility. Having overheard some of the employees, it sounded like he was getting this in order at this location. 

Despite the doctor not attending, he was sending several of his colleagues in his place to vouch for him and explain the program. 

Looking around at the field, Kate let her eyes slowly draw down to the ground beneath her feet. Just under a foot in front of her, the sun was shining on the grass. She wanted to feel the warmth, but knew she probably shouldn’t move from her spot. As the three armed men on her left seemed a little itchy to catch her doing something wrong.

“Sanders!”

Kate’s head shot up at hearing her name and her eyes snapped over to the field where Agent Watson was.

“Give me a hand over here! Could use a little help cleaning up some of this equipment.”

“Sir,” Kate called in response, giving a nod before she went to walk towards him. She stopped almost immediately though, and glanced back at the three armed guards, seeing them eyeing her, but also not doing anything to stop her. 

Turning, Kate started to jog over to where the Agent was. She slowed to a walk a few feet from him, her eyes dotting over the equipment. Some hurdles, cones, and other things you’d find on a sports field. Since there was a running track on the perimeter of the field, the whole space appeared to have many uses.

“Mind carrying these? I’ve got the hurdles.” He lifted up the stack of cones and Kate quickly took them with a nod.

“Yes sir,”

Agent Watson picked up the hurdles, having several of them over his shoulder as he began walking them towards some bleachers on one side of the field, the side Kate originally had been on.

Following the agent, Kate’s eyes snapped over to where she had been standing, seeing a fourth person standing with the guards. 

Kate clenched her jaw moments later and came to an abrupt stop as Agent Watson did, his eyes where her’s were.

“Huh… Looks like we got something over there.” He mumbled to himself before readjusting the hurdles he was carrying. “Alright Sanders, somethin tells me that has to do with you. So why don’t you run those cones ahead and put them with the others. I’ll meet you over there.”

“Sir,” Kate spoke up in confirmation before she ran the stack of cones ahead. Setting them down with the others she picked up a fast paced walk, returning to the small storage building she was leaning against beforehand.

“I understand that, but I have strict orders from the Director. Sanders is needed on an assignment. It regards potential information that she has.” Kate wasn’t sure if she should laugh out loud or quickly hide behind something. 

Captain Rogers.

The Next Day…

Steve woke up with papers strewn across his chest. The sound of files hitting the floor abruptly jolted him awake as he turned onto his side. 

Squinting his eyes, Steve sat up and stretched, his eyes finding the mess of papers on the bed. He had fallen asleep while reading through the data.

Closing his eyes again briefly, Steve rubbed a hand down his face, breathing in deeply before sighing. 

His eyes dotted about the comforter seconds later before he began collecting the dozens of papers, finding the capped highlighter before tossing it onto the nightstand to his right. 

Steve cleared his throat while looking over the files he was holding. His eyes met the photograph of Kate that Tony had gotten for him. Thoughts of the previous night went through his head as he remembered the idea Natasha had sparked for him. He needed to talk to her again. How the hell was he going to pull that off.

Getting out of bed, Steve quickly got himself together and headed down stairs to the communal floor with the now reorganized files.

“Jarvis?” Steve spoke up, walking into the large room. His eyes dotted around the space seeing it empty. Natasha and Clint were still on their reconnaissance mission regarding Oriah, but were returning to SHIELD at some point that day.

“Captain Rogers,”

“Is Tony in the lab?”

“Yes, sir. Would you like me to inform Mr. Stark?”

“Sure,” Steve mumbles, his eyes having turned down to what he was holding before he took a couple steps towards the kitchen. Bruce was most likely in the lab as well, if not probably taking some private time elsewhere in the Tower. “Mr. Stark requests your presence.”

Steve smirked to himself before nodding, turning on his heel before heading for the elevator. 

Less than a minute later, Steve exited the elevator and entered the large lab space that Tony spent most of his time in. 

“Morning Cap,” Tony called, peering through a hologram of one of his suits. “Get some sleep?”

“Yeah,” Steve gives a small smile before adjusting the files in his grasp. “Thank you again f-”

“It’s yours,” Tony shrugs, his eyes already having turned back to his work. 

Steve hesitated before giving a small nod, walking further into space, catching Stark’s attention.

“You look all that over?”

“Yeah I did,” Steve responded.

“I found something else if you’re interested. My intentions might be a bit risky, but I figured it was up to you whether to act on them.” Tony explained, dropping several holograms before pulling up something different.

Steve felt his brow knit as he walked closer, a few feet from Tony as the Stark moved to the same side of the hologram that had popped up.

“What’s this?” Steve questioned, his eyes dotting around the information present.

“Found a schedule for your kid; covers the next few days so I figure if you wanna talk to her, you can catch her in a few different places.”

Steve stepped closer to the image, processing everything there as best he could before he turned his focus on the schedule for that day.

“So this is everything on her schedule for today?” Steve pointed up towards the hologram and Tony gave a nod in response.

“Yep. She has a trial which takes up a little over an hour, then she’s hauled off somewhere else for another hour block of time. Most if this is coded, so I’m not too sure what everything is, however I can tell you where it is.” He smirked, causing Steve to give a small amused expression before Tony pulled something else up next to the hologram image of Katelyn Sanders’ schedule. “This trial is going to be on sublevel 24, and after that, wherever they’re carting her off to, will be on sublevel 25.”

Steve clenched his jaw before nodding, rubbing a hand down his face before letting it fall.

“I’ve only been down the first few levels.”

At his words, Tony tossed something at Steve who caught the small object. Looking down into his hand, Steve’s brow knit as he evaluated the ear piece now in the palm of his hand.

“I can get you down there,” Tony gives a casual shrug. “All you gotta do is swipe a security card off of one of the employees. I can get today’s codes for the elevators, but past sublevel 10, you need an employee ID badge. Facial recognition is gonna pick you up though. You should have plenty of time to do whatever it is you wanna do. However on your way out- or while you’re down there, it all depends - someone will probably catch on to you. Past that I can’t help you and you’ll be feeling SHIELD’s wrath.” Tony crossed his arms as he explained, leaning against the counter a few feet from Steve.

The Captain listened to Tony quietly, his brow was knit gently while he processed everything.

“Something else…” Tony mumbled while pulling up a couple different holograms. “I compared her schedule to that of several other recruits. She’s kept on a very different schedule.” 

“Is it more strict than the others?” Steve questioned, having placed the files down on one of the counters before taking several steps closer.

“In a manner of speaking,” Tony responds, scrolling down on one of the hologram schedules before pulling Kate’s to the front. “One thing I noticed was a lack of breaks. While other recruits seem to have a few break blocks throughout the day, she doesn’t appear to have the same format regarding free time.” 

Processing the information quietly, Steve clenched his jaw before giving a small nod.

“You can get me down there?” The Captain questioned again, causing Stark to roll his eyes.

“Easy. Without issue.”

It was risky. But SHIELD couldn’t exactly fire him… Right? Gordon said yesterday that he was eager to show Steve more of Oriah today, more specifically things regarding the trials these recruits take. However Steve doubted that would include anything regarding Kate. 

“Is the mission a go?”

Steve met Tony’s eyes at his question before giving a nod.

Having arrived at SHIELD’s main New York base of operations, Steve visited the locker room and got dressed before making his way towards the hanger. Wearing his uniform that was used on covert missions, the black tactical wear with subtle nods to his more patriotic suit, Steve was prepared for any potential mission work.

Natasha had called him, letting him know that they were back from their reconnaissance mission. By the sound of her voice it didn’t appear to have gone well. Steve just hoped something good came out of it. After the last mission he went on regarding Oriah, having seen the carnage left behind… He was hoping for something positive.

Steve headed into one of the SHIELD conference rooms, finding Natasha and Clint seated at one end with Agent Hill and Doctor Gordon. 

“Captain,” Maria Hill speaks up in greeting, seated at the head of the table with Nat and Clint adjacent on her right and Gordon the same on her left.

“Hill,” Steve nods, walking up on the left side of the table where Nat and Clint were. “How’d it go?” Steve turned his gaze over to his teammates who were quiet for a moment.

“Could’ve gone better,” Clint mumbles, leaning on a fist. 

“They knew something was up.” Natasha adds, giving a small nod. “By the time we got inside and searched the building they had already left. Some of the kids were killed, however it looked as if they took most of the kids with them”

“We didn’t get any,” Steve’s voice dropped as he was eyeing Romanoff.

“We had a few brought back, two died on the way here… The other two are in critical condition right now. Not a good chance they’ll pull through.” She explains, her hands clasped on the table in front of her. 

“Several of my staff are working with the remaining patients right now, Captain.” Doctor Gordon spoke up, pulling Steve’s attention away from Natasha and over to the scientist. “As soon as they’re stable enough, we’ll move them over to Oriah’s care facility for recovery.”

“Are we sure moving them is the best idea? We don’t know what kind of abilities they have, waiting until they’re conscious might be safer.” Steve responds slowly.

Doctor Gordon was quiet in response, however the man appeared to clench his jaw at Steve’s words before glancing towards Agent Hill. 

“Once we know the extent of their injuries, a decision will be made.” Hill responds before coming to her feet. 

The action caused the others to stand up as well. Steve’s eyes dotted around for a moment before glanced at Clint and Natasha.

“Take a few days leave. However I would like a report from both of you in the coming days.” At Maria’s words, both Barton and Romanoff gave a nod before turning to leave.

Steve remained where he was, acknowledging his friends with the smallest smile, Clint having patted his shoulder before they both left. Not seconds later the Captain looked up to meet the eyes of Hill and then Gordon.

“I understand you will be visiting Oriah again today?” The Deputy Director speaks up, causing Steve to turn his attention solely on her for a moment as Gordon cleared his throat.

“Yes, I showed Captain Rogers some of the recreational areas for the recruits yesterday. Today I was going to acquaint him with some of our early trials.” The lead scientist for Oriah explained, causing Steve to give a nod in response.

“Don’t take this offer lightly, Captain.” Hill gave a small smile. 

“I haven’t Hill.” Steve gave a curt nod and a smile in response before meeting Gordon’s eyes. 

“I have to check with a few of my employees regarding the condition of these two patients before our departure but you’re welcome to wait in the hanger,”

Steve gave the doctor a nod before watching him depart. 

Steve found himself meeting Hill’s eyes again after a few moments. It seemed as if she was eyeing Steve with suspicion before she collected a few files from the table and walked around, stopping a few feet from him.

“Are you getting some answers, Rogers?” She raises an eyebrow while Steve stood up a little straighter.

Resting his hands on his belt Steve gave a small shrug before glancing about the room for a moment.

“Yes and no,” He responds in a hopeful voice, meeting her eyes once again.

Hill hid her annoyance by giving a brief nod, shrugging her shoulders before walking past Steve.

“Just don’t cause any problems,” She adds, stopping at the door of the room to meet his eyes a final time. “Gordon is being rather patient in showing you all of this, don’t take it for granted.”

The Captain hesitated any sort of response, but eventually gave her a nod before she left. Steve remained in the conference room to think everything over before he heard a couple shuffling noises in his ear.

“Are we a go, Rogers?” Tony.

Steve clenched his jaw before adjusting the com in his ear. Hill’s words seemingly echoing in his head about not causing problems before he pushed the thought aside. 

“I believe so.” Steve responds before exiting the room to head towards the hanger.

“So this Gordon guy, what kind of vibe did he give you?”

“Seems pretty open and eager to discuss his work. Didn’t seem too offset by my curiosity, but…”

“Seemed suspicious.” Tony finishes.

“I guess so,” Steve mutters, walking past several agents before he took a couple turns down different hallways. 

“Alright, so I’ve looked at some blueprint layouts of this base you’ll be heading to,”

“Find a better way for me to get down there?” Steve wasn’t looking forward to having to steal a badge off of someone, not to mention get passed what will probably be many employees without anyone questioning his presence. 

“There are stairs, but they only open during emergency situations. You’re stuck with the elevators, Cap.”

“Great,” Steve mutters, pushing open one of the double doors into the hanger before he found a darker vehicle with several men standing around it. “Alright, I gotta go silent.”

“Roger that. I’ll spew some information into your ear from time to time, but let me know when you’re away and ready to go snooping.”

Steve clenched his jaw as it went quiet and he headed towards the black SUV.

“As you know, Captain, our patients all receive personalized rehabilitation as well as training. Today I have a few sessions we can stand in on; with patient consent of course.” Gordon gave Steve a brief smile as they continued down the hall.

Steve listened quietly however, trying to put together some questions in his mind that wouldn’t completely redirect the Doctor’s conversation in a rude manner. 

“So how do these trials or- training sessions vary for different individuals?” Steve questions slowly, resting his hands on his belt as Gordon stopped to grab a few files from a desk in the hall they were walking down. “I assume they get more challenging and slowly progress with patients over time?” 

“You are correct in that assumption, however all our patients are different. Some can handle more difficult training than others despite their current progress or rehabilitation.” Gordon responds, gripping the files in one hand against his side before he gestured down the hall with a hand for them to continue onward.

“And Katelyn Sanders? How is her training?” Steve asked, his voice somewhat counter to his question as he worded it with a more controlled voice. If he displayed his curiosity about her in a manner that proved he was almost desperate for information, Gordon might deny him any answers.

“Sanders is… A complicated individual,” Gordon smiles. “Her abilities require us to be on our toes. At times she proves sensitive, and others… as strong as an ox.” He chuckles before shaking his head. “All of our patients have their own quirks and mannerisms. I take pride in my team’s ability to personalize our rehabilitation program to suite the needs of all our patients.” 

Steve nodded thinking over Gordon’s answer for a moment before he clenched his jaw, clearing his throat for his next question. 

“Does she respond well to the training?”

“All of our patients have varying responses. As all of these individuals are of the younger age range, mood swings are common, as are hormonal changes. We keep a close eye on each patient’s behavioral records and make constant notes and changes when needed,” Gordon responds, having clearly evaded Steve’s original question. 

Steve eyed the doctor for a moment before looking ahead. 

“So the patients I’ll be seeing today… Are they all new recruits? Or-”

“We’ll be visiting some patients on both ends of that spectrum, Captain.” Gordon nodded before giving Steve a small smile. “One of our patients will be doing her second trial. She came to Oriah approximately two months ago. One of the other recruits we will be seeing has been with Oriah for a number of years now and will be participating in one of her final trials regarding agent recruitment.”

“Sanders?” Steve tries, quickly finding he probably shouldn’t have said that.

Gordon shot Steve a brief look before looking ahead, choosing not to say anything in response as they came to an elevator. 

Steve clenched his jaw as they walked in and Gordon punched a number into the code panel above the five sublevel buttons. Where was the rest of the buttons?

Steve’s brow knit as he looked at the wall, evaluating the buttons available. There were buttons for the first five sublevels, but none for any of the others. 

“Where are we going, Doctor?” Steve asks, trying to keep the question as professional as possible.

“Sublevel 9,” Gordon responds, gesturing to the panel on the wall. “Sublevels after 5 require a code. Helps keep certain areas compartmentalized to avoid confusion for newer employees who don’t know the layout of the facility. Employees working anywhere below the 5th sublevel receive the codes for whatever levels they have work on.” 

“Very practical.” Steve gave a small smile, causing the Doctor to chuckle before giving a nod.

Steve felt the smile fall away as he thought back to the conversation with Tony. He had the codes for the elevators so Steve could get down to the right sublevel. 

Taking another glance at the panel on the wall, Steve spotted a card scanner on the far side of the set of buttons for the first few sublevels. He’d need to get a card off of someone. 

“This patient is undergoing a training assessment, a little different than the other trials we usually give our recruits.” Gordon gestures through the viewing window, down into the gym area.

“How so?” Steve questions, seeing a girl as well as a group of what appeared to be SHIELD agents congregating a few yards from her. 

“In these assessments, we have the recruits working with other agents. It helps to get both sides acquainted with the idea of working with each other on missions and other operations for SHIELD.”

“So she wants to become an agent?” Steve nods, meeting the doctor as he was a few feet behind him organizing some files at a desk.

“Mm hm, she does.” Gordon nods, his eyes down at the contents he was sifting through. 

Steve turned back to face the viewing window as he thought over the last hour. They had visited two other recruits who were doing various trainings and trials. Gordon had introduced him to a boy with an enhanced sense of smell, he could pull apart an object, detect various ingredients and components. As far as application for potential agent work goes, Gordon had said he could detect a bomb from a far distance, potential gases, harmful substances… The boy said he was interested in agent work one day, if SHIELD could use his skills, which Steve had no doubt about. While the boy had been with Oriah for almost a year, almost eleven months, there was a younger girl they witnessed in a trial who had only been there for a few months. She had a sort of night vision ability, and could see extraordinarily well in the dark, as well as detect heat signatures in places deprived of any light. 

Coming back to the present, Steve clenched his jaw as he let his eyes go down into the viewing area.

“Her ability?” Steve questioned, his eyes following the recruit below as she was being spoken to by a couple Oriah employees.

“Something we call cloaking, Captain.” Gordon responds, taking several steps closer to look out the viewing window as well. “She can render another individual invisible and undetectable to the naked eye.”

Steve felt his brow knit as he took in Gordon’s words before he glanced in the scientists’ direction.

“How?”

Gordon barely let a sigh slip and Steve clenched his jaw in response. He had asked that question for the other recruits as well, and Gordon wouldn’t tell him, dodging his question.

“... You have to understand, Captain, we have many policies in place for all of our recruits. Some of our patients receive these abilities through means of past traumas and we try to keep what details we can between our employees and said patients to give a sense of privacy that many of them have been deprived of.”

At his words, Steve gave the doctor a small smile and a nod before he turned his attention towards the window once again.

“That’s good,” Steve responds. “Is it safe to assume most of them received their abilities through accidents or certain events?”

“We could say so, yes.” Gordon gives a short nod. “Some of our individuals brought here were given away to the organization we rescued them from by their parents… We try to provide a means of therapy and comfort to them, a sort of makeshift family between the employees and other recruits.”

Steve’s brow knit as he took in the doctor’s words. Natasha had mentioned something like that - parents not wanting their children back due to their supernatural abilities. 

“And Katelyn… Did she receive her abilities through some sort of accident?”

That question completely went against what Gordon just said in having privacy policies in place for the recruits, but Steve wanted to see the doctor’s reaction.

“... Why are you so interested in her, if I may ask, Captain?” Gordon’s tone seemed almost amused, but also strained. Steve was getting somewhere.

Turning, Steve met the doctor’s eyes, hesitating his words as his hands came to rest on his belt.

“I suppose due to everyone else’s reaction, Doctor.” Steve responds, looking out the viewing window for a moment before meeting his eyes again. “There is something different about her, I can tell.”

Doctor Gordon was quiet in response to Steve’s words. Turning, he walked a few steps towards the edge of the viewing window on the far side of the room before turning to look out.

“... You’re more observant than I originally perceived, Captain.” The doctor nods, giving the smallest of smiles before clasping his hands in front of him. “I will let you know, Sanders is a - specialty recruit.” 

“By means of her ability?” Steve questions, taking a couple steps closer to where he was, receiving a nod in response to his question.

“Her experience with the organization that held her captive was worse than most, and her ability requires special and very - gentle treatment.”

Steve’s brow had knit in response to the doctor’s words. He was being somewhat deceptive in his words, almost hoping Steve would recognize a certain gravity to Katelyn’s situation in particular.  

Letting his eyes meet the recruit below in the gym once again, Steve noticed her standing alone.

“Did they start?”

“Yes, I believe she’s cloaking three of our agents right now.” Gordon calls over, his voice coming from a few feet away as he had returned to his spot at one of the desks. 

“She can hide multiple people?” 

“Yes,” Gordon responds, seemingly focused on something else while Steve had glanced back at him. 

Clenching his jaw Steve turned to face the window again. 

He needed to find a way to get down to where Katelyn was. Sublevel 24… That was a long way down. Steve knew they were on sublevel 12 currently. Having visited 9 as well as 11, it seemed the more experiences these recruits were in their Oriah training, the higher the clearance you needed. 

Hearing a phone ring, Steve turned to see Gordon stand up straight, pulling a mobile from his pocket before answering the call.

“Hello?” 

Steve was quiet, not wanting to openly watch the doctor, but also wanting to at least overhear the conversation. 

“No Hall, continue as planned. I cannot be there, I have some other work to attend to. However I have Hunt and Jennings coming down to view the trial on my behalf, you’d do good to enlighten them on our changed schedule?”

Steve felt his jaw clench at the words. A schedule change? For what? 

“Yes, otherwise proceed as planned. I will check in before the exchange.” 

Steve watched as Gordon put the phone away before meeting the Captain’s eyes. 

“Forgive me, Captain, a colleague of mine. I was to stand in on one of our other recruit’s trials today.”

“I hope I’m not causing any trouble,” Steve speaks up, his expression somewhat hesitant as Gordon chuckled before shaking his head.

The scientist proceeded to start collecting several files scattered on the table.

“Absolutely not, Captain. In fact you’re giving me an opportunity to have a quick meeting with the Director today. I need to inform him of a schedule change promptly. If you wouldn’t mind remaining here for a short time…?” There was a bit of questioning in his voice, causing Steve to quickly nod in response before clearing his throat.

“Of course, yeah. Take all the time you need.” How fortunate.

“This recruit’s trial will be continuing for another half hour or so, but I should be back before it ends.” Gordon gives a small curt smile and a nod before picking up a stack of organized files.

Steve turned to face the window again, spotting the recruit walking around while seemingly switching her gaze between agents around her. Several of them would appear and disappear as she turned her eye line. 

Steve glanced over his shoulder briefly to see the doctor head for the door before departing, closing it behind him.

Steve clenched his jaw as he turned back to the viewing window, a hand coming to his ear as he adjusted the com.

“Tony?”

“There you are, I was starting to worry.” Tony mutters, his voice seemingly muffled like he was eating something.

“Gordon just left, had to talk with Fury about a schedule change. Whatever it was, it seemed important. He was on the phone a minute prior with a colleague about the change.”

“Have to do with your kid?” Tony asked.

“I don’t know. But I wanna get down there quick. I’m on sublevel 12 right now.”

“Okay, well I’ve got the code for sublevel 24, you just have to snatch an employee ID badge.”

Clenching his jaw Steve nodded quietly to himself before breathing out quietly.

“Alright,”

It took awkwardly bumping into someone for Steve to snatch a badge off of an Oriah scientist, but he had it, and was now heading down the elevator towards the 24th sublevel. He was cautious towards what he may find. 

“Good luck Cap. Remember, take a right out of the elevator - its at the very end of the hallway, take a left and you should be on the adjacent room of the trial area, there’s a large viewing window. If it is your kid in there, you’ll see her.”

“Thank you Tony.”

Steve disconnected the com before letting his eyes snap up as the doors opened.

The first thing he noticed was how dark it was. The halls were dark and dimly lit purposefully. It was extremely quiet as well. The previous sublevels Steve had been on had people walking to and fro down every hall. This level appeared almost deserted. 

Clenching his jaw Steve headed down the right hall, his eyes seeing how it curved to the left several dozen feet ahead. There were doors along each side of the hall, all of them closed. Steve walked a little faster as he leaned out, seeing the end of the hall as he let out a sort of breath of relief. He trusted Tony’s directions- mostly. 

Coming to the end of the hall, Steve turned to the left to see how the hall continued down to a set of doors. Light was shining in from one side of the hall from what appeared to be a window. 

Steve found himself coming to a stop for a moment as he could hear muffled noises, most likely voices as well as the sound of a loud humming, possibly a generator or other mechanical device.

Steve finally took several steps forward, picking up a slow pace as he came into view of a large window. There was an emergency door to the right of it at the edge of the hall, along with two other large doors. 

Letting his eyes gaze into the room through the glass Steve noticed two individual sparring. He almost immediately noticed Kate. She was sparring with another individual who was wearing a sort of mask- almost like a breather mask. What were they doing? 

Steve let his eyes snap over to the door with the emergency letters clearly across the surface. Below it was a set of warnings regarding the leveling of air pressure. So the room they were in was pressurized. Which was why one of them had a breather mask on… But why didn’t Katelyn?

A sudden series of beeps caused Steve to tense as a type of alarm sounded before there was a pressure release from the room and his eyes snapped over to the adjacent side of the room the two were in. There was another viewing area on the other side of the room, not opposite, but adjacent. One of the doors that Steve noticed must lead over there. 

He clenched his jaw as he noticed the group of individuals watching and seemingly taking notes. 

“Little harder Walter.” Steve could make out the voice more clearly as he could see the individual speaking into a mic in the viewing room. 

Letting his eyes meet the small room where Kate was again, he noticed how the individual, Walter, became more aggressive following the words of one of the scientists in the viewing room. But in the following moments, Kate seemed to start struggling, stumbling while seemingly dodging any throws and kicks that he was throwing.

Steve clenched his jaw, his expression growing concerned as he stepped closer to the glass. Where they messing with the oxygen?

“Alright, oxygen dropping.” The announcement made Steve’s gaze snap over to the viewing area were the Oriah employees were before he turned his attention back to Katelyn. 

While she already appeared to be struggling to stand, the beeping sound came again before there was a release in air pressure. The boy, Walter, was still going strong, causing Kate to go on the defensive as she was doing her best to block numerous throws. 

Steve watched, his posture having grown tense as his lips parted in shock. This was sick.

“Hey- what are you doing?!” At hearing the demand, Steve turned quickly to see an employee wearing a lab coat walking quickly towards him, a look of frustration and confusion on his face. “You don’t have access for this leve-”

“What the hell are you all doing here?” Steve finally snaps, his gaze having turned back to Kate for a moment before he met the scientist in front of him. The man was much shorter than Steve, and the Oriah employee seemed to realize that moments later as his aggressive expression dropped. 

“This is classified, only certain employees have access to this level of the facility, how did you get down he-” “What. Are you doing here.” Steve demands, gesturing towards the glass.

The man was quiet for a moment, his eyes turning towards the glass before he met the eyes of several of the other employees in the other viewing room, now seeing another person who shouldn’t be there. 

“Sir, I have to ask you to leave now.”

“I’ll think about that once you tell me what the hell’s going on.” Steve nods, his tone not faltering as he was no longer hiding his anger.

Another series of beeps rang through the hall, as did the sound of the air pressure change, causing Steve to turn his attention back on the glass. 

The guy sparring with Kate was beating down hard, her on the ground trying to catch her breath as she was obviously struggling to breathe. 

Steve quickly turns, pulling the latch on the emergency door before yanking it open. An alarm sounded as the air pressure leveled and Steve ran to where Kate was.

“Back up!” Steve yells, pointing at the agent who was in the room. He seemingly didn’t pay Steve any mind, going to kick her when Steve shoved him into the opposite wall.

“Who the hell is this!?” One of the employees yell, having walked into the room.

Steve was already kneeling down, pulling Kate over somewhat onto her back before sitting her up.

“Kate?” Steve spoke up quietly, supporting her in a sitting position, she was very dazed, having not acknowledged him yet.

“Get him out of here! Who is that?” The same man yells. “I don’t know sir, he was watching from the hall window,” The guy from the hallway. 

“What the hell do you people think you’re doing!?” Steve finally yells, still holding up a dazed Kate who was half conscious. 

At getting no response from the few people in the room, Steve’s attention snapped over to another man as he ran into the room, coming to an abrupt stop. Gordon.

Steve clenched his jaw as he met the eyes of Oriah’s lead doctor.

“Captain what are you doing down here?” Gordon asked, his tone quiet but very tense. He was pissed.

“I could ask you the same.” Steve responded firmly.

Steve was escorted out of the Oriah facility soon after the event. Katelyn Sanders, who was only half conscious at the time of his departure, was taken back to her room with a couple days leave. Steve had demanded they give her time after what he had witnessed, and Gordon promised him she would receive a leave of several days. 

Gordon. Like his word meant anything. Steve knew there was something off. He knew it. Now he had a firsthand account proving his suspicions. 

Steve walked through the front doors of Stark Tower and towards the elevators.

“Mr. Stark insisted I bring you to the common room to discuss some things regarding your visit to SHIELD today, Captain Rogers.” Jarvis spoke up.

“Not now.” Steve mutters, walking into the elevator before pressing the number for the room Tony was letting him stay in. 

“I’m afraid he is insisting, Captain.”

“Jarvis not now.” Steve says more firmly. 

At his request, the AI was quiet, giving Steve more time to think. 

He had all the files and information Tony had collected for him. He needed to look over them more. Now that he had found Kate, and had witnessed parts of her training that he had absolutely no clearance for - and probably never would thanks to his actions - they would most likely change up her schedule. 

Walking out of the elevator and onto the communal floor of the Tower, Steve didn’t have much time to evaluate the surroundings before he came to an abrupt stop. This was not the floor connected to the button he had pushed. 

Steve quickly tried to make a beeline for the stairs before Tony could say anything.

“Hey Cap. I didn’t hear from you after-” “Not now Stark.” Steve growls, heading towards the stairwell.

“Alright, cool it Cap. What happened? Talk to me, c’mon.”

Steve sighed, coming to a stop near the stairs before slowly turning to meet Tony’s eyes. He had helped Steve discover all this, he deserved to know the findings.

Clenching his jaw, Steve felt the frustration of the day bubble up and erupt.

“I was right… I was right to be suspicious, damn it.” Steve shakes his head, finally walking further into the room as he put a hand through his hair, not facing the Stark as he was still somewhat confused.

“Use your words, tell me what happened” 

“They were doing these tests on her. Having her spar in a room where they limited the oxygen supply to the point where she was almost unconscious.” Steve makes clear. “That enough words for you?”

“Don’t give me that sass. So you managed to find her. Did this doctor guy figure you out?”

“Yeah he did,” Steve mutters, his thoughts partially somewhere else.

“He chew you out?”

Steve only gave him a short glance before looking away.

“Or- did you chew him out?”

“Can you get more information?” Steve breathes, his eyes zoned out on the floor as his one hand rested on his belt.

“I don’t know… I didn’t trip any wires last time but there’s no guarantee it’ll stay that way if I go in further.”

“Do it then…” Steve makes clear, his gaze elsewhere before it softened and he breathed out. “...Please,” It took a few seconds before Steve met Tony’s eyes, causing the billionaire to sigh quietly.

“Sure thing blue eyes, I’ll get right on it.”

“Thank you,” Steve mumbles, his tone less hostile as his posture had since relaxed. 

“Not a problem,” Tony throws back, heading towards the kitchen. 

“So… You’re saying they were essentially suffocating her. Like in a controlled environment.” Clint speaks up slowly, sitting on the couch next to Natasha later that night while Steve took some more time to talk about his findings at Oriah’s facility.

“Not sure what else you’d call it.” Steve responds, his hands gripping a hot coffee mug.

After he had returned from Oriah’s facility and spoke with Tony about the findings, the Stark brought up some of the files he had uncovered the night before; taking over an hour to go over them with Steve. They almost certainly would change up Kate’s schedule to throw Steve off in the future. 

“Now was the room pressurized, or was one of the two wearing breathing equipment?” 

Natasha’s question caused Steve to turn and meet her eyes before he took a sip of his coffee.

“The room was. As soon as I opened the side door, an alarm went off and the room seemed to level. As soon as I walked, I had a split second where the air seemed extremely thin.”

“So this other agent she was training with was wearing a breather mask of sorts,” Clint nods, getting a confirmation from Steve as the Captain nodded.

It grew quiet between them as Steve gave the smallest shake of his head. 

“She was barely conscious when he was beating down on her,” Steve muttered, his eyes zoned out as he thought back to the moment earlier that day. 

“Talk about being kicked while you’re down,” Clint mumbles in agreement, causing Natasha to shoot him a small look. 

“Steve, do you know what her ability is yet?” Natasha asked quietly, his expression hinting subtle curiosity but also concern. 

“No I don’t. But whatever it is, she was struggling nonetheless, Nat.” Steve already knew that Natasha was more gray in terms of how she viewed Oriah. Steve downright didn’t trust them. While Clint somewhat agreed with Steve’s opinion, Natasha, on the other hand, was hesitant to point fingers. 

“You gonna talk with Fury?” Clint asked quietly, his hands finding his coffee mug as he drank down some of it. 

“Chances are he’ll want to talk to me.” Steve grumbles, causing the archer to chuckle. “But yeah… I’m gonna see when that can happen. The sooner the better, I’m not letting them sweep this under the rug.” 

Clint gave a nod in reply before setting the mug down once more, exchanging a glance with Natasha.

“Gordon say anything about her?” Natasha asked, holding her mug close with both hands. 

“That she was special… Her ability required gentle treatment and care,” Steve almost rolled his eyes as he shook his head. “There was nothing gentle about the way they’re treating her.”

“... Hopefully Fury can shed some light onto the situation,” She tried, giving a small shrug before exchanging another glance with Barton. “Her ability may be dangerous Steve, until you know more about her, we may be looking at this all wrong.”

Steve was quiet at hearing her words. She had a point, but he didn’t trust Oriah. What little respect he had for them was gone. 

“Fury will probably contact you soon. Maybe tonight or tomorrow morning,” Clint spoke up, giving the Captain a small shrug. He knew Steve was thinking about a lot right now; reflecting on everything he had seen. The modern world was a lot to take in on its own, but now Steve was focused on this controversial program within SHIELD.

“If not, I will.” Steve responded, giving his friend a smirk.

Steve had returned to his apartment late the night before. While he had a lot to think over, the time had flown by so quickly that he found himself walking home after eleven o'clock that night. 

While he got less sleep than normal, Steve woke up early and got himself together before heading off to SHIELD’s closest base outside the city. 

Arriving a bit earlier than he expected, Steve wandered about the facility. The sheltered hanger at this particular base was much larger; something that had been under construction since the Battle of New York. Something told him they were adding more quinjets and overall firepower for a reason. 

SHIELD didn’t have him enlisted for an assignment at the moment, and he found himself at a bit of a loss for something to do. Sure he could find Hill and she’d put him to work, but he needed to get his ducks in a row. If he wanted to get more information about this program, he needed to be smart about it. 

Having exited the hanger, Steve headed for one of the computer rooms when he almost ran into another individual exiting an office.

“Excuse me,” Steve says quickly, jumping back a bit as the individual adjusted his coat, taking a step into the hall.

“I’m terribly sorry,” The individual sighed, his hands coming to his sides as he met Steve’s eyes.

Steve gave a small nod before going to step by him. 

“Forgive me, Captain, we haven’t been introduced.” The man had briefly gripped Steve’s arm, causing the Captain to turn without hesitation.

“Doctor Oliver Gordon,” The man held out a hand and Steve took it. “I’m the lead scientist in charge of the Oriah program,” He furthers, giving a small nod. 

“Really,” Steve’s brow knit a bit with surprise. The odds of running into this man… “It’s a pleasure to meet you,”

“Honor’s mine,” He chuckles, having lowered his hand to stick them both in his jacket pockets. “I understand you spoke with a patient of mine yesterday,”

Oh. 

Steve clenched his jaw before nodding. Was this meeting coincidental?

“I did... “ Steve responds carefully, not sure as to what the Doctor’s intentions were. 

“I was wondering if you’d be interested in seeing more of my work. If you’re available, I’d be glad to have you as a guest at our facility today,” Gordon offers, gesturing forward with a hand.

Steve’s brow furrowed with curiosity but also concern. He had heard of this man only once before, as Hill briefly mentioned him. Not that this was detering him from the offer. But Steve wanted to make sure he didn’t lose focus of his ultimate goals. He wanted to see more of the program, but what this man would show him may or may not be an adequate representation of the entire operation. 

“... I wouldn’t want to impose, I can imagine you’re pretty busy” Steve says slowly, his hands having come to rest on his belt as he stepped out of the way so someone could enter the computer room. 

“Not at all. I’m flattered to have an Avenger so interested in my work with these gifted individuals.” The man chuckles, causing Steve to give a small smile. “If you’d like, I’m leaving in an hour for the facility. You can join me in the hanger then if you wish to go.”

“Alright,” Steve nods, glancing to the side before giving the doctor a curt smile. “I think I'll take you up on that offer,”

“Excellent,” Gordon smirks before looking down the hall. “If you’ll excuse me Captain, I have to get some things in order before my departure.”

Steve quickly nodded before stepping to the side. “I’ll see you in an hour then, Doctor” Steve responds, taking a couple steps back as the scientist gave a nod in response before leaving. 

Steve paused for a moment, watching the man walk away until he was out of view. Clenching his jaw Steve felt his relaxed expression lower. 

What just happened. Since when did Steve ever get that lucky. He starts snooping into this new program, getting doors shut in his face one after the other and out of the blue - the lead scientist in charge of the Oriah program offers to show him around… It didn’t feel right.

“Alright,” Steve mumbles to himself, turning before heading down the opposite hall. 

It seemed questionable, but Steve would take what he could get until he got the answers he needed.

Steve met the Doctor in the hanger, and while Steve rode with the doctor and a driver, two other large vehicles followed them. Probably with the things the doctor said he had to get in order before they left the SHIELD base. 

The ride was relatively quiet, although the Doctor was sure to ask Steve how his time with SHIELD was, as well as his recovery since the plane crash and - ice incident. Steve merely laughed that part off, but told the Doctor his SHIELD training was going well. 

“So you’ve been aware of my program for a few weeks now,” Gordon states, his hands clasped in his lap as he met Steve’s eyes. His tone almost hinted at a question, however the confidence in his voice also leaned towards said words being a statement.

The vehicle was a standard issue SHIELD van with seating in the back. The doctor was opposite of Rogers while an Agent drove.  

“What was your first impression?”

“… Shock, definitely.” Steve nods, meeting Oliver Gordon’s face as the scientist gave a nod of his own. “Really made me grasp just how much SHIELD deals with,” Steve words, gesturing forward with a hand before letting it fall to his leg.

“I remember when I first reached level 7… Oriah hadn’t been founded yet, but I was one of the top scientists who helped put it together when these individuals with supernatural abilities started popping up on SHIELD’s radar.” He explains. “The world was still so small then… We had no idea what we were dealing with so naturally we tried to study, research and do anything to better understand the phenomenon.”

Steve listened quietly, taking in the doctor’s words before he let his eyes fall. Maybe he was being a bit harsh on SHIELD for his initial response. They hadn’t known what was happening. Frankly, what most people don’t understand, they often fear and hate. Like this organization SHIELD was rescuing people from. 

“Forgive me if I’m wrong, Captain. But the Director has informed me of your… opinion, towards this program.” Gordon words carefully, his expression giving way to how he was treading carefully. 

Steve clenched his jaw before giving a small nod of confirmation, wringing his hands for a moment before opening his mouth hesitantly.

“This is all very new to me… “ Steve starts, earning a chuckle from the doctor before he raised a hand.

“I don’t mean to be crude. I understand you must be suspicious, considering many of these children are without homes - families,” He furthers, causing Steve to adjust his seat as he met the doctor’s eyes. “Many of my colleagues were hesitant as well when they were first transferred into the program.”

Steve nodded in understanding, feeling himself start to relax a bit. He wasn’t letting his guard down, but hopefully he was just being paranoid.

At the realization of his own thoughts Steve’s brow knit. Recalling his discussion with Kate the day before, Steve felt his jaw clench. 

“Is there anything in particular you find yourself curious about?”

Steve was taken from his thoughts by the doctor’s question before giving him a nod.

“Yeah, uh… I think just the lack of exposure is… my main concern,” Steve swallows, quickly trying to think of something to say. “I’ve seen over two dozen of these kids be administered into Oriah, but once they’re in-...”

“I understand,” Gordon chuckles, nodding in agreement. “Part of their rehabilitation limits any outside exposure until we can gain their trust. Many of these individuals have scars that can’t be seen, and until they are in stable care and not a danger to themselves or any of our employees, we limit any kind of foreign exposures.” 

… That made sense. Steve clenched his jaw as he quickly thought the words over. He didn’t enjoy having to remain so suspicious, but something told him that just accepting this man’s word wasn’t the right call. Not until he had actual proof that what he was saying was true. 

It wasn’t long after that the vehicles came to a stop outside the facility. Steve stepped out of the van, letting his eyes meet the familiar entrance of the base he had visited not too long ago with Agent Hill. 

They engaged in light conversation while entering the instillation. Steve listened to Gordon’s words regarding the early years of the program. While Oriah was officially founded only a few years ago, it was unofficially operating long before that in the early 2000s. 

Steve loosely looked about the large room that he had previously walked through with Agent Hill, although this time there were only a few agents present. 

“I must admit I am still curious to your interest in this program,” The statement caused Steve to turn and give a small nod.

“I guess it just grabbed my attention. The atmosphere around Oriah in particular was much different from anything I had experienced previously,” Steve explains, letting his eyes meet the elevator they were walking towards. “I suppose that was my original reason for being curious,” He gives the smallest of shrugs before meeting the Doctor’s face as he chuckled.

“Innocent enough,” He responds, putting in the code of the elevator before the doors opened. “I am aware of your previous visit to the facility. You saw our recruit cafeteria?”

Steve gave a small nod, following the doctor into the elevator. Gordon pushed one of the bottoms on a lower sublevel, causing the doors to close seconds later.

“If you don’t mind, I'd like to start there. The lunch shifts are about to change so you can see more of our recruits,” He explains, his arms crossed comfortably over his chest. “After that, we can stop by one of the lounge areas and possibly one of the recreational gyms.”

“Sounds good.” Steve gives the man a small nod before the doors opened, revealing the large cafeteria. 

As Steve entered the space, seeing some kids exiting while some were entering, he found himself looking for Kate. Maybe he would see her here. 

“I’m sure Agent Hill gave you a rundown of some things regarding this program, however there is much to learn about even this room in particular,” The doctor gave Steve a smile before gesturing forward.

Steve stood still for a moment, surprised at his eagerness to show Steve around before the Captain stepped forward and followed the Doctor further into the room. 

Steve passed several lunch tables, getting some looks from the kids sitting and walking about. Some even smiled at him. Steve gave them all gentle looks. Most of them seemed pretty calm, although his presence as an outsider wasn’t going unnoticed and he felt just a bit uncomfortable. 

“The food provided during our meal shifts is personalized to all our recruits. They each have a meal card that IDs any food allergies on file, as well as any other foods that cannot be consumed by the individual,” The doctor brought Steve up to the line where several recruits were getting their meals. “There is a loose meal cycle, it rotates and repeats regularly for the recruits.”

Steve watches a couple recruits walk by him, all of them with trays. At the beginning of the line, an employee would take the ID of a given recruit before taking it behind the counter. They put some food onto their trays that their ID card allowed them to have, before handing their ID card back to them at the end of the line. 

“All meals are nutritionally balanced… dessert options consist of fruits,” Gordon chuckles, causing Steve to give a small smile. “Overall we try to change things up every so often. Too much repetition negatively effective a small portion of our recruits. However some also need repetition in their schedule; change causes upset. The goal is to slowly bring both ends of the spectrum together as part of the rehabilitation process.”

“You guys really think of everything don’t you” Steve nods, having turned to look around the room and at the several dozen or so recruits at the lunch tables.

“Just being as thorough as we can, Captain.” Gordon responds before gesturing for Steve to follow him. “In the past few years we’ve had a spike in the appearance of these gifted individuals. The more patients we bring in, the more data we have access to. The time has been dedicated to meeting the needs of every individual best we can.”

Steve watched the Doctor as he spoke while also letting his gaze dot about at the individuals as he passed them. He was listening to the doctor’s words… but the majority of his attention was on seeing whether or not Kate may be in the room. 

“So, Captain. What do you think?” The doctor turned and came to a stop, eyeing Steve expectantly.

Steve froze and eyed the man for a moment, noticing how the elevator code had already been put in and the lift was on its way.

“Lounge or gym?”

“Oh, uh. How about the lounge?” Steve pulls together a quick smile as the Doctor gave a nod before turning when the lift doors opened.

“Excellent choice. The lounge is one of the most enriching areas. A smaller portion of our recruits have access to that area however,” He starts, stepping aside so Steve could enter the space.

“Why is that?” The Captain’s brow knit gently at the statement as he worded his question. 

“We find that such time can be overwhelming for newer recruits. There is no solid number on how long a recruit must be under our care before they can access such areas, however once we conduct a few psychological tests, as well as gauge the recruits comfort levels in the presence of others, they all slowly gain access to such areas of the base.

“And what about time outside the facility?” Steve mumbles, his brow still knit as he eyed the scientist. “I understand the precautions, but they need a little exposure to the outdoors.”

“We approach such opportunities with the same cautions,” He nods. “Some of our recruits can fly, Captain.” A chuckle emerged from the doctor’s lips as Steve found himself smiling before nodding.

“That’s understandable.”

“However we do have outdoor trainings with our recruits,” The doctor gestures forward when the doors opened, allowing Steve to go first.

“Training for agent positions you mean” Steve’s tone lowered as he found himself growing a bit wary.

Here it was. The recruits we allowed benefits if they gave themselves to SHIELD for agent work.

“No not at all. That training is only for recruits who decide that they wish to pursue such a position once they turn eighteen.” 

“Aren’t all these recruits going to be forced into agent positions later on?” Steve’s tone was harsh and he found himself asking the question before he could stop himself. It just came out.

“No of course not,” Gordon laughs, causing Steve to turn with confusion.

There was a choice?

Steve was quiet for a moment, taken aback by the doctor’s obvious amusement towards Steve’s question.

“While I usually refer to these individuals as my patients, the word ‘recruit’ is often used due to the agent potential we find in these individuals,” Gordon uses a hand to gesture towards several individuals in the lounge area as they enter the large room. 

Steve clenched his jaw as he eyed the many individuals present, first noticing that these individuals were in their late teens, and then noticing how many of them seemed quite calm in his presence. Unlike some of the ones in the cafeteria that seemed on edge in his presence.

“I apologize, I was under the impression that-”

“It’s quite alright,” Gordon makes clear, seeing the hesitant look in Steve’s eyes. “SHIELD’s discretion can be a blessing and a curse.” Giving the Captain a smile, Gordon directed his attention forward to where a few recruits were. A few of them were eyeing the adults quietly while others seemed unbothered.

Steve let his eyes graze over the several couches and chairs. There were shelves of reading materials in the corner and windows around the back of the seating area. 

“Are those television screens?” Steve questions, a little taken aback when he realized they were underground.

“Yeah,” The response came from one of the kids sitting sideways in an armchair. “You can change the setting too,” He replies before another kid sitting on the couch tossed him a remote of sorts. Sitting up the boy pointed the remove behind him before pushing a couple buttons, allowing the landscaping in the “windows” to change.

Mountains, city, beaches, forest, neighborhood… 

“This is Captain Rogers,” Gordon speaks up, throwing a small look in Steve’s direction before meeting the eyes of the various recruits. “He’s new here… and he’ll be visiting every now and then to get acquainted with the program,”

“Are you like an army captain?” One of the boys asked, causing Steve to direct his attention.

Steve had only come out of the ice months ago. Most of these kids probably didn’t even know who he was. Not that he would expect them to, but the Avengers were essentially well known across all levels of SHIELD… and the world.

“I was,” Steve smiles. “I’m with SHIELD now, but- everyone still addresses me with the title” 

The boy gave a small nod before glancing at the person sitting next to him.

“We don’t get too many visitors down here,” A girl this time spoke up. She looked a little wary of him, a book in her hands as she was only looking over the cover at him.

Steve was quiet in response, unsure as to what he could say that could reassure her. 

“Are you working here?” One of the previous boys spoke up.

“He’s working on the outside, Benjamin” Gordon smiles before patting Steve’s shoulder.

The action caused Steve to glance in the doctor’s direction before smiling himself. 

These kids seemed much more open than Kate… maybe he just picked someone who was shy and had trust issues. 

After showing the Captain around several other portions of the facility, Doctor Gordon escorted him out. A SHIELD vehicle present to take him back to SHIELD’s New York base, Gordon encouraged him to come by the next day to see some trial work. After all, Captain Rogers was snooping around so he was bound to discover something he wouldn’t like. Better to show him before he made accusations and ruined the reputation of the Oriah program. 

Once the Captain left in a SHIELD vehicle, Oliver Gordon felt the professionally kind expression fall as one of annoyance and anger replaced it and he stormed back inside. 

Only minutes later, the Doctor found himself walking into a moderately sized observation room where several of his colleagues were present.

“How is it going?” Gordon mutters, tossing several files down on the table that he had collected on his way down before turning his eyes out the observation window. 

Approximately one story below the viewing area, Kate Sanders was going through one of her ability trials. 

“Levels are holding steady, although something is causing heightened levels of anxiety in the subject.”

“How so, Lewis?” The Doctor’s brow knit, his tone was firm as he looked over at one of the screens.

“Well she is- she appears distracted. She’s not performing at normal capacity. Results are drastically changing every few minutes,” The Doctor, Lewis responds, his tone indicating he was walking on eggshells in front of his superior. The lead scientist was not in a particularly good mood.

“I told that damn director-” Gordon grumbled under his breath before harshly swiping several stacks of paper off of the desk in front of him. “I told him not to intervene!” He shouts, causing several scientists in the room to look over skeptically. “How long did Captain Rogers have access to the subject yesterday?” He demands, his eyes jumping quickly about his employees before one spoke up.

“Approximately two hours, sir.” She responds, a clipboard in hand as she gripped it tightly.

Gordon clenched his jaw, his eyes finding the viewing window again as he watched the subject below going through trials.

“The director give you any notifications? Does he plan on taking my patient again?” 

“No sir,” Lewis responds, turning slightly in his chair before his eyes found the computer screen in front of him. 

Doctor Gordon grumbled under his breath, his body tense as he looked about the room.

“All of you out. I need to contact the director.” He finally snaps. 

After his words were heard, several of the scientists began to leave the room. Gordon remained as he watched Sanders in the area below. Pushing a couple buttons on the front desk panel, the windows went dark, and the lights dimmed. Bringing up the hologram on the desk in the middle of the room, Gordon requested a private call with Fury. He had some things that needed to be discussed. 

It didn’t take long for the request to be answered and seconds later, a hologram of Fury appeared.

“Doctor Gordon, what can I do for you?” Fury rested his clasped hands forward on his desk as he eyed the scientist.

“I apologize for the intrusion, Director, but I’m afraid I must express my current feelings on this event my subject underwent yesterday.” Gordon explains carefully. “My patient is currently under some distress. Whatever the Captain forced her to talk about the other day has put strain on her,” 

At hearing Gordon acknowledge Kate more clearly, Fury raised an eyebrow gently. Gordon was always very careful to not personalize his patients… Fury was wary of whatever Gordon was heading towards. It was no secret they often disagreed over the welfare of these recruits… especially that of Kateyln Sanders.

“Is she undergoing any tests?” Fury asks, adjusting his seat as he leaned back in his chair.

“At the moment she is, Director.” Gordon nods before swallowing and clearing his throat as he breathed out quietly. He needed to keep his composure. If the director knew how angered he was, the conversation may take a turn. “Why do you ask?”

“Perhaps giving her some time would be beneficial. I don’t see the harm in giving her some exposure.” He shrugs. 

“If Rogers was pushing my patient to reveal confidential information, it could very well affect my results and the recruit’s efficiency to perform.” Gordon makes clear, some firmness to his tone as he leaned forward on the desk. 

“I highly doubt that her exposure to Rogers caused any great upset, Doctor.” Fury responds with a chuckle. 

Something in his tone causes Gordon to clench his jaw. Was he questioning his professional opinion?

“The coming weeks are of vital importance. If the recruit performs these lasts tests, the transfer will be deemed iminent.”

“Katelyn Sanders will soon be an agent, Doctor. Such exposure is of as much importance to her training as these tests regarding her ability.” Fury explains, his expression indicating his concern. 

Gordon was quiet for a moment before he gave a small nod.

“I understand Director, I do.” He responds more gently, having realized his tone was previously turning hostile. “She is one recruit I have worked closely with, and I would hate to see her put in such a position as she was yesterday.” He explains quietly and slowly. 

Fury nodded hesitantly, taking in the doctors words with care before humming.

“I’ll be sure not to surprise you with any more of Rogers requests,” 

“Thank you Director” Gordon gives a curt nod, standing up straight to return his hands behind his back.

“Is there anything else you need?”

“No, sir. Thank you for your time” Gordon smiles. Fury gave a curt nod in response before the hologram disappeared.

The Doctor stood quietly in the dark room for a moment before yelling out angrily, scattering more papers and files off the table and towards the floor. Slamming his hand down on one of the buttons on the far desk, Gordon waited for the dark privacy visor on the viewing window to rise before he spoke into the microphone on the desk that was connected to the room below. 

“Leon, end the trial. I want the subject in the back room for testing now.” He snaps, his eyes staring harshly through the window towards the large man standing off to the side of the trial area as he gave a nod towards the observation room.

It didn’t take long for Gordon to make his way down to the lower sublevel and into the secure room that housed the medical equipment for Sanders. 

“Doctor would you like us to record data fo-”

“Just get the basic readings down. Until I have this subject up in our new training facility, we are not going to rest. Understood?” Gordon snaps, his eyes quickly shooting about to every individual in the room. Taking a few steps to the side, Gordon passed the guards armed with heavy semi-automatic weapons before coming up to the central area of the room where Sanders was seated in a large medical chair. 

The lead doctor watched quietly for well over a minute as several scientists went about their tasks.

One scientist proceeded to hook up an IV to her arm while another added small stickers for reading her pulse. Several machines at the back of the room portrayed monitors, the live scans coming up as the doctors went about their work.

“Any visible injuries?” Gordon finally mumbles. 

“None, sir. Although there appears to be deep muscle damage from-”

“Administer an Epinephrine injection, I want her ready by tomorrow for the next trial.”

“S-Sir, this kind of damage needs at least a week to hea-” One of the scientists on her right proceeded to try and argue, only to be cut off.

“We don’t have time for this!” Gordon snaps. “Get the Epinephrine, give a high dose, I want the subject ready tomorrow.” Throwing a hand out to two of the doctors at the back of the room, Gordon left, leaving the team to do their work.

It took around an hour and a half to get back to New York City. Steve found himself heading back to his own apartment when he got a call from Tony telling him to come back to the Tower. It was getting close to dark and Steve figured he’d be having a similar night to the one he had yesterday.

Apparently Tony found some information about Kate. While Steve knew he should just wait until tomorrow to look at it, considering he had a lot to think about after his visit with Doctor Gordon, part of him was itching to look at some more information on Kate. 

Tony thought it was important enough for him to bypass his apartment and come straight to the Tower, so… hopefully it was some good intel. 

Walking into the lobby area, Steve made a beeline for the elevator. 

“Captain Rogers,” 

“Jarvis,” Steve nods, leaning back against the elevator wall with his hands comfortably on his belt. 

“Shall I take you to Mr. Stark?”

“Yeah, that’d be great, thank you.” Steve smirked to himself before letting his eyes draw down.

“You’re welcome.”

Close to a minute passed before the doors opened and Steve pushed off the elevator wall, slowly exiting the lift as he let his eyes circle the room. His eyes found the counters and various pieces of equipment as well as the back wall lined with Stark’s suits. 

“There you are. It’s about time,”  Tony exclaims, coming into view as he had been hiding behind several holograms. “Ok so I found out some stuff about your kid.” 

Steve let his hands travel into his pockets as he followed Tony over to one of the desks in the large room. There were several holograms up, mostly of his suits and various other things he was working on. 

Tony threw down a large stack of papers about half an inch thick, causing Steve’s brow to knit. 

“Now- remember I’m still looking,” The Stark grumbled while meeting the Captain’s eyes for a moment. “I got you a few things on her early time with SHIELD. I found a small assortment of medical forms and found enough papers to make a small book just on the injuries that were logged regarding her time with this other organization SHIELD got her from, but I couldn’t get complete access to those so I only have a few here.”

“There’s a lot?”

“Oh yeah,” Tony breathes, shaking his head before holding out a picture.

“That’s her ID image SHIELD took when she was first brought in. Kid looks pretty banged up,” He mumbled, letting his hand fall as Steve took the image and observed it quietly.

At first glance, Steve thought it was a different person, but after a couple seconds it became clear it was her.

“Right now she seems pretty dark and mysterious.” 

“What does that mean?” Steve muttered, turning his eyes up to meet Tony’s face as the man put his hands up playfully.

“Just sayin… her danger levels are a bit, uh… questionable.” Tony gave a shrug before going quiet and Steve’s brow knit in response.

“Danger levels?”

At the question, Steve was handed a printed sheet of what appeared to be code. 

“I couldn’t get the page decoded, but it’s part of her file.” Snatching the sheet back, Tony set in on the counter before grabbing a highlighter and drawing along several lines of text. 

Steve took a couple steps closer to the desk, coming up on Tony’s left.

“See these?” Tony pointed to the few spots he had highlighted and Steve let his eyes dot between them all. 

Hostility level: 12

Aggression level: 15

Submission level: 4

Obedience level: 8

Danger level: 20

“Now I’ve looked at dozens of other files to compare her stats, and I haven’t come across another danger level over 15.” Tony makes clear, his eyes on the Captain’s as he perused the information. “You sure you know what you’re getting into?”

“Is this everything you found?” Steve mumbles, his eyes still on the sheet before he met Tony’s eyes, earning a small scoff.

“Got a couple incident reports, nothing serious, although I couldn’t get them decoded completely so you’ll have to skim through to make any sense of it,” He shrugs, spreading a couple more papers out. “I made you paper copies btw. You can take em if you want”

Steve let his eyes traced the desk, finding all the sheets of paper before turning directly to Tony to hold out his hand.

“Thank you.”

Tony rolled his eyes before shaking his hand and patting his shoulder with his space hand.

“Still looking, but I’ll get some better info soon… Jarvis is currently running some files on her recorded trials, so if you wait around an hour or two I can get you those.”

“Do you mind?” Steve questioned, his brow knit together gently.

“Nope. If you want some privacy just take the suite,” Tony shrugs, throwing out a hand innocently as Steve almost rolled his eyes. “Hey, its late- you gotta wait here a few more hours anyway so just give it a try.”

Clenching his jaw Steve met Tony’s eyes for a moment, his gaze almost narrowing before he let out a breath. The Captain gave a small nod before glancing away.

“Alright,” Steve breathes, hesitating before letting his eyes meet the desk again. 

Tony smirked and turned rather quickly before he began to gather all the papers, putting them into a stack before holding them out to his friend. 

“You know where it is. Clean bed sheets are in the bathroom closet. Any other small necessities should be in said closet.”

“Tony-” Steve shook his hand, hesitantly taking the papers when Tony snatched them away.

“Romanoff and Barton sucked it up. They stay here now since their off being Mr. and Mrs. Smith fifty percent of the time,” He grumbles before slowly holding out the papers again. “And Banner is just here cause I’m so much fun to be around- you live in a sad little SHIELD apartment by yourself, that’s practically an excuse in itself.”

Steve gave Tony a small look of question before rolling his eyes, taking the papers he set the photo of Kate with it that he had been holding. 

“Thank you.”

“Not a problem,” Tony gives him a brief smile before gesturing for the door. “There should be a tablet up there for you. I’ll send the data over in a couple hours when Jarvis breaks through”

Giving a small nod Steve turned before heading for the elevator.

It had been around an hour since Steve had settled in the- his… room in the Tower. Tony had deemed it his, it was built for him. As was a room for each member of the Avengers. Steve wondered how Tony saw this team. Right after the Battle of New York, everyone went their separate ways, with not much intent of reuniting unless a world disaster called for it. Meanwhile Tony was rebuilding Stark Tower to fit the whole team in the event that they all met up again.

While Steve was still getting used to all this, it was comforting to have a place at the Tower, despite their extreme differences in personality and approach… Tony was a good friend, someone Steve knew he could rely on. Also someone Steve could break the rules with free of guilt. 

Steve was sitting on the bed in his room, the papers were scattered around the bed comforter, messy piles indicating some organization as Steve was sifting through some of the coded papers, a highlighter in hand as he traced any information that made sense or appeared relevant.

The Captain found himself sighing as he blinked his eyes a couple times before capping the highlighter and tossing it down. Letting his eyes search the scattered mess, Steve picked up the photograph SHIELD first took of Kate. Clenching his jaw he eyed the image closely.

She looked like she had been severely beaten to a pulp. She looked so different. Not in the manner of her appearance, but her expression. 

Steve felt his brow knit gently as he found himself just staring at the picture. It somehow spoke a thousand words to him. There was so much information just in her expression in that image. She looked like a force to be reckoned with, a dark look of determination on her face. And that was when SHIELD found her. What had they have possibly done to turn her into the shy and submissive individual Steve had talked with the other day.

“See anything?” Natasha calls over, her eyes finding Clint sitting by the window.

“There’s a bird by the west gate… “ He responds, turning to meet her eyes with a smirk. “Looking suspicious… I’ll keep an eye on him,”

“You do that,” Nat smiles, giving the smallest shake of her head before returning her gaze to the laptop in front of her. Pulling her legs up, she adjusted her seat to a criss-cross before leaning forward to continue pursuing the interrogation details. 

This could be another potential location. However this one was different. The man they spoke with made it clear that this facility held high risk kids, with unstable abilities. It was locked down tight. Now it was up to Clint and Natasha to conclude whether or not this info was accurate and a raid needed to be conducted to rescue any children. The first twenty-four hours had gone by quiet. While they saw a couple people entering and exiting the building, there wasn’t enough info to authorize a raid.

She is pulled from her thoughts and her eyes from the report as she spotted a small box pop up at the top of the screen.

“Steve’s trying to facetime me, should I answer it?” Nat calls over, causing the archer let out a laugh.

“Sure.”

Turning her eyes down to the screen she accepted the request, allowing a window to open in the middle of her screen, revealing Steve who was sitting in what appeared to be a bedroom.

“Rogers, long time no see” Romanoff smiles, sitting up a little straighter as she pulled the laptop into her lap. 

“How’s your mission going?” He asks, although his curious tone seemed a bit forced.

“It’s going alright,” She nods. “Nothing much yet. We’re held up on an adjacent street in a shady little hotel… Really exciting stuff,” She smirks, causing Steve to crack a small smile. “So what’s the occasion? I know you didn’t call just to see how much fun we’re having,” 

At her words Steve seemed to drop his forced expression to reveal a more conflicting one. “How’d the meeting go? You seem a bit off,” She tries, catching the attention of Clint who looked over at her words.

“... Just don’t feel like I got anywhere,” He shrugs, breathing out as he wrung his hands, having been leaning forward on his elbows. “She answered my questions, don’t get me wrong, I just-... I ran into Doctor Gordon today,” Steve finally throws a hand out.

“Gordon?” Natasha’s brow knit in response.

Clint meanwhile having heard Steve’s words looked over with a confused expression.

“Yeah, he uh, knew I talked to her and wanted to show me around the facility. Got to see some of the other areas, talk to a couple kids…”

“Well that’s- good, right?” She gives him a confused smile before narrowing her eyes a smidge. “You got what you wanted.”

Steve didn’t respond or confirm her words. He seemed to be lost in thought again, having begun to wring his hands.

“Everything seemed fine,” Steve mumbles, shaking his head. “But that doctor just rubs me the wrong way.”

“Got a fishy feeling there, Cap?” Clint calls over, having turned most of his attention back outside. 

Natasha shoots him a small smile before turning her own gaze back to the screen in front of her.

“Kate seemed different from the recruits I saw today… And Tony-”

“Tony shouldn’t be giving you anything” Natasha grumbles before smiling. “He gets caught again and Fury will be pissed.”

“Natasha something doesn’t feel right.” Steve makes clear. His tone was firm but there was an expression of worry on his face.

Natasha was quiet for a moment, her playful expression having loosened. She could see he was battling a lot of different thoughts. 

“What’s your goal here?” She finally asks, letting her arms loosely cross as she rested them on her stomach, the laptop on her thighs.

“What do you mean,” Steve mumbles, his eyes on the floor before he turned them up to meet her gaze.

“… You’ve talked to several of these recruits. One of which you’re more acquainted with than others. You have these questions that you’re getting answers to, just not the answers you want to hear,” She explains slowly, hoping that when Steve heard her words, that he would come to terms with his approach to this situation.

“She’s protecting something- er… someone. I looked at her and I didn’t see… She didn’t seem to process a response to a question until I asked her something that pertained to her in particular, like she actually had to think about her answer. Otherwise it’s just like a triggered response SHIELD’s conditioned into her.” Natasha remains quiet as Steve let his thoughts make a lengthy and somewhat jumbled explanation of words. While it seems this meeting’s purpose was to settle Steve’s conscience, it seems it only caused more upset.

He was right… in a manner of speaking. Part of any kind of training in this line of work required very impersonal and collective opinions or reactions; your own opinion was not of importance until you have proved yourself, in a sense, a skilled, efficient, and trustworthy agent. And even then, you were still a sense of ordinary or impersonalism amongst agents.

“Steve this kind of training can be a little intimidating… If anything I guarantee they might have told her to approach this interaction with you like a test or interview… everything is part of her training, whether it’s a planned event or not.”

At hearing her words Steve seemed to disassociate for a moment, almost as if he made a realization, causing Natasha to give him a subtly confused look.

“Steve?” She asks gently, causing him to seemingly snap out of his thoughts before meeting her eyes.

“So… If I were to get a chance to talk to her suddenly, you’re saying I'd have more luck getting some real answers,” Steve mumbles quietly, his eyes dotting about as he was deep in thought.

“W- No. No, I’m saying-”

“Thanks Nat,” Steve breathes, his expression having completely changed. “Good luck on the mission guys,” Steve calls a little louder for Clint. “Will do Cap’n,” Clint chuckles.

“Ste-” Natasha went to quickly explain her previous statement when the chat was suddenly ended and the facetime window disappeared. Her eyes dotted about the screen before she closed them, leaning her head back against the wall behind the bed momentarily.

“Did he just hang up on you?” Clint murmurs, his expression giving away how amusing he found the situation as his eyes were still out the window.

“He did,” Natasha rolls her eyes before shaking her head, causing Clint to let out a chuckle.

Turning off the tablet Steve sat back against the back of the bed frame, thinking it over. 

“They might have told her to approach this interaction with you like a test or interview.”

Swallowing Steve sat up again, thinking back to the last bit of conversation he had with Kate before she left yesterday. 

Yesterday...

“You ready Sanders?” Agent Hill called over, causing the recruit to turn and give a nod of confirmation. 

Steve had looked up to eye the deputy director before turning his eye down to Kate.

“Thank you for doing this, I know it probably wasn’t something you’re normally used to doing,” Steve gives her a small smile. 

Kate gave a nod in response before also giving a brief smile.

“It’s no trouble sir.” 

“Hey Hill, I got a question about this fancy program of yours,” 

The question caused Steve to turn a look of confusion up and over to the elevator where Hill was, seeing Tony had walked over.

Tuning out the conversation on the other side of the room Steve turned his attention back down to Katelyn.

“Sir, may I ask you one more thing? Genuinely” She seemed to word the question quietly, causing Steve to take a small step forward before nodding. “Of course,” He lowered his voice for discretion, as her body language also indicated she was trying to not draw attention.

“Is this a test?”

Her question caused Steve’s expression to contort with confusion. A test?

“Is what a test,” He murmers, his expression turning more serious as he listened closely.

“This meeting, our conversation…” She responds further, her brow knit gently. “Did Fury put you up to it- or, someone at SHIELD, Doctor Gordon?”

Steve is quiet for a moment before slowly shaking his head.

“Absolutely not,” He responds quietly, his hand rested on his belt. “I am not apart of- this, Oriah. Yes, SHIELD but… Not this,” He gestures past her. “This wasn’t a test.” He adds.

In response to his words Kate is silent. Her gaze had since drawn down as she processed his words before turning up to meet his eyes again.

He gave her a small nod, almost in the manner of seeking her confirmation, that she understood. She finally gave him a small smile and a nod.

“Sanders,” At the mention of her name Kate turned and gave a nod to her superior before meeting Steve’s eyes again.

He gave her a small smile and she smiled back before going to turn. Not a second later her expression had reverted back to the blank one she had arrived with and she headed towards the elevator.

Steve clenched his jaw, thinking it over. He needed to talk to her again. Get some truth out of her. While there were plenty of other recruits he could probably get info from, he knew her the best, and felt that he had enough contact with her that it would be a waste to start over with someone else. But more importantly, the recruits he spoke to that day seemed different. More relaxed. Kate was different. 

SHIELD was all he knew right now. They were furthering his training and knowledge of the modern world, but while they were using him for missions and assignments, he wanted to know exactly the kind of organization he was working for.

Right now, this Oriah program was the source of most of his curiosity and caution. All he knew at this point was that he wasn’t letting his suspicions go.

A Couple Days Later…

“That’s almost the exact opposite of what I just told you to do, you do realize that”

“Tony what are you even doing here?”

“My help is invaluable last time I checked Romanoff,”

“Eyes on target, guys.” Steve finally snaps, his eyes turning up as the sound of repulsors roared and Tony flew into view in his iron suit, shooting back another reply.

“Yeah guys, listen to Capsicle, he’s trying to play leader.”

Clenching his jaw Steve let his eyes fall to Natasha who was a few feet from him before he glanced a little ways past her to where Clint was collecting his arrows strewn about. 

There were days Steve seriously questioned everything. 

“Any word from Fury?” The captain’s eyes met Natasha’s as she headed in his direction.

“Nothing yet. He said reinforcements would be here shortly however. Shouldn’t be long now.”

Steve gave a nod in response, letting his eyes return out and around the streets before them.

The current enemy was somewhat unknown. However, what was clear was that they had managed to acquire a good amount of the Chitauri weapons and technology from the Battle of New York. What had started out as multiple bank heists quickly turned into a very high-tension situation in which many civilian hostages became apparent. 

The group consisted of a large variety of members, several dozen to say the least. Most of which thought they could fight there way out of the situation they had gotten themselves into. There were several cops that had reported to a few of the banks, most of which were now KIA. 

SHIELD then decided to dispatch some help in the form of half of the Avengers- well, half and change since Tony decided to show up.

“We’ve got two banks left with hostages. Nat, Stark, you guys take the bank on Ea-” 

“We’ll take the one farther away, Cap” Tony finishes, giving a salute before flying lower, holding out a hand to Natasha as she quickly grabbed it and they went off in the direction of one of the banks. 

Steve watches them quietly before Clint walked up next to him, two arrows in his hands as he quickly put them into his quiver.

“Cap’n,”

“This way,” Steve gestures with a hand before they picked up a jog and headed for the second bank. 

The bank was on the adjacent corner from where Clint and Steve now resided. 

“I count six hostiles on the ground level,” Clint speaks up, his eyes narrowing as he evaluated the bank around fifty or so yards away. “Not sure how many are on the second level.”

“Alright,” Steve responds, standing next to Clint as he eyed the bank as well. “Cops are on their way, we need to get in there before they arrive.”

“Hey Cap, heads up these guys have some explosives on them.” Tony.

At hearing his words Steve paused before turning to meet Clint’s eyes. That changes things.

“Stark you’re sure?” Clint meanwhile had turned his eyes back to the occupied building, narrowing his gaze as he looked closely.

“Pretty sure, Cap. No vests, but it looks like they’ve got some in a duffle bag, look for a black bag or something of the sort. One of the guys’ll have a phone- a type of makeshift wireless trigger mechanism.”

“Got em,” Clint speaks up, pulling Steve’s attention to the archer. 

“Grey long sleeved shirt, by the front desk.” 

The captain turned his eyes towards the bank, quickly finding the character in question, a small phone in his hand.

“Thanks for the heads up Stark,” Steve speaks into the com before letting his hand fall, meeting Clint’s eyes. 

“No problem, Cap. We’re almost done here. Call if you need a hand.”

His eyes meeting the bank again, Steve turned his gaze to the building next door.

“Think you could get in on the second level,”

Letting his eyes follow Steve’s, Clint looked to the surrounding buildings around the bank before giving a nod.

“Shouldn’t be a problem.” The archer nods. 

Steve slowly approached the front of the bank. His shield on his back, Steve knew he’d have to be careful not to provoke the individuals. 

Pushing the door open, the Captain caught the attention of everyone around him.

“I just want to talk,” Steve makes clear, his hands up in the air as his eyes jumped around at the several hostages and assailants; the hostiles yelled out numerous threats and demands for him to stop and not move.

Steve comes to a stop, his hands still in the air as his eyes met a few of the hostiles that came forward, pointing guns at him as the one long-sleeved man walked up, keeping a good distance between them. 

“I want to make a deal with you guys,” Steve explains, his eyes jumping about amongst the individuals before him before his eyes jumped up to the second story where four men were also attentively watching him, guns pointed. Steve’s eyes eventually met the eyes of the man with the phone in his hand, someone who was most likely leading this operation.

“Got some nerve comin in here making demands,” The man chuckles, the flip phone loosely in his grasp as he tossed it in the air before catching it loosely. 

Letting his eyes dot around to the various assailants loosely surrounding him, Steve let his gaze return to the lead man before giving a slight shake of his head.

“Let these civilians leave,” Steve makes clear, his tone calm but concise as he gestured to the several individuals on the ground fearfully gathered next to the front desk of the bank. “You can take me as your hostage,” Steve gestures to himself and met the eyes of the leader momentarily. “Do we gotta deal?” Steve’s question was immediately followed by chuckling.

“Not so fast man. I need a clear path outta here, and you don’t exactly provide cover for all my boys” He gestures around with amusement to his people.

“Cap, the wireless trigger in the phone requires a phone number to be dialed,” Steve clenched his jaw at hearing Romanoff’s comment as he remained quiet, eyeing the lead individual closely. Not seconds later something caught his eye as he saw movement on the second floor. 

“In position,” Clint.

“The authorities haven’t arrived yet… you can make it out now if you agree to let these civilians go unharmed,” Steve clenched his left hand casually into a fist as he still had his hands up in the air before he shot the smallest of looks up towards the second floor where several men were. 

The lead individual smirked before letting out a small huff. 

“You’d like that wouldn’t you,”

“Ok.” Steve grumbles, glancing about briefly before meeting the eyes of the lead individual, casually glancing up to see one of the hostiles disappear quickly from view.

“Your partners that you sent to another bank have been apprehended… The authorities are taking them into custody as we speak,”

“Was wondering why I wasn’t getting my calls returned,” He chuckles, flipping the small phone in his hands before meeting Steve’s eyes. “Here’s the deal, you’re gonna step aside and let us leave with half of these hostages. You stay put, I may just make things easier on you but not detonating these treats I have here,” He gestures over to the duffle bag, causing Steve to clench his jaw.

Light scuffling sounds were heard from the second floor and Steve gave the smallest of nods as he glanced about, taking account of the men around him and the proximity of them.

“... Alright,” Steve gives the smallest of nods as he slowly turned his eyes upward to see Clint giving him a casual wave, no hostiles in sight around him.

Meeting the eyes of the lead man, Steve gestured for the door behind him.

“Once you’re clear of the building, let them go,” Steve takes a couple steps to the side as one of the men gestured with his weapon for Steve to move.

“I’ll decide what happens to them,” He makes clear, twirling the phone in his hands when a sudden whistle-like noise pierced the air and an arrow sliced through the man’s arm, causing him to cry out. 

The phone hit the floor and Steve quickly took the opportunity to take out the several men around him, throwing their weapons to the side before knocking them about. 

Arrows went by here and there as Clint provided Steve with cover. Within a minute the men were incapacitated about the room and the civilians cowering by the front desks were hesitantly realizing they were safe.

Steve quickly snatched the phone on the ground and looked it over for a moment before giving Clint a small nod.

“Stark, we got things under control here,” Steve says into his comlink, having raised his spare wrist to his mouth. 

“Good to hear, Rogers. Have any trouble?”

“Nope, all the civilians are accounted for and hostiles are incapacitated.”

“Nice. Bomb squad is on there way and Fury’s gonna have guys in there soon I think. Some men in black just showed up here,”

“I’ll keep an eye out for them, thanks.” Steve responds before dropping the hand, looking up to see Clint coming down the stairs before he headed for the civilians now coming to their feet. 

Steve quickly headed over to help, giving the smallest of smiles as he helped a few people to their feet. They all seemed okay, shaken certainly, but not physically hurt. 

“Is everyone alright here?” The captain asks, his eyes dotting around the individuals as Clint helped up an older woman from the floor.

Several individuals mumbles their confirmations, causing Steve to give them all a nod and a smile.

“Authorities are almost here, there will be medical treatment available if anyone needs it.”

SHIELD personnel had since arrived at the various sights and had collected most of the evidence. There weren’t any civilians critically injured, although a few of the bank security guards had been injured in the chaos. 

Walking towards a small trailer that SHIELD had currently stationed outside one of the banks, Steve walked into the small space to see Natasha and Clint.

“How’s it coming?” The Captain asks, letting his eyes meet Natasha’s as she turned to face him, having been standing next to Clint who was sitting at a computer on a small desk of the trailer.

“Cataloging and filing the Chitauri weapons… Nothing exciting,” She gives a small smile before letting her eyes meet the screen once again.

Steve patted Clint’s shoulder as he passed and headed for the front of the trailer. After setting his SHIELD down against a few of the weapon crates, Steve turned to see Tony pop his head inside the trailer. 

“Hey Cap,” The Stark called out, causing Steve to head in his direction before following him out of the trailer.

“Yeah?” Steve’s brow knit lightly as his eyes followed Tony as the Stark turned to meet his eyes.

“I’m getting lunch together as we speak back at the Tower, you should take a load off, come by.” The Stark gave a small shrug, eyeing his teammate expectantly as Steve clenched his jaw before looking to the side. 

Tony had been trying to get Steve to take up his offer on the spare suite at the tower. In the renovations, Tony had several private floors added for the team. He essentially had his own floor in the Tower if he wanted to live there. However, Steve didn’t want to impose. He was doing a lot of work with SHIELD and was often gone for days at a time. 

“Its a meal, relax.” Tony mutters, patting Steve’s back before breathing out a small laugh. “And it’s not a request, get your ass back to the Tower around 2 for sushi,”

“Sushi?” Steve mutters, shooting a confused look at the Stark as he walked away. Watching his friend depart Steve shook his head before he let his eyes peruse the area around him. The street had been blocked off and SHIELD as well as some police and hospital vehicles littered the closed street. People were busy and walking about the scene.

Breathing out quietly Steve headed back for the trailer. 

It took a few hours, but Steve made it back to the Tower. Having visited his old apartment to clean up, Steve made sure to bring some entertainment in the form of a new book. Already having read many Cold War era books, Steve had gone in the direction of the sciences- in this case, a book on the first moon landing and NASA history. Steve was aware that SHIELD did work with NASA. Back before the battle of New York, SHIELD had a joint base where they did work on the Tesseract in fact. 

Caught up reading the inside cover of the book, Steve’s head shot up in surprise when the elevator opened, letting the light shine into the space.

“Hey,” Steve’s eyes met Clint’s as he walked by. 

“Cap, just in time, food’s all out.” Tony calls, seated on the couch adjacent to Bruce. 

“Thank you for the invite,” Steve nods, walking into the room before heading towards his fellow SHIELD agents. 

“Technically you’d be living here if not for that stick stuck up your ass,” Tony mutters, eyeing the Captain with an obviously amused expression.

“I have a place already Stark,” Steve responds, turning to eye the man.

“Yeah from SHIELD. It’s a SHIELD owned space. Join the times, come live here with your people,” Tony throws a hand out, his eyes looking for his food before he snatched up the bowl with his other hand.

“Everything go ok?” Bruce asks, chopsticks in hand as he used them to pick something up off of his plate.

“Yeah, everything went fine.” Steve gives a nod and a small smile before heading towards Clint and Natasha. 

“Thought you wouldn’t show there for a moment,” Clint chuckles, looking around Natasha as Steve sat down on her right.

“Had to do a couple things before coming,” Steve responds with a sigh, his eyes finding some plates of food in front of them before he furrowed his eyebrows.

“What’s this?” Steve asks slowly, his gaze locked on the unfamiliar food as Natasha chuckled.

“It’s sushi, like I told you.” Tony suddenly says over Steve’s shoulder, giving it a quick pat before walking away.

“Banner and I got a lot of work to do, so you all eat and get Capsicle to eat too. Something tells me he’s never had sushi before,” Tony calls, having disappeared into the elevator with Bruce.

Steve gave a bit of a nod, about to turn back to Clint and Nat when Tony spoke up again.

“Oh hey Cap, did a little digging into your situation with SHIELD. Jarvis is running a couple more things and I’ll be back up with the findings,”

Steve gave Tony a bit of a surprised look as the Stark had come back into view, hanging somewhat around the elevator door.

“Sounds good,” Steve replies, giving him a small nod and receiving a thumbs up in return.

Steve turned in time to hear the doors close, giving a small huff at Natasha’s disapproving face.

“You should be patient,” She sighs, chopsticks in hand as she gestured about with them to prove her point. 

Steve chose not to respond, turning his eyes down to the bar counter before meeting Nat’s and then Clint’s eyes. Not seconds later Steve looked at the food again, his blank expression giving way to his unfamiliarity with the food. 

“So what is this…” He mumbles, much to the amusement of both Clint and Nat.

“Sushi, its Japanese.” Clint explains, taking a couple pieces off of the large platter, filling his smaller plate.

“Rice, vegetables, raw fish… It’s good,” Natasha smiles, mildly amused at Steve’s facial expression. 

“Why would you want to eat it raw” Steve mumbles, eyeing the food cautiously before glancing up at Clint and then Nat. 

“Cause its good!” Clint responds, waving a hand before using chopsticks to pick up a sushi roll, shoving it into his mouth. 

Steve watched Clint momentarily before shaking his head slightly.

“I think I’ll just get some cereal,” Steve gives a small smile to Natasha who chuckled.

“Have some rice. There’s plenty of food here you can pick from,“ She responds, causing Steve to pause his actions, having stood up from his stool before he gave a small sigh and a nod. 

Gathering a small bowl of rice and some vegetables, Steve sat down next to Natasha, Clint still on her left side as he proceeded to eat several sushi rolls. As they all went about eating, Steve mostly picked at his food until the topic of a previous mission that Clint and Nat had been on came up. Steve mostly tuned them out as he was eyeing his bowl of rice and vegetables until some familiar words left Clint’s mouth and his head lifted rather quickly. 

“Wait, what’d you say?” Steve let his fork fall as he looked over at Clint, past Natasha. 

He gave the Captain a curious look before an expression of realization crossed his face as he awkwardly swallowed his sushi roll, clearing his throat. His eyes jumped to Natasha for only a moment before he sighed quietly.

“Uh, we had a small- it was a really small assignment concerning the uh- operation,” Clint explains quietly. “Two days ago. It was later at night, Hill had us come up for an interrogation of a possible target affiliated with this group.”

“And?” Steve’s tone revealed some confusion. As Hill had made it clear he was on this operation now. Why wasn’t he informed?

“Unsure yet. They’re doing some digging to see if the info is legit,” The archer seemed pretty calm, if anything a little uncomfortable as Steve was kept outside the loop for a reason. Glancing at Natasha he hesitated his words before continuing. “Hill kept you off because of your… Caution towards the program,”

“I’m sure she did.” Steve mumbles, looking down into his food. 

“The order came from Fury,” Natasha adds, causing the Captain to meet her eyes. “I think he wants you to be eased into this more slowly.”

Eyeing her quietly Steve hesitated a moment before letting his eyes fall towards his food, his jaw clenching briefly.

Minutes went by and eventually conversation between Clint and Natasha picked up. Steve turned his attention towards his book, managing to get through the first few chapters. Although his attention was more so in his thoughts than about the founding of NASA.

He didn’t like being kept in the dark, but if SHIELD at the least trusted him with the program - at some point, he’d be glad to even get that. Something told Steve that if he ultimately found that he didn’t like the program and gave SHIELD a hard time, they wouldn’t hesitate to take his clearance away. 

But that couldn’t dismiss the obvious fact that Steve seemed to be the only one seriously concerned about this whole program. He didn’t like using the term, thanks to Tony, but child soldiers were essentially what SHIELD was setting these kids up for. While any type of agent work wouldn’t start until they were eighteen, they were still being kept in these training programs, with no means of escaping it. Hell they were even bringing some of these kids into the field, like he witnessed with the Oriah recruit he met, Kate. She probably had to witness the findings of that operation in some manner. 

“Agent Maria Hill has entered the elevator, she requests a moment of your time,” Jarvis.

Steve pushed some of his noisy thoughts away momentarily as Clint looked towards the elevator before meeting his partner’s eyes.

“Probably the findings on the interrogation.” He mumbles, causing Natasha to give a small nod as she stood up. “Cap you’re welcome to listen in. Whatever she has to say she can say to all of us,” Clint adds, meeting his friend’s eyes.

Steve gave Barton a small nod before turning back to face the bar, getting some rice on his fork before putting the bite into his mouth, letting his eyes meet the pages of his book.

He didn’t want to be sour, but…. He felt sour about this whole situation.

“Agent Hill,” 

The sound of the elevator opening prior to Clint’s statement caused Steve to pause his actions. Now he just had to eavesdrop, he couldn’t help it.

“Barton, Romanoff,” Maria Hill was always very professional.

“What were the findings for the interrogation?” Natasha asks, her voice somewhat quiet.

“Could be nothing, but a possible location was found. You two will be going on a reconnaissance assignment to scout out the area. 48 hour watch, no interaction with any possible targets.”

“Alright,” Clint responds, his tone however seemed somewhat distracted. Hill probably handed them files on the assignment to look over. “When are we leaving?”

“Now, actually.” Hill responds. 

She couldn’t just call to have them come up to SHIELD? Steve furrowed his brow slightly as he listened in.

“You could’ve had an agent call us up,” Clint chuckles.

“I figured I could let you all know in person as I am here for something else, I’m here to speak with Captain Rogers.” 

At hearing his name Steve’s brow knit even more so and he closed his book before turning. Maybe a little too fast as it probably informed the agents of his eavesdropping.

When Steve’s eyes met Hill’s his eyes immediately went from her to someone standing next to her.

“I recall you and I spoke about a potential meeting with Oriah recruits the other day,” She adds, causing Steve’s eyes to meet her before they left again to meet the recruit.

“Uh, yes. Yes we did. Fury said he’d let me know.” Steve responds, his comment having started off a little confused before he curved his tone to be more professional.

Steve didn’t expect this to actually be approved, despite Fury’s words that it would be arranged. However what he never expected was that recruit to be one he had met before. “You remember Sanders,” Agent Hill gestures, causing the young girl to step forward.

“Captain,” She gives a brief nod and small smile in greeting as Steve gave her a small smile and nod in return, taking a brief moment to evaluate her. She was wearing a SHIELD uniform of sorts; long sleeved top with a SHIELD patch on the front left side and black tactical style pants and boots. 

Letting his eyes slowly turn, Steve saw Clint smiling as the archer looked between them, Natasha smiling as well. 

“Fury made it clear this wouldn’t be a possibility, if I recall correctly.” Steve starts, his hands coming to rest on his belt as he met Maria’s gaze with his slightly narrowed ones.

Was this done in hopes that he would be a little less annoying about getting information on the Oriah program?

“We made an exception,” Maria responds somewhat firmly. She didn’t appreciate Steve’s seemingly smug attitude. “Sanders here has a test coming up that needs to be scheduled so in the meantime Fury cleared the meeting.”

Steve nodded slowly in response before meeting Kate’s eyes.

“You alright if I ask you some questions about the program?” He asks, giving a small smile. He was unsure how to approach her. Part of him wanted to treat her like a child - which is what she was. But as a potential SHIELD recruit, he wanted to treat her in a professional manner. He felt like he was walking on eggshells. Not because of his colleagues around him, but because he wanted to be on this recruit’s good side.

“Yes sir,” She responds, giving a clear nod. Her expression seemed friendly, her eyes showed contentment. However Steve was unsure as to whether it was genuine.

“Well thank you Hill,” Steve holds out a hand and she takes it.

“Where would you like to do this? I’m guessing in the seating area?” She gestures to the couches and Steve pauses, his hand still grasping hers before they both let go. 

So that was the catch.

“I would like to speak with her alone, if that’s alright.” Steve responds, glancing down at Kate to see her content expression falter.

Hill was quiet before giving a small smile and a shake of her head.

“I’m sorry Rogers I can’t allow that,”

“Why not?” Steve questions, his tone somewhat innocent as he glanced at Clint and Natasha several feet away, somewhat next to the elevator. 

“I’m not permitted to leave her unattended, Captain.” Maria makes clear. “Surely you understand that this meeting shouldn’t be happening to begin with, and Fury made an exception on your part.”

“With respect, she’s not a piece of equipment, Agent Hill. I can watch her for an hour.” He makes clear right back. 

“Oh snaap,” Clint breathes having turned his body slightly towards Natasha to hide his comment.

Maria eyes Steve firmly for several moments before clenching her jaw, glancing down for a moment before meeting the recruit’s eyes.

“Are you comfortable partaking in this discussion alone?” Her question was somewhat firm as well, causing Steve to clench his jaw briefly.

Kate was silent, and for a moment, all attention was on her, her decision and response. 

Steve’s expression softened as she seemed to shrink into herself before nodding her head.

“Yes ma’am, I believe so” She met the eyes of the superior agent who then looked away to meet the Captain’s eyes.

“You have one hour.” She makes clear, her tone revealing how happy she was as Steve gave a small smile

Turning, the Deputy Director looked between both Romanoff and Barton. 

“I can give you all a lift,” Clint and Natasha turned their gazes towards the agent as well before nodding. 

“Sounds good,” Clint smiles before stepping aside to let Hill enter the elevator. The archer’s eyes turned down to meet that of the recruit before he smirked, holding up a fist.

“Have fun kid,” 

She eyed him for a moment before looking down at his hand. She seemed to process the gesture for a moment before hesitantly holding up a fist, causing Clint to make the final move to bump his fist against hers.

“You too Cap, don’t drill her too hard,” The archer chuckles before entering the elevator.

Steve watched them all leave, only to realize he was now alone with this recruit he didn’t really know, and whom he was about to have a sort of interview with… over some questions he didn’t exactly have present.

The silence couldn’t have been louder as Steve clenched his jaw before meeting the recruit’s eyes.

“Sir,” She addresses. 

She was definitely trained well. Steve had a hunch that she was prepared prior to the meeting. 

“We can sit over here,” Steve speaks up, meeting her eyes as he gestured to the couches. 

She gave a nod before heading over, following the Captain as they both sat down. Kate chose to sit on an adjacent couch, closest to the arm as Steve did the same, sitting closest to the arm of the other couch. 

“Uh, can I get you anything? Some water?” Steve asks quickly, gesturing to the kitchen in the most friendly and professional manner possible.

He never expected to have this opportunity, much less this soon. Probably a SHIELD tactic - catching him off guard so he wasn’t ready with any proper questions to ask or the mindset for it. 

“I’m alright sir, thank you.” Kate responds, her hands comfortable in her lap, her back straight. Yep, SHIELD definitely prepared her ahead of time for this. It was no longer a gut feeling, Steve was going into this with the notion that she was going to do everything in her power to curve Steve’s negative vibes about the program… Maybe a quick change of scenery would get her to be most honest.

“What if we did this- somewhere else?” Steve offers slowly, much to the recruit’s confusion as he brought knit almost immediately.

“S-Sir?”

“We can get some ice cream or, go walk around the city. If you’d rather do something a little more entertaining we can-”

She shook her head immediately, causing Steve to pause. 

“SHIELD’s got you kinda locked in to this meeting huh,” Steve mumbles, noticing how she seemed almost alarmed at his proposal. That didn’t come out wrong did it? “With respect sir, I came prepared to answer any questions you have. Thank you for your offer,” She nods, adjusting her seat as she blinked a few times before returning her expression to a more lax one. 

Steve eyed her quietly for a moment before giving a nod. 

“Alright… I must admit, I wasn’t entirely prepared for this meeting. I was never informed it was happening,” Steve gives her a small smile, leaning forward with his hands clasped, elbows resting on his knees.

His words earned a chuckle as she smiled.

“That was probably done on purpose,” She smirks, causing Steve to smile gently. A genuine expression of humor, that was a first. “I-I mean-” Her face tightened after the words came out. 

“They may have just- forgotten. The director is- very busy after all…” She swallows, her eyes not meeting his for a moment before she cleared her throat. 

She was trying to be careful… Why would she need to be so careful, her comment meant no harm, in fact it gave way to the fact that she probably had a sense of humor. Something SHIELD probably didn’t like. 

“Hey,” Steve leans forward a bit to get her to meet his eyes. “They can’t get to you here… You can be honest with me,”

She slowly met his eyes, and for a moment Steve could see her genuine expression. She was conflicted. 

Before Steve could act on the findings however the expression was gone and she was back to being somewhat robotic like.

“What would you like to know about the program, sir?” She blinked a couple times, almost like a reset. Steve wasn’t going to get what he needed easily.

“Well-”

The sound of the elevator opening caused Steve to pause, his brow knitting with confusion.

“Alright Cap,” Tony. 

Steve’s eyes widen a bit when he realized the last conversation they had. His findings on Kate.

“I got some info on your little frie-” 

“Tony this is Kate,” Steve blurts out quickly, having turned while gesturing to the person adjacent to him, causing the Stark to look up quickly, his brow knit before he smiled with amusement. 

Steve got to his feet, somewhat unsure of the immediate situation. Kate followed suit, coming to her feet.

“Hi there,” Tony calls, giving a small wave as Kate let her hands swing behind her back.

“Mr. Stark,” She responds, causing Tony to scrunch up with amusement at the formalities. “It’s a pleasure to meet you,”

“Honor’s mine,” Tony gives a playful half-bow as he walked towards the kitchen.

“How are things, Cap? Didn’t realize we were having company”

“Agent Hill stopped by,” Steve explains, glancing down at Kate who didn’t seem to mind the addition to the room.

“Oh yeah? She left someone here I see,” 

“Agent Sanders is just- answering some questions for me. I was curious about the program she’s training under,”

“With respect sir, I’m not an agent, just a recruit” Kate speaks up, her eyes on Steve who then gave her a small smile and a nod. “I apologize,” He adds quietly, meeting her eyes as she gave him a small smile in response.

“You training to be an agent kid? Or does SHIELD plan on using you for something else?” Tony calls over, pouring himself some juice from the fridge.

“I couldn’t say for sure, Mr. Stark.” Kate responds. 

Steve eyed her quietly for a few minutes as they engaged in light conversation. Tony was playfully drilling some questions out of her, but she always lightly dodged his questions with light answers. She wasn’t feeling any pressure at all. Steve thought it curious that she seemed more relaxed with Tony throwing these questions at her, or perhaps because someone else was present. 

“Alright Cap, I’ll just come back later and we can chat about that little something” 

The comment diverted Steve’s attention away as he watched Tony walk for the elevator.

“Alright, sounds good.” Steve sat back down on the couch, causing Kate to follow his action.

“Nice meeting you Mr. Stark” Kate speaks up, causing Tony to smile as he did a small amused bow.

“Likewise kid, have fun with Capsicle” As the elevator doors closed Steve caught Kate’s seemingly confused expression as she turned to him.

“It’s just a stupid nickname,” He breathes, shaking his head. “Tony gives them to everyone it seems”

“I see,” Kate gives a small chuckle before adjusting her seat, sitting up attentively as she met Steve’s eyes.

Back here again. 

“So… What’s your opinion of Oriah,” Steve uses a hand to gesture towards her, trying to keep the environment as friendly and welcoming as possible. He didn’t want to drill her. This wasn’t a strict interview. 

“Oh,” Kate’s brow knit at his words before she let her lips part a bit. Steve could see the gears turning in her expression before she gave him a small confused smile. “It’s a very efficient program,” She nods, receiving a nod from Steve in return. “The background that recruits come from isn’t exactly a good one. So SHIELD makes sure to personalize all its methods for rehabilitation.”

“Was your experience in particular a good one?” Steve furthers, starting to really invest in her words. 

She hesitated her response for a moment, eyeing Steve almost closely. Like she was trying to find the meaning behind his words.

“I suppose sir,” Kate nods. “It was a long time ago… My rehabilitation is a bit blurry,” 

“Oh… alright,” Steve nods, looking down for a moment. “Well how is your current experience then? Hill said you have a test coming up, what sort of test?”

“Well, as you know,” Kate trailed off for a moment, seeming to process her thoughts through before continuing. “Oriah recruits have abilities… Tests are usually personalized to abilities of recruits. So no recruit is trained the same way. Other than to control their abilities and use them responsibly.”

“Really,” Steve mumbles, his brow knit with curiosity. “So, what’re your tests like? Are they challenging? Or enjoyable? Is it a healthy challenge?” Too many questions, let her speak first. Steve swallowed, keeping himself from asking anything else as he met her confused gaze.

“A- healthy challenge sir?” Her brow knit with hesitation and Steve chuckled before nodding.

“By that I mean it’s not asking too much of you is it? It’s not damaging in anyway,” He shrugs, his expression a bit amused.

She clenched her jaw, her expression having fallen, almost blank. 

Steve felt his smile fall at her sudden change in demeanor. 

“I’m not sure I understand sir,” She mumbled a bit quieter. 

Steve began to feel a bit uncomfortable, as she seemed to shut down at his question and appeared even more uncomfortable than he was.

“These tests, I’m guessing they’re physical? Have you ever gotten hurt?” Steve tries, his head leaning a bit to the side as Kate refused to meet his eyes.

“SHIELD tests all recruits, ability or not. Physical tests are done, yes. You get hurt once in a while, but it’s normal” She makes clear, turning up to meet his eyes.

Steve clenched his jaw before ultimately giving her a small nod. He was making headway, but now it seems he fell back to the bottom of the mountain. He should probably think about wrapping things up. 

“So... you’re happy? With everything regarding the program you’re in,” Steve continues, his brows knit gently as he eyed her with subtle curiosity. He tried to keep his tone lighter this time.

“I- suppose, sir” Kate responds, her eyes falling before shooting about sporadically as Steve continued to eye her closely.

She was like an entirely different person now. The atmosphere had turned a bit cold. 

“I apologize if I’m coming across a bit strongly,” Steve finally breathes, a hand quickly coming to the back of his neck as he lightly scratched his head. “You seem to get nervous anytime I ask about how you feel about Oriah,”

Kate’s eyes snapped up to meet his, her expression somewhat blank and unreadable before her eyebrows jumped a bit and she shrugged.

“I suppose- it’s an odd thing to ask about, sir” Kate responds quietly, giving a brief nod and subtle smile as Steve gave her a small smile in response to her statement.

“I don’t think it’s odd…”

Kate remained quiet despite Steve’s words and found herself looking down at the floor temporarily. While the air between them wasn’t necessarily tense, Steve felt her closing off more and more.

“What’s the atmosphere like?” He finally asks, leaning forward only slightly in hopes she would meet his eyes again.

When she met his eyes with a somewhat confused expression Steve gave a small shrug of his shoulders before sitting up straight.

“Is it… tense? Do higher agents look down on the recruits or treat them negatively?”

Kate eyed Steve quietly for a moment, clenching her jaw briefly before giving a small smile and a shake of her head.

“I assume it’s just like the normal system of levels in SHIELD. Higher status agents are considered as such for a reason, just as recruits are at the bottom of the totem pole, sir.”

She was good. It made Steve smile as he continued to eye her gently, fully realizing she was not going to throw herself under the bus in revealing any kind of information that would put the Oriah program in a bad light.

“May- I ask you a question, sir?” Her request took Steve from his thoughts as his head shot back up and he eagerly nodded before gesturing forward with a hand.

“With all due respect, why are you so interested in this program?” Kate’s brow was knit only a bit, letting her curiosity peak through her hard set expression- something SHIELD was probably instilling in her as part of her training. 

“Is this SHIELD asking, or you” The words came out of his mouth before he could stop them. It was a little rude to put her in such a position, however before Steve could go back on his words she smiled.

“... Me, sir.” 

Steve eyed her quietly before nodding. While the Captain wouldn’t put it past this recruit to dodge questions, he believed some part of her wanted to be genuine, despite how wary she was of SHIELD’s shadow over her. 

“If I am over stepping m-”

“Not at all,” Steve cuts her off, not wanting the recruit to feel so inferior that she couldn’t ask him a question. The very nature of how she seemed to approach people was one of the reasons Steve didn’t like this Oriah program to begin with. 

“I’m just curious as to your… interest,” 

She had a point. Steve was probably expressing a little too much curiosity in her eyes. The way she was reacting to his concern towards her opinions and even happiness in her position with SHIELD seemed to be setting off some alarm bells for her. 

“I’m a little new to a lot of SHIELD’s classified programs, I just got promoted to level 7,” Steve explains, noticing how Kate gave a nod of realization. “I’m also… A little old fashioned regarding all this, so I might be what you call different from your average agent.”

Kate evaluated him for a few seconds, her eyes dotting around his expression before her gaze turned down as she seemed to process his words. 

Steve remained quiet, almost feeling nervous by how she might interpret his answer.

“Sir, what I mean to ask you, is… why would an Avenger have any interest in recruit welfare,” She explains quieter, almost leaning in a bit as if to keep her question secret.

Steve felt his brow knit more at her question. Did she know who he was? Like on the outside?

Pushing his own question away, Steve thought her question over. He somewhat understood it. She didn’t view her position as one of great importance, especially in comparison to an avenger or higher ranking agent. 

“... I guess that’s where I’m a little old fashioned,” Steve finds himself saying, giving her a small smile before nodding.

Kate eyed him silently, choosing not to respond as she took in his words and continued to evaluate him; his tension, posture, expression… She seemed almost confused by his consideration. 

Later that night, after Agent Hill returned and picked up Sanders, Steve found himself still at the Tower. Tony and Bruce had returned from the lab and the Stark proceeded to explain to Steve some of his findings. While he didn’t find too much as of yet, the sheer fact that he was having trouble getting any information was saying something. 

“I ran a few names through to see what I could find. I could get you information on the last two dozen recruits picked up; their names, families, abilities and other details. I’m still trying to get info on your kid here… SHIELD’s gwot her files loched up tighth,” Tony muttered out through a bite of pizza. 

Meanwhile Steve was having some more rice from lunch’s menu. He’d spent the last several hours repeating the meeting he had with Katelyn Sanders. When Tony and Bruce arrived on the communal floor, Steve let the thought rest in his mind to hear what the Stark had to say.

“You just had to pick the special one didn’t you,” Tony mumbles, shaking his head.

“Can you keep looking?” Steve mumbles quietly, choosing to ignore Tony’s comment in favor of getting more answers.

“Course I can. Was planning on it anyway since it’s proving to be a unique challenge,”

“Thank you,” Steve nods, turning his gaze away as he took his empty bowl towards the kitchen.

“I’m liking this side of you, Cap. And here I thought you were such a square,”

“Excuse me?” Steve looks over his shoulder, seeing the Stark merely give a shrug in response before picking up his glass of water.

“How was the meeting?” Bruce asks, looking up from his plate of food. “You seem a little out of sorts,”

Bruce was always pretty observant. No point in lying. 

“It was alright… She was just very hesitant to give me honest answers,”

“I would be too in that position,” The doctor responds gently, removing his glasses. “She has an ability?”

“Yeah,” Steve clearing his throat. “Not sure what it is, I chose not to ask.”

“SHIELD’s probably keeping her on a short leash. She may be emotionally unstable considering the conditions you said these kids are found in,” 

Steve hesitated his words as he processed Bruce’s. He made a good point. It may not be SHIELD, but more so Kate’s state. She said her rehabilitation was over, but that didn’t mean she was in tip top shape. Especially after what happened to her. 

Steve felt the images of the first location he raided with SHIELD come back into his head. The little girl he found there was skin and bones, and while she didn’t look like she’d been beaten, Steve saw several other children that were rescued who had been severely beaten. He could only imagine what had been done to her. 

“You have a point,” Steve mumbles quietly before turning, proceeding to wash his bowl in the kitchen sink. 

He needed more information. After the events of the day, he needed to find out more.