Chapter 3
“I’m just going to cut to the chase, Sam. I know you aren’t a federal agent, your brother has made that painfully clear, and your sister…I’m not even sure what to think of her.”
“We like to think of her as headstrong.”
Coulson gives Sam a tight lipped smile, “Yes, I believe that is an accurate descriptor.” He pulls out the chair he’s leaning on and sits down. “What I really would like to know, though, is how you managed to get an entire team of federal assets to go off the grid and help out the three of you. People who are tracked on the daily, just gone. Can you explain how you talked them into that?”
Sam leans forward and intertwines his fingers on top of the table, “I think the better question is, why would an entire group of people be willing to do that when they have the entire U.S government behind them? Maybe it’s not about talking them into it, maybe it’s more about why they believe it was necessary.”
“Why do you think they felt that way?”
“I don’t know, you’d have to ask them.”
“See, that’s the thing. They aren’t talking either, and I can’t figure out why. It doesn’t seem to benefit any of us. Any insight would be greatly appreciated.”
Sam laughs, “If you’ve talked to my brother and sister, then you know there are…things…in this world that have to be hunted. Those things don’t really give you insight. But if it makes you feel better, I can try. It just doesn’t sound very believable.”
“Aliens have attacked Earth multiple times and I have the god of Thunder on speed dial. Try me.”
“Okay…”
Sam and Dean follow Tony through the lobby and to the elevator. Sam can feel eyes on them, and he looks at Dean, who appears even more uncomfortable than he is. Once inside the elevator, Tony presses his thumb to a small scanner that is embedded in the wall.
Welcome back, Mr. Stark. Would you like me to give access to the two gentlemen that are accompanying you?
Sam frowns as Tony looks first him, then Dean, up and down over his sunglasses. “Just the bare minimum for now, Jarvis.” When Dean narrows his eyes, Tony throws his hands up and gives a gleaming smile, “Listen, it’s better to be safe than sorry. You realize how many people would die for any kind of access to this building? This isn’t Chuck E. Cheese, you know.”
Would the taller one please step forward and place your thumb on the scanner?
Dean pushes at Sam and he steps forward, grimacing as he carefully presses his thumb to the screen.
Mr. Stark, are you positive you would like to grant access? The scan shows records from the FBI, as well as several local law enforcement agencies, and the charges range from grave robbing to desecration of a corpse to murder and kidnapping. I am not sure this is the best idea.
Sam quickly pulls his thumb away and backs up, running into Dean, who in turn pushes him away again.
“It’s okay, Jarvis, they’re with Y/N. There’s a good explanation for that….mostly…I think. Just the bare minimum, huh?”
As you wish. Samuel Winchester, you now have access to the elevator and the upstairs cafeteria, as well as the main loft.
“Food? Hell yea, count me in!” Dean steps forward and presses his thumb to the screen. There is a pause before the smooth British voice echoes through the elevator once more.
Dean Winchester, you now have access to the elevator and the upstairs cafeteria, as well as the main loft.
“Thanks, Jarvis.” The elevator doors open with a quiet swish, and Tony gestures grandly towards the center of the room, “After you.” Sam and Dean step cautiously into the room and Tony swirls swiftly past them as he approaches the large set of chairs and couches in a recessed section of the floor. “Everyone, our guests have arrived!”
Dean’s jaw drops as he realizes who is gathered in front of him. Y/N is sitting on the couch; Thor on one side, the Winter Soldier on the other. Captain America is sitting across from them, and Black Widow is balanced carefully on his arm rest. Bruce Banner is standing off to the side, his arms crossed as he watches the commotion cautiously, and Hawkeye is sprawled out on another couch, one leg stretched in front of him and his other foot resting on the floor as he threads an arrow through the spaces between his fingers. Falcon is sitting in the chair next to Captain America, and all of them are staring at the Winchesters.
“Hey, guys.” Dean quickly walks over to Y/N and kneels down in front of her, his hand automatically moving to the bruise that is wrapping around her throat,
“What the hell happened? Are you okay? How did you get here?” Dean’s line of questioning is stopped abruptly when he feels a hand grasp his wrist and his gaze shifts from Y/N’s neck up to the large man sitting next to her.
“She has had a strange afternoon, I would suggest removing yourself and giving her some space.”
Dean’s eyes narrow as he stands up, “Excuse me?”
Thor stands as well, and upon realizing Dean is not as short as he thought, squares his shoulders and lifts his chin to appear taller. “The lady has been involved in fisticuffs and won, and has been working on science things with Stark and Banner. She has earned the right to rest.”
“Okay, Lord of the Dance, I’m gonna need you to back the hell up. This is my sister, and I can ask her whatever I feel like asking her. Like why she just disappeared, and how she ended up here….and what do you mean by fisticuffs?!”
“I am the God of Thunder, not Lord of the Dance…although, I do enjoy a nice hambo with a beautiful woman.” He looks down at Y/N and winks and she raises an eyebrow.
“Listen here, Goldilocks, you’re not going to…to hambo with my sister. As a matter of fact, I’ll tell you what you can hambo with-”
“Guys!” Y/N’s sharp admonishment silences both men and she stands up with a grimace, “That’s enough! I am a grown ass woman who will hambo with whoever she likes.” She glares at Dean and Thor smirks. The moment is quickly over when Y/N sets her sights on him, “And I don’t have time to hambo. ….Can we please just stop talking about hambos?”
“She’s right, there’s a reason why we’re here.” Sam steps forward and Natasha sits up a little straighter. Steve notices her sudden interest and elbows her in the side. She looks down at him and shrugs, “What?”
“Why are we here, exactly?” Dean asks as he rolls his eyes at Natasha, who is still staring at Sam.
“Well, Winchester Numero Uno, your sister here was getting into more than she could handle-”
Y/N holds a hand up, “Whoa, hold on, no, no I wasn’t. I was handling it just fine before you came along. From what I remember, you didn’t actually do anything, other than act as a distraction.”
“A distraction that saved your life, which is all in a day’s work. You don’t have to thank me.” Y/N sits back down and nearly sits on Bucky, who looks at her with mild interest.
“Oh, I won’t, don’t worry.” Bucky’s lip twitches and he tries to hide his amusement. Steve catches him and shakes his head, his own smile threatening to spread.
“Anyway, little sister here dispatched the two men attacking her, and although I applaud the cajones that that took, I was going to take her to the police station. You know, due diligence and all that. Until she told me who…or what…they were.” Tony walks over to the bar and pours a drink as he talks, then takes a sip and leans back against it. Sam turns to face him and scoffs,
“And you just believed her? Then brought her to one of the most secure places in New York?”
Tony shrugs, “I’ve seen stranger. I don’t know if I need to remind you about the aliens that keep attacking our planet, but this isn’t my first rodeo. And not to speak for my fellow colleagues, but I’d rather err on the side of caution and make sure it’s taken care of. If it is a lie…well, it’s a lot easier to take care of one liar than it is thousands of demons.”
“Thousands? What are you talking about?” Sam looks back at Y/N, who is chewing nervously on her lip. “Y/N, what’s he talking about?”
“That’s why we’re here. Once I told him what we do and what brought us to New York, he realized that there had been more occurrences than just missing people. That’s what Thor meant when he said we’d been doing science things. You think Ash could pull off some smart shit…”
“What did you find?” Dean asks this time, and Y/N shifts her gaze to him.
“Hell.”