A Surfboard Made of Wind
Kat was just leaving her favorite coffee shop when she heard the screaming start. Whipping around, she watched in shock as yet another alien ship descended from the sky above the Empire State Building. She began to back down the street tentatively, keeping her eyes on the sky, waiting…usually they were here by now…
And then, as if they’d heard her thoughts, the Avengers began to appear. Iron Man flew right past her, hand cannons firing at every alien in his sights. Thor landed atop one of the tallest nearby buildings with Hawkeye, while Captain America and the Black Widow rolled in on motorcycles.
'Thank god', thought Kat. For a minute there, she’d been worried that she’d have to step in. Instead, she started ushering people out of buildings and urging them away from the ever-increasing explosions. Things seemed to be going well – the Avengers were decimating the invading beings, as always, until Hawkeye lost his balance. Over their coms, the whole team heard him yell “SHIT” as he fell from the roof, but Thor was surrounded and Iron Man was pinned down; no one saw him except for Natasha, and she couldn’t do a damn thing about it.
Without thinking, Kat threw her bag on the ground and jumped into the air, spinning slightly as she did. The air caught her, as if she’d landed on a surfboard made of wind. Angling herself towards Hawkeye’s falling form, she shot through the air, dread filling her as she realized she might not make it in time. She urged the wind faster, faster, faster, until she slammed into him and they fell together. Kat threw her hand out, willing the ground to come up and meet her. It cradled them, softening their landing and lowering them to the ground.
“What the hell?” Hawkeye sat up, obviously confused, and looked at the woman sitting next to him. He knew that it shouldn’t have been possible for anyone to get to him, and yet here they were.
Natasha ran up, dropping to her knees beside the pair. “Clint, are you okay?” He nodded, and relief flooded Nat as she let out the breath she didn’t know she’d been holding. She stood up and offered her hand to Clint first, and then to Kat. “Who are you, exactly?” Nat asked, but before Kat could reply, something exploded very close to their heads. “On second thought, you can tell me later.” Nodding to Clint, they both turned to run back towards the center of the fight. Clint hesitated, looking back, and raised his eyebrows at Kat, hoping she’d come along. Kat debated for a second, but decided against it and shook her head. Clint shrugged, but told her to stick around even if she wasn’t going to fight - Cap was going to want to talk to her.
Sure enough, once the dust had settled after another precarious victory for the Avengers, she was approached by not just Cap, but every single member of the team that had been in the battle. They formed a kind of loose semicircle around her, and though it looked like they all had a million questions, it was Cap that spoke first. “Thank you for your actions during the battle today. You saved one of our team, and that makes you a hero in my book. What’s your name?”
“Kat. Kat Jackson.” Kat replied, shaking Cap’s hand, and nodding to the rest of the assembled heroes.
“Well, Kat Jackson, you’re clearly a gifted individual. Would you come with us back to the compound? I’d like to learn a little bit more about your powers.”
Kat looked around once more, unsure, and a small smile from Clint and a nod from Nat convinced her. Focusing on Cap again, she nodded, and they all walked over to where FRIDAY had conveniently landed a Quinjet that was waiting to take them home.
No one spoke to Kat on the flight back; Nat and Clint were deep in conversation, and Tony and Cap seemed to be arguing about something. Thor watched her with heightened interest, but still didn’t say anything.
When the jet landed, Kat was the last one off. She squinted as her eyes readjusted, and she heard Tony above everyone else: “Watch yourself, Reindeer Games. We don’t want to scare her away just yet.”
Arms crossed, Loki was leaning lazily against the door, surveying the scene when his eyes fell on Kat. He raised his eyebrows and looked at Tony, prompting Tony’s comment about watching himself. Suddenly, Kat focused on him, and he got the strangest feeling – like electricity traveling along his spine.
Kat knew who he was, of course, but she was shocked to see him at the Avengers Compound. What was he doing there, and WHY was he staring at her? She raised her eyebrows at him, a challenge: who was going to look away first?
He smirked as Cap pulled Kat’s attention away.
“Kat?” he asked, “Now that we’re not on a battlefield, would you mind telling us about you and your powers? What you did out there was very impressive.”
Kat reorganized her thoughts – damn Loki and his intense gaze – and faced the team. To her surprise, Loki joined them, ready to listen. Looking anywhere but at the God of Mischief, she took a deep breath. “Yeah, of course. I should warn you though: it’s kind of a long story.”