Natalie's POV
Really? Is he giving me a...chance? For the first time in forever ( yes I know I referenced frozen), I felt a spark of hope. This was the chance to find my parents. Besides, I would have a roof over my head. At least something. Once again, I felt a pang of guilt at leaving Tessie behind in that burning place. She could be dead by now!
" Yes, I will join Shield," I said through gritted teeth. The one-eyed man smiled and nodded.
" Well then, welcome to Shield, Agent Rushman," He said and I realized he was giving me a surname. I never actually knew my real surname until Tessie told me. I only knew that my name was Natalie and nothing else. I only have vague memories of my parents. I can remember what happened, but my parents' faces are blurry. I can't remember their faces. I was suddenly snapped back to reality when the one-eyed menace shoved a thing into my face. I took it and read it. It read: Shield agent: Natalie Rushman ( I know, the irony of it, right?) Clearance level 3.
" I gave you up to Clearance level three. You'd better be happy I gave you a discount," He said. " Your uniform is in the changing room." He dismissed me. I walked out of the door feeling satisfied and hopeful that I would find my parents. I was just minding my own business and walking to the middle of nowhere when suddenly a wall materialised out of nowhere in front of me! Well, maybe it didn't appear out of nowhere but THAT'S NOT THE POINT. So the point is that I walked straight bang into the wall and hit my head. Me and my clumsiness. I fell onto the floor as gravity took over. I collapsed in a heap on the floor.
" You need some help?" A guy that looked about my age wearing a black uniform asked. I looked up and saw that he had blonde hair and blue eyes. Well his voice was smooth and didn't rub against my ears. That's a good thing I guess?
" Yeah," I said as I gave him my hand and he pulled me up. He stared at me kindly.
" Well, you don't seem to be from around here," he said. " How'd you get in?" I looked at him warily. After so many years of being a master assassin, don't blame me for being paranoid. Anyone could be your enemy. I mentally slapped myself. I had to learn how to relax.
" Well, um, Director Fury summoned me," I said, suddenly feeling self-conscious and messy. I tried to fix my hair, which was going wild, but there were so many tangles I gave up on trying. His innocent azure blue eyes stared at me curiously and I shuffled.
" That's strange. Director Fury doesn't normally ' summon' people. Especially not to outsiders like you. So tell me, why are you the special case?"
" Actually, I'm not an outsider. I'm a new Shield agent." I said.
" Really?" He asked. I nodded my head. " What level?"
" Three," I said. He gaped at me.
" That's insane! Have you any idea that usually, all Shield agents start at level one? He rarely even gives them the chance to be a level two agent on their first try!" He exclaimed. " Are your parents Shield agents, by any chance?" I wanted to say yes but realised that it would be better to keep silent about my mission. So I shook my head.
" Anyways, I'm level three too! So we can be best buds! Can't we?" He asked enthusiastically. I nodded, smiling. Well, it was good to have a friend at Shield. I was thinking I was going to be lonely. Wait, best buds? And we hadn't even exchanged names!
" I'm Natalie, you?" I asked.
" James. Call me Agent Charles during work time." He introduced himself.
" Is Shield really that strict? We can't use each other's real name?" James shook his head.
" Well then, call me Agent Rushman," I said, using the surname Fury had gave me. He nodded. He glanced at his watch.
" Well, it's time for lunch. You wanna eat at the Shield cafeteria or go to some outside cafe for lunch?" James asked.
" Wait. I gotta go change into my Shield uniform first," I said.
" No. If you're eating out, you have to be wearing plain clothes. So, which one is it?" He asked. I shrugged. " Eating out it is!" He exclaimed and walked into a room. Having nowhere else to go, I followed him. I saw a bunch of lockers and guessed that this was the locker room. James opened one and grabbed some clothes out. He then walked through a connecting door and I turned to follow him. The connecting door went into two changing rooms, one for the girls and one for the guys.
" I'll wait outside," I said. He nodded and went in. After a few seconds, he came out in a black shirt and some jeans.
" Come on, new best bud!" He said and I very nearly face palmed, but held it in, knowing that it would hurt James's feelings. Both of us headed out to a restaurant to eat.
---
" So, James, why did you join Shield?" I asked. He looked up from his steak and stared at me.
" I joined because I had no other choice," He said. " I have no parents, or at least I think I don't if I have parents. Shield offered to recruit me because of my potential, so I jumped at the chance of a proper home." James said. " What about you, Natalie?" He asked.
" My story is somewhat like yours, but a bit different. I was abandoned by my parents, not intentionally, at the age of three. I grew up on the streets. I had to make a living, but with no proper clothes, I had to do what I had to survive. I soon got to knew how to fight to defend myself and stuff like that. Well, I accidentally got onto Shield's radar because of a careless slip. So they caught me and brought me to Shield. The Director recruited me then." I told James.
" Oh," he said and we continued eating silently. I contemplated telling James about my mission to find my parents. Nah. I just met him, so how could I know if I could trust him? Somehow, I had this strange feeling that I could trust him.
" James," I said and he looked up from cutting his steak again. " Can I trust you with a secret?"
" Yes, of course you can, Natalie. I am very trustworthy." James said.
" Well...earlier, you remember when you asked me whether my parents worked at Shield or not?" James nodded. " I actually lied about that. I do suspect that my parents work at Shield, but I have no evidence to support that." James nodded.
" Well, who are they, then?" James asked. " I might be able to find them for you." His words added fuel to my burning spark of hope. Was there really a chance that he could help me?
" Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton," I said. There was a sound of metal hitting against glass as James dropped his fork onto his plate.
" No way," He whispered.
" What? Do you know them?" I asked. He nodded vigorously.
" Yes. Have you heard of the Avengers?" He asked.
" Those people who saved New York from the ' alien invasion'?" I asked. " Yes, I know them, why?"
" Do you know the Black Widow and Hawkeye?" He asked. I nodded, literally on the edge of my sit.
" They're your parents," he whispered.
A/N
So sup, people, kind readers who actually take the time to read this book! Yes, I updated! I'm so proud of myself! So cliffhanger, eh? Yeah. That's about it. Also, I won't be updating from the 12th to the 16th of November because I'm going with my school to another country for an exchange program! Jamila will be going too, so this account will not be active within that period. Thanks and please leave a vote or comment or two! Thanks!
Stephanie out!