You sat the box on the floor at your feet and contemplated your choices. You could bust the lock but then you'd have to fix it. The logical choice would be to pick the lock but you didn't have your tools on you. You glanced at the window at the end of the hall. It wasn't directly connected to the fire escape but it was close enough you could climb over. Shit.

You opened the window and leaned out to eye the distance you needed to travel. Eh. There was a ledge. You'd be fine. You climbed up to balance on the sill before transferring to the narrow ledge. You slid sideways a few feet before leaping the remaining distance. A clang reverberated from the impact of your feet against the metal of the fire escape.

It was unsurprising to find your window unlocked. Your dad was always on your case about locking the windows. You slid it up and climbed inside. Anger flared through you as you straightened. The apartment was empty. Completely and utterly vacant. You flipped open a few cabinets and checked a few drawers but you knew what you'd find. A quick survey of the rest of the apartment found it empty as well.

You left through the front door, leaving it open as you went. It wasn't as if there was anything to steal. You tapped your foot in irritation as you rode the elevator to the main floor. When you reached the front desk, you dropped the box on the counter with a thud. "Where's my stuff, Jerry?" you asked the guard/agent that was on duty.

"Oh, Miss Coulson, it's lovely to see you." Jerry was polite to a fault but you really weren't in the mood for it.

"My stuff?"

He cleared his throat. "Several men showed a few hours ago with orders from Director Fury. They packed everything up."

"And you didn't think to call me?" Your voice had more snap than you'd intended. This wasn't Jerry's fault.

"This is a SHIELD property. Orders from Fury," he answered with a shrug.

"I'll be back. Watch my box." You stepped outside and around the corner so you could make your calls.

Fury was first.

"What the fuck?" you said when he answered.

"Coulson. What can I do for you?" He sounded completely indifferent. Unbothered.

"You can tell me why you moved me out of my apartment with no warning."

"That apartment is SHIELD property. As you are no longer an employee of SHIELD, you are no longer entitled to the residence."

You pinched the bridge of your nose. "Standard is thirty days to relocate, Fury."

"It's a courtesy, not a requirement."

Angry tears pooled and you swiped them away. "That was my dad's home for over twenty years. You could have warned me." Your voice had taken on a softer edge. As much as you hated to admit it, this hurt. Him pitching a fit was one thing. This was another.

"Your dad is the reason I'm doing this. He would have wanted you to stay where I could keep an eye on you." He sounded so reasonable. So caring.

"Fuck you, eyepatch. And your little assistant, too." You knew none of this was directly Maria's doing, but she had your number. She could have called. Besides, you always liked to channel your inner wicked witch. "Where's my shit?"

"Basement. Now that you're aware, you have until the end of the day to remove it from SHIELD property. Anything left behind will be discarded." His voice had turned cold again. Sharp.

"You know what you never understood, Fury? I was part of SHIELD because of my dad. When I lost him I stayed because it my family was there. Then you all lied to me. Again. I'm over it, and I'm over you. All you've done is assure that I will never come back." You hung up without waiting for a response.

Shit. Now you had to find somewhere to stay. A hotel would get you by for a few days but what were you going to do with your stuff? Wade would let you stay with him but it was Wade. You loved him, but even you had a limit when it came to him. Matt was an option but he had a giant neon sign outside the window of his apartment. It didn't bother him for obvious reasons but you hadn't slept worth shit the couple of times you stayed there.

That left Nat and Clint who were at the tower. Stark had offered for you stay as long as you wanted. You wondered if he meant it. Glancing at your phone, you realized you didn't have his number. After a moment's thought, you called Nat.

"Hello, младшая сестра. (mladshaya sestra – little sister – Russian)

"I need to talk to Tony. Can you take your phone to him or have him call me or something?"

There was a small pause. "Sure. What's up?"

You groaned. "I'll fill you in later. Right now I'm too pissed off."

"Got it. Here's Stark."

"Hello?" the billionaire's confused voice came over the line.

The corner of your mouth kicked up. "Hey, Tony."

"Ah, Coulson Jr. What can I do for you?"

"Fury kicked me out of my apartment. Can I stay at the tower until I find something else?"

"He did what?" He sounded so indignant that you couldn't help but laugh. He'd known you for two days. "Yeah, of course you can stay here. For as long as you need. Anything else I can do for you?"

You sucked in a breath. "I don't suppose you have a truck I could borrow?"

***

You had Jerry take you to the basement so he could unlock the storage area where your stuff was. After he did, he handed you a small key. "For the weapons cabinet at the back of the unit."

"Thanks," you said with a nod. "My friend said he's sending a couple of guys with a truck. Send them down when they get here please."

"Of course, Miss Coulson."

You followed him with your eyes until he disappeared. Then turned to the mess that surrounded you. It wasn't that things were unorganized but the stacks of boxes were completely unmarked and all the clothes from the closets were still on hangers and laid across the top of the boxes. You dug out a box and pulled your knife out and slit the tape. Everything was just dumped inside. No care was taken with packaging or placement. Son of a bitch. They better not have broken all your shit or you were going to be pissed.

Digging carefully through the box you discovered the contents of your junk drawer plus some photos that had been in the living room. In other words, they had literally just tossed shit together. That meant you were going to have to take all the boxes to sort and repack on your own. Leaving them for now, you moved over to inspect the furniture.

Neither you or your dad had been big on fancy furnishings. In fact, you were pretty sure he'd purchased his favorite big leather club chair when he'd moved into the apartment. It was old and worn and comfortable as hell. Frankly there wasn't much worth saving and you could afford to replace it later with the death benefit you'd received from SHIELD for Phil.

You moved to the weapons cabinet but heard a commotion from the stairwell before you could open it. You turned your head to see if you could place the sound when a voice called your name. "Where you at, Junior?"

Why the hell was Tony Stark here? You stuck your head out of the storage area and took in the group gathered at the foot of the stairs. The Avengers had come to help you move. "This isn't exactly what I pictured when you said you were sending a couple of people."

He grinned and shrugged. "They volunteered."

You returned his grin and motioned for everyone to join you. "Well, thank you. This was unexpected to say the least."

Everyone stood at the opening and took in the sight before them unsure of where to start.

"All the furniture stays except the brown club chair. Take the clothes and boxes. And please be careful with the boxes. I don't think they wrapped anything. I'd like to break as little as possible." Your annoyance was clear in your tone.

"Maybe we should repack it before we move it," Nat suggested.

"We don't have time. He only gave me until the end of the day and giving what a prick he's been I'm guessing he meant five o'clock."

"What the hell crawled up his ass?" Bucky asked, drawing your attention to him. You'd been studiously trying to avoid his gaze.

Clint snorted. "She quit. He's throwing a tantrum. He's worse than a damn toddler when he doesn't get his way."

You smiled. He was right. "I need to empty the weapon cabinet. I'll put that stuff in my car."

"I'll help," Bucky immediately volunteered.

You hesitated before agreeing. "Sure, Barnes. Come on."