•••

"Stark, you worry about bringing the city back down safely. The rest of us have one job: tear these things apart. You get hurt, hurt 'em back. You get killed, walk it off." Steve's words were cut off shortly as the team heard him throwing his shield at what I guess was a robot before his comm went silent. I glanced up at Pietro and I quickly pushed myself away from his arms that held me secure against his body. I crossed my arms over my chest, feeling a bit uncomfortable at the silence between the boy and I. "Don't die." I reminded him with a cocky smile and he smiled softly which made me drop my arms to my side. Pietro was about to run away yet he stood still, staring at a not particular something behind me and I saw how his body fought between running, something that he liked to do, and doing something else, whatever that might be. "Go then." I motioned my head towards the city where Pietro and I should be fighting, but I wanted him to go first, I didn't want Pietro to see me running at a slow pace as he runs past me with the speed of light. Pietro's eyes flickered in conflict and he slowly jumped up and down on the ground like a nervous child. "What are you waiting for?" I said, now starting to get annoyed at the boy who suddenly couldn't talk anymore.

Without any word he leaned forwards, kissed me softly on my lips before he ran off. My mouth dropped open in confusion yet satisfaction and I looked at the blue blur speeding his way towards the middle of the city. My hands flew up to my lips and I smiled uncontrollably wide as my cheeks started to tint deep red.

"Regain yourself Elena. You'll be catching flies in your mouth." I heard Tony through my comm and I immediately frowned in confusion, the smile dropping off my face immediately. I looked up to dusty sky to see Tony flying around in his suit and looking down at me.

"Okay, guys. Little girl, Elena over here, just got kissed!" Tony announced through the comm's before he flew away but not without mock saluting me to piss me off more. Almost everyone on the team commented with ooooh's but Pietro, he simply just joked; "Who kissed you? Is he handsome? I bet he is." while Wanda answered in utterly shock with a; "Brother, was that your first kiss?"

I rolled my eyes at the team, smirking slightly at their childish behavior as I ran towards the city.

•••

I quickly made my way towards Steve on the bridge and dodged an incoming blast from a bot that I quickly killed by unattaching its upper body from its lower body. "I can't do this." I breathed out once I reached Steve who was in the middle of throwing his shield into a chest of a bot. Around us were no living bots anymore and Steve dragged my behind a car, hiding away from any incoming bots.

"Look. Since the day I met you, I knew you were one of us. You can do this. We believe in you. I believe in you. Go out there and show us you are an Avenger." He said before he stood up again and threw his shield at a flying bot. He ran away, leaving me alone behind a car and I sighed before dropping my head in my hands, not knowing what to do next. Steve's words were inspiring, but it didn't stop the fear of building up in my body. I never have been this terrified before, I was scared I'd end up known as a murdered who's never did good before. I wanted to be like Natasha, I wanted to die knowing I was like Natasha. A woman who may have did terrible things in her past but bettered her life and instead of killed, saved people.

"Jelena." I heard my sister call out from the kitchen. I opened my bedroom door slightly so Anastasia couldn't see the bruises on my body and the blue bruise forming underneath my left eye. Someone ordered me to kill one hell of a man and if I hadn't had my blade with me, I wouldn't have escaped alive.

Anastasia threw the door open with great force just to see me struggling standing up straight. My back arched in pain and my legs slightly trembled while I gripped my waist in pain. "Stop fighting in the rings." She whispered, her voice slowly cracking at the sight of me. That's what she thought, that today was one of the many other days that I was fighting in the ring yet I was killing human beings for ten double the price I got for fighting in the ring.

"I can't. I need to take care of you." I winced and Anastasia quickly hugged me. Not too tight as she was scared to hurt me even more than I already was. She pulled away and put a string of hair behind my ear, her hand caressing my cheek as she wiped away a drop of blood on my jaw. "You also need to take care of yourself, sestra." She whispered, showing a small teeth less smile as she looked my in my brown eyes. "I know. But I can't stop now, not yet at least." I mumbled, looking away from my sister in shame. I just wanted to tell her the truth, but I didn't want her to remember me as the person I thought I was; a monster. I just wanted her to see me as her sister, a loving sister that would look out for her no matter what. "Well, I hope you stop soon. We will figure something out together. You're strong but together, we're invincible. I love you, Jeleňa."

I opened my eyes just to see a pair of blue sneakers in my view. I cocked my head up to see Pietro standing in front of me with his hand extended for me to grab as a worrying smile was plastered on his face. "I shouldn't have left you there, moja láska." He whispered calmingly as I reached out my hand to take his extended one. He hugged me tightly once I stood up and I opened my eyes just to see Wanda looking at me and Pietro hugging. I pulled back from the hug and straightened my clothes as I took a deep breath, trying to focus my attention to the fight happening instead of a memory.

"You must miss her." Wanda mumbled approaching me with a worrying look on her face. I was confused at first at how she randomly said those words until I remember she can read minds and she must've read mine when she saw me hopelessly hanging against a car.

"A lot."

Our attention soon snapped to the loud sounds of a helicopter flying in the air. "What in the bloody hell?" I gasped, looking up at the helicarrier rising up and flying just next to us.

"Nice, right? I pulled her out of mothballs with a couple of old friends. She's dusty, but she'll do." Fury's voice said through our comms. How he got access to our comms was another question for another day.

"Fury, you son of a bitch!" Steve exclaimed in relief. I could tell he was smiling by the tone of his voice.

"Oooh, you kiss your mother with that mouth?"

"This is S.H.I.E.L.D.?" Pietro asked as he looked up at the flying vehicle in amuse. "This is what S.H.I.E.L.D.'s supposed to be." Steve answered him and Pietro glanced down at me, slowly reaching for my hand and linking them together.

I looked down at our hands and a crimson red color appeared on my cheeks. Just for one second everything felt calm before another suit similar to Tony's came flying into the sky, this one was silver and had a gun attached to its back. "Yes! Now this is gonna be a good story!" He exclaimed happily and I squinted my eyes at the high pitched voice trough my comm.

"Let's get everyone to safety shall we?" I smiled as I looked back to Wanda and then to Pietro who quickly nod. Pietro detached our hands and took a deep breath as he looked at me. "Don't die." I whispered and Pietro smirked slightly. "Because you'll miss me?" "No. Because I won't have a someone to spar with if you died." I joked as I nudged my elbow into Pietro's side. He chuckled deeply, casting one more glance at me before speeding away with his sister in his arms to civilians to bring them into safety and I sighed before jogging my way towards the rest of the team. How badly I wanted to have super-speed right now...

"Princezná." someone suddenly said, picking me up and bringing me towards the rest of the team. He put me down and smiled widely at me, "You didn't think I would let you jog right?" Pietro asked but before I could answer to him he speeded up to civilians and brought them to safety.

"Rhodey, get the rest of the people on board that carrier." Tony demanded through his comm, followed by Rhodey answering him within a second, "On it."

"Avengers. Time to work for a living."