Edited: 17/09/23

B12 POV

The first thing I became aware of when I slowly began to regain consciousness was that I was laying on something quite comfortable. It was a weird feeling, to be comfortable. I hadn't been comfortable much in my life, or at least that I could remember. What I was laying felt like... a bed, I think, similar to the ones in the HYDRA lab that I was experimented on, but way more comfortable.

I moved my head slightly, wincing as it twinged painfully, only to feel something super soft behind my head and neck. It felt like it was a ... pillow? I didn't know what pillows felt like very well either. The scientists rarely gave me pillows except when they were doing long experiments on me and wanted me to stop moving around because I was uncomfortable. I loved the pillows at HYDRA, and without the needles constantly being stabbed into me, I probably would have been able to fall asleep on them.

My mind immediately became stuck on the memories of being experimented and I began to try and move, eyes still shut as panic began to fill my body. I didn't want to be experimented on again. I didn't want to be poked and prodded. I didn't want more needles to be stabbed into my skin. I didn't want to let the monster loose again and have no control over it.

As I began to try and move my arms, I felt cold metal around both my wrists, instantly causing me to freeze.

They had restrained me again.

Panic immediately took over my body, my heart pounding rapidly against my chest. My eyes flew open and I was blinded by bright lights, causing me to wince as tears flooded my eyes. My breathing became rapid as I tried to struggle out of the restraints, which I had now found were on my ankles too. I tried to blink the tears out of my eyes, raising my head weakly, causing my neck to twinge in pain. I looked around with still-teary eyes and saw that I was in a Lab.

What confused me though was that while it was a Lab, it wasn't one I had been in before. It wasn't exactly more reassuring and I continued to try and pull out of the metal restraints but they remained stubbornly in place. I tried to summon up my power, but all I got was a dull twisting feeling in my stomach.

A couple of seconds later, as the twisting in my stomach began to fade, I remembered what had happened. I remembered what happened with Loki and Thor. I remembered all of the HYDRA agents trying to attack them. I remembered Loki trying to help me. I remember him teleporting to me and grabbing my arm, but after that everything was blank and I couldn't remember anything else.

Questions immediately began to race through my head. Had HYDRA managed to get me back? Was I stuck in the white-tiled room again? What had happened to the two brothers? Had I hurt them with my powers?

"Mr. Stark is requesting entry." A voice suddenly echoed around the empty room and I immediately jumped, the restraints on my wrists and ankles stopping me from moving too much though. I looked around startled, eyes wide as I tried to find who was speaking. The voice wasn't one I recognised, it didn't have a Russian accent for a start, it seemed... British, I think. That settled my nerves a little, but I knew better than to relax completely. The voice didn't speak up again so I took that as my cue to speak, hoping I wasn't going to get punished for it.

"Who's there?" I asked timidly, my throat still dry and croaky from lack of water and speaking.

"My name is JARVIS." The same voice spoke up, causing me to jump and look around the room again. "I am Mr. Stark's AI." I barely even process the words, too focused on my mouthing heart.

"Where are you?" My eyes darted around the room. "Why can't I see you?"

"I am artificial intelligence." The voice explained. "Artificial intelligence is a piece of technology that is able to perform a variety of advanced functions and act almost the same as a human being. I was created by Mr. Stark. And as for the reason you can't see me? I am programmed into this building." I blinked in confusion, never in my time at HYDRA had I talked to artificial intelligence. I didn't know if it was some sort of new test they were putting me through, but just to be safe, I assumed it was. I slowly lay back onto my pillow and looked up at the ceiling, looking carefully to find any trace of speakers where the voice of the artificial intelligence was coming from. After a couple of seconds, the AI voice spoke up again and I jumped again, though I was more prepared this time.

"Mr. Stark is waiting outside." The AI said. "Do you want me to let him in?"

I hesitated, struggling to get my head around the fact that I was talking to a piece of advanced technology. I bit my lip, a nervous habit I had, before nodding slowly.

"Okay." I said softly and there was the sound of a lock opening up. I immediately sat up as much as I could with the restraints, watching the door cautiously. It slowly swung open and revealed a man with ruffled brown hair and a pair of strange square glasses. They flashed blue briefly and my eyes widened slightly before he took the glasses off, tucking them into the pocket of his long pants. He gave me a small smile and I stiffened, suddenly on high alert. I was never smiled at when I was at HYDRA, or ever wore casual clothing as this new person did. It was always white lab coats, or black suits if you include the guards. This had to be a trick, they had to be testing me again.

"I'm not going to hurt you." He smiled at me, grabbing a chair from nearby and rolling it over towards me, sitting on it so the back part was against his chest. I tried to shuffle away from him, but the bands kept me in place. I had no choice but to lay down on the bed, feeling vulnerable, knowing that I couldn't escape quickly in case he decided to hurt me somehow. I looked up at him, my face emotionless; I wasn't going to let him take advantage of my fear.

"It's good to see you finally awake." He continued, looking around the room, even though there wasn't that much. "To be honest, it was kinda getting boring watching you sleep." He sounded too calm and relaxed. It put me on edge even more and I exhaled quietly, trying to stop my chest from tightening with anxiety. He clearly heard my exhale and turned to face me.

"I'm Tony Stark by the way." He said, crossing his arms across the front of the chair. "You know, the genius." I watched him silently, calculatingly as he grinned. He continued to watch me as if waiting for me to answer an unasked question. Eventually, he sighed and shifted in his chair, causing me to immediately stiffen.

"Yeah, didn't really expect an answer to that." He mumbled under his breath before speaking normally. "What's your name?" He asked. I immediately knew that this was a test from HYDRA. I was asked this a lot of times in HYDRA, and after the first time I had learnt to never speak of my true name.

"B12." I replied in a monotone voice, trying to clear all emotion from my voice; the way the HYDRA agents liked it.

"But what's your real name?" This Tony Stark man pushed, his expression one of curiosity.

"B12." I repeated, shifting my wrists from where the bands were digging into my skin as I clenched my jaw. He sighed and looked away for a couple of seconds before looking back at me, his brown eyes lit with the slightest spark of sympathy. I looked at him carefully and curiosity bubbled inside me when I realized that he didn't seem to be faking it. Some of the HYDRA agents were very good at acting to try and manipulate me, but this man, if he was acting, seemed to be pulling it off very well.

"Do you remember what happened?" Asked Tony Stark after a couple of seconds. I furrowed my eyebrows, this wasn't a question they usually asked me, but I suppose it would make sense if he knew about Loki and Thor. I was tempted to not answer at all, but I knew that the HYDRA agents hated it when I did that, so I slowly opened my mouth, finding that my jaw was rather stiff.

"No." I said, my voice cracking slightly, probably from the lack of water. Immediately, the man stood up and I flinched, wincing as the bands dug into my skin at the movement. Either the Tony Stark man didn't notice my movement or he chose to ignore it. His back turned to me as he made his way behind me where I couldn't see. I immediately stiffened more and my anxiety spiked as I craned my neck to try and see him. I hated people being behind me, I could easily be attacked and they could take advantage of me when I least expected it.

As if sensing my unease, Tony Stark spoke up, his voice not too far away from me, but not too close either.

"It's alright." He said, his voice sounding relaxed. "I'm just getting you some water; your throat sounds painful. Do you want it cold or room temperature?" I paused, confused about the strange question and the fact that someone was asking me how I preferred something.

"Um, room temperature." I said quietly, my voice still croaky and filled with confusion. I remembered how the HYDRA agents always made me use my manners, so I quickly added on. "Please."

There was the sound of water from behind me and a couple of seconds later, the Tony Stark man reappeared, holding a plastic cup that was presumably filled with water. He held it out to me before realizing that I was cuffed. He set the cup on the bedside table next to me and dug into his pocket, pulled out a small silver rectangular pad with a screen in the middle. He swiped his fingers across the screen and the cuffs slowly began to retract from my wrists and ankles. I froze for a moment, confused and slightly afraid as to why he was letting me free. I quickly scrambled upright and pressed my back against the bedhead, trying to be as far away from him as I could. He just smiled at me comfortingly and handed me the cup of water from the bedside table before sitting back down. I looked at it before hesitantly reaching out and grabbing it, pulling it towards me. I watched the man warily and carefully sniffed the cup for any signs of spiking.

"I didn't poison it you know kid." Tony Stark sighed, sounding slightly sympathetic. I ignored him, knowing it was another test and continued to try and detect any trace of spiking. It was one of the tests I had become very good at, which made the HYDRA agents happy.

When I couldn't find any, which confused me, I hesitantly took a sip, a tiny trickle of water soothing my parched throat. I waited a couple of seconds to see if I felt any effects of spiking, but when I didn't, I drank all of the water as quickly as I could, grateful for the soothing coolness. I slowly lowered the cup and met Tony Stark's gaze again to see him smiling at me.

"Do you want another one?" He asked and I hesitated, biting my lip nervously, before nodding. He stood back up, causing me to flinch slightly again and he took the cup out of my hand, refilling it with the same-temperature water before handing it back to me. I took it and sniffed it again, less on edge this time before I drank it all again. I reached over and set the empty cup on the bedside table, watching the Tony Stark man carefully in case he made any sudden movements.

"I'm not going to hurt you kid." Tony Stark said. That was the second time he had called me 'kid'. No one had called me that before, I was either B12 or Experiment or a bunch of Russian curse words. I didn't say anything and we sat in silence. My head buzzed with questions, but I was too timid to ask them, afraid of punishment.

"Go ahead kiddo." Tony Stark urged, speaking up after about a minute of silence. "I can tell your brain is overflowing with questions." I immediately clench my jaw softly, cursed myself for being so easy to read. I paused for a moment, trying to pick out the most important question.

"Where am I?" I asked quietly after a couple of seconds, eyes darting up to meet his before I quickly looked away. I carefully bunched up my muscles in case he suddenly tried to attack me for asking such a question.

"Have you ever heard of the Avengers?" Tony asked and I thought for a second, trying to figure out if it was a trick question before I nodded slowly.

"It sounds familiar." I said quietly, watching him cautiously before I dared to ask another question. "Why?"

"Well," he smiled, crossing his arms over the chair again, "you are with us now, the Avengers, in my tower, Stark Tower."

"How did I get here?" I asked before I realized that I was probably asking too many questions. I immediately shut my mouth as my brain worked overtime to try and figure out whether he was telling the truth or not.

"Well, Thor and Loki stumbled across you in our mission yesterday." He explained. "You kinda... well flipped out when they tried to bring you back, that's what the cuffs were for." He nodded to where the restraints had retracted into the table. I looked down at him and back up to him to see him pulling something out of his pocket. I immediately stiffened and moved away, instantly thinking he was pulling out a weapon.

"However," he continued, "I have something that might be able to help you with your whole flaming goddess show." My eyebrows raised in confusion at his wording, but I soon forgot about it when he pulled out two solid black bands, probably no bigger than a centimetre thick, and handed them to me.

"What are they?" I asked warily, not taking them in case they could somehow hurt me or it was a trap.

"They are something that I hope will help you control your power." He explained. "I won't go into the whole scientific since that will probably bore you to death. They are just a prototype since we don't know the full extent of your power yet. They were based on something Reindeer Games once had to wear when he first came here, so for all we know, they might not even work for you."

"Reindeer Games?" I repeated in confusion and Tony, who had been looking down at the bracelets, looked up at me with a grin.

"Loki." He grinned. "Everyone has nicknames around here, you'll get used to them." He held the bracelets further out to me and my eyes darted down to them warily before I hesitantly reached out and picked them up. I was slightly surprised when they didn't zap me or hurt me in any way. I slowly slid them onto my wrists and almost immediately, they tightened to my arm, not painfully thankfully. I stiffened and watched them warily, suddenly panicking that they were something to stop my power completely so I didn't fight back. I tried to summon up my fire, only a small bit, and let out a sigh of relief when I could still feel it. I tried not to let too much emotion show however so I had the advantage over the Tony Stark man in case he did think that the bands would stop my power completely. I moved my arms around a little to feel how the bands felt and I was surprised to find I could barely feel them at all.

"Thank you." I said quietly, my eyes darting up to meet Tony's for a second before I looked back down. He smiled softly and shifted in his chair, though this time, I didn't flinch.

"No problem kiddo." He replied, watching me for a couple of seconds as I moved my arms around slightly. I knew that he wasn't looking just at the bracelets, my scarred, scratched and bruised arms were hard to miss. He was silent for a couple of seconds before he spoke up again. "You got any other questions?"

"Why did you bring me here?" I asked after hesitating for a second. "I am too dangerous to be anywhere except HYDRA. I can kill people with my power, without even thinking about it. Only HYDRA can control me."

"That's not true." Tony shook his head. "They are lies that HYDRA fed you. The only reason you can't control it is because they make you think you can't. Which practice, you'll be able to in no time." He gave me a comforting smile, but I wasn't looking, so he continued on. And it wasn't me who decided to bring you here. Reindeer Games didn't leave me any choice but to take you in." I immediately interpreted his words as that he didn't seem happy with Loki bringing me in. I was a burden, who would want an unstable experiment like me anyway? I was a waste of space, or a waste of air like the HYDRA scientists always told me.

I shrunk inwards a little bit, my posture hunching. Almost immediately, Tony noticed my reaction.

"Hey, don't shy away kiddo." He told me softly, leaning in closer. "I was not complaining about you being here. I would much rather you be here than in that horrible cell where you were." I fell silent, looking down at my bracelets and twisting them around my wrist.

"I should probably let Reindeer Games know you are awake." He said after a long moment of silence. "He will probably want to know if you are awake, that is if he has woken up himself." He stood up and I looked up sharply, watching his movements warily. He opened up the door and was just about to step out when he turned back around. "If you need anything, just ask JARVIS to get me." I nodded softly and he gave me a smile before stepping out of the room, shutting the door with a click. I watched the door a couple of seconds just to make sure he wasn't coming back in before I sighed and flopped against the bed head, letting my anxiety flow out with my breath. I looked down at my bracelets and turned them around and around on my wrist. Although I wasn't sure of this place so far, it seemed better than HYDRA.

But I wasn't going to be fooled so quickly. 

AN: 

Yup, another long chapter. Quite a massive information dump, I know. Don't forget to click that little vote button and comment on your favourite parts!