Mirror ∞ Marvel ∞ bk. 1

Chapter Eight

She glanced over at him, intrigued. "There are others then?"

"Can't tell you that. Super secret spy stuff, as a friend called it." He pointed to the newly fitted Shield logo on the Triskelion. It had gone up after the public announcement of Shield following the Battle of New York. "Nick Fury, the Director of Shield, keeps his office here."

With a nod, Paige watched out the front window as best she could while they approached. Soon they entered the base and the driver dropped them off at the main entrance above the parking garage. Clint got out first and stepped aside for Paige.

To both their surprise, Natasha Romanoff greeted them next to the doors. She wore black jeans, a red blouse, and a black leather jacket. She smirked at Clint who stood gaping at her. "Cat got your tongue, Clint?" She then turned to Paige. "So you're Paige Wilson. I'm Natasha Romanoff."

Clint rolled his eyes and walked over to Natasha. "Didn't expect to see you here."

"I wanted to see the woman for myself," replied Natasha with a shrug of nonchalance. "Fury called me down when he got word that you'd found her."

He shook his head. Turning back to Paige, he gestured to Natasha. "The Black Widow."

Paige's eyes lit up in recognition. A smile crept onto her face. "Pleasure to meet you. The news outlets didn't have your name to release to the public. But I always hoped I'd get to thank you."

"For?"

"Being the only woman on the Avengers, at least that the public knows about." Paige walked over to her and shrugged, folding her arms across her chest. "It's just cool."

Natasha gave a small smile and then rounded on Clint. "I like her."

"I had a sneaking suspicion that you would."

She smirked and gestured for Paige to follow them. Clint opened the glass doors with a frosted Shield logo. Nat led, Paige going after her, and Clint bringing up the rear. As they stepped into the massive hall that was the bottom floor, Paige stopped.

"Wow," she murmured. A hundred different well dressed men and women walked to and fro, going up and down escalators and stairs, or taking side passages further into the base. A huge Shield eagle symbol stood made of metal in the very center. "You know, for being a spy organization that values its secrecy, this is rather flashy." She shot Clint a smirk. "Or is there some super secret spy reason for the logos everywhere?"

Natasha smirked but kept walking as Clint folded his arms across his chest and responded. "Well, Pea, clearly the powers that be don't value secrecy as much as the agents. Keep walking."

They took the escalator closest to them, flanking a massive staircase. It brought them to a second floor off the grand entrance. Clint and Natasha led Paige to the left down a corridor filled with elevators. Natasha pressed the 'up' button.

"So, who am I off to see?" Paige asked, suddenly nervous. It occured to her that if she wanted to leave and not join this organization, it would take a lot of bloodshed. She didn't mind killing evil people, in fact, if she admitted it herself, she quite enjoyed it. Or the magic did. But these weren't bad people. At least not the ones she had met so far. "This, Director?"

"Director Nicholas J. Fury," explained Natasha as they walked into the newly arrived elevator. When the doors closed, she continued. "He's the director, reporting to the Council. But for all intents and purposes, he's the highest ranking agent in the organization."

Paige nodded. She stood quietly, trying to calm her nerves. The more anxiety she experienced, the less control she had over her magic. It always tried to protect her, which meant more often than not it lashed out. She had trained herself well over the years to control the fear, but this was more than she had experienced in many years.