chosen_one386
Angel of Chaos
As the title suggests, this fanfiction will contain characters from Supernatural, Doctor Who, Avengers, and Sherlock, but with a TAI twist. Enjoy!
1. The Library
Kat’s eyes flew across the page, completely engulfed in the world she was reading about. She could vaguely hear noise outside of her little space in the library, but she was too caught up in the epic of Westeros to notice.
“The library will be closing in five minutes.”
She frowned, looking up from the battle scene she had been immersed in and checking her iPhone. It was only three in the afternoon. Why was the library closing so early? She sighed, shoving the book into her bag and standing up, making her way for the lower levels of the library. She had found a nice little reclusive spot near the offices to sit and read, far from others…
She stopped short as she reached the stairs, straining to make out the rushed voices…and then screams…of people below. No one was on the floor she was on…no one had heard…she jumped as a scream pulsed up the stairs, driving her away from the door. She frantically searched the offices for hiding places, finally finding a cabinet to hide in. She closed the door in front of her, holding her breath as shots started to ring out from the lower levels. She grabbed anything she could use as a weapon…the cane she found seemed sturdy enough. She gripped it tightly, listening with baited breath as she heard footsteps pound in the hallway outside of the office. They paused, then came closer. Just one person.
The steps grew closer, then stopped. The door to the cabinet was thrown open. Kat swung the cane with all of her strength, letting it connect with the side of the intruder’s head. With a thump and a loud groan, he fell to the floor with his head in his hands. She realized with a start that this was no intruder. When he sat up, she could see more clearly that he was a guy only a few years older than her, with red hair, a short red beard and mustache, and the deepest blue-green eyes she had ever seen. “Oh my God, I’m so sorry, I didn’t…” She was cut off by more footsteps in the hallway. He jumped up, stepping into the cabinet beside her and shutting the doors in front of them.
Kat’s heart bead wildly in her chest. The screams and gunshots she heard from below echoed in her head, threatening to overwhelm her. She was only vaguely aware of the guy she had almost knocked unconscious until he put a hand on her shoulder, gripping her tightly as he waited with held breath to see if the intruders would find them. He was tall, though, to Kat, everyone was taller…She was only an inch over five feet. He had to be a few inches over six…
Another gunshot rang out from the office beside theirs. Kat’s eyes widened. She had thought she was alone on this floor…apparently, not all of the librarians had left…Blood rushed in her ears as the footsteps got closer, stopped, then turned around. She realized that she had never gotten a glimpse of their attackers…just heard their aftermath…
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Phil Coulson had had some rough days during his nearly three decades-long career at SHIELD…but this one seemed to top them all. As soon as the shootings at small library in downtown Manhattan had been reported across the radio, he had rushed to the scene, terrified for the victims’ lives…but most of all, the life of his adopted niece, Kat. Home for a short winter break, she had gone by the library to read while her friend Mike and Coulson were at work. And now, she was most likely trapped inside.
He swore when he realized the SWAT team the city had sent had not made a move to force their way inside. “What’s going on out here?” He demanded of the team leader, flashing his SHIELD ID in front of the man’s face.
The leader shook his head. “We can’t get in, sir.”
“Are they holding hostages?” Coulson prayed Kat was safe. This was a nightmare scenario for him.
“No, sir…we just can’t get in. There seems to be some sort of barrier wrapped around the building…”
Coulson didn’t ask clarification for this. As a member of SHIELD, he was used to such things…He thought a moment before stepping over to the side and dialing the number, praying that, for once, his friend wouldn’t argue before coming to the rescue.
------------
They waited for a few more minutes until they were absolutely sure the intruders were gone before they stepped out of the cabinet. He stepped out first, motioning for her to stay there as he went to investigate one of the lower levels. Kat closed the doors in front of her, waiting for what seemed like ages for him to return. When ten minutes passed, and he didn’t come back, she slipped out of the cabinet, stepping back down the passageway towards where he had disappeared. She heard hurried footsteps, and he appeared in the doorway, a shocked look on his face. “No, NO!” He stopped her before she could pass by him to see what had surprised him. “Don’t go down there…”
Kat, however, had to see what had happened. Her gut told her nothing good could be seen in the lobby…but she raced down their anyway, gasping when she saw the bodies strewn across the floor, each lying in a pool of blood. She shrieked as she spotted the body of a kid who was no older than five…Numbness overwhelmed her until she felt his hands on her shoulders, steering her away from the lobby and back up to the offices.
------------
“What’s going on?”
Coulson sighed, turning around and gesturing to the building. “Can you break it?”
“Yeah, I think I have something just for that.” Tony Stark lifted the suitcase he had snatched from his workshop a mere twenty minutes earlier. “What’s going on?”
“We don’t know yet…” Coulson paused, wondering if he should say it yet. Stark started setting up the device in front of the barrier…something sonic…”Um…”
“Um what?” Stark said, not looking up from what he was doing.
“Stark…Kat’s in there.”
Stark froze, looking up at him. “What?”
“Kat’s in there…in the library.”
“Why didn’t you say that sooner?” He snapped.
------------
“Here.”
Kat slowly lifted her head, meeting his blue-green eyes. Shock still resided there, but it had eased a bit. Both of them had separated, sitting in different offices for close to an hour, trying to come to terms with what they had just seen. She took the cup he offered her, barely tasting the water as he sat down across from her.
He studied her for a few moments before asking, “I’m sorry…I don’t believe I’ve asked you your name…”
“Kat. Kat Coulson.”
He nodded. “Grayson Strauss.” Silence reigned for a few more moments before he spoke again. “I think they’re gone…” He shook his head. “I don’t understand why…they did this.”
“Maybe they were looking for something…” Kat mused. Grayson blinked, confused. She sighed. “My uncle works for a government intelligence agency…people like that…organized killers…they’re usually hired to either take down targets or acquire valuables. They killed too many people to have a target. They must have come here looking for something…”
There was silence before Grayson stood up. “We should probably find a way out of here…somewhere other than the lobby…” They stepped back out into the hallway, making their way opposite from the staircase. Grayson opened a door at the very back to a fire escape. “After you,” he said, letting Kat step through first. She stepped out onto the fire escape, then stopped short. “What’s wrong?” Grayson asked.
“I…I can’t take another step…” She reached out and placed a hand on the space in front of her. “It feels like there’s a barrier here…”
------------
“How long is this going to take?” Coulson asked as he and Stark watched the sonic device start to destroy the barrier.
“About another half an hour,” Stark replied, his eyes on the library in front of them. Coulson studied him for a few moments before making another trip around the periphery of the library.
------------
“Wait…wait…Uncle Phil!” Kat banged on the barrier. “That’s my uncle…UNCLE PHIL!!!” She continued to hit the space in front of her, but he didn’t seem to see or hear her. “He can’t see us…” She muttered, as he rounded the corner out of their site.
“Come on, let’s go back inside,” Grayson said, leading her back in.
“I just don’t know what they were looking for…” Kat muttered as they stepped back into the hallway. She started walking in and out of rooms. The final room was obviously the head librarian’s office. It was wood-paneled and very nice…until Kat saw the man’s body lying in the desk chair, a bullet-wound in his head. The room was a mess, papers and books strewn everywhere. “They were looking for something in here…”
Grayson had stepped into the room, but he hadn’t spoken for a few moments. Kat turned around to see that he was staring at her. “What?”
“It’s just…I don’t know whether to be absolutely disgusted at you being apathetic about all of those people dying…or to admire the fact that you’re working hard to find out why they were killed…” He paused. “…out of sympathy…”
“My uncle raised me to always strive to make things right…” She suddenly felt terrible. What if he did think she was apathetic…and why did she care so much about what this random stranger thought about her…?
“Good…” He gave her a small smile. “I was hoping it was the latter…”
She turned around, scanning the room. “What were they looking for…?” She spotted a hidden cabinet high in the bookshelves. “I think I found it…I just…” She blushed. “You’re going to have to reach it.”
Grayson ducked his head as he stepped up, obviously not trying to laugh at Kat’s dilemma. He opened the cabinet and withdrew a file folder and an empty box. “There must have been something in here…” He said as he handed her the file folder.
------------
“Almost there…” Stark said, tilting his head up to the library.
“I don’t have to remind you that you need to be scarce when we get everyone out,” Coulson said.
“Yeah…of course you don’t want me to be around.”
------------
Kat stepped closer to the head librarian’s desk, sliding what he was reading closer to herself so as to read it. She tried to block the scene of the dead man slumping in his chair out of her mind as she scanned the pages. “He was writing about something before he died…” She muttered. Grayson stepped up to look over her shoulder. Before she could read further, they heard a sound like glass breaking, then smashing to the ground.
“The barrier…” Grayson muttered. “We should go…”
Kat snatched up the book from the head librarian’s desk and the file folder, shoving both into her coat. Grayson nodded and smiled slightly when he saw this. Both of them made their way for the fire escape.
------------
They were picked up by SHIELD agents and transferred to a building housing several of SHIELD’s offices. They were separated into two rooms to wait for questioning. Kat sat at the long table in her room, staring at her hands. The door opened, and she looked up.
“Are you okay?” Coulson asked as she sprang out of her seat. He gave her a big hug, then stepped back, repeating his question.
“Yeah…I am…” She nodded. “I just…do you know what they were there for?”
He shook his head. “Not a clue. But we’ve shut the place down…we’re investigating now.” He paused. “What do you know about this Grayson Strauss?”
She shrugged. “Nothing except that he’s British…he was just as freaked out as I was.” She paused, studying him. “Why do you ask?”
“Kat, you have to admit, it looks suspicious that only the two of you survived. I can vouch for you…but for Strauss…”
“No.” She shook her head adamantly. “He had nothing to do with this. He…couldn’t have…”
“Okay, I trust your judgment, Kat.” Coulson sighed. “Listen, why don’t you stay in here, take some time to calm down while I go and talk to him.”
“Sir.” Coulson turned to the agent standing behind him. “We found this near the building.” He held up a square box filled with wires.
Coulson swore. “Guy left it here?” He shook his head. “What was he thinking? You can just give that to me.” The agent handed it over, and Coulson placed it on the table and shrugged. “Don’t know what that is,” he said before leaving the room.
------------
“I apologize for the inconvenience, Mr. Strauss, but we’re going to have to keep you in the country for questioning for the next few weeks,” Coulson said.
“Of course. I understand.”
“Good.” Coulson nodded. “We just want to figure out what happened as quickly as possible.”
“What are you going to tell them?”
“I’m sorry?”
“What are you going to tell the families?”
“The truth. That we don’t know what happened, but we’re investigating it.” Grayson raised an eyebrow. “You seem surprised.”
“I just thought you would…”
“Cover it up?” Coulson shook his head. “No. We’re going to get down to the bottom of this. Then we’ll tell the families what happened. Well…I will. SHIELD’s not too big on that.”
“Now I know where Kat gets her sense of right from.”
1. The Library
Kat’s eyes flew across the page, completely engulfed in the world she was reading about. She could vaguely hear noise outside of her little space in the library, but she was too caught up in the epic of Westeros to notice.
“The library will be closing in five minutes.”
She frowned, looking up from the battle scene she had been immersed in and checking her iPhone. It was only three in the afternoon. Why was the library closing so early? She sighed, shoving the book into her bag and standing up, making her way for the lower levels of the library. She had found a nice little reclusive spot near the offices to sit and read, far from others…
She stopped short as she reached the stairs, straining to make out the rushed voices…and then screams…of people below. No one was on the floor she was on…no one had heard…she jumped as a scream pulsed up the stairs, driving her away from the door. She frantically searched the offices for hiding places, finally finding a cabinet to hide in. She closed the door in front of her, holding her breath as shots started to ring out from the lower levels. She grabbed anything she could use as a weapon…the cane she found seemed sturdy enough. She gripped it tightly, listening with baited breath as she heard footsteps pound in the hallway outside of the office. They paused, then came closer. Just one person.
The steps grew closer, then stopped. The door to the cabinet was thrown open. Kat swung the cane with all of her strength, letting it connect with the side of the intruder’s head. With a thump and a loud groan, he fell to the floor with his head in his hands. She realized with a start that this was no intruder. When he sat up, she could see more clearly that he was a guy only a few years older than her, with red hair, a short red beard and mustache, and the deepest blue-green eyes she had ever seen. “Oh my God, I’m so sorry, I didn’t…” She was cut off by more footsteps in the hallway. He jumped up, stepping into the cabinet beside her and shutting the doors in front of them.
Kat’s heart bead wildly in her chest. The screams and gunshots she heard from below echoed in her head, threatening to overwhelm her. She was only vaguely aware of the guy she had almost knocked unconscious until he put a hand on her shoulder, gripping her tightly as he waited with held breath to see if the intruders would find them. He was tall, though, to Kat, everyone was taller…She was only an inch over five feet. He had to be a few inches over six…
Another gunshot rang out from the office beside theirs. Kat’s eyes widened. She had thought she was alone on this floor…apparently, not all of the librarians had left…Blood rushed in her ears as the footsteps got closer, stopped, then turned around. She realized that she had never gotten a glimpse of their attackers…just heard their aftermath…
------------
Phil Coulson had had some rough days during his nearly three decades-long career at SHIELD…but this one seemed to top them all. As soon as the shootings at small library in downtown Manhattan had been reported across the radio, he had rushed to the scene, terrified for the victims’ lives…but most of all, the life of his adopted niece, Kat. Home for a short winter break, she had gone by the library to read while her friend Mike and Coulson were at work. And now, she was most likely trapped inside.
He swore when he realized the SWAT team the city had sent had not made a move to force their way inside. “What’s going on out here?” He demanded of the team leader, flashing his SHIELD ID in front of the man’s face.
The leader shook his head. “We can’t get in, sir.”
“Are they holding hostages?” Coulson prayed Kat was safe. This was a nightmare scenario for him.
“No, sir…we just can’t get in. There seems to be some sort of barrier wrapped around the building…”
Coulson didn’t ask clarification for this. As a member of SHIELD, he was used to such things…He thought a moment before stepping over to the side and dialing the number, praying that, for once, his friend wouldn’t argue before coming to the rescue.
------------
They waited for a few more minutes until they were absolutely sure the intruders were gone before they stepped out of the cabinet. He stepped out first, motioning for her to stay there as he went to investigate one of the lower levels. Kat closed the doors in front of her, waiting for what seemed like ages for him to return. When ten minutes passed, and he didn’t come back, she slipped out of the cabinet, stepping back down the passageway towards where he had disappeared. She heard hurried footsteps, and he appeared in the doorway, a shocked look on his face. “No, NO!” He stopped her before she could pass by him to see what had surprised him. “Don’t go down there…”
Kat, however, had to see what had happened. Her gut told her nothing good could be seen in the lobby…but she raced down their anyway, gasping when she saw the bodies strewn across the floor, each lying in a pool of blood. She shrieked as she spotted the body of a kid who was no older than five…Numbness overwhelmed her until she felt his hands on her shoulders, steering her away from the lobby and back up to the offices.
------------
“What’s going on?”
Coulson sighed, turning around and gesturing to the building. “Can you break it?”
“Yeah, I think I have something just for that.” Tony Stark lifted the suitcase he had snatched from his workshop a mere twenty minutes earlier. “What’s going on?”
“We don’t know yet…” Coulson paused, wondering if he should say it yet. Stark started setting up the device in front of the barrier…something sonic…”Um…”
“Um what?” Stark said, not looking up from what he was doing.
“Stark…Kat’s in there.”
Stark froze, looking up at him. “What?”
“Kat’s in there…in the library.”
“Why didn’t you say that sooner?” He snapped.
------------
“Here.”
Kat slowly lifted her head, meeting his blue-green eyes. Shock still resided there, but it had eased a bit. Both of them had separated, sitting in different offices for close to an hour, trying to come to terms with what they had just seen. She took the cup he offered her, barely tasting the water as he sat down across from her.
He studied her for a few moments before asking, “I’m sorry…I don’t believe I’ve asked you your name…”
“Kat. Kat Coulson.”
He nodded. “Grayson Strauss.” Silence reigned for a few more moments before he spoke again. “I think they’re gone…” He shook his head. “I don’t understand why…they did this.”
“Maybe they were looking for something…” Kat mused. Grayson blinked, confused. She sighed. “My uncle works for a government intelligence agency…people like that…organized killers…they’re usually hired to either take down targets or acquire valuables. They killed too many people to have a target. They must have come here looking for something…”
There was silence before Grayson stood up. “We should probably find a way out of here…somewhere other than the lobby…” They stepped back out into the hallway, making their way opposite from the staircase. Grayson opened a door at the very back to a fire escape. “After you,” he said, letting Kat step through first. She stepped out onto the fire escape, then stopped short. “What’s wrong?” Grayson asked.
“I…I can’t take another step…” She reached out and placed a hand on the space in front of her. “It feels like there’s a barrier here…”
------------
“How long is this going to take?” Coulson asked as he and Stark watched the sonic device start to destroy the barrier.
“About another half an hour,” Stark replied, his eyes on the library in front of them. Coulson studied him for a few moments before making another trip around the periphery of the library.
------------
“Wait…wait…Uncle Phil!” Kat banged on the barrier. “That’s my uncle…UNCLE PHIL!!!” She continued to hit the space in front of her, but he didn’t seem to see or hear her. “He can’t see us…” She muttered, as he rounded the corner out of their site.
“Come on, let’s go back inside,” Grayson said, leading her back in.
“I just don’t know what they were looking for…” Kat muttered as they stepped back into the hallway. She started walking in and out of rooms. The final room was obviously the head librarian’s office. It was wood-paneled and very nice…until Kat saw the man’s body lying in the desk chair, a bullet-wound in his head. The room was a mess, papers and books strewn everywhere. “They were looking for something in here…”
Grayson had stepped into the room, but he hadn’t spoken for a few moments. Kat turned around to see that he was staring at her. “What?”
“It’s just…I don’t know whether to be absolutely disgusted at you being apathetic about all of those people dying…or to admire the fact that you’re working hard to find out why they were killed…” He paused. “…out of sympathy…”
“My uncle raised me to always strive to make things right…” She suddenly felt terrible. What if he did think she was apathetic…and why did she care so much about what this random stranger thought about her…?
“Good…” He gave her a small smile. “I was hoping it was the latter…”
She turned around, scanning the room. “What were they looking for…?” She spotted a hidden cabinet high in the bookshelves. “I think I found it…I just…” She blushed. “You’re going to have to reach it.”
Grayson ducked his head as he stepped up, obviously not trying to laugh at Kat’s dilemma. He opened the cabinet and withdrew a file folder and an empty box. “There must have been something in here…” He said as he handed her the file folder.
------------
“Almost there…” Stark said, tilting his head up to the library.
“I don’t have to remind you that you need to be scarce when we get everyone out,” Coulson said.
“Yeah…of course you don’t want me to be around.”
------------
Kat stepped closer to the head librarian’s desk, sliding what he was reading closer to herself so as to read it. She tried to block the scene of the dead man slumping in his chair out of her mind as she scanned the pages. “He was writing about something before he died…” She muttered. Grayson stepped up to look over her shoulder. Before she could read further, they heard a sound like glass breaking, then smashing to the ground.
“The barrier…” Grayson muttered. “We should go…”
Kat snatched up the book from the head librarian’s desk and the file folder, shoving both into her coat. Grayson nodded and smiled slightly when he saw this. Both of them made their way for the fire escape.
------------
They were picked up by SHIELD agents and transferred to a building housing several of SHIELD’s offices. They were separated into two rooms to wait for questioning. Kat sat at the long table in her room, staring at her hands. The door opened, and she looked up.
“Are you okay?” Coulson asked as she sprang out of her seat. He gave her a big hug, then stepped back, repeating his question.
“Yeah…I am…” She nodded. “I just…do you know what they were there for?”
He shook his head. “Not a clue. But we’ve shut the place down…we’re investigating now.” He paused. “What do you know about this Grayson Strauss?”
She shrugged. “Nothing except that he’s British…he was just as freaked out as I was.” She paused, studying him. “Why do you ask?”
“Kat, you have to admit, it looks suspicious that only the two of you survived. I can vouch for you…but for Strauss…”
“No.” She shook her head adamantly. “He had nothing to do with this. He…couldn’t have…”
“Okay, I trust your judgment, Kat.” Coulson sighed. “Listen, why don’t you stay in here, take some time to calm down while I go and talk to him.”
“Sir.” Coulson turned to the agent standing behind him. “We found this near the building.” He held up a square box filled with wires.
Coulson swore. “Guy left it here?” He shook his head. “What was he thinking? You can just give that to me.” The agent handed it over, and Coulson placed it on the table and shrugged. “Don’t know what that is,” he said before leaving the room.
------------
“I apologize for the inconvenience, Mr. Strauss, but we’re going to have to keep you in the country for questioning for the next few weeks,” Coulson said.
“Of course. I understand.”
“Good.” Coulson nodded. “We just want to figure out what happened as quickly as possible.”
“What are you going to tell them?”
“I’m sorry?”
“What are you going to tell the families?”
“The truth. That we don’t know what happened, but we’re investigating it.” Grayson raised an eyebrow. “You seem surprised.”
“I just thought you would…”
“Cover it up?” Coulson shook his head. “No. We’re going to get down to the bottom of this. Then we’ll tell the families what happened. Well…I will. SHIELD’s not too big on that.”
“Now I know where Kat gets her sense of right from.”