Work Text:
"Not interested."
Maria Hill stopped mid-stride at the woman's sudden statement and narrowed her eyes. It had taken her the better part of three days to get from the undisclosed location of Fury's latest hidden bunker to the remote fishing village in Norway that had become a haven for Asgardian refugees. She was tired, cold, and more than a little hungry. All she'd been hoping for before she had to get down to business was a quiet drink and a bowl of something that could pass for stew in the village’s one dingy, darkly lit pub.
Running into the very person she'd traveled so far to see wasn't part of the plan.
Neither was being so immediately—and rudely—dismissed.
With a huff of annoyance, Maria stomped up to the bar and settled herself on a stool two places down from the woman she’d been told was an actual valkyrie of legend. “That’s a pretty bitchy greeting for someone you’ve never met.”
The valkyrie set the bottle of liquor she’d been drinking from down at the bar with a thunk and swayed around to look directly at her. “All-business woman coming sauntering in wearing a catsuit under her coat when I’m on my first drink of the night means one of two things: either you work for some human organization that’s looking to get inside information on Asgard and thinks I’m disillusioned enough to give it or you’re a hero type that missed the memo about our king fucking off to space and decided I would do as a second choice. Whichever it is, I’m not interested.”
Rather than dignifying that assessment with a response, Maria flagged down the bartender. She asked for a pint of dark beer and a bowl of whatever was hot, then took her time shrugging out of the heavy trenchcoat she’d worn tightly closed over the catsuit the other woman had apparently spotted with a glance. She observed the woman surreptitiously as she went about her business, using all her S.H.I.E.L.D. training to gather as many details as possible so she could decide on her approach. The plan might have been for a quiet night before she sought the woman that both Thor and Banner vouched for, but she wasn’t about to shove the opportunity that had fallen in her lap aside if it meant she might be able to get negotiations out of the way so she could get a good night’s sleep before trekking halfway around the world again.
The file she and Fury had compiled on Brunnhilde a.k.a. Valkyrie was woefully thin. The only photograph was a grainy shot pulled from a drone camera, and it definitely didn’t do the woman justice. Even under layers of roughspun work clothes she was obviously in stellar physical shape. Slouched as she was on her barstool it was easy for a trained eye to see that she was ready for a fight at the slightest provocation and would more than likely win any bout someone was stupid enough to rope her into. Plus, she was practically unknown compared to everyone else with the ability to take on enhanced individuals. People knew of her as a companion to Thor, but she’d somehow managed to avoid being splashed across the world media. She was, in short, perfect for the mission.
And, though Maria would likely never admit it out loud, the way her heart stuttered when she got her first real look at the woman meant she wasn’t going to have the least bit of trouble playing the roles the mission had for them.
“First choice, actually,” Maria muttered when her beer and a bowl of hearty stew were set in front of her. She didn’t raise her voice, but even without watching from the corner of her eye she could tell that she’d been heard. “Thor would be useless on this particular endeavor. I need you specifically.”
She made it halfway through her bowl of stew before Valkyrie’s curiosity got the better of her.
“Why?”
Maria set down her spoon and shifted on her stool to face the other woman. “Just to be clear, I wasn’t planning to approach you about this until tomorrow. It’s been a long damn trip, and I wanted to relax for a night before getting down to business.”
“Yeah, that’s not an answer.” Valkyrie rolled her eyes. “But for the sake for polite conversation, we’ll say I believe you. Why do you need me?”
“We got wind of a group in Madripoor trying to create super soldiers to sell to the highest bidder,” Maria explained as she turned back to her meal. She talked between bites, keeping her voice low. “They’re trafficking children for test subjects. I’ve got a cover opportunity to infiltrate an event we think is being used as a front to showcase progress on the project, but there are two issues. One, I need backup that can deal with enhanced individuals. Someone stronger than a human.”
Valkyrie snorted and took a deep swig from her bottle. It was nearly empty. “Lots of options for that. Don’t necessarily need me.”
“Most of the other options are too well known,” Maria insisted. “They’d never get past the door. Plus, the second issue: my backup has to pose as my wife.”
In the space of a heartbeat, Valkyrie’s expression morphed from extreme skepticism to cautious interest. Maria watched over the rim of her pint glass as the other woman let her eyes trail over her from head to toe with a flirtatiously assessing gaze. By the time her eyes had traveled back to Maria’s face the former Assistant Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. was extremely grateful she had enough self control to tamp down the heated flush threatening to rise up in her cheeks. In one smooth motion Valkyrie shifted herself onto the empty stool between them and brushed her foot along the side of Maria’s calf.
“Well, since you were planning on relaxing tonight maybe we should use it as a test of our compatibility,” Valkyrie practically purred, a lascivious smirk tilting up at the corner of her mouth. “We can talk about whether or not we’ll be convincing enough as wives over breakfast.”
Twisting in her seat, Maria draped one long leg over Valkyrie’s knee and licked her lips. “I do like pancakes.”