'Tis the Season (December 3, 2016)

Isabella put the final ornament on the massive, 16' Christmas tree that had been delivered to the Avengers tower a few days earlier, and took a step back to examine her work. Isabella Stark loved the holidays and put a lot of effort into decorating the tower and making it look as festive as possible. The tree was elegantly decorated with white lights, garland, a collection of ornaments, and was crowned with a regal star. The tree was Isabella's crowning jewel of the holiday season and a talked about feature of the yearly Christmas party that Tony and Isabella hosted every year. The party was a society "must attend" and everyone from politicians, celebrities, and sometimes royalty were there.

Isabella and Tony had met while she was working for SHIELD, having been recruited by Nick Fury directly from the CIA. Isabella began working for Tony as his new personal assistant under the name Viviana Fiore after Tony displayed a lack of concern over threats to his safety that SHIELD deemed credible. Isabella's job was to protect Tony, and she did...while also falling in love with him. Tony proved himself to be far more than she had been led to believe and her life was forever changed by him. Less than a year later, she and Tony were married in St. Patrick's Cathedral, and Isabella became the chair of the Stark Foundation and Tony made her a partner and the new face of Stark Industries. Because of her beauty, grace, and timeless fashion, Isabella quickly became the most photographed woman on Earth. She became a member of the board of several philanthropic organizations and charities and she was named one of the world’s most influential people.

Not long after they were married, Tony created a suit for Isabella and made it Sapphire blue after her favorite gemstone and they began to fight side by side. However, it was when Steve Rogers, who had been found frozen in ice two years earlier, teamed up with them that the Avengers team was founded. The team now consisted of herself, Tony, Steve, Logan, Natalya, and a new member named Serena Turner. Serena had only been with the team for 4 months, but Isabella could see how strong of an asset she could be already.

The elevator suddenly dinged and Isabella looked over to see Forge and Doctor Strange exit. Isabella had known Forge since her days working for SHIELD, and Stephen Strange was Serena's guardian and mentor. Serena had magical abilities that could be extremely dangerous if not understood and controlled and he had spent years instructing her and unlocking her potential. While neither Forge nor Doctor Strange were official members of the Avengers, they assisted the team and often worked with Tony. However, with them was a young man that she didn't recognize.

"Tony's in his lab," she said as she approached the trio. "Serena is in her room if you would like to say hello," she added to Stephen. Isabella, as always, was extremely elegant and graceful in almost every movement she made. She had long, cascading brunette hair, and eyes the color of warm chocolate with flecks of amber. Her skin was soft, and almost flawless, except for a small scar on the upper left side of her head. That had been caused the year before by her hitting her head during a fight after her helmet had retracted unexpectedly. Tony had spent the next week working on upgrading the safety measures in her suit. He did everything he could to protect her.

"I see you brought someone new with you today," she said with a warm, welcoming smile that caused her eyes to twinkle. "Welcome to the Avengers tower. I'm Isabella Stark."

Forge and Mason had arrived by jet not too long ago. Having met with Strange they left the cargo of material behind on the jet to be hauled in later. Mason was incredibly jet lagged as it was very late back home. Both Forge and Mason were dressed very warmly not quite used to the colder climate in large puffer coats and trapper hats. Forge and Strange had been in talks for a few weeks prior to this new project and it was Dr Strange's suggestion to Tony about involving Forge. While Tony was a brilliant inventor he knew Forge's abilities to create anything from his imagination would of great benefit to the Avengers.

That and he wanted to ensure his student Serena would be safe in her new role. The pair were busy conversing enjoying their chat while Mason was drifting off to sleep against the wall of the elevator when they heard Isabella. They straightened up and smiled thankful for the greeting. "Thank you Isabella. i'm sure he's eager to get started on discussing new projects." Forge said. He had recently cut his hair short and was fairly clean shaven knowing of his impending event. The Avengers were pretty high profile so he wanted to make sure he would look presentable. Mason on the other hand hadn't had a haircut in a couple of years and hadn't shaved in a month.

Hearing Isabella greet Mason Forge nudged him with his shoulder stirring the young man from his delirium. "Hm?" He straightened up slightly annoyed but realized what was going on. "Oh sorry sorry. Mason Kama thank you for having me." He said making an effort to be a gentleman.

"Should probably get you some coffee. I'll go check on Serena and meet you in the lab." Strange said. He looked to Isabella and gave her a smile thanking her for her assistance. The trio stepped out from the library and Dr Strange immediately made his way to his pupils room. He had high hopes that she was doing well for herself. That and he didn't necessarily want to be the only one around Tony as the pair didn't always see eye to eye.

"I like what you've done to the place. very festive and warm." Forge complimented taking note of the massive tree. Mason shook his head to clear the cobwebs and did notice how bright everything was and the smell of pine.

"Big on celebrating Christmas?" He asked looking to her. He did take notice of how beautiful she was, he had no delusions of a chance obviously but she was quite lovely.

Isabella smiled at Mason. She could tell he was exhausted and she decided to have Jarvis make some coffee. "Jarvis, please turn on the coffee maker," she said aloud. "Of course, Ma'am," the British, computer generated voice replied. The coffee maker in the kitchen suddenly started up and a fresh pot of coffee began to brew.

"I always keep the coffee maker ready to go, especially when Tony's been cooped up in his lab for multiple days in a row," she explained.

She beamed at Forge's compliment and then turned her attention to Mason. "It's my favorite time of year. I may have gone a little bit overboard with the size of the tree this year, but it makes me smile to look at it. I hope you both will be able to attend our annual Christmas party. It will be the evening of the 17th. We would love to have you both there."

The coffee maker beeped that it had finished brewing and Isabella walked over and took down two clean mugs and put the carafe on the counter as she got out the sugar bowl and some creamer for them to use if they wanted some.

"Oh, before I forget," she said suddenly, "you don't have anything peppermint on either of you, do you?"

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Meanwhile, Strange made his way down to Serena's room. However, when he opened the door he would find himself not in a room, but on a beach. Sand was beneath his feet and above, the sun warmed his skin. Waves crashed gently on the shore and birds called as they flew overhead. Serena lay on a hammock, suspended between two palm trees. She was dressed in shorts and a tank top and was listening to some music with her eyes closed. However, she sensed Strange's presence and she opened her eyes and looked over at him with a smile.

"I think you're a little over dressed for the beach, don't you?"

Mason looked up hearing Jarvis speak up and looked to Forge who seemed impressed. He had been toying with the idea of using AI to assist in the day to day life but he felt the younger folks would take advantage. "I've seen sci fi movies, that wont end well." Mason said knowing what Forge was thinking. Rogue AI going ballistic on the humans, seemed far too close to reality to the young mutant. Even if the thing provided coffee. "Party huh?" Mason perked a little bit hearing Isabella.

"probably a bit nicer than the kinds back home. With the projects we have in mind we'll most likely be here for quite a while. We would love to attend." Forge said thankful for the invite. Mason watched Isabella walk to fetch the coffee and took the moment to better look around.

"From waht you told me of Tony i'm surprised he sprung for this." He said in a whisper.

"He's gone through some changes and theres the matter of appearances he has to uphold. Besides a little Christmas cheer will do you some good."

"mhm, me stuck in some cramped vents reconnecting wires. Ho ho ho." Mason said rubbing his eyes. During his downtime he figured he'd wander New York, in the ritzy areas since he had money even. He did brighten up seeing the coffee and they wandered over. "Peppermint? Not that I'm aware of." Mason said eyeing Forge.

"what?"

"Out of the two of us you'd most likely be it. didnt know what peppermint was until a few years ago." Mason stated.

"Why do you ask?" Forge asked unzipping his coat.

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Steven stepped onto the sand shaking his head smirking. Well at least shes been practicing he thought to himself. he couldn't exactly blame her given how cold it was back in New York. He smiled spotting her resting on a hammock. He removed his coat to cool himself, a strange thought considering he was freezing a moment ago. "I always find myself dressed incorrectly for my surroundings. I trust you're settling in well, i love what you've done to your 'quarters'." He

Isabella decided to make herself some tea and as soon as Jarvis "noticed" her getting out the tea bag box, he turned on the electric kettle. Isabella smiled hearing it come on. "Thank you Jarvis."

"My pleasure, Ma'am."

"Well, while I was pregnant with Aeryn I had a sudden craving for peppermint tea. I began to make some, but as soon as Natalya smelled it she freaked out and we had to sedate her. Turns out that Tatiana, the head of the SSB, used to love anything peppermint and now Natalya associates peppermint with the horrible torture she endured for most of her life. So, we now no longer allow anything peppermint in the Tower."

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Serena concentrated and suddenly there was a slight shift to the illusion and the hammock was gone and was replaced by two beach chairs so they could sit. She sat down in one and looked over at Strange. "I am settling in, but I must admit that I do still miss the Sanctum. It was my home for so long that it feels strange being here. I'm not sure Natalya has fully accepted me yet. She seems quite wary of strangers and anyone new in her space. I'm a little afraid of her...and Logan."

Mason stopped and looked up hearing Jarvis speak up. a shiver ran down his spine so he just reached out and grabbed a mug of coffee. His 'leather' gloves keeping the heat at bay and took a sip grateful for the additional warmth. He hadn't realized he was shivering under the heavy coat. The pair listened as Isabella explained the peppermint issue and Mason's eyes widened at this. Forge nudged him a bit after adding some cream to his coffee.

"You won't have to worry about peppermint with us. Wiff of oil and ozone from time to time maybe. Does she have any other triggers?" Forge asked wanting to avoid further complications. He knew internal security was discussed at one point but he didn't quite understand the necessity.

"So..what loose cannon with PTSD that can snap my neck then?" Mason asked rather bluntly. "not like i wanna swap stories or anything but i get it. Don't mess with Natalya." He said. Forge sighed hoping Mason wouldn't upset the others. "I appreciate the invite don't get me wrong but i don't think I'm gonna have to worry about chatting up with people. Tellin ya right now if someone calls me kid or sport they're getting a shock." Mason sipped on the coffee. "Ok this is really good." He said feeling himself perk up a bit.

"I swear he's house trained. And we'll watch ourselves so she'll be comfortable." Forge said.

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Strange was impressed by the illusion and felt some pride swell in his chest. "It's not quite the same without you but i still feel you can do a lot of good here." He said. Having a representative on hand for the Avengers made for an excellent means of maintaining friendships. He thought of Natalya knowing she was a reason for himself and Forge to arrive to assist with defenses.

He still didn't have a strong opinion of Natalya but had heard of her history. "We'll have to remain patient with her. she has a lot of demons that she has to overcome. Logan..well its probably wise to stay fearful of him. Just his manners alone could intimidate." He joked hoping to alleviate some worry. "Has Natalya spoken to you of her past or has she kept to herself?"

"Oh and of course Forge, if you recall, has arrived with his assistant."

Isabella had chosen a bag of Early Grey and she unwrapped it and placed it into her cup. By that time, the kettle was whistling so she turned it off and then poured the hot water into the cup. The water almost immediately turned color as the tea bag soaked.

"I wouldn't worry too much about Natalya. She'll probably avoid you for the most part and Logan is with her most of the time. To be honest, she's been here two years and we're still figuring her out. She's proved herself, but between the nightmares, sleepwalking, PTSD, and the fact that the SSB is probably going to try to get her back at some point we just need to up our security a little bit more."

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Serena looked over at Strange. "We've interacted a little, but from what Isabella has told me, it just takes time to earn Natalya's trust. I suppose that just comes from her background. Did you know that they believe that they actually injected the embryo itself with the super soldier serum before implanting it into the surrogate who carried her? That's just insane to me. Although I suppose they feared that a child wouldn't have survived the process."

She took a sip of her Daquiri that had just appeared and then thought about Forge and his assistant. "Mason, right?"

Mason looked to Forge and gave a sleepy nod. "See nothing to worry about." he said. But hearing Isabella list off some negatives did give him some pause. Well that explains the electrical fields he thought thinking of the cargo they had brought over. Forge had ordered some supplies to be shipped over but some of the more sensitive equipment they had flown over themselves. Took up most of the jets cargo space as well. "Logan...oh the Wolverine!? the guy that calls everyone bub" Mason smiled much to Forge's fear.

"I may have told him about Logan during my time with the X men." Forge said looking to Isabella.

"I'm not gonna go out of my way to mess with people. We're here for a job and we'll get it done." Mason said taking a long draw on his coffee. It was still hot but he really wanted to warm himself up. "I"ll go and get the bots started up to offload the cargo. Thank you for the coffee Isabella and uh Jarvis." Mason said.

"Mind showing me to the lab? Just need to make arrangements on where we're setting up." Forge asked her. Mason walked back to the elevator to head back to the jet and prepped himself for the temperature drop practically hugging himself.

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Strange nodded thinking on Natalya and all that she had to endure. as a doctor thinking on the immoral experiments to bring her into the world churned his stomach. he wasn't familiar with the super soldier serum but he knew messing with embryo's was a significant risk even with good intentions. "Well she has been here for some time now. I would hope at least she feels safe, Tony and I felt keeping her unaware of the upgrades we'd be performing would be best. Most of what we've come up with would be about containment rather than defense." He admitted.

He gave a nod when Serena guessed Mason. "Forge felt he would be best suited to assist. I've thought of looking more into the young man on my own time but i get the impression he wouldn't like that much. Could have been the lack of sleep of course he's currently a number of hours ahead apparently. Lives on an island apparently, i think he'd be a fan of your earlier illusion. "

Isabella took a sip of her tea and nodded. "Yes, of course," she replied. She turned to Mason before he walked off. "When you get back, there are some freshly baked cookies in the jar there. Please feel free to help yourself if you would like some," she said with a smile. Isabella was nothing if not an impeccable hostess. That came from being married to Tony and everything that came with being "Mrs. Stark". However, Isabella wouldn't change her life for anything in the world.

She stopped by Serena's room and informed Stephen that she was about to take Forge to Tony's lab. He and Serena had been talking, but they ended their conversation and Stephen joined them.

Isabella thought about something and smiled at Serena. "I think Mason could use your assistance unloading the jet," she said.

Serena caught on to what she was saying and smiled and nodded. Isabella led Forge and Stephen back to the elevator and they went up several more floors. Tony wanted to ensure that the lab was safely away from his family just in case anything were to happen in there. There was a security door that Isabella punched a code into and the door opened. She walked in with Forge and Stephen and they approached Tony.

"Tony, Forge and Doctor Strange are here."

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Serena put on her coat and boots and headed to the elevator. She took it up to the top level and spotted a young man with longer dark hair and a beard near the jet. She smiled as she approached him.

"I'm Serena Turner. Isabella thought that I could help you unload the jet," she said in her English accent. When she saw him hesitate a bit she smiled. "I have telekinetic powers."

Stephen looked up upon Isabella's entrance and kept his smile in check at her suggest Serena assist Mason. He wasn't sure if he should encourage fraternization but she was an adult and he had to assume Mason was the same given his appearance. Besides he was certain Serena would be able to help out greatly with any large containers. He stood and join her and Forge in heading to Tony's lab.

Within the lab Tony was working on the logistics of upgrades for the Tower. A hologram of the tower rotated in front of him with Natalya's room highlighted in red. "We cant go much thicker so we'll just have to come up with a sturdier metal.." Tony sighed. Hearing his wife drew his attention to his surroundings. "Gentleman, welcome to the Avengers Tower." He greeted having promised he would behave during this task.

"I trust your trips went smoothly."

"No problems on our end. We've brought some supplies on hand and the ordered material should be on their way." Forge said giving a nod. "I take it you've already gotten a headstart on the upgrades?" he asked making note of the hologram.

"Only the basics, i'm leaving any magical assistance to the experts." Tony said. Originally he wasn't too keen on magic being involved as it wasn't something that could be measured but the others felt it best to exhaust all resources.

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As Mason went up the elevator he mulled over the idea of stuffing his face full of cookies but all he really wanted to do was sleep. the coffee had done the trick but he knew he'd end up crashing sooner than he'd like. Stepping out from the elevator he made his way through the hangar and to Forge's jet. The loading ramp was still down and when Serena arrived he was busy trying to get the automated bots to turn on to drag the freight containers down. He wasn't too keen getting a pallet jack but he wouldn'lt have much choice.

"Are you frozen over or something?" Mason cursed taking a step back. He heard footsteps after pulling his hat off. He found himself then eyeing a rather lovely redhead and thought maybe coming after all wasn't such a bad thing. And that accent..

He was about to question how she would help him out until she went ahead and explained it. "Ah. yeah that'll do it." Mason said looking back at the containers. He pulled his hat back on feeling the cold nip at him. "names Mason, if you think you can haul these down be my guest." He said stepping aside. "Some sensitive equipment, then again any damage can probably be repaired easily in this place." He said wrapping his arms around himself.

Isabella smiled. "Well, I will leave you gentlemen to it then. I've had two rooms prepared for Mason and yourself," Isabella said to Forge. "I can show you to them when you're ready. I should be getting back down though. Aeryn will be waking up from her nap any time now."

She then left and headed back down to the living level of the Tower.

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Natalya, Logan, and Steve had just finished a rather intense training session in the Training Room, which was located on another level in the Tower. The training level featured a gym with state of the art equipment and weights, as well as a running track, and a training room that could run training programs and simulations. There was also a firing range for arms training. One of the things that the team had learned about Natalya was that she didn't like sitting still for very long. Her entire life had been planned around her training and Tatiana didn't let her rest very often. Intense training also helped her rest more easily at night, although she still often had nightmares. Logan though had been helping her with those. His room was right next to hers and he was completely in tune with her. If he heard her having a nightmare, he would leave his room and go to hers. He would get into bed with her and wrap his arms securely around her and his presence would soothe her and ease her back into a more restful sleep. The pair were very close and there was no one in the world that Natalya trusted more than Logan. He had spared her life and had ensured she got a second chance. He looked after her and made sure she felt safe.

She was wearing her black workout leggings and a black sports bra. Her hair was pulled back into a messy bun to keep it out of her face and her skin glistened from the exertion of the intense training session the three of them had just gone through. She was still extremely beautiful though. There was a mysterious...almost dangerous look to her though. She walked over to the fridge and refilled her water bottle and then took a few big sips before leaning against the counter. She looked at Logan.

"There's supposed to be a Russian spy movie marathon tonight on tv. Want to watch it with me?" she asked. "I can point out everything that's wrong," she added with a grin.

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Serena smiled over at Mason. She thought he was rather good looking...in a bad boy sort of way. She saw him wrap his arms around himself and she concentrated a moment and suddenly he would find that the snow and cold air was gone. It was replaced with sunshine and warmth...like a late spring day. She saw him blink in confusion and she smiled at him. "I have a few other powers as well," she said before she began to use her telekinetic abilities to unload the containers with ease.

After the training Steve had retired to his room to freshen up leaving Logan and Natalya to talk. Like the others he knew Logan kept Natalya at ease and he noticed she did the same for him. Despite precautions with training the mutant had a habit of pushing himself a little further than necessary. THere had been a few times where Steve was glad his shield was made of adamantium. He knew of Logan's temper and knew under it all he was a good man. They needed someone like Logan especially when it came to Natalya. He could risk himself with little fear of lasting damage in order to get through to her during her particularly rough days.

Logan was dressed in his brown and tan training suit having caught his breath after the training session. He looked to Natalya thinking that she would rest well that evening. "A Russian spy movie huh? bit on the nose dont ya think?" He smirked hearing her joke. "Sure, starting to get tired of all the christmas carols. Would make a good change of pace around here i think." He said. At first when he would venture into her room to calm her it was out of sympathy and purely platonic. as of late he had noticed that his pulse quickened when he was around her. He hadn't approached the idea of a relationship and he doubted he would for some time given her trauma.

"Living room per usual?"

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Mason felt that the coffee's effects were leaving him. He was still awake due to the caffeine but the nice warm feeling as quickly leaving him. Until the cold air seemed to stop pestering him and he felt a bit warmer. He looked up seeing sunshine and noticed just how warm everything was. He spun about a bit confused by this development until he saw Serena smile at him. He then stepped out of the way as he watched her unload the jet with seemingly no issue whatsoever. By the time it was finished the automated bots came to life and began to move around on their wheels.

"Good timing guys.." Mason said watching them. Looking back to Serena, "Thanks. Guess i have a bit more time on my hands." he said. He thought of getting some shut eye but looking over Serena made him think he should be a bit more social

Natalya nodded and even smiled a little. She enjoyed the movie marathons that she and Logan would watch together. Over the past two years that she had been in the Tower, Logan, Isabella, and Steve had been working to overcome Natalya's past. With that, came introducing her to things other than just training and working out. It was quickly discovered that Natalya had a serious sweet tooth (although she could eat whatever she wanted and never gain an ounce due to her high metabolism), especially for chocolate. Sitting down and watching a single movie all the way through had been impossible for the first 8 months she was at the Tower. She just wasn't used to relaxing. Slowly though, she had learned that it was ok to relax and to enjoy herself. Now, she and Logan loved to watch movies together in the evenings.

"After dinner though. I saw Isabella's lasagna in the fridge," she said.

Isabella was an incredible cook and she and Logan never missed dinner when she made it.

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Serena finished unloading the containers and got them set up where Mason instructed her to put them. She smiled at Mason when he said that he had a bit of time on his hands now. "I could take you on a tour of the Tower if you would like since this is your first time here."

Logan hadn't anticipated sticking around with the Avengers as long as he had but he felt the could actually help Natalya. Besides it wasn't as if he were busying, back the mansion they had a new batch of kids and he really didnt want to play babysitter. He did try and keep some his worse habits, drinking and smoking, away from the tower. Mostly out of respect for Isabella, he didn't care much what Tony thought. "Lasagna huh. Gonna have to drag ya to bed huh." He teased insinuating she over ate italian

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Mason thought of a potential tour keeping himself awake. "Yeah that'll work. Would give me a chance to see places i'll be crawling underneath." He stated. Joining her in the elevator Mason leaned against the wall yawning a bit. "I take it you know about the upgrades we're doing?" He asked looking to her. "And sorry for askin but are you like..one of the help or?" he asked completely unaware that she was part of the team.

Serena's initial instinct was to point out that due to the powers she had just shown him that asking if she was one of the help was a little insulting, but she just smiled. "I'm part of the team...the newest member. I've been here about four months."

She decided to start on the living levels and the doors opened. She and Mason stepped out and she spotted Logan and Natalya in the kitchen. Natalya rolled her eyes a little at Logan's tease, but she also smiled a little. She took another sip of her water and was about to say she was going to go take a shower, but suddenly the elevator doors opened and someone she didn't recognize got off the elevator with Serena. Natalya's smile faded and her eyes watched the stranger as Serena approached cautiously with him. Natalya's body had tensed up a little and so Serena stopped and left a good bit of space between them all.

"Natalya, Logan this is Mason. He's working with Forge and is going to be staying with us for a while. I'm taking him on a tour of the Tower. Mason, this is Natalya Sokolova and Logan."

Mason hadn't intended to insult her he just assumed she wasn't an Avenger due to her looks. She looked around his age and surely they wouldn't have someone that young on the team would they? "wait you're an actual Avenger?" Mason asked. "Damn you're like what 20 or something? How do you get a gig like that?" He asked.

He stepped out with Serena into the kitchen area and stopped seeing Natalya. Wasn't sure why she looked on edge and why Serena was moving slower. It wasn't until she introduced them he understood. Right the sleepwalking neck snapper he thought. "Howdy." He simply said trying to come as easy going as possible. Logan straightened up smelling something new and looked to the newcomer.

"Forge's assistant right?" he asked. Mason gave a nod.

"Yeah thats me..just the electrician nothing special." Mason answered. "Forge has told me a bit about you, mostly to not try and piss you off."

Serena smiled at Mason. "I'm 22 actually. I helped out the team here in the city about 6 months ago and they offered me position after seeing my powers. Before that, I lived with Doctor Strange while he trained me...and before that I lived in the X-Men mansion...and before that I lived in Bristol, UK with my parents."

Natalya eyed Mason, but he seemed unthreatening so she relaxed a little. She glanced at Logan when Mason mentioned that Forge had said not to piss them off. "Sounds about right," she replied in her Russian accent. She grabbed a cookie from the cookie jar and then, remembering Isabella's training on polite manners, she put the jar down on the counter top in front of Serena and Mason before walking off towards her room. Serena looked at Mason.

"That's about as close to her offering you a cookie as you're going to get," Serena said.

Mason was surprised by how young Serena was and all that she accomplished. When she mentioned the X men he felt less insecure about his own situation. Well that explains the accent he thought when she mentioned living in Bristol. He kept an eye on Natalya feeling every hair on the back of his neck stand on end. he was glad he was wearing his heavy coat as he was tensing every part of his muscle. It was like staring at a predator and her being russian wasn't helping!

He watched her closely as he grabbed up the cookie jar and placed it in front of them before heading off. He exhaled finally relaxing, "I'm way too tired for this.." he said rubbing his head. Logan smirked and walked past them figuring a change of clothes was in order for him as well. He coudln't help but notice the strange smell coming from Mason, very subtle but his nose picked it up nonetheless. He watched him for a moment.

"where'd you say you were from again?" he asked. Mason watched Logan a bit.

"I hadn't." He said wanting to keep his past to himself. Mutants or not he wasn't sure if he was keen on sharing too much of his personal info. Yeah he was attracted to Serena but he didnt see reason to 'share'. "Just around you could say." Mason said trying to be civil. Logan watched the young man but knew Serena would be fine, after all she should be able to handle some random guy.

"Keep out of trouble you two." Logan said before moving on.

Mason took a step off to the side fetching a cookie from the jar taking care not to get crumbs on his gloves. "So thats Natalya huh. how much sleepwalkin she do?" He asked looking to Serena

Serena watched Logan leave with Natalya and wondered how much longer it was going to be until they were sleeping together. She could sense Logan's strong attraction to Natalya, but it was much more than that. He genuinely cared about her and she knew that he would do just about anything for her. Natalya was harder to read without delving her thoughts, but she could see how relaxed Natalya was around Logan and they did just about everything together. Natalya trusted Logan completely, something unheard of for her.

Serena took a cookie from the jar as well, and noticed Mason's gloves. At first, she thought that they were just regular gloves, but they didn't appear to be. However, she wasn't going to pry into his life.

"It's only every once and a while," she replied. "Apparently when she first got here, they found out about it when they granted her full access to the living areas. Logan woke up to find her in his room one night, but when he tried to wake her she straight up attacked him. Isabella was able to administer a sedative when Logan managed to subdued her. Tony was apparently quite upset about the whole thing because Isabella was pregnant at the time and he feared that Natalya was going to hurt her and the baby. It was a whole big ordeal, but Tony finally agreed to let her stay. Jarvis keeps an eye on her now and will alert Tony, Steve, and Logan if he detects her sleepwalking."

Mason broke apart pieces of the cookie as he ate thinking on the days events. Once he finished he brushed his hands off and slid them back into the pockets of his coat. He listened close to Serena when she spoke about the sleepwalking but then something else came to mind. "So Jarvis can see us then?" He asked. hearing the AI give the affirmative made Mason look up. "Oh that's gonna take me a bit to get used to."

"Alright..so do you sleepwalk?" He asked smirking at Serena figuring taking a shot wouldn't hurt. He did want to see the rest of the tower and once he was rested he had planned on going into the city itself to walk about.

Serena laughed a little and shook her head. "No, I don't," she replied. They finished eating their cookies and Serena continued the tour with Mason through the Tower. She showed him the living areas, including where Tony and Isabella's offices were, and then they headed up a level to the next part of the living quarters. This area had some gaming rooms, including a pool table and some vintage pinball machines. There was a poker table and down a ways was the indoor pool.

After that, they headed to the training level. She showed him the gym and the firing range, before they came into a large, open room. "This is the training simulation room. You can program in different fight scenarios and battle conditions. It's pretty cool."

Mason had to tell himself to keep cool hearing Serena laugh. He had little experience with anyone with an english accent so her voice was very soothing. As the tour continued Mason made sure to pay attention to where everything was. Just working on the upgrades itself he'd rather have personal knowledge on the location of rooms. Knowing Forge he figured he'd be staying in the tower for quite some time running new wires under the floors and ceilings.

Stepping into the training level was pretty interesting for him. They had a gym facility but most of their training for combat was done outdoors typically. He followed her into the training simulation room thinking it was just an empty space. When Serena advised what it was for he was rather impressed. "Full on simulation huh? is it all fight scenarios?" Mason asked.

"Like say you wanted to catch a concert or something." He mentioned. He looked to Serena, "Come on you gotta do something fun it can't just be work for you."

Serena smiled and shook her head. "No, it's not all work. We have our down time as well. I like swimming in the pool, or going to the movies, or going to see a concert, but because my name and my face are starting to get out there because I'm now apart of the Avengers, I do have to be somewhat careful. I was at the beach earlier today though," she said. She smiled at Mason's curious look and suddenly the simulation room was no longer there and they were standing on a sandy beach. It was warm and the sun shone down on them as the waves crashed on the shore.

"The celebrity lifestyle basically. Kind of limits your options." Mason said. He couldn't really imagine such a life. Everyone knowing you from your actions and having a high expectation. He had plenty of experience with low expectations but having high ones had to just be as bad right? He made a mental note that she liked movies and concerts and the thought of her swimming was nice. She did catch him off guard with the beach comment. He was about tease that she coudln't have been to a real beach until they found themselves on one.

"Oh thats different." he said even taking note of the warmth. He even kicked at the sand while he pulled his heavy coat off. He was a very fit young man and the coat did a good job of actually hiding him. Underneath the layers he was wearing a simple gray shirt, a shark fang necklace and of course his gloves that seemed to have bracelets around the end. "wish i came here first I'm not used to winter in New York anymore." Mason breathed out pulled his hat off letting his long hair down. "This really feels like we're on a beach. hell i wish i brought my trunks. Guess ill go into the city after some shut eye and do some shopping." Mason said obviously impressed

Serena smiled at Mason. "I'm able to warp reality. I first figured out I had this ability when I was a child. It was the middle of summer in Bristol, but I wanted snow and I made it snow...in a way. I freaked a bunch of people out...including my parents, but I don't remember being shocked at what I had done...it's like I just knew I could do it."

Serena could tell that Mason was exhausted. She ended the illusion and smiled at him. "Let's go figure out where you're staying so you can get some rest," she said and led him out of the Training Simulation Room. They got back onto the elevator. "So, where are you from?" she asked. curiously.