Hill washed her hands, and Rowan had already set the table with rice and chopsticks.
She had been out on assignment the past couple of days and was clearly starving. She devoured two full bowls of rice and even drank all the broth from the pot.
"I mean, seriously, Hill Is Fury really that stingy? You go on one mission with him and come back looking like you've been reincarnated from a starving ghost. Is the food out there that bad?"
Rowan chuckled as he watched her lean back in her chair, satisfied and full.
Hill pouted at the comment.
"He's not stingy. He just doesn't know what good food is. It's always pasta or macaroni, or steak and pizza. I was about to lose my mind!"
"That doesn't sound too bad. Maybe you're just too picky," Rowan said, spreading his hands in mock helplessness.
Typical American fare, after all. It wasn't like Fury was actually starving her.
"Hmph. That's your fault. You've spoiled my taste buds. You're responsible now!"
Hill huffed in a mock-offended tone.
If her colleagues at S.H.I.E.L.D. saw her like this pouting and playfully indignant they'd be stunned. Hill was famously composed and elegant. Not exactly an ice queen, but definitely not someone easy to get close to.
"Alright, alright. I'll take responsibility."
Rowan grinned and began clearing the dishes.
At this point, both Hill and Natasha had been completely converted to Eastern cuisine. There was no way they could go back to eating Western food every day without suffering.
Once Natasha got back, she'd probably eat even more than Hill.
"Rowan, did you grow taller recently?"
Hill watched him carry the dishes into the kitchen, her tone curious.
"Did I?"
Rowan paused for a moment.
"Yeah, I think you did," Hill said, resting her chin in her hand and looking at him thoughtfully.
The longer she looked, the more her eyes narrowed in a smile.
Her little brother really was getting handsome.
"It's perfectly normal. I'm still growing, after all," Rowan replied casually.
But deep down, he suspected it had something to do with the RR virus.
After scrubbing the dishes and tidying the kitchen, Rowan sat on the sofa and turned on the television. Hill had just finished her shower and walked out of the bathroom, towel in hand, drying her hair.
Seeing Rowan, she smiled.
"Rowan, can you help me dry my hair?"
"Sure."
He patted the spot beside him on the couch.
Hill walked over and sat down, then leaned over and rested her head just above his lap in a well-practiced motion.
Rowan turned on the hair dryer and began gently drying her hair.
"Usually, Fury takes Coulson with him to HQ briefings, doesn't he? Why'd he bring you this time?"
As he worked, Rowan made small talk.
Hill shifted slightly to get more comfortable.
"Coulson's been transitioning assignments. There's some unusual activity in New Mexico. Fury didn't trust anyone else with it, so he sent Coulson to handle it."
She closed her eyes, clearly relaxed.
"New Mexico..."
Rowan's heart skipped a beat. That meant Thor had likely just been cast down to Earth by Odin.
The arrival of Mjolnir must've caused enough of a stir that Fury decided to send his most trusted agent to investigate.
"When is Coulson leaving?"
He wasn't particularly interested in Thor. But Coulson, on the other hand, he had business with.
Coulson was Fury's most trusted lieutenant and key operator. When it came to recruiting superheroes like Iron Man or Thor, Coulson was always the one to make contact.
Among all of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s agents, Coulson had the best relationship with Tony Stark.
Rowan intended to reach Stark through him.
"I think he's heading out tomorrow afternoon."
"Tomorrow, huh? Then I'll need to find him before he leaves."
Rowan made a mental note.
"What about Natasha? What kind of mission is she on now? She only comes back once a week."
"Undercover, I think. Fury didn't say much, and I didn't ask."
"Of course. Another undercover job."
Rowan sighed.
Natasha loved playing the seductive spy. She'd get close to her targets, let them lower their guard, and then strike once they let slip valuable intel.
That was exactly why she earned the codename Black Widow.
"Think she'll be home this weekend for dinner?"
Rowan asked.
But a few seconds passed, and there was no reply.
He glanced down and saw that Hill had already fallen asleep, her breathing steady and gentle against his thigh, tickling slightly.
Rowan turned off the hair dryer and ran his fingers through her hair. It was about seventy percent dry.
"Must've really worn herself out this time."
He looked at her peaceful face, feeling a pang of tenderness.
Hill had become a Level 9 agent at just twenty-five. As one of Fury's most trusted operatives, her work was never easy.
And a big part of the reason she pushed herself so hard was to protect him to give him the best possible environment to grow up in.
Rowan turned off the television and leaned back on the couch, pondering how best to approach Tony Stark.
About twenty minutes later, he checked Hill's hair again. It was nearly dry now.
He gently lifted her in his arms, carried her to her bedroom, laid her down, and pulled the blanket over her.
After switching off the lights and closing the door, he returned to his own room, turned on the desk lamp, and pulled out his notebook.
As he thought, he began jotting down notes.
"I currently have six hundred thousand Alliance credits in the Devourer of Stars world."
"That world is set in the future. Some of its technology is far more advanced than the Marvel World. But since the human cities are limited in area, resources are scarce. I could use the Marvel World's abundant resources to trade for their tech..."
Rowan continued organizing his thoughts.
"Tony has just become Iron Man. It won't be long before he clashes with Obadiah. Right now, he desperately needs special metals to enhance his armor. Kro-Alloy from the Devourer of Stars world fits the bill perfectly."
He wrote Kro-Alloy in his notebook, circled it, and drew a star beside it.
Kro-Alloy was one of the greatest technological breakthroughs in the Devourer of Stars Earth. It was developed by Kro Dsenar using materials harvested from monster corpses and a mysterious metal known as "Bluegold" found on the Moon.
The alloy was categorized into ten grades based on the kind of monster materials used.
Even Grade 2 Kro-Alloy had hardness comparable to diamond.
A few kilograms of Grade 3 Kro-Alloy alone would be more than enough to impress Tony and persuade him to let Rowan use his arc reactor for recharging.
"Maybe I could even start a company in the Marvel World just to sell Kro-Alloy..."
As Rowan's thoughts raced, a new business idea began to take shape.