Regrouping

Anyone looking up at the sky would only have seen the streak of light arcing through the clouds. That was something Carol clung to; they wouldn't be able to see the blonde, well, streak.

As high up as she was, she still wrapped her arms around herself; even if the elements weren't the biggest concern of hers, she could still feel the cool of the thin air pressing against her skin. It became even more pronounced as she shot through a layer of cloud cover, water droplets condensing against her skin before instantly evaporating at the energy she emitted.

A thin layer of steam surrounded her when she landed on the SHIELD helicarrier. Sadly the faint wisps weren't remotely as opaque as their cloudy origins.

"I'm here to see Hill," Carol said, head held high, as stiffly as she could manage with her arm crossed over her breasts and her hand held over her core. A couple of the SHIELD agents did a double-take.

She focused, controlling her aura to make it brighten, as though she was preparing for the biggest fight of her life - her eyes lit up. Hopefully it would make her harder to look at. She hadn't exactly experimented with using her powers to dress with, but if she managed to brighten enough, maybe it would serve to hide a few pertinent details.

If nothing else, it made a couple of guards quickly duck to the side and get out of her way. Blush hidden behind a surge of yellow, Carol walked inside.

She looked down tentatively, and rather than seeing her chest effortlessly covered by a veil of power, she just saw a glowing pair of boobs. If anything she was more eye-catching. Grimacing, Carol dismissed the aura, returning to a much more typical appearance. Well there went that idea.

Taking a deep breath, she walked into the bridge. Maria Hill was already standing in the center, an array of screens behind her all showing scenes from the bacchanal. (Wait, wrong pantheon. Er, Thorcanal? That sounded vaguely dirty).

"What was that?" Hill said. "Fury said you were the best! That your punch was equal to ten nuclear bombs! That your cat could devour whole armies!"

"Ooh, you have a cat?"

Hill's lecture certainly didn't make her feel any less embarrassed; neither did some random brunette jumping in from the side, a grin on her face. She'd briefly encountered the SHIELD team when she'd been briefed upon arriving. Though she had been dressed then.

Her arms shifted slightly, uncomfortably, vainly trying to find a more decent position to be.

"So?" Hill said. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

That if she pushed much harder she'd have left a crater in the middle of Paris the size of France. That she didn't see SHIELD doing much better. That atmosphere could be remarkably flammable if she burned too much.

"Er," Carol managed. "Do you have a coat?"

Hill looked at her witheringly. A red-faced Carol matched her stare.

"Do they have gyms in space?" the brunette beside Carol said. Carol jumped.

"Who are you?" Carol said.

"Darcy," the woman said, eyes glued distinctly downwards. "Big fan. So, like, is that from a space gym, or is it just like one of your superpowers? It looks like it could be a superpower."

"Eyes up here, Darcy," Carol said.

"Right!" Darcy said. Her gaze went up. A little. "Wait, are those a superpower too? Totally cool."

"Darcy!" Carol said, cheeks flaming. "On a scale of zero to six, you're running at a six. I need to to take it down a notch."

Darcy offered a thumbs up. She still wasn't looking up.

Despairing, Carol looked away. Hill wasn't the only person on staff - most of the team monitoring the helicarrier's altitude and the party situation below were at their stations. Most also had their backs to their stations to look at the newest arrival. Carol coughed. Only a handful looked away. Carol started glowing; significantly more looked away.

"Coat," Carol said, eyes shining. "Now."

Maria sighed.

"Someone get the captain a jacket," Maria said.

It wasn't much. One of the scientists handed over a labcoat; Carol gratefully snatched it back, holding it closed over her chest with one hand. Still a little too much cleavage, and a lot of leg, but it was leagues better than nothing. Carefully, she brought the bottom as low as it would go, and still needed to hold a hand between her legs.

Just don't think of her butt. And don't think of Darcy - still wearing her coat, Carol noticed - standing right behind her.

"If I exert my full power, I blow a hole in this planet," Carol said. "Taking out kappa kappa frat freak won't be worth the price."

"Do it in a Dakota?" Darcy offered. "We have a spare."

"We have intel that suggests they're going to end the world anyway," Hill said. "It might be necessary."

"Well come up with a plan then," Carol said. "And a uniform. Then I'll help."

Hill grimaced, before looking away, talking to one of her aides. Maybe she'd be able to find a better site for the battle.

Then Carol would just need to get Thor there and blast him before she lost whatever replacement clothes she got. Better than nothing. And at some point she'd need to ask SHIELD's help in contacting a friend to get them to bring her a spacesuit that could actually handle her power again, otherwise she'd never get off this rock.

"So is that, like, space fashion?" Darcy said.

"What?" Carol said.

"The whole butt thing," Darcy said. "It suits you. Looks good. You could start a trend."

Carol flushed.

"My armor wasn't designed for combat with an Asgardian," Carol said. "It didn't last."

"Oh. Oh!" Darcy said. "I get it. SHIELD scooped me up while I was on my honeymoon, awkward moments aplenty."

"You're married?" Carol said, raising an eyebrow. Darcy still seemed rather interested in Carol's legs.

"As of yesterday!" Darcy said cheerfully. "Okay, with all your space knowledge, do you know how to get feathers out of-"

"Alright," Hill said, interrupting. "If you can get Thor somewhere isolated like Siberia, then you can blast him. Whatever you need to do."

"And the uniform?" Carol said, impatiently.

There was a chorus of disappointed sighs. Carol glowered, and adjusted the open coat again.

"I'll see what I can do," Hill said.

It had to go better this time, surely?