Disclaimer: Not my property. Just borrowing them, and I'll return them like I found them... well, maybe.

Title: No Cream, No Sugar
Characters: Agent Maria Hill, Steve Rogers/Captain America
Genre: General
Summary: Maria Hill needs to blow off a little steam. Set during Avengers (2012).

Maria Hill is done.

Dealing with "billionaire playboy philanthropists" is not what she signed up for when Fury recruited her. She does it for freedom. For liberty. For her own personal worth. Not for babysitting a guy with a terrible proportion of intelligence, money and ego.

She brushes a strand of dark hair from her eyes as she sheds her SHIELD uniform and dons a pair of work-out tights, leaving on the dark tank top underneath her uniform top. Maybe some time on the mats will burn off a little steam. After all, Stark and Banner have disappeared into the lab Fury had built especially for them (probably better for Stark to be with the man suffering from perpetual anger management issues than in her line of sight); Romanov is somewhere, likely doing something Maria would rather not think about; and she had left the demi-god and Phil Coulson talking in low voices in the corner of the bridge.

Nobody's going to miss her for half an hour or so.

The full-size gym of the Helicarrier is vacant when she exits the locker room. Three punching bags hang in the dimly lit far corner, behind the sparring ring and free weights. Slowly and methodically, Maria wraps tape around her hands and takes her stance. Picturing Stark's arrogant expression, she smiles slightly and curls her hands into fists.

Jab. Jab. Jab, kick. Kick, cross, upper-cut. Jab, jab, upper-cut, kick.

She continues the pattern, focusing on the feel of the bag against her hands and feet, the satisfying sound as she throws her body into her moves, the slight twinge in her knuckles.

"You've got good form."

The deep, masculine voice startles her, and she whirls around, fists up in a ready stance. Captain America raises his hands, a sheepish smile on his handsome face. "Sorry, ma'am. Didn't mean to frighten you."

Maria lets out a breath and relaxes, trying not to roll her eyes at the "ma'am." "It's okay."

He sticks out a hand covered in his brown gauntlet. "I don't think we've officially met. Steve Rogers."

She'd sized him up when he'd first arrived on the Helicarrier. She'd thought him handsome then (hey, she may be a kick-ass super agent, but she's still a woman), but he's still dressed in his spangled uniform that shows off just how effective the Super-Soldier serum had been.

She's always had a weakness for arms.

And the uniform brings out the blue in his eyes.

Focus, Hill, she admonishes herself. "Maria Hill," she replies, taking the proffered hand.

He smiles. "A pleasure, Agent Hill."

He's certainly the product of another time. She's aware that she's what most men would consider gorgeous, but his eyes stay on her face. Even though she's in a tank top and tights. Only the SHIELD agents keep their eyes on her face, mostly because they're well aware that if they drop below her neck, she'll drop them in a heartbeat. "Likewise, Captain."

"Where did you learn to fight like that?" he asks, gesturing to the bag.

"Standard training for all SHIELD agents." She starts to remove the tape, but it stubbornly refuses to come off.

Rogers shakes his head. "Women sure are different now."

She looks up at him, the corners of her mouth quirking slightly. "Oh, c'mon, Captain, I'm sure you knew some women who could have held their own."

A faraway look comes to his blue eyes, and his smile turns almost wistful. "One or two, maybe." He pauses for a second before looking at her again. "Not like you and Agent Romanov, though."

She allows a little half-smile for him as she continues to struggle with the obstinate tape. "We're just the logical outcome of what they started with the SSR. But I don't have to tell you all of that."

"Here," he says, throwing the gauntlets off his hands and reaching for hers, "let me." He takes her hands in his and begins to work at the strips around her wrists. "So you know about me, then."

It's a statement, not a question.

Maria nods. How could she not? He's a living legend. His work against HYDRA, his self-sacrifice, his time in the ice… She'd read the file, but she'd know about him even if she hadn't.

He manages to undo the strips on her left wrist, so he starts to work on her right. "Do you think this can work?"

"Well, it worked on the other one," she nods toward her left hand.

A slight smile appears on his face. "Not that. Us against Loki and his army. If it's as bad as Fury seems to think it is –" He might be better at reading people than he thinks he is, she thinks, "—then I have to wonder if a group like us, with different motives and interests, can really make a difference."

Uh oh. It's almost like he's voicing her own private concerns, ones that she hasn't even told Fury. She's seen videos of Banner's loss of control, of Stark's antics, of Captain Rogers' valiance in Europe, of Thor's impressive powers, of Romanov's special skill set. Since Fury told her of the Avengers Initiative, she's wondered many times if it will actually work when it comes down to it. She's come to the conclusion that it just has to work.

Maria chooses her words very carefully. "I think that people are capable of amazing, and sometimes terrifying, things when our backs are against the wall."

He manages to extract her right wrist from the tape and goes to work on her palms. She does her level best to ignore the roughness of his hands against the callouses on her own. "And you think our backs are against the wall?"

"I think there's more to him," she nods in the direction of Loki's cage, "than what meets the eye. But I also can't think of a better thing to fight for than the freedom and security of humanity."

A wide grin breaks across his face, and she can tell he agrees with her. They're cut from the same cloth, Hill and Rogers: soldiers with a dash of idealism, fiercely loyal. "Well put, Agent Hill."

"I watched some of the footage from your USO trips back in the day. Your speeches were... inspiring."

He groans lightheartedly as he finishes extracting her hands from the tape. "That's embarrassing."

She grins as she rubs the remainder of the tape residue from her wrists. "Very entertaining, though."

Rogers grins as well. "Glad I could be of service, ma'am."

"You were. And are." She holds up her hands. "Thanks for your help."

Rogers gestures to the mat. "You know, I'm always looking for a training partner. Maybe one day we could spar a bit?"

Maria's smile widens. "Are you sure I can handle it? You know, being a woman and all?"

"From the look you gave Stark back on the bridge, I'm not sure I'll be able to handle it." They share a laugh. He gestures toward the door. "Listen, Agent Hill, I was actually on my way to track down a good cup of coffee."

"You drink coffee?" she asks a little incredulously.

"Of course. It's a must-have for any soldier." She'd never thought of it quite like that, but she can't argue there. Though, she does wonder what a man with his energy levels would be like with caffeine. He continues, "Would you know where I can get a good cup?"

"Seattle," she immediately deadpans, rather enjoying the confused look that appears on his face. "Kidding. But you won't be able to find a good cup of coffee on this ship. Coffee, yes. Good, no."

Rogers nods, comprehending her joke now. "I'll settle, then. Care to join me?"

Maria opens her mouth to respond, but Fury's voice breaks over the comm she'd failed to remove when she first came into the gym. "Hill, I need you on the bridge, on the double."

She touches the button that opens the microphone. "Yes sir."

Giving Rogers an apologetic look, she gestures to her headset. "Gotta run. Rain check?"

He nods, and she knows he understands (another rare quality in most of the men she's known). "I'll hold you to it, Agent."

She believes him when he says that.

Again, a first for her when it comes to men.

Maria smiles at him, gathers the discarded tape, and turns toward the locker room.

"Oh, Agent Hill?" his voice stops her in her tracks, and she glances over her shoulder at him. "How do you take your coffee, just in case I'd… you know… maybe want to bring you a cup on the bridge? In case you can't break away… or something."

She fights the smile that's threatening at the corner of her mouth. He's rather cute when he's stammering. "Black," she replies. "I'm rather plain like that."

She turns on her heel and starts to walk away, but not before she hears him say so softly she's sure he doesn't intend for her to hear: "Nothing plain about you, Agent Hill."

And this time, she can't stop the smile.

Note: This is my first foray into this fanverse, but I had this absolutely crazy idea after watching CA2. I absolutely love Rogers, and Hill is, well, just bad-ass in that movie and in Avengers, and I sort of have a weakness for wanting to write bad-ass female characters who have just a hint of mystery. And, since writing a multi-chapter fic is hard for this time of my life, my thought (tell me what you think of this) is to write a collection of one-shots based around coffee in some way or another. Some will be Avengers-related, others will be based in the middle of CA2, others will be from AOS, and others will be just random ideas that pop into my head featuring Hill and Rogers. Some will be full-team, others will be just these two, some might be just one of them. All will be friendship/burgeoning relationship. So please, let me know what you think. I have several ideas.

And if you have ideas, I could potentially be inspired to include them. Please leave them in a review, or PM me!

If you like this idea, I'll change the title to "Java Joys." If not, this will just be a one-shot. Let me know your thoughts, please!