Sterling had been none the wiser to what had caused the city wide emotional void, the terrifying flattening of it's citizens into warzone shadows on the ground. He'd been curious, of course, but it wasn't exactly his department that was looking into it fully. That is, until he received his new assignment.
Hardly sounded like the name of one that would cause so much emotional turmoil to the population of New York, even in himself. The file on the man had been a mess. Just a rollercoaster of bad luck and abuse from most parties in his life. It was like someone had cranked Barton's file up to 11. To add superpowers on top of that.
What the fuck, Valentina?
Sterling often acted as SHIELD's liaison of sorts to other organizations and civilians alike. He was one of the more palatable agents despite his very formal nature. He still had a softness and empathy to him a lot of the other senior agents had had crushed by years on the job. He had Coulson to thank for that, he supposed. He'd always tried to follow the man's example. Kindness and diplomacy in the face of hostility was one of the most important lessons he carried with him in his career.
Still, when SHIELD had asked him to pretend to be Bob's friend, to get close to him so SHIELD could keep an eye on him, he had given them a questionable raised eyebrow.
"Why don't I just actually become his friend?"
Perhaps they were so used to tricking people the idea hadn't occurred to them.
He set up a meeting with him through Yelena. It seems it was a requirement to go through her in order to get to Bob. He loved that. It was nice seeing her make friends. In their worlds it was hard to do that these days. Sterling hadn't been in the New Avengers tower before. Even before Valentina had acquired it he'd only seen the inside a handful of times to deliver paperwork and, on one occasion, a Stark halloween party. It looked mostly the same, but the vibe, the vibe had shifted some.
"Mr. Reynolds?" Sterling stood as the man arrived, extending a hand to shake. The contrast between them was stark to say the least, even if Sterling had chosen a more 'casual' outfit. Sterling's appearance was pristine, every hair perfectly slicked back and in place, his button up shirt was wrinkle free, his tie was tucked neatly within his sweater, his dress shoes as new and shiny as he could get them, and his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows with such precision he looked like a display mannequin in a department store. "I'm Agent Erikson Sterling of SHIELD. Are you familiar with that organization?"