Seated at the dinner table of their two-storey house, Hope Pym chewed on a hamburger. A treat for her exceptional report card, cooked by her mother Janet Van Dyne. The tomatoes were sweet and the meat was warm and juicy. It filled her belly in no time. The only thing that could make the meal any better? If her father, Hank Pym were here to enjoy it with them. She knows he can have a late schedule sometimes because of work. She only wished he could make it to dinner once in a while.

"Mom, when's dad coming back? He's going to miss dinner." Hope asked her mother. Her voice conveying her disappointment for his absence and her concern for his hunger at the same time.

"He said he'd try to make it, Jellybean." Janet assured her, with faith for her husband. But the hands on the clock that read seven pm said otherwise.

One last bite into her burger, Hope heard the sound of jangling keys opening the front door. Her father was finally home and he had something with him.

"Sorry I'm late. I was getting something for my little girl." Hank apologized and held out a figurine of a bay horse. Hope's eyes lit up at the sight of the present and she hugged and thanked her father. The tightness of her embrace, telling Hank that this was more than her way of thanking him for the toy.

Hope was simply thankful that her father was home.

Thinking ahead, Janet put a beef patty in the microwave, so her husband wouldn't come home to cold leftovers. Spatula still in her hand, Hank surprised Janet by pulling her in for a kiss. Their lips met, the microwaved beeped and young Hope Van Dyne made a face as her parents kissed.

—

After dinner, Hope caught a glimpse of an action movie meant for her parent's eyes only. With a thrill in her heart, Hope ran to her room and jumped up and down on her mattress, practicing punches and air kicks at imaginary opponents. Hank got a glass of water from the kitchen during the commercials, when he heard the voice of his daughter play fighting and knew what was up. Improvising, Hank brought a pillow from the sofa for a shield and a wooden spoon from the kitchen for a sword and burst into the room.

"Your hero days have come to an end!" Hank warned with a mad look in his eyes and an evil grin, playing the role of the villain.

Delighted that her father had joined in, Hope smirked and grabbed a push toy from her bed. She threw it at the 'villain' and yelled. "Take that!"

"Ah! You got me!" Hank clutched at his chest where the toy had landed and took a calculated fall that would look convincing, without hurting himself.

Laying on the ground, Hank closed his eyes. Selling the part of the defeated villain. But in the short time his eyes remained shut, Hope was uncertain what was make believe anymore and rushed over to her father.

"Dad, are you okay?" She asked, shaking his shoulder to rouse him. Thankfully, he was only pretending. He could be so silly sometimes.

"I'm fine sweetheart. I was just playing." Hank reassured Hope and invited her for a hug with open arms. A gesture which did little to erase the distrustful look on her face. But after a moment of consideration, Hope forgave her father.

"Don't do that again. You scared me." Hope scolded her father, before accepting his apology hug.

—

"The next day was Sunday again. The caterpillar ate through one nice green leaf, and after that he felt much better." Janet read from 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar' to Hope, while the two were lying on her bed.

"Just like daddy!" Hope exclaimed. Recalling how much her hungry father had enjoyed eating a hamburger after a long day at work.

"Now he wasn't hungry anymore, and he wasn't a little caterpillar anymore. He was a big, fat caterpillar. He built a small house around himself, called a cocoon. And he stayed inside for more than two weeks. Then he nibbled a hole in the cocoon, pushed his way out, and... he was a beautiful butterfly."

"Doesn't he miss being a caterpillar?" Hope asked, feeling sympathy for the hungry caterpillar who had grown fat and turned into a different being as a result.

Proud of her little jellybean for her empathy towards others, Janet thought about what she said. Though the caterpillar might miss eating tasty treats, he would be less hungry as a butterfly and had been granted with the gift of flight.

"He might remember all the delicious food he used to eat, but the caterpillar would be happy that he could fly." Janet explained with a smile, and watched Hope consider what she had said.

"I wish I could fly." Hope said. A sentiment that Janet was familiar with, but one that she hoped her daughter would never experience. Two members of the Pym family risking their lives was enough.

"Maybe in your dreams, Jellybean." Janet told her daughter and gave her a goodnight kiss on the head.

—

"Your principal called me on the phone today. He said you kicked a boy in the shins."

"He pulled my hair! And dad said I should always finish a fight, even if I didn't start it." Hope defended herself. She was only following what her father had taught her. It wasn't her fault that Sammy was such a hair-pulling brat.

"Is that what he said? He should have said that sometimes it's better to walk away." Janet asked, sounding astonished and a little condescending. She knew that her husband acted tough and only wanted to impart her daughter with the strength to stand up for herself, but sometimes a little common sense could go a long way in preventing conflict and receiving phone calls from the principal.

"Put me in handcuffs, officer. I'm guilty as charged." Hank teased and held out his wrists close together for Janet to arrest him.

"That won't be necessary." Janet gave Hank a wry smile, and dismissed his surrender with a playful slap on the wrist.

Ant-Man and the Wasp doesn't really leave room for post-movie one-shots. So, I wrote fluffy ant sized drabbles about Hope's past with her parents instead. Enjoy! And please let me know what you think.