Disclaimer: I do not own the Avengers, only their kids :) This story is done in collaboration with Kelda1771. Enjoy!
Coulette Rogers:
"COULETTE!" My name is screamed through the house. Crap, mom's pissed.
"WHAT?" I yell back.
"COME DOWN STAIRS, NOW!" Sighing, I heave myself out of my chair and pad down the stairs. My mom is waiting at the bottom, tapping her foot impatiently, eyes narrowed.p
"What, mom?"
"I just got a call from your teacher, Mr. Odie. He says that you have been a disruption in class and when I looked at your grade, you have a B. A B, Coul! Why do you have a B?" She's exasperated, I can tell.
"Mom, relax. It's a B and its just the quarter grade. And if you had even bothered to look at the percent, which I'm sure you didn't, you would have seen that it is an 89.9 percent AND it's the beginning of the quarter. So, a B isn't that big of a deal. It will be an A for the semester." I roll my eyes, anger building. I do not have my father's infinite patience and but I do have his same need for the truth, and nothing but the truth, something my mother hates.
"Coulette Cassandra Rogers, you listen here." Her quiet tone is even more dangerous than her shouts. "You will not take that tone with me or so help me I will ground you for a month. And that means no CYNTHIA either." My eyes widen. CYNTHIA is my AI unit that Piper Stark, my best friend, built for me. Mom's not supposed to know about her either, unless Pepper, Piper's mom, told her. "And you're dodging my first question. You are a disruption in class?"
"Mom, that wasn't me! It was that stupid skank, Nari. She set off the sprinklers in class and blamed me!"
"Coul, watch your language!" Ugh, mom could be so old fashioned, just like dad.
"I'm hungry." I walked into the kitchen to eat and started making a bagel. I was just finishing when mom came back into the room, seeming to have cooled down some.
"Have you seen your dad today? At all?" Peggy looked worried.
"No, he dropped me off to school then went to work. Why?"
"Oh, he promised he would spend more time with you and he isn't." She sighed and walked out. Suddenly, my ear piece pinged. Reaching up to turn it on, CYNTHIA said in my ear "Call from Pipes." "Thanks CYNTHIA."
"Hey, Coul! I was going to get my hair highlighted, you want to come?" Piper's voice sounded through the bluetooth she had designed.
"Yeah, of course. Just let me get my stuff. Have you seen your dad lately?" The last question was risky, but I went with it anyway.
"Nah, he had a business trip this weekend, so it's just me and my mom. He said he would take me bowling when he got back though." Her voice was dejected, but rose with hope at the end. I could feel her. We both knew what it was like to have our parents away for long periods of time. Hers was worse though because her dad was billionaire, Tony Stark, and he was never home. I grab my purse and jacket and walk to my car. Its a Toyota Highlander, black, and I love it. It fits me well. Ten minutes later, I'm at Pipe's mansion and JARVIS lets me in.
"PIPES?" I yell.
"HANG ON!" She comes sprinting down the stairs, wavy brown hair flying. Dressed in skinny jeans and a blouse, she looks like she's on a date, but hey, that's Pipes for ya. Always dressed to impress, just like her dad. "Come on, lets go!" She's out of breath. We take my car because hers is too flashy, being a Ferrari and all. Arriving at Donna's Color Salon, we run inside to make the appointment time. Donna takes us to the back and starts on Piper. When she finishes cutting her hair, I see that the dye Piper is using for highlights is electric blue.
"Uh, Piper? Are you dying your hair blue?" I ask nervously. She laughs.
"Nah, too dramatic. Just getting it highlighted neon blue. Meadowview lets us do that, remember? You should do yours too. Maybe a pink or red?" She's right. Our school, Meadowview lets you dye your hair any color. And pink or red would look cute, plus it would be a great way to piss mom off. And I really wanted to do that, so why not? "I'm game. Red, I think. Not much of a girly-girl." She agrees. Once Donna is done with Pipes, she does my hair. And she's right, the red highlights look great. Piper slaps a hundred dollar bill on the counter and we leave. Driving back to Piper's house, we see a small shape flying overhead.
"Coul, look it's my dad! He's coming home early!" She's squealing with excitement. And I'm happy too because that means my dad will be back. We arrive back at the house just after Piper's dad and he greets us at the door.
"Hey girls! Come on in!" He seems to finally notice his daughter's hair. "Wow, Piper that looks cool. Trying to make an impression, are we? Better let me break it to your mom, she'll kill you." He's whispering, looking over his shoulder sneakily. Knuckling her head, he greets me, too. "How ya doin' kiddo? The red looks nice. BTW, your dad's back. Hey, JARVIS can you make these ladies some drinks?" I love Tony, he's so laid back. If only he didn't work all the time, that's part of the reason Piper does some of the crazy stuff she does.
"I can't stay, Tony. Sorry, I have to head home."
"No problem, next time maybe?" Just then, we hear Pepper's shriek.
"Piper, what have you done to your hair? Tony get in here now!" He grins guiltily.
"Busted."
I laugh and leave, shooting my best friend a sympathetic glance before preparing to face my mom and her fury.
Piper Stark:
I lazily opened my eyes as I am woken up from my nap by JARVIS. "Your mother is requesting entry into your room, Piper." I sigh and tell JARVIS to let her in.
She stomps in and stares at me expectantly. "What?!" I finally ask her.
"What exactly do you think you're doing?! Are you planning to just sleep your whole life away?!" she practically screams at me. I roll my eyes and answer, "And exactly how many inventions have you made? Exactly how many experiments have you conducted?"
Her cheeks flush with anger and she takes a deep breath and tries to keep her temper down leaving me to smirk at my small victory. Once she manages to calm down she says, "Your father should be back soon and I expect you to be presentable and that means I want you to clean your room and get dressed into something nice."
Before I can retort she turns around and leaves, leaving me no say in the matter. I sigh loudly and plop back down onto my bed, annoyed at my mom and furious at my dad.
You'd think it would be everyone's dream to live in a big house, have a nice car, and all the clothes you can dream of, but honestly none of it really matters if your very own dad doesn't even have time for his only child.
I have tried over and over to get my dad to notice me, but all he does is work and work and work.
He even has time for my mom and takes her out on romantic dates, but he can't be bothered to even play a game of catch with me? Seriously, this whole thing is ridiculous!
If he's not away on a business trip, which is rare, then he's working in his dumb lab.
He won't even tell me what he does on his stupid business trips anyways. I know he has the iron man suit but honestly what can he really be doing with that.
I guess he has to make his fortune somehow, but honestly if you only have one child it seems like you'd at least try to be there for, i don't know, at least an hour a week.
As I lay on my bed an idea started to form in my mind. Smirking I called out, "JARVIS will you be a dear and call Coul for me?" In reply the the phone started to buzz on speaker phone as I waited for Coul to answer. She almost immediately answered. Still smirking I asked her if she wanted to get her hair dyed with me. I know my parents will hate it and there's no way my dad can miss the bright colored streaks I plan on getting, even if I did only see him for a few minutes a week.
Coul, my best friend, agreed without hesitation. Just talking to her made my day a little bit better... Until she asked if I had seen my dad lately.
Coul knows that my dad is never really around and knows how I feel about talking about the subject. Trying not to sound as disappointed as I was, I said, "Nah, he had a business trip this weekend, so it's just me and my mom. He said he would take me bowling when he got back though." I could hear the note of excitement and hope creep into my voice at the end.
My relationship with my dad is... complicated to say the least. I love him to death, but I hate that he practically abandons me. There was once a year that I only got to see him for an hour total! Getting my hair highlighted in a crazy color is perfect to try and get his attention.
I try not to get my hopes up, but there's a small part of me that can't help but think he can change.
I hear Coul call my name and JARVIS asks me if I would like to inform my mom that I'm leaving. Ya right! She'll KILL me when she finds out.
I run down the stairs and hug Coul. We take her car because mines, well, lets just say a little flashy...
When we get to Donna's Color Salon I find the perfect color. The electric blue practically assaults my eyes and I instantly fall in love with it. It will look good and still be crazy enough to drive my parents insane! Coul is a little less adventurous with her selection, but it looks super cute in her hair. Her dad will kill her though.
I don't think Coul realizes how lucky she is most of the time. Even though her dad has to leave a lot, he still makes time for her. It might seem like nothing to her, but at least he tries unlike some people (cough cough DAD! cough cough!)
After we finish our hair I fish a $100 bill out of my pocket and drop it on the table. As Coul starts driving me home I see a shiny dot of red flying and practically squeal with excitement and point him out to Coul. When we finally get to my house my dad opens the door and greets us.
Much to my dismay he actually compliments my hair and thinks it looks cool. What kind of a father does that! He should be freaking out right now! He should be angry and yelling at me and telling me I'm grounded!
Coul leaves soon after, but not before my mother comes out and sees my hair. Coul awkwardly leaves when my mom calls me and my dad into the house. She shoots me a look of sympathy before walking back to her car.
Yet still my dad doesn't freak out! He takes my side! Who does that?! Squeezing my eyes shut I slowly close the front door preparing to face my moms wrath.
Alexandra Barton:
I landed on the mat with a solid smack, leaving me dizzy and out of breath. Clearing my head of the starts, I flip to my feet just in time to avoid the foot from connecting with my head. I block the rest of the kick, and return with my own, but my attacker sees it coming a blocks it. We once again engage in the fist-fight that brought me to the mat before. Nate lands a blow to my already sore ribs before kicking me in my shins. I dance around him and manage to punch him in the nose hard enough to make it bleed. Breaking apart, we resume our dance looking for an opening. He finds one first. I am shifting my weight when he pounces forward, tackling me to the ground and pinning me there. His face looms over me, looking ominous, before breaking into a smile and helping me to my feet.
"Beat you again. Its getting too easy to beat you." He taunts. Nate has always been better at the martial arts and hand-to-hand combat between the two of us.
"I beat you every time we run and if you ever bothered to challenge me in marksmanship, I would beat you in that too." I reply. He is no match for my accuracy.
"Exactly my point. I am not going to be twice and I am not going to get my a- handed to me again. I'll watch you practice instead. Your shots are still a little off." He grins again, blue-green eyes dancing with laughter.
"Fine, but you need to be smoother. You're too sloppy and stiff. Too wild and predictable. Faster, smoother, and cleaner. You're moves need to flow. Be creative." I instruct. Normally people would be pissed the loser is instructing them in what they did wrong, but Nate doesn't mind. He takes it and learns and gets better. He is my twin after all, so we learn from each other. He gives me tips about marksmanship and I return the favor with combat. Such is the nature of our relationship. Nate helps me set up the target and I grab my bow and arrows.
Nate Barton:
Watching Alex shoot is a beautiful sight to behold. Her brown and red-streaked hair is flying as she dives, rolls, and shoots arrows off in rapid succession and incredible accuracy. Her grin is wide and her grey and gold-flecked eyes are shining with fierce joy. She looks flawless with her shooting, but my quick eye sees that she is still releasing too fast; it makes her less accurate. She still manages to get all tens, but they're not as centered as they could be. When she finishes, there's sweat upon her brow. I am about to call down to her when someone beats me to it.
"You're releasing too fast and your stance is too open. You aren't taking time to aim. Try rolling faster and when you come up make sure you're ready to spring at a moments notice. Also, don't forget to grip your bow tighter, you almost dropped it. Your talent alone won't win you the gold prize." This comes from a voice in the doorway. Whipping around Alex and I stare at the door. Suddenly a shadow moves and it becomes apparent.
"Dad!" Our voices are as one. I fling myself from our nest, while Alex springs toward him. We crash into him at the same moment and he staggers backward grunting. "You're home! Is mom back too?"
"Yes, we're both home. Kids, I can barely breathe. You're too old to throw yourselves at me." Its supposed to be stern but he's laughing too hard to do it right. "How have you two been?"
"Fan-"
"tastic. School is-"
"so much fun. Alex-"
"made the archery team and Nate-"
"made the basketball team."
"It's so good-"
"To see you again." We're so excited we finish each other's sentences and the confusion is clear in our dad's eyes.
"Well... that's great. Your mom just made eggs and I was told to come get you. You hungry?"
"Of course!" Alex and I race towards the stairs and he follows us, just like always. But I swear, he was limping.
Bryce Banner:
"Bryce, can you come down here please?" My father calls from downstairs in his lab. Yawning I slowly rub my eye, fix my glasses, and gently set down my half way finished book. I make my way down to his lab and find my dad working on a complicated looking mixture with one of his computers wildly beeping.
His eyes never leaving the mixture he calmly told me what he needed me to do. "Carefully take a dropper and fill it with that purple mixture. Once you do that come over here and when I say 'now' put three drops into here and get out of the way as fast as you can." he instructed.
Doing as he said I wait for his signal and when I put in the drops a cloud of toxic mist starts to come out of the vile and slowly creep across the table.
My dad calmly adds something that is roughly the size of a small pebble that causes the mist to stop, neutralizing the toxic gases and turning it a deep green color.
Sighing in relief my dad wipes the sweat off his face with a rag and turns to me and smiles saying, "So, what should we do with the rest of our day?"
Struck by the absurdity of the question given we could have both been dead if he had miscalculated, I couldn't help but laugh.
My dad is the best. He's so good-natured and calm. I don't think I've ever seen my dad get really mad, but I guess he has to be pretty good at controlling his temper considering his really bad high blood pressure.
Apparently if his blood pressure gets to a certain point he gets really sick and it's terrible. I've never actually seen this happen, but he said that when it first started it was really bad.
He's trying to invent a way to lower his blood pressure and fix his problem. I really try to help him, but he won't let me near his notebook with a list of what he's tried and what works. I know I can help him somehow, but he says it's personal and I won't really understand it until I'm much older, but really what's so "personal" about high blood pressure? It happens to a lot of people and is actually very common.
Even with his secrets my dad is still the best. He has to work a lot, but when he's not away on business trips he always takes breaks to talk with me.
"Bryce?" my dad says, trying to jolt me out of my stupor. "What? Hmm?" I reply losing my train of thought and snapping back to the present. "How about a movie?" he asks laughing lightly. "That sounds perfect Dad," I reply, a small smile playing across my lips, "Absolutely perfect."
Valkyrie Thorsdaughter:
"VALKYRIE!" The shout makes the whole house tremble. I wake up with a grunt and fall to the floor. There is a timid knock on the door. Wrenching myself to my feet, I yank the door open with an angry snarl on my face. But it's not the person who voiced the shout. Instead it is my servant, Frita. She steps back with a yelp, and I feel bad.
"I apologize, Frita. I am not angry with you. I had just fallen asleep and Father just woke me up." Frita nods silently.
"S'kay. I just came up here to tell you that he found the trinket you stole from that ancient temple in the wilderness."
"Oh dear. He has a right to be angry, I forgot to tell him about that. Will you help me hide the other artifacts? He will never let me go to Midgard if he finds those." I am begging Frita.
"Of course, me lady. I will hide them in the shower room. He would not dare go in there." I smile at my young servant and friend's loyalty. She is my only friend here and I love her for it.
"COMING FATHER!" I bound down the royal stairs, sliding to a halt in front of my enormous father and tiny mother. My parents are so queer. My father is 6'4" with long, flowing blonde hair and blue eyes. His features are chiseled and his muscles are bulging. My mother, on the other hand, is 5'3" with a slight structure and intelligent brown eyes. Her soft hair is mouse brown and she is quite beautiful. Mother's eyes are filled with laughter and she is having a hard time repressing her smile. Father's face, however, is tight with anger and his mouth is a hard line.
"Valkyrie, why in Odin's snowy beard, did you take this?" He thrusts forward a small necklace with a fake green gem. The necklace was cheap and would probably break if I tried to take it anywhere. I got it for 50 cents at Thrifty's Shop on my mother's home planet. He could crush it right now and I wouldn't care that much. I just thought it was pretty.
"Father, I did not take the necklace. I paid for it. But I understand that I should not have brought it here." When addressing father, I must always be respectful. However, the anger is quickly fading from his eyes and he sighs.
"Very well, do not do anything like this again. Do you understand?" I nod. "Go pack your bags, we are leaving in the morning." With another nod, I bound up the stairs. Glancing back for a brief moment, I nearly gag. My mother has embraced my father and they are MAKING OUT in the middle of the foyer. What is it those humans say? Get a room? He drags her off and out of my line of sight. I sigh and shake my head. Best not let such thoughts disturb me right now. I am going to Midgard tomorrow and I can finally see my old friends!