The night was pitch black, the stars covered by smog from the mass amount of cars in New York City. The tall blonde man shuffled down the street, his hands in his pockets. Small clouds formed at his lips, the frigid February air turning his tanned cheeks a soft pink. His hair that poked out from under his hat ruffled a bit in the wind, and he shivered.
He was alone, on the street, a first for the crowded city. Only the crunch of ice on his boots accompanied him on his walk down the street, silence otherwise. He kept his head down and collar up, curling into himself. For such a big man, he looked so very small on that lonely, cold street.
"Help, help!" He looked up, searching for the call. It sounded like a young woman, a teenager, even. The good samaritan in him urged him to find the source of the call. He looked this way and that, searching for whoever could have possible made the sound.
He soon noticed that it was coming from an alleyway across the street, dark and isolated. He walked into it, calling back. "Are you alright? Show yourself." As he walked further into the alley, he noticed the beer bottles and glass shards everywhere, evidence of someone trying to drown out their pain. He shook his head lightly and kept walking.
He finally got to the back of the alley, with nothing to show for it. He looked up in confusion, but soon noticed a slight purple glow surrounding the entire alley. "What the hell?" He ran to the end of the alley, only to be blocked by that same purple glow. "What the hell is this purple stuff?"
He heard a soft, like someone landing, and whirled around. "It's not purple, it's lavender."
In front of him was some he thought he'd never see again, and his eyes widened. Luckily his hat hid his eyes, and he tried to obscure his face as much as possible and play along.
"Who are you?" She smirked, and shoved her hands in her pockets, looking relaxed.
"Lady Lavender, they call me. It fits, I think. At least they got the color right this time." She had aged, seeing as five years had been a long time. Her hair was longer, the afro'd puff larger than life now. She had grown about half a foot, and her face was more mature, like a woman now.
Well, he thought, I suppose she is a woman now. She's at least 19.
"Lady Lavender, huh? What are you, a new superhero?" He pressed the distress signal on his phone that Tony had installed, silently calling for the rest of the Avengers and SHIELD.
"I wouldn't consider myself a villain. I'm more in the moral middle ground. Neutral, you know? Apparently I fall under the term 'chaotic good'." He bit his lip nervously, but pressed on, trying to stall.
"So uh, what does that mean? Do you hurt anyone?" She shrugged and her smirk grew bigger.
"Sometimes." His eyes grew big again, and he shuffled his hands in his pockets, pressing the button again.
She wouldn't hurt me, right?
"Are you- are you going to hurt me?" She shrugged again, and his heart rate was starting to pick up.
"Well, there were nine other before you-"
"Lady Lavender, drop to your knees and put your hands behind your head. We have the block surrounded from a mile away. If you do not comply, we will use deadly force." She tsked and looked over to the man.
"Called SHIELD, huh Captain?" He opened his mouth but she cut him off and started to walk forward.
"That's right, I knew who you were the entire time. All I wanted to do was talk. Why are you so afraid of me? I missed you so much." Her entire demeanor changed, her facade of bravado dissipating. Her shoulders drooped and her face fell. Tears started to build up in her eyes, a light purple sparkly essence.
"I'm not afraid I'm-"
"Why am I such a-" She cut herself off, staring at something behind her. The fat tears rolled down her face silently, but it was loud for Steve's eyes. He looked over his shoulder, and saw the familiar flash of red and gold.
"Go. He misses you so much. He's sorry, you know." She looked back up at him, disbelieving.
"Won't he hate-"
"No, he won't. He loves you so much, I swear. He wears the headbands that you left behind, you know that? It looks ridiculous, but its the only thing he had left of you." She laughed, a short bark, sour and sarcastic. She covered her mouth with her hand as the laugh dissolved into a sob, her shoulders shaking.
"I missed you guys too, so much oh my god." He held her as she cried until she calmed down a bit, and then pulled back and stared her in the eye.
"No matter what your reasons for leaving were, I'm glad you're back. And I bet he is too. So go." She smiled at him and gratitude and started towards her father.
"Dad!" The suit of armor turned around, and started to fly towards her as well.
"Candi!" His faceplate retracted itself, and revealed the biggest smile Tony had ever given in 5 years.
She ran towards him, and he outstretched his arms, knowing what she was about to do. But just as he was about to catch her, they shot her, once in the spine and once on the right side of her chest. She fell into his arms, and started to bleed out.
"Baby, just stay awake for-"
"Dad i-its fine. My-my body-" she cut herself off by coughing up a blood, spraying on the pavement like a shower of red. "-heals itself. Bu-but I need to sl-sleep, I-I need to-" she cried out in pain, and he shushed her.
"Its alright, baby. Just do whatever you have to heal yourself." She gripped at his metal arm, eyes shining with tears.
"I don't- don't l-leave, pl-please. Mi-missed you. I'm so-so-" She couldn't get the word out, and she started to cry in pain.
"I'll be right here, alright? I won't leave. I promise."
"C-call Annie. T-tell her-" those were her last words before her eyes slipped close, and her brown skin faded away to reveal her true purple skin. The markings on her skin started to glow, and her body relaxed.
He looked up, and they still had their guns pointed at him. "She's passed out now. Stand down." They didn't move, and he looked around questioningly. What the hell was going on?
"Iron Man. We are under direct orders from Director Fury to bring Lady Lavender back to base for questioning. She is the primary suspect in a serial assault case. As of right now, you appear to be an accomplice, and we will not hesitate to bring you down as well, if you refuse to comply." He looked at the small girl in his arms, astounded. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and looked over to see Steve.
"Tony, you didn't hear what she said in that alley back there. She's- there's something bigger than us going on here. Something important." Tony looked down, and squeezed his eyes shut and gave up.
"Fine."
12 hours later, the girl sat shackled to a table in the SHIELD containment facility, looking as healthy as possible. She was bored, seeing as she was alone, and started to play with magic in the air. Just past the wall, though, sat the Avengers and Fury in a conference room.
"Now please, someone tell me why the fuck that little girl is assaulting people."
A/N: Dun dun duuuun! The plot thickens! This is the sequel to Mystical, something I am extremely excited about. I'm not doing anything as of right now, so I should be updating fairly regularly. Look out for chapter one! It might even show up today. You never know ;)
-ABBM