Disclaimer: All rights and characters, except OC's, belong to Marvel/Disney.
Beginnings
"So, you've taken the young witch under your wing?" Hill didn't sound surprised; she'd probably suspected it ever since the Captain and the redhead had returned.
"I did. She needs a safe place to grow up and now that Tony is mentoring Peter, it seemed like an obvious choice," Steve replied.
They were in the first complete meeting of all Avengers and important members of the new Shield under whose supervision the Avengers would operate again.
Tony, Natasha, Bruce, Steve, Clint, Rhodey and Sam, as well as Hill, Coulson and even Fury were sitting around the conference table at the Avengers base in upstate New York. The introductions had just finished and everyone seemed excited and happy to be back among their colleagues. Fury had drawn up a sketch of the new organisational structure of Shield, Coulson laid out the current and predicted future threats and Hill moved the topic onto personnel now.
"And those two possibly won't stay on their own," she said ominously. Seven pairs of eyes turned to her in surprise while Coulson and Fury just smiled knowingly.
Hill continued. "Some of you know her – Lucy Rutherford."
Recognition suddenly dawned on Steve and with a look to the others he saw the same in Tony, Natasha and Clint's eyes.
"Lucy should become a part of the Avengers?" Tony asked incredulously.
"Well," Coulson still had the knowing smile on his face. "She is working on a suit in the basement of Columbia Prep."
"How –" Steve trailed off. This was Shield, of course they'd keep tabs on her.
"Wait, wait, wait," Bruce's soft voice was suddenly heard. "Backtrack here for a second. Who is Lucy Rutherford? The name sounds familiar."
"She's a little genius, the daughter of Asher Rutherford, from Rutherford Industries," Tony answered his science partner. "I didn't know she was building a suit… that's impressive –" he stopped after locking eyes with Hill.
"So she's a mini-you?" Rhodey asked but the amusement in his voice couldn't be hidden.
"Not quite," Coulson intervened. "Stark is right, but that's not all she is. She's also the granddaughter of Peggy Carter."
Silence fell upon the table and Nat was the only one who kept her gaze locked on Steve.
Sam was the first one to speak up after a good minute of quietness. "That lineage sounds like quite an explosive mixture."
Fury nodded. "Exactly. And she definitely has aspirations in terms of Shield, although she hasn't been in contact with us for some time. But that suit looks functional and if we want to prevent a small catastrophe caused by a young megalomaniac genius, we should probably intervene now."
"Not that I know anything about that, but –" Tony started but Natasha stopped him with a short but pointed "No".
"She doesn't have a good relationship with her parents, never had actually," Coulson explained. "Her mother had a falling out with Peggy but at least left Lucy mostly in her care. She was sent to boarding school at eleven, to Columbia Prep, so she was still allowed to stay in the city." Coulson took a deep breath before continuing which cautioned everyone not in the know yet; something that managed to upset Coulson's countenance must be bad. "Lucy's parents barely talk to her and ever since Peggy died, she hasn't been out of school at all. It's not just about making sure she doesn't overestimate her abilities with that suit. It's about giving her a safe space and comfort."
"So what's the plan?" Steve asked.
"We send someone to her school and meet with her formally, then ask about the suit and offer her to come by the tower to be introduced to all of you," Hill spoke plainly in the curt and to-the-point way that was so distinctive to Shield agents.
"We go from there. If she rejects the offer, hates the idea of training and working with you, then we'll have to subtly explain to her that she can't continue on the suit and has to give it up." Hill smiled. "Knowing her, that won't happen though. She'll be absolutely overjoyed to see you again and get to know the others."
"Wait a minute!" Tony interrupted. "Are we even being asked if we want to train her? Work with her? What if we don't have the time or – Ouch!" he exclaimed as he was being punched left and right, Nat and Rhodey respectively.
"Tony!" Sam and Clint shouted simultaneously.
"It was just a joke, guys!" Tony ruefully massaged his arms. "She was an incredibly smart girl the last time I met her and that was four years ago. I can't wait to see how brilliant she is now."
Steve had stayed quiet during the outrage. "Who will go meet her?"
"Ah, that's the tricky question." Fury's eye twinkled.
"We need to think strategically. She's highly intelligent and wary, so if it's the wrong person we lost our chance."
"Coulson would be the obvious choice, I assume?" Clint intervened for the first time. "Considering she spent loads of time with him around the offices when she was young."
"We thought that too –" Hill began.
"But I need to get back to the team and on the bus again," Coulson continued. "I would've loved to go but there's an 0-8-4 we have to investigate, and I still need to keep a low profile."
"The next obvious choice is you, Captain." Fury cocked his head and narrowed his eye at Steve.
"She's not gonna wanna admit to the suit or give it up and you're probably the only one she's not able to turn down. The impact due to her grandmother is too big."
Steve couldn't argue with that and simply nodded. "Of course, I'll do it." A little smile formed on his lips. "I can't wait to see her again."
###
Lucy's day had been suboptimal when she was called into the Reception office with the notice that a visitor was waiting for her. Her lab results didn't add up, she hadn't started on the reading list for neither her English nor her French class yet and school began in a few weeks. She didn't know who could possibly want to see her, since she was pretty sure it wasn't her parents. Even during vacation, the only communication from them was the odd text message but usually just something relayed through Matthew, RI's manager. She couldn't think of anyone else who would need something positive from her, so she was completely prepared for a worsening of her day when, upon her entrance into the office, Steve Rodgers suddenly stood up. Lucy stopped dead in her tracks and had a hard time keeping her mouth closed. Truly, she hadn't expected that. Cap had been exonerated for less than forty-eight hours, but he already came to see her. Something didn't add up. She decided on the confrontational method.
"Shouldn't you be visiting Sharon, first thing out of fugitive life?" Lucy couldn't help a slight snarky tone but the happiness in her voice to see Steve was still easy to grasp.
Steve sighed and grinned before gathering Lucy in his arms and kissing her forehead.
"I'm so glad to see you again." He considered her carefully. "You've grown so much!"
Lucy rolled her eyes. "Now you really sound like an old man."
The soldier laughed and asked her if she was up for taking a walk. Lucy agreed with the firm resolution to find out why exactly he was here. Steve thanked the reception staff for welcoming him before the two walked out on the bustling street towards Central Park.
"I guess it's futile to ask how you've been doing?" Lucy grinned. "You don't look too bad considering the constant alien invasions and fugitive life."
Steve gave her a bemused look. "Enough of the cheek, you're almost as bad as Tony."
They spent some time simply walking through Central Park, bringing each other up to date on happenings during the past two to three years. Steve told Lucy about Wanda and the young genius was excited to meet the witch – whether out of friendship or scientific interest, Steve couldn't tell. As they stopped for iced coffee and sat down on a bench, stretching their legs in the sweltering high summer sun, Steve turned to the issue he was actually visiting her for.
Lucy could feel a change in Steve's demeanor as they sat down, so the question didn't come completely out of the blue, although she hadn't expected this specific topic.
"What is going on with that suit in your school's basement? You know – the one you keep stealing supplies for?"
Lucy's eyes widened and she sunk her head as she was caught and only narrowly stopped herself from glancing at Steve. She opened her mouth and almost denied the ridiculous claim but then thought on it again. This was Captain America, the role model her grandma had always held as the greatest hero of all – most importantly, this was Steve. She couldn't lie to him, so she just met his firm gaze with curious eyes.
"How –," she started before stopping herself. "Shield, of course. They're keeping tabs on me?"
Steve nodded. "Obviously. Probably a part of your grandma's testament."
Lucy gave a crooked smile in reply.
"Would you mind showing me that suit? I'd be very interested in seeing it."
Again, this was the Captain. Lucy couldn't hide this from him and she knew her grandma would be disappointed if she wasn't cooperating with him. Also, she did want to show him. She didn't like to admit it, but part of being a somewhat arrogant genius was a need to show off her inventions. Lucy sighed. With every passing day she could understand Howard better.
"Sure," she relented with a confident smile towards Cap. "Let me show you there."
###
"That's very impressive," Steve couldn't contain his amazement, although the last thing he wanted was to stroke Lucy's ego. That didn't work. The kid genius had a satisfied smile on her face and she turned the suit back off and shoved it in the closet again before locking it. Steve turned to her and readied himself for the next part of his mission, the most important one.
"We were wondering if you'd like to work on the suit properly – in a real lab, not a basement."
Lucy cocked her head questioningly at Steve.
"How would you like to come visit the tower? We'd love to help you with the suit, train you, along with Wanda and Spiderman."
Lucy's eyes grew. "Become part of the Avengers?"
"Of sorts, yes."
She smiled knowingly. "I would've said yes anyway but the fact that Shield would take away my suit if I didn't, only strengthens my decision."
The brilliance and sharp mind of the young woman baffled Steve once again, as much as the great resemblance she bore to her grandmother.
"Then I'll see you tomorrow? We'll pick you up at 3."
###
The grey Audi stopped outside her boarding house only a few minutes after Lucy had stepped out the door. Steve got out the backdoor and after hugging her, gave way to the girl to slide in the car. The driver looked back curiously and Steve smiled as he introduced them.
"Lucy, this is Happy. He used to be Tony's security and now – well, he's doing basically everything, driving being a big part of his job."
Lucy grinned. "Yeah, I think I remember faintly."
"You must've been nine at most," Happy said amusedly. "You've grown quite a bit since then."
"Why is this the first response I get from everyone?" Lucy couldn't help rolling her eyes. "Please don't let it continue this way when we get to the tower. This is worse than a family reunion."
The two men chuckled as the car slowly made its way through the thick afternoon traffic around Central Park.
Lucy wasn't specifically nervous about meeting everyone – she knew most of them since she could walk and if this didn't work out, she would just go back to the life she knew so far - school, her own research and RI - but she couldn't pretend that she didn't want it.
The conversation with Steve and Happy continued pleasantly until Happy stopped the car in front of the famed Avengers tower which was surprisingly quiet since it was a Saturday and none of the employees were in, solely a few tourists had found their way there.
Happy let Steve and Lucy out before promising he'd catch up with them upstairs after bringing the car into the garage.
Steve navigated Lucy to the doors and straight to the elevators where he pressed the button to the 81st floor.
"Don't be nervous," Steve felt important to add as they were waiting for the elevator to climb the floors. "Everyone is really excited to see you."
"I'm not nervous," Lucy shot back. It was partly true at this point. She was used to pomp and media circus but not even she had been at the Avengers tower before.
The elevator plinked and the doors opened and before she knew it, Lucy had stepped into the common room floor following Steve. She didn't have much time to look at all the different faces awaiting her because she spotted two important ones straight away.
"Natasha! Clint!"
Within two seconds Lucy had passed the distance and found herself engulfed in the arms of the two Shield members.
Natasha's smile was much wider than usual as they pulled away from the hug. "I'm so glad to see you again."
"You've grown!" Clint observed.
Lucy's growl was deep and Steve had to laugh.
"Apparently she's heard that a few times and would prefer not to talk about her height anymore."
"Well, obviously she's heard it from all the old people around here, so she won't hear it from me," Tony commented with a chuckle before examining Lucy with critical eyes.
"So, I hear you're building a suit? Copycat much?"
Lucy grinned cockily. "I'm not copying anything – mine's much better."
The entire floor fell silent; those knowing Lucy were amused, the others expected Tony's reaction.
The older genius kept serious for another few seconds before laughing and hugging his younger counterpart.
"Now that's the Lucy I know. Good to see that boarding hasn't turned you into a part of the machine yet."
"Well, it hasn't turned you either. We're the rebels, remember?"
Lucy was quickly introduced to the other members she hadn't known already and didn't fail to impress both Sam and Rhodey as well as Bruce. Last were Peter and Wanda who instantly took a liking to Lucy, similarly to how they'd taken to each other.
"So you can do neural electric interfacing and mental manipulation?" Lucy sounded suitably impressed and Wanda seemed satisfied.
"Yeah, and telekinesis too," the young witch added.
"That is fascinating," Lucy examined her more closely. "Do you know how? Is it genetic or studied? Did you ever face radioactivity or –"
She was interrupted by a hand clasping her arm and pulling her away slightly.
"I think that's enough for now, Wanda isn't the object of scientific study," Natasha said, and Lucy complied.
"Sorry, it's a habit… and highly interesting," Lucy conceded sheepishly.
Steve intervened before she let her spirit of curiosity take over again.
"Why don't we show you the rest of the tower? We have the common room floor here, then there's the labs, the training room…?"
Lucy's eyes lit up. "Oh yes, please!"
Natasha smiled. "I'll take her."
"I'll join you," Clint immediately got up and put an arm around Lucy's shoulder.
The three started their tour of the tower, with Peter and Wanda also following them. Lucy was impressed with the space. Not because of the luxury or technology – she was used to that – but because of the homeliness. Not since she's visited her grandma regularly had she seen this much of a family home. The common room was cozy, the kitchen big and light and Lucy especially loved the training room and the gym and the idea of training there with the rest of the Avengers left a giddy feeling in her stomach. The labs were especially impressive and the sheer thought of having access to this level of materials and research almost had Lucy faint. There were few things in life she couldn't get but the Avengers facilities were definitely on that list.
When they got back from the tour and returned to the living room, Natasha explained the rest of the day.
"Why don't the three of you go upstairs to your rooms, either Wanda or Peter's? We'll call you for dinner and after that we'll talk about everything else you should know."
Lucy nodded enthusiastically and joined Peter and Wanda as they led her out of the common floor towards the elevator where they went up two more floors.
"Peter has his room on Tony's floor and I got mine on Steve's," Wanda explained.
"But I don't live here permanently," Peter added. "I live with my aunt but I spend quite some time here or upstate."
"Upstate?" Lucy asked as they stepped out of the elevator and walked towards Wanda's room.
"The new Avengers base upstate. We don't live there but it's where most administrative Avengers business is happening. Being at the tower at least during the week makes this a lot less stressful for everyone, especially 'cause I need to start school soon." The obvious sigh in Wanda's voice wasn't hard to make out.
"Oh, check your privilege," Peter groaned. "You got special powers and didn't have to attend school until you were sixteen. That's pretty good, come on!"
Lucy couldn't help but giggle as they entered Wanda's room. It was a spacious area, definitely decorated to Wanda's taste and Lucy felt at home straight away.
"Your room's awesome," Lucy said and didn't hide the impression in her voice. "You got good taste."
"Thanks!" Wanda plopped down on the bed and Lucy joined her.
"Me going to school is probably another thing they wanna talk about tonight."
Lucy gave her a questioning glance and Wanda explained.
"As Peter so eloquently explained, I haven't been to school in years, so they're looking for one that's gonna accommodate me and bring me up to speed to join regular classes."
Lucy had a faint idea where this was going.
"So, Columbia Prep seemed like an obvious choice and I think they're gonna go with it if you join us. It's a really good school and they're already doing the special thing with you," Wanda finished.
Lucy couldn't help but feel taken aback. "How do you know about my teaching arrangements?"
Wanda and Peter both gave her a dashing smile.
"Selective listening with good ears, mostly," Wanda explained.
"Also, the luck of having adults discuss these things in strategically convenient places," Peter added.
Lucy grinned. "So – eavesdropping."
Wanda nodded. "Yeah, basically."
The trio started laughing and Lucy started to think she could feel very much at home with these friends.
"What else do they wanna talk about tonight then? Since you apparently have an overview of the entire agenda," Lucy wanted to know after their laughing had subsided.
Peter gave her a slight smile. "Probably just training arrangements, lab work, all that jazz. We're not gonna take anything away, you'll just have to wait."
Lucy raised her eyebrows. "Mean but I have patience – a little at least."
"So how do you guys like coming here, living here – you know, your perspective. I gotta know what I'm getting myself into at least."
Wanda grinned and looked at Peter.
"You're getting into a lot I'd say, but it's also awesome. I've never had anyone care about me and but here I have Steve and everyone else as well." Wanda smiled at Lucy.
Peter chimed in. "Yeah, it's definitely nice. I mean I got May at home but with Tony it's different and training and living with the Avengers is great."
Lucy had to admit that it indeed sounded pretty amazing. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so safe and that was definitely also due to meeting people again she'd known years ago.
A knock on the door interrupted their talk and as it opened, Natasha's face appeared in the frame, smiling.
"Dinner's ready."
The kids scrambled up and followed the spy towards the elevator. Lucy smiled at Nat who put an arm around her shoulders.
"How are you liking the others?"
"They're awesome," Lucy sounded ecstatic.
Natasha rubbed her shoulder. "I'm glad, you'll hopefully be training with them regularly."
Everyone was present for dinner and it was a great homecooked meal that Lucy devoured after the school food she was used to normally. Dinner finished and some of the adults as well as Peter and Wanda left until only Steve, Nat, Tony and Clint were still sat at the table.
"How did you like today then?" Steve started.
"It was awesome!" Lucy's eyes lit up. "The training room, the workshops, the common room, it all looks amazing."
The adults chuckled and Tony continued.
"We're glad to hear that. So, you'll agree to training and working with us?"
Lucy gave him an incredulous look. "Of course I will! No question about it."
Steve cleared his throat and Lucy shot him a surprised look.
"There's one more thing we need to talk about."
From his tone of voice, Lucy could tell it was a serious topic, so she focused her attention on Cap.
"It's about discipline."
It wasn't nervousness that started to form within her stomach but something akin to it. She didn't want to admit it but she wasn't a stranger to trouble. Being highly intelligent, young and rich was an explosive mixture – she'd experienced it often enough.
Steve continued. "The three of you have extraordinary powers, whether biological or intellectual, and access to funds and materials that aren't normal for your age. The trouble that you could find yourself in is exponentially more dangerous than normal teenagers'."
Lucy wouldn't admit it out loud but she agreed with Cap, so she held his stern gaze and waited for what was coming.
"We have certain rules and boundaries in place and they are reasonable, especially for your situation. If they get broken, we have certain punishments in place too; grounding and the usual and for major incidents also spankings." Steve stopped to observe her reaction.
Now Lucy's stomach did turn slightly. It was nervousness – she hadn't really expected that but thinking about it made sense; Steve grew up in the 20s and from the few hours she'd spent with them, Lucy could tell Tony was very protective of Peter – and Peter was about as reckless as herself.
"You have to decide whether you want to accept these rules and consequences, because that's a part of training and working with us," Steve finished.
Lucy was silent for a moment. Expecting to follow rules wasn't an issue, those were everywhere and she didn't necessarily have a problem with that – it was simply normal. What set off her nervousness was having the consequences laid out so plainly, and her knowing herself, she was sure she would incur them at some point. Lucy began wondering why she'd felt nervous as soon as Steve had mentioned it. She could easily decline and be free of whatever expectations they held for her when suddenly the realization hit her. She'd already decided she was going to join, so she met the explanation of the rules with nervousness because she knew they'd apply to her. Lucy thought to her grandma; she wouldn't want her to throw away a place with the Avengers because she wasn't prepared to accept discipline. The only way to avoid it was to follow the rules which she was supposed to anyway – Lucy knew exactly it was wishful thinking, but she'd be optimistic, for her grandma's sake.
"Sounds fair," Lucy spoke up and met the adults' eyes one by one. They all were happy but there was something else in Natasha's as well, something akin to – pride?
Steve sighed in relief. "I'm glad you accept. We just need to decide on your primary mentor, the one who'll be responsible, carry out the discipline for you - basically your first point of contact." He paused. "Do you have any preference?"
Lucy looked up in surprise, not expecting to have a choice in the matter and her gaze immediately went to Natasha. She saw a glimmer in the older woman's eyes and a mutual understanding between them.
Smiling, Lucy turned back to Steve and answered. "Natasha?"
Clint groaned in playful exasperation. "Of course, you choose her. I'm always left out," he sulked.
"Nooo!" Lucy immediately jumped to consoled him. "You're number two, I promise!"
Clint grinned and Natasha stroked Lucy's back as Tony finished up.
"That's settled then and fits perfectly since Cap's got Wanda and I got the spiderling."
The meeting seemed to have finished and it was getting quite late but Lucy couldn't help herself.
"When are we gonna start then?"
Everyone chuckled and Natasha responded with clear pride in her voice.
"That's the enthusiasm I want, but we can hardly start tonight."
At Lucy's disappointed look, she smiled.
"We'll have a look at your schedule and work out some regular training and lab times."
"And set some time aside to get that suit out your basement." Tony's eyes had a twinkle in them making Lucy chuckled.
"We'll see you tomorrow anyway," Clint commented nonchalantly and grinned as Lucy threw him a confused look. "It's Fourth of July and someone's birthday." He gave Cap an obvious side-eye which caused Steve to jump into action straightaway.
"You don't have to come," he assured her immediately. "It's not that important – after a hundred years you don't really care about that sort of thing anymore."
Lucy gave him an incredulous look. "Of course I want to come! I'd be spending the day in school anyway and I think I've missed enough birthdays already."
Steve smiled and Nat gave her shoulder another squeeze. "We'll pick you up at 4 tomorrow, have a barbecue and then watch the fireworks from the roof." She smiled. "It's gonna be nice."
###
"This is amazing," Steve's eyes grew large as he unwrapped the big gift basket and took out the variety of art supplies. He turned to Lucy, smiling and with a glint in his eyes.
"You really didn't have to do that."
Lucy spent the morning choosing a present for Steve – it wasn't easy finding a suitable gift for someone who'd missed the past seventy years. But she hadn't spent the first fifteen years of her life with her grandmother for nothing and she'd completely forgotten how much fun it was to shop for gifts. In the DaVinci Art Supply store Lucy picked up a variety of drawing and coloring pencils, brushes, paper, watercolor, acrylics and everything else she could find. She assumed that while on the run, Steve probably hadn't had much time to draw and paint, so she figured she'd give him the opportunity now.
"But I wanted to," Lucy responded confidently. "You need some relaxation time."
Steve hugged her tightly and kissed her forehand. "Thank you very much! I'll be sure to return the favor."
The barbecue on the open floor of the tower was the most fun Fourth of July Lucy had ever celebrated. The view over the city was beautiful and the atmosphere was relaxed, informal and easy-going. Lucy decided to make the rounds and first stopped to talk to Bruce and Tony about the intended lab work. The two scientists smiled at her as she was approaching and stopped their conversation.
"So, are you excited to start working in the workshop here?" Bruce asked her and elicited an enthusiastic response.
"Definitely," Lucy nodded. "We're getting the suit out tomorrow, right?"
Tony grinned. "Of course. I'm curious as to what you fabricated in that basement in school – obviously it's impressive how you got this all done without a real workshop," he quickly added at Lucy's frown which softened immediately.
She smiled sheepishly. "I didn't do it completely without a lab… I got some supplies from the lab in school."
Bruce's eyes grew large and Tony cocked an eyebrow which had Lucy quickly explain further. "I mean, we're paying so much money for that school, it's only right that they help me out."
"Obviously…," Tony just grinned while Bruce's expression didn't change.
Lucy decided changing the topic was the right move. "I'm trying to improve my blaster power but I can't seem to be able to miniaturize enough power, my arm piece always gets too heavy." She gave the science bros a dashing smile. "I think that's the first thing we gotta work on."
Bruce seemed to have snapped out of his jar and smiled at her. "We'll figure it out. It's what we do."
Tony patted her shoulder and Lucy was about to answer when an strong hand pulled her around. Peter was smiling excitedly at her.
"Lucy! I want you to meet my aunt, May! May, this is Lucy, she's Natasha's protégé now and she's built a whole suit herself! In a basement!"
Lucy raised her eyebrows at Peter's eager introduction but didn't blush – she had people praise her intelligence on levels far above this one for years. She eyed Peter's aunt discreetly. She was young, younger than she expected and very pretty. Lucy immediately noticed her eyes – they were warm and kind and she could see instantly why Peter was so attached to her, she must be a great mother figure… not that Lucy knew anything about that. She extended her hand but May just waved it away and engulfed her in a hug. Lucy was taken by surprise but quickly relaxed into the embrace – it was impossible not to. The woman was so lively and welcoming and all-round lovely, she almost forgot she was also a guest here.
"Peter's told me so much about you! You're going to Columbia Prep?" May asked and as Lucy nodded, she continued. "That's a really good school." She sent a thoughtful look to Peter who sighed heavily and looked helplessly at Lucy.
She grinned. "It's so nice to meet you, I've heard a lot about you as well."
May got the girl talking and before she knew it, Lucy was feeling completely comfortable with her. Natasha appeared from the open deck and came up to them, greeting May and putting a hand on Lucy's shoulder.
"Has May started mothering you as well?" Nat grinned at the other woman.
Lucy smiled as May answered. "There's no other way, is there? So many young kids around that need to be taken care of."
"We're not young!" Peter and Lucy burst out laughing as they answered in unison. The adults just grinned and kept the conversation going, with Tony and Pepper chiming in as well.
Lucy got out of the parent talk as Wanda pulled her and Peter politely away – Steve's influence was noticeable – but the three were caught by Rhodey, Sam and Clint, as the trio tried to sneak off to a quiet corner.
"Are you excited to start our training?" Sam asked Lucy but before the girl could answer Clint grinned.
"Oh, you should've seen her last night! She was almost dragging Nat into the training room that evening," he smiled at her and Lucy was sure there was the same pride in his eyes as in Natasha's.
Rhodey nodded firmly. "That's what we want. I think Tony wants to get the suit tomorrow? Then we can schedule a training session when you come in."
Lucy's eyes grew large. She hadn't expected to be starting this soon.
Clint noticed her surprise. "We need to see where you're at, fitness-wise etc. We're gonna start your training without the suit first, then have some sessions with it too."
"Why?" Lucy hadn't meant to sound as offended and whining as she did but she loved her suit. She'd worked on it for a long time and put lots of time and effort into it. Also, training without the suit was a lot harder and required much more physical activity – but that wasn't the problem, she told herself. No, it was about her liking the suit.
Her response didn't go unnoticed though. Sam eyed her with an intense, stern gaze and Lucy made a mental note to never cause trouble during training – especially when he was in charge.
"You said you want to be a Shield agent as well as an Avenger? A field agent? That requires discipline, lots of physical training and dedication and that's what we're here for."
Lucy swallowed nervously but held his gaze. She wanted them to see that she was serious, especially considering these were the people that would train her. She thought to her grandmother and how excited Peggy would be that she was fulfilling her dreams and legacy.
"I do and I'm ready to work for it. I'll do anything to make it happen," Lucy was firm in her response.
The three men smiled and Clint clasp her shoulder.
"Well done, you passed our motivation exam."
Everyone burst out laughing, even Peter and Wanda who had wisely kept quiet – they'd been training for a few weeks now and knew when to shut up.
"Have I ever told you the story about the tank at the general's palace?" Rhodey asked the kids and all three shook their heads so he began.
The stories the adults told about missions and quests were every bit as mesmerizing as the regular Shield mission Lucy spent her childhood hearing about and sparked her eagerness to start training even further.
As the sun was setting everyone made themselves comfortable on the open platform overlooking the city lights. Nat had appeared after Clint had just finished a story about a Ukrainian mob mistress and led the two of them towards the seats at the front, while Steve sat with Wanda and Peter went to where Tony, Pepper and May had sat themselves.
Lucy placed herself between Clint and Natasha and the older woman gave her a side hug, allowing her to lean her head against her shoulder.
"Did today give you the same impression as yesterday? Still excited about training and working and –" She couldn't finish because Lucy interrupted her enthusiastically.
"Yes! It gets better and better," she beamed. "Everyone is so welcoming and it's gonna be great."
"You bet," Clint agreed as he leaned back with a beer in his hand and placed the other arm around Lucy's shoulder. "You'll be the best Shield agent the entire organization has ever seen."
Lucy snorted. "That's impossible. Look at who I'm sitting in between."
Nat grinned. "We'll just be an unbeatable trio."
Clint threw his head back. "You bet your ass. We're not gonna let go before you can hold your own against that Taiwanese executioner."
Lucy's eyes sparkled, slightly concerning considering they were talking about a serial killer, but nothing in her life had ever been normal – this wasn't very out of the ordinary.
Their conversation was cut short as the sound of the city got louder when the celebrations' high point neared. They could hear the cheering of hundreds of thousands of people down in the streets and along the river banks as the fireworks exploded in the night sky. Lucy's heart felt light and she was truly happy. For the first time in months, ever since her grandma passed, she had the chance to allow herself to open up and let someone new in her life – apparently, she had chosen the entirety of the Avengers, but she didn't mind - the more the merrier.
###
The next few weeks had gone by in a now regular routine of school, training and lab work and spending many nights and weekends at the tower and sometimes upstate. Wanda started preparing for classes at Columbia Prep in order to start attending with Lucy as soon as school began and to Lucy it was the best thing that had ever happened. She'd never had many friends, a by-product of moving often and having other interests than most of her classmates; a few acquaintances that the East Side always kept for future business contacts but no more than that. Wanda understood her, they shared interests and the same wavelength. It wasn't surprising that Lucy quickly kept spending more and more time at the tower rather than at school. Peter had become a close friend too - Lucy appreciated his sharp intellect and interest in science as much as his lax attitude (although he definitely could be a reckless idiot – but funny and not too different to herself). The three of them had surprisingly managed to stay out of trouble – though Peter came close by almost missing curfew when he stayed at the tower. It was one of those night she was spending at the tower in her room on Natasha's floor – Wanda helped decorate, obviously – when the inevitable conversation finally started after dinner.
"You're spending the night here again?" Steve began and Lucy looked up confused. He didn't sound annoyed, but she couldn't tell why he'd be offended at it.
"Yeah, I'm helping Wanda with some school work and I wouldn't be able to make the curfew, so…" Lucy trailed off.
Tony grinned. "Don't worry. We don't want to get rid of you – quite the opposite actually."
Lucy just got more and more confused. That was the problem with the Avengers, they just loved dramatic reveals too much and Lucy couldn't help but say so.
Tony's smile just got wider. "You are right, we do like our drama and –"
"Tony." Natasha cut him off with a stern glance and Lucy was once again amused at how easily Nat managed to keep Tony in line. On the other hand, she'd been on the receiving end of a few of these glances by now and needless to say, she didn't care to invite more or anything stronger than those.
"We wanted to ask you if you'd like to completely move in here," Natasha explained calmly.
Lucy's eyes grew wider before jumped from her seat and hugged her mentor so forcefully that the table started shaking. After Lucy detached herself from Nat's throat again the latter smiled.
"I assume that's a yes?"
Lucy was stilling grinning from ear to ear. "Of course! I'd love to."
"Then we'll notify Columbia straight away and move you as soon as possible." Natasha switched to her planning voice instantly. "You go upstairs to get school work done, I'll get this sorted." Natasha squeezed Lucy's shoulder before the girl went upstairs giggling with Wanda about the sheer luck they were having.
"We definitely need to make sure this doesn't turn into a 24/7 sleepover," Steve said, frowning, as he watched the two walking upstairs.
"Agreed," Natasha smiled. "I already got some ideas."
###
Moving day came a few days later and Peter was around as well, helping to move the boxes of Lucy's possessions to the tower. With all the support, the move was quickly done, and everyone found themselves in the living room. The others had been ecstatic about the news and Rhodey had even lifted Lucy up and swung her around when she told him.
"Now that we have another tower resident, we thought we should lay down the rules not just for the kids but everyone clearly," Steve started. "This is not going to be a sleepover every night, we need to try and live like a normal family – yeah, that's not going to happen… somewhat normal… you know what I mean!" He finished exasperatedly at the giggling from the girls during the end of his sentence.
Natasha rolled her eyes and cleared her throat which caused the girls to quiet down.
"Look through the book, most rules apply to everyone, some only to the kids but all are reasonable and basically what we expect anyway," Natasha concluded the explanation and gave everyone some time to flick through the pages.
No one had any complaints, since Bruce and Tony had been helping to devise the lab rules, while Clint, Sam and Rhodey helped with the training room ones. The kids almost started a fuss about the bedtime, but Steve started to list their various engagements and they redacted their objections pretty quickly.
Lucy looked around. Natasha smiled at her and so she gave a satisfied smile back and Wanda rested her head on her shoulder. She'd never had a real family, but this one was the best she could wish for. It'd be only uphill from here.