A/N: Chapter Two! This story will be pretty short.

The next day Thor and Loki left with the Tesseract. "I wish I was not going," Thor said somberly. "There is still much to do, and the girl..."

"She'll be fine," Steve said. "Just, come back whenever you can."

"I will."

The Asgardians returned to their own realm, and the Avengers returned to Stark Tower. "Which frankly, is now Avengers Tower," Tony said, as they were gathering in the living room. "I mean, if you're all going to have your own floors here it can't just be my name on the top of it."

They all shared a glance. "What are you talking about Stark?" Steve asked.

"You're all getting your own floors," Tony repeated. "I thought I told you."

"Nope."

"Oh. Well it's in the specs. Jolly Green, where would you like to put your new daughter? The same floor as you or a whole separate floor?"

"Um, a separate floor, I think. She is 16 after all. Don't they want freedom or something?"

Everyone shrugged. "I don't know the first thing about kids," Tony said.

Clint raised an eyebrow at Bruce. "We're not the best people to be asking. None of us even had parents."

"This is going to be a very steep learning curve," Bruce said.

"Yep."

JARVIS spoke up. "I believe Ms. Banner is waking, sir."

"Oh goodness," Bruce groaned.

Tony clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Come on, mister. We've got to go see her, and tell her what's going on."

Bruce stood up and they went with him to the medical ward.

Rosie was there, staring up at the white ceiling, tears running silently down the sides of her cheeks. She looked up when they came, and wiped her eyes. "Hi," she said, and held her side as she coughed.

"Hey," Bruce said, coming forward and checking her monitors. "How are you feeling, Rosie?"

She gave him a tremulous smile. "I'm okay, I guess." She looked around the place. "Is this, is this Stark Tower?

"Yes," Tony said. "What do you think?"

"It's, tall?"

He laughed. "Yes it is. And once it's rebuilt it'll be better than ever."

"Rebuilt," she echoed. "Oh yeah..." She blinked back a few stray tears. "So, what happened here?"

They took turns telling the story, and finished with her entry into this world.

She was silent the entire time, and when she finally spoke she asked, "Who's the Hulk?"

Nobody answered. They all stared at each other for a long second, and turned to look at Bruce. "Uh..." He laughed nervously. "That's a long story."

"Well I'm not going anywhere," she pointed out.

"No, I guess not."

Steve ushered the others out. "We'll just go find something to eat for lunch," he said.

"But I wanna hear," Tony complained.

"Out," Natasha said firmly, shoving him along.

Bruce sat down in the chair next to Rosie. "Okay," he said. "You know how not everything's the same?"

"Yeah."

He hesitated. "How much, how much do you remember about the, uh, the accident where your mom died?"

"I was little, I don't really remember much. Dad was supposed to be there too, but, he came to pick me up because I got sick at school." She frowned at him, curiously. "What does that have to do with anything?"

So Bruce told her the story of how he injected the super soldier serum on himself and the gamma radiation changed him into the Hulk. He told her the whole story of General Ross's obsession with him, and his exile in Calcutta before being found by SHIELD. He didn't dare look into her eyes, afraid to see the revulsion and the fear that everyone showed.

"So you're a superhero," she said.

He laughed wryly, still avoiding her eyes. "If you wanna call it that."

She picked at the blanket, looking down shyly. "Are you going to go back to India?" Please say no, please say no, please don't leave me alone...

He looked up sharply. "No, not without you." He dropped his gaze again as she looked up. "I mean, not if you don't want to."

"What are you saying?" she asked.

Tony burst in. "Oh for goodness' sake, just get it over with. He wants to keep you and we want to keep you and you're not going anywhere and you're not alone so for everybody's peace of mind will you just hug or something?" He was promptly dragged out of the room by Natasha.

Bruce and Rosie stared at each other, surprised, and then both of them started laughing. Rosie pressed a hand to her bruised ribs and held her hand out to Bruce. He took it hesitantly and squeezed her hand. "You're not afraid of me?" he asked.

She smiled brilliantly. "No, why would I be? You're not any different from my dad."

"I turn into a giant monster."

"So? You're still sweet and kind and you're the same genius and you like helping people. That's good enough for me." And she hugged him.

He froze for a second and then carefully wrapped his arms around her and hugged her, mindful of the bandages.

"Finally!" Tony said, bursting back in again with the Avengers in tow. "We brought lunch."

Lunch was pizza, and then they stayed talking for a long time, getting to know Rosie. It was slightly disconcerting how well she knew them, and teased them. Clint, especially.

"What is your problem with my spy name?" he asked, finally.

She blushed. "It's, well, the first time we met you kind of shot me with a Nerf gun, and then, I don't know. Me and Clint, my Clint, he was just like my brother. We insulted each other all the time and pulled pranks on people and he taught me to shoot." She smiled briefly. "We had this routine."

"What was it?" Clint asked, smiling at the thought of having a little sister.

"Well if you were being mean, I'd call you Birdbrain. You'd retort with Four-eyes-"

"Four eyes?" Bruce asked.

She touched her face absently. "I'm supposed to wear glasses. I lost them in the fight."

Bruce made a mental note to get her some glasses.

"And then?" Clint said.

"And then I call you Featherbutt, and you call me Hunchback."

"Hunchback?" Tony said, inspecting her back. "Yep. You have your dad's posture."

She laughed self-consciously. "Too many hours at a computer."

"Yeah."

Clint grinned. "I think I'm going to like having a little sister."

"And then," Rosie said, "we usually end up poking each other or smacking each other or something. But if we could hold off till my ribs aren't bruised that'd be great."

He reached over and flicked her forehead.

"Oi!" she protested, but she was laughing.

She got out of the medical ward a couple days later, and was moved to the floor above Bruce.

"Are you going to be okay up here?" Bruce asked worriedly. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to get me, or JARVIS, or have JARVIs get me, or Steve, or Clint, or Natasha-"

She hugged him. "I'll be fine, d- don't worry. I think I can handle going to bed."

He grinned sheepishly, not even noticing her stammer. "Sorry. I'm just a little anxious."

She gave him another quick hug. "It's fine. Good night."

"Good night." On impulse, he kissed her forehead. "Sleep tight."

She burst into tears as soon as he left. She'd almost called him 'dad.' She'd almost forgotten this wasn't her universe. She curled up in bed, crying silently, and thought about her father. She knew, somehow, that he was dead. That explosion that had followed her... She was not an idiot by any means. She knew that if they thought it would help, he and Hawkeye would've blown up the base. She sobbed outright at the thought. She should've been with them, should've died with them. Should've died instead of Captain America. Steve shouldn't have died for her. She wasn't worth saving. She thought about all the other people who'd died, and finally, started to grieve.

JARVIS watched her crying well into the night, when she finally fell asleep from pain and exhaustion. And then he told Bruce, who was still awake, "Miss Banner has gone to sleep."

"Thank you, JARVIS," a worried Bruce said, and went to bed.

The next morning when Rosie woke up she felt sore and her eyes felt swollen and her throat hurt. She lay there in bed, just thinking, thinking about her people and this universe's people, and decided to stay in bed. She shouldn't even be here after all. It's not like anybody would care.

Steve was the first to notice her absence. "Jarvis, where's the Banners?" he asked, at the breakfast table.

"Dr. Banner is still asleep and Miss Banner is in bed." JARVIS paused for a second and then continued, "It seems like she has no intention of leaving her room."

The ones at the table exchanged a worried glance. "Do you think she's okay?" Clint asked worriedly.

"Her heart rate and blood pressure are steady, but her neurotransmitter levels are borderline depression," JARVIS reported, doing a full scan. "She's also in pain from her injuries."

"Poor kid," Natasha said, standing up. "I got this."

They watched her go and Clint said, "She's finally discovered her mothering tendencies."

"I didn't even know she had any," Tony said.

"She's full of surprises," Clint said, smiling briefly.

Natasha made her way up to Rosie's room and knocked. "Rosie?" she said softly.

Rosie sighed. "Come in."

Natasha came in and sat next to Rosie on the edge of the bed. "You okay?"

"Yeah."

"You're a really bad liar."

"I know," Rosie said flatly.

Natasha held up the roll of bandages. "Here. Let me help you." She gave the girl an encouraging smile. "Trust me, you'll feel better."

Rosie sighed again but did as she was told and sat up.

Natasha checked her wound to make sure it wasn't infected, and then re-wrapped the bruised ribs.

"Thanks," Rosie said, giving her a quick smile.

"Now that you're up, you want to have some breakfast?" Natasha asked, pulling the girl out of bed as she spoke. "Steve made pancakes with chocolate chips."

"I don't know," Rosie said reluctantly. "I'm not really hungry."

"Come on," Natasha coaxed, "Steve's a regular fifties' house wife. He makes the best pancakes this side of anywhere."

Rosie grinned. She could just imagine Captain America in an apron. "I guess."

"Great." Natasha moved to the wardrobe. "What do you want to wear?"

Rosie picked out her clothes and Natasha helped her put on the shirt. They got in the elevator and Rosie said quietly, "Thanks."

Natasha squeezed her hand briefly before letting go. "No problem"

The others greeted Rosie with smiles and hugs, and Steve dished out the pancakes. She only ate a pancake and a half and stared at the other half.

"You're done?" Tony asked, surprised. "I thought kids ate a lot."

"Yeah... I don't eat a lot."

"Oh."

"So, where's Pepper?" Rosie finally asked, after a long awkward silence.

"Pepper's in DC, at a conference," Tony said.

"Hey kid, you want to go shopping?" Natasha asked abruptly.

Rosie blinked. "Shopping?"

"Yeah. You can't keep wearing the same clothes forever."

"Oh. Yeah. Um, sure." She looked at Bruce. "Can I?"

They all turned to look at him. "Yeah, sure," he said. "Just, don't get too tired and don't lift anything heavy."

"Okay."

Tony handed Rosie a credit card. "Here."

"What, Tony, I-"

"Take it," he said. "You earned it, a million times over." He shooed them towards the door. "Go on. Go spend money, get some clothes."

"Maybe one of us should go with them," Steve said.

"I'll go," Clint said, and followed the girls out.

They went to Brooklyn, since it was mostly untouched, and hit all the shops, getting everything from underwear and socks to jeans and blouses to purses and jewelry. Clint trailed along behind them carrying bags and pointing out sales.

"I still can't believe it," Rosie said, looking at all the buildings and the people walking past. "I can't believe that this is all still standing." She frowned. "This was all gone on that first day." She gave a shaky laugh. "I never thought I'd see this place again."

Clint wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Well, you're seein' it, kiddo. You have your whole life ahead of you, and whatever you want to do, you can do it." He frowned. "Within reason of course. No drinking or drugs or boys."

Rosie smirked.

They stopped for dinner at an Indian restaurant and Rosie surprised them by ordering in fluent Hindi and making small talk with the owner. "We lived in India for two years," Rosie explained to the spies.

"Cool."

"Yeah. It was fun."

* * *

When they got back, Natasha helped Rosie put everything away and then Bruce knocked on the door. "Can I come in?" he asked.

"Yeah."

He came in and found Rosie sprawled on her stomach, looking at a Stark tablet. "This universe is weird," she said, sitting up. "What's up, da- Bruce?" She glanced down.

He squeezed her shoulder lightly, trying to let her know it was okay. "How are you doing?" he asked. "Did you find everything you needed?"

"Yeah." She grinned. "Never turn down an offer of Tony Stark's credit card."

He grinned at that. "How's your ribs?" he asked.

"Still sore."

"Sorry."

"It's not your fault." She picked at a loose thread on her sleeve.

"Uh, I have a few questions," he said. "Just, to know what to do now you're here."

She looked at him warily. "Okay..."

"What grade are you in?"

She laughed. "First year of college. I graduated last year."

"That's impressive," he said. "You must be smart."

"JARVIS says my IQ is 150."

"What are you studying for?" Bruce asked.

"Computer science."

"Nice."

She smiled wistfully. "Mom always said that I got the best of both brains."

"Your mom," he started, and then fell silent. "Never mind."

"Does she exist, here?" Rosie asked hesitantly. "I know the general does, but..."

He sighed heavily. "Yes, she does."

"What happened?" she asked softly.

"The Other Guy happened."

"Oh." She was quiet for a moment and then said, "You don't have to talk about it. If you don't want to."

"No, it's fine." He took a deep breath, and told her the story of their brief relationship.

"So there's definitely no chance of there being a me," Rosie said.

"No."

"Oh. Okay. Just checking." She fidgeted for a bit longer and then asked, "Can you tell me about the other guy?"

He raised an eyebrow. "What do you want to know?"

"Is he, well, is he like another complete personality, or is it just a part of you, and how do you keep him calm, and-" She stopped talking. "Sorry. I ask a lot of questions."

"Asking questions is good," he assured her. "Never be afraid to ask questions." He saw her expectant face and sighed. "Okay. First question."

They talked for a long time, and afterwards, Rosie leaned her head on Bruce's shoulder. "I think I like this guy."

Bruce smiled and put an arm around her shoulders. "I think he likes you too."

They had dinner with the Avengers, and then everyone went back to their rooms. Bruce was reading the latest medical journals on the tablet when JARVIS spoke up. "Dr. Banner, you wished to be notified if Miss Rosie was ever in distress."

"Is she? What's wrong?" Bruce asked, dropping the tablet and starting towards the door.

"I believe she is having a nightmare."

"CAP!" Her shriek went unheard in the battle, and Rosie's face went ashen as she watched Captain America fall to the ground in front of her. She dropped to her knees beside him. "Steve, Steve, no-"

"Rosie!" Hawkeye picked her up. "We have to go."

"But Cap!" she protested, trying to get back to him.

Clint pulled her along. "He's gone, he saved you, we have to go, now!"

"STEVE!" she cried, watching as his body was engulfed in flames when the building went down.

Rosie jolted awake, disoriented, sweating, crying, her throat hoarse from screaming. "No," she sobbed, curling up into a little ball, trying to get her breath back. "No, no..."

"Shhh," a soothing voice said, rubbing her back. "It was just a dream. It's okay."

"Daddy?" she whimpered, still unable to move.

"Not quite," Bruce said, smoothing her tangled hair away from her face. "Do you remember where you are?"

"Stark Tower, different universe," she whispered, closing her eyes in despair. It wasn't just a dream. It was memory. But, "Is he okay?" she demanded, sitting up, filled with the desperate need to make sure that this universe's Cap was still here.

"Steve's fine," Bruce said soothingly. "Everything's okay." He pulled her into his arms.

She started crying again, fisting her fingers in his shirt. "It's not okay," she said, her voice cracking. "He died for me. He shouldn't have died for me, I wasn't worth it. He was right there, right in front of me, and now he's dead, and he shouldn't have been..." She trailed off, unable to stop crying.

Bruce shifted his hold on her and continued to card his fingers through her hair. Somehow he knew that the only way he could make it better was just to hold her. "JARVIS, can you get Steve up here if he's awake?" he asked quietly.

"Of course sir."

Steve came into the room a minute later, hesitantly, seeing the sobbing teen and worried looking Bruce. He knelt next to Rosie. "You wanted to see me?" he asked quietly.

She lifted her head and looked at him, a fresh wave of tears rolling down her cheeks as she launched into his arms and hugged him tightly. "I just wanted to make sure you were alive," she sniffed. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," he said quietly. "What you went through, it's perfectly normal to have nightmares and flashbacks. I still have nightmares, and my war was seventy years ago." He rubbed her back lightly, careful of her bruised ribs. "Nobody should have to experience anything like that," he said, "and even I can't imagine what it was like. But you don't have to be sorry, or ashamed, of anything you're feeling." He tipped her chin up, made her look at him. "Whenever you need me, or any one of us, no matter what time it is, you can get us. Okay?"

She nodded. "Okay," she finally whispered. "Thank you."

Steve gave her a final hug. "You are very welcome." He let her get up and shared a glance with Bruce.

"Thank you," Bruce said quietly.

"No problem." The super soldier left, feeling guilty about causing her pain, even though it was all his doppelganger's fault.

Bruce took the trembling girl into a hug. "What Steve said, he was right," he said quietly. "I don't care if it's two in the morning or 2 in the afternoon, whenever you have a nightmare, or a flashback, or you want to talk, or cry, I'm here for you, okay? I know it hurts, but it will get better eventually. I know it doesn't feel like it but it will."

"Yeah," she said softly. "Thank you."

He gave her a gentle smile and helped her get up. "You wanna take a warm shower?" he asked. "I find it usually helps after a nightmare."

She nodded. "I think that would be good."

"Okay. I'm going back to my room, but don't hesitate to get JARVIS to call me, all right? Or you can come get me." He gave her an encouraging smile and left, trying to calm his own heartbeat. The Hulk wanted to get out and SMASH whoever made Rosie cry, but it was hard explaining alternate universes to the other guy. "Deep breaths," he murmured to himself.

Rosie took a long, hot shower, and when she came out she found DUMM-E just finishing remaking the bed with fresh sheets. "Thank you," she told the robot. "Good job."

The robot squeaked in pleasure and scurried away.

She got in bed, and the rest of the night was spent in dreamless sleep.