Author's Note: Oh boy is it good to be back! I missed hearing from you guys :( It's been wonderful getting back into this even though this is only the second chapter. I'm always blown away by you guys and your dedication to these characters. Seriously. It gives me all the feels ;)

Review Reviews:

KristenGall1998: Thanks for being patient. There will be plenty of both I think :) He's a cute kid.

imnotcraZyjustuniQue: Thank you :)

phoebewang99: Thanks! I appreciate it, really!

Epic Elven Warrior Princess: Thankies :)

kendramccormick: Robby is a good kid, he lucked out with this family :)

BlueBanshee: Thanks! Haha no one could ever not like Anya, it's impossible :p

Morgan: Thank you! He's a good little boy with a great new family :)

maggie: I'm not sure what kind of one-shots these will be yet. I know there will be a few overall story arcs such as Robby settling in, Pepper's pregnancy and, of course, plenty of Aceland ;) I also have a Dahlia story line in mind that will play out throughout a few chapters probably. We'll see how it all works out. Thanks :)

Chaos Reigner: THANKS for the enthusiasm ;)

Toxicalilly: I'm glad you like it so far! There will be Aceland chapters (how could there not? ;) plus little moments strewn about the other chapters [there's a little bit in this one even] so you won't be without Aceland :)

SpectrumLight: Thank you! Don't we all? What's not to love!?

discordchick: Adoption is a beautiful thing. Thanks, sorry it took so long! I'm just happy to be back :)

Lollypops101: I'm glad you like it :)

kimbee: You and Robby both are so sweet! I has been such a long month! Part of me feels like I blinked and 4 weeks passed but I also feel like it took years haha

Linwe Ferland: I couldn't stay away too long ;) Thanks!

SilenceSpeaksWhenWordsCan't: That was my only real ambition ;) lol Thank you!

Author's Note: A few people (specifically those from Tumblr lol) said they can relate to Dahlia the most so I'm hoping to add a bit more of her to this story. I also wanted to give her a very realistic story arc that involved the feelings we got a glimpse of in chapter4 of Linchpin because struggling with loneliness and love-lust is something I think we're all going through. So I this is just a taste of what's to come for Dahlia and I hope you like it :)

Enjoy!

It took no time at all for Robby to warm up to everyone and even less time for everyone to warm up to him. In fact, by nighttime he was running around the living room with Thor and Tony playing some crazy imaginative game that involved jumping on furniture and screaming like idiots. Once the screaming started, that's when Clint joined in and soon enough almost everyone was involved in some way or another, leaving the only two not playing to clean up after dinner. The ruckus in the living room carried into the kitchen as Ryland handed dirty dishes for Any to wash so he could dry them. Since they were keeping Robby's homecoming low-key Anya was just in burgundy jeans and one of Ryland's oversized NASA tee shirt (which he loved most on her).

"He's a great kid." Anya mused as she scrubbed a serving tray that held dinner a short while earlier. They'd made a feast for dinner just like they had lunch and stuck Anya and Ryland with cleanup. But of course the couple didn't mind- any excuse to get away from the family for a few minutes of alone time.

"He fits in the family perfectly." Ryland replied, hearing Robby screaming in the background. Robby had more energy than Ryland had ever seen before, even from Anya. When she was a baby she'd run for hours on end but Robby was even more energetic than she. Everyone knew he'd sleep like the dead that night given everything that had gone on throughout the day. It was just a matter of time before he passed out.

"He reminds me of you." Anya said over her shoulder as Ryland gathered the rest of the plates off the table. When Ryland shot her a look she just smiled and said, "He's got everyone wrapped around his finger; he's a little charmer."

Ryland chuckled and tipped his glasses at her with a sly smile. "Well I'll take that as a compliment." he said with a look that made Anya giggle. The last few weeks Ryland had been trying very hard to grow something of a beard because Thor mentioned something about facial hair being a sign of masculinity; however Ryland, having gone almost two weeks without shaving, barely had five o'clock shadow. It was endearing though, the little stubble all over his chin, and Anya adored it so he kept at it. And when he nestled his face in her neck and tickled her with his tiny whiskers she giggled.

"Okay that got old a long time ago." Dahlia's voice floated over to them from the kitchen doorway. "We're all sick of your stupid honeymoon phase so quit kissing all the time." she teased and so, just to spite her, Ryland grabbed Anya and dipped her so she was almost horizontal before kissing her hard on the lips. Dahlia made a gagging noise and rolled her eyes, slinking into the room by sliding her cupcake socks across the floor. She was also casually dressed in ripped jeans and a red nerd shirt since all she was doing all day was chauffeuring Kellen from publishing house to publishing house so he could try selling Through The Heat, his first novel.

"What's wrong, Lia, you seem down?" Anya mused as she went back to cleaning up, pushing Ryland away a bit so he could focus on his own responsibilities. There was no stopping Ryland though so he kept close to her side regardless of the look she shot him.

Dahlia made a face, slinking about the kitchen lazily, stacking dishes absently and not saying much. Ryland stared at her for a really long minute before catching the hint and excusing himself so the girls could talk without him listening in. He even closed the french doors that lead out to the living room to give them a bit more privacy.

"Okay, spill. What's up?" Anya requested as soon as the doors snapped shut and the screaming in the living room quieted to a dull roar. Dahlia pulled herself up onto the counter next to the sink, drying the dishes Anya had already washed.

"Remember that Ethan guy I told you about from school?" Dahlia asked as they worked together. After Anya nodded Dahlia continued with, "He asked out Elizabeth today. That's all she talked about the whole day. They're going out this weekend- she even asked me to go over and help her pick out what to wear."

"Awe, sweetheart," Anya mumbled sympathetically, placing a hand on Dahlia's knee. "You liked him a lot didn't you?" Dahlia just sort of rolled one shoulder, trying to brush aside how much she really did care about the guy she'd liked for almost a year. Anya was tempted to go on and on about how Ethan didn't know what he was missing and that this was his loss not hers, but she knew that wasn't what Dahlia needed at the moment so Anya kept quiet.

"I think I'm pissed." Dahlia mused with a little chuckle. "Yeah...I'm pissed. I mean I sent out so many signals! I practically screamed how much I liked him but no he didn't notice a damn thing. For god sake do I have to wear a sign around my neck!?"

"Pretty much," Anya grumbled, handing Dahlia a plate to dry. "guy's are pretty oblivious, Lia. But at the end of the day, he isn't worth your time if he can't even read you. I mean think about it, you want someone to be your pattern, your best friend-"

"My Ryland," Dahlia added quietly, just loud enough for Anya to hear but they didn't comment further.

"-and Ethan isn't that." Anya said, skipping over Dahlia's comment about Ryland. "He can't read you, he doesn't understand you or know you at all, and that's not the kind of guy you want to be with. Trust me when I say this, Lia, you're better off without him."

"But I'm lonely!" Dahlia whined pathetically, throwing her hands in the air and pulling a face. "I want someone to kiss my face and hold my hand and I don't know just be there or something. I'm lonely, I want a boyfriend!"

Anya had to chuckle a little at the way Dahlia sounded- somewhere caught between a toddler whining for a candy bar and an adult worried they'll never find their soul mate. What Dahlia was experiencing was real though so Anya set aside the dishes for a minute to look Dahlia in the eye and give the only advice she knew. "It's my opinion that the things we want most come to us when we least expect them. So maybe if you put relationships and dating to the back of your mind- focus on school and other things for a bit- that's when things will work out. Maybe it'll happen when you least expect it. I don't know, Dahlia, I don't have some perfect piece of sage advice for you. All I know is you can't force love. So be happy with what you have for now."

"Which is?" Dahlia pouted, getting sadder as the conversation drew on. But then Anya grabbed her by the hands and led her to the french doors where they could see everyone in the family running around like total maniacs playing whatever game Robby had invented. They were screaming and running and a few people had nerf guns. It was complete and total anarchy. But everyone was clearly having a blast, laughing and carrying on. Pepper had to be careful now that she was pregnant but everyone was jumping on the furniture and roughhousing just like they used to when Anya, Ryland, Dahlia, Kellen and the twins were Robby's age. In fact it was really nice seeing the team act all childish again, it'd been too long since they all acted like idiots for the sake of their kids. It was most fun seeing Clint acting like a goofball if just because Anya joining S.H.I.E.L.D. added a few years to him and he suddenly got a lot more serious. He spent every minute she was away paralyzed in fear, but when Robby smacked him upside the head with a throw pillow from the couch Clint laughed and grabbed the boy by the waist and flung him over his shoulder, running around the room with him, being chased by everyone else.

"This is what you have, Lia." Anya said as they watched the family run around like fun idiots. "You have this family and that's a hell of a lot. And I promise that no matter how wholeheartedly you fall in love with some boy, he'll never live up to all of this. Even Ryland can't live up to all of this." Anya said pointedly. It was no secret everyone thought Ryland was perfect; and though he came damn near close to it, Anya knew otherwise. Dahlia wanted someone like Ryland and more specifically a love like Anya and Ryland's. But what she couldn't see was how great she already had it. So Anya threw open the french doors and pushed Dahlia into the chaos with a giggle.

"Get your mind off Ethan." Anya said over the screaming pandemonium. "Love can wait a while longer; tonight you're only concern is the nerf arrow aimed at your head."

Just then Clint shot and Dahlia turned in time for it to smack her between the eyes. She laughed and jumped at her uncle, ready to beat him down for that hit. Anya watched her insane family from the doorway, a smile on her face, just wonder how anything could compare to this.

Author's Note: As always, you can check out my Polyvore (samitballi. polyvore. com) for a set from this chapter titled What You Have which is just Dahlia and Anya's casual outfits. However, I've included a picture of what Ryland sort of looks like. Of course characters are completely up for interpretation and he's made up so it's not spot-on but I found the picture online and immediately though "Oh my god...that is Ryland!" lol so you should check it out ;)

Thanks!