Chapter 11

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Before Melinda is even half an hour away from the Farm House, where she would rather be but she knows that she has to see how her father is, Melinda's phone starts to ring. As she looks down at the caller ID Melinda sees Andrew and once she sees that she just ignores her phone and continues to fly.


After allowing himself a few minutes of crying into Phil's shoulder Tony headed to the bathroom to clean himself up as he plans on going back into his mother's room and he doesn't want Steve or his Mom to realise that he has been crying.

When Tony gets back to his Mom's room he finds Tony hanging up his phone and looking so much more tired that he looked when Tony left him.

"What's going on?" Tony asks as soon as he is close enough to Phil.

"That depends do you want the bad news or the really bad news?" Phil asks Tony curious.

"Let's start with the really bad." Tony responds, feeling that it might be best to get the worse out of the way.

"Nat called, Uncle William is in hospital." Phil explains, pain being clear in his voice as even though they never replaced his father both Howard and William were father figures to him after his Dad died.

"What! Is he okay?" Tony asks worried.

"Not Sure. All they would tell Millie over the phone is that it was a hit and run. Daisy hacked into the hospital and all she could find is that he was in surgery." Phil explains, "Millie took the Mark One and is on her way to him."

"Damn it." Tony says angrily, "What is the bad news?"

"Andrew's at the Playground and in his infinite wisdom, because he thought Andrew already knew, Hunter said enough about Daisy to lead the others to having to explain." Phil tells Tony.

"Great. That's just perfect." Tony says sarcastically, "He's going to be furious. I doubt he's going to get Millie's reasons for not telling him."

"He won't." Phil says, being pretty sure about that, "Especially with all the times they fought about Natasha and Clint when they were together."

"Yeah. Guess we should get back then." Tony comments.

"We can stay if you want. If you want to spend more time with your Mom." Phil tells him.

"No, it's okay. I'll just say goodbye then we can go." Tony says and he heads back to the room, even though he Is pretty sure that his mother won't realise that he is gone he still wants to say goodbye.


After they watched Melinda fly away Clint, Natasha and Melinda headed back to the house and Daisy headed up to her room while Clint and Natasha stayed downstairs.

For a while Daisy has been sitting in her bed, at the end so that she is looking up at her photo wall, hacking when she hears a knock on her door.

"YEAH." Daisy calls and the door opens.

"Can I come in?" Natasha asks, not even taking a step into the room as she doesn't want enter until she has her daughter's permission.

"Sure." Daisy responds and Natasha walks over to her daughter and sits down on the edge of her bed.

"You know if you want I can help you move your bed so that the head board is up this end, or so that it's in another place where you can look up at that wall." Natasha tells her daughter.

"Maybe, I'll think about it." Daisy responds.

"Are you okay?" Natasha asks her daughter.

"Yeah, I'm just worried about May." Daisy admits, "What's he like?" she asks

"Your grandfather?" Natasha asks as she moves so that he is sitting next to Daisy.

"Yeah. That's him isn't it?" Daisy asks, pointing at one of the pictures on her wall.

"Yeah, it is." Natasha confirms, "Your grandfather is one of the kindest people I've ever meet." Natasha informs Daisy.

"Really?"

"Really." Natasha confirms, "He always say's what is on his mind, and usually it's exactly what you need to hear, and even though he's not spy he's been around Spy's long enough to have picked up a few things." Natasha explains.

"He sounds great." Daisy comments.

"He is." Natasha confirms, "Your Mom's always says that she's her mother's daughter, but I think she's more like her Dad than she realises." Natasha explains with a fond smile, "When your Mom, Dad and I realised that we had something real your Mom was worried about telling her parents. She was worried about how they would react." Natasha tells Daisy.

"Did they react badly?" Daisy asks, feeling bad for her parents as it must have been hard to tell people about their relationship.

"Your grandmother was hesitant. It took her a really long time to come around." Natasha reveals, as she has always been sure that Lian preferred Andrew over her and Clint.

"That must have been hard on May." Daisy says, feeling bad for her mother.

"It was. I don't know what she said, you'd have to ask your Mom, but something Peggy Carter, who was completely supportive of our relationship like Howard was too, said to your Mom helped her after your Grandmother reacted badly." Natasha reveals, "Your grandfather on the other hand was a different story."

"Is that a good thing or bad thing?" Daisy asks worried.

"A good thing." Natasha answers, "As soon as your Grandfather found out he embraced your Dad and I. He always said that we just as much his kids as Mel." Natasha says with a smile as that amazed her, always has, "That's never changed, even after we stopped being together. I always stop by to see him when I'm in Arizona and he always greats me with open arms."

"Wow." Daisy says amazed, "I really want to meet him."

"If all goes well you will." Natasha tells her daughter and the two of them drift into silence.

"Your parents aren't up here." Daisy notes, looking up at the pictures.

"No, they're not."

"What happened to them?" Daisy asks curious.

"I don't really know." Natasha admits.

"Why don't you know?" Daisy asks before she can stop herself, "Sorry. You don't have to tell me."

"No, I will." Natasha says, being pretty sure that if she doesn't tell her daughter then she will look into it herself either on purpose or by accidently stumbling upon it and that will be so much worse, "I… grew up." Natasha says, having struggled to think of the right word, "In a place called The Read Room. It was a training facility. My earliest memories are of that place. I have no memories of before that and only have a vague idea, thanks to research I have done, off what happened before."

"I'm sorry." Daisy tells her Мама, "I can't imagine how hard that is for you."

"Thank you, Daisy." Natasha tells her daughter, "The Red Room raised me to be one thing."

"A spy." Daisy guesses.

"A killer." Natasha corrects as while it did teach her to be both a killer is a better description, "I'm not a good person, Daisy, I've done horrible things. Things that you couldn't even imagine."

"Sounds to me like you didn't have much of a choice." Daisy informs her Мама as that's what it sounds like to her.

"Your Dad told me the same thing when he was sent after me." Natasha informs Daisy, "He went against orders to bring me in, said he saw something in me." Natasha explains, still not understanding what that was, "Peggy had met someone else who had been in the same program before, so she knew what I was capable of, what I could do, but she gave me a chance anyway." Natasha says, "I don't know why she did, but I do know that at least part of the reason is because your Dad and Mom and even Coulson were willing to go out on a limb for me, and I will always be thankful for that." Natasha reveals.

"I'm glad too, but it sounds like you deserved that chance, and look at you now. You're an Avenger, a Hero." Daisy says, smiling at her Мама, "And you did that yourself."

"I would like you to believe that, Daisy, I would. But, I also know that I can't lie to you." Natasha tells her daughter, "I'm not a hero, Daisy." Natasha says, "I've done too many horrible things to ever be one."

"I don't believe that." Daisy says, her voice forceful, "You didn't choose how you grew up, or what that would turn you into, and yet when you got a chance you turned away from that, not many people would have the strength to do that." Daisy says, not being able to help but think of Ward and how he never turned away from Garrett or Hydra even though he had plenty of chances, "You became an Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D and an Avenger, you protect people, you save them. I think you're a hero, even if you don't." Daisy informs her Мама who is just completely amazed and lost for words so she just hugs her daughter.

"You're amazing, Daisy." Natasha tells her daughter, feeling that she doesn't deserve the faith and belief that her daughter has in her, but before Daisy can say anything her phone starts to ring, "Your caller ID is saying Bobbi." Natasha informs her daughter as she looks over her daughter's shoulder.

"Which means it's likely Hunter as well." Daisy reveals as she and Natasha break apart.

"I'll let you talk to them." Natasha tells her daughter, "Your Dad and I will be downstairs if you need anything."

"Okay." Daisy says and Natasha heads out of the room, "Nat."

"Yeah?" Natasha asks, turning around to face her daughter.

"I'm glad that you, Clint and May and are my parents." Daisy reveals, and Natasha feels her heart fill with joy as she hears that, "And thanks."

"What for?" Natasha asks confused.

"For telling me the truth, even though it's hard." Daisy reveals.

"You're welcome." Natasha says before leaving.

"Hey." Daisy answers once Natasha has left, and just like she was suspecting, Bobbi and Hunter are on the other end of the video call.

"Hey." Bobbi and Hunter both say,

"Coulson just told us. Are you okay?" Bobbi asks.

"Yeah." Daisy confirms, "Honestly I'm not sure how I should be feeling." She admits.

"What do you mean?" Hunter asks curious.

"I mean it's May's Dad, which makes him my grandfather and I'm staring up at a picture of him holding me, when I was a baby, but I don't really know him." Daisy admits, "I'm more worried about May than anything else right now." Daisy informs Hunter and Bobbi, "What's going on there?" Daisy asks curious and as she does she notices Bobbi and Hunter exchange looks, "What? What is it?"

"So, um, Andrew showed up, and turns out there were a few things that he didn't know about your Mom and the genius that Hunter is, decided to tell him." Bobbi explains, giving Hunter an annoyed look.

"What are you…..." Daisy says then she realises, "Are you saying Andrew didn't know about me? That he didn't know that May had a child?"

"Not before today." Bobbi answers, "Daisy, are you okay?" Bobbi asks concerned as Daisy got an odd look on her face as she can't help but think that for May not to tell her husband about her then maybe she doesn't matter to May as much as she thought.

"Um, I don't know." Daisy admits, "Why wouldn't she tell him? They were married." Daisy says.

"People who are married don't tell each other everything." Hunter says, an undertone of bitterness to his voice.

"That seems like a kind of big thing not to talk about." Daisy says, not understanding why May wouldn't tell Andrew, "I got to go."

"DAISY." Bobbi says before but before she can say anything Daisy has hung up.

"Not good, really not good." Hunter comments, it being clear that he is worried.

"No kidding." Bobbi says, also looking and sounding worried.


After leaving her daughter's room Natasha heads down to the living are where Clint is sitting on the couch.

"How's our Girl?" Clint asks curious.

"Amazing." Natasha reveals as she walks over to Clint and sits down, "I told her the basics about The Red Room."

"Really?" Clint asks surprised as he knows how huge that is.

"Yeah." Natasha confirms, "Even after what I told her she called me a hero." Natasha says, sounding amazed.

"That's because that's what you are." Clint tells Natasha, it being clear that he believes that, "Before you say anything I know that you don't believe me, but that's okay, because you will one day." He tells her and the two of them drift into silence.


After they leave the facility where Peggy is Phil and Tony head back to the playground. Once they get back, after talking to Phil's team, Tony and Phil head back to Phil's office, both bracing themselves for how Andrew is going to react to everything.

When they walk into the office Tony and Phil find Andrew sitting at the desk, seemingly staring into space.

"Andrew." Phil says.

"Long time." Tony adds.

"Yeah." Andrew responds, "You didn't say anything, either of you." Andrew says, looking between them.

"It wasn't our place." Phil says, "It was up to Millie, Clint and Natasha to decide who they told about their daughter, and what happened to her. Not us."

"I was Melinda's husband. Why didn't she tell me?" Andrew asks and hearing that both Phil and Tony exchange looks.

"You'd have to ask her." Coulson tells him.

"I would, but she's not answering my calls." Andrew responds, sounding unhappy about that.

"She probably can't right now." Tony says, and Andrew looks at him, "Uncle William's in the hospital. She's on her way to him right now."

"How bad is it?" Andrew asks concerned as while he was closer to Lian than William he does still care.

"We don't know yet." Phil answers, but before anyone can say anything there is a knock on his door, "Come in." Phil call and Bobbi and Hunter hurry in, Bobbi saying,

"We've got a problem." As they do.


For a while Natasha and Bobbi have been sitting in silence when their silence is broken by the sound of Natasha's phone ringing.

"Hey, Phil." Natasha answers.

"Bobbi and Hunter just came hurrying into my office. They were taking to Daisy when they told her about Andrew finding out about her and how he didn't already know, and she hung up on them. They said that she didn't sound okay." Phil explains.

"Thanks Phil." Natasha responds before hanging up and getting up, dropping her phone on the couch as she goes, "Come on." She tells Clint as she hurries to the stairs and even though he is completely confused Clint follows right behind, but Natasha and Clint don't even make it up a couple of stairs when they almost run into Daisy who was coming down.

"You said you were downstairs if I need anything, well, um I need some answers." Daisy tells her Мама and Dad, both of whom exchange looks upon hearing that.

"Then we'll do our best to give them to you." Clint says.

"How about we go back downstairs." Natasha suggests and Daisy nods and that's what they do.


Thanks to the size of the Quinjet and the cloaking, and sleuth, capabilities Melinda is able to land the Quinjet, completely unnoticed on the roof of the parking structure. Then once she lands she is able to hurry into the hospital where she heads straight to the emergency department.

"Excuse me, I'm looking for my father, William May." Melinda says to the admittance nurse.

"Let me have a look for you." The nurse says before looking it up on the computer, "Yes, William May, he is still in surgery."

"How is he? What's his condition?" Melinda asks, concern more than clear in her voice.

"They are preforming surgery on a broken hip and the doctor will be out when they are done to talk to you." The nurse informs Melinda.

"Can't you tell me anything more?" Melinda asks, needing to know more.

"I'm sorry, not right now." The nurse informs Melinda, "I can take you to the waiting area if you would like."

"Yes, that would be good." Melinda says and as she is led to the waiting area she feels her phone start to ring once more and so she pulls it out because there are people who she wants to speak to, but when she sees Andrew's name once more on the caller ID Melinda just puts her phone back in her pocket, and sits waiting for news on her father, hoping for good news.


After they met on the stairs Natasha, Daisy and Clint head down to the living area where they sit on the couch, Daisy sitting between her parents, who are just waiting for Daisy to say what she needs to say.

"Why wouldn't May tell Andrew about me? They were married, weren't they?" Daisy asks, needing to know.

"Yeah, they were." Clint confirms, his tone of voice being hard to read as even though he was happy for Melinda when she and Andrew got together because he always wanted both Melinda and Natasha to be happy, it still hurt to see.

"They why wouldn't May tell him?" Daisy asks, not understanding.

"You've got to understand something, Daisy. When you were taken from us, we lost parts of ourselves." Natasha informs her daughter, "Since that night all we wanted was to have you back, and we didn't care what it took."

"For a long time after you were taken we didn't care about anything other than leads." Clint explains, "Our family, Phil, Tony and his parents, your Grandparents, and Fury, had to remind us to eat, to sleep, to look after ourselves. Fury told Pierce that were on a long term assignment and worked with Peggy, Howard and Lian so that there was a paper trail supporting that so that no one questioned why we were gone from S.H.I.E.L.D for almost two years." Clint tells Daisy, "We followed any tiny clue, any scrap of information, in hopes that it would lead us to you, but nothing did." He says, sadly, looking upset, "It almost destroyed us, but we didn't care. All that we cared about was finding you." He told Daisy with a sad smile.

"What changed?" Daisy asks, being amazed that they left S.H.I.E.L.D to find her, "You went back to S.H.I.E.L.D, I know you did."

"It was Peggy and Howard." Natasha reveals, "You need to know that we never once gave up on you, малютка, and we never would have." She tells Daisy, who wonders what that word means as Natasha has called her it several times.

"After what I saw when I arrived here I believe that." Daisy comments, completely believing that which is something which surprises her as like she told Jiaying mistrust of home is her superpower, "What happened with Peggy and Howard?" Daisy asks curious, as she isn't exactly sure what this has to do with why May didn't tell Andrew about her.

At their daughter's question Clint and Natasha exchange looks, both trying to decide which of them will explain and after a nod, Natasha does just that,


January 27th 1991

Having followed whispers about children of intelligence agents' children being taken Natasha, Clint and Melinda travelled, under assumed names to Cairo. While there they were able to rescue half a dozen children, and get the information about the people behind it to Fury and Coulson, but their daughter wasn't one of them. So, after making sure that the children got back to their parents, because they didn't want anyone to suffer as they had, Natasha, Clint and Melinda headed back to their safe house, which was an abandoned house, to figure out what whisper to follow next.

It had been a couple of hours since they started doing their newest research when Natasha, Clint and Melinda heard sounds of movement and so they all pulled weapons and were surprised when Peggy and Howard walked in, neither having looked phased by the two guns and bow that were pointed them.

"Aunt Peggy, Uncle Howard. What are you doing here?" Melinda asked, having been surprised to see them.

"We're here for the three of you." Peggy told them.

"Why? Have you found something on our girl?" Clint asked.

"No, I'm sorry." Howard answered.

"Then what are you doing here?" Natasha asked.

"We're here because you can't do this forever." Peggy said as she walked over.

"You can't spend every second of every day looking for someone, you have to live lives." Howard said as he to walked over.

"That's a bit rich coming from two people who have gone out to the artic once a year, every year for the past fifty years, in an attempt to find someone." Melinda told her aunt and uncle.

"That's why we're telling you this." Peggy said, "Because we understand."

"After Steve went down we put everything we had behind trying to find Steve and over time that started to destroy us." Howard told Melinda, Clint and Natasha, "And putting everything behind looking for your daughter is doing the same to you."

"We can't give up, we won't." Clint said.

"We're not telling you to." Peggy said, "But when you find her, and I believe that you will find your baby one day, she's going to need her parents to be functioning, not so cut off from everything that you don't know how to live." Peggy informed them.

"Follow leads, even follow whispers, but let yourselves live too." Howard told them, "You can't search a word for your girl, if you don't let yourselves see it."

"We will continue to help you. Neither of us, or Tony, Phil, Fury or Lian, will ever give up on finding your girl, but you can't keep going like this, because if you do it will kill you." Peggy informed them and the room fell silence while they all considered Peggy's words.

"Seven hundred and three days." Natasha said, which broke the silence, "It has been seven hundred and three days since our baby was taken, but she's not a baby anymore. She's two years old now." Natasha said, sadly.

"She's out their somewhere and she's walking and talking. She's becoming her own person and we're not there to see it." Clint added having sounded just as sad.

"We failed her when we let her get taken. So, don't tell us that trying to find her will destroy us, because that doesn't matter." Melinda said, "All that matters is finding our girl again."

"You want to do what's best for her, right?" Peggy asked and Natasha, Clint and Melinda nodded, "Well what is best for your girl is for her to have parents when she is found." Peggy said, "Come home with us, keep working on finding her, but do more than just that, spend time with your friends and family again, think about going back to S.H.I.E.L.D when you're ready, you can use S.H.E.I.L.D resources to find real solid leads, and it will be better than this, because right now you're just going from one place to another, following whispers that are just leading you in circles, you can't do that forever." Peggy told them.

END OF FLASHBACK


"It took another three days, but Howard and Peggy finally got through to us." Clint informs Daisy, "We kept looking, but we actually took Peggy and Howard's advice."

"I, I can't imagine how hard that must have been for you, and I'm glad to know." Daisy says, feeling bad for her parents as they are clearly in pain, "But, what does this have to do with why May didn't tell Andrew?"

"Your Mom meet Andrew in 2005, but that point we weren't together and we were all more closed off than ever. We wouldn't even say your name…" Natasha reveals, but before she can say more Daisy cuts her off.

"Why not?"

"Because it hurt too much. We all had to learn to live with the pain and guilt of you being taken from us and even sixteen years later not a minute of a single day passed where I didn't think about you, or where we all didn't think about what we would do when we found you again." Clint explains to Daisy.

"Mel loved Andrew, I know she did, but she couldn't love him completely, not after what happened." Natasha explains, "Mel thought about telling Andrew, but she didn't think she could handle telling him everything. You've talked to Andrew, he would have gotten her to explain everything, go into detail that would have caused Mel excruciating pain to go into."

"Yeah, he would have." Daisy realises.

"But don't think for a second that Mel not telling Andrew means that she didn't love you, or that she stopped thinking about you, in fact it's the opposite." Clint tells Daisy.

"Your Mom thought she was failing you all over again by being happy with Andrew. She hated herself for even considering having a family with Andrew." Natasha says, deciding not to mention that she dragged Melinda out of a bar a week before Bahrain where she was basically drowning herself in scotch because she thought she was betraying Daisy by considering having another child.

"She shouldn't have." Daisy comments, "I want her, I want you all, to be happy and to stop feeling guilty for what happened to me." Daisy informs her parents.

"That's easier said than done." Clint says, "Your Mom loves you, just like me, and just like your Мама. That's never changed, whether people know about you or not." Clint tells Daisy who just nods and the three of them drift into silence, Daisy thinking about everything that her Dad and Мама have told her.


At the hospital Melinda is sitting in the hospital when she once more feels her phone vibrate, even though she is sure that it is going to be Andrew, as he has been calling constantly, Melinda checks the caller ID and when she sees that it is Tony she answers.

"Hello."

"Hi. So, it's just Andrew's calls your ignoring, good to know." Tony says, a little bit of amusement in his voice as while he never doubted that Melinda loved Andrew, he never thought they were right together.

"He called you?" Melinda asks surprised.

"No, he's at base." Tony explains, "He kind of found out about Daisy."

"Of course." Melinda says with a sigh, knowing that she doesn't have it in her to deal with Andrew considering everything else that is going on, "Let me guess Hunter thought he already knew so he mentioned it."

"Yep. Bobbi made him suffer for that mistake." Tony reveals, "Want me to tell him that you didn't answer my calls too?"

"Please." Melinda responds.

"Phil and I were wondering, how's Uncle William?" Tony asks curious, saying Phil's name for a specific reason.

"I'm still waiting for news." Melinda answers, "Why did you call, not Phil?" she asks as she is pretty sure that this is the kind of thing that Phil would usually call about.

"He was worried that you would ignore his calls too." Tony admits.

"I wouldn't have. Tell him that for me." Melinda requests.

"Will do." Tony responds, being glad about that, "You know I can come down their if you want."

"Thanks, but I'm alright." Melinda says as she notices something, "Tony, I've got to go. I think Dad's doctors coming."

"Okay. Talk to you later." Tony says before hanging up.

"Ms May?" A doctor asks, walking over to her.

"Yes."


It has been a while since Clint and Natasha finished explaining to Daisy about why Melinda didn't tell Andrew about her and ever since she has been quiet, and Clint and Natasha are starting to become worry.

"Daisy?" Clint asks concerned, "Are you alright?"

"I think I need some air." Daisy says, forcing herself to find her voice, "I might go for a walk." She says as even though she understands May's actions she isn't sure how she feels about them.

"Okay, well just… cause an earthquake if you need us." Natasha tells her daughter, and hearing that, even with how confused she is feeling, Daisy manage to smile.

"How about I try calling before causing a natural disaster." Daisy suggests.

"Would probably be a good idea." Clint says, "Try and stay on the property."

"Will do." Daisy responds, "See you later." Daisy says before getting up and walking out of the house, her Мама and Dad watching her with worried expression on their faces as all they want is for their baby girl to be okay, and she clearly isn't.