Avengers Facility

Natasha hadn't talked to Ana in three days, with those three days she had seen her daughter in passing never saying a word. They avoided each other like a plague, Natasha spending more time in the lab with Bruce and Ana being around Thor as they told each other of dealing with demigods. She had also avoided Bucky, the fact that he had known before anyone made her annoyed. Clint was still at the farm, she thought that she might go there, but there was something holding her back. It was any day next week that her daughter would get pulled to the Underworld and thrown into a pit with no idea if she would come out.

She didn't understand her daughter's world, she had been trying to read on it, but each myth seemed like it had three versions of it. The only one that could tell her anything was her daughter, from what Connor and Valentina had told her, on Wednesday's during the summer she taught a class on different monsters in the Underworld, by the end of the summer they would get through every single one. She knew monsters inside and out because of the amount of time she spent in the Underworld and she had wanted to prepare her family.

She had also found it weird that everyone in Greek Mythology was related, when it came down to it she could trace Ana's father and Connor's father to being related. When she asked Thor one night before going to bed, he just shrugged as he told her not to worry about the young demigod. She got up from her spot in the lab, seeing her daughter and Peter working on some assignment. Peter saw Natasha staring at them and quickly got up, leaving the room.

"Are you going to talk to me or ignore me?" Ana asked, crossing her arms. "I don't want to leave like this, us not talking. Gods, I'm sorry that Bucky found out before you. He found out a lot quicker than I wanted anyone to. I'm sorry that Thor had to come blurt it out with Tony standing right there."

"I did research on the man that you're chasing the spirit up. I fought him before he blew up." She replied, "We were on a team when I worked at SHIELD. He knows what he's doing."

"Yeah, well, he's dead and all I have to do is get close enough to open a version of Pandora's box and in he goes. Hopefully, I won't have to fight him at all, if I do that's why I have to spirits who are trained fighters." She replied, "The only thing I have to worry about it how I'm going to react with Tartarus." She crossed her arms and stared at her mother. "You need to learn to have a little trust in people, Mother."

"I don't trust people." She replied as Ana shrugged. "I believe that you're too trusting."

"That's rich, you trust Clint. I've had to learn to trust the people I can, excuse me there are a lot more people than just Connor, Nico, Will, Valentina, and I that are demigods. We have a network that when it comes down to it, we have to trust each other with our lives because we're stuck in the same boat." Ana snapped, looking at her mother. "I trust you guys because you are family and mean something to me, I kept it hidden because I had to because while the people you fight just want you dead, mine want me as a snack most of the time. The only person that has ever broken my trust was a demigod named Luke." With that, she walked off.

"After not talking to her for three days, that went a lot worse than what we were expecting," Sam replied, taking a sip of his soda. "I heard every word of that. Let her cool off, then go talk to her. At least you can help Clint when his girl becomes a teenager."

"Lila won't be jumping into hell," Natasha replied.

"Well, you'll be prepared to help him with whatever comes his way then," Sam replied, walking off.

She heard Ana on some kind of demigod talk thing that night, she didn't know who she was talking to. It wasn't voiced that she was familiar with, she looked through the crack in the wall and saw two people. One had curly black hair, like Valentina, but her skin was the color of chocolate with her deep black eyes she had only seen on Nico and her daughter. The other was Asian, with a bow and arrow strapped to him, they were wearing purple t-shirts and were smiling at her. They were talking about some type of council thing, "You do know that out of all the ones at Camp Half-Blood the senate was very pleased with you. Percy, Annabeth, and Piper are already nominated and they just have to accept. That leaves two different spots, we'll fill them before Christmas and we come to Camp to celebrate next summer you'll be inducted, a council of five Greek demigods that will sit with the senate when it comes down to it."

"I'm not the best candidate. Why not Clarisse or someone like that?" The girl shrugged, smiling. "We got to go. Good luck on your quest Ana, Nico told me about it. Us Underworld kids have to stick together."

"What about me?" The boy replied as she turned to look at him, saying something as the message disappeared. With that, Ana shook her head and crawled into bed. Natasha held her breath, hoping that tonight wouldn't be another night where she woke up screaming every hour.

High School

Ana couldn't believe that it was October First, her mind trailed along that idea as she rode in the car with Peter beside her. She had moved into the Avengers facility in the middle of August and had almost finished her first semester of mortal school with somewhat decent grades. There was a B in English, C in Geometry (thanks to Bruce being a kick-ass tutor), and B in her computer class, and an A in Drama. She hadn't even had this good of grades in elementary school. Though her mind didn't feel like celebrating, she was thinking about how next week she'd be pulled from a routine life to get sent on her very first quest. It had run her nerves down, she pulled on the choker necklace she had on. It was also the first day that she had tried on her outfit, auditions for the Drama I play in December were today and her teacher said that they needed to impress with their outfits.

She had asked Wanda to help her pick out something and they had settled with the choker, a black tank top with a lace jacket thing, a pair of maroon skinny jeans, and matching maroon sneakers.

She had been told that Leo Valdez was alive and that Hades would pick her second companion on her quest. She had been shocked that Pietro was going to go with her, a peace offering to the Avengers as an "I'm sorry" thing. Her eyes flickered to the building as she made her way to Geometry, wanting to swallow that class in whole, the only thing that was keeping her grade up was the homework because she had Bruce and time, in class she had only herself and allotted time for the tests. Her first one she had made a C on, the rests were D's and F's. The rest of the day went in silence and a blur to her until lunch. "Are you okay?" Peter asked, looking at her. "You seem like you've been out of it since homecoming."

"I'm fine, Peter. Just tired, how was your date with Valentina?" She asked, wanting to hear something normal. Since homecoming, every weekend that she was allowed Valentina was either with her or with Peter, considering it had only been one she went with Peter first. It felt weird, sharing her with someone for the first time in forever. She knew that Valentina's curse was part of the attachment, she didn't want to know all the details.

"I finally kissed her." He replied, "It wasn't her kissing me." He grinned, "I was walking her back to her car and I went in to kiss her."

"Valentina's very forward with what she wants," Ana replied, looking up at him. "She's always busy trying to set up everyone else with who they belong with, it's good that she's managed to find someone to make her happy." She looked at him, realizing this might be the last time that they talk about Valentina if she didn't make it out of Tartarus. "Take care of her, Alright Parker?"