"I'm gonna wrap my arms around my daddy's neck, and tell him that I've missed him. And tell him, All about the man that I became, and hope that it pleased him. There's so much I want to say, There's so much I want you to know. When I finally make it home. When I finally make it home..." Finally Home, MercyMe

Chapter Twenty One

Everything was all packed and ready to go when the day finally arrived. Two days had passed since my last interrogation with Jason. He still wasn't saying anything after being interrogated by more than one agent. Something told me that he wouldn't talk unless the answers were forced out of him.

It was the second week of January. I hadn't realized that I missed out on Christmas and New Years Eve already. But at the time I was at the Academy, and even though the holidays were celebrated we didn't really have a chance to enjoy them. The second week of January also marked my birthday. I'd never told anyone when my birthday was, and I wasn't expecting anyone to bother caring about it.

Truthfully going back to the tower was probably the best birthday present I could ever get. That and the fact that Natasha and Clint were now my officially adoptive parents had made more than just my day. I still couldn't believe that they had made it official by signing the documents.

"Ready to leave?" Clint looked down at my duffel bag in surprise as I had it slung over my shoulder. "Is that all you brought?"

"It's all I needed," I replied with a shrug.

Honestly, I wasn't the type of person who packed a whole year's worth of clothing for a week. Fashion wasn't exactly my thing either. So it wasn't really a problem when it came to choosing what I should bring with me and what should be left behind.

"The quinjet's ready," Natasha announced as she joined us. She raised an eyebrow when she saw the two of us together. I gave the faintest of nods before following them towards the hangar door.

Agents were running back and forth as they returned to their posts or left them. I tried my best to blend in with them. Considering the fact that I was now seventeen, I didn't really blend in all that well. I suddenly wondered if there was an age limit to SHIELD. It would make sense if there was, depending on what one could do or if they had powers like myself.

When we arrived I noticed that once again Natasha was piloting the quinjet. Both she and Clint were skilled pilots, and I knew that eventually I would have to learn how to fly one of these things. Although I would never admit it, I prefer flying as a dragon than in one of these things.

That was when an idea occurred to me. I couldn't hide the smirk that followed as I threw my duffel bag into the quinjet.

"Hey guys, mind if I just follow you? I'm not entirely fond of flying in these things," I explained with a shrug. All at once Natasha and Clint exchanged confused looks as I ran towards the nearest corner, ignoring the weird looks that followed.

I got down to my hands and knees and willed my body to shift into the shape of my favorite dragon, the Night Fury. As far as I knew that was the only kind of dragon I could change into. Once I changed into a Night Fury I bounded over to the Quinjet, staring at Natasha and Clint pleadingly. All the other agents were staring at us in disbelief. I tried not to laugh at the looks I received.

"Alright, but try not to fire any plasma blasts," Clint replied with a grin. I nodded in agreement before watching the hangar door open. Without another word or thought I jumped down into the air, letting my wings flare open just as I was ready to fall.

This was what I loved the most about my ability. Being able to fly gave me more freedom than I could ever imagine. I started doing back flips in the air until the quinjet finally flew down. Once they were ahead of me, I flew after them so that I could follow them back to the tower. This was going to be fun.

...

"Are you sure they said it was today?" Pepper started pacing around the living space anxiously. They had gotten the call the other day that Natasha and Clint were returning to the tower after spending a few months away.

"That's what the message said," Tony replied.

Everyone was gathered in the living space. A 'welcome back' banner was pinned to the wall leading to the hallway. Balloons had been scattered along the floor, and even confetti was thrown all over the place. It was obvious that Pepper had gotten up early to decorate the room. Of course no one bothered asking why. The message had been clear that they were returning with an old friend.

"I've never seen you get so worked up before," Steve pointed out.

"Something tells me it's for a good reason," Bruce muttered under his breath.

Just as he said that they could hear the familiar rumble of the quinjet landing on the deck outside. All of them looked up in shock when a familiar black dragon landed beside it, folding it's wings and staring around warily.

"That would explain it," Tony said with a smirk.

...

I stared at the living space in disbelief. Pepper had done all of this for me? As I changed back into a human I was overwhelmed by the fact that everyone was here. Well, everyone that was except for Thor. Coulson had told me that he went back to Asgard for some business that needed to be taken care of.

"This is… amazing," I breathed when I stepped inside. Before I could get another word out Pepper wrapped her arms around me in a hug.

"It's so good to see you again, Casey!" she greeted me with a happy grin as she stepped back.

"Welcome back kid," Tony said with a small nod.

"So, does this mean you're staying?" Steve's question made me turn and look back at Natasha and Clint. That I wasn't so sure about. Now that I was a SHIELD agent it meant I might be going on missions more often like those two.

"As long as she isn't needed," Natasha replied with a shrug while Clint grabbed my duffel bag from the quinjet.

I tried not to laugh when he threw it at me. Clearly he wasn't thrilled with the idea of a dragon following them all the way back to New York. I could already imagine all the media trying to figure out what it was and whether or not the dragon was the same one from months ago.

"Needed by who?" asked Bruce with a raised eyebrow.

"It might not be a good idea to tell them," I suddenly murmured, aware that Pepper probably wouldn't approve of the fact that I was now a SHIELD agent.

"Tell us what?" Pepper looked at us all seriously this time, and for a moment I almost wished I'd never said anything at all.

"Casey's a SHIELD agent now," Natasha explained.

For a moment there was dead silence. I braced myself for the shouts that were likely to follow. But to my surprise everyone seemed to understand where Natasha was getting at with this news. I looked around warily and saw that no one seemed to argue with her statement.

"So that's where you've been," Tony suddenly piped up when the room became awkwardly silent.

"Yeah, pretty much…. Wait, you've been trying to find me?" I raised an eyebrow as I looked at him skeptically.

"Well, I haven't but, Pepper and Steve wouldn't let it go if I didn't look up the orphanage Coulson mentioned," Tony explained. I didn't miss the fact that Steve had rolled his eyes when Tony said that. "I had my suspicions."

Well that made sense. Though I was more than surprised that Pepper had been worried enough to look me up at the orphanage. I didn't think I'd left that much of an impression.

"Enough talking, it's time to celebrate that you're back," Pepper announced, clasping her hands together.

I had to laugh when she said that. What she did next made my heart nearly give out. She'd walked into the kitchen and pulled out something from the fridge as everyone gathered inside. I couldn't help but smile when I realized that she went all out and got a cake for me. What really surprised me though was that the icing read 'Happy Birthday Casey!'.

"Y-You didn't have to do this for me," I whispered when she placed it on the counter.

"Actually it was Steve's idea," Pepper explained, glancing at the Super Soldier with a sly grin. Steve just smirked and rolled his eyes when he was pointed out.

"Thank you, really. This has to be the best present anyone could have given me," I sighed out of pure happiness.

...

The rest of the day went by in a blur. Everyone wished me a happy birthday. I wasn't expecting to receive any gifts; just being here was more than enough of a present.

By the time it was all over I was more than exhausted. I excused myself and returned to the room I'd become more than familiar with. Once I was back inside I realized it hadn't changed much. The bed was freshly made, and the windows still had a good view of the city.

"Hey Jarvis, mind playing the song 'Finally Home' by MercyMe?" I couldn't help but ask as I grabbed the photo album Pepper had given me during my first departure.

"As you wish, Miss Anderson," replied the friendly AI.

I couldn't hide the smile as the music began to play. This had always been mom's favorite song. I could still remember her playing it at my grandfather's funeral. That had only been two or three years ago, but it still felt like forever ago.

At long last I was finally home. And I could relax now knowing that I was part of SHIELD. I began to wonder if this life would ever be approved of by my parents. Or if they were still watching over me like mom had always said. Either way I was happy now to be back. And nothing could ever change how much I would always love my family and miss them.

AN: This chapter was kind of bittersweet. I'm happy with the way it ended though, especially the choice in song. Finally Home is definitely going to be my funeral request :') And of course listening to TAN doesn't help either. Anywho, onto review replies!

LadyMorganaPendragon - Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying this so far :) And her story I'd say is better, but that's just me. I'm really thankful you think that, it definitely made my day :)

Currahee506 - XD It shall always remain a mystery :P It is fun to see who all tries to guess it though ;) And I hope this chapter proved to be a good surprise. I didn't get into detail, but there's something even better approaching soon :D