Hey all! Finally, I bring you the epilogue of this crazy long story. I'd like to take the time to thank everyone who has reviewed, subscribed, and favorited What if: A new Legacy! You all have been such a big help, as this story has been impeccably hard to write.
Special thanks to IronAmerica for all of the helpful hints and suggestions, as well as putting up with my whining and griping about redoing plot over and over again. And, of course, many thanks to XxDeathStarxX, for all of the lovely reviews and comments along the way.
Now, before my A/N gets any longer, here's the new chapter. I own nothing.
What if: A new Legacy- Epilogue: A new Legacy
As the years went on in the Faraday home, stranger things seem to happen more and more frequently. By the age of five, Jolie had started to experience headaches that just wouldn't go away. Vince and Orwell knew that they had to do something, in turn, they took their younger twin to the doctor repeatedly, but nothing ever came of it. There was no real proof that Jolie was ill like her mother and grandfather, but it still worried Orwell.
Julie, on the other hand, showed no signs of prolonged headaches. What she did show signs of, however, was a growing interest in superheroes, especially women superheroes. She claimed that she was going to be a superhero like her daddy was, with the help of Uncle Max's cape, of course.
Vince wasn't so sure about all of that. If anyone would have taken over as the Cape, he always thought that it would be Trip. However, the oldest Faraday child had become close with his stepfather and eventually went to work with him on the docks. While Dana and Vince both had fainting incidents once their son told them about his new sought out profession, he promised them that he would be the good guy amongst everyone else.
The former vigilante and his wife had to get used to all of that, but not before welcoming in the second Faraday boy. James turned out to be a mini Vince. He was energetic, happy-go-lucky, and very adventurous. However, like his mother, he was highly intelligent. Later on in his life, he would become a rich businessman, one that would put his grandfather to shame.
Fate had worked its way into Vince's life and turned it around for the better. He and Dana split up because both of them had someone else that needed them more. Fate was inevitable. Whether it was a good or a bad thing depended on how you lived your life.
-0-
Vince had always been protective over his kids. No matter how old they were, he would always be this way. On the day that Trip was supposed to come home for his college graduation party, the sandy blonde and brunette gathered their rugrats and headed over to the home where Dana and Scales lived.
Orwell had made it clear that she wanted to be there early, to beat the traffic that would come from the Fourth of July weekend. Not only that, but also both Dana's and Vince's family would be coming out of the woodworks for this special event. She was comfortable with the whole blended family by now, but she liked to get there early enough to help Dana set up and finish cooking, if need be.
Thirteen year olds Jolie and Julie loved going over to Aunt Dana's house. This was mostly because they got a big kick out of Uncle Dominic bullying their father and spoiling them and their little brother. James ate the attention up, especially at family functions. Even Dana's family adored the ten-year-old.
Most of the blended family functions consisted of the Raoul and the Faraday households, plus both Dana's and Vince's parents. Even Natalie tried to come whenever she could.
For the day's particular adventure, both sets of Trip's grandparents and his step-grandmother were supposed to come by. When Vince and Orwell pulled up into the driveway, however, it was safe to say that they were the first to arrive.
The Raoul household wasn't the apartment that Dana and Trip stayed at way back when in 2011. The home was located just on the outskirts of Palm City; it was a quaint one-story home. Dana didn't need much else. She was happy with it, just the way it was.
Orwell and Vince walked up the front steps, ahead of their children who were trailing behind as they studied anything and everything that they saw. A little butterfly that went fluttering by distracted Jolie. The little brother, who was studying a flag across the street as it writhed against the random breeze that shifted towards it, distracted Julie.
The brunette mother turned around as her husband knocked on the front door leading to the Raoul house. She folded a brunette lock behind her ear as it obscured her view when the wind blew her way. Her children were piddling along, not really paying attention to much else.
"Jolie, Julie, James, are you three coming?" the blogger asked, arching an eyebrow back at them.
Orwell's children jerked their heads in the direction of her voice. All three of them smiled sheepishly, which they most likely picked up from their father, before hurrying after the brunette and sandy blonde.
When the family stepped inside, a sweet scent of peppermint candles shot up their nostrils. The brunette kissed each of her children before they ran off, presumably to find Dana. Before joining them, Orwell dropped off her purse on the set of chairs that came to view as soon as you got into the house. Vince then draped an arm around his wife's shoulders and walked with her to the kitchen, which was the next room over.
When the former vigilante and blogger walked into the kitchen, the aroma of coffee overpowered the scent of peppermints. Dana stood at the stove, stirring a boiling pot that sat on the back burner. In the back of the kitchen, Trip sat at a glass table that was right under an open window. The sunlight shone down on the table, creating a spectrum of colors on the middle of the table. Neither the twins nor James were in there, the strawberry blonde had sent them to help their Uncle Dominic set the table.
As the twenty-three-year-old picked his head up from the laptop that he had in front of him, a grin found its way onto his face. This was the first time that he had seen his father and stepmother since Spring Break earlier that year.
"Hey, kiddo," Vince grinned back at his son, which prompted him to get up and give his father a hug. What the former vigilante appreciated about his son was that he was never too old to hug his dad. Vince had been afraid for quite awhile after he came back from being dead, that his son would never forgive him. Thirteen years later, it was as if everything was as it always had been.
After Trip broke the hug with his father, it was his stepmother's turn. Orwell didn't hesitate one bit; she hugged him back with as much affection as she did with her biological children.
"Good to see you again, sweetie," the brunette mother replied as they broke apart.
"Yeah," the young adult grinned, "been forever."
"Just a little bit," Orwell spoke as a small smile curled into her lips.
Dana looked back at the family members behind her and threw over her shoulder, "I told him that he had to live somewhere close to home. Otherwise we'd miss him too much."
Trip let out a nervous laugh, just as his father would do when he was holding something back. "Mom, you know I'll visit whenever I can."
The brunette mother jokingly rolled her eyes just as Vince gently placed his hands on her hips and brought her to lean against his chest. "But Dana, didn't he say that during Spring Break? And Christmas Break?"
"Hmm…" the strawberry blonde contemplated from her spot in front of the stove. "Now that you mention it Jamie…"
"I swear this time," Trip called over to his mother and stepmother. He then walked back over to his laptop and shut the screen. "Plus, I'm gonna have to stay here in Palm City 'cause of work."
The blogger arched an eyebrow back at her stepson. "You've already gotten a job and we didn't hear about it?"
"Yeah, bud," Vince added with a skeptical, but playful, smirk on his face. "What are you going to be doing?"
The young adult looked between his three parental figures. "All playfulness aside? Dominic offered me a job on the docks."
The words went in one ear and out the other for Dana and Vince. Within the next moment, they fainted almost simultaneously.
-0-
The former vigilante came to about five minutes later. He groaned slightly and turned his body, coming to realize that he was laying on his wife. His head was supported against her chest as she gently ran her fingers through his hair. A hum accompanied her affectionate touch. Her warm brown eyes carefully watched her husband, waiting for him to stir back into consciousness.
"What happened?" Vince asked quietly, his eyelashes fluttering repeatedly. "Ow," he murmured as he sat up next to his wife. "Why do I feel like I got hit with a couple of baseball bats again?"
Orwell stopped humming and spared him a tiny smile. "You passed out, sweetheart."
The sandy blonde groaned and rubbed the back of his head, catching sight of something from the corner of his eye. As he turned his head, a bit too quickly, he saw Dana on the couch across from where he sat with his wife. She was currently babbling under her breath, something that confused the hell out of Vince.
"Is Dana okay?" he asked worriedly.
"Oh God, you don't remember?" the brunette mother murmured, taking in an inward breath moments later. "You can't remember what Trip said like ten minutes ago?"
Vince took a moment to think about that. However, it was only a moment more for his memory to come flooding back. He leaned forward and cradled his head in his hands. "Why did you have to remind me, Orwell?"
The blogger rubbed her husband's back consolably. "Would you rather be oblivious?"
The former vigilante sighed and ran a rough hand over his face. "I guess it's a little too late now…" His wife remained quiet and interlocked their fingers together.
Despite the silence that came from the other side of the living room, Dana was still mumbling to herself. Her husband sat next to her and tried to talk her out of it. The strawberry blonde wasn't really listening, though; she was still trying to figure out why Scales didn't tell her first. She knew that she would get over it, eventually, but it was just the initial shock that she had to deal with.
Trip had the biggest amount of guilt hanging over his shoulders; he didn't know that his parents would have this sort of reaction. Sure, it was a big deal, but his mom trusted Scales enough, didn't she? It wasn't like he would be reinforcing his stepfather to smuggle illegal goods into Palm City, as of late he hadn't been smuggling anything illegal. And with Trip there, it would definitely stay that way.
When the twenty-three-year-old walked into the living room, he was happy to see his parents upright again. His mother was talking to her husband again, which was nice to see. His father, on the other hand, was chugging down coffee. Orwell still sat next to him, gently rubbing his back as he did so.
"Hey guys," Trip nervously began. He felt as though he was ten again, coming to talk to his parents after doing something seriously bad. In turn, the adults looked back at him. "The food's ready. I got the little ones to pitch in after the whole… fainting fiasco…" he added, equally nervous as before.
The older adults stared back at him, which only amplified his anxiety. However, when his mother got up and spared him one of her amazing 'mom' smiles, he knew that he didn't screw up.
His father was a whole different story, in all honesty. Vince still had a hard time dealing with his ex-wife being married to a criminal, but now that his son was going to work alongside him? That was definitely going to take some getting used to. Trip could only hope that his stepmother would talk some sense into him.
-0-
It wasn't long after that, that other family members started to arrive. Natalie Fleming arrived first, much to her daughter's delight. The elder Fleming had since given ARK over to Orwell. She didn't really see the need to keep the business; every day Natalie grew older, which only gave her brain tumor a more prominent chance of returning. Now that her daughter was finally in charge, ARK was one less thing that she had to worry about.
Trip and his step-grandmother got along very well. When she saw him this time around, she had to gush about how much he looked like his father. As there was no way that Orwell could deny her twins, Vince couldn't deny his older son in the least bit.
About fifteen minutes after Natalie arrived, Monica and Kenneth Thompson made their appearance. Dana's parents had high expectations of their daughter so, needless to say, when she married a criminal, her parents weren't happy at all. They knew that he made Dana happy, so they tried their best to be happy too. Scales did end up growing on them, though, as they came to realize that he was a gentleman at heart. Orwell, on the other hand, the Thompsons loved her from the beginning. They also tended to bond with Natalie and even formed a friendship that way.
The elder Faradays, April and Vince Sr. were the last to arrive. Vince's mother loved everyone, but his father wasn't that easily impressed. Orwell, he had no problem with. With Scales, though, something wasn't quite right. It was as if they had past connections. Maybe it was something more than just connections. Not even Dana knew what it was, which worried her to no end. However, despite the differences between them, both men kept themselves restrained.
With all of the family there, dinner was finally served. Several different conversations were heard around the dinner table as they ate. Some were directed to Trip, just as some were directed to the twins and James. More times than not, Trip was asked where he would be working at now that he had graduated. Nervously, he told them that his stepfather had offered him a job. Reactions varied from shock to discomfort, but thankfully no one fainted like Vince and Dana did.
-0-
In a few hours time, the former vigilante and his wife were back at home. The children were playing in the living room, where their parents sat on the couch watching an old sitcom from back in the early 2000s. Jolie and Julie were trying to get their little brother to play Scrabble, but he wanted to play Sorry! instead. The three of them were beginning to get into an argument about it, something that neither parent could ignore for very long.
"Didn't we play sorry yesterday?" Jolie whined. She held up the box that contained Scrabble as she complained to her little brother.
"Nuh-uh, it was scrabble we played yesterday! 'Sides, you and Julie always beat me with bigger words!" James fought back, holding up his game.
"You're a smart boy," Julie threw back with a teasing smirk that could only come from a mini-Orwell. "I'm sure you'll do fine playing us again."
The mother of three tilted her head up from where it laid on his chest and stared up at him. Those three just never knew when to quit, did they?
Orwell's husband noticed her watching him and gently brought his neck down to her level. The former vigilante placed a kiss on her lips and smiled against them as they slowly broke apart. "Are we going to have to do something with them?" he whispered.
"Sounds like we're going to have to," Orwell began, a sigh escaping her lips.
"Maybe we can get them to go to bed early," Vince teased as he trailed kisses down her jaw line.
The brunette mother whacked his chest playfully. "Not so fast, Tarzan. That was easy when they were four years old. Not so easy now."
The former vigilante picked his wife's hand up and placed a kiss on each of her fingertips. "Well, we could leave them downstairs. The girls know how to handle their little brother."
Orwell shot her husband one of her famous 'you've gotta be kidding me' looks. "And you honestly think that they would stay down here?"
"Why wouldn't they?" Vince asked, an adorable pout in place.
"Kids are curious. And nosey. Yes, the girls have had the birds and the bees speech, but James is still a little young. If they get too curious, they'll try to come in the room with us," the blogger replied matter-of-factly.
"We can lock it," the sandy blonde added hopefully with a sheepish grin.
Orwell pressed a quick kiss to her husband's lips. "Calm down and wait your turn," she paused, a smirk curling into her lips, "we'll have our own game a little later."
Vince didn't need to be told anymore. He just shut up and went back to his TV show. The kids went on with their argument and Orwell went back to snuggling with the sandy blonde while she kept an eye on their arguing kids. All was well with the world.
-0-
Vince and Orwell crashed back down onto their respective pillows, completely out of breath. The sandy blonde had finally played his favorite game and he had enjoyed every minute of it.
Vince turned his body to face his wife. Her normally pale face was flustered beet red and her hair was a disheveled mess. "You still look beautiful, you know," he whispered to her, placing a kiss on her bare shoulder.
A little smile complimented her flushed face "Even when I'm knotted up in a bed sheet, my face is all red, and my hair is a mess?"
"Well that just makes you adorable," the sandy blonde grinned down at her, to which she secured herself against him.
Vince and Orwell fell quiet for a moment as they tried to get their heart rates back down and catch their breaths.
The former vigilante took in one last deep breath before he spoke again. "I'm kinda worried about this whole Scales thing…"
The blogger sent him a look. "Vince, honey? Are you not telling me something?"
"No…?" Vince started in a dumbfounded tone. "Why do you ask, baby?"
"Because, when a man talks about another man after having sex with his wife…" Orwell began, only to be cut off prematurely.
"What? No! Orwell, I was talking about Trip," the sandy blonde countered, "you know, he took that job working for Scales."
The brunette mother picked her head up and melded their lips together in an affectionate kiss. As they broke apart, she gently smiled down at her husband. "Trip is twenty-three. He knows what he wants to do and it looks like he'll do anything to do it."
"I know," Vince sighed and sat up against the headboard, to which his wife followed suit. "I'm still just worried about him."
Orwell sighed and laughed to herself. "If it's not me worrying, it's you."
The former vigilante laughed in spite of himself. "I guess that's why we make such a good team."
The blogger leaned against her husband's shoulder. "Vince, you just need to stop worrying. Dana won't let anything happen to him and I highly doubt Dominic would either."
"I know," Vince repeated from before. However, unlike last time, a smirk was playing at his face. "But I'm gonna need something to get my mind off of this whole ordeal."
Orwell smirked to herself and turned her back to him. "Well, there is a magazine on your side of the bed," she teased.
"Orweeeell," he whined. "Why do you have to be such a big tease?"
The brunette turned her back around with that playful smirk growing wider by the second. "Because you make such a big deal about it."
Vince opened his mouth wide in mocked-shock, which prompted a chuckle from his wife.
"I love you, silly," Orwell said in between her giggles.
The former vigilante dropped the playful act and pressed a kiss to her temple. "I love you too, gorgeous."
After all of this time, and after everything they had been through, it seemed as though they were indestructible. However, even those relationships needed work.
For Vince and Orwell, they had given up everything to keep their love strong, and they'd be damned if they let anything screw that up.
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