"G'morning, Mom," Megan mumbled as she opened the basement door. "Did you sleep okay?"

"After a bit. Greg and I were up rather late talking," her mother said from where she was sitting at the dining room table.

"Everything okay?" Megan asked, trying to ignore the queasy knot forming in her stomach. There was something extra in her mother's voice that had her on alert. It was too early for her to manage this kind of head game.

"Yes, but I want to talk to you about a decision Greg and I came to. Come sit down."

"Mom, I need food. I need caffeine. I'm barely awake. Can you give me ten minutes?" Megan tried not to sound like she was begging even though that's exactly what she was doing. She took the tea kettle to the sink to fill.

"Okay, but don't wait too long. I want to talk to you before Steve and Greg get back."

Megan put the kettle on to heat, cursing the early hour under her breath. She was so tired. "Where are they?"

"Out at the pond. Or at breakfast, whichever they did first. But they left at about five-thirty and it's already after ten. I expect them to get back any minute."

She felt her hands getting clammy. "Please tell me Greg isn't giving him the shovel talk."

"I have no idea what that is."

"The 'I have a shovel and nearly forty acres of woodland, so if you hurt Megan, they'll never find the body' talk often given by overprotective family members. Nothing is official yet. We're just talking." Why had Steve told them about their discussions of marriage last night? "I need use the bathroom," she mumbled, not even waiting to hear her Kathy's answer. This was bad. Had they figured out that she and Steve were not as serious as they'd implied? It seemed unlikely. They were both falling for each other so one could hardly accuse them of bad acting. Had they figured out that the security guy yesterday was there to protect them? Or worse, had they received a threat of some sort and finally connected it to Steve and Megan?

Megan studied her image in the mirror and wanted the person looking back to give her answers. Instead, she saw a bleary-eyed non-morning person trying to wake up. She wanted Steve to be back now. Or never… so she could stay in the bathroom and hide for the next year.

Exactly twelve minutes later, Megan fixed her second cup of tea and sat down across from her mother. She decided that she'd say as little as possible and keep her mother talking. That way, she'd have less chance of saying too much. "What's going on?"

"Greg and I plan to adopt Steve."

"What? It's early, Mom. Don't talk in riddles."

"He needs a family. Whether or not you two get married, we want him to feel he can come visit us any time he wants and spend holidays here if he chooses. He's going to get nagging calls from me reminding him to take his vitamins and eat his vegetables. That man broke my heart last night with the way he was so happy just to join us for dinner and a game. His friends from the army are all dead, his first girlfriend has Alzheimer's, and he has no living family to speak of. No one should be that alone and we're not going to let it continue. Greg's talking to him and showing him the property out at the pond so Steve can go there any time he wants to get away. He's also giving him a key to the house. If you two break up, you'll just have to schedule your visits at different times or learn to play nice when you're both here.

"Isn't this all too sudden and too soon?" Megan asked softly.

"Touché." Kathy pinned Megan with her eyes and she felt like she was five years old again, unable to move or speak after talking back to her mom and getting reprimanded for it. "I'm glad Steve is insisting on a long engagement, if there is an engagement, and I think you are, too. He's right about his point that there are a lot of extra things you both need to consider seriously. Greg and I totally agree. But darn it if he doesn't get under your skin like a tick spreading Lyme disease. Before you know it, he's past your defenses. Worst of all, he's so genuinely good and honest about everything, you don't even care you lowered your guard. I don't think he has a deceptive bone in his body."

"Mom, he's human. He has flaws just like the rest of us, including an overinflated sense of responsibility for everything that happens. He knows how to lie and I've watched him do it. He's overprotective, terrible about talking about his feelings, and thinks riding a motorcycle is the best way to travel, although he does wear a helmet and bought me one so I'd do the same. He's neat to the point of being anal and so private about some things I don't think he'll ever let me in. Do you realize that after all this time, I've still never been to his apartment? Not even once. So don't put him on a pedestal. He's a guy with a WHY chromosome who suffers from testosterone poisoning just like the rest of them."

"And you love him."

"That, too."

"I'm glad you cleared that up," Greg said as he opened the door and came in, followed by Steve.

Megan just put her forehead on down on the table and whimpered softly.

"Megan? Your dad and I caught a bunch of bass. You never showed me how you cook fish." Steve said as he toed off his shoes.

"Fish are friends, not food." Megan mumbled, banging her head on the table again.

"Sorry, Dory, but I like fish." Steve told her in that perpetually upbeat and cheerful tone that was positively grating at this hour of the morning. "Want to come help me clean them?"

"No, I do not want to dissect your damn fish for you. I want to go back to bed and sleep until a respectable hour." Megan pulled herself up with a sigh and went over to Steve. Can you believe this? I'm happy for you, but can you believe this!? She asked with her eyes as she leaned into him for a much needed hug.

She could practically read the thought balloon over his head. No, I can't. I like your parents but this is unreal.

Steve and Greg feasted on grilled fish for lunch while Kathy and Megan ate leftovers from the night before. The meal was followed by several rounds of card games, including canasta and 500 bid. While they played, Megan kept teasing Steve with her feet under the table. She was pretty sure her parents were oblivious, but pretending not to notice a game of footsie worked just as well. As long as Steve kept smiling like he had been all day, she'd be satisfied. As exhausted and beaten down as he had been on Friday, he seemed to be rested and recharged now. Nothing had changed about the challenges they faced, but getting away had done them both a lot of good.

"I'm going to put an apple pie in the oven," Kathy said, getting up from the table to turn on the oven when it was Greg's turn to deal for the next hand.

"Mom, we still have cake left."

Kathy shook her head. "You're taking that with you. Are you going to argue too, Steve?"

"I've done a lot of stupid things in my life, but turning down homemade apple pie isn't one of them."

"Says the man who jumps out of an airplane without a parachute," Megan muttered under her breath.

"What?" Greg asked, looking up sharply from the cards he was shuffling.

Steve shrugged. "Only over water and only when we're coming in low enough. If I can dive alongside the ship and climb on board before the rest of the team, I reduce their risks. Even at night, 'chutes can make good targets." He looked at Megan. "How did you hear?"

"I'm not telling."

Kathy put one hand on her hip as she looked at Steve. "Why do I get the impression you gave your mother grey hair from the time you learned to walk?"

He just grinned and shook his head. "I don't think she had any idea of half the stuff Bucky and I got up to."

"I doubt that," Greg said. "She probably just didn't want to say anything. It's much more fun if you think you're getting away with something."

"You would know, dear." Kathy said before she headed downstairs to get a pie from the freezer.

Steve smiled at Megan, was clearly enjoying the loving banter between her parents as much as she was. He got up to refill his water. As he stood by the refrigerator sipping his water, he asked, "How about you, Megan? You've never told me what antics you got up to as a child."

She rolled her eyes. "I have nothing to share. I was the perfect, boring child."

"No one is that well behaved."

"Ask Mom."

"Ask me what?" Kathy said as she came back upstairs.

"Steve doesn't believe was I was the perfect, boring child."

"She really was. She made think all the expert parenting books were right. When she was just a toddler, I didn't have to childproof. I'd tell her the outlet was hot and she left it alone. There was a period of time when I felt pretty smug about my parenting skills. Then her brother came along and showed me how little I knew. Rebellion for Megan was reading under her covers with a flashlight after bedtime. It all balances out in the end, though. Now I get to worry about her begin attacked by strangers and left for dead in the street."

"Mom, I'm okay."

"This time. I'm not saying I want you to give up your dreams, Megan. I'm saying I worry."

"To excess, if you ask me," Greg added. "If you don't have something to worry about, you worry about that!"

"I can't help it. But you have to give me credit for not clipping your wings as a result."

"I do, Mom. Will it make you feel better to know I'm learning self defense?"

"Actually, yes. It won't protect you in every situation, but it will improve your odds. But isn't it hard for you to fit a class in by the time you get home?"

Megan shook her head. "There's a gym on the S.H.I.E.L.D. campus. Unfortunately for me, that means I get to train every day." She winked at Steve when he looked over at her after checking his watch.

"Speaking of work, what time do you want to leave?" he asked.

"Never. But we should probably head out by three or so. We need to go down to Morgantown and pick up 68 so we don't get caught in any Sunday evening gridlock in Breezewood. It's a prettier drive, but a bit longer and with fewer places to stop. We can get dinner in Hancock and be home around nine."

Steve nodded his agreement and sat back down at the table.

"I wish you weren't so far away," Kathy mused.

"I know, Mom, but it could be a lot worse. If I were down in Research Triangle Park, it would be a lot harder to get home for a weekend visit. California would be worse yet. Do you guys think you'll be able to make it down this summer?"

"I think so. It will be nice to see where you've settled."

"I hear there's a new temporary exhibit opening in July in the Air and Space museum," Greg said blandly while looking pointedly Steve.

"Not my idea. And the disagreements about who owns my stuff have been a bit frustrating, too."

"Do you have any lawyers working on your behalf?" Greg wanted to know.

"Stark does. Without his help, I think they'd try to put me on exhibit, too." He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Opening weekend is going to be a lot of miserable P.R. I may as well be back in the U.S.O."

Kathy sat down after putting the pie in the oven and picked up her hand of cards to examine. "Is there any way you can take back control of their agenda without asking?"

"What do you mean?" Steve asked looking at his own cards. He sorted them quickly.

"Well, Megan said you went to the children's hospital now and then to visit the kids there. What if some of the stronger ones or those that have been able to go home since you last saw them got their own tour of the exhibit with you? It would take some of the focus off you and give them some extra attention. The press would love it. If you can set it up without the involvement of the politicians ahead of time, all the better. Let them be surprised when they're pushed out of the spotlight by a bunch of children. What are they going to do about it? They know they don't dare complain about seriously ill kids where the press can overhear them. If they do, they can kiss any hopes of reelection good-bye."

"You are a devious woman, Kathy," Greg said as he smiled at her. "I like the idea. But that sort of thing is going to require a lot of logistical planning for both the hospital and the museum. Do you have someone who can help them coordinate it that can also keep it secret?"

"Jarvis." Megan and Steve both said as they looked at each other. Steve put down his cards and pulled out his phone.

"Jarvis, I have a favor to ask," he said as he got up to pace.

"Jarvis?" Greg looked at Megan questioningly.

"An employee with Stark Industries who is extraordinarily gifted at anything involving computers or planning. From what I can tell, if you ask Jarvis to do something, it just happens. It's like magic," Megan explained, keeping her voice low so as to avoid interfering with Steve's phone call. "It's a good idea, Mom. He's going to dread that all a lot less now that he's taken control of it a bit."

"Maybe we'll take them next time," Megan told Steve when the game was over. Despite playing multiple games, they had been unable to beat Greg and Kathy at five-hundred bid.

"When they come down to D.C.," he agreed, eating his last bite of pie. "You are welcome to stay at my place. I have a spare bedroom and live pretty close to the Metro. It would spare you the expense of a hotel room, too."

Megan watched her parents hold a discussion with their eyes. It always fascinated her how they could do that without saying a word. Kathy was hesitating, obviously remembering what Megan had told her earlier about Steve being very private. But Greg and Steve had not come inside yet, so Megan didn't think he knew she had never been to Steve's apartment. Even so, Greg seemed to know what his wife was thinking and was leaving it up to her, though he somehow made his preference known.

"I mean it," Steve told both of them. "I'll make sure Megan has a key in case I'm sent out on a mission."

Kathy nodded, apparently conceding to Greg's view. "Okay, we'll do that."

"Good." He looked at Megan, who sighed.

"I know, it's getting to be that time." She sighed and stood up. "I'm going to go get my suitcase from downstairs."

Steve watched her go. "Leaving is hard on her."

"It's hard on all of us," Greg said. "But the career she wants won't happen in a small town like this one."

"And the weather bothers her, too." Kathy added as she collected up the pie plates and silverware.

"What's wrong with the weather?"

"Lake effect skies." Kathy explained. "She doesn't mind the snow, but we're close enough to Lake Erie that we have a lot of overcast days, especially in winter but even in summer. The lack of sunlight really bothers her and by January, she's likely to have a rough go of it. It doesn't bother me, but a lot of people in the area are sensitive to it. Megan is one of them."

"I'm another," Greg added. "February is a tough month for me. Now that we're both retired, I'm seriously thinking about heading south for week or two each winter just to get some sunlight."

"We get plenty of that in D.C. You're always welcome." Steve stood up. "I'm going to go get my bag. Do you want me to strip the bed?"

Kathy shook her head. "Don't worry about it. Doing it one-handed won't be easy for you and it's better for me to keep busy when you leave."

Despite Megan's protests, Steve carried their bags and his shield out to the car. His only concession to his injury was that he made two trips since the bags were too awkward to carry in one hand at the same time.

Megan followed him with their jackets and tossed them in the backseat.

"You okay?"

She took a deep breath and nodded. "Give me ten miles and I'll pull it together. It's always hard to leave. No matter how often I visit, it never gets easier. But I can't have the career I want here and they aren't moving closer. I compartmentalize it pretty well once the first ten miles or so are behind me."

Steve nodded. "I get it."

"I know you do. Let's get this done. Drawn out good-byes just prolong the misery," she said as she headed back to the house.

"Don't forget the cake," Kathy said, handing Megan the leftovers that she'd carefully wrapped in plastic before giving Steve a hug. "Call or email any time. Don't be a stranger."

"I won't," he promised before shaking Greg's hand.

Megan handed Steve the cake and hugged her stepfather, then her mother. "This weekend was just what we needed. I wish we could stay longer."

Kathy looked up at her daughter and held her by the shoulders. "I'm proud of you. Call me when you get in."

"I always do. Love you." Megan wiped the tears away. "Never gets easier."

"No, but it's okay," her mother said. "We love you, too. Drive safely."

Megan nodded and took the cake back from Steve. He opened the door and followed her out. "We should put this on the floor in the back."

"I'll get the door." Megan opened the passenger side door and held it open while Steve set the cake down.

"Chin up," he told her softly, so her parents wouldn't hear.

She just nodded. Her parents stood at the top of the driveway watching them silently. Steve opened her door for her and closed it behind her before going around to get in. He was still fumbling with his seatbelt by the time Megan had her own fastened and the car started. She backed out of the driveway, gave a quick wave and a flash of the headlights before the house, blurred by tears, disappeared in her rearview mirror.

Megan took another deep breath and tried to focus on the life she was heading back to. "I think we pulled it off. Other than that one time when Greg seemed to help distract my mom from being watched, they didn't act like they realized the danger I've put them in. I feel better knowing someone is watching the house."

"You didn't put them in danger, Megan. That's on me."

He sounded as responsible as she had been feeling. Megan laughed through her tears. "Will you listen to us? We're arguing over who gets to be responsible for the actions of unknown criminals. We're both being stupid."

Steve chuckled. "I guess we are. New topic: what size bed do your parents have?"

"King. Why?"

"My spare room is completely empty at the moment. I may as well get the same size bed as they are used to using." He hesitated, then added, "…unless you don't think they'll visit."

The vulnerability in his voice was like a knife twisting in her gut. "Oh, they'll visit. They might even come see me while they're in town."

"Do you mind?"

"No. I'm thrilled for you. You're finally starting to build a support system outside of S.H.I.E.L.D. That's a good thing."

"Only until they know how we've deceived them."

"Just the opposite. Mom is going to be ecstatic to know you're a kindred spirit in the overprotective department. When they learn the lengths you went to in order to protect them, and me, you'll never hear the end of it. You're family now, Steve, and they aren't going to let you go for anything."