Chapter Six
Four months
Steve rubbed his face as he got off the plane. He really should have shaved before he left but he was running late for his flight and he really did just want a nap. He had to fly to London to negotiate a deal with the British government and MI5 about a co-operative partnership with S.H.I.E.L.D. Mostly he was there as an advisor more than a negotiator, which was more Coulson and Natasha's area. While leaving Wanda and Joey had become fairly routine, it was never easy. It had been a lot worse since she was pregnant. When they were in Wakanda, they were together virtually twenty-four seven and Steve never missed a moment. Though he did think that Wanda would rather him not hover over her, especially since Pietro and Bucky were trying to be helpful but at the same time irritating.
After a quick call to Wanda to tell him he was okay, he showered shaved and put on a pair of smart trousers and a light blue shirt before getting a cab to Downing Street. Natasha and Coulson were already waiting outside the gate and after presenting their passes, they proceeded to number ten. The police officer outside let them through the door and an aide led the three to the Cabinet Room.
It did not take long for Natasha to notice the picture of Steve with Winston Churchill. Before she could say anything, Steve said, "Smart war leader but not the most humble man."
They took their seats in the Cabinet Room and it took Steve about two seconds to notice Sharon sitting opposite him.
"Hey, how you been?" he asked.
"Not too bad. You?"
"Great."
"Excellent."
After the meeting, Steve and Sharon caught up in a cafe. Steve was showing her pictures of Joey. He was such a smiley little thing that Sharon could not help but find him irresistible. "He looks so much like you," she told him. "How much is he like you?"
"Ability wise? He's very strong and he was walking and talking before he turned one."
"Well, he looks to be very happy." She swiped the phone to the next photo where Joey had his hands on Wanda's rounded stomach. "She's pregnant again?"
"Twins. We're hoping for girls."
"You seem to have the life. Then again, I think you both deserve it. You've been through a lot."
"That we have."
"Do ever wish you could have this life with Aunt Peggy?"
"I used to. After I woke up from the ice, I still dreamt of a life in the forties. It's only really stopped since I fell for Wanda. I will always love Peggy but I know she'd hate it if I didn't live a full life."
"She never forgot you. I remember when I was a little girl, I looked through some of Aunt Peg's photo albums from the War. I have to say you two made a very attractive couple."
"Thanks."
Sharon looked at her watch and gulped her coffee down, "I'm sorry, I have to go, but good luck with the twins and keep in touch."
"Will do." Sharon gave him a kiss on the cheek and left. Just before Steve could finish his coffee, his phone rang and it was Wanda. Answering it, he asked, "You okay Doll?"
"Let's just say we've had a breakthrough."
"With what?"
At that point, he did not hear Wanda's voice but instead the slightly broken but overexcited speech of his son, "I… I peepee on potty!"
Steve chuckled. Wanda had been determined to get Joey potty trained before the twins arrived so the fact she had successfully gotten him trained was rather miraculous. At least that was something to lessen the load on them.
-o-
Five months
"Where are you going?" Wanda asked Pietro as he emerged from his room dressed presentably for once. Even Bucky looked confused at Pietro's choice of wardrobe.
"None of your business," Pietro responded. "I'll be back later."
"Okay," Wanda said looking back at the television.
"He's on a date," Bucky concluded.
"You think?"
"I think he's been getting rather close to Daisy."
"Really?"
"You not noticed?"
Wanda had noticed Daisy and Pietro had been talking to one another a fair bit, but enough for a date? She had been more focused on her babies and Joey, as well as just ensuring she was okay, to really take notice of what her twin was doing. Had they really drifted that far apart since they came to the US? She thought about this when she lay in bed and Steve took his turn with Joey's bedtime routine. She took a look at her bump and wondered if her twins would drift apart when they were older as well.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Steve asked when he joined her in bed.
"Have Pietro and I drifted apart?"
"Not really. I don't think you two are attached at the hip like you were but you two are still close."
"It's just that he never told me he was on a date tonight."
"Is he on a date tonight?"
"That's what Bucky said. I just never really noticed him talking to a woman. It's always been him and me."
"But it's not just you and him anymore. It hasn't for a while."
"I know. Maybe when he died, whatever bond we had broke."
"It won't be that. Remember when you said we couldn't be together because you were afraid of abandoning Pietro?"
"What do you think?"
"Well, a lot has happened in the last three years. You had a child, got married. Maybe it's just that you two are grown up."
Wanda nodded. She really had changed in the last few years. For one she was happy. She was more emotionally mature than she was before Ultron. She really had to grow up when she was pregnant with Joey and she had really grown into being a mother. She just was in a happy place and no longer relied on Pietro. And he deserved as much happiness as she did.
-o-
Six months
"I'm just saying it could be worth bumping up some of these second tier Avengers up to first," Steve said. "Scott, Hope and Rhodes seem to be ready."
"What about Daisy?" Pietro suggested.
"Daisy could be good. Peter is still slightly too young." Steve looked up and saw Daisy knocking on the glass door to the conference room. She looked rather antsy so Steve went to the door to see what the problem was. "Daisy what's up?"
"It's Wanda. She slipped on a step and she fell down the stairs. It's not serious but she's in the med bay getting checked out."
With no hesitation, Steve ran to the med bay where Wanda was lying on an examination table, a doctor touching her swollen belly where there seemed to be a bruise forming on the left side. "What happened?" he asked running to her side.
"I missed the step and fell forward and then down the stairs," Wanda explained. "I can still feel kicks so I think the babies are okay."
"Let's just have a look," the doctor said picking up an ultrasound probe. She squirted some gel on Wanda's stomach and moved the probe over the lower part of her belly. Before they knew it there was a strong sound of a heartbeat. "There we go, twin one looks a healthy size. Let's look at twin two." She moved the probe across Wanda's stomach until the second baby came into view and their heartbeat echoed through the room. "Good. Twin two is smaller but not enough to cause concern." Steve breathed a sigh of relief and kissed Wanda's forehead. Wanda felt herself relax knowing that the babies were okay. "Everything looks in order. Would you like to know the sex?"
"Please," Wanda replied too eagerly.
"You're having girls."
Wanda could not have smiled brighter than at moment. Steve grinned and kissed his wife on the lips. Just what they wanted.