Chapter Thirty Seven

A smaller version of me stood in the middle of the room, crying as I stared at what was left of the dollhouse my dad had made. It had been destroyed a few moments ago, and I couldn't even remember why. I wasn't even sure what had triggered the memory. But I knew that no good would come from it.

The room I was in was small, with a bed to the side and a small desk to the other. I remembered this place well. A bin full of toys that I used to play with was placed underneath. The room was usually such a mess that I could barely see the floor.

A figure leaned down and kissed me on the forehead. By now I stopped crying and looked up to see a familiar face staring down at me. Mom. A face I hadn't seen in months, and a face I missed more than I realized.

"Casey, what happened?" she asked, pressing a hand on my shoulder comfortingly. I sniffed and wiped my nose against my sleeve. Mom smiled and gave me a tissue, laughing a little as I sneezed into it. "You'll be okay," she whispered.

"Momma, I broke the dollhouse," I whimpered, pointing to the dollhouse my dad had made for me. It was an exact replica of our farmhouse. The only difference was that the dollhouse had no front side on it, and half of it had been destroyed.

"I'm sure that it wasn't your fault," mom reassured me. The doubt in her voice wasn't exactly comforting. I could remembering being picked up by her at that point. I was small enough that she and dad could carry me without causing any physical pain. She carried me to my bed and placed me there before cleaning up the mess I'd made.

"But it was me who destroyed it!" I yelled. "I-I can't even remember how, but I did!" Mom stopped in her tracks when I said that. She suddenly turned and gave me a look that told me something was wrong. I stopped my sobbing and looked at her through wide eyes.

"Were you angry when it happened?" mom suddenly asked. Her question made me blink. I could barely remember what happened and she expected me to answer that?

"M-Maybe," I answered, still sitting back in my bed. Mom turned around and sat down next to me. I looked at her hopefully.

"None of that was your fault, and don't you blame yourself for it," mom told me. "I'll be sure to get you a new dollhouse, one that's even better than this one."

She kissed me on the forehead and left the room, and me behind. I stared after her for a while, not realizing what she meant by that. I liked the old one. It was special because daddy had made it for me. And now it was gone because I ruined it. It was all my fault, everything.

...

Wind rushed past my face as I flew through the sky. I had changed into the form of a Night Fury. I was running, and I didn't even know why. All I knew was that I needed to get away for a few days. I found myself flying over a familiar landscape, and as I looked down I was tempted to land.

But instinct kicked in and I continued soaring. Something told me that landing wouldn't end well. Especially since my home had changed so much. As I looked down I spotted the farm where my family used to live. The whole place had been burned down recently. I could still smell the acrid tang of smoke in the air that made my lungs burn. I let out a growl of outrage and flew towards the sight, ignoring the thoughts that were screaming in my head.

People were gathered outside the roped area. When I landed I could see their shocked faces staring at me. I let out another warning growl as my tail swept over the debris. Everything I grew up with was gone. All my old clothing, my school work…. Everything.

"Did you hear what happened?" I jumped when I heard that voice. People were talking now, as if they didn't even see me.

"They said it was arsenal, that someone set the place on fire out of spite," a woman replied, her voice sounding grim. "Who would do such a thing? It was a lovely place."

"The family that lived there was murdered," another man whispered. "Even their kid."

"I don't know how people can be so rotten…. I knew that family, and they were good people," another woman said.

"I need everyone to clear the area." I felt my ears pricking forward at that familiar voice. "This place is under government surveillance as of now."

All at once I felt my body changing into the wolf. That voice was so familiar that it was almost frightening. But it was comforting as well. I let out a small whine and padded through the ash that covered the ground. The crowd that had gathered stood back in shock at the sight.

"Casey." Coulson knelt down after realizing it was me. I held back the urge to give him a hug, realizing that something was wrong.

I couldn't change back. I tried focusing on my human form, but I couldn't. My mind was too hazy. By now the crowd had dispersed, and I could hear people shouting at the sight of a huge wolf sitting there.

"I can't change back!" I tried to say, panicking at the thought of never becoming human again. But what I said only became a yip and a howl. Coulson stared at me in alarm when he realized something wasn't right.

I was ready to say something else when I felt something sharp pierce my skin. A bolt of electricity suddenly surged through my body. In the distance I could hear someone shouting, as if they were angry with whatever had happened. By the time Coulson reached my side the world went dark.

...

"I never realized the serum would work on her." Mom's voice rang in the kitchen. I knelt down on the floor, laughing as I drew a picture of what I thought was a wolf.

"We need to be careful," dad said, looking at me anxiously. "Who knows what else the serum is capable of. We only went as far as we could to ensure they wouldn't get their hands on it."

Mom rubbed his hand gently as I wandered into the kitchen, showing them a poorly drawn picture. "Look what I drew!" I said, giggling as dad took the picture and smiled.

"You'll make a great artist one day." I couldn't help but grin at that.

My parents were the best in the world. As I started running through the house I didn't notice they were keeping a close eye on me.

"Do we know if the serum has a permanent effect?" mom asked.

"As far as I am aware, no," dad answered. "But we need to run more test results; I'm afraid the Pure Ones will try going after her now that they know what she can do."

Mom frowned at that, realizing that he was right. They would go after their daughter if given the chance. All it took was one look to know that she was theirs. They had used the serum on Casey as a way to keep it away from them. The moment they found out would put all of their lives in danger.

...

Coulson was beyond livid when agent May had fired a taser at Casey. She had come out of nowhere and thought that Casey was a threat. Though her actions were understandable, they wouldn't go by unpunished. Now Casey was lying in her wolf form unconscious on the BUS.

No one on the team expected him to bring her on board. The moment they realized who she was, Fitz and Simmons went over to see if she was okay. She was only just beginning to wake up when they arrived.

"I've never seen anything like this," Coulson said after the wolf opened her eyes. Recognition lit up within them when she saw Fitz and Simmons, but she was too weak to greet them. "She should have changed back the moment May used the taser."

"It's possible something's wrong with her DNA," Simmons replied. "The serum that was used on her could have altered it in a way that makes it impossible to change back."

"If that's the case than why was she there at all? The Avengers should have been keeping an eye on her." Coulson knelt down and pressed a hand against the wolf's forehead. The wolf barely reacted, only letting out a small whimper at his touch.

It was a pitiful sight. If anything could be done to help her, they would try. But for now she needed to relax. Hopefully something would come up that could help her.

...

"Steve, have you seen Casey?" Natasha had reached the kitchen about an hour after working out in the gym.

Casey had been gone since than. It was obvious that she had run away, but maybe she would have left some kind of clue as to where she would go.

"I haven't seen her since this morning," Steve replied. He frowned when he realized that something was wrong. "Did something happen?"

"I told her the truth about her parents," Natasha explained, her shoulders slumping as she recalled Casey's reaction. The girl hadn't taken it well like they had hoped. "She wasn't happy about what we found out."

"I'm sure she'll be fine," Bruce reassured them after returning from the lab. "She's more than capable of taking care of herself."

Agreement rang between the two of them. After all Casey had been training as a SHIELD agent, and she had her ability to change into a wolf and a dragon. Anyone who fought against her would be in for a nasty surprise.

"Agent Romanoff, you have a phone call waiting for you." Jarvis' announcement made them all look at one another in surprise.

She shrugged it off and headed for her room, only to find a familiar face staring at her on the monitor screen. "Agent May." Her tone was curt and to the point as she stared at the other SHIELD agent.

Melinda May was infamous throughout all of SHIELD. She was known for being strict and to the point. Her loyalty and devotion to SHIELD had made her one of Fury's top picks for missions. The two of them had met a few times here and there. But that was about all Natasha had known about her.

"Agent Romanoff," Melinda replied with an equally curt tone in her voice. "Director Fury wanted me to inform you that Casey is in our custody at the moment," she explained, getting straight to the point. "Until we receive further orders she will be staying with my team."

"And you just expect us to agree with those terms without a fight?" Natasha folded her arms and kept on her poker face, though inside she was fuming.

"I expect you to comply with our orders," Melinda told her. "Casey's in safe hands, we won't let anyone harm her."

The video feed went dark before anything else could be said. Natasha's fists clenched as she typed in a few codes on the keypad.

"Jarvis, can you trace back that call?" she asked.

"I am afraid they blocked their call," the AI replied almost instantly.

At this point Natasha wasn't sure what to do. With Casey gone the tower would be quieter. But it also meant that they had failed as being her guardians. And failure was not an option for her. One way or another, they would bring her back.

...

A few years had passed since I first discovered my abilities. At first I was shocked by them. I didn't know how to react. All I knew was that I needed to keep them a secret. Mom and dad couldn't know about them. So I kept them hidden. I only used them when it was absolutely necessary.

Secretly I started taking classes in archery. It was a challenge between me and Emily, my best friend. I'd surpassed our teacher's expectations, and they gave me my own bow and arrow set to practice with. Which was why I found myself in the middle of a field with a set of targets.

My eyes were focused on the target as I pulled back on the string. That was when I heard the shouting. Recently a few kids had started going missing, and a curfew was set up at night. I shouldn't have been out there in the first place, but I couldn't resist going out to practice. I hated being cooped up in the house when there was so much to do.

The arrow had barely missed it's target when I dropped the bow and stared in disbelief. A girl was being dragged by her arms, by two large looking men. She was unconscious, and blood could be seen through her shirt.

All at once I dropped down to all four, and changed into a wolf. The change had started coming to me naturally. I could feel the intense anger the wolf felt towards the humans for hurting their own. My senses went into overdrive as I charged at the two men.

They let out startled shouts and dropped the girl as I grabbed the first man by the arm with my teeth. Blood suddenly rushed out, and I tried spitting it out as the second man reached for his gun and fired at me. I dodged to the side and bit down on the gun before prying it out of his hands.

"Kill it!" the first man shouted while holding onto his bleeding arm.

"No, she's one of them." I didn't bother waiting to understand what they meant by that. I snapped on the first target and grabbed my teeth around his neck. At that point I was almost as tall as them, and could easily break them if I wanted to.

But I kept myself from doing just that. I just let out another snarl and tossed him aside into his partner. Once the two of them were knocked out, I gently picked up the girl by the shirt and dragged her away from them and the field.

I changed back into a human so fast that it gave me a headache. At that point the girl had finally regained consciousness, and was staring at me in shock.

"It's okay," I whispered as I tried searching for any identification. "You're going to be alright." I knew that I was only trying to convince myself of that. Something deep down told me that I was already too late.

"Don't let them take you," the girl said through raspy breaths. "Don't…."

Her eyes glazed over when she didn't finish. I felt rage burn within me when I realized I was too late. It was the first time I had watched anyone die. And I was beginning to realize at that time that it wouldn't be the last time either.

AN: Well this chapter was fun to write, and the next couple will be too. And thanks for all of the positive feedback, you guys are awesome! :D

LadyMorganaPendragon - XD I know, weird things happen when Thor's involved :P

Guest - Yep, he'll be making a few appearances in the next story too :) And I'm glad you're enjoying it so much! It's been fun writing it :D

WhatIfWeWereDogs - It really was awesome! Though I feel the whole Nat and Bruce thing was a bit forced and rushed. They could have made it more subtle. And seriously, it broke my heart. I loved Clintasha D:

RAINBOWSNEMESIS - That's good to hear ;) And yeah, Tony would be totally jealous :P Things are about to get more exciting and interesting for Casey in the long run, especially if she sticks around with Coulson's team ;)