I've dealt with my ghosts and I've faced all my demons
Finally content with a past I regret
I've found you find strength in your moments of weakness
For once I'm at peace with myself

I've been burdened with blame, trapped in the past for too long
I'm movin' on

At last I can see life has been patiently waiting for me
And I know there's no guarantees but I'm not alon
e...

~I'm Movin' On – Rascal Flatts

-o-

Chapter 53: The Days Turned to Weeks

The days turned into weeks...

The weeks turned into months…

The winter had passed them by and spring was well on its way. February had slowly moved into March and March slowly warmed into April. By the time May had arrived, Ana was a month away from her due date and bigger than she had ever been. The twins had run out of room quite awhile ago but they were thriving on the love between their parents and amongst their family; their pack.

Ana had grown close with Cin's brother over the time since that day by the lily pond and Erai was the needed balm for the missing part that had been Sido's in the pack. With the pack losing and gaining a new member, Ana had found herself taking the place of head, which had been her mother's place originally. Her Aunt Jenn was still mourning the loss of her sister (though she had been getting better thanks to Jarvis' help) and was in no way, shape or form able to take the mantle her sister had left behind. She had been the beta and now it looked as if that place would fall to Bruce. Ana had been given that mantle of alpha and with her own children due to come in a month's time, she found that she had to better prepare herself. This was where Erai had come into play.

Over the weeks, he had learned the English language fluently and even began to pick up French. He had explained to those within SHIELD and within the Dupont group his origins. The history of his people, their role within the Nine Realms -the universe- and how they had come to disappear. He had explained how his realm, his planet, had been trapped in another dimensional plane with the Chitauri, though he did not explain how that had come to pass. He had explained how his twin sister had been the one to discover a rogue portal in their realm that lead back to the Nine Realms. She had been the one tasked with finding a way to contact Asgard, Thor's realm, for help. Along the way, she had lost her memory of her mission. Hence why Ana was the way she was…

All in all, Erai was there solely to find his sister, who had been missing for some thirty odd cycles. In Earth years it could calculate between twenty and fifty years, depending on a few variables. Now that Erai had found his sister and her new pack, his next goal was to find a way to bring Pyragia back into the fold of the Nine Realms. They had been locked away in that other dimension for so long that their population was declining. Erai and Erin had been one of the last of their generation to be born within the last two hundred cycles.

When Erai had been asked how old he was, he couldn't give a definitive answer but it was a given. He was much, much older than he looked. Not quite as old as Thor but Pyragians had a long lifespan. It was a wonder, since Erin had merged permanently with Ana, would Ana live longer than a human because of it?

It was mystery that Tony Stark was very interested it getting to the bottom of but not while Ana was so heavily pregnant. So, while SHIELD, the Dupont group and Stark Industries continued to work together to locate the elusive LIFE Foundation (which had seemed to disappear off the face of the Earth), the family finally felt as if they could all relax and were getting ready for the arrival of the twins that were due in June.

-o-

It was a wonder why Bruce wasn't permanently attached to Ana.

As the due date approached, he was constantly hovering her, checking to see if she was all right. Did she have enough water? Was she hot? Cold? Were the babies ok? Did she need a massage? Did-

"Mon dieu Bruce! Assez!"

Bruce paused in the middle of going to grab her another bottled water and turned around to look at his wife. He studied her in the noonday sunlight streaming in through the windows of their bedroom in the Dupont estate. She was sitting in a blue armchair, her copper brown curls falling loose and frizzy about her round face. Her hands were resting comfortably upon her large belly and the frustrated look on her face wasn't enough to deter the sudden protective love welling in his heart. Even looking so frustrated, she was the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on. Being heavily pregnant with his son and daughter seemed to just make his love for his wife grow to such an extent, he could never find the right words to describe it. He could feel a prod from the Other Guy and the sudden burst of love from the depths of his mind made Bruce smile. Hulk was in full agreement, as usual when it came to their women.

"Bruce, go call Tony. I want Pepper to come here," said Ana, the frustrated look on her face growing when she saw he was smiling for no apparent reason other than that he was happy. He had been doing that a lot lately and it was annoying her. She was carrying two babies in her womb, she was constantly feeling bloated and swollen in her fingers and feet, she could never get comfortable. As far as she was concerned, there was nothing to be smiling about. "And since you're offering, would you get me a sandwich?"

Bruce's smile only grew, knowing that she was frustrated and annoyed with him but he could feel the deep love she had for him through their mental link. No matter how angry she would get with him, he would always feel her love and he couldn't help the happiness. He moved over to her, set the bottle water down on the end table beside her, and leaned down to give her a firm kiss on her lips. "Sure, I'll be right back." He kissed her again before he turned to leave the room.

Once he closed the door behind him, Ana let out a huge sigh and slumped in her chair. She loved the man dearly but he hovered too much. She felt two kicks against her hands and she glanced down at her belly. She smiled fondly at her little ones. "I know my Sunshines… We need a break."

-o-

Bruce walked down the large corridors toward the kitchens as he pulled out his custom Stark smartphone, one of only a handful that belonged to the immediate family. Jarvis had direct and secure access to all of them and so they did to one another. Since Tony and Pepper had to head back to the States for business two months prior, they had to have a secure way of remaining in contact with their brothers and sisters.

"Jarvis, would you-"

"Already ahead of you Dr. Banner," said Jarvis through his phone. "I could not help overhearing. You will be connected to Mr. Stark momentarily. He is, at the moment, preoccupied. However, I had already notified Ms. Pots of Mrs. Banner's request for her to arrive there. She said she will be on the next jet out."

Bruce paused in mid-step, finding Jarvis' communication a little too convenient, but before he could ask the AI what was going on he was already connecting to his best friend. "Tony?"

"Hey there Big Guy," said Tony, his voice sounding a little strained, instantly bringing up the good doctor's suspicions. Tony never sounded strained, even at his worst moments. "Jarvis told me Ana wanted Pepper out there first thing. Is everything all right? Did her water break? If you need me to I'll fly straight out of Malibu and-"

Hearing the strained tone in the uncle-to-be's voice now made more sense, Bruce began to relax and he continued making his way to the kitchens. "No, no, Tony, everything's fine. I've just been driving her crazy with my worry. She wants a break and Pepper would be a welcome distraction." He made his way into the kitchens, giving a nod to the kitchen staff that worked there. They gave him various greetings in French and English, already knowing why he was there. Many of them had smiles on their faces and were already helping him get together the sandwich his wife was craving for.

"How soon will Pepper be here?"

Tony didn't answer right away and Bruce's suspicions were rising slightly. He seemed distracted…

"She'll be there by tomorrow, she's taking one of my private jets." He seemed to hesitate before his voice came through again. "She's going to be bringing an old colleague of mine along with her. It's sort of a last minute thing but considering my little sister wants Pepper there as soon as possible I hope you don't mind the extra guest."

Bruce frowned at this and he took in a deep breath to calm his rising heartbeat. A stranger, even if they were an old colleague of his best friend, was still a stranger. They would be close to his wife and unborn children and considering how close to the due date they were, he wasn't too comfortable about it. "Who is this colleague of yours?"

Again, Tony sounded distracted, but his voice was suddenly rushing from the other end. "Her name is Maya Hansen. Don't worry, she was a good a friend mine back in the day."

"You mean an old girlfriend," said Bruce, already knowing Tony well enough to read between the lines. He took the sandwich that was already done by the kitchen staff from the counter, smiling at his employees (it was still a strange thought to him) in thanks, before he left the kitchens and headed back to his wife. "Fine… She'll be welcome to stay here but she only stays in the guest section of the house and stays as far away from my wife as possible, understood?"

"Big Guy, you know I would hurt myself before I would ever let anything happen to Ana or Pepper," said Tony, now sounding like his old self. Bruce couldn't help the smile at hearing the offended tone, this was the Tony he knew. "You know if anything were to happen that would be a potential threat to you and Ana, Jarvis and Jenn will be the first to let you know."

"All right," said Bruce after a moment's hesitation. "I trust you and Pepper. This Maya Hansen? Be sure to warn her what she's going to be coming to. I'm very protective of what's mine. Add an alien brother-in-law and an ever watchful genius hacker hooked to your AI, you know better than anyone that she's going to be in for a world full of hurt if she brings any trouble with her."

Tony didn't respond right away, there was a moment's silence, seeming as if his attention was elsewhere. When he finally responded to Bruce, his tone matched that of his best friend's. "Pepper's filling her in on the warning. You have my word that if she brings any trouble to your doorstep, you do what you have to keep our family safe Bruce."

-o-

(A/n) I'm on vacation! I will have time to write this week, a few pages here and there but I will be updating! Yay! Thanks for always being awesome everyone!