Sorry for the long time between chapters, I had a lot of trouble figuring out how to get this one done and the next one started (when it's done, I'll publish it, promise). Not to mention that all the ideas I had were to other stories, mainly the ones I never published because I don't think I like them enough (not yet at least).
Just letting you know that this chapter and the next will be a LOT of Ava, Nine, Steve and Natasha. Family time all around.
Thanks for all the support and the comments, they make me really happy and encourage me to keep going. Please let me know what you think.
Promise to try and be good about the frequency that I publish new chapters, but sometimes its really hard to figure out how my characters will react to things, like they're taking such a complex shape that, if I make them do the wrong thing, they will jump out of the computer and ask me 'what the hell?'. Or as Ava and Nine would put it: Anyone with a functional level of intelligence would be able to tell I would never do that in those circumstances. Do better or never try again.
Living on the run wasn't easy. Of course, part of the reason was the lack of comfort, the need to hide one's face, to blend in to the background. To Steve, the lack of purpose, was another. The lack of a mission. Ever since he came out of the ice, Steve had never been on the bench. He was always able to be in the field. And he didn't know when he would be able to get out of it now.
The worse part, though, was leaving Ava behind. He had a daughter, and he wasn't there to help her.
She was so smart, so capable, so strong. But she had so much to learn, he wanted to be there to teach her. To show her that it was alright to feel. That there was a difference between who she was and how she was forced to act.
She had potential to grow so much. She and Nine did. The both of them had such a strong connection. They allowed themselves to have. It showed the emotions underneath, the girl who befriended Drew, who considered him family, but had to disappear after he died.
"Penny for your thoughts?"
Steve looked away from the dirty wall of the abandoned farmhouse they were occupying for the last three days. Natasha was standing in the doorway that led to the porch, looking at him as he sat on the ground, leaning against the balusters.
"Just wallowing in self-pity." He said, with a side smile, a hand going to scratch the beard the still wasn't used to. "You?"
"Just... stalking our daughter in social media." She said, walking over and sitting down next to him.
"Our daughter is in social media?" He asked, a little surprised.
"No, but when people recognize her, they post it." She said. "Apparently she has a habit of running every morning with Nine. Teenagers posted pictures of her stretching."
"What?" He asked, sounding a little more horrified than he intended to. "Let me see!"
She chuckled, giving him the phone on her hand. And there it was, his daughter and Nine, in work out clothes, stretching in a corner of a place he couldn't recognize.
"It should be forbidden to post things like that." He said, it wasn't exactly pornographic, but it was clearly a photo that focussed on the body of the teenagers.
She laughed, shaking her head.
"Good thing you've never seen the photos they used to post of you." She said, he stopped glaring at the clear proof that this particular internet user was a pervert and looked at her, frowning. "Not that I blame them, you do have a love for extremely tight workout clothes."
"They weren't extremely tight."
"At least two sizes too small." She retorted, smirking. "Well, you know what they say: if you got it..."
He chuckled, shaking his head.
"It's good that she's doing it in the city right? Getting out?" He asked, changing the subject.
"Yeah. I think so. Baby steps." Said Natasha, taking the phone off his hands. It was the one they used to follow the news, a fake e-mail connected them to social media sites and news websites that demanded it, so they all used it from time to time. No call was ever made from it and they never logged into anything with user id's that were actually real, or any close to being so.
"Yes, baby steps."
They were silent for a moment, and he was about to ask her if she wanted to do something. If she had any idea of what they could do to distract themselves. But he didn't, because a sound interrupted him.
A phone.
His phone.
His 'in case of emergency' phone.
He took it out of his pocket in a rush, both former Avengers looked at the screen, seeing the number.
They knew that number because they forced themselves to memorize it.
"Speaker?" He asked, finger on the answer button.
"No, but offer it." Said Natasha.
He pressed the button in a hurry and placed the phone to his ear.
"Hello?"
"Hello, Steve." Answered Ava. And it was so good to hear that voice. That wonderfully impassive and a little smug voice that made him want to jump through the phone and hug her.
"Ava. How are you? Are you okay?" He asked, half eager and half worried, because he knew she wouldn't let it show on her voice if something was wrong.
"I'm alright. As always." She answered, calming him, without actually letting her voice sound comforting. "I take from your voice that despite being fine physically, you are drowning in boredom and unused energy?"
He chuckled, shaking his head.
"Well, nothing to be done." He said, a laugh in his voice. "At least not now."
A tap on his shoulder reminded him that Natasha was there.
"By the way, your mother is right next to me, do you want me to put you speaker?"
The expected pause came and he waited. His daughter wasn't one to do anything without thinking. He didn't hold it against her. It was nothing against Natasha. It was just the fact that, if she called him, she had something to tell him and now was considering all the possible options and outcomes of having more people knowing what she wanted to say.
"That would be acceptable." Finally answered the teenaged girl.
"It would be acceptable." Said Steve, with a smile to Natasha, who chuckled at the very 'Ava' choice of words.
He took the phone away from his face and pressed the button to put it on speaker.
"Natasha."
"Ava." Greeted back the woman. "How are you doing?"
"As always." Said Ava. "And you? Still the one who can withstand life on the run better out of the group? I assume its not easy to act as a therapist for them in a regular basis."
Natasha and Steve laughed silently. After time apart, all those comments that were so characteristic of their daughter, were even more endearing, at least to them. How life on the run made the two miss them. They could see her almost invisible smirk and slight raise of an eyebrow in their minds.
"It is a burden I must bear." Said Natasha, smiling.
"She is overreacting." Said Steve. "We're not falling apart."
"One can argue that you're not falling apart BECAUSE I'm here." Said Natasha.
"A good point." Said Ava.
"Why do you two always band together against me?" Asked Steve, with a light tone.
"It is not 'always'." Said Ava.
"Only when you're wrong." Completed her thought Natasha.
Steve laughed silently, shaking his head.
"Well, despite that, I'm happy you called." He said, when he told Ava that she could call in case of emergency, but also if she just wanted to talk, he didn't think she actually would. "How are things there?"
"And by that, your father means how is living with Tony and his kids too?" Added Natasha.
"As I'm sure you two can guess, living with others who came from the Maternity is not hard." She said. "And Tony and I have reached an arrangement that is mutually comfortable."
"I'm glad." Said Steve. "I knew Tony would look after you, but... I'm glad it's working out okay. Do you guys do things together?"
"Steve, I could tell you all that has happened since we parted ways, but there is a reason I called." Said the girl. "Nine and I would like to speak with you concerning some subjects we find ourselves unable to solve."
Natasha and Steve shared a look, was Ava asking for help? Could this be? If it was true, Steve could not be happier. Not that she needed some help, of course, but that she reached out for it.
"What is it? You can put him on, of course we'll help." Said Steve.
"This is something we prefer to speak in person." Said Ava. "Which is why I am asking if it would be possible, and if you would be willing, to meet in India, two weeks from today."
Natasha and Steve exchanged another look.
"Ava, nothing would make me happier than to see you in person, we both miss you so much, but you DO have a team of agents following you wherever you go. If you disappear now, it will destroy all the work you have been doing to gain the Board's trust. " Said Natasha. "What is going on to make you want to get on the road again?"
"Oh, I should have been more specific." Said Ava, and Steve wanted this to be a video call, so he could see her face. Not that she would ever let her expressions show something she didn't want to. "Tony is taking a trip, the rest of us are all going along. One of the stops will be in India."
"That's better." Said Steve, relieved. He was worried for a moment that she decided to live on the run again. Then he exchanged a long look with Natasha, could they meet her?
"Given where we would be staying on these days, India is the best place to meet. Tony has an event there from an acquaintance from work. He would have just stayed for a few hours there, but since he has, as he puts it, 'six kids hanging off of him' he will stay for a few days. It gives enough time to meet at night. Nine and I will escape the hotel and meet you at a safe location, where we'll speak. In case you can, of course."
If there was anyone who could arrive in a meeting place WITHOUT being followed, Ava could. And Nine.
"I understand that this is not a decision that is yours alone to make. I will call again at this time tomorrow." Said Ava, in a tone that Natasha called the 'Steve subtle bossing'.
"Ava, there is no thinking about it, if I have to walk there, I'll meet you." Said Steve, making up his mind.
"I'm not walking, I'm taking the plane." Said Natasha. "Where and when?"
She gave them the exact location and time.
"I'll call tomorrow." She said, ignoring the fact that they already said they would do it. "Make sure you can make it before agreeing."
Natasha and Steve exchanged a look. This particular habit of Ava of acting like she was the only one who thought things through fast was a little annoying. Even if not so much now, due to how much they missed her.
"Do I need to remind you who you're talking to?" Asked Natasha.
"We already said we would meet you, but if it makes you feel better, we'll confirm it tomorrow." Said Steve.
"Until then."
And she hung up.
They exchanged a look.
" You know, I love her, but I really think we should ACTUALLY do something about her bossing us around, because 'she knows better'." Said Steve.
"Don't give me that look, she gets that from you." Said Natasha, getting off the floor.
"Me?" He asked with a laugh. "I'm sorry, have you met yourself?"
"Me? Since when do I boss people around?" She asked, as he got up, pocketing the phone.
"You may not boss them around, but you act like you know everything." He said.
She looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm letting that pass." She said, then turning back to get in the house. "Because it's actually true. But the bossing it's all you."
He laughed, following her.
Funny how a few minutes changed someone's humor, he went from completely lost, sad and worried, to excited, happy and expectant of the future.
Two weeks. They could not pass fast enough.
Ava and Nine usually solved their own problems. IF they had to ask someone, anyone, for help, it was each other. No one else.
But Ava did have a good point when they talked more in depth about the things bothering Nine. They were too similar. They needed an outside perspective, as much as it annoyed them.
The other experiments weren't a good choice. They counted on Ava and Nine to be on top shape physically AND mentally, because they were the ones in charge of their mission in getting the UN on their side. If they started having doubts about Ava's and Nine's skills, it could end in them acting alone and ruining everything for everyone. They were all counting on the two of them, best not to despair anyone by showing 'instability'.
The first name that came to mind when thinking of someone who understood Ava and Nine enough to understand their point of view, that at the same time didn't share that point of view at all, and could possibly be trusted with the information discussed, was Steve. He was on the other end of the spectrum when it came to emotions, but he also studied and lived with them enough to not be completely unprepared to see where they were coming from.
Natasha was a good option too, but she was closer to them then Steve was. There would not be such a contrast as it would be with Steve, which in that case, was what they wanted. A contrast to their homogeneity.
When Ava did call Steve, his offer to put Natasha on speaker made her think that, perhaps, a four people discussion would be better than a three people one.
A questioning glance to Nine, who was listening in, and he agreed. He had to, for it to happen. They were speaking of his problems and it was his call.
As she sat in her seat in the jet, they were taking, Ava thought about how she was not only happy that Nine might solve his issues faster, she was satisfied of having a chance to seeing Steve and Natasha again.
Her parents? The words didn't sound wrong exactly, but there was still a distance there. A forbidden sign in front of it.
Nine called Marina sister. He didn't understand fully the why or if he should, but he did. Was that a similar situation to hers? She could not assume. Nine, with the situation with Barnes, had a lot more to worry about. Her job now, her self-imposed one, was to make sure he could solve them.
Best not to get distracted by creating problems of her own.
She looked away from the window to look at Nine, who was sitting at the seat facing hers, he had stopped looking at the tablet, a file of the book he was reading open on the device and looked at her.
"What has you thinking so hard?" He asked. "The ocean beneath us is not that interesting."
"It really isn't." She said. "My mind has wondered."
"Somewhere interesting?" He asked.
"Not in present company."
"If you two are making world domination plans, I don't really need to hear it!" Exclaimed Tony, from his seat a few feet away from them. "Wait to do your secret things while the grown ups are not around, like normal teenagers."
Abby's babysitter, Andrea Bafford, spending so much time already around Tony, was no longer surprised at anything he said. Though she still found him amusing for some reason, so she chuckled as she held open a colorful book in front of the baby. The book being chosen by the education specialists who were consulted regarding the baby's and the other experiments study materials. Natural skills and preexisting education had to be taken into account for all of them. Abby was the daughter of two geniuses, and though she wasn't being pushed as she would have been at the Maternity, she still was more advanced than other infants her age.
"If you're really planing world domination, I want in." Said Marina, from her seat, headphones on as she watched something on her tablet. "But I want field work. I could be the one you send to end revolutions and revolts."
"If we do end up planning to take over the world, I'll keep that in mind." Said Nine.
Andrea laughed.
"I just adore how you say things like that in the most normal, matter of fact tone." She said, shaking her head as Abby's chubby hands turned the thick page of the book. "One would think you'll actually do it."
"They would. That's the scary part." Said Tony, leaning back on his seat.
"No, they wouldn't." Said Andrea, looking away from the baby to see that now she had the attention of all the others in the jet, including the two elder Stark kids, who looked away from their tablets. "What?"
Ava now was curious.
"Why would you say that?" She asked.
"Well, I don't doubt that, if anyone CAN, is you." Said Andrea, the babysitter, tucking a strand of her short curled back hair behind her ear. She seemed to remember that Ava and Nine were not people one should want to irritate or offend. "But really, would you really bother? What would 'dominate' the world be? A LOT of work for nothing more than power for power. All the time I see you two; you're minding your own business, reading, working out, meditating. You cook your own meals, wash your own clothes, clean your own rooms. Never meddle into other's business when they don't want to share." She looked back at Abby when the girl exclaimed something, but it was just a reaction from the pictures in the book, so Andrea looked back at Ava and Nine. "Frankly, I think you're just too chill to want to dominate the world." Tony actually chuckled at that. " Unless you had absolutely no choice, I don't think you would actually do anything."
There was a moment of silence from the others, which, not surprisingly, Tony broke, laughing.
"Andrea, I think you're owed a raise just from this conversation alone." He said. "Other than the kids, you're my new favorite person."
The woman shook her head, smiling. Then looked at Ava and Nine, who were still looking at her. The others were waiting for their reaction as well.
Ava and Nine exchanged a look.
Andrea was Abby's babysitter, which meant where the girl went, she went too. America, Korea, it didn't matter which parent was currently with the girl, the babysitter was always there. That meant her contact with Ava and Nine was intense for the last months, but not before. She was a competent woman, with no important political ties, no family (thus why she took a job that demanded moving around the planet), nothing that would make of her a threat to them anymore than any ordinary person would. Not to mention that her profile spoke of a person that was against violence in principle and extremely empathetic.
It should not have surprised them that she had reached such conclusions when it came to them. With contact came enough information to make a verdict over whom they were and what they would do.
They were actually surprised that, despite them not agreeing that they were 'chill', she was right that they wouldn't in fact want to 'dominate' the world. In addition to the idea being childish and flawed, having responsibility over the whole planet sounded like the most irritating thing they could possibly force themselves to do.
They looked away from each other to stare at her.
"Interesting." They said together. Not giving the others any insight on what they actually thought of her opinions. They didn't 'reprimand' her, so they couldn't be too mad.
"Man, they have the most annoyingly boring reactions." Muttered Phebian, looking back at his tablet. All the others going back to doing their own things too.
Ava and Nine turned back to each other.
The look they gave each other meant that they would be having a long conversation about this, and other things, when the jet landed and they could find some privacy.
Ava took out her sketchbook, when they broke their gazes and went back to their own things.
She took a moment just looking at it. Thinking about the things Mr Franks told her in the second to last figure drawing class she went to before traveling. The man didn't bring it up, and she didn't either, but it had been on her mind. Constantly.
She knew without needing to look up that Nine noticed her pause. He didn't need to look at her to be able to either.
After that moment of consideration of things, she didn't have the answers to yet. She picked up the pencil case and took out the charcoal pencil and started drawing the sight she currently had of the jet and the people in it.