To say today was long is an understatement. I mean, emotionally, how could it have not been. Meeting your biological father, reuniting with a friend that I thought I never see again, and meeting new people all in one day, you'd be too. After we said goodnight to Steve and James, we went to Tony's room, and we talked for a few hours.
We talked about different subjects, such as school, movies, family, and technology. By the time 10 o'clock came around, I finally had to say, "I'm tired; I think I'll turn in." "I'll show you where your room is, sweetheart," Tony tells me as we get up from the bed we were lying on.
"Thank you; I would appreciate that," I say, yawning as we walk into the hallway towards a door with the initials "A.D." "Why did you put my initials on the door?" I ask curiously. "Well, one, I did it because the doors look the same, and it helps to differentiate the doors. Second, I've done it to the others too, so people don't walk into the wrong room," he explains as he opens the door for me.
As I walk in, I see that some of the stuff that I hadn't brought with me was here, like some of my family pictures of my Mother's side of the family and I. The camera that I use for sightseeing, family, and nature pictures. Also, my t-shirt blanket my Aunt made for me as my graduation present. "I contacted your Dad and asked him to collect things that you might not bring yet but might want," he explains in a nervous voice.
"Thank you; I didn't expect it, and I love that you thought of this," I assured him, walking towards him and embracing him. "You're very welcome. I wanted to make sure that you felt at home here. I hope that you'll be happy with us. I also need to talk to you about Peter." he says, letting go of me.
"What about Peter?" I ask nervously. "Peter may also be my son," he explains nervously. I sit down on the bed, crossing my legs. "Dad, he's a great kid, but why do you think he could be your son? I like Peter; he feels like a little brother to me already. Don't get me wrong. I'm just trying to get a clear picture," I say reassuringly.
"Well, at first, when I met him when I figured out he was Spiderman, I didn't realize that he looked like me when I was younger and acts like me in different ways," he tells me. "I've only met the both of you today, and I can kinda see the resemblance. If you want, I can try to separate the spider DNA and run it to see if it matches, but I can't make any for sure promises. The only reason I want to separate the spider DNA is to make sure that it's accurate, but I can run it first with the spider DNA to see what happens," I cautioned him in a calm voice.
"You could do that?" he asks excitedly. "Possibly, I learned how to separate DNA for my degree in Forensics, but I can't promise that I can do it. I would need to see his DNA first," I affirmed as I got up from the bed, and I placed a hand on his shoulder in comfort.
"Thank you; I want to make sure that I know about all of my kids so that I can be in their lives if they wish me to be," he said in a weary voice. "I understand, trust me, Dad," I assured him. "I will let you sleep, kiddo," he says. "Goodnight, Dad," I say, hugging him again.
After Tony leaves, I call Cornelis, take a shower, brush my teeth, and put on pajamas. Then, I climbed into bed and got under the covers; I fell asleep a short time later. It was another restless night, but that could be because of the stress of everything that's happened the past two days.
A few hours later, I woke up to a knock on my door. I get up, turn on the lamp, walk to the door, and open it. It was Peter; he looked frightened. "Hey, what's wrong?" I ask, concerned. "I had a nightmare. Can I come in?" he asked in a timid voice. "Of course, kleintje, come in," I say. As he walks in, he looks so unsure of what to do. "That bad, huh?" I ask in concern.
"Yeah, I dreamt that everyone died, even you, and I wanted to make sure you were okay," he tells me nervously. "Come on, you can sleep with me tonight if you want," I say, encouraging him to relax and find comfort from me. "If you don't mind," he says timidly. "Come on, kleintje; I don't mind," I say, climbing into bed and lifting the covers for him to climb into bed. As he climbs in, I turn off the lamp next to the bed. I pulled the covers over him; he was comfortable, and I rubbed his back to calm him. He comes closer, and I embrace him; I hold him like that as we fall asleep.
-The Next Morning-
I wake up to find that Peter was still with me in my room. I would've thought he'd wake up before me, but he did have a nightmare, so he's probably emotionally exhausted. Nevertheless, I feel pleased that he felt comfortable enough to come to me when he needed comfort. I didn't feel ready to get up just yet, so I ran my fingers through his curls and listened to his breathing.
It's calm and slow, like when you're in a deep sleep. I know deep in my heart that he is my little brother, even if we aren't biologically related. I know that I haven't known him long, but there is already a bond. I've lost people who should still be here, so I think that's why I'm bonding with people quickly. It's about an hour later that Peter starts to stir. I keep running my fingers through his hair and rub his back so he won't feel uneasy when he finally wakes up.
"Angie, how long have you been up?" he asks, rubbing his head against my shoulder. "An hour, but it's fine. I figured you'd want to sleep in a little bit after last night," I explained to him. "Thank you," he says, cuddling closer to me and inhaling my scent.
"No problem, kleintje. My cousins would cuddle with me when they wanted to, so I don't mind cuddling with you either," I reassure him. We stayed that way for a while until we heard knocking at the door, and Dad asking, "Anjali is Peter with you?" "Yes," I answered loud enough for him to hear through the door. After a minute or so, Dad comes in, and he smiles warmly at us.
Seeing Peter and Anjali in her room together makes my heart melt in a pile of goo. "Breakfast is ready," I tell them. As if she knew what Peter would do before he did, she let go of him, and he shot off the bed in a flash. "I guess he's hungry," she said, laughing at his antics. "Yeah, I guess so," I say, beginning to laugh as well. "I'm going to get dressed," she says when she stops laughing. "We'll be waiting when you're ready," I say, walking back out of the door and closing it.
As I walk away from her door, I can't help but wonder how she's coped with everything. If that happened to me, I wouldn't have dealt with it at all. I want to take her pain away. I wish she didn't have to go through what she did. "You and every good parent out there," Strange says sympathetically. "How did you know what I was thinking?" I ask curiously. "It's written all over your face, Stark," he says, putting a hand on my shoulder.
"When I met her last year, she wasn't in the best place, but she wanted to go home, and I couldn't force her to stay if she didn't want to. I should've checked on her, but I thought going back to her family would be better for her, but I guess I was wrong. I didn't know she would relapse, but I couldn't see the signs of her mental state," Strange tells me in sorrow.
"It's not your fault; you couldn't have known what was going to happen to her when she went home. Nobody could've known because some people can hide it better than others," I say. I walked away then so I couldn't see the expression on his face.
I walked into the kitchen and smiled, seeing Peter stuffing his face with pancakes. "Slow down, bud, and save some for Anjali and the rest of us that might want some, okay," I say, patting his shoulder. "I will, Mr. Stark," he says with his mouth full.
"Kiddo, you can call me Tony; I promise it's not a problem," I say comfortingly. "Okay, Tony," he says, still unsure. "Tony, I made plenty of batter for people who have enhanced metabolisms, and I'll have plenty to spare for those who don't," Steve says as he reappears behind the counter with a bowl of batter.
"Okay, I was just making sure; I'm just worried about Anjali not getting enough. She looks unhealthy thin," I say. "That's because I lost a lot of weight while I was training and when captured. I'm working on getting back toward a healthy weight without overdoing it and keeping it the same. I was overweight when I was younger, and it was hard to lose it. When I started drinking again, I lost even more, and I've gained some weight back, but it's a slow process," Anjali says as she comes in and sits down at the counter wearing a navy long sleeve shirt, black sweatpants, and black Nike shoes. "Anjali, if you need help from me, just ask," I say. "I will when I need it," she says firmly.
"Anjali, how many pancakes do you want?" Steve asks. "One for right now, thank you," she says. "No problem, just let me know if you want more," he tells her kindly. "I will," she says in a quiet voice.
The rest of breakfast went by slow and fast at the same time. Anjali ate two pancakes with syrup and peanut butter. The rest of the team came in and had breakfast with us. Steve and I talked throughout breakfast about anything and everything.
Once everyone was done with breakfast, I take Peter and Anjali down to the labs. The first lab we went to was the lab that is Anjali's. The lab has holograph tables, state-of-the-art computers, the necessary forensic DNA lab equipment, tools, and machinery. "Thank you, Dad; I appreciate it. The lab is awesome," she says excitedly.
"This is cool, Tony," Peter exclaims. "Thank you both, I do try," I say, grinning at them. "Come on, let me show you my lab," I say as I head towards the door. As we walk into the hallway, I show her how to make a passcode for the door for protection. She puts in 1014 as her passcode. "Alright, now that's done, let's head down," I say. We head back to the elevator and go down three floors. I notice that Pete's bouncing with excitement.
"Pete, you've been in my lab multiple times; why are you excited?" I ask curiously. "I'm excited for Anjali to see your lab. She gets to see what we're making and upgrading," he says as we reach my lab. As we step out of the elevator, I notice that she's wincing.
"You okay, sweetheart?" I ask in concern. "My scars are acting up, but it's not bad, I want to see your projects, and I think Pete is going to explode with excitement if we don't go in. I think I'll see Stephen this afternoon and see what he thinks," she tells me reassuringly.
"Okay, if you're sure," I say as I put in my passcode for the door. She just nods in confirmation. As we walk into the lab, Pete grabs her and pulls her towards the suits on display. His and mine, she looks like a girl that just walked into a candy store. Pete shows her the upgrades that he's worked on the past few weeks with me. I just watch them as Pete leads her around the lab as he knows his way around as well as I do.
As I show her around the lab, I sense that she's in some pain. "Anjali, you, okay?" I ask in concern. "Yeah, kleintje, I'm okay; just my scars are acting up," she says reassuringly. "Okay, if you're sure," I say hesitantly.
"I have to deal with sensitivity all the time, kleintje. I just need to put a mix of lotion and Aquaphor on my scars," she confirms. "I just wanted to make sure you're okay because it looked like you were in pain," I say in concern. "I understand, kleintje," she says, putting her hand on my shoulder and squeezing it gently.
I showed her some of the projects I have been working on recently. "These projects are pretty cool, kleintje. Are these for school or just something you've been tinkering with?" she asks as she picks up one of my web-shooters.
"Mostly just tinkering to see if I can improve them for patrols. The webbing formulas need to be more potent; sometimes, criminals break out of the webbing, which causes me to use more than I should. That causes me to run out faster," I tell her, rubbing my arm nervously.
"Have you talked to Tony about it since I'm assuming he developed upon your original formula to create more of it and created other types of webbing for you," she asks, putting down the web-shooter. "I have talked to him about it, but he said that he would help me with the formula to make it durable, so when I have to web up criminals, they can't break out of it," I say, crossing my arms.
"That's good. Just remind him if he forgets, okay, and remember to be confident. He does care about you. I can see it in the way he interacts with you," she says, pulling me into a hug. "Okay, I will," I say, hugging her back, trying to be careful of the scars and my strength.
"Come on, let's go and get something to eat, and then we can do some training. I want to see what you can do," she says, pulling away but keeping an arm around me. We walk towards Tony and tell him that we're going to get something to eat, then train for a bit.
"Okay, kiddos, I'll shut down everything here and join you guys in a few minutes," Tony tells us as he begins saving progress and shutting down the computers and tablets. "We'll meet you in the kitchen, Dad," she says as we walk towards the elevator.
The ride up was quiet, but it was quick. As we get off the elevator, she turns towards her room. "I have to put on lotion for my scars; I'll be right back," she says. "Okay, I'll tell Tony when he gets here," I say. "Thank you!" she says. "You're welcome," I say as she walks further away. Tony came in a few minutes later.
"Where'd Anj go?" he asks, walking up to the island. "She went to put lotion on her scars," I told him. "Alright, how about leftover lasagna for lunch?" he asks. "Sounds good," she says as she walks into the kitchen. "How did you put lotion on so fast?" I ask in curiosity.
"I know which ones are usually irritated, so I was able just to get my lotion from the bathroom and apply it to the scars on my shoulders," she says, pointing to her shoulders. "Okay, but why do they get irritated?" I ask. "Well, the scars on my shoulders get irritated because of stress and weather.
The scars on my back hurt when I overdo it with yoga and get too dry, so I have to put lotion on them every day. The ones on my arms and legs don't hurt, but I do moisturize them anyway," she tells us with a sigh. "Why do the scars hurt when you overdo it?" I ask in concern.
"Because they're the most prominent scars I have. They're big in length and width because they would use a whip around and on the same spots. My back looks like I have four prominent scars on it, but they aren't from one big wound; it's smaller wounds mashed together. So, when I overdo it with yoga, it feels like my back is on fire. When they get too dry, they feel rough and cracked," she tells us as she sits down and gets comfortable.
Tony served us lunch a few minutes later after putting the lasagna portions we wanted in the microwave. I ate my piece slowly to make sure I didn't overeat. While we were eating, Bucky and Steve came in for lunch as well. They had sandwiches for lunch instead of lasagna.
"What have you guys been up to today?" Bucky asks, sitting beside me and between bites of his sandwich. "Tony showed us Anj's lab. Her lab is incredible; she can test DNA, draw up schismatics for her future inventions, and pretty much everything she needs. Then we went to Tony's lab and showed her our projects. Then we came up here for lunch," Pete tells him. "I'd say so. I'm excited to work there," I say, smiling and ruffling Pete's hair.
I look at James, and he's looking at me like I painted the Mona Lisa or made the sky. I took a good look at James; I realized that he had interactions with my Mother when I was a little girl. He protected me. I wonder if he remembers that. I mean, he doesn't look any older than he did back then. "James, can I talk to you later?" I ask in a whisper. "Sure, why?" he whispers back, leaning in closer to me.
"I'll tell you when we're alone, it's to do with your time with Hydra," I say, looking him right in the eye. "When and where?" he asks. "My room at three. That work for you?" I ask. "Yeah, Angel, it works," he says. I blushed and smiled at him. "Okay, see you then," I say. When I finish eating, I tell Peter that I'm not up to training today, but I'll train with him tomorrow. Then I go to my room to unpack.
I open both suitcases and duffle bags so that I can make sure I get everything put away. By the time I put everything away, it was three o'clock, and I heard a knock on my door. I open it to see James there with his hands behind his back, waiting for me to open my door.
"Hi, James, come in," I say, waving him into my room. "Thanks, Angel. Why did you want to talk about my time with Hydra?" he asks, walking in and sitting in my desk chair. I close the door and sit on my bed.
"Well, at lunch today, when I looked at you, I realized that you had interactions with my Mother. I was probably two or three at the time, but I clearly remember your eyes," I tell him. I pulled out a picture of Mom around that time. "Do you recognize her?" I ask. He takes the photo for a closer look. We sit there in tense silence as he looks at the picture.
"I think I remember her, but I can't be sure. Hydra had my brain wiped after every mission or when they put me to sleep. I'm sorry, I can't be sure. Maybe if you show me a picture of you, that may help," he says sincerely.
"Okay, I don't have many, but let me see if I have any good pictures," I say as I go to my desk and get a biscuit tin filled with pictures of my family and I over the years. As I flipped through them, I couldn't help but smile at the memories they brought.
It takes a few minutes for me to find the right pictures. I found a good one with my face looking towards the camera. "Here, this should be the correct period. I have a few more, but I think this one is the best," I say, handing him the photograph.
As she hands me the photo, I feel like I did know her then but, I need to be sure. The picture is of her at Christmas, and she has a dark blue blanket around her. She's smiling, playing with her toys. Her cousins, I'm guessing, are around her playing as well with her Mother.
She has blonde hair and grey-blue eyes. I remember those eyes as I'd seen them just yesterday, not seventeen or so years before. Last night and at lunch, I didn't get a good look at her eyes, so I put it down and looked at her eyes. Her eyes are the same color, but they look older and saddened. I pull her into my lap to hug her close to me.
"I'm so sorry that I couldn't protect you. Your eyes were the only thing I could remember even with the mind wipes because I thought they were so beautiful, and the little girl that came with them felt safe with me," I say, gently rubbing her back. "I used to call you Blue because of your eyes; that was the only thing I could remember clearly," she says, wrapping her arms and legs around me and placing her head on my shoulder.
I laugh at that because I wouldn't have thought that would be something she'd call me. "I know that you killed my grandparents. I've seen them, and they don't blame you for what happened; they know that you were under Hydra's control," she says, looking me in the eye. I laugh at that because I wouldn't have thought that would be something she'd call me.
"What do you mean you've seen them?" I ask, pulling her back to face me. "Well, I didn't tell y'all about this last night because it's my most vulnerable state, but I can go between our world and the spirit realm. It's part of my abilities, and when Phil told me about Tony being my biological father.
While I was in the spirit realm that night, Maria and Howard came to me and told me that they forgive you and tell you that if I ever met you. They want me to tell Tony that they love him. But I don't know how to tell him," she tells me. She starts to tear up, and a tear fell.
I wipe the tear away and pull her close again to be a comfort to her, hopefully. "I don't know what to say. Can you show me?" I ask. "It's not something I can show you, but I can go into the spirit world and try something," she says, pulling back to look at me. "Try what?" I ask. "I've never done this before, but I can try to pull spirits and get them to speak through me, but I can't promise that'll work," she tells me in a serious tone. "Okay, let's do it," I say. She scoots out of my lap, but she takes my hand.
"When I go into the spirit realm, I like to be lying down because I usually come out of it, I get dizzy," she tells me. "Okay," I say, rolling in the chair towards her bed. "Don't freak out, okay?" she asks. "Okay," I say. She lays down on her bed on her back. She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, then releases it. Her eyes opened again, but they were pure white and glowing.
As I enter the spirit realm, I feel a calmness rush over me. The spirit realm isn't white; it's a forest, at least for me. I don't know what it looked like for my ancestors, but it seems like this to me. I call out, "Grandfather, Nonna, where are you?" "Anjali, who are you calling out to?" my Great Grandfather asks. "Hi, Grandpa Lee. I was calling out to Howard and Maria. Tony's parents. Have you seen them?" I ask him as I hug him.
"Well, I haven't, but maybe your grandmother has," he says, taking a look at me. He died before I was born, so he's only seen me a few times. As a result, he doesn't usually see me when I come here. "Is she where she usually is?" I ask. "Yes, I don't think she leaves there. It seems to be her favorite place to meet you," he says with a small smile. "Thanks, Grandpa. I'll see you later," I say, hugging him goodbye. "You're welcome, my dear. See you next time," he says as I pull away from him.
I walked further into the forest, knowing where I needed to go. My Grandmother usually meets me by the river deeper in the woods. So I ran towards the spot, knowing I shouldn't be wasting time. A few minutes later, I spotted all three of them at the river. "Mama Ann, Grandfather, Nonna, how are you?" I ask, running up to them. "Anjali, what are you doing here?" Mama Ann asks, hugging me tightly. "Well, Mama, I was looking for Grandfather and Nonna. I want to try to get them to speak through me," I tell her. "Why, Bambina?" Maria asks, putting her hand on my cheek.
"Well, I think that what you have to say should come from you and not me," I say, looking at her and Howard. "Sergeant Barnes is in my room. I think it would be good to use him as a guinea pig," I tell them. Howard and Maria looked at each other and then agreed.
"Okay, what do we need to do?" Maria asks. "One of you needs to put their hand on my forehead. Then I'll try to project you into my body so you can talk to him," I say. "I'll go first since he knows me better than you, Maria," Howard says, coming closer to me. "Alright, but I want to talk to him too," Maria tells him in a stern voice. "Yes, dear," he says, smiling at her.
As soon as we were ready, I placed Howard's hand on my forehead. I concentrated on getting his spirit into my body. Howard was suddenly still, as though he was somewhere else, then he began to speak. "Sargent Barns, it's been a long time," Howard says in my voice. "Howard, is that you?" Bucky asks. "Yes, I know that this is hard to believe, but it's me. My granddaughter thought that we should tell you that you are forgiven," Howard tells him in a sincere voice. "Thank you, but I don't deserve your forgiveness," he says.
"You do deserve our forgiveness. I should've thought of the possibility that you were captured by Hydra again. I should be asking for forgiveness since I was the one who should have looked for you and Steve better after the war. For that, I'm sorry. You and Steve should've had a life after the war, and you guys didn't, and for that, I'm partly to blame. My wife also wishes to speak to you as well, then Anjali will return to you," he tells Bucky.
Then I released Howard, and Maria put her hand on my forehead as her husband did. I repeat the process with her, and she goes still. "Hello, Sargent Barns. You didn't meet me before I died, and don't say you met me when the Winter Soldier murdered my husband and I. I don't consider him, you, Sargent. You have nothing to be sorry for, but I forgive you because I know that wasn't you that night. I only ask that you protect my granddaughter because I know Tony can do so much," she says.
"I will, Mrs. Stark. The best way I know how," Bucky says. "Goodbye, Sargent, we'll be sending her back in a few minutes," she tells him. Then I release her, and she takes her hand away. Then both she and Howard hug me goodbye. "Mama Ann, I'll be back sometime tomorrow," I say to her as I turn towards the way I came. "Bye, sweetheart, I'll see you tomorrow," she says, coming closer to hug me. I hug her fiercely. She died when I was in my early teens, so seeing her here is special to me. I let her go after a few seconds and ran back towards where I came in. It takes a few minutes to get there and go through the gate.
As I come out of my trance, I feel a doubt of dizziness come over me. "Angel, are you okay?" he asks, taking my hand. "Yeah, just give me a minute," I say, breathing in deeply, trying to regain a sense of balance. "Thank you for letting them speak with me," he says, brushing his fingers through my hair. "You're welcome. Let's not tell anyone about this yet since this is my most vulnerable state. If I die out here while I'm in the spirit realm, I can't return," I tell him, looking him in the eye.
He nods, pulling me close to him. I wrap my arms around him, holding him tightly to me. We held each other for a while, just comforting each other. "Come on; let's go see what everybody else is doing," I say, breathing in his scent one last time. "Alright, Angel, let's go," he says, helping me sit up to stand. He stands and holds his hands out for support. I grab his hands as I stand up and put on my slippers.
We walked out of my room, not caring who saw us together. As we're walking down the hallway, I spot Stephen. "I've got to talk to Stephen. I'll see you later, okay," I tell him, and I kiss his cheek. "Okay," he says. I smile and catch up with Stephen. "Hi, Stephen, Levi," I say, catching up with him and petting the Cloak of the Levitation. Levi unlatches from Stephen and wraps around me. "I missed you too. Stephen, can you look at my scars? I want to make sure I'm taking care of them correctly," I ask as Levi unwraps from me.
"Sure, are they bothering you?" he asks. "A little, but it's when I overdo it with exercise," I tell him. "Alright, let's go to the sanctum and see what we can do," he says. "Hold on, I need to get my phone," I say, patting my pockets and not finding my phone. "Dragon, be quick," he says. I quickly walk back to my room and get my phone. "Friday will you tell Tony that I went to the Sanctum with Stephen, please," I ask her. "Sure, would you like to give him your phone number?'' she asks. I tell her "yes" and give her my phone number if Tony wants to call me as I walk back to Stephen. As soon as I reach him, he opens a portal to the Sanctum.
We walk through the portal, and Stephen goes to get the supplies he needs to help my scars. As he walks away, Levi gets off his shoulders and wraps around me. I go to sit on the mat on the floor as we wait for Stephen to come back. I take out my phone and look through my notifications to see if Mom called or texted me.
She didn't, but I'm not surprised. Last year when I came home, I told her and Cornelis what happened to me, and that was why I was gone so long. She went silent, and then she said she was going to hunt them down and kill them. She went into full secret agent mode, packed a few things, and left. I kept telling her not to go and that I needed her here, but she said, "I'll be back before you know it."
That was almost seven months ago. I've been debating whether or not to call Grandpa Charles to see if he'll help me find her. Grandpa Charles/Charlie is Charles Xavier, founder of the X-men and Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. He's also my Mother's biological father. He and my Grandmother were friends, and when they were in difficult spots in their relationships, they had an affair. I don't like what they did, but I don't judge them.
Stephen came back five minutes later with acupuncture needles, shea butter, and incense. "Okay, I'm going to light some incense, rub shea butter to see if it helps, and then do some acupuncture." I nod and take my shirt and sports bra over my head but keep myself covered, and Levi gets off me; then I lay down on the mat and get comfortable. Stephen lights the incense and sets it down near me to breathe it in deeply.
Then he kneels next to me and gets a glob of shea butter from a bowl, and starts to rub it on my scars. He begins with the most extended scar on my back. The last time I looked at it was red, and I couldn't reach parts of it. "I'm assuming that you can't get to parts of your scars?" he asks. "You'd be right. I can't reach some of the middle parts of them," I tell him.
He hums in acknowledgment as he continues rubbing the shea butter on my scars. We don't say anything else. I relax as he rubs the other scars and inhale the incense. He soon finishes putting shea butter, and he prepares the needles for acupuncture.
As I prepared the needles, I noticed that her elemental tattoos changed from black to light brown. I thought this was peculiar, but I didn't know it would cause what was about to happen. I place a few needles on her ear's antihelical fold to help with PTSD and her mental health. Then I place more needles around her most extended scar since that one that's giving her pain. After putting them in place, I noticed that her tattoos were glowing white. Crap, this probably means that she went into the Avatar State.
So I checked her eyes to see if they're glowing too, and they were, but something didn't seem right. It feels as though her spirit isn't as present as it should be. "Dragon?" I ask, looking her in the eye. "Stephen Strange, what are we doing at the Sanctum?" she asks, but it's not Anjali speaking; it's the Avatar spirit, Ravanna.
"Anjali wanted some help with the scars, so I figured I would light some incense to help her relax, rub shea butter on the scars to help heal them, and acupuncture to help with the pain and PTSD," I told Ravanna.
"Alright, can you get the needles out so I can sit up, please?" she asks. "Of course." Then I take the needles out of Anjali's back and ear. Ravanna sits up and puts on Anjali's sports bra and shirt, and says, "I want to meet them." I tell her, "Okay." I clean up everything and then open a portal back to the tower as Ravanna stands up and walks towards me.
I tell Friday to tell everyone to meet in the common room when we get to the tower. I led Ravanna to the common room, not sure if Anjali had been there already. I grab a chair for her when she lets Anjali have control again. "Ravanna, do you want me to explain and then let them ask questions, and you answer them?" I ask her in a whisper as some of the team come in.
"Yes, I think that would be good since you'd be better at speaking under pressure, and you know them better than I do," she tells me calmly. As the rest of the team comes in, I have Ravanna sit in the chair for when Anjali retakes control. The last ones were Peter and Tony. "Stephen, what's going on, and why are Anjali's eyes glowing?" Bucky asks. "I'm going to tell you, and it's why I called you here," I tell them, and I see Peter coming up to Ravanna/Anjali and sitting on the floor next to them.
"Okay, so Anjali and I went to the Sanctum because she told me her scars were bothering her, and so I figured I'd use acupuncture to help. So, I placed the needles around her more prominent scar and in the antithetical of her outer ear. I also lit some incense to help her relax. I only noticed that this happened because her elemental tattoos were glowing.
So I checked her eyes; they were also glowing, but it wasn't like she had gone to the spirit realm or in the Avatar State, where she is in control. Right now, it's Ravanna who is in control. Ravanna is the Avatar Spirit that gives her the ability to control the elements. If Anjali didn't have the Avatar Spirit, she wouldn't be the Avatar and be able to control the elements and travel between our Realm and the Spirit Realm.
She didn't tell you guys this yesterday because the Avatar State is her most vulnerable state, and if her body dies, she can't come back from the Spirit Realm. She also promised her guru/teacher Elaina that she wouldn't tell anyone unless she could trust them or something like this happened. The only people who know about this are her Mother's side of the family, Ancient One, and I because we're allied with Gyatso Clan, who trains the Avatar. Her Grandmother was the previous Avatar.
Ravanna chooses the next Avatar from her family when they are still alive and starts transferring herself to the next family member, she deems worthy of the Avatar's abilities and responsibilities. If anyone has questions, Ravanna will answer them as best she can," I finish and grab a chair to sit next to her.
"Ms. Ravanna, I'm Peter, and I want to know why you choose to come out today," Peter asks, facing me. "Well, I didn't mean to. It was an accident; I'm usually better at not interfering in her life, but I wanted to meet you all since Anjali is going to be here full-time, and she already cares for you all, and you don't have to call me Ms., Peter," tell them honestly. I see someone raise their hand, and I point to them. "I'm Tony, her father, and I want to know why you choose her out of her other family members," he asks and crosses his arms.
"Well, when her Mother was born, I didn't think she was the right fit. I usually choose from the females because they can generally handle being the Avatar better. I do choose from the males occasionally if I think they're worthy. When I looked into her Mother's spirit when she was a teenager, I still didn't think it felt right because I saw something in her future that would darken her soul, so I didn't choose her. I can see some of the future, but only small parts, and it's that person, not everyone before you ask.
Anyway, when her older cousins were born, they didn't feel right, so I checked again when they were teenagers before officially choosing Anjali. Their personalities didn't feel right; the oldest is toxic, she thinks the world revolves around her, she doesn't take responsibility for anything, and she is a narcissistic person. Her sister is better, but I didn't feel that she could handle the duties, and I knew that she would have children early.
When Anjali was born, I knew she was the one right away, even though her cousins were still in the running. Though she has been through a lot of pain in her life, she has always been kind and wanted to help people. I knew she was going to change the world as the Avatar and as herself. I do sometimes skip a generation if I feel that's the right call," I tell them.
I see a man with red and silver skin with a yellow stone on his forehead. I point, and he says, "My name is Vision, her brother since Tony is my creator. Why do you choose your person when they are teenagers?" "Well, because when my potential candidates are born, I don't necessarily get a sense of who they will be right away, but when they're teenagers, I get a better understanding of who they will be or become. I also look into their soul, and that's how I can see their future," I say, and I can feel Anjali's consciousness.
Then I see a brunette with a metal arm raised, so I point to him. "I'm Bucky, or if you want to call me James as well, that's fine. My question is, what did you mean by a lot of pain in her life, and I'm guessing it's not just from when she was in China?" he asks. "It's okay; they would have found out eventually anyway whether I like it or not," Anjali tells me.
"Well, her Aunt committed suicide when she was eighteen while she was being held captive by the Black Lotus clan. Her Uncle had died the previous year due to a car crash. She lived, and she couldn't take the guilt, so after Anjali went to train and got captured, I guess Jane couldn't take it anymore. She overdosed on the sleeping pills she was taking.
Her Grandmother Anne died a slow death of lung cancer, and in the last year of her life, Anjali spent as much time with her as she could and watched her die slowly. I could see from it both of their points of view since Anne was the previous Avatar, and I was transferring myself to Anjali so I could see what she was seeing. Anjali resented me for a while because she thought I could help heal Anne, but there wasn't anything I could've done; she was too far gone by the time they found out about it, and I had never encountered cancer, so I didn't know if I could help her.
But when I shared my memories of that time with her, she knew I was right. Anjali was thirteen when her Grandmother died. She was sad that her Uncle died, but they weren't as close as she was to her Aunt.
Then after she came home, as you know, she relapsed, and she almost died from alcohol poisoning. She put herself through rehab after she got out of the psych ward. She got put in there because Cornelis thought she would try to drink herself to death again. Although she was eighteen when it happened since she endangered herself, Cornelis made her medical decisions for her. Luckily after a month, she had improved enough to be released and spend two months in rehab.
She didn't actually like alcohol, but she used it to make herself numb from the pain and nightmares. She's been what you call sober for almost nine months now, and you should be proud of her. Her injuries were lacerations on her back, vaginal and anal tearing, broken ribs, and she had a miscarriage. Luckily, she can have children still," I tell them.
They were silent as they processed what I told them. I can feel tears falling down my face. They're not mine. I can feel Anjali wanting to retake control so ask them if they have any more questions. Peter asks, "Can you see and experience everything she does?" "I can, but usually, I just stay in the spirit world and help her there. Like I said earlier, this happened by accident. I try to let her live her life as normally as possible. I do try to help her when she's in danger.
When she got captured by the Black Lotus, it was by surprise, and by the time I could get to her, it was too late, so she told me that she and Elaina were coming up with an escape plan. She told me that when the plan was ready, she would get me the week before they escaped to give her extra power if needed, and she did so; I took control in the Avatar State. I stayed with her until she got to the Kamar-Taj just in case she needed me. Could the rest of you introduce yourselves?" I ask as I finish.
They introduce themselves as Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton, Phil Coulson, Thor, Wanda Maximoff, Bruce Banner, T'Challa, Shuri, Scott Lang, Hope Van Dyne, James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Sam Wilson, Happy Hogan, and Pepper Potts. "Thank you. Please take care of my girl. I'll let Anjali retake control now," I tell them and pull away from her consciousness and go back to the Spirit Realm.
As Ravanna pulls away, I start to see them better, and from the looks on their faces, she told them everything. Tony, Vision, Steve, Peter, James, and Stephen look devastated; the others were crying or looked anguished. Peter was the closest to me, and probably as soon as my eyes stopped glowing, he wrapped himself around me like an octopus. I didn't wrap my arms around him right away because I was dizzy, and I concentrated on not falling over with Peter holding on to me. I felt someone lift Peter and I off the chair and onto the floor, so I lay down on the floor with Peter holding on tightly to me, and once I felt stable, I wrapped my arms around Peter tightly as well and put my chin on his head.
Someone else approaches us and sits down in front of Peter, and takes one of my hands. I opened my eyes, not realizing I had closed them. I look and see that it's Tony with Steve next to him. Tony lets go of my hand and reaches out to take Peter, but I shake my head no because I was okay with holding him, so instead, he starts carding his fingers through my hair.
Steve reaches out to take the hand that Tony was holding and squeezes my hand in reassurance. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys about Ravanna and all of what happened for me to get sober. I was ashamed because I subconsciously wanted my Mom to come home, and I thought she would if I did something rash. I should've gone to Grandpa Charles," I say.
"It's okay, sweetheart. I can understand that, and who is Grandpa Charles?" he asks. "Charles Xavier is my biological maternal grandfather, and yes, he's the leader of the X-men. I have telepathic abilities, but he blocked them, and I haven't seen him in a year, so I haven't asked him to take it off yet. I haven't mentioned him or the X-men because I wanted to protect them since they run a school for mutants, and some of the students are too young to be trained to be X-men.
Also, I'm not sure if any of you have had run-ins with them, so I didn't want to expose them," I say. "I've had run-ins with Wolverine as the Hulk and me but didn't know if he was part of them or not," Bruce says. "Yeah, he is, but he isn't always with the team. He's kind of a lone wolf that way," I say.
I looked down at Peter and saw that he's relaxed now. I sit up with Peter. Tony stops running his fingers through my hair and gets up to move behind me and embrace us. "There are two members of this team that I have met before besides Stephen. Bruce and Bucky," I tell them. "Where have you met me, Anjali?" Bruce asks me. "When did you meet Bucky?" Steve asks.
"Bruce, you met me when I was visiting Betty, and I met Bucky when I was two or three years old because my Mother was a double agent with Hydra and Shield. She was in the high ranking with Hydra because I think you had to have a high rank to access him. I don't know why she didn't help him get away from Hydra, but I can ask Grandpa Charles to track her down," I tell them. Steve looks at Bucky with a look of betrayal.
"I didn't realize I knew her until we talked this afternoon. She recognized me first because of my eyes. After that, the only thing we could remember of each other was our eyes. My mind got wiped after every mission, but her eyes always stuck with me," he tells them.
"Betty called me Sunshine all the time because I was always smiling. I would have been three or four the last time you saw me. I used to call you Ruse because I couldn't pronounce the b sound yet. I would call Betty Etty for the same reason," I tell him. I can see a look of recognition on his face as I tell him the nicknames. "I used to call you Jude because you always wanted us to sing Hey Jude by The Beatles when you went to bed," he says, smiling at me.
"I need to tell you one more thing. Ravanna didn't mention it because she doesn't know about it. About three months ago, I was walking towards my car after an A.A. meeting and heard screaming. I ran towards the screaming; a man was lying on the ground at the back of the Church where the A.A. meeting had been. I leaned down over him to see if he was okay, then someone came up behind me and told me if I didn't do what they said, they would kill the man and me.
So I nodded, and they raped me with a sex toy, and once they were done, they left us, and I called 911, and an ambulance took us to the hospital. The man was Artie Underwood; he was one of the other A.A. members. A woman attacked us because she thought that people recovering from addiction were weak and should stay weak. Luckily, I was able to scratch her to get DNA, and the police arrested her.
Her name is Anna Lopez. She raped and killed 12 other people before us. Artie died during surgery because he fought back, and she stabbed him in the stomach; and I tried to keep him from bleeding out after she was done with me, but she stabbed him to where he bled out too much. I didn't know she stabbed him until I called 911, and I was checking him for injuries, but even though the ambulances came quickly, it was too late.
After I got processed for evidence, I stayed at the hospital to see if Artie would be okay. I called Cornelis to tell him what happened and that I would be home as soon as possible. I didn't leave the hospital till two o'clock on the morning of June 20th, 2019. The trial is in December, and I have to testify since I was the one who was able to get her DNA.
Her DNA was in the system because she had a juvie record for assaulting her Mother since she was an addict. She was at the A.A. meeting that night too, but I didn't realize until the police showed me a picture to see if she had been there before that night. She'd been in the group for over a month, and she heard me, Artie, and others talk in group, but her targets were Artie and I. I would've used my powers, but it was too risky, and I couldn't explain it to the police if I were questioned about it.
Thankfully the police caught her before she could rape and murder anyone again. She'll be charged with multiple counts of sexual assault and murder. I need to call the Prosecutor before the trial and before we go public," I tell them. "Did she target just alcoholics, or was it all kinds of addicts?" Peter asks, speaking for the first time in a while. "She mainly targeted alcoholics, but she went after other types of addicts.
I need to go back to Texas between the week of Thanksgiving and the first week of December to prepare for the trial and stay for however long the trial lasts. I was thinking about spending some time with my Mom's family and Cor then as well if that's alright?" I ask, turning to look at Tony.
"I think that's a good idea, but if we find your Mother, what are we going to do for her?" he asks. "I mean, that's up to her if she wants to stay with us or if she wants to recover with Grandpa Charles," I tell him. "I was sober before this. When I was a freshman through my sophomore year, I would drink all the time. I would drink two to three bottles of vodka, whiskey, and rum every other day and more on the weekend. The only reason I didn't get caught was that I would keep myself hydrated, and I had a high tolerance for it.
I hit rock bottom when my friend attempted suicide, and I was almost too drunk to help him. I was drinking then because I was depressed, and I wasn't handling it as well as I could've. I don't remember some of it because Mom made Charles block those memories so I wouldn't try to drink again. That failed, but I digress.
Luckily, I was able to call an ambulance and stop the bleeding until they got there. The police asked me if we had been drinking or using drugs. I told them that I hadn't been drinking as much as he had and that I didn't do the drugs.
They had me do a breathalyzer test, and I was barely under the limit; he had been drinking and doing heavy drugs, which would've done a better job than cutting. I'm not saying that anyone should commit suicide, but those are the facts. Friday, show them my medical records and the police report," I ask her.
"Sure thing, sis," she says, and I smile at the endearment. A projection shows on the wall and shows the police reports on my rape and the suicide attempt my friend had. Then my medical records appear on the wall as well. Showing everything since I was born, I notice that there are injuries that I barely remember, and they were significant.
"Anjali, were you abused or trained to become a Shield agent?" Clint asks. I start to tear up and cry as I say, "I don't know, I don't remember. Mom could've had Grandpa get rid of the memories after I healed, as well as Cor. I need to call him," I say as I get my phone out and search my contacts for Charles' number.
As soon as I found it, I pressed the call button on my touch screen, and I pressed the speaker button on the call screen so everyone could hear as well. It starts ringing; after two rings, Charles answers the phone.
"Hello poppet, how are you?" he asks in a cheerful voice. "I'm okay, Grandpa. I need to ask you a few things," I tell him as calmly as I can. "Poppet, would you be okay with Opa joining this conversation? The questions you have may involve him, and I know he would like to talk to you too," he asks.
"Yeah, that's fine. I'm telling you now that I'm with the Avengers, which means that Tony is here," I say. "I understand, and that's fine since some of what we're probably going to talk about concerns him too," Charles says solemnly. "I didn't mean to call you out of the blue, but we were looking through my medical records, and I couldn't remember some of it. I'm guessing that Mom made you block and change those memories and with Cor, too," asking him quietly.
"Yes, I did, but your Mother threatened never to let me see you again if I didn't, and I will give you back those memories if you want them. I didn't want to change the memories; I wanted you to remember because some of the training you had was with us at the mansion, and when I took those memories, it affected your relationships with the others and Opa and I.
"Who is her, Opa?" Tony asks. "Erik Lensherr. After he tried to make mutants be accepted by force, he soon realized that his methods weren't going to work, and he joined the school as a mentor after my Mom was born. They didn't officially get together until a few years before I was born because they're idiots," I tell them, and Charles laughs at that.
"Wow, that's so cool and kinda scary," Peter says in awe. I laugh at that because to me, my Opa is a big softie but only for me. He doesn't like my other cousins except for the little ones. He can be stern, but he's kind and gentle, not just me but also his students and the other X-men.
"Well, he's not scary when you get to know him. I'm his favorite grandchild. No, I'm not his only grandchild. I have another sibling that Mom is hiding from us. Grandpa and Grandma Anne know about them, but they don't know what happened to them. I vaguely remember Mom being pregnant again and then not after a year and no sibling," I say, thinking Peter may be that missing sibling, but we need to test his DNA.
"Sonnenschein, how are you?" Erik asks. I'm assuming that I'm on speakerphone like I put us on so we can hear. "I'm fine, Opa, but I need to tell you and Charles about Mom and that I'm with the Avengers and Tony," I tell him, and I feel a sense of dread, but it has to be done.
I feel both Tony and Peter squeeze me for encouragement. "What about DeeDee do you need to tell us about?" Charles asks, concerned. "Well, when I came home last year after everything. I told Mom and Cor what happened, and she went awol and left. I don't know where she is or if she's okay. I think she went after the Black Lotus Clan in revenge for me. Grandpa, I figured that it would be easier to ask you to find her since you have Cerebro," I tell them.
"I will see if I can find her with Cerebro. How did you find out that Tony was your biological father?" Charles asks quickly. I tell them what's been happening the last few days with comments from Phil, Tony, Bucky, Steve, Peter, and Friday. It's about thirty minutes later we finish, and we agree that they'll call tomorrow as soon as they find her with Cerebro. We say goodbye, and I hang up. I feel so drained, and I'm glad that Dad and Peter are still holding me; otherwise, I would've laid down on my side and curled up into a ball.
"It's going to be okay, kiddo. I'm sure of it," Tony says comfortingly. "Thanks. I need to get up," I say, letting go of Peter and moving away from Tony. I crawl a little bit and stand. I sway a little as I straighten up. I feel someone come to help me not fall; I look up and see it's Bucky; I blush and smile at him. I look away, semi-embarrassed.
When James lets go of my arms, I notice that the foundation that I use to cover up my other tattoos has rubbed off onto his hands. All I can think of is crap. I have to show them now. I might as well get it over with and face it.
"I have other tattoos besides my elemental tattoos on my back. I don't actively hide them, but I wasn't sure how'd y'all react to them," I say. "These were my choice to have rather than as part of my Avatar status. Pete, will you get the makeup remover from my bathroom cabinet. It's the Cetaphil Gentle Makeup Removing Wipes. Pete leaves to get the wipes.
"Kiddo, you're over 18; you don't need permission to get tattoos. I don't care if you have tattoos; if they make you happy," Tony says and gets up to hug me. I start to cry in his arms because, for the first time, a person besides Cor, Charles, and Erik hasn't negatively reacted to my choices. My other grandfather, Mother, and some of my other relatives have negatively responded to some of my life choices.
Like when I came out as Bisexual when I was 15 years old, when I decided to get my degrees in bioengineering, forensic science, and computer science when I was in High School, or when they found out about my alcoholism. My sexuality and addiction to alcohol I get, but my education was something I didn't get. I guess they were jealous, but I would think that my accomplishments would be something to be proud of, but no.
"Kiddo, why did you get the tattoos?" Steve asks. "Well, when I was going through the process of becoming sober again, I decided that I should reward myself with something I wanted for positive reinforcement, so I chose tattoos because I could express myself. None of them are inappropriate or anything," I tell them as Peter walks in with the makeup remover. Pete hands me the wipes; I take a wipe from the box, and I start with my left arm since it has colorful ones.
I smile as the tattoos begin to appear. The first one is the memorial tattoo for my baby, who I miscarried. The tattoo is blue and pink angel wings; under it, it says, Baby de Jong with the year 2018 since I didn't know the exact date that I miscarried. The next one is my bisexual tattoo. It's a triangle with the flag colors in watercolors. After I finish with my forearm, I take my shirt off to get to the rest of my arm, to show the entire tattoo, and get a fresh wipe.
I start to wipe my upper arm to reveal Van Gogh sunflowers surrounding a quote that says The Way I see it, Every Life is a pile of Good things and Bad things. The Good things don't Always Soften the Bad things, but Vice Verse, the Bad things don't Always Spoil the Good things and Make them Unimportant. I got this tattoo as a reminder not to let them win. It's a Doctor Who quote that spoke to me. Yes, I do watch Doctor Who; it's still one of the shows that I can watch that doesn't affect my PTSD.
Once I finish with my right upper arm, I get another wipe to wipe my left forearm. I only have tattoos only on my forearms because they're less painful than getting outer arm tattoos for now. As I began to reveal the next few, I wondered how they reacted, but I wanted to finish before looking.
The first tattoos are the lyrics to Hey Jude and Let it be by The Beatles. I got them because they remind me to love and of my Grandmother. The last one on my arm is my semicolon tattoo that says I am worthy with the semicolon as the i.
The next tattoo is on my left lower leg. I got it when I first came home. The tattoo is a tribal dragon because of my nickname, and I wanted to feel like myself again. I haven't gotten my eighth tattoo because I wasn't sure what to get.
As she finishes wiping away the makeup, I can't help but wonder how strong she is for exposing herself to all of us. She's trusting us to understand and support her. She is so beautiful inside and out. I want to make her happy and feel safe with me. God, I hope I don't mess this up. "Wow, they're beautiful, Angel," I say in awe.
She blushes again, but you can't always completely tell because of the redness she already has in her cheeks. She starts to tell us what the tattoos are and why she got them. We all walk around her to get a better look at them. When I see the baby memorial, I can't help but wonder how she has dealt with this pain and trauma without doing worse than relapsing.
"I had my family and future to look forward to, so I decided to deal with the trauma as best I can and get better for myself. I shouldn't have gone back to drinking in the first place, but with drinking, I knew that it would take away my pain most effectively, and it was a mistake. No, I can't read your mind, but I can read your face," she says somberly.
"So your bisexual?" Tony asks apprehensively. "Yes, is that a problem?" she asks back fiercely. "No, kiddo, because I'm bisexual too," he says as he comes up to embrace her. Tony being bisexual doesn't surprise me since I've seen him looking at Stevie, and it's not in he's my friend way; it's the I want to get him in my bed and more way.
Steve should come out too, but it's still hard for him to come to terms with his sexuality even though it's better now. " I'm bisexual too," Bruce tells us. I can't say I'm shocked, but it's nice to know that other people here besides her and Tony are bisexual. "I'm bisexual as well, and I'm not scared anymore to say it," Steve says.
Confessing that I'm bisexual was scary and relieving at the same time. "That's awesome. You didn't have to tell us just because we were doing it too," Anjali says as she walks over and hugs me. "I know, but I needed to because I don't want to lie to myself and others anymore," I tell them. "This is a safe place. I tried to make sure that my employees and board members know that because it's the right thing to do," Tony says informatively.
"Thank you, Tony, and I'm sure that your employees appreciate it. I know I do," I say sincerely. Anjali let's go after I say this and puts her shirt back on. "I think we should have a movie night and comfort food," Tony suggests. "That's a good idea, but there are a few more things that need to be discussed," Anjali says.
"Like what, Angel?" Bucky asks in concern. "There is another name for the Avatar, and it's Guardian," I tell them, and Thor gasps and kneels before me. "My lady, it is an honor to be in your presence," Thor bellows. "Please, Thor, that isn't necessary. I know that my title is important, but I don't want any special treatment from you," I tell him. "Of course, my lady. To the rest of the Universe, she can control the infinity stones without needing some kind of aid as Thanos does," Thor tells them, and I stare at him in confusion.
"What do you mean I can control the infinity stones?" I ask with panic in my voice, and I start to shake. I feel my knees begin to buckle, and someone catches me as I fall. "Grey, breathe; you're having a panic attack. Breathe with me, Angel. In, two, three, four. Out, two, three, four. In, two, three, four. Out, two, three, four," Bucky tells me. I start to breathe slowly in and out, but I start crying again because I just couldn't keep it in anymore.
I feel Bucky turn me around in his arms and holds me against his chest, rocking me back and forth. As if on instinct, I wrap myself around him like I've done it a million times before. "I'm not letting you go ever again, Grey. You saved me; now let me help you heal. I promise for as long as I'm alive, I will always be here. Do you want me to stay with you tonight? He whispers to me softly.
I just nod into his shoulder and squeeze him tighter. As soon as I feel calm and more steady, I lift my head from his shoulder, turn around in his lap, and look at Thor.
"Well, when Loki first came back to Asgard, he was telling us about what Thanos was planning, I guess, to get a lighter sentence from our father. He mentioned that he was afraid of a person called Guardian and could control infinity stones with their will. I don't know much else. I guess we would have to talk to him, but to be honest, I don't know how much more he could tell us. I would say that we could go to Asgard and talk to him, but he's dead as far as I know," he tells us.
"So, you don't know for sure if I can do anything with the infinity stones," I ask cautiously. "I'm afraid not, and I apologize for causing you distress. I thought you would know about this, but I was wrong," he says sincerely.
"There's one more thing I want to bring up, and I know that I should've brought it up yesterday, but it was to help a friend whose family wouldn't let her make her own medical decisions and so I could take over as her medical proxy.
I've been emancipated since I was 17 because my Mother wouldn't let me control the money I inherited from my grandmother, and she stole from me. I know I said that she gave me money to go to China. Still, she also gave me money as an inheritance, but anyway, I got married to one of my dearest friends because when she was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma at 13, they were able to slow it down.
But the treatment made her miserable, and when she turned 18, she decided she'd had enough. We talked it through and decided that I could take over as her medical proxy since I was emancipated. Getting married mainly was so her family couldn't contest it. We talked to the Doctors, and because even though they could slow it, there is no cure, so we put her on hospice.
She died about 3 months later. I'm considered a widow, but I don't see it that way. Friday bring up my marriage certificate, Dinah's medical proxy, and Dinah's death certificate," I tell her. Friday brings up the documents I requested and some pictures of Dinah and I from social media, and I start crying again.
Bucky holds me against his chest again. "This doesn't change how I feel, and I admire that you would do that to help someone who needed you," he says, pulling me closer to him. "Why did she want to die?" Nat asks. I look her in the eye and say,
"She didn't want to suffer anymore, and there isn't a cure for Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, her needs were my priority, that's what she wanted, and I wasn't going to deny her. Her family only wanted the money that she inherited from her great-grandparents.
Which I inherited after she died. I put that money in investments, but I haven't touched it otherwise. I didn't even want the money from my grandmother, but because Mom was using the money without my knowledge, I had to get control of it back. I was using it for college tuition, and Mom was using it for her undercover work without my knowledge or permission. So, I had Mom pay me back as well as blocked access to the trust.
So, if you think I was being a bitch for it, then go ahead, I don't care. I did what's best for me at the time. I'm not going to let you criticize me and put me down for it. Does that answer your question," I say, and I get off of Bucky's lap, stand up, and cross my arms.
"How much money do you have?" Tony asks. "The last time I checked during the previous quarter, I had close to 900,000 dollars, but that's just from the money from my grandmother. Even though I used it for tuition, it was invested before then, so yeah.
From Dinah, I don't know. I just didn't think about her money when I look at my portfolios. I'll call the bank tomorrow and ask what the amount is. I know when I inherited it was 600,000 dollars, and it's been a little over 2 years, so it's more now, so I could be a millionaire in my own right," I tell them and run my hands through my hair. I need to get a haircut soon.
"I'll help you with that if you'd like," Pepper offers. "I'd like that; thank you, Pepper," I say. "Your welcome, kiddo. I've been doing this for Tony since you were probably born," she says, coming up to me and hugging me. I hug her back, and as I let go of her, Natasha comes up to me.
"I'm sorry, Anjali. I thought you were like your Mom, and I was wrong. I've known your Mom for a long time; I've seen what she's done, and you are better than her in every way. I want to be someone in your life if you'll let me," she says sincerely and reaches out her hand for me to shake. I shake her hand in agreement, and she grins. When I let go, I felt Bucky wrap around me again, and I put a hand on top of his that's around my waist.
"Dad, we need to be honest with Pete," I say. Tony looks at me solemnly, but he nods, knowing I'm right. "What do ya mean Anjali?" Peter asks. "Well, bud, I was talking to Anjali last night, and what's she's revealed just now, we think you might be my son and her full sibling. We were wondering if we could test your DNA against ours?" he asks nervously.
"Would my DNA be able to be used because of the spider mutation?" he asks. "Well, we can test it and see. It doesn't hurt anything to try with the spider DNA anyway," I say cautiously. He nods. "Friday, pull up my DNA, my Mother's, Dad's, and Peter's, and test them, please," I ask her.
"Actually, I've already done it. When you and the Boss talked last night, I figured I'd take the initiative and run it. Congratulations, it's a boy, Boss. Anjali and Peter are full siblings," she says. As she finishes, I get out of Bucky's arms, hug Peter tightly, and start crying again.
"I'm so sorry, Kleintje; if I'd known, I would've found you sooner," I say, holding on to him like a lifeline. He hugs me as tightly as he can without hurting me. I look up, grab Tony's arm and pull him into our hug. He hugs us tightly as if he would never let us go.
"Come on, let's get something to eat and get Anjali some water so she can rehydrate," Steve says. We break the hug and walk towards the kitchen. Peter is holding on to me like a lifeline. "Kiddo, I'm not going anywhere," I say, and I take his hand so that if he wants to hold on, then he can.
Steve gets to the kitchen first, brings me a glass of water, and gets out ingredients for Mac & Cheese, Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, Tomato Soup cans to heat up, and Spaghetti and Meatballs. "I figured comfort food would be the best way to go after everything the last few hours," Steve says, getting out pots and pans.
"I can make hot chocolate. It's super simple, and I can make it quick," I say as I get up and pull out milk, a pot, cocoa powder, sugar, chocolate chips, and vanilla extract.
I put the pot on the stove and pour all the milk because I'm assuming everyone will want some. I use my powers to heat it up, then add cocoa powder, sugar, and chocolate chips. I stir them all together, then use my power as I'm mixing the ingredients.
I obviously don't use extreme heat, but I use gentle heat that radiates from my hands, so I don't damage the pot. As soon as I feel that the chocolate chips have melted down, I put in three splashes of vanilla extract and stir it all together.
"Wow, it smells delicious, Angel," Bucky compliments. "Thanks. Could you get mugs for everyone, please?" I ask. "Sure, Grey, since I'm getting plates, bowls, and silverware for Steve," he says, chuckling.
"Well, do that first, then get the mugs. I just need a few more minutes to make sure the vanilla is mixed in properly," I tell him. After a few minutes, I get a spoon and scoop a little bit to taste. It tastes good, and I take it over to the other side of the stove where Bucky is getting out the mugs. I take a look at the mugs.
I grin at the icons, Tony's Ironman, Steve's shield, A silver star for Bucky, Thor's Hammer, A green fist for Bruce, Nat's Black Widow, Rhodey's is War Machine, Vision, Wanda, and Pepper's are red with their initials, Happy's has a smiley face on his, Scott and Hope's are an ant and a wasp, and Peter's has his spidey symbol.
Not everyone joined us for dinner tonight. I see that Bucky laid out another mug for me. "Steve, where is y'all's ladle so I can fill the mugs?" I ask, turning to look at him. "Uh, I think it's in the drawer next to the refrigerator, but I'll get it; you go sit down," he tells me. I put my arms up in surrender and go sit down.
After the hot cocoa was served, we ate dinner, and then I went to bed because I'm exhausted. As I'm walking to my room, Wanda asks if we could hang out tomorrow since it's been a while since she's been around someone her age. I just nod yes because it was easier.
When I get to my room, I get some clothes, and I take a shower to get the rest of the makeup from my tattoos and freshen up. When I get dressed, and out of the bathroom, I hear a knock at the door, and it's Bucky.
"Come in, James," I say, waving him in. He came in, and he wrapped his arms around me. "I think we should go to bed, but I want to talk to you about us," he says, and we sit on the bed on the sides we plan to sleep on.
"I want us to be together, but I need to be very clear that I probably won't be ready to have sex anytime soon. I am fine with being intimate in other ways like holding hands, hugging, cuddling, talking, kissing, and different ways. I don't know how often I'll have panic attacks. I'm going to need reassurance because of my mental issues, and it helps. Sorry but I just want to be clear from the start," I tell him, and he gives me a kiss on my forehead.
"Angel, I do understand that. We will work through it together. I'll need reassurance, too, and I want us to take our time. I'm not going anywhere, and I want to be there to support you through your healing process," he says, laying down and pulling me down with him.
"I want to support you through yours, too, Blue," I tell him, wrapping my arms around him. He just nods and wraps his arms around me, pulling me close to him. "Friday, turn off the lights and put on Brisingr by Christopher Paolini, please," I tell her, and she complies.
"I'm guessing that'll help you sleep?" he asks, and I just nod. I close my eyes, James pulls the covers over us, and he rubs my back. Probably not even ten minutes later, I'm sound asleep safe in the arms of my person.