New York was beautiful in December. It was possibly Lucy's favorite time in the city. The Upper East Side was full of colored lights and Christmas trees stood at every possible corner. Every shop started playing Christmas songs and Lucy wasn't yet fed up with them. Wanda and she had decided to start on their Christmas shopping early. It was a Wednesday after school and Peter had to get home straight away to finish some work and get out patrolling in time. The girls had more time and strolled along the shopping malls and stores in search for some Christmas presents and also to hang out between just the two of them.
Thankfully, both had similar clothing styles although Lucy was a lot more fluid with her trust fund – that Wanda still declined to take from although Lucy continually wore her down – and the first stop was Urban Outfitters on 3rd Avenue. With armful of clothes, the girls disappeared into the fitting rooms and it didn't take long for Lucy to emerge, wearing a jazzy 80s style sweater. When Wanda laid eyes on her, she started giggling uncontrollably.
"I gotta say, it goes really well with the school skirt. Really reminds me of some psychedelic drug episode."
Lucy started laughing until her sides hurt but she did like the sweater and with some simple black jeans it might actually be less flashy.
Wanda also found a few pieces that she liked and the girls made their way down the street.
Lucy pulled Wanda along and turned to her with serious eyes. The witch knew that look and sighed already.
"You know what I'm gonna say."
"But we need nice dresses for Christmas! Let me do this one nice thing for you. Tony would buy it anyway, come on!" Lucy was really persuasive if she wanted to and Wanda knew she'd lose this battle anyway.
"Fine, but no Ralph Lauren."
Lucy almost jumped. "You won't regret it! Let's go!"
She pulled Wanda by her arm further down right into Bloomingdale's. Wanda didn't feel comfortable in between all the expensive fabrics and dresses but Lucy was right at home and her natural behavior did help Wanda settle. She wasn't used to expensive clothes and accessories but Tony wouldn't let any of them step outside in ragged clothes anymore. Even Bruce had to update his purple shirt. It was still purple but now Armani.
The girls emerged from the store with beautiful Christmas dresses in large bags and Wanda was happy with her selection though she didn't want to look at the price tag twice. Lucy didn't care about that sort of thing. She was like Tony in this respect. They had so much money, they didn't care how much they spent but they also both made sure that everyone else had their fair share too. Wanda relaxed as both girls entered their favorite coffee shop and ordered the new Christmas specialty lattes and a bagel. She listened with only half an ear to Lucy lamenting the lack of pumpkin spice lattes for another ten months.
"What are you getting Nat for Christmas?"
Lucy only sighed in response. She liked shopping for gifts but her mentor was a tough nut to crack. She was usually so focused on missions and her jobs that she didn't have much time for hobbies. Lucy had been thinking for months and didn't come up with much.
"I don't know, it's really difficult. I have an idea but it might be stupid…" she trailed off.
"What is it?" Wanda encouraged her to carry on.
"You know how our favorite Disney movie is Mulan?" Lucy continued and Wanda nodded. "Yeah, so I was thinking I could get her something from the Disney store? Is that a ridiculous idea?"
Wanda smiled and shook her head. "I think it's great, honestly!"
Lucy still looked skeptical. "You think? I mean… what do you get a Shield agent for Christmas?" She grinned.
"Don't think about it like that," Wanda intervened. "Think about what you would get your mother for Christmas."
Lucy threw her a disbelieving look. "That's not helping."
Wanda gave a wonky smile. "Well, think what normal kids would get their parents for Christmas."
"That's what you did with Steve?" Lucy asked and the other girl nodded.
"Yup. I haven't found anything yet but I got some ideas. That's what I now tell shop clerks and they're actually pretty helpful. More helpful than when you ask what to get Captain America."
The girls started laughing and after they finished their coffee, Wanda ushered Lucy in the direction of the Disney store.
"This one is great!" Wanda held up a water bottle with a stylized Mulan figure on it. "Perfect for training."
"Throw it in the bag," Lucy nodded and kept looking.
She showed Wanda a red, 90s style, oversize T-Shirt with Mushu on it. "You think she'd like this one?"
Wanda's eyes grew. "Oh, yes, that's awesome!"
Lucy tossed it in the bag as well and held up her last find, a dark green, cropped, sleeveless hoodie vest with the golden dragon logo over the chest. Wanda nodded enthusiastically and the girls went to pay for their treasures. Lucy was happy that she finally found Christmas presents for Nat. Wanda assured her that she'd love it – it was personal and something that connected the two of them.
Back at the tower, the girls arrived just in time for dinner and even that turned eventful when Nat addressed Lucy.
"Have you thought about what you want to do for your birthday?"
Everyone at the table listened up.
Peter's eyes lit up. "It's your sweet sixteen!"
Lucy just shrugged and threw a careful look at Tony. "Honestly? Nothing much. I didn't think we'd wanna celebrate much."
Tony caught her look and immediately stopped her train of thought. "Don't worry about it. I think it's great if the day gets a happier connotation."
The girl gave a half smile. "I still don't wanna do much. My past few birthdays I always had to celebrate with the girls from school but I'll gladly pass on that this year. Just a nice, calm day with my family is enough."
Nat nodded in understanding.
"You'll still want to have a nice cake though," Pepper surmised.
Lucy smiled and nodded. "Something fruity would be nice."
"Done deal!" The ginger pulled out her phone and started noting down ideas.
"You want any specific presents?" Tony asked but Lucy only shrugged again.
"No, I think I'm good. I mean – I don't need anything." She sighed. "This is gonna sound crazy first world but it's hard to think of a present when you can buy everything yourself."
Most at the table just gave an amused smile but Tony nodded in earnest agreement.
"We'll organize a nice chill party, alright?" Nat concluded the brainstorming session. "It's only about ten days away anyway."
Lucy nodded happily and got up to help clean up after dinner before relocating to the living room to watch Jeopardy with the rest of the family that had the evening off.
###
Lucy's birthday was only a few days away but it was probably the furthest on her mind right now. The provisional AP English exam was scheduled for tomorrow and the three all had to take it. They were currently crammed into Lucy's room, having spent the entire night cramming books and analysis. Usually, she didn't have to study – math, physics and chemistry came naturally - but English was another issue and her brain wasn't wired for it. She still didn't have to study as much as others but a little was still more than nothing.
The mountain of Monster grew as the night went on and especially Wanda got more and more desperate. Peter was his relaxed self but Lucy could feel the tension underneath. While the kids were trying to get through as much English as possible, procrastination was a persistent enemy and playing around with their powers was always more fun, especially at first but when midnight rolled around, they started working earnestly.
Peter finally got up to stretch his feet and wandered over to the window. When he opened the blinds, the kids were startled by the morning light that suddenly shone into the room.
Lucy only threw a short glance up and kept scribbling furiously but Wanda stared at the sun.
"Jesus Christ, it's the morning already! What are we gonna do?"
"Maybe we could start with calming the fuck down?" Peter turned around.
"Calm down? Calm down?" Wanda almost shrieked. "We're still on Hemmingway! We haven't so much looked at Lee!"
"At least you know you're not alone," Peter was still calm and Lucy, in her hectic scribbling, wondered how he wasn't freaking out yet. They really didn't cover enough so far.
"We're all gonna fail, we're all gonna get our asses handed to us and we're all in the same boat."
Now Lucy stopped writing, basically threw her pen across the room and looked up with frantic eyes. "I don't wanna be in that boat! I wanna be in a different boat, sailing down a totally different river!" Her voice almost took on Wanda's shriek who turned to her.
"Why are you stressed anyway? You're the genius here."
"I can do science!" Lucy exclaimed. "Logic! But English isn't logical!"
Wanda just groaned. "Why didn't we start earlier?"
She didn't direct her desperate question at anyone in particular but unfortunately, all of them could answer it.
"Out patrolling too much," Peter mumbled.
Lucy just sighed. "I don't know, English is boring. I've been reading Shield protocols." Wanda threw her a disbelieving look. "That's less boring than literature?"
"They're interesting, okay?" Lucy responded defensively.
Peter suddenly turned rational. "Why are we freaking out anyway? We have another chance in May."
His attitude didn't transfer to Lucy.
"I can't fail!" Her eyes turned wild. "I've never failed anything in my life!"
Wanda also shook her head hysterically. "I don't wanna see Steve's face when I come home with anything worse than a C."
Peter jumped when Lucy suddenly let out a strangled cry. She hadn't even thought about Nat's reaction but now she had another motivation to do everything in her power to not fail this exam.
When the three got downstairs for breakfast, Nat threw Lucy a knowing look but didn't say anything. Lucy almost groaned again. This meant Nat was in her 'let her make her own mistakes and learn from it' mood and that never ended well. Steve frowned as he saw their worried faces but Wanda managed a wonky, highly unconvincing smile that stopped any comment.
"I think your sweater is the wrong way 'round, honey," Pepper casually mentioned as Lucy picked up her eggs.
The girl twisted to throw a look over her shoulder and saw the school logo on her back. She quickly changed it and when she pulled it over her head again, she caught Clint's amused smile. With a frown in his direction she sat and gulped down her breakfast and coffee and snatched another cup to go when Happy appeared in the door, ready to take the kids. Lucy jumped up, grabbed her bag and, after leaning down and letting Nat press a kiss to her forehead, walked towards the door.
The drive to Columbia was too short for any of their liking and they quizzed each other in the car. It didn't go terrible but Lucy still had concerns whether she would pass this exam. When they got to the school, Happy stopped and turned around with a sympathetic expression.
"Good luck, guys, you'll do great."
The skeptical faces he got in return told a different story but the kids didn't stall any longer and got out of the car and walked into school.
All the kids in their year had gathered in front of the double doors to the examination room. Lucy went over to the group around Olivia and was assured that none of them took this exam seriously either. Columbia was an academic school but as long as the exam wasn't serious, the rich kids wouldn't try as hard as they could.
Lucy returned to Peter and Wanda who had gone back to quizzing each other on Hemmingway.
"You're really gambling on a Hemmingway question, huh?"
The poisonous look Wanda threw her shut Lucy up straight away but Mrs. Epstein who walked around the corner that moment brought silence upon the entire hallway.
With one last look to her partners in crime, Lucy took a deep breath and followed the mass of students into the exam hall and took her place at one of the tiny desks.
###
"That wasn't too bad!" Peter was too happy for the occasion and Wanda only threw him an exasperated look in response.
"I don't know about you but I barely scraped by," Wanda said dejectedly but Lucy learned not to take her opinion for pure gold. The witch was somewhat of a pessimist, so she just shrugged her shoulders.
"I'm just glad that they put the Hemmingway question… I don't think we would've been able to write a single word on 'To Kill a Mockingbird'."
Peter turned with a grin on his face. "Guys, we made it out of our first AP exam alive!"
The girls looked at each other and smiled.
"Let's have lunch," Lucy pushed her friends towards the break room. The three of them crashed at one of the round tables that was half-built into the wall, hiding from curious glances through the glass wall.
Lucy had gotten used to having lunch with her friends during the past few months. She'd never done it before, if anything she sat with Olivia's crew in the cafeteria but it was always more a business lunch feeling rather than having fun with classmates.
After lunch, Wanda and Lucy pulled out some homework they'd neglected during the exam preparation. Peter got out his Spiderman notebook and worked on a new version of his web fluid that still had a few calculations missing.
###
"Which one do you like better?" Pepper held two pictures under Lucy's nose.
Lucy's eyes wandered back and forth from a purple, red and black cake to a gold, red and white one.
"You really didn't need to put this much effort into this, you know that?"
Pepper only huffed. "Oh please, it's your sixteenth birthday! So, which one is it?"
Lucy grinned. "I guess I should be glad you didn't also find a red, white and blue one?"
Tony couldn't help snickering but Steve only rolled his eyes.
"I'll have to stick with the family colors." Lucy pointed to the purple, red and black theme. "Sorry Tony."
"Nah, it's fine," the genius responded good-naturedly. "I understand the obligation. I just hope Peter does too." He threw the spider a long look who didn't bother looking up from his phone.
"I'll have a star-spangled cake," he drawled.
Tony pointed a finger at him. "That's it, you're disowned."
Now Peter looked up. "I didn't know I was gonna inherit anything."
"Tony, that's not how we were gonna tell him!" Pepper said exasperatedly.
Tony smiled. "Oh well, too late."
Peter grinned and shrugged and threw a lazy look on the pictures. "I think you made the right choice."
"Agreed," Clint called over Pepper's shoulder who spun around.
"What were you doing in the kitchen?" she asked him with narrowed eyes.
He backed away slowly, holding a glass of orange juice. "Just getting a drink. I didn't touch anything electric, I swear."
Pepper considered him dangerous eyes before Nat walked out the kitchen as well, holding a bottle.
"Who bought Sunny D?" She looked around the table with the same threateningly narrowed eyes as Pepper.
"Do you know how bad this is? How much sugar it has?"
While Nat was talking, Clint slowly made his way towards the door, trying to hide his glass as much as he could but Pepper already spotted him. She gave Nat a look and together the two women made their way towards the agent who quickly spun around and left the floor.
Shaking their heads, Nat and Pepper returned to the table while everyone else had erupted into fits of laughter.
"At least you've chosen a cake decoration," the ginger addressed Lucy. "Nothing left to do except wait for tomorrow."
Lucy smiled in response but she had one more thing to ask.
"I was thinking… I wanted to visit grandma tomorrow morning, you know, before we celebrate?" She looked at Steve who nodded in response.
"Of course, I'll come with you."
Tony also smiled softly. "I'll join you as well… I should probably bring my parents some flowers."
Lucy smiled. "Thank you, guys."
###
It was freezing cold the next morning. The cemetery was deserted, only a few senior citizens were visiting and maintaining graves. Happy let Lucy, Steve and Tony out and decided to wait in the car park with the car heating running.
Lucy pulled her coat and scarf tight around herself to keep in some of the warmth. She was carrying two large bouquets of flowers in her arms as well as a fresh candle.
She'd woken up quite early and found Natasha sitting by her bedside. It was a new experience – ever since she started boarding school, no one had bothered to do something special on her birthday. She usually invited her colleagues from school for a dinner like she was expected but since her grandma had gotten sick, it was basically a day like every other.
Having Nat be there when she woke up a year older was nice – Lucy couldn't imagine why, since she'd spent years telling herself her birthday wasn't special.
"Happy Birthday, ptichka," Nat smiled at her and Lucy fell in her arms straightaway.
After they pulled apart, her mentor extended a gift, wrapped in Avengers paper, eliciting a grin from Lucy.
"I know you said you couldn't think of anything but it's your birthday and you deserve a gift." She kept smiling. "I hope you'll like it."
Lucy carefully unwrapped it, not wanting to rip apart Cap's face and revealed a beautifully delicate silver bar bracelet, with навсегда engraved on it as well as a little birthstone on the chain. Her eyes grew and as she looked up into Nat's, she couldn't help the tears forming in them.
"It's perfect! It's so beautiful! I love it! Thank you so much!" She flung her arms around her mentor's neck again and Nat hugged her tight.
"I'm glad you like it. Now you should probably get dressed so you get to the cemetery and back in time."
Lucy nodded and jumped up, choosing a blue Burberry dress and putting on her new bracelet before walking downstairs where everyone else also wished her a happy birthday. When Clint saw her walking down from the elevator, he opened his arms and that was all the invitation Lucy needed. She sprinted towards him and he lifted her up and swung her around.
"I can't believe you're sixteen," Clint mused. "Seems like yesterday when you were born and–"
"Alright, that's enough!" Lucy interrupted him quickly. "No embarrassing stories today."
Steve smiled. "I hope I can stop myself. Happy Birthday, sweetheart." He hugged her tightly.
Peter and Wanda jumped out the kitchen and could barely stop themselves from crashing into her. They engulfed her in a group hug.
"Finally you're sixteen as well!" Peter apparently tried to crack her bones with how tight his grip was.
Lucy pretended to gasp for air which resulted in the spider loosening his grip with a subdued expression.
"Sorry, I'm just really excited."
Wanda started pushing her towards the door. "Alright, the three of you, of to visit the cemetery, otherwise we won't have enough time to prepare."
Lucy laughed and left the tower towards the garage, flanked by Steve and Tony.
###
Peggy and Howard and Maria laid close to each other. It's what her grandma had requested and like always, she'd gotten what she wanted.
The first stop was the grey stone with the well-maintained green before it, though at this time of year, it was covered in snow. It was telling that Lucy didn't start crying the moment she laid eyes on the grave. She once again thought back to Wanda's words and how true they were. Living at the tower really healed her broken heart.
She kneeled down on the cold stones, framing the grave bed and laid down the first bouquet that had all different kinds of flowers, including her grandma's favorite, lilies.
"Hey grandma," Lucy started out softly, the greeting not feeling so strange anymore after she'd come here regularly over the past few months. Never alone though, always accompanied by Steve and sometimes also Sharon – it made every visit less painful.
"I'm sixteen today. It's weird, isn't it?" She stocked and focused her look on the name engraved in the stone. Margret Elizabeth Carter. This is where she'd gotten her own middle name from.
"But it's a much better birthday than last year. I mean, you're not here, but I got everyone else and they're preparing a whole party." She shook her arm and revealed the bracelet. "Nat got me this bracelet, she engraved it with 'forever' in Russian. It's pretty, isn't it? She did so much for me in the past few months and this is perfect."
Lucy could feel Steve's reassuring hand on her shoulder so she continued.
"I miss you, especially today, but my heart doesn't hurt as much anymore. You probably know this already, cause you're watching me from up there, but they're taking really good care of me."
Steve and Tony both nodded in support and Lucy had to smile. Both wanted to make sure that Peggy was happy – it was cute.
"So, yeah, I think that's all I wanted to tell you. Just making sure that you don't worry. I'm starting out being sixteen happy and healthy and cared for."
"And loved," Steve added. Lucy turned to see his face but he focused on the grave stone as well.
"I promise you, we're making sure she's okay, Peg. Your granddaughter is in the best hands."
He also sunk to his knees, as did Tony.
"You were the best godmother I could've wished for and I hope that I can be as good an uncle to your granddaughter."
Lucy shifted slightly to lean reassuringly against him.
He continued. "I hope you're alright up there, together with mom and dad…"
Lucy took a deep breath before lighting the candle and replacing the old one that had almost completely burned down.
With a last long look to the grave, the three got up and walked the few feet over to the double grave that belonged to Howard and Maria.
Tony went first, kneeling and talking softly before Lucy and Steve joined them.
"I don't think I've introduced Lucy yet. She's pretty much you, dad, except with a few of Peggy's genes. You'd like her. It's even her birthday today."
Lucy smiled softly. "I'm not as intelligent, Tony's exaggerating."
"No, she definitely is," Steve intervened immediately.
The girl just shook her head. "Tony's doing great, he's an amazing dad and uncle to all of us."
She could feel him smile next to her and put down the second bouquet she'd brought. "Hopefully you'll like these flowers, Maria. I doubt Howard cares about them."
Tony's grin widened.
"I hope you're all happy up there and obviously watching us." Lucy stocked but she wanted to say this one thing. "Grandma, if you're listening as well - I promise that we'll do everything to keep your legacy going. Shield is running pretty smoothly now and hopefully, I'll be able to become an agent in a few years. Nat says she's got high hopes."
Steve put an arm on her shoulder again and after another goodbye, the three walked back to the car where Happy was patiently waiting and, thankfully, left the heating on.
The drive back to the tower was quick as even New York traffic seemed to slow down on cold and snowy Saturdays.
When the elevator arrived on the common floor, Lucy was greeting with an enthusiastic "Happy Birthday" and decorations in the purple, red and black scheme she'd picked out the day before. Her mouth stood open. She should've known that a small party at the tower would mean something different than what normal people would consider one.
Nat walked towards her. "I hope you're not upset that we got a little crazy with it but once Wanda and Pepper started, they were unstoppable."
A big smile spread on Lucy's face and she flung her arms around the older woman. "It's amazing!"
"I'm glad," the red head smiled. "There's some guests that haven't said hi yet."
Lucy threw her a questioning look but Nat only pushed her towards the sofa where the girl saw who was waiting.
"Phil!" she exclaimed and ran towards the agent who caught her in his arms.
"Happy birthday, Lucy," he smiled at her. "I can't believe you're so grown up now. It seems like yesterday when you were running around the office with Peggy."
Lucy frowned. "Yeah, I'm not gonna get around the embarrassing baby stories today, am I?"
Phil only shook his head in response.
"Awesome, I got a few," Clint called over but became silent quickly after Lucy threw him a venomous look.
Another person emerged from behind Phil and Lucy threw herself into her arms as well.
"Your sweet sixteen… remember how we were imagining this when you were a kid?"
"It seemed so far in the future back then," Lucy pulled back to smile at Sharon.
Her second cousin grinned. "And now it's here. Don't you wait, time's gonna go by faster and faster. Before you know it, you'll be 21."
"Don't scare me!" Lucy laughed and turned to the rest of the party people.
"I can't believe all of you came and prepared all this." She smiled at everyone. "Thank you, guys."
"Always for you," came Rhodey's enthusiastic reply that was echoed around the room.
Tony couldn't wait anymore and clapped his hand. "Onto the presents then."
Sharon ushered her towards the table while Lucy sported a confused expression.
"But I told you I didn't need anything."
"You really think we'd let your birthday go by without presents?" Tony gave her his signature look and Lucy wondered why she'd ever thought she'd get away with this.
Nat placed herself right next to her and she wondered if her mentor had an inkling that she might need moral support.
Tony and Pepper came forward first and handed her a small box, the genius sporting a devilish smile.
"This isn't something scary, is it?" Lucy asked hesitantly but Pepper reassured her.
The box wasn't heavy so Lucy unwrapped and opened it, revealing shiny, silver keys. Her mouth fell open and she looked back up at Tony and Pepper.
"Are you serious?" Tony and Pepper just nodded and Lucy jumped up and hugged both of them at the same time.
Tony looked incredibly satisfied. "It's a nice little Audi A5 convertible in Manhattan Grey. Pepper picked the color and it's perfect. You'll love it."
Lucy's eyes grew and before she could say what she was going to, Nat placed a hand on her arm. "What about if you drive Sharon home later?"
She nodded enthusiastically and thanked Pepper and Tony again who just waved her thanks away.
Steve and Sharon's present was next and it was a large rectangle wrapped in beautiful flowery paper.
Lucy pulled the bigger one out first and carefully unwrapped it. The last thing she wanted to seem was greedy.
When the large painting was revealed, her eyes almost watered and Nat next to her gasped in recognition. It was a picture of Peggy, back from the forties and looked quite old in itself. With incredulous eyes, Lucy turned to look at Sharon who smiled at her.
"It's from the original Shield facility in Camp Lehigh. We thought you might like it to have for yourself."
Lucy only nodded mutely and couldn't draw her eyes off the large canvas while Sharon put a calming hand on her shoulder.
She continued with the rest of the presents. Next up was Rhodey who handed her an envelope that Lucy tore open – again, carefully.
A large but disbelieving smile spread across her face. She turned to look at the Colonel who just nodded.
"This is amazing, thank you, thank you, thank you." She flung her arms around him and he caught her in his arms, laughing.
"I'm glad you're so ecstatic but we've gotta wait till the weather gets a bit better."
"What is it?" Peter couldn't contain his curiosity anymore.
Lucy turned to him, smiling from ear to ear. "He's teaching me to fly a plane."
"Oh no." Steve sounded slightly scared but an elbow from Nat shut him up.
"That is awesome!" Wanda's eyes shone. "You're the youngest but the only one who can drive and soon also pilot."
"You know there's nothing keeping you from getting your driver's license?" Sam asked the witch.
She only shrugged her shoulders. "I wouldn't want to put Happy out of work."
The table erupted in laughter and Happy thanked the girl profusely.
Clint leaned over the table and extended his present as well. "Here you go. You said you had everything but I doubt you got this."
Lucy had a very bad feeling at that but since Natasha didn't seem to worry, it wouldn't be awful.
She unwrapped the gift and revealed a thick photo album. Her bad feeling intensified.
"Please tell me this isn't what I think it is."
The Shield agent only grinned at her. "It's your sixteenth birthday. A little time travel is obligatory."
Lucy looked up at Nat, Phil and Sharon who all had apologetic expressions, confirming her suspicion that they were all involved in this.
"Actually, we might wanna relocate to the living room…" Clint suggested mischievously.
Lucy's stare only widened his grin.
"I thought printed pictures were too small so I decided to set them up in a nice slideshow. Onto the screening!"
She only shook her head but Sam picked her up and easily carried her to the sofas and sat her in between Nat and Sharon, while Clint stood next to the monitor.
He clicked and the first picture appeared that had everyone awing and owing. Lucy was only a few months old in it and she was crawling across a desk that had a few classified Shield files on it.
In the second, Lucy wasn't much older but she was standing up, in between Clint's legs who held her and apparently tried to teach her to walk.
"Did you actually teach me to walk?" Lucy asked astounded.
Clint pulled a face. "I wanna say it was me…"
"But it was just as much me," Phil interrupted.
"No wonder she's such a monkey then," Bruce laughed and everyone had to agree with him.
Clint quickly changed to the next picture. Lucy was a little older in it and reached toddler stage. She was in Natasha's arms and played with her curls, a bright smile on the baby face and Natasha looked comfortable but slightly bewildered.
Again, everyone burst out laughing.
"You're slightly more comfortable with me now, aren't you?" Lucy asked her mentor who grabbed her and pulled her into a side hug.
"Well, you stopped pulling my hair and I don't have to carry you anymore," Nat grinned.
The next picture that seemed to be from the same day as Lucy's outfit was still the same, had everyone falling off the sofas, laughing. Clint was lying in front of Coulson's desk who was sitting behind it and Lucy was standing on his back, reaching up to climb on the desk.
"Oh, I think I remember this day!" Phil suddenly exclaimed.
"Peggy came in and went, 'Thank god you're all here' and dumped Lucy on us. She had some meetings to attend and apparently you were getting so mobile that you would've just run off," he addressed Lucy.
"And you were so exhausted and quiet after spending the day with us, she insisted we should open a child care. The Strike Team Delta Daycare or something."
Clint and Nat cried out in recognition and everyone fell into new bursts of laughter.
"That's the best story I've heard in a while." Rhodey actually wiped away tears of joy.
Clint's eyes sparkled. "Oh, we're just getting started. Wait till we get to the story about the missing data report from when she was eight. That's a good one."
"Nooo!" Lucy yelled. "I actually remember that and you are not telling it!"
"It's far too funny to keep to ourselves. It'd be unfair," Phil grinned and Lucy just gave up the fight.
She snuggled in between Nat and Sharon and laughed along with the others at Clint, Nat, Phil and Sharon's stories of her childhood. They were reminders of a happy time and unlike last year, when she thought that time was over, she knew she was living it again. Yes, her grandma was missing but the time that morning at her grave had given her confirmation once more that Peggy was always watching her and that she was happy to see her content and cared for. And loved, she reminded herself and she pressed against Natasha who tightened her arm. Loved.