Hot Hero Summer
### Paris ###
Lucy had been breathing French air for a day now and she absolutely loved it. Their hotel was in the middle of Paris and from her window, she had a clear view of the Eiffel tower. The night was promising to be interesting too, as the adults allowed the kids some free time on their own around the city as long as they'd make it back to the hotel by midnight. They had already forged plans what they wanted to see, after they checked off most touristy spots with the entire family.
Their tour of Paris had become a little more interesting than usual as Clint and Nat had some great stories from missions from back in the day that took place there – until Pepper stopped them with a definite "no shop talk" policy for the rest of the day.
The Louvre was gorgeous and breath-taking, and all the other adjectives usually used to describe European places, but Lucy was especially enthralled by the Dutch masters. The Golden Age had always spoken to her on some level, with its realism but somehow still magical proportions. Vermeer's 'The Astronomer' was a masterpiece of light and shadow and she made a mental note to visit Germany and the Netherlands eventually to get a glimpse of the paintings she hadn't seen in real life yet.
Paris was an enigmatic city, beautiful and charming but also quite ruthless and definitely packed. Coming from New York, Lucy didn't mind it though. The atmosphere and laissez-faire way of life was so drastically different from her home or any other city in the US. She was also happy to finally use all her French and even though they had just started they're
After watching the sun set on the city of love from the Arc de Triomphe, the adults bid the kids goodbye and went off to somewhere – Lucy didn't bother asking, she was far too excited to have a night alone in Paris.
The three made their way down the Champs Elysees, one of Lucy's favorite streets in the world – sort of like 5th Avenue, but pretty. Halfway down, they jumped into the metro – a novel experience since Lucy would've never taken the subway in New York, but in she was on vacation and new experiences were on her bucket list.
They arrived at the Trocadero, grabbed some food from the vendors by the side and made themselves comfortable on the steps, next to the improvised stage where a young man was already performing on his guitar. The mix of Ed Sheeran, Coldplay and the Chainsmokers fit the mood perfectly and the trio cheered with everyone when at exactly 11pm, the tower started to sparkle for a couple of minutes. It really seemed magical (although the apparent searchlight that went out from the top slightly threw Lucy off) and none of them wanted the night to end.
When one of the vendors that sold beer and wine and souvenirs from a large bag passed by, they each got a bottle of Heineken and leaned on each other, taking in the music, the atmosphere and the chatter around them, colored in a different type than that in NYC.
Time went by far too quickly and in order not to ruin the start of this trip, they hastily got down to the metro station. They stepped into their hotel lobby just as the clock struck twelve, but so did the adults, and they all grinned at each other.
Lucy couldn't help the feeling in her stomach though, so she turned to the adults that were waiting in front of the elevator.
"I'm actually still quite hungry and since you've seen us here at 12, could we hop out and get some McDonalds from across the street? We'll be back in no time."
The adults exchanged glances but apparently, they were completely in vacation mood as Nat nodded at them.
"But only if you get us fries."
"And a cheeseburger!"
"Nuggets too."
They grinned at the kids who nodded in response and quickly turned on their heel. The first real day of their trip had been fantastic, and Lucy wasn't sure if it could get any better.
As she later snuggled against Nat, happily and content, both munching on fries and burger, while trying to understand what the French show on the TV was about, she felt absolute happiness. So much so, that she almost didn't want to fly down to Barcelona the next day, but she also couldn't wait to get on the yacht. It promised to be a very interesting summer.
### Barcelona ###
The yacht was totally awesome. While the girls were at first supposed to share rooms with their guardians, they quickly convinced them to let them share a twin cabin instead as Nat and Steve didn't see too much opportunity for trouble in the middle of the Mediterranean. Peter was staying in the single cabin adjoining the master suite that Tony and Pepper occupied, but the girls didn't really feel sorry for him – he got to use the master bathroom which was definitely the nicest. Nat didn't mind sharing a double room with Clint and Steve would just move into one of the twin ones with Sam.
Unfortunately, they didn't have much time in Barcelona itself as they spent the night on the boat and left the harbour early in the morning, on route to Marseille.
### Marseille ###
### Cannes ###
### Monaco ###
### Nice ###
### Rome ###
### Amalfi ###
### Malta ###
### Ancona ###
### Venice ###
### On sea ###
### Crete ###
### Greek Islands ###
Whether it was the total relaxation brought about by the ability to leave Avengers and SI business on another continent for a whole month or just the stunning scenery of the Greek islands, by the end of the first day, Tony and Pepper surprised the group with a proposal over dinner.
"We want to get married here," Pepper announced, while Tony beamed beside her from ear to ear.
Exclamations of surprise were shouted around the table but everyone looked excited.
"We just thought it'd be so much nicer to have our real wedding in private, with our family and then the big, official one will be much less stressful."
"Plus, you can't get a nicer backdrop than Greek islands," Tony chimed in and Pepper pressed his hand in support.
"We gotta get you a dress!" Wanda said excitedly and Lucy recognized a familiar glimmer in her eyes.
Pepper nodded. "I thought we could have a look in one of the cute dress shops on Mykonos. I'm sure we'll find something for myself and for you." She grinned. "Natasha needs something as my maid of honor and you two as bridesmaids."
Lucy and Wanda exchanged an excited look. Getting to be bridesmaids twice? That sounded cool.
"So I have to wear a suit on vacation?" Peter whined but catching himself after Lucy's elbow landed in his ribs. "I mean I'm happy – obviously – but… it's hot!"
Tony laughed. "Don't worry, a somewhat presentable-looking shirt will be enough. We're also gonna find something. For all of you," he added with a pointed look around the table, specifically at Bruce and Clint.
### Athens ###