I was so excited to finish Book I that I went ahead and posted the epilogue today. Here it is! Book II (Siren Meets Doctor Strange) will be combined on this same story, so if you're subscribed already, you don't need to do anything to keep getting updates. Thank you to everyone who's still following this story! Siren Meets Doctor Strange is not going to follow the Doctor Strange film - I've got some fun, original (and romantic) stuff in mind for our next adventure. Hope everyone's staying safe during quarantine!

Chapter 14

Søren Kierkegaard once wrote that "life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards." Temperance Ward couldn't seem to make sense of her life either backwards or forwards. This was true now more than ever, as she looked at the boxes that held her life and dreaded pulling out the contents, only to be reminded so tangibly of the people who had left unfillable vacuums in her life.

She was back where she started, with a 1-bedroom in Manhattan and a total of two friends, who looked at her now with the somber eyes of wearied parents. Tony and Pepper had come over to help her unpack her things after the moving crew delivered them from the now-moot Avengers facility. It had been a couple of weeks since Siberia, and after many painful talks about what should happen next, Temperance found herself here.

"It has a lot of charm," Pepper said, nudging her boyfriend, "Right, Tony?"

"It could use a few security updates," He said, eyeing the walls as if he could see right through them to the wiring, "and you'll need an A.I."

"Need is probably a stretch," Temperance said, the corner of her mouth rising in a half-assed attempt at a smile.

"Don't be silly, Temp," Pepper agreed with Tony, "he'll make you one."

At this, Temp did smile. The one good thing about Tony's fight with Steve was that it had pushed him right back into the arms of Pepper Potts, who was doing a lot to hold him and Temperance together right now. She was relieved to see them together - at least she could hang out with her two friends at the same time. Temp tore open a box and pulled out a few books, sighing. She hadn't lived alone since her father died.

"Sure you want to do this?" Tony asked, picking up on her hesitation, "I'll pay to break the lease."

"Tony," Pepper said, giving him a chastising look.

"I'll be fine," Temperance assured him.

"Of course you will," Pepper said, "It's for the best. You could use the space."

"I know," Temp said, nodding. It had been Pepper's idea for her to use this as an opportunity to start over. She didn't need physical space - she needed space from the Avengers Initiative. Space from S.H.I.E.L.D. Space from the temptation to use her ability. Temperance and Tony both agreed that this would be best for her, but quitting was always easier said than done, especially when so much of her heart had been invested. Tony and Pepper were on board because they wanted to see her move on and enjoy what was left of her twenties. Temperance was on board, because she knew she didn't deserve more - she had proven that much when she lost control and grabbed Steve's cords. She had tried the Avengers, and it hadn't worked out. She would have to find something, anything, else to live for.

"Any thoughts about what I'll be doing at Stark Industries now?" She asked as they continued to unpack and break down boxes.

"I was thinking, as much as you liked helping people as Head of Damage Control, maybe you'd like to manage the scholarship funds and requirements," Tony said, stomping a particularly difficult box with his foot to break it down. He'd offered to hire a crew to do this part as well, but Temperance had wanted to do it herself.

"That could work," She said, considering it. To be honest, she didn't much care what she did, as long as it didn't have anything to do with the Avengers.

"There was something else," Pepper said, giving Tony a look that clearly said tell her all of it. Temp stopped unpacking and looked to Tony.

"Well, there's also the matter of Peter Parker," he said, shoving his hands into his pockets. Temperance's brow furrowed.

"What about him?"

"He could use some guidance," Pepper explained, "From someone who understands. You're the obvious choice."

"No," Temp argued, grabbing the box cutter and slicing through the tape on another box, "Tony's the obvious choice. The kid worships the ground he walks on."

"Right, but you're younger. You can really achieve that older friend/sister thing that I can't. And besides, you're the one who's still on the payroll and not earning it," Tony said, earning an elbow to the ribs from Pepper.

"I think my paygrade is a little bit above babysitting," Temp reminded him.

"Right, but it wouldn't be babysitting. It would just be one part of your scholarship fund duties. You'd just be spending a little more time and attention on him than the other kids. And Happy and I can help you watch out for him." Tony said.

"Fine," Temperance said before pointing a finger at him, "but he has to do real grant work. I don't want to lie to May."

"Of course," Tony conceded, "he'll love that. And while he's working on that, you can keep an eye on him."

"Alright," Temperance said, "but I'm doing it for him."

"Obviously," Tony said flippantly, "who else would you do it for?"

As if she hadn't recently proven that she'd do whatever Tony asked her to do.

"And there was one more thing, wasn't there, honey?" Pepper interjected, looking at Tony.

"Right now, Pepper? God, I wasn't gonna bombard her."

"She needs to know," Pepper said.

"Right, but I figured I could spread the news out over the evening, let her get a beer or two down first," He said. They bickered back and forth for a minute, causing Temperance to roll her eyes. They weren't the best moving helpers, to be sure.

"Whatever it is, just tell me," She said. She was so exhausted, she didn't even care at

this point.

"Rogers broke the others out of the Raft last night," Tony said. Temperance stopped

what she was doing, letting the news sink in.

"Good," She said finally.

"Yeah," Tony agreed, though she could tell he still felt as conflicted as she did about everything.

"Has he contacted you?" She asked.

"I got a letter and a burner phone for emergencies," Tony answered, pulling the phone out of his pocket to show her.

"And Nat?" She followed-up despite herself.

"Haven't heard from her, but I assume they're all laying low together." He told her. Temperance nodded, swallowing hard. She could understand Steve not reaching out to her, but Nat? Did she not trust her? She remembered the look in Steve's eyes the moment she'd wrenched his free will away and made him her puppet. Of course Nat didn't trust her.

She pushed the thought away. None of it mattered anymore. That chapter of her life was over, and there was nothing she could do now to change it. Her world now consisted of Tony, Pepper, Happy, and Peter. It was enough. She would make it enough.

"You mentioned beer," she said finally, giving Tony and Pepper a tight-lipped smile, "did you bring some?"

Later that night, Temperance sat alone on the fire escape of her new apartment. The curtains Pepper had helped her to hang were blowing in the window behind her, and the sounds of the street filtered up in a cacophony that she'd missed almost as much she hated it.

From her new apartment building, she could see the pointed roof of the structure she'd rebuilt for her father. An uncertain mix of comfort and pain mingled in her chest as she stared at it, taking a sip of the beer Tony and Pepper had left behind for her. She had lost so much. She had rebuilt so much. Did it do any good to rebuild if you were a wrecking ball by nature? Perhaps the way to get by with the least amount of collateral damage was to just walk through life with your head down. The cold night air mixed with the realization that she had nobody to return to inside. It was worth a try, she supposed.

END OF BOOK I