Past and Present

Despite his exhaustion and the late night, Wally still woke up early the following morning. The only sign that it was the dawn of a new day was the graying of the sky outside. Wally walked over to the window and gazed out at the open country before him. For a moment, Wally considered trying to escape again, just running off. Then he remembered that there was now a very real possibility he'd be going home soon, if this Dr. Anders was worth her salt anyway. On the other hand, given the conversation with Fury from the previous night and the man's penchant for getting what he wanted by any means necessary made Wally doubtful that he'd be able to just leave.

Fury's heart might be in the right place, protecting this earth and all, but damn is he paranoid. Not to mention unscrupulous.

Wally's indecision was broken by the loud grumble that emanated from his stomach which made him realize that the last time he'd eaten had been lunch the previous day and it hadn't been that big of a lunch either given how little he had in the way of money. Just what he'd managed to scrounge up doing odd jobs for people as fast as he could without being too suspicious. With a speedster's metabolism, that was never a good thing. Thus, at least for the moment, Wally abandoned his thoughts of escape in favor of a search for the kitchen which, he reasoned, should exist if there were some people who lived here permanently.

Thankfully, his reasoning was sound and he soon found what he was looking for. Wally investigated the fridge and all the cupboards before deciding on copious quantities of cereal and just about all the bacon they had left which, thankfully, was microwave ready. He would have put more effort into his breakfast, probably made French toast, pancakes, eggs, the works. But Wally found that his lack of food and sleep had left him rather drained and so he settled for filling, but convenient.

Wally munched his way through his breakfast as he watched the sun come up in the east. His mind drifted toward Dr. Anders and her offer to help him find a way home. His first impression of her was that she was kind of crazy, but smart. That last part was the most important. It was that he'd have to rely on if he wanted to get back to his family and friends, to get back to Dick and the team, to get back to Artemis. Maybe he'd even be able to help the doctor out a bit. He was a physics major after all and he was pretty smart himself.

I'll be home soon Artemis, I promise. Then you can kill me all you want for being reckless and leaving you like that.

Soon Wally was joined by a woman with light skin and long brown hair. Even though he only saw her out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of scarlet clothing which gave him a clue as to who this woman was. "I'm guessing you're my prison guard?" Wally asked without taking his eyes off the sunrise.

"Fury asked me to keep an eye on you if that is what you mean," the woman, who could only be Wanda, or Scarlet Witch, replied. Wally took note of her accent which he identified as Sokovian. He'd spent enough time in the country since he'd been here to recognize it. Wally heard her going through the fridge and the cupboards before she spoke again. "You seem to have quite an apetite."

"It's a side effect of the super speed," Wally replied, reaching toward the fruit dish for a banana. "Everything's faster, including my metabolism and your friend didn't let me get any dinner last night."

"Fury's not exactly a friend," Wanda said as she put a couple slices of bread in the toaster.

"So is he your warden too? Or is he just your boss?" Wally quipped, still gazing out the window as he peeled the banana.

"He's a…" Wanda trailed off, obviously not sure how to answer Wally's question. Eventually she finished, "Since Thanos, he's the closest thing we have to a leader. Since the Civil War really."

"Is that what you're calling that thing that happened over the Sokovia Accords? 'Civil War'?" Wally asked.

Instead of answering him, Wanda changed the subject. "Pietro used to have the same problem," she said. "With his metabolism. My brother could quickly overcome being stunned but he also had to eat a lot."

"So your brother's this Earth's speedster?" Wally asked. "Does he live here too?"

"Pietro died. In Sokovia."

Way to step in it again Wally.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Wally said sympathetically, finally turning to face Wanda. Thankfully, she didn't blame him for his faux pas which meant she probably believed his story about being from another universe was at least sort of plausible. "I've lost people too," Wally said. "Not a brother, but people who were like brothers and sisters."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"Yeah, but it kind of comes with the territory doesn't it." It didn't look like Wanda wanted to agree, but at the same time she couldn't argue with it. How could she? Iron Man, Vision, and Captain America had all died in what the press had called the "Infinity War" and apparently she'd lost her brother to the superhero business too. "Why do you still do it?" Wally asked.

"Huh?"

"The whole superhero thing," Wally clarified. "It might just have been internet hearsay but weren't you pretty close with Vision?" When Wanda nodded sadly Wally continued, "So that's two people you were really close with who've died on the job. Aren't you tired of watching the people you love die around you?"

"I don't like it, no," Wanda admitted. "But saving the world is more important than my comfort."

Wally sighed. "I thought the same thing not too long ago. That's why I got back into the whole superhero thing, rejoined the team, even if only for a short while. That's how I got in this mess, stuck on another Earth, dead to everyone who knew me.

"There's always a world to save. Maybe if I'd just let someone else save it…"

"But you still helped when Beck attacked London," Wanda pointed out. "And in the rebuilding of Sokovia. My home country is the most peaceful and prosperous it has been in a long time partly because of you."

Wally couldn't help but scoff slightly at the comment. "Old habits I guess," he replied. "Funny thing, that whole filming Peter and Beck on the bridge was a total accident. When the attack started, I ran off to get people out of harm's way without even thinking about what I was doing, let alone to turn off my phone's camera and put it away. I didn't realize I didn't have it anymore until everything was over and it just happened to catch them on the bridge during all the commotion."

"It was a good thing then," Wanda said. "That old habit. Even if helping Peter was an accident, you still did a lot of good."

Wally knew she was trying to lift his spirits, but somehow, he couldn't find it in him to be cheered, let alone convinced that he should stick with the superhero gig.

When I get back, no more heroics, for either me or Artemis. That's what we agreed to six years ago. If Dick hadn't called…

That was it wasn't it. He'd have to be up front with Dick, they both would. Under no circumstances would they allow themselves to be roped into the heroics again. Of course that would be after Artemis killed him but he could deal with that.

That was when they noticed the aircraft coming into view from the south. "Looks like the Doc's back," Wally remarked as he bussed his dishes before leaving Wanda to meet the woman who was going to try and send him home. When the aircraft landed, not one, but three people came down the ramp, in addition to another surly looking man clad in black who had to be one of Fury's men. Two of the additional people he recognized as Dr. Anders and Peter, the third he was introduced to as Dr. Octavius, one of Anders's coworkers who had offered to assist with transporting and setting up her equipment. Wanda didn't look too pleased at the presence of the third, pudgy looking man with an odd taste in color schemes.

Probably something Fury told her about "need to know" and all that.

Nonetheless, Wanda didn't protest as Wally helped the three of them move and set up the equipment with Wally moving as fast as he dared with the unfamiliar and probably fragile devices. The sooner they got all set up, the sooner Dr. Anders could run her tests and find a way to send him back to his Earth.

"Anything else you need help with Liv?" Dr. Octavius asked after plugging in the last of her scanners.

"Thanks for the help Otto but I think I can take it from here. Unless you want to help with the analysis," Dr. Anders replied.

"I don't think I'll be of much help on that," the other scientist replied with a nervous chuckle. "This quantum stuff's more your scene than mine. Just let me know if there's anything else I can help with." With that, Dr. Octavius pulled up a chair, signed onto his laptop, and began working on whatever it was he did at that academy in Virginia.

"Interesting that he decided to come along," Wally remarked quietly to Dr. Anders as she started up a piece of machinery.

"Otto's just that kind of guy," the scientist replied.

"You did tell him that that Fury guy probably wouldn't want him here right?"

"I did, but he dismissed it. Said it didn't matter."

Wally glanced over to the other scientist and smirked to himself. While Dr. Octavius certainly seemed absorbed in what he was doing, every now and then he'd get distracted and glance at Dr. Anders furtively before returning his attention to his laptop. It was so quick and subtle that Wally doubted even Dr. Octavius noticed he was doing it but with a speedster's perception, it was clear as day.

Well, if he plans on coming regularly to "help", I guess we'll see if I'm right.

After Dr. Anders had declined his offer for additional help with her research, Peter had decided to wander the new compound a bit. He hadn't gotten much of a good look at it the previous night and he hadn't really gotten to see much of the old one either when it was still standing. So this was really his first real Avengers compound visit.

Peter's first stop had been the labs in the north wing. All of the equipment was Stark tech of course. He'd seen on the news that she'd been trying to get the Avengers back up and running. Unfortunately for all the calls for a renewed defense against interstellar threats, her attempts to reassemble the heroes had seen limited success. Peter thought back to Mr. Stark and the Civil War. Mr. Stark had told him that Captain Rogers was wrong and that he thought he was right. That that made him dangerous. Peter wondered if the same could maybe have been said of Mr. Stark. Dr. Wells had a point, the Sokovia Accords had helped to cripple the Avengers and Mr. Stark had been one of the most vocal proponents of the Accords.

Did Mr. Stark regret his part in the Civil War? Do I?

Peter pushed the questions to the back of his mind. He didn't want to focus too much on the past right now. He just wanted to be in the present.

As Peter explored, he came across a room with a nano-fabricator like the one he'd used to make his current Spider-suit. Peter thought about what Wally had said the previous night, about wanting to be the Flash when he was younger.

I can relate to that.

There used to be a time when Peter wanted to be Iron Man. Heck, that time had extended even to just a couple years ago. Well, more than that if you counted the blip, but from his perspective it wasn't that long ago. Peter still remembered the kid wearing a plastic Iron Man mask and toy glove at the 2010 Stark Expo. He remembered how awestruck he'd been when the real Iron Man had thanked him for his help. Looking back it wasn't like he'd actually done anything but to that little kid it meant the world.

I can only imagine what it was like for Wally. Discovering that his uncle was the Flash.

Even so, Peter got the sense that, in being stranded, Wally had lost something. He'd noticed it at the hotel too, even though he hadn't known the full story yet.

Wally probably used to be a much brighter guy. I bet he was the heart of their team.

Peter tapped the display on the nano-fabricator and began entering instructions. He did his best to remember the design of Wally's old suit and began inputting the specs, making it even lower friction and more durable than his last one. He wouldn't be ready for it, not yet. Peter knew what it was like to not be ready to go back to being a hero, but he also knew that eventually, you just had to go back. It wasn't just about having a duty to use his power to help others. It was a part of who he was and, based on Wally's story about how he got stuck here in the first place, it was a part of Wally too.

Just as Peter was about to press start on the nano-fabricator to begin the fabrication process, he stopped. The suit's base was still yellow and the lightning was red. After a moment's hesitation, Peter switched the colors. Wally wasn't a kid anymore and if Peter could be Spider-man at fifteen, Wally was definitely old enough to stop being Kid Flash.

Peter pushed start. Now all there was to do, was wait. Maybe he could give it to Wally as a parting gift when he went home. After all, Peter still felt like he owed him for everything that happened in the UK.

This'll be a good way to repay him.