Chapter 3

Introductions

Lily woke the next morning, stretching as she sat up only to cover her mouth in shock. What had happened to her room? She stood on weak legs, walking over to the shattered glass all over her balcony and saw the splintered nightstand in the grass. Her deep sea blue eyes looked over all the destruction around her. Had she done this? Her feet carried her to a corner of her room with no debris, crumbling down into a ball. She pulled her knees tightly to her chest, guilt wrecking her whole being. Would her rescuers get angry with her? Would they give her back to HYDRA? Her mind raced with these horrible thoughts, each one more horrible than the previous. A soft knock echoed in her silent room.

"Lily?" Natasha's voice called out as she opened the door.

She looked around the room, before her eyes settled on the balled up girl in the corner. The spy smiled as she set a fresh pair of clothes on before walking over to the guilt stricken Lily.

"You ok?" She knelt down to the younger girl's height.

Lily just nodded, not feeling brave enough to look the heroine in the eye.

'I'm in trouble aren't I?' Lily asked, fearful of the answer.

The question caused a laugh to escape the assassin's lips. Lily glanced up with curiosity now overtaking her guilty look.

"Kid, if we got in trouble for wrecking our rooms after a bad night, we'd all have been kicked out long ago." Natasha explained as she extended a hand to help Lily up. "Though, Wanda might be a little jealous. You beat her record for furniture throwing by 20 feet."

Lily smiled at her joke, laughing silently. Natasha helped her up, guiding her to the clothes.

"I brought you some fresh clothes. I had hoped between Wanda's and my wardrobe we could find clothes that would fit you." Natasha smiled. "Now get dressed. We'll do a proper team introduction after breakfast."

With that, Natasha left the room, shutting the door behind her. Lily looked down at the clothes, smiling at the soft fabric between her fingers. She carefully removed the pajamas before putting on the simple black, flowing short sleeved top and jean shorts. She folded the pajamas and set them on the bed before heading out of her room. Lily looked around, not knowing where the dining room was. She started to shuffle toward the stairs Vision had carried her up. She held onto the railing tightly as she slowly descended the stairs, her legs still weak from her imprisonment. Halfway down the stairs, the scent of pancakes filled the air. It was unlike anything she had ever smelt, a big smile forming on her lips.

At the bottom of the stairs, Lily was greeted by the sight of the entire team working on preparing breakfast. Natasha looked up from cutting fruit.

"I was just about to come get you!" She walked over, ushering Lily to sit at the table.

"Morning Lily!" They all greeted.

She could only offer a smile and a nod, afraid of using her powers after the destruction she caused. The teen sat at the table, navy eyes observing everyone working so hard. Clint was making pancakes as Steve collected plates and dishes to set the table. Natasha returned to cutting fruit, sliding the colorful foods into a bowl. Wanda and Vision tag teamed cooking bacon and eggs, the witch helping the synthezoid season the food. She tried spotting the two men from her exam yesterday, but found them missing. Just then, Bruce and Tony came up from the basement, yawning after spending a sleepless night turning part of the lab into an operating room.

"You two look like Hell." Clint jabbed at the geniuses.

"Steve, Clint said a bad word in front of the kid." Tony mockingly said as he and Bruce grabbed cups of coffee.

Steve just shook his head. "That will never go away, will it?" He asked.

Lily just observed their interactions, smiling at how normal this seemed. She thought about how much she wanted to help them with their preparations. Vision turned to her.

"You're our guest Lily." He stated with a smile. "You need to gain your strength back."

She blushed as she hadn't realized her thoughts had been telepathically projected.

"Actually she can," Steve stated, setting the table with all of the dishes and silverware, "she can help us eat all this food we made."

Lily smiled and nodded silently.

After all the food was cooked, Vision and Clint served all of it to the seated avengers. Clint slipped pancakes on everyone's plate, saying he made a special one for Lily as he placed smiley face one on her plate. Vision came behind him with the bacon and eggs, the bowl of fruit sat in the middle of the table. As everyone was now settled, they all began to eat. Wanda levitated the fruit over to whoever asked for it, giving Lily a scoop as well. Lily ate silently as she observed the others banter back and forth, though her gaze settled on Vision who wasn't eating.

'Why aren't you eating?' Lily asked him.

"I am a synthezoid so I do not require the need to consume food." He explained.

"Where are Sam and Rhodey?" Natasha asked.

Tony swallowed his mouth full of pancake before replying. "They went out to buy clothes and furniture for Lily."

He sipped more on his coffee. Lily kept her gaze low to her plate as kept eating, still embarrassed that her powers destroyed her room.

After breakfast, Steve cleared the table, putting the dishes in the dishwasher. Wanda helped Lily to the living room, leading her to sit in a chair across from a series of chairs and couches. She sat there and watched as they all filled the seats in the living room. She kept her gaze low, her hands fiddling with the hem of her shirt. Was this where they would chastise her?

"Lily?" Vision spoke, causing her to turn her attention to everyone. "You can use your telepathy with all of us. We wanted to properly introduce ourselves."

'O...ok.' Her voice rang in all of their heads. 'Um… I...I'm Lily.'

Tony stood up, coffee cup still in hand. "Welcome to the Avenger's Headquarters Lily." He made a grand gesture as he greeted her. "We met yesterday, but I'm Tony Stark and this fella next to me is good ol' Dr. Banner."

Bruce merely waved a hand as he drank more coffee.

Steve stood up. "I'm Steve Rodgers, but just call me Steve. You already know Wanda and Vision. And lastly, over there we have Natasha and Clint."

Lily looked at everyone, smiling a little.

'I never got to say this, but thank you for saving me.' Lily thanked them all.

"No need to thank us kid." Clint chuckled. "We're heroes. I'm sure I speak for all of us when I say, I'm glad we got you out of that hell hole."

"Now there is some business we need to discuss." Steve stated as he looked at Lily. "We want to help you to find your parents that Hydra took you away from."

Lily looked down, her smiling face turning solemn. Vision tilted his head.

'My parents… are no longer here.' Lily said, tearing up. 'Hydra killed them… if it weren't for me then everyone…' She swallowed harshly as she tried to compose herself.

Everyone fell silent as Wanda moved over to her, hugging her as she cried into her shoulder.

"It's not your fault." Natasha stated, looking over at the distraught girl. "You were a child Lily. There was nothing you could have done."

Lily shook her head as her hands began to emit a golden energy. Tony stood up and stood in front of her before kneeling down to her level.

"Look kid, I know that is awful and I know I can't begin to understand what you've been through," Tony spoke calmly," but you can't live in the past. There was nothing you could of done and you can't go back to fix of. But you can prevent others from experiencing what you went through."

Lily looked over at the billionaire, the energy dissipating as she listened to him. Steve quirked an eyebrow.

"What are you saying Tony?" He asked.

"I'm saying it would be nice to have some fresh blood on the team." Tony replied, turning to Steve.

"Absolutely not!" Clint raised his voice. "For Christ's sake Stark, she's a kid!"

Before it turned into another bicker fest between the three, Vision interrupted.

"I do believe that such a decision is not ours to make." The synthezoid spoke, turning his attention to Lily. "Lily, what do you want? You could remain here as our guest or you could join the team. Either way, we would protect you."

Lily looked around at all of them. For once, she was given a choice instead of a command. She looked at the carpet as she contemplated her answer to avoid all the eyes on her.

'I...I don't want to be a burden on everyone.' She finally answered.

"You would not be a burden." Wanda spoke. "You don't have to decide right now. Take your time. We should all be training anyway." The Sokovian woman stood up. "Isn't that right Cap?"

Steve nodded. "That's right. Avengers, report to the training facility except you Vision. Why don't you keep Lily company?"

"He doesn't need training anyway." Clint teased as he stood up and lead the way. The others followed behind him.

Lily still kept her gaze low as it was now only her and the synthezoid. Vision stood up and straightened his sweater out before he extended a hand to her.

"Why don't we go for a walk?" Vision suggested. "If I recall correctly, you said you have never felt the sun before."

Navy hues met cerulean geared ones as Lily took his hand, standing from the chair. She walked silently behind as he lead her outside the walls of their headquarters. Lily was speechless. Before her was the most beautiful sight she had ever seen. She didn't know it but she had passed Vision, walking barefooted onto the front lawn. She spun around as she saw the green grass, the towering trees of the forest, felt the calm breeze blowing through her hair and the gentle sun on her skin. She knelt down, running her hand over the grass. Vision observed her as she now just sat on the lawn. He walked over and sat by her, looking where she was.

"I know you are afraid of your abilities." Vision spoke softly. "I can assure you that you are not the only one among us who does not fully understand your powers."

'I don't want to hurt anyone.' Lily explained as she looked over at him. 'I don't even remember destroying my room last night.'

"You were having a nightmare. Wanda and I helped you but it was not your fault. Correct me if I am mistaken, but you have never been taught how to control your powers correct?" Vision glanced over at Lily, who just nodded. He stood up, brushing off his pants and helping her up.

"Follow me please." He instructed as he guided her around the complex to a separate building. As soon as he opened the door, the lights turned on to reveal scorched, dented walls. Lily looked around.

"As you can see, this building is basically indestructible due to the vibranium that makes up the walls." Vision showed her, firing his beam into the wall. "It is how both Wanda and I found out just what our abilities could do. If you would like, we could discover exactly what your powers are capable of."

Lily looked back at the crimson and green man, before looking at her hands. She couldn't explain but she trusted Vision. Midnight blue eyes looked up at the synthezoid.

'I'm… I'm scared.' Lily admitted to Vision. 'I'm scared that I won't be able to control them.'

"You are not alone in that fear." Wanda's voice came from behind Vision.

The Sokovian woman stepped fully into the building, her arms crossed in front of her.

"I thought you were training with the others." Vision articulated as he turned his attention to Wanda.

"I decided now would be a more appropriate time to discuss last night's matter with Lily." Wanda explained.

Lily's navy eyes grew wide, fearing she was talking about the destruction to her room. 'I am so sorry for what happened last night. I didn't know my powers were going out of control. I am so sorry!' She trembled as she rambled on, diverting her eyes to look at the metal floor.

Wanda walked over and placed a hand on her shoulder, bringing Lily's attention back to her. She smiled at the younger girl, shaking her head.

"You aren't in trouble Lily." Wanda stated. "Vision and I just wanted to talk to you about something important. Something to do with the device in your throat."

"I believe we should step back outside for this conversation." Vision spoke up as he had already opened the door.

Lily and Wanda followed closely behind him as they exited the building. Lily glanced down, seeing Vision reach over and lightly grab Wanda's hand. She smiled at how even these heroes had time for seemingly normal, trivial aspects of life. Vision guided them to the patio, which had a few tables and chairs set up. He pulled a chair out for both Wanda and Lily, pushing their chairs in as they sat one after the other. He took a seat beside Wanda, turning his attention to Lily.

"Mr. Stark called in a professional last night to discuss removing the implant in your larynx." Vision explained. "He almost made the decision for you, but I interjected. I wanted you to have a say in whether or not you wanted the surgery, because there are risks. There is only a fifteen percent chance that your voice would ever return after the procedure is done."

Lily took in everything Vision told her. She wanted that thing out of her as badly as she had yearned for freedom. To her, it was just another way of HYDRA having control over her life. She looked up at him, nodding.

'I want the surgery,' Lily spoke, 'I want all traces of my old life gone. That thing… it is just another reminder of my imprisonment.'

Wanda smiled, glancing over at Vision. He seemed relieved that she had agreed to the surgery, but she still saw the gears behind his eyes whirling. A chuckle escaped her lips at his adorable habit. Just what was he researching now?