***Jamie & Nikki's Room***

"Haha, on your left!" Jamie laughed, tapping and going strong with his game controller.

"Yeah, yeah, I see him!" Shaun replied, doing the same with his.

The two were currently playing Minecraft and their avatars were firing arrows(Jamie) and swinging a sword(Shaun) at incoming zombies and creepers.

As they continued to play their game, something grappled onto the lentil of the window.

Though they didn't see it, they definitely heard it and looked away from their game to see it. At first, Jamie was confused - with Shaun in the same state - before he realized what it was. Or who it was.

He paused the game and ran over to the window, just in time as a hand grabbed onto the frame.

"Whoa! What the-!" Shaun exclaimed, shocked at the sight before him. Someone was climbing into the room. And that someone was... "Nikki?"

The blonde teen looked at the visitor and smiled. "Oh, hey Shaun!" She said as she pulled herself the rest of the way in.

"Uh, hey." The teen was still a bit confused. He poked his head out the window and looked around before coming back in. "Do you do that...often?" He asked Nikki.

It took a moment before she answered.

"Yes and no." She bobbed her head, not really giving a definitive answer.

"How was the 'ride'?" Jamie asked.

Nikki huffed a laugh and sighed heavily. "Fun."

"You look like you were in a bit of a scrap." Shaun said, noticing the dirty spots on her legs and a light tear on her shirt.

"Yeah, I was."

A knowing smile came to Jamie. "How's the other guy?"

The question surprised Shaun so much, he furrowed his brow. "The other guy? Bro, your sister was just in a fight and you're asking how the other guy is?"

"No, he's right, Shaun. The other guy got it way worse than me." Nikki kindly corrected him. For extra emphasis, she pulled out her taser and held it up for them to see.

"Is that a-"

Shaun didn't get to finish his sentence as Nikki his the button twice and Shaun jumped back and the violent clicking of the stunner.

Nikki couldn't help but laugh a little before putting it away and walking to her and Jamie's bathroom. Meanwhile, Shaun was still stunned - not literally, thank goodness - at all of this.

A pat on the shoulder made him look to Jamie who was smiling confidently.

"Told you." He said with a smirk, "She can hold her own."

"Yeah, I...I guess so. But, what were you doing?" Shaun asked as Nikki walked out of the bathroom, drying her face with a towel.

Before answering him, she picked up her jacket from off the bed and pulled out the stashed paper. "Getting this."

"What is it?" Jamie asked, taking it and examining it.

"It's a list of veterans that Mace is recruiting."

"Who's Mace?" Shaun asked.

"Some veteran," Jamie jumped in, "He was by here earlier, just before you got here, asking Mom and Dad to join something he's got going on. But he wouldn't reveal it."

"Well, whatever it is," Nikki started, "it's something big. This list is only part of it. There were three more pages that made the full list, but I lost them when I got spotted and fought with one of the guys there. I was only able to save this one before I had to bolt outta there."

As Nikki rehashed her little "outing", Shaun and Jamie went down the list. However, for Shaun, something caught his eyes.

"Hold up..." He said to himself, his brow furrowing the more he eyed the paper.

'What is this?'

"What's up?" Jamie asked him.

"My dad's name is on this list."

"What?" "Are you sure?" The twins both asked him.

"Yeah, that's his name right there. 'John Lucas', and that's our address." They all eyed that line of the list very carefully and saw it in clear black and white.

'John Lucas.'

Age: 45.

Former Military. Rank: Sgt.

Married, Child: one.

And under the section labeled 'Status/Recruitment', were the words 'Alive/TBD'.

Multiple thoughts and questions swirled in Shaun's mind. Why was his father on this list? What did this stranger man want with him? What did this mean for Shaun and his mother?

"You guys don't think..." He began to say.

But Jamie and Nikki already knew what he was about to say.

"Well, he was bold enough to ask Captain America and Black Widow." "So what's to stop him from asking your father?" They said, one after the other.

Hearing the words of his friends, worry began to stir in Shaun. Though he was mean and downright dirty at times, he was still his father and Shaun did still care a out him. And if this 'Mace' fellow meant to hurt him, he wasn't going to let him without a fight.

"I gotta go."

That was all he said before he set the paper down, grabbed his shoes and began to slip them on.

"Where you going?" Jamie asked.

"Home. I gotta warn my parents about this guy before he comes around."

Finally, he got them on and Shaun walked out of their room. However, Jamie was close behind.

"We'll walk you home." He said.

"No, its okay."

"Wasn't a question."

Shaun looked over his shoulder to his friend and the two shared a nod of respect.

"Nikki, you coming?" Jamie called back to the room.

As if on cue, his sister walked out with her hands in her jacket pocket and a smile on her face.

"Right behind you." She said, holding that smile.

This trio was happy to have each other. Especially right now, they would definitely need each other.

"Kids!" They heard from downstairs. "Can you come down for a minute, please?"

It was Natasha. Since they were already on the way down, they continued and soon entered the living room to see Steve and Natasha standing there.

As they came closer, Steve was about to speak until he noticed an abrasion on Nikki's temple, and the dirt marks on her pants. Almost instantly, his face went from calm to alert.

Natasha noticed this too. Yet, she noticed that Nikki seemed somewhat chill about it. The two parents looked at each other, having the same thought.

Nikki wasn't stupid, though. She knew her parents could see something had just happened to her and she could tell something big was coming. Fortunately, she wasn't alone.

"Mom. Dad. What's up?" Jamie asked them, trying to break the silence.

"There's something we need to talk to you about." Steve replied. That wasn't all he wanted to say, nor what he originally had in mind to say. But he held himself best as he could for now.

"Why don't you sit down?" Natasha added, her eyes bouncing from Jamie and Shaun to Nikki. "We'll explain it."

Oh yeah, this definitely wasn't going to go undiscussed.

So the three teens sat down, and the adults began to explain. They told them about Mace, his plan to recruit people(including them) for some unknown cause, and how they were going to have to go after him, find out what he was planning and stop him.

It was quite a lot to take in, but it was also easy to understand as these three had already had some "involvement" in this situation. Granted, each had a different amount of it, but still.

"And so," Natasha began again, "me and your father have decided that, while we're gone, we would like you two to stay at the mansion. Just until we can make sure this man is secure."

Taking in all that their parents had just said, the twins understood their reasoning about going to the mansion. Even though there was a part of them that knew they could take care of themselves should danger come knocking, they didn't want to anger them.

Though he was quiet, the mention of a "mansion" surprised Shaun. These guys stayed in a mansion? He hadn't expected that. These people seemed well mannered, humble. Not exactly rich, but still. There was probably more to it than he knew.

"Are you going out right now?" Jamie asked.

The parents nodded in reply.

"Well, before you do," Nikki started, "there's something I need to tell you."

Without hesitation, Steve and Natasha focused on Nikki. Ready to listen.

"What is it, sweetheart?" Steve asked.

Their daughter seemed a bit hesitant about answering. And she was.

Nikki felt nervous as heck with what she was about to tell them. She had never been afraid of her parents, and this wasn't her first time sneaking off somewhere, but that didn't really lessen the fact that she was nervous.

But is needed to be done. So she took a breath, and, just like ripping off a band-aid, told them flat out. "I snuck out and followed Mace."

'Well, that was blunt and to the point.' Jamie thought.

The faces of their parents took a moment to register this new information, but soon caught up and went through a mixture of faces. Surprise. Confusion. Slight intrigue. VERY slight.

"You mean, just now?" Steve asked, motioning to the front door. "I thought you kids were in your room."

"We were," Jamie spoke up, "But we heard a gun cocking, and we're usually alert when we hear that."

"Especially if it's in the house." Nikki added. Jamie nodded in agreement.

"Is that where you got that at?" Nat jumped in, pointing to her daughter's scuffed up pants.

"Nikki, that was very dangerous." Her father said, concerned-parent mode clearly activated.

Nikki lowered her head at that, feeling a bit sheepish now.

"Given all that we've done, like fighting aliens and what have you, the danger level on this one is considerably low on this one." Jamie defended his sister in an undertone.

But they all still heard it.

"Be that as it may, you can't just go off like that." Natasha added, her voice raising a little more and more. "What if something had happened to you? How would we have known?! You co-"

"Nat." "Mom!" Steve and Jamie jumped in, cutting her off.

She looked to her husband then her son before she realized what she had done. The one thing she had hoped to never do: she had yelled at her child. Nikki.

Said child had begun to tear up at her mother's loud words. The emotion and shock of it was so heavy that Nikki swiftly stood from the couch and headed upstairs to her room.

Shocked by her actions, Natasha

"I'll go talk to her," he said.

But Natasha caught him before he could step away. "No...I have to make this right."

Though he was unsure, Steve let his wife go. Hoping for the best. As he always did.

***Twin's Room***

Nikki lay on her bed, hugging her pillow and crying into it.

She knew her parents would be upset at her but she didn't really think they would yell at her. Let alone her mother doing it.

She felt she should maybe apologize, try to smooth it out. But she just wanted to lay her a bit longer. Vent herself out to the pillow.

But...

[KNOCK x3]

"Nikki?" She heard from the other side of the door. Immediately, Nikki's heart dropped.

It was her mother.

"Sweetie, can I come in?"

She didn't answer, though. She didn't know what to do, this situation really had her messed up.

Outside the door, Natasha contemplated entering or not. After what she had just done, she figured Nikki may not want to see her. But still, she didn't want to leave for a mission and the last thing she said to her daughter was loud and angry.

No, she couldn't have that. So, she let out a sigh, turned the know and opened the door.

She poked her head in first, looking around before seeing Nikki lying on her bed. And she was crying from the sound of it. That hit Natasha's heart something awful.

Still, she didn't lose sight of her objective. Crossing the room, the mother approached the bed and sat on the edge. Nikki felt the bed dip behind her and closed her eyes.

"Nikki," she heard her mother call. The feeling of a hand on her hip sent a shock through her, one Natasha felt as her daughter stiffened beneath her touch. Nikki wanted so desperately to answer...but still...but still... "...honey, please look at me."

Now that hit something. Hearing her mother's new whispering tone, that made a new wave wash over Nikki. One she felt more comfortable with.

Giving in, the blonde teen slowly turned over and soon faced her mother above her.

A sad smile came to Natasha's lips as Nikki faced her. "Hey!" She whispered.

Nikki gave a half smile back, but it barely came through.

Seeing this hurt Natasha even more. This definitely isn't how she wanted to leave things.

"Sweetie, about what I said downstairs," she began, "I-...it was out of worry. I didn't mean to yell at you...I'm sorry, baby."

Hearing her mother's words, Nikki could sense regret, the worry her mother had mentioned, but also love. A worried mother's love. That's what it boiled down to, and she knew that.

It was a good thing that she didn't really hold grudges, and definitely never against her mother.

As if reading her mind, Natasha spoke again. "Can you forgive me?"

Nikki looked her mother right in the eyes and held her stare. Natasha saw this and felt her daughter searching for something. Just like she would have. Whatever it was, Nikki must've found it as she began to sit up and move of the bed, leaving her mother unanswered.

Natasha, thinking Nikki was going to leave the room, almost called her name again. But she stopped when she saw Nikki grab her jacket from a chair at her and Jamie's desk and bring it back to the bed where she sat down right next to her mother.

Once sat, Nikki reached into the jacket pocket and pulled out a folded sheet of paper and handed it to her mother.

"What's this?" She asked, taking it.

Finally, Nikki spoke. "A list. I got it before I had to run out of Mace's base. Dad's name is on it."

Nat's head shot up at that just as she had finished unfolding it. Looking back to the paper, her eyes lit up with surprise as she soon found her husband's name. Just as Nikki had said.

Now, her mind began to work.

"Sweetie, where was this place at that you followed Mace to?" She asked Nikki.

Nikki thought back to her "ride" earlier that morning, retracing the course she took. "This old warehouse somewhere in Manhattan."

Taking that in, Natasha logged that away in her mind. Knowing that would be looked into later. That was pushed aside as another feeling hit her...make that two: amazement and pride.

She realized that her daughter was just like her; in more ways than one. And this whole situation was proof of it. And for that, Natasha wanted to set the record straight.

"Nikki...I-...I shouldn't have yelled at you. Even though what you did was dangerous, you still were just doing what you thought was right. And you even brought back something to show your success! That's really amazing."

Nikki lifted her gaze to her mother, surprised by her words. "You mean that?"

Her mother nodded in reply with a smile.

"So you're not mad at me?"

"Oh, sweetie, no." Natasha cooed, putting an arm around Nikki's shoulder, which the teen leaned into, "I might've been a little upset...okay, a lot upset, but to be honest, I probably would have done exactly what you did when I was your age."

Again, Nikki looked at her mother in surprise. "Really?"

"Mhm." She nodded. Then she snorted. "In fact, ha, I did. I went on espionage missions when I was way younger than you actually."

The Black Widow program had been pretty intense, and didn't leave much room for leisure time. Or anything really. But that was different from what Nikki had done. She had done this for some good, not for evil. And she even came clean about it. That was commendable, not something the Red Room would have favored.

"What I'm trying to say is, I'm sorry...I'm so, so sorry that I yelled at you. Its just...to me, a year and a half ago, you were this cute little baby who always wanted to be by my side, who i would tuck in at night, who loved Disney princesses."

Nikki snorted and smile at the memory of that. It was so long ago and she was so little, but she remembered it...all of it.

"But I have to keep reminding myself that you're not that little girl anymore. You're growing up into a young woman, and I...I just don't want to lose you."

Natasha's voice cracked in the last sentence and tears threatened to come out. Seeing and hearing this hit Nikki so much that she felt herself becoming emotional as well.

Nothing else needed to be said as Nikki embraced her mother tightly. Natasha hugged her daughter back and held her as close and with all her love. Tears were shed and the hug held strong, unbreakable by the love of this mother-daughter duo.

"I'm sorry, Mom. I'm so sorry." she cried into Natasha's shoulder.

Natasha rubbed her back and hushed her like she did as a baby. "It's okay. It's okay. Shhhh. It's okay, baby."

Moments like these, right now, these were the kind that Nikki held to heart. Same for Natasha as well. But Nikki, this gave her strength.

"Ty ne poteryayesh' menya, mama." She said in Russian. Her mother pulled back just enough to look Nikki in the face. "Obeshchayu."

Natasha's lips quivered as her tears turned into ones of joy. Taking one of her hands from Nikki's back, she brought it up and cupped her cheek. "YA znayu...ya znayu. I ya ochen' gorzhus' toboy. Moya malen'kaya Nika."

Nikki almost broke at hearing her mother saying she was proud of her, that alone was heavy. But hearing her Russian name as her mother used, that did it for her.

Once again, she embraced her mother and she did her like a big mama bear.

"I love you, Mom." Nikki said into her shoulder.

"I love you too, Nikki." Natasha happily replied.

The two held each other close, not letting go.

That is until Nikki laughed at something. Natasha heard this and pulled back with a curious look.

"What?"

"I just realized, you said you did stuff like what I did when you were younger."

"Right?" Natasha was wondering where her daughter was going with this.

"Well, now I have something else to ask Mama Melina about." Nikki was holding back laughter, but couldn't hide her growing smile.

Neither could Natasha as she threw her head back in laughter. "Oh my god, what have I started?"

Nikki shrugged innocently. "Nothing bad. Just opened up a door for me to ask my grandmother about funny stories about you!"

They both laughed at that. The very thought of it hit them both silly, but it was something they both really looked forward to.

***Living Room***

Downstairs, the men had talked amongst themselves while the women were upstairs. And soon, Bucky came over.

He told Steve about his "job offer" from one Gideon Mace earlier and Steve told him that he and Nat both received the same offer. But turned it down cold.

A little later, though, Natasha and Nikki came back down into the living room. Upon seeing her uncle, the blonde teen ran over and hugged him. To which he hugged back with a smile.

"Buck," Natasha greeted him.

He nodded back. "Nat."

Steve walked over to his wife and put an arm around her, as she did in return. "Everything okay?" He asked her in an undertone.

"It is now," she replied, leaning into his shoulder.

And it was...for now.

Phew, that was a big one. 😅 A little family time, especially this one, is something I will never pass up. And that'll come through more so in the future of this fic. 😉😉

Working on something big here,, for this story, this series as a whole, all of it. I'm sure you guys have seen the new one ice started; Torunn: Princess Of Thunder. And I can't wait to share it with you all! Its gonna be fun. 😎😁 Love and appreciate the support you guys give. You're all awesome! 💯💯💙😊

See y'all soon! 👍