Waking up in Wakanda was disorienting. Entering the common room and having breakfast with the Avengers was mind boggling. Billy spent most of the morning trying to settle the butterflies in his stomach long enough to eat. Taylor on the other hand, seemed to have had no trouble adapting. She sped from one window to the next in the circular room talking at a speed none of them could understand.
Billy only paid partial attention to her, and the green and white flash she'd sometimes be reduced to in his vision. She hadn't bothered to change before breakfast and was in a fluffy pair of dark green pajama bottoms and a cotton tee shirt the same color. Her snowy hair was a mess of tangles, she clearly hadn't cared to brush it that morning. Billy hadn't either, though in his case it was nearly impossible to get the black mess to lay flat even if he had brushed it. He ran his hand through it now self conscious, especially with Captain America sitting to his right looking like a perfectly put together soldier with his clean cut hair that laid perfectly. The long sleeved navy blue cotton shirt he wore hugged his muscles which only bulged further when he crossed his arms and he'd put on a pair of grey slacks and a nicer then casual pair of shoes. Natasha sat on Roger's other side just as well put together in a tight black shirt with a collar that went up to her neck and a matching black jacket thrown over it. Next to her was Scott who looked more disheveled than Billy and Taylor which made the former feel more at ease with his appearance, at least he'd changed into a red collared shirt and jeans for breakfast, Scott hadn't even gotten out of his grey bathrobe and slippers yet. Clint Barton was next to him still in his Hawkeye suit from yesterday, it looked like he may have even slept in it, whether because he'd been too tired when he finally went to bed to change or because he felt on edge enough that the gear helped him feel prepared just in case. The final Avenger at their table was Falcon who sat between Barton and Billy. He had a pair of black sweatpants on, the nicer kind you'd wear to the gym, not cotton. And a maroon tee shirt that was as muscle hugging as Cap's.
On the other side of the common room was a half moon shaped couch that was long enough for all of them to spread out on if they wanted, a large plasma screen tv - or maybe it was vibranium - and a round ottoman that fit like a puzzle piece with the curve of the couch. A few tables were along the walls with small sculptures and potted plants that made the space feel more homey.
The common area had windows going all the way around that stretched from the floor to the ceiling. One side showcased the capital with it's quinjets and bustling citizens below. The other showed the outskirts of the city melt into the jungle and incline of the mountains. Some of the Avengers watched Taylor with amusement and while she seemed distrustful yesterday she also showed no discomfort or self-consciousness at being her genuine self today. Billy envied that, her ability to not care what others thought of her. It would have come in handy back at school, especially with Kesler. That was one silver lining in everything that had happened he supposed. No more Kesler.
Then Barton set his silverware down and pushed his plate to the center of the table. The action drew all the eyes of the Avengers and even Taylor stopped her zipping around and turned from the window to look at Hawkeye.
"So I was able to get in contact with Secretary Ross late last night." He began slowly letting it sink in. "He's willing to work out a deal for Scott and I. An arrangement that will let us get back to our families."
"That's great." Natasha replied halfheartedly, waiting to hear what strings were attached.
Clint nodded though he didn't look all that happy. "It involves a lot of talk on house arrest, ankle bracelets, constant monitoring, probation, -"
"So the usual?" Scott chimed in still munching on his bowl of cereal.
Clint sighed, "Also no contact with any of you." He looked around the table, his eyes lingering on Nat the longest. She smirked back though and anyone who saw it knew she'd find some old school spy way of communicating with her oldest friend. Clint smiled but looked down at the table to try and hide it. When he composed himself he looked back up at them. "And of course the looming threat of twenty years in federal prison."
"What about me and Taylor?" Billy asked drawing an uncomfortable amount of attention.
"Do not drag me into this." Taylor called across the room returning her attention to the outside landscape.
"Going home might be harder for you." Captain Rogers replied with regret. "For Barton and Lang, what they do is based on their gear. Scott's suit and Barton's bow. Ross can take that from them and feel more at ease with them walking around like free men."
"But what Taylor and I do he can't take." Billy completed the train of thought. Meaning he wouldn't be given the same offer, Ross would want him locked up tight somewhere he could keep an eye on him.
"Son of a bitch." Taylor muttered from the window.
"Taylor." Natasha called, getting a small glance from over the teen's shoulder. The blonde Black Widow smirked, "Steve doesn't like that kind of talk."
"You know what Romanoff?" Cap replied but didn't finish the threat, instead just shaking his head.
Clint smirked at their banter before returning to the subject at hand. "I'm going to take the deal." He announced, "Laura needs me, especially with the baby. And house arrest means I get an easy pass back into retirement anyway."
"And I can't leave Cassie again." Scott added looking solemnly into his cereal bowl.
Billy stared down at the table his mind drifting back to his own family. He didn't notice Captain America analyzing him. Then Cap turned to Barton.
"When you talked to Ross. How did you reach him?"
"Some old spy tricks and Shuri's help. Her tech ensured the signal of the call would be untraceable."
"After your call give Kaplan the line." He ordered as Billy turned to him with surprise. Cap gave him a small smile, "Even if you can't make a deal with Ross your family should at least hear from you that you're safe."
Billy gave him a hesitant smile, "Thanks. . . Cap."
Steve nodded at him then looked to Taylor from across the room. During their discussion she'd turned back to watch them from over her shoulder, quietly eavesdropping.
"We can do the same for you Taylor." He offered.
She scoffed and rolled her eyes turning away. Cap didn't push the matter though, instead he turned to Nat and gave her a long look. She knew he wanted what she'd found on them, the files she'd downloaded from the Raft before deleting them. She nodded once understanding what he was telling her.
With the idea of finally getting in touch with his family comforting him Billy found his appetite returning and dug back into his breakfast scarfing the food now that the knots had left his stomach. A breeze alerted them to Taylor's departure along with the soft sound of a door closing. Through the walls they heard the dim beat of music a moment later.
.
.
"It's all cued up and ready to go, you just have to punch in the number." Barton instructed while handing him the phone. It looked like an old land line though Billy assumed it was more of Shuri's technology, maybe another realistic hologram. Wordlessly he accepted the phone and Barton left the room to give him some privacy. They were currently a floor below their assigned hallway in what looked like a random office break room. Taylor's theory of the Wakandans hiding their true selves was beginning to sink in for Billy. He was pretty sure the old style coffee maker on the counter and dated magazines on the end table were all part of some illusion of modern mediocrity. Though the other side of his mind argued that Shuri was just trying to make sure they were comfortable here, surrounding them with sights they'd be accustomed to. Whichever it was he didn't have time to ponder it, he needed to focus on what the heck he'd tell his parents once they were on the line. How was he supposed to explain he had powers? That he'd inadvertently broken a new and very big law and wound up in a high tech security prison? And on top of that he was now a fugitive after being broken out by the Avengers.
Taking a deep breath he just had to go ahead and do it. His parents were bound to have questions so he'd start by simply answering those to the best of his ability.
He punched in his home phone number and the phone began to ring in his ear. He took another deep breath, he hoped his parents wouldn't ignore the odd phone number and assume it was some scam or telemarketer. He had no idea what a secured line all the way from Wakanda would show up as on their caller ID.
After just two rings someone answered with a dull, "Hello?"
"Mom?"
"Billy!" She exclaimed and there was a rustling in the background, probably his father running over. "Oh my God, sweetheart." He heard her voice waiver as she started to cry.
"Mom please don't cry, I'm okay."
"Billy?" his father's voice chimed in, "Are you alright son?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm so sorry about everything that's happened, I . . . I don't know how much you know."
"Some men came to the house weeks ago and said you'd been arrested, but they wouldn't tell us much." His mother replied sniffling as she composed herself, "Why didn't you call sooner? They give you a phone call don't they?"
"I didn't get one, otherwise I would have called." He heard his dad curse under his breath and it sounded like his mother hit him in the shoulder, "I. . I broke a law, but I didn't mean to."
"Son that doesn't sound like you, you never put a toe out of line." His dad responded, "Listen, we. . . they had mentioned those new Sokovia Accords, the ones they've been talking about on the news. They said you'd been using superhuman abilities without legalized approval."
Billy hesitated taking another deep breath, "I was just trying to help people. It was stupid I know but I just, I was there and I could help so I did. I didn't think it would be this big of a deal."
"We are proud of you Billy, for doing the right thing and not standing idly by."
"But you could have gotten hurt." His mom spoke up.
He smiled just a bit, "I know mom, sorry."
There was a pause before his father cleared his throat, "So, I take it, you aren't there anymore?"
He took another deep breath, surprised he wasn't getting light headed by now, if the people who arrested him hadn't allowed him a phone call but here he was calling, then that meant he'd broken out - or been broken out.
"No. Captain America broke me out, some of his team were locked up in the same place."
There was another pause.
"Billy." His dad said cautiously, "What exactly is it you do? To get you mixed up with the Avengers?"
"It's hard to explain. It's like. . . like this energy that comes out of my palms. I can move things without touching them. Put up force fields that bullets bounce off of. I can throw it like a baseball and it explodes whatever it hits. But I only use it on bad people I swear I've -"
"We know son, you're a good boy."
Billy smiled and looked at his feet dropping his voice, "Well. . . I was raised right."
"We're glad to know you're okay." His mother said sounding on the verge of tears again. "But Billy. . . " she trailed off and he was thrown when her next words came out in a rush, "Youcan'tcallhereagain. It'snotsafe. Donottelluswhereyouare. Justkeepyourselfsafe. Juststaysa-"
There was a scrambling of feet and deep voices he didn't recognize started shouting about cutting the call and telling his mother to shut up. The line went dead a second later.
He just stood there his heart racing from those last seconds and the warnings his mother had gotten to him. They had been monitoring his call, Ross and whoever else worked with him. They'd probably swarmed his parents house the second he'd escaped. Their black SUV's delivering a dozen agents to make sure he didn't show up there, or to catch him if he did. And his mother risked her safety telling him that information, to keep him safe.
"I will mom." he said to no-one. "I promise."
Slowly, he hung up the phone. He just stood there letting it sink in, letting the adrenaline work it's way through his blood until he felt like the tips of his fingers weren't twitching anymore.
"How'd it go?" A soft question reached him. He turned to see Steve Rogers standing in the doorway, a look of genuine concern on his face. Billy took a final deep breath and cleared his head trying to keep himself composed.
"Ross was listening in."
Cap didn't seem too worried about that as he slowly nodded his head. They both knew Shuri was well equipped to keep Ross off their trail.
"That wasn't what I meant." Cap clarified.
Billy nodded looking back to the floor, "They'll be alright. They know I'm okay now. . . they'll be alright."
Captain Rogers took a few steps into the room and approached Billy, "Are you alright?"
He looked around the room not able to make eye contact, "I don't know." He finally looked at Cap, "I'm not used to all this. My biggest problem until now was dodging bullies."
"Always hated bullies." Cap said before giving a small smile, "I was the skinny orphan who always ruined their fun. Telling them to knock it off when they'd cat call a woman. Or causing a scene in a store when they tried to swipe something." His eyes were glassy as he traveled down memory lane, then he looked back at Kaplan, "What excuse did they have for picking on you?"
He froze, unsure about admitting it to Cap. But there was something about the look he was getting that felt, safe. "Being gay."
The look in Cap's eyes didn't change. There was no surprise no anything, just that same clear blue as he nodded his head. His grin grew a little more, "Well that had to get easier once the powers showed up huh?"
Billy chuckled as the tension left over from his call drained out of him. "Not really." He replied smiling as he looked down at his hands. He opened and closed them thinking back, "I only ever really used my abilities when there was trouble."
"Getting shoved into lockers and getting swirlies doesn't count as trouble?" Cap asked his tone still light.
He shook his head, "I mean, sure, it could have made my life easier. But. . . it'd be selfish and. . . I didn't want to accidentally hurt anyone. A criminal was different, they usually had a gun or a knife so if I lost control there was. . . less guilt."
Cap nodded his head looking deep in thought again, "Hey speaking of that, T'Challa told me there was a fitness room of Shuri's they'd agreed we could use. Taylor's already there, figured it'd be a better place for her to let out some steam then run a pit in the floor of our living quarters. Would you be interested?"
The chance to practice his abilities without hurting anyone? Absolutely! Though he tried to give less of an excited fanboy answer to Captain America.
"Yeah, that'd be awesome." He smiled.
"'Kay, I'll show you the way."
.
.
"Sorry I'm late." He apologized to Natasha when he met her in the computer lab. It was on the same floor Kaplan had made his phone call from just under the hall with their rooms.
"Playing out some parenting fantasies?" She accused with a teasing grin. He shook his head, now was not the time to reminisce about the kind of life he'd wanted back in the 1940's.
"So what did you nab?" He asked looking down at one of the screens where lines and lines of information were typed out. Nat tapped something on the computer she was working on and a hologram version of it appeared in the air in front of them, everything enlarged.
William J Kaplan. Born at Lenox Hill Hospital. Five pounds three ounces. To Jeffrey and Rebecca Kaplan of the Upper West Side, Manhattan, New York. Currently a high school freshman. Hair Color: Black. Eye Color: Brown. Height: five feet eight inches. Weight: 155 pounds. Charges for Arrest: utilizing super human abilities without authorization. Other distinguishing attributes: Convict has displayed use of neuro-electric interfacing. Telekinesis. Mental manipulation. Levitation. Astral Projection.
Taylor M Shepherd. Born at Atlantic Health Hospital. Five pounds seven ounces. To Frank and Mary Shepherd of Springfield, New Jersey. Currently a high school freshman, newly released from juvenile prison. Hair Color: Bleached White. Eye Color: Green. Height: five feet eight inches. Weight: 155 pounds. Charges for Arrest: utilizing super human abilities without authorization – destruction of public property – manslaughter. Other distinguishing attributes: Convict has increased metabolism and improved thermal homeostasis. Faster then the speed of sound. Can cause atomic disruption resulting in implosions and explosions.
"That sounds almost identical to the Maximoff's." He noted out loud. Nat had a solemn expression on her face as she gave a single stern nod, keeping her eyes ahead at the file and not looking at him. She tapped a few more things digging deeper into the records. Getting the details.
"William Kaplan: date of arrest: September 7, 2016. Location of arrest: Upper West Side, Manhattan, New York. Additional notes: prisoner was detained under cooperative pretenses. Admission to the Raft was completed within hours."
"Taylor Shepherd: date of arrest: May 6, 2016. Location of arrest: Springfield High School, Springfield New Jersey. Additional notes: Original response was to report of catastrophic explosion at local school. Prisoner was found unconscious on the scene and taken into immediate custody. No other survivors were recovered. Blood tests revealed several signs of genetic mutation consistent with super human abilities. Admission to the Raft was completed within hours. EDIT: four weeks after arrest prisoner regained consciousness. Medical care was discontinued. Prisoner is volatile and must be contained at all times. No exceptions."
"May 6th? That was -"
"The day Wanda and Vision's twins were killed."
The air between them became silent and tense. Wanda and Vis had only wanted to retire quietly, to have a life like Barton had. They didn't want the drama that came with the Accords. While months had passed and Cap and Tony continued to disagree at nearly every turn Wanda had given birth - under extraordinary circumstances. Then, the following spring her, now toddlers, had been the victims of a terrible act of revenge. No one had seen or heard from Wanda since, not even Vision.
Nat cleared her throat, "Taylor was picked up the same day."
He nodded. His theory that Kaplan and Shepherd could somehow be Wanda's children started to look very far-fetched. After all, the file said it right there. Taylor had been in high school the day Wanda's kids were killed, and only hours later had blasted apart her school and fell into a coma. But what if, somehow, those powers that caused that destruction came from what was left of one of Wanda's boys?
"Her powers manifested in a moment of pure rage?" He asked needing clarification.
"Looks like it. There's no witnesses to the event, they're all dead. All that's here is the statement she gave once she came out of her coma. Kaplan took longer to bring in, probably went the scared-of-your-powers-once-you-realize-you-have-them route, then of course there's the adjustment phase, the practice phase, then the live out your superhero dreams by saving grannies from purse snatchers - which is what got him caught."
"So Taylor was locked up months longer then Billy, or any of the team."
"Maybe."
"What?"
"There are redacted pieces to her files. I didn't have time to unredact them but Shuri is helping on that. It looks like transfer papers from the parts I can read."
"Transfer to where? The Raft is the most high secure prison there is."
"Maybe it's not a prison." She suggested then paused, almost like the idea was too horrible to put into words. "Keep in mind I've seen a lot more horrors in the world then you have Steve. There are places Ross could have sent her that do. . . terrible things."
"She's a child."
"That didn't seem to matter to Ross when he locked her up." Natasha pointed out, "Didn't matter to the people who trained me either."
"And this man thinks he's saving people." He thought back to WWII and the Nazis, they thought they were cleansing the world too, making it better. Then there was Hydra, look at what they did to Bucky. He shuddered to think what Ross could have put the young speedster through. He looked back up at the files, specifically at the blacked out parts of Taylor's file.
"Keep working on this for me will you? I want to know exactly what these kids went through." He turned to leave the room, "I want to be able to ensure whatever it was never happens to them again."
"Shuri will have to fill that order." Nat spoke up making him pause before he turned around. Nat rested a hand on her hip as she looked at him, "I'm taking off."
"Where are you going?"
She took a deep breath and broke eye contact again, "I have some loose ends I need to check up on. Something I need to do alone. . . now seems as good a time as any."
"One hundred and sixty four countries want to find you Nat." he reminded her but it only got a smirk as she smiled at him.
"Sounds fun."
He chuckled, "If you need anything –"
"I know how to reach you." She walked over and gave him a peck on the cheek. They took a moment just looking at the other before she smiled at him again and walked out.