It was nearly three in the morning when the group of Rogue Avengers finally left the abandoned muffler factory on the outskirts of Seoul. They had to bid farewell to the makeshift hospital, hoping and praying they would never need it again before flying off into the night with the Quinjet as protection and the entire world still looking for them.
After the scare with Danielle, everyone was back on high alert. No longer sure of what to do, the leaders of the group made a decision to go to the only place they knew that was safe: Clint's farm house.
Though, Danielle had never been there before, most everyone else on the ship (save for Sam and Scott) had apparently been to the farm house in the middle of nowhere. All it seemed to be was open field, forest, white-picket fencing, and a two-story house with a barn beside it in the middle of it all. It seemed... surprisingly normal. But, what Danielle found to be completely mind blowing was the fact that not only did Clint have a farm house with ACTUAL animals, but he also had a wife... and kids... and a baby.
When they initially arrived at the farm, Natasha and the archer had piloted the jet and parked it in a hidden space behind some trees before letting everyone out. Clint and Natasha led the small group down a path that led from the trees to the house. Frm the way the path seemed to be carved out through a large field, Danielle inferred that this hadn't been the first time the archer's farm was used as a safe haven for one reason or another.
The group marched up the path, taking in their surroundings. Sam was cracking jokes about the Hawk's lifestyle off the grid, Clint making quips back creating a small banter in the middle of a tension filled atmosphere amongst the group while Scott, Steve, Natasha, Wanda, and Danielle carried on silently behind them.
When they finally reached the front porch, they were greeted by a beaming brunette woman. "Hi, honey," Clint greeted her with an equally surprised and loving smile before wrapping his arms around her in a tight embrace.
The woman let out a sigh of relief before releasing her husband. She gave him a quick peck on the lips before her eyes finally fell on the group of wanted fugitives standing just at the bottom of her porch steps, all looking a bit rough around the edges and in dire need of a shower and a good night's rest. Her smile then morphed into that of sympathy and welcoming kindness, something Danielle found to be extremely refreshing. She was already starting to like Mrs. Hawkeye.
Clint's wife then turned back to him with a look of mock-scorning. "If you would've told me we were having company, I would've made more food for everyone."
"We don't mean to be a burden," Steve immediately apologized.
The woman simply laughed and shook her head. "When will you learn, Captain? As long as you keep this troublemaker-" she nudged Clint's chest with her elbow jokingly. "-alive, you'll always be welcome in our home." Steve gave Clint's wife a smile filled with gratitude and thankfulness.
"Come on in. Make yourselves at home," Clint stated as he led everyone into the house.
Inside, Danielle looked around at her surroundings and noticed that just like the house, the farm, and the property as a whole, the interior of his house was just as normal and ordinary as everything else. He really did just live an average life. Must be nice...
There was suddenly the sound of giggling and running that caught Danielle's attention, and when she turned around to find the source of the noise, she was pleasantly surprised at the sight of Clint being clobbered by two kids, a boy and a girl. The little boy couldn't have been maybe a few years younger than Danielle herself, the girl maybe a few years younger than him. It was no surprise that Clint's kids loved him enough to greet him back frm his prison break with hugs and kisses, but it was a surprise to Danielle when they suddenly turned to Wanda and greeted her just the same.
"Auntie Wanda!" The pair shouted as the bounded into her middle. Danielle watched as her older sister stumbled a bit at the force, but laughed it off as she returned the enthusiastic embrace. She remembered Wands telling her something about being known in the Barton household after Pietro's sacrifice to save the archer's life a year ago, but she didn't think it was on this large of a scale. But, nevertheless, Danielle watched in silent amusement as Wanda struggled with trying to keep her balance with two kiss jumping at her feet, bombarding her with questions. However, it didn't seem to last when the little girl caught sight of 'Auntie Nat' and the pair started to run to attack the redhead across the room with just as much excitement.
"Ssh," Clint's wife hushed the pair after a few minutes of shouting and stomping. "You'll wake Nate," she told the kids.
"Ah," Natasha chuckled. "How is my little namesake?" 'Namesake'? Danielle's forehead creased and her head tilted. Clint named a kid after Natasha? Well, now that she thought about it, it didn't seem that crazy. They were, after all, partners in crime.
Clint's wife shook her head and chuckled. "Exhausting," she answered. "He's growing. Too fast. He's already started to run around everywhere and is beginning to get his front teeth in, so he's more... emotional than usual." As if on cue, there was the sound of a distant cry coming from a room on the other side of the kitchen. The brunette laughed knowingly, "Speaking of..." The group chuckled.
"Well, make yourselves at home. Clint can give you the tour, show you guys where you'll be staying..." She let or a heavy sigh, her tone taking on a more somber meaning as she continued. "I'm so sorry about everything that's happened. But, hopefully it'll all work out in the end." There was a long pause. The group all giving her sad smiles as they recounted their tough few weeks.
Sam was the one who eventually broke the silence, "Thank you for this."
"Of course," Mrs. Barton nodded just before the baby let out another cry from the other room. "Well, duty calls." The brunette chuckled before pressing a chaste kiss to her ached husband's lips one last time before scurrying over to an unseen crib. Danielle watched from over the kitchen counter as she picked up Baby Hawkeye and bounced him on her hip, whispering sweet nothings and cooing in his ear trying to sooth him back to sleep. It was moments like these Danielle really wished she had someone there to do that for her. Cradle her into their arms and comfort them until she fell asleep. Speaking of sleep... she really needed it.
Despite having been unconscious for hours, she was still exhausted after... everything and so desperately wanted to curl up beneath some blankets and just pass out for a few days, or months, or years. She didn't care at this point.
"The girls can take Lila's room. Her and Coop can bunk together for the time being," Clint began explaining. "Cap, Sam, Lang," the archer chuckled. "Have fun sorting out arrangements for the couch." A collective groan came from the two latters while Steve merely chuckled and shook his head.
Danielle didn't understand how they could all be so... calm and cool. After everything that had happened, they all acted as if none of them were international fugitives. They all acted as if Danielle hadn't just lost everything she ever loved and cherished in the small time frame of a few hours; her powers, her brother, her freedom, her normality, her old life, everything! But they didn't know, no one did! How could they? Did they even care? Why would they care? Who cared-?!
"Danielle." The brunette was pulled from her inner turmoil by the sounds of her name being called. When she turned to see who it was, she found Wanda looking back at her. The older telepath's eyebrows furrowed and her expression was on etched with worry. "Are you o-"
"I'm fine," Danielle answered way too quickly. "Just tired," she added as she uncomfortably shifted her weight on the balms of her feet as she crossed her arms over her chest, squeezing herself tightly as if it were bound to just squish the anguish and pain residing inside her like a the pimples Liz had taught her to pop. Liz... Betty... Peter... Michelle... Cindy... Sally... Ned... Amber... Ashley... A few more people she would never get to see again.
"Danielle," Wanda called her younger sister back to the present, again. "Are you sure you're alright?"
Danielle nodded. "Just tired," she repeated.
"Here," Laura spoke up, her hands full from carrying a bunch of clothes instead of a baby. "I brought you guys some clothes for you to shower and change into. They're some old clothes of mine, so hopefully they fit."
Wanda and Danielle picked up a few pairs of pants, some shirts, and under garments. Wanda thanking her a thousand times over while Danielle merely nodded in agreement. The older brunette smiled, a small hint of pity and sympathy in her eyes caught Danielle's attention before Mrs. Barton walked off. She was starting to really hate being looked at and treated like she was a little glass sculpture or a time bomb, as if she were going to break or blow up at any given moment. She already broke and blew up... this was just the aftermath.
After being shown where the shower was, Danielle decided that what she really needed was a long and relaxing bubble bath to help wind down after her stressful few days– weeks, really. It took only a few minutes for the tub to fill up and even less time for the bubbles to encase the top layer of the warm water. Once Danielle found the temperature just right, she slipped in.
It felt like it had been centuries since her last bubble bath, but even after a few seconds of settling down in the soft and relaxing pool of bubbly foam and the smell of Sweet Pea body wash, she could already feel the tension leave her body and the stress and grief from the recent chain of events begin to leave her mind for a momentary pause filled with peace and silence.
Danielle let out a heavy sigh, taking it all in and just letting everything out. And after a few moments of doing nothing but soaking in the water, she reluctantly continued on with actually washing herself. She took the wash rag that had been given to her and went over her pale skin, scrubbing all the sweat, dried blood, and dirt from off of her body. She tried to ignore the emotional and physical pain each time the rag went over a scar, a scratch, or a scan that would no longer heal, but an involuntary hiss somehow always managed to escape her lips. Like when she dragged the rag over the small cuts she'd gotten during her time with the man frm HYDRA her mother had hired almost half a year ago, a couple of bruises she had gotten frm all her time playing soccer, the burn on her hand from where Jack had shocked her too hard, a small stab wound that never healed up on the lower side of her abdomen, and then around her neck where the stitches were still prominent.
Once she had finished washing off her body, Danielle could practically feel her tangled and dirty hair begging to be dunked in the water. So, after setting down the wash rag, the teenager slowly began to descend into the water, holding her breath and closing her eyes as she took the plunge beneath the bubbles.
When she was completely submerged, it was like a switch was set off in her mind. Suddenly, the small flashes of visions and bits and pieces of memory came back t her like a freight train, hitting her without warning.
But, it wasn't the sounds of her dead mother's voice that sent chills down her spine, or the feeling of her father's embrace back when she was trapped inside her own mind that made her want to scratch her skin off her body, or even the way that the golden eyes that always seemed to be staring back at her felt as though they were staring directly into her soul. No. It was the way that the Entity knew exactly how to hurt her it was the way that Danielle had to watch as the blonde took her own face, her own image, her own body and made it into It's own. It was the way that she could do nothing as the Entity tried to tear apart her sister's scarlet power. It was the way that the blade she plunged relentlessly into her body burned her and hurt her more than anything ever had in her life. And it was the way that when she woke up, she realized that in the deepest darkest pit of her mind and her soul, there was a part of her that wished she had never woken up at all.
Danielle suddenly shot up and out of the water from where she was submerged, gasping and coughing for air as she struggled to comprehend everything that had just sunk into her mind. It took a few moments for Danielle to both process what had just happened and also catch her breath once again, but once she got everything under control, she took a deep breath and reached to take the small plug out of the tub, letting the water drain out of the tub, ending her attempt at having a relaxing bubble bath. So much for that.
When she finally got out, dried off, and got dressed, the teen decided to try nd find where everyone else was. When there seemed to be no sign of anyone upstairs, she figured they were all probably downstairs still eating dinner or something.
Shortly after making her way down half of the stairs, she stopped in her tracks when she heard the sounds of familiar voices conversing in the direction of where she was sure the kitchen and dining room were located.
Trying not to be noticed, Danielle dropped to her knees and positioned herself so that she could see between the pillars of the staircase railings without being seen by the group of people sitting around the kitchen and dining room. Upon closer inspection, it looked like there was a meeting going on in the kitchen. There was Sam, Natasha and Steve seated at the dining room table, Clint washing dishes over the sink, Scott seated at the kitchen island, and Wanda perched on top of one of the counters.
"This is a mess," Scott groaned from where he sat.
"I think we can all agree on that, pal," Clint said, handing the dishes he would wash to Wanda who would place them in the racks of the washing machine to dry.
"Yeah, but the real question is: how are we going to get out of it?" Sam prompted the group from where he sat across the room.
"That's gonna be a bit tough," Clint remarked, not looking up from his chore as he spoke. "It's only a matter of time before somebody figures out where we are."
Steve's eyebrows furrowed as he sat up in his chair. "How would Ross know where to look? I thought Fury kept this place off the books."
"He did," the archer replied. "But Stark may have let it slip that I had a wife and kids during his little visit after Leipzig when we were first brought in." Steve let out a heavy sigh as he set his face in his hands, perched on the table. Danielle could only imagine how frustrated the Captan probably was with the billionaire. "I figure it's only a matter of time before someone fires out where this place is."
"I'm sure he didn't mean to purposely do it," Natasha said, coming to her friend's defense. "Stark can be an idiot, but I know he isn't the type of idiot to get the innocent involved. Especially not innocent people that mean so much to you." Clint glance up from his dishes this time, giving his partner a knowing and somber look. One which she returned with a look of sympathy.
"Either way, we're not safe," Steve exclaimed, diverting the still-sensitive subject of Tony back to their own safety. "We have to figure out where to go from here since we can't stay."
"Like where?" Scott spoke up. "We're international criminals now. And, don't know about you guys, but I'm not exactly a professional at 'hiding in plain sight', or whatever you international espionage... spy... people call it." Danielle couldn't help but smirk a bit at his antics. He seemed to be the only normal person on this team of misfits, or at least Danielle thought so.
The teen watched Steve glance around at the group for an answer. Natasha was the one to answer, naturally. "I have a few places," she shrugged. "Someone owes me a few favors in Cuba. I have some contacts that lay low in Quebec. Not to mention, a couple off-the-grid safe houses a few other places."
"Can they fit all of us?" Wanda asked as she dried a few more plates Clint handed her before placing them in the dishwasher rack to dry or in the cabinets where they belonged. Danielle began to wonder just how many times Wanda had come to visit the little farm house Clint had in the middle do nowhere with his family. Then again, Danielle always did wonder where Clint managed to get her a baby chick for her birthday.
"I'm sure we can manage," Natasha answered Wanda's question with a shrug.
There was a long silence amongst the group as everyone exchanged looks of agreement. That was until Clint grimaced from where he stood. "About that..." Eveyrone turned t the archer with confused expressions. "I think I'm gonna stay here. Laura and the kids need me."
Wanda was the first to protest. "But, the Task Force..."
"I'm sure I can strike up a deal with them that doesn't involve jail time," Clint stated nonchalantly with a shrug. "If I sign the Accords, they might even let me stay here and finally retire."
"That's a big 'if'," Sam remarked. "What are you gonna do when they end up just throwing you back in jail anyway?"
"You guys broke us out this time," the archer said as he dried his hands, glancing between Natasha and Steve with a smug smile on his face. "I bet you can do it again."
Natasha chuckled and Steve merely sighed, shaking his head as he crossed his arms over his chest. Danielle could tell that something Clint said was probably turning the wheels inside the Captain's head. And Wanda's, too, from the way Danielle could see the crease in her forehead she always got while thinking a bit too far into things. The teenager wondered if maybe they were thinking about signing the Accords and making a deal with Secretary Ross and the government. But she wasn't sure. What she was sure about was the fact that she sure as Hell wasn't going anywhere near Ross and his men after what happened at the Raft... She couldn't take that chance.
After a moment of deliberation from the team in the kitchen, everyone exchanged glances. Apparently, they were all on board with Clint's decision.
"So, that's it then," Sam exclaimed. "Clint can stay here, the rest of us can go live it up in one of Nat's super secret hiding places?" The redhead rolled her eyes while the pilot laughed. "Hope you got one in Fiji because I'm gonna need a vacation after all of this."
"Yeah... Fiji sounds nice," a new voice chimed in, their tone coated with uneasiness. When Danielle pressed her face closer to the stair railing to get a closer look at who it was, she found it to be Scott who had spoken. His eyes were downcast and his fingers nervously drummed on the kitchen island counter.
"Lang," Steve spoke up, catching his attention. "Something on your mind?"
"Uh... Yeah," the Ant-Man began uneasily as he digested with his fingers some more in his lap. After an awkward moment of silence from the new edition, Scott eventually spoke again. "Look, guys, it was great fighting along side you and all, but... the threat's gone now, right? That scary doctor guy is locked up, there's n more super osycho assassins. I just... Maybe Robin Hood has a point-"
Clint interrupted with a groan. "God, first Stark with 'Legolas' and now I'm stuck with 'Robn Hood'?"
Scott grimaced in response, but continued. "Like I was saying, he has a good point. Maybe if we sign the Accords like they want us to, I can go back home and, I don't know, stay on house arrest for the rest of my life? It may work." Danielle silently hoped that that would be the case. After all, she remembered Scott mentioning the fact that he had a daughter before.
"So, what are you thinking, Lang?" Steve prompted, easily on board with his decision as well.
"Uh, well, I was going to just tag along with... you," Scott said, glancing over to Clint. "Think I can do that for a while?"
The archer shrugged. "Sure. I don't see why not. Hey, they might offer us the same deal if we're lucky. But you should probably hide that suit of your real well. Who knows what the government might do with it if they confiscate it."
"Right..." Ant-Man said uneasily. "I actually think we might've left it at the Raft..."
"No we didn't," Natasha stated. "While Steve was breaking you all out, I took the time to grab all of your suits out of the lock up area."
Her suit... Danielle suddenly remembered why she was so scared of getting captured in the first place. Not only because of what had already happened to her in the Raft, but also because of what she had hidden in a small slit on the side of her new suit: the USB drive. The drive that carried all the information her mother had collected on HYDRA.
Danielle panicked, wondering about whether or not Ross or the men may have found it. She wasn't sure, but what she was sure of was that she didn't want it with them. Who knew how much all that info could be worth and how dangerous it could be in the wrong hands. And last she checked from the wounds on her neck from the shock collar they shoved on her, Ross and the government was definitely the wrong hands.
"So, it'll just be us going to the safe houses, then?" Wanda asked, bringing Danielle's attention back to the conversation in the kitchen.
"The four of us and Danielle, yes," Natasha replied.
Suddenly, at the mention of her name, the conversation came to a pause. No one spoke, but everyone's eyes gave away the fact that they all felt either some sort of guilt or Pitt towards her. Danielle couldn't help but feel her chest twist up in pain and discomfort. She didn't want them to treat her that way. Like she was a breakable kid to them. She just wanted them to forget, just like she wish she could. But, knowing them, they probably wouldn't.
"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Sam abruptly asked, making eye contact with Steve say beside him. Danielle's eyebrows furrowed. She didn't know what he was thinking, but she wanted to.
However, Steve apparently did. The soldier sighed and clenched his jaw slightly but didn't say anything. Instead, Clint spoke up. "It's not a bad choice... It's the right choice." Okay, now the teenage girl in the stairwell was definitely confused. How was everyone in on this brilliant idea the had to do with her and what exactly was it?
"We're not even one hundred percent sure that they'd be willing to make a deal with the two of you," Wanda exclaimed, worry clear in her voice as she gestured to both Scott and Clint. "How are we supposed to be certain that they'd give her a deal?" Suddenly, it all came into view for Danielle; they wanted her to break a deal with Ross and his men for her freedom. But at what cost? Another shock collar around her neck? No, she wouldn't have it. Even if they made her, she wouldn't take the deal. She'd somehow manage to hide or run or leave, wherever she could. She wasn't going to take that deal, she wasn't going to sign the Accords and be thrown into another cell just be treated like a piece of meat again-
"Maybe we should just offer it to her," Scott chimed in as the voice of reason. "It is her life and her decision, after all... I mean, not that it's any of my business. I hardly know the kid."
"We could offer it to her, but she'd never take the deal. Not after what she went through in the Raft," Steve explained. Sometimes it scared Danielle just how well he knew her, but then again, she always had to remind herself that for the first few months out of HYDRA's captivity, she spent nearly everyday with the soldier. He probably knew her a lot better than most people in her life. "This has to be a decision we make for her," Steve continued. "Usually, I'd let her decide, but... she's not in her right mind set– I can see it already. This is something we have to decide. I already made the mistake once of allowing her to make a bad decision, I won't do it again."
From where the soldier and his team of Rogue Avengers sat in the kitchen, the group suddenly heard the sound of movement coming from the stairs. The group all turned towards that direction, but upon closer inspection, it seemed like it was vacant. Almost as if someone had been there, but scurried away erode they could catch them snooping in. Nobody had to tell the group who it had been. They already knew.
—
When Steve went out searching for Danielle he expected her to be somewhere secluded like the bedroom her and Wanda were staying in, or the porch, or even the barn out back. But instead, he was shocked to find her all the way past the barn where the Quinjet was hidden behind an array of trees surrounding a small pond and a miniature field they had parked it on. When he found her, she was seated on the jet's lowered ramp, her head bowed as she twirled something unseen between her fingers.
As the soldier approached, it was clear to him that she wasn't aware of his presence. His theory was proven when he spoke, "I didn't expect to find you out here." At the abrupt sound of his voice piercing through the serene silence of the small, peaceful oasis, the teenage girl jumped and swirled her head around to glance up at him.
Once Danielle realized that it was just Steve, she went back to her earlier position of bowing her head, letting the damp tendrils of her hair fall over her face like a dark curtain as she continued to stare at a small object she held in the palm of her hand. She didn't answer until Steve got closer, and even then it was a bit hard to hear her in her quiet tone. "It's quiet," was all she had to say in response.
Steve sighed as he leaned on the side of the ramp, glancing out at the pond and the trees. It was a pretty nice spot to hide out; secluded, quiet. The only sounds were the soft croaking of frogs near the pond, owls hooting in the trees, and – of course – the insects chirping n the tall grass of the field. And the view was just as equally serene. The moonlight came beaming up from the night sky filled with scattered stars that reflected from off the dark waters of the pond, and occasionally a few lightning bugs would light up around them. Steve was starting to understand why Clint liked this place so much.
Getting back to the point of his trip out here, Steve glanced over at the girl still seated on the ramp a few feet away. It was at this moment that he finally figured out what she seemed to be holding in her hand as he caught sight of it through a gleam from the moon. The USB she had that her mother gave her containing everything on HYDRA.
The soldier began to wonder how she could've possibly had it on her after being out in the Raft, but then remembered that she had hidden it away somewhere inside her suit before the disastrous fight in Leipzig.
After solving the mystery of how Danielle got the drive back, Steve's mind began trying to piece together why she had the drive in her hand right now. It could've been a testiment to her mother. Maybe she was holding the drive like it was the piece she had left of the woman who was so brutally snatched away from her, repeatedly.
The soldier sighed, unsure of how to approach that situation. Especially after given the knowledge of who her mother's true killer was.
"Look, Danielle-" he began, only to be interrupted by the brunette's abrupt question.
"Why didn't you kill me?"
Steve turned to look at her with a surprised look on his face, as if he were looking to see if perhaps she was joking. But, when she looked up at him through her hair, he could see it clear in her eyes that she wasn't joking at all.
Unsure of how to respond, the soldier responded with, "...what?"
"We made a deal that if Eris–" she cut off with a wince. "-the Entity-" she corrected herself. "got released, you would kill me to save yourselves." The brunette made direct eye contact with him, a glimmer from a swell of tears in her eyes she seemed to be holding back as she added with a broken voice, "why didn't you?"
Steve was at a loss of words still. Not because he couldn't answer it– he knew exactly why he didn't go through with his end of their 'bargain'– but because he couldn't believe that she actually had no idea why he didn't kill her. So instead of giving her an answer, he responded with a question of his own. "Why would I?"
Her expression changed in the short timeframe of a second. Her eyes went from wide and disbelieving at his question, to narrowed as she seemed to almost glare at him. "'Why'?" She asked incredulously. "You saw what she was capable of– what I was capable of. She would've killed you just to get to me, and she almost did. And instead, I had to kill myself to stop her and now..." her voice broke and the soldier could tell she was getting close to reaching her limit.
She turned away, took a deep breath, and recomposed herself before she continued again. "And now... now I'm..." the girl let out a humorless laugh, a sound so odd and unfamiliar coming out of the teenager's mouth Steve would've thought he had imagined it at first. "I don't even know what I am..." she admit. "I don't have my powers like I used to, I can't fight anymore... And I'm not normal. I'm not a normal person... So, where does that leave me? What am I? Some... Some freak? Some monster?"
"You're not a monster," Steve quickly reassured her in a firm voice.
Danielle merely shook her head. Her eyes unwilling to meet his as she replied, "You should've killed me when you had the chance."
Steve felt the air in his lungs get knocked out of him at her broken voice saying that sentence. So emotionless, so void of feeling. He felt as though he could physically feel a piece of his heart break off a bit just from hearing her say that. And it wasn't just the way she said it that hurt him so much, but it was the fact that she actually believed what she said.
"I would never– and will never kill or hurt you," the soldier stated in a rough and angry voice. A voice Danielle couldn't help but peek up through her eyelashes to stare at him for. Once he had her attention, he looked directly in her eye and added, "Do you understand that?"
She was silent. A pregnant pause fell among them until she finally asked, her question muffled by her hair, "...why?"
Steve answered within a heartbeat. "Because you don't hurt the people you love." Danielle's head snapped up at his statement, her eyes wide and glimmering with tears that she could no longer hold as he added, "Not even when they ask you to."
The soldier watched as her expression went from shocked, to accepting, and finally into a sad sob. The first one broke from her lips before the tears began to fall and before he knew it, the little brunette was jumping to her feet to go attack him in a tight hug around his stomach. He hugged her back, not nearly as right because he didn't want to crush any ribs, but tight enough so that he could convey just how much she meant to him.
And it was true. He loved her like she was his own kid. Of course, he knew she wasn't actually his daughter, she had her own Dad and Mom and he could never replace those two important people in her life no matter what they did wrong and no matter what he did right. But, he didn't need to be her Dad or her parent, he just needed to be there for her. And he was. Danielle couldn't remember a time that he wasn't aside from when her mother had taken her to Rhode Island, but even then she knew she missed him.
But, Steve wasn't her Dad, or her Mom, or Wanda, or Pietro, or even Jack. He was just Steve. And somehow, that meant more to her.
After a few moments of tears and hugs, Danielle slowly released Steve to glance down at the drive in her palm still. Steve noticed her mentally debating whatever it was she was thinking over about the USB. "That can change a lot of lives, you know," he remarked.
"I know," she replied before she did something so unexpected, not even Steve could've predicted her doing something so wildly out of character for the girl.
Without so much as a second thought, the teenager abruptly snapped the drive in half before forcefully throwing both pieces into the pond. The pair watched as the two dark specks flew up and then dropped into the pond with a small splash, the ripples reflecting the light of the moons and stars above before ceasing to exist again. Like it never happened...
"Can we go inside now?" The brunette finally asked. "I'm getting bit by a bunch of mosquitoes."
Steve let out a small chuckle, the first he had in a while, and nodded. "Yes, we can go inside." The soldier smiled down at the little girl as he reached to press a button on the small pad attached to the side of the Quinjet, pulling the ramp back shut before the pair began to start back to the farm house.
Above them, the moon continued to glisten down upon the pond that held everyone's secrets. And it didn't stop there.
—
A few hundred miles away, the same moon shone down upon the Avengers' Compound. The light reflected through the large glass panes that were installed to the sides of most of the rooms, and came gleaming through one of many; Tony Stark's personal bar he had installed for recreational purposes. But, in this case, he was just drinking to forget his regret.
The billionaire genius had been doing well, pushing aside most of his problems and baggage by focusing on work and politics, PR, his new jittery intern, the grieving Android that was brooding all throughout the building, his pained best friend, his shattered relationship, and the pissed of kid who had himself locked in his room all day and all night. But, it was all starting to pile on more than he liked, and Stark found himself in need of a few hours to himself... And by that he meant 'at the bar'.
And that's now where he sat, pouring himself glass after glass of expensive liquor and downing it within a few seconds each. He prided himself in the fact that he still had a little bit of dignity left. He was drinking out of the glass and not the bottle, after all.
Tony was absolutely content with getting completely wasted for the rest of the night until the familiar sound of loud high heels clicking on the tile floor of the room in the far corner caught his attention. The billionaire's heart sputtered as his hope rose at the tac that it could've been Miss Pepper Potts, but he was a bit disappointed when a familiar voice (that definitely was not Pepper's) spoke up from beyond the shadows behind him, "You look like shit."
Tony rolled his eyes as the sound of the person's heels free closer until the were directly behind him. "Smell it, too," the cool voice added, a hint of disgust in their tone.
"Oh, great," the genius grumbled in exasperation, finally glancing up to look at the mysterious woman in heels. "How'd you even find this place?"
A smile stretched across the woman's face, the lack of light in the room and the amount of ought coming in from the windows provided by the moon reflected off of her porcelain skin and the bright white of her hair that draped around her face that made her unmistakable. "I have my ways," the woman remarked rather vaguely as she took a seat at the bar stool beside him, much to Tony's chagrin.
"You know, you sound like Romanoff when you say crap like that," the billionaire slurred his words as he rested his head on his hands sloppily on the counter.
"That a compliment?" He could practically hear the smugness oozing in the woman's voice. She always did have an attitude that would occasionally rival his own. It was one of the reasons they would butt heads at times.
Tony rolled his eyes again as he picked up his half-empty glass. "Not really," he mumbled before downing the rest of his drink, wincing at the bitter aftertaste it left in his mouth. The genius reached out to grab the bottle of liquor to refill his glass when the woman's hand beat him to it. She grabbed the bottle and held it up to study it, just out of his reach.
"Wow, this shit really did a number on you," she remarked as she continued to read the label. When he tried to snatch it from her, she merely slapped his hand away like it was nothing. It practically was to her.
When Tony finally got sick and tired of her shit, he relented by asking the real question, "What do you want, Sable?"
"'Sable'?" The white-haired woman scoffed. "I'm gone for almost a year and a half and suddenly we're not on first-name-basis anymore?"
It was Tony's turn to scoff now. "We were never on first-name-basis," he remarked.
'Sable' clicked her tongue and muttered beneath her breath, "Touché."
"Not to mention, you're besties with my ex, remember?"
The woman grew quiet at the mention of Pepper. But, when she spoke again, her tone was suddenly sympathetic. "I'm not here about Pepper, Tony-"
"That's a first."
Sable's tone went as soon as it came. She let out a loud groan before snapping back in her more natural cruel tone she always spoke with. "Could you stop being a pretentious dick while I attempt to be civil with you here, Stark?"
"Did you know?" The question left the genius's mouth before he could stop it. It was like his drunk subconscious took what he was already wondering and just rolled it off his numb tongue.
"Know what?" Sable asked in confusion. Tony suddenly felt a shudder overtake his body as flashes of memory came back to him.
"Did you know?"
"I didn't know it was him."
"Don't bullshit me, Rogers. Did. You. Know?"
"Don't act stupid, Sable," he suddenly snapped. "I know you're into that international espionage... assassin... spy... black markets crap, okay? Ex-HYDRA operative, and all. How do you think you and Pepper met, huh?" In his peripheral vision, he watched the composed expression of fear and surprise barely flash across the white-haired woman. "Yeah, that's right. I did my research," he stated. "Now, my question is, did you know your buddy Barnes killed my parents?"
He watched for the first time in his entire acquaintanceship with Sable, her face go from completely expressionless to a look of shock and confusion. He'd never once seen her show her emotions so much. He always saw the cold and calculated side of her, the one who barely showed emotion and talked only in smug remarks and deadpan threats to him. So, seeing her now, completely dumbfounded by what he had just asked her, he knew she couldn't have possibly known. "So, that's a 'no'," the billionaire mumbled quietly before decided he needed another drink.
But just as he was reaching for the bottle, Sable tried to snatch it from him again. "That's enough of this for you," she stated, holding it just out of his reach, yet he still managed to somehow get a hand on it as he attempted to yank it back.
"Don't touch–"
"That's enough–"
"–my alcohol!"
"Tony–!"
"Don't touch my–"
"– I said that's enough!" Suddenly, at the outburst, the entire glass bottle shattered within Sable's hand. Her other hand was clenched in a fist, her white hair seemed t start to glimmer ever so slightly, and her eyes that were a dark brown a moment ago were now glowing a menacing silver. Her teeth gritted and she let out a heavy sigh, closing her eyes as regret crossed her expression. The tension left her body, quickly replaced by guilt as she took a breath and opened her eyes again. They were back to brown. "Tony-"
"Get out," the genius grumbled beneath his breath. When she didn't move at first, his temper flared and he shouted, louder this time, "GET OUT!"
Sable didn't even flinch. The guilt leaving her face, replaced with irritation as she stood up from her stool and began to stomp off, the sound of her heels clicking stopping just short of the door where she spun around and shouted back at him. "When are you ever going to learn that you're not the only one having to pick up the pieces of their life? That you're not the only one suffering through this shit show, huh?" She prompted. "When are you ever going to grow up?!"
Tony flinched at her final blow before listening to her heels click out of the room, leaving him all alone in the darkness with the broken pieces of the expensive liquor bottle and the broken pieces of his life currently. She was right... this really was a shit show.
—
A/N: Hi, and welcome back to me screaming. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH! I already bought my Endgame tickets and I. Am not. Ready. I bought three for me and my two roommates to watch Endgame at the day before showing and then we're also going to binge watch every single MCU movie on our 22 day count down. We just finished Iron Man today with helped me with inspiration for the Tony-centric end of this chapter. I'm honestly fucking terrified and I don't know what to do.
Anyway, back to the story. Danielle is a stressed boi and is basically now Steve's adopted daughter (officially not official). And, also, Tony has a sort of frenemie who is definitely important. Look or for Sable. Who is she? Why does she have white hair? Are you catching in to who she is? Well, there is definitely more to her which is why I'm basing an entire story around her that's a spin-off of this one. It's going to be calle and it is still in progress. The more we get to see Sable, the sooner i'll post the story.
Chapter songs: I Can't Breathe by Bea Miller
Reviews:
Hyraeth: I have returned yet again! And yes, you are the first reviewer of the chapter again, lol. Yep, powers are kinda malfunctioning, Eris/the Entity is dead (or is she). I cannot confirm nor deny her current status. I have yet to write their reunion, but I do have it planned out. I can tell you that it does start off awkward but it ends really heartwarming... then it goes back to a bit tense and awkward when they get to talking about everything. He he, yeah. I don't think she appreciates the shit I put her through. I feel that one author lady from that Will Ferrell movie 'Stranger Than Fiction'. If you haven't seen it, I totally recommend it. And, hmmm, I really don't know. I want to say Jean mostly because I love her ad she was a partial inspiration for Dani's powers, but Danielle/Eris combo is pretty interesting and when we cross a certain bridge I guess I'll explain everything because I don't want t give too much away because where would the fun be in that?
The-Dark-Love-Writer: Thanks for the review, I'm glad the story means that much. I don't write just to put my Author's mind at rest, but also to excite other people and I'm happy I'm accomplishing that. Yeah, I'm super depressed over it ending. I'm still kind of getting over it because it's the same thing with me and my best friend who bonded over our love of it. But, I'll get over it... someday... when I'm dead... But, aside from that, I do have big plans for Danielle and Peter. I kind of feel bad because I'm dragging this ship on but have good reason to because I'm a strong believer in the fact that you can't go into a relationship and expect to build a strong bond with someone if you're not even sure of who you are without the person and that's something Dani has to learn before she gets into a relationship as well. It all comes into play later on. But, I ca tell you that I won't drag it out that long to where even in Infinity War they're not together. I promise that they will get together soon. And yeah, Dani without her powers is gonna be a real trip and will teach her a lot about herself, but it may not be a good thing for her, as wee see in this chapter. Once again, glad you liked it! Enjoy this one!
Einklley: Well, she's not completely powerless. She still has some power in her, just not enough that she can actually use. I'm not going to keep her powerless, don't worry. But I am using the opportunity to build herself up as a person that doesn't rely on her powers, special abilities, and super hero alter-ego. I'm giving her a chance to discover herself as just normal Danielle. But, yes, your hunch that she'll eventually get stronger after this is correct. Oh boy, I have BIG plans for Danielle in Infinity War and Endgame. I have a pretty good idea of what I want to happen before and after, but I'd need to see Endgame to confirm my definite choice of what I want to happen. All I can say is that Danielle's relationship with everyone will be very vital for those two arcs.
GhostRyder13: Her powers aren't completely gone, they will come back, don't worry. And you will get the answer to that question... next chapter? It'll all be explained in time.
amrawo: This does change everything. Glad you liked it and I'm happy to hear that I'm unpredictable. :)
FairyMaster23: AH! CONGRATULATIONS YOU'RE MY 100TH VIEWER! As a gift, you get my undying love and affection, as well as this new chapter that marks my 50th chapter!
