They call her Human Torch! Chapter 15

1 month later, Wednesday September 7, 2011

It had been a month since Kitty first came over, everything was going great and she really bonded with everyone before leaving that weekend. Jane and Darcy had gone back just last week and we were sad to see them go but Kitty and I grew closer with everyone. She really enjoyed being doted on by the 3 girls while they helped her decorate her room. Pepper had to go back to LA to keep working as CEO and came once every 2 weeks to overlook the new construction of the building in New York.

Tony used his Iron Man suit to fly back and forth every 2 day's, I thought it was so funny how he would work all day in the old projection room that we started calling the lane room which was the only thing that was in there. He refused to let any contractors go in there so what would be a 2 week job was taking Tony forever! He was changing the programming to everything, messing with all the parts and making his own system. I swear that man! He was putting 4 lanes in there and adding a bar in the back of the room as well as couches. I had only gone bowling 2 times in my life and I was not great at it but now that I wouldn't stumble passed the line and slip on the lane, I was looking forward to it. He wanted to put a sign up and asked me what we should call it. I had jokingly said we were the Avengers and we should call it that, I think he took it serious though because he remained silent for the rest of the day.

Fury had spoken with me and I told him how much I wanted Tony on the team, I really felt we worked good together and I almost saw him as a brother after so many nights of helping me in the lab with Jane. Logan's blood really did change my DNA, I had a shorter temper but I was also stronger and still had the healing ability but it was much faster now, my blood now had the mutant gene and it was much stronger than his was, Charles told me that everyone had the mutant gene but it was just not active in some people. He felt that I now had Logan's gene and my own was activated as well, which would explain the 'Shield' I had going in my head and the way I could almost feel it's warmth if I focused enough. I had also taken a long time to come to terms that Logan did not age. He said he stopped when he reached his mid 30's and I had my DNA matching his very closely, we had theorized that I would stop aging as well but as of now we could not be sure when or if I already had stopped.

Tony and James had gone to the ceremony to get their medals, he said he could refuse it if it bothered me but I though it made his public image look good and Fury would feel he belonged more in the team if he took the recognition, I told him to go and he did but still he got his payback for me. He called in a favor and made Senator Stern host the ceremony, he hated Tony and was the main person behind the meeting that convinced others against a mutant getting a medal. Tony took the microphone and dedicated his medal to me in front of everyone. The look on Stern's face was priceless and once he got home I jumped in his arms and gave him a tight hug, I even dented his suit but he was not mad. We had a strange friendship going, he never liked to show emotion but then he would show random bursts of affection. Pepper told me he never had any true friends that he was close to and even growing up, his family was not very reliable outside of financial support. I dedicated myself to try and make him feel at home here after she told me that. She really did have a unique understanding and patience to him, they make the cutest couple!

"Bella!"

I turned and saw Clint and Nat coming my way.

"Hey guys what's up?"

"We were called on a mission, Fury just wants the 2 of us to go with a team."

"Oh? Why? Guys is he upset with me or something? I have noticed that he changed my schedule and only has me working here at headquarters doing paperwork and studying stuff."

Their eyes softened and Clint sat in front of me.

"Bella, he did the same thing to me when I started having kids, after he met Kitty and he understood how much of your guidance she needed, he stopped sending you on small missions and making sure you didn't work weekends when you are supposed to be with her. This was the original plan anyway. You are an Avenger remember? We can't risk losing you on a stupid mission that we can handle ourselves when we need to save you for the stuff that matters. You are a secret weapon right now and he just wants to keep it like that. Appreciate it while you can Bells, trust me."

I never thought he would care about that but I was thankful for it anyway. I smiled and nodded at them before they left. About 3 hours later Fury and Coulson walked passed the room I was in and I quickly ran out to meet them.

"Director, Coulson. Hi!"

Hi? really? They gave me questioning looks but I could see some amusement there too. Geez I was nervous.

"Um, I wanted to talk to you about something. Do you have time sometime this week?"

"If you can make it quick I have some time now."

"Great! Yeah I will be fast!"

They smirked a little (their version of a laugh) and followed me back into the room.

"So I was looking through all the files that were in here and I still have some to go but my interest was pulled to this one. This is a file on Bruce Banner. I am not sure why but, I just feel like his control must be much much harder to manage than mine, I mean I burst into flames but I still am myself you know? He has to have tight control on that because he loses himself completely, I just keep thinking over and over, maybe if I could get in his head, have a talk with him about it, he might be able to be that final piece for me. I know my control is not horrible but I am not great either. If I got very mad then I know I am capable of losing it."

He kept quiet for a moment and exchanged a glance with Phil.

"What are you asking for exactly Agent?"

"I am not sure. I want to meet him. His file says he is dangerous but being as I now have healing abilities and if things went south I could just fly up and flee immediately, I guess I am just asking if I had permission to do so, I know you guys are keeping a far away eye on him and I just wanted to run it by you and get your view of it. I feel like it could benefit me."

He looked once again at Phil before sighing and sitting on the desk that was in front of me.

"Bella, we are not ready to inform him that we know where he is. He thinks he is off the hook in isolation, surrounding himself with people who do not know who he is. Now, don't get me wrong, I too see how this can help you, but if things go south, am I willing to risk that village of innocent people? You may be able to flame on and get out on time but will they? I cannot get you transportation and give you company help to get to him."

I sighed but nodded.

"I understand. Thanks for listening anyway. See you men later then."

I turned back to keep reading through some files but Fury's voice make turn back around.

"You asked for the next 3 weeks off didn't you?"

"What? No, I didn't."

"Well its on the schedule. Do you have any plans? I heard Kolkata is... nice, this time of year."

"What? Fur-"

"See you in 3 weeks Agent Swan."

With that he left and I felt so dense. He just pulled on me what he pulled on Tony months ago. I put things away quickly and stepped out side the building, taking my shoes off before flying home. People were still getting use to seeing me in the sky but at least it was not all over the news. As soon as I got home I went to the lane room where I could hear Tony making a mess.

"Hey!"

"What are you doing home? Get out! You are not allowed to see it yet, you have to see the finished product."

"Fine fine."

I went out to the hall and he followed.

"I want to go to India."

He looked taken aback before tilting his head to the side to try to study me.

"I'm down."

"No, I want to go alone."

He sighed, as if expecting that answer. He walked towards my office and sat next to me.

"What do you need to do there?"

I turned my computer monitor towards us and googled Banner. I showed him the news articles and the videos.

"Control. I need full control. He can show me."

"Show you what Bella? How not to go about life? You are fine, you never lose it, you never burst out in flames."

"I could though. I am constantly oppressing it Tony. I know what I am going through and how it feels, I need to explore this for my own sanity. As soon as I saw his file I felt the need to find him, I just want to talk to him! I need to know how he does it."

He sighed and started rubbing his temples.

"You are going to go alone to a place you know nothing about to meet a man with the worlds worst anger issues. That sounds so much like you."

I chuckled grimly and put my arm around his shoulders while I jumped on his lap.

"I knew you would understand! Now, are you hungry?"

He instantly got up and carried me to the kitchen where he dumped me with a wide smile on his face.

"Yes! Get cookin' good lookin' I'll just watch from here"

After glaring at him and getting off the floor I turned to the stove and made him a quick pasta, adding extra garlic as payback. You are going to fly to Pepper tonight a very very stinky man Stark!

"So when are you leaving?"

"I am not sure. I have the next 3 weeks off. Actually I am going to fly really quick to the school and talk to Kitty about it. I don't want to ditch her for 3 whole weekends."

"Aw I can stay with her. Bond with her and show her how I work in the lab. You said she was interested in computer hacking right? I know more about that than anyone! I mean you are alright enough but I do it in seconds!"

"Jerk! I don't know, I will talk to her about it."

"See ya later then."

"Bye."

I went up to the roof and took off. Driving to the school took around 40 minutes but flying at a relaxed speed took less than 10 minutes. Once I was 20 feet from the ground I just turned off the flame and fell in a crouch. I will never tire of that.

"I will never tire of seeing that."

I laughed as I looked up to see Storm and Logan standing there. I had gotten very close to him the past month. I guess sharing DNA with someone really made them feel like family. I didn't see him as a brother or a father figure, not even as a cousin. Just a very very close friend, its as strange as it is with Tony. I guess because they are older and girls my age would not normally be friends with guys their age but I am not a typical 19 year old am I?

"Hi. Sorry to drop in so suddenly."

"No problem Bella, we are always happy to see you here."

"Thanks Storm. Is Kitty busy?"

"Not with school work. I actually think she was trying to set up a meeting to talk to us about using the danger room."

"She explained that to me last week. I must say, it sounds fascinating. Although I am not sure how I feel about her in it. I have never seen her skills."

"Well you are always welcome to it, just ask Logan or myself to teach you how to use it. As for Kitty, I am always with the students making sure they are safe and that we are not putting them in situations that they are not trained or ready for. At this time I don't know if Kitty is ready for it but that is a decision we will make as a team later on."

"Sounds good. For now I think I am going to ask her to start training with me, maybe it will help her prepare."

"She would like that and I am sure it would help her in the future."

"Yeah, well I am going to go find her, hopefully I will see you both before I go."

"Yes, please stop by my office, the science class is going on a trip, the Illinois State Academy is allowing a group of 10 students to go 2 weekends in a row and take presentations that will give them credit towards their high school diploma's. You know we teach our students a very different way but aside from our personalized classes, we do require them to take lessons for their diploma. If you can come in to fill out the paperwork then she won't have to bug you with it later."

"That sounds great! I really learned a lot from the classes I took in Arizona. Those were month long courses though. When is the trip?"

"In a week and a half."

"Really? That is perfect! I have a trip coming up and I came to talk to Kitty about that, I did not want to leave her for 3 whole weekends."

"Oh, works out then."

"Yeah. See you in a bit. I will drop by in an hour to fill everything out."

This is great! Maybe she will agree to stay with Tony just 1 weekend. I know they get along very well and although I have not even adopted her yet he really told her he was her godfather and he is protective of her.

"Bella! What are you doing here?"

I loved that she still got so happy to see me even though we had been seeing each other every weekend for a month now.

"Hey Kitty! I just wanted to talk to you about a trip that I need to take but I ran into Storm and she told me about the awesome field trip you guys are taking and the dates match my own trip."

"Really? That is perfect."

"Yeah. I am going to book a flight as soon as possible, probably sometime tomorrow or the day after, depending on what I find. Then I will miss this weekend of us together and we will both be gone the 2 weekends after that. Would you want to stay with Tony this weekend or would you want to stay here at the school?"

"Well I wouldn't want to bore him all weekend. We like spending time together but he has never spent more than 3 hours alone with me. What if he doesn't want to stay?"

"If you do not want to, it is perfectly fine but Tony wouldn't get bored with you, he is the one who offered, he said he could teach you about hacking. Like I said though, if you don't feel comfortable being in an apartment alone with a man then that is completely okay-"

"Bella! Tony is like an uncle to me. I am not scared of being alone with him at all! He is like a teddy bear."

I laughed so hard just thinking about how offended Tony would get if he heard that!

"Hey wait."

She pulled out her new iPhone that she finally let me get her and started checking the calendar on it. Oh no, she is going to figure it out.

"How can you leave tomorrow?! Your birthday is on Tuesday! You are going to spend it on a mission?"

"Kitty, like I said when I told you my birthday, I do not like to celebrate it. I could not think of anything more perfect than to spend it working."

She looked sad but nodded anyway.

"I'll tell you what, how about I look for flights on Friday instead of tomorrow and tomorrow I can pick you up as usual, we can go to that Persian place, and we can spend tomorrow together. Tony is flying out to see Pepper tonight but he will be back tomorrow night since he is expecting some part for the Bowling project."

"Really? You would push back your trip for me?"

"Of course I would! It is just one day. Plus, who knows if I will even stay the full 3 weeks."

"Okay. Thank you."

"No problem hun."

I spent a little over an hour there before saying goodbye and going off to find Storm's classroom. When a shy student finally pointed me to it, it looked more like an office with desks. I didn't chat too much with her since we did not know too much about each other. I filled out all the papers very quickly and left with out talking to Logan, I had seen him in the library but he was with Rogue and I did not want to intrude on his mentor time. He recently started letting his guard down around me and I did the same so I had gotten to see a side of him that not many saw, with Rogue he let them down a little, enough for her to catch a glimpse of the real Logan, I encouraged him to form a stronger bond with her, I knew that if he stopped being so gruff with her then he could easily see her in a paternal way. I got home and saw Tony's key's missing so I assumed he had already left. I sat down and just thought of all the great turns my life had taken, I smiled thinking of all my friends that had turned into family, even Nat showed some motherly concern or affection to me once in a while. She was a few years older but I really enjoyed my time with her, she had opened up more about her past and after seeing no judgment on my face, only pure understanding, she seemed to be more relaxed around me.

My bliss of course also came from the honesty I could share to a certain point at home. A few day's after I had called the pack last month, Sam and Billy called, they said the council had agreed to let me tell Kitty everything. I almost started crying with joy at hearing that but we still spoke for a long time about why I felt Kitty would be responsible with the tribe secret. I was right that her being a mutant was a big help, the council was understanding on why I wanted to tell her and knew that Kitty's situation was similar to that of the pack. Days passed and I hadn't built up the courage to sit her down to tell her. Billy called again wanting to know more about my situation at home and who was there. Of course he knew about Tony now and knew how much he was helping me with my new DNA, they had all been devastated when I called and told them about the new shift in my life, they hated not being able to be here for me so knowing how much Tony was helping me and how close I had gotten with him made them see 'the great Stark' in a different light than what the news showed. It was difficult sometimes when I was on the phone with them and Tony walked in, I knew both Tony and the Pack could sense my guilt. Only the pack knew why but Tony tried giving me privacy, not asking who I was talking to anymore. Billy told me then that the tribe held great respect for me and the memory of Charlie.

"Bella, your father was my best friend. We never told him about the wolves because there was nothing happening that effected him but it was never because the council didn't trust him. We trusted him and we trust you. You are in a new world that has mutants and super heroes Bella, so I give you permission to share our secret only to those you trust as much as you trust us and only to those you deem worthy. Sam as alpha has claimed you a member of his pack, that makes you a member of this tribe. I can only ask for your responsibility and your wisdom on how to use the trust we are extending to you. I can only ask that you value it and understand what this means to us."

I could hardly talk from the emotion that burst forward, I wished to be nearer so I could hug each one of them. After handing up I thought long and hard about what they had said. Pepper truly was an amazing woman and I valued her as much as I value Tony but she had no need to know about the supernatural world, not because she couldn't be trusted but I knew Tony would agree that she didn't need to be burdened. I took a breath and called Tony with Kitty into the room. Pepper was not home and I was so thankful because that meant I could have Darcy and Jane there as well, for support. It had been a long long conversation and both were skeptical but finally showing them my scar from James, did they start to believe. We were in there for over 3 hours, talking about everything. They both had so many questions.

The next day I called Sam and told them about their reactions. Embry figured that if she is a mutant then she would not even be phased by them turning to wolves. He was right, she did not care about them, she did however, find the idea of vampires incredible in a scary way. I did not blame her, not after I told her what my experiences with them were like. I told them about how Kitty really did not care about it but she was afraid of ever meeting a vampire. Tony found it strange but looked at it the same way he saw mutants, he was neural about it, vampires however were a different story, he was upset at what they had done to me and how James had tortured me. He had started drawing up ideas for weapons that could hurt vampires already, preparing for battle against Victoria. I had told him that I did not expect him to fight my battle but he scoffed and said I could not change his mind. Once I explained all that to them they found it funny knowing that someone else shared their hate for vampires and that there was someone working to make things that could kill vampires. That right there sold them. I think they figured that having Tony on their side was a step forward. Everything settled and they told me that they wanted to meet Kitty soon. It was such a weight off my shoulders that I was able to keep the peace between my two groups of friends. Now just to call them and let them know I would be out of contact for my birthday.. should make for a fun conversation.