They call her Human Torch! Chapter 21

Birthday's.

2 months later. March 8, 2012

"Alright Peter, you see the 6th man on your far right? I want you to use your web on his legs only, trip him over before he rings the alarm but don't let his head hit the concrete. Do that quickly, as soon as the other 5 see you they will come at you. Figure out how to apprehend them without killing them."

He looked frustrated and tired as he huffed out and put his mask back on to try again. I felt bad for pushing him but I knew he could do better than this, he could have full control but he just had to give in to his instincts. The passed 2 months had been eventful to say the least, Peter had gone out a few times and made an appearance in some crime scenes while looking for his uncles killer, it fueled him lately and I was not sure if it was something he could use to better himself or if it would end up killing him. Aunt May was absolutely furious with him when he came home hurt a 3rd time, she was ready to lock him in a tower and never let him out again but I sat down and spoke with both of them, committing myself to train him and mentor him as much as I could until he was at least 21. They both agreed and I told him I could go out with him 3 nights a week only and he could not go out without me. It actually excited him and he worked on a spandex type suit for himself and his secret identity that he wanted to keep. He and aunt May had gotten pretty close to our family and we all promised to keep his secret, Jane and Darcy were not included since they did not live nearby or visit too often but weekend family dinners now included Tony, Pepper, Logan, Kitty, Piotr, Aunt May, and Peter. Logan tried to recruit Peter to the school but he didn't want to leave May and he was adamant about keeping his secret identity for as long as possible. Kitty, Piotr, and Logan had taken to him quick and had started training him on weekends. Logan had also gotten Tony and I into the danger/training room at the school so we could start plans to make our own, for now though I had my shield tight around Peter as we used the school's danger room to train. So far he was having trouble with the force of his web, he kept accidentally killing all the criminals in the simulation.

"Do it again. You need to not want to kill them Peter, I-"

"Ugh Bella, I'm not killing him on purpose!"

"Are you sure? Look I know you want to find the man that kille-"

"We're done here."

I sighed and leaned against the wall for a second while he stormed off. After turning off the console I walked out to the car where he was leaning.

"I'm sorry Bella."

"It's fine Peter. I've told you how much I changed when my dad was killed."

"I know but you are doing everything you can to help me and Aunt May, you feel like my Aunt too now and just because I am annoyed or don't want to talk about something, doesn't mean I can be rude and snap at you like that."

"Come on, its getting late and I need to take you home for that test you have tomorrow. How about we stop for milkshakes?"

He laughed but nodded quickly and got in the car.

4 months later. Saturday June 16, 2012

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday dear Kitty

Happy birthday to you!

My baby girl was as red as a tomato as she blew out the candles to her cake. Everyone cheered on as Tony came up behind her and squeezed her tight.

"And many more!"

Pepper and Tony doted on Kitty as she cut her cake, Pepper even cleaned her face up when Tony smashed frosting all over her. It was heart warming to see them actually act like the godparents that they appointed themselves to be. Soon after cutting the cake and passing it out, she went on to open her gifts from everyone.

"OH MY GOD! Mom is this real?! Are we really going to Disney World?!"

I nodded and laughed as she bounced around for a few seconds, I was just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"Wait, this is a trip for 15?! How?"

"A lot of people want to see you have fun baby girl."

She got a little teary eyed but hid it quickly when she saw all the eyes on her soften.

"Thank you mom."

She hugged me and went on to open the rest of her gifts. I was proud to see how grateful and thankful she was to everyone, even when Pepper gave her a pair of shoes that I knew she would never wear. 1 hour later Kitty, Piotr, and Peter left to go catch a movie that they all wanted to see and as soon as they left so did Mrs. Grim and Aunt May.

"Alright Clint, the kids are gone. This is your party now."

He laughed as we cheered and I pulled out all the food I had been preparing yesterday. Kitty's birthday was on the 19th but Clint's birthday was the 18th. He is leaving tomorrow to be with his family so we decided to just have a 'joint' party today. It was 7 pm but with all the family and friends in a party mood, I knew this was going to end pretty late. The usual suspects were here of course Nat, Fury, Phil, Agent Hill, Logan, Tony, Pepper, and myself. I brought out some bottles and cocktail mixers as well as big bowls of gummy bears I had soaked in vodka. They dug right in and I was surprised to see that Fury dove right in to the gummy bears. Logan was drinking much more than anyone else here but of course he and I couldn't get drunk so I didn't even bother, I didn't like the taste of pure alcohol and I was not 21 yet so I just had fun as I slowly watched every one start to lose their inhibitions. Nat was slightly reserved but even she trusted everyone in this room so she gave in and soon I had to go to the kitchen to get more bottles.

With more bottles in hand I went to the living room and found it empty so I followed the voices to the bar in the bowling room. Tony and Fury were fixing up some drinks while Clint and Phil tried to balance themselves enough to bowl but the balls went straight to the gutters. Logan and I sat together and laughed as we looked around.

"Here let me help you with those bottles."

"Oh what a gentleman! So why did they come in here?"

"They decided that you were taking too long and Tony said there was a bar in here full of bottles so they swarmed over here."

"I was gone like 2 minutes at most!"

He shrugged and went to the corner station to put on some music, asking me to dance and making fun of me when I said I couldn't. He started teaching me and I found I really enjoyed it now that I didn't trip over my own feet. Soon all the men took a turn at swinging us girls around. Later that night they started on some karaoke but it was mostly hogged by Clint, Tony, Pepper, and to everyone's surprise, Agent Hill. I did not go on missions with her or work under her like Phil, Nat, and Clint do so I have never gotten close to her but she did seem nice. That night only Nat, Hill, and Fury were sober enough to call a cab to take them home but everyone else ended up crashing in one room or another. Tony and Pepper already had their room that no one slept in. Logan had called a smaller room in the first floor, and Piotr also had his own room now. Nat almost never slept over but when she did, she always went for the same corner room in the first floor too. Pepper and I had a suspicion that Logan and Nat were friends with benefits but we had no idea if it was true or not since there is never any lingering stares or affection of any kind really. Kitty and Piotr got home around 10 and had locked themselves in their rooms after coming home to see Tony grinding into Pepper on the dance floor. Poor kids.

Sunday July 8, 2012

"Okay guys, we are just going to go to dinner, we will be back soon. Emergency numbers are on every fridge of every kitchen. Kitty you know how to lock the place down from my office just in case and I left food in the warmers. Lets see, what else?.."

"Bella, seriously? We are going to dinner, they will be fine!"

"Tony we have never left them here alone, this is a big place for them to be alone."

"You are acting like a momma bear, kinda funny but mostly sickeningly sweet. Stop. They are trained fighters in case you forgot. Come on, we are going to be late because of you."

Pepper laughed as she followed us to the elevator.

"Oh! Don't open the elevator to anyone! doesn't matter what they tell you."

"Mom you have it hooked to your phone remember? If anyone is allowed up here you have to confirm it with Jarvis."

"Right. Sorry. Okay be good and finish packing. Make lists so you don't forget anything!"

Tony groaned in annoyance behind me and suddenly I was suspended in the air one second before being dumped on the floor of the elevator the next. Pepper glared at him before helping me up.

"Ass."

Finally 3 minutes late, we entered the restaurant and walked straight to the furthest corner of the place. The thing about going to dinner with 4 spy's meant that paranoia was part of it always. Sure enough, we found Agent Hill, Clint, Nat, and Phil sitting in the corner booth, away from all windows and almost all tables around them empty.

"Hey guys! Phil happy birthday! This is from Kitty and I, She can't wait to see you tomorrow."

"Aw, that girl is going to be the death of me.'

He laughed as he got up to hug me and went on to do the same with Pepper. I went on to hug Nat and Clint but stopped short when Agent Hill got up and hugged me too. We had gotten more comfortable around each other since we run in the same circle but still had not gotten a chance to actually hold a conversation.

"Hi Agent Hill, How are you?"

"I'm good thank you Agent Swan. How is Kitty and Piter?"

Nat broke her conversation with Pepper and turned to her.

"It's pronounced Piotr."

"Oh! I'm sorry. I didn't remember."

"It's okay, he is use to it. He is fine though and so is Kitty. Thanks for asking Agent."

"Uh you know you can just call me Maria or Hill."

This conversation is so awkward..

"Right, thanks. You can call me Bella."

She nodded but I could tell she was as uncomfortable as I was. We ended up nodding to each other like in a truce before joining the other conversations going on around us. It went very well and most importantly, I could tell that it meant a lot to Phil that we got together for his birthday. We wrapped up quickly and went our own ways since Clint and Tony still had to pack, well Pepper still had to pack for Tony actually. Tomorrow we were leaving for the trip I planned to Disney world. I remember how touched Kitty was when I told her that everyone wanted to go and experience her first time there with her. Clint had asked if his wife and 2 kids could come along and of course we were excited to meet them. Nat, Tony, Pepper, Kitty, Piotr, Clint, Phil, Peter, Aunt May, and I were taking Tony's jet tomorrow to Orlando, Jane and Darcy were gonna meet us there and Clint's family would land at the same time we did as well. Planning a trip for 15 people was the hardest thing but I was able to get a whole floor of one of the resorts for us. Part of me really wanted to ask the whole pack to come as well but I just didn't think mixing them with these agents and my family here would go well. I felt completely relaxed around the pack and didn't hold back or shy away from their older brother like protectiveness but I was not like that around my family in New York and I don't know who I would be if they were together in one place.

Thursday August 16, 2012.

I had just come home from a mission with Phil last night so it was refreshing to get back to my routine today. Thursday's was always for picking up Kitty and Piotr so I was on my way now with Nat tagging along. Today we were taking Piotr to dinner for his 18th birthday but he didn't want a big thing, just dinner with Kitty, Logan and I. When I told Nat however, she just signed herself up. I have noticed she pays very close attention to him and sometimes seems protective of him, almost motherly in a way but she did it from afar. Same thing with Peter when he came over alone without May.

"So Nat, are you getting off to see where Logan lives?"

"Why would I do that? As an Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D I don't think I would be very welcomed to come in."

"Just asking. I guess you are right."

Pepper and I had been watching for weeks, we even recruited Kitty but none of us could tell if Logan and Nat were interested in each other, they were too damn good at being stoic. After a few miles we pulled in and I noticed her looking around in interest but she pulled back a serious mask once we pulled up to the front door. As always Logan, Kitty, and Piotr were already waiting at the front with their weekend bags. I opened the boot and stepped out to give them a hug.

"Happy 18th birthday Piotr! I love you very much and I am glad you are part of our little family."

He blushed and awkwardly shuffled as he hugged me back but then he muttered a little embarrassed.

"Love you too Aunt Bella."

Now it was my turn to almost blush. He never called me Aunt but when he did, it made me feel extra warm and also old. Kitty and Logan laughed, knowing how I felt about being called Aunt but then lined up to give me a hug too. Kitty always gave me tight and warm hugs but then Logan was less affectionate and he just threw his arm around my shoulder for a second before ruffling my hair. He went to Nat after hugging me and simply patted her back while greeting her. Once their stuff was in the back and we were all in the car I pulled out of the drive way and started driving back to the main street.

"So Piotr, today is your day, where do you want to go eat? Anywhere you want."

"Oh it's fine, anywhere you take us is fine."

"No don't start with that. Pick a place."

Once again Nat showed a maternal side, she turned towards him in the backseat and softened her gaze but kept a playful stern tone of voice.

"Don't think about what we want to eat, just tell me where you want to go. What is your favorite place or the best place you have been to?"

"Well, I really liked that steakhouse we went to the second time I met Bella."

"You mean the Brazilian place?"

"Yeah, can we go there? It's fine if you think it's too expensive or something, we don't need to go."

"Of course we can go, that place was great, I'm sure Logan will love it."

He nodded and seemed to relax as Kitty smiled up at him in comfort. It took us about 20 minutes to get there since I had forgotten which exit to take. Once we got there it was slightly fuller than it had been last time we came but still we were seated right away. I saw some people stare and point at me so I ended up tipping the waitress to get a secluded table away from wandering eyes.

"So mom, are you going to Virginia for Aunt Darcy's birthday in 2 weeks?"

"Uh I'm not sure yet. I want to go and I can but I am not sure yet."

"Well what is the hold up?"

"I don't know, I guess I just don't want to leave you for a weekend again. I just got back last night and I couldn't take you with me to a college town, I know Darcy will probably just want to get drunk with Jane."

Nat and Logan laughed, knowing damn well that Darcy was not one to get just drunk, she gets trashed.

"I am excited for whenever I fly long miles though. Tony finally finished a prototype of goggles with built in GPS. They are not completely fire proof but if I do go visit the girls then I think I will fly there and test out the screen and sensor on it."

Piotr almost spit out his drink from laughing so hard and had to take a moment to compose himself enough to tell us what was so funny.

"I'm sorry Bella but I just kept picturing the GPS on that thing guiding you to Virginia and then you landing somewhere in China! That would be hilarious!"

We all laughed then at the mental image but Kitty tried to speak seriously through her giggles.

"Don't let uncle Tony hear you say that Piotr, insulting his tech is worse than insulting Aunt Pepper!"

"It's true. I have faith in this prototype."

"I don't know, they just look like sunglasses not goggles. I don't see how it could guide you."

Everyone ended up giving their opinion but most of us were in favor of it, we knew Stark tech never disappointed.

2 months later. Monday October 15, 2012

We were all gathered for a family dinner in Peter's honor, he had joined Piotr in turning 18 now and so I spoke to Charles in order to excuse Kitty and Piotr from school for today, I would be driving them back in about 2 hours though. Peter invited his girlfriend Gwen, she was a very nice girl and from what he told me, she took the news of him being Spiderman very well, then again, she just saw him as being a mutant and he accepted that, he did not want to tell her about the whole spider bite thing. It was our first night meeting her and Kitty seemed to like her so that definitely gained her points with the family. Peter was suppose to bring her for my birthday party last month but at that time she didn't know about him and he didn't know what excuse to make for being so close to me and Tony, even now she still looked at us and I could see the curiosity burning in her eyes, it was the look we got from most people when we went out. Well, I did anyway, Tony mostly got looks of awe! She was even giving Kitty looks of admiration but that was slightly annoying her. Earlier this month the adoption process had been finalized since it was easier now that I was 21. The public record got the media attention and they quickly got pictures of Kitty. I was not nearly at the public media level that Tony was so the news died quickly, something we were all grateful for. I was snapped out of my thoughts when Tony threw my phone at me, catching it last second and being careful not to crush it in my hand, I answered it with a glare sent his way.

"Hello?"

"Bella."

"What's wrong?"

Jasper's voice came over the line but his tone of voice had me quickly getting up and rushing to my office, ignoring the worried looks digging into my back.

"Did Alice see something?"

"Where are you?"

"At home, why? Tell me what hap-"

"Take your shield off now and decide to do something, decide to come here."

"Jasper I can't do that, I don't know how. Why do you need me to?"

"Dammit Bella! Of course you can. Just like you mastered wrapping your shield around other people and know how to take the shield off of others, take it off of yourself!"

I deliberated whether I should or even could but eventually tried to picture it just like I always did, I had gotten better with my shield but this made my head hurt and my gut churn, it felt wrong to take protection off of myself, it was impossible to take it off since it was part of me but I did manage to slowly push it so it was beside me and not actually on me. It took more than half of my concentration and a lot of discomfort but I was proud to accomplish something new.

"Okay. I did it, Kinda. This is as off as it can go."

I heard him mutter something and a soft voice answer me, Alice.

"You need to decide something Bella, just decide to come visit Forks."

I quickly shut my eyes, trying to keep my concentration. I grit my teeth and pictured myself going to the house and opening up all the windows. Immediately I heard a gasp and more muttering.

"What happened? Jasper? Alice? What the fuck is going on?!"

"Alice lost sight of the Volturi completely."

"Why? Are they coming here?"

"She was watching for any new decisions they could make about us but everything turned black, we called you right away to have you take down your shield, the only way for Alice not to see them would be if they chose to go after you in New York but with your shield down she still can't see them."

"Okay.. so what does this mean, how do we proceed?"

"They had to have found a stronger shield or are training Renata to be stronger with her gift, it might mean they have known about Alice watching for them because they know Peter and Char went with you and I am connected to Alice or they are trying to find a way to be ready for you in the future."

"Possibly."

Just the thought of those 'kings' working their guards to have even more power had my blood boiling. I lost it and released built up tension, letting my arms catch on fire. One second later I could faintly hear my screams as searing pain rippled through my whole body only to double back and concentrate on my arms. The shock of the pain was enough to make the flames die out but my arms were severely burned, I could see through my tears the angry red marks and the blurry drops of blood seeping out of the welts formed. I was confused for a second but pain won out and my concentration slipped. I was in so much pain but I heard the door crash open at the same time that my shield came back over me with a vengeance. The power of it knocked me back and slammed against the walls, causing all my books to fall and making the person at the door frame fly back on impact. With my shield over me the pain fell considerably and I could level my head enough to see Logan's healing ability start to kick in fast. I closed my eyes and leaned my head back against the desk feeling completely drained. Now I knew why taking my shield off felt so wrong, it's what makes me fucking fireproof! All my senses felt off and so what was the family rushing in to see what happened, sounded to me like a stampede. I groaned at the headache I now felt coming, on top of everything else I could hear small, panicked voices coming from my phone. I heard a lot of voices actually but I concentrated on Kitty's frantic one first.

"Mom! Oh my god mom are you okay? Logan what happened to her? Why did she knock you out of her office?"

I felt hands grip at my arms but I cringed away in pain. The hands moved away and grasped at my chin and eyes.

"Bella, come on open those eyes."

I just wanted to sleep for the rest of the year but slowly I listened to Tony, knowing he would not let me rest until he examined me in the lab. Logan was right behind him and was carefully watching my arms heal themselves.

"What happened Bella?"

"Flame, I turned in-, without."

I paused to take a deep breath and collect my thoughts. I knew I just needed to rest and my brain was already halfway there.

"I took off my shield, I- my arms burned. My shield protects me from burning and I didn't know."

I could see him storing that information for later but he was concerned for me and I could see how on edge everyone was. I'm guessing my screams must have scared Logan if he came running and the crash of my shield was loud enough to be heard by them. Logan took notice of my droopy eyelids before Tony did and so he took over the questioning.

"Why did you take your shield off Bella?"

"Get me to my bedroom please. Not here."

I was too tired to explain the whole thing now and there were too many people in this room that did not know about vampires. They shared a look and quickly Tony picked me up while Logan went to grab my phone that still had Jasper's voice coming out of it. I heard the rest of the family try to follow but Logan stopped them and told them to give me some space while they figured out what happened.

"But Logan I want to make sure she is okay!"

"Kitty listen to me. Stay here. Pepper, Mrs. Parker, Keep everyone in the dining room please."

Once we were back in the lab Tony quickly took a needle to my arm to start testing my blood.

"Tony I'm fine, I just need to rest. Put my phone on speaker."

Tony shook me off and kept going with the testing while Logan turned up the volume of my phone, as soon as I did I heard Jasper's voice along with Peter and Char's voices in the background.

"Jasper, I'm fine."

"Bella! What happened? You were talking and suddenly we heard you scream out!"

"I got upset talking about the Volturi and my arms were covered in flames to release tension and relax a bit but I had my shield down so Alice could see and I guess my shield is what protects me from burning. I just need some rest, I am very tired."

"I'm sorry Bella, we didn't know your shield affected you like that."

"It's fine, I guess it's good to know right?"

"Look we'll let you get some rest, call me later when you feel better okay?"

I didn't even answer him when he said goodbye, all I could do was close my eyes and take it all in. The last thing I heard before I passed out was Tony confirming that my blood work looked the same and that I was probably right in my shield protecting me from my flames.

A few day's later…

After the dramatics going on the past few day's I decided that I needed a break. I had passed out the night of Peter's birthday and I didn't wake up until mid Wednesday. Needless to say Fury, Clint, Nat, and Phil, were all very worried that I had not been in to work and that they could not reach me at my cell. They were desperate enough to call Tony since he had stayed with me and he then explained that my shield had 'malfunctioned' he of course left out the part where vampires came in to play but still they were just glad I was okay. Logan had taken my car that night and had driven Kitty and Piotr back to the school against their will once he saw that I was okay and really did just need to rest. Now I just needed day's off to myself and as soon as I imagined where I should go, I immediately booked a plane ride here. Less than 3 hours after getting off I approached the run down building and went straight up stairs. I could already hear him shuffling about and as soon as I entered the doorway he froze while I cleared my throat. In a flash he turned and eyed me for a second before a huge smile spread across his face. He opened his arms for me as I ran into them and returned my tight hug.

"I honestly thought I would never see you again.'

"You told me you expected it remember?"

He pulled back as he laughed and kissed my forehead.

"It's really good to see you Bella."

"You too Bruce."