Chapter 90

Despite her protests, Toni Stark was in the med bay after going through labour for a full thirty-six hours. She'd insisted she was fine, and that she was hardly about to go through any strenuous activities anytime soon, however between Steve and her doctor and Helen Cho, she was forced to stay in the room until they deemed her ready to leave.

If it weren't for the fact that she was at least allowed to bond with her daughter and her son spent most of the time hanging out with her in the room, she wasn't sure she what she would do with herself.

She looked down at Morgan cradled in her arms. Her daughter had had a long night, struggling to fall asleep, so she'd spent most of the night holding her daughter in her arms, just rocking her back and forth.

It seemed like her daughter was particularly fond of the Italian lullabies that her mother had sang to her growing up, so she'd sang to her daughter for a few hours before she'd finally fallen asleep.

"Do you want me to take her for a bit," Steve said, coming into their living room from the shower as he used a towel to dry his hair off. "Give your arms a bit of a break?

She nodded, knowing he missed holding their daughter. In the few hours since she'd been born, Morgan had spent most of her time being held by someone or the other. She and Steve had been the main ones to cuddle their daughter, but Peter took over often. And between her godparents, Aunt Ava, Uncle Harry, Grandma Peggy and Grandpa Daniel, and the rest of the Avengers, Toni knew her daughter would be the most loved and protected baby.

She handed Steve their daughter, and his eyes crinkled down at her.

"I'll never get over how perfect our daughter is," he said, as Morgan let out a yawn.

"Absolutely perfect," she confirmed, as she watched him rock her back and forth, trying to get her to back to sleep for at least a few more hours. Both of them knew it was going to be a while before Morgan slept peacefully though the night, but she didn't mind. How could she when she had two children who were amazing? When her family felt so whole?

She knew he felt the same way, as his eyes softened every time Peter held Morgan in his arms and talked to her. Their perfect, amazing, brilliant, children.

"I never knew that it possible it was to love another person this much," he continued, "How much I love Peter and Morgan. When I was younger I knew about a parent's love. I knew my mother loved me. But having children is an entirely different thing. It's like my heart exists outside my chest, and I'd do anything to keep them safe."

"Miss?" JARVIS said, his voice on a softened setting, "I believe there is something you and the Captain need to see."

She glanced over at Steve, as the TV came on in front of them. And there on the screen were reports of an explosion of unknown origins in London, England.

She watched the screen, as a perfectly ordinary street appeared having faced damage unlike anything she'd ever seen before. What could have caused it? It looked to be too contained to have been an ordinary bomb. But the destruction was clean on the screen.

Who would attack a street full of civilians, and why? What was the purpose of the attack? Who had been involved?

"At this time there have been no reports of casualties," the reporter on the screen informed them, "However there have been several reports of injuries from those who happened to be at the scene at the time of the explosion. The Counter Terrorism Command has been dispatched to look into the details of the explosion and at this time, we have no way of knowing if this was an isolated incident or if future incidents will arise again in the future."

"Steve," she whispered. Was this HYDRA? She knew logically not every explosion that occurred was connected to the group. Nor was it necessarily alien in origin either. It could be a regular old-fashioned terrorist. But they didn't know that for sure. They didn't know what had caused this or why. And without that confirmation, they didn't know what they were dealing with or even who they were dealing with.

"I know," he said, holding Morgan tighter to his chest, "I know, Toni. We don't know what it was yet. We need to know what caused it before we take any actions."

"Are you going to go?" she asked, feeling panic fill her. She knew her husband almost always was on the ground for missions like this. But that had been before their daughter had been born. Before they had a lot more to lose if something happened to one of them.

He looked contemplative himself, and she knew he was conflicted on the matter. But he resolutely shook his head after a few minutes, as he sat down beside her on the sofa.

"No," he told her, "I'm not. I'll ask Harry and Natasha to look into it. They can handle the mission on their own, and I trust that if something's up that they'll figure out what it is. I'll watch from here. I don't want to leave Morgan so soon. Not if this wasn't an isolated incident. I want to be here with you and Peter and her."

She leaned into him, grateful that he wasn't going to go on the mission. Call her selfish, but she wasn't ready for him to go back out again. Not when she'd just had a baby less than a full week ago.

"I'm not going anywhere," he reiterated. "I'm staying right here. With you, with Peter, and with Morgan."

"Thank you," she said gratefully, and he turned to kiss her forehead.

"Always, Darling," he said, as she glanced down at their daughter.

She wondered if the fears would ever go away. Fears of their family being ripped apart. Fears of something happening to them.

She'd need to get used to it. And she was sure she would. But it didn't make it any easier.

"Are we still on for dinner tonight?" Peter asked, and he came into the common room, his hair windswept from finishing his patrols.

"We sure are," she smiled as she pushed her fears aside. "Spaghetti and meatballs sound okay?"

She stood up to start dinner while her husband spent some time with their daughter.

"Sounds amazing," Peter grinned, as he walked to the kitchen with her, ready to help make dinner.


Peter slinked his backpack over his shoulder as he put his textbook in his backpack. It had been a long weekend, what, with his mother just giving birth to his sister, and he'd done his homework in record time, wanting to spend the most of it with his new sibling.

As a child, he'd always been envious of all the other kids at school who had siblings. His friends with older siblings always seemed like they had someone there to look out for them. Someone to help them with their homework and teach them how to beat the hard levels in video games. They had someone to look up to.

His friends with younger siblings were different because they seemed surer of themselves for it. They may argue with their younger brothers or sisters or think they knew best in any situation, but he knew they'd always be there at the end of the day if something happened to them.

He'd been jealous of it. Wishing he could have a sibling there by his side. Someone to understand what he was going through. Someone to talk to.

But his parents had died before he even could properly remember them. And well Aunt May and Uncle Ben never had any children of their own. Part of him felt guilty for that, wondering if his presence had caused them never to have their own. But he knew that if it was something they wanted, they would have had anyways.

He'd never had a younger sibling when he was younger, and while on one hand he found it a bit strange to have a younger sibling that was a baby, he found he didn't mind it. Sure, he'd be considerably older than her, but it meant that he would be able to protect her from everything much better.

And her nose.

Her nose was so tiny that he wanted to scream. He didn't think babies were so small until he'd held her in his arms and looked down at her.

She didn't really do much yet, but that was okay. He was excited to watch her grow up and see her accomplish all her first milestones.

And well, if he hoped Peter would be her first word, well that was secret he'd share with no one.

"You look tired," MJ said, as he closed his locker. She was leaning against the one beside it, and he'd almost let out a yelp in surprise, not really expecting her to be there.

"MJ!" he said, his voice a bit high, "What are you doing here?"

"I was waiting for you," she said with a roll of her eyes, "What did you think about that assignment for Chemistry? Did you finish the lab?"

"Yeah," he said with a quick nod, "I did it Friday night so I could get it out of the way."

"What a nerd," she teased, "Doing homework on a Friday night."

"I wanted to spend the weekend with my family," he defended lightly, knowing she wasn't serious.

"I'm sure you did," she said with a nod. Stark Industries had released a press release early Saturday morning announcing the birth of Steve and Toni's daughter, and asking for privacy at the time. Other than Morgan's name, they'd released no deals, and even that was because Pepper told them it would be easier to ask for privacy if they provided the press with something.

He thought it was all stupid. If they didn't want to tell the world anything, why did they have to?

But the world for famous people didn't work that way. Something he was quickly starting to learn.

"Hey Parker," he heard Flash's voice boom down the hall, and instantly, he felt a sense of dread fill him. While the boy had backed off on physical violence, there was still quite a bit of verbal harassment. Something which he wasn't able to prove and didn't care enough to try.

Because if Flash was harassing him, then at least he wasn't harassing some other poor kid who wouldn't even be able to defend himself. He had the Stark-Rogers name backing him, even if not officially, and he knew Flash wouldn't dare touch him when the repercussions were so high.

"Flash," he greeted, bracing himself for whatever it was that the bully was going to say that day.

"I heard Toni Stark gave birth over last week," he said, as a crowd slowly began to gather. They were nothing if not vultures waiting for gossip. And since Toni wasn't going to say anything else to the press, the best chance they had to learn more about the newest addition to the Stark-Rogers family was indeed through Peter.

"Yeah, she did," he said, not bothering to hide it. Because she'd released a statement and that was all they were going to get.

"So what are you still doing at their home?" he asked, a malicious smile filling his face, "They have a heir now. One who's actually a proper Stark-Rogers. Why are they bothering keeping you around?"

"Excuse me?" Peter asked, not really sure he'd heard the boy properly. Because did he actually just suggest that his adoptive parents would get rid of him now that they'd had Morgan.

Actually, he wasn't that surprised. This was Flash they were talking about. Of course he was asking that.

"Are you losing your hearing now too, Parker?" Flash taunted, not at all backing down, despite the fact that it felt like half the school was watching them carefully. "I asked why Toni Stark and Captain America were bothering to keep your sorry ass still when they have their own child. You were just a publicity stunt after all, so I'm not really sure why they didn't just dump you back in the orphanage with all the other sad children without parents where you belong."

He stared at the boy, not completely able to form a sentence. Because what did one even say to that? It was such an awful thing to say. The guy was making fun of him because of what, his parents being dead? His aunt and uncle being dead? He was making it sound like there was something wrong with it. Like Peter had wanted it.

He curled his fists up tightly, as he struggled to calm his breathing. He wasn't going to beat the other kid up, but he wasn't entirely sure he was going to do nothing. Yell at him maybe. Because he loved Toni and Steve. They loved him. They weren't going to return him like some sort of defective child because they had their own. They were very clear about that.

He could see how hard they tried. They didn't want him to feel like he was somehow worth less because of Morgan. And he didn't. Not with how they went out of their way to make sure that he knew that they loved him.

But between the media's constant speculations about what it would mean for Peter, and well Flash being Flash, he was starting to get real tired of all of it. He just wanted them to acknowledge that he mattered. That he was worth more than a headline to sell a few papers.

"Wow," MJ said, looking at Flash in shock, "I wasn't aware that children were something that could be exchanged so easily. Is there a return policy for kids? Like a full two-year money back guarantee?"

"What?" Flash said in surprise, clearly not expecting MJ to have said anything.

"I'm just having a difficult time understanding the concept," she said, looking contemplative, "Because if kids were something you could return in exchange for a newer, better model, then why wouldn't your parents have returned you? I mean, all things considering.

She looked him over a few times slowly, and he could hear snickers begin to fill the hallways. Ned, who'd pushed his way to the front when the crowd began to grow burst into laughter, and Peter couldn't help the smile that filled her face.

"Whatever," Flash said, looking annoyed that he'd become the butt of the joke, when clearly his intention was to humiliate Peter in any way possible.

He turned to leave, as MJ called out, "Wait you never answered my question. I have a few younger cousins that are kinda annoying and I really want to know the answer."

He pushed past the crowd, not stopping to answer her question. And the crowd that had gathered quickly began to disperse now that the drama was over.

"That was amazing," Ned said, wheezing, "I've never seen him grow so red. Damn MJ, you're a straight up savage."

She cracked a smile.

"Thanks," Peter said, as he turned to her, "I really appreciate you stepping up to him. I'm just so tired of it all, you know. Like I have to continue to justify to the world that I'm deserving of being their son."

"You don't need to prove anything to anyone," MJ told him firmly. "I've seen how they interact with you when I came over. You're not a publicity stunt or an inconvenience to them, no matter what the world says. Trust me, I know what it means for a parent not to want you."

She looked a bit bitter at that, but he didn't push, knowing she'd most likely close up.

"Still," he said quietly, "I love Morgan. She's amazing, and honestly if Toni didn't have a no showing picture policy yet, I'd have sent you guys a billion of them. I don't care that she's their real daughter. But it's hard when the world seems determined to tear that apart."

"She sounds amazing," MJ said, a small smile filling her face as Peter talked about Morgan."

"She really is," Peter grinned, "Maybe you and Ned can come over and meet her in a few weeks? Mom says not yet for visitors who aren't family, but she's adorable, and I'm sure you guys would love her. She doesn't do a lot yet, but I'm gonna teach her everything."

"Dude trust me," Ned said, clapping his back. "I have a younger brother. And it's not all that cracked up as it seems to be. They steal all your stuff and break it too. Do you know how many lego models of mine my brother broke? Give it a few years and you may start asking about that return policy too."

Peter shook his head firmly, "Never. Morgan's amazing. Trust me on that, guys. I wouldn't return her for the world."

MJ had a look on her face that Peter couldn't tell what it meant, but he didn't have time to ponder on it too much as the bell rang, signifying the end of their lunch break. He picked his backpack up from where he must have dropped it earlier from the shock of having to listen to Flash and everything he said.

The three of them headed towards their algebra class, picking up the pace as they didn't quite want to be late and face their teacher's wrath. He couldn't really afford to get detention, knowing he had quite a bit to do after school between his patrols, homework, and spending time with Morgan.


Since losing the trail she had gained on Stephen Strange, Toni really hadn't thought much about the man. It wasn't as if they rolled in similar social circles before his accident. She didn't really have that many reasons to work with a medical doctor when her doctorship involved other areas of science.

Still, he'd been a tremendous help when working on BARF with her and Ava, and while she'd had no leads on what happened to the man, she still hoped he was doing alright.

She hadn't heard anything about him, that is, until she got a call a week after Morgan's birth.

"Miss, you have a call," JARVIS told her, and she looked up at the speakers. Steve was in the other room, putting Morgan down for a nap, and other than Harry and Natasha who were currently looking into the cause of the explosion, everyone else was somewhere in the New York area.

"Put them through," she said, as she looked at the screen. Christine Palmer came on the screen, and if Toni had to use just one word to describe her, frazzled would be it.

Because she was. Her hair was all over the place, she looked like she hadn't slept in days, and she was just exhausted.

"Christine?" she asked, "Are you doing alright."

"I'm fine," Christine pushed aside. "I need to talk to you, Toni. Something happened, and I'm not really sure who to talk to about this. I-I don't really know if anyone would believe me, and I was hoping that you would, given that you've seen a lot of weird stuff over the years. I'm not even sure I didn't hallucinate the entire thing, because none of it makes any sense. It goes against science! It couldn't be real."

"Christine take a deep breath," Toni told her firmly, "Tell me everything that happened, okay? What can't be real?"

"Magic," Christine whispered. "I saw Magic. Toni. Stephen, he just showed up out of nowhere, wearing the strangest clothes, and it looked like he'd been stabbed. I've never seen anything like it. We got him into the operating room, and then it was like a ghost of him appeared. He was hovering over his own body and talking to me like it was the most normal thing in the world. I was so shocked; I nearly dropped my tools."

She let out a sob, and Toni was sure her shock hadn't completely worn off yet.

"What happened next, Christine?" Toni prodded her gently, hoping to get the woman to open up to her.

"He said it was his astro body?" she said, a bit confused. "He vanished so suddenly, and all of a sudden the room started shaking. It was like it was haunted. Things were rattling, lights were flickering. And I didn't know what to do. I was so scared I was going to kill him. He started crashing at one point, and I thought I'd lost him. I got him back but then he asked me to up the voltage. It really could have killed him. His arm twitched, the lights shot out around me, and I was certain he was dead."

She looked rattled, and Toni wished the other woman was there with her, so she could comfort her in person. She may not understand their relationship, but she knew Christine still loved Stephen, despite whatever else was going on in his life.

"He woke up, and I don't know what I would have done if he hadn't, Toni. I can't lose him. Not again," she cried.

"Take a deep breath, Christine," Toni told her soothingly. "What happened after? Did he tell you where he's been for all these months?"

"He confirmed he was in Nepal," she said with a nod, "Said he went to a place called Kamar Taj. Met a person named the Ancient One. I thought he was in a cult, but he kept denying it. You should have heard the way he was talking about it, like they taught him how to reach paradise or something, Toni. I had no idea what to say. He wanted to leave right after but he said something about a powerful sorcerer giving himself over to an ancient enemy but he'd left him chained up in England and he wanted to open a portal to get back there."

Her eyes widened in recognition. Could the fight in England be tied to the explosion that had occurred? If the two were in fact related, it could explain what was happening. Because from every scientific angle she'd looked at it from, there was no explanation for the cause.

"I walked into the closet with him where he said there was a portal, and I thought he was lying to me," she cried, "But there was one there. I don't know what to do with this, Toni. I thought he'd just gone off trying to find a cure or something. I didn't expect he'd get involved with magic."

Steve had entered the room part way through the conversation, but she knew he'd heard enough to have an idea of what was going on.

"I don't know what to do," she said, trying to calm herself, "What if he'd gotten hurt? What if something happens to him. Magic? I don't even know what to do with magic. It's so beyond anything I know how to handle. And I'm sorry for calling you, I know you just had a baby and all. But you were the only one I thought I could tell without you thinking I was crazy."

"We'll look into it," she said soothingly, as she looked over at Steve. "I'll ask Rhodey if he can investigate. If something is going on, we'll figure it out, okay?"

"Thank you," Christine said, sounding grateful, "He's a good man. I know he is. Whatever's going on, he's trying to fix it. I just am terrified he may get hurt even more, or worse, die trying to stop this. I appreciate everything you've done for me."

"Don't worry about it, Christine," she told the other woman, "Just get some rest, okay? I'll let you know when I have something."

The call ended then, and she looked over at Steve.

"Magic, really?" she said with a sigh.

"The world keeps getting stranger every day," Steve said in agreement as he wrapped an arm around her.

And did it ever.

Magic.

Of course it would exist just to spite her.