Steve Rogers stormed toward his wife. The blonde sat on an old stone bench, facing the lake beyond the former Avengers Compound. Her long hair blew in the slight breeze away from her red windbreaker, making her look mysterious in her stillness. She lifted her head as he approached but she didn't turn around at the sound of his voice.
What was she thinking? Tampering with something she doesn't understand...
Steve huffed as he reached her, standing behind her with his hands on his hips, waiting for her to turn to him. "You have anything to say for yourself?" Steve asked, fighting back his instincts to wrap his arms around his girl and embrace her. He knew he'd been gone only a moment, but he hadn't seen his wife in several days. He'd have been home earlier, but she threw a curveball in his plan. He needed to talk through her recklessness with someone he trusted. He waited for a moment, but the blonde didn't respond. "Kayla... what have you done?"
"I had to Steve. I can't explain it. I had to keep it."
Kayla turned her head to the side, and Steve moved around to meet her eyes. He stumbled back a step when he saw them, glowing gold as she lifted her chin to look up at Steve. "Kay? What- you- the stone?"
Her cherry red lips broke into a smile, releasing her shining white teeth, "It chose me."
"It chose you?" Steve asked tentatively, seeing the stone glowing in his wife's hands as she grinned up at him wickedly, "Kayla, I don't think you're okay..."
"I've never been better darling. I'm going to fix everything. I'm going to bring Natasha back." Kayla assured the soldier as she stood, and he took a small step back as she took a long one toward him. She tilted her head to the side, watching her husband carefully as he retreated, "You're afraid of me."
"A little bit Kay. You're acting very strange. Let me take the stone. Let me put it back, Doctor Banner can take a look at you-"
"No. No, the stone chose me. I need to take it back to the Stonekeeper. I need to use it to bring Natasha back." Kayla warned as she bared her teeth, and Steve felt like the woman he loved was becoming a feral animal, wild and untamed in her inhibitions.
"Cap? What's going on?" Sam asked as he approached the pair, finally getting a good look at Kayla. "What's happened to you, Kayla?"
"She took the Soul Stone." Bruce answered, meeting the girl's eyes as she grinned up at him, her eyes glowing as her hair blew around her face, "She's holding it in her hand."
"And you're going to let me use it, Bruce. I can tell." Kayla murmured threateningly as she took a step closer to the Hulk, and the green man watched her nervously, unsure of what she would do.
Steve carefully grabbed her arm, yanking her gently away from Banner, "Kayla, please, give me the stone-"
At his touch, Kayla froze, grabbing the star on the front of his scaley Captain America uniform roughly. She turned her face slowly to face her husband, and the gold in her eyes blazed orange as her toothy grin melted away into a scowl, "You went back." She squeezed the Soul Stone in her left hand as she clenched his suit in her right, pulling closer. She tipped her head to the side, studying Steve with her glowing eyes. "You are... content. You don't feel any confliction about coming home."
Steve stared at Kayla for a moment as Bucky, Sam, and Bruce watched him, waiting for him to elaborate. "I wasn't-"
"Planning on telling me. I know. You got your dance. But you were too late. She was already married. As are you. So you came home to us. To your family." Kayla's voice echoed a little as she spoke, in a trance as she read straight into Steve's soul. "I know you are mad at me. But you'll forgive me."
Steve furrowed his brows, tightening his jaw as he leaned away from Kayla. "Honey, please. Let go of the stone. This isn't you."
"I have to Steve. It's my destiny."
"Please don't make me do this Kayla." Steve begged, getting a tight grip on both of her arms. "I don't want to hurt you, but the Soul Stone is controlling you. I know you, this... isn't you."
"It could be."
Steve's eyes fluttered away from Kayla's for just a moment to see Sam nod, and Steve yanked her and threw her to the ground, straddling her as Sam grabbed the Soul Stone out of her hand. "No!" She cried out, and reached for the golden stone, calling it back to her even as Sam held it. The essence of the stone wisped away, leaving only a rock in Sam's hand as it entered Kayla through her open mouth, gasping at it like air.
Steve leaped away from Kayla, backing away quickly as the Soul Stone disappeared into his wife. "Kayla... what have you done?"
The blonde woman laid on her back, blinking her eyes rapidly as the gold ebbed away and was replaced with her forest green eyes. "Steve?"
"Cap." Sam handed Steve the former Soul Stone, a small rock that was brown and ugly. Powerless. Sam looked to Kayla cautiously, but she panted as she pushed herself onto her knees. "What the hell were you thinking?"
"I wasn't," Kayla admitted, looking from Steve to Sam as she squinted into the sun. "What happened?"
"You took the Soul Stone. I got to Morag to return the Power Stone and realized it was missing. I put all the stones back where they came from. Except I had no reason to go to Vormir because the stone was gone." Steve accused Kayla, but she sighed, looking down at her legs as she kicked at the dirt.
"So you made a personal call to 1945?" Kayla retorted with a shrug. Steve closed his mouth, his cheeks heating up at her words. Kayla smiled knowingly at her husband, "I'm not mad. I get it, Steve."
"Why did you take the stone, Kay? I need to put it back. Clip the branches remember?" Steve said gently as he offered her his hand. She took it and allowed him to pull her up, catching her as she leaned into his arms.
Kayla looked up at Steve, grabbing his jaw with her palm as Steve tossed the rock to Bruce to study, "I'm... sorry. It called to me... I didn't push it out. I let it in."
"Yeah, and it's in you now. You are now the Soul Stone." Bruce said, waving the worthless rock in Kayla's face. "Can you control it? Or it going to control you?"
"The baby. Is the baby okay?" Steve asked, pressing his hand to Kayla's stomach nervously as he turned to the doctor. Kayla looked around at all the expecting faces, knowing they wanted answers she couldn't give. She didn't know what was happening. She didn't understand why it chose her.
Kayla sat in the backseat with Bucky, curled up with her arms around her knees as she leaned against the door, staring out the window. Steve drove in silence, staring straight ahead as his heart filled with dread. What was going to happen to his girl? What was going to happen to their unborn child? They'd worked so hard to get James back. They'd faced death. They were on the brink of a normal life, and just like the Cosmic Cube had thrown his life into a tailspin eighty years ago, another Infinity Stone had stolen his happily ever after.
As the large brick house came into view, Kayla sighed deeply, knowing she'd have to face Wanda and Tiffany. And her parents. Oh, what would her parents say?
When Steve parked the car, Sam and Bucky practically jumped out before he could turn it off, leaving Steve alone with his wife. Tiffany opened the front door and Zawadi and Buddy came charging out toward the car, jumping into the backseat and covering Kayla with kisses. She giggled as she allowed them to lick her, and Steve felt at peace for a moment, seeing some things hadn't changed.
He got out of the car and closed the door gently, but the noise alerted the Rhodesians and they leaped out of the open door away from Kayla to bark at Steve, wanting attention. He didn't oblige, but instead opened up the door for Kayla and offered her his hand. "Come on Kay. We'll figure this out together."
"I don't want to be around James. What if I hurt him? What if I hurt them?" Kayla gestured to her stomach, and Steve knelt down outside of the car.
Steve grabbed her hands and stroked her knuckles as he looked into her green eyes, "I won't let you hurt our children. I told you, we'll figure this out."
"If anything goes wrong, you protect them. Do you understand me, Steve?" Kayla asked with shakey breath.
"Yes." Steve replied quickly, "I do. But I won't let it come to that."
Kayla stood and allowed Steve to lead her to the house, where, as promised, Sandra had dinner on the table. They all stared at Kayla like she was a ticking bomb. They were scared she'd go off. Sandra and Matt watched with bated breath as Kayla took her place next to her mother, across from Tiffany. The little brunette pushed her hair behind her ear as she met her best friend's eyes. "You okay?"
"As far as I know. As per usual though, I'm starving. So let's table the talk till after dinner and eat?" Kayla asked cooly, and Tiffany passed the salad bowl, which Kayla took and loaded up her plate with leafy greens. Tiffany looked to Steve with wide, questioning eyes, and he raised his hand and nodded, silently telling the woman that Kayla was fine.
"So, you got the stones back alright Steve?" Mathew cleared his throat, taking a bite of his pasta as he looked from Kayla to Steve.
"No issues. Got the five of them back pretty easily." Steve explained before taking a bite of his garlic bread, sparing a brief glance at Kayla before looking over her head to her father. "How was James while we were gone?"
"He was very good. He's down for a nap now, but I'm sure he'll be happy to have his mom back." Sandra offered, smiling at Kayla, but the blonde didn't return the sentiment, instead, she stared down at her plate of pasta emotionless.
"I, uh, I'm done. Dinner was great. I think I'm gonna go check on James." Kayla said weakly, quickly pushing away from the table and walking briskly around the group toward the stairs. She sprinted up the stairs, her heels clunking as she quickly ran out of sight.
"Steven," Mathew said darkly, grabbing the soldier's attention, "What is happening to my daughter?"
Steve shook under the former President's stare, feeling the pressure to assure his father-in-law of his only daughter's safety. But Steve couldn't.
"Kayla is bonded with one of the six stones. The Soul Stone. She stole it before Steve left and it seemed to have... possessed her. She seems fine now, but I think it's still... in her." Sam told Kayla's parents from Mathew's left, grabbing Tiffany's hand and squeezing it.
"And what's your plan for ridding her of this Infinity Stone?" Mathew asked Steve again, but Steve simply stared at the table.
"I don't know. I'll figure something out. I won't let anything happen to your daughter."
"It's a little late for that Captain Rogers. It seems like something very bad has happened when you weren't looking. We are very aware of what those stones can do... is she dangerous? Should she be alone with your son right now?"
Steve pushed away from the table roughly, not acknowledging Mathew's question, but his actions spoke louder than his words ever could as he stomped toward the stairs, following Kayla up to their spare bedroom.
Steve pushed open the door slowly to find Kayla standing by the crib, cradling James closely to her chest. She looked up when he entered the bedroom, and he saw the tears streaming down her face as she cried softly. Steve sighed as he approached her, gently grabbing onto the sleeves of the red windbreaker she still wore, "Kay..."
"He loves us so much. It's the only thing in his soul."
Steve pressed his forehead against Kayla's, looking down at their son as he looked up at them with wide green eyes, "Yeah? How do you know?"
"I can see everyone's soul. You are frustrated. My mom is nervous. My dad is angry. Tiffany is scared. I can see everyone. I'd like to understand it. But I'm scared to become what it wants of me. It's sentient Steve... it's alive." Kayla explained, her eyes glowing orange for just a moment.
Steve moved to take James from his wife, but she held him close, staring at Steve defensively as she turned herself to keep the baby away. Steve put up both hands to show he didn't mean any harm. "Kayla, please, you said it yourself, you don't understand the stone's power. Give me James." Steve's eyes were dark as he ordered Kayla to hand over her child. Her lower lip shook in anger for a second before she passed her baby to his father. "I'm not taking your son away from you, Kay. You understand that right?"
Kayla looked at Steve, staring into his soul and seeing that he meant well, but he was manipulating her. He was being Steve.
"Give me the baby. You don't worry about me anymore, okay?" Kayla said evenly, her eyes glowing briefly as his blue eyes mirrored hers before settling back to their normal color.
"I'm not worried, baby. Everything's fine." Steve said as he straightened up and handed James back to Kayla. "I don't know what came over me. I trust you."
Kayla smiled wickedly as she held James tight to her chest, "Why wouldn't you?"