Author's Note: Sorry, it took me longer to update than I thought. I just got so distracted over the past couple days. I finally finished Stranger Things season 2 so at least there's that. So grateful I live in the Pacific Northwest by the way. So much great seafood. I literally ate a ton of Calamari the other day and it was so good. I've been thinking about that ever since. Sorry... I just had to mention that Calamari.
Okay, so this chapter was super emotional for me to write. I think I cried a lot while writing it because this chapter contains the confrontation between Emma and Tony which is their biggest fight yet. I had to listen to a lot of classic rock to sooth my soul. Lots of The Kinks and The Zombies. I just want to make it clear that I don't hate Tony. This isn't a Tony bashing story but for obvious reasons Emma really resents him right now. She misses her father and Steve and Tony just happens to be there for her to cast her blame on.
I also want to thank knarl so much for creating a trailer for Some Things Never Sleep on youtube. I've watched that thing like almost ten times already. I love it so much. The face claim for Emma is Elle Fanning in my story but for the trailer she had to use Chloe Grace Moretz for obvious reasons since it was easier for her to edit. Hit-Girl and Emma are very much alike. I think Hit-Girl amongst other female characters subconsciously inspired Emma. It's a great trailer and here's a link. Once again, thanks so much.
watch?v=WCnFOnDuOW4
ArtemisLuna85: Emma does know what Bucky did to Tony's parents. Tony asked her about it on the way back to the compound from Raft prison. She didn't know about it until Tony asked her but she wasn't surprised either.
treyalexander63917: Emma and Peter will eventually talk more about both their pasts as their relationship progresses. After the Homecoming storyline they will definitely become very close so we'll start seeing more stuff like that in a little bit.
JokeLover123: Emma is really starting to recognize her attraction to Peter although she tries to dismiss it as not being anything significant. It's going to be interesting for everyone to see how she starts handling her emotions and feelings in future chapters.
Thanks for all the reviews and please let me know what you think of this chapter. Enjoy.
As Peter was in the process of gluing the ship back together Emma was trying to evacuate the main deck of the ferry as fast as she could. She must've rescued twelve passengers from the main deck. There were a couple of families as well as a few loners that she managed to rescue. Peter was still shooting his webbing at both sides of the broken ship so Emma did her best to dodge the webbing whenever she placed another passenger on one of the higher decks. She had even rescued the group of criminals that had been knocked unconscious. The FBI agents eagerly took the criminals off her hands as they rounded them up and kept guard over them while the ship continued to fall apart. Emma had just gotten done rescuing a grandmotherly looking woman and her dog when she returned to the main deck to look for any other passengers.
"Are there any other passengers left on the deck, McConaughey?" Emma questioned as she tried looking through car windows to see if there was anyone left. McConaughey did a quick scan of the area before the camera in her lenses zoomed in on an SUV towards the back of the deck.
"There appears to be one woman left in a Honda SUV. She's the last remaining passenger aboard the deck." McConaughey told her and Emma nodded to herself.
"Okay, I'm gonna go grab her before this place floods." Emma said and it was true. The place really was starting to flood. The water on the main deck was already up to her knees as she tried to keep her balance on the moving half of the deck. It wouldn't be that much longer until the entire deck was underwater.
Emma then propelled herself off the ground and flew in the direction of the SUV. It was faster just to fly rather than wading through the water. The blonde landed right outside the SUV and looked in only to see a woman passed out cold in the driver's seat. At least Emma hoped she was only asleep. There hadn't appeared to be any casualties yet and she rather hoped that it stayed that way. Emma opened the door of the car and immediately checked the woman's pulse which was still steady. Good. She was right. The woman was just unconscious for the time being. Emma immediately picked the woman up out of the car and into her arms, not wasting anytime as she flew them off the deck and out of harm's way. Emma noticed that the woman looked to only be in her late twenties or early thirties at the most. Still young, Emma noted. It was a good thing she found her when she had.
Emma dropped the woman on the floor of the deck which seemed to awaken the olive skin toned woman. It was when the woman opened her eyes to look at her that Emma immediately recognized her. Those honey brown eyes were too familiar to her and especially since this woman was part of an important moment in Emma's life. No, Emma would recognize those eyes from anywhere. Camila. It was true. This was the same woman Sam had her meet at the VA nearly two and half years before. She was the child soldier from Colombia that Emma had been able to relate to on some level.
"Daniel? Daniel?" She said in her thick Colombian accent as she looked around the ferry, her eyes still heavy from sleep. That's right, Emma recalled. Her husband's name was Daniel. Emma thought she remembered seeing Camila's husband that day at the VA. A nice looking man with blue eyes and brown hair.
"Relax. You're safe. We're trying to put the ship back together." Emma told her in a soothing voice, trying to keep the woman from panicking and passing out again. She figured that Camila probably passed out from a panic attack earlier when Emma found her. "Stay calm."
"No, no, no. Where's Daniel?! Where is he?!" Camila asked, sounding more hysterical as she glanced around the area. It was clear to Emma that Camila was wide awake now.
"Daniel? Your husband?" Emma asked her in confusion and Camila furiously shook her head.
"No. My little Daniel. My son." Emma's eyes widened as she heard Camila's admission. She suddenly remembered the prominent baby bump Camila had last time she had seen her. The baby bump that made Emma curious and terrified at the same time. Curious at how Camila had managed to make a life for herself after everything but terrified at the prospect of ever having children. That was something Emma didn't think she was ever deserving of. "We were heading back home to Staten Island when the... well, when I heard the explosion."
"Your son? He's here?" Emma questioned, suddenly feeling her heart pounding against her chest. The situation was suddenly taking a drastic turn. Camila's eyes were filled with tears as she nodded.
"Yes, he's two. He was in the car with me. Please, you have to save him." Camila begged her. Emma swallowed, her throat suddenly feeling dry as she tried to gather her thoughts. There was still a kid, practically a baby stuck down there, and somehow she hadn't spotted him. Great. Now was not the time for her to be making rookie mistakes like that.
"Don't worry. I'll get him." Emma told her firmly as she maintain her composure. "You stay here." Camila could only nod as she watched the mysterious blonde hop back off the edge of the deck and into the mass of webbing. Emma quickly dodged the sticky webbing as she flew down towards the flooding deck of the ship. Hold yourself together, she told herself. Just get the kid and get back out. It was that simple.
When she landed back on the deck the water was nearly to her waist. She was starting to run really low on time so she needed to find that kid right this instant. Emma moved towards the SUV again and this time ripped one of the back doors off the vehicle without hesitation. She threw the backdoor to the side and was immediately bombarded with the screaming and crying of an infant. Emma winced at the sound of the loud crying little boy as she looked inside the car. She noticed the two year old toddler seated on the other side of the car, buckled into his car seat. He looked exceptionally like his mother. He shared the same olive skin tone, black hair, and even the same honey brown eyes. The kid would probably be a real heart breaker when he was all grown up. Right now, however, his face was all red and blotchy from crying and snot also streamed down from his nose. Emma wrinkled her nose in disgust but she knew that the kid would never cooperate with her if she seemed too unpleasant. Kids could sense that kind of thing so Emma forced a smile onto her face as she looked at the little boy.
"Hi, you must be Daniel. I'm Viper." Emma said in an even tone as she tried to seem pleasant towards the two year old. The little boy only continued to cry in his car seat.
"Mama!" He cried and Emma nodded anxiously.
"Yes, I know your mother. She sent me here to rescue you. She's waiting for you." Emma told him but that didn't seem to make the little boy feel any better.
"Mama!" He continued to cry and Emma could feel her patience being severely tested by the crying little boy. This kid was going to make it really hard on her, wasn't he? Maybe Emma really shouldn't ever have kids if this was what kids were like. Kids always seemed gross and messy to her… too much of a hassle so maybe she shouldn't.
"I know but like I said before I'm here to help you so let me help." Emma told him but the little boy shook his head furiously.
"Want Mama!" He cried again and Emma gritted her teeth in annoyance. That was it. She tried being patient with this kid but this was taking too long. Emma was about to lean into the car and snatch the kid from the car seat when something else happened. She immediately felt s tremor from below her feet. Emma glanced down at the cement floor in confusion. What the hell? Before she could ponder anymore on the subject she felt herself being thrown back as the deck of the ship began to separate from the other side again. Emma groaned as she hit one of the cars harshly and looked up towards the webbing that Peter had placed between the higher decks. She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as she saw it snapping. What was going on up there?
Her attention was taken away from the webbing as she remembered the car which still held the two year old little boy in dire need of saving. Emma's eyes rested on the SUV but she felt her breath hitch when the crack in the floor of the deck started becoming bigger again, sending the SUV through the crack. The blonde gasped in horror as she immediately got up from the ground and started flying in the direction of opening in the floor. As Emma hovered above the opening she was relieved to see that the SUV had become stuck in between the two halves of the separating floor. That probably wouldn't last for much longer once the two halves started moving further and further apart. The SUV would be underwater in no time. Emma looked down into the SUV which was turned sideways as it rested there in between the two halves of the ship. What was once it's side now seemed to be the floor. Thankfully, Emma could see Daniel still sitting in his car seat bawling his eyes out although the car seat had somehow fallen from the backseat and was now resting against the car window. Emma swallowed nervously as she could see the depth of the ocean underneath the window and the window was all that stood in way of that little boy falling in and drowning. Water also seemed to be gushing into the car at a rapid rate. She didn't have much time to rescue him.
"I would not suggest going into the car, Miss Rogers." McConaughey informed her. "Anymore weight and the car would be sent plummeting into the ocean. The risk of Hypothermia is increasingly high for this time of year."
"Noted." Emma told McConaughey as she tried to think about how she was going to handle this situation. She obviously couldn't get inside the car to rescue the kid so how was she going to do this? The situation was increasingly delicate and Emma couldn't afford to make any mistakes or this little boy might die. No, she had to remain calm and approach this as cautiously as she could.
"Daniel, are you okay?" She asked in her nicest voice. The only answer she received from the little boy was his sobbing. "Look, Daniel I need to get you out of there but I'm going to need your help."
"Mama!" He cried again and Emma sighed.
"I know, kid. You want your mother but right now I'm your only option." Emma told him. He sniffled as he looked up at her with those familiar honey brown eyes. It was kind of hard to believe that this kid was the same baby bump she saw just two years ago. The years really did seem to fly by.
"Scawy." He said, seeming to calm down a bit as he sat there. Wait… was he trying to say Scary? Emma gave him a confused look, not understanding what he was trying to say.
"Scary?" Emma asked and the little boy nodded as he then pointed at her face.
"Scawy." He repeated and Emma then understood what he was trying to tell her. He found her mask scary… she was scaring him. Emma hovered there above the opening gap of the car where the door was missing as she decided what to do. It occurred to her that she had to get this kid out of that car no matter what. This was her mission. To save lives and this kid's life was possibly one of most important ones she could save. She wasn't about to fail him and let him die. Emma took a deep breath before exhaling as she rested her fingers on each side of her mask. Without another thought Emma took her mask off, revealing the face of a normal looking fifteen year old girl.
"So long, McConaughey." Emma muttered to herself as she took the mask off before tossing it over to the right half of the deck that was still being flooded. It landed with a small splash and began to float as she abandoned it. Emma looked back at the toddler and noticed how he stared at her in awe.
"Not scawy." He told her and for once Emma was completely fine with being not scary. Emma also had to admit it was pretty cute how he pronounced the word scary. It looked like someone couldn't pronounce their R's yet. She gave the boy a small smile… a genuine one this time.
"Can you help me now, Daniel?" Emma asked him softly.
"Danny." The little boy said sulkily.
"Danny? Is that your nickname?" Emma asked him, trying to suck up to him so that he would let her help him. The little boy nodded quietly and Emma grinned at him.
"Well, Danny… I kind of need your help." She told him seriously. "I'm going to reach in there to help you but I'm not going to touch the sides of the car. It's like a game, you see."
"Game?" Danny asked he looked back up at her, suddenly looking interested. Emma nodded quickly.
"Yes, a game. If I touch the sides of the car than I lose." Emma continued to tell him. "But in order for me to even play this game I need your help. See that red button on your buckle?" Danny immediately looked down at the buckle of his car seat.
"Button?" He questioned and Emma nodded again.
"Yes, I'm going to need you to press the red button." Emma instructed, hoping that she could get through to him this way. If she didn't get this kid to understand what she needed him to do than they were both doomed.
"Wed?" Danny said as he tried to pronounce the word red.
"If you press the red button I can get you and we can get out of here." Emma told him calmly. Danny's attention was taken away from the red button as he noticed the water starting to rise within the car. He looked around in fear and even started to shiver when the water touched him.
"Cold!" He cried as the water touched him.
"I know it's cold but if you help me than you won't be cold anymore." Emma said as she tried to convince him to let her help him.
"Scawy!" He cried again as he started panicking. Emma sighed heavily. She needed to get him out of there as soon as she could. Come on, Emma! She told herself. Think of a way to get him out of there. There has to be a simpler way.
"Do you want to fly, Danny?" Emma asked him suddenly as something came to find.
"Fly?" He questioned, his tears coming to a sudden halt as he looked up at the blonde girl. Emma nodded.
"Yes. Fly." Emma told him before she swallowed her disgust. She couldn't believe she was actually going to say this but she had to get this kid out somehow. "Do you want to fly like Iron Man or Vision? I can help you fly."
"Pete Pan." Danny replied quietly and Emma looked at him in bewilderment.
"Pete Pan?" Emma questioned.
"Pete Pan fly." He repeated and it suddenly occurred to Emma that he was trying to say Peter Pan. He wanted to fly like Peter Pan. That kid was a million times cooler to her for saying that. Emma smiled at him before nodding.
"Yes. I can fly like Peter Pan and so can you if you press that red button." Emma replied, knowing that she almost had him convinced.
"Pixie dust." He said and Emma let out a small laugh.
"Yes, I have all the pixie dust in the world. You'll have the pixie dust too if you just press that button." Emma told him and this seemed to convince Danny as he nodded.
"Kay." He mumbled. Danny then placed his tiny fingers over the small red button at the center of his buckle. He pressed the button with all his might and the buckle immediately came undone. Emma grinned at the little boy in delight.
"Good job, Danny. Now I'm going to enter the car without touching any of the sides." Emma informed him. She wasn't going to touch anything in the car because she knew the added weight would only cause the car to probably fall through the crack in the ferry. However, if she managed to go through the door-less side of the car and hover inside the car than she wouldn't be adding any extra weight.
"Game." Danny said and Emma gave him a quick nod.
"Yes, game." Emma responded before she started to fly into the car without touching the sides like she previously stated. She hovered within the air inside the car carefully but Danny was still a bit out of her reach. Damn it. If she flew anymore inside the car then she was going to somehow touch the console. That wouldn't end well for anyone.
"I'm going to need you to do one last thing for me, Danny." Emma told the small boy who looked at her curiously.
"Vipey, help?" He questioned and Emma smiled.
"Yes, Viper needs your help." Emma confirmed before continuing. "I'm going to need you to stand up in your seat and raise your arms up as high as you can. Can you do that for me, Danny?"
"Stand up." Danny said and Emma nodded at him again.
"Yes, stand." Danny then got up from his seat and began to stand himself up. Emma swallowed nervously as she noticed the car make a quiet squeaking sound from the movement but she remained calm. There was no reason to alarm the boy. Danny finally managed to stand up in his seat and Emma gave him an encouraging smile.
"Good, good. Now raise your arms as far as you can." Emma instructed before she raised her own arms in his direction. "See. Like this." Danny watched her movement thoughtfully before he started to copy what she was doing. The small boy immediately raised his arms out to her and Emma gritted her teeth as she inched her way a bit closer to him. The car started shaking and trembling again. Most likely whatever was going on up there with the ship separating again was having major repercussions down here as well. Emma didn't allow herself to think about it as she kept her hands from shaking. Everything was going to be fine. The blonde then wrapped her hands around Danny's tiny ones and immediately pull him in closer to her, holding him tightly to her chest as they started floating through the air upside down.
She could feel the car begin to move and Emma just cradled him close to her chest as the car finally slipped through the crack in between the two halves of the ship. Emma's eyes were tightly squeezed close as she held Danny in her arms just as tight. She felt the whoosh of air through her hair and a coldness hit her just as she opened her eyes again, noticing that they were no longer within the car. The carwas instead in the ocean while she and Danny were still floating upside down in the air. To her astonishment the little boy was actually giggling and giggled even louder when she did a back flip through the air so that they were right side up again. Emma wasn't sure she'd ever understand children. She flew back up to the main deck that was still flooding and noticed her mask floating in the surface of the water. Thank god. Emma immediately swooped down to retrieve it.
"Do you think you could hold onto this for a moment, Danny?" Emma requested as she handed the mask to him. Danny immediately grabbed onto the mask and looked at it in fascination. "It can be your very own mission."
"Yes." He replied distractedly as he held onto the mask with wide eyes. Emma just smiled as she shook her head in amusement before she flew them away from the main deck.
"Wee!" Danny called out excitedly as they flew through the air. "Pete Pan!" Emma chuckled at the little boy before they finally landed on one of the higher decks Camila was on. The woman looked incredibly worried, tears streaming down her face. That is until she saw Danny in Emma's arms.
"Could you put my mask back on for me, Danny?" Emma asked him and Danny nodded eagerly. He reached over and immediately placed the mask on Emma's face, noticing that she didn't seem quite as scary as she did when he first saw her. Emma smiled kindly at him as he placed the mask on her.
"You're one of the few people that's ever seen what I really look like." Emma told him softly and Danny only stared at her, not really understanding what she meant by that. He was too little to understand and Emma knew that. "I guess it'll be our little secret."
"Danny! Thank God, you're okay!" The Colombian woman cried out as she approached the blonde and her son.
"Mama!" Danny exclaimed happily as he held out his arms for his mother. Emma immediately handed Danny over to his mother and Camila didn't hesitate in wrapping her arms tightly around her son, relieved to be reunited with him. The boy buried his face in the crook of his mother's neck as Camila cried in happiness. Emma smiled at the scene of the reunited mother and son but couldn't help but feel conflicted about the sight. She was suddenly reminded of her own mother. It saddened Emma to know that she didn't even remember what her mother's hugs felt like or even what her mother's voice sounded like. It had been so long since she had been in the arms of her own mother that she just couldn't remember the simplest things about her. Camila looked at the masked blonde from over her son's shoulder.
"Thank you, Viper. Thank you so much." Camila said, her voice thick with emotion. Emma just stood there awkwardly.
"Don't mention it." Emma replied but Camila shook her head.
"No, really. I don't know what I'd do without my little Daniel." She told her firmly and before Emma could respond the ship moved once again, causing Emma and Camila to be jolted forward. It seemed like the webbing wasn't holding up at all. Emma tightly grasped her hands on Camila's shoulder as she steadied the older woman.
"You guys stay here and be safe. I have to go help my friend." Emma instructed the dark haired woman and Camila nodded in understanding. The blonde gave her one last tight lipped smile before propelling herself off the ground again to see what Peter up to. Camila and Daniel watched her fly away in awe.
"Bye, bye, Vipey!" He called after her and with that she disappeared through the expanse of webbing. Camila stared at the webbing that the Viper Assassin disappeared into as she wondered about the mysterious blonde. For some reason Camila felt like she might've met her before but where? Camila wasn't sure but she had the strongest feeling that she had seen those sad looking blue eyes before. She just couldn't place her.
Emma flew through the webbing and to her surprise noticed that a lot of it was snapping, making the divide between the two halves of the ship larger than ever. She watched, mystified, as the two halves were starting to sink into the ocean even more. It was then that she noticed Peter hanging onto the ropes of webbing, one on each side, looking as though he might be torn in half himself. He yelled in both pain and turmoil as he used all his strength to stop the ferry from sinking into the ocean. Emma witnessed in horror as not even he was strong enough to keep the ferry together. The instinct that Hydra had instilled in her, for years, told Emma that it was time to abandon ship and seek safety. It was an instinct that represented self-preservation. As Emma watched Peter and the rest of passengers she knew that she would never be able to do it. How could she leave knowing that all those passengers could drown? How could she leave Peter by himself? There was no reason to still listen to Hydra's teachings. They were a bunch of cowards and she was most certainly was not a coward.
Emma took a deep breath, maintaining her calm composure, before she flew over to where Peter was situated. She immediately grabbed one of the ropes of webbing and started pulling, using all her strength and her power of flight to stop one half of the ship from sinking. The other half was still sinking but Emma was being logical. If she could keep one half of the ship a float than that would leave her with less people to save from drowning when the other half finally sank. Emma groaned as her arms were strained from the weight of the ship.
"What are you doing?!" Peter called out to her and Emma gave him an annoyed look. She was a little busy at the moment.
"If we can't save both halves of the ferry than maybe we can save one!" She answered him. Peter didn't seem to like that answer as he tried to keep the ferry from sinking.
"No! That's not cool! No one dies!" Peter yelled back at her and Emma tried to steady her breathing as she continued to pull back against the rope of webbing attached to the ferry.
"No one's going to die! If we can keep one half a float then that's less people we have to save from drowning!" Emma explained even though she was in no position to explain with the circumstance she was currently in. She gripped the rope of webbing tightly in both hands as she then flew back but the weight of the ferry was too much. Her flying ability seemed to weaken underneath all the weight. The half of the ferry, that Emma and Peter were both trying to hold up, seemed to be fairing well with their combined strength as it began to stop from sinking but the other half of the ferry was most likely doomed. Emma just hoped that this half of the ferry could stay a float long enough for them to save the rest of the passengers.
It was then that Emma and Peter both felt the strain of holding the ship together lessen as the other half of the ship started moving back in place seemingly on it's own. Emma looked back at the other half of the ship in bewilderment just when the half she was holding up started moving on it's own as well. As the ship came back together, Peter repelled himself down onto one of the decks. Emma also let go of the rope of webbing she had been holding onto as she flew herself back down to the deck to stand next to Peter.
"What the hell?" Peter questioned as they heard strange noises coming from outside the ferry. Emma tensed, getting the strongest feeling that this wasn't going to be a good thing. She already kind of had an idea as to who was behind this and Emma really hoped that she was wrong. It was then, however, that Emma spotted a familiar figure of red and gold appear outside the window of the ferry. Yeah, it looked like she was unfortunately right. Iron Man looked up through the window at Emma and Peter in a fashion that reminded Emma of a monster out of a scary movie. This wasn't going to end well.
"Hi, Spider-Man." Tony said mockingly as he pushed the ferry back together. "Nice to see you too, Viper Assassin." Emma just rolled her eyes. Great, he sounded pissed. It looked she was about to receive yet another useless lecture.
"Band practice, was it? School?" Tony asked sarcastically. Dozens of Stark's tiny little gadgets flew past the windows as they latched themselves against both sides of the ferry and immediately started finishing the job of putting the ferry back together, even cementing both halves in place.
"Yeah, Iron Man!" A man yelled in back of them as he clapped. Emma glared at the man before glancing away and resting her gaze on Camila and Danny who were seated off at the opposite end of the deck. Danny seemed more than fine as he told his mother how he and the Viper Assassin flew like Peter Pan and Wendy. Her gaze softened. They were safe and that's all that mattered to her. Camila completely deserved this life that she had managed to make for herself. Nothing should ever have the capacity of taking that away from her… not even a bunch of idiots with alien weapons.
Peter immediately ran off to follow Tony, trying to see if he could offer him any help but Emma knew better. She let Peter run off as she stayed on the ship momentarily to watch Camila and her son interact. There was no use in trying to aid Stark now. It was over… at least for now. Emma smiled softly as she watched Camila tickle Danny and the little boy giggled infectiously. The pair had no idea that they had the attention of the mysterious blonde anti-hero. She swallowed thickly before she decided that she had seen enough. The blonde began to walk towards the balcony of the ferry, preparing herself to take off. Emma wondered if she could ever be happy. She knew it was hopeless even thinking she could have a life like that but maybe she could still somehow be happy. Emma, however, knew that she could never be happy unless she had both Steve and her father with her. Until then she could only hope.
Emma flew over to where McConaughey told her Peter was located. She bit her lip nervously as she saw the forlorn looking teenage boy sitting on the roof of a building, his legs dangling off the edge as he looked down at the city below him. It was clear that Peter wasn't really thinking about the city. His gaze was distant and troubled. Emma sighed as she landed on the edge of the roof next to where he was sitting. She didn't really know how to approach this situation since he looked absolutely devastated. Emma sat down next to him as she tried to think of something nice to say… it was probably one of the most difficult things she had to do. Compassion was never something she was trained for. She had only learned the idea of compassion within the past two years she had spent living with her grandfather.
"So… no one died. That's good, I guess." Emma finally said, the first one to speak out of the two of them. Peter didn't say anything as he continued to stare blankly at all the cars and buildings beneath them. This was going to be harder than she thought.
"It didn't go exactly as planned but it's not the worst mission I ever went on." Emma told him but Peter didn't even glance in her direction. She sighed heavily before deciding to move on to a subject that might take his mind off things. "My worst mission was actually my first one." It was then that Peter looked up at Emma with interest. Good… they were actually getting somewhere. Feeling encouraged by his curious gaze, Emma continued with her story.
"My first mission was in Odessa, Iran. I was only eight but my handlers thought I was ready so they partnered me up with Winter." Emma started to tell him before continuing. She didn't want to refer to Bucky as her father because it was still a boundary she didn't want Peter to cross. Her father was hers and she didn't really feel like divulging the details of their relationship to anyone else right now. Her father was a very sensitive topic for her. "The mission was to assassinate a nuclear scientist that had originally been a Hydra scientist before defecting to Shield. Hydra was afraid that he'd tell them about Hydra's secret existence so they ordered the hit."
"It was supposed to be easy. He'd be driving through Odessa in a hummer with a Shield agent as his personal bodyguard until he reached a safe destination. My job was to assassinate the scientist and the Shield agent as well if she got in the way. Do you know who that agent was, Peter?" Emma asked him quietly and Peter shook his head, seeming perplexed by the story of her first mission. "It was Natasha Romanoff."
"The Black Widow?" Peter asked in shock as he raised his eyebrows. It was completely mind blowing to him that Emma had been given the mission to assassinate not only a scientist but the Black Widow as well. Emma just smiled as she nodded.
"Yes. I thought it would be simple to assassinate them both since they'd never see us coming. Winter reassured me that I would do well. He wasn't to interfere in my mission… only oversee." Emma stated and Peter listened to her intently. "I blew the tires out with a sniper rifle as the hummer came by. They were sent careening off a cliff so Winter drove me over to the car wreck."
"My job was to make sure that they were dead and if they weren't then I had to kill them both but they weren't dead... unfortunately. They were still alive and breathing." Emma remarked sadly before continuing. "I had my gun pointed right at Natasha as she shielded the scientist. She pleaded for me not to do this and to come with her but I knew that I could never leave Winter so I didn't. I had my finger on the trigger and was about to shoot but for some reason I just couldn't."
"Really?" Peter questioned and Emma nodded. It was like he was seeing a completely different side of Emma… this was clearly the more vulnerable, open Emma that he liked. He could that she was being genuine and honest with him. There was no lies and manipulation.
"Yes. This was something I trained years for. I should've been able to end it right there but when I was actually there with my finger on the trigger… Well, I just couldn't. All I could see when I looked at her was my mother." Emma told him honestly. "I could see my mother and my mother looked so disappointed in me."
"What did you do then?" Peter asked, somewhat afraid to hear the answer but at the same time curious. Emma had a look in her eyes that he had never seen before. Hurt. She had a hurt look in her eyes as she gazed down at the city.
"I did nothing. It turns out that I wasn't capable of doing that so Winter did the dirty work for me. He shot through Natasha and killed the scientist. Mission over." Emma replied, somewhat bitterly. Peter couldn't help but be surprised at Emma's confession. He knew that she had killed people in the past which was something he tried to ignore but he had thought it was something Emma had always been able to do. Peter hadn't known it was something she had struggled with at the beginning. "She was still breathing and I should've left her to die in the desert alone but I didn't. I pressed her panic button and spared her life. That was the first time I completely screwed up."
"You didn't screw up, Emma. You did the right thing." Peter told her softly and Emma just scoffed as she laughed humorlessly.
"Do you think Hydra saw it that way? Of course not. Winter lied for me… he said I completed the mission successfully which he never should've done because it completely backfired on us a couple weeks later." Emma told Peter, her gaze hardening as she remembered how they had tied her father up in that chair and tried to wipe his memory. "They found out the truth and they punished us both for lying. It didn't end there. They thought a more rational part of my training was to bring in random living, breathing human targets for me to kill so I could get used to killing someone. It would've been so much easier if I had killed Romanoff that day in the desert." Emma eyes were filled with unshed tears as she looked at Peter. Peter just stared at her in bewilderment, never having seen Emma look so vulnerable before. He hated seeing her that broken because it seemed to break his heart a little. Peter also noticed that he couldn't really see the green reflected in her blue eyes when her eyes were filled with tears like that.
"I've killed a lot of people, Peter. If there's a hell I'll probably burn in it for what I've done and the worst part is that I think I would do it all over again if I had to." Emma told him, her voice trembling as she spoke but Peter just shook his head furiously.
"No, you wouldn't. I know you… you wouldn't do that. That's not you." Emma just smiled at him but it didn't reach her eyes.
"You don't know me at all, Peter. I've done a lot of bad things but it was for survival so of course I'd do it again." Emma stated and Peter just watched her with wide eyes, not knowing how to feel as he saw the emptiness in those blue orbs. "I didn't enjoy killing people but I did it because the second I stopped being useful to Hydra they'd probably end me."
"Why are you telling me this?" Peter asked her, tears welling up in his own eyes a little.
"Because there's still hope for you. We might of screwed up this mission but there will always be another one. Don't let what happened today get you down. You'll be fine. You're a good person, Peter." Emma told him honestly and Peter furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.
"What? Are you saying there's no hope for you? That you're not a good person?" Peter questioned and Emma just stared at him, not knowing what to tell him. Before Emma could even respond to his question, they both heard the familiar sound of Iron Man approaching. Emma's gaze immediately hardened once she saw Tony's red and gold Iron Man suit hover inches above the roof. She forced herself to bottle up her emotions since she didn't want to appear weak in front of Tony of all people. Emma wondered which Tony Stark they were getting today. The living and breathing Tony Stark or the virtual one?
"Previously on Peter and Emma screw the pooch, I tell you to stay away from this and you both hack a couple of multi-million dollar suits so you can sneak around behind my back doing the one thing I told you not to do " Tony told them scoldingly as if he were a parent in this situation. So that's how much the suit cost? Emma thought to herself. And to think she almost dumped her mask in the ocean without so much as a thought. Emma maintained a calm and collected composure as she sat there on the ledge. Stark didn't intimate her. Who was he fooling?
"Is everyone okay?" Peter asked quietly.
"No thanks to you two." Tony replied shortly, obviously beyond pissed at the both of them. Tony's reply seemed to be what caused Peter to snap. His emotions were already running high right now from the Vulture getting away once again as well as the emotional conversation he just had with Emma.
"No thanks to me?" Peter said angrily as he caught up from the ledge and started stalking over to where Tony's suit was hovering. Frustrated and angry tears filled his eyes as he glared at Tony.
"Those weapons are out there and we tried to tell you about it but you didn't listen." Peter continued to say and Emma watched the confrontation silently, shocked as she saw Peter in his angriest state. There were times that he had appeared frustrated or annoyed at her but he never seemed as angry as he had in that moment. "None of this would have happened if you would just listen to me!"
It was clear to Emma that this went beyond just Tony not listening to the both of them. This seemed to be between Tony and Peter… it was personal. Emma had been berating Peter for looking up to Tony as a mentor but she realized that he didn't look up to Tony as a mentor… No, he looked at Tony and saw a father. Emma understood Peter a little better now because she could relate to him on some level. She too had idolized her father for the longest time and wanted to be just like him. Emma did everything she could impress him but he never really seemed that impressed. It wasn't until Emma realized that it was because he didn't want her to be like him… he wanted her to be better.
"If you even cared you'd actually be here right now." Peter told him bitterly before he stumbled back when the Iron Man armor starting shifting and Tony came walking out of his suit with a beyond pissed look on his face. Emma hadn't seen him this angry since that helicopter ride home from the Raft Prison. So he actually showed up. Emma thought and kind of hoped that she wouldn't have to deal with him in person today.
"I did listen, kid. Who do you think called the FBI, huh?" Tony questioned as he stalked towards Peter and the teenager walked backwards away from him nervously. The FBI? Stark must really be insane if he thought those low level agents stood a chance against Birdman, Emma thought to herself.
"Did you know I was the only one who believed in you?" Tony told him as he glared down at the teenager. "Everyone else said I was crazy to recruit a fourteen year old kid." Well, everyone was right, Emma thought to herself. Stark was insane if he thought it was a good idea to recruit a fifteen year old boy for a war that he had no part in. Emma knew better than anyone else that Stark was out of his mind. Look what he did to her family. He took them away from her and then proceeded to destroy the Avengers. All these battles they fought and it wasn't the villain who destroyed the Avengers. Loki, Ultron, Hydra… none of them had managed to destroy the Avengers. No, Tony did that all on his own.
"Preaching to the choir." Emma quipped bitterly at the same time as Peter responded to Tony.
"I'm fifteen." Peter added and Tony's nostrils flared as he looked at the both of them angrily, completely exhausted from their behavior.
"No, this is where you both zip it! Alright, the adult is talking!" Tony said as he raised his voice at them. Emma narrowed her eyes at the billionaire. How dare he talk to her like that… what gave him the right? "What if somebody had died tonight? Different story, right? Cause that's on the both of you."
"And if you died…" Tony said as he looked between Emma and Peter, a conflicted look in his eyes. "… I feel like that's on me. I don't need that on my conscience."
"Yes, sir I-" Peter stammered on the verge of tears. "I'm sorry."
"Sorry doesn't cut it." Tony said bitterly as he just shook his at Peter.
"I understand." Peter said, looking crestfallen. "I just… I just wanted to be like you."
"And I wanted you to be better." Tony told him and Emma was reminded too much of the relationship between her father and her. She clenched her jaw as she forced the thought of her father out of her mind, focusing all her resentment and anger onto one individual. Tony.
"He's already better than you." Emma told Tony venomously as she glared at him before stepping off the ledge and onto the roof. She stalked over to Peter and Tony, her glare focused on Tony entirely.
"Don't get me started on you." Tony said seethingly as he looked at the blonde. "You've been nothing but a pain in my ass since you ended up in my custody."
"Well, that makes two of us." Emma replied and Tony just shook his head as he looked back at her.
"You know, the reason I sent you to school wasn't just to give you a somewhat normal adolescence. No, I sent you to school because I knew you two would find each other and I had hoped that you would help each other but I was severely mistaken." Tony told her as Emma stared back at him emotionlessly. "You were supposed to help him but all you've done is encourage him to do all the wrong things. But of course…What did I expect from an assassin?" Emma bit down on the inside of her cheek hard as she tried to control her anger. Her eyes were filled with resentment as she glared at Tony.
"I hate you." She spat, her tone laced with bitterness and resentment. All the anger and hatred that she had been holding inside of her was beginning to be released onto Tony. "I hate you more than I've ever hated anyone or anything. I hate you more than that school you sent me to, I hate you more than I hate the townhouse you've imprisoned me in, and I hate you more than I hate Hydra."
Tony tried not let what she was saying effect him as he clenched his jaw. It saddened him, more than he could ever admit, to hear those words coming from Emma's mouth. They had never been very close in the past but they always enjoyed funny and laid back banter. Tony had developed somewhat of a soft spot for the blonde in past years, especially after feeling guilty for what happened to her in that Hydra base. His father was the one who created the serum she was injected with after all. When Steve and some of the others were on missions, Emma had even sat quietly in the lab with him. She'd draw in that sketchbook he had given her while he made modifications to his Iron Man suit. Emma had said that she was only there in the lab with him because she needed a change of scenery but he knew that she was there to keep him company so he wouldn't feel lonely. Pepper had just broken up with him at the time and Emma knew that he wasn't his usual sarcastic self. This was why it hurt him beyond to belief to hear her say that to him. It even pained him to see the tortured look in her eyes as she gave him the coldest glare he had ever seen.
"You've taken everything from me." Emma hissed at him as she continued. "My father and Steve… my home. You've messed everything up like you always do because you seem to love sabotaging yours and everyone else's happiness. You just can't stand to see other people be happy, can you?"
"You know, it's not just those things that fuels this hatred that I feel..." Emma trailed off as Tony swallowed, his throat suddenly thick with emotion. Peter only watched the confrontation with wide eyes as Emma seemed angrier than he had ever seen her be before. The blonde was definitely a scary sight when she was angry. "It's not the fact that you ripped my family apart. It's not that you abandoned me at that school when things got hard… And it's not even the fact that you want my father's head on a silver platter."
"It's that you brought him into this." Emma stated, her eyes filled with unshed angry tears as she pointed at Peter. Peter's eyes widened in surprise as he became the center of Emma's argument. A single tear streamed down from Emma's eyes much to both Peter and Tony's surprise. They had never seen the blonde so much as shed a tear before. "You knew what Hydra did to me… you know what they made me do and what they turned me into. They forced me into a war I had no place in. Yet…. Knowing all that you that, you still recruited him to be one of your foot soldiers. You just didn't even give me a single thought. You didn't care."
"That's not true, Emma." Tony told her, denying what she was saying but Emma didn't believe him. Peter could only stand back and watch the emotional confrontation between Emma and Tony. It was clear that this tension between them went back a ways. Emma had known Tony for a lot longer than he had so he couldn't really deny all those things she was saying about Tony.
"Yes, it is. You took advantage of him. You knew that he looked up to you and you took advantage of that, giving him promises of being an Avenger… promises of a father. It's so cruel." Emma told him, her voice thick with emotion. "And I know it's not all one sided. You hate me too."
"I don't hate you, Emma." Tony told her but Emma shook her head. It was true… he didn't hate her at all. In fact, he saw her as the closest thing he would ever have to a niece or a daughter. Maybe Tony should've told her that in the past… maybe he should've told her how much she meant to him… how hard this tension between them was on him but he just couldn't bring himself to.
"Yes, you do. I don't know if it's because your father obsessed over Steve too much or if he looked at my father, my biological one, as his son but you hate me." Emma said, sounding very sure of herself as she looked at Tony. "I've been nothing but a problem to you since you guys rescued me from the Hydra base. You've resented me from the beginning."
"No I-" Tony tried to say but he was interrupted by Emma as her gaze hardened, her eyes becoming cold and resentful once more.
"Don't deny what we all know to be true, Stark." Emma said stiffly as she clenched her jaw. "It's okay that you hate me. We were never friends to begin with." Emma gave him one last hateful look as she spoke the next words.
"I just want you to know that I'll never forgive you… not in my lifetime and not even in Thor's." Emma spat, her tone cold and unrelenting, and Tony stared back at the blonde with an unreadable look on his face. He shoved away the hurt feelings he was feeling as he forced himself to glare at her, his jaw clenched. Tony didn't need to worry about how much Emma's words had hurt him and he would never admit how much her words stabbed him like knives. No, he needed to do what Steve would if he was here. He needed to enforce some authority in this situation and administer discipline. Steve would do that and Tony was left with no other choice but to follow Steve's lead. Tony exhaled as he tried to calm himself down.
"Okay, it's not working out. I'm gonna need the suit back." Tony told them both and Peter immediately panicked as he moved forward, his brown eyes wide with surprise.
"For how long?" Peter questioned worriedly but Emma just glared daggers at Tony, her gaze unchanging from before.
"Forever." Tony said firmly. Emma wasn't surprised. She was actually surprised that Tony let her have the suit in the first place. Peter, however, wasn't as relaxed about the situation as he furiously shook his head. His eyes were flooding with tears as he gave Tony a desperate look. Emma was just pissed off that Tony had driven Peter to tears. It was so cruel of him to encourage and mentor Peter like that… to paint himself as the father in Peter's eyes and then take it all away. Just like that. But that's what Stark did, wasn't it? He just pushed everyone away until he was all alone.
"No, no, no. Please, please, please." Peter pleaded with him desperately as he tried to get Tony to change his mind. Emma knew trying to get Stark to change his mind was a lost cause. "You don't understand. This is all I have. I'm nothing without this suit."
"If you're nothing without this suit then you shouldn't have it." Tony told him seriously, looking to be a parent for once in his life much to his disbelief. "God, I sound like my dad." Emma scoffed at the billionaire.
"You want the suit then fine. It's all yours." Emma snapped at him as she tore the mask from her face and threw it at him. Tony flinched as the mask fell to the ground by his feet. It was moments like that that he reminded that he wasn't dealing with a normal teenager. He was dealing with an enhanced former assassin with the emotions of a teenager. It didn't escape his mind that she could probably throw him off the roof without any effort which was why he had to stand his ground with her. Peter could barely pay attention to Emma's aggression, completely heartbroken about losing the suit.
"You've finally got your wish, Stark." Emma sneered as she continued to glare at him. "You've finally managed distance yourself from everyone. And what do you have left? A big empty building upstate with only two Avengers and your charming self to keep you company."
"You're just a bitter and lonely old man." Emma told him and if Tony didn't feel that hurt by her words he might've come up with something sarcastic to say. The truth was that he did feel hurt by her words even though he didn't think he would ever admit that aloud. Mini Cap sure knew how to hit someone right where it hurts. Emma gave him one last glare before she leapt back onto the ledge. Tony swallowed his emotions down as he raised a hand.
"Where are you going? I still need the-" Tony started to say, trying to maintain his stern exterior, but Emma just gave him a cold look.
"Don't worry, Stark. I'll give you your precious suit back because we all know I was never cut out for all this Avengers nonsense." Emma said, her tone was harsh. Peter looked up at the blonde when she said that. What did she mean that she wasn't cut out for this?
"Happy can come pick up the suit." Emma continued to say, looking at Tony in disgust. "Because I can't even stand to look at you right now." Her eyes then rested on Peter briefly, her gaze suddenly not as harsh.
"Emma." Peter breathed as he tried to read the expression on her face. He didn't want her to go… not when he was feeling as broken as he was in that moment. Peter also didn't want her to leave because he knew that she shouldn't be alone right now. She was obviously feeling angry and bitter but Peter knew that they could more than likely comfort each other. Even though Emma always had a cold and calculating demeanor she somehow knew just when to say the right thing. Peter felt like he needed her now more than ever.
"I'm sorry, Peter." She told him softly before she propelled herself off the roof and flew off in the distance with all the strength and speed she could muster. Peter immediately rushed over to the ledge to try and get a better view of where she was at but she was already too far gone. A crestfallen look came over the teenager's face as Emma disappeared. Why did she have to leave him in a time like this?
Tony just stared off into the distance as he realized how much he had failed. He had failed Steve, the others, and now he had finally failed Emma. Tony had tried to step in for Steve but it was obvious to him that she would never accept him as that figure in her life. He had finally made her hate him which was only another example at how much he had failed Steve. Steve had asked him to be there for Emma but Tony couldn't even do that. He never felt like he had failed anyone more than he had failed Emma. Tony then kept a calm and stern composure as he ignored his own discomfort and self loathing. He coughed awkwardly and Peter's gaze was immediately taken away from the sky where Emma had disappeared off into.
"Suit, kid?" Tony inquired, getting back to business as he ignored his thoughts that encompassed a certain blonde assassin. Peter sighed sadly as he avoided Mr. Stark's stern gaze.
"I don't have any other clothes." Peter told him and Tony just stared at him before nodding.
"Okay, we'll sort that out."
Emma entered the townhouse, slamming the front door so hard that it broke off the hinges and fell to the ground. She was angry, bitter, and filled with an inescapable feeling of sadness. All three were not a great combination and only served to cause Emma great turmoil. Darcy just stared at the broken front door in shock as she eyed the angry looking blonde from her spot on the couch in the living room. Darcy was shocked because she didn't think she had ever seen the blonde so visibly angry before.
"Hey, Em? Is everything alright? I tried to call you earlier but you never answered." Darcy said carefully but Emma just glared at her before making her way upstairs. Darcy sighed as she sank back against the couch.
"Well, that went well." She mumbled to herself.
Emma didn't know why her first instinct was to go to her room. She had no idea what to do now that she was in there. What was she supposed to do in a situation like this? Emma just shook her head as she immediately went to go sit down on the edge of her bed, her body heaving with her angry. The blonde furiously wiped the tears off her face with the sleeve of her suit as a million thoughts went through her mind all at once. Steve. Her father. Hydra. Rumlow. Stark. Peter. All of those names and faces flashed through her mind as tried to calm herself down but for once in her life Emma just couldn't keep calm and collected. She sniffled as she tried to block out all the events that had occurred within the past couple hours. It didn't seem like Emma had much control of herself. The breathing exercises Bruce taught her didn't even seem to be working and neither were any of the methods that Sam mentioned.
Emma immediately opened the drawer of her night stand and took out something that she knew she wasn't supposed to have. It was something she had stolen from Steve's room at the compound before Stark sent her away to live with Darcy. Her eyes gazed down upon an old framed photograph of her father and a pre-serum Steve. It must've been taken right before the war, Emma figured. It mesmerized her as to how happy and care-free they looked in the picture. So much had changed since then and Emma wished that in another life she could've been there to see Steve and her father at their happiest.
A lone tear fell from her eye and landed on the picture she was holding in her hand. Something in the image of the fallen tear finally caused Emma to snap as she immediately glared down at the fallen tear, her temper rising. Without another thought Emma chucked the framed photograph at the wall with such speed and strength that the glass shattered in pieces on the floor. The sight of the broken photograph seemed to snap Emma out of her anger momentarily as she raced over to kneel on the floor and pick up the broken pieces. Emma sniffled as she desperately tried picking up the pieces so she could save the delicate photograph. As she started pushing away the broken glass, one of the pieces immediately cut her. Emma winced in surprise as she retracted her hand, the blood flowing from her cut. She finally gave up in the effort of trying to clean up the mess as she stared at the old photograph longingly.
"I give up, Steve. I give up." Emma told the photograph, her voice sounding exhausted and frustrated. She was exhausted from constantly trying to play by the rules and being the hero… trying to be more like Steve. It was all so tiring to Emma and she was just frustrated for herself for letting her emotions rule her. She was better than this… she was stronger than her emotions so she shouldn't be crying. Emma never usually cried that often but for some reason she couldn't stop. Everything was finally getting to her.
"I can't do what you asked of me. It's just too hard." Emma continued to say, not even bothering to wipe all the tears from her face this time. There was no use at this point. "You asked me to listen to him but he just makes everything impossible. I lived here, went to school, and tried to play hero but I just don't have it in me."
"I just can't do this anymore, Steve. Pretending, I mean. This just isn't who I am." Emma said as she started crying more. "I miss you and Papa so much. I just want to go home."
"Why can't I just be with you guys?" Emma said quietly, her voice nearly breaking from the strangled sob that also managed to escape her at the same time. She groaned in frustration as she tried and tried to suppress the emotions but she just couldn't. Getting up from the floor, Emma immediately grabbed the first thing in her sight which happened to be her vinyl record player and threw it at the wall. The heavy record player was thrown so hard that it went through the wall on impact and Emma glared at the now the gaping hole in the wall, her body heaving with anger. She screamed in anger before she also grabbed the bookshelf in her room and pushed it over, causing all the books to come falling out.
"I hate it here!" Emma screamed, her face painted with tears and her eyes red with anger.
"Emma?" Emma immediately turned around and saw Darcy standing in the doorway with a concerned and bewildered look on her face. Her body was still heaving with anger as she looked back at Darcy. Darcy stared in shock at seeing the wave of destruction in Emma's room and also seeing Emma in such a wild and angry state. Emma was usually so calm and put together so Darcy didn't know what to think. Most people would probably run in the opposite direction if they saw a former Hydra assassin in a state like this. However, Darcy wasn't most like most people.
"What's going on, Emma?" Darcy asked her again but Emma didn't say anything. She just stared at the floor with a haunted look in her eyes. Darcy took a deep breath before she climbed over the large bookcase and the other debris on the floor before finally making it over to Emma.
"You've gotta tell me what's wrong, Em. You can't keep it in like this. Not anymore." Darcy told Emma and Emma just continued to avoid her gaze. It was clear that she was trying to suppress her sadness but Darcy could see the tears streaming down her face and her red rimmed eyes. Emma had been crying. The blonde teenager was still heaving with both anger and frustration as she looked away from the brunette woman in embarrassment. Embarrassed at the way she couldn't control her emotions. Darcy just sighed.
"Come here, Em. It's gonna be okay." Darcy said as she then wrapped her arms around Emma without hesitation. Emma stiffened when Darcy wrapped her arms around her but relaxed a moment later. She was tired of fighting with herself. Darcy rubbed Emma's back soothingly as she held her.
"You're going to be just fine, Emma. Whatever happened… it's gonna turn out alright." Darcy told her as she tried to reassure Emma. Emma really wanted to be believe her but she couldn't bring herself too. She didn't think anything was ever going to be alright. Not when she was living in a world without Steve and her father.