Some Things Never Sleep

by MotomamiBizcochito

"You never learn when to quit, Spider-Twerp." She told him. "Spider-Twerp?" Spider-Man questioned in disbelief as he glared. Emma smirked. "Well, you annoyingly seem to get in my way all the time. That and you don't look or sound like a man to me." She explained. "I am a man." He told her angrily. "Somehow I doubt that." The first time Emma and Peter met didn't exactly go well.

75. Chapter Sixty Nine: Part I

Author's Note: Wow...This chapter was just so difficult to start writing but I finally managed to do it. Just remember that not everything from the past numerous chapters is going to be covered in this one because this is only the start. The Avengers have a lot to talk about which is going to happen over the next several chapters. I also decided to split this chapter into two parts, this one being Part I. I'm also not going to be able to answer all the reviews because I have like five pages which is amazing but I'm also posting this right before I leave to go somewhere that doesn't have wi-fi so I don't have the time to answer everything. I would if I could but that would mean no updating this chapter until next week and I really didn't want to wait that long.

INFINITY WAR SPOILERS(PLEASE READ MESSAGE): So there is just one last scene in this that may contain some spoilers from infinity war. It's nothing major, just a few lines from the movie, but the scene is yet another way of me adapting the Infinity War storyline to this one because the Avengers obviously return a lot sooner in my story. This is the last Infinity War scene until we actually reach the storyline. I promise! It's within the scene with Ross in this chapter so be warned but I change a lot of things at the same time so it's barely noticeable. It's more like a nod to the movie than an actual spoiler.

It's almost the one year anniversary of the story! July 10th! I want to update again by then but I'm not sure if I'll have the chance. I might just update 'Dry Bite' in honor of the anniversary instead if I'm not ready. I'm also super excited for Ant-Man and the Wasp. I'm planning on seeing it opening night. Hopefully it'll be a nice break from all the sadness that was involved with Infinity War.

Guys, I was also listening to Florence + The Machine's new album 'High as Hope' while writing this chapter. I wasn't sure about it at first but now I am. It's amazing! Florence can really do no wrong.

Can I also just say how amazed I am by all the reviews? I went to bed after posting the last chapter and when I woke up I had like two pages of reviews. So amazed! For some reason I felt like people weren't reading the story anymore but seeing all those reviews made me super inspired to write this chapter so thank you. I've read every single one of them so thank you for taking the time to write them.

Rocket Rover and OgFrosty: In regards to Cloak and Dagger, I don't really know if they would ever appear in this story. If they did it wouldn't be for a long time since we don't know much about them from the show yet. I actually forgot all about the show. I meant to watch it but then forgot about it but when you guys mentioned it, I binge-watched all five episodes so I'm all caught up now. It's really amazing and much darker than I'm used to when it comes to Marvel. I was hesitant at first because I thought it would be like Agents of Shield or other Marvel shows that aren't on Netflix but it's not. I really like it.

Avalongirl55: The Infinity War storyline isn't going to happen for a long time. It's going to be a long while since I'm focusing on the Hydra storyline right now.

Assbitch67: I feel like a lot of things are going to come out about Emma's time at Hydra during this Rumlow thing. I'm not going to spoil anything so that's all I'll say for now.

scrapingskies: I try to update as often as possible so thanks for that. One time I didn't update for two weeks and someone thought I was quitting the story. It's a little stressful but I update when I can. It might take a while since I write long chapters.

OgFrosty: I'm thinking about writing up until Spider-Man: Far From Home(We finally know the title!) and then doing my own thing from there on out. I'm not sure if I'll wait until the third Spider-Man movie. It just depends on where I'm at in a year or two from now.

"The ones that love us never really leave. We can always find them...in here." -Sirius Black

"Compromise where you can but where you can't, don't. Even if everyone is telling you something wrong is something right. Even if the whole world is telling you to move, it is your job to plant yourself like a tree, look them in the eyes, and say 'No, you move'." -Peggy Carter

JeshaR: Thank you so much for your kind words. I'm glad you like the story so much. The Peter Parker I'm writing in this story is probably different from the ones in the comic books or other movies but that's only because he's entirely based off Tom Holland's version. I just find Tom's version of Peter Parker to be so cute and nerdy which is why I love writing this story so much.. Well, one of the many reasons at least. I am planning to do the Infinity War storyline by the way. Thor: Ragnarok too but we won't get there for a while.

Strider Ridge: Thank you for the advice on the action scenes. I have so much trouble writing them so I'll try to use your advice next time I write an action scene. Thank you. I also tried to make Emma and Bucky's relationship realistic. The Winter Soldier wasn't all touchy feely with her like Steve but there was still a connection there because deep down he still remembered Steve and I think Emma reminded him of Steve in a way.

Keystone0913: I'll try to improve Peter's Spidey sense for next time so thank you for the advice.

Radioactive88: As far as I know the two Ross's aren't related. I looked it up because it was only when I wrote last chapter that I realized that both of them had the same last name but I couldn't find any evidence that they were related. Ross is a very common name so it's probably just a coincidence. Just like how Jessica Jones and Michelle Jones have the same last name but aren't related although I'm not sure if Michelle was in the comic books or maybe she had a different name in the comics.

LovingBOBThePacific: I would've really loved to have gone to see Sebastian and Anthony too which is why it kind of pissed me off that those girls treated them like that. They weren't even supposed to go there and it was really nice of them to show up in Chris Hemsworth's place. I get being a total fangirl over a celebrity. When I was fifteen I had this massive crush on Adam Levine for some reason and I get the wanting to know everything about that person thing but it's just a phase. I'm just glad my worst and embarrassing fangirl moments weren't caught on tape because I'm pretty sure those girls are as bad as it gets because they not only embarrassed Tom but they embarrassed themselves. I also never went that far during that phase or did the stuff they did. There's a different between being a fan and being disrespectful. Just because Tom, Anthony, and Sebastian tease each other/roast each other doesn't mean it's okay for other people to do that. They don't even know us. It's like going up to someone on the street and talking to them like that. It's just plain rude. Hopefully those girls learned a lesson from this and they'll maybe grow up.

Asterion98: That ad is a weird coincidence. I saw it too and it's so weird Elle Fanning(face claim for Emma) is now doing Tiffany and Co. ads. Although I'm not sure how I feel about the rapping in the song because it kind of ruins it for me. I like some rap but not in 'Moon River'.

Naluforever: I probably won't include Luke Cage or Daredevil in this story but never say never. They're okay to me but they're not my favorites Netflix wise. The Punisher and Elektra are more likely to show up in the story although I'm not promising anything. Daredevel may show up, after all, so who knows. I can't remember if you were the one who asked me about the Runaways or someone else but I'll just answer it here. The Runaways won't be featured in this story either but mostly because I haven't seen the show since I don't have Hulu. I already have subscriptions to Netflix, Book of the Month Club, and Apple Music so I really can't add another subscription into my budget right now.

Guest: I would include something like that if I could because that sounds hilarious but unfortunately I don't think Emma and Peter having sex right now is a good idea. With the attack on the compound, I think sex is one of the last things on their mind for the time being.

JustJoyce: I do watch Stranger Things actually. I know everyone probably says this but my favorite character would have to be Eleven. I just love strong, badass female characters like that.

Nathan19bane: I don't have an exact number of chapters planned until Thor:Ragnarok. I'm not that organized. I just know it's not going to be for a while. We still have to get through the stuff with Hydra and then a lot of stuff after that because I feel like Emma, Peter, Steve, Bucky, and Tony all deserve to be happy for a while before Infinity War because in my story Infinity War happens right after Thor: Raganrok. I just want to write everyone back together for a while before we move onto the more serious stuff.

Thanks again for all the reviews and I'm so sorry for not responding to every single one. Thanks for all the favorites and follows as well. You can't know how much I appreciate it.

---

Emma woke up to sunshine littering Tony's office early the next morning. The blonde lifted her head up from the couch as she blinked a couple times, allowing her eyes to adjust to the light. She immediately reached for her phone which was in the pocket of her pajama bottoms and checked the time. According to her phone she had only been asleep for around three hours. That was more than enough for Emma because she doubted she could go back to sleep after everything that happened. Emma immediately sat up on the couch and noticed a sleeping form on the ground beside the couch. She frowned as she watched Peter sleeping on the hard ground with nothing but a pillow for comfort. Emma wanted to wake him so that he could sleep on the couch, but she hesitated. She knew that he was going to want to talk if he woke up and Emma just wanted to be alone. Emma had been afraid to be alone last night, but she just needed time to figure everything out.

Without giving it much more thought, Emma got up from the couch before carefully stepping over Peter's body. She smiled a bit at the sight of him sleeping because he looked really adorable. Especially with his mouth hanging open like that and drool pooling out onto the pillow. Emma used to wrinkle her nose in disgust whenever she saw Thor sleeping like that back in the day, but she figured when you were in love the things you once found disgusting actually became cute. Emma carefully placed the blanket over him and Peter only slightly stirred before burying his face into the pillow, lost to the world. She didn't linger there long because she knew she had things to do so she left Peter in peace before walking out of the office.

Emma made her way across the building but couldn't help but notice how many people were bustling around. Most of them were construction workers who were already fixing all the damage that was done to the compound. She guessed when you were Tony Stark everyone bent over backwards to help you. More like when you had money everyone bent over backwards to help you, Emma thought to herself. Still…Emma was thankful that they were already working on getting the compound back to what it was. The faster everything was fixed, the faster they could build up a stronger defense against Hydra.

She made her way up the staircase, careful not to step on any of the debris as she made her way up the stairs. There was bits and pieces littered everywhere which Emma was careful to avoid as she finally made it back up to the second floor. The first thing Emma noticed about the second floor was that it looked way worse in the light than it had in the dark. Emma made her way down the hallway slowly, taking in all the damage. The damage wasn't as bad as she imagined. It could probably be fixed in a week or two with all the construction guys Tony already had there. It looked like Tony probably had two or three companies working there. There was no telling how much money that was going to cost but with Tony's wealth, she doubted there would even be a dent.

Emma finally made it to her bedroom and she didn't think it looked that bad given the circumstance. It could've looked worse. There were some pieces of ceiling lying across the floor and even the bed while some pictures had fallen from the wall but that seemed to be the extent of it. For some reason she expected the entire room and all her possessions to be ruined. She didn't know why. The explosion happened elsewhere but Emma supposed she always assumed the worst. The blonde didn't waste any time grabbing her Viper Assassin suit along with the additional gear. That's what she came here for, after all.

Emma tuck a dufflebag she had in her closet before stuffing the suit and other items inside the bag to keep close to her in case something happened like last night. She just wanted to have the suit close to her. Emma also took the time to stuff some other clothing and toiletries in her bag because she didn't know when she would have the chance to come back up here. She finally managed to pack up all of her necessities in a record amount of time, but she paused as she looked around the room, feeling more sentimental than usual.

Had it really been over a year since Steve had last been here? It was so much for her to comprehend and somehow it felt even longer than a year since she had seen him last. Emma then remembered the last time Steve had been in her room. It was the day Ross came to talk about the accords and Steve came to inform her about her grandmother's death. They had hugged as they comforted each other over the death of Peggy Carter. So much had happened since that day. The Sokovia Accords, Germany, High School, making new friends, making amends with Tony, and even Peter. All those new things happened, and Steve hadn't been there for any of them. Emma wished that he had because she thought it would make him happy. He was always preaching to her about having a normal life. Emma had always scowled at the idea but maybe just maybe she was kind of happy with a somewhat normal life.

Emma reached in the drawer of her nightstand and pulled out the compass along with the dog tags Steve had given her. She placed the dog tags in a side compartment of her dufflebag but she stopped as she held the compass in her hand. A soft expression came over her face as she stared at the engraving across the surface of it. The Wuthering Heights quote Peter had picked out which was the one that still made Emma's heart race in her chest whenever she read it. She didn't like to think she was a romantic, but she didn't mind if Peter was a romantic. Emma then opened up the compass and admired the picture of her grandmother. She hadn't known the woman that much. Emma had only visited her with Steve on several occasions, but it was still so difficult seeing her so ill. Of course, Emma had faint memories of seeing her grandmother when she was little, but those memories were fading. She just wished that she had gotten to spend more time with Peggy. Emma was sure that Peggy had plenty of knowledge to share and Emma would've loved to have heard it all.

There was a sadness lingering inside her over her grandmother's death, so she subsequently shut the compass before shoving it into the dufflebag. Emma glanced up and it was only then that she saw the photographs that littered the surface of her nightstand. She gently lifted the old photograph Steve had given her of himself and her father before the war. The blonde gently traced her father's face with her finger as she stared at the image of him laughing. He seemed so carefree and happy in the picture and it occurred to her that she had never seen him laugh like that before. She knew a different Bucky Barnes, but Emma would be just as happy if she got to know the happier and carefree version too. Emma knew she would love any version of her father.

"Walking down memory lane?" Emma heard a voice ask from behind her and she immediately turned around to see Tony standing in her doorway. She glanced over his appearance and noticed how tired he looked. She figured that he probably hadn't gotten any sleep the night before. Not that she could blame him. Emma had only slept for a couple hours herself. The teenage girl then sighed as she shoved the photograph inside the dufflebag.

"I guess." Emma said quietly and normally she would've said something more rude to Tony but she wasn't in the mood today. There was too much fear and anxiety that overwhelmed her. After last night, Emma didn't know if she could ever feel safe again. Not when she knew that Rumlow was somewhere out there and he was closer than ever to taking her again. This time wouldn't be like the last time he kidnapped her either. The last time he had kidnapped her was when she was a frightened child who didn't know his true monstrous nature. However, this time she knew everything he was capable of which made it a hundred times worse. Emma knew that if he managed to kidnap her again and raping her like he wanted…she just knew that she wouldn't be able to survive it a second time. Rumlow finally getting his hands on her again could be the very thing that just might ruin her for good.

"I've already brought some guys in to fix up the compound. It should all be fixed up within the next week or so." Tony told her as he tried to awkwardly start up a conversation with her. Emma just nodded, and Tony could tell that she had a lot on her mind. He was deeply troubled by her quiet demeanor. There was something that was very off about the teenager although Tony didn't know if he could be surprised. It was clear to him that Emma was scared, and he felt guilty for not calling Steve sooner. If he had called Steve last night when Emma asked him to then maybe she wouldn't be like this.

"That's nice." Emma said but it was clear that she wasn't really paying attention. Tony frowned. Her behavior was concerning.

"How's the kid?" Tony asked, and Emma shrugged.

"He's fine, I guess. He was still asleep when I woke up, but I didn't want to wake him to come up here with me." Emma explained, and this confirmed to Tony that she probably didn't know that Steve and the others were coming back today. He doubted the kid would've woken her up to tell her and he also doubted she would be acting this way if she knew.

"That's good." Tony said as he nodded but he knew he was going to have to be the one to break the news to her. Maybe he would be able to get back in her good graces after the fight they had the previous night. Tony still didn't think he deserved all the credit either. Peter was the one who finally convinced him to get off his ass and call Steve. It seemed like the kid really did have Emma's best interests at heart. Tony was glad in a way because at this least this meant that someone was always looking out for her. Even when people like him were being too stubborn or cowardly to do the same.

"Did he tell you everything that happened during the attack?" Emma inquired curiously, and Tony snapped out of his thoughts as he looked back at her.

"He went over everything. Don't worry about it." Tony told her, and Emma nodded before a more regretful look came over her face.

"Am I in trouble over the thing with that Hydra agent?" Emma asked almost hesitantly. A part of her was afraid to hear the answer. "Ross isn't going to let that go." Tony just shook his head.

"Let me worry about Ross. The Hydra agent's doing fine…unfortunately. He's doing better than he was a couple hours ago and Cho thinks he'll make it out alright." Tony informed her. "We're hoping by tomorrow that he might be awake and alert enough for us to question him."

"That might be difficult." Emma told him honestly. "He's not like the rest of the lowly Hydra agents. This one believes in what he'd doing. It might be a bit harder to get him to break down."

"Something tells me that maybe you have a trick or two up your sleeve." Tony joked as he smirked at her, but he could tell that Emma wasn't in the joking mood. She looked away from him and Tony felt like he might've said the wrong thing.

"I shouldn't have gone that far. I know that deep down but…" Emma trailed off sadly and Tony gave her a curious look. It was rare that Emma was ever vulnerable like this with him. There was no doubt in his mind that she was like this with Peter but never with him. "I just couldn't stop myself. He threatened everything I hold most dear and I just snapped. It's happened before but Papa was always there to hold me back but not this time."

Tony ignored the way she called Barnes her father, which always had a way of making him feel uncomfortable, before he moved closer to her. He awkwardly placed a hand on her shoulder and she flinched but neither of them moved. They were never touchy feely with each other, but they were sometimes willing to try.

"It's okay. We get it. You were scared, and you snapped." Tony told her as he tried to make her feel better about the situation. "It happens to the best of us. No one thinks any less of you for it. Not even Vision and you know how annoyingly self-righteous he is."

"It's not like how it is for you, Steve, Peter, or anyone else." Emma said as she denied everything Tony just told her. "I'm not like any of you. I have all these emotions and feelings inside of me and I try to bury them the best I can but sometimes I can't. I just lose it. It's like when you're boiling water on the stove and leave it on too long. The boiling water overflows and spills onto the stove top. That's what it's like for me." Emma turned away from him again as she tried to blink away her tears.

"What if something happens one day? Peter pisses me off all the time. What if he pisses me off so much that one day I hurt him." Emma said before glancing back at Tony who was watching her quietly, a wave of concern coming over him. "You piss me off all the time too but you're more fragile than Peter. I could hurt you too…or worse. How are you not afraid of me?"

"Because I remember the first time I ever saw you." Tony said as his gaze softened. Emma stared at him with a calculating expression on her face, but she couldn't see a single ounce of fear on his face. "Margot had you in her arms and you just stared at me for the longest time. You even smiled. You were the smallest and cutest thing I had ever seen. That's how I know you could never hurt me or Peter. Not to mention you liked me a lot back then…I was your favorite person which I think makes me safer than Peter at this point." Emma scoffed.

"You never were and never will be my favorite person." Emma told him despite feeling touched at Tony's explanation. She knew he must've had a lot of stories about her parents, but Emma never asked. A part of her didn't want to know because she was afraid that it would make the loss of them more real. Tony laughed, and Emma couldn't help but smile even if the smile was barely noticeable.

"Keep telling yourself that, Mini Cap." Tony told her before he calmed down from his fit of laughter. Emma's smile faded at once too. A more serious look came over his face once he remembered their fight from the night before. Tony sighed heavily before speaking.

"Look, I'm sorry about last night." Tony told her, and Emma just watched him silently, almost curious as to where he was going with this. "You were obviously right about Hydra and everything, but I was too goddamn stubborn to see it. I was so hung up on my own insecurities that I risked yours and everyone else's safety. It's all my fault." Emma furiously shook her head as she disagreed with him.

"No, I get why you didn't want to bring everyone back. I know it's not that simple but I just…well, I guess I just missed them all so much that I didn't really care or want to see the logic behind everything." Emma admitted, and Tony suddenly felt even more guilty than before. Peter was right. Emma really needed the others back because she was really hurting, How long had she been suffering like this? Peter never told him the extent of it and Tony doubted he ever would. There was probably a lot of things Peter didn't tell him about Emma because he was trying to protect her privacy, but Tony still knew that he should've brought Steve back a long time ago.

"I was wrong, Emma. The truth is that I could've brought them back a long time ago." Tony said as he then began to pull out what looked to be a flip phone from his pocket. Emma raised her eyebrows at the sight of it.

"What's that?" Emma asked.

"I know that you've probably never seen technology this old before but this is what we used back in the day to-" Tony started to ramble and Emma immediately cut him off with a glare.

"I know what the hell it is, idiot. I just meant that why the hell would Tony Stark have an ancient looking flip phone." Emma told him, and Tony gave her a slightly guilty look but underneath it he was really afraid about how she was going to react to this. He knew she was probably going to be angry but hopefully not too angry.

"Well, Steve kind of gave it to me." Tony admitted, and Emma stared at him silently for a moment before a confused look came over her face.

"Steve?" Emma questioned. "What do you mean?" Tony sighed before answering.

"He sent this to me all those months ago and I've had it in a drawer of my desk this whole time." Tony hurriedly said, expecting Emma to look angry or surprised…maybe even both but he was perplexed to see that she didn't look phased in the least bit. Tony was relieved that she didn't seem angry, but he was also surprised that she wasn't angry. He figured that she would be hitting him with one of those photographs sitting on her nightstand by now. However, she did no such thing.

"So?" Emma said, and Tony furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"What do you mean so? I've had this flip phone he gave me to call him if we ever needed him back and I've been lying to you about it all this time." Tony said as he elaborated. Emma just shrugged.

"I'm not a stupid little girl, Tony. I know I freaked out on you about it last night…bringing Steve back, I mean, but I know a lot of things can't be undone with the press of a button." Emma said, and it was true. She really wasn't mad about this and she wasn't even mad about last night. Too many things had happened in the time since they last fought for her to still be angry. Emma didn't really feel like being angry anyways…not now at least. Emma wasn't even surprised that Tony had the phone. Emma doubted Steve would've just dumped her on Tony like that without some kind of way of getting in touch if need be.

"I called him." Tony suddenly blurted. He kind of wanted to break it to her in a better way than that but there wasn't really any good way to break something like that to a person. Emma stared at him for a long moment and at first, she thought she had heard him wrong.

"What?" Emma questioned, her blue eyes wide with desperation. She was desperate for what she thought Tony said to be true. Tony swallowed hard before speaking again.

"I called Steve on the phone. I told him we were in a bit of trouble and he said that he and the others were on their way. They should be here in an hour." Tony told her, and Emma thought that maybe he was joking. She just couldn't find it in herself to believe him. Not when she had been dreaming of this very thing happening ever since Steve had left. She would dream of him and her father coming back for her and taking her somewhere far away from here…somewhere quiet and peaceful where they could all live in peace without the fear of Ross and the Sokovia Accords. Of course, that dream changed over time. She would start dreaming of a reality where they could come back, and everything would be as it once was at the compound but only this time Peter was included too. Emma would dream of Steve and Peter being the complete dorks they were while her father and her laughed at them. While the dream had been nice, Emma didn't think it could ever come true for a long time.

"Are you serious?" Emma asked quietly, still shocked by Tony's admission. The billionaire nodded as a guilty look once again came over his face.

"You were right last night…I was being an egotistical coward. I put my own feelings before your safety and everything that happened after that is my fault." Tony told her, and Emma felt the excitement die down in her a bit when she saw the sad look on Tony's face. Emma frowned. "I really am a selfish asshole." Emma immediately shook her head.

"I didn't mean all those things I said. I was just really angry." Emma told him, but Tony didn't look like he felt any better about himself.

"I promised I would take care of you. I promised your dad if anything happened to him that I would take care of you and I failed him. Your grandfather made me promise him the same thing and I failed him too." Tony said, and Emma didn't know how she felt as she watched Tony Stark become more vulnerable and emotional than she had ever seen him be before. Her throat thick with emotion as she stared at him. "I'm just a huge failure. I don't know why you didn't run away from me months ago. The only person who hasn't failed you is the kid and it was never even his job to protect you."

Emma watched silently as the tears fell down Tony's face. She felt the tears well up in her own eyes as well. At first, she didn't want to say anything or even acknowledge his emotions. She was never comfortable dealing with people's emotions. The sight of someone crying made Emma want to back out of the room and run for the hills. It was even difficult for her to deal with Peter's emotions at the beginning although she was becoming better at comforting him when he needed it. However, Emma knew that she had to approach Tony a different way than she did with Peter. Peter was her boyfriend and Tony was…well, she didn't really know what Tony was to her. She had considered him a nuisance for a long time then an enemy before she finally went back to considering him a nuisance, but their relationship had changed over the past several months. Tony was still a nuisance, but he was more than that at the same time. Emma didn't know what he was to her, but she knew that she cared about him a lot.

The teenager immediately went over to the billionaire and hesitantly rested her hands awkwardly on his shoulders. Tony barely seemed to notice, still caught up in all his mistakes and regrets. He seemed to have a lot of those when it came to Emma Rogers. Emma bit her lip nervously before she crossed the unspoken boundary between them and wrapped her arms around Tony, resting her face against his shoulder. Tony immediately paused as he realized that Emma was actually hugging him. She hadn't hugged him since she was a little girl…since before Steven and Margot were killed. There were a couple differences between then and now. Mostly the fact that Emma was quite a bit taller than she had been back then. Emma was only a couple inches shorter than Tony, but her embrace didn't feel any different. It didn't take long before Tony hugged her back, happy that she had even hugged him in the first place. He knew how difficult it was for her to do things like that. It was difficult for him too, but everything was different when it came to Emma. She was different.

"I forgive you." Emma told him quietly. She didn't really believe that there was anything for her to forgive but she knew that it was what Tony wanted to hear.

"Thank you." Tony said just as quietly before the two of them finally pulled away from each other. Emma just shook her head as she gave him a grateful look.

"No. Thank you for doing this. I know you didn't have to so thank you." Emma told him, and Tony just nodded.

"Don't thank me. I'd thank the kid if I were you. He was the one that finally managed to knock some sense into my head." Tony told her, and Emma gave him a confused look. Emma didn't know what he was talking about.

"What do you mean?" Emma questioned but Tony just smiled and shook his head.

"Just ask him." Tony told her before clearing his throat awkwardly, trying to calm himself down from his emotional state. It was a bit awkward for the both of them as it would seem.

"Anyways…I've gotta head back downstairs. We have a lot to prepare for if the others are coming back. Ross also wants a meeting in forty-five minutes." Emma nodded quietly, still in shock from everything Tony had previously told her.

"Right." Emma said shortly, not having anything else to say in that moment. Tony just nodded once more before he began to leave the room. However, Emma stopped him before he could.

"And Tony?" Emma said, and Tony looked back at her. "If you tell anyone about that, I'll cut your balls off in your sleep." Tony just chuckled, not looking frightened or offended by her in the least.

"I wouldn't put it past you." He told her and with that he left the room. Emma just smiled to herself as he left, becoming caught up in the memory of their recent conversation. It was only then that Emma realized what Tony told her.

Steve was coming back.

Emma almost wanted to jump on the bed and squeal in excitement although she knew she would probably look as stupid as Peter if she did something like that. She still couldn't believe it. The idea of Steve coming back was totally crazy, but it was real. He was going to be here in an hour…he was going to be with her in an hour. After a year without seeming him, they would finally be together again. Emma couldn't believe how happy she was. She knew that he was coming back under less than pleasant circumstances, but Emma was just glad something good was coming out of this whole Hydra thing. Her father probably wasn't going to come back unless Steve knew where he was. Last she heard he was in the Cyro-Chamber but maybe he was better now. Maybe Steve knew how they could get him back. For now, Emma would just allow herself to be happy about Steve.

"Emma?" Peter said from behind her and it was then that Emma did something to entirely shock him. She ambushed him with a hug and Peter stumbled back a bit from the impact. He had only just woken up from his nap when he noticed that Emma wasn't in the room with him, so he had gone to find her. He never expected to find her in a state like this.

"He's coming back, Peter." Emma said, her voice full of happiness and Peter's heart couldn't help but melt at the sound of it. She sounded so happy. Peter smiled as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I know." Peter said which confused Emma. She pulled away from him as she gave him a confused look.

"What do you mean?" Emma questioned, and Peter blushed.

"Well, I kind of said something to Tony last night when I filled him in on him on how we handled the attack." Peter said nervously, and Emma raised an eyebrow.

"What did you say to him?" Emma asked, and Peter seemed even more shy as he avoided her gaze. He always did that whenever he feared her reaction to something which made her even more curious.

"I just said that maybe he should think more about what's better for you." Peter said quietly as Emma watched him curiously. "You were right about your dad and grandfather. They could really help out and I know they would want to help if they knew you were in trouble. I just made Tony realized how wrong he was."

"That's it? He just agreed after that?" Emma asked, and Peter blushed even more. She didn't really believe that Peter had asked Tony politely and the stubborn old man just caved in after that. Emma had asked him politely and then not so politely yet Tony hadn't even budged when it came to Steve and the others.

"Well, not exactly." Peter said, sounding even more shy and embarrassed than before.

"What is it?" Emma asked him again and Peter swallowed hard.

"I might've…well, I kind of...um…threatened him." Peter finally said, and Emma stared at him in surprise. Did she hear him right?

"You threatened him? You as in Peter Parker threatened Tony Stark who just so happens to be your dream daddy?" Emma questioned but she thought she was probably very justified in asking that. The idea of Peter threatening anyone was laughable because Peter was the least threatening person she knew. "Although I think your idea of a dad is messed up. Vision seems way more like daddy material than Tony." Peter wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"Don't say it like that. It sounds gross when you say it like that." Peter told her, and Emma just smirked at him in amusement.

"That's why I say it." Emma told him before she became serious again. "Now tell me what you did to finally get Tony to do the one thing I thought he would never do. Did you blackmail him? I blackmailed Ross to stay off Steve's trail." Peter made a face at the way Emma so casually brought up blackmail. He wouldn't even have an idea where to start when it came to blackmail. That seemed to be more of Emma's thing than his.

"No, it wasn't blackmail. I just sort of told him that if he didn't bring your grandpa and the others back then I would take you and leave." Peter finally admitted, and Emma watched him in surprise. It wasn't like Peter to go around making threats let alone threats like that. Emma couldn't really picture Peter talking that way to Tony either. Tony who he admired beyond all others.

"No kidding." Emma managed to say, and she was honestly surprised by this new information…and maybe she was even a little turned on as she tried to imagine a threatening and angry Peter. "This is what Tony meant then…he meant that you were the one who did this."

"I think I just made him realize that he shouldn't play around with your wellbeing like that." Peter said quietly, trying to dismiss the idea that he was the one behind this whole thing, but Emma wasn't fooled. She knew it was him. "He was probably already thinking about calling your grandfather anyways. He even-"

Peter didn't finish as he was interrupted by Emma's lips crashing against his. The words seemed lost inside his mind as she kissed him, and Peter couldn't help but respond to her kiss as he held her close to him. The kiss wasn't as passionate and weak in the knees as it usually was when they were alone together, but it was instead one full of emotion and gratitude. The kiss didn't last long as Emma pulled away from him, resting her forehead against his. They stayed there for a minute locked in an embrace and Emma was just thankful to have him. She didn't know what she did to deserve someone like Peter Parker, and she still wasn't sure if she really deserved him, but she was immensely happy with him. He was so good to her.

"Thank you." Emma murmured as she moved back a bit to look at him. Peter blushed but he shrugged her gratitude off.

"You shouldn't thank me, Emma. Tony was the one who made the call. Not me." Peter said, trying to be modest but Emma wasn't having it.

"He only called Steve because of you." Emma told him as she tried to show him how grateful she was. "I know how hard it must've been for you to stand up to him. It couldn't have been easy." Peter looked up at her and locked eyes with her.

"I'd do it all over again if it meant that you could be safe and happy." Peter told her sincerely and Emma only stared at him for a moment before she ambushed him with another hug. He stumbled back again from the impact and the surprise of it all before he held her once more. Peter was starting to think that he should've convinced Tony to do this a long time ago. Emma seemed remarkably happy. More happy than he had ever seen her.

"I love you." Emma told him, wanting to make sure he knew that she did. The expression on Peter's face softened because he knew he would never grow tired of her saying that.

"I love you too." He replied softly just as Emma pulled away to look back at him.

"I could almost marry you." Emma told him with a teasing smile on her face. Peter gave her a look of surprise before relaxing when he realized that she was only messing with him. He should've known. Emma seemed to love teasing him.

"Almost?" Peter asked her in amusement. "What would it take for you to actually marry me?" Emma just shrugged nonchalantly, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

"I don't know, Parker. There's probably several contributing factors. You can't expect me to want to marry you after only knowing you for a year. I mean…I don't even know what you're like in bed yet." Emma told him flirtatiously, knowing fully well that she was probably making him uncomfortable. Peter blushed a vibrant shade of red.

"You're not funny." Peter muttered as he tried to ignore the way she always got underneath his skin. Emma knew just how to embarrass him but at the same time cause him to think not so innocent thoughts. Especially since they had already talked about taking that next step in their relationship.

"You're so sensitive, Parker." Emma teased as she playfully hit his shoulder, but it was only then that Peter gave her a hopeful look.

"Does this mean you'll actually marry me one day?" Peter asked her, and Emma rolled her eyes. He never learned when to quit, did he?

"This means that I might think about it." Emma said reluctantly, and Peter gave her that goofy grin.

"So yes?" He said, and Emma gave him an annoyed look.

"This means that in ten years I might start to maybe consider it. In all honestly it all depends on one thing." Emma told him seriously and Peter gave her a quizzical look.

"What thing?" He asked her, and Emma gave him a smirk.

"Your winky." She said in a serious voice and Peter glared at her before groaning. He shoved her away which only caused Emma to laugh at him.

"Are you ever going to let that go?" Peter questioned, and Emma just grinned at him.

"Never." She told him, but she noticed that Peter still looked very bashful but for some reason scared as well. She was about to question him about this, but he beat her to it.

"You're going to have to stop talking like that to me now." Peter told her, and Emma raised her eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" She asked him, and Peter looked at her as though it was obvious.

"You're going to have to stop saying suggestive stuff like that to me since your grandfather's coming back. He'll probably kill me if he finds out about any of the stuff we've done together." Peter told her, and Emma just rolled her eyes. She thought he was overreacting.

"What stuff? All we've done is make out while you've occasionally felt me up. It's not like we've had sex or anything. We haven't even had oral sex." Emma told him bluntly which only caused Peter to blush more.

"See! That's what I mean! He'll kill me if he hears you talking about that." Peter told her as he tried to convince his girlfriend that they had to be on their best behavior now that her grandfather was coming back. "I know this is hard for you to understand but I actually want to make a good impression on him. I want him to like me and he's going to hate me if you keep discussing our non-existent sex life like that." Emma then coughed awkwardly which caused Peter to give her a confused look.

"What?" He questioned as he stared at her and Emma suddenly looked somewhat hesitant which was rare for her. Emma had only just started considering something after learning about the return of her grandfather a half an hour before. She never considered this before but now she realized something she was going to have to do…or to hide.

"About that…I was thinking that maybe we should wait to tell Steve about us." Emma told him, but Peter didn't look any less confused.

"But he's going to be here in less than an hour." Peter stated, still not understanding what Emma was talking about. Emma bit her lip nervously.

"I know but I just don't think it's a good idea to tell him about us right now." Emma said honestly but she was still scared of his reaction. She immediately regretted even making the suggestion when she saw the hurt look on Peter's face.

"You don't want to tell him about us?" Peter asked her, thinking that maybe she was embarrassed of him, and Emma immediately shook her head.

"It's not that I don't want to because I really do, Peter. I've always wanted you two to meet but…" Emma briefly paused as she started to give Peter her logical explanation behind all of this. "I just don't think it would be wise to add this to the huge pile of things we need to catch him up on. We have this whole thing with Hydra to deal with and not to mention Rumlow." Emma looked back up at him and Peter's face was now filled with understanding.

"I'm going to tell him about Rumlow, Peter. I should've told him a long time ago, but I think it's time." Emma stated as Peter listened to her patiently. "I just don't want to overwhelm him with everything. He's going to be shocked enough as it is."

"You're right." Peter admitted reluctantly. Leave it to Emma to think of everything logically even if he wished that she didn't sometimes. "I don't like it but you're right."

"This might be better." Emma said, trying to get her boyfriend to see the bright side in all of this. "He could know you as a person before knowing you as my boyfriend."

"You think he'll really like me?" Peter asked her shyly and Emma smiled before nodding.

"I know he will." Emma told him honestly. "I know this because you're both so much alike. How could he not like you?" Peter nodded as he took this in before a more serious expression came across his face. He realized that Emma and him were going to have to figure out certain things before her grandfather and the others actually came back. They needed to get their stories straight if they were going to temporarily hide their relationship from everyone.

"So how are we doing this? What's our story?" Peter asked her curiously. "If I'm not your boyfriend then what am I to you?"

"Well, I know Steve already knows that the Viper Assassin and Spider-Man are partners of sorts so I guess we'll just be friends…just like the old days." Emma informed him as she carefully glanced back at him for his reaction. He seemed to be listening to her even though she knew he didn't like this. "Which also means setting up some boundaries."

"Boundaries?" Peter questioned, and Emma nodded.

"Boundaries like no sleeping in bed together, no flirting, no holding hands, and definitely no kissing." Emma told him which caused Peter to pout. The idea of not being able to kiss Emma or be affectionate with her publicly was completely mind boggling to him. Peter also didn't want her to sleep alone either. He knew all about the nightmares she had and how him holding her in his arms comforted her. Peter didn't like the idea of her spending a night without him and then having a really bad nightmare only for her to wake up completely alone. He didn't like the sound of that at all.

"How long is this going to be?" Peter asked with that puppy dog look on his face that always made Emma weak in the knees.

"Just until Steve gets settled in. It won't be forever." Emma told him honestly. "I promise it won't be. Just trust me on this."

"I do trust you." Peter murmured as he stared back at her, warm brown eyes meeting ocean blue. Emma just smiled back at him and Peter allowed himself to be happy for her despite the situation. Of course, he wanted to meet her grandfather as Emma's boyfriend, but he knew that this would be for this best. Maybe Emma was right. Maybe her grandfather getting to know him as just Peter would be better than him immediately learning that he was Emma's boyfriend. Either way, Peter was just glad that she was happy. It was all he really wanted.

"How are you taking this?" Peter asked her quietly after a moment. They had been silent for a few minutes, both lost in their own thoughts. Emma could feel her heart racing because she knew that it wouldn't be long before she would finally be back in her grandfather's company after waiting so long. Emma was happy but scared too.

"I don't know. It's just been so long." Emma said quietly as she tried to think of what she was even going to say to Steve after being away from him for so long. "I'm beyond happy and excited but I'm also scared."

"Scared? Why would you be scared?" Peter asked her in confusion and Emma shrugged but she looked very worried…as if something was just dawning on her.

"It's just that…well, Steve and I haven't seen each other in a year." Emma said as something that had never occurred to her finally dawned on her. She was so lost in the act of missing Steve that she never considered what it would be like when they were finally reunited. "I know that I've changed a lot in a year and he probably has too. What if he doesn't like how I've changed? What if I don't like how he's changed?" Peter stared at Emma in disbelief.

"Emma, he's your grandfather. He's not going to care if you've changed. He'll still love you the same and you'll still love him the same." Peter told her honestly as Emma looked back at him. "Besides…he'd be a fool to not love you for who you are. I'm completely in love with the person you are."

"Really?" Emma asked in a small voice and Peter nodded.

"Of course." He told her and she smiled, feeling a bit better after Peter's reassurance. Peter was probably right. She was being silly about everything. They were about to fall into another comfortable silence before something else occurred to Peter…something very curious to him.

"What about your dad?" Peter asked her, and Emma gave him a slightly confused look.

"What?" She questioned.

"Your dad…do you think he'll come too?" Peter inquired, and Emma sighed.

"That's tough to say. Last I heard he was still in the Cyro-Chamber who knows where. I suppose Steve would know so he might be able to track him down, but we'll just have see I guess." Emma explained, and Peter nodded as he took in that information. Peter was a bit relieved that it might take a bit of time before he met Emma's father too. He knew it was already going to be overwhelming meeting her grandfather and the rest of the Avengers. Peter couldn't imagine meeting her father at the same time. He might die from his nervousness.

"So this is it." Peter said as he looked at her with a wide smile on his face. He just couldn't believe he was going to meet Emma's grandfather…the one who she talked so much about. It seemed sort of surreal. When Peter pictured meeting Captain America it was never like this. When he was younger he always imagined what he would say to the iconic hero but now he seemed at a loss for words. Of course, Peter never imagined he would be meeting Captain America as his granddaughter's boyfriend…not that her grandfather would even know that he was her boyfriend. It was still pretty crazy.

"Yeah. It seems like some kind of weird dream." Emma said as she smiled back at him. "I've always imagined him coming back but the fantasy always seemed too far away to actually become true."

"But now it is." Peter told her, and Emma nodded happily.

"Yes, it is. I feel happier than I've been in a long time. I mean…you make me happy too, but I've always felt incomplete without him and Papa around." Emma told him carefully, afraid of somehow offending him with her words but Peter understood.

"No, I completely get it. You need them and that's okay with me." Peter told her sincerely. "There's other people in the world that love you and care about you like I do and you don't know how happy that makes me."

"Really?" Emma said, and Peter continued to smile at her.

"Yes." He confirmed before that puppy dog look returned. "I'm just sorry that we're going to have to hide our relationship. That means that it's going to be forever until I can kiss you again." Emma rolled her eyes playfully at her pouting boyfriend.

"You'll get over it." Emma told him although she was honestly going to miss being openly affectionate with him as well. Even though she rarely admitted it, Emma largely enjoyed kissing Peter, but she also enjoyed the small things like hand holding and just him wrapping his arms around her and holding her. Emma figured that they were still in the honeymoon phase of their relationship and she hoped that it would always be like this.

"Do you think we could maybe get everything out of our system one last time before he comes back?" Peter asked quietly and at first Emma didn't know what he was asking her. It wasn't until his hand held onto hers, his thumb gently caressing the top of her hand, that she realized what he meant. Emma gave him a look of disbelief.

"Peter, we have to go to that stupid meeting with Ross which is in like…fifteen minutes." Emma told him, but he continued to look at her with those warm brown eyes and she knew she wasn't going to be able to resist him. Yeah, pretending not to be completely in love with Peter was probably going to be the most difficult thing she ever had to do.

"I'm just going to miss you." Peter told her, and Emma knew exactly what he meant by that. She was going to miss being alone with him all the time, but she was also happy that Steve was going to be here too.

"I'll miss you too." Emma said softly to him as she rested her hands on his shoulders. They slowly inched towards each other, eyes fluttering shut, before they finally closed the distance as their lips met. The kiss started off soft and slow as they remained locked in each other's embrace, but it wasn't long before the kiss then grew more intense as they poured every emotion they were feeling into it. Emma was communicating how much she was going to miss being like this with him while Peter was communicating the same thing. Peter backed up until he hit the bed and he promptly sat down with Emma following suit by straddling his lap. Once they were comfortably seated, they both continued kissing as they expressed their love for each other without saying any words. Emma with her fingers knotting in his hair and Peter with his hands on her hips as they kissed passionately. Emma was definitely going to miss this, but it was only temporary. Once this Hydra thing was over, Emma could tell Steve just what Peter meant to her and she knew he would love him too. Steve would see just how important Peter was to her.

---

"Stark, you've really done it this time." Ross said at the meeting. He was once again in holographic form with a bunch of other UN members as he glared at Tony. It was only a little too unfortunate that the power back and running. The meeting had been in commission for around ten minutes, yet Emma was still filled with the urge to kill him. Peter and Emma were some of the last to arrive at the meeting although they showed up in a disheveled state much to Tony's amusement. Emma blamed Peter.

They were currently in the lab area of the compound since the other conference rooms were currently being reconstructed by the work men. Tony, Vision, Rhodey, Maria, and surprisingly even Nick Fury had shown up for the party. Emma hadn't seen the former Shield director in over two years, so she was a bit surprised to see him there. Well, maybe not that surprised considering that this was Hydra they were talking about. Emma assumed the meeting would grow larger when Steve and the others would inevitably arrive. She tried not to think too much about it but deep down she was still both excited and anxious. Emma's could feel her heart pounding against her chest in anticipation.

"Look at what happened to the facility last night." Tony told Ross seriously. For once Tony didn't seem to be in the teasing mood. "This was the only way to solve the problem. The next time Hydra strikes…well, we weren't going to survive something like that now, would we? Anyone with common sense can see that."

"We would've sent more men to the facility." Ross argued but Tony just scoffed.

"What? So more men can die last night? Yeah, that's a fantastic idea. Let's get all the funerals ready." Tony said sarcastically as he glared back at Ross.

"So your brilliant solution is to bring back a bunch of war criminals?" Ross asked in disbelief. "Stark, I'm about this close to sending your ass to Raft. The fact that you knew how to contact Rogers this whole time is enough to give you a life sentence. I'm talking about treason in the highest degree-"

"Oh, well you just give it a rest!" Emma interjected, coming to Tony's defense which was rare in itself. Everyone turned to look at her, including Ross although he had a look of pure hatred on his face at the very sight of her. Emma was sure that he would probably find a way to threaten to send her to Raft too if he had the time. "I'm getting sick and tired of your petty threats about Raft. Wake up. Your underwater prison isn't that scary after all. A complete moron could break out of that place in ten minutes tops."

"Don't get me started on you, Rogers." Ross said as he sneered at her before looking back at Tony as the billionaire narrowed his eyes at him. "I'm at my wit's end with you, Stark. I accepted it when the government released Rogers into your custody and I even looked the other way when you started mentoring the other kid." Ross briefly paused as he started lecturing Tony who just watched him in silence.

Emma had always thought it was a bad idea to let Ross know of Peter's true identity which was something Peter agreed to months ago. It made sense logically since Ross was hellbent on tracking down any superhero who wasn't registered under the Sokovia Accords and throwing them in prison. It made sense that Tony and Ross came to an arrangement when it came to her and Peter but she knew Tony probably had to pull a lot of strings in order for Ross to not throw them in prison. Even though she understood why Tony and Peter decided to let Ross know, she still didn't agree with it completely. Emma didn't like the idea of Ross knowing that much about Peter. Ross knowing about her was one thing because she knew how corrupt and twisted politicians, especially ones like Ross could be, but Peter was still naïve when it came to things like that. Emma didn't trust Ross at all and she never would.

"We trusted that you were responsible enough to keep watch of these two highly dangerous individuals because of your support of the accords which we're all grateful for. Believe me when I say how much your support means to us…all of your support." Ross said as he glanced at Vision and Rhodey too but pointedly ignored Emma. She rolled her eyes at him because as much as he bragged about being a decorated war hero, he was still a politician underneath. He just had to show everyone how much of a suck up he was. "However, you've crossed a line. These people have warrants out for their arrests. Offering them aid is treason."

"Secretary Ross, I think the current circumstance is more important than the accords. We're talking about Hydra here. We're not talking about just any terrorist organization." Fury told the older man who just scoffed at him.

"Oh, how could I forget about you, Nick. A man who miraculously rose from the dead." Ross said before rolling his eyes and Emma could tell Fury was really struggling not to cuss the man out. Emma had to admire his self-control and ability to remain diplomatic with people like Ross.

"I've been a lot of things in my life. Being dead is just one of many things." Fury said shortly before continuing. "Hydra isn't a threat we can ignore when convenient. Hydra doesn't like to be ignored. The Avengers' Facility is in a sad and almost laughable state so we're gonna need all the help we can get."

"Rogers and his followers made their decision the day they refused to sign. They made their choice, the wrong one, and they'll have to live with the consequences." Ross retorted, and Emma looked up at the older man with a blank look on her face.

"You speak like you know from experience, Ross. Why is that?" Emma inquired although it was obvious that Emma knew exactly why that was. Ross just stared at her in shock. "Have you made many wrong decisions yourself? Please share. We're all so very curious." Peter looked between his girlfriend and the Secretary of State curiously. He thought he remembered Emma mentioning how she blackmailed Ross once and he wondered if this was what she had been referring to.

"Okay, let's cool it with the blackmail and arrest threats." Rhodey said to both Emma and Ross as he tried to bring some peace to this discussion. It was clear that the meeting was about to take a very ugly turn if he didn't intervene. "I have to say I'm on Tony's on this one, Mr. Secretary. You haven't seen the full entire state of the place. It's really bad and Fury's right. We need all the help we can get."

"I'm in agreement with the others as well." Vision said quietly from beside Rhodey. He didn't often speak up, but he chose to show his support in this decision. "I think it would be wise if we called for a truce for the time being. The Captain and the others will offer their aide and in return there will be no arrests. There's been truces like these formed in the past during times of war. I don't think we're asking the impossible."

"I don't need a lecture from you, Spock." Ross said annoyance although he was slowly starting to realize that the Avengers that used to be on his side no longer were. Even Rhodey who had admired him in the past didn't seem to care too much about the accords at the moment.

"So what?" Ross questioned as he looked around at all of them. "You've sent for the world's most wanted criminals on a stolen Quinjet to come to the rescue." Emma wanted to roll her eyes again. It's not like her grandfather had stolen the government's property. The Quinjets belonged to Tony who didn't really make it that big of a deal. Emma stole shit from Tony all the time and he didn't even care.

"You know, they're only criminals because you've chosen to call them that right, Sir?" Rhodey pointed out as Ross groaned in frustration.

"My god, Rhodes, your talent for horse shit rivals mine." Ross complained and Rhodey ignored him as he continued to try and diplomatically get Ross to see his point, but Emma knew that would never happen. Ross would never admit how much the Sokovia Accords had failed. He had too much stubbornness and pride to admit that.

"If it wasn't for the accords then the other Avengers would've been right here during the attack. Hydra wouldn't even have been able to infiltrate the compound." Rhodey told him logically. "Hell, they might not have attacked the base in the first place if everyone was here. Hydra knew we were understaffed. They attacked us when we were at our most vulnerable."

"Rhodey's right." Tony said after being quiet for a majority of the meeting. It seemed like he was still working through a lot of things in his mind in regards to the others' return.

"The Sokovia Accords were intended to make the world a safer place but all it's done so far is to jeopardize everyone's safety." Tony told Ross honestly as he realized some of the mistakes he made when it came to the accords. He never meant for everything to end up the way it had. Tony had only been trying to protect the world but in the process, he ended up putting it more at risk.

"If the accords prevent us from protecting the world from bad guys then what's the point?" Tony finally stated, and it became obvious to Emma that Ross didn't like what was going on. Why would he? His whole idea was going up in flames.

"I remember all of your signatures on those papers…each one of you." Ross said coldly but it was clear he wasn't referring to Emma and Peter. He was looking at Tony, Vision, Rhodey, and Maria who he expected to look guilty or ashamed but none of them did. They knew that the accords weren't working out in this situation, so they were doing what was right by asking for help when it was needed. They weren't being blinded by their pride like Ross was.

"That's right…and I'm pretty sure I paid for that. I'm pretty sure we all did." Rhodey said as he walked closer to Ross's hologram. The paralyzed man had a strong look on his face, making it clear to Ross that he wasn't about to back down from this. Tony, Vision, Fury, Maria, Peter, and Emma also had similar looks on their faces. There wasn't a single person physically in this room that was willing to back down. Ross was just going to have to deal with it or arrest them like he always threatened to do. Emma would like to see the old man try.

"And you're having second thoughts?" Ross questioned as he looked back at the four who had signed the accords in the first place. Tony stared back at the older man defiantly.

"Not anymore." He told him firmly. Ross looked like was about to respond, however, he never got the chance as the doors to the lab slid open. It was almost something like a dream when Steve and the others finally walked in. Emma was almost surprised that she hadn't heard them coming or smelled Steve's familiar scent, but she had been distracted, after all. Emma had missed the others as well, but it was Steve who her eyes remained locked onto as he entered the room with the same commanding presence he always had.

At least that was one thing that hadn't changed.

The first thing Emma noticed about him was the beard he had on his face. The very sight of the beard caused her eyes to widen because Emma never recalled him ever going a day or two without shaving. He was the most clean shaven and well kept person she knew. The second thing she noticed was how different his Captain America suit looked. All the stars had been colored in with black sharpie which was highly logical. He had been on the run for the past year, so it made sense that he would try to fly more under radar and especially with the beard too. The suit also looked very worn which didn't surprise Emma either. They hadn't exactly had Tony Stark to give them upgrades on their equipment, after all. Even with all the differences, Emma knew that Steve still looked like Steve to her. Emma couldn't feel more delighted or ecstatic at the sight of him. The smile that made its way onto her face couldn't be helped as she had the sudden urge to run at him and ambush him with a hug.

It had been so long…too long even.

Steve Rogers wasn't entirely sure how he felt when Tony had called him up just a few hours before and asked for his help. He had been worried at first because Tony mentioned that Emma was in trouble, but he had also been happy to be reunited with her at the same time. A year was just too long of a time to spend away from Emma. Especially since he had missed the first thirteen years of her life. He never planned on missing another, but some things were beyond his control.

Even Captain America couldn't control everything as it would seem.

He and the others had been sent a debriefing file on the way back to the Avenger's Facility, so everyone was fairly aware of what was going on with Hydra. There was still a lot of things Steve had questions about, but he expected that the others at the compound could answer them. Steve had been quiet the whole entire ride back to the compound and no one even tried to bother him. It wasn't unlike Steve to be quiet these days. There was a certain sadness he lived in ever since he had been forced to leave Emma behind. That sadness only seemed to increase when Bucky volunteered himself to be placed inside the Cyro-Chamber again. The only brief instances of happiness he had was whenever he saw the Viper Assassin on the news. Of course, Steve was worried out of his mind for Emma and not exactly very approving of her crime fighting but at the same time he was glad to see her even if it was only on TV.

Steve had spent the past four hours eagerly anticipating his reunion with Emma, but nothing could've ever prepared him for the moment he walked into Tony's lab and saw her standing there, staring back at him. He didn't know what he had expected when he saw her again, but Steve was still surprised. Was she this tall when he had last seen her? Was she this beautiful? Steve wasn't sure, but he thought she looked older to him than she ever had before. Sixteen, he reminded himself. She was sixteen now and just two years closer to becoming an adult…a woman. Steve's ocean blue eyes locked onto her identical ones and he so desperately wanted to embrace her…to hold her. He wanted to hold her and never let her go as he apologized over and over again for leaving her alone in the first place. Steve hoped that she could forgive him or at least understand why he did it. It then took everything in Steve's power to finally look away from her and focus on Ross as he remained professional in this difficult circumstance. Steve swallowed hard as he put his own personal feelings to the side. He couldn't allow himself to get emotionally compromised right now. Not when Emma's life was in danger like this.

"Mr. Secretary." Steve said as he locked eyes with Ross's holographic form. Sam, Natasha, Wanda, and Clint all stood behind him loyally as Steve spoke to the older looking man. There were some differences in the other Avengers as well. Sam had grown a beard as well while Natasha had died her hair platinum blonde, a shade that was even blonder than Emma's own hair. Clint had a different haircut going on and although you wouldn't know it unless you talked to her, Wanda had managed to change her otherwise distinct Sokovian accent into a more American and generic one. Although all the Avengers had come back from their previous lives on the run, it was clear that they had seen their fair amount of hardships while they were away. There wasn't a single one of them that didn't look exhausted or worn down.

"You've got some nerve. I'll give you that." Ross muttered as he glared hatefully at all five of them.

"You could use some of that right now." Natasha said smugly as she smirked at the former colonel. It seemed like she was delighted at causing Ross so much stress and grief. At least everyone knew that Natasha hadn't changed much. Natasha Romanoff had always taken great delight in messing with people's sanity. That was something Emma and Natasha had always had in common.

"The world's on fire…and you think all's forgiven?" Ross questioned as he sneered at them. Emma usually would've told Ross to fuck off but she was so lost in the presence that was her grandfather that Loki could've fallen out of the sky and kidnapped Tony, yet Emma still wouldn't have been able to snap out of this happy state she was in.

"I'm not looking for forgiveness." Steve stated coolly as he maintained a stoic expression on his face. It was clear to everyone that he was in full Captain mood in this moment. "And I'm way past asking for permission."

"Hydra just attacked the facility and that's only just the beginning." Steve told him, carefully maintaining his usual calm and rational demeanor. "They'll be back for more soon enough. There's no telling what they have planned but when they make the next move you'll be glad that you had eight Avengers instead of three." Steve briefly paused as Ross watched him silently.

"Hydra almost managed to win last night so we're here to fight." Steve said firmly, and it was clear that he wasn't about to let Ross tell him what he could or couldn't do. He had never believed in the accords, after all.

"If you want to fight us then we'll fight you too." Ross stared at Steve in complete silence for a minute or two and you could hear a pin drop in the room. It was clear that the Secretary of State wasn't amused by Steve's return or his continued defiance. The former colonel then gritted his teeth as he looked over at Tony and Rhodey who had been remarkably quiet this whole time. Both them still in a state of surprise over seeing their friends again after so long.

"Arrest them." Ross ordered, thinking that any one of them would still even listen to him after his continued ignorance.

"Yup. All over it." Tony said and although it was clear to everyone in the room that Tony was only humoring Ross, Tony's sarcasm seemed to go over Ross's head. The billionaire then ended the transmission. Ross subsequently disappeared from the room along with all the other UN members. But no one really complained about the absence of the Secretary of State.

"That's a court martial." Rhodey said light heartedly as he grinned at all the other Avengers. "It's great to see you, Cap."

"You too, Rhodey." Steve said shortly although his gaze was entirely locked onto Emma who stared back at him. The Captain was only half paying attention to all the others as he took in the sight of his granddaughter. The distinguished colonel then walked over to give Steve a quick, friendly hug.

"I'll just get out of the way now. I think there's someone here that would probably murder me if I stand in their way too long." Rhodey said as he then let go of Steve to give both him and Emma some room. Everyone watched in complete and utter silence as the granddaughter and grandfather reunited for the first time in over a year. Emma swallowed hard as she slowly walked over to Steve who allowed a small smile to come over his face as he watched her. It was almost like she was unsure of how to approach him. A part of her still felt like this was some dream that would abruptly end before she even got the chance to hug him.

"Steve…" Emma trailed off as she walked closer to him. Steve could feel himself begin to become emotional over the sight of her. He hadn't realized how much he missed her until she was right there in front of him again.

"I'm sorry I missed your birthday." Steve joked weakly and it was then that Emma wasn't able to hold herself back anymore. She never liked anyone seeing her in a emotional state but she no longer cared. He had been away for far too long for her to care about that anymore.

Emma immediately ran at him and attacked him with a hug. Unlike Peter, however, he was able to hold his ground as she hugged him but mostly because he was used to Emma's unpredictable nature at this point. He was her own flesh and blood, after all. Steve chuckled as he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close in his arms. The super soldier just stood there quietly for a moment as he took in the warmth of her in his arms again as well as the familiar scent of her shampoo. Emma also took note of his familiar scent among other things as she tried to memorize everything about him. She hadn't taken the time to do that before because she had taken him for granted but Emma swore she would never do that again.

The others watched in silence with similar smiles on their faces as they watched the two reunite. There was seldom anything that gave anyone any happiness these days, but they were glad to see the Captain happy again. It had been a long time. Even Sam seemed to be shedding a few tears as he watched his best friend and his best friend's granddaughter hug each other. Rhodey gave his friend a look of disbelief although he looked mostly amused.

"Are you actually crying, man?" Rhodey asked him and Sam furiously wiped the tears from his face as he blushed.

"They're both happy and it's beautiful. What's so wrong with that?" Sam said as he sniffled. Rhodey just shook his head as he chuckled.

"Nothing…absolutely nothing." Rhodey told him as he continued to smile at the pair. Emma buried her face in Steve's neck as she clung onto him for life. She was afraid that if she let him go, he'd disappear again somehow. Emma wasn't willing to let that happen.

"Steve…I-I've-" Emma then stopped because she was at a complete loss for words. Steve just rubbed her back soothingly as he held her.

"I know, Emma. I know. I've missed you too." Steve told her softly and Emma didn't even try to stop the tears from falling down her face as she stood there with Steve. There was so much she wanted to say to him, but she didn't even know where to begin. Well, maybe they would have a lot of time now that he was there. Emma pulled away from him so that she could look up at his face. Despite being away from him so long, she could still see the same gentleness he always had about him.

"I really have missed you, you know." Emma told him quietly and Steve nodded. "I got your present too…the one you sent me."

"You did?" Steve inquired with an amused smile on his face. Emma nodded as she smiled at him through the tears.

"Yes, I loved it. You know me so well." Emma told him, and Steve just wiped the tears from her face as he gazed down at her.

"Sam wanted me to get you a wooden fan or one of those porcelain dolls, but I knew that wasn't you." Steve remarked, and Emma loved that he knew her that well. He might've never completely understood her, but he still knew her. Emma then gave him an amused smile as she gently ran her fingers through his beard.

"What's this thing on your face?" Emma asked, and Steve gave her a confused look before he realized what she was talking about. He just laughed at her reaction to his beard.

"It was necessary. We were on the run, after all." Steve told her, and Emma laughed with him too, sounding quite happy and content to be able to tease him again like she always used to.

"You look like a pirate." Emma told him, and Steve shrugged but he still smiled down at her.

"I don't know. I think I like it." Steven joked, and Emma feigned a disgusted look but she honestly didn't care about the beard. She was just happy to have him back.

"Please never leave me alone with Tony again. I almost murdered him, Steve." Emma said jokingly but her voice seemed to contain no amount of disdain or anger as she mentioned Tony. It was something that only Natasha and Clint seemed to notice but Steve became too distracted at Tony's name for her change of voice to occur to him.

Steve then glanced up and for the first time since arriving he seemed to really notice Tony. The billionaire had remained quiet during the exchange between Emma and Steve but now it seemed like he was no longer able to avoid Steve's attention. The both of them stared at each other silently with the memory of their last encounter flashing through both of their minds. What happened in Siberia was possibly the most difficult thing to ever forget. A lot of things had been done and a lot of things had been said. None of which could really be taken back but the fact that the two of them were standing here at all was a sign that maybe…just maybe…they could find a way to get along. For Emma if no one else.

"Tony." Steve greeted but his voice was much quieter than when he had talked to Emma. Emma watched the two carefully as she tried assessing whether or not they were going to kill each other.

"Cap." Tony said just as quietly but the two of them didn't really seem to say much beyond that. What else could they even say in a situation like this one?

"This is awkward." Sam remarked before smirking and learning over to Clint. "Or should I say Hawkward." Clint just glared at the man before shaking his head.

"Shut up, Wilson." Clint muttered, and he honestly wondered how he had spent this long away from home. It was really a miracle. Rhodey then cleared his throat awkwardly as he tried to cut some of the tension out of the room. Everyone knew this wasn't going to be easy but Rhodey honestly didn't think things would be this weird.

"You guys really look like crap." Rhodey told them as he tried to lighten the mood. "Must've been a rough year." Sam just shrugged.

"Yeah, well, the hotels weren't exactly five-star." Sam retorted, and Natasha smirked as she crossed her arms.

"Well, you guys seem to be doing less than well. I really love what you've done with the place, Stark. Your redecorating skills are phenomenal." Natasha said sarcastically and even Tony couldn't resist to smirk back at her despite the tension in the room.

"I just thought I'd try out a few new things. Knocking down some walls…maybe a new color scheme while we're at it." Tony quipped.

"I happen to think everyone looks more than well." Vision said quietly as he gazed at Wanda with an expression of what almost seemed like endearment. Wanda smiled back at him, something else in her eyes.

"Hey, Vis." Wanda said happily, and Vision returned her smile.

"Wanda." He said softly, and Emma wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"Excuse me while I go barf." Emma muttered as she tried to keep her food down while looking at the witch and the android. Steve gave her an amused smile. Maybe Emma wasn't so different after all, Steve thought to himself. However, it was then a certain someone made his presence known to the other Avengers.

Peter had been remarkably quiet during the whole reunion. It was mostly because he didn't want to interrupt Emma and her grandfather's reunion but also because he felt shy and nervous. These were the rest of the Avengers he was talking about it, after all. Peter had only gotten to know three Avengers on a personal level. The five other ones seemed intimidating to him, but he was also in awe of them. There were about five million questions that he wanted to ask them but he knew now wasn't the time for that. Maybe he would have time later to admire the Scarlet Witch's weird but unique abilities or to somehow convince the Falcon to let him borrow his wings. For now, he had much more on his mind.

Peter had been staring at Captain America for the past several minutes in complete awe and disbelief. Surprisingly enough, it wasn't even because he was Captain America. When Peter was a little kid, all he imagined was what it would be like to meet Captain America and Iron Man. When Peter had met Tony, he hadn't been nearly as smooth as he thought he would be, but meeting Captain America was different. Peter felt overwhelmingly nervous, but it wasn't because he was meeting Captain America. No. It was because he was meeting Emma's grandfather for the first time. Was this how most boyfriends felt when they met their girlfriend's family? Peter didn't know.

However, Peter was just happy that her grandfather was here now. He had seen how happy she had been to be reunited with him. A smile graced his face from the clear happiness on Emma's face from finally being in her grandfather's arms. She was happy, and it was everything and more Peter had hoped for. From the minute Captain America walked into the room, Peter kept his gaze on Emma as he admired her happiness. She was so beautiful when she was happy. Well, she was always beautiful, but it made Peter happy to see her happy. He knew he was right in convincing Tony to bring them back. Not just to stop Hydra but for Emma to have more support and comfort than what Peter could provide for her. Her grandfather was just what she needed.

"Uh…hi. I'm Peter." Peter said nervously as he approached Steve. It wasn't until then that Steve and the others noticed the teenage boy. The room grew quiet as Steve looked away from Emma to look down at Peter. Peter gulped but tried to remain calm as he introduced himself to his girlfriend's grandfather. He had to remind himself to take deep breaths.

"I-I mean Parker Peter. No, I'm Peter Parker…Sir." Peter stammered as he tried to get the words out. Emma smirked at his nervousness. A nervous and scared Peter was always adorable to her.

Steve stared down at the teenage boy with an expression of both curiosity and confusion. The boy couldn't have been any older than Emma, but he was perhaps the most nervous looking person Steve had ever seen. The boy was a few inches shorter than him, so Steve had to look down at him. His brown eyes seemed wide with some inexplainable emotion and his brown hair seemed slightly disheveled. That voice, Steve thought to himself as he tried to think. Where had he heard that voice before?

"Steve." Steve introduced politely although he still sounded unsure of what to make of the boy. The Avengers who were more than aware of Emma and Peter's relationship watched the interaction between the two curiously. Even Tony had to hide a smirk at the sight of a near trembling Peter Parker. Too bad Darcy wasn't here to get this all on camera. The Avengers, that weren't aware of Emma's relationship with the teenage boy, seemed just as confused as Steve.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Captain." Peter said as cordially as he could as he reached out and grabbed Steve's hand to shake. A goofy smile then came over Peter's face as he was now close enough to get a really good look at Steve Rogers. He had seen him at the airport all that time ago when they fought against each other, but Steve's mask had obscured much of his face then. However, now Peter could see how much alike him, and Emma looked. The same blonde hair, similar jawline, tall height, and most of all they shared the same exact eye color. Steve had the same ocean blue eyes with small flecks of green hidden in their depths as Emma had. It was Peter's favorite feature about Emma and now he knew exactly where she had gotten her eyes from. Peter couldn't help but feel in awe at the fact that he was standing in front of someone who looked so much like Emma.

"You too." Steve mumbled although he still looked immensely confused at the sight of the teenager. He looked at Tony, Rhodey, Fury, Maria, and Vision questioningly but none of them seemed to be paying attention. They seemed abnormally quiet. "I'm sorry…who are you?" Peter blushed.

"I'm Peter." He repeated before elaborating a little more. "We actually technically already met but I wouldn't expect you to remember me or anything." Steve still looked confused, so Peter continued to explain himself to the Avenger.

"At the airport last year. Remember?" Peter said as he smiled sheepishly at Emma's grandfather.

"I'm Queens and you're Brooklyn." Steve's eyes widened in realization as he looked at the teenage boy. It seemed like that was all it took for Steve to remember him as he stared at the boy in disbelief. Emma bit her lip as she looked between her grandfather and boyfriend. A part of her was terrified that the meeting wouldn't go as well as she hoped. Steve didn't know Peter was her boyfriend, but she still really wanted him to like Peter.

"You!" Sam exclaimed as he stared at Peter in surprise. "You're that little idiot in spandex that shot that gross stuff at Barnes and I. What's your name? Spider-Kid or something?" Peter tried not to glare at the Avenger known as Falcon because he knew how much Emma liked the man. He was still offended by what Sam Wilson said, however.

"I-I'm Spider-Man." Peter tried to say confidently but it didn't come out the way he hoped. His voice kind of broke half way through. Sam smirked at the kid while all the others watched on in amusement.

"Spider-Man? What are you like twelve or something?" Sam questioned, and Emma had to force herself not to laugh at Sam. She had really missed him too…more than she realized. "Kid, I hate to break it to you but you don't look you've even hit puberty yet." This time Peter really did glare at the man.

"I'll have you know that I'm sixteen. Sixteen!" Peter argued, and Emma could tell that Sam had bruised Peter's ego which was very sensitive. Emma kind of wanted to go over there and hug her little Spider-Twerp comfortingly, telling him that at least she knew how much of a man he was. But she also knew that the very idea of that was impossible. As much as she wanted to tell Steve all about her and Peter, now was not the time. Steve chuckled at the sight of the offended looking teenage boy.

"Like I said before…you have heart, kid." Steve told him honestly and the angry look on Peter's face faded. What did that mean? Did that mean Steve liked him? Peter didn't know. He didn't think they had been acquainted long enough for Steve to approve of him. What did winning Captain America's approval even look like?

"What the hell are you even doing here?" Sam questioned as he narrowed his eyes at the kid. "I thought Em kicked your ass all over that runway."

"Oh, how I've missed you Sam. It's been too long." Emma said as she smiled at her grandfather's best friend who grinned back at her.

"Emma Rogers actually missing someone. Who knew?" Sam teased, and it was Clint that brought the conversation back to Peter.

"I'm with Sam on this one. What's this kid doing here, Tony?" Clint asked as he looked suspiciously at the teenage boy who only blushed in response. Steve momentarily nodded in agreement with Clint. He was barely okay with Emma being involved in this and the Hydra thing happened to concern her, after all. He wasn't sure how felt about another child being involved in this. Especially since this was someone else's child and not his.

"I'm Emma's…" Peter stopped himself before he said what Emma really was to him. Not only would he cause a panic if he brought his and Emma's real relationship up, but Emma would probably be mad at him if he blurted out that he was her boyfriend. "Friend. I'm Emma's friend. I want to help out if I can."

Everyone raised their eyebrows in surprise at the teenage boy's answer. Tony, Rhodey, Vision, and Maria raised their eyebrows because they were surprised that Peter didn't introduce himself as Emma's boyfriend. Everyone, especially Tony, was dying to see Steve's reaction to Emma having a boyfriend but Peter said no such thing. The rest of everyone else raised their eyebrows in surprise because they were shocked at the idea that Emma had a friend or at least a friend that was her own age. It was no secret that Emma had trouble getting along with people. Especially since Emma had always complained about how much she hated kids her own age in the past.

"You have a friend?" Natasha said to Emma as she gave her an amused look. Emma scoffed.

"What? I can't have a friend?" Emma retorted as she playfully elbowed Peter in the ribs, a wide smile on her face. "Some people, like Peter, happen to find my personality very warm and friendly."

The Avengers, who had been missing for so long, stared at Emma like she was some strange, alien creature. Was Emma actually trying to make a joke? Emma had joked around in the past but usually only around Steve or Natasha. Usually she was very serious and bitter. The sight of Emma casually making a light hearted joke was odd…very odd. There were also the times she teased Tony but that was meant to be mean rather than funny. Natasha looked at the blonde suspiciously because this was something she had seen a bit of before. She had seen a slightly more carefree Emma back when she visited her in D.C. all those months ago, but this was still different. Steve stared down at his granddaughter as he tried to analyze the expression on her face. Now that he thought about it there was something different about Emma now that he was looking at her. He just couldn't put his finger on it.

"Warm and friendly are the last words I would use to describe you." Sam teased, and Emma smiled at him. Steve admired the way that her smile seemed to actually reach her eyes. Those kinds of smiles were always rare in the past.

"Thanks a lot." Emma muttered as she rolled her eyes at Sam. Steve's fascination with Emma's odd behavior then faded as he looked back at the teenage boy named Peter. It concerned him that another kid was involved in this. Emma being involved in this was bad enough, but she was his responsibility. Who was responsible for this boy? Where were his parents? They honestly couldn't be okay with their son hanging out with superheroes.

"You said your name's Peter, right?" Steve said as he glanced at the kid who eagerly nodded. Peter was touched that Captain America even remembered his name. Seven-year-old Peter would've been losing his mind right now.

"Y-Yes um…Captain. Peter's my uh…name." Peter said awkwardly, and Emma resisted the urge to laugh at him. She couldn't believe he was actually being so formal with Steve. Steve smiled at the teenage boy.

"That's okay. You can just call me Steve." Emma's grandfather informed him politely before the smile faded as he moved onto more serious matters. "I'm just a little bit confused as to what you're doing here, Peter. This is a very dangerous situation. Do your parents know that you're here?" Emma wanted to roll her eyes at the way Steve talked to Peter. He really sounded like the old man he actually was. Steve might've as well of started calling Peter "young man" at this rate.

"My parents are dead." Peter said quietly. "But my Aunt May knows I'm here though. It was kind of tough getting her used to the idea of all of this, but Emma convinced her that I would be okay. She's really good at convincing people to do things." Steve looked very sympathetic as Peter mentioned his dead parents, but he nodded nevertheless.

"She's always been good at that." Steve said softly as he glanced at Emma affectionately before looking back at Peter. "And I'm sorry about your parents by the way."

"It's okay. It happened a long time ago, Captain-I mean Steve." Peter said, blushing as he realized that he had almost called him Captain. Steve smiled at him in amusement before Tony stepped in from there.

"I've been keeping an eye on the kid for the past year. Same with Emma. They're both good kids." Tony told him seriously and Steve took a moment to respond as he tried to think of what he should say to Tony. There was still a certain amount of awkwardness in the air, but they were just going to have to get over it.

"Thank you for that…for taking care of her, I mean. I really am grateful." Steve said quietly, and Tony nodded as he shrugged.

"It's not a problem. Mini Cap isn't so bad and we kind of like each other now." Tony said as he looked back at Emma and winked. Emma scoffed as she crossed her arms.

"Says you. You're still a huge nuisance to me, Tony." Emma said bitterly but mostly just to keep up appearances. She didn't really think Tony was all that bad although she would deny that if anyone asked her. Steve and the others didn't miss the way she called the eccentric billionaire Tony instead of Stark or asshole. She then glanced at Steve.

"Steve, Peter's more than capable of lending a helping hand in this. Believe me." Emma told him sincerely and she knew he didn't like the idea of kids being involved in this, but she rarely thought of her and Peter as children. "We both held our own really well last night. Especially Peter."

"Emma's right. I know you don't know me but Emma's my…friend and I want to help." Peter said, nearly stumbling over the word "friend" again. Ugh! What was wrong with him?

Tony smirked once more at the kid's nervousness. At this point he figured out that Mini Cap and the kid probably decided to hold off on telling Cap about their relationship. He didn't blame them either. There was way too much going on right now. They needed to deal with one thing at a time. However, Tony still couldn't resist putting his two cents in.

"Yeah, Mini Cap and the kid are very good friends." Tony quipped, and the others gave Tony an odd look at his weird statement before placing their focus back on Peter.

Natasha was perhaps the only person who found Tony's suggestive tone suspicious. She gave Tony a curious look before glancing over at Emma for her reaction and it seemed like she wasn't disappointed. Emma was glaring at Tony as though Tony had done something to piss her off. Something was definitely weird about all of this. What was going on around here? By the warning looks the others gave Tony she could also tell that they knew something that the rest of them didn't. Well, this was interesting.

"Emma and I aren't inexperienced. We've been fighting crime for the past several months and we even took down the Vulture together." Peter told Steve pointedly and Emma nodded in agreement.

"Hydra attacked him last night too, Steve. Peter's just as involved in all of this as I am." Emma told Steve seriously. "Besides…I'd rather him be here with us than to go home. He's safer this way."

This time, however, everyone did seem to find something very odd about Emma. Clint and Sam exchanged a look before glancing at Emma, wondering if some kind of demon or alien had taken over her body in the time they were gone. Wanda also seemed mystified by Emma's behavior although she knew better than to look inside the blonde's head again. Natasha just raised her eyebrow at her while Steve gave her a slightly concerned look. Steve was wondering if maybe Emma was sick or something. Emma swallowed hard as she then bit the inside of her cheek to stop from blushing. She was starting to think that she might've said too much.

"Because we're friends and you know…friends are supposed to care about each other's safety. Right, Clint? You care about Natasha's safety, don't you?" Emma asked the archer who seemed even more weirded out by the blonde's odd behavior. He had been happy to see her at first and happy to see that she was in good health but now he was starting to worry about her. Clint had always noticed that she always acted more like her father than her mother but now Emma seemed to be acting more like Margot which worried him.

"Uh…I guess." Clint said awkwardly. In one corner of the room Tony and Rhodey were struggling to stifle their laughter which once again did not escape Natasha's notice.

"Emma's right, Cap." Tony said seriously once he sobered up from his laughter. "The kid's alright. I've taken him under my wing and he's more than capable of taking care of himself." Steve still didn't seem to like it, but he decided not to argue anymore with them on it. Emma had a point. Hydra had attacked everyone last night, so the teenage boy had a right to help out. Steve just nodded but didn't say anything at first. He probably could've gone out of his way to argue with them, but Steve didn't have it in him. He just wanted to appreciate the fact that Emma was standing next to him again after so long. When he didn't say anything, Nick Fury decided to make his presence known. He had remained quiet during the whole exchange but mostly because he wanted to ensure that Tony and Steve weren't about to kill each other. Maria filled him in on some of what happened last year, so he wasn't going risk something like that.

"Right…now that we're all acquainted, why don't we start talking business?" Nick said, and everyone turned their attention to the quiet but serious former Shield director. Peter felt a little intimidated by the older man, but he assumed it was because Nick Fury had an eyepatch. Everyone who had an eyepatch was a badass. That was a well-known fact although he was sure that someone like Natasha Romanoff didn't need an eyepatch to be a badass. Peter wasn't going to lie. He might've been a little bit afraid of the Black Widow. There was probably a reason she got that name. Ned always argued that Emma was probably just as scary as the Black Widow, but Peter didn't think so. Emma was…Emma. She wasn't like that.

"We read the debriefing file you sent us on the way here." Steve said as he nodded in agreement with Fury. "We know about the Hydra attack in Oklahoma City as well as the one here last night. What else do you know about Hydra?"

"They made an appearance several months ago here in New York." Rhodey answered as the conversation then became serious. "A man by the name of Volkov made it his mission to get Emma's attention." Emma sighed heavily as everyone's attention turned to her.

"He was one of the guards at Hydra. I didn't know him that well, only in passing." Emma told them quietly. "He posed as a thief that Peter and I were trying to apprehend. Volkov revealed his true identity before killing his partner and then himself. He said Hydra wanted me back. This was back in November." Peter then felt inclined to mention another incident.

"There was also the time back in January when we caught those weapon dealers." Peter mentioned, and everyone stared at the teenage boy who blushed at the attention before continuing. "There were these ATM robbers that Emma and I were familiar with. They were known buyers of the Vulture's weapons. We had a stake out to catch them in the act in hopes of retrieving their weapons, but they had already sold them."

"They claimed their buyer was Rumlow." Emma added, and everyone stiffened at the name. Peter felt a spike of hatred come over him at the name as well. Every time he heard that name, it made him mad. "Apparently Rumlow knew we were looking for the weapons. He had those idiots send us a message."

"So we know Rumlow has those weapons from Toomes now, right?" Steve stated. He was very familiar with the name after hearing about how the Viper Assassin and Spider-Man had taken the weapons dealer down on the news. Steve didn't like the idea of Emma out there crime fighting but he figured that this was just something he was going to have to deal with.

"Powered by Chitauri technology, right?" Clint inquired, and Emma nodded. Maria then took it from there.

"After Toomes was arrested we started making it a priority to track down and arrest everyone he ever sold those weapons to. We've managed to retrieve a lot, but we can't be sure we've found all the weapons." Maria explained, and Natasha raised an eyebrow.

"But those weapons Rumlow bought from ATM robbers couldn't be the ones used in the attack in Oklahoma and here. The Chitauri weaponry couldn't do the same amount of damage." Natasha told them, and it was then that Tony brought something up on the holographic screen. He used his Stark Industries designed watch to control the screen as he brought up the information.

"McConaughey finally finished doing the tests on the weapons we confiscated from the apprehended Hydra agents here last night." Tony explained as the screen started displaying all kinds of numbers and info. "There was a positive match."

"A positive match to what?" Steve asked, and Tony swallowed hard.

"There was a positive match from these weapons to the ones used in Hydra back in your time, Cap." Tony informed him, and Steve's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Everyone's eyes widened in shock and even Emma felt horrified by this new information as she began to connect the dots. Emma didn't know what this meant. What weapons?

"You mean the weapons powered by the Tesseract? Are you saying that these weapons Hydra has now are powered by the Tesseract too?" Steve asked as he shook his head in disbelief. It was then that Emma began to realize just how bad this was. She tried to think if she ever remembered Hydra experimenting with the Tesseract but she couldn't recall. Emma remembered them experimenting with Chitauri and Dark Elf technology but that was it. She knew for a fact that they experimented with Loki's scepter, but Emma wasn't sure beyond that. "How is that even possible? Thor took the Tesseract to Asgard. It's not even on this planet anymore."

"But the Tesseract was here for almost seventy years before Thor took it away." Emma said quietly, and everyone looked at Emma in a new light. She hesitantly looked up at all of them as she decided to tread very carefully over what she said next. "Hydra was in Shield for all that time too. Couldn't someone have taken the Tesseract and used it to make weapons? No one would've known the difference."

"It's very possible." Fury stated as he considered what Emma said. Shield wanted to use the Tesseract to make weapons, after all, so why couldn't Hydra have done the same. "Someone high ranking would've had to of taken the Tesseract and then erase all evidence of them doing so."

"Who, besides you, could've done that?" Sam questioned, and Fury gritted his teeth.

"I sure as hell didn't do it but a deputy director could've done it." Fury said as everyone collectively looked at Maria. "Maria's out on that one and the only one I had before her was Steven Rogers Jr. and I know for a fact that he never did it. That only leaves one person."

"Who's that?" Peter inquired curiously, and Fury had a grim look on his face.

"Alexander Pierce." Fury answered, and everyone grew very quiet when they heard that name. Emma clenched her jaw at the mention of her, thankfully, dead grandfather. The one who she hated almost as much as Rumlow. Peter looked at Emma from the corner of his eye and he desperately wanted to hold onto her hand to comfort her, but he knew that wasn't an option right now.

"Pierce could've taken the Tesseract out of our high security vault and placed it at one of the Hydra bases." Maria observed aloud. "He could've returned it before anyone ever noticed."

"Like a fucking library book." Fury grumbled. Steve gave him a pointed look for his language use with children in the room before Tony stepped in from there.

"We also know that these weapons are made from Vibranium as well. McConaughey managed to detect Vibranium and we know the weapons T'Challa confiscated from those weapon smugglers also contained Vibranium." Tony informed everyone. "We have a good idea how Hydra managed to use the Tesseract to power these weapons but where in the hell did they get the Vibranium?"

"Hydra's not getting the weapons from within Wakanda." Natasha told them seriously. "It would be almost impossible for them to invade Wakanda. Trust me. No one's getting inside Wakanda."

"What about Ulysses Klaue?" Wanda suggested, and Emma couldn't help but notice that Wanda's accent was almost gone. She supposed you had to lose a lot of things when you went on the run. "Ultron bought a lot of Vibranium from him and I'm sure he might've sold more before then."

"That's a solid theory." Fury stated, nodding his head in agreement with Wanda's suggestion. Emma had to agree with Maximoff there. It was well known that Ulysses Klaue had stolen a large amount of Vibranium from Wakanda and he was known to be the only outside source that had a supply of it. If Hydra was willing to spare a couple billion dollars then Klaue would've been very happy sell it to them just like how he sold Ultron all that Vibranium.

"Is there any word from Hello Kitty by the way?" Tony asked as he referred to the Wakandan king. Emma was also curious about that too. She was sure that if Vibranium was involved, T'Challa would surely want in on all this. Steve looked around at the teammates he had been on the run with for the past year before looking back at Tony and nodding.

"We got into contact with him on the way over here. He's already on his way and he's bringing his sister who's Wakanda's leading technological scientist. She might be able to help." Steve informed Tony and Emma raised her eyebrows at that. She was pretty sure T'Challa only had one sister and that happened to be Princess Shuri who was only her and Peter's age. If she was Wakanda's leading scientist, then she must've been at a genius level.

"What about Lang?" Emma inquired curiously because she noticed that the awkward man known as Ant-Man didn't seem to be here like she expected. "I thought he was on the run with you guys too." Steve sighed.

"Lang wanted to help but he was concerned about his daughter. He's currently trying to work out a plea agreement with the DA. We're thinking he might be under house arrest at the most." Steve explained, and Emma nodded in understanding. She didn't really know Scott that well so it's not like she expected him to come. Especially if he had a family to think about back home. Emma then shot a curious glance over at Clint.

Wait a minute.

Clint had a family to think about as well. Why wasn't he trying to work out a plea agreement with the DA like Scott was? Why was he here? However, Emma decided to put that thought to the side as she focused her attention back on the conversation at hand.

"That's fine. We were only down to three Avengers last night and now we have more than twice that, so I think we might be fine…for now." Emma said calmly, and Steve nodded before a more serious look came over his face. She gave him a curious look before she wondered what came over him all of a sudden that caused him to look like that.

"There's also one other thing we should mention." Steve said solemnly as he glanced over at the others before his eyes finally landed on Tony's face. He wasn't sure how the billionaire was going to take this. "T'Challa's bringing Bucky with him."

The room was so silent after Steve mentioned the fact that Bucky was joining them. Fury looked unbothered by the statement while Rhodey and Maria exchanged uncomfortable looks. Vision was too busy staring at Wanda to notice much else and Tony was very tense. Emma was perhaps the only one to look incredibly excited at the news. She was oblivious to Tony's obvious sign of discomfort as her eyes lit up with happiness and a smile came over her face. Peter smiled himself at the way she reacted to the news, excitement and fear washing over him at the realization that he was finally going to meet Emma's dad.

"Really?" Emma asked softly as she looked at Steve excitedly. "Papa's coming? For real this time?" Steve looked away from Tony and glanced down at his happy granddaughter. He smiled softly at her.

"Yes, he's on the plane with T'Challa as we speak. He's been out of the Cyro-Chamber for a couple months now." Steve informed her as Emma hung onto his every word. "According to T'Challa he's been doing really great now. I guess we have Shuri to thank for that. She was able to erase Hydra's brainwashing." Emma frowned when she heard the last part although she was happy to hear that her father was doing good.

"Erase? Do you think he still remembers me?" Emma asked him, and Steve nodded.

"T'Challa said he asks about you every day." Steve told her, and Emma smiled in return. She couldn't believe this. Not only did she have Steve back, but she was also going to get her father back too. It felt like it had been years since she had seen them both but in reality, it was just one year. Emma never thought she could have everyone back in her life at the same time, but it was happening. Her father, Steve, and Peter were all going to be with her and Emma couldn't be happier. It suddenly didn't matter if Hydra was back with a vengeance because she knew she could get through this now that all of them were back.

Emma couldn't wait to see her father. She couldn't wait to tell him how much she missed him…how much she loved him. They were finally going to be together again after so long. Not to mention the fact that they were going to be fighting alongside each other again. Despite all the terrible things they had done together, Emma still cherished all the time she spent with her father on missions. All the fighting, killing, and sparring they had done made them closer. Maybe Emma could even somehow have convinced him to a sparring session in the training facility like the old days. He was always her favorite sparring partner out of all the others. Steve would never fight her, she had to be very careful with Clint, Maria was fragile too, Sam thought he had to be careful with her, and Natasha was great, but she never compared to her father. Peter was a close second but that was only because their sparring sessions were more on the sexual side…at least to her. Her father, however, was her favorite because he never went easy on her and he was the only opponent that was a challenge to her. Emma just hoped none of that would change.

"I think Bucky will be able to help out a lot in regards to the Hydra stuff. He might know something." Steve said carefully as he then glanced back at Tony. Emma was still lost in the thought of seeing her father again. She almost seemed to be on cloud nine. Peter tried to get her attention by smiling at her in an attempt to show her that he was happy for her, but he went ignored by Emma. It was like he didn't even exist in that moment. Peter smiled in amusement because it was obvious how happy she was. "I hope this is okay with you, Tony."

"Sure. Why wouldn't it be?" Tony said awkwardly as he tried to be nonchalant. "Look, you said Barnes is doing good, so I'll take your word for it."

Steve nodded to himself, but he knew that this made Tony very uncomfortable. The super soldier just hoped that the tensions wouldn't rise from here. It was obvious that there was still some unspoken awkwardness between everyone, but Steve knew that they would just have to get over it. For the world's sake but also for Emma's. Her safety and saving the world right now was more of a priority than whatever falling out he and Tony had the previous year.

"Great. They'll be here soon." Steve said in response and Tony just nodded.

"We'll save the rest for discussion later when T'Challa and…Barnes arrive." Tony said as he nearly winced when he said Barnes' name. "The facility is secure for now, so I'll let the rest of you get settled back into your rooms. I should warn you that the explosion last night kind of made a mess of everything so be prepared." Steve and the others all nodded.

"Thank you, we'll just get ourselves settled in then." Steve said and when Tony didn't say anything else, Emma chose to step in.

"I'll show you to your room, Steve." Emma said helpfully although they were both fully aware of the fact that Steve and the others knew perfectly well where their rooms were. She just wanted time alone with him. Steve smiled softly at her and Natasha and the others couldn't help but notice that this was the happiest Steve had looked in a long time.

"I'd like that." Steve told her, and Emma happily linked her arm through his as she led the way to the bedrooms upstairs. The others followed suit with Vision tagging along as he chatted with Wanda who looked perfectly delighted to see him again. Peter watched Emma leave with her grandfather, noticing how she didn't look back at him as she left. Peter didn't even think he minded the way she ignored him. He knew that she was happy and excited to be back in the company of her grandfather. She deserved to have the time to catch up with him. Peter wasn't going to take that away from her. He watched his girlfriend leave with a smile on his face. Everything was starting to look up for them so far. Going up against Hydra was going to be a long and bumpy road but he was certain that this wouldn't damage Emma. Not with her grandfather and father being back in her life.

Peter didn't know what the future would hold but he was just looking forward to seeing Emma at her most happiest.

---

"No one really touched your things or anything." Emma said quietly as they entered Steve's old room. The room was still in a state of disarray from the explosion, but it was the same for the most part. "I mean…I haven't even really been in here. I would've cleaned it up if I knew you were coming but Tony didn't tell me until a couple hours ago."

"It's fine." Steve told her as he looked back at Emma before sitting on the edge of the bed. Emma did the same as well. "I think we're honestly just glad to be back in a place that's not filled with rats and cockroaches." Emma looked down as she heard the way her grandfather and the others had been living for the past year. She was no stranger to living in harsh conditions, but she hated to think of one of the few people she loved living that way.

"I'm sorry." Emma said quietly, and Steve just shook his head.

"Don't be. I've lived in worst. You're forgetting what I had to go through during the war." Steve told her, and Emma shrugged.

"Still…" She trailed off before looking back up at him. Emma stared at him for a moment as she tried to memorize every feature on his face. The beard was still throwing her off, but he was still Steve underneath it all. Steve gave her a curious look.

"What is it?" Steve questioned, and Emma smiled before shaking her head.

"I just can't believe you're here." Emma told him, and Steve gazed back at her, feeling the same exact way as she just said she did. How was it possible that she looked this grown up? Steve wondered if she had looked like this last time. Maybe she had looked like this, after all, but Steve was just picturing the scared and angry thirteen-year-old girl from all that time ago.

"Well, I am." Steve replied as he continued to smile at her. "I'm not going anywhere either."

"I hope not." Emma told him, and she suddenly didn't know what to say. There were so many things she wanted to say but didn't know how. She had a tough time trying figure out how to talk to Steve but before she could even decide on what to say, he did the deciding for her.

"So…Natasha told me that Tony enrolled you in high school. Is that true?" Steve inquired even though he already knew it was true. "It's funny. I just can't picture you in school."

If this was a year ago then Emma would've made a face at the very idea of going to school. However, things were different now. School wasn't as bad as she thought it was going to be. Emma would never admit it, but she might've even enjoyed it. It was a few hours in the day where she didn't have to be the Viper Assassin. She could be Emma Lewis…a bitchy teenage girl whose hobbies included brooding and reading Bronte sister novels. She mostly kept to herself with the exception of Michelle Jones, Ned Leeds, and weirdly enough Peter Parker. Emma kind of liked being Emma Lewis and high school helped her find that identity. Natasha always talked about finding new identities and that was fine, but this was different. She happened to like this identity. Emma always thought she was the Viper Assassin above everything else but this past year she had learned that the Viper Assassin was just a part of her. Peter taught her that…he taught her a lot about humanity now that she thought about it.

"Yeah, well, I didn't really want to go at first, but Tony forced me." Emma said as she tried to downplay her true feelings over the matter. "It's okay, I guess. It's filled with idiots but what place isn't filled with idiots?"

"But how do you really feel about it?" Steve asked, and Emma rolled her eyes playfully as she laughed. Steve knew her way too well.

"I guess I like English even though a lot of morons in the class don't even try to understand Hemingway or Poe. It's annoying how little they try but I try not to get too mad. Kids these days are idiots so it's not their fault I suppose." Emma said as she told Steve how she really felt about high school. Steve smiled in amusement because he always found it amusing how Emma never lumped herself in with those other kids.

"Art class is nice too. It's nice to have a goal to reach in art." Emma looked back at him with a small smile on her face. "I won the art showcase this past school year which I guess is pretty cool…not that it matters or anything. It's kind of lame, isn't it?" Steve shook his head as a proud and happy look came over his face at the news.

"No, it's not. I'm proud. Wait…what did you draw?" Steve asked her, and Emma forced herself not to blush because she knew very well what she drew but she didn't want Steve to know. It wasn't inappropriate or anything, but Emma knew that he would find out about Peter if he saw.

"It's tough to describe. I'll show you some other time." Emma told him, and Steve nodded before giving her another curious look.

"You've made friends? Natasha mentioned something about you making friends, but I wasn't sure if I believed her." Steve told her, and Emma smiled before shrugging.

"I actually have, believe it or not. You should be proud of me for that too." Emma said, and Steven chuckled.

"Tell me about them." Steve requested, and Emma knew that she no choice but to tell him. There were so many things she was dying to tell him, but she guessed she could start here.

"Well, there's Michelle. We were friends straight off." Emma said as she began to talk about the small group of friends she had surprisingly formed. "She's great…she just about as cynical and sarcastic as I am which is refreshing. I always thought high school would be filled with annoying, entitled, and spoiled teenage girls who couldn't keep their hands off their phones. Michelle's not like that. I even think she reads more than I do."

"Is that even possible?" Steve joked, and Emma just shook her head, but the smile remained on her face.

"It is funny enough." Emma replied before continuing to talk about her school life. "Then there's Peter and I guess I'm friends with Ned too although probably only because of Peter. That kid is almost as annoying as Parker."

"Wait…that boy and you go to school together?" Steve asked with a confused expression on his face. Emma guessed she forgot to mention that.

"Um…yeah. That's kind of how we met. I mean…on less than formal terms." Emma said almost awkwardly as she tried find a way to talk about Peter without revealing the true nature of their relationship. "Tony actually sent me to Midtown because I think he thought Peter and I could be good friends or something. In a way he was right."

"So you two must be close then?" Steve asked, and Emma's eyes widened slightly because she thought that Steve knew about her and Peter.

"What?" She questioned before Steve elaborated.

"The boy…Peter and you. The two of you must be close. I saw the concerned look on his face back there. He seems worried about you." Steve said, and Emma tried to shrug his comment off.

"He's a great kid. I mean, he's really annoying and everything…not to mention he's a little nerd who can never seem to stop running his mouth but he's okay." Emma said, downplaying the true way she felt about Peter. Steve almost smirked at the way she thought she was complimenting someone. Maybe Emma hadn't changed so much, after all. She was still terrible at complimenting people.

"He seems like a nice young man." Steve commented and usually Emma would've made fun of the way he said that. She would've laughed at him and told him he sounded like a total grandpa, but she didn't. The blonde only shyly looked at her grandfather from under her lashes.

"Do you like him?" Emma asked curiously, and Steve looked back at her. "What do you think of him?"

"He seems nice like I said before, but I only just met him, Emma. I can't really judge his personality now, can I?" Steve said before giving his granddaughter an odd look. "Why do you want to know what I think of him anyways?" Emma blushed as she looked away from him. The sight of a blushing Emma threw him off because Steve didn't ever think he had seen her blush. What was going on with her?

"I um…I don't know. I don't really have many friends, so I guess I just wanted to know what you think." Emma lied lazily but Steve seemed too tired to see through the small white lie. He just nodded as he accepted her lazy explanation.

"If he's your friend then I know I'll like him. Anyone who sees you like I do is alright in my books." Steve told her with a smile and Emma returned his smile.

"Thank you, Steve." Emma told him even though he didn't know why she was thanking him. She then surprised him as she wrapped her arms around him and locked him in an embrace. She buried her face in his chest while Steve sat there in surprise before wrapping his arms around her in return. He held her close in his arms and he was determined to not let her go. Not again.

"I love you." Steve told her, and it was something he always used to tell her when he was still here. Back then she never said it back because she took him for granted but she wasn't about to do that again.

"I love you too, Steve." Emma whispered as she held onto him. "Please never leave me again." Steve shook his head as he rubbed her back soothingly just like whenever she had nightmares. He always knew how to comfort her and make her feel safe. Despite her coldness and distance, Steve was never afraid to show her affection. He always wanted to make sure she knew how much she was loved.

"Never." Steve promised, and Emma just remained there in his arms, basking in the warmth and familiarity of his hug. There was so much they still had to talk about. Emma knew she was going to have to tell him about Rumlow as well as her father when he would return but she decided to wait just a little while longer. Telling the story twice was unnecessary so she would tell him and her father together. It would be better that way. For now, however, Emma would just allow herself and Steve to be happy for this short amount of time. It had been too long since they had been like this for Emma to deny herself of sharing this moment with Steve. Steve was back, and Emma could be happy. Now there was only the return of her father and Emma knew that she could be even happier. Hydra was coming but Emma also knew that she could get through it with all three of the men in her life at her side. Emma just hoped that Steve and her father wouldn't be angry with her when they learned the truth about Rumlow. Only time would tell but Emma knew it was what was right.

It was time.