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.

85. Chapter Seventy Seven

Author's Note: Okay so I'm going to leave a quick(or not so quick because I have a lot to cover) author's note here at the beginning and then another one at the end answering a bunch of reviews.

I know I apologize a lot for not updating like I used to but this chapter was legitimately a big one. It was actually going to be over 60,000 words long and I was 40,000 words in the other day when I realized that this could in no way be just one chapter. There was too much going on and I didn't want it to be a novel of a chapter so I found a good end point and ended it at 20,000 words. So it's still a giant chapter so take your time with it. Anyways...that's why it took so long and I'm in no way stopping writing the story which some people actually believed. Also, if you want updates on the progress on my stories, I'll try to leave little messages on my profile about that. Or just PM if you want to know how the progress is going.

That being said, I'm also putting all my other stories on hold right now. I want to focus on Some Things Never Sleep. It's nearing the end but there's still going to be several chapters before I end it. This is my main priority right now and I've been working a lot on it.

The next update is going to come a little sooner which I know for a fact because I'm close to finishing it. I just have to write four more scenes in the chapter and then it's done. I'll probably have it ready in a few days or next weekend at the latest.

Another announcement is that I've given the sequel an official name. I had a working title before but the official name is 'North Star'. I'm excited for it because it's going to be so much fun to write. I'm excited for whenever I finally get to that Ragnarok storyline. I was worried about having to stop writing after the Infinity War storyline because I didn't know what was going to happen but I've been so slow lately that I'm not worried anymore. That wasn't intentional by the way. I know some people thought I was purposefully dragging this out but that's not true. Life just kinda got in the way.

I just want to thank Another random account for a ton of stuff this chapter. She definitely got me more inspired to write with all the amazing and beautiful fanart she sent me. The new profile picture I put up of Emma and Peter's upside down kiss was actually done by her and it's just one of the many amazing art work she sent me. She also did the cover for the sequel which is so amazing. I was seriously worried about making that cover because I'm terrible at making covers but she's so good. So I already have a cover so there's no need.

I'm also going to recommend a couple Peter Parker stories I've read lately that I've really fallen in with. There's this one here on called 'Affinity War' by ForASecondThereWe'dWon. It's a Peter/Michelle story but it's so good. There's not a lot of Peter stories I've found that I liked because I'm really picky but that's definitely one of my favorites.

Secondly, there's 'Serenity' by spideypeach on Archive of Our Own. I think it's just on there but it might be on Wattpad too from what the author told me. I know it's not here on though. This is a Peter/OC story involving an OC that's a mermaid. Seriously a genius idea. Anyways...it's amazing and deserves a ton of recognition. Both fics do, actually.

I'd like to also let you guys know that you can always give me constructive criticism as long as it's nice with good intentions and not mean. I learned recently from a couple readers that I've apparently been making a huge grammar error for all a million words of this story. I would've liked to have known this a long time ago because I'm always learning new things and ways to improve my writing. I'm majoring in Culinary Arts so I definitely know I'm not an expert when it comes to things like grammar which I've always had a bit of trouble with ever since high school. So if you guys have pointers for me when it comes to grammar then that would be great. I'm planning on re-editing the entire story anyways...eventually.

I'm going to thank Maggie Rogers for finally finishing this chapter because her new album definitely helped me through my writer's block. You should seriously give her a listen if you haven't yet and you like indie pop. If you love Vera Blue then you'll definitely love Maggie Rogers.

Two major MCU trailers have come out since I last updated. Endgame and Far From Home. Endgame gave us so much but told us so little. Far From Home seems to have the same tone as Homecoming so I'm already excited to write the storyline when that comes along. It's weird to see Jake Gyllenhaal in that kind of role but he's a really good actor so I'm excited to see what kind of villain(or hero) Mysterio will be. Peter's so adorkable as usual so I'm excited to see more dorkiness from him.

Lastly, thanks to all my very patient and tolerant readers for putting up with my slacking off lately. I know it's been really infuriating waiting for a new chapter but just thanks for being so patient. We're at over a million words now, guys! That's so incredible. Over 1,600 followers and 1,360 favorites too which is amazing. You guys are so amazing and thanks for all the reviews as well. I really appreciate it.

Now I'm going to finally finish rambling(I seriously don't blame you if you skimmed through this message) and let you read. Please let me know what you think of the chapter. The next one is almost done so just keep that in mind for a very minor cliffhanger at the end.

---

Hydra Headquarters

Location: Swiss Alps

Rumlow felt better than he had in years. Even better than before he got crushed during all the chaos in the fall of Hydra a few years ago. There was no doubt in his mind that this good feeling he had might've had something to do with the serum Dr. List made using Emma's blood.

Dr. List's experiment had gone well...or as well as it could.

Rumlow had been in more pain than he felt in a long time. He didn't think he could feel pain anymore but this was a different kind of pain. His head had felt like it was going to explode during those first few hours and it had felt like there was fire in his veins as well.

It was the first time he felt anything in over three years.

"Rumlow-er-I mean, Crossbones," Jorgen Nygard said nervously as he walked into Rumlow's office.

He wasn't sure what to call Rumlow these days.

The last time someone had called him Rumlow, they ended up with a bullet in their head and this was another Hydra agent they were talking about too.

Jorgen was now Rumlow's second in command.

The Norwegian Hydra agent had never worked his way through the ranks so fast but with Collins taken prisoner by the Avengers, and several other Hydra agents either dead or taken prisoner as well, Jorgen was one of the few qualified agents to take the position.

Although...Jorgen didn't really know that he liked the job. He had to spend way more time with Rumlow than he liked since Rumlow scared the hell out of him.

"What?!" Rumlow snapped as he turned to look at the tall but lanky man.

The man nearly shrunk back in fright but he seemed to muster what little courage he had left as he prepared himself to inform his superior of some pretty unfortunate news. It didn't necessarily help that Rumlow looked more terrifying than ever.

His Crossbones attire, that he seemed to wear daily as he impatiently waited for an attack from the Avengers, was sinister looking as always. However, his appearance was also drastically different.

Underneath the metal helmet he was wearing, and all the armor, was what looked to be a monster.

After Rumlow had undergone the transformation from the serum Dr. List made, using the Viper Assassin's blood, he looked even worse than before. The serum did little to heal his previous scars from the building falling on him all those years ago. The serum, for some unknown reason, seemed to make Rumlow even worse.

His eyes were scarily bloodshot, save for his dark brown irises, and his dark hair was falling off in clumps with several bald spots now encompassing his head. The older man's teeth were rotting. His teeth had actually started falling out a few days ago. Rumlow's skin was also a very pale sickly color but that wasn't the worst part.

His skin seemed to be rotting off...almost like decaying flesh.

Despite Emma's blood making Rumlow increasingly stronger, faster, and even a bit bigger, there seemed to be severe side effects that no one had predicted.

Not even Dr. List.

Rumlow resembled something more of a zombie or horribly disfigured creature than an actual super soldier. Dr. List theorized that this was due to radiation poisoning from Emma Rogers' blood. He summed it up as much after analyzing Rumlow's blood samples that were contaminated with radiation.

His blood cells were evidence enough of that.

It didn't help that Rumlow was suffering from not just nose bleeds and constant puking but bleeding from the ears and eyes as well. Everything that came out of him was blood and rot. Finally, Rumlow resembled what he truly was on the outside.

A monster.

Dr. List didn't live much longer after that.

"I'd just like to tell you that we received word that Diego Ugalde was captured from his home in Mexico City a few hours ago," Jorgen said nervously, afraid that he might set Rumlow off. "We have limited intel at the moment but we believe this is the Avengers' doing."

The grumpy expression then seemed to fall off Rumlow's face as he stared at Jorgen. An almost gleeful and excited look came over Rumlow's face at this news. It was almost like this was good news to Rumlow instead of bad news like what it was to Hydra. Jorgen didn't know what this meant but he couldn't help but feel highly disturbed by the expression on Rumlow's face.

"The Avengers, huh?" Rumlow said, the smirk on his face widening and showing off his rotting teeth in the process. Jorgen grimaced at the sight. He could feel the bile rising in his throat just from being around Rumlow. Rumlow wasn't a pretty sight these days and not to mention there was a certain odor around him too. The smell vaguely reminded Jorgen of death and decay.

"Yes, sir. That's what I've been told." Jorgen answered awkwardly and he tried to ignore the chills running up and down his spine as a more sinister look came over the disfigured man's face.

"It looks like they finally put the puzzle together, didn't they? It took them long enough." Rumlow muttered and Jorgen gave his superior a confused look.

"Sir?" Jorgen questioned.

"Don't you see, Nygard? Diego, Collins, and all the others were bait. I wanted them to get caught because it meant that it would bring her closer to me," Rumlow explained to a still confused Jorgen who was pretty sure that this was never in the plans.

Who would risk most of their men and weapons just for the sake of one girl?

Granted the Viper Assassin was one very powerful and impressive girl but still. Rumlow was betting what was left of Hydra on this and Jorgen didn't think he liked it. He wasn't sure all the others would like it either if they knew.

"I agree that the Viper Assassin being returned to us would be highly beneficial but I don't think it's worth the Avengers coming here and destroying what's left of Hydra," Jorgen said, trying to reason with the insane man but it was no use. "If the Avengers have Ugalde then that means that they're on their way here as we speak. Ugalde would've ratted us out the first chance he got if they leaned on him enough."

"Hydra is nothing without the Viper Assassin." Rumlow snapped, clearly not listening to a word Jorgen said.

"Brock," Jorgen started to say, a serious expression on his face. He didn't utter the ridiculous name Rumlow gave himself but, instead, his actual name. "The Avengers are going to come here and they're going to annihilate us."

Jorgen only paused briefly before continuing.

"I've heard whispers that some of the other Avengers are back this time. The elder Rogers, Romanoff, Wilson, Maximoff, Barton, and even Barnes. I've even heard talk that the king of Wakanda is involved in this," Jorgen informed Rumlow who was listening but not caring about any of it. "There's been no word of any arrests so I can only assume that the United Nations is letting them do the dirty work to get rid of us before they step in. This is a no-win scenario. They're the only ones who will win."

"Don't worry. I'll take care of it," Rumlow said, still looking unbothered by the fact that the most Avengers, there's ever been, were coming for them. Jorgen wasn't sure if Rumlow was delusional or…

Jorgen's eyes then widened as he looked at Rumlow.

He stumbled across the sudden realization that Rumlow was aware of all of this. He was aware that the Avengers were going to either kill everyone or arrest them. Rumlow knew they didn't have a chance but he didn't care. He was going to use everyone as bait anyways if that meant that it might bring her here.

Rumlow knew this was going to be a suicide mission but he was so obsessed with the girl that he was willing to risk everything to be in the same room as her.

That thought scared Jorgen the most.

"Let them come here," Rumlow finally said, a huge smirk on his face. "This just means that they'll bring her to me."

"Sir, I still don't think-" Jorgen started to say but Rumlow interrupted him, a crazed look in his eyes.

"Now we just wait. Everything will fall into place as planned," Rumlow said and Jorgen could only gulp as he watched the monster of a man.

All Jorgen could think about was how Hydra was going to make it out alive this time?

Maybe they would. Maybe they wouldn't.

He just hoped that Rumlow hadn't damned them all.

---

"You not hungry, kid?" Tony Stark asked his young protégé, Peter Parker, as they sat in one of the lunch rooms of the compound.

Peter had a lost look on his face as he allowed his mind to process everything he learned that day.

His parents' death, Hydra's involvement in it, and even the newfound origin of his girlfriend's powers.

It seemed like today was leaving its toll on Peter but he was sure that it had to be a lot worse for Emma who was discovering things about herself that she didn't even know. He just wished that she wouldn't have run away from him like that. She obviously needed to talk but, like always, Emma seemed to be against letting people help her.

"I'm fine, Mr. Stark," Peter said, sounding a bit, unlike his usual upbeat self. Tony frowned but he didn't blame the kid. Everyone had been through a lot recently and none more than Peter and Emma. Tony sighed as he set down his green smoothie, wiping his mouth, before looking over at the teenager.

"I'm sorry about your parents, Pete," Tony told him sincerely, causing Peter to glance up at him with a conflicted look on his face. "I know what it's like thinking one thing about your parents' death and then finding out another thing."

"I guess Hydra got them both." Peter murmured softly and Tony analyzed the look on his face, trying to figure out what was the right thing to say in a situation like this. Tony didn't really have a lot of experience with comforting others, after all. Emma and Pepper had proved time and time again that he was bad at it.

"It wasn't easy finding out the truth behind my parent's death at first. Hell, it's sure not easy having their killer under my roof…" Tony trailed off and Peter gave him a curious look.

"But?" Peter inquired and Tony shrugged.

"But I think I'll get through it...eventually," Tony told him and he meant it too. "So will you."

"I don't know," Peter said, a sad look in his brown eyes. "I used to think I knew everything about them. I even thought they were boring people. Now I realize that I was wrong."

"People have secrets. My dad obviously had some pretty big fucking secrets and your parents did too," Tony told him and Peter realized that maybe Tony was right. Peter obviously had a pretty big secret, after all, and Emma had kept the Rumlow thing a secret for so long. Maybe everyone did have secrets.

"I don't want to be like that. I don't want to have secrets," Peter told his mentor suddenly. Tony raised an eyebrow.

"You're keeping a pretty big secret from the whole world, Peter," Tony informed him. "I don't know if you're aware of that or not."

Peter, however, shook his head.

"I meant that I don't want to keep secrets from the people I love," Peter clarified. "I especially don't want to keep secrets from Emma."

"Peter, you're not the type to keep secrets," Tony said as he looked at the teenager. "I think Mini Cap knows that too."

"I just don't want to be like them," Peter said quietly. "They could've told Uncle Ben and Aunt May about what they were doing but they didn't."

"I think they were trying to protect them...and you too," Tony said, not wanting Peter to have a bitter image of his parents. Tony, at times, looked at his own parents that way so he certainly didn't want that for the young and optimistic teenage boy. Peter didn't deserve that.

"Now this whole thing's even affecting Emma," Peter told Tony, moving the conversation forward. "Maybe if they had told Fury from the beginning and trusted him then she wouldn't be going through this. Did you see how upset she was?"

"Yes, I did," Tony admitted, a sad look crossing his own face as he tried to wonder about how Emma must've been feeling right about now. He wondered if she was pissed at him because of his father's mistakes or if she was even scared. Maybe both.

"She's already been through so much. It's not fair for her to have to deal with this too," Peter told him with a worried look on his face. "She must be so scared right now. Emma won't even talk to me either."

"Emma's just trying to wrap her mind around all this. It's a lot for anyone to comprehend," Tony told Peter as he tried to comfort him about Emma. "Sometimes she has to be alone with herself."

"She can talk to me. Emma doesn't have to be alone," Peter said, looking even a bit hurt at the thought that Emma didn't want to talk to him. "She always talks to me when I'm feeling down like that. I can do the same for her."

"I know you can, Peter. Mini Cap knows that too but…" Tony trailed off as he tried to find the right words to say. "She's a bit like me, I guess. Sometimes we just need to sort through things on our own before we want to talk about them with others. Just ask Pepper or Rhodey."

"I guess I get it," Peter said even though he didn't like it.

Emma was different from him.

Peter always needed to talk but Emma made it more than clear in the past that she was perfectly fine with not talking about her feelings. She had gotten a lot better about sharing things with him lately but he just wished that she'd come straight to him with her problems. Peter just wanted to help her sort through her issues. Her problems weren't just hers to deal with alone anymore. They agreed to be partners a long time ago so that meant that Peter wanted her to feel like there wasn't anything she couldn't come to him about.

"She'll be fine in an hour or two," Tony promised him.

"I know," Peter said before an uneasy look came over his face as he remembered another problem he was going to have to face. "I just don't know what to do about Aunt May."

"What do you mean?" Tony questioned, a frown coming over his face.

"Uncle Ben and Aunt May didn't really even know my parents. I already told May that they didn't work for the university and she was shocked," Peter explained to Tony.

"My uncle died not even knowing who his brother really was."

"You'll both get through it," Tony promised, giving the teenage boy a small smile. "You're a lot stronger than you look, kid. That's for sure."

"Thanks, Mr. Stark," Peter told him and although he still didn't look like he quite believed the older man, he was grateful for Mr. Stark's reassurance nonetheless. "I'm still worried about May though."

"I know," Tony started to say. "Which is why she's on her way here as we speak."

"What?" Peter questioned in confusion. Tony nodded.

"I figure since Leeds and Jones are already here then it might be a good idea to get your aunt here as well," Tony explained to him. "We don't know what's going to go down with Hydra. Although the compound isn't in the best of shape right now, it's still better than anywhere else."

"Okay," Peter said, feeling a bit better now that May was going to be safe at the compound.

"It just the best option...considering everything else, I mean," Tony told him and Peter nodded.

"Thank you, Tony," Peter said quietly, looking a bit shy as the billionaire looked at him in surprise. It wasn't very often that Peter called him by his name and not "Mr. Stark".

"Don't mention it, kid," Tony said as he gave him another small smile which seemed to soften up his gaze as he looked down at Peter over from the chair next to him.

The billionaire then seemed to swallow hard as he almost hesitantly reached over and patted the teenage boy on the shoulder. However, it wasn't like the other times he patted Peter on the shoulder. It wasn't awkward and uncomfortable like those times.

He patted Peter on the shoulder in a way that a father would pat his son on the shoulder in a moment of comfort and reassurance. It was very fatherly and Peter felt his heart skip a beat for a moment because it had been so long since he had something like that.

Not since Uncle Ben.

Peter almost forgot what it felt like until now but he welcomed the feeling and welcomed the kindness and affection his mentor gave him.

"Everything's going to be alright, Peter," Tony told the boy reassuringly and Peter gazed back at him, looking at Tony in a new and different light.

He tried to be like Emma.

He tried not to let his emotions get the best of him and while he seemed to manage, for the most part, Peter still held back tears.

He wasn't sad or upset. Not now, because the way Tony looked at him, his fatherly gaze on him, made Peter feel as if everything really was going to be alright. Not just Emma and his parents, but Peter too. Peter felt like he was actually going to make it out of this nightmare and he was going to be okay in the long-run. All he needed was Tony's reassurance and it seemed to be enough to put him in that frame of mind.

If Tony noticed the tears in Peter's eyes then he didn't mention it nor did he tease him about it like he would've done with anyone else. Tony, himself, felt a bit emotional at the new step he seemed to be taking with Peter because it really made him wonder.

How could this have been so difficult for his father?

How could being comforting and reassuring to a young boy in a moment turmoil be so difficult for his father to manage?

It wasn't difficult.

Tony didn't think so, at least.

Tony decided that this would remain another mystery he would ponder for the rest of his life about his father but never understand. Because it was easy, after all. It was so painstakingly easy to just...be there for somebody. Not just Emma but Peter too. It was easy to be there for them and it made Tony realize that maybe he wasn't totally like his father. Maybe there were differences. Maybe Howard Stark and Tony Stark could be two separate people. Tony could at least try. If not for himself then for Peter.

Tony thought he could manage that much at the very least.

---

Emma was making her way to her room to get a couple hours of sleep before the mission or maybe just to do anything but think of everything she learned from earlier.

Between learning the origin of her abilities, Clint's connection to her mother, and the thing about her father, Emma was feeling a bit overwhelmed. It wasn't just those things either that had her in over her head. It was her newfound strength she felt in finally facing Rumlow and ending things once and for all. Emma found a new determination within herself to ignore those feelings of fear to save everyone she loved from Rumlow's wrath. She wasn't sure if she was going to be okay but she just knew it was something she had to do.

The blonde was about to head to her room when she noticed the door of her grandfather's bedroom opened.

Emma paused in the doorway as she saw her grandfather sitting on the edge of his bed, his back turned to her. She didn't say anything as she quietly watched him while she leaned against the doorway. He had an unreadable look on his face, looking down at a framed photograph in his hands. As Emma cast her eyes downwards a bit she could see that it was her grandmother.

This was something she never understood about her grandfather.

After all this time, it was clear he still felt a lot for Peggy Carter.

She knew he constantly imagined a life in which he never went down in the ice...that he even longed for such a life but he never said so aloud. Emma could tell when he remembered something from before the ice. A faint smile would cross his face and he'd get a distant look in those blue eyes that were so much like her own. She knew he was reminiscing, but then he'd snap out of it a moment later and change the subject to something else. It was clear he still felt a bit out of place here and he missed her.

Her grandmother, she meant.

Of course, there was Susan but it was clear to Emma that while her grandfather flirted, in his own weird way, with the young scientist, he was still hung up on Peggy.

Emma wished it wasn't that way.

Now that she found some happiness for herself, she only wanted Steve to find that same happiness. He deserved it more than anyone she knew.

"Do you still miss her that much?" Emma asked quietly even though she already knew the answer. Steve flinched in surprise before turning around to look at her.

"You're so good at doing that. I'll never understand," Steve said as he smiled at her softly. Emma took that as an invitation to enter his room.

"It's more like a bad habit now than anything else," Emma explained before sitting next to him on the bed and giving him a curious look. "You didn't answer my question though."

Steve sighed as he momentarily glanced back down at the picture.

"You already know the answer to that, Emma," Steve told her quietly and Emma looked down at the picture of her grandmother.

She didn't really know her grandmother that well. Other than the visits to the nursing home she lived in, Emma didn't really have many memories of her. Emma didn't even remember her grandmother from before Hydra killed her parents. All she knew was a very sick and confused old woman in a room that reeked of a hospital. Emma always hated going there, it smelled just like the lab where Hydra would poke and prod her with needles, but Steve forced her to go. He said that it would cheer her grandmother up although Emma didn't know how. It wasn't often that Peggy remembered her during her last few months.

Emma was torn.

She admired Peggy Carter who was historically a badass woman that fought her way through sexism and misogyny to get to where she wanted to be. Peggy was truly a feminist icon and while Emma didn't care much about sexism, only if it got in the way of something she wanted, she did admire her grandmother for defeating all odds and making a name for herself. A name that separated herself from becoming known solely as Captain America's Baby Mama. History books didn't just know her for her relationship with Captain America but for all the achievements she made in her lifetime too.

This was why Emma rarely associated that woman with the weak one she saw in a hospital bed.

It was like they were two completely different people.

One was strong and empowered while the other was weak and vulnerable.

Emma supposed that her grandmother was just an ordinary human, after all. Eventually, people got old and died. Emma knew this more than anyone but she still had trouble trying to figure out why Steve couldn't move on from her grandmother. Her grandmother had been dead for over a year now but it was like her ghost was still haunting Steve.

"She moved on with her life, Steve. She wanted the same for you," Emma tried to tell him but she knew that it was no use.

"Sometimes it isn't that simple," Steve said with a slightly haunted look in his eyes.

"It could be," Emma suggested to him but he just shook his head.

"You know who you remind me of sometimes?" Steve said and Emma resisted the urge to roll her eyes. It seemed that because of her young age and relation to Steve, she was always being compared to someone. Whether that was Steve, Natasha, her father, or even Loki. It was almost like she was destined to be compared to other people.

"No," Emma said instead of saying something sarcastic like she wanted to. Steve's gaze softened as he looked down at his granddaughter.

"Her," Steve told her much to Emma's surprise.

"What?" Emma questioned and Steve nodded solemnly as if this was something he truly and deeply believed.

"I've always known that it was never me that you were like," Steve said as he explained his observation in more depth. "You were never even like Natasha or Loki like some of the others believe."

"I don't think I know what you're talking about, Steve," Emma tried to tell him but Steve just smiled as he went on.

"Don't get me wrong. You're you and there's no one else like you out there but…" Steve trailed off as his eyes met hers.

"There was always something that bothered me about you," Steve said as he continued to confuse Emma. "You reminded me of someone but I could never guess who for the life of me."

"I used to think that maybe it was Bucky because he's the one that we bonded over from the beginning," Steve stated as he told her about his previous deductions about her. "Then I thought perhaps it was Natasha. It would make sense...you and her, I mean. There are so many similarities there that not even I could argue with."

"Then there's Tony," Steve said as he let out a laugh and Emma's eyes widened in surprise. She just didn't know whether or not to be disgusted or surprised.

"Sometimes when we argue, like we always seem to do, I feel like I'm arguing with him."

"I'm not like Tony," Emma finally managed to say. She didn't really know how to say anything else and it seemed like he suspected as much as he gave her a knowing smile. Steve then continued to explain himself to her.

"However, I realized that you only share some of our qualities because you're the best of us," Steve told her seriously as Emma watched him. "You, like most children, observed us from the start and some of our habits, both good and bad, rubbed off on you. It only makes sense."

"I don't understand the point you're trying to make, Steve," Emma said, still as confused as ever.

"I'm telling you this because all the traits you might share with us all is because you're a child, if there ever was one, of the Avengers," Steve informed her kindly and Emma started to wonder if Steve considered this to be a good thing or a bad thing. "We've rubbed off on you in both good ways and bad ways so we can only hope for the best now. We can only hope that we've done right by you because you're growing up so fast, Emma. So fast that it scares me."

"But even through all that fear of you growing up, I only realize now that it was never us who you reminded me of from the beginning," Steve said as he seemed to get a little choked up which was strange for the man who was so well put together most of the time. "Ever since you came into my life, you reminded me of someone and it was always on the tip of my tongue but I could never figure out who. Even when it was staring right in my face the whole time."

"Peggy?" Emma questioned, still not understanding how she could remind Steve of his lost love and her grandmother. Peggy had been a good person, unlike Emma. Someone that Emma quite often even forgot she was related to because of the kind of person she was and the kind of person her grandmother was. They could not be any more different...or could they?

"I didn't realize it until right about now," Steve admitted as he glanced away from Emma to look back down at the picture of his lost love. "I actually didn't realize it until I saw the way that boy looks at you when you walk into a room."

"You mean Peter?" Emma asked him and he nodded silently.

"I only know because I looked at her the same way whenever she walked into a room," Steve said and Emma could see the emotion in his eyes as he remembered her grandmother. "She had a kind of presence about herself that could just turn heads like that and that's why I understand the reason Peter's drawn to you. It's because you and her are alike in that way."

"It's nothing that rubs off on you nor is it something you observe and learn," Steve explained to her much to Emma's surprise. "It's a trait you inherited from her."

"You're also tough like her," Steve told her honestly as Emma felt a bit choked up herself from this conversation about her grandmother. "I always wondered how you went through everything you did but still managed to come out on top. I know now that it's because you're tough. You don't break."

"You're tough too, Steve," Emma tried to tell him but Steve just smiled sadly before shaking his head.

"Not like her," Steve told Emma truthfully. "Not like her because she was able to pick up all the pieces after what I did to her and manage to not just raise my son but to move on from my death."

"I can't even find it in myself to have an actual relationship with someone," Steve confessed to his granddaughter much to both his embarrassment and shame but it wasn't because he didn't have a girlfriend. It was because he didn't have his life together for Emma. "I know I also haven't done right by you."

"What are you talking about, Steve? You've done everything for me," Emma told her grandfather, a bit angry that he would even suggest such a thing.

"I haven't though. I'm not a good parent like she was," Steve said, his expression could only be described as being crestfallen. "I don't know how she did it."

"You're not a bad parent," Emma told him honestly. "You're an amazing father to me. You always have been. It's like it comes so easy to you."

"I always wondered how you were just able to step in those shoes when I came into your life," Emma said as she remembered how Steve made her transition between Hydra and the real world easier for her than it should've been. He had always been so patient and understanding. "Anyone else, especially Tony, would've cracked under the pressure."

"It wasn't so easy," Steve admitted to her and Emma looked back at him curiously. "I had a lot of help from the others. Natasha, Thor, Bruce, and Clint offered me a lot of advice."

"I actually don't know how I didn't know back then that Clint was a father. It should've been so obvious," Steve said as he chuckled a bit at the thought. Emma was just glad he was cheering up a bit.

"Tony didn't give you any advice?" Emma inquired with a teasing smile on her face and this time a more carefree smile crossed Steve's face.

"Nothing that was helpful and appropriate," Steve retorted and Emma laughed which was the first time she had probably laughed since learning that the world was playing some kind of cruel joke on her. "He once suggested making you clean the windows outside the tower as a form of punishment. Tony said you'd be okay because you could fly."

"Okay, I really don't feel bad about all the awful pranks I used to play on him," Emma said but she didn't look angry. She might've been angry to hear Tony's suggestion a year ago but now she was just amused by the billionaire's antics. "Remember that time I tied him up in that chair and held him hostage while you, Thor, Natasha, and Clint were on a mission?"

"How could I ever forget?" Steve said as he laughed at the memory of walking into a room, after a mission, and seeing Tony tied up while Emma watched television as if the whole thing was normal. He hadn't been amused back then but now the memory just made him laugh.

"I made him watch as I poured all his booze down the sink. You should've seen how angry he was," Emma said as she just looked back at the memory with fondness.

"I know. I had to pay him back for all that alcohol. It wasn't cheap either," Steve stated before a look of wonder came over his face. "Although, I always wondered how you were able to tie him up like that."

"I asked him if we could play a game so I picked one that would feed his ego," Emma explained almost proudly as she remembered how she tricked Tony Stark into playing a game only she found amusing. "I was Iron Man and he was Loki. Little did he know it was actually the other way around."

"Natasha and Sam never let him forget that," Steve told her and it was true. Sam still brought up the topic almost every other month.

"Thor and Clint almost pissed themselves with laughter too," Emma reminded him and Steve nodded.

"I grounded you for a month for that one," Steve said as their reminiscing started to come to an end because they both knew that things were a lot different now.

Things might not even be the same again even though the Avengers were back together. Emma knew, despite the fact that almost everyone was back, that it didn't feel like it did back then.

Everyone felt divided.

Now that everyone had been through so much, she kind of missed the time she spent in the tower with the others. She really missed Thor and Bruce too even though she would never admit it.

Emma missed telling Thor how much cooler Loki was than him but she also missed hearing his playful laughter when she told him that. His large booming voice had once been annoying to her but now everything seemed empty and quiet without hearing his voice from several rooms down the hall.

The teenage girl also missed teasing the very cautious and shy Bruce Banner who always seemed to be scared of her. Not because she was an assassin but because she was a child and he feared that she'd provoke him into turning into the hulk. Emma, for some reason, liked that he wasn't scared of her because of her past but was instead scared of her because of her young age and mischievous nature.

He was also perhaps the nicest of all the Avengers.

Next to Vision, of course.

Emma now realized that she had taken all that time for granted.

Everything was so much simpler back then when Thor stuffed his face with Pop Tarts before proudly announcing that Pop Tarts were the most delicious confection he had ever eaten in his life.

Back when she sparred with Natasha and Clint in the training facility of the tower while having lunch with Bruce as she teased him about how boring and lame science was just to rile him up a little bit.

Emma also longed for those movie nights she had with Darcy, Sam and Thor as Sam annoyingly, but hilariously, narrated each movie while Thor loudly cheered whenever the cliched hero saved the day and defeated the villain. Emma would always root for the villain which would amuse Thor more than it seemed to annoy him much to Emma's dismay.

Then there were the times that she would have hour-long discussions with Steve about the books she read and afterward he'd tell her a funny story about her father or an affectionate one about Peggy.

Of course, there was also all the pranks she played on Tony too as she had fun tormenting the much older man. He always threatened to kick her out of the tower but no one ever believed him.

It wasn't just those things she missed either.

What she missed most were those nights they had dinner together as some sort of dysfunctional family unit.

Steve and Tony would be bickering as they normally did as Tony teased him about being a grandpa and Steve glared at him before telling him to grow up. Natasha and Clint would have some kind of silent, in sync communication between them as they ate, not unlike the communication Emma and her father seemed to share, and stayed out of Tony and Steve's arguments. Pepper would roll her eyes at her ridiculous boyfriend while Bruce would cast his gaze downwards at his plate as he moved his food around with his fork back and forth, probably asking himself how this was his life now.

Thor, Rhodey, and Sam would be oblivious to Tony and Steve's argument as they debated amongst each other who had the most heroic and bloodshed filled adventure as of late.

Somehow it always ended up being Thor which was never surprising.

Darcy would tease Jane about the astrophysicist and her Asgardian boyfriend being very loud the night before as Jane blushed furiously.

It then occurred to Emma that she had never felt very much a part of the odd dysfunctional dynamic the others seemed to have with each other.

Don't get her wrong.

She did felt like she was part of the very weird superhero family which was the first time she had felt that way since her parents died. However, it was only now that she realized that their family was ever growing and changing. The family she remembered was only the beginning because now she imagined everything differently.

Emma could see Wanda and Vision somewhere in there as well as they were wrapped up in their own little world, ignoring the antics of the others.

Maybe a visiting T'Challa would be having a laugh with her father who was sitting to her right. Instead of Bruce sulking on his own maybe Shuri would invite him into an intellectual conversation about the very thing Emma used to tease him about. Okoye would then interrupt Thor, Sam, and Rhodey's dick measuring contest with a story of her own which would put all their own tales of adventure and battle to shame.

This time Emma didn't picture herself as a lone observer to this group of very interesting people.

No, she pictured Peter there right next to her.

She would flirt with him in that way she usually did just to see him blush and watch him stumble through a cute response before he'd remark to her about how they lived in a tower filled with crazy people. This was the first time where Emma could see herself as being an active member of this team of misfit people from all backgrounds.

It wasn't until now that she realized that with all these people, she felt a true sense of belonging which she didn't understand until now. Not until all the Avengers were divided and everything felt emptier without that same familiar feeling of kinship. Now Emma was beginning to wonder if it could ever be like she imagined.

It was becoming a little too clear to her that the answer might be no.

After this Rumlow business was over then it was highly likely that things would return to how they were before Tony made that phone call to bring everyone together.

The reason he called wasn't that he missed Steve and the others, after all.

It was for professional purposes only.

"What is it?" Steve asked her as he noticed the faraway look in Emma's eyes. She snapped out of her thoughts at his question. The blonde swallowed hard before shaking her head.

"It's nothing. It's just that I…" She trailed off as she tried to find the exact words to express how she was feeling. "I just miss how everything used to be."

"I do too," Steve said softly.

Emma, sensing that this was a topic they couldn't allow themselves to get too emotional over right at that moment, decided to change the subject as she reached into the pocket of her jacket and took out the one thing she almost always carried with her.

"I still have this, you know," Emma told him and Steve looked at her hands only to see something very familiar.

The compass.

"Oh," Steve said, his mouth not being able to form any other words.

Emma gingerly placed the compass in her grandfather's hand.

Steve felt the sensation of cold metal against his skin as he turned the compass over to examine it. It felt like it had been so long ago when he passed the compass along to Natasha to give to Emma. He felt like Emma could've used it. Steve knew how alone she must've felt so it only made sense to give her something that might've given her some comfort in his absence.

It was only as it glinted under the light in the bedroom that he realized that there was something different about the compass.

Something there that wasn't there before.

An engraving.

'Whatever souls our made of, yours and mine are the same-To E from P'

"I wasn't really thinking when I let Peter put the engraving there," Emma confessed as she carefully watched the expression on her grandfather's face. It was occurring to her just then that her grandfather might not have appreciated what she and Peter had done to his compass. "I'm really sorry, Steve. We shouldn't have done it."

"No, it's fine. I just wasn't…" Steve started to say as he trailed off, analyzing the inscription there. "Well, I wasn't expecting it."

"Peter took me to an old movie theater that was showing Breakfast at Tiffany's for our first date and I guess he got really inspired," Emma mentioned and Steve tried not to act like it was weird that Emma had a boyfriend now. He fully accepted it but it was still going to take some getting used to.

"I don't think I've seen that one yet," Steve said to Emma which made sense. There was probably a lot of films Steve hadn't yet seen. Spending seventy years in ice could do that to a person.

"Well, you should. Audrey Hepburn's really great in it and not to mention beautiful," Emma told him quietly. "I actually don't think there was ever a movie where Audrey Hepburn wasn't beautiful."

"I liked her in Sabrina," Steve added and Emma gave him a small smile.

"Me too," She said softly and it was then that Steve flipped the compass open to not only see the picture of his lost love but another picture next to it too. It was a picture that Steve hadn't yet seen.

Emma in Peter's arms with Big Ben in the background.

This must've been from her trip to London, Steve thought to himself.

He vaguely remembered looking at her school website and seeing the announcement about the decathlon team's trip there.

Steve would do that frequently.

Check up on her using the school website.

Sometimes he didn't see anything about her but there were times where a picture would pop up of her on the home page. A small slideshow put together on the school website for that month. One time Steve had seen a picture of her in what must've been her art class. She wasn't looking at the camera but she seemed to be in deep concentration as she focused on her drawing. Steve printed the picture out at a library in Sweden and kept it with him all the time.

However, this was different from that.

Steve knew this much as he observed the picture now placed alongside Peggy's picture. He stared at the young couple who were clearly in love with each other. Steve could tell from the way they gazed at each other.

He traced the happy smile on her face with his finger as he tried to remember her ever looking that happy. Steve knew that he had seen her smirk countless times or even seen her force a smile to please him and the others but it was rare that he had ever seen his granddaughter look so carefree.

"You look so happy here," Steve remarked and Emma just shrugged, downplaying her feelings for Peter.

"He forced me to take the stupid picture," Emma said nonchalantly. "He said that he didn't have a lot of pictures of us together so I just did it to shut him up."

Steve knew this was a lie.

He knew it was a lie because why else would she put the picture of them together in the compass and carry it around with her everywhere?

Steve knew why.

She put the picture in the compass for the same exact reason he put the picture of Peggy in his compass all those years ago.

It was so that he could carry her close to his heart at all times and she'd always guide him to where he needed to be. Steve had always hoped Emma would someday find someone like that for herself. He never had any doubts about some boy falling madly in love with her but he did have his doubts about her falling in love with someone. Steve had hoped but he was unsure if she would let herself to do that but he now knew that she had and for that he was glad.

"He gave me this necklace too," Emma said quietly and Steve looked back at her, before glancing at the necklace around her neck. She was fiddling with an emerald green heart-shaped pendant as Steve stared at it. He noticed her penchant for wearing the necklace, not seeing her without it ever since he arrived at the compound, but he assumed it was just some necklace Tony or Sharon had gotten her for her birthday or Christmas.

"He's always giving me stuff," She said casually but he could tell by the look in her eyes that something bothered her about this. "I'm not really good at giving people gifts. I always worry that the stuff I get him is crap in comparison since he's very romantic and sentimental while I'm neither of those things."

"I don't believe that," Steve said as he tried to argue with her but Emma wasn't trying to put herself down. She was just stating a fact.

"This was his mother's necklace by the way," Emma said as she ignored his interjection. Steve gave her a surprised look. "He said his father gave it to his mother when he knew she was the one."

"It looks beautiful on you," Steve remarked because he didn't know how to process the fact that Emma was "the one" for someone now. It wasn't just that he was still trying to come to terms with the fact that Emma now had a boyfriend, but that she was in a very serious relationship now too. Things had always been serious with Peggy but Steve and Peggy never said so aloud. Everyday back then might've been their last so Steve was going to wait until the war was over to propose to her.

Unfortunately, he never got the chance.

"I know you think I'm really young," Emma said as she looked back down at the compass and photograph in her grandfather's hands. "Everyone seems to think that high school romance never lasts, which might be true in some cases, but this isn't puppy love."

"If it is puppy love then I can't imagine what it'll feel like when we're adults," Emma said softly and Steve completely believed her when she said that. The gravity of it all scared him a little bit but he was honestly happy for her despite everything.

Despite everything bad that's happened to her, she was making a life for herself. Not just with Peter but with the friends she had, school, her art, and possibly even college. Emma seemed happy with this life too which in turn made Steve happy.

"I'm happy for you, Emma," Steve told her truthfully. "And for the record, I don't think you're too young. You've always been older than you seem so I know this isn't something that you'll outgrow. You rarely let people in but the people you do let in stay."

"Thank you for understanding, Steve," Emma said as she gave him a small smile before it faded once something suddenly occurred to her. Steve noticed the change in emotion immediately and became concerned.

"What is it?" He questioned and Emma just shook her head as she looked back at him.

"I think I just realized what you meant about not being able to move on from my grandmother," Emma stated as she locked eyes with his. "If something ever happened to Peter, I don't think I could ever move on from him either. I'm in too deep now."

This was true.

The more Emma thought about it, the more she knew that losing Peter the way Steve lost Peggy would ruin her. The dorky teenage boy had wormed his way so far into her once cold heart that she didn't think she would ever recover from losing him. It sounded melodramatic and something like every teenage girl in the world would say about their boyfriend but Peter was different. He was her best friend too but he had also helped her through a lot of obstacles in her life in such a short amount of time. They had been through so much together that it left them connected in a way that was more than just the simplicity of being boyfriend and girlfriend.

This was the reason she had to stop Rumlow before he got to Peter or any of the others. She wouldn't let Rumlow take Peter from her too. Not like he took her parents, her childhood, and her innocence. Emma hadn't been able to save herself but she could still save Peter because if Rumlow hurt him or...killed him, it would destroy her.

Rumlow had ruined her life in many ways but he wasn't going to ruin this for her too. She knew Peter would do anything for her, even if it meant getting himself killed for her, but she didn't want that for him. The world needed Spider-Man more than it needed the Viper Assassin anyways. Spider-Man was a hero and the Viper Assassin was...well, Emma didn't completely know but she just knew that Rumlow needed to be gone once and for all.

He needed to pay for everything he had done to her.

This was his retribution.

"I pray that you'll never know that kind of pain," Steve said sincerely, not accusing her of being silly or ridiculous for saying such a thing but instead believing her when she told him about her feelings. If Emma hadn't been so deep within her thoughts then she would've appreciated this gesture more.

"How are you feeling despite everything?" Steve inquired, referring to the news of the origin of her powers. Emma pushed the thoughts of vengeance out of her mind as she shrugged.

"I don't know," She told him. "I don't think I know what to feel."

"That's understandable," Steve said in response. Emma sighed heavily as she tried to express what she was feeling but it was hard. Especially because there was no guideline about how to react to news like this.

"It's just that every time I think I know who I am, something else happens and then I'm left feeling like an idiot," Emma said quietly and it was the only thing she thought she could say that would explain how she felt about this whole thing. "I'm confused, annoyed, angry, and maybe even scared. There's no in between emotion for me. It's just a flood of many different feelings that I'm unsure about sorting out."

"I know this is tough...well, maybe I don't actually know but I know that you'll get through this," Steve said, fully believing in his granddaughter's strength. "As I said before, you're tough so I know you'll survive."

"Yeah, I just have energy from an Infinity Stone flooding through my veins. Probably not a big deal, right?" Emma said, joking about her predicament for the first time. Steve stared at her in surprise for a moment before cracking a smile.

"Probably not," Steve said in response.

"Who knows. Maybe this would make Loki want to be friends with me," Emma said as if she were trying to see the bright side of all this. "He had an obsession with the Tesseract, didn't he?"

"That's not funny," Steve said despite chuckling at Emma's antics. Maybe not everything had changed, after all. They were still able to talk like this just like they had before the accords.

"You know that I'm going with you guys on this mission, right?" Emma told him after they both calmed down from their laughter and grew more serious. Steve sighed heavily before nodding.

"I'd rather you didn't but I know there's little I can do to stop you. You're really stubborn," Steve told her and Emma allowed herself to smile once more at that.

"I think that's the one trait I got from you," Emma told him playfully but there was seriousness in both of their eyes.

"It must be a Rogers thing," Steve declared before looking at his granddaughter with a more tired look on his face. "Just promise me you'll stay on the Quinjet as back-up, Emma. I don't want you running around the Hydra base and possibly getting yourself killed in your emotional state."

Usually, Emma would've grown angry at him for accusing her of being in an emotional state but she refrained from doing so this time. She'd never get herself on the Quinjet if she started a fight with Steve now of all times. Emma knew how to pick your battles and this was one she'd save for another day.

"Okay," Emma said, agreeing to Steve's demand for once. Not because she was actually going to listen to him and stay on the Quinjet but because she knew it was what he wanted to hear. He really should've remembered the last time he told her to stay behind as back-up.

Emma wasn't good at being back-up.

"It's going to be okay, Emma," Steve said reassuringly but it became clear that he just wasn't speaking to her. He was speaking to himself too. "We'll get him and he'll pay for everything he's done. I promise."

"I know," Emma said quietly. She knew this because she was going to make sure Rumlow paid himself. Emma just needed to figure out a way to get to Rumlow before the others could intervene. Emma still wasn't completely sure but she knew she'd figure it out.

She'd figure it out because she had to...to finally end this and move on.

Boy, she was going to love seeing the look on Rumlow's face when he realized that the girl he helped trained for all those years and raped was also going to be his demise.

Emma heard that he couldn't feel pain anymore because of nerve damage.

Hopefully, she could change that.

---

Steve made his way down to the lab of the compound after his talk with Emma. He knew this whole ordeal with Hydra and Rumlow had been tough on her but Steve also knew she'd get through it. Emma was resilient like that...just like Peggy was.

The mission was soon to start now that he, Tony, Natasha, and Bucky came up with a clear and well thought out plan to infiltrate Hydra's newly found base. Of course, there was much debate over what they were going to do just like in the old days. Tony didn't seem too thrilled to hear Bucky's input but for once he kept his opinion to himself.

This wasn't about them, after all.

It was about Emma.

Steve walked into the lab which seemed to be empty for the most part. Rhodey told Steve that Tony had designed a newer suit for him during everyone's absence so Steve went to retrieve it. However, he didn't really expect to be left alone in a room with Tony when he finally made it down to the lab.

Steve was about to leave the lab before Tony noticed him, but it was too late.

It seemed like Tony already had.

"You here for the new suit?" Tony inquired, being quieter than usual. Steve noticed there wasn't a trace of smugness or excitement on his face this time around. Not like before whenever Tony proudly unveiled a new device or feature to one of the suits he created.

This made Steve feel even more guilty than he already felt.

"Yeah, Rhodey told me to come down here," Steve explained to Tony even though he didn't really have to explain to Tony why he was there. Tony probably already knew.

Tony nodded solemnly as he got out of the chair he was sitting in and walked over to the opposite side of the lab. The billionaire nodded for Steve to follow him so the super soldier did so without argument.

"It's nothing too fancy," Tony said as a secret compartment came out of the floor and rose up to meet their height. There was an assortment of new gadgets and suits that were now on full display.

Steve could see a new Black Widow suit with material that was much more resistant than the material for the suit she wore now.

A new and improved bow and arrow for Clint while there was also a more combustible but equally powerful looking version of Sam's wings.

Steve even saw a high tech looking belt of some sort sitting next to the other prototype weapons for Thor.

There seemed to be new weaponry and suits for all the Avengers, even the ones who had been on the run for the past year, which made Steve think that Tony must've kept himself busy.

Tony keeping himself busy wasn't a good thing either.

He knew what Tony was like when he locked himself in the lab for days on end. It had been better when Bruce was still around because, at least, Tony hadn't been alone in the lab, but no one knew where Bruce was.

At least Pepper seemed to be back in the picture now.

That reassured Steve of Tony's well-being but his concern still wasn't dismissed.

"I came up with a few different prototypes of a new shield for you," Tony told him as he started combing through the latest invention he created for the absent Avengers. "Something a little more from this day and age, at least in my book, and something that might give one of those Hydra assholes a little jolt when you play ultimate frisbee with their faces."

Steve watched in surprise as he stood in front of a new shield which was both like and unlike his old shield that had seen better days.

It was the same round shape as before but the colors were different now. Instead of the iconic red, white, and blue of his old shield, the new shield just featured a red, white, and black color scheme without the iconic star in the middle. It was different but Steve didn't think it was unwelcomed either.

He carefully lifted the new shield off its mantel and felt it's weight under his grip.

"Very lightweight," Tony commented as he anxiously watched Steve's reaction to the new shield. "I know that was never really a problem for you or Emma with that nifty little serum of yours, hers a little niftier than yours as it would turn out, but it's lightweight even for the rest of us."

Steve moved his arm forward and backward as he tested the weight of the shield.

True to Tony's words, it really was lightweight.

"I designed it to give out electric shocks, not unlike Romanoff's Widow Bites," Tony informed him as Steve continued to observe the shield. "It's highly durable and resistant against gunfire."

"Shuri even gave a little input since she came down to the labs. She added energy absorption and manipulation," Tony couldn't help but add. "Princess Genius actually even made me look like an old person around technology. I hate to say it but I think I finally met someone smarter than me, Cap."

"I just can't believe you're admitting that there's someone smarter than you," Steve pointed out as he gave the billionaire an amused look. Tony shrugged but the smile on his face was unwavering. He didn't seem angry or annoyed that there happened to be someone smarter than him. It was quite the opposite, actually.

"Well, there is and her name is Shuri," Tony admitted before shaking his head. "God, forty-six and outdone by a sixteen-year-old kid. I've gotta tell you, Cap. These kids are really showing us up at this point. Pretty soon they won't need us anymore."

"That's the point, isn't it?" Steve inquired and it was pretty clear that they weren't just talking about Shuri at this point.

Steve wasn't stupid.

He spotted the dynamic between Tony and Peter from the start. Steve knew what kind of relationship they had.

"We try to teach them to the best of our abilities and hope that someday they'll be better versions of ourselves."

"Who knew parenting would be the thing we finally bond over," Tony remarked in his usual unserious manner but it was clear to Steve that Tony wasn't all jokes right in that moment. He didn't fail to notice that there was a more tiredness and seriousness to Tony than they ever had been before. Steve knew that he was probably partially to blame for that. "Me with the Spiderling and you with Mini Cap or wait...what was that name Bruce liked to call her? Evil Twin or Steve No.2?"

"Evil Steve," The super soldier corrected with a small smile on his face.

It used to piss Steve off when Bruce would refer to Emma as the evil version of him. Bruce didn't do it in a joking manner like Tony, but he used the nickname as if he actually thought she was the evil version of her grandfather. Steve couldn't really blame him though. He knew how much Emma could stress a person out even if said person didn't have massive anger issues like Bruce famously did.

"Right. Evil Steve," Tony said as he smiled at the memory. "He was so terrified of her. Poor Banner. It's a wonder how she never got him to turn into the Hulk."

"I wonder about that too sometimes," Steve agreed and Tony looked back down at the shield that was still in Steve's hands. He felt the sudden need to steer the conversation in another direction. Sometimes Bruce's absence was still a little too fresh in his mind. Tony would've really liked to have had Bruce by his side during everything that happened with the accords.

Although, maybe Romanoff was right.

Maybe he wouldn't have been on his side, after all.

"I hope you like the shield," Tony said as he changed the subject. "I know it's not vibranium but vibranium is a little hard to get your hands on. I'm trying to work out something with T'Challa and Shuri but all my tech is outdated compared to theirs so I'm not sure if I have anything to bargain with. Wow...I finally know what Justin Hammer felt like. I never thought I'd see the day."

"No, it's amazing, Tony," Steve said in the midst of Tony's usual rambling. It seemed like some things really didn't change. He was even surprised that Tony had designed this shield for him in the first place. He thought he'd be the last person Tony would want to design a weapon for after everything they've been through. "Thank you. I really appreciate it."

"I know it's not dad's either but…" Tony trailed off, still feeling a bit guilty at the way he left things between them in Siberia when he took back Steve's shield. Steve just gave Tony a conflicted look before taking a huge risky step in finally reacting to the unspoken tension between them ever since he arrived back at the compound.

"I'm sorry, Tony," Steve finally said much to Tony's surprise. The super soldier took a deep breath before continuing. He knew Tony had a penchant for interjecting so he might as well speak while he still had the floor.

"I'm sorry for not telling you about Bucky and your parents. I told myself that it was better if you didn't know but that's not true. I didn't want to tell you because it was better for me if you didn't know and that wasn't right," Steve said sincerely as Tony soon grew uncomfortable with where this conversation was heading.

"We don't need to talk about this now, Cap," Tony tried to tell him, not wanting to start another argument with Steve but the iconic hero just shook his head as he went on.

"No, we do because we're about to go out there and I don't know what's going to happen so you need to hear me out," Steve replied and Tony fell silent as he looked back at Steve. "I know I hurt you. You can deny that all you want but I know I did. I hate the way we left things between us and I know things can't be the same again because of what Bucky did-"

"That's not why I'm mad," Tony said as he interrupted Steve's apology. A confused look crossed Steve's face.

"What?" Steve questioned and Tony just shook his head.

"I said that's not why I'm angry. It's not because of Barnes," Tony said much to Steve's bewilderment. "Well, I guess a part of it is because he did kill my parents but it's more than that."

"I don't understand," Steve said in confusion and Tony took a deep breath before responding. It wasn't easy for the billionaire to talk about his feelings. The action was actually immensely hard for him but he realized he needed to do this. For closure if nothing else. Tony had been haunted by these feelings of anger, betrayal, regret, and guilt for the past year and now was finally his chance to get it all off his chest.

"My father never ceased to remind me that you were his better creation," Tony finally told him as Steve listened with a conflicted look on his face. "From the time I could walk, he was always talking about how great you were."

"I lost track of the number of times that old man told me the story of the day you walked into the lab. He told it so often that I could recite it right here and now if I wanted," Tony said bitterly as he continued with his story. "He could've been in love with you for all I knew since you were such a fucking saint in his eyes."

"Tony, I wish it hadn't been like-" Steve started to say but Tony stopped him.

"Just let me tell the goddamn story, Steve," Tony said in annoyance as he dismissed Steve's interruption. Steve immediately fell silent at that. "Then there was his precious little Steven Jr. The apple of his eye because he was the son of his greatest creation."

"I always resented Steven too," Tony admitted as Steve watched him carefully. He knew it was rare that Tony ever talked about Emma's dad and his son. Steve tried asking him about his son after the whole incident with Loki years ago, but Tony said that they weren't that close.

Of course, Steve knew that was a lie because why else would his son make Tony Emma's godfather?

Why did Peggy have so many pictures of his son and Tony together?

Steve tried bringing up the subject of his son countless times after that, but each time Tony would get snippy or excuse himself from the room. He learned from Pepper and Rhodey later on that Tony had taken Steven Jr.'s death very hard so Steve gave up trying to get Tony to talk about him. Steve always hoped Tony would come to him someday and initiate that conversation but it never happened.

Now, however, it seemed like the conversation was taking place but not in the way Steve would've imagined.

"Dad treated him more like a son than he ever treated me," Tony said as he told Steve the history of his complex relationship with Steven Jr. "It didn't help that Steven was so nice all the time. He wasn't unlike you in that department. He was so perfect that I wanted to punch him in his stupid ruggedly handsome face."

"Which now makes me realize that the more time I spent around you, the more I started seeing you as him," Tony said, being honest with Steve for the first time in forever. A wave of emotions came over Steve as he watched Tony let his walls down for the first time. "I think I forgot you were two different people."

"I mean, yeah, I resented him for my entire life because he was the guy who stole my dad from me but I…" Tony swallowed hard as he fought the urge to shed tears. He was a grown man, for crying out loud. He shouldn't be crying right now. Tony inhaled through his nose and looked back at Steve who looked equally emotional right now. "I still loved him. Maybe it wasn't so different from what you and Barnes have. For a long time, he was the only one who cared and so when he died, or when Hydra killed him, I was alone."

"Everything that happened in Siberia made me realize that you're not him. You're not his replacement and neither is Emma," Tony said as he finally let everything out. This was difficult but he knew it needed to be said. "When you told me that you knew what Barnes did to my parents, I felt betrayed. Not just by you but by him too. I realized that you weren't him and it hurt a lot.

"I wish I'd handled things differently but I was just so angry at you for lying to me about my parents and for reminding me that one of my best friend's is still dead," Tony said as he finally wrapped up his angry and emotional rant.

When he was done he looked away from Steve, unable to meet his eyes at the present moment.

Things were quiet between the two Avengers after that. Tony had given Steve a lot to think about and a lot to process while Tony was still coming down from his emotional state. Steve was at a loss for words because he never knew that was the way Tony felt. Not in all his five years of knowing the famous billionaire. Steve always just thought Tony was mad because he lied to him and protected Bucky but he could now see that it was so much more than that.

"I didn't know that was the way you felt," Steve said quietly as he tried to form his thoughts around what else he could say to Tony.

"I never wanted you to know," Tony said in response and Steve nodded slowly, a thoughtful and melancholy look on his face.

"I can see that now," Steve said as he finally apologized for something he hadn't realized he had done until now. "Look, Tony, there are things that I can't fix. I can't fix things between you and your dad while I also can't change the fact that I'm Steven's father. I wish I could make it easier for you, I really do."

"But I am sorry for everything. For all the pain I've caused and so much more," Steve said sincerely as he apologized to an unusually quiet Tony. "I know I haven't been a good friend to you lately and I know I've betrayed you in a way I might not ever fix, but I just want you to know that I still think of you, and always have thought of you, as my friend."

"I'm sorry too if it's any consolation," Tony said because he knew he wasn't the only one at fault either. "I've always treated you a bit shittier than I've treated everyone else. I kept you at a distance because of how much you look like him but it wasn't fair to you.

"It's not fair for me to blame you for things you can't change either," Tony spoke softly as he did a rare thing of apologizing. It wasn't often that he did so but it was odd that he seemed to be doing a lot of apologizing to people with the last name Rogers lately. "I understand why you helped Barnes and I know what he means to you. I'm not going to get in the way of that again. My father talked about him a lot too and I know he would've understood Barnes' circumstance had he lived."

"I guess what I'm trying to say is that I've always considered you to be my friend too," Tony said before deciding that was a little too mushy. He had a reputation to keep up, after all. "I mean, I still want to punch you in your perfect teeth but just a little less now," Tony quipped as he offered Steve a small smile.

A wave of relief washed over Steve at Tony's quip because he realized that they were moving forward.

They got everything off their chests but now it was time to leave some things in the past. It was what they both wanted but also what they both needed.

It was clear that nothing would ever be quite the same again but they were still willing to move on and be teammates once more. This was a huge step in making things right between them and they were both happy with the end results.

"Should we shake hands now or…" Tony trailed off, not knowing what the next move to make was. Steve smiled at the slightly shorter man.

"I think we're at a point where a hug wouldn't be out of the question," Steve said much to both of their surprise. Tony shifted uncomfortably.

"Well, I already told the kid this but I'm not much for hugging, Cap," Tony told him and Steve just shook his head.

"For Emma then," Steve told him and Tony stared at him long and hard for a moment before releasing a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. Tony remembered the times Steven would wrap him up in a big bear hug as Tony felt like he was being crushed to near death. He just hoped that this wasn't the same kind of experience as that.

"Okay," Tony said quietly and Steve gave him a small smile before reaching forward and embracing his old friend. It wasn't a very long hug and it was also a very manly one. It lasted maybe five seconds as they patted each other on the back awkwardly before parting.

"Let's not tell anyone about this," Tony told the blonde man. Steve gave him an amused look but nodded nonetheless.

"Whatever you say, Tony," Steve told him and Tony could've sworn Steve was smirking.

Actually smirking.

It occurred to Tony then that Steve looked a lot like his son and granddaughter when he smirked. A smirking Steve wasn't a common occurrence so it was definitely something Tony would have to get used to.

"So uh...do you want to take a look at the new suit? It's more stealth mode. Not unlike your suit from your days at Shield," Tony inquired as he changed the subject. He cleared his throat awkwardly as he moved towards the new gear he had been showing Steve earlier. Steve smiled as he nodded, following the billionaire as they went down a new path of forgiveness.

"Sure," Steve told him as Tony started pointing out all the modifications of the new suit while Steve listened patiently. He was just happy that things were looking a bit up despite the current situation they were.

At least Steve could go into this fight against Hydra, hopefully the last one, knowing that he and Tony wouldn't part again on bad terms.

This gave him hope for not just his future with Emma but with the Avengers as well.

"Congratulations on your engagement by the way," Steve told Tony sincerely, taking a step in this new direction. "We heard about it in the news. I'm happy for you and Pepper."

"Thanks, Cap," Tony said, smiling genuinely for once. "We haven't set a date yet but we were thinking some time next year."

"Really?"

"Yeah, Pepper's parents got married in the summer, you know. A summer wedding could be nice."

"I think so too."

---

Everyone seemed to be gearing up for the big mission. Various agents were busy loading up the Quinjet with numerous weapons and equipment for the Avengers' mission.

The first one as a complete team for a long while.

Emma felt like she did a couple years ago as she watched Steve and the others getting ready for a mission. Only this time she would be going with them.

Not all the Avengers were going.

Steve didn't want to use all their resources and he also wanted to make sure some people stayed behind in case Hydra tried to infiltrate them while they were gone. Not to mention there were a lot of civilians staying behind which would include May, Michelle, Ned, Darcy, Pepper, and the majority of their scientists at the compound. There was no telling if Hydra knew whether or not they were coming. Emma knew that Rhodey, Vision, Maria, Fury, Okoye, and Sam were staying behind to protect the compound while everyone else would be going on the mission. Emma and Peter included.

Emma was dressed in her Viper Assassin suit which she hadn't worn since before this whole mess started. She knew Peter was somewhere around the compound getting ready for the mission as well. Emma hadn't spoken with him since the meeting but she knew she'd eventually have to talk to him. Probably to apologize about storming away earlier. Emma hadn't meant to but things became a little too overwhelming in that meeting.

The discovery of the origin of her powers terrified the hell out of her but mostly because she didn't know what it meant for her. The thought of having any kind of power associated with one of the Infinity Stones made Emma uneasy. She supposed she wasn't all that different from Wanda in that sense but a lot of people were terrified of Wanda. Emma knew she was already controversial in the news with her former past in Hydra. Some people didn't like how the Viper Assassin was granted immunity so she could only imagine what they'd think if they knew her powers came from an Infinity Stone.

The Space Stone as Thor called it.

The stuff of legends.

"You're leaving then," Michelle said as she broke the blonde out of her thoughts. Emma turned to look at her friend who also seemed to be curiously watching people move in and out of the building as they loaded the Quinjet.

"It would seem so," Emma said in response.

"This is weird," Michelle said as she looked around the compound which seemed to be heavily occupied by a large assortment of the Avengers at the present moment.

The young girl had already met Vision, Rhodey, and Tony but now she seemed to be staring at a bunch of other heroes she had yet to meet. It was only a second ago that she watched the Scarlet Witch taking a short walk with Vision before she left for the mission. Black Widow and Hawkeye were locked in a hushed discussion with each other while the Falcon seemed to be teasing the Black Panther about something...or rather King T'Challa who was king of a nation that was very fascinating to Michelle.

Emma fought the urge to smirk as she noticed the way Michelle, not so discreetly, checked T'Challa out. It was hard not to look at him if Emma was being perfectly honest. Not to mention that very sexy Wakandan accent of his. The guy drew a lot of attention wherever he went. Especially female attention.

"He's not so bad looking, is he?" Emma said as she smirked at her friend. Michelle looked at her in surprise before blushing. Emma found that strange since she didn't think she had ever seen her friend blush before.

"I uh...I don't know what you mean," Michelle said, sounding very embarrassed.

"He'd never look at us that way because of his lame nobleness or whatever, but that doesn't mean that we can't look at him," Emma said, mischief in her eyes despite the current situation. It was nice to be distracted anyways considering everything that was currently going on in her life.

"You do know that Peter probably wouldn't like you talking about another guy like that, right?" Michelle told her and Emma rolled her eyes. "He's really territorial for a nerd. I'm surprised he hasn't tried pissing on you like a dog."

"Very funny," Emma told her. "Parker's not my fucking keeper. Besides...I'm pretty sure he jerks off to that girl from Star Wars so he shouldn't be pointing fingers."

"I'm pretty sure he just jerks off to the fantasy of you dressed up like that girl...or maybe even Slave Leia. Peter seems like a little weirdo who would be into stuff like that," Michelle added and Emma just shook her head in amusement as she let out a small laugh. It only took a moment for them to grow more serious again as they remembered where they were.

"This is a big deal, right?" Michelle asked Emma quietly with an expression of worry on her face although she really wouldn't admit it to anyone if they asked her. "Hydra and you, I mean. After everything they did to you, this is kind of what it's been leading up to."

"We're going to end Hydra once and for all if that's what you mean," Emma said in response and Michelle nodded solemnly.

"It's going to be dangerous then," Michelle inquired although she already knew the answer to that.

"Probably."

"And you have to be there too," Michelle said, sounding worried about her which surprised Emma because she didn't think Michelle had ever seemed worried about her before. Well, Michelle didn't seem like the kind of person to get worried about things. It didn't seem to be in her nature but maybe Emma was mistaken about her before.

"After everything I've done in the service of Hydra, the least I can do is help destroy them for good," Emma said even though that wasn't the whole part of the truth. This just sounded like something Steve would say...something noble and admirable. Truthfully, Emma wasn't exactly doing this for the right reasons and a part of her knew that. Her actions were more fueled by vengeance, anger, and fear than anything else.

"Be careful then," Michelle told her and Emma smiled before nodding.

"I will. You be careful too, MJ," Emma said to her before smirking. "Make sure Leeds doesn't annoy the hell out of Fury. The guy's not the best around children,"

"Will do," Michelle said as she returned Emma's smirk. Emma was about to say something when they were interrupted by her grandfather who dressed in a much different suit than usual.

He certainly wasn't dressed in his usual Captain America suit.

That much was clear.

His suit looked more like his old stealth suit she knew he used during his days at Shield. Although, instead of the dark blue color of that suit, this suit was black. The only trace of color was the chest of the suit which was designed with red and white stripes horizontally across the front. A black star was positioned right at the center of his chest amongst the stripes, but what struck Emma was how different this suit looked from its usual look. He even had a new shield which seemed to match his new look.

Emma was surprised by this new Captain America look but she didn't think she hated it either.

"Well, this is different," Emma remarked as she looked the suit up and down. Steve chuckled as he looked down at the suit.

"Do you like it? Tony designed it and I don't know…" Steve trailed off, a little unsure of the new look. "It's different, I guess."

"No, it looks really good on you," Emma told him, assuring him of the fact that she liked it. She truthfully did. He looked pretty badass in his new suit. Emma never took him for the badass type. Steve was always the noble looking hero in her eyes but this was a nice change. "I like it."

"I'll stick with it then. You, teenagers, seem to know what's hip, right?" Steve said jokingly, a teasing smile on his face as Emma rolled her eyes.

"Yes, grandpa. We know all the trends," Emma said sarcastically as Steve just laughed at her. It was only then that Steve took notice of Michelle who was standing next to Emma. He realized that this must've been one of Emma's friends. The friend she had been telling him about who was just as much of a book worm as Emma was.

"Oh, hi," Steve said politely as he smiled warmly at Michelle. "You must be Michelle. Emma told me about you."

"Hi," Michelle said awkwardly as she carefully eyed the very tall man who greatly resembled her friend. It was obvious that the two were related now that Michelle saw them side by side. There was absolutely no denying it.

"I'm Steve by the way. Emma's-"

"Yeah, I know," Michelle said, interrupting the super soldier much to his surprise. "You're Emma's gramps. By the way...how are those turkeys treating you these days? Are they still trying to get you to do the wrong thing?"

"Excuse me?" Steve said, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. Emma laughed at the expression on Steve's face as Michelle just watched him in amusement after referencing the video from detention.

"Everyone's seen those videos at school, Steve," Emma told him, causing Steve to blush. "I also hope that you know I'll never let you forget those videos."

"Right, well, it's nice to finally meet you," Steve said kindly as he pointedly ignored Emma, giving Michelle another polite smile. He then proceeded to ramble on about his happiness at Emma's social life. "Emma's always talking about the friends she's made at Midtown and I'm happy that she seems to be doing so well there. You know, it was just a couple years ago that she said she'd never have any friends but now…"

The two teenage girls both tuned him out as he went on and on about how happy he was that Emma was making friends and that Michelle was one of those friends.

Michelle raised her eyebrows at Emma as she listened to her friend's grandfather ramble on like that. He only sounded a little too much like another guy in Emma's life who rambled on like that whenever he was nervous or happy about something. Michelle always wondered why Emma, someone very cynical and bitter, was always so over the moon about Peter Parker, someone very optimistic and kind, but maybe now Michelle knew. It actually made a lot of sense now that she put all the pieces together.

Michelle deduced the reason behind Emma's attraction to dorks stemmed from Captain America being a rather large dork himself.

"What are you looking at?" Emma questioned as Steve happily went on rambling about how proud he was of her, oblivious to the look Michelle was giving Emma.

Michelle just smirked as she shrugged nonchalantly.

"Nothing," Michelle said casually and Emma narrowed her eyes at her friend, not sure that she liked how smug Michelle was being right now.

"Oh my god." Emma sighed tiredly as she heard yet another person come up to them. Could this get any worse? "It's Captain America! You're Captain America!"

"Hi, Leeds," Emma said, not sounding particularly amused by the awestruck look on his face as he stared at her grandfather. His mouth was practically hanging open as he continued to stare at Steve.

"Hello, you must be Ned," Steve said politely as he kindly smiled at the young boy. Ned's eyes widened in surprise.

"You know who I am?" Ned questioned, completely overwhelmed that Captain America apparently knew who he was. This had to be one of the greatest moments of his life. Way greater than when he found out his best friend was Spider-Man and greater than when he shot that one bad guy with Peter's webbing in the school parking lot.

"Emma told me about you," Steve told him before he then introduced himself. "I'm Steve by the way."

"Yeah, I know who you are, Mr. Rogers," Ned said, slightly out of breath because of just how cool this all was. There were all kinds of superheroes just walking around the place like it was normal. Ned just fanboyed over the Black Widow a couple minutes ago although he didn't dare go near her. She was probably even scarier than Emma. The young teenage boy then turned his head to look at Emma. "You talk about me?"

"Relax, Leeds," Emma said with a smirk on her face. "I just told Steve how you're Peter's annoying idiot friend that I only tolerate."

"Thanks a lot, Emma," Ned mumbled while Steve gave his granddaughter a warning look.

"Be polite, Emma," Steve told her and Emma just rolled her eyes as Ned and Michelle watched the pair in both curiosity and amusement. It wasn't often that they saw someone tell Emma what to do and her not tell them to go fuck themselves.

"It's just really cool to meet you, sir," Ned said as he gushed to Steve about how amazing this was. "Peter and I are such big fans of yours. I just can't believe I'm finally meeting you."

"Peter?" Steve questioned as he raised an eyebrow at him. Ned nodded.

"Yeah, Peter and I used to have these Avengers action figures," Ned explained to Steve who found it curious that his granddaughter's boyfriend happened to be a fan of his. "The footage from that thing with Loki was so awesome. You, like, totally threw your shield around like a frisbee and then you were kicking alien ass but the best part was when you-"

"It's too bad Loki lost that day," Emma deadpanned with another smirk on her face as she interrupted Ned's fanboy rant. "He would've made a very handsome dictator. Our country could do really well under a dictatorship. Who needs freedom anyways?"

"You're not funny," Steve told Emma with a pointed look on his face. He could see that Emma's weird fascination with Loki wasn't gone. That was the one thing that she hadn't changed about herself after all this time.

"I just think it's so cool how Emma and Peter are together now," Ned said as he ignored Emma's weird remarks. He was used to her weird fascination with Loki at this point. Everyone was, really. "I mean, when they get married you'll be Peter's grandfather-in-law and that's so awesome."

"Uh…" Steve said as he stared at the excited looking teenager with wide eyes. Michelle basically facepalmed while Emma glared at him.

"You guys would be this huge superhero family and especially when they have kids," Ned gushed excitedly as Emma's anger grew and as Steve felt a rush of fear wash over him.

Peter had mentioned something about marriage before, but Steve hadn't taken him seriously then. He was just a kid, after all. However, now that Emma's little friend was going on about marriage and kids, it was painting a very scary image in his mind. Emma having a boyfriend was one thing but Emma getting married and having babies was a whole other level.

Steve wasn't ready for that.

He wouldn't be ready for a very long time.

"Did you know that you'd be a great-grandpa when they have kids?"

"You'd probably be the youngest looking great-grandpa ever. Well, you're probably the youngest looking grandpa ever because, you know, ice and everything," Ned said as he rambled on endlessly without noticing that Emma was five seconds from shutting his mouth up herself.

God, he was even worse than Peter about this whole kid thing.

"You'll still be young and everything when their kids are born because Peter told me that he wants Emma and him to start having kids when they finish college so that's only a few years away and-"

"I swear to god, Leeds," Emma snapped as she nearly pounced on him and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. He immediately shut up and stared at her with wide eyes. "I'm not having any bratty little Spider-Twerps. If you don't shut the fuck up right this instant, I'm going to make Hydra look like the least of your problems."

"Did I say something wrong?" Ned questioned innocently as he looked at the blonde in fear.

Emma looked so angry at him and for some reason, he seemed to always piss her off somehow.

Steve snapped out of his horrified state to step in.

"Emma, stop," Steve ordered and Emma looked back at him.

"But Steve-" Emma started to whine but her grandfather gave her a very stern look.

"Stop right now or I won't let you come on the mission," Steve demanded in a very serious, no-nonsense tone. Michelle watched in surprise because she had never seen someone talk to Emma like that. Even Ned looked surprised despite Emma being two seconds away from shutting him up herself.

Michelle and Ned were even more surprised when Emma groaned and rolled her eyes at Steve before subsequently letting Ned go.

"Fine," Emma grumbled but not before giving Ned a distasteful look.

"You know that my mom would've washed my mouth out with soap if I swore like you just did," Steve pointed out to her and Emma raised her eyebrows at him.

"Like Ralphie?" Emma questioned, making A Christmas Story reference that clearly went over Steve's head as he gave her a confused look.

"Who?" Steve questioned and Emma just shook her head before smirking at her grandfather.

"You're forgetting who you're talking to, Steve," Emma told the blonde man. "I spent nine years in Hydra. You're not going to scare me with a bar of soap."

"Speaking of which, we should probably get going, shouldn't we?" Emma inquired, already bored with this conversation. Steve gave her another stern look before deciding to let this one go. They were heading out on a mission soon anyways.

"You're always going to be a whole lot of trouble, aren't you?" Steve asked but there was no anger or annoyance in his tone. He was more amused than anything else.

Emma shrugged nonchalantly.

"You wanted me," Emma said snarkily before walking off without saying another word to her two friends.

She knew that she and Michelle spoke more than their fair share of words. They weren't the most talkative of friends but Emma felt good about where they left things. And Ned...well, Leeds always annoyed the hell out of her but she knew he'd be fine at the compound with the Avengers who were staying behind.

Steve just watched her leave in amusement. He wondered how he could go from being angry at her to amused. Only Emma could evoke those kinds of emotions out of a person in such a short time span.

Only Emma.

Steve stared after Emma as she walked towards the Quinjet outside, lost in his thoughts, but he was soon distracted by a clearly still awestruck Ned who seemed to forget the fact that Emma nearly killed him a second ago. The super soldier turned back to look at the teenage boy in surprise at the next question that came out of his mouth.

"Are you really a mean old grandpa like Emma told us you were?"

---

Emma felt relaxed briefly after the introduction between Steve and her friends. However, the relaxation period disappeared as soon as she saw the Quinjet in sight. It was only then that Emma remembered her mission. Her mission which was Rumlow.

How could she let herself forget something like that?

This was what she was supposed to focus on with the mission just on the horizon. It wouldn't be long before they'd arrive at their destination and that's when all hell would break loose. Emma needed to prepare herself for the upcoming battle. She didn't know for sure what Rumlow had up his sleeve but she would bet good money on it having something to do with her super soldier serum. There was a reason why Rumlow was waiting until the last minute to reveal himself and this was exactly why.

The others were so focused on finally ending Hydra that they didn't stop to think that this was a trap.

The only reason why Rumlow hadn't come to them yet was because he was waiting for them to come to him. Emma knew him and she knew the workings of his dark and sadistic mind. In his own fucked up way of thinking, he was living in the belief that they somehow belonged together and that Emma would return to him out of love or some other kind of fucked up bullshit. That couldn't be further from the truth but the guy was a deranged psychopath.

She didn't love him.

She never had and she never would.

Emma wanted to make sure he knew that about her. The former assassin was going to make sure that she woke him up to the truth of the matter. She wanted him to know that she hated him with all her being and she wished that he would never die so she could spend eternity killing him over and over again.

Even so, Emma knew she had to end him if she ever wanted to move on with her life. He'd never stop trying to get to her if he lived. This was why Emma already knew that he wasn't going to be arrested and put into Raft. He'd use his connections somehow to break out and then they'd be in the same position.

There was simply just not any other way.

Bruce always liked saying that the best way to move on was to leave your past in your past. It was one of those stupid hippie meditation lines Bruce liked spouting out. The guy was always a little too "all love and no war" for Emma's liking which was why she teased him all the time. Now, however, Emma was finally listening to his advice. Only...she didn't think Bruce and herself had similar methods of leaving their past in their past. Bruce's method involved yoga and veganism and Emma's method involved killing Rumlow.

At least she'd be living out her childhood dream this way. Emma just didn't think many people had childhood dreams of killing someone.

Rumlow was just special that way she guessed.

"There seems to be a lot on your mind, Miss Rogers," Emma heard someone say from behind her. She would've recognized the accent from anywhere. The blonde turned around only to be met with the sight of the Wakandan King himself.

Emma had just walked aboard the Quinjet.

She didn't really know what she was doing there by herself. Probably just stalling so she wouldn't have to talk to her father. Emma really didn't want to talk to him right now. It wasn't just the fact that she was still mad at him for how he acted the other day, but learning that new information from the flashdrive was overwhelming. She was still trying to process it and figure out how to deal with it.

Unfortunately, Emma was just going to have to put that to the back of her mind right now. Rumlow was going to require all of her focus and she couldn't let herself become distracted. The tiniest slip up on her part could cost her both her life or someone else's life. Rumlow wasn't someone to underestimate.

She didn't know why no one else seemed to understand that.

"Well, there's kind of a lot going on, isn't there?" Emma said sarcastically, coming off a little bitchier than usual.

T'Challa eyed the teenage girl suspiciously. He wasn't completely sure how to talk to her. Bucky always made the girl out to be a sweet, innocent young girl but it occurred to T'Challa that Bucky just remembered the five-year-old girl she used to be. Steve mentioned that his granddaughter was complicated more or less but T'Challa never thought it was to this extent. He noticed that she was very deflective which almost made him feel like he was talking to Stark, but there was something else about her that reminded him of someone else. Nothing like a character trait or even a physical one but just a look she had in her eyes.

"There may be a lot going on out here with the rest of us," T'Challa said as he looked at the teenage girl before nodding at her. "But I think there's something going on in there. In your head."

"Are you pissed at me or something, Your Highness?" Emma questioned as she narrowed her eyes at the man. He may have had a pretty face to look at but that didn't mean Emma was going to bat her eyelashes at him and play nice. "If this is about your sister then maybe you should keep her on a shorter leash."

"Shuri does as she pleases. That I know better than anyone else," T'Challa told her before focusing his gaze on her. "There's something else that bothers me about you, Miss Rogers."

"And what's that? I'm really dying to know," Emma said in a dull tone as she met his gaze with a bored look on her face.

"Whenever I look at you I see a look in your eyes. A look that a bright woman young woman as young as yourself should never have in their eyes," T'Challa said and Emma couldn't help but let out a smart ass remark.

"What are you, a sexist now too? I'm sorry if I'm not a proper young lady of the court, Your Highness," Emma said sarcastically but T'Challa didn't look offended. He just went on despite Emma's bitter sarcasm.

"It's vengeance I see in your eyes," T'Challa finally said, making the bored look fall off Emma's face. She was seemingly more interested in what T'Challa had to say than before. "I can see it there in your eyes as clear as day."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Emma told him, masking the surprise on her face with a calm and collected expression.

"I think you do," T'Challa said calmly as he stared at her with a look of wisdom and knowingness that Emma really didn't like. "I know because I've seen that look in someone else's eyes. My own too for that matter."

"You seek to bring the harbinger of your pain and suffering to justice but only on your own terms," T'Challa continued to tell her as he informed Emma of what he thought he knew about her. "You think vengeance will bring you peace but you are wrong."

"Vengeance will only consume you until there's nothing left but pain and suffering," T'Challa told the teenage girl. "You saw what Zemo did firsthand. He let vengeance consume him and we all paid the price. I've seen vengeance consume many men and women and it's given them nothing in return."

"I almost let vengeance consume me," T'Challa said, looking somewhat ashamed of himself as Emma eyed him with a cold look on her face. "Your father could've paid the price for that."

"You wouldn't have come close so I wouldn't sweat it," Emma bit out as her eyes narrowed into a glare. T'Challa looked up at her in surprise. "What are you doing, T'Challa? Trying to trade sob stories with me?"

"I just want you to know that I understand," T'Challa said as he started to get a feeling that this conversation wasn't going the way he hoped. Emma scoffed and it became clear to T'Challa that he made the wrong move in trying to talk some sense into her. He overstepped his bounds.

"You understand nothing," Emma hissed as T'Challa just watched her with a torn look on his face. "So you watched your father die. Big deal."

"I saw my father's head get blown off, his brains splattering everywhere, and nothing was left but an empty cavity where his face used to be," She said as she raised her voice in anger. "My mother's throat was slit mercilessly. All by the very same man, we're going after today."

"They died because Hydra wanted me. They wanted a new weapon because their first one was starting to get old," The young girl told him as T'Challa was left with no other option but to stay silent and listen. "Hydra tortured me for nine years. Made me learn fucked up things like how to take down nations, inflict chaos, and murder people who were sometimes not innocent but most of the time they were."

"What ten-year-old kid spends their afternoon rigging a car bomb?" Emma questioned rhetorically much to T'Challa horror. "What eleven-year-old kid takes out a hit on a South Korean politician? How's that for a childhood."

"They stole my parents from me, my childhood, and everything else too," Emma ranted angrily after being set off by the king, a lone tear streaming down her face. "Just when I thought that at least I still have my dignity, my innocence if you want to call it that, then that fucking asshole came into my room and raped me over and over again no matter how much I begged him to stop."

"So don't go trying to compare yourself to me while pretending to know how I feel," Emma told him with a furious look on her face and T'Challa was left speechless at her anger. "You who always lived all comfortable in your little palace with your little servants and guards. You who lives completely innocent of all the fucked up shit in the world because your mommy and daddy kept you in a bubble."

"I never meant to offend you, Miss Rogers," T'Challa said, feeling sad for the girl who was obviously left feeling very bitter and hurt by all suffering she had faced in her life. He wasn't angry at what she said to him about his upbringing because it was true in a sense. Emma also wasn't the first person to tell him this. "I only meant to give you some advice."

"I don't need yours or anyone else's advice," Emma said bitterly and T'Challa just nodded slowly.

"Perhaps but do you still think it's wise for you to be going on a mission in this state?" T'Challa inquired carefully and Emma felt like telling him to go fuck himself. The guy thought he was all high and mighty because he was a king so that somehow gave him the right to tell her what to do. She didn't like what he was insinuating but she knew she had already argued with him enough. Emma was just going to tell him what he, like everyone else, wanted to hear.

"Are any of us fit to go on this mission right now?" Emma retorted but her tone was calmer now and she seemed a little less angry than before although she was clearly still tense. T'Challa relaxed a bit at her change in demeanor. "Every single person here is emotionally compromised. It's not just me"

"I suppose you have a point there," T'Challa said in response. She feigned a reassuring look as she crossed her arms and leaned against the wall of the Quinjet.

"Don't worry, Your Highness," Emma said and anyone that knew her would know by her emotionless tone that she didn't mean her own words. "I'm just back-up, remember? I won't screw the mission up. It's too important for me to interfere like that."

"Besides…" Emma trailed off as she looked him in the eyes, something that she knew was the indication of a person telling the truth, and softened her gaze. "Vengeance for me isn't death. Vengeance is making sure that bastard rots in prison for the rest of his pathetic life."

"I'm glad to hear it," T'Challa told her and she wondered if she had him convinced. She did kind of yell at him a second ago but then again...manipulation and lying were her strong suits, after all. Emma might not have been confident about this whole hero thing but lying was definitely a gift of hers. She knew she could lie to T'Challa because he didn't know he, but she also knew that if Steve or her father saw her then they'd know she was lying. It seemed like there were a select few who were immune to her gifts.

"Well, we almost seem ready to go," Clint Barton announced as he walked onto the Quinjet and headed straight for the pilot's seat. He seemed oblivious to the obvious tension in the air from Emma and T'Challa's dispute. Emma and T'Challa exchanged one last glance before turning to look at Clint who was taking his seat.

"I'm glad to hear it," T'Challa told him, his tone sounding more optimistic than before. Clint smiled back at him before looking down at the screen as he began to set course for their mission. The others seemed to pile on to the Quinjet after that and Emma's only relief came from T'Challa not mentioning their argument to anyone. She took comfort in the fact that she was just as good of a liar as she used to be. He believed her and that was all she needed to know as they got ready to leave for their mission.

T'Challa believed that Emma would settle for Rumlow being put behind bars but the truth of the matter was that she would never be satisfied with him behind bars. She wouldn't be content until that asshole was buried six feet under. Emma would take no less than them coming out of this thing with his cold corpse for everyone to see.

There would be no compromising over the matter.

He was already dead and she was the only one who knew it.

---

"Peter, I just got here and now you're leaving?" May Parker questioned as she tried to stop her nephew from going on the mission. Peter was heading for the Quinjet with all the others as May followed him.

"You'll be fine here, May. You'll be safe and-" Peter started to say but May interrupted him. It was still going to take some getting used to with seeing her nephew dressed in his Spider-Man suit. May didn't think she'd ever get used to that.

"You're the child, Peter, and I'm the parent. You shouldn't be going off to face a bunch of evil super Nazis in the first place," May told him with both a worried and angry look on her face. "How come you never told me what exactly was going on? You told me it was nothing to worry about. You said it was being taken care of."

"I didn't want you to worry," Peter told her quietly and May scoffed.

"Of course I was going to worry, Peter," May told him, sounding frustrated by her nephew's antics. "It's my job to worry."

"I always worry whenever you go off to every night to be Spider-Man but this is different, " May said, tears streaming down her face. "This is the Avengers. This is Hydra. This is so much more than any of it before and I'm scared for you."

"And this is also Emma," Peter finally told his aunt as he finally stopped in his steps, May stopping alongside him. The older woman noticed an odd look cross Peter's face. A look that was a combination of emotions like fear, anger, and desperation. It should've scared her to see her nephew like this but she understood why.

"This man...he's a very bad man, May, and he did terrible things to Emma," Peter told his aunt, his eyes flooding with tears. The look on his face broke her heart. "He did really evil things to her and he wants to take her away so he can do more evil things to her. I'm not going to let that happen. I'm not going to let him hurt her again."

"What would you do if it was Uncle Ben?" Peter asked her and May suddenly felt overcome with emotion at the mention of her late husband. "Wouldn't you do everything you could to help him? To protect him?"

"Don't ask me that, Peter," May told him tearfully and Peter swallowed hard as he sought to make his aunt understand why he needed to do this.

"She needs me, May. She'd never admit to needing me but I know she does," Peter said honestly and it was clear to May at that moment that there was no changing his mind. He could be remarkably stubborn when he wanted to be. "And she's also going on that mission so I'm going to have to go with her. I can't lose her, May. I really can't."

"I can't lose you either, Peter," May said, her eyes still flooded with tears. However, before she could say anything else someone else came up to them.

"Is everything okay here?" Steve inquired as he noticed Peter in the presence of a very emotional looking woman. Both Peter and May looked up at Steve who was dressed in a much different uniform than what they were used to seeing. In fact, Peter hardly recognized him in this uniform.

"Yeah, my aunt's just worried about me," Peter told his girlfriend's grandfather. It was then that May allowed herself to turn to Captain America. Remembering her manners and forcing a polite smile across her face despite the tears.

"Hi, you must be Steve. Emma's...grandfather," May finally managed to say. Wow, that really was a strange concept, after all. Here was a man who looked no older than thirty-two or thirty-three, terribly good looking too, but who happened to be a grandfather. He certainly made May feel old.

"Yes, I am. You must be Peter's aunt?" Steve inquired with a kind smile on his face. May nodded.

"It's nice to finally meet you despite the current situation," May told the blonde man sincerely.

"It's nice to meet you too, Ma'am," Steve said, being his formal and polite self. May blushed.

"Please just call me, May. Ma'am makes me feel so old," May told him and Steve smiled.

"Of course, May," Steve told her before glancing at Peter and then back to May again.

Peter chewed on his bottom lip nervously because he kind of felt like Steve might tell May about what he and Emma had been doing the other day when her father walked in on them. It seemed like a silly thing to be worried about in the situation they were in but he really didn't want to give May another reason to ground him when this was all over. Sure, May seemed to be more on the cooler spectrum of parents when it came to things like sex, unlike Emma's father, but he didn't want May embarrassing him in front of all the Avengers about making sure he used protection.

"You've raised a very nice young man. You know that?" Steve finally said, shocking Peter to his very core. The boy's eyes widened as he looked in between May and Steve. May smiled, momentarily forgetting all the worry she was feeling about Peter's impending mission.

"I know. Believe me," May told him, a proud look on her face. Peter still couldn't believe Emma's grandfather said that about him.

"I'm glad he's taken care of Emma while I've been away. I'll never forget that," Steve told her but it was clear from the way he was looking at Peter from the corner of his eye that he wasn't speaking directly to May. He was telling Peter this as well. Then it became clear why Steve seemed more accepting of his relationship with Emma than her father was. Sure, Emma didn't want to be taken care of but that didn't mean her grandfather didn't worry any less about her.

The real difference between Bucky Barnes and Steve Rogers was that Bucky Barnes believed that Emma could take care of herself while Steve Rogers knew deep down that Emma needed to be taken care of. She'd probably get mad at him if she ever heard him say that but it was something Peter could see that Steve believed. Peter felt protective over her too but he thought it was a good thing. It was a good thing that people cared that much about her even if Emma didn't like it.

"Peter's always been a good kid. I don't know if he ever needed Ben or myself for that," May told him and Peter felt a little embarrassed that they were talking about him like he wasn't there.

"I'm still here, you know," Peter said as he pretended to be annoyed. May and Steve both looked at him with slightly amused expressions on their faces. Steve then subsequently turned back to face May.

"I figure there's not much we can tell these kids not to do. They'll still end up doing it anyways," Steve informed her and May smiled before nodding.

"You're telling me. My nephew's the stubbornest person I've ever met," May told him and Steve returned her smile.

"My granddaughter could give him a run for his money," Steve told her before casting another look in Peter's direction and then returning his gaze to May, a more serious look in his eyes. "Which is why they'll be back-up on this mission. Hopefully, there won't be a need to bring them in. We're hoping for an in and out kind of situation here."

"I hope so too," May said quietly before taking one last look at her nephew. Peter met her gaze but felt a bit guilty at causing his aunt to worry so much. That wasn't what he wanted. "It seems like the world needs Spider-Man more than I need Peter Parker right now, huh?"

"Seems like it," Peter told his aunt. Her gaze softened in that instant.

"It seems like maybe there's someone else who could use both right now," May told him as she referred to a certain blonde former assassin. Peter nodded.

"I know," Peter told her and May ambushed him with a hug. He blushed at first, a little embarrassed for Captain America to see him get coddled by his aunt, before he relaxed into the hug and wrapped his arms around his aunt in return.

You be careful, okay?" May told him as soon as she pulled away from him. Peter nodded hurriedly.

"I know, May. I will," Peter promised and May leaned in, kissing him on the cheek just like she did when he was little. Peter blushed at yet another thing that Captain America had to see. However, there didn't seem to be a teasing look on Steve's face like there would've been if Tony was in his place. The man even seemed moved by the scene.

It seemed like Emma's grandfather was a different type of Avenger than what he was used to.

"I'll bring him back home to you, Ma'am," Steve told her, forgetting the fact that she previously told him not to call her that. She nodded, giving him a small smile.

"Please do," May finally said and Steve gave her a small nod before he began to walk off in the direction of the Quinjet. Peter gave his aunt one last reassuring look before he also walked off into the same direction, following Steve's lead. He knew his aunt must've been a crying mess back there and he hated himself for worrying her but this mission had to take priority. Emma's safety was in jeopardy, after all, so of course, Peter was going to go with her. Even if it meant rushing into the jaws of death, Peter would go because there wasn't anything he wouldn't do for her.

Peter would never cease reminding Emma of that fact either.

"Are you coming, Peter?" Steve asked him, breaking Peter out of his thoughts. The teenage boy only realized then that he had paused on the ramp of the Quinjet. Steve was standing ahead of him a little ways with a raised eyebrow. Peter noticed that he didn't exactly look too unlike Emma when he did that. It was little instances like that when he was reminded that the two were related. Otherwise, they both weren't much alike.

The eyes were the main thing.

Emma and Steve had the same exact eyes.

Peter nodded after a moment, a small smile on his face as he looked back up at Steve.

This was it.

This was the big mission.

This was what everything had been leading up to for the past half year. Peter just wanted it to end too so that Emma wouldn't have to have the threat of Hydra looming over her head for the rest of her life. She deserved a lot better than that and ending Hydra would mean that she could actually live a more carefree life. A carefree life was something she deserved and Peter planned on giving it to her. He didn't care what he had to do in order to make it happen for her but he'd do everything in his power to make her happy.

"Yes, I'm right behind you."

---

Yet Another Author's Note: I should add that I've created a list of AU story ideas on my profile page for STNS. There's five ideas so far and you can check them out if you want before putting a vote in for which one you want to see. I'm planning on eventually writing all of them but I just want to decide which one to write first. Currently 'Spider-Brat' seems to be in the lead.

Tusia0095: I think Emma is really curious about her parents so she might eventually ask Clint about that. She just really resents her parents in a way for making the decision to have her knowing that people would probably be after her because of who she was related to. I think she might blame them in a way. So it might be a while until she finally becomes comfortable enough to talk about them with someone but it's an issue she'll come to terms with in the sequel. I know when I wrote all the flashback chapters with Emma's parents I listened to a lot of eighties music just because of Margot. I created a playlist with a lot of Blondie, Phil Collins, David Bowie, The Police, the Kinks, and Bonnie Tyler. 'Give the People What They want' by the Kinks is probably one of my favorite albums from the eighties. The Kinks are seriously underrated.

Onlyinitforthestories2: During the Civil War storyline Rumlow managed to escape from Steve and the others in Lagos. I never wrote the scene in which he escaped but Steve relayed it to Emma later on after they came back from the mission. It was a long time ago so I get that you might not have remembered.

Whyeren: Thank you! I'm always happy to get new readers.

Purplestan: Everyone knows that Rumlow's going to bite the dust and I'm not going to say when but it'll definitely be soon. Not this chapter soon but soon. REALLY soon. I'm dropping a hint here but I don't want to give it entirely away.

I'm the Galactic Starfish: Thank you! Your review is so nice. I mean, I'm not going to reveal much about whether or not the others find out about the Winter Viper Project. It won't be because Emma let it slip though. She's very good about keeping secrets but time will tell.

bonitalito: It's not going to happen in this chapter but it'll happen eventually when things get back to normal. I have the scene planned so just keep that in mind.

Mabel: I mentioned my two recommendations for Peter stories in my author's note at the top. One of them isn't a Peter/OC story but it's still worth checking out. I promise.

Guest: No. Wanda and Pietro got their powers from the mind stone which was inside Loki's scepter. Emma got her powers from the Space Stone which is inside the Tesseract.

JustJoyce: Emma worries about not being good enough to be Steve's legacy because she thinks there's so much bad inside her and Steve's so good. She just worries that she'll never be able to make him proud that way. There will be more interactions with Shuri in the future. Maybe Emma, Peter, and Shuri can be pen pals. As for Ned and Michelle...there might be a nice surprise in this chapter.

It's actually not the time stone but the space stone. It would basically make Emma have more in common with Wanda who doesn't have the mind stone in her body but got powers from it because of all the experiments Hydra did to her. As for the power thing...maybe not in this story so much as in the sequel. There might be a couple things Emma discovers about herself in the future that she didn't realize she had before.

Bucky might be starting to come around to the idea of maybe accepting Peter but it's going to take something that won't happen until the next chapter for that to happen. Yeah, Emma's not like anyone exactly. I think some of the Avengers' traits have definitely rubbed off on her but she's pretty much her own person. Steve and her kind of have a talk like that in this chapter too.

Don't worry. I love long reviews.

Summer: No, Wanda and Pietro got their powers from the mind stone. Emma's powers are from the space stone. I don't think it's unreasonable that they'd be surprised. Their reactions are pretty believable.

Blue: Yes, they will. It'll happen towards the end of the story so...soonish. I have everything planned so I know how I'm going to write it. It just wouldn't be right for it to happen during all the Rumlow stuff. I want Emma to put the Rumlow stuff in her past before she moves on. As for the Rumlow poll, I'll just tell you guys after said chapter comes out. What actually goes down in the next chapter is pretty close to what people voted for. It's what I wanted to write anyways. I just wanted to see what other people thought about it. The Spider-Brat idea seems to be pretty popular so far so we'll see.

jaclynencizo: I think you're referring to the Iron Viper suit like the Iron Spider suit. It's not vibranium...at least I don't think it is. I need to double check that. However, the Iron Viper probably wouldn't be used by Emma until the Endgame storyline which is far away. Emma will have a new and different look for the Ragnarok storyline though.

Anonanon: It will be another chapter until you find out. This chapter became way longer than I planned and I didn't want it to be 60,000 words long so the next chapter which is nearly done. Hopefully I'll have it out in a few days.

Rorydev: Thank you! You're so nice and I'm glad you've given the story a read. I'm just feel bad it's taken so long to update.

glagla60800: More will be explained in the sequel. The sequel is when Emma discovers more about herself.

scrapingskies: Nope. Just busy with life while writing a super long chapter or two. I really love that idea too. I love all of them really and I hope to someday be able to write all of them.

Thanks again, guys, and I'll have the next chapter out within the week. It's almost done and I'm so excited for all of you to see it. I'm really proud of it.