Little did Lainey know that as much as she thought Wanda was doing for her, she was doing so much more for Wanda. She couldn't replace Pietro, no. But she did make her longing heart much easier to bear to the point where she felt that she didn't miss him so much anymore. She would tell Lainey stories about him of when they lived in Sokovia. The good and the bad. She told the younger girl that Pietro would've loved her. That meant the world to her.

Two girls from completely opposite sides of the world, brought together, forming a bond that could never, and would never break.

Did it get any better than that?

Chapter Twelve: And So it Begins

"Lainey"

Sarah tried to get the twelve year old's attention, but she was off in space.

Their teacher was teaching them about linear equations and she really didn't feel like having to explain it to her.

Again.

"Lainey. Pay attention."

But Lainey just couldn't. Ever since she left for school that morning, she had had this awful feeling that something was wrong. That something was going to happen that was out of her control.

What else was new?

Luckily, math was the last class of the day, so as soon as the final bell rung, Lainey sprung out of her seat, not even sparing her friend a second glance, or waiting for Peter, before rushing towards Happy's car. She had to make sure everyone was okay.

The team had gone on a mission to Lagos to stop Brock Rumlow and other HYDRA agents. Lainey just didn't feel right about the mission. She didn't tell anyone, for fear of them thinking that she was being paranoid, but now she was kind of wishing that she had.

Her gut instincts were always very accurate, and yet she still chose to ignore them.

"Tony!" She called, rushing onto the common floor and putting her backpack down by the elevator.

That's something she did everyday that drove Natasha absolutely nuts. She told Lainey to put her bag in her room so she wouldn't kill anyone who was walking through the doors, but the habit was extremely hard to break.

…...Or maybe she just kept doing it because she knew it irked Natasha. Who knows?

"Natasha!" She called for the redhead and received no answer. The floor was pretty empty, so Lainey could only assume that everyone was still on the mission and Tony was still at M.I.T.

She knew that Vision had stayed behind to make sure that she wouldn't come home to an empty house, but she really didn't feel like looking for him.

Besides, her nightmares had decided to make another appearance. This time, instead of being about that big purple thumb, they were about her mother.

The dream started out beautifully, she and her mother were out in Central Park, right by the Bow Bridge, eating sandwiches.

Peanut butter and banana, to be exact.

It was a bright summer's day, the leaves on the trees were a vibrant green, and the sun shined down with a comforting glow.

"Mommy?" A seven year old Lainey asked, rolling over from where she lay on the grass. "Can I ask you something?"

"You can ask me anything." Allison smiled warmly, brushing a stubborn strand of hair away from the child's face. "I'm always here to listen."

Lainey smiled and leaned into the women's touch, basking in the love she so craved to receive. "You'll always love me, right? And we'll always be together?"

"Para siempre mi vida. Para siempre."

"Te quiero mucho Mommy."

"Te quiero mucho más mi corazón y mi alma."

When Lainey woke up, she had really believed that everything was back to the way it was. She thought she was still living at home in the small apartment in the Bronx. Everything was fine. She was in her own bed, in her own room, and her mother was a few doors down, sleeping peacefully.

What made the dream a nightmare, was Lainey snapping out of the momentary delusion as she finally opened her eyes to look around the room.

Her mother wasn't a few doors down, she wasn't in the home she had grown up in and come to love, and nothing would ever be the same.

It was haunting.

Why didn't her mother love her? Was it something she did? Was she just tired of her?

She knew she was just an experiment for HYDRA, but couldn't she have grown to love her in all the years they spent together? She wasn't always like this!

She was a good woman! A gentle woman! She'd never hurt anyone!

Why did she hurt Lainey?

How could she hurt Lainey?

"I think it's time to find out." The brunette mumbled to herself, making her way to the elevator. "F.R.I.D.A.Y.?"

"Yes Ms. Alayna?" The AI piped up.

"Take me to my mother's cell."

"I am not authorized to perform such an action. It is against the Little Romanoff-"

"-Override." Lainey squeezed her fists, hoping that that little word would be enough to get her what she wanted.

"Overriding the Little Romanoff Protocol." The AI spoke, closing the elevator doors, allowing the machine to descend all the way to sub level eight.

When the doors opened, Lainey's eyes widened at what she saw.

Her mother was sitting in a cell, reading a spanish novel while taking small bites of an apple.

A gala apple. She wouldn't eat any other type of apple except galas.

That was one thing that she and Lainey had in common.

"Look who's here. Did you miss me?" Allison's eyes never left the book she was so engrossed in. "Come to gloat?"

"No, I came to talk to you…...you're still my mother." Lainey inched her way closer to the woman's cell.

"Oh cut the crap." Allison slammed the book shut, making Lainey jump. "You came here because you want something, not because you felt like coming by for a visit."

"No, I-"

"-What do you want? What was so important that you had to disobey your new mother to come and see me?" Allison spat.

"I wanted to ask you something…...a few things...…"

"Spit it out." The older woman threw the apple core at the glass, making Lainey jump back.

Even behind a barrier, Allison managed to make Lainey nervous. She couldn't physically get to her, but she definitely made an emotional impression.

"Pathetic. I'm trapped in a cell, and you're still afraid of me. Grow up and tell me whatever the hell you want to know before I break out of this hellhole and beat the crap out of you."

Lainey felt herself starting to sweat as her blood ran cold. She was beginning to think that this wasn't such a good idea, but she had to do this. No one else was going to be able to give her the answers that she wanted.

So despite her trembling legs, and sweaty palms, she stood up straight and looked her mother in the eyes before opening up her mouth.

"What did he put in me?"

"Your father?" Allison rolled her eyes. "He injected you with a serum that would enhance your control over the things around you. Telekinesis with a hint of elemental control. When you were born, we knew we had to do everything possible to make you into one of HYDRA's best possessions. And even though your father left, we were still in agreement. We stayed in contact through all those years, waiting for the right time. See, we didn't have you because we wanted a child, we had you because we wanted a soldier. An asset."

A frigid chill ran up and down Lainey's spine as she looked at her mother in disbelief. She wasn't born for love. She was born for a purpose. She was a project, a thing. Every waking moment she had spent in this life wasn't even hers, it was her parents', it was HYDRA's. She had never been loved, she had just been an object to be used for something greater. She wasn't even a real person. She was an asset.

Everything she had ever known was a lie.

Allison was clearly enjoying the look of devastation that had made its home on Lainey's face. She had always thought the girl was dramatic, but this was satisfying. "I wonder how long it'll be before she dumps you too." She changed the subject to deliver the killer blow.

"What?" Lainey gasped, nearly in tears from the immense pain she was feeling in her chest.

"Natasha Romanoff. The Black Widow. The spy. Do you really think she has any use for you, other than to use you?" The woman threw in her last two-cents. "She cares nothing for you. She's manipulating you just like I was, and when she's done, she'll get rid of you."

Lainey didn't even bother speaking. It wasn't like she could. Her heart was pounding so hard, she could feel it in her ears, her lip trembled, and all she could do was stand there. She couldn't speak, she couldn't cry, and she couldn't make a clever enough response in Natasha's defense.

It isn't true! She wanted to scream. She knew it wasn't true.

But all she could think to do was run.

It was what she did best.

"Wanda?" Lainey sniffled, peaking her head in the older girl's doorway.

"Not right now baby, I'd like to be alone." Came a tearful reply.

Lainey had come to her room seeking comfort after what her mother had told her, but hearing Wanda in distress made her push her own problems aside and ignore the Sokovian's request for solitude. When she was upset, she didn't like to be alone. She didn't think anyone did. Everyone needs someone to comfort them when they feel less than themselves. Even if they wouldn't admit to it.

"Wanda? Whats wrong?" The twelve year old asked, making her way into the room, sitting right next to Wanda on her bed.

Wanda's attention was too focused on her television to respond to Lainey's question. When Lainey looked at the screen, her eyes widened in shock. Wanda had the news playing and right now, the media was covering their mission in Lagos. The news reporters were talking about how the Avengers screwed up and how Wanda was dangerous and out of control.

They showed a a cellphone clip someone sent in, of Wanda forming a shield around Rumlow, just as he detonated a bomb. She lifted him up and lost control, making him crash land into the side of a building, killing nearly everyone inside.

"What happened Wanda?" The curly-haired child asked, not quite willing to believe what she was seeing.

"I killed them." Wanda deadpanned as tears rolled down her face. "Innocent people are dead because of me."

"But you didn't mean to kill them! You were just helping!"

Wanda turned to face Lainey and sent her a gentle smile. "That's not what everyone else thinks."

Lainey's eyebrows furrowed in annoyance at how ignorant people could really be. All Wanda wanted to do was save people, but because of one mistake, all she was getting now was grief.

She didn't deserve it.

"I still love you Wanda…..." Lainey looked her right in the eyes. "Even if they don't."

It was such a childishly simple sentence, and yet it made Wanda burst into a new set of tears. She had been feeling like an absolute monster that needed to be put down, but Lainey managed to see the best in her and tried to make her feel better anyway.

"Please don't cry." The younger girl wiped her tears away as some of her own escaped her eyes. "It's going to be okay. It was an accident."

"I killed those people sweetheart. They're gone because of me." Wanda gently pulled Lainey to sit on her lap, needing to hold her close.

"It's okay to be sad." Lainey sniffled. "I don't feel too good either. We can be sad together if you want."

That made Wanda giggle through some of her tears. Even in sadness, Lainey was generous. She was a gem. A priceless gem that everyone in the compound held onto and refused to let go of.

"They are operating outside and above the international law. Because that's the reality, if we don't respond to acts like these." A news anchor spoke on the television as the two girls continued to watch.

"What legal authority does does an enhanced individual like Wanda Maximoff have to operate in Nigeri-"

Both Lainey and Wanda turned their heads to see who shut the t.v. off while they were still watching it.

It was Steve. He was standing against the doorframe, looking more tired than Lainey had ever seen him. He seemed to be carrying the weight of the world right on his two shoulders. Lagos was bearing down on everyone.

"It's my fault." Wanda spoke, absentmindedly pushing an unruly curl away from Lainey's eyes.

Steve shook his head, unwilling to let her believe such a thing. "That's not true."

"Turn the t.v. back on. They're being very specific."

"I should've clocked that bomb vest long before you had to deal with it." The blonde sighed and moved to sit down on the bed next to the two brunettes. "Rumlow said "Bucky" and all of a sudden I was a sixteen year old kid in Brooklyn again...…people died, and it's on me."

Lainey looked back and forth between the two, knowing that there was really nothing she could say or do to convince them that it wasn't their faults. At least, not right now. They needed time to grieve, to cope. They did say that time is the healer of all wounds.

The twelve year old could only hope that that was true, so they could all heal.

"It's on both of us."

"This job…...We try to save as many people as we can. Sometimes that doesn't mean everybody. But if we can't find a way to live with that, next time…...maybe nobody gets saved." Steve dished out a hard truth just before Vision sifted through the wall.

"Vis!" Wanda scolded gently. "We talked about this!"

Vision at least had the decency to look apologetic before responding. "Yes, but the door was open, so I just assumed...…"

"You still have to go through the door Vision." Lainey smiled at the AI, trying to make him feel better. "But it's okay."

"Thank you Alayna." He smiled at the young girl before looking at Steve. "Captain Rogers wished to know when Mr. Stark was arriving."

"Thank you. We'll be right down."

"I'll use the door this time around. Oh! Apparently, he's he's brought a guest."

"Who?" Lainey asked curiously.

"The Secretary of State."

This couldn't be good.

"Five years ago. I had a heart attack. I dropped right in the middle of my backswing. Turns out, it was the best round of my life, because after thirteen hours of surgery and a triple bypass, I found something forty years in the army had never taught me: Perspective." Thaddeus Ross, the Secretary of State spoke as everyone sat in the conference room.

Lainey had begged Steve to let her sit in and listen to what was going on, and him being the softy that he is, let her. Natasha really didn't want her to hear anything that was going to be said, but by the the time she had figured out what was happening, she couldn't really do anything to stop it from taking place. She was going to kill Steve for this.

And that's how the twelve year old ended up sharing a seat with her adoptive mother, because one, there weren't any seats left, and two, the redhead wanted to keep and eye on her and make sure she sat still during the meeting.

As Lainey listened to the secretary speak, she had to fight every single urge in her body to not roll her eyes. She hated Ross. She had heard awful stories about him and did her best to steer clear of him whenever he came to visit. He came off as a rude and arrogant man who didn't care about anyone but himself. She didn't want people like that in her life.

"The world owes the Avengers an unplayable debt. You've fought for us, protected us, risked your lives…...but while a great many people see you as heroes, there are some...…who would prefer the word, 'vigilante'."

"And what word would you use Mr. Secretary?" Natasha asked.

"How about, 'dangerous'?" Ross bit back. "What would you call a group of US based, enhanced individuals who routinely ignore sovereign borders and inflict their will wherever they choose and who, frankly, seem unconcerned about what they leave behind?"

Lainey swallowed nervously and looked at Natasha to see her reaction, but when she saw that the woman was completely calm, she settled down and continued to listen.

"New York. Washington D.C. Sokovia. Lagos." Ross narrated as he showed them footage of all the damaged they've left behind in each of those places.

Lainey vaguely remembered the Battle of New York. She and Peter were in the city at the time, just taking a stroll with Ben and May when the Chitauri flooded the streets. Buildings were being destroyed, people were screaming, and debris was everywhere, making it hard to run anywhere. She remembered being so frightened by the wormhole in the sky, thinking that if she wasn't careful, she'd get sucked in. Luckily, Ben and May managed to get the two kids home, safe and sound. The same couldn't be said for a lot of other families.

"Okay." Steve spoke up, taking notice of how much the clip of Lagos was affecting Wanda. "That's enough."

The poor girl had lost everything in Sokovia and she was making great progress. She didn't need this kind of a setback.

"For the past four years, you've operated with unlimited power and no supervision. That's an arrangement the governments of the world can no longer tolerate. But I think we have a solution." Ross picked up a large stack of papers, bounded together and slid them across the table.

Wanda took them and looked at Rhodey in confusion, before passing them to him.

"The Sokovia Accords. Approved by 117 countries." Ross explained. "It states that the Avengers will no longer be a private organization. Instead, they'll operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel, only when and if deemed necessary."

Lainey tapped Natasha gently, pleading for an explanation with her eyes alone, but Natasha shook her head and put a finger to her lips. She'd tell her all about it later, but right now she had to stay quiet.

"The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place. I feel we've done that." Steve argued, not at all in favor of where this was going.

They didn't need the government to tell them what they could and couldn't do. The Accords were just going to create problems for all of them in the long run.

"Tell me Captain, do you know where Thor and Banner are right now?" Ross challenged. When he didn't receive an answer, he continued. "If I misplaced a couple of thirty megaton nukes, you can bet there'd be consequences. Compromise. Reassurance. That's how the world works. Believe me, this is the middle ground."

For one thing, Thor was in Asgard, doing who knows what. And for another, Banner hulked out again and nearly destroyed the Compound a few months prior, so he decided to leave for the safety of everyone else. No one wanted him to go, but he just didn't feel right staying when he wasn't truly in control of himself. They hadn't seen him since.

It angered Lainey to think that Ross really compared living beings to nukes. They weren't dangerous. They just did the best they could with what they had. Most of these situations weren't even their fault! New York was all Loki, Washington D.C. was HYDRA, and sure, Tony created Ultron, but it wasn't his fault that the thing turned on everyone, and Lagos was definitely not Wanda's fault.

"So there are contingencies," Rhodey acknowledged, a calculating look etched on his face.

"Three days from now, the UN meets in Vienna to ratify the Accords." Ross nodded. "Talk it over."

"And if we come to a decision you don't like?'

"Then you retire, Ms. Romanoff."

That left a thick tension in the air, that would never dissipate again.

"Secretary Ross has a Congressional Medal of Honor, which is one more than you have." Rhodey argued with Sam.

That's all that's been happening since Ross left. They had made their way to the common room and immediately started arguing.

It was beginning to give Lainey anxiety. She did her best to hide it, but as their voices got louder and more aggressive, it grew harder to contain. She started out by picking at her nails, then twirling her hair, and now she was full on biting her nails while her leg bounced at a rapid pace.

Why couldn't they just talk this out? Why did they have to yell at each other like this?

"So let's say we agree to this thing. How long is it gonna be before they LoJack us like a bunch of common criminals?" Sam retaliated.

"117 countries want to sign this thing Sam! 117. And you're just like, 'Nah, it's cool. We got it'."

"How long are you going to play both sides?" Sam stepped closer to Rhodey.

"I have an equation." Vision interrupted before it could get out of hand.

"Oh, this'll clear it up." Sam rolled his eyes, but turned to listen anyway.

"In eight years since Mr. Stark announced himself as Iron Man, the number of noted enhanced persons has grown exponentially. And during the same period, the number of potentially world-ending events has risen at a commensurate rate." Vision began to explain.

"Are you saying that it's our fault?"

"I'm saying that there maybe a causality." The AI looked at Steve. "Our very strength invites challenge. Challenge incites conflict. Conflict...…breeds catastrophe. Oversight…... ..Oversight is not an idea that could be dismissed out-of-hand."

"Boom." Rhodey sent a pointed look Sam's way.

"Tony, you are being uncharacteristically non hyper verbal." Natasha pointed out, before pulling Lainey's hands away from her mouth.

Lainey tried to put them back in when she looked away, but apparently, Natasha expected that and pulled them down again, handing her a Rubik's cube to keep herself busy. She didn't know where Natasha got it from, but she was glad to have it. It would distract her from some of the tension in the room.

"That's because he's already made up his mind." Steve spoke, turning his attention to the billionaire, who happened to be slouching on the couch with a hand over his face.

"Boy, you know me so well." He stood up, running his hand over the back of his head, before he made his way over to the kitchen. Everyone save Lainey, watched as he grabbed a mug and attempted to make himself a cup of coffee. "Actually, I'm nursing an electro-magnetic headache…...That's what's going on Cap. It's just pain. It's discomfort." He looked in the sink and growled at what he saw. "Who's putting coffee grounds in the garbage disposal? Am I running a bed and breakfast for a biker gang?"

They all knew that he wasn't actually upset about the coffee grounds in the garbage disposal, so they kept their eyes on him, just incase he actually decided to voice what was on his mind.

And he did. The philanthropist pulled his phone out of his pocket and put it to stand up in a basket, before it projected an image of a young boy. The boy appeared to be happy with a smile brightening his features.

"Oh that's Charles Spencer by the way. He's a great kid. Computer engineering degree, had a floor level gig at Intel planned for the fall. But first, he wanted to put a few miles on his soul, before he parked it behind a desk. See the world. Maybe be of service." Tony sipped a cup of his failed coffee before continuing. "Charles didn't want to go to Vegas or Fort Lauderdale, which is what I would do. He didn't go to Paris or Amsterdam, which sounds fun. He decided to spend his summer, building sustainable housing for the poor. Guess where? Sokovia."

Lainey immediately turned her attention away from her Rubik's cube and looked at everyone in the room.

They all looked shaken by the revelation. Like Charles Spencer's blood was on their hands. Which, it very well may have been, but Lainey wasn't there, so she couldn't give her opinion on the matter. Besides that, it was really none of her business.

"He wanted to make a difference, I suppose. I mean, we won't know because we dropped a building on him while we were kicking ass." Tony popped what looked like an aspirin into his mouth and downed it with some coffee, clearly having been affected by his knowledge of the young boy's death. "There's no decision making process here. We need to be put in check. Whatever form that takes, I'm game. If we can't accept limitations, if we're boundary-less, we're no better than the bad guys."

"Tony, if someone dies on your watch, you don't give up." Steve responded.

And as if it was a reflex reaction, Lainey tensed. All the muscles in her body contracted and refused to release, making her nearly lose her grip on the Rubik's cube that had one side completed.

The white side.

No one seemed to notice as her breathing became ragged and shallow. The adults in the room were too wrapped up in their conversation to see how fast her fingers flew to her mouth, providing her with nails to bite off.

"Who said we're giving up?"

"We are if we're not taking responsibility for our actions." Steve tried to make his point. "This document just shifts the blame."

"I'm sorry Steve. That…...that is dangerously arrogant. This is the United Nations we're talking about. It's not the World Security Council, it's not SHIELD, it's not HYDRA." Rhodey broke in.

"No, but it's run by people with agendas, and agendas change."

"That's good." Tony abandoned his coffee and made his way over to the rest of them. "When I realized what my weapons were capable of in the wrong hands, I shut it down and stopped manufacturing."

"Tony, you chose to do that. If we sign this, we surrender our right to choose. What if this panel sends us somewhere we don't think we should go? What if there's somewhere we need to go and they don't let us? We may not be perfect, but the safest hands are still our own."

This was the equivalent to watching your parents fight right in front of you. There was nothing you could do to stop it, but for some reason, you forced yourself to watch. No one in the room was technically fighting, but they were close. It was enough to make Lainey's thoughts spin out of control.

What if one of them went too far and they actually started to exchange blows? What if they never solved this? What would happen then?

"If we don't do this now, it's gonna be done to us later." Tony threw his hands up. "That won't be pretty."

"You're saying they'll come for me." Wanda deadpanned, not even able to muster up enough energy to look frightened by the idea.

But Vision wouldn't let her entertain it. "We would protect you."

What did she mean, come for her? What was going on? What were they not telling her? Why would they want to take Wanda? Where would they take Wanda?

"Maybe Tony's right." Natasha once again pulled Lainey's hand away from her mouth, but this time, she held it so she wouldn't be able to bite her nails again.

She could feel how anxious Lainey was and that gave her pause. They needed to start listening to reason before they bit each other's heads off without thinking first. This situation wasn't just black and white. "If we have one hand on the wheel, we can still steer. If we take it off-"

"-I'm sorry, aren't you the same woman who told the government to kiss her ass a few years ago?" Sam looked shocked.

In fact, there wasn't anyone there that didn't look shocked. Not once has Natasha ever agreed with Tony and not once has she ever sided with the government this way.

Not since Washington D.C.

"I'm just...…I'm reading the terrain. We have made some very…...public mistakes. We need to win their trust back." The redhead explained, pulling Lainey closer to her, stroking her hair.

She had taken one good look at her face and saw that she was on the verge of a panic attack. She knew she shouldn't have let her stay and listen to these conversations, but there was no changing the past. All she could do now, was try to calm her down and explain everything in detail soon.

Very soon.

"Focus up." Tony joked, attempting to lighten the mood for the twelve year old's benefit. "I'm sorry, did I mishear you or did you just agree with me?"

"Oh, I want to take it back."

"No, no, no. You can't retract it. Thank you. Unprecedented. Okay, case closed, right CurlyLocks?"

"Caso cerrado Mama." Lainey nodded, calm enough to see the humor in what Tony had just said, yet aware enough to realize what she had just called Natasha.

And suddenly, all eyes were on her.

Fantastic.

She was mortified. Her first instincts were to pull away from the woman, but she didn't want to make it seem like a big deal and draw anymore attention to herself. What she really really wanted to do, was crawl into a hole and bury herself. This was so embarrassing. What made her think that she could call her that? She should've just kept her big mouth shut. How hard was it to stay quiet, smile, and nod? She was never going to live this down. She might as well just write, 'I'm an awkward idiot' on her forehead and move to a convent where no one knows her name.

Fortunately, the watchful eyes didn't remain trained on her for long.

Steve's phone vibrated and he took it out to check it. He had gotten a text. Whatever was in it, must've been bad, because his face went from being amused, to heartbroken.

"What is it Steve?" Sam asked his friend, voicing his concern.

"I have to go." Steve put the Accords he had been holding down on the coffee table and left the room without another word.

Lainey had never seen Steve look so hopeless.

What was in that text?

"Lainey." Natasha rubbed her back.

"I don't want to talk." Lainey mumbled, her voice muffled by a throw pillow. "Leave me here to die."

A few minutes after Steve had left, which clearly meant the meeting was over, everyone turned their attention back to Lainey and smirked. She obviously couldn't handle all those eyes on her at once, so she ripped herself out of Natasha's embrace and buried her face into a pillow, refusing to look up.

"Come on CurlyLocks, there's no need to be embarrassed." Tony smiled and gently tugged on one of her curls, hoping to annoy her enough to make her moved her head. "That was cute."

"No it wasn't." Lainey whined. "You're just saying that so I'll look up and then you can laugh at me."

"No one will laugh at you." Wanda spoke gently.

"No?"

Lainey was just about to lift her head up when Sam busted out laughing. He didn't even try to hide it. He just guffawed without any shame.

Jerk.

"See! I told you!"

"Alright." Natasha decided to put Lainey out of her misery. "Everyone out."

"Oh come on!" Sam whined as Rhodey pushed him towards the door with the rest of the Avengers, except for Tony, following. "You can't tell me that that wasn't a little funny."

"If it makes you feel any better, I accidentally called my ninth grade physics teacher 'Mom'." Tony told the child.

"That makes me feel even worse! I'll just die!"

"Tony, get out of here." Natasha glared at him, hoping he'd get the message.

"Fine!" He started walking with his hands up in surrender. "Look on the bright side kid, you'll look back at this one day and laugh. Hey Nat? Can I be the godfather?"

"Out!"

"Okay!" He chuckled and finally exited the room, leaving the two alone.

"Alright Lainey, there's no one here but us."

Lainey studied the silence for a moment before responding. "Are you sure?"

"Why don't you take a look for yourself?"

Lainey sighed and peeked up from the soft pillow and found that Natasha hadn't been lying just to get her to do what she wanted.

But she refused to look at her.

"I think we need to talk."

"No we don't. It was an accident." Lainey shook her head, staring at the refrigerator.

It was a nice one too. It was white with chrome handles and a nice ice dispenser. It had freezer drawers at the bottom and settings that could be altered, depending on what kind of ice was desired.

Chunky, cubed, rectangular, crushed-

"Alayna, look at me."

"No thank you."

And then there was that stove. Lainey had never seen so many burners on a stove in her life! There were eight on this one and they were electric instead of gas, which she thought was better for the environment and-

"If you don't look at me, you won't get a lick of ice cream until your eighteenth birthday." Natasha threatened.

It was a cheap shot, but it worked. No sooner did the words leave her mouth, did Lainey's head whip around to face her. Natasha thought she even heard her neck crack.

"Maybe next time I'll start with that."

"That was mean, I'm going back to my postmortem pillow."

"No you're not." The Russian stopped her from lying back down. "And it's, pre-mortem. You aren't dead."

"I am, on the inside."

"You're a drama queen, you know that? Do you even remember what you were so embarrassed about?" She asked. "Because with all this fuss you've been raising, I wouldn't be surprised if you forgot."

"I do too remember." Lainey crossed her arms and looked away childishly.

"Looks like we're going to have to do it my way." Natasha shrugged and unceremoniously lifted the preteen to sit on her lap, much to her surprise and chagrin.

First she called her 'Mama', and now she was making her sit on her lap? How much more of this would she be able to take?

"And quite frankly, I don't know why you're beating yourself up about it. It's no big deal."

Lainey didn't know what was worse, having everyone make it into a big deal, or having Natasha brush it off like it was nothing.

She obviously thought of Natasha as her mother. That's why the moniker slipped from her mouth. It just hurt to think that Natasha didn't see her as her daughter. Maybe she just adopted her to help her. It had nothing to do with love or anything. She was just doing her job as an Avenger. Allison was right.

"What's going on in here?" Natasha put a gentle hand on her head and asked, to which Lainey immediately shrugged. "I can't read your mind honey. Would you please tell me?"

"You don't really want me, do you?"

The poor kid was so used to being someone's play thing, to be used and cast aside when whoever had her was done. But that wasn't the case here. No, here she was loved and cherished. She didn't need to worry about any of that anymore. Natasha just wished she could help her believe it.

"Of course I want you. Why do you think I went through all of this to keep you?"

"Because you like Peter and you were just doing your job."

"You know that isn't true." Natasha gave her a pointed look. "If you had just talked to me instead of hiding your face in a pillow for half an hour, you'd know exactly how I feel."

Lainey sighed and once again, started to bite her nails. Which Natasha started to realize was a really bad habit of hers. It was unhygienic too.

"Would you stop biting your nails?" She pulled her hand down. "That's disgusting Alayna, do you know how many germs get underneath your nails during the day?" She made the girl wipe her hands on her shirt before continuing. "What made you call me that?"

"I don't know…...you've been acting like it a lot lately."

"I have?"

"Yeah, you don't let me eat as much candy as I did before, I can't have ice cream for dinner, you make me clean my room, and you don't let me stay up late." Lainey rattled off of the top of her head. "Which I'm perfectly capable of doing, by the way."

She was definitely not capable of staying up late. That's why she has a curfew. Natasha used to let her stay up however late she wanted, but it was always a struggle to get her up in the morning, and when she was up, she was a monster. She grumbled things under her breath in Spanish and she'd glare at anyone who dared to look in her direction before noon.

"Don't you think that if I didn't want to do all of those things, I wouldn't?" Natasha questioned. "Alayna, I want to be your mother. Why won't you let yourself be my daughter?"

"You weren't mad at me earlier?"

"No."

"And you really don't mind?"

"What for? I'm your mother, aren't I?"

That was all it took for Lainey to throw her arms around Natasha's neck and squeeze. Not that the assassin minded. She was glad that Lainey felt comfortable enough to express how she was feeling now that everything was out in the open.

Well, almost everything.

But Natasha didn't need to about that right this minute, did she?

"Mom…...Mommy…...Mama…..." Lainey tried out different variations, deciding that she liked 'Mama' best.

It was music to Natasha's ears. It meant that the Red Room really hadn't taken everything from her. She could be a mother and she was a mother. She was taking back her life one day at a time, and was being granted the best gift she could ask for.

Para siempre mi vida, para siempre - Forever my life, forever.

Te quiero mucho - I love you very much.

Te quiero mucho mi corazón y mi alma - I love you very much, my heart and soul.

Caso cerrado - Case closed.

A/N: Hello everyone! I've given Lainey a nice balance of angst and happiness in this chapter. She can rest easy tonight! I'm still heartbroken over Endgame, so I highly doubt that this story will be IW/EG compliant. Let me know what you thought of this chapter! I'll have those one shots ready soon! XOXOXO