The dreams had tired her out. It was a mental energy that she had run low on ever since she had arrived at the Avengers Compound. Before, she could put up a mental barrier with ease, but now that she was out of practice, the exhaustion from the dreams lingered, clinging to her body and filling it with an unsettling weariness. After hugging Peter goodbye, wishing that she did not have to let go, she watched the black car disappear into the horizon, before crutching her way back to the gym to get started on her physical therapy.

"I'm really not too happy about Mr. Stark cutting our time in half," Dr. Blythe mumbled as she wandered through the door. He was sitting on his mobile footstool, tapping his finger on what he called an 'iPad.'

She was particularly bored from the exercises that day, the boredom forcing time to pass like molasses. The image of her sisters reappeared every time she closed her eyes, tempting her to keel over in fear. It was not pleasant, and Dr. Blythe could blatantly see her apathy. 15 minutes before her shortened session was supposed to end, he let her go, saying that she did especially well that day, and he was feeling under the weather.

He had to explain to her that it meant he was feeling ill.

She stood for a record time of one whole minute, which put more of a positive spin on the horror of the previous night.

Dr. Loud did not show up to her appointment, calling in sick. Lena was not sure if this was a coincidence, but she would take any opportunity to get her out of the misery that was speech therapy. She wished that Mr. Stark had cut those sessions short rather than the physical therapy.

An hour later, Lena had been working with her new tutor, Miss Gomez, when Peter arrived earlier than usual. She was used to his tedious schedule, which usually got him to the lab around 9PM, and had him leaving around 11PM. Seeing him at 4PM in the afternoon, even on a Friday, felt odd and out of place.

Ignoring whatever math problem she had been working on, Lena stood, walking over to him in three large strides, and almost collapsing into his arms. Three steps was the most she had taken on her own without help, so she took mental note of the small victory. Dr. Blythe would be happy to hear of it.

"Lena-" he caught her, only needing one arm around her waist to keep her steady, "Hey, how are you!"

"Miss Potts we really need to continue-" Miss Gomez had not moved from her seat at the table, looking slightly irritated that Lena had taken off so quickly.

"Why...are...you here? Now?" Lena asked, steadying her feet on the floor. She closed her hand around the upper part of Peter's bicep, ignoring how firm it was, knowing that it meant that he was particularly strong.

"Something's happened, Mr. Stark asked me-"
"Mr. Parker, Miss Potts, just the people I wanted to see," Lena looked up to see that Mr. Stark had materialized behind Peter, his figure dressed in his usual suit and tinted sunglasses, and causing the boy to jump slightly out of surprise. She smirked.

Almost at the snap of Mr. Stark's fingers, Lena was brought her crutches and guided into a large room with a circular table and chairs surrounding it. Men and women in suits sat, watching her every move. She felt their eyes on her, as if they knew everything about her.

Peter leaned over and whispered, "This is called a conference room."

She nodded, watching as official-looking men and women took seats, all eyes still fixated on Lena, making her shake slightly. So many humans, with their feelings and judgements gave her the same feeling she had when Mr. Stark told her that she was going to school with Peter in a month. A petrifying feeling. The room suddenly felt much larger than it had when she had first walked in, her heart beat picking up its pace and a bead of sweat forming at her hairline. She felt Peter take her hand from the seat next to her, squeezing it as an act of encouragement.

"Hey kids," Mr. Stark sounded somber, his voice low, "It somehow slipped out that I know what happened to the ships. Thank you, Mr. Rhodes, for that one."

Mr. Stark looked to his left, shifting the blame to another somber looking man. She could tell based on their shared expressions that there was a history. Lena could sense the energy. When she focused hard enough, she saw the physical manifestations of the connections between two people. It glowed. She saw it between herself and Peter, and now she saw it between Mr. Rhodes and Mr. Stark. It was different, however; it glowed in a way best friends glowed amongst each other. This unique pair brought out the best of each other.

"Mr. Rhodes let it slip that I, Tony Stark, have knowledge of what happened to the 8 ships and the 64 people that have vanished. And I do. I know they're dead. I know that there's a species of siren that have killed them. And we have a solution to the public outrage that is on the brink of ensuing, but I need both of you to consent to this solution. Pepper take it away. "

She heard Peter clench his teeth, his leg starting to bounce underneath the table. He heard the words sales pitch flash across his mind.

"Spider-Man has become notorious for stopping neighborhood crime. Some tag him as a vigilante, others tag him as an honorary avenger, either way, he has made a positive impact on the greater New York area," Pepper was not only speaking to Lena and Peter, she spoke to the various adults sitting on the table, seeking their approval. Videos of Peter fighting crime behind her, all videos that she had seen late at night to calm her from her nightmares.

"That being said," Pepper continued, "Lena's unique power is not one we want to discard. With her permission, we want to put them to use. Tony has been working on a suit to fit her specific needs and caters to her abilities."

Behind Pepper was a tall blue curtain that opened to reveal a mannequin wearing a hero's suit, similar to the gear she had seen on Peter, as well as variations of Mr. Stark. A set of goggles shielded the eyes, a thick band completely covering the ear. A wire was attached to the cheek, stopping right before the lips. She wore blue and white, a navy skin-tight suit reminiscent of the material Peter's was made from, the elbows and knees covered in a white, hard shell that looked like-

"Speakers," Mr. Stark saw where Lena's eyes had been lingering. "The microphone attached to the goggles it meant to amplify your voice through the speakers on your elbows and knees. If you notice there's temporary ankle and leg support, which will be removed as soon as your training is complete."

"Training?" Lena was finally able to speak up.

"If you agree to this proposal, following the completion of your rehabilitation will follow the start of your combat training," Mr. Stark rested the side of his face in his palm, a relaxed manner that Pepper did not mirror.

Lena looked at Peter, meeting his brown eyes with a strong lack of confidence. It sent a large stirring to her stomach, which took off when she realized that all of the eyes in the room had returned to her, waiting on an answer.

"We would be partners," Peter finally chimed in, starting to rub reassuring circles on the back of her hand. "A team."

"Essentially yes," Mr. Stark added. Lena still had no idea what to say.

"And why...why are we talking about this right now?" Peter was plucking the questions from her brain, giving her the voice that she did not have.

"Because we need to announce the existence of her species, and assure the general population that they pose no threat unless they are provoked," Pepper explained, the steam that Leana noticed always seemed to follow her circling around her head.
Mr. Stark elaborated, "We were going to wait to announce this until after she was in school and fully adapted to human life but…"

"I messed that up," Mr. Rhodes finished.

There were no words, not even words to conjure inside of her mind, that could articulate what she was feeling. She copied Peter's nervous tick, bouncing her leg up and down at a vibrating speed.

"Yes," it came out of her, as if someone else had said it. It was what she wanted, sure, but it was difficult to imagine a future that was months away. It was a future where she was able to fight crime alongside her best friend. Right now, the most she was capable of physically was standing for about 60 seconds. Partaking in combat was forever away.

The tension in the room released in a giant wave, a rush that stopped both of their legs from bouncing. People packed up their briefcases, and Lena was helped up from her seat.

"I need you two to suit up. We have a press conference waiting in the press room. All you two need to do is suit up, stand there, and look pretty," Pepper was peeling the suit off of the mannequin and into a bag, handed to Lena.

Changing into the suit was awkward, and she felt rushed. She sat on the floor of her bedroom, yanking the material around her useless legs, pressing a button to fully fasten it. She examined the metal clasps intended for her ankles and thighs, almost identical to what she noticed Mr. Rhodes wore. They were temporary. Until she was able to move on her own.

Walking across the room for the first time was not near what she imagined it to be. It was faster than crutching, that was for sure, and while she knew that it would be different when it was on her own, she had anticipated more of a pride in herself. Even if it was the technology permitting her to mobilize.

Peter met her at the door frame. It was the first time she had seen him in the red suit since the day that he found her in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. He did not have his mask on, his face looking pale by the overwhelming news that continued to be pelted at them.

"Mr. Stark wanted me to give you this," he held a small cube in his palm. "He called it nanotech? I've never even heard of that. But he said to put it on the back of your neck…" his train of thought trailed off, a quirk that Lena had picked up on a while ago.

She turned around, Peter gingerly moving her hair to the side and placing the cube at the base of her neck. There was a set of clicks, and her hair was no longer sitting on her back, but higher up. The roots of her hair follicles all converging at a singular point.

"High ponytail. Like Ariana Grande. Nice!" Peter smiled, but Lena's confusion only manifested, "Oh she's a singer. She's pretty, but not as pretty as you."

It took a moment for him to realize what he had said, but she just smiled and fastened the goggles around her eyes, knowing that he had no reason to be shy; she reciprocated every feeling of adoration that he carried. He fumbled over words, stuttering to try and cover up his mistake, but his declaration was already stated, and all she did was press a single finger to his lips, take his hand, and motion for him to lead her where they needed to go.

Welcome, Lena Potts.

She jumped, the voice in her ears recognizable, but unexpected.

"PET?" she said, out loud

"You all right?" she heard Peter's voice behind her.

Hello, Lena. I'm here to assist all of your needs.

Now she understood the purpose of the thick band on her goggles that covered and tightened her ears to her head. The microphone also allowed her to speak to her AI.

There was not a single factor that Mr. Stark did not think of.

"Fine, thank you," she turned to Peter and smiled.

She could hear dull voices speak behind a door. Mr. Stark had briefly warned her that as soon as anyone important walked through that door, the room would explode with intense voice and harsh questions. Reporters were not always nice people, they had one motive, and that was to get the best story for their news source.

Lena was starting to discover that there were different types of seas that were not strictly bound to the ocean. The sea of reporters shouting waves of questions as Mr. Stark walked in, herself and Peter following, was more violent than any storm she had been through in the Atlantic. She was lucky that her eyes were completely shielded, because they were wide with an overwhelmed shock. It was loud. It was far too loud. The voices of everyone in the room were filling her head with words, some of which she did not know the meaning of. She wanted to cover her ears, but Mr. Stark had specifically told her it was important to stay strong.

She knew it would be loud, but she did not know it would be this loud.

Lena.

She heard his voice in her head. Amongst all the noise, Peter's voice stood out. Her name. That was her name. She turned her head to him, and she could tell he was searching for her, trying to pull her out from this sea that she was somehow drowning in. She was able to breathe underwater, she was not supposed to be able to drown.

So she did what she knew best.

She sang.

Purposefully directing it at everyone in the room except Peter and Mr. Stark, she sang what she now knew was an 'o' vowel. The cameras dropped into laps, microphones fell, and lips closed as all eyes turned to her, hanging onto every note, until she released them, allowing the fog to remain in the air so that Mr. Stark was able to finally speak.

He did not acknowledge the trance that she had put them in, just continued business as usual. The reporters and photographers blinked as if they had just woken up from slumber, some more quickly than others. Some minds were more easily moldable, while others took a bit of an extra effort. It was one of the first things she had learned as a child, as she was introduced to luring sailors from their ships into the water.

Mr. Stark did his best to calmly explain the general concept of the seiren and how they planned to proceed with the situation. Changed trade routes, markers of the coordinates, Mr. Stark providing elaborate gifts for the families of the lives lost.

"I know that no amount of money or physical items can bring back your loved ones, but both The Siren and I wish to make it up in any way that we can. It is with great pleasure that we announce that Spider-Man will be accompanied by The Siren, a woman dedicated to keeping the people of New York safe, just as Spider-Man already does. All further questions will be directed to my fiance, and the only person keeping my life together, Pepper Potts."

He placed one hand on Lena's shoulder and the other on Peter's as they were guided out through the door they came. When they were out of sight, Mr. Stark grabbed Lena's other shoulder, and leaned down to her level.

"What the hell were you thinking?"