A/N: Hey guys! Sorry this is so late. I took last week off without telling anyone. Had to go visit my best friend and my niece, and learn I was gonna be an Aunt again! Seriously though, we had a very relaxing weekend, and it helped me prepare my mind for the coming months, as by the beginning of September, I'll be a Mom myself. Long weekends are the best. I got a review recently that I hadn't had a chance to respond to in the last chapter, so here it goes.

BlooAngels: Thank you so much for reading. I know that the 'plural marriage' is not everyones cup of tea, so I really appreciate you following along. In regards to how I can keep my images straight with the story being so complex, it is a challenge some days. I have to re-read my own stuff sometimes, and think back to when I used certain details to make sure they are straight. I guess I should have created a flowchart or something. Well, a little late for that haha. But you asked how I could keep Sera from being classified as a "Mary Sue" character. That is a little more difficult to explain. In certain ways, she is me, or I am her. Like most authors, we use parts of our own lives to shape our characters. I used events of my own past and struggles I continue to deal with, to shape her personality and her sense of humor. I guess, for me, I've never seen her as Mary Sue, because she's so complex. She's got edges, and different sides to her, a darkness and a side of light, and I hope that everyone else can see that too. Now, I'm going to be a little more observant of how I portray her, but she empowers me in my own life. I get discouraged sometimes if I haven't gotten a review, or I get one that stings, but my best writing comes from my own struggles. I don't know how else to describe it.

Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel , Disney, ABC or the Avengers.


Any thoughts of going back to my normal schedule went out the window with my arrival back at base. My weekend getaway at the spa was the best treat, because as soon as we got back home, I was overworked. Natasha was on me to be walking at least 30 minutes a day, outside of walking around the base to get places. Bucky and I tackled the twins homeschooling, me taking more of the subjects he didn't understand. As they both took after the Stark side, they were wicked smart, and I had them doing high school pre-calculus upon returning. Steve and I got through the mountains of paperwork and government crap together, so he could breathe a bit easier. Maria, May and I were in charge of the supply orders now, with everything being bankrolled by my father, so it had to pass by Pepper last.

Daisy had told Phil she was pregnant and he shot Tripp the next time he saw him. Well, he hunted him down to do so and it was an ICER. Needless to say, Daisy had to come clean to Trip about why Phil was so angry he hadn't even given a warning. His response was hilarious, jumping around and shouting at the top of his lungs that he was going to be a Dad. It eased Daisy's anxiety about it. She was now among the ranks of SHIELD and Avenger women's pregnancy 'club'. Jane and Thor had done just as my future twins said; get pregnant and immediately get married on Asgard. So we were expecting 6 little ones within the next 8 months. I knew that Jemma might be freaking out there was something in the water, but I assured her that her time would come, on her terms.

We had a few weddings one after the other. Jemma and Pietro were married the beginning of May, with Loki and Maria following the next weekend. Audrey and Phil opted for a small ceremony with just Daisy, myself, Steve and May in attendance. Audrey was due the following month with their little boy, but Audrey wanted to wait for me to be officially back before the wedding happened. Much like Pepper, she was not a replacement mother, but a best friend in her own right.

Daisy and Tripp tied the knot after Phil and Audrey, as Tripp's grandfather just about tanned his hide when he heard that Trip knocked her up out of wedlock. Apparently some 40's traditions were not to be messed with. But Gabe Jones was overjoyed at the prospect of his first great-grandchild. Jacques, Dum Dum and Gabe were all in attendance at their ceremony, sitting with Steve and Bucky as I stood up as one of Daisy's bridesmaids.

That only left May to pair up with someone. I valued my life too much to try without her permission.

As the end of May neared, and Memorial Day weekend approached, Steve, Bucky and I wanted to sit the kids down and go over what the next couple months would look like. We wouldn't be doing any big vacations until after I was healed from this pregnancy, and they would be non-stop learning as much as they could, both in training and in school subjects. I wanted to give them all the information we had on Inhumans and their origins before they decided for themselves that they wanted to go through the Mist. Loki and Thor gave them history on the Kree and every race we knew of, to better prepare them for our coming fight. I could tell they were mature enough to handle it, because they kept asking questions, rather than get frustrated. Definitely took after me, because once you gave them a subject that challenged them, they wouldn't put it down until they solved the problem.

Quill contacted us only two days previous to tell us about their latest battle. How the Sovereign were after them, and that Peter had found his Dad, and had to end him only a day later. There was an incident in Missouri that coincided with his story. Jemma and Fitz went out with Trip to investigate, while Daisy and I ran backend at base.

So, after everything had gone down, Quill asked for a place to lay low for a while. We were happy to offer them rooms, as with the married couples, more had opened up. I invited T'Challa over for the weekend too, trying to make it a point to keep up our camaraderie and introduce everyone officially. And then we had two unexpected guests…

Earlier that day…

"Callie, have you finished your History homework?"

"Yes Momma. It's on your desk in the blue folder," I heard her call from her room.

"Elijah, have you- GAH!" I yelled, feeling an odd pain in my side.

"Mom? Are you okay?" Eli asked, coming into my room where I was folding laundry.

"I don't know. Call Aunt-" I yelled again, doubling over in pain. Well, this wasn't good.

"ARSENAL!" Callie called out.

"Miss Callie, you need to get your mother in bed. I have alerted Dr. Simmons and Dr. Cho, as well as Agent Romanoff."

"Okay," Callie said, as Elijah came to help me over to the bed.

"Eli, grab me some pillows," I breathed, trying not to concentrate on the pain.

"Momma, are the twins okay?" Callie asked me, helping me sit on the bed and swing my legs over.

"I hope so pumpkin," I smiled before feeling another stab of pain.

"Okay, Callie, remember this if I pass out. Tell Dr. Cho that it's my left side," I said, feeling my head clouding.

"Momma, you're scaring me."

"It's okay baby, I'm gonna get through this. Remember what I told you," I sighed, as I heard the door open as another pain hit. Moaning lowly, I felt my body being positioned by three sets of hands and voices overtop of my moans. My head was swimming in pain, worse than my own pregnancy, any wound I sustained in battle, but not as bad as absorbing the radiation from that bomb in Lagos.

I was vaguely aware of my body being lifted and placed on another bed, most likely a gurney for transport. Voices were trying to talk to me, and I saw Natasha's worried eyes stare into mine as we started moving. I felt another pain rip through and felt the wind knocked out of me.

"Sera, we need…"

"…. Babies in distress... C-section… not lucid…"

Okay, what was that?

"No time… cradle…healing…"

Now I was confused and in pain.

"Sera! Look at me," Dr. Cho said, when I could breathe again.

"The babies are coming whether we want them to or not. We are doing a C-section because it will be faster to get them out safely. We are gonna use the cradle afterwards, but we need your consent."

"Nat?" I asked, scared. I didn't want her losing her babies, they didn't say if they would be okay coming this early.

"Helen says they are okay to come out now. Sera, this is your body. You need to decide."

"They can't stay in longer? Their lungs?" I asked, before another wave of pain rolled over me. I suddenly couldn't keep my breakfast down, and I was given a small bucket to throw up in by someone fast.

"Thank you Pietro. Go tell Steve and Bucky to get the twins, or warn them and you stay with the twins," I heard Jemma say.

"The babies will have had enough time for their lungs to mature enough, but we would keep them on ventilators. Sera, this is happening. Yes or no?" Helen said, making me listen to her words. I looked up at Nat and she said, "It will be okay."

"Then what are we waiting for? Christmas?" I joked, before another stabbing pain hit my side.

It was a blur after that as they prepped the medical lab for my emergency C-section. When the epidural went in, I was so thankful for the loss of feeling in my lower body. I could breathe again, but still felt movement around my pelvis and abdomen. Bruce came crashing through the doors and Natasha immediately sent him to put on a gown and gloves. I looked though the little window to see Steve and Bucky with worried faces. So I gave them thumbs up and a smile before Nat stole my attention back.

It wasn't even ten minutes later that I felt weight leave my body. A cry pierced through the noise in the room and I heard Bruce's muttered, "Oh my god."

"What?" I asked quietly.

"They refused to let go of each other," Nat said, smiling overtop the shield at her babies. I watched as Dr. Cho brought them over to examine them.

"Lungs sound strong. We will put them on oxygen to be safe, but I believe we have two healthy little babies, even at 6 weeks premature."

"Nat, you have your babies," I smiled at her, as she and Bruce stared in awe of their little ones.

"I do?" She said, letting her smile show, while happy tears streamed down her face.

"And you miss, get to sit in the Cradle to repair this," Jemma said cheerfully, as Helen moved to put the babies in incubators, only, they wouldn't let each other go.

I decided to succumb to my bodies demand for rest.

I woke to soft gurgling sounds coming from my right, and hushed voices on my left. I couldn't seem to open my eyes, and I hoped they hadn't shot me up with morphine.

"Sera?" I heard Steve's voice as a hand was slipped into my left.

"The babies?" I asked, as I became more coherent.

"Out and healthy as little oxes. They really want to meet their Auntie," I heard Nat's voice from my right.

"Water first please?" I asked softly, still not opening my eyes for fear of the lights. A straw was pressed to my lips and I sucked greedily.

"Names?" I asked softly,

"Niklaus James, and Anna Natalia," She spoke softly, taking my free hand.

"Strong names," I smiled as I tried to open my eyes.

"Don't fight sleep Sera. If you need to, rest."

"Nope. I can't feel any pain, so there isn't a reason to be asleep. Besides, I need to reassure Callie and Eli that I wasn't dying. They were a little freaked out."

"Bucky has them outside. We aren't gonna bring them in yet. Just to minimize the babies exposure to infection and bacteria."

Okay. Well, I think I should be well enough to get out of bed," I joked, and Helen smiled from the corner of the room.

"Yes, you should be. Go slow," She said, putting the bar down on one side so I could attempt to get out of bed. As my feet hit the ground, I realized I felt better than I did in months.

"Okay, when do I get to see my niece and nephew?" I smiled as I stayed sitting on the edge of the bed.

"They are over here," Nat said softly, coming around to help me over to them. Since the cradle dealt with the emergency C-section, my body felt like it did before my own pregnancy. I felt my stomach lightly and said, "Wow, no need for a tummy tuck."

"Not that you'd need it anyways," Steve smiled at my joke.

"We calibrated the Cradle to help with the elasticity in your skin. It snapped back like a rubber band," Helen said as Natasha helped me into an armchair. She and Helen went to the incubators, being extra careful with the twins, as I waited patiently.

"Here is Niklaus," Helen smiled, putting him in my arms gently. He definitely didn't look like a premature baby, and Nat must have sensed my confusion at his weight.

"Takes after his Dad apparently. 6 pounds, 2 oz," She supplied while letting me get a look at him.

"Well, you are gonna be a big boy," I chuckled.

"And little Annalise, 6 pounds, 1 oz." Nat said, watching me as she placed my niece in my arms.

"Anna for-" I stopped, looking down on her with tears in my eyes.

"Named for her Aunt. We couldn't exactly name her Sera, but it was too perfect to pass up," She said, wiping a tear from my cheek.

"Well, why don't we get a picture?" Steve said, as I kissed each of their little heads. Bruce came through with his camera, handing it to Steve with a grateful smile.

"Thank you, for being so accepting of this," Bruce said to Steve.

"Bruce, you are family. There is nothing we wouldn't do for family," Steve said, clapping his shoulder lightly and gesturing for him to go stand beside Natasha. She perched herself on the armrest of the chair I was in, looking down on her babies.

"Angel, what's wrong?" Steve said after looking through the viewfinder of the camera.

"I'm so happy," I lied, as Nat rubbed my back.

"After my period comes back, we are getting started on our next one," I joked to ease Steve's doubts of my statement, making Natasha laugh and Bruce chuckle. He gave me a look that said he didn't believe me, but snapped the picture anyways.

We took pictures, and Steve filmed a bit of our reactions, especially when our twins came in to meet them. Callie was so excited to be meeting them and Elijah was curious as to why they were so small. So, when I went to bed that night, I had a hard time letting go of them, but knew they weren't my babies. Bucky held me tightly as I went to sleep, knowing that it was hard for me to separate myself from the situation, as they had been with me so long.

"Make love to me?" I asked Steve and Bucky quietly as I could. I could feel the free fall into my depression like symptoms, and knew I had to keep myself from giving in. Helen said I was as good as new, so I wanted their comfort.

Wordlessly, they both agreed, nourishing my body and mind with their love. And as it ended, I couldn't help the sad tears that my eyes leaked. But Steve and Bucky refused to let me be upset as I drifted off, each telling me how proud they were of me, and how it would get easier.

Taking a shaky breath, I let go, and drifted off into an uneasy sleep.