A/N. Hi guys! Didn't keep you waiting too long did I? Thanks to all those who reviewed last night, made my entire day :D :D :D. So now we all get to meet Tania's mom! I hope you hate her, because that was what I was trying to get across throughout this chapter. Enjoy! :D

CHAPTER XVII

"Hello Dearie, come give me hug," Felicity greeted, stretching her arms out wide with a fake grin that looked like it had been plastered there with surgery.

Tania blinked before leaning towards Pepper. "What is she doing here?" she hissed angrily.

Pepper stuttered visibly. "I, um… It was… supposed to be a birthday surprise. From Tony." She's early...

"Happy Birthday," Felicity said and walked forward to hug her daughter who just kind of stood there with a disgusted face.

"My birthday isn't for at least a week," she deadpanned,

"Oh," she pulled away. "The fourteenth, right?"

"The sixteenth," Graham stated as he entered from the elevator with a horrible grimace on his face.

"GG!" The grimace deepened when she hugged him awkwardly. It was obvious the woman didn't do this very often. "So, where's my room?"

"Your what?!" Tania exclaimed.

"Uh, yeah…" Pepper started, "Tony kind of… well he invited her to stay for the week."

"WHAT?" The siblings chorused together. Neither of them had ever spoken much about their past, except maybe to Steve via Tania. So Tony had no knowledge of the giant rift in their "family" or what had caused it. This was just great… not.

"Is someone going to answer my question or what?" Felicity asked, cocking her hip to one side and raising an eyebrow.

This woman was definitely their mother. She had a light shade of brown hair that matched Graham's and was cut in a bob just above her shoulders with long dangly earrings and huge sunglasses. When she removed them, she had chestnut brown eyes the same colour as Tania's and certain aspects of her face held similiarities to her children. She stood at about five foot six and wore a big floppy hat and matching pink scarf with purple and white clothes that made her look like she was trying too hard to look like she was young again.

"Or what," Graham answered her.

"Mom,-"

"Don't call me that. You know I don't like it."

Tania ground her teeth together. "Felicity, this is MY home and I don't want you here."

If Pepper was at all shocked how blunt the "kids" were being to the woman that gave birth to them, she didn't show it.

"None the less, I'm staying. Anthony was kind enough to invite me and I was kind enough to accept it." As she said this, she began unwrapping her scarf from around her neck before tossing it into Tania's face like she was a coat rack or a shelf of some kind. "What a… large place you have here…"

"Felicity," Graham called through his teeth, "this is OUR home and we BOTH want you gone. For life."

"Well you don't own this home and therefore can't kick me out of it."

Brother and sister turned to the CEO who shared the Tower with Tony. "Pepperrrrr!" They whined.

"Oh Ms. Potts, you wouldn't kick a lady out of your own home when she has nowhere else to go? Out on the streets with the hobos, and the muggers, and the press…?" Felicity drawled, circling Pepper like an animal to its prey.

"Well…um, I…" How could she kick the lady out? She was practically threatening to go to the press and tell them mean lies about SI and the Avengers! Even though she seemed like a pretty nasty woman, Pepper knew enough to know that she had been MIA for the past several years and it was entirely possible that she was homeless despite her attire.

"Then it's settled!" She finished for the redhead. "Show me to my room. My flight was exhausting." She yawned over dramatically.

"Jarvis," Pepper called with narrowed eyes at the Tower's newest 'guest'.

"Yes Ms. Potts?"

Felicity jumped. "What was that?"

"You'll figure it out," the red head reassured while gently (not really) ushering her and her suitcase into the elevator. "Jarvis will show you to your room on the twenty-first floor."

"But my luggage-!"

"I'll see you later!" She spoke over the woman before the doors closed. She turned around to face the two very angry siblings and laughed sheepishly. "So… who wants a drink?"

"And then we all go to the lounge and there she is! Raiding Tony's alcohol collection like she owns the place! And then she says, 'oh I'm sorry, did you want some?' like she was going to drink all of it and like it belonged to her! UGH! That woman just drives me insane!" Tania cried out, spinning around in her office chair in frustration.

"Well-"

"And then there's Tony! I mean, I know I didn't tell him the gory details of my past, but he should know by now that Graham and I happen to dislike our parents! I mean, come on! They divorced and then left us like we were month old spoiled milk! Who does that? How could Tony invite that bitch here? And for my birthday which she doesn't even remember! GAH!" She banged her forehead on her desk.

"Darling, I'm sure Tony meant well," Steve told her from his holographic screen projected over her desk. "He's in the cockpit with Natasha right now to give us some privacy but I know that if he heard this he would send her away without a second thought."

"But then, get this, she threatened to go to the press and tell lies about us! And with stocks already plummeting because of the whole 'Mandarin' thing, SI can't take much more beating! Sure, we just bought Arrow Incorporated but until the Tower comes out of lock down, we can't work on it!

"Speaking of lock down, I can't believe Pepper just let her in! She's never seen the woman before and yet because she says she's my mother she lets her in! WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL?"

"Tania, I'm sure both Pepper and Tony mean well and had Jarvis use facial recognition to make sure that this Felicity person was who she said she was."

"Ugh, I don't need THIS on top of everything else going on in my life right now. Why would she even bother showing up? It's not like she cares about me or my brother. She's completely self-centered and acts like a spoiled brat but unlike our own lovable billionaire, she has NO redeeming qualities whatsoever!"

"I'm sure she must have something…"

"No, Steve, you don't get it! I know you like to look for the best in people but she is just… she's a horrible person and now she's staying in the Tower for a whole week! And why?"

"Well if she's as horrible as you say she is, then it's probably because her children live in the safest, biggest, and most expensive place in almost the whole world. She probably just wants in on the action."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

"Knock knock!" A voice from behind her office door sing songed.

Tania groaned.

"Who is it?" Steve asked.

"It's my mother."

At that moment, Felicity entered the room without permission carrying a bottle of wine with a goofy grin on her face. Yup. Already drunk. "Hey there, Tan. Who's this handsome fella?"

"Steve Rogers, ma'am." He dipped his head at her politely.

"Pleasure to meet you Captain America."

He frowned a little, barely noticeable on the screen. "Likewise Mrs. Banks."

"Don't call me that!" she snapped, waving her bottle around and sloshing some onto Tania's lap. "My name is Felicity Deed. I dumped that asshat years ago."

"Well, Ms. Deed-"

"MISS Deed!" she corrected as if she was some young girl being mistaken for a fifty year old woman.

Steve cleared his throat, wanting to make a good impression despite everything Tania had said. This had come up totally unexpectedly and he was not prepared for it in any way. His palms were getting kind of sweaty and he rubbed them on his pants nervously. "Miss Deed, it is an honour…" okay, he's gotta be honest, otherwise he wouldn't be Captain America, "it is an honour to be able to know your daughter-"

"How charming," she interrupted rudely before taking another gulp of alcohol. She turned to Tania. "Is he rich?"

"MOM!"

"Tania Banks, you are too old to be calling me 'mom'."

She clenched her hands into fists as she tried desperately to get the wine out of her skirt. "Felicity, go away."

"Answer my question."

"Yes ma'am, I… well, I have money," Steve responded instead, running a hand through his hair anxiously.

"Hm. A ninety-something year old rich guy in spandex. Didn't think you had it in you Dearie."

"Stop calling me that!"

"Whatever. Either way I approve."

"Of what? Steve?"

"What else? Although Anthony would prove to be much richer, I suppose the Captain is sexier. Good choice."

Steve began blushing profusely from head to toe. "Uh, ma'am,"

"Oh shut up, I'm talking to my daughter."

Tania slammed her palms against the desk and shoved her chair back as she stood to her full height, exactly one inch taller than her mother. "Don't talk to him that way! And I will never be your daughter! You may have given birth to me, but my mother figure has and always will be Aunt Gemma!"

"Oh Gemmy! How is the old bird?"

Tania ground her teeth again, absolutely seething. "She's dead."

"Oh. Well I guess she had it coming. The stress of raising the two of you must have finally gotten to her. Good thing I got out of there early."

Tania was practically shaking. "Jarvis, initiate the Justin Hammer protocol. Otherwise known as the protocol of the UNWANTED GUEST," she said, leaning over her mother who took a step back.

"With pleasure," the AI responded,

The floor beneath Felicity's feet pulled away and she screamed as she fell down the trap door before it closed again. Tania smirked widely.

"Thank you Jarvis."

"Happy to help, Miss Banks."

Steve was gaping at her. "Did you just-?"

"Yeah I did." She plopped down in her office chair. "I've always wanted to do that."

"Get rid of your mother or the trap door thing Tony installed not too long ago?"

She looked him straight in the eye. "Yes."

He stared for a few moments longer, not getting it, before realization dawned on him and he burst out laughing. He coughed. "You still shouldn't have done that."

She grinned and crossed her legs. "I know."

He rolled his eyes. "Where did you send her?"

"The laundry room."

"Did Tony ever clean that place up?"

"Nope," she answered, popping the "P".

"You are very devious."

"That's what Howard said." He laughed lightly along with her. "So when are you coming home? I could really use your support here."

"We're on the jet back home now but we hit some… er, problems somewhere over Europe. Turns out we forgot to cloak the jet and so the military started trying to shoot us down. Took us a while to shake them off and finally get the invisibility working, but we're going to be home late. I'd say probably sometime in the middle of the night?"

She sighed. "Alright. I just miss you is all. First there was the trip to Philadelphia, and then there was you going off to Europe…"

"I know Darling, I know. I miss you too."

"So how did Germany go?"

He pursed his lips. "Well, it's definitely Austerlitz. Too bad he wasn't there."

"So he's… still here?"

"Presumably. Unless he was one of the many that Clint killed."

"It wasn't. All the bodies were found by civilians and identified. It's all over the news. The press have been trying to break into the Tower and get an interview for days."

"Okay then. Yes, Austerlitz is most likely still in New York. We scoped out his hotel room he was using as a cover to lie to his wife and kids and found this." He brandished the pamphlet and Tania gasped. He opened it to the page with the circled hotel. "So yeah," he continued, lowering the clue, "it's him. There was a phone number on the back that we called and managed to get some sort of code word I assume."

"What is it?"

"Wizard."

"Wizard?"

"Wizard."

"Hmm…"

"Any ideas?"

"Not one. Sorry."

"It's fine. We just don't know either. Tony is probably breaking his brain trying to figure it out and Natasha is trying to get him to stop thinking out loud."

Tania laughed. "That sounds like you guys. Are you still sane after a weekend with them?"

He chuckled back. "Yeah, I am. I have another several hours before we land though so we'll see how that turns out."

"Alright. Steve, I have to go. It's time for dinner. Pepper's making beef and mashed potatoes."

He groaned. "Don't tease me."

She laughed. "I'd tell you that we'd save you some, but with Thor, Clint AND Graham I doubt there'll be much for the rest of us."

His stomach rumbled loudly enough that she could hear it from her office and she laughed. "Sorry sweetie. But I seriously gotta go. Love you!"

"Love you more."

"No, I do." She shut off the connection and chuckled. "I win," she whispered to herself. She sighed. She really did miss him. It felt weird walking around the Tower without him in it and sleeping in a cold bed too big to be just for her.

Tony and Natasha's presences hadn't been lost on her either. The ex-playboy's charisma and charm as well as dick attitude was something she had grown accustomed to and it felt odd to say the least when it suddenly stopped.

And then there was Natasha, who was always with Clint but since she was gone, the archer was left to his own devices which hardly ever happened. However, this allowed for more bonding time with both him and Pepper, who wasn't always babysitting her boyfriend. It wasn't just that why she noticed Natasha's lack of appearance, it was also in that her training had been put on hold. Normally she would wake up at six every morning to get in an hour of learning hand-to-hand combat before work and they would speak civilly and sometimes share little secrets here and there. The two of them had gotten infinitely closer since the mission she and Steve had been on for a week. They were almost totally comfortable around one another, just like everyone else.

Tania pondered these thoughts as she made her way to the dining room where everyone was waiting for her – including Felicity. She scowled but didn't say anything as she took the seat between her brother and Bruce.

The doctor leaned over to whisper in her ear. "She's been driving us crazy ever since you dropped her in the chore room. She's been whining and compaining about how she had to change clothes tie up her hair and how the air tastes like soap."

She sent him an apologetic look. "Sorry, but she was grating on my last nerve. I had to do it!"

He shook his head. "I get it but I just thought I'd let you know."

She raised in eyebrow in his direction before Pepper, Clint, and Betty began handing out platters of delicious food. During the meal, Felicity talked non-stop about herself and her journeys of exploring the Himalayas (illegally) and how she didn't miss having kids at all. She chewed with her mouth open and spoke with her mouth full and her knife squeaked against the plate when she cut her beef and she didn't even try to stop it.

Tania felt like she was in a horror movie. To her left, Graham appeared to be having the same feeling. Pepper and Betty were always trying to steer the conversation away from Felicity politely but that woman was persistent and just kept returning to the same topic over and over and over again… herself.

After dinner, everyone held it together long enough to have dessert. As it turns out, Betty loved to bake. She had made a wonderful New York Cheesecake to celebrate her permanent stay in NYC at the Tower. She had been halfway through thanking the others for allowing her to move in when Felicity simply grabbed a fork and dug straight into the cake.

"Eh, I've had better."

Bruce practically had to hold back his wife from snapping and ripping the woman's head clean off her shoulders. Not that anyone would mind. It was morals more than anything.

Once everyone had a piece of the exceedingly large cake (there were what, eleven people total who should get a piece? Not to mention some of them were bound to want seconds), Tania excused herself to her room and told everyone not to come in.

It seemed everyone had forgotten about the whole, "Locked in her room until further notice" thing because no one brought it up. Or maybe it was because now that she was out, everyone knew that she could override JARVIS and get out whenever she pleased. Either way, she was happy they hadn't decided to lock her in again. Although with her mother here, she might just have to lock herself in anyway.

She bid everyone goodnight and used the elevator to get to her room, where she quickly changed into her PJs and going through her nightly routine. Afterward, she looked at her bed solemnly. It looked rather big without Steve in it. Even though she knew that she would wake up to his handsome face, she still missed him like crazy.

She decided to do something she knew Pepper sometimes did and probably a lot of other couples: she went to look for one of Steve's shirts to wear. Apparently they had some sort of "boyfriend scent" on them. Who had ever heard of that? So Tania walked over to Steve's dresser and began rummaging through it. She hadn't opened it since she put the clothes there in the first place months ago in probably late September.

The first drawer she opened was his socks and underwear drawer, which she quickly closed and looked in the next one. "Aha," she said as she removed the top T-shirt in the pile. She wondered if the scent thing actually existed… She sniffed it, glad no one was around to see. Nope. All she smelled was fabric softener. Hm. Maybe he had to wear the shirt first and then it would be covered in his scent? Either way she was going to put it on. She went to close the draw when something stopped her in her tracks.

She a little piece of navy velvet sticking out in a lump from under the second pile of T-shirts to the right of the drawer. Curious as to why Steve even had velvet in his collection of clothes, she lifted the shirts to see the article of clothing – but it wasn't clothing. She gasped and dropped the T-shirt she had been holding to the floor.

It was a jewellery box. For an engagement ring. Holy hell.

A/N. Duh Duh Duhnnnnnnnnnn... again. Don't hate me for the cliff hangers! It's just something I tend to do.