Nobody spoke. They all looked at Hulk who was still as a statue. The 'strongest one there is' was beginning to breathe faster and faster and was starting to panic internally. He's a superhero, he fights bad guys, he saves the day. That's what he does. He couldn't be a father! He doesn't know the first thing about being a parent! Even if he did, he was a giant green man that was known to get angry and express that anger through violence.
"Hulk."
This kid, Harry, was mistreated terribly by his former guardians and as the Hulk he was intimidating to just about everyone. How could a kid, that was supposedly his, ever feel comfortable around him, nevermind be happy?
"Hulk?"
And to top it off, he had enemies. Abomination, the Leader, the U-Foes and those are just the ones specific to him. As an Avenger, he has so many more because of his association with other heroes. How could he ever keep this kid safe?!
"Hulk!"
Hulk snapped out of his moment of panic and saw the rest of the Avengers looking at him. Not with any anger or accusation, but with compassion and concern for their friend.
"It'll be okay. If you need help, to talk, or anything else, we'll gladly help." Steve said.
"Did you know Lily Potter, or maybe she went by Lily Evans?" Hank asked, not judging him for a moment.
Hulk thought for a minute, then remembered a woman with red hair, green eyes, and a problem Banner could solve. "Banner met a woman named Lily and her husband James in Britain while he was still on the run. Banner met Lily in a tavern while he was working as a bartender for a disguise. Lily was getting harassed by a guy nearby. Banner kicked the guy out and after Lily thanked him, they got talking. They kept in touch for a while and Lily eventually introduced Banner to James and they told Banner about their problem.
"Apparently, James got an injury that left him unable to have children. They both really wanted a kid but wanted it to be theirs. Banner closed the tavern and walked them home that night, but the three of them were attacked by muggers and Banner got stabbed. Then I made the scene. They were scared at first but when they realized I wouldn't hurt them, they calmed down. I changed back into Banner when they were safe and he explained everything. They… were actually understanding and got excited that Banner was a doctor. They asked Banner if he would donate a sperm sample so they could have a kid.
"Banner really didn't want to, but they managed to talk him into it. But he had some conditions. They only get one sample, because if they did it more than once, Lily could die from radiation poisoning. They also had to keep in touch to make sure that there weren't any side effects. If it all worked out and the baby was healthy, Banner would get to meet the kid when the kid was 18. If the kid had any… special traits, Banner would help the kid with controlling their powers. If Lily and James died, their will would have instructions sent to his guardian on how to contact Banner if they needed to.
"They agreed and two weeks later, Lily was pregnant with a boy. But before the birth, Ross found Banner and he had to run. Nobody told Banner about what happened after he left."
"Then how did he end up with those… people?" Thor asked, disdain for the Dursleys clear in his voice.
"No idea. Lily's sister hated Lily and Lily cut off ties with her. Petunia wasn't supposed to get the kid. It was supposed to be in the will."
Hulk was going to say more, but before he could, a wall panel spoke. "Sir, young Harry is awake."
Harry woke up surprisingly comfy. He was in some kind of bed that looked like it should be in a hospital, but he certainly wasn't in a hospital. It looked more like an advanced laboratory. He was wearing the same clothes as this morning. Trying to remember what happened, the memories hit Harry like a brick flying at Mach 7.
A construction yard. Big green men fighting. Small flying lady. Red and gold robot. Anger. Icy winds. Darkness. Harry lifted his hand to his head, only to stop when he noticed the color of his skin. Icy blue with little bits of frost sprinkled all over, almost like freckles. He grabbed the rail of the bed in panic and felt some ice around his hand on the rail. Ice that wasn't there a moment ago. Looking at the rail in question, he saw ice spreading along its length at an unnatural pace. The moment he pulled his hand off, the ice stopped forming. He also realized that he could see his breath a little bit.
"Good, you're awake."
Harry turned his head so fast, it may as well have twisted off. The voice came from a man in a lab coat with red and black underneath. When Harry noticed the helmet on top with two antennas sticking out, he realized he was looking at the superhero, Ant Man.
"We were all worried, especially Hulk, but we can get to that later. How are you feeling? Woozy, tired, anything?" He asked, concerned.
"Um… no. I feel okay, but I'm blue." Harry replied.
"Well, at first we thought that it was frostbite, but after some scans, it looks like you have some… unique traits. First, I have to ask: do you know anything about your parents?" Ant Man asked gently.
"Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia always said that my mom was a prostitute and my dad was her pimp, and that they died in a drunken car crash, and I got my scar when it happened." Harry said, not quite understanding what exactly what he was told actually meant.
But Ant Man did and it made the pacifistic scientist question his beliefs. A little kid, no older than nine years old, was told to his face that his parents were horrible people. Even if Mr and Mrs Potter WERE bad people, you don't just say that to an orphaned child. But it seemed that the Dursleys didn't even bother to try sugarcoating the details.
Ant Man still had a child present though, so he had to remain calm and tell Harry what he needed to know. "Harry, I need to tell you something. It's not bad or dangerous, but it is important."
"Ok?"
"While I was checking you while you were asleep, I ran a DNA test. Do you know what DNA is?" Ant Man asked.
"The blueprint for a living thing?" Harry half answered, remembering what he heard and read at school.
"Exactly, good job!" Ant Man replied enthusiastically, earning a shy but happy smile from Harry. "Well, your DNA looks like it's been mutated by small amounts of gamma radiation. That's why your skin is blue and things get really cold when you grab them."
"Am I a freak?" Harry asked, scared yet resigned.
Ant Man knelt down and looked Harry in the eye. "No. You are not a freak. You're just different." When Harry looked skeptical, Ant Man tried another tactic. "Can I tell you a secret: my powers used to come from my belt and suit. But after using them for so long, I can change my size all on my own. Do you think I'm a freak?"
"No." Harry said with certainty.
"Exactly! I'm not a freak and neither are you. We're just different, and that's completely okay. Right?" Ant Man said with passion.
Ant Man waited patiently for Harry's answer, as did the rest of the Avengers upstairs, who were watching the whole thing from a security camera.
"...Right." Harry finally said.
Ant Man smiled a warm smile, along with the other Avengers.
"Um, do you know what my powers are?" Harry asked shyly.
"We have a good idea." Ant Man answered.
"We?"
"The Avengers." Ant Man explained.
"... Oh my gosh! The Hulk's head got hurt, the Wasp got squeezed, and Iron Man's armor got damaged while he was inside! Did you check them too?! Are they okay?!" Harry panicked.
Ant Man's jaw dropped and the Avengers watching were dumbfounded. The kid was in a hospital bed with blue skin after being told he had been mutated by gamma radiation and yet he was more concerned about the superheroes that were used to this and barely even got hurt.
Ant Man's silence left Harry worried about the answer. Luckily Ant Man noticed this quickly and rectified the issue. "Yeah-yeah they're fine. Hulk didn't have any lasting damage, Wasp was barely bruised, and Iron Man's armor protected him. But I'm sure they'll be happy to hear that you were worried about them."
"Do they know I'm here?"
"Yep. Iron Man and Wasp managed to bring you here while Hulk made sure the Abomination was secure. Hulk asked about you when he got back. He was worried about you." Ant Man explained.
"... Can I talk to him?" Harry asked, so shy he was almost unheard.
"Of course. But first, I need you to put something on." Ant Man turned and when he turned back, he was holding something that looked sort of like a scuba suit with small tubes running along it.
"Until you've got control over your powers, this suit will keep you safe. You can still use your powers while you're wearing it, but you have to put in extra effort, so you won't end up freezing anything by accident." Ant Man explained.
"Do I wear this under my clothes?" Harry asked curiously.
"Yes, but you can wear your underwear under the suit." Ant Man told Harry, the latter being relieved he wouldn't have to get naked in front of a superhero.
One minute later, Harry was wearing the suit while Ant M- Hank, as he insisted to be called, was next to him writing on a clipboard, trying to not think about the scars he saw on his back. Hank thought Harry would be embarrassed about the scars. But he was relieved when Harry exclaimed "This is really cool! And really comfortable too. I look like an alien!"
"You know, if you want, we can make the suit different colors later." Hank offered, smiling joyously, just like the rest of the Avengers upstairs.
"Really?! Thank you Mr Hank!" Harry said running up and hugging Hank tightly, with a smile warm enough to melt any ice he could possibly produce. Hank returned the hug gently, and guided Harry to the elevator that went upstairs. They got in and moments later, they got out and met Janet in the living room.
"Hey kid, is it okay if I call you Harry?" She asked politely yet excitedly.
"Yes ma'am."
"Thank you, but if I get to call you Harry, then I want you to call me Janet. After all, you did save me from Abomination." She playfully commanded.
"Okay, M- Janet." Harry said shyly.
"Oh and Hank sent me a text saying that you might want to decorate your suit." Janet said, grinning like a loon. "I'm a fashion designer, so would you like it if I helped you?"
"You want to help me decorate my suit?" Harry asked, not quite believing what he had just heard.
"If you want me to." Janet replied calmly, her smile still planted firm on her face.
Harry couldn't really speak so he nodded his head.
Janet and Hank's eyes squinted a little from the joy they felt. Harry had a question though. "Um, M- Janet? How did you know about the suit Mr. Hank gave me?"
"I got started on it when we figured out your powers and how they work." Hank answered.
A small silence reigned before someone new came by. "Hey kid. How're you doing?"
Harry turned to face the man who spoke and was met with the sight of Tony Stark wearing a business suit and a blond man wearing casual clothing. "Hello, Mr. Stark. Thank you for saving me from the Abomination." Harry said to the genius, billionaire, philanthropist, and superhero. "May I ask what your name is, sir?" Harry asked the blond man, slightly intimidated by said man's height and build.
"My name is Steve Rogers, but you can call me Steve. It's nice to meet you." Steve said, offering his hand. Harry shook it with only slight hesitation. A moment after letting go, Harry realized just who exactly he was talking to.
"Are you… Captain America?"
Steve smiled and nodded his head, then noticed Harry wanted to ask something. "If you have a question, you can ask."
Harry squirmed a little, then asked the question. "Were you scared when you got out of the ice?"
The Avengers present were dumbfounded once again. This kid was meeting Captain America, but instead of asking if he could see the shield or the suit or even hear about the adventures he went on during or after WW2, Harry wanted to know if Captain America was scared when he found himself 70 years in the future.
How does a kid as kind-hearted and polite like this come from a place as horrible as he did? They all worried that he would be damaged, broken at worst, and that they wouldn't be able to help him. But it seemed that somehow Harry survived and didn't need saving in the first place.
Steve knelt down to look at Harry eye to eye. "Well at first, I thought it was just an elaborate lie and I didn't believe it at all. But after Janet here managed to convince me… well I wasn't afraid, though honestly I really didn't know what to feel. I felt like I didn't belong anymore. But in the end, I managed to find a place where I belong. The way I see it, if you look in enough places, anyone can find a place anywhere." Steve said with his hand placed gently on Harry's shoulder, smiling.
"Thank you for telling me, Si- Steve." Harry said quietly.
Another silence passed and Tony decided to get the 'meet and greet' back on track. Everyone agreed to meet Harry one at a time so that he wasn't overwhelmed. The plan was to 'randomly' run into everyone on the walk around the Mansion with Hulk being the last to meet Harry, mainly so that Hulk could psych himself up and figure out what to say and how to say it. "Well Harry, let's see if we can find Hulk. Hank said that you wanted to talk to him, right?"
"Yes please, Mr. Stark!" Harry said excitedly.
They went back to walking with the little blue skinned cryokinetic nine year old looking at everything in wide eyed wonder. Harry may not have known it yet, but his eyes were going to get so much wider by the end of the day.
Okay, so a few notes.
First: Harry's skin will be the same color as Killer Frost or Mr Freeze from DC comics and the 'suit' that Harry got from Hank looks something like Mr Freeze's pants in Batman Arkham City but as a full body suit with matching gloves. He's going to wear it under his normal clothes, so don't worry, he won't be walking around everywhere in nothing but a skintight bodysuit.
Because if he did, it would be like the scene from Family Guy where Herbert saw three robot children on a mattress and suspected it to be a trap. Yeah, I may not be a genius, but I'm not brain-dead either. No sexual moments in this story by the way (yeah, I see you weirdos). Sorry for the rant.
Second: this will be part one of a two chapter introduction for Harry and the Avengers along with anyone of significance. By the way, yes Nick Fury will appear in the story and will be depicted as a badass as much as I can possibly manage.
Third: I don't really know how to fit an entire explanation on how Harry's powers work into the story naturally, so I'm just going to tell you what his current powers are here and now.
Harry is obviously Cryokinetic, but his level of power will revolve around his emotional state (not unlike the not so jolly green giant). Harry doesn't project cold, but instead drains heat, like Killer Frost in DC. Unlike Killer Frost though, Harry doesn't sustain himself by draining heat. He'll consume food and drink like normal.
Harry has a healing factor like Hulk, but to a lesser strength.
Harry can generate cold fields that can slow down anything moving through them like Captain Cold (seriously Captain Cold is ridiculously awesome in the comics, look it up).
Harry can survive in extremely cold environments. On top of that, Harry feels cold temperatures to a much lesser extent. In hot environments, he feels it like a normal human would.
Harry will learn to ice skate and will ''skate on the ground' to get around.
More powers may develop as the story goes on and when they do I will explain them as best as I can.
That's all for now.
If you have any ideas, don't hesitate to leave a comment!
Please keep all criticism constructive and have a wonderful day.