Thank you to everybody who read or reviewed the last conversation. You're all fabulous. We are now in the "bad" timeline. Although, there's a surprise at the end.

Remember two weeks ago when I said that would be the last chapter before we would begin WandaVision. That's what I thought at the time. However, circumstances have changed. Due to 2021 being the even worst sequel to 2020, Ursula not able to be the beta on this story. So as of the next chapter, my only beta for this story will be Grammarly. So there probably will be more typos, but you'll get chapters every two weeks. (I'm also considering uploading a chapter next week to celebrate WandaVision.) I want to thank her for all her time working on the story.

Conversation 22: Olive Branches

Counselor Laura: Hey, we are doing another all-hands meeting tonight. Steve is making turtle brownies, and I'm ordering pizza. Tell me what toppings you want.

Counselor Laura: Yes, from your favorite place. Like I would order pizza from anywhere else.

Counselor Laura: Good news after the awkwardness of two days ago, Steve and Tony managed to have lunch together yesterday. Better yet, they came up with an idea to keep half of my reality from going poof and help your reality undo the damage of the purple one here.

Purple Arrow: I don't think it's possible to undo that damage.

Counselor Laura: Trust me, I know. What happened is going to leave many scars that are going to have to be worked through. So much therapy is going to be required for everyone.

Purple Arrow: Someone told you about the kids?

Counselor Laura: Yes. Friday told me.

Purple Arrow: I thought Friday was banned from telling you stuff?

Counselor Laura: Telling me about the kids caused me to pass out.

Purple Arrow: That would do it.

Counselor Laura: You know, I'm personally surprised that you're still responding. It's not nice having your husband avoid you for a week. I'm proud this conversation has lasted this long.

Purple Arrow: I'm not actually your husband.

Counselor Laura: You're a version of him. Just like I'm a version of your Laura. It's just maybe at some point, I took a different path.

Purple Arrow: Maybe not the best version. Has Friday told you about what I've been doing over the last five years?

Counselor Laura: Honestly, I haven't asked. I figured if you wanted me to know, you would tell me. I've been focusing on how to get back to my own timeline and what to do when I get there.

Purple Arrow: How's that going? Stark and Rogers had a breakthrough?

Counselor Laura: Well, they had a breakthrough on what to do when I get back to keep this from all happening again. Once we figure out how to get me back to my own time, you're going to take the stones we can access and keep them here until we can take out the purple one.

Purple Arrow: Good plan. Make sure to go for the head.

Counselor Laura: I will remember that. The problem is we need to get me back. That's not going well at all. Robin convinced Friday to send all of Deke's notes to the other timeline.

Purple Arrow: Who is Robin?

Counselor Laura: In this timeline, Steve and May's adoptive daughter. She is an Inhuman that can see the future or at least possible potential futures. In my timeline, she is Bucky's soon to be stepdaughter. He's planning to get married in the fall. If we survive that long.

Purple Arrow: I didn't know about the adoption. I'm not here a lot, and maybe they didn't want to mention their kid around me.

Counselor Laura: Maybe. The notes that Tony does have don't make a lot of sense. He can't ask Simmons because she's mostly been in the framework since she threw up on my shoes. She's also mad at us for hiding the liquor.

Purple Arrow: Understandable. So just another day at the Avenger Compound.

Counselor Laura: It feels that way. Look, we need you at the meeting this time. We know that you were with Simmons while she was working on her plan. You can tell us what she was working on.

Purple Arrow: And she can't? I thought she started talking last time?

Counselor Laura: As I mentioned earlier, Simmons has spent most of her time in the framework, probably because she doesn't want to answer questions.

Purple Arrow: You already mentioned that most of the notes are missing, and what you do have is not understandable. Really Stark can't understand it?

Counselor Laura: It's tough to understand the musings of a drunk scientist even if you're a recovering alcoholic with multiple Ph. D.s. Ones that are useful, not like the seven that Bruce has. Seriously, pick a lane.

Purple Arrow: You said the same thing before, or rather, my Laura did.

Counselor Laura: Look, I know you're mad at me because I'm here and she's not. I get that, but if you help, maybe we can get her and the babies back.

Purple Arrow: I'm not mad for that reason. I'm not mad at you anyway. I'm just angry at the world.

Counselor Laura: As soon as you found out I wasn't your Laura, you can't even be in the room with me. I've been trying to talk to you for days, and you keep avoiding me. How am I supposed to take that?

Purple Arrow: It's not about that. You don't know what I've done these last five years. I'm not a good person. I've never really been a good person, but now there's too much blood to even pretend.

Counselor Laura: I've never seen you as perfect. I've always known who you were, maybe even better now because I'm an agent. You must live in the gray in this job. I don't know what you did because you haven't told me. However, your other self served me with divorce papers and then went dark to take out Ross. Therefore, it's going to be difficult for you to shock me at this point.

Purple arrow: So, my other self took out Ross? I'm surprised I haven't done that yet. I should've done it when I dealt with the Watchdogs.

Counselor Laura: He got his daughter to come clean about his Inhuman racism. In addition to the various extramarital affairs. From there, all the illegal spending came out, and he had no choice but to resign as Secretary of State. OIG is still dealing with all his dirty laundry from his tenure at State.

Counselor Laura: He's been making a fuss on the various talk shows and podcasts. He's a regular of JJ Jameson, but he's mostly neutered at this point. We have more significant problems.

Purple Arrow: Political assassination, not actual assassination. Also, that explains why the POTUS fired the OIG in our timeline before the snap. Thankfully, he was snapped.

Counselor Laura: Yes. What did you think happened? A bullet to the skull?

Purple Arrow: Or cutting his head clean off.

Counselor Laura: That seems like one of Tony's fantasies, but no one wanted to make him a martyr or get arrested for his execution.

Purple Arrow: This is something that I've done, just not to Ross.

Counselor Laura: I'm an agent too now. I'm mostly working with kids, but my hands aren't clean.

Purple Arrow: When?

Counselor Laura: September.

Purple Arrow: What happened?

Counselor Laura: We have a Watchdog problem in my timeline. You must, too, since you mentioned taking them out. Anyway, they love attacking Midtown because they know that there are powered people there. As well as Inhuman relatives. It's public knowledge that Daisy's cousin is a student there; she is a UN Avenger in my timeline. That makes her cousin a prime target. They tried to kill one of my kids again.

Purple Arrow: You took them out first?

Purple Arrow: Daisy has a cousin? That's May's daughter? The one that was dusted?

Counselor Laura: Yes, yes, and yes. They found out about Michelle when Tony did an in-depth background on all of Peter's acquaintances. Too bad we didn't find out about Flash's piece of shit dad at the time. We could've got him out months earlier.

Counselor Laura: Yes, I did kill someone. I turned his weapon on him. Unfortunately, your other self wasn't happy and asked me to leave Shield again.

Purple Arrow: You said, no?

Counselor Laura: The kids need me, and I know I'm making a difference. I looked up what happened to a few of my kids here, and I know it was better for them with me there at Midtown. I don't think my Clint got that. The shouting started because I felt like he was trying to control me, and that's not going to happen. It ended with him moving to Malibu and filing for legal separation, again.

Purple Arrow: He was angry because he feared losing you.

Counselor Laura: Trust me, I know. I was an agent's wife for a long time, but my Clint can't stand to be on the other side. It's why he served me with divorce papers the time before. In my timeline, Ross kidnapped me to find out where the Secret Avengers were, and my Clint completely blamed himself.

Purple Arrow: That didn't happen here.

Counselor Laura: Probably because Tony kept his distance.

Purple Arrow: Lila got a cryptic message to me that you were drinking again, and I made a deal with the feds. Or rather Coulson did, not that I knew. I didn't find out until he was dead again. I didn't even know he was alive until he was dead again.

Counselor Laura: I'm sure you regret not getting to punch him. Your other self did.

Purple Arrow: Good.

Counselor Laura: Look, I have a plan to fix things here.

Purple Arrow: You already mentioned. Get back to your own timeline and send the stones here to start building our own gauntlet as we prevent your purple monster from doing to you what he did to us.

Counselor Laura: You know, snapping the gauntlet and bringing everybody back isn't really going to fix things. You said earlier you can't undo all this damage, but we can start working through it.

Purple Arrow: How?

Counselor Laura: Phase one, group counseling, and apparently, I must be the leader until I leave. I should also find an alcohol counselor for Simmons. Tony had Steve clean out the alcohol in the lab, and it was terrible.

Counselor Laura: We also need a grief counselor. Also, Tony said something about me needing to do an intervention in Norway. Why do I need to do an intervention in Norway?

Purple Arrow: I think that's where New Asgard is, but I don't know why an intervention would be necessary. Good luck trying to find a grief counselor with even Tony's money. Those are hard to come by right now.

Counselor Laura: I'm sure they are in high demand if Steve is working as a counselor. Maybe I could send Suarez from the other timeline over here if we get things working right.

Purple Arrow: Steve is working as a counselor?

Counselor Laura: That's what Stark told me. You really haven't been around much?

Purple Arrow: I've been terribly busy.

Counselor Laura: Missions? You mentioned taking down the Watchdogs.

Purple Arrow: Not necessarily sanctioned ones.

Counselor Laura: I want to know what happened to you.

Purple Arrow: I'm not ready to tell you yet.

Counselor Laura: When you are, I am willing to listen. I won't judge. I have no room to.

Purple Arrow: So, what's the next phase of this grand plan of yours?

Counselor Laura: As we work on getting everyone here emotionally healthy, we start working on how to get me back to my timeline. Which means you come down and tell me what you know.

Purple Arrow: It's not much.

Counselor Laura: It will give us a place to start. Pizza will be there.

Purple Arrow: Okay. I'll tell you what I saw and what Simmons told me. I don't understand, but maybe Stark will.

Counselor Laura: Fingers crossed; we will get me home.

Purple Arrow: You will get those stones to us. Then I'll be able to bring the kids back?

Counselor Laura: I hope. Although that means we need to get all the stones, it would be easier to do if I knew where they were in 2018.

Genius Princess: We would really like that information as well. We can start getting the stones while we figure out how to get you back. We are trying on our end.

Genius Princess: Although if you're reading this message, then that means that we've at least figured out how to send text messages to 2223 of the original James Leopold timeline. I'm going to see if I can push Deke's mission report to you as an attachment. I have no idea if I will be successful.

Genius Princess: Deke wants to know if his Nana has drunk herself into a puddle or locked herself in the framework? He's concerned.

Counselor Laura: Shuri, is this you?

To be continued

OIG stands for the Office of Inspector General. In this case, we're specifically talking about the Inspector General for the Department of State. I feel like the office was busy during the Ross administration in the MCU. At least they are busy in the timeline of my story.