Chapter 40: The Wedding of Billy And James
As soon as Billy had the go-ahead from Toby and had confirmation from James that he was all showered and ready to go, he wished their guests - and himself - straight to the spot he'd immediately thought of when James said they'd have to do it outside of Genosha. There was a little spot out in the woods by the school where James had taken him in the Jeep and helped him learn how to drive. It was pretty, it was secluded, and James knew immediately what it was.
And then, the guests appeared. Tommy looked down at his suit and then started laughing, knowing exactly what was going on, but everyone else looked varying degrees of confused. Tony and Jan went from confused to teasing each other about their color-coordinated looks; Annie clocked immediately what was happening and told Scott telepathically; Rachel and Nate picked it up from there and passed it on to their significant others; and Wanda and Vision looked like they had been deep in discussion about something before they were wished there. But the cute suits both Chance and David were wearing definitely pointed anyone confused in the right direction anyway.
"How long did you wait to ask him?" Tommy managed to gasp out between giggles as Mia, the last to arrive, came to help him straighten up, looking confused about the long black dress with shimmering stars but not put out by the whole thing.
"Long enough," James shot back, not at all rising to the bait. "So I'm told."
"I thought you guys were waiting… is this … what is this?" Kate asked when she was finished making cute sounds at David for how handsome he looked.
"Tommy can explain it," James said as he gestured for his brother and sister to come over.
"So, Grampneto didn't want to make his daughters angry, so Genoshan law recognizes marriages that happen anywhere else in the world, right? So, technically, if me or Billy get married away from home and then come back home, Genosha would have to recognize the marriage. The gauntlet was for a big royal wedding," Tommy explained. "No fanfare this way, but it still sticks… so long as the gauntlet still gets run. Genosha will recognize the marriage retroactively once that's all done, so it'll still work out to them being married today. Eventually." He shrugged. "It's complicated."
"So… you still have to do the official stuff," Jan said, wrinkling her nose. "What's the catch?"
"I mean, if James flunks out of the gauntlet, then the marriage isn't officially recognized," Tommy said. "Which isn't a real concern at this point, but it was kinda Grampneto's way of giving his descendants an out… or stopping any marriages he disapproved of from becoming part of the line of succession."
"So, let's get everything arranged," Toby said pointedly. "We've got a wedding to run, people."
When Rachel and Nate got to where James was standing, they both looked like they had the same concerns on their mind, but all of it got derailed with a single joke from James: "Okay. Fight. Or don't. I'm supposed to have someone on my side, but if you don't want it, I'll ask Kate." James looked between the two of his siblings. "I'm sure Kate will run with it fast."
"What, no, I'm doing it," Rachel said, and Nate shoved her shoulder.
"What?"
"Yeah, I'm claiming older sister privilege."
"And I'm claiming little brother privilege?"
"Oh, so it's because you're the best man? I can't do it because I'm a girl?"
"Oh, sure, make me out to be the bad guy here."
"You totally are."
From there, the argument went telepathic, with the only clue to how it was going the changing facial expressions. And Scott came over to James to ruffle his hair. "They're never going to get past this, you know. They'll go in circles indefinitely."
"So, I should just skip it and talk to Kate? Is that what you're saying?" James teased, knowing both Rachel and Nate were still with it enough to listen to the real world.
"No," both Rachel and Nate said at the same time.
"I'll do it if Rachel can walk you to give you away," Nate said.
"No, you'll give him away," Rachel said, shoving him.
"I mean, she tried to give me away at least six times already," James deadpanned.
"So Nate should get a turn," Rachel said, undeterred.
"Maybe Dad should decide," James said quietly to Tommy, who was enjoying every second so far.
"You're gonna give him a stroke if you make him pick," Tommy laughed.
"Hey, Kate, we need a tie breaker," James called out.
"I vote for Tony!" she called back to him, which had Nate giving her a look of pure betrayal - and she burst into laughter.
"You were my alternate, but okay," James said, turning back to Tommy. "One vote Nate, one Rachel, and one Tony …"
"I vote for Kate," Tommy said with the biggest grin he could manage.
"I honestly thought it wouldn't be this hard," James said.
"Well, you're just that loved," Kate said as she came to join them - and let David launch himself at James. "See?"
James picked up David and let him snuggle up. "Okay … one vote Kate, one Rachel, one Nate, and one Tony. This calling tie breakers isn't working very well."
"Oh, let it be Rachel," Annie said with a smile as she came to join them. "Girls stick together."
"Biased!" Nate called over.
"And? You were counting on Kate to say you, weren't you?" Annie shot back, grinning.
"You're all being ridiculous," James said, shaking his head at his own picking blowing up on him. "Everyone clear out. Mia? You got a few minutes to spare?"
"For my best friend? Always," Mia said, teleporting over to him.
As soon as she was close enough, James kissed her cheek, and David patted her arm. "Thank you."
"That's what I'm here for," she said. Then, she dropped her voice. "That and interrogating you later about how you found out about this loophole. "
"No interrogation needed," James whispered. "Tommy told me about it. Apparently, his grandfather told the twins."
Mia's tail went still, and she blinked. "Huh."
"Yeah, exactly," James agreed.
"I'm … gonna need a minute to stew on that, actually."
"Can you do it after this is over?" James asked.
"Sure, yeah, uh-huh. Give me two seconds to reorient," Mia joked, teleporting over to where Toby was. "Reoriented! Let's go!"
Scott laughed and grabbed David to set him on his shoulders. "C'mon, let's go watch your uncle get married," he said, though before James could leave, Annie reached over to hit him on the arm.
"I wanted to make you boys a cake!"
"You can do it for the next time out - this is family only," James said.
"Still." She shook her head but then hugged him one-handed while Chance giggled and tried to eat his bow tie. "I'm excited for you both. I'm glad you're seizing your moment."
Once James and Billy were in front of Toby, the ceremony itself wasn't more than the basics, since it had been thrown together at the last minute. But that didn't matter when everyone was just happy to see it happen. They could give speeches and make a big fuss at the Genoshan ceremony when they were officially recognized as prince and prince consort.
But as short and sweet as it was, that didn't mean they were done. "We should throw a party," Kate said. "We could have it somewhere America picks if we want to keep it on the down-low, but we should celebrate."
"We can have a party anywhere," James pointed out, still half wrapped up with Billy. "We don't have to announce what we're doing or why to anyone."
"Someone's gonna want to know why Scott's trying to break his face grinning," Kate pointed out.
"He has babies; that's always enough for him to break his face."
"True," Rachel laughed as she watched Scott tickle Chance to get belly laughs.
"We should certainly celebrate," Wanda agreed, her arm around Vision as she came to the group. "It's a surprise… but a welcome one," she added.
"I would've warned you, Mom, but … well, I'll tell you later how it all got to this point."
"I just want to know why you're rushing," Wanda said. She looked toward James but was clearly addressing Billy. "You're so used to getting your way; I don't want this to be another one of those things."
James nodded. "Yeah, but … a few people have chatted with me about this, and my parents made a good argument the other direction."
"So did Grandfather," Billy said pointedly. "And he's the one who wrote the law."
"He actively would have stopped it," James said.
"Not to break up the fun, but Kate's concerns … well, there isn't a way to stop this from being open knowledge," Toby said, holding the paper that everyone required had signed. "This isn't legal until this is filed - and then, it's public record."
"Like I said: we can party in private and then decide what to do about the press," Kate said. "Or, if you two want to honeymoon, we can handle the public reveal. I'm still benched, but I could do a presser or two so long as Nate keeps me from panicking if it gets crowded."
"Let me work the press," Tony offered. "I'm still torn between getting ahead of it or hitting it after the fact."
"If you hit it after the fact, you can really play up the spur of the moment eloping because they're so in love," Kate said.
"They just couldn't help themselves," Jan agreed, grinning broadly.
"But … we can do both," Wanda said. "Tony and I will just have to be seen talking together in public somewhere. That will set them in the right direction if we look like we're enjoying our chat."
"Then we should definitely go out for fun," Kate decided.
"I know just the place," Jan said. "If we're all out and partying, someone will notice."
"Can we just … have a good time without it being strategic for five seconds?" James asked. "Please?"
"You're a Summers," Kate teased. "Everything is strategy. Don't you know that by now?"
"I'm only part Summers," James said.
"It's okay," Billy said with his chin on James' shoulder - he was floating so he could reach. "I have a perfect honeymoon spot picked out. We can ditch whenever we want."
"I told you before: it's on your mark," James replied quietly.
"Yeah, but let's party first."
"Gotta see if anyone spots the rings," James teased Billy low.
"Just let me tell my dad he and Mom are on deck for babysitting," Kate said, already texting her dad. "He's been bugging me for more David time anyway, and he wouldn't be opposed to watching Chance too so we can all cut loose."
"That sounds lovely," Annie agreed.
"Besides," America said, elbowing Billy in the side as she passed him with Rachel on her arm, "we have to celebrate these idiots getting it together." She gave Billy a crooked smile. "And I didn't get to do the threats I wanted before the wedding, so I have to get them out during the afterparty."
"I'll make sure you get to that," Tommy said, and America laughed.
"Knew I liked you."
James and Billy had their heads together, honestly enjoying watching their families plot and plan - and entirely relieved to get this one major thing off their stress checklist. All that was left now was to go and have a little fun before they disappeared to parts unknown.
As expected, the party just … kept growing once it got started. The chain reaction of Kate and Rachel reaching out to a few friends just kept spiraling until just about every hero or hero family in New York was showing up to have a little fun.
And the more heroes showed up, the more the press started to try to sneak through, and before too long, Billy caught up to James with a plan in place. James had been dancing with Mia when Billy found him - but since there were photographers starting to creep, it was time to call it.
"Wanna ditch?" Billy asked, stealing a kiss.
"Absolutely," James agreed.
"Perfect," Billy said and wished them both out of there - straight to the spot where they'd gone camping with the other Logan and K.
"Oh, wow, volume switch," James said, popping his ears at the silence.
"Thought you'd appreciate it," Billy said, already wishing a couple bags to their sides, too.
"So much."
"Yeah, well, gotta spoil my new husband," Billy said, grinning wider and wider.
"I'm sorry we didn't find that loophole sooner," James said.
"It's okay. I don't think we were expecting there to be one," Billy said. "And… honestly, Mom is still kinda shocked we didn't just wait."
"We've been talking about this being the plan for a long time. It's just the timing she's stressed about," James said.
"Yeah." Billy swallowed. "And, for the record, I'm still trying to keep a lid on it as long as I can with that wish."
"So … was this helpful or hurtful, then?" James asked, honestly not sure which way it fell.
"Actually?" Billy let his shoulders drop. "Surprisingly? Knowing that if I lose control, it won't screw things up that badly? Is super helpful. It takes some of the pressure off."
"That's all I wanted to do, was give you a break," James said before he pulled him into a long kiss.
Even though James and Billy had disappeared, the party was still in full swing. The drinks were flowing freely, the music was loud, and the heroes were glad for the excuse to cut loose.
Tommy and Mia were slow dancing in the middle of the floor, with Mia resting her head on his chest as they spun in a slow circle. It was the most overt they'd been in public since Apocalypse, so a few of the people who hadn't been in the loop were taking note. But eventually, the music changed to a faster song, and they went to grab something to drink, steadfastly ignoring the rest of the group as Mia wrapped her tail around his wrist, keeping him close and basically laying claim.
Not that Tommy was complaining. At all.
As all of their friends had shown up, it was just a matter of time before someone from the fringe tried to make a friendly inroad. And today, it was Franklin Richards. He was happy to hear that James and Billy had finally gotten it together, but … he was sure that when they were there, his presence might not be taken as a friendly gesture like he wanted it to be, so he hung back and had some fun with the younger heroes. Still, he was dying of curiosity, since he really didn't know what had gotten the happy couple to move just then. And he was a little afraid something had gone wrong after the mess in Latveria that had pulled a demon into being. And he was feeling a bit guilty about that whole thing anyway because he'd asked them to look into Latveria in the first place.
Naturally, with what little he knew, he wanted to go right to the source - or close enough to it. But he really didn't know much about Tommy and Mia or all they'd been through. At least not in detail. James never was too liberal in sharing gossip on his friends.
Franklin tried to make his approach look casual, but that was hard to do with a speedster and a teleporter in play. At any moment, they could disappear and reappear anywhere. Literally, anywhere. So he threw caution to the wind and half jogged over to say hello. "Hey - nice party, guys. Can I give you credit for it?" Franklin asked with a hopeful smile. "I didn't get a chance to congratulate the guys, but … well …" When that didn't get more than a smile from Mia, Franklin was a little encouraged to try again. "So … ah … I guess you two aren't too far behind them, huh?"
Tommy blinked at Franklin and then shook his head. "Yeah, I'm not claiming credit for this wedding, but if you wanna give it to me? Totally earned," he said, which got Mia to laugh at how he did not answer the question.
"Yeah, I think I'll give it to you," Franklin said, glad to at least be acknowledged. "Anyhow … I'll probably see you guys around, yeah?"
"Oh, come dance with me," Mia said, smiling as she finally unwrapped her tail from Tommy's arm. "You look like you're about to burst."
"I am always late to the party, that's all," Franklin said.
"Your team's always in another dimension," Mia pointed out.
"My team needs to step out of the Baxter Building."
"I wasn't gonna say it." Mia teleported them both to the middle of the dance floor, still smiling.
"You can say it," Franklin said, clutching onto her a little tighter before he regained his balance. "Maybe if someone outside of the circle says it, they'll listen."
"Maybe."
"Hey, I'm sorry if I stepped on a nerve back there," Franklin said, looking honestly stressed over it. "I didn't mean to rile him - and his brother hates me, so I … don't really know why I tried, you know?"
"Billy doesn't hate you," Mia promised. "He's just had a lot to deal with, a ton of reasons to be jealous, and he hasn't really had a chance to process those feelings when bigger ones have been going on with the whole James and dying and the department and everything…"
"Yeah, I don't think they could have processed all that," Franklin said, pulling a face. "Which is kind of why I wanted to stop in and check on them? I mean … I'm kind of the one that mentioned Latveria, so everything with that … I'm so sorry."
"No way," Mia said quickly. "No, that's so not on you. You can ask Kate yourself if you want, and she'll tell you so herself."
"I am honestly afraid to bother her, too."
"She's not gonna bite," Mia said, purposefully flashing her sharper teeth.
"Yeah, you and your bestie have the same jokes about the teeth - please don't."
Mia laughed. "I won't," she promised. "But seriously, Franklin, no one blames you. If anything, we'd love you to come around more often."
"Can I please? James told me a long time ago to just … show up at the tower, but I feel like the Avengers would be a little too much of a hit to Mom and Dad."
"No, no, show up at the school," Mia said. "Besides, there's a better vibe there."
"For sure," Franklin agreed, relaxing a little. "Are they okay, though? I mean … there's not some reason for the rush, right? Because I know the whole trying to fix the dead thing and …."
"They're okay," Mia promised. "They've just…" She blew out her breath and leaned in closer. "They found a loophole in the law."
"Oh?" Franklin brightened up considerably. "Then … this is overdue?"
"Totally." Mia stopped dancing and teleported to his side to lean her arm on his shoulder and then teleported to the other shoulder to perch there to get more comfortable. "That's why Billy got so jealous. He's been wanting this happy ending since they were in high school. But he doesn't hate you, I promise. He's just dramatic."
"He doesn't like me, either," Franklin said.
"He doesn't know you," Mia pointed out. "Come hang out at the school, huh?"
"Aside from James, I've spent more time with him than anyone on your team."
"Didn't you hang out with Kamala's group?" Mia asked.
"A little bit, but the vibe wasn't fully right."
"You might be reading into that. Kamala's the sweetest person on the planet."
"Oh, Kamala's great," Franklin agreed. "I had more trouble with the other guys. Like … I don't know. It's weird."
"I'm serious - just come hang out more," Mia said. "I bet you'd get along with Cassie. She's also struggling with feeling like an outsider."
"Alright," he agreed with a nod. "I will."
With a laugh, Mia teleported him around the room half a dozen times before stopping next to Lexi, who still looked a little off since her break up with Sam - and since Franklin had said the vibe was off with the guys in that group, Mia had to wonder who, exactly, rubbed Franklin wrong. "You know Lexi, right?" Mia asked.
"Oh, hey, Frank," Lexi said - after she recovered from the sudden appearance.
"Hi, Lex - want to dance?" Franklin said, still laughing from the teleports.
"Oh, you're still half dizzy, aren't you?" Lexi said, breaking into a smile.
"A little bit," Franklin admitted.
"Okay." Lexi shook her head at him and then held out her hand. "What brings a Fantastic Four member to the party? Aren't you supposed to be fighting monsters in the quantum whatever?"
"Um … my old college roomie just got married?" Franklin said. "Or … well, close enough. I'm friends with both of the grooms. Kinda."
"Yeah, me too. I know them through my sister," Lexi said. "That core group is tight, huh?"
"I thought you were on James's list of little sisters?" Franklin said with a frown.
"Yeah, sorta."
"He had your picture at the house," Franklin said, still frowning.
"Oh, really?" Lexi brightened considerably.
"Yeah, I mean … little sister?"
"He just kinda is a big brother to everyone," Lexi said, then shook her head. "Don't mind me. I'm off today. Overthinking everything."
"I know how that goes," Franklin said. "Let's get some snacks and think less? We don't have to dance unless you want to. I just thought it was a fitting suggestion at the time."
"That actually sounds perfect." Lexi stopped dancing and looped her arm through his. "This whole day has been a rollercoaster. And I'm talking, like, twenty-four hours, didn't sleep well, big-time emotional shifts."
"Sounds like normal X-Men schedules," Franklin teased.
"Kinda," she laughed. "I've only been on the team for a little bit, though."
"Everyone has to start somewhere, right? You'll get used to it, or you'll go be an Avenger or a Defender, right?"
"My backup plan was SHIELD, but they're kind of in shambles right now," Lexi admitted.
"Oh, well … yeah, they still haven't recovered anything from that incredibly nasty worm that ran its way through … a lot of systems. Like a lot. They pulled me in to see if I could salvage anything, but that's impossible."
"Yeah, did you notice that the worm hit Hydra first?" Lexi said, trouble in her gaze.
"I did. And AIM after SHIELD," Franklin agreed. "It was a very thorough and hungry worm."
"Yeah, and they were all connected to each other, so…" Lexi sighed. "Sorry. I don't mean to dump this on you at a wedding."
"No, it's fine! I didn't get invited to the wedding. I only came here from a friend of a friend kind of angle. More like a party, anyhow."
"The only people who were invited were their siblings and parents." Lexi gestured out toward the group. "This happened once Jan and Kate spread the news."
"How mad is your mom that she wasn't on the guest list, then?" Franklin asked.
"I think," Lexi said slowly, "that she's okay. She's not thrilled, but she also gets that she's not his mom the way Tony is his dad."
"Yeah, it's kind of complex," Franklin agreed. "I know he never really wanted another mom, if that makes her feel any different."
"She figured that out when his dad started dating, actually," Lexi said.
"Oh? What was his tipoff?"
"When it was Jan, Nate couldn't stop talking about getting a mom, and James talked about Nate getting a mom. Big hint," Lexi said. She sighed. "That and she saw how he and Kate bonded."
"Two peas in a pod, huh?"
"Kate's my big sister, but she still remembers her old family. They both felt the same way about a lot growing up."
"Yeah, I know it had to be hard, bouncing around, too," Franklin said quietly.
"Yeah." Lexi leaned against the snack table.
"We really suck at this wedding talk, huh?" Franklin said after a long moment.
Lexi laughed. "Yeah, sorry. I know how to fake it, but I don't have it in me right now."
"No, it's alright, I'm kind of in a weird space, too," Franklin admitted.
"Yeah, you had a big crush on James for a while, right?"
"I mean … I know I'm not alone."
"Yeah, he's easy to like," Lexi said. She smirked his way. "Would you believe I had a crush on Tommy when I was, like, fifteen?"
Franklin looked over at Tommy and Mia, who were again dancing. "I can see that. He and his brother are both pretty cute."
"Yeah, but he and Mia are so serious."
"They really look it," Franklin said.
"You should see him when someone tries to say something to Mia about being a Horseman. He's fine when someone says it to him - at least enough to tamp it down. But her?" Lexi shook her head.
"I'm glad to hear that, though," Franklin said. "That he's protective of her. They're good together."
"Yeah." Lexi let out all her breath. "I broke up with my boyfriend last night," she blurted out, half under her breath, because she couldn't come up with anything to say and it was hard to watch all the couples when she was still so mad.
"Do you … want me to hit him?"
Lexi laughed. "He saw me take on Department H, and my big brother basically told him never to say a bad word about me or he'd get adamantium in his skull. I think he's been threatened through and through."
"That's a fun look," Franklin laughed.
"Oh no; you have the same turn on Billy does," Lexi said, giggling delightedly.
Franklin blushed but kept laughing with her. "I don't have a defense for that accusation?"
"Because you know I'm right. That's adorable." Lexi grinned.
"Okay …" he said, still grinning and blushing.
"So, are you coming around more often?" Lexi asked when the conversation once more fell into a lull.
"I was told I had to by a goddess, which, as I understand it, is a law, so…"
"Oh, Mia does all the welcome tours since she was a kid. So you're required now."
"I kinda know my way around the school already, but I wouldn't say no to a tour anyhow."
"Come on by, then. I know you're into your PhD stuff now, right? But you can still hang out."
"Ah, no … I got my PhD's while James was in college," Franklin said. "I was lecturing at Harvard when we shared a house."
Lexi blinked and then blushed. "Sorry. I'm pretty sure I knew that. I'm usually better at remembering my intel."
"It's okay. I'm way too young for that, generally speaking."
"Yeah, but that makes the fact that you did it more memorable, and I'm-" Lexi blushed and ran her hands down her face. "This is embarrassing. I wanted to be a spy."
"I mean, same, but … about the embarrassing stuff, not the spy stuff. My god, I'd be awful at that. Obviously."
"Mom's going to tell me I'm relying too much on my powers and let the rest go soft," Lexi said. "I let bugs do a lot of my eavesdropping now…"
"So let's not let her say that," Franklin offered, obviously trying to cheer her up. "Let's grab our snacks, get some fresh air, and you can interrogate me on things she wants to know about the Baxter Building. I'm really stupid about interrogations, you know."
Lexi laughed. "Okay, but let's not gather intel. Let's try to maybe be normal and hang out?" She pulled a face. "God, if that's even possible."
Franklin immediately wrinkled his nose. "What's that like?"
"I don't know, and I have the supposedly normal Avengers for parents."
Franklin leaned toward her. "Lexi, I hate to tell you this?" He looked both ways. "But if your parents are normal, we are all screwed for normal parents."
"You know, I try to tell people that, but they get distracted by the god on the team," Lexi laughed.
"He's definitely not normal."
The two of them grabbed some food and chatted all the way out to the patio for some fresh air, passing Kate on the way, who was sure to give her sister a significant look as they went by. She knew Lexi was still reeling, so she hoped she wasn't looking for a rebound. Especially since Franklin was such a good kid who just didn't know how to fit in.
But she had other things on her mind, and she searched the crowd until she found Bobby and Remy laughing together at one of the tables. "Hey, I need a favor," she said as she dropped down into the seat across from them. She was doing her best not to show it, but she was starting to get to the point where every sound bothered her, and every time someone brushed against her, she was jumpy.
Remy frowned when he saw how tense she was. "Anythin' you need," Remy promised, leaning toward her, but not reaching out. Not when he knew how upset she'd been lately.
"Can you make me calmer?" she asked seriously. "I know you have that empathic… thing. And Nate's trying to enjoy time with his family, so I don't want to distract him."
"Mebbe," Remy said, tipping his head slightly. "You sure you wan' ol' Remy to do dat?"
"Please," she said softly. "I'm tired of not getting to party, you know? I figured you'd get that."
The corner of his mouth pulled tighter, and he offered her his hand. "You wanna do dat here, or you think you might could dance wit an ol' swamp rat?"
Kate smiled tightly. "I could probably manage a dance if you start it up fast. I'm stretched to my limit, honestly. But I miss dancing."
"Whatever you want, Miss Kate," Remy agreed, already turning up his empathic powers before they came anywhere near the dance floor. "You gon make your ole man jealous, you know."
"Always," she said without missing a beat.
"You know, you can get ol' Remy to do dis whenever you say," he promised.
"I'm trying to work through it, but… would you please?" Kate asked, looking relieved at the offer.
Remy nodded solemnly. "Any time."
"You're the best," Kate said as they headed out to dance.
Remy scoffed at that, though. "Dat's crazy talk. People gon lock you up if they hear you say dat about me."
"What? Are you sure Bobby's treating you right?" Kate teased. "What happened to 'ol' Remy knows what he worth'?"
"Don' you go usin my own words against me now," Remy shot back in mock severity. "It's undignified."
"So I'll keep doing it," Kate said. "Seriously, though, you and Bobby are adorable. He better treat you right; I know you usually get the threats."
"We good," Remy promised.
"Oh good." They spun out onto the dance floor, and the longer they were out there, the more Kate started to relax - until she suddenly laughed when she saw someone new enter. "Okay, I hate to abuse your powers and ditch, but Phil Coulson just got here, and I have to go grab him."
"Dat seems to be a good 'nuff reason, Miss Kate," Remy said, then made a point to bow low and kiss her hand. "You come find me if dat ol' espionner wreck your good cheer."
"Seriously, you're a life saver," she said and blew him a kiss before she flounced off.
"I'll have the rest of that dance, thanks," Bobby said before Remy could head back to the table, shaking his head at the whole display. "You good?" he asked under his breath.
"For now," Remy said, pulling Bobby a little tighter as they spun.
"Just checking. We can always get out of here if you need… or even if you just want to get out," Bobby added, just to tease.
"I tink it best we stick 'round in case she need a lil more help."
Bobby nodded, knowing exactly what Remy was doing, then stole a long kiss. "Yeah. I get it."
Across the way, Kate bounced over to Coulson, who looked as dapper as always. "You missed the grooms, but I'll let them know you came," she said. "Long time no see!"
"I'm glad to see you, Kate - it's been too long. I was hoping to talk to your friends, but I'll catch them next time I guess." Coulson smiled tightly at her, and it was clear to Kate that he wasn't happy at all. "I've interrupted your dance, though."
"No, it's okay. You look stressed," Kate said, frowning at him.
"That's sort of what happens when your whole career implodes with every helicarrier SHIELD had."
"Oh." She let her shoulders drop and then gestured for him to step outside with her so they could talk. "I'm really sorry," she said. "You're the best SHIELD agent they've ever had."
He shrugged lightly. "You don't need to apologize, Kate. You didn't do it."
"Yeah, it's more that I feel sorry," she said. "Are you out of SHIELD entirely? Why? None of what happened was your fault either!"
"Doesn't matter," he said. "The ones at fault are freaking out - spies with unfounded paranoia are an ugly thing."
"I can sicc my mom on Fury if you want," Kate offered.
Coulson shook his head. "I don't want her anywhere near him. He's looking for excuses to lock heroes up."
"Wait, what?" Kate stared at him, and she could feel a lot of Remy's good work go out the window. "Are you serious right now?"
"He can't prove who did it, but he knows."
"Then he knows the virus came from Hydra's servers, right?"
"He knows that, but he also thinks he knows who created it."
"And he's mad at you because you're the official liaison with our team." Kate covered her mouth with one hand.
"You and James have blown him off for years now," Coulson said. "And it's been a building thing."
"Coulson, I can't handle something like that," she told him frankly.
"You don't have to," Coulson promised. "Like I said - he can't prove anything. And he is incredibly wary of touching anyone with close ties to the Maximoffs."
"And James just married in - ha!"
Coulson smirked. "There's that, yes." He tipped his head her way. "And seeing as you're best friends with Billy …" He smiled a little wider. "I think you'll be alright."
"Still. We need to let the others know. You know if Fury is on the warpath, he can find a way to cause problems."
"I already talked to Stark," Coulson said. "He told me to let my contacts know what's going on before I'm officially canned from SHIELD. It's an any day kind of thing."
"Jeez. That sucks." Kate shook her head. "If you ever want a spot on a team…"
"I'll keep that in consideration," Coulson said, once again wearing his quiet, troublemaking smile.
"Okay, but I'm serious about it," Kate said. "I kinda feel responsible. Indirectly."
"You're not," Coulson promised. "At all. But seeing as you and James have unofficially, officially become the forward faces of the team, you needed to know. Especially if he's MIA for a while."
"Yeah, I'll make sure word gets out. And I'll make sure the heroes who aren't as connected know to watch out too. Don't want a solo hero or part-timer getting caught up in it." She pulled a face. "Don't want Fury trying to steal up heroes for himself. That's what happened with Noh, so it's not like it's out of the realm of possibilities."
"I'm keeping a few contacts, but we're going to be otherwise staying underground for a while. If I hear anything, I'll notify you - or your mother. I just wanted to make sure everyone it applies to was warned. So … let your friends know."
"Will do." Kate let her shoulders drop and rested her hand on his arm for a second. "You should come join the party. You're probably everyone's favorite agent. Well, you or May. Or Clay. It's a tie."
Coulson laughed openly at that. "No contest there. It's May and you know it."
"True. But this is about building you up," she said with a winning smile. "Now, come on. It's time to let loose a little, huh?" With that, she pulled him into the party, waiting until he was talking to Steve before she headed over to Tony and stole the drink from his hand. "Okay, I'm partied out. Love you, but I'm going to scream if I stay here any longer."
"Lightweight, huh?" Tony teased. "Thought your other team beat that out of you."
"You'd think," she said without missing a beat.
Tony raised an eyebrow. "Okay, spill. What happened?"
"I'm still not the best with crowds and lots of people touching me, then throw in I just found out Coulson got demoted…"
Tony made a little sound in the back of his throat. "Yeah, that'll do it. He already turned down my offer for a job."
"Sounded to me like he was trying to do what good he could on a sinking ship. He deserves better."
"Sure, but that just gets you stuck with the rats sometimes," Tony pointed out.
"Yeah. Did he tell you Fury is getting vindictive against heroes?"
"Getting? Getting? Princess, that's been the case for years."
"Vindictive relative to his baseline vindictiveness."
"To answer your questionL yes, I knew that."
"So you get why that freaks me out, right?"
Tony nodded slowly. "You're golden, though, kid."
"Yeah, that doesn't let the rest of my family and friends off the hook, though. Remember what Fury pulled with James with the Viper video footage? I have zero trust in him not to make plays for my siblings, for example."
Tony gave her a tight smile. "Working on it."
"I know. And I'll get the other team on it too. I just…" She blew out her breath. "I was barely holding it together so I could be with the people I love. And this is … I can't hold it together, Tony."
"I know, kiddo; you just go take care of yourself and your little family. Let me cover you."
Kate let her shoulders drop and then half leaned against him in not quite a hug. "Love you."
"Love you too, Katie. Now go on. Don't stick around where it's not fun anymore."
Kate smiled tightly at him before she left to go find Nate, leaving Tony also frowning over the whole thing.
