A Haunting Past: an Avengers/x-men fanfiction

Leading the Pack

I walked downstairs when I smelt the pancakes cooking in the kitchen.  I don't remember falling asleep in Sam's car let alone being moved to the bed upstairs, but here I was in Washington D.C. 

"I was just about to come wake you up." Sam flips the pancake onto a plate on the counter. "How did you sleep?"

"Fine I guess." I slide onto the chair as he hands me my pancakes.  "So what's the plan for today?"

"I'm meeting with a couple of my patients at one for lunch.  Would you like to join us?" I know that he's not really asking a question but he's trying to make it seem like I have a choice in what I do while I'm here.

"Yeah, that's fine." I reply and Sam gets back to work finishing the rest of the pancakes. After breakfast, I go back upstairs to change into a pink shirt with sleeves that go down to my elbows.  The words 'I love ballet' are sprawled across the front.  My hair is a mess so i throw it into a long braid before I slip on a pair of flats.

"You don't have to hide your scars." Sam looks at my outfit and I cross my arms across my chest.

"This is the best you're going to get today." I hold my ground and he sighs heavily.  "Remember I'm stubborn." I say as we get into his car.  "Where are we going until then?"

"Is there anything you've always wanted to see?" He asks and I think about the question.  

"The Vietnam War Memorial." I tell him.  My mother took me there when I was five and showed me where my grandfather's name was.  I still remember it like it was yesterday.

"Interesting request." But Sam drives there anyways.  Once we walk up to the memorial, I feel the presence of so many people.  I stop for a second as I close my eyes.  The voices aren't coming from the living.  They are coming from the dead.  "You ok?" He asks and I nod.

I walk along the wall reading names as I walk.  I get to the spot where my grandfather's name is and I put my hand against it.  I feel something that I can't quiet explain and the feeling makes me feel at ease, like my grandfather is telling me that everything will be alright.

I open my eyes and I feel that my cheeks are wet with tears.  I hastily wipe them away and I turn around to see Sam watching me closely.  "I'll explain later." We walk again and I read more names.  Once we leave the memorial, I have a feeling of ease wash over me.

~*~*~*~*~*~

"You must be Allison." The woman has blonde hair that is pulled back into a bun.  She looks like she's still enlisted in the military or at least is still trying to portray herself as a soldier.  "I'm Lisa." I take a seat next to Lisa at Sam's urging.

"So Sam's told us a few things about you."  A man with only one arm says.  "Tell us a little bit about yourself, and we don't care that you're a mutant."

"I grew up in a wealthy household but my mother was killed when a man kidnapped me when I was seven.  I was experimented on and my powers were enhanced.  Then I was trained to kill people and when I refused, he would whip me.  I escaped eventually though." I say as I try to avoid too many specifics.

"You're senator Swan's daughter." Lisa managed to put two and two together and I freeze up.  "So it is true that you were alive all these years."  I nod.  "What's the true story on that then?"

"Many people believe he sold me to Stryker because he didn't want people to find out his daughter was a mutant when he wanted to get us all exterminated.  My mother was probably just a causality but no one knows for sure since he was killed before I managed to escape."

"You are a soldier in your own right." The man tells me and I shake my head.

"A soldier won't run from a fight." I tell them.  "I'm just a lamb that was lead to the slaughter."

"And came back leading the pack." Sam tells me.

"I didn't come back on top.  I might be stronger in my physical abilities but I'm not strong mentally.  I'm weak and I can't handle the stress sometimes but I can't keep running."  I whisper the last part to myself.

"Then admit you need help." Lisa tells me.  "The first step is admitting you have a problem and then getting help for it." I nod even though I won't be able to talk about it.  I'll give it a shot though.