Trying to find home

4

By the time I had gotten back to the apartment, it was already waaaay too late. If I walked through the front door, I risked getting beaten, and I wasn't about to make life harder on myself. I wandered to the back of the building and climbed up the fire escape. When I could get back in time, I would just walk in and go to my room, but I took this way when I couldn't. 

I quietly slid the door open and wiggled my way inside. The only reason I even came back at all was that I needed to get a change of clothes and collect a few coins so I could do the rest of my laundry.

I could my foster father and brother yelling in the main room with the tv, the only place they ever seemed to be. I was safe for now. I quickly shoved some clothes into my bag before grabbing whatever coins were on the floor. I quickly made my way back over to the window.

I sighed before letting my suit grow out over my skin, settling over me like a warm blanket a cold night. I opened the window and jumped out, my helmet snapping onto place.

"Welcome back, Celeste." Lilith said through my helmet speaker.

"Hello, Lilith." My voice sounding like a million people talking at the same time. I stretched out my wings, letting them catch me and shoot me up high above the buildings around me. I spun in a right circle, laughing as my arms exploded out from my sides. I stared out at the city, alive with pulsing lights and fast moving cars.

A loud ring echoed through my helmet. Someone was calling me. I glanced at the number and then smiled. The Avengers. This was going to be a fun night.

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I landed quietly next to the rest of the group on the roof of the tower.

"Took you long enough!" Hawkeye muttered, thinking I couldn't hear him. I turned to stare at him. He visibly gulped when he saw the way my head was turned. He acted like he didn't notice me, but his entire body screamed fear. I finally tore my focus from him and back onto Iron Man.

"Why did you call me?" I asked him.

"We need you to catch us Spider-man." I turned my head to the side, confused.

"Why?"

"We need his help. On our team." I giggled at his remark. They wanted him too. I never really knew the guy well, but he seemed nice enough. I wasn't about to help them terrorize another superhero for refusing to join their stupid cult. Whatever the reason they wanted Spider-man, I wasn't about to help.

"What's so funny?!" Snapped Black Widow, clearly impatient.

"You seem to need a lot of help these days." A loud ring sounded inside of my helmet. "Excuse me." I walked a few steps away to take the call. "Hello?"

"A young child was kidnapped earlier today from her school. The kids name is Candace Williams. Six years old. Find her and you get your usual payment." I smiled at the police chiefs voice.

"Give me six hours. I will find her." Click. He hung up. My smile grew as I turned to face the Avengers again.

"Well?" Said Captain America. "Will you help us or not?"

"No. I have better things to do than to help you track down a hero like me without any significant proof he has done something wrong." I turned to and prepared to take off to go and find the child, but something stopped me. A quiet heartbeat from behind me, one that I had never heard before. I snapped around and caught her head in one of my right hands.

"Hello there!" I said, feeling around in her head. I moved the molecules in her body as her eyes went wide. I have been told it is an uncomfortable feeling, like an itch you can't scratch. "Impressive," I whispered, watching her hands glow bright red.

"Let. Me. Go." She said through gritted teeth. I smiled under the helmet before shifting something in her head. Her eyes rolled back into her head as she fell to the floor. I looked down on her. I had never seen her before, but she radiated power. She could bring down the universe if she wanted to.

" what did you do?!" Hawkeye yelled, bending down next to the girl.

"She is unconscious. She will wake up soon." I tried to leave again, but something grabbed my wing and snapped it in half. I screamed and whipped around. A blue flash shot out in front of me, reaching out for my other wing. I just stuck my leg out.

"Shit!" The blur yelled, tumbling forward. My hand snapped out and grabbed him around the neck. It was a boy dressed in blue. His eyes held uncontainable fury. I felt my wing snapping back into place with sickening cracks. The rest of the Avengers held their breath as they watched us, afraid of what might happen. I finally laughed and threw him to the floor.

"Nice try." I jumped off of the building before flying away, leaving a flabbergasted group of superheroes behind.