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.CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT.
[48]. Magic Projection Session, Thingy.
[PART ONE]
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❝ ᴀʀᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ʜᴇʀᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴛʀʏ ᴀɴᴅ ᴋɪʟʟ ᴍᴇ
ᴀɢᴀɪɴ? ❞
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A DAY WAS SPENT as James and the others making their way back to New York. Yelena indeed did tag along. Not only that but... they got a damn dog. James was ready to tell the kids about Yelena, about his story. After what felt like forever they finally arrived at the compound. The Trio steps out of the cabin. While Natasha and Yelena stayed back to gather their things, James made his way inside.
James walks into the compound, and he begins to look around. "Hello? Anybody home?" he hears a noise coming from his room so he makes his way towards it, he laughs a bit. "If I find somebody else in this room, I'm not gonna be happy."
In front of him had been Wanda... or not really Wanda. But it was the Scarlet Witch. She was floating in the air, her legs crossed while the book had been in her lap. It was the dark hold.
James drops his bag. "What the fu—"
The hologram— Wanda looks up, before he knew it the projection of Wanda had been gone.
"Wanda, darling?" James looks around slightly confused. He hears the door close causing him to rush back to the front of the room.
Before he even had a chance to see what's going on, someone jumps into his arms and he automatically knew who it was.
James fought a bit. "Jeez, Wanda. Let me breathe."
"Can you just shut up for a second?"
James laughs, he gently sets her down after a few more seconds. Wanda doesn't say a word, she just looks at him. She sees the injection wound on the side of his neck, but oddly at that moment, it healed up.
"Told you I'd be back." James smiles, he then clears his throat. "I should've told you I was coming, you know, so I didn't interrupt your... magic projection session... thingy."
Wanda sighs. "Can we not go back to that right now? Let's just enjoy today. Plus, it was just some standard practice."
"Standard practice? Wanda that book—" James sighs, he decides to save it for another time. "I brought home a guest."
*NATASHA (ROGERS) POV*
I just got out of the shower. It's been a very long week and Dad was still not home. The past week he's been gone, the compound got settled down. And we've already set everything up for the wedding. Now, all we needed was for the groom to arrive back home so we could plan everything.
Anyway, I had plans today. Peter and I were going to the movies and meet up with the rest of the team. So once I finished getting ready I made my way downstairs.
That's when I heard a rustling sound.
"Mom?"
No answer.
I shrug it off and continue to walk around the room, making my way towards the kitchen. That's when I was knocked onto the ground. I quickly recover, I look to see a blonde woman holding her gun up. I use my powers to snatch the gun from her hands and then bring them into mine. Now I was holding the gun at her, she then takes another gun out. So we were both holding a gun at one another.
"Woah! Woah! Woah! Put the guns down!"
I turn to see Dad standing with Mom, they both run into the kitchen. The rest of the Avengers then appear as well. So now everyone was surrounding us.
"Yelena, gun. Down. Now." Grandma Nat tells the blonde now known as Yelena.
Yelena huffs, but she puts the gun down. Dad sends me a look, I lower the gun as well.
"Okay, crazy pants, who are you?" I question looking at the blonde.
She scoffs. "Didn't you just hear? I'm Yelena."
"I heard your name, but what are you doing in my home."
Dad sighs, he stands in the middle of us. "Yelena, this is Natasha, my daughter. Natasha, this is Yelena. Moms sister..."
My eyes widened. "H-holy shit. I didn't think I'd see you at all."
Yelena smiles, she tucks the gun in the side of her belt. "It's nice to meet you. Wow, you look just like him." she then turns to face Mom. "I'm assuming you're the mom?"
Mom nods. "My name is Wanda."
Clint now walks into the room, he smirks. "Yelena? Are you here to try and kill me again?"
All eyes were now on Yelena. Dad and Grandma Nat seemed conferenced and confused.
Yelena awkwardly laughs. "Ha. No. Now— shut up."
Once things settled down, and everyone was introduced to Yelena... the five of us— Me, Billy, Mom, Tommy, and Dad— were now seated down. It was now about 10 at night, everyone was getting ready to go to bed, but Dad had other plans.
He thought it was time to finally tell us why we never knew about Yelena, or why she never got brought up around us. Along with his past, and why he never spoke about it to us.
Although he was my dad, I felt like I didn't even know him.
Dad clears his throat, grabbing our attention. "Okay, how do I start this...?" he thinks for a moment. "Do you kids remember our first fight? Your mother and I told you that you were born for this? Part of me always wanted you guys to grow up how I did. To learn to fight at a young age, to control your powers... that was mostly because I was afraid that Wanda or I wouldn't be able to protect you."
We all stay silent, waiting for him to continue.
"So when you kids were taken... a bit of relief hit me." Dad looks over at Mom. "Which is why I never talked about them since then, unless you decided to bring them up. I knew we'd find our way back to you three, I knew it for a fact. But something also told me that a great evil was coming... that something terrible was going to happen. And it did, I got injected with Nagel's serum— well Melina's and the Red Rooms serum. I wasn't able to control myself, or my anger."
"I don't get this...? What does this have to do with Aunty Yelena? Or past you?" Billy asks, just as confused and lost as the rest of us.
Dad sighs. "I'm getting to that. The thing was... that serum, it wasn't evil itself. That's not what grandma or any of them made it out to be. It drew out the anger, my emotions, my thoughts... it was who I was. Who I am..."
I shake my head, eyes narrowed. "You're not evil."
"No... but I'm angry. I've got anger built inside of me. This rage that i've learned to contain. But very little, I mean at any point given I can snap." Dad details, before scoffing. "The point is... that serum was never the problem. It was me. I wasn't able to control myself, or my fear, or my powers. And I was angry because I knew that side of me would be shown... and that side of me. That's me. That's who I was. I'm not who you think I am. I'm not the man who's got it all under control. I'm not the perfect father. I'm never going to be the man that the world wants me to be. That's why I never intended on being Captain America. I was taught to pick up a gun at five and to shoot at 6. By the age of 7, I was practicing on deers and anything in sight. And by 9 I killed a person for the first time. Someone my age... a friend of mine. I felt... relieved that I was finally able to get something other than an animal. But then I realized I killed somebody. And then pain took over me. And I never wish to feel that way again. Especially about something like that."
Holy shit...
"Growing up, Dad wasn't around. Mostly because he got put in the ice." Dad tells us. "So really... it was just me and Mom. Since my first kill, we were sent on missions for this evil man... and we killed, killed, and killed. There was a lot of red. Too much. Then we met Clint, he saved mom but... I was still lost. I- I couldn't process all the things that I did. But that's when Yelena came around. I was very... cautious with her. I didn't know if I could trust her, or really at the time, I didn't know who she was. Then mom broke it to me that she was family... and I was just as shocked as you four were. But after spending time with her and having her around, Little by little, Yelena grew on me. She'd take me to school, she taught me how to properly defend myself, whenever mom was mad at me she'd even sneak me into archery classes with Clint, she even accompanied me to my first prom because I didn't want to choose anyone to go with. That's why I was shocked seeing you in that dress."
Well that makes sense. I thought I looked weird in it.
He stops talking for a moment before smiling as he thought back to how things were. "Truth be told... at the time she was the only person who believed in me. By the age of 13, we met Stark and Fury. Mom was so busy cleaning her slate she forgot about mine. So, I would try to go out and do better in the world. Yelena stood by my side during that entire time. If I'm going, to be honest, she was like a mother to me. I thought of her as my mother. Not as an aunt, or a random family member. She would encourage me to ask to go on simple missions with mom, but Mom and the team would always say no. But of course, I didn't listen. I tagged along to the first ever mission; getting Loki and the scepter. That's when I met dad for the first and at that time I didn't even trust him. Mostly because I had no clue who he was. But this isn't about him—"
"But if you were so close with Yelena, why didn't you speak of her? Or let alone to her?"
I was so confused.
"Because, even after all the good moments...it all came to end." His smile fell. "After I came back from the mission, I ran home to tell Yelena how it went. She wasn't there. I assumed she was out, so I stood up all night, so excited to tell her how I shot that bow perfectly. Hell even about the fact that I met a freaking god. How I was able to capture Loki single-handedly. How I met my dad..." his voice cracks. "I eventually got tired after waiting... so I fell asleep, hoping that I'd wake up and she'd be ready to take me to school. But she wasn't here, and once again I didn't think anything of it. So I waited after school, and again, she wasn't there to pick me up. And neither was Mom. That's when I grew anxious, and later that night I was taken home. Mom was sitting there at the table crying with Uncle Clint. I was so confused and angry. Confused as to why the hell she was crying. Angry that she forgot about me. Clint was the first to notice me. That sat me at the table and that's when they told me she left. We didn't know why. All we knew was that she left."
And that's it. That's why dad was the way he was. Why he was so hesitant to trust and allow people into his life. Why he never wanted to allow Mom into his life. It all made sense. Yelena helped build him into who he was... just to break him again.
"That's why I never brought her up. I didn't even think I'd see Yelena again." Dad continues. "So... that's it. That's all there is to know. That's my story."
Mom shakes her head, she scoffs. "That's not your story, James."
"Then what is my story?" Dad questions. "I'm the man who trusted too easily only to get broken over and over."
Now I interfere, agreeing with mom. "That's not your story, dad."
Dad exhales heavily. "Well... I assumed it was. I didn't think my life was that important that others would want to know it."
Tommy makes a face, he walks over to dad and hugs him tightly. "You're a great dad."
Billy joins as well, smiling. "I love you."
And now Mom. "We love you."
They look at me. I smirk before jumping into the hug as well. So now we had all been hugging, still all processing everything Dad just told us. Although I was upset with Yelena, I could only assume they fixed things when he was gone. I mean, he allowed her into our home. So he must've trusted her. And if Dad trusted her, that means we all trusted her.
Cause what's family without trust?