Standing in front of us, threatening and ready to fight, was 2012 Steve Rogers, glaring through narrowed eyes. We froze in shock, not moving a muscle. Instinctively, Present-day Steve took half a step in front of me, while I concentrated my electricity into my hand.
2012 Steve raised a hand to his ear, speaking into an earpiece.
"I have eyes on Loki," he announced to whoever was on the other end. "14th floor, with an unknown female accomplice."
One of Loki's capabilities was the power to shape-shift, making him appear as anyone. Obviously Loki's magic act was a more plausible explanation than a carbon copy of yourself, at least in 2012 Steve's eyes.
Present-day Steve pressed the case into my hand, never taking his eyes off of his younger self. "Think you can get past him?"
I clutched the case, the handle digging painfully into my sweating palm. "Uh, yeah...maybe. Think you can keep him occupied if I fail?"
He nodded, speaking calmly to 2012 Steve. "I'm not Loki. And I don't wanna hurt you."
2012 Steve ignored him, looking back and forth between us, trying to determine who would be the biggest threat.
I stepped towards him tentatively, trying to look him in the eye despite the fact that his eyes were rapidly moving between Present-day Steve and myself.
"You're going to let us-"
Before I could finish the sentence, he hit me with his shield, knocking me off my feet. I just managed to keep my grip on the case as I went hurtling through the glass railing and onto the floor below. I groaned, flipping over from my front to my back. I could hear Present-day Steve blocking his counterpart's blow with his own, their shields colliding. The loud bang it created perforated the eardrums of anyone unlucky enough to be in the vicinity. Bright sparks flew from the weapons as the identical Super Soldiers fought.
Standing up painfully and clutching the case, I peered up to the floor above, throwing my electricity towards 2012 Steve (who was easily identifiable due to the old-fashioned cowl he was wearing). It incapacitated him long enough to give Present-day Steve time to address me.
"I've got this," he confirmed, breathing heavily. "Get the scepter out of here."
"I will," I nodded, clutching my side. "When you're done, go find Tony and Scott and see if they got the Tesseract. I'll find you guys after... Kilgrave."
"Need help?" he asked, just as 2012-Steve got back on his feet and lunged towards him, the electric shock now completely out of his system.
"I think you have your hands full!" I shouted up to them, before making a quick exit.
The first part of my three-part mission was complete. Now I had to get to S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ.
***
Thanks to the mess that New York was currently in, it was easy to sneak into the building undetected, even with the case in my hands.
Walking around the S.H.I.E.L.D headquarters after all this time felt like being home again, back before everything had changed. My time at S.H.I.E.L.D. were some of my first memories; the only first memories I wanted to keep if I couldn't have my own.
There was a part of me that felt like I could completely fall back into my 2012 life. I could go back to being the girl who was scared to show the world her powers, who wanted a quiet, simple life within the four walls that S.H.I.E.L.D. provided, without the stress of having to save the world. But I wasn't that girl anymore, and I'd gone through too much to ever be her again.
"Rogue," an authoritative voice said from behind me, causing me to practically jump out of my skin with shock and surprise. I didn't need to turn around to know who the voice belonged to; I'd know him anywhere.
Nick Fury walked towards me, fixing me with a stern glare. For a second I was frozen. Of all the people from my past that I'd thought about when undertaking this mission, seeing Fury again hadn't entered my mind. I was completely unprepared.
"H-hi," I stammered, trying to seem as normal as possible. Thankfully his mind was on something else, distracting him from my weirdness and the case I was carrying.
"Did you see what just happened out there?" he asked, gesturing to the window that looked out over New York City.
I looked outside curiously, saw the remnants of the alien attack, and nodded. "Yeah. The Avengers saved the world."
Fury nodded his confirmation. "Tony Stark just put a nuke through a wormhole," he continued, his tone more animated than I remembered it being the first time around. "We almost lost him."
For a moment, I struggled to control my facial expression. "Tony Stark did that?"
I had a vague recollection of hearing about the billionaire superhero who'd saved the world by doing something completely stupid and reckless, but it was totally different when the person in question was your husband.
Fury nodded again. "Today, they saved the world. But Loki isn't the only threat out there. We're hopelessly, hilariously outgunned, and the 6 of them can't do it alone."
I discretely rolled my eyes, remembering with ease the first version of this conversation just over a decade ago. Back then, joining the team had been the furthest thing from my mind – in fact, I couldn't think of anything worse. I never would have guessed that a few years later, the team would have given me an entire family.
"Rogue, it's time for you to come out of the shadows," he told me sternly, like a father who's saying something upsetting 'for your own good'. "You've hidden from the world for years and now it's time; we need you."
I crossed my arms, my eyes narrow. "Why me?"
"I've been watching you since you came here 12 years ago – you're ready."
"That's not what I mean," I said. "How did-do you know that I'll fit in with this team?" I asked curiously. If Fury hadn't asked me to join the Avengers all those years ago, it never would have crossed my mind. My life would have been completely different – a thought that scared me.
"I've got a great team," he told me with a casual shrug. "You'll fit in well with them. They need you, Rogue."
"And I need them," I replied under my breath, not sure whether he heard me or not. He gave me a confused look suggesting that he did, but he didn't call me on it. His silence allowed me to make a hasty escape before I said anything else incriminating.
Walking down the hall, I was pleasantly surprised to find that I could still make my way through the winding corridors to my (old) room without even thinking about it. It was almost second nature.
I stood outside the bedroom, my ear pressed to the door, wondering how best to approach my former self without freaking her out.
For a moment I heard nothing, but then she started speaking.
"No. I'm good. I'm good."
I opened the door softly, safe in the knowledge that she was dreaming. I'd been having nightmares for as long as I could remember - the only thing that had changed was the person haunting me. Back then, it was Joseph Jackson and Agent Frollo, the men who had kidnapped me, erased my memories and accidentally given me powers when they tried to turn me into a Super Soldier. Now, my nightmares largely featured either Kilgrave or Thanos, sometimes both.
When I first entered the room, it was too dark to see anything. All I could hear was the sounds of her tossing and turning, talking to the source of her nightmares, as I used my hands to guide my way towards her.
Once I found my way to the bed, I stood still, listening to her breathe. I wondered how alike we would look; if seeing her face in the light would send either of us into a state of shock.
Suddenly, the tossing ceased. She flipped over, groaned and stretched. Then she seemed to sense something, and her head turned sluggishly in my direction.
"Give me five minutes, Hill," she said, her voice full of sleep.
I stood still, speaking as calmly as possible. "I'm not Hill."
For a second, she did nothing. Then she abruptly launched herself out of bed and ripped open the curtains, surrounding herself in a force field.
I placed the case on the ground and held my hands up in a surrendering stance, trying to appear completely non-threatening (despite the fact that I'd just appeared unannounced in her bedroom).
We stood, opposite each other, with the bed acting as a buffer between us. I glanced over at her, remembering the darker, shorter hair and envying her pre-baby body. However, her eyes were stuck on my face. At first she was scared, then angry, but her predominant expression was confusion.
"W-who are you?" she asked hesitantly.
"I'm... you." I told her, because there was no easy way to break that news to someone. "Rogue, the Avengers need your help."
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Will 2012 Rogue help her future self save the world?
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