Building Bridges
It had been a total of five years since that fateful day when Thanos snapped his fingers. Most of the world had tried its best to readjust to the new reality, while others simply couldn’t.
Evie was now almost thirty two, set to celebrate her birthday in just a few months. Not that she actually did though, it was something she found pointless now. Nothing big to make a fuss over. She'd much rather spend that day like any other, even if her parents didn’t listen to her request and always got her a cake anyways. She didn’t mind it though, Morgan loved blowing the candles with her while Laura could eat cake for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. So as autumn settled over the city of New York, Evie was getting ready to meet her family upstate.
“Ready to go Ms. Stark?” She smiled sweetly at her loyal assistant and close friend.
“Yeah, Morgan called this morning and said I needed to be home, ‘like right now’ cause she wanted to camp out in the backyard. So, you know what that means…” Clara smirked, “hmmm, yes. The wolf and the mage?” Evie grabbed her bag, slinging it over her shoulder. “Yep. Wolf and the mage alright… kid loves to ride me like a pony.” Both women shared a laugh as they moved towards the elevators. “How’s Laura doing? I’m sure you miss her already. I know I do.” She hummed contentedly. “She’s doing great, really liking the school. Especially since she had been anxious to see her friends for a while now.”
“That's good to hear, I’m happy she’s adjusting… Well Ms. Stark you have a wonderful rest of your week. I’ll keep you informed of any work related updates that need your attention.”
“Thanks, Clara.”
The ride upstate was surprisingly relaxing. Evie loved seeing the trees in their fall colors. And her motorcycle had the breeze brushing her hair as she sped through the curvy roads.
The sound of her engine had Morgan bouncing down the stairs and racing towards the front door. Pepper looking over at Tony passively said, “just in time for supper. And remember, no bike rides with Morgan this time. Seriously! You two fall so easily to her puppy dogs eyes.” Tony chuckled as he kissed his wife’s hair before going to follow his youngest to meet his oldest.
“Evie!”
“Maguna!”
The two sisters ran to each other and Evie allowed herself to be tackled to the ground. “You’re late! I said ‘right now’ but it's dinner time already. Why didn’t you just magic your way here?” She couldn’t help but fake pout in order to gain some sympathy.
“I’m super sorry goober, but sissy had to work. I had to meet with some important people to talk about boring stuff. But I made it, right?! Doesn’t that count for something?” She rolled over the child to whisper in her ear. “Plus now that I'm here, we can stay up eating juice pops and chocolate.”
The little girl in her arms lit up like the fourth of july. “Juice pops and chocolate?!” Morgan whispered-yelled.
“Shhhh, yes!”
Tony walked off the porch to collect his daughters. “Alright you two. That’s enough sinister potting. Mom has the table set, so go wash up.” Evie got up hauling her sister on her back, “yes sir! Maguna, to the kitchen?”
“To the kitchen!” The girl exclaimed, pointing in the direction of the house. Prompting Evie to take off. He couldn’t contain the joy in his heart seeing his two girls getting along famously, after everything Evie had been through she deserved this. A happy and loving place to come wind down at, surrounded by her family.
At the dinner table Evie was chatting with Morgan, listening to all the amazing things that popped into her head.
“Oh and tomorrow we’re setting up camp. I wanna play-” “Wolf and mage,” everyone said enthusiastically as the kid rested her head on her hand with her elbows propped on the table. “Hey, how’d you guys all know?” She pondered suspiciously.
“Oh just a hunch, hey you go change into your jammies and pick out a movie, while I’ll help mom and dad clean up. Sounds good?”
“Yes!” The sweet little girl hopped off to do as told while Evie and her parents cleared up the table. “So how was work today? Didn’t you have a meeting with that British guy?” Pepper rolled her eyes as the other two talked shop, they truly were very much alike.
“Yeah, he’s the headmaster at Laura's school. He runs an academy for ‘gifted children’…”
He creased his brows, “gifted , what's he mean? Like enhanced?”
Evie nodded, “yep, but he uses the term mutants, since genetically speaking their biology has been altered to some degree compared to regular folks.” Pepper stepped in next.
“That's interesting… what’s your read of the guy, honey?”
As she started washing the dishes Evie took a moment to mentally revisit the meeting. “He genuinely cares. When I shook his hand and probed his thoughts, it became clear that he welcomed it. The guy was an open book. Although he has telepathic abilities, I quickly realized that his powers were far more complex than mine. As we connected mentally, I searched through his mind and found it wholly untainted—no deceptions, no hidden agendas, just a genuine desire to do good. He actually has a team assembled to assist if needed, but his primary mission is to provide a safe haven for displaced children who have powers and need help learning to control them.”
Tony reached in to start drying off the now clean plates. “That’s great, but what about my granddaughter?” He grinned a cheesy grin, huffing with delight before muttering, “granddaughter… never thought I’d like being a grandpa.”
Evie smirked, “Yeah.. old man .” Tony threw a dish towel that she caught easily. “Anyways, she sure does. I sent the board my recommendations and plans so he should be receiving a grant by the end of the week. He kept instanting they don’t need it, but with Laura there… I just don’t wanna feel like I’m taking advantage of their kindness.”
Pepper went to help Morgan when she started yelling that she couldn't find her favorite pajamas and Tony took the chance to ask Evie more questions.
“So what's the other thing, kiddo?” Her smile dropped a bit as she paused for a moment, “that’s it, dad. There’s nothing else.” Tony's eyes snapped to her, “yeah, sure. Kid, we’ve done this dance way too many times for you to try and pull a fast one on your old man. So spill, what’s going on in that noggin?”
Her face was bleak for the briefest of moments before she schooled it to be more neutral. “Dad,I’m not trying to cry wolf over something that may be nothing…” she muttered hoping to dismiss the conversation. He sighed dramatically, put down the plate in his hands, crossed his arms, and stared at her with a pointed look.
“What?” She creased her brows, yet he said nothing. He just kept staring. She huffed reluctantly. “Alright fine I’ll tell you but this is Black Wolf business… not Iron Man’s or Tony Stark’s. Got it?”
A sly smirk came across his, “scouts honor. Honey. No interfering. Now tell me all the juicy office gossip.” He said, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. Evie rolled her eyes at his antics, shaking her head as they went about the kitchen putting things away in their respective places.
“I gotta loose end floating around. And I dunno…” she shrugged, hoping to ease some of the tension in her shoulders. “I’ve been having this strange feeling. Like my gut is trying to tell me something major is about to drop, but I can’t crack the code and decipher it.”
“And you think it’s got something to do with this ‘lose end’ of yours?”
Evie clicked her tongue, “that’s the thing, I’m not sure because I don’t know if it's something good or something bad. Or shit, even both. But the only thing my mind can think of is that… The unfinished business.” Evie leaned against the counter, grabbing a glass of water. “Two days ago, I had Blaze and Lockley tell me they’ve hit another dead end. Logan phoned me not long after and said the same. The trails run dry and we don’t know where else to search for this guy.”
Tony had concerns written all over. “Even using magic?”
“Yep.” She heaved a sigh, taking a sip of water.
“This guy pose a threat to you and Laura?”
Evie inhaled sharply through her nose, “me no, but Laura… I’ve done just about everything I can think of to make sure she’s safe. And still I can’t help but obese over it. I feel exposed. Like I’m seconds away from getting caught with my pants down or something.”
Her father chuckled, something that made her frown and throw him an incredulous look. “Welcome to parenthood, sweetheart. Having kids is like living with your heart on your sleeve. Open to the world and vulnerable.” Evie huffed, suppressing a grin. “Yeah well… I don’t like it. I know she’s okay and safe, and yet I can’t help but worry…” Just as Tony was about to continue the conversation, Morgan burst into the room dragging her sister away by the hand to watch yet another princess movie.
The next day Evie did as promised and had camp Stark built in the backyard in a whirlwind of fabric, sticks, and a touch of magic. Morgan’s blue floral tent was set up in no time at all right next to her kid sized picnic table by their mother’s garden.
Currently Morgan was commanding her forces to move forward on their attack of the invading trolls. “Sissy go to the woods and don’t come out till I tell you okay!” Evie bowed silently before trotting off into the nearby woods, her senses picking up on the small wildlife she was starling.
She patiently waited for roughly thirty minutes when she heard her dad calling out, “chow time!” Indicating lunch was ready. As she approached she saw her dad sitting on a ridiculously small doll’s chair when Morgan emerged from her tent with a blue and silver Iron helmet on, stating, “define ‘lunch’ or be disintegrated.” Her tiny hands armed with the pretend iron gauntlets she and Laura had made on their last visit.
She froze and hid behind some shrubs knowing very well she was about to get an earful for not keeping her little sister out of the garage. But as the two conversed, Evie detected people breaching the perimeter of the house.
When Tony scooped up the little girl into his arms, Evie came to his side and he saw her body language suggest she was on alert. “What is it-” but the question died on his tongue when they saw a silver sedan pull up the cabin. Moments later Steve, Natasha, and Scott Lang all got out of the car.
From the back of her throat a low groan came out as she went to the porch following her dad. She stayed there studying them intently as her dad went inside to leave Morgan with Pepper.
Evie, already getting a few steps ahead, searched for the reason behind the visit.
Scott broke the eerie silence first, whispering to Cap, “I didn’t know it was legal to own dire wolves in this state.” Just then Tony came back with several glass cups and a pitcher of cold brewed coffee.
The three had made the trip to the cabin to explain how Scott had been trapped in the quantum realm saving him from Thanos’s planned execution. And apparently using that science, he had birthed an unorthodox idea.
After Scott's plan had been carefully explained, her dad went about serving everyone a drink. The others still a bit apprehensive of the giant fury black wolf sitting off to the side. Studying their every move.
It had been years since Evie had seen them, and although she was happy to know they were well and doing okay, she chose to stay in disguise. Not quite ready to face her old teammates after their falling out. So instead she listened to every word Lang had to say. Not quite sure how his calculations were making sense to them. However, her dad shared her trepidation about their half-baked plan.
Steve took the floor next by asking her father a direct question. “Tony, after everything you've seen, is anything really impossible?”
“Quantum fluctuation messes with the Planck Scale, which then triggers the Deutsch Proposition. Can we agree on that?” They all looked at the older Stark puzzled as the science was clearly out of their field. He sighed as he handed them all a cup of cool beverage. “In Layman's terms, it means you're not coming home.”
“I did.” Scott blurted and Evie went to rest her head on Tony’s lap when he took a seat. Scott instantly stepped behind Rogers, and Nat eyed the dog curiously.
“No, you accidentally survived. It's a billion to one cosmic fluke.” Tony pointed out. “And now you wanna pull off a... What do you call it?” Tony asked quizzically.
“A time heist.” Scott said sheepishly, regaining his composure. filling up with pride and confidence.
“Yeah, a time heist. Of course, why didn't we think of this before? Oh, because it's laughable? Because it's a pipedream?”
“The Stones are in the past. We can go back and get them.” Steve said with an air of determination, and Natasha quickly added, “we can snap our own fingers. We can bring everyone back.” Yet Tony was just as fast with his comeback. “Or screw it up worse than he already has, right?”
“I don't believe we would.” Steve said resolutely. Evie always did admire how he could always be so positive in the face of adversity. And even her dad voiced it. “Gotta say, sometimes I miss that giddy optimism. However, high hopes won't help if there's no logical, tangible way for me to safely execute said time heist. I believe the most likely outcome would be our collective demise. And before you even ask or try finding her, I’m beyond positive that Evie would have the same conclusion agreeing with me.”
Scott moved to take a seat in front of Tony. “Not if we strictly follow the rules of time travel. That means no talking to our past selves, no betting on sporting events-”
“I'm gonna stop you right there, Scott. Are you seriously telling me that your plan to save the universe is based on, Back To The Future?” Evie tilted her head, whining a bit as a show of her disbelief at what Scott was saying.
Embarrassed, Lang huffed out, “no.”
Tony leaned forward as Evie went to nudge Natasha, who bent down to scratch her head. “Good. You had me worried there. Cause that'd be horse shit. That's not how quantum physics works.”
Evie felt something stirring within Nat, her face showing her emotions as she went to stand upright again. “Tony... We have to take a stand.” He met them all one by one looking into their eyes.
“We did stand. And yet, here we are.”
“I know you got a lot on the line.” Scott started up again in a last ditch effort to bring him on board. “You got a wife, a young daughter. But I lost someone very important to me. A lot of people did.” His voice got a little louder as he tried to sell his desperation. “And now. Now we have a chance to bring her back. To bring everyone back. And you're telling me that won't even-”
“That's right, Scott, I won't even. I got kids… I can’t.” He interrupted unapologetically.
The screen door was heard opening and closing before Morgan jumped on Evie’s back, straddling her like a horse and beaming up at their dad. Something that momentarily startled the Ant-Man who thought the child was about to be mauled before their eyes.
“Mommy told me to come and save you guys.”
Steve’s brows pinched together as he quietly mouthed, “ you guys? ” Tony plucked the little star off Evie’s back saying, “good job. I'm saved.” With Morgan hiding in his embrace, he turned to face Cap, Nat, and Scott as he rose from his seat. “I wish you'd come here to ask me something else. Anything else. Honestly, I-I missed you guys, I just…” He trailed off before saying, “oh, and the table's set for six.”
Evie stood up on all fours ready to follow her dad in, but they stopped when Steve spoke again. Catching her dad’s elbow.
“Tony, I get it.” He said, eyes glancing at Morgan. “And I'm happy for you, I really am. But this is a second chance.”
Her dad searched his friend deeply saying, “I got my second chance right here, Cap. I can't roll the dice again... If you don't talk shop, you can stay for lunch.”
Evie decided to stay back as her dad went inside and the others stood around glancing at one another before Steve took in the large wolf before him. “Such pretty brown eyes for such a big wolf.” He said, raking his hands through her thick black fur. “You guys think she’s a rescue staying at the Eco-compound?”
Nat narrowed her eyes, there was something familiar about those knowing orbs staring back. “Doubt it, gray wolves were exterminated from New York more than a century ago. Besides, this one is black. And at least three times the size of a normal one.” Scott scuffed, “three times? She comes to my chest on all fours. I’d hate to see this dog pissed off or hunting.” She nuzzled into her old friend, relishing the show of affection she was getting even if it was while she was disguised.
“Come on guys, let's go.” They started walking back towards their car as she watched from the steps.
“So what are we gonna do now? We need him. What, are we gonna stop?” Scott asked, not yet wanting to claim defeat. “No, I wanna do it right.” Steve replied, stopping at the driver's side door and looking back at her, “with Tony saying no and Evie being in the wind for the last four years, we're gonna need a really big brain.”
Lang threw his thumb over his shoulder, “bigger than his?”