Chapter Twelve
"Hey, Little Miss, don't go too far!" Natasha called out. "You have some school work to catch up on."
"Okay!" Lainey giggled, not at all concerned with whatever Natasha had to say.
She wanted to explore the new facility. Tony had paid for an entirely new building to be the location of the Avengers headquarters, and Lainey was just far too excited to see everything.
Natasha said that they'd be living there now and she just needed to explore!
"Excuse me, kid, watch your step." A mover smiled as he walked past her, pushing a cart full of boxes.
He didn't seem annoyed, so he was more than likely very used to rambunctiously curious children.
The entire building was beautiful and there was plenty of space to play. Lainey was definitely going to have a good time here.
As she wandered the halls, she accidentally bumped into someone, causing her to nearly trip on her own feet.
"Oh, I am sorry."
It was Wanda! But she looked sad. Lainey remembered that her mother told her Pietro didn't make it out of Sokovia like the rest of them. She couldn't imagine what Wanda must've been feeling, but maybe she could make her feel better.
She didn't know what she would do if she couldn't see Peter anymore. They hadn't seen each other in a really long time, but at least he was still around. Wanda had to be devastated by this whole thing.
Lainey didn't know Pietro. They had only met once, but she wished she had been able to get to know him. He was obviously special to Wanda and his absence was affecting her deeply.
"It's okay. I wasn't looking where I was going. It was my fault." She shrugged the girl off.
She knew all about what Wanda was capable of, but that didn't scare her. Actually, she thought her red powers were cool and she wished Wanda would show her one day. That is, if she comfortable with it.
"I am looking for the training room…..do you perhaps…..know where it is?"
"Nuh uh." Lainey shook her head, her signature braids whipping against her face. "I just got here. I don't know where anything is either."
"I see."
"But we can look together!" Lainey perked up. "I'm good at finding things! Mama always says that's how I get into trouble. She's boring."
That got a genuine smile from Wanda and her body visibly relaxed. "I would like that very much. Thank you."
"Come on!" The ten year old took the girl's hand and pulled her down the many hallways of the Compound, finally finding the room they were looking for.
Sam, Rhodey, and Vision were already there and it looked like they were waiting for everyone to arrive.
"Hey, kid." Rhodey greeted, fully prepared to catch her when she threw herself into his arms.
Or rather, armor.
He was wearing the suit in preparation for the day.
"You're getting heavy." He pretended to struggle. "Has Steve been feeding you again?"
Steve always tended to try and fill her up more than everyone else did. It must've had something to do with not having much to eat when he was a kid, so he didn't want Lainey to ever feel the way he did. Or, it could've been because, back in Brooklyn, Lainey never really got much to eat with her mother going off to who knows where. Either way, Steve wanted to make sure she was fed.
"No." She giggled, squirming down from his grip, and launching herself at Sam. "Hi!"
"One day, I might not be able to catch you." He chided. "What will you do then?"
"You'll catch me." She said confidently.
She was constantly playing the 'trust' game with the adults in her life. Whenever she was bored, she'd just jump off of a high place like the kitchen counter, or the couch, and wait for them to catch her.
Her favorite person to torture was Steve. He got the fright of his life every single time Lainey did it.
But her fun kind of ended when her mother found out what she was doing and lectured her on the dangers of just throwing herself off of high things at unsuspecting people.
So now, she threw herself at unsuspecting people from the ground.
Natasha never said anything about that.
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah." She nodded, glancing at the purple looking man.
"Hi." She waved.
"Hello."
And as soon as he greeted her, she gasped.
He sounded just like Jarvis!
"That's Vision, kid." Rhodey introduced them. "He's helping out now."
Lainey had seen him after he came out of the cradle, but they had never been formally introduced up until this point.
This was...interesting to say the least. Vision wasn't exactly a person, but he wasn't completely a robot either. Lainey didn't know what he was just yet, but his very existence did intrigue her.
"Hi, Vision."
"Hello, Lainey."
"Who's this?" Sam looked at Wanda. "Your new friend?"
"Yeah." Lainey answered easily, much to the older girl's shock. "Her name is Wanda. She's nice."
"Nicer than me?" Sam pretended to be hurt.
"Yeah. She doesn't make fun of me." She smiled in Wands's direction.
She still seemed to be a little uncomfortable, but not as much as before. She was making progress.
"Avengers!" Steve's voice cut their conversation short when he and Natasha marched into the room. "Let's get to work."
Sam put Lainey down and they watched as the little girl ran up to Steve and wrapped her arms around his waist.
The blonde put a soft hand on her head and smiled down at her, having been temporarily distracted from the task at hand.
"We're splitting you into two groups." Natasha followed his lead. "Wanda and Vision with me, and Sam and Rhodey with Steve."
"Can I stay?" Lainey tugged on Steve's sleeve.
"Ask Mama."
"Mama, can I stay, please?"
"You can watch, but don't forget about your work."
"Yay!"
"C'mon, Bug." Steve sat her up on his shoulders as he made his way to his group. "Let's show these guys how it's done, huh?"
"Yeah! Wanda? Can we watch a movie later?" She asked sweetly before Steve carried her away.
"I would like that."
"Yay!"
"She's very charming." Wanda commented offhandedly when the two were out of earshot.
"Yeah, she's a good kid." Natasha smiled gently. "I'm surprised, though."
"Surprised? Why?"
"She doesn't…..warm up to people the way she warmed up to you."
It was true. Whenever Lainey met someone she didn't know, it didn't matter if they were friend or foe, she always needed time to size them up and figure out for herself whether or not they were safe.
But with Wanda, she didn't do any of that.
"Is that bad?"
"No, not at all. She must really like you."
"But she doesn't even know me."
"She doesn't care about what you did. She looks at you and she sees a new playmate."
Wanda was surprised that such a little girl knew about her powers and wasn't afraid of her. Not even a little bit.
Maybe this new move wouldn't be as difficult as she thought it would be.
"Wanda, let's go play!" Lainey tugged on the girl's arm as soon as they finished eating dinner.
"Excuse you, Little Miss." Natasha sent her a pointed look. "Why don't you ask and see if Wanda wants to play first? She might be tired from all the training today."
"It is alright." Wanda smiled faintly, not at all offended by the little one's behavior.
"No, no." Natasha shook her head. "She knows better. Try again, Honey."
"Wanda, do you wanna play with me?" Lainey asked as if she hadn't been hounding her. "Pretty please? We can play whatever you want."
"Now how can I say no to a 'pretty please'?" In truth, Wanda was a little tired from the intense workout, but that didn't mean she was going to turn Lainey down. She seemed so eager to play with her, she couldn't disappoint her.
Besides, playing with her would probably keep Wanda's mind off of the loss of Pietro. She felt bad about having to distract herself, but she just couldn't deal with the searing pain and the emptiness in her chest right now.
She needed time and she needed something else to occupy her mind.
"Thank you!" Lainey would've hugged her if she wasn't a stranger. She figured that Wanda wouldn't really like that, so she refrained from doing it.
"Lainey, why don't you go in your room and set up 'Candy Land'?" Natasha suggested.
"Are you gonna play, too?" She turned her charming little smile onto her mother. She knew it didn't really work anymore, but her mama seemed to be in a very accommodating mood. There was a high possibility she'd say yes.
"Sure, we'll be there in a minute." And she was right.
"Uncle Steve and Sam, too?"
"Wouldn't miss it, Pal." Steve smiled.
"Yay!" Lainey cheered and dashed off to her new room.
"You don't have to play if you don't want to." Natasha spoke softly with a twinkle in her eyes, once the door to Lainey's room closed shut. "I'm really sorry about that, I know she put you on the spot. She gets…..really energetic when she's excited and she doesn't really understand that she might be making someone else uncomfortable."
"She is fine. I like her." Wanda waved her off. "She is very playful, yes?"
"Very playful." The redhead nodded. "But it took a long time to get her there. So, I try not to discourage it."
"She is wonderful." Wanda complimented, curious to know what Natasha was talking about, but not wanting to pry. "Reminds me of Pietro."
No one would ever be able to replace Pietro, or fill the void he had left, but Lainey was slowly helping to heal the wound.
So much for a distraction.
"Well, I think we'd better get a move on." Sam clapped his hands together. "If we keep that kid waiting much longer, she might hunt us down and drag us in there."
That actually got Wanda to laugh.
"You're laughing, but I'm really scared." He joked.
"Cut it out." Natasha chuckled. "She's not that bad."
"Not that bad?!" Sam gasped dramatically.
"You're putty in her hands and you know it."
"Oh, like you're any better, Rogers."
It was true. One simple smile from Lainey and Steve could be more than willing to do whatever she wanted. It had been like that since the beginning and it wasn't going to change anytime soon.
He was the fun, teddy bearish uncle and he aimed to please.
Besides, she was so cute with her big eyes and pouty face. How could he say no to anything she asked for?
"He's got you there."
"Alright. Before we start, I want you to run five laps around the track."
"Five?" Lainey quirked an eyebrow. "That's a lot of running."
Just as promised, Lainey's training began the very next morning with Natasha overseeing it all. The brunette didn't mind getting up so early in the day, and she was excited to finally be getting what she wanted.
But Natasha wasn't making it easy to enjoy.
"You like to run. You run in the morning with Steve and you ran away from the farm." Natasha shrugged.
Oh.
She thought her mama had forgotten about that…...or at least decided to let it go. But she should've known better. Natasha never forgot anything and she never let anything go. She should've seen this coming.
"This should be the fun part of your workout."
"But." The child chewed her bottom lip, trying to figure out how she could possibly get herself out of this situation. The gears in her head were turning, but nothing was coming to her. "I'll get tired."
"Okay, that's fine." Natasha shrugged. "You don't have to do this if you don't want to."
"I don't?"
"Of course not. I'm not going to force you to train if you don't want to train."
"But I want to! I just don't wanna run all those laps. Please, Mama?"
"Five or the deal's off."
"Oh, alright." Lainey huffed. "I'll run."
She would run. But she was definitely going to let Natasha know she wasn't happy with her.
"Go ahead."
Natasha didn't care. She thought it laughable that her daughter actually believed she had forgotten about her grand escape from the Barton farm.
All things considered, she wasn't exactly mad at her. She knew she was just worried about her and she didn't want anything to happen to her, but things like this weren't good to sweep under the rug.
So, Natasha figured she'd have her run some extra laps and call it even.
Lainey just rolled her eyes and took off on the track, keeping her own individual pace. She had fought too hard to get Natasha to let her do this and she wasn't about to just give up before she even started.
Five laps was child's play. She could do that in her sleep, couldn't she? Natasha wouldn't get the best of her.
"You're really letting her do this, huh?" Steve smirked. "You finally gave in."
"Well, she needs something to do to stay out of trouble." Natasha shrugged nonchalantly. "And she's been pestering me about this so often, I don't think I could've held out any longer."
"You're soft, Romanoff."
"Just for her."
"You know, you could put in her in school. I know you'd rather have her here where you can keep an eye on her, but it might do her some good. She'd have friends her own age and it would give her something to do."
"I've thought about it. She does like school well enough. And it isn't like she's falling behind on anything. I think she's comfortable enough being here for me to send her to school."
"Mama!" Lainey interrupted the two. "I finished my laps!"
"There's no way you ran five laps."
Steve was right. Lainey needed to go to school or else she was going to run out of ways to entertain the little whirlwind.
Lainey was not happy with the arrangement. When Natasha had brought up the very idea of her going to school, she vehemently refused to go. To say that her mother was shocked by her reaction was an understatement. She thought that Lainey would've been jumping at the chance to go.
The way the girl had devoured all her schoolwork and excelled, she figured that she would enjoy learning with other kids. But Lainey wasn't thrilled.
She wanted to stay right where she was at the Compound. She liked doing her work on the coffee table in the living room and she liked knowing that everyone was nearby incase needed them.
Unfortunately, Natasha had her mind made up and come that Monday morning, Lainey was sitting at a desk with a notebook in front of her and a pencil in her hand. It wasn't anything new. It wasn't like she had never been to school before, but it had been so long that she just wasn't used to it anymore.
And the first week was always the roughest. Nobody wanted to talk to the new kid. They were all shy or they just didn't care. So Lainey spent her lunch periods eating by herself. Whenever Natasha asked her about how her day went, she'd always lie and give her a good report before rushing off to her room.
She didn't want her to know that she wasn't having the easiest time at school. Things would probably get better soon, so it wasn't really a big deal. Fifth grade wouldn't be so bad if she kept a positive outlook on it.
Besides, there was something different about today. She could just feel it. All her classes were going well, her teachers were pretty nice, and no one was giving her funny looks anymore. A girl in her class sat down near her at lunch, and she looked like she wanted to talk to her, but she was just too shy to say anything.
It didn't matter, Lainey was perfectly content with her company anyway. Maybe one day they'd both have the courage to talk to each other.
Once the final bell rang, the ten year old collected her books and dashed out of the building as if someone had been chasing her.
The hot sun kissed her skin, sending waves of happiness through her as she hopped over a few puddles that were left behind on the sidewalk from the previous day's rainfall. The train hummed and screeched to a stop on the platform above and a wave of students flooded the streets in a rush to get home and start the weekend.
In her hurry to get away, Lainey wasn't exactly paying attention to where she was going. So it was no surprise when she crashed right into someone and fell flat on her back.
"Oh, I'm sorry! Here, let me help you."
And when Lainey looked up, she gasped. It was Peter! She hadn't seen him in forever!
"Lainey?"
"Peter!" She grinned, throwing herself at him for a hug. "Hi!"
"Hi." He chuckled, quickly reciprocating the gesture. "Where have you been? I stopped by the apartment a couple of times, but it's empty. And your mother hasn't been answering her phone. I tried to get in contact with you. You just disappeared. What happened?"
"We, uh…..we moved out of the city." She tried her best not lie to him, but there was no way she could tell him the truth. What was she supposed to say? Her mother was a criminal and she was living with the Avengers? Somehow, the lie would be more believable than the truth. "We lost everything."
"Hey, I'm sorry, Lainey. Is there anything I can do?"
"No." She shook her head, feeling guilty. "How's Ben? And May?"
"May's fine…..uh, we lost Uncle Ben."
Lainey's heart dropped once the words left the teen's mouth.
Uncle Ben was gone.
Lainey loved Uncle Ben. Whenever she had stopped by the house and he was home, he had always made her feel like she was welcome. He was such a warm and kind man. Steve reminded her of him and that was probably why she had grown so attached to him so quickly. Uncle Ben was the only father Peter had ever known and now he was gone.
"H-How did it happen?' She bit back tears.
"He was shot." Peter's jaw clenched, choking back his anger. "And all I could do was watch."
"I'm so sorry. I had no idea. I—"
"—It's okay. We're okay." Peter just shrugged her off.
The fact that Lainey couldn't be there for him really tore her up inside. She had been so busy worrying about herself and enjoying herself with Natasha that she hadn't even bothered to check in and see how Peter was doing.
And now his uncle was just…...gone.
How could he cope with that?
"It's just me and Aunt May now. Like you and your mom. She'd love to see you both. It's been too long."
"Well, my mom is really busy…." Lainey didn't want to tell him that her mother was long gone along with the helicarriers in D.C. It didn't seem like the right thing to say. "She's working literally all the time now. I barely see her. But I could come by….if that's okay?"
"Of course it's okay!" Peter lit up again. "We'd love to have you over! Can you stop by today? Unless you're busy or you have other plans or something. May would really be happy to see you."
"I'm not busy." Lainey smiled.
She would have to text Natasha and tell her where she was, but she didn't think the redhead would mind as long as she said she was safe. She'd just tell her she was with a really good friend.
Peter was family. There was no safer person she could be hanging out with.
"Lainey?" Natasha smoothed some hair from the girl's head. "Honey, is everything okay?"
Ever since she had gotten back home from her reunion with Peter, Lainey hadn't said much. She just trudged straight to her room and shut the door behind her without acknowledging anyone.
Of course, Natasha gave her her space, but when she didn't come out for dinner, she decided that she needed to step in. That's when she found the girl lying face down on her bed.
Her shoulders were trembling and she could hear small sniffles.
She was crying.
"Alayna?" She rubbed her back, hoping to soothe her. Lainey didn't really cry, so this was new for the both of them. "Sweet girl, can you look at Mama?"
Lainey took a deep, shaky breath before sitting up. She knew Natasha would want to know exactly why she was so upset, but she just couldn't tell her. She couldn't risk never seeing Peter again. If she told Natasha, then she might want to meet May and Peter, and then Peter would really know the truth about what happened to her.
What if he found out, and then wanted nothing to do with her? They go so far back, Lainey just couldn't let him go. He meant too much to her. His rejection would destroy her.
"Can you tell me what's wrong?"
"N-No." She hiccuped.
"Is it school? Are you having a hard time? Is anyone giving you a hard time?"
"No, M-Mama."
How was she supposed to tell her that she was grieving for someone the woman didn't even know existed?
"Honey, I can't help you if you won't tell me what's wrong."
But Lainey still wouldn't tell the truth. So Natasha didn't push her anymore. She would tell her when she was ready. For now, she'd look out for any signs of bullying or other uncomfortable situations.
"Alright." She whispered. "Come here." She lifted the girl to sit up on her lap. "It's okay. Mama's here."
If she couldn't do anything to help her, then Natasha was certainly going to do everything in her power to make sure that Lainey knew she was there for her.
She just hoped Lainey wouldn't suffer in silence for too long.