Maya

Nat is waiting for me at the cabin.

The kids pile out one after the other with their school bags. Safia stays behind, glaring at Nat with her arms crossed.

I know the look on her face. The mistrust in her eyes is a reflection of mine.

There's a bruise on her cheek and a tissue stuffed up her nose. Her bottom lip had a cut which was still oozing.

She hasn't said a single thing the whole ride and none of the others said anything either. Carlos is more quiet than usual, which makes me more suspicious.

This was going to happen at one point or another.

I just didn't expect it to happen so soon.

—

My morning was going pretty well. Nat and I had lunch and then I got a call from school.

"Is everything okay?" She asked.

"Ah, fuck." I said, seeing the name flash across the screen. "No, It's Safia. Listen, I need to get to the school. Think you can find your way to my place?"

Nat narrows her green eyes. "Do you want me to get involved?"

"Nah." I waved her off as I put on my jacket. "You're too recognizable."

Drew looked at me like I had grown a second head as I threw my truck in reverse and sped through a red light. I'm pretty sure I exceeded the speed limit trying to get there.

I was pissed.

No. Screw that, I was fucking furious.

I left my truck in the parking lot and found my way to the office.

I took my hat off, running my fingers through my hair so that I could calm down. Nothing was going to be dealt with if I killed someone.

The receptionist in the school office only pointed towards the principal's office when she saw me stalking in.

Dealing with Schoolyard fights isn't in my job description but here we are.

Safia and a boy with blonde hair were sitting in front of the principal's office.

They glared at each other silently, bruised and bleeding. The boy looked much worse; he had a black eye, there were tissues stuffed up into his nose to stop the bleeding, and his jaw was bruised purple.

I stood in front of Safia who looked up at me. I held her face in my hands as I examined her wounds, feeling my blood boil. She winced but didn't say anything.

The bruise on her right cheek was purple, causing her eye to swell.

"I didn't think you would come." She whispered.

I pulled a handkerchief out and pressed it against her bleeding lip. "What happened?" I growled.

"Your bitch of a sister went apeshit and—"

I whirled around, bearing my teeth. "I wasn't asking you, boy!" I hissed.

He made a sound and shrunk back, like some rodent when a cat swiped their paw at them.

Safia grabbed my arm. I noticed how her knuckles were broken, and red with blood.

I felt angry all over again.

"I didn't want to make a big deal out of it. I thought I could take it but..." she trailed off, her grip tightened on my jacket. "I'm sorry, Maya."

I shook my head. "Don't apologize," I say.

"I didn't mean to—"

"You defended yourself," I remind her. "There's no shame in that. Let me deal with this."

I could hear his parents screaming at the principal from the inside.

They shut up real quick when I slammed open the door.

I glared them down as I walked across the room and plopped down in an empty chair. The principal opens his mouth to argue but closes it when he sees me cross one leg over the other and stare him down.

Principal Gregory Dunswick. His shiny gold desk plate boasts his name and title.

"I'm Safia's sister," I introduced myself because unlike the people next to me, I have manners. "I've heard there was an incident."

He clears his throat. "Yes, well..." Principal Dunswick glances at Samuel Grayson's parents. "Your sister attacked four of our students in the parking lot this afternoon. Two of them are in the hospital, luckily the other two aren't seriously injured."

"The bruises and cuts on my sister's body say something different."

His mother, a middle-aged woman with too much Botox in her cheeks, hisses at me. "Are you suggesting my son was bullying your sister?"

I tilt my head, blinking innocently. "Oh no, I never said anything about bullying. But if you think that's the case, then I suppose it must be true."

She flushes red. "I can see where she gets her manners from. Didn't you see how she hurt my precious angel?"

I nearly roll my eyes.

"I believe that we should let Principal Dunswick decide, don't you?"

"Yes," he clears his throat. "Obviously, Miss Brown. We take these types of incidents very seriously. Samuel Grayson is a star athlete and a good student. Perhaps your sister provoked him?"

"Provoked him?" I felt my twitch. "What? Like, pull on her pigtails? Are you suggesting that this is just a silly teenage crush? What's next? That her shoulders are too distracting or she can't wear crop tops?!"

I felt my phone buzz in my pocket.

I take it out and see that Nat has sent me something.

Have fun. ;)

[Attached_Videofile_05:34:20]

[Attached_Videofile_12:01:56]

[Attached-Image_Groupchat_2mb....]

I feel a wicked little smile creep onto my face.

"Please, Miss Brown. I just don't want the situation to be misunderstood."

His father speaks up. "Your sister—" he said that as if he meant to say something else. "—injured my son. We're taking this seriously. I hope you have good lawyers, Miss Brown."

His parents were the typical rich folk in positions of power. They thought if they could gang up on me with the threat of a lawsuit then they were dead wrong.

I laugh. I can't fucking believe this.

I lift my phone. "Sure, if you think you can win." I press play and slide my phone across the desk.

It's a Samuel Grayson being a huge mega dick marathon that shows every moment of him pushing, shoving, and messing with Safia. She doesn't react once, not even shoving him back.

I grit my teeth as I watch the little shit stain grab her by the hair while class is in session.

"What the fu—?!" His mother tries to swipe my phone but I block her with my body, physically pushing her back into her husband's arms. "That's an invasion of privacy! How dare you?!"

I raise an eyebrow sharply, waving the phone in my hand. "You have money and I have evidence that can destroy your son's future. Decide which one matters."

They had the fucking audacity to blame Safia when it was clear that he was harassing her.

I'm well aware of what microaggression are.

The principal wasn't much help but he agreed that we didn't have to escalate things legally.

We agreed to pay the compensation, the boy would be banned for the remainder of the football season, and Safia would be suspended for two weeks for starting the fight.

A lose-lose for all. A perfect compromise.

A girl with an oversized black hoodie and dirty blonde hair sits next to Safia, dressing her wound.

"Stop moving," she chides. "I can't believe they didn't send you to the nurse's office."

"That stings!" Safia tries to pull away but the girl manhandles her back into position.

"Don't be such a baby!"

"Ugh!"

I close the door to the principal's office closes. Both of them jump and turn around to look at me.

"We can go now," I said.

The girl's eyes flicker with recognition. "You're..."

"I'm Maya," I say, holding my hand out. "Thanks for taking care of her."

She smiles. I notice the dark blue eyeshadow around her eyes. "Not a problem. She did us a huge favour by kicking that guy's ass."

Oh, I like this one.

Safia scratches her neck. "Can we drop Emma off? Her bus left."

I smile. "Not a problem, kiddo."

Safia didn't argue with me when I dragged her out of the office. I pretended not to notice the both of them holding hands.

—

"She won't hurt you," I tell her, killing the ignition.

"It's not her I'm worried about." Safia turns her head, staring at me. "Why did you fight for me? I heard you in the principal's office."

I hold my hands out in front of me. "What did you want me to do? Just let you get expelled! His parents were going to sue you if I didn't decide to settle it then and there."

She shook her head. "You're not my mom. You don't have to do this."

I don't have the patience for teenage angst.

"No, you're my responsibility. And someone has to be the adult here."

She scoffs, shouldering her backpack. "Responsibility."

"Don't do that."

"Do what?"

"Be difficult," I said. "How am I supposed to know what's bothering you if you don't tell me anything?"

"Why are you mad?!"

"Because I had to find out someone was bullying you through someone else! Of course, I'm mad! Somebody hurt you!"

Safia grins but there's no humor in it.

She gets out of the car and slams the door. Nat nods her head at Safia who brushes past her, hardly glancing at her.

I sigh and get out of the car.

Well...that went well.

I wonder if I had been like that as a teenager. Gods, my poor mother.

"She's a handful, isn't she?" Nat asked, approaching me. She digs her hands into the pockets of her jacket, her cheeks turning red due to the cold. "She reminds me of someone."

I roll my eyes. "You're seeing things, Nat."

"Did it work out? Or do I have to threaten a few people?"

Knowing Nat, she would do that for me.

"Easier to let it go. We settled and I made sure that shit stain won't touch Safia again unless he wants to wake up with his dick no longer attached to him."

"That's a vivid image."

"Thanks for the videos, by the way." I open the door for her. "I appreciate it."

She grins in a feral way. "Not a problem."

We head inside. Annette and Rayan are sitting at the kitchen table, glancing between me and Nat. Carlos is in the kitchen, making a snack. Safia is nowhere to be found, most likely on the back porch glaring into the tree line.

"Kids," I hold my hand up, pointing towards Nat. "This is Natasha Romanoff, she's—"

"An Avenger," Carlos says. "We know. A lot of the girls in my class wear your tee shirts."

Nat raises her eyebrows, glee all over her face. "Nice to know I'm still popular."

I smack her arm lightly. "You've always been popular."

Annette looks up from her colouring book, eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Why are you here?" She asks.

Good kid. She learned stranger danger well.

"Well, uh...I'm just stopping by to check in with you guys." Nat explains. "Can I sit next to you?"

Annette pulls out a chair. "Please do." She says. "Can I ask a few questions?"

"Fire away."

Nat nods her head to the kitchen door. I frown but listen, making sure to ruffle Rayan's hair as I walk past him.

It's bitterly cold outside. I regret not keeping my jacket on.

Safia sits on the rocking chair, staring out into the wilderness. I sat down next to her, mulling over what I was going to say.

She inhales sharply through her nose, breaking the silence. "What?"

"Safia, what's going on?"

"You're not the one for small talk, are you?"

I crossed my ankles and leaned back, watching the sun set slowly over the mountains. "I've learned that it's easier to get what you want if you ask directly. The less bullshit, the better." I glance over at her. "So...what's up?"

"You already know. I got into a fight," She says.

I reach over and brush her hair out of her face. It felt like I was looking into a mirror. "Nobody throws a punch without a good reason. Now...tell me. What happened?"

"That fu—I mean, jerk." She closes her hands into a fist, sparks flying and landing on the ground. "It's only been two months since I got here and it's been shit. I'm different, nobody says it but I can feel it. And Samuel Grayson senses that."

"He's a real piece of work, huh?"

"You have no idea. I didn't know someone could be that entitled and spoiled." She said. "He thought I was weak."

Now that's irony.

"You punched him in the face because of that?"

"No!" Safia peeked over at me, averting her gaze.

"Then what was it that pissed you off?"

"He said something about you." She muttered. "And then I punched him in the face."

"Oh."

"Yeah, I know." She leans back. "I'm sorry, I fucked up."

I placed my hand on hers.

Her knuckles were bruised, red and scabbing slightly. I would have to get those bandaged.

The volts of electricity don't hurt me. Her eyes widen when she realizes her powers don't affect me.

"How come my powers don't hurt you?" She asked.

"You'd be surprised by what I'm immune to."

"I'm sorry for being difficult."

"It's alright. When I said that you're my responsibility, I meant that I'm supposed to care for you. And doesn't mean you're weak for having someone look after you. It's what adults are supposed to do." I say gently. "You're strong, Safia but that doesn't mean you have to be alone."

She chuckled, pushing her hair out her face. "You know, Carlos was right about you." She said. "You'd probably would've killed him if I told you. You do care."

I smirked. "Yeah, I do."

—

Nat and I are sitting at the table. She cradles a drink in her hand and I sip on a can of soda.

The kids are watching TV. We don't have access to streaming services but good old cable TV still exists. Annette is happily watching Star Trek dragging the rest of her siblings in. Safia sits on the couch with a bowl of popcorn in her lap.

"How'd it go?"

"She's been suspended for two weeks."

"Are you mad?" She asked.

I chuckled. "At her? Hell, no. She held her ground against three boys, all older and taller than her." I took another sip. "I wish I could've put that guy six feet under."

Nat looked a bit murderous. "Is he going to be a problem?" Nat smirked. "I can make it go away if you like."

I laugh. "Gods, no! No need for you to get your hands dirty."

"I didn't say I was going to kill him."

"Relax. It shouldn't be an issue anymore. I settled with his parents. They stay in their lane and I stay in mine."

"And Safia?"

"I'll have to bring her to work with me." I crush the can and toss it into the trash. "Maybe we can work on her powers or I can teach her how to properly throw a punch."

Nat grinned. "Look at you."

I roll my eyes. "What?"

"Mentoring," she flicks my nose.

If these were Clint's kids, she do the same.

I swat her hand away. "Anyway, what's the news? I'm sure New York has something interesting going on."

She shrugs, finishing off her drink. "The same old. Spider-Man is managing the hell out of Queens, Daredevil had Hell's Kitchen on lock, and Asgard is starting talks with the UN." 

"Talks?" I ask, slightly surprised. "I didn't know Asgard was interested in 'talks' with Earth. I thought they preferred being, you know, isolated."

"They were. But Thor is king now." Nat glances at me, searching my face. "Well, temporarily he's king. He's friendly so it actually means something now."

A bitter taste coats my mouth. Thor leaving Earth was a sore point.

Loki and I had been fine until then.

Once news of Odin being incapacitated reached Earth, Thor didn't hesitate to go to Asgard. Loki followed soon after, more concerned for Thor and Frigga than his father.

Nobody knows what weakened Odin and Asgard kept their secrets very close.

I pull myself out of my spiralling thoughts. I can't go there. Not now.

I feel her place a gentle hand on my shoulder. I can smell the scent of her perfume. Once I would've hated someone touching me like this, but now I don't mind it.

"I'm sorry about everything. I know you liked him."

I blink slowly. "I was stupidly in love with him. But fuck me, right? Things aren't always meant to be."

"There's always a chance."

I wished I could've believed that.

I give her a reassuring smile. "I'm alright. I've survived worse things before. It's just a little heartbreak."

"It's never just a little heartbreak, Maya."

—

Nat leaves in the middle of the night.

I wish she could stay for the weekend and help me train the kids but she has missions to go on.

You know, superhero shit.

"You still have the emergency beacon?" she asks.

"Obviously," I said. "This might be the middle of nowhere but you never know what can go wrong."

"Take care of yourself, Maya." she pulled me into a quick hug. "The tower is boring without you."

"I'll see you soon."

"Promises, promises."

The headlights of her car flicker to life, illuminating the darkness. I can see a deer just past the treelike staring back at us with white eyes. It blinks once and then trots away, deeper in the woods.

Nat kicks her car into gear and speeds down the long driveway.

I watch as the lights of her car grow distant.