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Two

Years

Later

• Now five years after the snap •

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"Dawn Renee Beckett Junior! If you do not get your ass down here in the next minute and a half, I will personally make sure you train with Steve for your foreseeable future."

Natasha is rarely surprised, but when she swivels her gaze to face me, I can see the shocked, albeit impressed, look upon her face. 

"Wow, motherhood really has toughened you up. I like this Dawn, you should treat adults like that too" Nat remarks, and I shrug, my hands still fiddling with DJ's lunch to make sure it is ready to go when she gets to the kitchen. 

"Do you really think that'll work, though?" Steve asks, sipping from his coffee mug, "I mean training with me is a gr-"

I interrupt him, a slight smirk on my features, "Three, two, one..."

"I'm here! I'm here!" my niece calls out, her footsteps pounding against the floor. Once she hits the main floor, the fourteen-year-old struggles to put her other sneaker on before jogging up to Natasha, Steve, and I in the kitchen. Steve sends Nat and I a fatherly glare while she and I try our hardest not to crack up. We give each other a secretive fist bump, which Steve still catches and rolls his eyes.

"Jeez, are you two even adults?" He fires out. Even though I go to laugh, all of my amusement is cut off when I hear a slight chuckle come from my niece. It takes everything in me not to snap my head to her in awe, but she hasn't laughed in...Well, she never laughs anymore. Instead, I discreetly lift my head to capture every detail of the relaxed amusement on her usually withdrawn and serious features.

In that small moment of laughter, though, I see that little nine-year-old girl again. The same nine year old who used to beg Steve to spin her around the room again and again and again. The same nine year old who never stopped giggling and was always making us smile. 

Grief and trauma truly can change a person, meld them into something new. Not something bad or good, just...new. 

"Well I'm glad to see you're alive and well. You almost made yourself late for the field trip" I announce, earning a half-meant eye roll from the girl.

"I wasn't gonna be late, Aunt Dawn. You just didn't give me a chance to get down here on time" She shoots back. I raise my eyebrows at her attitude, looking over at Nat and Steve to see if they're hearing what I am. The two of them just shrug, looking like cornered animals for any way out. 

DJ has been having more and more...teenage moments that I still am trying to get the hang of parenting. 

I send the two Avengers a glare that basically screams 'thanks for your wonderful help' before I turn back to my niece. I take a slow breath to calm myself, desperately not wanting to yell. That is something I still despise to do. 

"Remember, DJ. On time is l-"

"Late, yeah yeah I know. You've only said that a million times." She huffs, slipping her lunch into her backpack and slinging it across her shoulders. 

"Listen young lady, we may like to have fun around here and be the 'cool guardians' but that doesn't mean you can disrespect us," I calmly scold, grabbing my own purse and keys from the counter, "We all love you so much and we just want the best for you."

"Oh my God you're not my mom! Stop pretending like you are because you just aren't!" DJ suddenly explodes, whirling around and stomping her way to the front of the facility where my car sits ready to take her on the field trip we'd planned for her today. I freeze, as do Nat and Steve, and just stand in the silence for a moment.

Always Fight | Bucky Barnes |Where stories live. Discover now