JULY 1, 2018 — AVENGERS COMPOUND — RÉA
After training, I shower, spend a little time in the music room, then curl up on my couch. I've just finished reading my mother's journal for the umpteenth time, when I notice that the inside of the back cover has a flap that's beginning to lift. Curious, I grab a letter opener and carefully slide it beneath the flap; I run it up the length of the page, revealing a pocket. Inside, there's a piece of paper with what I recognise as my father's handwriting. My eyes widen and I inhale sharply when I realise what it was. I read it aloud, muttering the words under my breath, translating as I go.
"'Puer de caelo et mundo nascetur'...'A child will be born from heaven and earth'
'Et feret summa potestas'...'And shall wield the highest power'
'Vinculum creabitur'...'A bond will be created
'Et ne divinitas quidem frangere potest'...'And not even divinity can break it'."
Bone-deep knowledge settles into me, and I know that this is about me. I quickly read the rest, but the second stanza keeps grabbing my attention.
I take out my phone and call Pepper.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Pep, it's me."
"Hi, Réa."
"Are you with Tony?"
"Yeah, we're upstairs, watching T.V.." She pauses. "You sound...off. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. Could I come up? Just for a few minutes?"
"Of course, sweetie. See you soon."
"Thanks. See you soon," I say, then hang up.
I leave my room and take the lift to Tony and Pepper's floor; the door opens as I approach.
"Thanks, F.R.I.D.A.Y.," Tony says.
"What is it, Réa?"
"I found something. In my mother's journal. There was a hidden pocket in the back cover...it contained a note my father wrote." I inhale deeply. "Specifically, a prophecy."
I repeat the words to them.
"I feel it...like I felt with the Infinity Stones...this bone-deep knowledge that it's about me. And I..." I clear my throat. "I think I have a soulmate."
As soon as I say the words aloud, I know I'm right. Once the initial shock wears off, multiple emotions fill me; the strongest are happiness and gratitude.
"I have a soulmate! I didn't...I never...I..." I trail off, happy tears filling my eyes as a smile forms on my face.
"That's wonderful, sweetie," Pepper says, wrapping me in a hug. "Although, I'm not surprised. You're half-human...so I always kind of assumed that your human half would have one."
"Ditto for me, kiddo," Tony says. "But I'm happy that you're happy."
"Thank you. I just wanted to share with you. I probably could have just called on FaceT—"
"I'm—we're—glad you came up to tell us in person," Pepper says, while Tony nods in agreement. "Thank you for sharing this with us."
"Of course. You're my family," I say, and she and Tony pull me into a group hug.
"We love you, kiddo," Tony says when the hug ends.
"I love you, too."
----------------------------------------
I take the lift back to my floor, and run into Sam, Steve, and Bucky in the corridor.
"Hey, Réa!" Sam says. "We're gonna go to Chinatown for lunch at Joe's Shanghai. Do you want to come with us?"
"I'd love to! If you're sure you don't mind. I don't want to crash guy time."
"We don't mind," Bucky and Steve say in unison.
"Okay then. Let me just grab a pair of shoes," I gesture to my bare feet, "and my bag. I can meet you in the garage."
"Sounds good. We're going in Steve's truck," Sam says.
I nod, and they step into the lift as I go to my room. I slip on a pair of sandals and grab my purse, then I blink to the garage.
"Whoa!" Sam exclaims as I appear, jumping slightly.
Bucky and Steve chuckle, and I can't help grinning as I respond.
"Sorry, Sam. I was going to take the lift, but I know how you are about food, and I didn't want you to have to wait any longer to be fed," I tease.
He chuckles in response. "Fair enough."
We walk to Steve's truck, and Bucky opens the front passenger door, gesturing for me to climb in.
"Are you sure? I can sit in the bac—"
"Nope, ladies get the front seat," Steve says.
"Okay then," I say. "And thank you," I say to Bucky in a softer tone.
"You're welcome," he says, then settles into the seat behind me.
I look over my shoulder at him.
"Do you need me to move the seat up?"
"No, thank you," he says, a grin on his face. "See, she gets it," he tells Sam.
"Yeah, yeah," Sam rolls his eyes.
YOU ARE READING
The Fall
FanfictionRéa, a half-human, half-Seraph, has spent her entire life locked in a tower, haunted by visions of a man in pain. Unbeknownst to her, this tortured soul is Bucky Barnes, the former Winter Soldier. Their destinies intertwine as Bucky discovers a conn...
