The New Girl

Chapter 11

"Oh, say can you see,
By the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hailed,
At the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars." Raven skyrocketed out of bed at the loud noise that was her ringtone. Tiredly, she reached for her phone and answered the call.

"Sometimes I think you call me just to see how I react." She told the Star Spangled Man on the other end. Steve chuckled.

"I'm sorry. Did I wake you?" He asked.

"Mhm. What time is it anyway?" Raven mumbled.

"Almost noon." Raven groaned.

"You know, I have to be honest with you Cap. Having the National Anthem blaring is a great way to start the day. Very patriotic." Steve laughed. "Whatcha need?"

"I was wondering when Buck's arm will be ready. I know you said you're doing the best you can but I hate watching him struggle while he does things with just one arm." Steve answered.

"I bet you do, Steve. All I have left is the hand, I'll have it done today."

"Thanks." Steve ended the call so Raven set her phone back on the nightstand. Groaning,
she snuggled up to the blanket and tried to fall back asleep. A couple minutes of failing later, Raven got up and walked into her lab.

The arm was right where she left it last night. Sitting down on the stool, Raven started working on it. The hand was the hardest part in Raven's opinion but she eventually got it done. When the whole arm was completed, Raven cleaned up the desk before teleporting to where Bucky and Steve were hiding out.

She walked into their apartment and looked around for them. The arm was wrapped up and hidden in a backpack along with some money for food, a blanket, and some plums. From how Steve's described it, they hit the bottom of the barrel when they got this place- at least that's Raven's opinion.

Bucky and Steve weren't in the living room nor the kitchen. The only other room in the small apartment was the bedroom because she wasn't gonna look in the bathroom. She slowly approached the bedroom door and held her ear to it. There was noise coming from inside so she slowly opened the door but she quickly wished she hadn't.

Raven screamed and threw the backpack onto the bed. She ran away from the room as Steve and Bucky quickly grabbed their clothes that were laying on the floor. Once they looked decent enough, they exited the room and found Raven rocking back and forth in the corner.

"Raven-" Steve tried but she screamed and reached for her head.

"I am NEVER going to unsee what I just saw!" Bucky looked down towards the floor, a slight blush creeping up on him. Steve too. "You knew I was coming!"

"We did and we're sorry. We should've left a note on the door or something." Bucky told her. Raven slowly stopped rocking back and forth and stood up carefully, almost hesitantly. Steve griped her shoulder. "You finished the arm?"

"Yeah." She shuddered. "It was in the backpack I threw at you." Bucky nodded before leaving to go retrieve it. Raven turned to Steve. "Hopefully my mom can erase that from my memory."

"You can't do it yourself?" He asked. She shook her head.

"My powers don't work on me." She gestured to the air around her. "Just on everything else." Steve nodded. A minute later, Bucky came back with the backpack.

"Why a backpack?" He asked as he attempted at opening it.

"Because the arm isn't the only thing that's in there. And I just realized that I didn't give you back your memories from your time." Raven walked up to Bucky and placed her hands on his temples, a bright purple light filled the small space between her hands and his head. Bucky's eyes flashed purple for a second before they returned back to normal. "Here, I'll help you open the backpack." Raven grabbed the bag and opened it for him. Bucky grabbed the arm that was wrapped up. Raven tossed the bag to the side and grabbed the arm before locking it into place. Bucky clenched and unclenched his fist as a way to test it out. "So, what do you think?"

"It feels like a normal arm." Bucky stated, amazement clear in his voice. Steve watched as his bestfriend continued making a fist.

"That was the point. And no more covering it up either, it doesn't stand out." Bucky stopped playing with his arm to give Raven a hug. She stood there awkwardly, arms to her side. "Okay, I don't know how it was back in the olden days but now, I don't do hugs. Especially hugs with you after what I just saw." Bucky chuckled and let go of her. She took a step back before grabbing the backpack.

"What else is in there?" Steve asked.

"A blanket, some money for food and stuff, and some plums." She shrugged before looking up at Bucky. "You look like a plum kind of guy." The two super soldiers laughed.

"You didn't need to bring anything else." Steve told her.

"Oh, I know. But from how you described this place it sounded like a dump so. . ." Raven looked around. "I guess it's not so bad. Now I think the blanket won't come in handy."

"Why's that?" Raven smirked at the two men.

"Because you're keeping warm through the use of each other's body heat." Bucky and Steve glanced at each other before looking away. "I knew you two had a thing for one another. No one cares that much about a childhood friend unless they were something more." Raven patted Bucky's shoulder. "Anyways, I should get going before my dad realizes I'm gone and starts asking me where I've been."

"They don't know you've been helping us." Steve asked but it sounded more like a statement. Raven shook her head.

"No. I've been put in charge of finding Wanda and Lang but I haven't even started. I told dad that if I didn't find anything soon, I'd stop." She sighed. "You should've signed, Cap. This whole thing would've been averted, we would still be living under one roof, we would be a team, and I wouldn't have to walk in on you doing it while I try bringing you plums!" Steve chuckled. "If you talked us through this, if you came to us instead of doing it on your own, you would've had Barnes back sooner. I would've brought Barnes back to you."

"How?" She rotated her right shoulder in a form of a shrug.

"I have this power. . . I can track a person especially when they pose as a threat. Not saying Barnes was a threat to me! I'm just. . . I dunno." Steve smiled at her as she looked to the floor.

"Then I should've came to you." He agreed.

"Too late now." Raven remarked. Steve sighed. "Tell the truth, were you scared of what I would do if you asked?" He shook his head. Raven took in a deep breath. "Look, I know we haven't really been the best of friends but if you need anything, don't hesitate to call." Steve nodded, a smile tugging at his lips.

"If anything major comes up-" Steve caught Bucky's eye before they both nodded. "-you can count on us to come help." Raven smiled before hugging Steve. Bucky looked hurt.

"Whoa! I thought you don't do hugs?" Raven laughed as she pulled him in.

"I normally don't. But today's the exception." The trio shared a hug before Raven pulled away. "Gotta go. Keep the backpack." She said before she teleported out of the apartment and back into her room. Noting that nothing looked out of the ordinary, she walked out of her room and down the hall where Tony was waiting for her. Along with six other people and Thor.

"Great you're awake." Tony acknowledged. Raven nodded slightly.

"Um, who are they?" She asked, pointing in the group's direction.

"Raven I would like you to meet Star-Lord, Gamora, Rocket Raccoon, Groot, Drax, and Mantis. Guardians meet my daughter Raven." Raven stared blankly at them, then to Thor, then to her father before looking back at the group.

"What the hell is going on?!"