She's The Girl Who. || Avengers. [1]

ix. Birthdays Suck

'She's the kinda girl god gives you whilst your young so that you know loss from a young age.'-

Time seemed to go by unbelievably fast after Carter opened up to the Avengers about her past. She wasn't normal. They knew that.

Ultimately they couldn't just act like she was. 

So in the end Tony decided it would be in her best interest to keep Carter away from the media until she was ready. She couldn't have been more thankful for that and the fact they all understood her, or at least tried to.

She hadn't told them everything, she refused to show them her wings and tell them about her previous mutation, but they never pushed the fifteen year old on the topic. 

Eventually it just became normal to have Carter around, it was like she'd always been there, and Tony? Well he couldn't have been happier.

Every weekday morning Carter would wake up early and skip breakfast to train in hand to hand combat either on her own or with Steve, depending on if the super soldier had woken up after his nightmares or not.

She would usually occupy herself throughout the day or go and explore the city after the ankle bracelet was taken of a few weeks ago.

Carter began to quickly get used to spending time with the group of heroes and although it still wasn't ideal, she could deal with it, she was happy with it.

..........

So there she was one afternoon, in the training room. Unaware that the Avengers were all at the door watching the teen as she took hits at the punching bag with rapid pace.

"...111...112...113...114...115...116!" The girl finished as she took deep, even breaths. 

Carter unwrapped her hands and looked down at them as the bruises and small cuts from her workout began to heal before her eyes. "Happy Birthday to me I guess..." She grumbled unhappily, even as a kid before the whole Hydra thing had happened, Carter had never enjoyed her birthday, always knowing that it was the day she was abandoned.

"It's your birthday!" The unmistakable voice of Tony Stark said in shock from behind her causing the dark haired girl to turn with a sheepish smile on her face as she looked up to meet his eyes.

"Damn it! How didn't I know that." He silently cursed under his breath as Carter raised an eyebrow at him, looking over at the others at the door as if to say 'is he serious?'.

"Maybe because I never told you?" She sarcastically replied as she walked past them all, wincing slightly when her back twitched painfully. Something she hoped no one picked up on.

"God, what do you want? you can literally have whatever you want." Tony eagerly asked his daughter as he turned to her excitedly.

"Birthdays suck, lets leave it at that" Carter said as she walked backwards with the group of superheroes following her into the living area.

"What? No kid, birthdays are the best, your turning sixteen, let's have a party!" Tony grinned at his own idea as he moved over to the corner table and poured himself a glass of scotch whilst the Avengers situated themselves around the room.

"Yes because I have so many friends who I can invite!" Carter said with fake enthusiasm before rolling her eyes and flopping down onto the couch.

"Well then I'll have a party, Invite you and introduce you to some of our closest friends only? How's that sound?" The billionaire suggested as Carter sat up straight, contemplating the idea before she shrugged and nodded her head as an okay.

"Yes! That's my girl!" He exclaimed as he walked over and placed a short kiss on Carters forehead before grabbing Bruce on the way out hollering about sending invites.

"Have I just made a huge mistake?" Carter questioned those around her as Thor let out a hearty laugh and made his way to the kitchen.

"Lady Carter, I believe your father does not understand the concept of a 'small gathering' you are more than likely in for a surprise tonight when fifty people show up." Thor chortled as he placed some pop tarts in the toaster and leaned back against the counter.

Carter let herself fall back on the couch with a huff as she thought about whether or not she'd made a mistake.

"So what's with the back pains? You aren't that old." Clint teased although there was a undertone of concern in his voice as the others looked to the girl for an answer.

"Don't know, I'm just hoping at this point that I'm not gonna sprout wings and fly away -- Oh wait." Carter gasped in fake shock as she looked over at Clint with her hand over her mouth and wide eyes.

"Funny." The agent muttered as he rolled his eyes at the teen before looking at Natasha and Steve for help on the subject.

"You need to tell us If something is happening though, alright?" Natasha asked in a serious tone as she stared down the girl.

"Yes captain killjoy, It's just uncomfortable having wings in your back." She exaggerated before rolling over and curling up with her eyes closed, "Now Shh, I'm tired." The girl said as she listened to their conversations stray from the topic and continue on before she eventually fell into a dreamless sleep.

..........

Waking up to someone shaking your shoulders was not something Carter enjoyed. So when it happened to her she jumped up and tackled the person before curling up like a cat on their chest, feeling the vibrations as they laughed at her weird antics.

"Carter, get up." Steve -- who it turns out she was lying on -- chuckled as he sat up, causing the the girl to fall into his lap and sit up as well. 

She sighed exasperatedly as she looked up at the Captain expectantly causing him to chuckle as he pulled her up into a standing position. 

"Pepper arrived with a dress for you for tonight and everyone should be arriving in an hour or so." He told her as he stood himself up and brushed invisible dirt from his shirt.

"Dress?" Carter asked in disgust, she wasn't the girly type of girl and usually settled on shorts or jeans with a tank top or jumper, sometimes if she left the tower she would throw on her leather jacket and a scarf to look more presentable.

"Yes dress, Nat said she'd help you get ready whilst Pepper get's herself put together." Steve informed as he pulled the girl up from the couch she'd sat on and dragged her down the hallway to her own room before gesturing her to go in and leaving with a short wave.

Sighing, the dark haired girl opened her door and found a very bored and very dressed up assassin on the other side, sitting on her bed lazily.

 "Sleeping Beauty awakes." Natasha spoke with a small smirk as Carter rolled her eyes, shutting the door behind her as she looked around the room until her eyes landed on the navy blue dress that hung over her window.

"That alright?" Natasha asked shortly, only getting a nod from the girl in return as she ran her fingers over the fabric of the dress before turning to Natasha with a small grin.

"Let's do this" Carter huffed making Natasha smirk as they got to work on Carters outfit, curling her hair and applying minimal makeup. 

When they were done she was wearing the navy sweetheart neckline dress with a pair of black heels, her leather jacket and a simple silver necklace with diamond wings that had been left on her nightstand by her father with a simple 'Happy Birthday Xx' note on top.

Looking in the mirror Carter sighed in content as Natasha smiled and slipped out of the room, telling her to come out soon and meet everyone. 

Maybe things would turn out alright. Only time would tell for Carter.