Chapter Text
The day after her birthday, Kahlen stood in the kitchen on their private floor heating up a bottle of milk, Teddy on her hip. The little boy was watching her intently, his hair a similar curly dark brown to hers and his eyes shifting from green to brown. She smiled down at him, the need to protect and love him overwhelming her. She understood now how Sirius had felt about her. She wasn’t just his best friend’s kid, he’d loved her as his own. She would do anything to keep Teddy safe and happy, and she knew that Sirius had felt the same. If Teddy were in the situation she’d been in at the end of fifth year, she would do exactly what Sirius had done. It helped to have this new perspective; she’d begun to realize that Sirius’ sacrifice was not something to regret, but something to appreciate and respect. He’d made his choices, and Kahlen realized now that he wouldn’t have regretted them had he known the outcome.
So caught up in her thoughts, she hardly noticed when Tony entered the room, shifting from foot to foot with a hand behind his back. He cleared his throat to gain her attention.
“Hey Tony,” she greeted him, smiling. He frowned a bit at the use of his name, but it disappeared quickly. They’d only known each other for a couple months, they had plenty of time to get to the ‘dad' stage.
“H-hey,” he stuttered a bit, cursing himself as a look of confusion came over her. He took a deep breath. “I have a late birthday gift for you.”
Kahlen giggled. “I think the bracelet, earrings, new phone, clothes, and hologram projector were plenty.” He chuckled, though made no move to apologize for spoiling her. Giving people gifts was one of the ways he showed them he cared about them. If anything, he didn’t get her enough.
“This one is something you’ve been wanting for a while,” he explained. He brought his hand from behind his back, placing familiar papers on the table in front of her. Kahlen gasped, recognizing the Wizengamot forms immediately, Tony’s neat signature on the bottom of the page.
“But… our agreement was until the end of the summer,” she insisted, panicking slightly. She’d just begun to feel comfortable, she didn’t want to leave yet.
“And you’re welcome to stay if you want, for however long you want,” Tony insisted. “But I realize now how important these forms are, and I couldn’t hold that over you. It wouldn’t be right. Besides, I want to spend time with you because you want to spend time with me, not because you feel forced.”
“I’ve never felt forced,” Kahlen said, waiting until he met her eyes to make sure he knew she was being honest. “Maybe into staying at the tower, but never into spending time with you. Every dinner, every lab hangout, every training session… I’ve wanted to spend time with you, to get to know you. And I’m glad I did.” She smiled at him, but her gaze was pulled back to the forms like a magnet.
She contemplated staying at the tower. Training with everyone, enjoying dinners together, braiding sessions with Nat and Wanda, movie nights and game nights and…
Steve.
How could she leave when there was so much left unsaid between them? There was so much she didn’t know about him, so much she wanted to learn. She hadn’t felt this way in years, not since she lost Cedric to the war. She wanted to see what could happen, see what he could be to her. How could she do that from halfway across the world?
And Tony. She finally felt like she was getting to know him. She’d never done this before; her other parental figures were either dead or had families of their own, and while she loved them with all her heart, with Tony it was different. She wasn’t just tagging along in someone else's family, she was joining one of her own. Hermione, the Weasleys, the Lupins… they were her family too, but the Avengers were hers.
She wanted to stay. But looking at the little boy in her arms, she knew she couldn’t abandon the Wizengamot. There were too many still suffering. If she had the power to change that, she had to do it.
Tony must have seen the resolve take hold of her, because he gave her a sad smile, pride in his eyes.
“Do what you’ve got to do,” he told her. No judgement, no influencing her one way or the other. Just trust.
“I have to go back,” she said sadly. “I have to. But I meant what I said: I’m not giving up. On any of you.” She took his hand with her free one. “I’ll come back as soon as I can, and I’ll call and I’ll visit. This is just something I have to do.”
He nodded in understanding, prouder than ever to call her his daughter.
— — —
By noon the next day Kahlen was packed and her portkey was waiting for her. She didn’t want to drag out her leaving, too afraid of changing her mind. She’d already said goodbye to most of the Avengers, crying no less than 3 times. Wanda in particular was difficult to talk to. In the short time they’d known each other, the witches had become incredibly close, so saying goodbye was practically torture. And seeing as both had actually been tortured, that said something about just how much they would be missed.
The only one she’d yet to speak to was Steve. She’d left him for last on purpose, needing to get her wits about her. She wasn’t sure where they were at, but if nothing else they were friends, and she would miss him. She checked his floor but found it empty. The gym was similarly vacant, leaving her at a loss.
“Friday,” she called, confusion lacing her words.
“Yes Miss Potter.”
“Where is Steve?”
“Captain Spangles is currently on the roof.”
Kahlen smiled at the nickname, then smiled wider as she processed what the AI had said.
“Thanks Fri.”
She took the elevator up to the roof, finding Steve standing at the edge, relaxed and leaning on the railing. She took advantage of the fact that he hadn’t noticed her arrival, admiring him from behind for a minute before walking to join him.
“Y’know,” she started, looking out over the city, “we don’t have the best track record with the roof.” Steve chuckled.
“There’ve been some good moments,” he defended, both of them thinking of a starry sky and a delicate kiss. They looked out at the bustling roads, falling into a calm quiet.
“Thank you,” Kahlen spoke softly. She felt his questioning eyes on her. “For the best birthday I’ve ever had,” she explained, “long before I knew there would be a party with all my favourite people.”
Steve grinned. “I could thank you for the same thing,” he responded. At her furrowed brows, he continued. “Our Staten Island trip… it was on July 4th, my birthday.” He realized his mistake as she began to smile, groaning at his misfortune.
“Captain America’s birthday is July 4th?! Are you kidding?” They laughed together. “You really are Mr. America, I guess. Maybe there’s another great American holiday we can celebrate sometime,” she suggested, earning a smile from the man.
“I’ll be waiting.”
— — —
With all her bags packed and goodbye’s finished, there was nothing left to do. Kahlen and Steve made their way down to the common room, finding everyone else waiting for them. Clint handed Kahlen Teddy, watching in fascination as his hair shifted from honey blond to dark brown. Kahlen took the boy gladly, settling him in a harness to keep him safe during portkey travel. She eyed the portkey nervously: the pen she’d tried to trick Tony into signing with.
She looked up at her father, expecting him to be angry with her for leaving, but all she found was a soft smile. He pulled her into a tight hug, careful of the baby strapped to her. They stayed that way for several minutes, neither wanting to break away.
“Thank you for proving me wrong,” Kahlen finally whispered. She’d thought he would let her down or leave her, but he’d done more than just prove her wrong. He did everything he could to prove that he would be a good dad, and she believed with all her heart that they would only become closer.
“Thank you for finding me,” he responded, pulling back to look her in the eyes. “Promise to do it again?” Kahlen giggled through her tears.
“I promise.”
She looked around, the smiling faces of her family looking back. She didn’t know how to put into words how glad she was to have met them and how excited she was to return, so she tried to put all her love in her eyes. Somehow, she knew they understood.
She took one last look and grabbed the pen, already thinking of the time when she would come back home.