Chapter 7

They're Back

Lily sat in the common room of the Avenger's compound, thumbing through the channel on the large television. It had been long enough since the surgery that her stitches were removed and Strange said she could start some speech therapy to see if she could regain her voice. Tony had offered to hire someone, but Vision interjected, stating he was more than capable of taking on the task. Vision was a great teacher and was very patient with her. She smiled softly to herself as she remembered how excited she was when she actual said her first word after so long of not talking. Her own voice sounded so foreign yet so familiar. She still used her telepathy to communicate since it was faster, but she was happy when she could actually talk.

Her reminiscing was interrupted by thunderous laugh of Thor. Lily had only met the god of thunder a couple of times, but she already viewed him as an older brother figure. She quickly got up and ran toward the sound of his voice. Upon entering the kitchen, she was greeted by the sight of Thor and a tall, raven haired male just talking. Thor wore a normal pair of jeans with a hoodie while the man next to him wore an entirely black suit. The blonde soon glanced over to Lily, his smile only growing as he ran and hugged her tightly, picking her up and spinning her around.

"Lily! It has been ages since I last saw you!" Thor laughed as he set her down and ruffled her hair.

'It really has been.' Lily smiled as well. 'I missed you Thor! Who is that with you?'

"This is my little brother Loki." The god of thunder clapped the trickster on the back, causing his eyes to narrow. "Loki. This is Lily! She is the newest Avenger."

Loki's thin lips curled into a small smile as he took a few steps forward to stand in front of the mortal. He truly towered over her as he stood there. She looked up at him, the same smile still plastered on her face as she went to hug him. Loki was a bit shocked that she wanted to hug him, but didn't stop her. He instead ruffled her silver hair with one of his hands.

"I can now see why Thor refers to you as a little sister." Loki chuckled softly.

"I brought Loki to Earth to tell the rest of the team that he wishes to join us in battle." Thor beamed with excitement.

'That' amazing! Can I spar with him sometime?' Lily asked with a smile. 'I want to see what powers he has!'

"That is entirely up to him." Thor smiles as he looks over to his adopted brother.

Loki let out a small chuckle. "I would enjoy that very much Lily."

"Why don't you two go ahead while I go to find the rest of the team?" Thor suggested as he looked at the two.

Lily nodded, grabbing Loki's much larger hand with her own and dragging him down the hallway. The god followed closely behind the girl before him, a genuine smile gracing his lips as he was amazed by her childlike wonder. He was also curious about what powers the child possessed. After a short walk, the pair arrived to the training room. Lily let go of his hand as she reached up to tie her long silver hair into a ponytail.

"I must ask you Lily, beside telepathy, what powers do you possess?" Loki asked.

'It's complicated to explain but I can show you.' Lily smiled.

Her navy eyes glanced over to a set of weights across the room. Her eyes began to glow with golden energy as the weights began to float in the air. Loki looked over to the floating weights, arching a single dark eyebrow. Lily set them down before focusing on her hands. Her hands glowed with the same energy as she created a shield with the energy. Loki looked around at the impressive shield.

"Telekinesis and Energy manipulation," He stated before turning his attention back to the girl before him, "That is quite impressive for one so young."

'Thank you.' Lily smiled at the trickster before her.

"Though, if I may ask, why do you rely on telepathy for communication?" The god asked as Lily dropped the shield.

She looked down at the floor, explaining her imprisonment with HYDRA and how they had taken away her voice. Throughout the whole story, Loki listened to her tell her tale as his heart broke to hear how much she had been through already. He took a few steps toward her, raising a hand that glowed green with his magic.

"If I may…" Loki began to speak.

Lily nodded, sensing what he wanted to do and tilted her head back to expose her neck. Loki placed his hand carefully on the long scar that ran down her throat. His emerald eyes shut as he focused his magic into healing her. After a few moments, he pulled his hand away and dismissed his magic.

"My healing magic is not the strongest, but I do believe you should be healed considerable faster now." Loki explained to the teen before him.

Lily's lips curved into a smile as she hugged him tightly around the waist. Loki didn't know how to react, but instead patted the top of the girl's head.

'Thank you.' Lily smiled up at the god.

"You are most welcome, little sister." Loki smiled back at her.

"Yo Lightbrite!" Tony called out as he entered the training facility. "Vision wants to see you."

'Thanks Tony! It was nice to meet you Loki!' Lily said to both of them before she ran out of the room.

Lily walked down the hall to the library. Vision usually had her lessons there because it was private, since no other residents really used it. However, upon arriving to the library, she found that it was empty. She stood there and thought for a moment. Maybe he wanted to meet her in the common room? Lily then began to walk to the common room. Sure enough, Vision was sitting on a couch there with a book in his one hand as his head rested on the other. She smiled as she approached the synthezoid, drawing his attention away from the literature he was engrossed in.

"Ah, there you are Lily." Vision spoke as he shut the book, setting it on the table in front of him.

'Are we having our lessons here now?' Lily asked as she sat across from Vision in a chair.

"Your lesson shall take place afterwards, for now there is a matter I wish to discuss with you." The synthezoid spoke.

'Have I done something wrong?' Lily asked, suddenly feeling anxious.

What was going on? Were they tired of her already? Her mind was becoming a war zone with reasons that the avengers were sick of her. She stared at the ground before her as her own mind assaulted her with all the things she had done wrong.

"…ly..." Vision stated softly, rousing Lily from her thoughts.

'Y…yes?' She stuttered.

"Are you alright?" The synthezoid asked, his face showing concern for how Lily was acting.

'I'm fine. What did you say?' Lily replied as her navy eyes met his cerulean ones.

"Director Fury will be here tomorrow to assess you and spider-man to see if you both are ready to become a part of the team. I just wanted to warn you so you wouldn't be nervous." Vision explained calmly. "As long as you remember everything that Wanda and I have taught you, you shall be just fine."

Lily smiled. SO they weren't tired of her. They just wanted her to be ready for Fury coming.

'I'll make you both proud! I promise.' Lily told Vison excitedly.

"We are already proud Lily." Wanda spoke as she exited the kitchen with a freshly brewed cup of tea. She sat next to Vison on the couch. "I don't think we could have asked for a better student. Now why don't you go find Peter and have a day off?"

'Really?' Lily looked to both of them.

Vision nodded. Lily stood up, hurrying forward to hug both Wanda and Vision as she kept thanking them. Wanda chuckled and waved her off to her room.

"Were you able to find that information we were both curious about?" Wanda asked the synthezoid beside her.

"I was." Vision draped an arm around Wanda's shoulder as she moved closer to him. "Tomorrow shall be quite special."

Lily sat in her room. She was looking through her clothes to find an outfit to go hang out with Peter in. When she couldn't decide, she flopped on her bed and took her phone to text Peter. Maybe if she knew what they were going to do then it would be easier to pick out an outfit.

[Lily: Hey Peter! Would you want to hang out in a few?]

She set her phone down, but not a second later did her notification go off. She picked it up and read the message from Peter.

[Peter: Sure! Do you have anything you want to do?]

[Lily: Nope. I was hoping you'd have some ideas.]

[Peter: Would you want to go see a movie with me and Ned?]

[Lily: Ned?]

[Peter: Oh he's a friend from school. He's really chill and knows I'm Spiderman so your secret is safe with him too]

[Lily: A movie sounds like fun! Should I have someone take me to your place or should I meet you at the theater?]

[Peter: You can just meet us at the theater.]

[Lily: The one on 6th avenue right?]

[Peter: That's the one!]

[Lily: I'll see you soon Peter.]

Lily tossed her phone onto the bed as she stood up. She walked back over to her closet, her navy eyes skimming over her clothes. She wanted to be comfortable and warm for the movie, since the theater always kept it cooler. An oversized heavy turtle neck sweater and some thick leggings were carefully chosen and soon were paired with a black pair of boots. Lily looked herself once over in the mirror, smiling at how normal she looked. She pulled the turtleneck collar up higher to hide the scar on her neck. Grabbing her phone and purse, Lily left her room and walked to the common room to ask for a ride to the theater. Thankfully, Tony was the only one in the room and by the looks of it; he was already planning on leaving. The genius glanced over at the teen as she entered the room, a single eyebrow quirking curiously.

"You going out lightbrite?" Tony asked as he fixed his tie.

'Peter and I are going to see a movie.' Lily told him. 'Would you mind dropping me off at the theater?'

"Sure thing kid. It's good to see you going out like a normal kid." The billionaire smiled as he grabbed his keys from off the countertop.

Lily quietly followed Tony to the garage of the compound, carefully getting into the passenger side of the expensive sports car. The engine roared to life as the billionaire started the car and pulled out of the underground garage. The teen sat quietly as Tony drove into the city. She watched the world outside just scroll by as the forested area around the compound soon yielded to the modern scape of the city. Lily was lost in her thoughts and watching the world outside when Tony came to a stop outside of the theater.

"We're here kid. I'll be in town so just text me when the movie gets out ok?" Tony told her as she exited the car.

'I will.' She assured him before shutting the door and waving bye to him.

Lily stood outside the theater as she pulled out her phone to text Peter.

[Lily: Hey, I'm here. Just text me when you get here.]

She shoved her phone back into her purse as she waited on the crowded street. Lily loved to observe people and see how they act around others, something she had never gotten to do all her years she was a prisoner. Since she didn't know how long it was going to be until Peter and Ned showed up, she decided to take a seat on a nearby bench and wait there. Just as she was about to sit down, she heard a cry for help. She stood straight up, scanning the area for where the cry had come from. She was an avenger technically, so she could handle something as simple as a mugging or something of that sort. Lily cautiously left the bench as she pinpointed the source of the cry for help. She walked a little ways away from the theater to the mouth of a dark alley.

'Hello?' Lily called out with her telepathy, but received no answer.

Her brows furrowed. Maybe she was wrong about someone needing help. As she turned back to walk to the theater, a cloth covered her mouth. She began to throw punches and kicks at the person who held the cloth firmly over her mouth and nose. The sweet scent of the cloth filled her nose and then Lily went limp in the man's arms. He lowered the cloth and picked Lily up, carrying her to a black SUV. He set her in the backseat and fastened a thick metal collar around her neck before climbing in the driver's seat. As he pulled away, he pulled out his phone and called someone.

"Hey Boss," The man greeted, "I got her."