AN: Woop! Thank you to @evrillaaaa for all the votes! This chapter is dedicated to you. It's difficult writing Lilly's chapters...differently. Glad I updated, though!

The halls of Xavier's School for the Gifted echoed with laughter and talk about the latest trends. The aroma of bitter coffee beans swam through the air and mingled with the sweet fragrances of perfume and freshly picked fruit. I walked down the middle of the long corridor, eyes wandering around. The same old flyers and posters clung to the cork boards and polished dark wood. Go to Soccer Practice! Basketball Tryouts! Cheerleading Squad Fun! Chess Club! D&D Time! Did they ever take these down? I shook my head and kept walking. With all of the voices echoing in the hall, no one ever came into view. I raised an eyebrow and peered through a door window into a classroom.

Empty.

Huh. Lunch break, maybe?

A soft humming drifted into my ears. A gentle wave of notes washed over my ears. Something recognizable, yet so far off. The longer I listened, the more my muscles relaxed.

Crescendo. Up. Up. Down. The notes flowed in a lullaby, entrancing my heart. It copied the beat of the melody, allowing me to feel the blood pumping throughout my body. I knew that voice. I couldn't place the name, but I know they are close to me. My feet carried me down the hall.

Quicker.

Quicker.

The humming grew louder the closer I got.

Who could it be? Why can't I remember? Where are they? How could I hear them through all of the noise?

I reached the door at the end of the hall. Kitty's room. The humming vibrated in my ears. The words...I can't remember the words. My hands hesitatingly reached for the door knob.The tune soothed my aching heart. Did I really want it to stop?

No. Not really.

My insides twisted as if a knife had stabbed me in the back. Something tried pushing me forward. Why should I? The humming was beautiful. It shouldn't end! A shock wave of pain shot through my insides. I nearly cried out through clenched teeth. Stop! Stop! Stop! I opened the door, and the humming ceased. The pain ended abruptly as I stepped into Kitty's room.

Hues of the light purple walls darkened as it ascended to the ceiling. The glow in the dark stars disappeared and were replaced by crimson paints and shimmering glitter. The polaroids on the wall hung in different spots than last time, capturing moments between Kitty and the team. The desk had markings on the top of it, as if it were phased through one too many times and stabbed with pens and scissors. Kitty sat upright on her bed as she worked on her small laptop. Her dark hair hung up into a ponytail and stray hairs grazed against her eyes..

I blinked a few times. "Was that you humming?"

Kitty's hazel eyes glanced up from her laptop, yet she never stopped typing. "No. You heard humming?"

I...what? It was so loud! I hung onto my thoughts by the edge, losing my grip on reality. I clung to it, scratched at the edge, yearning to yank myself up onto whatever platform the humming arose. I sat down on Kitty's green fluffy bed. I mindlessly ran my fingers along the creases of the blanket. Why was the humming so loud, only to suddenly stop? A small tinge of disappointment flourished through my heart as it fell into its own steady beat. The tip tap of typing brought me back, causing me to let go of the edge. I fixed my gaze on Kitty. "Where is everyone? In class or something?"

"It's Saturday." She mindlessly answered, eyes not meeting mine. Her voice revealed distance with the way the last word of each sentence dripped off her tongue. Mentally, she wasn't there. "The kids have been walking through the halls for hours."

But there was no one in the hall. I scrunched my eyebrows together, attempting to think about where those kids could possibly have been to have their voices carry that much through the halls. I dropped the conversation and pushed up my glasses. That wasn't important right now. What's more important is that Kitty wasn't...well, Kitty. "How are you doing?"

"Doing great."

"Just the other day you broke out in tears, Kitty," I pointed out.

"Everyone has those moments."

Maybe I had been clinging onto the past too much. Or maybe I was the only one who saw something was deeply wrong. I let the idea simmer in the back of my mind. The X-Men had a group therapy session the other day. What if they're the same as Kitty? "Is everyone else okay?"

Kitty simply nodded, eyes flashing left and right as she scouted her document.

"Really? You see how they are doing every day, even if they don't show it. Nothing is wrong?"

"They're fine. No abnormalities." She finally looked up from her computer. Her gaze pierced right through me. "I have this presentation to finish. Talk to you later?"

I nodded slowly, a part of me still clinging to disbelief. "Yeah, sure." No abnormalities. That in itself counts as one. Why would she want me to visit, only to blow me off? I got up and walked out of the room. My eyes landed on Kitty one last time. Worry emanated off my body. A part of me yearned to solve the mystery, but I decided to close the door behind me.

Ding.

The elevator door opened, allowing me to walk onto the penthouse floor of the Avengers Tower. I plastered on a smile onto my lips and held my head high. I couldn't let them see my confusion or pain.

Sam, Steve, and Tony were talking in the living room. Laughing and nearly giddy about whatever they were talking about. The television played the news in the background, a soft and tragic sound when the silence struck. Coffee drifted into the air and mixed with the different aromas rising from within the city. Bagels, baked goods, soups of all different kinds, and grilled meats made my mouth water.

Tony got up from the couch, stretching his tired limbs. His work out clothes appeared worn in and stretched, presumably from a long work out. Perhaps they had all just taken a run together through central park. "Just the person I wanted to see."

A welcomed surprise. Then again, this was Tony. His ideas seemed to be ridiculous lately to overcompensate for what happened to us. I raised my eyebrows and peered at him skeptically. "Really?" Steve scooted over to give me room to sit in between them. I plopped down and set my hand over his, causing him to smile.

Tony strolled over to the dark marbled bar and made himself a drink. Ice tinged against the small glass cup, causing me to flinch. He talked as he mixed liquor together, "I have great news."

"If this has anything to do with that atrocious Avengers statue you want to build, then I don't think it's great news," I commented with a small grin tugging at one corner of my lips.

Sam laughed, "I thought the same thing."

"Hey, it would look great in the plaza." Tony lifted his drink into the air, as if he was cheering to something. He sat down in his comfortable leather chair across from us. "The Clint Barton Fund has officially helped fifty percent of the deaf community here."

Something pinched my heart and twisted it into agony. Clint. Our boy Barton. He should be here with us. All of them should be. I played with my fingers to shift my focus elsewhere. "I'm glad we opened the fund in his memory. Clint would have wanted that."

Steve noticed my distance and squeezed my hand. He added, a tone of reassurance in his voice, "You should see the people being helped by the fund. They are so happy to be given the opportunity to learn and grow with their families."

Tony leaned back in his chair, attempting to get comfortable with his legs crossed. He stirred his drink by swirling it around, again and again, almost as if he were transfixed in some deep thought. When he spoke up, I never expected the conversation to go in that direction. "What about you, Wilson? We've aired our dirty laundry. What's your tragic backstory?"

"Tony." Steve began. He shot a pointed look in his direction.

"Would you rather watch the news in silence? Because we can do that."

"It's cool, man." Sam cracked his neck and settled in. Where to begin, where to begin? "Grew up in Harlem. Dad died when I was nine. That courageous fool tried to stop a fight between some gangs. And my mom..." He paused, his lip nearly twitching at the thought. "We got mugged one night after dinner. She protected me and my siblings. Then...bam. I can still remember the feeling of her warm blood against my face."

He bitterly stopped. The raw memory nipped at his heart, causing his face to sour. "Drove me down a dark path. Dropped out of school and started working for the mob. A recruiter got me out of all of that and I joined the military. That's keeping it short and sweet."

"You and I have two very different definitions of sweet." Tony's dark eyes flickered away. He drank to fill the awkward silence that followed. Tragic backstory...of course it was going to be rough. Whatever they were talking about before must've been more rough than that to have Tony bring it up. He pursed his lips and apologized, "I am sorry for your losses."

"Thank you." Sam nodded slowly. He watched his fingers trace a line around the ring of his mug. "I'm not ashamed to admit it anymore." He started talking more in depth about his time in the mob, but I didn't really hear him.

Was I purposely ignoring him? No...No. Not at all. In fact, I wanted to hear what he was saying. This was a chance to learn more about one of Steve's best friends! Why would I choose to tune out? I'm not...

But...

Something drew my eye to the balcony. Birds drifted by, wings expanded as they rode the breeze. The sun shone through the windows and a glare met my eyes. I squinted and saw a blur on one of the creme lounge chairs.

Pepper Potts. In the flesh. It's been forever and a half since I have talked with her in person. I got up from my seat, my fingers hesitatingly leaving Steve's, and walked over to the balcony. "Hey, Pepper."

A smile instantly graced her lips as she exclaimed, "Hi! How are you?" Pepper set the blank covered book she was reading aside and sat up. The sun highlighted the tame orange of her hair and enhanced the brightness of her eyes.

"Good. How about you?" Straight up lie. I hoped she didn't see right through me. Tony had told some horror stories of how perceptive this storm of a woman could be.

"Doing better now. Tony is taking some time off this week, so I get to see him more often."

I sat down on the comfy lounge next to her and forced myself to not get comfortable. The breathtaking view called to me. Bright blues danced with white swirly puffs. Oranges and yellows of the sun shone down on the loud city, reflecting off of the tall glass covered buildings. I ignored the call with all of my might. I couldn't let my free hours dwindle, not when I had to see Peter. "How is Tony adjusting to being home?" It had been a year since we were on the run. At that time, he admitted to not being fine since the Attack on New York. I don't blame him. A suicide run like that took not only a toll on his mind, but his heart.

Without missing a beat, she answered with a hint of relief, "He is doing fine."

I hesitated for a second. Calling her bluff was too rude, especially when I am trying to dive back into the groove of being home. Friendliness...took a back seat when it came to reality. I let it slide in order to see if she would trip up. "Really? No lapses, attacks, seclusion, anything?"

"Yes." Her eyebrows twitched downwards for a split second. "Why, is there something wrong?"

I shook my head. "I wanted to be sure. I worry about everyone." Maybe she didn't want me to worry about him? Pepper does that enough already.

Pepper set her hand on mine. The sun shone over her smile, blurring my vision of her. "Lilly, everything is okay. Do you need to talk to someone?"

I stared into her eyes, not wanting to avert away in order to sell the lie. One corner of my lips tilted upwards in a hint of a smile. "I'm okay." I squeezed her hand and took the opportunity to shift the conversation, "Hey, have you seen Peter?"

Pepper straightened up and her face blanked as if she were taken off guard. "Peter?"

Odd. To react like that was...as if Peter didn't exist. He's around the tower nearly all the time. It was hard not to know who he was. Especially when Tony went on his spouts and stories about their technology, such as their new hearing aid prototypes for the Barton Fund. I narrowed my eyes and drawled, "Yeeaahhh...Peter Parker? One of Tony's lab partners?"

A light turned on upstairs in Pepper's mind. Her features brightened instantly. "Oh, right! He came by yesterday, but didn't say when he would be back." She laughed it off in an attempt to recover and waved her hand. "It's been a long day."

I chuckled a bit and stopped searching her expression. Doubt implanted itself in my heart; I remained cautious of my surroundings. My body screamed for rest, but I knew deep in the back of my mind that something was severely wrong. I had to figure out what that was. "Oh...Okay."

Pepper moved her mouth to say something, but Steve called me from the other room. Something important on the news. A part of me wishes I hadn't.

"It has been brought to our attention that someone is performing heroic justice across the city. The civilians have started calling the vigilante Hawkeye, per use of the old fashioned bow and arrow. Although, it's not the man the city used to know. It is someone new. No descriptions yet other than she is a young woman. Other civilians have refused the name and coined her Knightress."