How do you heal?

Chapter 80: All It Takes Is Time

"Yes, mom, I'm okay. No, we are at the hotel getting our stuff. Yes, we are going to stay at the house tonight. Yeah, I'll come by in the morning, I just need a night. I love you too." Annie hung up and slid her phone into her pocket.

"She try to get you to go back to the house tonight?" Pietro asked as he zipped up their last bag.

"Yeah and I get it. But after the week I have had I just want to spend tonight at my house, around a fire pit, with the two people I love most in the world...and Loki, he's welcome to join if he's not working."

Pietro stopped in his tracks and looked at her, a grin growing on his face. The two people I love most in the world. He knew, realistically he knew she meant it in the same way that she loved Alex but it still felt nice to hear. Annie told Alex she loved her all the time but she'd never said as much to him one way or the other. He opened his mouth to speak but Alex walked in, cutting him off. "And what about Sam? Do I need to tell him to head back to New York with the others tonight?"

"I figured it was just understood he goes where you go, like a little purse poodle."

"I like to think he's more of a teacup chihuahua, small and adorable but scrappy." Alex dropped her bag on the bed, hand resting on top.

"Speaking of scrappy," Annie moved across the room and picked up Alex's hand, examining the scraped knuckles. "When are you going to stop punching people for me?"

Alex pulled her hand back and unphased said, "When you start punching them yourself or when they stop deserving to get punched."

"You don't even know what he did. How do you know it was deserving of a punch?"

"I warned him if he hurt you again I'd hurt him. The what doesn't matter, it's the fact he did something." Alex eyed Pietro standing at the desk behind Annie. "For verification's sake though, what did he do? Just in case he deserves another few whacks."

Annie smiled sadly and shook her head. "Like you said, the what doesn't matter. Just know that I am done letting James Buchanan Barnes, and Cherry Harris or anyone else like them, have any effect on my life."

"Wait," Alex said, raising a finger. "You mean to tell me this whole time you were letting a guy with a middle name like Buchanan make you sad? That is absolutely ridiculous. What kind of name is that anyways!"

Annie laughed and walked back to the desk grabbing her bag. "It's not like he got to pick it, Lex. Now let's go, I want to stop and get take out on the way to the house."

When they got to the house about an hour later Loki hurried out the door and walked up to Annie and gave her a hug.

"Annie, I heard what happened today and I am so sorry. I wish I could have been there to put a dagger through that woman's heart."

Annie took the hug happily. "It's fine, Loki. I understand why you couldn't be there, secret identity and all, but how'd you hear?" She asked, turning to Alex with a questioning but Alex shook her head.

"I told him." Thor said as he stepped outside to join them. "Some of the other Avengers are coming with Sam to drop him off and to check on you so I wanted to warn him. I also wanted to fill you in on what happened after you left."

"Who all is coming and when are they getting here?" Annie said a slight panic in her voice as she started pulling Loki back towards the house.

"And what happened?" Alex asked.

"Rogers, Wanda and Vision I think. Nat and Bucky flew the Barton's home on the quinjet and will swing by to pick up the others on the way back to New York. Banner and Rhodey left with Tony on his jet not too long ago. I suspect they don't plan on telling you what happened until you get back to the compound."

"What happened?" Annie and Alex asked in unison as they walked into the living room.

Thor looked around, obviously uncomfortable.

"Just tell her, brother. You need to be gone before the others get here."

"Annie, Tony convinced them to allow Wanda to wipe you from your mothers memory so she won't bother you any more."

Annie was stunned. After the fight with Bucky she had sworn to herself she was done letting people like Cherry, and Cherry herself, have an effect on her. Of course she had the fear that Cherry would show up one day and she wasn't sure how she would face it but it had happened and she' made it through, not unscathed but she'd made it. Now though, knowing that was the last time, that never again would she have to face the woman who'd ruined so much of her she felt...free. She let out a choked laugh.

"Are you okay, Солнышко?" Pietro cupped her face in his hands.

"I don't think I've ever been better."

Several hours later Thor had left and the others had come and gone leaving Sam and as predicted no one had mentioned what they had done with her mom. It was nearing two in the morning and they had just put out the fire and filed into the house. Alex and Sam headed straight to their bedroom and Loki in Iris form went to the bathroom. As Annie placed their empty glasses in the sink and began to lock up, Pietro headed for the hall closet and pulled out a spare blanket. As he walked back down the hall to the couch Annie stopped him.

"What are you doing?" She looked at the blanket in his arms confused.

"Going to bed." He answered with a grin. "Unless you have other plans."

She rolled her eyes but grabbed the blanket and walked it back to the closet and now his face showed the confused expression as she grabbed his hand and pulled him into her room. "You said you'd stay with me as long as I wanted. Plus you just spent the last week sharing a hotel bed with me, seems unfair to make you sleep on an uncomfortable now."