I Thought You Were Different: Part 5

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The door to the conference room opened urgently, and Steve rushed in, stopping in his tracks just inside the room when Brooklyn turned to look at him, but her eyes were darker and unaffected, as if she barely knew him. The girl who was looking back at him now wasn't his daughter, and Allie's words about Anthony rang in his mind again, louder than they first were. "What's happening?" he asked Vision, though his own gaze never left his daughter.

"You can't stop this," Brooklyn answered instead. "Destiny halts for no one. Not even you, Steven Rogers."

"Steve," you gasped from just behind him, grabbing his arm, "what do we do?"

Sam and Bucky took a stand at the door, blocking any attempt that the kids might make to leave, but Anthony's hand raised ever so slightly, a force emanating from it that pushed the duo to the ground. The young man didn't even look in their direction, or act as if it were a distraction in the least. Wanda tried next, her hands glowing despite her hesitance to hurt any of them, but Grant took the next action, a burst of flame blinding her and pushing her back against the wall.

"Anthony, stop," Steve commanded, but he quickly met the same fate as his friends, being pushed down to kneel in front of his son. You wanted to step forward and help, but you still had your freedom, and as fleeting as it might be now, you had to try to keep it.

"I thought that mangy mutt made it clear to you, Captain. This isn't Anthony."

"Dad," you whispered, "where's Stephen?"

Brooklyn stood slowly from her chair, with nothing from the commotion in the room stopping her from turning her focus back on Vision. She took careful steps around the table, away from you and Tony, the only two who were still free, until your stupid father took a leap of faith in his granddaughter and pushed himself between her and her mission.

"Baby, don't do this," he urged, trying desperately to connect with some part of her, if he could reach that far. "Whoever is doing this to you, push back."

"Oh, I'll push, Tony Stark," she sneered, raising a hand to throw him against the wall with a resounding hit that left him unconscious and sliding down into a still heap. Her hand turned and aimed to Vision next, and his body stiffened, his arms pinned to his sides. "This might hurt," she smiled coldly, "but I'll try to be expedient in your demise."

"(Y/N)! Please!" Wanda cried out, unable to stop the attack that Grant waged against her; each time she attempted to quell the flames that pushed her back, they only grew stronger and risked hurting more than just herself. "Please, make her stop!"

Brooklyn's hand raised towards Vision's head, and your adrenaline kicked in; there was no thought process, no decision making, only pure reflex as you grabbed her wrist and spun her, flipping your daughter over your head and onto the conference room table with enough force to crack the wood beneath her. Anthony and Grant startled at the sound, looking to their sister in horror. Anthony's hold on Sam, Bucky, and Steve released, and the flames that Grant was feeding died away. Vision shuddered as his body was his again, and the blackness that had washed over Brooklyn's eyes diminished until the color was her own.

"Mom?" she groaned, painfully. She tried to move and take a breath, but it was met only with a sharp wince of pain, your arm still pressing her firmly into the table. "What...what happened?"

~~~

It took a long time before you and Steve would join the team in the conference room again, with everyone gathered together to talk about what had just happened. Even with the two of you sitting in the room next door, with one wall separating you, they would wait as long as they needed to; during your absence, they talked about what this has to be doing to you both, with your children under attack and with no idea from who. Stephen had arrived just as the attack had stopped, and he promised the best explanation that he could find; even with a possible answer in the room only a few feet away, you couldn't get yourself to move towards it.