I Thought You Were Different: Part 6

Fatherhood

Both Sam and Bucky had been through remarkable battles, had faced death, come back from it, and faced it again, but none of that felt quite like the hit to the chest they were taking now as they stared helplessly at their daughter.  They could stand pain to remarkable lengths and never hesitated to face it again at the promise of protecting their loved ones, but when the pain was caused by one of them, they never wanted to feel this way again for any reason. 

"You want to move out?" Bucky asked first, his voice cracking uncontrollably.  "Is it something we did?"

"No!  Dad, no, it's nothing you did, I swear!" Becca answered emphatically.  "You two are the best parents anyone could ever want, I promise!  It's just...I-I think it's best...if I go to Xavier's for a while.  Until things with you and Uncle Steve get figured out.  After what happened in the kitchen this morning...what if it's because of me?"

"How could it be because of you, sweetie?" Sam joined in.  "That's ridiculous."

"Really?  You heard what happened right?"

"Yes, we did.  But Becs, you move metal.  This is something going wrong with the serum in their blood. That's not in your wheelhouse of powers."

Becca grimaced slightly and turned to face away, staring out the large window that overlooked the lake behind the compound.  It was a view that she had grown up with, in a room right next to theirs so that they would always be close by if she needed them.  Her dads were always there for her, and she would miss that too.  Maybe it wouldn't be forever, but maybe it would, and she had already begun to prepare herself for that.  "Uncle Viz and Aunt Wanda talked to Uncle Bruce before you got home.  I overheard them in the conference room."

"And?" Bucky asked immediately, shifting forward in his seat.  He knew exactly what Banner had brought up without needing to ask, but he wanted to hear it for himself.  He also wanted to know why anyone felt it right to talk about it where his daughter could hear, before he had the chance to do it himself.  "What about?"

"He's working with Dr. Cho and Shuri, and they've all come up with the same answer," Becca whispered, still turned away.  She didn't want them to see the tears building up in her eyes with every word spoken. "It's my fault, Dad.  They think I'm pulling the serum apart."

Now Sam was growing just as upset as Bucky was, leaning in closer as well, "what the hell does that mean? How is that even possible?"

"There's Iridium in the serum that Uncle Steve and Dad have, and not in Aunt (Y/N).  That's why she's still okay.  I'm not hurting her."

"And you're not hurting me either, doll," Bucky argued vehemently.  "Don't you believe this until we know for sure, alright?  If that's what's happening, then we'll deal with it, but we know that it's not on purpose.  You don't have to leave your home because of this.  I'm going to make sure of that."

"It's already done," she nodded definitively.  "Brooke is going to take me back this evening-"

"Now hold on just a minute-"

"No, Dad, I'm going," Becca snapped, finally looking at them both.  Her expression was suddenly aging her, looking so much more mature than her gentle ten years of age.  It was their fault, they supposed, making her so strong and determined in how they raised her; it didn't escape their notice that she looked so much like you in her resolve.  They had never once doubted their decision to ask you to give them a child, but for just a second, it gave them pause to know that she was just as stubborn as you were. "The Professor has called Erik to meet with me again once I get there.  He thinks that something might have been awakened in me when I worked with him before I came back home.  The only way for me to know for sure is to go back.  I don't know how long I'll be there, but I'm going to stay as long as I have to so that you and Uncle Steve are safe from me.  It's the only way that I can protect you, and you can't change my mind."