"She's got her father's eyes," Nat murmured, setting her coffee cup aside just in time.

Lara scrambled up out of Alyona's lap and threw herself into Nat's for a hug before crawling over and into Steve's lap. "We gon' go home, Unca Steve?"

Steve couldn't help but smile down at this adorable little girl that was a mini-Natasha. Even if he couldn't be her father, she already had a place in his heart, and he'd make sure she had a place in his life. "Soon as your mother is ready, sweetheart," he assured her.

Lara's hopeful face turned toward Nat, who chuckled.

"Just give me a second, kiddo," she told the little girl. "I just gotta have a quick chat with Aly."

Lara sighed exaggeratedly, turning her attention back to Steve. "Can I have a sweetie?"

"A sweetie?" Steve echoed, a mild look of panic on his face to be left alone with the girl. "I, uh ....Jarvis, can you tell me where we can find some sweets?" he asked the ever-present A.I. who was always listening.

"I believe Agent Wilson keeps a selection of candies in the coffee jar on his personal shelf in the kitchen, Captain Rogers," JARVIS offered helpfully. "I surmise he would not notice one going missing."

"Thanks, Jarvis," Steve told the disembodied voice that was the A.I. before placing Lara on her feet and offering his hand. "Shall we go steal some of Uncle Sam's sweets?" he asked as he, too, moved to his feet, towering over the small girl.

Lara giggled, her little hand easily sliding into Steve's larger palm as she bounced on her toes. "Unca Sam is a birdie," she informed him cheerfully, apparently with no qualms about stealing said birdie's treats.

"Well, he does have wings," Steve confirmed, reminding himself that this sweet little girl was only three years old. He wasn't entirely sure what Alyona put in her head, but he hoped he'd be able to handle any questions she might ask.

It seemed as though Lara at least knew her way around the Avenger's Mansion, almost leading the way out of the common room and into the kitchen without needing to be told where to turn. In there, they found Tony sat at the counter, steaming coffee in one hand, complex blueprints in the other.

Lara abandoned Steve to go and hug Iron Man's leg. "'Lo, Unca Tony!"

Tony blinked, looking down at the munchkin on his leg, and looked up at Steve. "Did I miss something?"

"She's been with Alyona," Steve explained, hoping Tony would put two and two together. "We're taking her home in a bit, but someone was hoping for a sweet, so we thought we'd come raid Sam's candy jar."

"Unca Steve gonna be a ninja like Mama," Lara agreed solemnly, smiling up at Tony as he snorted with laughter.

"Now this, I have to see," Tony said, bending to lift the little girl up to sit on the counter. "Go to it, Ninja Steve."

Steve laughed. "I don't think Uncle Sam will mind if we steal a few pieces of his candy, do you?" he asked, wondering where Sam had gone, but all of them had homes and loved ones elsewhere, after all.

"You think he knows how many he's got in there?" Tony pointed out. He seemed far less stressed today than he had done yesterday; apparently handing off the problem to Steve and Natasha had let him sleep. "So long as you leave him a handful, he'll never remember. Or he'll blame it on Tinkerbell."

That was more than Steve had done, anyway. "Well, if Sam is so worried about his candy, he shouldn't leave it where other people can pilfer it," Steve reasoned, as he reached for the coffee jar to open it and peruse the contents. Maybe it was Sam's personal shelf, but he didn't think the man would mind, considering he was pilfering for a three-year-old.

"Tinkerbell?" Lara asked hopefully, but that was Tony's mess to fix.

"Not the real thing, munchkin," he told her, tapping the end of her nose. "I call Aly Tinkerbell, 'cos she's a fairy in disguise."

Lara's big blue eyes went wide with amazed delight.

Steve smirked, as Tony somehow managed to get himself in deeper, wondering how he was going to explain that remark. "You like Tootsie Rolls?" he asked, holding one and rolling of the little wrapped chocolate flavored chewy candies between two fingers.

Distracted by candy, Lara's head snapped around to look at Steve. "Yes pwease, Unca Steve," she said, proving that manners had certainly been drilled into her, no matter her background.

"How about you, Uncle Tony?" Steve asked, hoping Sam wouldn't miss three pieces of candy. He carefully unwrapped one of the candies before handing it to Lara. "We'll bring some for Uncle Sam next time we visit," he promised.

"Yes pwease, Unca Steve," Tony parroted Lara, grinning as the toddler erupted into cackling giggles. He watched her take the candy, putting a finger over her mouth before she could devour it. "What do you say?" he asked. Apparently Pepper had been working on this with him.

Lara rolled her eyes as only very young children can, and sighed. "Thank you, Unca Steve. Can I have now?"

"Yes, you can have now," Steve said, smiling back at her. He wouldn't have cared if she'd thanked him, but apparently, Tony was taking manners seriously for a change. He held out another candy for Tony, waiting for him to say the appropriate words, as well.

"Thank you, Uncle Steve." Tony held out his hand, just like a small child, the look on his face betraying just how much he was enjoying teasing Steve so innocently for once. Having a child of his own was just going to make this a more recurrent event, clearly. Lara giggled through her mouthful of candy, clapping her hands together at the silly display.

"Look at you, all sticky," she declared. "Which uncle am I gonna spank?"

"Guilty as charged," Steve said, raising a hand, though he doubted Nat would dare spank him. He had been the one to give her the candy. "She wanted some sweets, and I'm a pushover," he said in his own defense.

"You're such a soft touch," she accused affectionately, hugging the toddler on her hip. "Everything under control here now?" She glanced between the two men, a part of her trying to put off taking Lara home and introducing the little girl to her new father and sister.

"Yeah," Steve replied, debating whether he should mention Tony's blueprints and deciding against it for now. "Just saying our goodbyes." It was probably obvious he was holding something back. If Steve Rogers was anything it was honest; he was a terrible liar.

"Uh-huh." The look on Nat's face assured him she knew she wasn't being told the whole truth, but she let it pass. "Thanks for getting on this so fast, Tony," she added. "Appreciate it."

Tony nodded to her. "She's cute," was all he said, but the nod was enough.

"Ready, kiddo?" Steve asked, with a glance at Lara. He had mixed feelings about going home. While he missed his wife and family, it was going to take a little while for him to get used to the fact that someone else was raising his daughter. He had complete faith in Nat though, and knew this was for the best.

Lara nodded, still hugging Nat about the neck. She might not know what was waiting for her at home, but she had her Mama and her Uncle Steve, and they would keep her safe. Alyona's gentle readjustment of her memories had worked perfectly.

"You have everything?" Steve asked Nat. They hadn't really brought much with them but the clothes on their backs, seeing as how they had extra clothes at the mansion.

"Everything we came for, yeah," she assured him. "Gonna need to borrow a few things from you and Luce for a couple of days until we get set up, but we're good to go."

"No problem," he assured her, tossing Tony a wave before turning to lead the way toward the exit, back the way they'd come the day before. "We're happy to help. You're not in this alone, Nat. And don't forget about our extended family. I'm sure Humphrey would love another grand-daughter."

"Let's start small?" she suggested, grinning as Lara waved to Tony over her shoulder. "We've got a little settling in to get over before we start expanding the circle again."

Steve smiled, both at Nat's suggestion and Lara's wave. "Yeah, okay. Just ....We're family, you know?" he said, needing her to know and understand that. It was hard for him to say sometimes, to get sentimental, but he hoped she knew how much she meant to him. Like she'd said, family wasn't always measured in blood.

"I know," she promised. "I might not be good at saying it, but I do feel it, Steve. Like I said, you're my brother. Blood's got nothing to do with it."

"Where we goin'?" Lara asked suddenly, looking around the garden.

"We're going home," Steve told her, though that wasn't much of an explanation. "It's kind of like magic, but you have to close your eyes first," he said, as they made their way into the garden, well away from the mansion.

"You know how you got here yesterday, sweetie?" Nat explained. "We're going to do something like that. Home is on the other side." Lara nodded, her eyes wide, holding on just a little tighter. Even having her memories slightly tinkered with hadn't erased the fear of what had happened to bring her here.

"Will you feel better if we all hold hands?" Steve asked. It hardly mattered whether she thought of him as her uncle or not. It didn't even matter much if he was her birth father or not. From the look on his face, it was obvious that he cared.

The nod this time was more vehement, one hand untangling from Nat's neck to reach out to Steve.

"It's okay," Nat murmured to her as they approached the designated area in the gardens. "You're safe."

"We won't let anything happen to you," Steve promised, along with Nat. He moved closer and gave her hand a gentle reassuring squeeze. "Ready?" he asked, a warm smile on his face, as if they weren't about to travel through what amounted to a wormhole in reality.

"You comin' wiv me, yeah?" a tiny voice asked, small hands clinging to both of them in defiance of any attempt to let go.

Nat rubbed her cheek against the red curls, meeting Steve's eyes but letting him answer.

"Yes, ma'am," Steve replied, his smile widening. "That's why we're holding hands." He reached over to brush a finger against her cheek, his fingers straying to brush against her eyelids. "Now, close your eyes and together, we'll count to five. Ready?" he asked, waiting for her to do as he asked before activating the device.

Still looking worried and holding on tightly. Lara squeezed her eyes shut obediently. Nat winced as the grip on her neck turned into a tight fistful of her hair, but let it go for now. This had to be scary for the little girl.

"Okay, sweetie," she said. "One, two ..."

"Three, four, five ..." Steve counted, just before he activated the device, opening the portal that would take them to Rhy'Din. He gave Nat a nod to indicate he was ready, and together the three of them stepped through.

The sucking, fast-motion-no-movement sensation of the portal was somehow heightened while holding a frightened little girl, but it was over in less than three seconds, the three of them stood beneath the trees in Maple Grove, a layer of snow on the ground and the sound of children playing in the not too far distance.

Nat smiled, kissing Lara's hair. "We made it, kiddo."

Steve drew a deep breath - something he always did after traveling that way. He might not admit it out loud, but he wasn't overly fond of portal hopping. He looked around at their surroundings, smiling with relief to know they were home.

The little girl nodded happily, giggling as Coco's wet nose brushed her leg. "Does Papa make good cocoa?" she asked Nat, who grinned.

"I think he does," she told Lara fondly. "Better than me, right, Ali?"

"Co-co!" Ali exclaimed, lunging toward her sister and her mother so that Colin had to hold tight to keep her from falling out of his arms. It was hard to tell whether the toddler was excited about the dog or about having hot chocolate though.

Colin chuckled again, lowering Alia to her feet. "Why don't you girls play with Coco a bit while your mother and I get the drinks ready?" he suggested.

Lara looked uncertain as Nat lowered her down. "It's okay, munchkin," Nat promised her. "We're home, and if you need us, all you gotta do is yell. Besides, Alia really wants to show you the playroom, I'll bet."

The toddler's eyes widened; a whole room for playing in was worth a bit of an adventure. She shyly took Alia's hand, the two girls toddling off as Nat straightened up.

Colin watched quietly to see how the two girls would react to each other, but he had no doubt they'd be best friends in no time and was relieved to see them happily toddle off together. He wasn't fooling himself though; he knew it was going to take Lara a little time to get adjusted to her new life here.

"If she were younger, she could almost pass for Alia's twin," he remarked, as Coco hurried after the two girls, tail wagging.

"Mmm." Nat turned to him, her expression concerned. "You don't have to pretend you're okay with this right from the start," she told him quietly. "I know it's a lot. But I don't know what else we could have done."

"Who says I'm pretending?" Colin said, darting a glance in the direction the girls had gone to ensure they wouldn't overhear their parents' conversation. "I get it, Nat. And you know what?" he said, reaching to draw her into his arms. "You wouldn't be you if you didn't want to help," he said, touching a kiss to her nose.

She smiled, going into his arms without a moment's hesitation. "I love you," she murmured. "What did I do to deserve a husband who gets me so easily, huh?"

He shrugged, his smile widening. "You met me?" he asked, as though that in itself was enough. "Seriously, Nat. She's just a little girl. What kind of person would I be if I turned my back on her" Besides, she's your daughter, whether you birthed her or not. She belongs with you."

"She's our daughter," she corrected him gently. "Steve might struggle with it a bit, but she knows him as her uncle now, not her dad. You're her dad, Col, and she's been really looking forward to meeting you."

"I know," he said, his smile fading as he turned serious. "How's he handling it?" he asked, thinking how hard it must be for the man to let another man raise his daughter, though in truth, Lara belonged to a Steve and Nat from another universe. It was a lot to wrap their heads around, but what was most important to them all was Lara's well being.

She sighed. "He's putting on a good face, but I know it's got to be hard for him," she said in a low tone. "Hopefully he'll be able to talk it all out with Lucy, and find his calm again. He's angry and frustrated that we couldn't do anything to help her real parents."

"Do we know what happened to them?" he asked, pushing a stray lock of red hair away from her face if only as an excuse to touch her.

Nat drew in a shaken breath. "Seems as though, on their side of the portal, this Thanos guy was waging war on Earth, and winning," she said reluctantly. "Steve saw it through Alyona's memory of what she saw in Lara's memory. They were completely overwhelmed."

"Bloody hell," Colin murmured, his frown deepening. "I assume we've taken precautions against that happening on our Earth," he said. Though he didn't say it like a question, he was hoping for confirmation.

"We have," she assured him. "Tony's working on a secondary defense as well. We are not going to let that happen to us. Ever." From the playroom came the sound of two little girls giggling together, drawing a smile to her face. "At least we won't need to worry about those two getting along."

"No, I think that's the least of our worries," Colin replied. "I guess I better make good on my promise for hot cocoa though," he said, touching another kiss to her lips, this one lingering a little more than the last.

"Mmm, that was what you promised," she agreed, though she was in no hurry to let go. She truly had missed him, even during one night away. "I guess I should prep for bathing the girls this evening, too."

"That might be best, until Lara gets to know me better," Colin agreed. "All of this is going to be harder on her than on us. We need to do everything we can to make her feel comfortable ....and loved," he said, needing her to know that they were in this together.

"She's young enough that, in a few months, this will be her reality, and the old world just a bad dream," Nat murmured. "We just have to make it through the nightmares and the adjustments. And we can do that, together."

"It seems our little family just got bigger," Colin said, smiling again. "And you didn't even have to go through nine months of pregnancy to do it," he teased. It wasn't that he took any of this lightly, but he knew how important this was, not only to Nat, but to Lara, too.

She laughed softly, glad he was taking this so much better than she had thought he might. "It still could happen again," she warned. "But we just got a little more saving grace time before that decision gets made."

"Well, I wouldn't mind having a son someday, but I think two kids under three is enough for now," he told her, relieved to see her laugh. "It's gonna be okay, Nat. Promise," he assured her, sealing that promise with another kiss. "Now, if you don't mind, I promised two little redheads some hot cocoa."

"You did," she agreed, hugging him close for just a moment longer. "I'll go and get the basket ready to throw them in the bath later on." It was still only around lunchtime, but one thing Nat had learned about being a mom was making sure she was prepared ahead of time for almost anything.

"I don't think she's the only one." Nat nodded to Lara, who had definitely slowed down in her chewing as she nodded in her own chair. "C'mere, you." Lifting the older toddler onto her own lap, she helped Lara drink from her cup before letting the little girl slump against her. "We can do this, right?"

"If Steve and Lucy can manage six, I think we can handle two," Colin assured her. It wasn't all that long ago that he'd have answered that question differently. He'd never expected to have met someone like her or to have fallen so hard and so fast, but sometimes life surprised you like that.

"Oh, I know you can," she said, rising to her feet with Lara clinging limply to her neck. "Not so sure about me, but I'm stubborn enough to fake it."

"You never give yourself enough credit," Colin said, moving to his feet with the toddler tucked against his shoulder. "Just look at yourself, Nat. You're a natural," he assured her.

"If I ever sound confident about anything but fighting, you'll know I'm not myself," she pointed out in amusement, gently rocking Lara as the little girl relaxed on her shoulder.

"We already have one child, Nat," Colin said, his voice warm and soft and reassuring. "What's one more?" he asked, moving closer to touch a kiss to her lips, the two sleepyheads the only thing coming between them. "What do you say we all take a well-deserved nap?"

"That sounds ....amazing," she agreed. "I missed you last night." Just a year ago, she would never have said that aloud. Colin's influence on his fierce little wife went a lot further than simply getting a ring on her finger.

"All right then," Colin said. "Our room or theirs?" he asked, unsure if she wanted to be alone with him or share their bed with the girls.

"Them in theirs, us in ours," she said. "Start as we mean to go on, right' They need to get used to each other, and she needs to realize sooner rather than later that we're always nearby, even if she can't see us."

"Good point. Shall we?" he asked, gesturing for her to lead the way, intending to be right behind her. He wasn't especially tired really, but he knew the same couldn't be said for her and the girls.

Chuckling at the gentlemanly way he allowed the ladies to go first, Nat lead the way up the stairs and to the girls' bedroom, pausing for just a few moments to appreciate how much had been done in less than 24 hours. Where there had been just one crib and a lot of floor space, now there was another bed and chest of drawers, filled and ready for use.

She glanced over her shoulder at Colin with a smile. "You have been busy."

"Well, I can't take all the credit. I had a lot of help," Colin said quietly, so as not to wake the girls. He had already given Liv credit for most of it, but even she'd had help. He'd just been there to supervise, so to speak.

"That doesn't mean you don't get some of the credit, baby," she pointed out warmly, making her way over to the bed to go down on one knee as she slipped Lara under the covers, little shoes tucked away as the toddler sighed in her sleep. She even automatically hugged her arms around the soft plushie polar bear set next to her pillow as she drifted off.

"I've heard about how efficient Liv can be, but I'd never seen her in action before," Colin said, once again giving Liv all the credit. It was just a bed and dresser and some clothes, but it had come together pretty quickly. He gently laid Alia in her crib, tucking her under a blanket, along with her own plushie in the form of a penguin.

"Sleep sweet, munchkin," Nat murmured to Lara, kissing her brow softly before standing up and moving to do the same for Alia. The girls would be up again in less than two hours, but that little bit of peace was looking like heaven right now.

Confident both girls were sleeping peacefully, he slid an arm around Nat and kissed her on the cheek. "You're a good mother, Nat. They're proof of that," he whispered.

"Never would have happened without you," she whispered back, wrapping her arms about his waist. And yes, she included Lara in that. She would never have taken the girl on if she had still been alone; that she had come to that decision almost without thinking about it said more about Colin than it did about her.

Had he known how she felt, he might have disagreed, but it hardly mattered. The two little girls sleeping contently were proof enough that they both were good parents. Even if Lara had only just arrived, the fact that they cared about her well-being was enough to prove that point.

"Come along, love. Time to tuck you in next," he told her, his whisper of breath soft against her cheek.

"Only if you tuck you in with me," she murmured, only too happy to be drawn out of the room with him. Her sleep the night before had not been particularly restful with Lara in the bed with her. A nap would be very welcome at this point.

"That's the plan," he assured her, as he drew her toward the door, leaving it cracked open behind them so that they could hear if either child needed them. The dishes could wait until later. Nat seemed to need him and she was far more important than a clean kitchen.

As she slowly relaxed for the first time since Steve had told her Tony wanted to see them the day before, Nat began to shake, the shock and trauma of learning everything she had learned in the last 24 hours finally sinking in now she was safe and everything had been seen to. She didn't cry, or bemoan what had happened. She simply crawled into bed with Colin and held on tightly until her whirlwind of feelings died away once again.

Infinitely patient, Colin held her for as long as she needed, murmuring soothingly every now and then, as one might to someone who'd just woken from a nightmare - which was, in a way, just what she'd done. His fingers gently stroked her hair and her back, his body warm and comforting beside hers, his arms strong and capable.

"Sorry," she apologized eventually, relaxing her grip to look up at him, her cheek resting on the pillow. "It's been a hell of a day and night."

"No need to apologize," he reassured her. "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked, offering to listen to whatever she might want to tell him. He knew the events of the last day or so had been a shock for both of them, but more so for her than for him.