Life was definitely moving at a decent lick on Maple Grove, especially around the Storm/Rogers/Prescott triad of homes. With permission from Humphrey Granger, as well as a donated building on the grounds of the Grove, Steve and Lucy were already working on remodeling the place for a school, and putting out feelers to families with children possessed of certain types of innate ability, as well as to any teachers who felt up to the challenge they were going to present them. Colin had been all but ordered to turn his attention onto IT security and networking for the school in progress, and Natasha seemed certain to take on one of those teaching roles. Liv was offering up her organizational abilities to keep her sister and brother-in-law from flying apart at the seams, and Johnny had a whole host of connections to draw upon in the creation of a safe environment for young children with such talents.
And that was just the professional side of things.
Liv might still have been a little shell-shocked from Fliss and Lucas' visit a few hours earlier, but with the younger children all off enjoying themselves with friends and the twins stolen by Miranda Granger for an afternoon, she felt as though she had time to process.
"So ....should we tell Steve and Lucy?" she asked her husband, stroking her fingers through his hair.
"About the wedding or the fact that we missed something?" he asked, though they should probably share both bits of news, as they were equally important, if for very different reasons. They'd made every effort to wipe Hydra from the face of the Earth - literally - and still they seemed to have missed something.
"Well, obviously the second part," she pointed out. "But good news tends to temper the bad news. And it isn't bad news yet. With this sort of warning, we can ask our friends on Earth to look into Senator Foster and his connections and perhaps stop this before it happens at all."
"Yeah," Johnny agreed, frowning a little, despite the fact that his wife's fingers were tangled in his hair. "But Steve is gonna be pissed. He thought we got them all, and he's gonna be pissed when he finds out we didn't."
"Would you rather he be pissed at Hydra for still being active, or at us for not telling him we knew?" Liv countered gently. She knew she was worse than useless when it came to things like this, but she could at least keep Johnny's mind level.
"No, we have to tell him," Johnny said, and the sooner the better. "I guess that answers your question, huh?" he said. It wasn't so much Steve's anger that worried Johnny as the simple fact that Hydra was still out there, operating somewhere under the radar.
"They're going to be underpowered," Liv pointed out, giving him a gentle tug up onto his feet. "Far fewer resources. Why else would they still be operating with such secrecy?"
"I know, but ....If Lucas' father is part of Hydra, that means they might know about Rhy'Din," Johnny reasoned. It all depended, he supposed, on how much Jessica Foster had told her ex-husband about her family's origins.
"It's a big might," Liv reminded him. "Can you imagine trying to explain to anyone over there that Rhy'Din exists, much less everything else that entails?"
"So far, it doesn't seem like they know about Rhy'Din, but they could be bidding their time," Johnny pointed out. There was just no way to know for sure without digging deeper. He moved to his feet, his hand still in Liv's. "No, you're right. We need to talk to Steve. Maybe he can send a few A.E.G.I.S. agents to investigate."
"I don't think that is a maybe, sweetheart," she answered, smiling gently as she drew him toward the back door. "A.E.G.I.S. can find out the details. This may not be an imminent threat, either. It was a fortune reading; they don't seem to give accurate timelines."
"Maybe she was wrong," Johnny said, hopefully. He wasn't sure what Steve was going to say when they told him their intel had come from a fortuneteller, but it was better to be safe than sorry.
"We can but hope." She pulled him close, hugging her arms about his waist for a long moment. "But more importantly ....how does it feel to know you'll be walking your daughter down the aisle before Christmas?"
He chuckled at that, as he returned her embrace. "Honestly' It feels weird. How'd she grow up so fast?" he asked, though to be fair, Fliss was already a teenager when they'd adopted her.
"She's still growing," Liv mused. "And she's always going to need her father, one way or another. Still, it'll be funny to see Tony's reaction when he finds out - especially if it happens on his wedding day."
"Yeah, but ..." Johnny frowned as he realized something. "I'm not sure if I'm ready to be a grandpa yet." He had only just turned thirty-two, after all.
Liv laughed, shaking her head. "Have a little faith in your little girl," she suggested. "I highly doubt Fliss is going to want to have children while she's in university, do you? You have at least three years to prepare yourself for that."
"Izzy and Marnie will be aunts before they get to kindergarten!" Johnny pointed out, though he'd always known this was a possibility when they'd adopted Fliss. He'd known she was already a teenager and that they wouldn't have her for long before she grew up, but that hadn't stopped them from adopting her or from loving her, and it wouldn't stop them now. "I'm gonna get old before my time," he muttered with a sigh.
"You'll always be my Sparky," his wife teased, rising onto her toes to growl into his ear impishly. "Besides ....what?s wrong with being a foxy grandad?"
"Means I'm old," he said, though he really wasn't. Besides, wasn't age just a number, especially on Rhy'Din. "Tell Fliss she has to wait until I'm at least forty before having kids!"
"Oh, no, you get to tell her that," she laughed, prodding his stomach. "I am not your shield against the wrath of Felicity, Johnny Storm!"
"Oh, come on, Liv. As parents, we're supposed to be united!" he said, having heard that somewhere, though he couldn't remember where. Probably Dr. Phil.
"United, yes," she agreed, pulling him outside. "Not using each other as human shields when we deliberately antagonize the children." But she was still laughing, tucking her arm about his waist as they headed down the porch steps and across the grass toward the Rogers' house.
And that was just the professional side of things.
Liv might still have been a little shell-shocked from Fliss and Lucas' visit a few hours earlier, but with the younger children all off enjoying themselves with friends and the twins stolen by Miranda Granger for an afternoon, she felt as though she had time to process.
"So ....should we tell Steve and Lucy?" she asked her husband, stroking her fingers through his hair.
"About the wedding or the fact that we missed something?" he asked, though they should probably share both bits of news, as they were equally important, if for very different reasons. They'd made every effort to wipe Hydra from the face of the Earth - literally - and still they seemed to have missed something.
"Well, obviously the second part," she pointed out. "But good news tends to temper the bad news. And it isn't bad news yet. With this sort of warning, we can ask our friends on Earth to look into Senator Foster and his connections and perhaps stop this before it happens at all."
"Yeah," Johnny agreed, frowning a little, despite the fact that his wife's fingers were tangled in his hair. "But Steve is gonna be pissed. He thought we got them all, and he's gonna be pissed when he finds out we didn't."
"Would you rather he be pissed at Hydra for still being active, or at us for not telling him we knew?" Liv countered gently. She knew she was worse than useless when it came to things like this, but she could at least keep Johnny's mind level.
"No, we have to tell him," Johnny said, and the sooner the better. "I guess that answers your question, huh?" he said. It wasn't so much Steve's anger that worried Johnny as the simple fact that Hydra was still out there, operating somewhere under the radar.
"They're going to be underpowered," Liv pointed out, giving him a gentle tug up onto his feet. "Far fewer resources. Why else would they still be operating with such secrecy?"
"I know, but ....If Lucas' father is part of Hydra, that means they might know about Rhy'Din," Johnny reasoned. It all depended, he supposed, on how much Jessica Foster had told her ex-husband about her family's origins.
"It's a big might," Liv reminded him. "Can you imagine trying to explain to anyone over there that Rhy'Din exists, much less everything else that entails?"
"So far, it doesn't seem like they know about Rhy'Din, but they could be bidding their time," Johnny pointed out. There was just no way to know for sure without digging deeper. He moved to his feet, his hand still in Liv's. "No, you're right. We need to talk to Steve. Maybe he can send a few A.E.G.I.S. agents to investigate."
"I don't think that is a maybe, sweetheart," she answered, smiling gently as she drew him toward the back door. "A.E.G.I.S. can find out the details. This may not be an imminent threat, either. It was a fortune reading; they don't seem to give accurate timelines."
"Maybe she was wrong," Johnny said, hopefully. He wasn't sure what Steve was going to say when they told him their intel had come from a fortuneteller, but it was better to be safe than sorry.
"We can but hope." She pulled him close, hugging her arms about his waist for a long moment. "But more importantly ....how does it feel to know you'll be walking your daughter down the aisle before Christmas?"
He chuckled at that, as he returned her embrace. "Honestly' It feels weird. How'd she grow up so fast?" he asked, though to be fair, Fliss was already a teenager when they'd adopted her.
"She's still growing," Liv mused. "And she's always going to need her father, one way or another. Still, it'll be funny to see Tony's reaction when he finds out - especially if it happens on his wedding day."
"Yeah, but ..." Johnny frowned as he realized something. "I'm not sure if I'm ready to be a grandpa yet." He had only just turned thirty-two, after all.
Liv laughed, shaking her head. "Have a little faith in your little girl," she suggested. "I highly doubt Fliss is going to want to have children while she's in university, do you? You have at least three years to prepare yourself for that."
"Izzy and Marnie will be aunts before they get to kindergarten!" Johnny pointed out, though he'd always known this was a possibility when they'd adopted Fliss. He'd known she was already a teenager and that they wouldn't have her for long before she grew up, but that hadn't stopped them from adopting her or from loving her, and it wouldn't stop them now. "I'm gonna get old before my time," he muttered with a sigh.
"You'll always be my Sparky," his wife teased, rising onto her toes to growl into his ear impishly. "Besides ....what?s wrong with being a foxy grandad?"
"Means I'm old," he said, though he really wasn't. Besides, wasn't age just a number, especially on Rhy'Din. "Tell Fliss she has to wait until I'm at least forty before having kids!"
"Oh, no, you get to tell her that," she laughed, prodding his stomach. "I am not your shield against the wrath of Felicity, Johnny Storm!"
"Oh, come on, Liv. As parents, we're supposed to be united!" he said, having heard that somewhere, though he couldn't remember where. Probably Dr. Phil.
"United, yes," she agreed, pulling him outside. "Not using each other as human shields when we deliberately antagonize the children." But she was still laughing, tucking her arm about his waist as they headed down the porch steps and across the grass toward the Rogers' house.