**Request for BethanyGregerson where her OC, Lily, has joined the Avengers, but she's hiding something from the team. Peter and Loki, thank goodness, are there to make her feel at home, but what happens when a familiar face turns up and changes everything? I am so sorry I haven't been very active, as some of you guys know, I am in school and finals were massive this term. I had a professor who assigned a 30-100 page essay! And COVID-19 isn't making me any less stressed, so... Anyways, enough of that. Enjoy!**

"I am so tired of you people," Fury mumbled, holding his head in his hands.

Tony was leaned back in his chair, his usual look of carelessness plastered on his face. Steve and Clint were arguing, both leaning over the wide, sleek table, hands pressed to the tabletop with such force, they were white. Natasha looked on in amusement, chiming in whenever she felt like spiraling the argument into another frenzy of shouting. Bucky was trying to hold Steve back, but with their strength nearly matched, the super solider kept slipping out of Bucky's hold, and in the end, it just looked like Bucky was an unfortunate dog-walker, whose job it was to control a Mastiff puppy.

"Are they always like this?" Lily asked, pushing a strand of chestnut hair out of her eyes. Peter looked up from his homework, and Bruce looked up from his book.

"Yeah, usually," Peter said with a smile. The scientist shrugged at went back to his book.

"They just don't seem like the world's mightiest heroes like this," Lily said, plucking a piece of lint from her tee-shirt and looking around the room again.

Peter laughed, throwing his head back for a moment. "Yeah, in public they are always so put together and poised, but up here? Yeah, no way."

The two teens giggled for a moment, watching as the whole meeting devolved into chaos, before Peter cleared his throat and ducked his head, like he was about to ask something embarrassing.

"So, uh, okay- okay- so are- let me start again," Peter took a breath. "Have you thought at all about telling the team?"

Lily shook her head violently. "No."

Peter opened his mouth to say something, but Lily cut him off.

"No. I can't, Peter. You know I can't."

Peter huffed slightly, turning his eyes back to his work.

It's okay, Lily reminded herself silently. It's okay. Peter knows people like me, he knows mutants. He's not going to tell anyone.

Lily was always stressed about someone finding out about her secret. The 'M' word. Mutant. When her parents had found out, they'd nearly lost it. The asked for a child, a daughter, not a freak. Not some genetically messed up weirdo. It wasn't long after that, after they found out, after Lily was locked in her room and forgotten, that the girl had run away.

The team was still fighting when Fury cleared his throat in that way that made the room go deadly quiet.

"Sorry to interrupt your little domestic-"

Natasha let a giggle escape her lips at that one.

"-but we are getting reports of an attack on downtown Manhattan. I need you to get the rest of the team and head down there, eyewitnesses and surveillance is telling us it's a big one. You'll need heavy backup."

The call disconnected quickly, leaving no one any time to ask questions.

"I'm contacting Thor and Loki," Tony said, rushing out of the room.

"Suit up!" Steve led the group out of the room, each one scattering to get their weapons and suits.

Bruce settled back into his chair. "I'll stay here, then," he called after the team. "No reason to cause more damage."

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Another explosion, caused by two parked cars being crushed together, shook the concrete, sending the few remaining bystanders screaming. Peter ducked out of the way of an incoming piece of metal, slinging his way towards where Loki was and crouching down.

"We need to find a weakness!"

The trickster god looked around. Clint had been knocked out already, and Natasha was having a hard time getting close enough to get a hit. Steve and Bucky were darting between buildings, taking turns throwing things at the man hovering above the main street, while Thor was trying to crack thunder down on him, but an invisible force field kept him from meeting his mark.

"Hey," Tony yelled, flying closer to the man. "Who the hell are you anyways? What do you want with New York City?"

The man raised a hand at Tony and FRIDAY shut down, glitching a few times before sputtering out. The Iron Suit fell and Peter jumped from his crouching stance and throwing some well aimed webs. The suit was caught with a little bounce, and Peter sighed.

FRIDAY started back up after a moment. "Sir, it would appear that a magnetic field knocked out the circuits for 1 minute and 19 seconds. I rebooted the system from the Tower mainframe as soon as we were out of the field."

"Guys!" Tony shouted into his com. "He can somehow manipulate magnetic fields!"

Lily wasn't very used to the coms yet. She'd only been on the team for about 6 months now, this was all new to her, but when those words came over the little piece stuck in the girl's ear, her blood ran cold.

Peter and Loki exchanged looks, even from across the battlefield, they saw one another and nodded discretely.

"Karen, connect me to a private com with Lily." The teen waited for the little buzz that meant a private line had been established.

"Lily, this is Peter, we're on a secure line. Do you know him? Is he naturally powerful?" That was Peter's term for mutants. It was accurate and, if Lily was being honest, it sounded a lot less upsetting than 'mutant'.

"Yeah, he's known as Magneto. He manipulates and creates magnetic fields."

Peter chewed his lip, then disconnected the private line and got back into the team com.

"-try attacking at once." Steve was just finishing his plan, but that was all Peter needed to hear.

"Cap, I think that's a bad idea. Thor can't get a strike on this guy, we have to be prepared for some sort of force field. We probably won't be able to get a strike!"

The team hummed over the comms, Tony and Natasha each muttering their own agreements.

"It's a day of new orders!" The man raised his arms, yelling out to the slowly smoldering street. "I will be the one to bring it, this new order, and one day, you will all know the name Magneto!"

"Magneto?" Tony rolled the name around in his mouth. "How do I know that name?"

The man continued his little speech, unaware of Tony's little lapse in memory. "It is time we addressed the issue here. For years, people like me, people labeled as mutants, have been belittled, locked up, and tortured. We are superior! We should be the ones in charge! Born stronger, better, faster!"

Something about the way he said "born" made Lily think of Peter. She crept forward from where she had been watching the fight unfold. Magneto spotted her quickly.

"Ah! Lily! I knew you would come around!"

Peter and Loki's faces paled, each one watching as Lily froze.

"Magneto? Like the mutant who was giving everyone trouble with that whole 'overthrowing us normals' thing?" Tony asked, sass heavy in his voice. Peter knew him long enough now to know that he wasn't being mean, and that he wasn't really an elitist, but to Lily...

"Lily, he doesn't mean that. He believes mutants are good people."

The girl didn't seem to hear Peter as she continued to move closer to Magneto, who looked down at her. "Lily, are you ready to take control of your life? To take revenge for what your parents did to you?"

The team was staring at the girl in confusion. What was Magneto talking about?

"Are you ready to make 'mutant' a proud title on your name?"

Everyone gasped, shocked by the man's words. Lily? She was a mutant?

"I don't think I ever was a mutant," Lily said, holding her head high. "I think I was a naturally powerful person from birth."

"Lily," Tony interrupted, looking up. "What are your powers, then?"

Lily inched forward, her hand outstretched. "I can take other powers, Tones."

With that, the girl pushed a fingertip to Magneto's foot, and a surge of energy flowed through her. She focused, channeling her energy and sending a blast of force towards the man in the air.

Magneto flew backwards, his head cracking against a brick on the ground and going limp. Everyone was frozen where they stood, except Peter and Loki, who ran forward and quickly restrained Magneto.

"Are you two not shocked?" Steve asked.

Peter shrugged.

"We knew," Loki explained simply.

Tony laughed a couple times, then turned and pulled Lily into a hug. "Thank God we have you on the team."

And for the first time in a long time, Lily felt like she belonged.