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Treat your enemies like autumn wind sweeping away dead leaves—mercilessly.
But treat your friends with the warmth of spring.
Anna was his friend.
And aside from Gwen, she was the first person he'd ever verbally acknowledged as such.
So, Being bound to Pure Land for eternity, tending to these flowers—that was Anna's punishment for keeping secrets.
Anna heard Hawk's words settle into place. She felt the power descending upon her from some higher authority. Then she looked at the flowers blooming inside and outside the shop.
She could sense it now. Any soul suffering in the Blazing Prison—any soul at all—would be released from torment and allowed to live in Pure Land if she gave them a single flower.
Anna instinctively looked at Hawk, who stood beside her with that smile on his face. She couldn't help but speak.
"This is punishment?"
"Of course."
"No."
Anna shook her head, meeting his gaze. "This is a blessing."
Hawk chuckled.
"No. This is your punishment for keeping secrets."
"This isn't—"
"Hey."
Hawk raised an eyebrow at Anna, who seemed determined to debate whether this was punishment or blessing. His expression hardened with obvious displeasure. "Who's in charge here?"
Anna opened her mouth.
"You are."
"Exactly. I say it's punishment, so it's punishment. You're my friend, sure—but right now we're on the clock. During work hours, use my title. Call me Lord of the Underworld!"
"..."
Anna looked at Hawk's stern face. She was silent for a moment. Then a radiant smile spread across her features. She dropped to one knee. "Thank you, Lord of the Underworld."
Hawk didn't stop her from kneeling. He waited until she finished, then helped her rise. He waved at Anya, who stood watching from nearby.
Anya's eyes lit up. She darted over in a flash, calling out "Brother!" as she ran.
Hawk then made introductions. "Anna, this is Anya. My sister. When I'm not here, help me keep an eye on Pure Land."
"Anya, this is Anna. My friend. When I'm not around, she can keep you company. But treat her with respect—she's one of my very few friends. And my first one at that."
Sure enough.
Brother must have had it rough these past four years.
Anya heard that her brother had so few friends. She noted this internally, then beamed at Anna and extended her right hand. "Hello! I'm Anya. I'm Brother's sister."
Anna caught Hawk's amused expression from the corner of her eye. She smiled and shook Anya's hand. "Hello. I'm Anna. I'm your brother's friend."
Hawk watched this scene with a slight smile. Then he turned, and in that instant, his consciousness departed his Cosmo and returned to reality.
What he saw:
Gwen, Peter, Sharon—all staring directly at him.
Hawk raised an eyebrow.
"Where are Felicia and Dr. Cho?"
"Took the baby to the break room for lunch."
"Dr. Cho had something come up. She left already."
Peter and Sharon answered.
Gwen looked at Hawk.
"Well? What did Anna say? Was it Hydra's doing?"
"Yeah."
Hawk nodded. His gaze drifted to the red-haired girl still sleeping on the couch. He suddenly realized he'd forgotten to ask Anna what the girl's name was.
If it had been a boy, he might have been able to guess.
But a girl—
Not a clue.
Whatever.
He could ask later.
Hawk thought this to himself, then turned back to the three people waiting for his answer. He smiled. "Strucker."
"Him again."
Gwen frowned, remembering Hawk had mentioned this guy before—the one who'd taken his Mind Stone.
"Who's that?"
Peter looked completely lost. He had no idea who they were talking about.
"We've been searching for Strucker's whereabouts too."
Sharon didn't seem surprised by the name Hawk had dropped. "But he's gone deep underground. Our trail went cold in Sokovia. He vanished—like he'd evaporated into thin air."
The hunt for Hydra remnants had been entirely transferred to Captain America's Avengers.
After all, S.H.I.E.L.D. had plenty on its plate. They couldn't waste most of their resources on Hydra.
As it happened.
Captain America Steve Rogers wanted to find Hydra because it might lead him to his best friend Bucky.
Iron Man Tony Stark had learned his father was one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s founders. Plus he had nothing better to do, so why not help?
Thor thought post-battle drinking sessions were worth fighting for.
As for Black Widow Natasha and Hawkeye Barton—they provided the official justification for the Avengers' operations.
Since taking over the Hydra case, the Avengers had achieved considerable results.
But two Hydra leaders remained at large.
Baron Zemo, and—
Wolfgang von Strucker. The Strucker Hawk had mentioned.
Gwen looked at Hawk curiously.
"Did Anna say where she was being held?"
"She doesn't know." Hawk knew what Gwen was thinking. He gave a brief summary of Anna's ordeal.
Gwen and Sharon fell silent after hearing it.
Peter—who'd been standing there like a lost puppy—blinked, then turned and left the office.
He didn't know who Strucker was. He didn't even know who Anna was.
So why hang around? Better to find Felicia in the break room and watch his son eat lunch.
If he was lucky, maybe he could snag some food too.
Besides, Even if he knew the details, he probably couldn't help anyway.
After all—what caliber were Hawk's enemies? World-ending organizations. Aliens.
What caliber were his enemies? Pickpockets. Muggers. The toughest one had been the Lizard.
No comparison. No comparison at all.
So—
Peter thought this through, felt zero psychological burden, didn't feel excluded at all, and happily left the office.
The sound of the door closing snapped Gwen and Sharon back to attention.
Gwen looked at Hawk. "Just like you guessed—Anna was imprisoned two years ago."
Hawk shook his head. "I wouldn't call it imprisonment. Anna was on death's doorstep. Strucker kept her alive with life support this whole time."
Just like brain-dead patients in hospitals.
In a sense, they were already dead—but doctors used medical technology to maintain their basic vital functions.
In simple terms.
Couldn't live. Couldn't die.
Gwen processed Hawk's words. "Same difference. Strucker kept Anna alive because he didn't want her soul entering Hell. The moment Anna truly died, her soul would go to Hell. They don't know about your Underworld, but they know you can access Hell."
Sharon, standing nearby, looked at the red-haired girl on the couch and added, "But now this girl somehow escaped Strucker's control and found you. So keeping Anna alive no longer serves any purpose. That's why they pulled the plug."
Hawk listened to his fiancée and New York's top S.H.I.E.L.D. agent analyze the situation together. He nodded thoughtfully.
But just as he was about to share his own thoughts—
Hawk sensed movement from the couch. He turned to look.
What he saw:
The red-haired girl—who'd been asleep for over an hour—fluttered her eyelashes. Then she opened her eyes.
The next second.
The girl saw Hawk watching her. A delighted smile spread across her little face. She whooshed off the couch and threw herself into Hawk's arms again.
"Daddy!"
"..."
Hawk held the red-haired girl, instinctively glancing at Gwen.
Sharon couldn't help looking at Gwen either.
Gwen met both their gazes. She smiled, ignoring their looks, and walked to Hawk. She took the red-haired girl into her own arms.
The girl looked at Gwen. She didn't resist—in fact, she seemed happy to accept this.
"Auntie Gwen!"
"Auntie?"
Hawk's eyebrow shot up. He saw Gwen's gaze swing toward him and immediately spread his hands.
God as his witness.
From the moment he'd first seen this girl until now, he'd been with Gwen the entire time.
Sharon, standing to the side, didn't want to miss this drama. She did her best to minimize her presence.
Gwen studied Hawk's gesture. Her gaze passed over him and settled on the red-haired girl in her arms. "You... know me?"
The red-haired girl nodded, her smile radiant. "Mm-hmm! Daddy showed me your hologram. Daddy said you're gentle and smart. The best woman in the whole world."
Gwen heard this. Her gaze snapped back to Hawk.
Sharon—who'd been trying to stay invisible—also turned to stare at him.
Hawk's expression was flat. "That wasn't past or present me."
He didn't know the details either.
But if he had to guess, his future self had probably borrowed the Time Stone from Kamar-Taj and traveled back to meet this red-haired girl.
Speaking of which—
That didn't make sense.
The timeline wasn't supposed to be tampered with. The Sorcerer Supreme had said so. She should have stopped him.
Hawk thought this to himself.
Gwen heard Hawk's words. She frowned, about to say something—
When suddenly.
Alarms blared throughout the building.
Sharon—who'd been trying to stay inconspicuous—received intel from outside.
"Director, there's an intru—"
"Wha—"
BANG!
The office door exploded open.
Gwen felt her arms go light.
When she processed what had happened, she looked at her empty embrace and sucked in a sharp breath. "Where's the girl?"
"—der."
"—at??"
Sharon's conversation with the agent finally completed.
But—
After her initial shock, Sharon looked at Gwen's empty arms. Then she frowned.
"Hawk's gone too."
"What?"
Gwen instinctively looked up.
What she saw:
The spot where Hawk had been standing moments ago was now empty.
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