(A/N: Hello old friends and the dozens of you knew readers that just saw Black Panther! I'm so happy that you guys found my story and have been favoriting and following it. Thank you so much! If you have any questions or anything, my fanfiction tumblr is DeePett. Come on over and we can chat!)

A royally engaged woman sat the the counter of her former employer, a spread of photos around her. The lunch rush had slowed to a trickle of customers, leaving behind only a few elderly patrons in its wake. The familiar sound of sizzling plates and clinking silverware was little comfort to Joe as she thumbed through potential designs for her wedding dress.

"Thanks, Tay." The copper woman smiled at her friend as she poured her another cup of coffee, before biting her lip as her attention returned to the pictures. Ramonda had sent them over from Wakanda, urging her to design her own dress. Included in the book of designs from the past was Ramonda's own dress, a beautiful white gown with intricate designs. Needless to say, Joe was overwhelmed.

The queen-to-be groaned as she slicked down her hair in its two puffs, the transitioning strands beginning to revert. "Why is this so hard?"

"Because you're fickle." Taylor answered the rhetorical question, snickering as Joe glared at her. "Oh come on, Joey. I've known what dress I've wanted to wear at my wedding since I was five."

"Because you're a romantic." Joe retorted with a roll of her eyes, "Who would have thought that I would get married before you?"

"Don't rub it in, queenie." Taylor huffed, going to serve Mr. Johnson more coffee.

Joe exhaled a huff of her own and looked back at the designs, chewing on her bottom lip. She heard the door jingle open but she paid it no mind, instead focusing on whether to have a veil or not. A patron sat next to her at the counter but she barely noticed, until a brown finger reached out and pointed to a picture on the right.

"I'd like that one more if it wasn't so puffy."

Joe was too distracted to notice the familiar accent, "I know, I don't want to look like a cake on my wedding day…" Her voice trailed as she looked beside her. A black teen was grinning widely at her, her hair in thin braids and in two buns mirroring Joe's. A flash of Queen Ramonda's face went through her mind and a smile spread across her face in recognition.

"Hello sister." The teen greeted and Joe immediately incased her in a tight embrace. "Woah!"

Pulling away from the girl, Joe beamed, "It's so good to finally meet you!"

"I had to sneak away to see you," Shuri whispered facetiously, a teasing grin on her face, "Brother talks about you all the time and now that Mama has joined in, I didn't want to be left out!"

Joe smiled bashfully, "Really?"

Shuri nodded excitedly, "All anyone is talking about is you these days. 'Joe' this and 'Josie' that. I needed to see what all the fuss was about."

"Well, look, are you hungry? I can get Frieda to whip you up something." The woman offered and Shuri beamed even brighter, if that was possible.

"Can I have a slice of that famous pie? My brother talks as if it is a delicacy."

Joe laughed loudly and nodded, closing her book of dresses. "Sure thing, I'll get it for you."

"No you won't." Taylor chimed in, coming behind the counter. "You don't work here anymore, boss."

"Right." Joe rolled her eyes, "Taylor this is T'Challa's sister Shuri, Shuri this is my best friend Taylor who's about to get you a slice of pie."

"And milk?" Shuri added, "Please?"

"Sure thing, kid." Taylor nodded, disappearing in the back.

"So this is where you used to work?" The teen questioned, looking around the diner.

"Yep," Joe answered, before smiling fondly, "Until T bought it for me as an engagement gift."

"Show off." Shuri jested with a roll of her eyes, before reaching into her bag, "I have a present for you, sister."

Joe blinked as she watched her pull out a little black box. Taylor sat Shuri's order in front of her along with a glass of milk, before walking off. As soon as she was away from them, the teen opened the box to reveal a bracelet.

"They're kimoyo beads." Shuri explained as Joe put it on her wrist, "Very special Wakandan tradition."

The copper woman nodded with a smile, inspecting the bracelet. "It's beautiful," She breathed, as Shuri took a bite of her pie, "Thanks, sister."

"And this pie is delicious!" Shuri exclaimed, digging in, "No wonder he proposed!"

Joe snickered just as the door opened again, revealing an obvious Dora, but one she hadn't met before. Her eyes were fastened in a glare on Shuri and as she stalked up to the young princess, she snapped something at her in Xhosa.

"Aye, I'm sorry!" Shuri retorted in english, "I just wanted to meet my new sister!"

The Dora's glare intensified before she looked over to Joe. Crossing her arms in front of her, Joe's eyes widened as the Dora bowed her head. "My apologies, Miss Josephine."

"Uh," Joe uttered, looking around, "That's alright…"

"That's Okoye, General of the Dora Milaje and leader of our army." Shuri informed Joe, a hand over her mouth teasingly. "She's just mad that I was able to sneak away."

"You did not sneak away from me," The general protested fiercely, "You snuck away from Ayo."

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but has T'Challa returned?" Joe asked, looking at the general.

Okoye shook her head a polite but tight smile on her face, "He is still in Wakanda, sorry to inform you. Only the Princess is here."

"Oh." The woman breathed, disappointment bleeding into her tone.

Shuri frowned for a moment before an idea lit up her eyes, "We can take you home with us!"

General Okoye's polite smile dropped and her eyes flicked to Shuri, a warning in them. Joe watched the interaction and shook her head, "I would love to but T told it wasn't customary for an outsider to-!"

"But you're not an outsider anymore!" Shuri protested, "You're my sister!"

"Princess," General Okoye hissed before putting on another polite smile, "She wisely does not want to go. Leave it at that." Shuri rolled her eyes but nodded, finishing the last bite of her pie. "That being said, we must go."

"But I just got here!" Shuri protested with a scowl, "I want to bond with Josie."

"You will be in more trouble than you are in now if you stay another minute." General Okoye warned.

Shuri, again, rolled her eyes before turning to Joe and hugging her. "Don't mention the bracelet." She whispered lowly. "It was good to meet you, sister." She then said louder, side eyeing Okoye.

"It was nice to meet you too, sister." Joe smiled before turning to the general, "It was also nice to meet you, General."

The Dora nodded at her before she motioned to the door. Shuri got up from her seat and waved as they left. Joe watched them until she couldn't see them anymore before packing her wedding book into her tote bag. Telling Taylor and Miss Frieda goodbye, she left the diner. She made her way to the metro station and got on the train right as it was about to leave.

Luckily, there were seats, as it was the middle of the day. As she sat there waiting for her stop, her fingers played with the beads of her new bracelet, her mind lost in thought.

Why hadn't Shuri wanted her to mention it in front of the general? Was it another tradition thing? The Wakandan traditions were very important to the culture, so much so that she had a feeling they wouldn't be too happy with T'Challa proposing marriage to an outsider.

It was a secret fear that had been keeping her up at night for the last few months. Would they be able to accept her? Or would they just turn her away? Would the pressure be too much on T'Challa? Would he call off the engagement?

Joe's heart began to pound erratically and she took some deep breaths to try to calm down. It was fine. He loved her. His mother loved her. His sister loved her. She was fine, they would be fine.

As the announcer called out her stop, Joe stood and waited for the train to stop, stepping out of the doors right as they opened. She jogged up the stairs and to the street, taking a moment to breath in the air. Reaching her apartment, she again jogged up the stairs to her floor, then to her door. She listened for a moment for Chanel's loud voice, but heard nothing; she must have been at work with her mom.

Joe unlocked her door and kicked it closed behind her, turning the lock without a thought. She dropped her tote bag on the couch and walked to her bedroom, changing into a pair of sweatpants and a shirt T'Challa had left one of his many nights there. She grabbed her laptop and walked back to the living room, setting it up on the coffee table and calling T'Challa.

The call was answered after three rings and his crooked smile greeted her, "Hello, entle."

An uncontrollable smile spread over Joe's face, "Hey, T. Guess who I met today?"

"Hm," T'Challa hummed, furrowing his brows, "Could it be a certain sister that snuck out this morning?"

Joe laughed loudly and nodded, "She came to the diner to get a slice of pie. General Okoye was pissed."

"She's a troublemaker." T'Challa jested with a shake of his head, "Mama almost had a heart attack."

"Aw, she's just a kid. I did worse when I was sixteen." The woman protested, her eyes widening as T'Challa raised a questioning brow.

"Oh really?"

Joe clicked her teeth, "Don't look at me like, shug! It was the country, there's nothing to do there!" T'Challa gave her a challenging look and she rolled her eyes, "Anyway, I love her and she's very sweet."

"She loves you, too." T'Challa informed her with a crooked grin, "She wouldn't stop talking about how pretty you are. Too pretty for me, she says."

Joe giggled, her face flushed, "I think you're pretty, too, shug."

"Well I think you are beautiful." The king upped the ante, winking at his fiance.

The copper woman just shook her head and looked around the room, "Where are you talking "from?"

T'Challa looked behind himself, "I'm in my bedroom."

"Woah," Joe breathed, the view behind him something out of a tourist guide, "You have a great view."

"Yes," The king smiled slyly, a twinkle in his eye, "I do."

"I mean behind you." Joe whined playfully, her heart fluttering, "Don't be cute."

"Wakanda has the most beautiful sunset in the world, one day soon you will get to see them." T'Challa promised and Joe smiled, though it was small. "What's wrong?"

Joe's eyes widened and she shook her head, "Nothing."

T'Challa hesitated for a moment before, smiling assuredly, "I love you."

"I love you, too." Joe immediately replied, "So much."

"It'll be soon." The king uttered, "Soon we'll never be apart."

"How soon…" The woman muttered under her breath before putting on a smile, "I'll be looking forward to it."

T'Challa frowned and opened his mouth to reply but a knock at Joe's door took her attention away from the camera.

"One sec, T." She said as she got up from the couch and padded to the door. She looked through the peephole and saw a delivery man holding a large package.

Unlocking the door, Joe peeked through the opened crack. "Yes?"

"Delivery for Josephine Bell." The man replied, "You have to sign for it, miss."

Joe nodded and opened the door fully, but before she could take the box, a gun was being pointed at her. "Hello queenie." He sneered before hitting her in the face with his gun and knocking her out. The last thing she heard was the faint call of her name.

The first thing Joe felt when she awoke was panic and then pain. Her hands and feet were tied and a rag was in her mouth, gagging her. The car was shaking as it went over rough roads, signaling that they were not in the city anymore.

Joe tried to scream but it was muffled. Lying on her back, hysterical tears began to fill her eyes. She was going to die, she was sure of it.

Tears spilling down her cheeks, she cursed every bad thing she ever did. Every mean word she ever said, every Sunday she ever skipped. She thought about her sister and grandmother, what they would do without her. But most of all, she wept for T'Challa.

Joe had finally found the man of her dreams and she was going to die before she could even marry him.

A thump on the top of the car made her jump and she began to sob even more, her body shaking with fear. The car came to a hard stop and Joe was jolted forward as another car rammed into the back of the one she was in.

Quiet chatter was heard from the front and she heard the car doors open and close. Making herself as small as possible, Joe closed her eyes and began to pray. Gunshots sounded from outside and it startled her, causing her to pray even louder, though her words were muffled.

It suddenly got quiet outside and so did Joe, afraid of what was coming. Her heart nearly jumped out of her chest when the trunk door was ripped off and a person decked in black was standing in front of her.

The person was wearing a black suit with silver detailing and a black mask with ears like a cat attached to it. The person slowly held out a hand to her.

Joe screamed loudly behind her gag and inched away in panic. Her screams intensified when the person grabbed her anyway, holding her like a bride. Joe looked up at the person with wide eyes, from her viewpoint now, she could obviously tell it was a man. A very built man. She could also see the little bumpy strands that made up the suit he was wearing and the necklace of silver teeth that were around his neck.

As if the appearance of this masked hero wasn't enough, the wind around them began to pick up and when she looked above, a spaceship was hovering over their heads. Her mouth would have dropped if she wasn't gagged. A bridge dropped from the ship to the ground and to her surprise, her hero started to walk towards it.

Once inside the ship, Joe couldn't help but marvel at it. It was something out of Star Wars, something she didn't think she would live to see. Whoever this man was, he must've been an alien. Joe was sat down carefully on one of the metal benches in the sip and the man bent down to untie her feet and hands.

Joe watched with wide eyes as he finally undid her gag. She stared up at his mask with cautious eyes, swallowing thickly. "Thank you." She whispered, pressing her back into the wall. "Who-!" Before she could ask, he was walking away from her to the pilot's seat.

Joe tucked her feet under her and the bridge of the ship came up, before it took off. Too afraid to speak anymore, she instead focused her attention on the interior.

Sure Joe had been in New York when Thor's brother attacked and knew of the other worlds that existed outside her own, but this was a bit overwhelming. She remembered seeing the dead bodies of alien life forms on the street before the clean up and getting a glimpse of Captain America ushering out civilians on the news as she hid people in the breakroom of the diner. It was horrifying to think that a creature could have saved her, but this hero looked like a regular man, yet this ship told her otherwise.

After an hour in the sky, Joe was brought out her thoughts by a blanket being draped over her shoulders. She jumped and turned to see the unnamed man sitting next to her a small distance away. She furrowed her brows; who was flying the ship if he was here? But she was too afraid to question it. Instead she glanced over at him, still fully suited up, before bringing her gaze forward again.

It was silent in the aircraft, save for a couple of whirling parts. Joe tugged her blanket closer to her and decided she couldn't stand it anymore. "Why did you save me?" She muttered into the space around them. She didn't get an answer and she huffed, shaking her head. "I don't understand. Who are you? Where are you taking me?"

More silence followed and Joe gave up, instead leaning her head on the wall and staring at the ceiling.

"Andiyazi ukuba kuthetha njani oku."

Joe's blood ran cold and she whipped her head around to face him. She knew that voice, she knew that language, only one person in the world could shake her with just his voice. Her legs dropped from the bench and she turned to him fully, her eyes frantically searching his blank mask. Her eyes began to water as she breathed out a begging, "Please."

Almost like magic, the mask of the suit dematerialized and she was face to face with her lover. Before Joe could stop herself, she wrapped her arms around T'Challa's neck, sobbing when he hugged her tightly back. They just sat there in silence for a long moment, T'Challa rocking her back and forth and rubbing her back soothingly.

"How?" Joe finally croaked, into his chest, now fully seated in his lap.

"It's a long story, entle." T'Challa rasped above her, "I will tell you when we are home."

"Home?" She echoed with furrowed brows, she pulled away slightly to see his face. "What do you mean?"

T'Challa gave her a tight smile and gently pressed her head back to his chest, continuing to rub her back in silence. Joe sat there with furrowed brows and soon T'Challa's soothing touches lulled her to sleep.

The sun was setting when Joe startled herself awake. She shot up like a bullet and her chest heaved as she took in her surroundings. Silk sheets covered her bare legs and she threw them off to inspect herself. She was now wearing a clean shirt she recognized to be T'Challa's. That detail calmed her slightly, only for her nerves to flare again when she remembered the earlier events of the day. Running her hands through her now loose hair, she caught a glimpse of the most beautiful sunset she had ever seen over a city that was definitely not New York.

Furrowing her brows, she slowly got up from the large bed, padding toward the large window. Her eyes danced over the tall buildings of the unknown place, seeing lights flickering on as the sun bid its farewell. A small ship flew past the window, followed by another and a smile ticked on Joe's face before realization set in.

She knew this view. She had seen it from a computer screen behind T'Challa. Joe's eyes widened and she pressed a hand to the window. There was no way. She couldn't be-!

The copper woman whipped around and looked at the interior of the room, her eyes going over every detail. She spotted a photograph on a side table and walked over to pick it up; it was a picture of her and T'Challa, him holding the camera and whispering in her ear, while she ugly laughed.

"I told him to delete that." Joe muttered, putting the frame down. She took another look around the futuristic room and dropped onto the bed in shock.

She was in Wakanda.

Joe looked over to the window again and shook her head in disbelief. The beautiful words that T'Challa had used to describe his home could not even compare to being able to see it herself. The world was completely wrong about the African country and though Joe knew the truth, it still was shocking to see.

A sharp chime came from her wrist then and Joe was brought out of her thoughts. Curiously, she raised her arm and inspected the chirping bracelet. "What-!" Her words were cut off as a hologram of Shuri appeared.

"Hello sister!" The teen greeted with a grin, "You are finally awake!"

"Shuri?" Joe questioned, bewildered. "What… How are you doing this right now?"

"It's magic." Shuri answered cheekily, before laughing, "I'll tell brother that you are awake." With that the hologram disappeared and the bracelet returned to black.

"I am so…" Joe babbled to herself, shaking her head. In the next moment, T'Challa was coming through the door, dressed in the most elegant suit she had seen him wear. His eyes brightened when he saw her and he smiled, the expression still enough to set her heart on fire.

"Josie," The king breathed, sitting next to her on the bed and grabbing her hand as he searched her eyes, "How are you feeling?"

"Disoriented." Joe admitted, "Confused, scared, overwhelmed… How am I in Wakanda right now? And what was that suit you had on? And why did they kidnap me? And-!"

"That's is talk for in the morning, when you are not so riled up." T'Challa soothed, placing a hand on her cheek and pressing his forehead to hers, "I am just happy you are alright."

"Thanks to you." Joe muttered, her words filling the small space between them.

"You are the most important thing in my life." The king uttered back, his thumb brushing against her skin, "I will always come when you need me."

"I know." Joe smiled sweetly, "I know you will."

T'Challa pressed his lips against hers and her breath hitched when he pulled away. "I love you." He whispered with a crooked grin, nuzzling his nose against hers.

"I love you more." Joe cheekily replied, holding in a giggle when he groaned.

"Not this again," T'Challa facetiously whined, pulling her legs into his lap, "Why can't I just love you more for once?"

"Because I love you more." The woman retorted, wrapping an arm around his shoulders, "Because you saved my life today. Because-!" Her words were stopped by T'Challa kissing her deeply.

The king pulled away with a smug smirk as a dazed look now took over her expression. "I win." He gloated, adding a victorious, "Ha, ha, ha." as he wiggled his fingers along her sides.

Joe giggled loudly and tried to push his hands away, the stress of the day on the back burner, if just for a little while.