Okay, so I am SOOO SORRY! It's been almost two months since I posted an actual update! I feel awful about that! Anyway, thank you for all of the support everyone has given me, in both reviews and PM's. The reviews have really been what have kept me motivated to make it this far, and this is by far the longest story I've attempted!

Speaking of reviews… Chapter 11 brought me my 150th review, from one of my anon readers! So, congratulations, "Guest"! (PS, I hate referring to people as "Guest", so if you could give yourselves names, that would be great. Thanks! ;P)

As I stated in my A/N, I'm sorry, but I will not be writing these for the rest of the characters. I don't have the patience or drive to do one more of these, let alone more than one. If anyone else wants to, BE MY GUEST!

During this chapter, I took some creative liberties. In canon, Steve's mom died from influenza when Steve was a teenager, but I changed that. I hope that's alright! ;P

DISCLAIMER: I don't own The Avengers!

Here are the replies to my reviews…

GuidedByHarbourLights- o.O Thanks...? I think. I'm glad you liked it, but I'm sorry that it makes you want to punch me... But don't worry, I totally get it.

vampyfreak- Thanks!

Cookie-the-Rookie- Yeah, stupid plot tricks.

Rika100- I'm glad you liked it, but I'm sorry you cried...

.98- I take it you liked it?

LaughingLadybug- Hehe! Thanks!

Mina888- Thanks so much!

Dancing With The Clouds- Yeah, I didn't think he would!

jwstahle- Thanks for the review!

Miso Muchi (Guest)- Yeah, I didn't think anyone would think of Bucky. Thanks!

Avengerscrazygal (Guest)- Sorry, not going to. You're welcome to, though!

me (Guest)- Glad you like it! (Very creative name) ;P

I Know Love Hurts 2010- Thanks so much for understanding! I hope you get over your hiatus too!

Book girl fan- Yeah, I hate it when stories end, but otherwise, there would be some ridiculously long stories out there. (More than there already are) Glad you're enjoying it!

LucyWithoutDiamonds- Thanks for understanding!

Jewel Princess1992- Thanks for the kind review! I'm glad you understand!

FudoTwin17- lol, thanks for the enthusiastic review! =P Hope you like it!

Last Time:

Pepper separated from Tony and sat next to Steve, putting an arm around him in an almost motherly way. The younger man instinctually turned into her, and she wrapped the other arm around him and pulled him into a hug, resting her cheek on the top of his head. She was slightly surprised to find his shoulders shaking, but she masked that and rubbed his back soothingly, ignoring her boyfriend and the others. After a few minutes, he pulled away, seeming a bit embarrassed.

"Sorry, it's just… He was all that I had for so many years, and I hardly got the chance to mourn while the war was going on, then when I woke up, it was the Chitauri attack, then…" He trailed off, looking lost again. Pepper shook her head and rubbed the back of his hand with her thumb. "We don't blame you, Steve. It's okay." Steve looked around at his new family, and knew that it would be okay. It really would.

Five minutes were spent in silence; everyone in the group was deep in thought, thinking about the scenes that they had just finished watching. Pepper still had an arm around Steve's slightly shaking shoulders and was rubbing his hand soothingly. Bruce was staring off into nowhere, brows furrowed as if working over a complicated equation. Clint and Natasha were having one of their silent conversations, unreadable expressions on their faces. Tony was frowning, but his eyes showed that his mind was far away from the darkened room, more specifically, his thoughts resided in Brooklyn. Finally, Steve straightened up, wiping his cheeks and standing up. All eyes turned to him.

"Well, um, I think I'll go back to my room…" he said awkwardly, "Kind of tired…" He turned to leave, but a voice made him stop in his tracks.

"Steve?" Bruce asked, coming back from wherever his thoughts were. Steve looked at him questioningly. "What happened to your mom?" Steve froze. "It's just that something that Bucky said made me think. He said to stop blaming yourself, that it wasn't your fault, it was his," He used quotes around "his". "What did he mean?" Steve's partially reconstructed mask was slipping again, his face reflecting conflict and pain, worry flashing across his eyes too.

"Steve? You don't have to tell us, but it might help." Natasha said, eyes on the blonde. Steve shook his head, "I- I'll tell you." He moved over to the seat that he had abandoned and sank into the couch again, taking a deep breath before beginning his story.

"Growing up in the Depression was rough. My parents were Irish immigrants, so we didn't live in the best circumstances. We never had much money. More often than not, I would go to bed hungry because we couldn't afford to get three meals a day, sometimes not even two. Looking back, it's incredible that we held onto the house for that long." Steve had a faraway look in his eyes, and it was as though he was back in his childhood. "I had a lot of health problems, most of which needed medicine, which we couldn't afford, so I wasn't able to play outside with other boys because they were too rough. My ma was a veritable saint, though. She got a job as a seamstress and a laundress to try and make ends meet, all while taking care of me, and handling my dad. She worked hard to try to give me the best life I could, and anytime she would have the tiniest bit of extra change, she would put it in a jar and save it for things I needed. My dad on the other hand… He worked when he could, but Ma and I never saw his paychecks. He bought the strongest cheap liquor he could get, and would come home drunk out of his wits. He wasn't… He got angry really easily, and the drink only made it worse. He would turn violent at the drop of a hat, and took it out on Ma and me. Ma'd try to keep him away from me as much as she could; sending me out of the house to our neighbors if she saw him coming home, but there were always times when she didn't send me away fast enough." Steve shuddered, rubbing his left forearm absentmindedly.

"One night, when I was eight, Dad came home drunker than anything. Ma had been in the kitchen, cooking up some chicken broth and vegetables for dinner; she had just gotten a pay, and had managed to get some of the cuttings from the chicken at the butchers down the street for cheap. We were both really excited because neither of us had had chicken in so long. I was staring out the window, trying to draw the boys playing a game of soldier outside. I was so concentrated at getting some of the detail right that I didn't see him coming…"

Steve sat on the windowsill, tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth in concentration. He held a tiny pencil stub carefully and traced the outline of one of the trash bins onto a blank bit of paper. He glanced out the window quickly before turning back to his paper, starting to shade it in. He didn't hear the sound of clumsy footsteps approaching the door. His mother- busy in the kitchen and humming to herself- glanced back into the tiny living room to look at her son, peacefully drawing. She didn't hear anything until the floor creaked in the hallway outside, causing both mother and son to jolt upright, alarmed looks on their faces. Instantly, Sarah Rogers ran into the living room toward her son.

"Run, Steve!" She hissed, kissing him quickly on the head, "Go! Go to the closet!" Steve ran as fast as he could to the hall closet and hid inside the always-empty laundry hamper that his mother kept there just for times like this. Sarah checked quickly to make sure that he was hidden completely before rushing back to the kitchen just as the door opened. A red-faced man with a scowl stumbled in, cursing the whole way.

"SARAH! Get in here!"

"That night, after he had yelled at her for a while, he started looking around for me. When he asked where I was, Ma lied and told him that I was at my friend Richard's house. He didn't need to know that I didn't know a Richard. But for some reason, he just kept coming closer to the closet I was in, maybe he thought it was where he stored his liquor- I don't know. All I know is that he was getting angrier and angrier, and closer and closer. My ma was trying to distract him, but he just kept coming, then I sneezed. It was really dusty in the hamper, and I already had a cold. But that did it. As soon as he heard the sneeze, he blew his top and started going after me. Next thing I know, my Ma is on the floor, bleeding, and my dad's passed out from being hit on the head with the pot of chicken broth."

The Avengers all sat around Steve, spellbound and horrified. "The next few hours were a blur. My neighbor heard me screaming and came over, then sent her son to the police station to notify them. My dad was put under arrest and died a few years later, my ma was buried, and I was put in St. Mary's Orphanage where I met Bucky. We spent the next decade running from the nuns before we moved out and bought the apartment that we lived in until both of us were shipped out." Steve ended his story, and his teammates made no reaction, still staring at him, horrified.

"Oh, Steve…" Pepper, ever the maternal one sighed. Steve shook his head, looking downwards. "Please just leave it. It was a long time ago." The other members of the team exchanged worried glances, but complied.

"…So…" Tony started awkwardly, trying to break the silence that had fallen. "I keep wondering, what was Peggy so angry about in the scene with your shield?" To everyone's surprise, Steve's face turned red. Clint grinned, "Come on, Steve, what was it?" Steve muttered something unintelligible, and they all leaned forward to hear him better.

"What was that?" Bruce asked. Steve spoke up, "She… walked in just as one of the women who were working as secretaries around the base kissed me. She surprised me, and I didn't have a chance to get away…" He trailed off awkwardly as his friends started laughing at him.

"Classic," Clint laughed, "Seriously. Hey, Tasha, that reminds me of that one time in…"

"Don't even think about it." Natasha cut him off, glaring at him. He grinned, and the others looked at them in curiosity before deciding that it was better not to know.

"This story reminds me of a time in my adolescent years," Thor said, chuckling happily. Tony was still laughing at the expression on Steve's face, as Pepper rolled her eyes at her boyfriend. Bruce chuckled quietly as was his way. Steve's blush was fading slightly, and he started to laugh too. Natasha and Clint exchanged glances, Clint grinning, and a corner of Natasha's lip twitching before they finally gave in to the laughter. Avengers tower rang with happy laughter, the superhuman occupants of the uppermost floors all knowing that they had a family within the group.

:=:=:=:=:=:=:

Not sure how much I like the ending, but that may just have to do with the fact that this is over! I can't believe how far this has come, and how much support I've gotten for it! This started as a oneshot, because I wanted to read a story about the Avengers watching the plane crash, then I wanted to have them see pre-serum Steve, then… it turned into this!

Now, for the last time, I want to thank all of you who read this, especially those of you who reviewed. Without you motivating me, this would have died a long time ago, but this is now my first completed multi-chap! With almost 20,000 words, 26,296 views, 200 followers, 138 favorites, and 158 reviews, this is by far the longest story I have ever attempted. So thank you! To all of my readers who have supported me since the beginning, you know who you are!

THANK YOU!

-Little-miss