#you can't tell me that amy isn't kastles adopted daughter

[kastleaesthetic]

Kastle AU (and Amy)- One Big and Happy Family.

Frank was great with Amy though, she would often find the two of them goofing off. Sometimes it’d be at the kitchen table, Amy was supposed to be doing her homework, but Frank would come along with a deck of cards and a grin on his face. “Let’s go, time for a break.” He would say. “I’ve mastered it, I can beat you at your own game. Lets go, three card monte.” It would usually end with Frank being a sore loser and Amy with a smug look on her face. Other times it’d be in the garage where Frank had set up a punching bag, that would rarely get used. Instead they insisted on practicing fighting with each other. Karen would often hear them and then open up the door with an eyebrow raised and give them a sigh. “Amy, just- don’t aim for his nose, alright? I don’t think it can handle another break.” The teenager and the grown man would give her thumbs up and a wave respectively and continue on.

Karen really had no idea what she was doing, she thought she was way over her head but then a window opens one saturday morning as she is doing her makeup. Amy knocks on the door frame of the bathroom. “Hey Karen.” Karen turns to look at her, capping her mascara as the teen takes a deep breath. “Are you busy today? Cause if you are, I mean, it’s fine- but I was wondering if you’d take me dress shopping? There is this dance and believe or not, some guy asked me and I wanna go, and I know it’s cheesy and corny, but-”

She smiles at Amy and nods her head. “Alright, let’s go get you a dress. I mean, gives us a solid excuse to check out that store in the mall, right?”

Amy smiles brightly. “Cool, then maybe we could hit up the food court?”

“Do you even have to ask?”

The stores in mall are nothing like the stores in the city. There was your typical department stores, like JcPenny and Macys, and of course there was the stores that the teenagers flocked to, like Hollister and Abercrombie. “So, what’s this guy like? The one that asked you to the dance?” Karen asks as they walk towards the small boutique.

“He’s nice.” Amy answers with a shrug. “JROTC, baseball player, honor society.” She laughs. “I have no idea what he sees in me.” she looks down at her hands. “His ex is one of those super popular girls, I am pretty sure she wants to claw my eyes out.”

Karen laughs as they enter the store. “Well he sounds like a catch and who knows, maybe Frank will even like him. I know he’s been nervous about this whole dance thing, he’s never had to deal with a teenage girl and her first date.” As soon as they walk through the entrance they are met head on by a sales lady.

“So, how can I help you two ladies? School dance I suppose?” She asks and Karen and Amy nod. “Well, so nice of your big sister to take you out shopping for a dress.”

“Actually, she’s my daughter.” Karen cuts in, running a soothing hand down Amy’s braid. “I know, I don’t look old enough.” She says, looking at the woman’s shocked face. “But we were just kids ourselves so-”

“Oh!” The woman cuts in. “You’re the folks that moved into the Pearson’s old place. You’re boyfriend, he’s helping build the new church. My brother’s working the job too! Small world this is, well should I say small town.”

“Actually husband,” Amy suddenly says, sticking the the story they were using. “He didn’t know about me, was serving overseas. My mom and I were the real life Gilmore Girls, until my dad came back. He got on one knee, it was pretty romantic.”

“It was life changing, that is for sure” Karen smiles softly. “But we are really here for her, so, we were thinking something flashy, but not too flashy.”

“And nothing to puffy, we don’t want puffy.” Amy explains, Karen nodding along.

They end up with a nice selection of dresses, the pink options get nixed almost too quickly, as well as the yellow ones. The red ones flush her out and there was no way in hell she was going near a white dress. Though finally, Amy finds navy blue dress with a gold bodice and she looks stunning in it. Karen and Amy both agree on the dress. They walk out of the shop, the dress bag slung over Amy’s shoulder and Karen speaks. “You know, Frank’s going to want to meet this guy.” She tells Amy, who in return gives her a horrified look. “I mean, he can’t honk and expect you to rush out to his car. We’re going to need for him to come in so we can get pictures-” Karen fakes an exasperated sigh and smirks. “Oh I am going to love embarrassing you.”

“You wouldn’t.”

“Oh I will.”

Amy realizes later that there is a lot she doesn’t know about Karen Page.

Like the fact the the woman is a total hellraiser, she knows that you have to be to deal with Frank Castle. Her second week at school, Amy manages to get into a fight at school. Some of the girls really didn’t like her and they made a point of tormenting her, they took to locking her in a utility closet, stealing her clothes during gym class and the straw that broke the camel's back was when they poured rotten milk on her. Amy had lost it, stood up and launched herself at the ringleader, she slammed the girl through the cafeteria doors and into the snowy courtyard. Frank’s self defense classes helped as she put the girl into a tight hold and pressed her already bleeding face into the cold snow. The gym teachers pulled them apart, the ring leader calling Amy a psycho and Amy spat choice words at the girl.

Of course the school tried to pin it on Amy. She sat outside the principal's office as Frank tried to speak for her. It was Karen though that came to save the day, Amy heard the clack of her heels against the laminate floor. Karen stopped in front of Amy, gave her a smirk as she caught sight of the other girl and gave her a wink before walking right into the principal's office. Amy had never heard Karen raise her voice as fiercely as she did in that office.

After the fact, Frank had a smirk as he walked out of the office first, followed by Karen. He chuckled, rubbed her back. “Alright, Mama Bear.” He laughed as the ringleader’s parents shuffled out of the office and towards their daughter. “Their gonna give you a detention, but that princess over there, she has a saturday detention and she has to write you an apology letter.”

Amy thanks Karen, the older woman wrapping an arm around her. “Just cool it with the right hook, alright?”

But she finds out more about Karen, about her life before Frank. The death of her mother and then Karen’s history after high school, the terrible boyfriend, the death of her brother and then the disownment by her dad. Amy learns about Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson, and about mess Karen got into in New York. She understands why Frank has a thing for her.

Karen is the mom that Amy had craved for as a child and the day of the dance, when Karen is concentrating on her hair, Amy sort of blurts it out. “Damn, if I had you and Frank from the start, I wouldn’t be such a fuck up.” Karen’s look from the mirror makes her head drop, but the comforting hand on her shoulder makes her look back up. Karen puts down the curling iron and smiles.

“Hey, don’t you dare talk about yourself like that.” Karen tells her in a soothing voice. “The three of us? We fit together because of what we’ve been through and what we’ve overcame.” She pauses. “We are a family now and honestly, this is the happiest I’ve been in such a long time.” Karen smiles warmly before adding a few more bobby pins and the sighs happily. “All finished. You look stunning.”

This boy, Alex picks Amy up. Frank isn’t that keen about the whole date idea and grills the kid to the nine. The threat of: ‘You hurt her? and I hurt you, real bad. You got me? And if you are stupid enough to try anything that she doesn’t want? Well, you won’t like the outcome.” He point to Amy, “11:00 at the latest.”

“C’mon, dad,” Amy comes back. “1:00.”

“11:05.”

“Mom!”

Karen folds her arms. “How’s 12:30 work for everyone, I think we can agree to that?” Frank folds and Amy beams. “Just have fun, be safe and if anything happens, just call us.”

Frank wraps an arm around Karen’s waist as they watch her get into this boy’s car and drive off. “You know, you’re amazing with her.” Frank tells her and Karen laughs. “No seriously, the kid respects you and trust me, takes a lot for her to respect someone.”

Karen looks up at him, beams and kisses his cheek. “Well, I’m glad that I came along with you guys. This is honestly the best life I could ask for.”