Chapter 9
Five
Years
Later
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“So I, uh... went on a date the other day. First time in five years, you know? I'm sitting there at dinner... I didn't even know what to talk about.”
Steve nodded. “What did you talk about?”
The man, Joe, looked at his hands. “Same old crap, you know? How things have changed, and... my job, his job... How much we miss the Mets. And then things get quiet... He cried as they were serving the salads.
“What about you?”
Joe shrugged. “I cried... just before dessert. But I'm seeing him again tomorrow, so...”
Steve tried for an encouraging smile. “That's great. You did the hardest part. You took the jump, you didn't know where you were gonna come down. And that's it. That's those little brave baby steps we gotta take. To try and become whole again, try and find purpose. When the dust settled five years ago... I lost my second chance at a once in a lifetime love. You gotta move on. Gotta to move on. The world is in our hands. It's left to us guys, and we got to do something with it. Otherwise... Thanos should have killed all of us.
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“Hope?”
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“What the hell happened here?”
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“Cassie?”
“Dad? “
“You're so big!”
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“You look tired.”
Natasha ripped off a piece of her sandwich and threw it at the hologram of Rhodes. “Save it.”
“Nat, we need to talk about-”
“I said save it. I'm handling him, I swear. But it has to be me. General.”
Rhodes made a face.
“I just need time.”
“These people don't have time, Romanoff.”
“These people are criminals, Rhodey, come on-”
“Natasha, I am trying to give everyone the time and space they need, but it's been years. It might be time for us to move on. All of us.”
Natasha sighed, pulling at the chain around her neck. “Maybe.”
“We’ll talk soon.”
“Always a pleasure, General.”
The camera cut off, and Natasha wiped a tired hand across her face, blinking back tears.
“You know I'd offer to cook you dinner but you seem pretty miserable already.”
She looked up, giving Steve a small smile.
“You here to do your laundry?”
“Well, I never did learn to master those fancy machines.”
Despite herself, she laughed.
“How have you been?”
He looked tired. Older. “You know, I keep telling everybody they should move on and... grow. Some do. But not us.”
“Maybe we should. Maybe it’s time.”
“Do you really believe that?”
“I used to have nothing. And then I got this. This job... this family. And I was... I was better because of it. And even though he's gone, they're all gone... I'm still trying to be better.”
Steve smiled sadly at his oldest, his best, his only friend.
“I think we both need to get a life.”
“You first.”
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“Is this an old message?”
“It's the front gate.”
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“Have you ever studied Quantum Physics?”
“Only to make conversation.”
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“So who do we talk to about this?”
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“Little B! Come on, you have to eat before Aunt Pep comes to get you! Come on, Brooke? Brooklyn H. Rogers. You want some lunch?”
Brooklyn stuck her head out of her shed, and Toni took a moment to marvel at how her little girl was growing before her eyes. Then she laughed as the girl struggled to remove the blue and silver helmet she’d found. “Hey, come on.” Toni crouched in front of her daughter, “You should not be wearing that. That is not yours, where did you even find that?” Brooke gave her a smile that made her heart ache. “I found it in the garage. It was in a box of scraps.”
“Right. Scraps. You're getting scraps for lunch, how about that?” She reached out to tickle her lightly, before taking her hand to lead her back into the lakehouse. “Mommy, look!” Brooke turned, tugging on Toni’s hand and pointing to the sleek black Audi pulling up. Toni bit her tongue to keep from cursing as she watched the car park. Brooke squealed, letting go of her mother’s hand to run towards the car, reaching them just as Natasha, Scott, and Steve stepped out. “Daddy!” She launched herself into her father’s arms, and he caught her, spinning her around with ease despite how big she’d gotten.
Toni wanted to crawl into a hole and die. Still, when he locked eyes with her, she smiled.
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“You're plan is insane.”
“Toni, please.”
“No, no you please. Quantum fluctuation messes with the Planck Scale, which then triggers the Deutsch Proposition. Can we agree on that?”
She shouldn't have felt so smug at their puzzled expressions. And yet.
“Brooke, baby, go inside. I’ll be right there.”
Brooklyn pouted, but knew better than to argue when Toni got that look. As soon as she was out of earshot, she turned back to her guests. “Scott, please don't tell me that your plan to save the universe is based on Back To The Future.”
“Toni, I-”
“Toni,” Natasha tried, “We have to take a stand.”
“I did stand.” She snapped. “And yet, here we are. I can't risk my life. Not again. Not after...”
She looked at Steve, eyes wide and sad and just as beautiful as he remembered.
“I wish you'd come here to ask me something else. Anything else. Honestly, I... I missed you. God, I've missed you, and you're always welcome here, truly, but Steve... I can't roll the dice again.”
Whatever Steve wanted to say was cut off by Brooke’s voice calling from the kitchen. “I set the table for three!”
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“You two go find our other big brain. I’ll stay here.”
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Brooke kept looking between them, waiting for someone to say something. “This is delicious, Toni.”
“Thanks, I bought it.”
“Oh.”
Brooke took the last bite of her lasagna. “Yes.” Toni waved her away before she even asked to be excused. They watched her until the door shut. “I really have missed you, Stevie.” Toni whispered.
“I never went anywhere. You were the one who left.”
“You were the one who-!” she inhaled, pinching the bridge of her nose. “No. No use in having this fight again. You will always do what you believe is right, and I love that about you. But this family? We need Steve Rogers, not Captain America. Steve Rogers is all I've ever needed.” She was crying now, and Steve was there, pulling her up and into his arms, her home.
“I’m here, Toni.”
“Steve.” She sobbed.
“I'm here.”
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“Guys, you know I'm always happy to see you, but if anyone would be able to figure out this... insanely hypothetical and highly unlikely scenario...”
“We’re dividing and conquering right now. But you know, you pulled this off. I remember a time when that seemed pretty impossible, too.”
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Brooke was asleep, and when the time had come for a guest to maybe head home or inquire about a guest room, Steve wordlessly followed Toni to her bedroom. He tried not to flinch when he walked in. It was like a beautiful amalgamation of all their past bedrooms. He saw the frame just like their very first bed in Malibu, with curtains and a rug from the long gone Avengers Tower, and right above the bed, a photo from their wedding. It should've hurt, to know that she’d spent years alone, waiting for him to come home. And yet.
“You and your caveman thoughts.” Toni muttered, but her smile was fond.
“I'm sorry I left.”
“You're here now, aren't you?”
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She lasted maybe twenty seconds once Steve’s breathing evened out before she gently untangled herself from his arms, silently making her way to her workshop.
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“Shit!”
“Shit!”
Shit.
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Toni pushed a hand through Brooke’s hair. “God, how do you look so much like Peter?”
“Who’s Peter, mommy?”
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When she opened the door to her bedroom, Steve was awake. “Not that it's a competition, but she loves me 3000.” Steve scoffed. “Don’t worry, you were somewhere in the low 6 to 900 range.”
“What were you doing, Tones?”
She sat down next to him.
“I figured it out.”
It took everything in Steve to keep calm. “So what now? Do we just hand a time machine over to Romanoff and just, what, roll over and go to sleep?”
“Who’s we? Nobody’s forcing you to do anything, Winghead.”
“Nice try, but I'm not leaving you. Not again.”
“...God dammit. F.R.I., get Pep on the phone.”
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“Instead of pushing Lang through time, you might've wound up pushing time through Lang. It's tricky. Dangerous. Somebody should've cautioned you against it.”
“Are you with us?”
“I’m with you.”
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Natasha pulled Toni in for a hug. “What changed?”
Toni shrugged. “They don't deserve to be forgotten.”
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They watched the big lug that was once the Mighty Thor as he lumbered into the compound. Toni and Steve shared a concerned look.
“Make sure to check on him before we do any... avenging.”
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“I'm going to Tokyo. Should be back... eventually.”
“Backup?”
“I can take him.”
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“You shouldn't be here.”
“Missed you too, babe.”
“Don't do that.”
“Why not? It’s true, I have.”
He had his back to her.
“It’s time to come home, Clint.”
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“You know, you're only a genius on Earth, girl.”
“I actually happen to know about a colony of-”
“Not the time, Shellhead.”
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“Wait a second, let me ask you something. If we can do this, you know, go back in time, why don't we just find baby Thanos, you know, and...”
“Rhodes!”
“It’s Thanos.”
“It doesn't even work like that!”
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“Lila? Lila!
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Natasha was cradling Clint’s head on the floor, and he was shaking, but he was alive.
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“So, did I imagine seeing the Wonder Twins in Soho a few years ago?”
“They took off together sometime before you and Nebula landed, but... they never reached out. We figured, better to let them start fresh.”
“That's cute. Get them.”
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Wanda and Pietro did not look particularly excited to be back at the compound. “It’s not like we can even help.” Wanda grumbled, “Our powers all but dissipated when the stones were destroyed.”
Several Avengers shot the twins a look. “Are you saying you need powers to be useful?” Toni asked.
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“Almost all of us has had an encounter with at least one of the six Infinity Stones.”
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“Is he asleep?
“No, I'm pretty sure he's dead.”
“Steve, seriously. He's not leaving here without a good therapist.”
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“Thanos found the Soul Stone on Vormir.”
“What is Vormir?”
“A dominion of death, at the very center of Celestial existence. It's where... Thanos murdered my sister.”
“...Not it.”
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Natasha and Toni were lying on the table, papers all around them. Bruce and Steve were on the floor, passing a pint of ice cream back and forth. “How can Clint even sleep?” Natasha shot Toni a look. “I'm not complaining. He needs it.”
“We all need it.” Steve spoke from the floor.
None of them even pretended to move.
“Right.” Natasha said, “So that time stone guy...”
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“Guys, if you pick the right year, there are three stones in New York.”
“Shut the front door.”
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“So, Rhodey and Nebula can take Morag, Thor and Rocket to Asgard, Maximoffs to Vormir, and we’ll take New York and split up from there.”
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“All right. We have a plan. Six Stones, three teams. One shot. Five years ago, we lost. All of us. We lost friends... We lost family... We lost a part of ourselves. Today, we have a chance to take it all back. You know your teams, you know your missions. Get the stones, get them back. One round trip each. No mistakes. No do-overs. Most of us are going somewhere we know. But it doesn't mean we should know what to expect. Be careful. Look out for each other. This is the fight of our lives. And we're gonna win.”
And there he was, Steve Rogers. Older, but just as beautiful as the day she’d met him.
The day he’d saved her.
“Whatever it takes. Good luck.”
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