Ashes to Ashes

Vormir

Your alarm started blaring at six-thirty and it woke Steve up. You, on the other hand, had still been awake, lost deep in thought.

"Y/N?" Steve called out in a sleepy voice as he rolled over to face you.

"Yeah?" You questioned as you turned your head to look at him.

"Have you been awake long?"

"Only about 25 hours or so," you admitted.

Steve frowned as he sat up. He was already worried but knowing you hadn't slept at all made him that much more uneasy.

"Maybe you shouldn't go today."

You laughed in Steve's face as you got out of bed, shaking your head at his absurd suggestion.

"I'm not kidding," he said as he watched you.

"You can't stop me from going today, Steve. I'll be with Natasha and Clint and I will be perfectly fine."

You started to get changed into your suit, one similar to Natasha's, as Steve got up. Rather than going to the bathroom to brush his teeth as he normally did first thing after waking up, he walked over to you and wrapped his arms around you.

"Steve, everything is going to be fine," you said softly as you rested your head against his chest.

"I know," he replied with a sigh. "But you've always been my sidekick on missions since you joined the team. Who is going to watch my back now?" He teased, smiling small.

"You have some pretty great people to choose from that are going with you."

"So do you," Steve replied with a nod.

You glanced at the clock— 6:45.

"We'd better hurry," you said in an almost sad tone.

Steve nodded and started to get ready, putting his own suit on. Once the pair of you were ready, you had a few minutes to spare so you took your time heading to the hangar. You stepped away to talk to Bruce and Tony before grabbing your new jet pack while Steve pulled Clint and Natasha aside to talk to them.

As 7:00 hit, Steve began to speak to the group like the captain of the football team before the biggest game of the season.

"Six stones, three teams, one shot," Steve said, looking around at everybody. "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."

You looked around the group and, while some were confident, you could see the apprehension on others faces, yourself included.

"No mistakes, no do-overs. Most of us are going somewhere that we know. That doesn't mean that we should know what to expect. Be careful. Look out for each other," Steve said, as if it was almost directed at Natasha and Clint. "This is the fight of our lives and we're gonna win. Whatever it takes. Good luck."

You exhaled shakily after Steve's speech. You were scared now— beyond scared. As you tried to gain your composure, Steve pulled you aside and into a hug before kissing your forehead.

"It's all going to be fine," he said with a smile.

That damn smile. It always made you feel safe, even before you were together and just friends, that smile had a way of making anybody feel safe.

"We'll be back in a flash," you said as you took Steve's hand, squeezing it gently.

Bruce finished getting the quantum tunnel prepared and everybody began to circle up around it.