CHAPTER SEVEN.
───────────────.˚₊❖
—IZETA, SYLVINA, PEPPER, AND MORGAN SAT ON THE COACH WATCHING TONY'S HOLOGRAM, HIS MESSAGE.
Rhodey and Happy were behind the women, tears in their eyes.
They arrived back in America yesterday, for Tony's funeral. Izeta looked out of the window to see Sam's back, Pepper had invited him in but he had declined, saying this was for Tony's family.
Izeta rolled her lips as she looked at the hologram, God, she missed him so much and he hadn't even been dead for a week. Even worse, Sylvina hadn't taken the news well, at all. She was confused, mad. Mad, because her lovie and uncle Tony were gone. They weren't coming back.
"Everybody wants a happy ending, right? But it doesn't always roll that way. Maybe this time. I'm hoping if you play this back, it's in celebration. I hope families are reunited, I hope we get it back, and something like a normal version of the planet has been restored. If there ever was such a thing. God, what a world. Universe, now. If you told me ten years ago that we weren't alone, let alone, you know, to this extent, I mean, I wouldn't have been surprised. But come on, you know? The epic forces of darkness and light that have come into play. And, for better or worse, that's the reality Morgan's gonna have to find a way to grow up in. As will Sylvina."
Tony's message projected off of his Iron Man helmet, Rhodey, and Happy had put it on the table.
"So I thought I'd probably better record a little greeting . . . In the case of an untimely death on my part. I mean, not that, death at any time isn't untimely. This time travel thing that we're gonna try and pull off tomorrow, it's— it's got me scratching my head about the survivability of it all. That's the thing. Then again, that's the hero gig. Part of the journey is the end. What am I even trippin' for? Everything's gonna work out exactly the way it's supposed to. Besides, we got Izeta if anything goes wrong—" They watched as he bent down, looking straight at Morgan, "—I love you 3,000."
Izeta sniffed as she wrapped her arms around Sylvina, wiping the young girl's tears away as she held Morgan's hand. The message ended and the hologram disappeared.
And that was the last time Izeta would ever see Tony again.
Pepper stood up, grabbed Tony's bouquet of flowers, and walked out of the cottage with Morgan, Izeta and Sylvina following, and then Happy and Rhodey walking up behind them.
Everyone was here, every Avenger was here to honour Tony Stark. Izeta looked to her side to see James staring at her and Sylvina, she clenched her jaw as she glared at him and shielded her daughter away from him.
What was he even doing here? Izeta was sure Tony didn't even want him here. She scoffed in her head, she watched as Pepper put the wreath on the lake. Everyone watched in silence as it floated away.
Izeta looked behind her to see Rhodey holding his hand out since she was crouched down. She pressed her lips together in a thin line before accepting his hand. "The hating eachother was fun while it lasted, right?"
"Yeah. Suppose, it was." Izeta hummed, looking at him with a smile, before looking back at Sylvina who was comforting Morgan.
∘₊✧──────✧₊∘
— IZETA WAS STANDING AT THE EDGE OF THE LAKE WITH CLINT AND WANDA, STARING AT THE LAKE.
"You know, I wish there was a way—that I could let her know. That we won. We did it." Clint told the sisters who were holding eachother's hands.
"She knows– They both do." Wanda spoke, Clint only gave her a side hug, which she reciprocated.
Izeta watched her sister, she knew the redhead had something planned. And as her sister, she felt the need to help. And she would.
Wanda tightened her hold around her sister's hand before nodding towards Sylvina and Sam, "I'm gonna go pay my little niece a visit. I'll see you soon." She smiled at Clint, who smiled back.
The redhead walked away and Izeta let out a sigh, "I'm hosting a funeral for her in two days. Yelena and her parents will be there. You're free to come."
"Yeah, I'll think about it." Clint hummed, before walking away. Making Izeta let out a breath and purse her lips together.
The woman sat down on a stone and stared at the lake. She was so done, she was so tired of the constant death surrounding her. It followed her around everywhere. It would never leave her alone, Death liked haunting her. Sending her reminders of everyone she loved that had died, giving her nightmares of her loved ones dying in different ways. Death stuck by her like no other.
And apparently her past also did, "What do you want?" Izeta spat, feeling the presence behind her, knowing exactly who was here to bother her.
"Look, Izeta—" Bucky sighed, only to be cut off, "Oh, I'm sorry. Am I bothering you by sitting here? Would you like a seat, a place to grieve?" Izeta harshly told him, standing up and pointing at the stone.
Bucky huffed and pinched his nose out of frustration, "Don't make this any harder than it needs to be, Stasya. I still love you, and I want to forgive you and be with you."
Izeta stalled in her place, silence falling over them as she turned her head to look at him, "But, without Sylvina right?"
She only got silence in response and that was all she needed, "You are horrible. What do you suppose I do, huh? Send her away? Throw her on the streets?"
Silence.
"God, you know I once thought no one knew me better than you. But, you clearly don't if you think for a second that I'd throw my own daughter away for you. My own flesh and blood. My lifeline. Have you gone absolutely insane? What, you got your head stuck in a blender again? I thought you were here to say you were ready and every word you spewed two nights ago was bullshit. I should've known better. That's on me." Izeta cried out, her accent becoming more clear with every word that came out of her mouth.
She was about to shove past him when he grabbed a hold of her elbow. Izeta tilted her head at him before throwing him against a tree, holding him in a chokehold. "Don't ever touch me again, James. I mean it. I don't want to see you, I don't want to talk to you and I certainly don't want you alive. I don't ever want to hear from you, again. I want you to disappear and never come back." Izeta said, her anger overpowering her other emotions.
Her eyes glowed a deathly purple as she looked at him, "Do you understand?" Izeta whispered in his ear, tightening her grip around his neck when he tried to wiggle his way out. He should've been able to, he was a super soldier. But the man was no match against Izeta's powers.
"I—I understand." He squeaked out, making Izeta hum before letting him go. James fell to the ground as his hand flew up to his throat.
Izeta blankly watched him before turning around, and leaving him alone. God, Tony would've loved this. His ego would've grown two sizes if he knew there was a fight at his funeral. Claiming that he didn't want his funeral to be boring.
The witch didn't even look back at the man, she had no energy left for him. Maybe she should've tried to convince him, but if he didn't want to be a father two nights ago, why would he ever? She wouldn't put energy into someone who put no effort in herself or her daughter. Because she had someone waiting for her who put more effort into her and in her daughter than she could ever imagine.
Would she still cry over him? Yes. Would she continue to love him or ever take him back? Absolutely not.
Izeta was wandering around the cottage when she got stopped by Steve, she smiled at him, wondering why he was dressed up in the suit that they used to time travel.
Noticing her confusion, Steve spoke up, "I'm going back in time to return the stones." Izeta nodded in understanding, but noticed the look on his face, "You're not coming back, are you?"
"Not like this, no." Steve told her, Izeta let out a deep sigh. His mind was made up, she couldn't do anything to stop him. Besides, who was she to stop him? Who was she to ruin his happiness? She wouldn't say she was happy with his decision, but he had sacrificed so much. He deserved this, he deserved happiness.
Izeta wrapped her arms around his waist, making him rest his chin on her head. She closed her eyes and soaked in his scent. How was she going to tell Sylvina?
Almost as if he could read her mind, he whispered, "Don't worry about Vina. She told me she was fine with it as long as she could come to visit. She even liked it, said I'd finally look like a grandpa."
Izeta let out a teary laugh before pulling herself away from him, "Are you coming with me?" He asked her, Izeta shook her head.
"No, I'm sorry. I can't watch that, I can't do it." She sighed, Steve only nodded before pressing a kiss to her head.
"Keep in contact, alright? I love you." Steve said, Izeta agreed and smiled at him.
"If you remember how to use a phone, old man." Izeta joked, making Steve laugh before he walked away. "I love you too."
∘₊✧──────✧₊∘
—IZETA AND SYLVINA WERE WAITING IN THE CAR FOR SAM TO COME BACK, ALREADY HAVING SAID THEIR GOODBYES TO EVERYONE.
Sylvina sat in the back, singing the lyrics to a Taylor Swift song as Izeta danced in the passenger seat.
They did this for a while until Sam came back with a big black bag in his hand, he put it in the trunk before stepping in the car.
"What's that?" Izeta questioned him, as Sam turned on the car and drove away from the Stark Household.
"Steve's shield." He responded quietly, his eyes straight on the road, Izeta tilted her head at him before squinting her eyes. "I don't know what to do with it."
"Look Steve gave his shield to you, Sam. You can do whatever you want with it, no one can tell you what to do with it, except you." Izeta smiled at him, Sam grinned back at her before taking a left.
Izeta's eyes narrowed as she looked at his bloody knuckles, she raised an eyebrow at him and he laughed, unapologetically. "I couldn't resist."
"Go, Sam!" Sylvina yelled from the back, putting her fist in the air, making the two adults laugh.
Izeta took his right hand off the steering wheel and placed it in her lap, while still holding it. "I'll disinfect it at home." She told him, making him nod.
"Hey, Sam. Why are you going the wrong way?" Sylvina questioned the man, looking outside the window.
"We're not going to the airport, angel." Sam told her, making Izeta's eyebrows furrow, "Then where are we going?"
"We're going to my house for a few weeks if that's okay. Sylvina can meet AJ and Cass, and Sarah. Plus, you'll be living closer to Wanda." Sam told them, Sylvina cheered in happiness while Izeta nodded.
"Alright." Izeta smiled at him, tightening her grip around his hand, caressing his thumb.
And she held his hand the whole way there.
∘₊✧──────✧₊∘