bustled with life, the people of New York City forever on the move. Professionals in formal attire mingled in the open area, speaking about technology and business contracts. The woman weaved in and out of those standing still and those rushing off to their next obligations.

She approached the reception desk with a persuasive speech on the tip of her tongue. She was prepared to convince the receptionist to allow her to meet with the new owner of the building. However, upon seeing a familiar face, she didn't have to say a single word.

The man's eyes went wide in shock as she emerged from the crowded center of the first floor. The blonde stood up, a growing smile spreading across his face.

"Sampson," she greeted him, mirroring his facial expressions.

Sampson walked from behind the reception desk, ignoring the questions of the other man who sat behind the desk. Despite not being one for public displays of affection, Beau engulfed Iris in his arms, embracing his former friend.

"Iris, you have a lot of explaining to do," he told her after hugging her in silence for a moment. The one hug didn't make up for the past six years but it was a start. "I'm sure Richard has just as many questions as I do."

agents sat around a table, taking turns asking questions and discussing their whereabouts for the past few years. Iris intently listened to her two friends explain what history had formally titled The Blip.

"For five years, half the population was gone. One day, we simply watched as those around us disintegrated to dust," Richard explained, his eyes focused on the skyline outside the windows of the penthouse that sat atop the skyscraper. "As is the order of things, the world fell to shambles. With half the population missing, the structures of society that kept the world going... collapsed. For five years, people mourned their losses. Carrying their grief, a new normal was created. People did the best they could. That was until the flimsy infrastructure collapsed again. After a glorious time heist by the remaining Avengers and others, The Blip was reversed. Those who disappeared suddenly reappeared, unaged and unprepared. The world was in complete disarray once again."

"What happened to the Joint Counter Terrorist Centre?"

Beau let out a grim laugh, recalling memories of the past they used to live in. It hadn't even been a decade but it felt like it had been lifetimes ago that the three had formally worked together.

"With more than half its employees presumed dead, the JCTC basically closed its doors. A small group of us continued to work under the deputy but with limited resources and unprecedented times, we eventually disbanded."

"And this?" Iris asked, her finger making a circle, meaning the massive building they occupied.

"Ah, we never could discuss our personal lives could we?" Richard set down his mug of coffee, his gaze on the woman. "My father was a man of scientific innovation. He earned a name for himself among the most brilliant minds history had to offer. Upon his death, my brother - who was always more intellectually endowed - took over the family business. He rebranded it and the company soon became worth billions. While my brother chose to run the family business, I chose to use my father's connections to secure a position working for the government. Joe passed a year after The Blip and left everything to his only living relative: me. Amidst the chaos of the world, this company was my life vest. Of course, I brought along Beau once JCTC shut down permanently. He and I have been partners for years. I hired him as my personal bodyguard for lack of better words. With decades of C.I.A. training among a long list of talents, who else better to protect a man who just inherited billions, becoming a likely target of those left desperate?"

The woman processed the overload of information, staring at tea that was room temperature by then. "The Avengers..." she started, hesitant to pull back the curtain that would reveal the truth she had been tiptoeing around, "what happened to them?"

Richard continued, "Well, days after half the population turned to ash, Captain America marched into JCTC headquarters, demanding to speak to us. He told us the truth before any broadcast news could. Thanos had become the most powerful being in the universe and decided to use that power to kill half of it. After a failed attempt to stop the goon, he watched in horror as his friends became dust like the rest of us. He told us you disappeared too but not like the others. Cap didn't know what happened to you, figured you may still be alive. He was recruiting all the help he could get to figure out a plan."

She opened her mouth to explain herself but was stopped short.

"We know, Iris. Cap told us about your past with S.H.I.E.L.D. and your history with the Avengers. He also mentioned your abilities, told us you almost killed Thanos with them."

Beau looked up from the knife he had been messing with, a small smirk on his face, "I always knew I should have put in a request for you to be my partner in the field."

Richard looked offended by the years-old joke, jabbing his finger in his body guard's face, "Sampson! I will fire you!"

The three shared a round of laughs, a comfortable nostalgia falling over them like a comforting blanket.

"What happened to you? Where have you been for the past five years? You didn't come back when the others did."

"If I told you, you wouldn't believe me," she let out a short breath, finishing the rest of her lukewarm tea in one sip.

"We've seen a lot of weird fucking stuff," Sampson retorted, pushing her for answers, "I think we'll believe you."

So she told them. She told them everything.

By the end of what seemed to be her life story, Richard's jaw was wide open while Beau looked at her with even more admiration.

"I should have made the child of a god my fucking partner!" The blonde man threw his hands up in defeat, his knife left on the table.

"Infinity isn't a god."

"Okay, child of a cosmic entity. Pardon my lack of knowledge."

Once more, Richard shot daggers in his friend's direction. "So what's your next move now that you're Earthbound once more?"

"That's just the thing. I don't have a next move. I blindly came back to the only place I've considered home after mine was destroyed and left to waste away."

"That appears to be a common theme among people that aren't from here. This little blue planet has a habit of wearing off on people," Beau quipped.

"You're more than welcome to stay with us, Reign. There's plenty of room here," the bald penthouse owner told her, a supportive smile on his face.

"About that... Reign isn't my last name. It was a cover."

Sampson slammed his hand on the table, a laugh coming from his throat. "I fucking told you Venture! I fucking told you! You owe me a hundred bucks!"

Once again a round of laughter filled the room, the three falling back into their old antics. As the laughter died down, so did the comfort. The blanket was torn away from her.

"I'm sorry for your loss, Iris," Beau spoke softly once the room was completely quiet.

"My loss?" Her eyes were puzzled with confusion, the expression apparent on her face.

"You don't know..."

"Know what?" She asked, rising to her feet.

They told her.

Tony Stark: dead. It was common knowledge he died when he acquired the Infinity Stones and killed Thanos. He left behind his wife and daughter.

Steve Rogers: dead. There were theories that he died with Tony or that he was on the moon, but the former JCTC agents had been told the truth by a trusted source. He left behind two best friends.

In another dimension of reality, she had been unable to feel their souls slip into the unknown. Perhaps that was the saddest part, not knowing what happened to the two men after they saved everyone. She only knew what happened between life and death, not after. While her abilities stemmed from life, death, and the in-between, her knowledge stemmed from the transition between life and death. All she knew was that their souls survived their mortal bodies and lived peacefully or damned forever. She knew nothing more.

With the grief of loss and the shadow of the unknown swallowing her whole, she drowned in her tears for nights, only finding temporary moments of peace knowing they died as friends and that the two men whose lives had been a constant battle, finally knew peace in whatever came after death. She cried until Tony and Steve's own peace washed over her.

the world were watching the Smithsonian museum. Across the globe, especially in the United States, millions watched as Sam Wilson stood in front of a crowd, all camera focused on him. Behind a podium, he began his speech. The infamous shield of his fallen friend sat at his feet.

"Steve represented the best in all of us. Courageous, righteous, hopeful. And he mastered posing stoically." The audience in front of the former Avenger chuckled.

Camera shutters clicked as the man continued, "The world has been forever changed. A few months ago, billions of people reappeared after five years away, sending the world into turmoil. We need new heroes. Ones suited for the times we're in. Symbols... are nothing without the women and men that give them meaning. And this thing..." he paused to pick up the vibranium shield.

His gaze was no longer on the crowd but instead on the red, white, and blue. He found himself remembering his best friend, almost talking to Steve once more, "I don't know if there's ever been a greater symbol. But it's more about the man who propped it up," he tore his eyes from the last piece of Steve, "and he's gone."

Sam held the shield in his hands, his fingers wrapped around it tightly, knowing he was going to have to let go. He looked at it once more, "So, today we honor Steve's legacy. But also, we look to the future." He turned his head to look at a banner with his best friend's face on it, speaking to the man for the last time, "So, thank you, Captain America. But this belongs to you."

In the crowd of people, Iris watched as Sam handed the shield over to a Smithsonian employee. Unveiling a glass shadow box, the symbol was put on display. Here, in the new exhibit, it would remain untouched, forever a symbol of hope.

Barnes stared back at Iris as she read the panel of information quietly. The Smithsonian had dedicated a large exhibit to the life of Captain America. As a vital part of Steve's life, Bucky had been incorporated into the display. While his influence on Captain America's life had been large, Bucky's presence had been reduced to a few panels.

He was so much more than that.

She heard the voices of Sam Wilson and James Rhodey but tuned them out as she continued to walk the exhibit, reading the story of the man she had fought for when the Avengers fought one another. She searched for Bucky's story, following the natural path until she laid eyes on his symbol. It was surrounded by the LED symbols of S.H.I.E.L.D. and HYDRA.

"World's a crazy place right now. People are.. well, nobody's stable. Allies are now enemies. Alliances are torn apart. The world's broken. Everybody's just looking for someone to fix it."

"The world won't remain broken."

The silhouettes outlined by the propaganda posters spun around, having believed they were alone. Able to see their facial features, it was evident they were both surprised to see woman before them.

"I've seen broken worlds, ones that remain broken. Thanos tried to break this planet but he failed. Earth is resilient. She will heal with time."

"Iris?" Sam questioned, tilting his head. He reached out to touch her, not willing to give up the possibility she was a figment of his imagination or simply someone playing tricks on him. Upon touching her arm and feeling flesh, he began to smile. "Oh my god!"

"And another Avenger rises from the ashes," Rhodey declared, hugging the woman after Wilson let her go.

"Avenger?" Her foreign accent became more apparent in her words as she questioned the man, "I was never an Avenger."

"Steve told the world what you did, how you almost killed Thanos. In the world's eyes and ours, you're an Avenger."

The three walked through the exhibit, coming to a stop in front of the newly placed shield.

"If the others emerge from the ashes, maybe the world won't remain broken," Rhodey mused. He turned to address Sam, a bit of hope in his tone, "It's a new day brother. I'll be in touch."

her body, her hands trembling as she sat with her eyes glued to the screen. A Senator stared into the camera, addressing the country as a whole. He had an American flag pinned to his lapel, a symbol of what Iris chalked up to be his false patriotism. A true patriot would never do what he was doing.

"Unrest, in the wake of recent events has left us vulnerable. Every day Americans feel it. While we love heroes who put their lives on the line to defend Earth, we also need a hero to defend this country. We need a real person who embodies America's greatest values. We need someone to inspire us again, someone who can be a symbol for all of us. So, on behalf of the Department of Defense and our Commander-in-Chief, it is with great honor that we announce here today that the United States of America has a new hero. Join me in welcoming your new Captain America."

The wooden doors behind the Senator opened and out stepped the man deemed worthy of the title of Captain America. Iris sprung to her feet, shaking her head in denial.

"No! They can't do that!"

Sampson placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort his friend. Watching the new man smirk with the shield in hand, Iris yelled in frustration. After he winked, the girl turned to Beau, unsheathed the knife he kept on his belt loop, and threw it at the man on the television screen. It punctured the glass perfectly, the screen flickering before dying completely.

"Iris!" Venture protested, getting up to assess the damage of the flatscreen while Sampson continued to attempt to support her.

Things like televisions could be easily replaced. The title of Captain America could not be.

She ignored both men, pushing the blonde off of her as she heard her phone ping. It was Sam.

Wilson sent the number he had for Barnes not two minutes after Iris sent the last text. Eager to hear a familiar voice, the woman tapped on the number and waited as the line rung a few times. Anxiety crept up in her throat, her palms began to sweat.

"Hello?" A gruff voice answered.

"Bucky?"

"Who is this?"

"An Avenger risen from the ashes," she answered cryptically. She knew this would tip him off.

"Iris!"

*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*✭˚･ﾟ✧*･ﾟ*