MCU (Avengers) Imagines Part Two

Ex-Avenger!Reader - Back In Black

A/N - This chapter is based on the song 'Back In Black' by AC/DC. This one hasn't got an actual pairing, but Reader is/was close to most of the characters. I hope you all enjoy it.

Retirement had been treating you pretty damn well. Living off of the radar in a quiet little town in the middle of nowhere had grown to be so relaxing that you couldn't quite understand why you hadn't made the decision to leave the superhero life behind you sooner. You had been threatening it for so long that none of the team had really believed you when you had told them you were leaving. And then you'd defeated Ultron and you'd hit the road without a moment of hesitation. 

For years, you had watched the team tear themselves to shreds from a distance, having to force yourself to stay hidden. The second you put your tactical gear back on, you'd be trapped again, and in all honesty, you'd become pretty accustomed to living a normal life. But the Thanos had one a real number on the planet, and you'd come to the conclusion that there was no point in retiring if earth was facing an oncoming apocalypse. So you'd packed your bags and hit the road, headed for the one place you knew you would find what was left of the team.

The grounds of the Avenger's Facility weren't anything like you had remembered. Now that half of the inhabitants were gone, and the other half had been sent off on peace keeping missions, it was quiet; eerily so. You placed your thumb against the reader, letting out a sigh of relief when you were granted access. 

Inside was just as quiet. An empty foyer greeting you. Even the front desk staff were gone, a rarity even at the most ridiculous of hours of the day. You dropped your duffel bag on the ground, kicking it to the side and stalking through the halls until you found the main common area. 

The room was silent, but as you glanced around you noticed the figure hunched over in one of the armchairs. You stilled for a moment, shifting on the spot as you reached for the gun at your hip. 

Levelling the gun at the person, your cleared your throat, watching as his head shot up quite suddenly, revealing Steve. With a soft sigh of relief, you holstered the weapon, watching as his brows furrowed slightly. 

"Y/N?" 

"The one and only," you uttered, crossing the space between you as he stood and pulling him into a tight embrace. 

His arms lifted to wrap around you, giving you a tight squeeze. "It's been too long," he muttered, and you nodded slightly.

"Glad to be back, Captain." You paused for a moment, the two of you separating. "Thought you guys could use all the help you could get, given the circumstances."

He nodded, his hands landing on his hips. Now that you could get a good look at him, you realised just how exhausted he looked. There were dark circles under his eyes, and his shoulders were drooping. He looked so different to how he had when you had last seen him, that your heart tightened slightly. "No one's seen Tony since-"

You reached out, touching his arm lightly. "I know," you interrupted, silencing him. "I've been keeping an eye on everything whilst I've been gone."

Steve swallowed, nodding again. "Alright. Well, it's good to have you back."

*Time Skip*

The moment Tony had come back to earth, you had known he was going to lash out. He and Steve had been bickering for years, and now that everyone had lost so much, it was getting harder to keep emotions at bay. 

As he started to make biting comments, you had stood from your seat. "Tony, this isn't helping-"

"And where the hell were you?" You fell silent, staring across the table at him in disbelief. "We needed you, and you were nowhere to be found. Too busy off living your best life."

"You don't get to lecture me on my actions," you bit out, a glare fixed firmly on your face. "Despite what you may believe, Tony, I didn't leave the team because I suddenly got bored of saving the planet; I left because you built a murder-happy AI that was pretty intent on destroy the human race, and you didn't even bother to tell us about it." You paused for a moment, shaking your head. "If you hadn't been so bitter about me leaving in the first place and had told me what was happening, I would have been here. You know that as well as I do." 

For a second, he looked like he was about to calm down, his face softening as you held his gaze, and then he was pushing away from the table and marching out of the room. You released a soft sigh as he went, shaking your head as you slumped back into your seat. 

"He's mad at himself," Rhodey started, looking all apologetic as he offered you a small smile. "Try not to take it too personally."

"He needs to get his shit together. We'll need everyone to work together if we're going to fix this mess, and right now, he's the only one here making that difficult." 

Rhodey shuffled uncomfortably on the spot for a moment, and then nodded. "I'll talk to Pepper. Give him a couple of days to cool off and she'll have him back here and ready to take on the world again."

"Good. We'll be waiting for him."

*Time Skip*

You were sitting out in front of the facility when Tony's car had pulled up. You watched it wind it's way up the drive, pulling to a halt dead in front of you. When the window rolled down, Tony was offering you a small, apologetic smile.

"Hey," he started softly, reaching down and letting the car door open. You raised an eyebrow at him, waiting patiently as he got out of the car, standing in front of you with his hands in his pockets. "You're still mad-"

"Yeah, I'm still pretty mad," you uttered, your eyes still fixed on his. "But I'm glad you came back."

He nodded, clearing his throat slightly. "I didn't mean what I said about-"

"Yes, you did. You were upset that I left, and you were mad at yourself for not calling when you needed me." You paused for a moment. "But I'm here now, and I don't plan on going anywhere until we fix the whole Thanos problem, so we can put all that behind us for a little while." 

You pushed yourself up from the bench, offering him your hand, which he quickly took, dragging you into a tight hug. "Thanks for coming back," he mumbled, giving you a quick squeeze before releasing you.

"Come on, Steve's got this guy here- Scott something- and he thinks he's figured out some plan to change everything." You shook your head. "They're calling it a time heist, but I'm not sure that actually means anything."

Tony let out a sharp burst of laughter as he followed you inside. "You're telling me they figured out time travel?"

"Well, they certainly seem to think so, but I don't intend on getting sent back in time until my favourite technology know-it-all has a bit of input," you teased, patting him on the shoulder and offering him a small smile. 

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