Frostbite

Eight

Steve and I were in our old room, changing before our mission. Hopefully our last. With a wave of my hand, I conjured my robes, the blue, black and silver clothing replacing my street clothes. I hadn't worn them in years, and I smiled as I glimpsed myself in a mirror.

"Those still look extremely good on you," Steve murmured in approval as he walked across the room. He stopped right in front of me, and I rested my hands on his broad chest, smirking up at him.

"I could say the same thing," I mused, referring to his own suit. It was odd seeing us like this after so many years trying to be normal.

He leaned down until his face was inches from my own. I sucked in a breath as he softly kissed me, pulling me into him. My own mouth responded greedily, wanting to stretch out the moment as long as I could. Too soon we broke apart, our breaths coming in short pants.

"No matter what happens, we're both coming home. You got it?" he whispered, his brows furrowing slightly as he stared into my eyes.

The corners of my mouth twitched as I said, "Ya know, I like it when you're bossy, Steve."

"I'm serious, Mel," he sighed, trying to hide his amusement at my comment, "But if that's the case- I'm ordering you to make it back. Do whatever you need to. Just come home to me. That's an order."

"Well, I'd be wrong not to follow the captain's orders, wouldn't I?"

"Damn, right."

"Language," I mumbled, pulling him in for one more kiss. His arms pressed me into him tightly, refusing to leave just yet. "The same goes for you, too."

"I know," he grinned, touching his nose to mine, "I'd hate to face the wrath of Frostbite."

I scoffed at the name, rolling my eyes dramatically. He knew I wasn't a fan of the moniker.

"You're on thin ice, hun," I teased, as he pulled on the quantum suit. Mine appeared over my own clothes with a simple motion.

"Nice pun," he chuckled, tilting his head to the side.

"I didn't even mean to- dear lord," I huffed, moving to the door. He strode over and grabbed my hand, turning serious once more.

"You ready to do this?"

"I've been ready for five years."

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All of us spread out across the platform, taking our positions as we readied to time travel. Steve was on my one side, Tony on the other. Tony elbowed me and I shook my head at him with a chuckle. He was the reason we were here, that we were getting this shot. We owed him everything.

"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," Tony and Steve exchanged a meaningful glance, "Whatever it takes. Good luck."

"He's pretty good at that," Rocket admitted in awe. Scott leaned over excitedly.

"Right?"

Tony nodded to Bruce behind us, "All right. You heard the man. Stroke those keys, jolly green."

Bruce pressed several buttons on the control panel before joining us on the platform.

"Tractors engaged."

Rocket fixed his gaze on Clint across the way and nervously said, "You promise to bring that back in one piece, right?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay. I'll do my best," he agreed shortly and unconvincingly. The shrunken ship sat in the palm of his hand.

"As promises go, that was pretty lame."

"Oh, definitely," I scoffed, earning a pointed look from Clint.

"See you in a minute," Natasha smiled widely, her entire face lighting up for the first time in forever. I grinned back at her before turning to the man beside me. Steve and I locked eyes as we nervously waited.

The panels began shifting, rotating faster as they went. Our helmets automatically sprang forward as we were seconds away from leaving. The floor of the platform finally opened up and just like that, we all shrank, soaring through the Quantum realm.

The colors were hard on the eyes as we shot past, making everything blurry. We eventually all split apart, heading to our different times. Nat, Clint, Rhodey, and Nebula would go back to two thousand fourteen, to Morag and Vormir. Thor and Rocket were the only ones going to Asgard. Steve, Tony, Bruce, Scott, and I were all going to New York, where half of the stones were.

Suddenly, my feet were on solid ground again. The world took a moment to stabilize, my stomach turning from the sensation it had just experienced. I sighed in relief when I saw that the others had made it without an issue as well. The Quantum suits disappeared, leaving us in our own clothing.

"All right, we all have our assignments. Two stones uptown, one stone down. Stay low. Keep an eye on the clock," Steve instructed, easily falling into the leader role once again.

Chitauri were everywhere, just like I remembered, but we were hidden on a small side street. They wouldn't bother us. The past Hulk ran into view, smashing everything in sight as he went. I snickered at the sight, Bruce covering his face in embarrassment.

"Okay..." Scott drawled in surprise, the rest of us avoiding eye contact with Bruce. I opened a portal to the sanctum's rooftop with my sling ring, letting Bruce go through first.

"Remember where the rendezvous point is," Tony told me, kissing my cheek as the others passed by. They needed to get to Stark Tower.

"I know. Be careful."

"Got it, little sis."

Steve hesitated, his eyes locking with mine. I gave a reassuring smile and said, "Your job is more complicated than ours. Stop worrying."

"I know," he huffed, "There's just this feeling in the pit of my stomach that is gnawing away at me. Like something is gonna happen to you. I don't know what it is."

"It'll all be fine. You'll see," I said, cocking my head to the side, "I love you."

"I love you too, Mel."

With a final glance, I stepped through the portal and joined Bruce on the roof. Time to get to work.