One | Steve Rogers

25

Grief is such a strange feeling. It's something that silently lives inside of us until the day it comes out. Grief is loss. But, what is grief if not love persevering? 

The entire world grieves the loss of Captain America. He was a hero not only to America, but Earth as a whole. He was willing to fight against Thanos and his whole army. All by himself.

Steve Rogers is honored with a military funeral. The soldiers carry his casket down the street while his widow walks behind them. His casket gets lowered into the ground with an American flag draped over it. A soldier folds another flag and presents it to Lauren. She takes it with tears in her eyes as she watches her husband be lowered into the ground.

All of the government officials offer their sympathy. She shakes enough hands to get carpal tunnel. 

Sam walks up to the seated widow and places a hand on her shoulder.

" I'm always here if you need me," He says, " Just a call away."

Lauren nods in response. Sam walks away from her chair, and soon enough she's the only person left. She sits there, staring at her husband's grave with a white lily in her hands. With one shaky breath, she stands up and kneels before his grave.

" Hey, Steve, " She whispers, " I know we would always say, till death tear us a part, but... I-I never thought it would."

The woman lets her tears fall down onto her skin. She looks at his tombstone and can no longer hold back the sobs. They escape from her chest and echo across the graveyard. Her tears land on the freshly laid dirt of the grave. 

With her grief comes an idea. Inspired by the magical doctor. She tries to silence her sobs as she looks down at the flower in her hands. She hasn't used her powers in so long... decades. She sniffs and regains her composure. As she places the lily upon his grave, she freestyles an incantation.

" Flower gleam and glow,

Let your power shine,

Make the clock reverse,

Bring back what once was mine,

Heal what has been hurt,

Change the fate's design,

Save what has been lost,

Bring back what once was mine...

What once was mine." 

Her singing makes the flower glow. The golden glow bursts out of the flower and surrounds the graveyard in a golden mist. All is dark for a moment, but when Lauren open's her eyes... she sees her husband. He stands in front of her, young as she remembers. She looks around, and she's back in their house from the 50's. She looks at her husband while tear stained eyes, who looks at her with a smile.

" Lauren."

Steve holds his hand out for her to take. Lauren can't believe it. She did it. She actually did it. She takes her husband's hand, and the two begin to slow dance to their favorite song in the living room.

From the 50's, they live their lives exactly the same way they did before. From the library, to the diner, to the college.

60's.

70's.

80's.

90's.

2000's.

2010's.

All the way back to 2023. They lived their lives all over again, but alas, nothing lasts forever. Lauren still ends up kneeling at his grave, in the exact same spot as before. She looks around, and notices that everything is the same. She did everything exactly as they had done before... but he's still gone. With a sigh, Lauren places the lily upon his grave and signs once more.

" Flower gleam and glow,

Let your power shine,

Make the clock reverse,

Bring back what once was mine,

Heal what has been hurt,

Change the fate's design,

Save what has been lost,

Bring back what once was mine...

What once was mine."

The golden glow bursts out once more, and transports them back in time to the 50's where it all began. They slow dance. They kiss. They cook for each other. They share the milkshakes. This time, Lauren tried something different. When Steve got older, she used her powers to heal him.

60's.

70's.

80's.

90's.

2000's.

2010's.

2023.

 Her powers could not heal him for long. She still ends up kneeling by his grave and mourning his lost. She huffs, then clears her throat and places the lily down on his grave. She sings the song and gets transported back in time. This time, every decade, she healed him. She gave it her all. She cast protection spell after protection spell, but it was no use. When she returned back to 2023, he still dies.

As she kneels before his grave, she lets the sobs escape her chest. She's lived the same life over and over again, and has lost her husband multiple times. She's felt the pain of losing him so many times. As she cries, her powers seep through her hands and cause the lily to wilt. She looks down at it and furrows her brows. She bites her bottom lip and sighs. She's cast the same spell before... so maybe it's time for a different one. She places the wilted lily down on the grave, and begins to sing once more.

"Wither and decay...

End this destiny...

Break these earthly chains, 

And set the spirit free

Take what has been hurt

Grant them no mercy,

Bend and break the resigns,

And set the spirit free...

The spirit free..."

As she sings, all the trees and plants around her begin to... wilt. All living things wither. The grass grows a sickening brown as the trees begin to rot from the inside. This time, black magic bursts out of the lily and surrounds the graveyard. The black mist surrounds them, and transports them back to the 50's.

This time, Steve stays young the entire time. He doesn't age. When they go back to 2023...

SNAP

Lauren snaps her fingers and brings them back to the 50's. She creates a timeloop. One where she can live with her husband... forever. With each loop, Steve begins to grow older. When each loop resets, he seems to have more and more wrinkles with every start. 

SNAP

Lauren restarts the loop, but when she sees her husband, she's face to face with his rotting corpse. She gasps in horror, and Steve sends her a sad smile. Her eyes widen as her body is frozen in place.

Steve walks up to his wife and gently places his rotting hands upon her cheek.

" Lauren... let me go... please."

His words ring through her ears, but she doesn't listen. She takes a step back and shakes her head.

" No... I-I can fix this."

SNAP

The loop resets, and Steve is young once more. Lauren smiles and wraps her arms around his body.

She lives within a lie. Her mind knows the truth, but she's in too deep to realize it. She uses the power of the stones to play house with her husband's rotting corpse. She uses her powers to alter reality, to keep going back in time, to have the power to pull this off, to trick her mind, to transport them back to their home... and to keep Steve's soul inside of his own body.