Believer [Peter Parker]

47 - Avengers Compound

At the Avengers Compound, Steve Rogers was standing in the bathroom holding a blade. He had just shaved his beard off. He sighed and looked at the side mirror. It started to shake. It shook slowly at first then it got severe.

At the yard, Nora Hudson stood there looking up at the ship. Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff, Bruce Banner, and James Rhodes walked out looking up. The Benatar, the ship, was carried by Captain Marvel. She landed and set the spacecraft on the ground. The landing gears deployed as they touched down. The entry opened and Tony, Nebula, and Hannah walked out. Tony was supported by Nebula and Hannah. Despite Hannah and Tony being in the same, terrible condition, Tony needed more support.

Steve ran over to the trio and helped Tony stand up. Nebula let go of Tony now that Steve is here. Tony gripped both Hannah and Steve.

"We couldn't stop him," Tony said.

"Neither could I," Steve said.

"I lost the kid," Tony said.

"Tony, we lost," STeve said.

"Is ummm..." Tony struggled to ask about Nora.

"Oh my God!" Nora said. She walked over to Tony and hugged him. Hannah and Steve both let him go. 

"It's okay," he said. 

***

Inside the base, the heroes were sitting in a living room area. Tony and Hannah both sat at a table, getting blood for healing.

"It's been twenty-three days since Thanos came to Earth," Natasha said. "World governments are in pieces. The parts that are still working are trying to take a census. And it looks like he did... exactly what he said he was going to do. Thanos wiped out fifty percent, of all living creatures."

"Where is he now?" Tony asked. "Where?"

"We don't know," Steve said. "He just opened a portal and walked through."

Thor sat on a bench. He seemed to be deep in thought.

"What's wrong with him?" Tony asked.

"He's pissed," Rocket, the raccoon, responded. "He thinks he failed. Which of course he did, but there's a lot of that's goin' around ain't there?"

Hannah would've been surprised seeing a raccoon talking, but with everything that has been happening, she wasn't at all. 

"Honestly, until this exact second, I thought you were a Build-A-Bear," Tony said.

"Maybe I am," Rocket said.

"We've been hunting Thanos for three weeks now," Steve said. "Deep Space scans, satellites, and we got nothing. Tony, you fought him."

"Who told you that? Hannah did? I didn't fight him," Tony said. "No, he wipsed my face with a planet while the Bleeker Street Magician gave away the stone. That's what happened. There was no fight."

"Did he give you any clues, any coordinates, anything?"

"Pfft! I saw this coming a few years back. I had a vision. I didn't want to believe it. Thought I was dreaming."

"Tony, I'm gonna need you to focus," Steve said.

"And I needed you," Tony said. "As in past tense. That trumps what you need. It's too late buddy. Sorry. You know what I need?"

Tony stood up and pushed things off the table with a clatter. Everyone winced at the noise.

"I need to shave," he continued. "And I believe I remember telling you, Cap."

Tony goes for Steve. Rhodey quickly comes in front of him, trying to stop him.

"Tony, Tony, Tony, stop!" Rhodey said.

"Otherwise what we needed was a suit of armor around the world!" Tony said. "Remember that? Whether it impacted our precious freedom or not- that's what we needed!"

"Well, that didn't work out, did it?" Steve asked.

Hannah pushed her wheelchair away. She stayed in the corner, watching everything. She didn't want to get caught up with everything."

"I said, 'We'll lose,'" Tony reminded Steve. "You said, 'We'll do that together too.' And guess what, Cap? We lost. You weren't there. But that's what we do, right? Our best work after the fact? We're the Avengers, we're the Avengers. Not the Prevengers, right?"

"Okay, you made your point," Rhodey said. "Just sit down, okay?"

Nora quietly entered and bent over to Hannah.

"I'm going to wheel you out," she whispered. "I know that you're old enough to watch this, but I'm going to take you away."

"Okay," Hannah said. She didn't have the energy to argue.

Nora grabbed the handles of the wheelchair and wheeled Hannah away. 

"Are any of my friends or family alive?" Hannah asked as Nora wheeled into a small room.

"I'm going to need you to get into the bed," Nora said. "And sleep."

"Okay, but what about my friends and family?" Hannah asked as she slowly got up and sat on the bed to lay on it. Nora helped her.

"I'm sorry, Hannah," Nora responded, sadly. "I looked for them and I couldn't find them. The only one I know from your friends that's alive is Dylan."

Hannah looked down at her hands in disappointment. She knew she lost almost everything, but a small part of her hoped she was wrong.

"I'm really sorry, Hannah," Nora said.

"It's not your fault," Hannah said. "I'm going to get some rest now."

Just as she said that, they heard someone fall.

"What was that?"

They heard someone call Tony's name.

"Oh, God," Nora said. As she was walking out of the door to get to Tony, she looked over at Hannah. "Get some rest."

"Will he be okay?" Hannah asked.

"I'll let you know, but get some rest."