Don't You Worry Child

Goodbye My Lover

Chapter Summary: Samantha supports Steve as Peggy Carter is laid to rest; Audrey Montgomery's past is revealed.

Soundtrack: Goodbye My Lover by James Blunt

A private funeral was held for Peggy a week after her death. It was a small, intimate affair. Her husband and two children had died before her and she didn't have any siblings or other family members living so it was just S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel who'd known her in attendance. That limited it to Tony, Steve, Natasha, Fury, Clint and Coulson. Samantha went as a friendly support of sorts for Steve and Pepper, of course, went for Tony.

Everyone had their own memories of Peggy Carter in some way. For Fury, she was his predecessor and mentor. For Coulson, Peggy was the woman who'd seen his talents and helped to cultivate them. For Clint, she was the woman who had brought him back from the brink after his parents' death. Natasha had been a bodyguard for the old woman and, in return, Peggy had acted as a confidante for the redhead. During his somewhat turbulent childhood, Peggy had acted as something of a constant for Tony, an aunt who knew him almost as well as his own mother. In Peggy, Steve had found his first love, a kindred spirit who understood his pain and suffering.

Steve was breaking at the graveside and it was difficult for Samantha to witness. As the preacher said those immortal words "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust," Samantha saw Steve crumple to the ground and she knelt down beside him.

"Hey, you're okay," she soothed "I know it's hard to believe but she's in a better place. A place where HYDRA and those other guys don't exist okay?" Even for someone who had only known her from stories, watching Peggy's coffin being gently lowered into the ground was difficult. She heard Steve sob and did the only thing she knew to do, wrapping her arms around him in a hug, cocooning him so that – if only for a little while – he was safe, away from a world of hurt and pain. Samantha knew that kind of pain all too well. It was one of the things she sometimes wished she didn't know. But she did and she was using it to help one of the most important men in her life "It's okay, it's okay," she repeated in a soothing voice.

Soon enough, they had to toss the red rose petals into the grave. It was an act that symbolised love and seemed less final than the traditional throwing of dirt into the ground. It had been Steve's request that something other than dirt go in the ground with Peggy, something light and beautiful like her. Samantha had suggested the rose petals.

She held him close as he tossed the delicate petals into the grave over the mahogany coffin, his head resting on her shoulder as he did so.

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Once the funeral was over, Steve ended up knelt beside the newly placed headstone, stroking it as though it were some kind of pet "I'll meet you back at the hotel," Samantha told her father as they watched.

"You sure?" he responded with a sad smile.

"Yeah. Steve shouldn't be left alone and I'd prefer to be the one who sticks around with him," she answered, giving her father a brief hug and walking over to Steve "How're you doing?" she asked the super soldier.

"How do you think?" he asked abruptly.

"I know. It was a dumb question. Everyone's heading back to the hotel where there's going to be one hell of a wake," she told him kindly.

"Yeah... I don't really feel like going to that," he answered, his voice monotone and numb.

"Well what do you feel like doing? Because there's no way I'm going to let you sit and wallow all day," she said and he nodded "I'll give you five minutes," she announced before whispering, more to herself than to anyone else "I swear Peggy, I'll make sure he gets through this," and walking over to one of the nearby trees.