Saving Grace

Ninety Nine

Everyone else is arriving now for Tony's funeral, a larger affair. Those that fought in the battle are coming, though not the whole Wakandan army or all the magicians Strange and Wong had brought, as there would be no room for them. Everyone else feels they should be there, to pay respects and honor him, whether they knew him well or not.

Grace stands with Happy in the backyard, looking over the long table of food meant for those coming, and reluctantly untouched by those already there, who wait in the front yard, near the lake. Grace messes with the hem of her black dress, pushes her bangs out of her eyes. She didn't put on make up, as she knew it would be running down her face if she did.

Happy checks his watch. "It's starting in an hour." Grace makes no response, seemingly staring at the finger sandwiches on the table, her mind somewhere else. "Grace?" Happy asks.

"You didn't even get to say goodbye," she says, not looking at him.

He can hear she's about to cry, and he puts an arm around her, side-hugging her. "Oh, no. I don't have to say goodbye — not really. None of us do. Because he's still here, in you. And Morgan..." She looks up at him, and he smiles softly. "You both got his smile, you know." She tries to smile a little then at the thought, and then Happy continues. "And that raised brow look. You're the spitting image of him when you do that. It's freaky."

Despite herself, she laughs a little.

She moves back inside, passing her mom in the kitchen, making more food as it distracts her from thinking about it all, and, on the front porch, she meets a friend, one she hasn't seen in person since she was eleven years old.

He called her, when he saw the news — the compound, Thanos, all of it. She had to tell him what happened and, later, told him to come to the funeral. It all pains him, but he wouldn't miss it for the world.

"Hey, stranger," she says.

"Hey," Harley replies.

"Finally taller than me, I see," she jokes, though he can see she's falling apart behind her sad smile.

He smiles sadly, too. "Finally..." After a pause, he turns to the girl next to him. "Um, Grace... this is Hannah. Hannah, this is Grace." Politely, she shakes Grace's hand. Grace had excepted her; she told Harley she wanted to meet her.

He had sent Grace pictures, but Grace thought Hannah was even more beautiful in person, with her long blonde hair and soft blue eyes. She has a sad, almost apologetic look on her face, and that's beautiful, too, in a tragic sort of way.

"I wish we were meeting under different circumstances," she says.

Grace nods. "Yeah, me, too. Harley's, uh... well, he's told me a lot about you."

"You, too," she says. "Though, he only first mentioned you about a week ago. Thanks for pushing him to ask him me out, by the way."

Grace chuckles. "You're welcome."

"Oh, and for your input on this." She lifts her left hand, showing Grace the engagement ring Harley had sent her a picture of months ago, along with a couple others.

Grace shrugs. "It was no problem. Every ring he picked out was beautiful, really; it's the one thing he's good at apparently."

"Hey!" Harley says, though he's glad that she's joking. It's normal, and it's a good sign.

Hannah laughs lightly, then excuses herself. "Well, I think I'll go and... look at some nature and let you two catch up."