Everly || Steve Rogers

68. The Noblest End

A smile crept across Everly's lips as the children around her giggled, running their tiny fingers through her long hair. A few young girls took turns twisting the locks into braids, something they'd been begging to do for the past week. A breath escaped her lips as her eyes wandered the bustling village around her. People went about their day per usual, sparing the occasional glance at Everly and the bouncing children. The sun warmed her cheeks and shone off of the lake's surface like a mirror, the smooth pebbles beneath the silky blue ripples hardly visible. 

Everly frowned when a large shadow skipped across the water. She peered into the sky to see a quinjet soaring overhead. Her gaze flicked toward the Wakandan palace where she made out Okoye and the guards escorting T'Challa, Bucky lingering behind them. Her face scrunched up in confusion.

"Uh, thank you girls. I have to- um. I gotta go." She said slowly, standing to her feet just as one of the children tied off a final braid. 

The quinjet touched down just outside of the towering palace and T'Challa stood ready to greet the visitors. Her pace quickened ever so slightly, a frown still plastered across her face. The jet's door fell slowly open and a group of seven stepped into the sunlight. Vision was the first she recognized and her eyes grew wide, her feet speeding up. She recognized Rhodey next, none other than Bruce Banner beside him. She thought she'd never see Bruce again after Sokovia. Sam and Wanda followed close behind and she couldn't help the grin that spilled across her lips. Her heart beat a bit faster when she recognized Natasha, whose hair had been colored blond and cut shorter. 

She didn't even need to see his face to know who the final man was. The group started toward the tower and stopped when they'd reached Bucky. Steve stepped forward, wrapping his friend in a hug. Everly finally made it up the grassy hill and slowed to a stop just before reaching them, her eyes wide. She ignored the heavy rise and fall of her chest, her heart pounding in her ears.

"Steve?" She breathed. He quickly spun around and immediately met her eyes, his expression softening. She couldn't seem to pry her feet from where they were frozen to the ground. He looked so different from how she remembered, and yet, so similar all at once. His hair had grown a bit longer and was swept straight back, a beard lining his jaw. After years of not seeing him, she'd almost forgotten just how blue his eyes were. She couldn't manage any words with a lump planted firmly in her throat.

Everly let out a deep breath and a smile took hold of her features as she lunged forward, engulfing him in a hug. A sigh of relief pushed past her lips when his arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her close. She couldn't bring herself to let go, though it didn't seem like he was quite ready yet either.

"God, I missed you." She whispered. She felt a deep breath escape his lungs, rustling her hair in the slightest. He pressed a kiss gently to her forehead and pulled her tighter. He was about to speak when T'Challa interrupted, directing their attention over to where he stood waiting in the doorway.

"Captain." He said, nodding lightly toward the building before heading inside. Steve glanced back at Everly and hesitantly unwrapped his arms from around her waist. He smiled down at the ground before starting toward the entrance. Everly hurried after him. As she walked alongside him, she could almost feel the worry radiating off from him. 

"Is something wrong?" She asked quietly, peeking at the rest of the group ahead of them. She knew the answer, though there was still some part of her that hoped all was well. She'd assumed her days of fighting had ended with the Avengers. Steve peered over at her and paused before filling her in on what they were dealing with.

Everly fiddled nervously with her locket, chewing the inside of her lip as she watched Shuri drag her fist through the air above Vision's face. He laid still on the table, everyone else in the room watching impatiently. A sickening sense of dread hung thick in the air causing Everly's stomach to sink. The device on Shuri's wrist scanned him over and she turned her hand, uncurling her fingers. A hologram of the yellow stone appeared in her palm and Banner's eyes widened in the slightest.