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PROLOGUE. ASHES

HER FINGERTIPS WERE GREY WITH THE REMNANTS OF HIM.

"Come on, kid," a flash of red, white and blue lowered itself to her line of sight. Steve Rogers was exhausted and heartbroken, and the look in his eyes knew exactly how the teenager was currently feeling. "You gotta wash 'em."

She refused. She'd been staring at her hands for hours, as if she'd somehow be able to bring him back. Her clothes were covered in the dust he'd crumbled into, as if she needed the constant reminder that he was gone. He had disappeared in front of her very eyes - they all had. Wanda, Bucky, T'Challa; reduced to nothing but ash in the breeze.

Steve reached into the bucket a few feet away and wrung out a cloth. He gently took her hands, but she shook her head, about to burst into tears. His lips pursed, and he reached up to cradle her face. Her shoulders trembled as she choked back a sob. She didn't want to wash what was left of him away. "Delilah..."

"I-I can't," she spluttered, her throat closing up. It was like she'd forgotten how to breathe. Her heart was beating seven times faster than usual, and her head thudded with every picture of him that flashed through her mind. His smile, his words, him. "If I do, he'll...he'll be gone forever."

"Listen to me," Steve's steady voice brought her back, even if only for a second. Her eyes settled on him. She could see the sadness that reflected hers. But he'd lost people before. He never put himself first. He took care of everyone else. "We're gonna find a way to bring them back. I'm not gonna rest until we've undone all of it. I promise."

Delilah wept as she allowed him to softly scrub her palms, wiping away what was left of Sam's body. The cloth turned cloudy as her hands grew clean, but her heart was heavy with the burden of what she had just done.

"C'mere," Steve dropped the cloth in the bucket and helped her to her feet, pulling her into a tight embrace. Delilah choked out a sob, burying her face in the crook of his neck. Steve rubbed circles on her back, trying to find a way to calm her while remaining so himself. "We'll get through it."

She had repeated those words in her head for the next five years.

We'll get through it.

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