⏳ 2016

"You should come."

"I can't, Tony. Cap wants me on the Lagos mission. We finally have a lead on Rumlow and we don't want to lose him again."

"I'm sure he can survive without you for one mission."

"I don't doubt that, but it's personal."

"I finished it."

"The BARF?" He'd nodded with a smirk. I'd raised an eyebrow. "You need to work on that acronym."

"Binarily Augmented Retro-Framing, an extremely costly method of hijacking the hippocampus to clear traumatic memories. Sounds like something we both need."

"Look, Tony. I'm happy for you that you finished, but I can't pass up this mission. I need to be there when we take Rumlow down. I hope your talk goes well."

In hindsight, the device was very much needed now, even a month after the incident in Lagos happened. I didn't want to hear of it anymore. I'd heard enough. I'd heard the news reports. I'd read the articles. I'd ran the new opinions of us over and over again in my head, and it kept me up at night.

Eleven Wakandans died that day. And I felt ashamed that I had a direct part in that. They were on an outreach mission. And now they'd never return to their families. Wakanda was an ally, even as traditionally reclusive as they were. I had benefited time and time again from their help, from one man's in particular. No doubt that he hated me now.

"Our people's blood is spilled on foreign soil," the king of Wakanda had said at the recent press conference. "Not only because of the actions of criminals but by the indifference of those pledged to stop them. Victory at the expense of the innocent is no victory at all."

Guilt weighed me down, the pit of my stomach heavy. I had a part to play in what happened. I was stupid to think I could take Rumlow on alone, and, in return, my mangled hands inhibited my ability to create a portal to channel the blast to a different location. I should've done more. I should've healed faster. I was the Lady of Time, for hell's sake. I should have the power to do that. I should've been able to stop Rumlow in one swoop.

But I didn't. I messed up. That building exploded because of me. Those innocent people died because of me.

"What legal authority does an enhanced individual like Wanda Maximoff have to operate in Nigeri—"

I passed Wanda's room as the latest television report cut out. I peered around the corner to see Steve stand by the threshold.

"It's my fault," Wanda said.

"That's not true," he replied, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Turn the TV back on. They're being very specific."

"I should've clocked that bomb vest long before you had to deal with it." He sighed, uncrossing his arms and joining Wanda on her bed, sitting on the edge of it next to her. "Rumlow said "Bucky", and all of a sudden I was a sixteen-year-old kid again in Brooklyn." He clenched his jaw before continuing. "And people died. It's on me."

I took an interest in my feet. We were all at fault for what happened, some of us more than most. It was preventable. I didn't know how, but I knew that it could've been. We were reckless. I was reckless.

"It's on both of us," Wanda said, eyes on her hands threading and unthreading. "How's Andi?"

I looked up at the sound of my name to see Steve bite his lip in concern and avoidance, and, no doubt, I was wearing the same expression.

"She'll be all right," he replied in a soft tone. "At least, that's what she's been telling me. I know she's lying. But I've learnt from experience not to question her when she wants to be alone." Steve inhaled and slowly exhaled. "This job...We try to save as many people as we can. Sometimes that doesn't mean everybody. But if we can't find a way to live with that, then next time..." Those next words were hesitant, though, there was no explaining that needed to be done. Wanda understood and so did I. "Maybe nobody gets saved."

And then the Vision walked through the wall, making Wanda jump. "Vis! We talked about this."

"Yes, but the door was open," the mighty being said, "so I assumed that..." With a dubious look from Wanda, he caught himself and changed the subject immediately. "Captain Rogers wished to know when Mr Stark was arriving."

Steve cleared his throat and looked away. "Thank you. We'll be right down."

Vision gestured to the doorway. "I'll use the door. Oh, and apparently, he's brought a guest."

"We know who it is?"

"The Secretary of State."

I raised my chin. The Secretary of State. Ross. A man who was the epitome of a hate-filled dartboard. Banner wasn't a fan of him. Neither was Tony. When he arrived, bad things always happened. Nothing good ever came of his appearance.

I blinked out of my thoughts when the Vision brushed past me, and I saw Steve's eyes on me. I turned and sped back the way I came.

"Andi, wait."

I didn't. I couldn't. I didn't want to address what had happened a month ago. I didn't want to see the look in his eyes. The disappointment. The sadness. The pity. I didn't want any of that. I didn't want his pity. I screwed up and I was paying for it. I had no doubt he was as well, and Wanda certainly was. But I felt keeping my distance was the right thing to do right now. After all, with Thunderbolt Ross now in the building, I was going to confront the consequences whether I liked it or not.

★ ★ ★

⏳ 2016

We convened in the conference room, silence grasping us all as Ross paced before us, a look that screamed suspicion to me. Steve, Nat and Rhodey sat across Wanda, Vision and Sam. Tony sat behind the table in the cluster of free chairs. It looked like his talk didn't go according to plan. His upbeat and confident demeanor had completely vanished, replaced with one that was troubled. I leaned against the wall behind Wanda, Vision and Sam, arms crossed over my chest and glaring at Ross.

"Five years ago I had a heart attack." He mimicked a golf swing, holding his arms in the air after the swing. "Dropped right in the middle of my backswing." He rested his hands on the table before the others. "Turned out it was the best round of my life because after thirteen hours of surgery and a triple bypass, I found something forty years in the Army had never taught me." His aged eyes flicked to Tony. "Perspective."

My head tilted slightly. Long winded speeches like this were always segues into something bad, which was why I hated them. This meeting was not going to end well.

"The world owes the Avengers an unpayable debt," Ross continued. "You have fought for us protected us, risked your lives." I sensed a 'but' coming. And it did. "But while a great many people see you as heroes, there are some who would prefer the word—"

"Vigilante?" I interrupted with a dark glare. It was a word I wasn't overly familiar with, though it was a word that I disliked all the same, for we were not so.

"What word would you use, Mr. Secretary?" Nat asked, a slithery tone in her voice.

"How about "dangerous"?" Ross retorted coldly. "What would you call a group of US-based, enhanced individuals who routinely ignore sovereign borders and inflict their will wherever they choose?" He eyed Wanda and I closely with those words. "And who, frankly, seem unconcerned about what they leave behind?"

The conference board in front of the table lit up, a map splashed across the thin almost invisible glass. It zoomed in to America, going in and in, following the green coordinates dot.

"New York," Ross noted.

Images of the 2012 Battle of New York played, one of the giant Leviathans tearing apart buildings. Footage of civilians fleeing the chaos appeared, the army opening firing on the enemy aliens. The Hulk appeared on screen, blasting through the building opposite Stark Tower to land on the adjacent roof, jumping back to the building with a shower of debris falling on the people below.

"Washington, D.C."

The map changed its course to the American capital. The three Helicarriers from the 2014 Fall of Shield appeared. The Trisklion ablaze was next, smoke billowing into a cloudy, stormy sky. The Helicarriers plunged into the man-made lake, a blasting wave of water sweeping away civilians trying to get away, but all too late.

"Sokovia."

People fleeing and screaming was first to be shone, the rising city as the chaotic backdrop. Buildings fell and crumbled, crushing whoever could not get out in time.

"Lagos."

Smoke swelled as it rose into the sky, fires lighting up the building Wanda's power hit. Body bags were strolled out by paramedics as officers aided in dragging out the limping wounded, the screams of burned and bloody innocents all too loud. But it was the deceased little girl who took centre stage, lying on the screen before us, her eyes open but empty, the life all but gone from her.

Wanda looked away. So did I. I felt Steve's eyes on me, moved from Wanda and resting on me sympathetically and in pity. We'd done that. We'd hurt those people, killed those people. We'd murdered that little girl.

"Okay. That's enough," Steve ordered, his voice gruff.

The screen went dark, returning to its invisibleness.

"For the past four years, you've operated with unlimited power and no supervision," Ross said. "That's an arrangement the governments of the world can no longer tolerate." He looked to his assistant. "But I think we have a solution." The other suited man handed Ross a thick document. He placed it on the table and slid it to Wanda. "The Sokovia Accords. Approved by one hundred and seventeen countries, it states that the Avengers shall no longer be a private organisation." I watched as Ross walked around the table with slow and precise steps as the document was passed from one Avenger to the next. "Instead, they'll operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel only when and if that panel deems it necessary."

I squinted. I had a bad feeling about this. An all too familiar feeling. It was as if I'd missed something. As if something was staring me right in the face about this whole situation that I couldn't put my finger on. Had I missed something?

"The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place," Steve said. He looked up at Ross.  "I feel we've done that."

A sinister, but somewhat neutral expression slithered onto Ross's face. "Tell me, Captain, do you know where Thor and Banner are right now? If I misplaced a couple of thirty megaton nukes, you can bet there'd be consequences." Ross rounded back to the front of the table. "Compromise. Reassurance. That's how the world works. Believe me, this is the middle ground."

"So," Rhodey began, a hand hovering over the document heavy with our future, "there are contingencies."

"Three days from now, the UN meets in Vienna to ratify the Accords." I watched Steve turn back to Tony, who's eyes gained an interest in the flooring for a few seconds before flicking up to look at Steve's. I saw something in those pools of brown. Consider it, they seemed to say.

"Talk it over," Ross concluded.

He motioned to leave when Nat halted him with a question that no doubt was all on our lips. "And if we come to a decision you don't like?"

Ross's reply was cold and logical, one that, as much as I tried to refuse to, agree on to a degree. "Then you retire."

And then he left, leaving the silence to take over his jump of forcing intimidation down our throats.

❈Author's Note: Hey, there! Sorry this chapter was late. I was going to work on it yesterday, but I didn't get home from work until 12am. If you liked this chapter, please consider giving it a quick vote! Thanks for reading!