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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏𝟓
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐍𝐄'𝐒 𝐂𝐎𝐒𝐓

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When everyone came out of the Quantum Realm, they returned to the same spots they started in. Large smiles were plastered on everyone's faces as they looked around at everyone surrounding them. None of them truly believed their time travel scheme would work, but here they were with all of the Stones. Now all they needed to do was figure out how to bring everyone back. They knew they couldn't fail after making it this far, and they wouldn't fail.

Charlie couldn't help but let out a relieved sigh after seeing Tony and Steve both in one piece. She wasn't sure they would be successful with their plan, it was even to the point she thought she would never see them again. The Barton woman was overjoyed by their presence, even if she was confused by their very outdated outfits. But her joy soon faded when she turned to face Clint and Natasha, only to find her father standing beside her. Charlie's blood ran cold when she saw the sorrow in the Barton man's as he stared at the open space in front of him. It wasn't long after that when he fell to his knees. The sound of Clint hitting the ground was enough to draw everyone's attention toward him. Smiles were no longer gracing their features as they stared at the master archer. No one had it in them to break the silence surrounding them. No one except for Bruce.

"Clint, where's Nat?" the Banner man asked, only to receive nothing but more silence from the man in question.

It wasn't long after that when tears began filling Clint's eyes as he looked up at Steve then at Charlie. That was all it took for the Barton woman to understand what had happened. Tears soon formed in her eyes and the world around her seemed to blur. It became harder for her to breathe as she stumbled down the ramp. A million thoughts bounced around in her head while walking through the hangar, completely ignoring the people calling her name. Charlie continued walking until she finally made it outside. But the fresh air didn't help the way she thought it would. If anything, it made everything worse. Instead of turning around, the young archer kept walking.

Unknown to the Barton woman, Pietro followed right behind her. Despite wanting to pick up speed to get in front of Charlie, he fast-walked at a normal speed. The last thing he wanted to do was startle her more by randomly appearing in front of her. It still didn't take the Maximoff man long to catch up to the archer, who was now clutching her hair as if her life depended on it. Pietro didn't hesitate to place himself in front of Charlie, preventing her from taking another step. He then gently removed her hands from her hair and took them into his own. The Barton woman's breathing continued to quicken as tears streamed down her cheeks. She kept her eyes glued to the grass beneath her feet, unable to meet his gaze.

"She's gone," was all Charlie was able to say through her labored breaths.

"I know," Pietro whispered just loud enough for him to hear while gently squeezing her hands. That lasted for another moment before he remembered what Wanda used to do when he was anxious about something. "Tell me, anđeo. What are five things you can see?"

His words caused the Barton woman to look up at him with a hint of confusion in his eyes. But when she found him staring back at her expectantly, she couldn't help but respond. "Trees. Water. Bushes. Sky. You."

"Now, what are four things you can touch?"

"The grass. My hair. My clothes. Your hands."

"Three things you can hear?"

"Birds. Waves. Your voice."

"Two things you can smell?"

"Flowers. And, uh...I don't know. I guess the water."

"And lastly, what is one thing you can taste?"

"My mouth tastes sour right now. I have no idea why though."

A small smile appeared on Pietro's lips when he noticed Charlie's breathing return to normal. The only sign that anything was wrong was her tear-stained cheeks. But it wasn't long after that when more tears ran down her cheeks as the Barton woman pulled the speedster into a tight hug.

"She's gone," Charlie repeated in a tone just above a whisper as Pietro wrapped his arms around her, "Nat's gone. This can't be happening."

"I'm so sorry, anđeo," the Maximoff man responded while tightening his grip around her.

It wasn't long before the two of them found themselves sitting at the edge of the dock. Pietro kept his arms around the Barton woman's shoulders as she watched her feet skim over the water. Neither of them said a word since they sat down, but they didn't mind the silence. After all, neither of them had anything important to say. Charlie needed time to get her thoughts together and the Maximoff man didn't want her to be alone in her head.

What felt like an eternity passed before they were joined by the five remaining original Avengers. They let the silence surround them as they enjoyed the peace of the lake, despite none of them feeling peaceful. That continued for a moment longer before someone was brave enough to break the silence, even though Charlie wished they hadn't.

"Do we know if she had family?" Tony asked while looking around at the heroes surrounding him.

Steve swallowed the lump in his throat before forcing himself to respond. "Yeah. Us."

Charlie unconsciously grabbed Pietro's hand and squeezed it, as if checking if he was really there. While she did that, Thor walked toward Tony with an annoyed look on his face. "What? What are you doing? You're acting like she's dead. Why are we acting like she's dead? We have the Stones, right? As long as we have the Stones, Cap, we can bring her back. Isn't that right? So, stop this sh*t. We're the Avengers. Get it together."

"We can't get her back," Clint said in an eerily calm tone, making his daughter's blood run colder than before. When the master archer realized everyone was staring at him, he let out a long sigh and continued speaking. "It can't be undone. It can't."

Thor instantly started laughing in response, drawing everyone's attention toward him, including Charlie and Pietro. "Look, I'm sorry, no offense, but you're a very earthly being, okay? And we're talking about space magic. And 'can't' seems very definitive. Don't you think?"

Throughout the Odinson man's speech, the Barton woman could see the anger and annoyance building up in her father's eyes. But she also saw the grief swirling around in his eyes. Though she seemed to be the only one who noticed. "Yeah, look, I know that I'm way outside my pay grade here. But she still isn't here, is she?"

"No, that's my point." The God of Thunder's comment was all it took for Clint to fully turn his attention toward him. He had an expression in his eyes that Charlie had only seen once in her life. Despair.

"It can't be undone. Or that's at least what the red, floating guy had to say. Maybe you wanna go talk to him, okay?! Go grab your hammer and you go fly and talk to him!" The Barton man went silent after seeing the shocked looks on everyone's faces. He let the silence surround them for a moment before swallowing the lump in his throat and continuing. "It was supposed to be me. She sacrificed her life for that d*mn Stone. She bet her life on it."

Charlie just stared at her father as she took in every word he said. But her thoughts were soon interrupted by Bruce tearing off the bench nearest to her and hurling it into the distance. He let out a long breath before turning to face his allies. "She's not coming back."

After squeezing Pietro's hand one last time, the Barton woman got to her feet and approached her father. She took Clint's hand into her own before he pulled her in for a very much-needed hug. The two of them stayed like that for what felt like an eternity before their moment finally ended. Charlie kept her hands interlocked with her father's as she looked around at the heroes surrounding her. "I knew Nat most of my life. She always did what needed to be done. This isn't any different. We just have to make what she did worth it."

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Unknown to those out on the dock, another person was having a hard time accepting Natasha's loss. Trina sat on the bench right outside the Compound with her eyes glued to the horizon. An empty feeling was all she felt within her as her mind raced with thoughts of Orion and Natasha. The Felicity woman wanted them to meet one day, knowing that her son would've loved that his mother finally made a friend. But now that wasn't going to happen. Even if they did manage to get those they lost to Thanos back, the Felicity boy would never meet Natasha Romanoff.

A shaky breath passed over Trina's lips as she pulled out her phone. She gazed at the black screen for a moment before tapping it with her thumb. A picture of her and Orion immediately replaced the blank screen. It was from when she took him to Disneyland for his seventeenth birthday. It was his first time at an amusement park and she remembered how in awe he was. The Felicity woman couldn't help but stare at the large smile on her son's face, something she hadn't seen in person for five years. It made the empty feeling inside her triple.

She continued to stare at the picture for what felt like an eternity until she finally unlocked her phone. Trina hesitated for a moment before tapping on the photos icon. It didn't take long for her to find what she was looking for. Despite the sorrow she felt throughout her entire body, a small smile appeared on her lips. A picture of her and Natasha from one of their late nights at the Compound was displayed on her screen. Trina caught the Romanoff woman in the middle of a laugh, making the picture even better. That night was the most relaxed the Felicity woman had seen Natasha in a very long time.

It wasn't long before a single tear slid down Trina's cheek and landed on the screen. She quickly wiped it away before shoving it back into her pocket. A thousand thoughts bounced around in her head as her attention returned to the horizon. The Felicity woman didn't know what to do at that moment. She had no one she trusted that she could talk to. No one for her to confide in. For the first time in four years, she felt truly alone.

Trina didn't know how much time had passed since she sat down in front of the Compound. But what she did know was that the sun was starting to set. She knew she should be heading back inside to see what everyone was planning, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. It wasn't long after that when Trina heard a door open and close before someone sat down next to her. The Felicity woman hesitated before looking over to find Primrose occupying the space beside her. She just stared at the Quill woman for a moment, unsure of what to make of her presence. That was until Trina found the courage within herself to break the silence surrounding them.

"I don't feel like talking right now," the Felicity woman said just loud enough for Primrose to hear. As soon as the words finished leaving her mouth, Trina turned her attention back to the sunset.

A silent moment passed between them before the Quill woman responded. "You don't need to talk. But you shouldn't be alone."

A single tear made its way down Trina's cheek, followed by so many more. She just had enough courage within her to say two words to the woman sitting beside her. "Thank you."

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