3rd Person's POV

The Avengers are gathered at HQ. Steve is sitting, studying the Accords, while Rhodey and Sam argue behind him. Sammie comes in the room and sits beside Steve. He moves the Accords in between the both of them allowing her to read along.

Sighing, Sammie grabs Steve's hand from under the table and holds it tight. Steve glances over at her for a second making sure she's okay before looking back at the accords.

Sammie's mind thinks back to that one day in the hospital as everything around her disappears. The table disappears, the chairs all around, and everyone... even Steve. Sammie bites her lip in worry as she looks down noticing she's in a hospital gown.

She lifts her head hearing screams and cries of pain and notices she's in a empty hallway. Her bare feet take slow cautious steps towards the cries which leads her to a hospital room.

Stepping into the lit room, Sammie frowns looking around at all the nurses and doctor standing by a hospital bed. She walks closer and freezes once she sees herself laying on the bed.

"I can't..."

The doctor holds Sammie's leg and gives her an encouraging nod, "Yes you can. I need you to push."

Sammie watches her past self let out a cry while holding onto Steve's hand. He kisses her forehead and whispers you can do it into her ear, which gives her a little bit of motivation.

"Alright one more... big push..."

Silence.

"I did it..."

"Yes you did doll."

More silence.

"Why isn't she crying?"

The nurses all stand hovering over the baby they had taken to the side to clean up. The room fills with thick harsh air as Sammie watches a nurse whisper to the doctor.

The doctor frowns before composing himself and looking at the two new hopeful parents, "Okay the nurses are going to take your baby girl for a second and clean her up for you. I'm gonna stitch you up real quickly."

"Is Maggie okay? Is my baby okay?"

"I'm sorry miss."

Sammie watches as her past self sits in shock and doesn't utter a word or move as the doctor stitches her up. She watches as past Steve stands by the bed looking over at the station where the nurses took the baby. It was left bloody and empty.

Moments later the doctor finishes and holds his hands together with a regretful face.

"I'm so sorry. It seems as if Maggie was born stillborn. That would explain the blood that leaked instead of amniotic fluid."

Past Steve sits down in the chair beside the bed still holding onto Sammie's hand with one hand as the other runs through his hair. He grips it and tugs it wishing this was all a dream.

"Do you know why? What's the cause for Maggie to be stillborn?"

The doctor glances at the still frozen past Sammie before looking over at Steve, "It could be many things. But above all stress is the one major cause. We noticed Sammie's blood pressure was higher than normal when she came in but we didn't know this would happen. I'm so sorry."

A knock on the door silences the doctor. A nurse opens the door and comes in holding a bundle. She walks over to the couple with red eyes and a sad smile. She hands the baby to Steve seeing as Sammie was still frozen.

The doctor checks on Sammie as Steve cries holding his dead baby. His finger rubs her cold cheek. He kisses her forehead and silently sobs.

"Mrs. Rogers can you hear me?... Sammie..."

Past Sammie sits still in complete shock. The doctor raises a flashlight instrument and looks into her dilated eyes.

"Give her..."

Sammie tunes out the doctors orders as she walks over to past Steve. She looks at the beautiful still baby girl in his arms and sniffles.

All she remembers is herself thinking, 'Her blood is on your hands. You did this. You killed her... your first born, dead because of you.'

"Sammie... Sammie..."

Sammie blinks a few times staring straight as everything starts to blur.

"Sammie... doll... can you hear me?"

Steve frowns as he holds Sammie's face between his hands. His forehead rests on hers as he tries to coax her out of shock. This was happening a lot more recently and he didn't know what to make of it. She had been through a lot over the past few months and he didn't know how to help her.

"Sam... come back to me... come on... open your eyes..."

Sammie's eyes flutter open as tears fall down her cheeks. Steve smiles sadly as his thumb wipes away the tear drops. He looks into her gleaming eyes and sighs.

"There's those beautiful eyes... are you okay doll?"

Sammie takes a second to catch her breath and looks around realizing she was no longer at the meeting with everyone.

"How'd I get in here?"

Steve kisses her head before kneeling in front of her, "I picked you up and brought you in here. You were starting to shake and mumble to yourself."

Sammie shakes her head while rubbing her temple, "Oh... I'm sorry."

Steve frowns gripping her hand before kissing her knuckles, "Don't apologize Sam... just tell me whether you're okay or not."

"I'm okay."

Natasha frowns and quickly hides it as she watches Steve come back into the room pulling Sammie behind him. He pulls out her chair and allows her to sit before taking his own seat. No one had said a word when he took her out the room, yet everyone knew she was having another episode.

Sammie avoids all eye contact as she plays with Steve's fingers in her lap. Natasha watches her body language and instantly knows that her friend is not okay. Steve glances up to see Natasha reading Sammie and frowns before grabbing her attention. Nat raises an eyebrow as Steve shakes his head. Sighing Natasha looks away and opens her accords packet.

"Secretary Ross has a Congressional Medal of Honor, which is one more than you have."

Sam Wilson frowns looking at Rhodey before glancing around at the rest of the table, "So let's say we agree to this thing. How long is it gonna be before they LoJack us like a bunch of common criminals?"

"A 117 countries want to sign this. 117, Sam, and you're just like, 'No, that's cool. We got it.'"

Sam frowns, "How long are you going to play both sides?"

Vision holds up a finger, "I have an equation."

Sam scoffs rolling his eyes, "Oh, this will clear it up."

"In the eight years since Mr. Stark announced himself as Iron Man, the number of known enhanced persons has grown exponentially. And during the same period, the number of potentially world-ending events has risen at a commensurate rate."

Steve looks away from Sammie to frown at Vision, "Are you saying it's our fault?"

"I'm saying there may be a causality. Our very strength invites challenge. Challenge incites conflict. And conflict... breeds catastrophe. Oversight... oversight is not an idea that can be dismissed out of hand."

Rhodey nods, "Boom."

Sammie snaps out of her usual episode aftermath and rubs her head. She watches Tony as he lays on the couch, one hand over his face. When Natasha speaks, he removes the hand to look at her.

"Tony. You are being uncharacteristically non-hyper-verbal."

"It's because he's already made up his mind."

Tony chuckles glancing at Steve, "Boy, you know me so well."

He gets up and winces, rubbing the back of his head.

"Actually, I'm nursing an electromagnetic headache."

He walks to the kitchen and grabs a mug, "That's what's going on, Cap. It's just pain. It's discomfort. Who's putting coffee grounds in the disposal? Am I running a bed and breakfast for a biker gang?"

He puts his phone in a basket and taps it.The phone projects an image of a smiling young man. He looks down, then back up, and pretends to notice the picture for the first time.

"Oh, that's Charles Spencer, by the way."

Sammie frowns letting out a sigh, "Here we go..."

Steve looks at her in confusion but looks back at Tony as he starts to go on a spiel.

"He's a great kid. Computer engineering degree, 3.6 GPA. Had a floor level gig at Intel planned for the fall. But first, he wanted to put a few miles on his soul, before he parked it behind a desk. See the world. Maybe be of service. Charlie didn't want to go to Vegas or Fort Lauderdale, which is what I would do. He didn't go to Paris or Amsterdam, which sounds fun. He decided to spend his summer building sustainable housing for the poor. Guess where, Sokovia."

The others look affected by this. Wanda looks down at her hands. Sammie sees this and glares lightly at Tony.

"Tony we get it... that's enough."

Tony shakes his head looking at his sister, "He wanted to make a difference, Dylann... Well I suppose. I mean, we won't know because we dropped a building on him while we were kicking ass."

He takes a pill with some coffee, then faces the others. He glances over at Sammie who gives him a harsh look before looking away from him. He sighs and shakes his head.

"There's no decision-making process here. We need to be put in check! Whatever form that takes, I'm game. If we can't accept limitations, if we're boundary-less, we're no better than the bad guys."

Sammie chuckles humorlessly, "Wow... we're helping save millions of lives. There's bound to be casualties. We can't save everyone Tony... it's like we're being punished for doing something that the police and military can't do."

Rhodey shakes his head, "Watch it Sammie."

Sammie scoffs, "No I'm not going to watch it. I'm done watching it. I'm done treading carefully hoping not to step on anyone's toes. We help save lives... they need our help. You remember New York you really think it would've been stopped without us."

Tony frowns, "Do you remember New York Dyl?"

Sammie frowns as she understands his insinuation. She remembers that in the beginning of the war in New York she was on the bad side. She would never forget that. It sucked that he threw that in her face. It hurt... It was a low blow.

"Screw you."

Silence.

Nat frowns as she watches Tony's composure break a little. His jaw ticks as he stares at Sammie in disbelief and sadness. Sammie just stares at her clenched fists as she tries to keep ahold of her anger. Steve grabs her hand and unclenches her fist already seeing red marks from her nails on her palm.

"Tony, someone dies on your watch, you don't give up."

Tony puts on his facade as he looks away from Sammie to shrug at Steve, "Who said we're giving up?"

"We are if we're not taking responsibility for our actions. This document just shifts the blames."

Rhodey shakes his head, "I'm sorry. Steve. Th-that is dangerously arrogant. This is the United Nations we're talking about. It's not the World Security Council, it's not SHIELD, it's not HYDRA."

"No, but it's run by people with agendas, and agendas change."

Tony nods, "That's good. That's why I'm here. When I realized what my weapons were capable of in the wrong hands, I shut it down and stop manufacturing."

"Tony, you chose to do that. If we sign this, we surrender our right to choose. What if this panel sends us somewhere we don't think we should go? What if there is somewhere we need to go, and they don't let us? We may not be perfect, but the safest hands are still our own."

Sammie glares at the Accords in the middle of the table, "If we do this, we're basically puppets."

Tony frowns, "If we don't do this now, it's gonna be done to us later. That's the fact. That won't be pretty."

Wanda sighs, "You're saying they'll come for me."

Vision glances at her before holding his hand over hers, "We would protect you."

Sammie scoffs chuckling humorlessly, "You can't protect her if she's going against you, Vision. That's not how it works."

Natasha watches Sammie's eyes flicker as she glares once more at the Accords. It seems as if no one else saw it but her.

"Maybe Tony's right."

Tony looks at her, surprised.

Sammie's mouth drops in shock, "Excuse me?"

"If we have one hand on the wheel, we can still steer. If we take it off-"

Sam's eyebrows furrow in confusion as he looks at Natasha, "Aren't you the same woman who told the government to kiss her ass a few years ago?"

"I'm just... I'm reading the terrain. We have made... some very public mistakes-"

"Mistakes... we made mistakes. Humans make mistakes. It's not like we meant for those people to die. We were trying to help. And we did. We cannot save everyone."

Nat shrugs looking at a furious Sammie as Steve tries to calm her, "And because of that people are scared of us... we need to win their trust back."

Tony laughs, "Focus up. I'm sorry, did I just mishear you or did you agree with me?"

"Oh, I want to take it back now."

"No, no, no. You can't retract it. Thank you. Unprecedented. Okay, case closed--I win."

Steve's phone buzzes, and he pulls it out to check it. A text message reads: 'She's gone. In her sleep.' Sammie glances over and freezes instantly. Her eyes fill with tears as she feels her heart slow down. She feels her throat start to close as she knows she's about to have a panic attack. Quickly she stands up from her seat and runs out the room.

Steve gets up sharply, "I have to go."

Everyone watches as he drops the Accords on the coffee table. They wonder where the two ran off to but don't say a word.

Steve hurries downstairs and stops at the bottom of the stairs. He leans against the banister, and bows his head. Catching his breath he walks down the hallway to his room and finds Sammie sitting in the shower. He sighs in sadness then opens the glass door.

Sammie doesn't even look up knowing my that it was her husband. She feels him peel off her wet clothes as well as his own. He pulls her into his chest as the water falls down onto them both. Crying into his chest Sammie grips onto him tightly.

The two say nothing just hold each other and let out all emotions and all pain as the water continues to run over them.

...

London.

A cathedral, packed with mourners, holds a choir that sings beautifully as a coffin is carried down the aisle. Steve is one of six pallbearers carrying a coffin draped with the Union Jack. His eyes are red--he's been crying.

At the altar, a candle burns by a framed photograph of Peggy Carter in a military uniform. The label reads "Margaret 'Peggy' Carter".

The priest addresses the mourners, "And now, I would like to invite Sharon Carter to come up and say a few words."

Agent 13, Steve's "neighbor" from DC, steps up to the podium. Steve sits beside Sam and Sammie in a pew at the front. Steve is looking down and doesn't see Sharon walk up. Sam is watching, and nudges Steve. He looks up to see Sharon, who glances at Steve and takes a breath.

"Margaret Carter was known to most as a founder of SHIELD... but I just knew her as Aunt Peggy."

Steve realizes who exactly Sharon is, and takes a surprised breath. He squeezes Sammie's hand who also stares at Sharon in shock.

"She had a photograph in her office. Aunt Peggy standing next to JFK. As a kid, that was pretty cool. But it was a lot to live up to. Which is why I never told anyone we were related. I asked her once how she managed to master diplomacy and espionage in a time when no one wanted to see a woman succeed at either. And she said, compromise where you can. But where you can't, don't. Even if everyone is telling you that something wrong is something right. Even if the whole world is telling you to move... it is your duty to plant yourself like a tree, look them in they eye and say, 'No, you move.'"

Later, Steve stands alone in the isle, still dressed in black. Natasha to him and he turns to her. He begins to speak without any introduction.

"When I came out of the ice, I thought everyone I had known was gone. Then I found out that she was alive. I was just lucky to have her."

Natasha nods, "She had you back, too."

"Who else signed?"

Nat takes a deep breath, "Tony. Rhodey. Vision."

"Clint?"

"Says he's retired." She smiles slightly.

Steve stares down at his hands, "Wanda?"

"TBD... To Be Determined. I'm off to Vienna for the signing of the Accords. There's plenty of room on the jet."

Steve sighs and bows his head.

Nat sighs placing a hand on his shoulder, "Just because it's the path of least resistance doesn't mean it's the wrong path. Staying together is more important than how we stay together."

Natasha almost seems to be convincing herself.

"What are we giving up to do it?"

She sighs. He shakes his head, unconvinced, "I'm sorry, Nat. I can't sign it."

"I know."

"Then what are you doing here?"

"I didn't want you to be alone."

She pulls him in for a hug. They hug for a moment before Steve pulls away, building up his composure once more.

"I'm not alone Nat..."

They both glance at the front of the church where Sammie sits looking down. She hadn't heard a word of what the two were saying. She was in her own world.

Nat shakes her head looking at the girl sadly, "Are you sure?"

Steve just stares blankly.

"We both know that this almost hit as hard as losing Maggie... anything else... anything worse and she's gone for good."

𝐻𝑜𝑤 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑤𝑒 𝑓𝑒𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔?

𝐷𝑜 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑘 𝑆𝑎𝑚𝑚𝑖𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑝𝑖𝑐𝑘 𝑎 𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑜𝑟 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑦 𝑏𝑜𝑡ℎ 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑁𝑎𝑡𝑎𝑠ℎ𝑎?

𝐼'𝑚 𝑐𝑟𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑜𝑠𝑝𝑖𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑒... 𝐴𝑛𝑦𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑠𝑒?

𝑊ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑡𝑜? 𝐴𝑛𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡?