New story! Note, this is not a happy one. I know many other people have written these kinds of one shots, but I wanted to try my hand at it. Some will be shorter, some longer, it all depends on who they are about. Six chapters in all, one for each Avenger. Yes, some of these did hurt me to write. Sorry for any OOCness in advance.
I did change some stuff from the movies/comics to take note of:
Civil War never happens. Bruce returns shortly after the battle with Ultron and lives in the Tower with them. Steve and Natasha never have James Rogers. Bucky died on the train and never became the Winter Soldier. In this story, Peggy is also already dead.
All of that being said, I hope that you guys like it! I tried my best, and hopefully it will pay off! Reviews and constructive criticism are greatly appreciated!
Shoutout to DreamEscape1675 for the cover photo!
I don't own Marvel or any of the characters.
Just like everything before and after them, the Avengers came to an end. For some, the cause was time. Others was illness. Only one went out in the battle. But eventually, the Earth was without their mightiest heroes. And the day that happened, the better half of the world was sent into mourning.
Five years after the Ultron invasion, the effects of Tony's drinking finally started to set in. His skin became more yellow, his eyes grew sunken, and he lost the snarky attitude that had annoyed the team for all those years. During one of their weekly movie nights, his liver gave out, along with his left lung. The movie was turned off with worried gasps and panic as Tony slid off the couch, eyes closed and unresponsive. With Bruce across the country dealing with other "sciency mumbo jumbo", as Tony liked to call it, the team was left helpless and calling for an ambulance. Twenty-two hours and three surgeries later, Tony was on life support with a breathing machine pushing air in and out of his failing lungs.
Bruce was flown in from the west coast, only to end up with the rest of the team, sitting in cold chairs next to Tony's bed. After being informed that Tony may never wake up, and if he did, many problems would continue, Bruce was handed the form to take him off life support. There was absolutely nothing the doctors could do, and it was better to end his suffering before it got any worse. With shaking fingers, he signed his name and passed the clipboard to Pepper. Her tears blurred the usually sleek signature.
The paper was passed around to all of the members of the team; a final goodbye. A doctor then took the paper and left the room silently, leaving the Avengers to themselves and time to part with their friend.
In hushed whispers to their comrade, they each said goodbye.
"You were a strong warrior. It was an honor to fight beside you and the team will not be the same. Your bad jokes will be missed, Lord Stark." Thor placed a gentle hand on Tony's shoulder for a second before leaving the room.
For Pepper, it was a final 'I love you'. Natasha bade the inventor good luck and helped Pepper out of the room.
"The lab won't be the same without you, Tony," Bruce whispered, wiping a tear from his eye. "I'll keep working on the armor, same as always. It can always get better. But without a man inside it, I don't know how well I can do. I will try, for you, buddy."
Clint told Tony something about being a dumb-ass and not telling them about his illness before apologizing and saying how he would miss the snarky pain in his side.
Then it was just Steve and Tony in the room, the silence interrupted by the beeping heart monitor and the harsh intake and exhale of forced breaths. "I know we never got along real well. Too different, I suppose," Steve started, smiling slightly to himself. "But we normally worked okay together. Sure, your attitude was a pain sometimes, and not following orders was something that you excelled at, but you never ceased to make me at least smile. And that I will truly miss. I'm sorry I never told you this under different circumstances, but I couldn't find the right words I guess."
"I know part of the reason why you hated me was because of your father and our relationship. He would still be alive today, or at least would have had more time with you, if I had not let Bucky go. And believe me, whenever you brought it up, I kicked myself for it. Boy, did I kick myself. But you'll be with him soon and you guys can talk all day long about how 'perfect' I am or something." Steve took a deep breath in and sighed, looking at Tony's still form in the bed. "The team won't be the same, Tony. But I'll try to keep them together. God speed, my friend."
With that, Steve stood up and walked out the door, head hung low, right into the arms of his comrades on the other side. A minute later, they watched through the glass as the doctor came into the room, jotted down some notes, and looked back to the team. With a solemn look, he turned to Tony and flipped a few switches. Gradually, the monitors started going off and the rising and falling of his chest ceased.
Three days later, Tony Stark was buried in a private cemetery along with the faceplate to one of his suits.
The team returned to the Tower late at night and split up, except for Steve and Natasha. Tony's death bothered both of them more than they liked to admit, and they spent the night picking up fond memories and laughing at some of the best ones.
Pepper walked down into the lab that she so seldom visited, except to tell Tony to get in bed. She half expected sparks to be flying, or him to yell 'watch out!' at the top of his lungs, or cursing at an invention that refused to work. For the first time since she met him, the lab was completely silent. She made her way around to the various unfinished projects, including an upgraded TV and plans for more Avengers floors should Sam and Wanda ever need to stay for a night. An automatic coffee delivering robot and plans for new outfits for the team also lay scattered on the table.
She brought a hand up to her mouth and let out a choked cry when her eyes landed on the last project. The plans were for a silver ring, with a light red stone and a diamond set into it. A box sat on the table next to the plans, open to the world. The word 'Pepper' was inscribed inside the box.
A strangled sound came out of her mouth as the realization dawned and then began drowning her. FRIDAY alerted Bruce, who was only a floor away, and he was by her side seconds later. She sat on the floor, staring at the unfinished ring, sobs escaping her mouth. Bruce sat down next to her and let her wrap her arms around him, tears wetting the soft material of the black suit.
He knew what Tony had been planning. And it killed him on the inside that Tony's greatest accomplishment would never happen.
