Yep, keep the sad music going. Also, please review any of the chapters if you have a few spare minutes on the train or something xD

October 29th: I didn't say we should leave

(During AoU, battle of Sokovia - AU)

Only a moment passed. The Hulk gently set her down on the helicarrier before pushing himself back in the air. Natasha looked up to see him disappear inside a quinjet. She quickly got up and looked around herself. Agents were hurrying around to find a place for the people of Sokovia who were already arriving on the platform with the first jets.

She couldn't wait around here so she decided to find the others while helping with the evacuation. Nat ran over to the jets and went on board of one of the smaller carriers. They took off towards the floating city once again.

When they stopped at the edge she saw something really worrying. The carrier that had arrived before hers was already getting loaded and one of the people to leave the city was Clint. Nat quickly departed and made her way to the other vehicle. She stopped in front of the first row of seats where her friend was standing, looking around in a confused manner. Carefully Nat touched his shoulder to get his attention: „Clint?"

Her voice startled him, but he recognized her immediately and turned slightly to lock eyes with her: „Nat... you alright?"

She nodded: „Yeah... but you don't look too good."

Clint swallowed hard: „I... I am good... just... the kid. I... I couldn't save him. He saved me."

Natasha was confused by his babbling and shook her head: „What do you mean? Who are you talking about?"

The archer started staring at the city behind her: „There was this little boy in the rubble. I picked him up and ran towards the carrier to give him back to his parents and... there... there was a jet flying over us, firing down. I kept the boy close to shelter him, but... there were no bullets coming... they. The fast kid, the Maximoff boy, he took the bullets."

There was a silence between them and Nat looked down. Clint fought back the tears: „He's dead, Nat. He died..."

Natasha carefully and softly ran her hand over his arm: „But you didn't... you are here, Clint. This is horrible, but he has no one. Only the sister. You have responsibility, you need to live."

He nodded: „Thanks Nat... but that is not how it is supposed to happen. He was so young..."

Natasha sighed: „Don't think about it now. You need to get back to the helicarrier and get yourself checked and patched up."

He nodded again: „You should stay here too. Not sure how long Sokovia is going to last."

Natasha saw that the carrier was filling up with people and sighed:„No... I'll take the last one back. I should help the others. Where is everyone anyway?"

Clint looked at her again: „Don't know... last time I knew everyone was still on the city."

Natasha nodded: „Then that is where I need to be. Take care!"

He turned to walk further onto the plane: „You too!" Then she left the carrier quickly because it was ready for take off. She looked around the city of Sokovia and guided a few of the people who hadn't left yet to the get-away-planes. She had picked up from hear-say that Tony was on the bottom of the rock to mingle with the core and Thor was protecting it on the surface. However, she hadn't seen Steve since they had fought Ultron and his robots together.

Suddenly she saw several people running toward the carrier and right behind the small group was Steve protecting them from the robots following them. Nat ran over to the last carrier waiting for departure and met him there. He waited until everyone was on board and then addressed Nat: „Is everyone on the helicarrier?"

Nat shrugged: „I know Clint is save and Bruce is on one of the jets. But I don't know about Thor, Tony and Vision..."

Steve nodded: „That's alright. They are shutting down the core and... they will pulverize the city before it hits the ground."

Nat frowned: „Pulverize? Like blow it up?"

Steve looked around to make sure there was nobody left at all before stepping onto the carrier: „Yes, exactly. Tony said he knew how to do it and it is the only way."

Natasha shot a look over her shoulder to check on the Sokovians on the carrier. She stepped onto the platform and looked back at him: „In that case we should really leave now."

Steve nodded and was about to follow her when he heard a child's cry behind him in the rubble. He stopped: „Hold on for a sec... wait here." He turned around and ran towards the crumbling buildings. He didn't exactly remember where it came from so he called out: „Hello?"

A small voice responded shakily: „Help..."

Right away Steve followed the sound and he found a little girl nearby. Her foot was jammed between two pieces of debris. Steve lifted one of those up and picked her up: „Don't worry, kid... I'll take you back to your mom."

The child relaxed just the slightest bit in his arms, but she still continued crying. Steve reached the open space in front of the buildings again. He saw the small carrier waiting for them. There was a woman in the front who stretched out her arms towards them. He assumed she was a relative of the girl.

Next to the woman was Natasha. The corners of her lips turned upward a bit when she saw him coming back. For the fact that they had just been in battle she looked stunning. The setting sun illuminated her small frame and reflected from her beautiful red curls. It was not his place, however, to look at her that way.

Steve hurried to get back, but suddenly the ground shook for a moment. Then he felt a new sensation. The whole city started moving down.

The little girl in his arms clung onto him for dear life and her crying intensified. Steve needed to do something quickly because no matter how fast he ran to the carrier, they would probably not make it. He grabbed his shield and with one skilled movement he tied the child to it with a grappling hook. The city now started falling faster and as loud as humanly possible he called out for Nat to catch the shield. Then he threw it upward towards the carrier. A shriek escaped the young girl, but then everything went silent for him.

He saw the shield arrive safely on the platform. Then he saw Natasha reaching out for him. Soon she was small and distant.

The sensation of falling overtook him again. Automatically he held onto what used to be a street lamp. For a moment he was back on the plane falling down towards the ice, but this time there would be no ice. The ocean underneath him was not frozen and this rock was much bigger.

Hopefully Nat had caught the shield. Hopefully that little child was save now. Hopefully Nat would be save too. And she would find Bruce and they would comfort each other because he would be dead by then. Maybe they would find happiness.

A smile found its way to his lips and Steve closed his eyes. The image of Natasha's smile lingered on his mind.

And the city blew up.


It happened fast, too fast for Nat to realize what had just happened. One second Steve was walking back towards her, the next she was holding his shield in her hands, a screaming kid attached to it. Like in a trance she handed the object over to the crying woman waiting for her daughter.

Then she looked down. When she saw him, everything came back to her.

Sokovia was falling. She wasn't. Steve was.

She was save while they would be blowing up the whole rock - with everything... everyone on it.

I'm not leaving this rock with one civilian on it.

Natasha felt tears running down her cheeks. She kept staring down. The lifeboat started making its way back towards the helicarrier.

The wind was deafening and her ears felt like they were ringing. This was not how it was supposed to be. Ultron shouldn't have been able to make it this far. Just because they had wasted their time joking around, splitting the team up and dwelling on the past this whole thing had gone downhill.

They were leaving the falling city behind fastly and Natasha kept standing at the edge of the small carrier, not moving, not caring.

And Sokovia exploded into what felt like a million pieces.