A/N No, you're not mistaken this is a new update only a week since the last one. There is some borrowed dialogue in here that I do not own :)

Thank you for all your kind comments about the previous chapter. I can't believe there are still so many of you out there. Here's one of the longest chapters in the whole series as a reward!

Aftermath

Rhodey had spent the entire journey to Salter House steeling himself for the sight that would await him there. He was no stranger to war and the immediate, devastating aftermath of a brutal battle, but this… How could anyone make sense of this?

And so, despite his best efforts, Rhodey was completely unprepared for the reality of arriving at the scene of desolation in what had once been a happy, loving home for people he'd cared about. The house itself wasn't too badly damaged, but the people within were utterly ruined.

Natasha was waiting for him in the grounds, next to a large fire. Even in the fading light, Rhodey had spotted the plume of black smoke some miles back and as he landed he saw that they were torching the remains of the beasts that had sought to tear Hermione and her family to shreds.

"Rhodey," Natasha greeted stiffly, her voice tight with emotion. "I'm glad you're still with us."

"Thanks, Nat," he replied, retracting his mask and then stepping out of his suit. "You too." They embraced, which wasn't something that they'd normally do but these times were about as far from normal as you could get.

There was a loud grunt behind them and Rhodey turned to see Thor tossing more carcasses onto the fire. The glow from the flames highlighted the baleful, brooding glare on the Asgardian's face. Thor turned, perhaps to gather more of the beasts, but his features didn't soften as his eyes swept over Natasha and Rhodey.

"He blames himself for what happened," Natasha explained quietly as they began to walk towards the house. "He had a chance to take Thanos out and he misjudged it slightly. Barely said a word since."

Rhodey shook his head in sympathy. "Poor guy." He hesitated a moment before asking, "Stupid question, I know, but how's everyone else?"

Natasha sighed deeply. "Quiet," she replied heavily. "Stunned. Heartbroken." Her voice faltered and she hitched in a breath, wiping a tear from her eye. Rhodey laid a hand on her arm in a gesture of support and comfort. He had no doubt that Natasha was trying to be strong for the others but her own pain and sorrow was tangible. He knew that she considered the residents of this house to be her family after all.

As they stepped through the backdoor, a shrill wailing reached his ears and he flinched.

"It's Albus," Natasha told him wearily. Rhodey had to think for a moment before recalling that the child was Harry's youngest son. "We can't get him to settle. He's been screaming for hours. He wants his parents but..." She grimaced. Harry and Ginny were amongst the fallen.

The wailing got louder as they moved through the house until they entered the lounge. Rhodey had only met Draco Malfoy on a couple occasions but he wasn't the sort of person you forgot in a hurry - particularly given that he'd once tried to send Hermione to magical prison. Regardless, Malfoy had always come across as a cool customer: smooth in style and demeanour. The unkempt, exhausted man trying to soothe the screeching baby in his arms bore little resemblance to that previous image. Malfoy gave Natasha a defeated look but continued to rock the child as he gave Rhodey a simple nod in greeting.

"You've had Al for nearly an hour, Draco. Pass him here," Natasha offered loudly, holding out her arms. "Go check on the boys and then get some rest."

For a moment, Malfoy looked like he would stubbornly refuse but then he let out a deep sigh. "All right, thanks," he murmured, carefully handing the screeching baby over to her. "I'll be back soon."

"It's fine," Natasha called after him and then wrinkled her nose at the phrase. "Fine," she muttered. "If only." Rhodey winced as Albus's cries gained in intensity and pitch - it was incredible that such a small person was capable of such an ear-splitting sound. "We've tried everything," Natasha told him, struggling to be heard over the noise. "Feeding, diapers, burping, singing, napping - Vision even flew around the outskirts of the grounds a few times - everything!" She paused. "Well, almost everything. Hermione's normally got the magic touch when it comes to the babies, but I couldn't ask her to. Not now."

Rhodey's stomach clenched sickeningly at the thought of Hermione. The fight against Thanos had been a personal crusade for her for so long. And now, not only had she lost the battle but her husband and child had been taken from her too. It was a cruel fate that he wouldn't wish on an enemy, let alone a friend he'd become so close to over the past couple of years. He couldn't begin to fathom the pain she must be experiencing right now…

"I need to see her," Rhodey said heavily.

"I know," Natasha replied. "I've tried to get through to her - to make her see that the fight's not over if we can find Thanos, that we can make him bring everyone back or get our hands on the stones ourselves, but it's like talking to a brick wall. She's shut down."

Rhodey frowned. "Hasn't she done that before? With Ultron?"

"Something similar," Natasha confirmed, shifting her hold on Albus. Her lips pulled into something between a smile and a grimace as she said, "It was a true love's kiss that brought her round last time." Her eyes watered, most likely at the recollection of Steve and the rawness of his loss. She delivered a kiss to Albus's wrinkled forehead. "What a goddamn mess." When she looked back towards Rhodey, he saw Natasha more vulnerable than he'd ever done so before and his stomach clenched again. "Hermione's in the drawing room - two doors down on the left."

Rhodey departed with a nod and took a deep breath to prepare himself for his conversation with Hermione. He located the right door and was just about to open it when he sensed that he was being watched. Glancing along the hallway, he saw a small boy clutching the bannister about halfway up the main staircase, staring at Rhodey as he sucked his thumb and hugged a cuddly toy lion in the crook of his elbow. His messy dark hair made him easy to identify as Harry's other son. Nearly everywhere you turned in this house there was another heartbreak waiting for you.

"Hey, kiddo," Rhodey greeted softly, taking a couple of steps towards the child. "I like your lion."

The boy glanced down at the lion then looked back to Rhodey. The thumb came out of his mouth with a small pop. "It's Lucy's lion."

Ice shot through Rhodey's body at those words and his shoulders slumped. "I see. You're doing a good job looking after it for her, champ. What are you doing out here?"

"Draco's changing Scorp's nappy then he's gonna make me some warm milk," the boy replied, relinquishing his hold on the bannister and tottering down the stairs. "I'm James. Who are you?"

"I'm James too," Rhodey replied.

The boy stared at him, trying to figure out if he was being tricked. "Really?"

Rhodey nodded. "I'm James Rhodes. Most people call me Rhodey though."

James stared at him. "Why?"

Rhodey shrugged. "They're my friends. It's their way of being friendly."

James thought about that for a moment. "Some people call me Jamie." He jumped off the last step. "You can call me J."

Rhodey blinked in surprise and managed to smile despite the overall situation that lurked in the background like a spectre. "OK, champ. I'll call you J but you've gotta do the same for me, alright?"

James surveyed him again. "OK, Big J." He walked past Rhodey and stopped outside the door Hermione was behind. He turned to Rhodey. "Are you here to see Hermione?"

He nodded. "She's my friend."

James frowned at the door, reaching out a hand to touch the wood. "She's sad because Lucy and Steve have gone away. My mummy and daddy have gone too - and my nana."

Rhodey froze. There were many things he was well-equipped to deal with, but talking to a small child mere hours after he'd lost half the people he cared about was certainly not one of them. "I know. We're all very sad about it."

James considered this for a moment and then, to Rhodey's surprise, the boy shrugged. "They'll come back soon," he said. "Mummy and Daddy go 'poof' a lot," he waved his hand in some sort of imitation of magical disappearances, "but then they always come back."

Rhodey stared at him, trying to hide how aghast he was. What on earth was he supposed to say in response to that? Maybe the other adults weren't aware that James hadn't understood what had happened, or did they think it was kinder to keep the horrible truth from him for a little longer? Knowing that the poor boy's innocence would soon be crushed was like a suffocating weight on Rhodey's chest.

"Jamie? You still want that milk?" Draco's voice called as he descended the stairs with Scorpius in his arms.

"Yes, please," the child answered politely, moving past Rhodey and in the direction of the kitchen. "Bye, Big J. I hope you get Hermione to cheer up."

"Bye, Little J," Rhodey murmured, feeling quite affected by the encounter. He refocused his attention on the door to the drawing room. He gave a light tap on the wood before twisting the handle and letting himself in.

He vaguely remembered the drawing room from one of his previous visits to Salter, recalling a bright, grand, expensively-furnished room with large windows that nearly stretched from floor to ceiling, showcasing beautiful views of the grounds. The gloomy interior he stepped into was so different to his previous experience that he thought for a moment that he'd entered the wrong room. However, as his eyes adjusted to the darkness, his gaze landed on Hermione's prone figure. Her head lay on Astoria's lap and the blonde woman had tears running down her face as she silently stroked Hermione's cheek and hair. Rhodey could only imagine the bleakness of the sensations that Hermione was transmitting through to Astoria and he admired the witch's willingness to continue exposing herself to such pain. There were no tears in Hermione's eyes though and he suspected that those would come later when the sense of shock had worn off. Assuming, of course, that this was the end; that they couldn't find a way back from the day's horrifying events.

Stepping further into the room, Rhodey saw Vision numbly watching over Hermione from the corner of the room, his mind no doubt still reeling from what had happened and his grief at losing Wanda. Rhodey nodded at him but VIsion only returned the greeting with the slightest inclination of his head.

Repressing a deep sigh, Rhodey turned to the two women on the couch. Astoria used her free hand to try and wipe some of her tears away and inhaled a hitching breath. "H-hello, Rhodey."

"Hi, Tori. Are you OK - do you need a break?"

She was clearly exhausted but she stubbornly shook her head. "I don't want to leave her," Astoria admitted quietly, looking forlornly down at the silent, still Hermione.

Rhodey crouched down next to them. "OK. But - just to warn you - I'm going to try and get through to her. This battle isn't over yet, and I know it sounds harsh but we need her."

Astoria grimaced but then nodded. "I understand. We tried talking to her earlier but decided that it would be better to leave her be for the moment." She reached over to the coffee table next to the couch and picked up a thin glass bottle containing a blue liquid. "We've had this calming draught on standby in case she lost control but it might help to bring her out of her shock as well."

Rhodey nodded, bowing to her expertise in potions, and helped her to get Hermione into a sitting position. He sensed Vision come closer as Astoria passed him the vial.

"Try and get her to drink as much of it as possible," she advised him and then turned back to Hermione. "Darling, I need you to drink something for me, alright? Can you do that for me?" Tears still openly running down her cheek, Astoria was able to gently use her hands to open Hermione's mouth. Rhodey grimly pulled out the stopper and then brought the vial up to her parted lips. He tried not to pour in too much at once but she very quickly spluttered. He instinctively drew his hand back but Astoria stopped him, pushing the vial forwards once more. "That's it, darling, well done," she told Hermione bracingly. "Keep drinking, nearly finished."

Rhodey was able to drain half of the potion down Hermione's throat before she pushed him away, getting to her feet as she coughed and spluttered violently. The three other people in the room watched her carefully and Rhodey saw that Astoria had her wand in her hand. Hermione was bent over, taking deep, ragged breaths.

"Darling?" Astoria asked cautiously.

Hermione started to tremble and many of the objects in the room started to do likewise. She straightened up, looking at them in clear distress. Rhodey's stomach contracted violently at the heartbreaking sight.

"Do you want the rest of the potion?" Vision asked.

Tears had started to fall from her eyes and she nodded. Rhodey stepped forwards, holding out the vial. "Here you go, Bee," he said softly. She took it with shaking fingers and gulped it down eagerly. He wanted to reassure her and tell her that she was going to be OK, but he knew that those words would be meaningless when - despite his fervent hopes - she had possibly lost her husband and child forever. So instead he offered her his embrace and she clutched at him tightly. Her cheek made contact with his neck and he tried not to flinch and the rawness of her pain and grief. It was nigh on unbearable to endure it but he made himself hold onto her for as long as she needed. "I've got you," he told her over and over.

Thanks to the effects of the potion, she soon stopped shaking and he could hear the rattling of objects within the room also quieten. Astoria brought her another dose of the potion as well as a cup of tea, and Hermione let go of Rhodey in order to drink them. The calming draught disappeared down her throat almost as quickly as the first one and she sank onto the couch with a small hiccup. Astoria put her arm around her friend and clutched her hand. WIthin less than a minute, Hermione's breaths had evened out and her tears began to subside.

Her gaze met Rhodey's. It was still pained but there was a much greater clarity of mind that was attempting to block it out. "Wipe out half the galaxy," she breathed, shaking her head in disbelief. "Did he do it?"

Rhodey hesitated. "It's way too soon to be sure but I've been pulling on all my resources across the globe - what's left of them - and, well, it looks like it," he admitted grimly. "At least as far as this planet is concerned - reports of scores of people disappearing from every corner of the globe." He barely refrained from shuddering as he recalled what it had been like to witness such a tragedy. He'd been at the attack site in Paris, celebrating with those he'd fought alongside as they pointed up at where the enemy's ship had exploded in a great fireball. Shuri had been informing him about the global situation when she'd suddenly gone quiet. At first he'd thought there was a problem with the comms device but then people around him started yelling and screaming…

A single tear dropped from Hermione's eye. "I'll never forgive myself," she whispered.

Rhodey wasn't surprised to hear the words come from her mouth after sensing her guilt amidst the rest of her pain, but he knew they couldn't afford to let her get consumed by it - not to mention the fact that she had no reason to feel guilty after everything she'd done to try and stop the worst from happening. "It isn't over," he told her firmly. "If we can find Thanos and those stones then we can reverse what's happened."

She stared at him. "Take on Thanos again?" she asked in faint disbelief. "But we already tried and, and failed." Her voice broke on the last word. "With the Stones, he's just too powerful, Rhodey. I can't see how we could take him on after we've lost… " She took a deep breath. "After we've lost so many."

"I know," he replied gently. "But I'm not willing to call it quits yet and I know I'm not the only one."

"You're not," agreed Vision flatly.

"Our team was divided before, if all our forces are joined then we stand a better chance," Rhodey continued. "The Avengers - whatever might be left of them - need to assemble."

Her eyes widened. "Tony!" she gasped. "Has anyone heard from him? He promised he'd send Peter back. What about Stephen?"

Rhodey shook his head. "There's been no sign of any of them. That's why I'm here - I want you to try and find them. I don't know what's happened but they might need our help."

She nodded solemnly. "It's not going to be easy. If I had the faintest idea where they were then that would be something. Has F.R.I.D.A.Y got a trace on Tony's suit?"

"Apparently he went out of range a long time ago," Rhodey replied. "Do you think you can still do it?"

She hesitated and then nodded. "But, like I said, it's not going to be easy."

Nor was it. She wasn't helped by the fact that she was completely drained - physically, emotionally and mentally - by recent events and the numerous battles she'd fought in the last forty-eight hours. The necessary calming draughts also seemed to have something of a soporific effect on her ability to conjure up any portals.

Rhodey stepped in to call a break to her attempts after just twenty minutes because she looked to be on the verge of collapse. They'd gone into the darkness of the grounds as a precaution and he helped support her weight as they returned to the house to let her rest. They'd agreed to try again in a few hours because she was in no state to continue. Rhodey just hoped that Tony and the others could wait that long - supposing they were even in a position to be rescued.

"I'll need another potion to help me sleep," Hermione admitted to him quietly. "A dreamless one."

"I think we could all do with one of those," he replied, helping her through the backdoor. They were met with the sound of Albus's continued screeches. Rhodey flinched but Hermione paused, her breath hitching in her throat. He could feel her conflicting emotions at the sound of the baby's cries - though there was one that was stronger than the others.

"You should go to him," Rhodey told her gently.

Hermione's face creased with uncertainty even as she took a couple of steps nearer the sound. "I don't think I'm in the right state with my emotions," she admitted slowly. "The pain… It would hurt him."

"You've forgotten that I'm holding your arm, Bee," he told her gently. They were right by the door now. "As soon as you realised that Albus was crying I could sense your love for him above everything else. I think you'll be fine. He needs you."

He opened the door for her, revealing the frazzled Natasha with wailing babe in arms. He again sensed an overwhelming surge of love from Hermione for the child and the friend before her. Natasha looked close to tears at the sight of her. She glanced at Rhodey as he helped Hermione onto the couch, but at his reassuring nod Natasha carefully passed the baby into her arms.

Al's cries began to still at once.

Natasha quickly turned away, holding a hand to her mouth to keep in a sob. Rhodey gripped her shoulder supportively and let out a relieved breath of his own.

As dawn broke over Salter House, there was a new sense of purpose amongst most of the inhabitants. With Hermione back with them - admittedly still heavily dosed with calming draughts - there was a renewed feeling of hope amongst the blatant disbelief and pain.

They were going to relocate to the Avengers Facility. Though Salter House had many virtues, its interference with technology made assembling a response team extremely difficult.

Astoria, Draco and the children would not be joining them. Rhodey could tell that Draco felt guilty over the decision but everyone saw that his wife wasn't in any condition to be able to care for Scorpius, not to mention the fact that he had been entrusted to see James and Albus safely to their extended family. Even though Rhodey was not one of the core members of the Salter House community, he could sense the heartache Natasha, Hermione and the Malfoys felt at separating themselves from the young boys and each other. But the hard truth of the matter was that those assembling in Upstate New York may be going into battle very soon…

Hermione was able to create a portal to the facility without any great difficulty, which was an encouraging sign for their attempts to track Tony and the others. Rhodey, Thor, Vision and Rocket took the steps through the glowing ring to get the recovery started, with Hermione and Natasha to follow a little later.

Judging by the stricken faces of the two women, the parting with their friends had been hard to bear.

"She's on her fifth calming draught of the day," Natasha admitted to Rhodey as he prepared to follow Hermione and Rocket outside into the early morning American sunshine. "Draco says there's a chance she's going to get addicted if we let her carry on at this rate."

His stomach swirled uneasily. "Let's deal with Thanos first," he murmured.

Upon learning about Hermione's ability to open portals across space, Rocket - a new acquaintance of Rhodey's - requested that she also search for the rest of his Guardians team. The fact that his technology could pinpoint his ship's location was certainly going to help her create a more precise portal than just relying on connecting to a person rather than a place, as she'd been attempting with Tony. And it was hoped that making contact with the Guardians might lead to some news about the others, given that when Rocket had last seen the rest of his crew they had been intending to stop Thanos themselves.

The assembled group watched anxiously as Hermione held her hands outstretched and started to make the now-familiar circular motion. The outline of a sparkling circle appeared at once but it took a few seconds before a true image formed of another location.

It was so dark and gloomy on the other side that it was difficult to make anything out. As Rhodey's eyes adjusted, he could see that it did indeed look like the interior of a ship. The problem was that the Benatar didn't appear to be in good shape and looked deserted.

Rocket peered anxiously through the portal. "Hey - is anyone there? Quill? Gamora?"

After a few seconds, Rhodey could discern a shadowy figure starting to move closer to the portal. He couldn't help but blink in surprise at the blue face that emerged into the light.

"Nebula?" Hermione asked, her tone far from pleased even under the effects of the potion.

"Sister," Nebula greeted stiffly.

Rocket put a reassuring paw on Hermione's side. "It's alright - she's not as batshit crazy as she was before," he told her before turning back to the portal. "What happened? Did we lose anyone?"

Nebula's posture was rigid. "They're all gone, Rocket."

"What?" the raccoon said in disbelief. "All? They can't all be gone. They can't…"

Nebula's gaze switched back to Hermione. "We joined forces with your associates," she said bluntly and Hermione let out a gasp. "Stark survived. The others were lost."

A wave of relief swept through Rhodey at the revelation that Tony was still alive, but his heart was still heavy at the further losses.

"Where's Tony now? Is he OK?" Hermione asked desperately.

"He is onboard. The ship's fuel cells are cracked - he's attempting to fix them," Nebula replied.

Hermione let out a breath of relief. "Tell him not to bother. I can make another portal big enough for the Benatar to fly through."

Within minutes, the Benatar had safely landed on the grass. The others rushed over as the landing ramp lowered and Nebula and Tony started making their way down the steps. Rhodey immediately noticed the battered and haunted expression on the face of his longest friend, and Tony was also holding a hand to his side, looking like he was protecting an injury.

Bearing this in mind, Rhodey was careful not to embrace him too tightly as they met at the foot of the steps, but Tony's grip was almost painful in its intensity. When they pulled away, they simply nodded at each other - no words necessary to convey the shared pain at their failure, as well as their relief at finding one another alive.

Tony turned towards Hermione next. She looked very much like she was trying to compose herself and Rhodey was grateful that she was dosed up on her potion. Tony pulled her into a tight hug, his face struggling to hold back his emotions now. "I couldn't stop him," he choked out. "I'm sorry."

Hermione was running her hands up and down his back. "It's not your fault, Tony," she told him softly.

He winced at her words and pulled back to look her in the eyes. "I lost Parker," he admitted, the trauma clear on his face and in his voice. "I lost him…"

"It wasn't your fault," she repeated, holding a hand to his cheek.

He flinched and then accepted whatever comfort was flowing through him from her for a few seconds. He kissed her on the forehead and then pulled her hand away. "Has anyone heard from Pepper?" He was rigid, braced for the worst news.

"I spoke to her an hour ago," Rhodey replied, and relief swept over Tony's face. "She's already on her way."

"Thank God," Tony murmured. There was a hesitant look on his face and Rhodey had a feeling he knew the question that his friend was reluctant to ask, but he couldn't bear to list the names of the fallen yet.

"Let's get you inside, man," Rhodey suggested. "Then we can fill you in."

A grim look settled on Tony's face as he took in the small number of survivors inside the compound and then abruptly he visibly jerked. His wide eyes flicked over to the pensive Hermione and then turned to Rhodey with a questioning look. "Cap?" he mouthed silently.

Rhodey nodded and then leaned over to whisper into his ear, "Little Lucy too."

Tony looked aghast and then had to turn away, holding a hand up to his mouth. Rhodey heard him take in some ragged breaths.

Natasha came over holding two mugs of coffee. Tony pulled himself together in time to accept his but Nebula stared at hers suspiciously and held it at arm's length. Concisely, Rhodey and Nat told Tony what had happened in his absence with Hermione dropping in comments when she saw fit.

"Vision is using his technopathy to help set up responses in the wake of all this chaos," Rhodey said. Even without the Mind Stone, Vision was still able to easily interface with computers all over the world and he was currently making hundreds of decisions a second to help those around the world. "From what he's been able to gather, it looks as though Thanos did what he set out to - wiping out half of all living creatures."

"We've started looking for him," Natasha continued after there was a heavy pause. "Rocket's got the Deep Space scans and satellites trained up for any trace we can find." She nodded at the raccoon.

"It's not much but it's a start," Rocket said. "I'll get cracking on the Benatar soon - she's got a few tricks up her sleeve."

"Once we know where Thanos is - " Natasha continued but Tony cut her off.

"No."

Rhodey and Natasha shared a confused look. "No?" she repeated. "What do you mean?"

"You want to go after him."

"Tony, we can undo this," Rhodey pointed out, "he's still got the Stones."

"Exactly," Tony stressed, not looking keen on going another round.

"Look, I know you've already fought him," Rhodey said but Tony interrupted again.

"Fought him?" Tony scoffed. "I didn't fight him. No, he wiped my face with a planet while the Bleecker Street magician gave away the stone. That's what happened. There was no fight because he's unbeatable. Didn't any of you notice that?"

Rhodey held his tongue. He hadn't been at Salter to see Thanos for himself and he knew that Vision and Nat had been away from the fight too. Only Thor and Hermione had experienced proper encounters with him and were both still reeling from the experience.

"Tony," Natasha began in a diplomatic tone. "I know you're hurting - we all are - but we need to come together."

"Oh, is that what we need to take on this guy?" he replied caustically. "We saw this coming for years - years - and we still got our asses handed to us!" Rhodey opened his mouth but Tony pointed at him to hold his tongue. "And don't try and tell me that we did all we could because I seem to remember telling everyone that what we needed was a suit of armour around the world! Remember that? Whether it impacted our precious freedoms or not - that's what we needed!"

The rawness of Tony's ordeal was still acute. Whereas the others had been able to seek and receive comfort from each other in the immediate aftermath, Tony had kept his grief, guilt and anger pent up inside, halfway across the galaxy, and now it was finding its release.

"I don't think it would have made a difference," Hermione said quietly.

Tony flinched at her words but refused to look in her direction. "Tell yourself that if it makes you feel better but you know as well as I do that it's not true. I told you all that we'd lose without it and the response was 'We'll do that together'. But that's not how it turned out, is it? Even though we knew what was coming, people weren't prepared to make the necessary sacrifices to keep the team united."

"Don't you dare lecture her, of all people, about sacrifices," Natasha snapped at him. "We had to step in to stop her from ending her life - that was her plan to uphold the secret spell on the last stone, in case you didn't know." Rhodey could tell by the look on Tony's face that he didn't. "And the only reason that she's at all functioning at the moment is because she's dosed up to the eyeballs with a calming potion."

Tony's jaw clenched. "I didn't mean…" He shook his head. "You guys wanna be the Avengers then that's your lookout. I mean, that's what we were all about, right? Our best work after the fact. Avengers - not Prevengers. But I've got nothing for you anymore. I'm done." And with that he stalked away.

"We owe it to everyone who's not in this room to try, Tony," Natasha called and he paused at the door but he didn't look back. "Even if there's only a small chance we can undo this."

"He'll come around," she murmured as he disappeared from sight.

"I sure as hell hope so," Rhodey replied.

Hermione stared at the object that Natasha had handed her. It looked like an early portable electronics device - all chunky black plastic and big buttons, except for the display screen which showed a blue and red horizontal band with a star motif in the centre.

"What's this?"

"We located Fury's last location," Natasha replied, taking a seat next to her at the workstation. "We sent someone to the site to check out if Fury was holding onto anything that might be useful going forwards and they found this. It's a pager. We think he sent a message out - a bit like a distress signal. It's still transmitting."

Hermione frowned. "But who's receiving the signal? Where's it being sent?"

"We don't know," Natasha admitted. "I thought you might be able to open a portal to the other side."

Hermione mulled it over. It was certainly possible. "I can give it a shot."

She and Natasha walked out of the compound and into the grounds. It was their third day in Upstate New York but it didn't feel like it. With the regular ingestion of calming draughts, Hermione had lost all concept of time. Nothing felt real anymore. However, there were certain realities that she was aware of and if the potion helped her not to feel them then she was perfectly content to be in a disconnected state. She vaguely recalled a session recently where Natasha had tested her reaction times, reflexes and her ability to perform different magical spells. She had a feeling it didn't go well but the calming draught stopped her worrying about it.

Bruce had joined them at the compound, as had Pepper. It was nice to have more of her friends close by.

Hermione gripped the pager in her hand tightly and drew on the energy of the different dimensions to visualise the connection to the transmitted signal. Holding on to that vision, she slid on her sling ring and attempted to create the portal. The instant the gateway was created a gold flash soared through the air and up into the night sky.

"What the hell?" Natasha gasped, holding a hand to her heart. The glowing streak suddenly halted and then reversed direction to come towards the two women on the ground.

The glowing was actually a woman. Hermione had never seen anything like it before. It was beautiful.

It turned out that the glowing woman was called Carol, and she was an old friend of Fury's. Her appearance caused a bit of a stir in the compound.

Hermione watched on serenely as her friends told Carol what had happened, and their visitor confirmed that the same fate had befallen other planets that she'd passed on her journey to get to Earth. Carol was evidently keen to take on Thanos at once - single-handed if necessary. But Natasha pointed out that the Avengers functioned as more of a team and Rhodey added that they didn't have any idea of Thanos's location.

"Actually, that might not be true," Rocket inputted, garnering a lot of surprised expressions from the others. Apparently, he and Nebula had been trying to track a planet referred to as 'the Garden' by Thanos in conversations with his much-modified daughter. They had managed to pinpoint a few possible locations through the Benatar's navigation system and were monitoring them for any indication of Thanos's presence.

"I'll check them out - get some eyes on the ground to see if there's any sign of Thanos or his forces," Carol decided and then seemed to remember the group's desire to tackle this as a team. She turned to Hermione. "I'm assuming you can create portals to these planets. I can move through the possible locations quicker that way."

"I can do it," Hermione replied calmly.

Carol nodded approvingly. "Let's get on it."

"Wait," Natasha called, glancing at Hermione with concern. "She's not in a fit state."

Carol looked between Natasha and Hermione, then shrugged. "She looks fine to me."

"Yeah, well, you don't know her like I do," Natasha replied. "Look, we're only going to get one shot at this so we've got to do it right. Opening a portal to Thanos while she's compromised by the potions she's been taking is too much of a risk: her reactions and reflexes are too slow and she doesn't have the same awareness of potential dangers."

"It's why we haven't got her to try and open a direct portal to Thanos himself," Rhodey added. "In normal conditions she'd probably be able to find him wherever he was. I know you want to take him on - we all do - but you should wait."

Carol frowned. "For what?"

Hermione saw her friends exchange apprehensive glances.

"Until she's free of the potion," Tony said from the doorway. "You'll want her on your team, new girl - she's much more than just a portal maker." Tony took a couple of steps further into the room, giving Natasha a solemn nod which she returned.

Carol gave Hermione another appraising look. "Fine. We wait."

The withdrawal was just shy of hellish.

At least one of her friends stayed with her at all times to remind her that she wasn't going through this on her own. Some were better than others in their attempts to distract her from her come do. Pepper, for instance, was very good at keeping a conversation flowing about inconsequential things, and Rhodey challenged her to compete against him in a number of games on their phones. Natasha enlisted her help in preparing food for everyone, which went well until she started trembling so violently that she couldn't even stir the sauce on the stove. Bruce saw to her next, trying to care for her as more physical symptoms appeared: sweating, muscle aches and vomiting. But Bruce was worried about mixing muggle medication with magical-caused symptoms and he was reluctant to give her anything.

By the time Tony joined her, her mind was acutely aware of everything she had tried to hide from herself over the last few days. The pain of the grief and the guilt was unbearable, and the only reason it wasn't completely destroying her was the hope that this wasn't the end. There was still a chance.

Still, the emotional upheaval had her sobbing and wailing like a child. Tony climbed up on the bed next to her, holding her tight as he rocked her back and forth, murmuring endless reassurances. In his arms she managed to snatch a few hours' fitful sleep. Her body wasn't quite back to its best when she awoke, but a belligerent mood settled in her mind as she channelled her raw feelings into one purpose: getting to Thanos so that the atrocity could be undone. Whatever it took, she would fix this.

Everyone was assembled in the living area when Hermione returned from a steaming hot shower. She could tell from the looks on their faces that something had happened. Anxiety flared in her stomach and she pushed away the urge she had to seek out a vial of potion. "What is it?"

"We think we've found him," Rocket answered and pointed to a projection of a planet. "When Thanos snapped his fingers, Earth became ground zero for a power surge of ridiculously cosmic proportions. No one's ever seen anything like it until our sensors picked it up happening on this planet a few hours ago." As he spoke, the hologram showed a ripple of energy engulfing the planet. "It's one of the ones that we were monitoring."

"Thanos is there," Nebula stated. "And he used the Stones again."

Hermione could feel her magic itching to be released and the air crackled around her. Carol looked at her approvingly.

A large figure lurched into sight. It was the first time she had seen Thor move in days. He held out his hand and his new axe flew into his grip. "Let's do this."

Tony looked round at the others: Nat, Rhodey, Bruce, Vision, Rocket, Nebula, Carol, Thor and then his gaze met Hermione's. "Time to take the bastard down…"

There wasn't much of a plan but, then again, there didn't need to be - especially after Carol did a recon trip and discovered that Thanos was completely alone, without any type of back-up. They simply needed to subdue Thanos and get the Stones away from him by whatever means necessary.

The ambush was quick and brutal. Carol, War Machine and Hulkbuster-Bruce restrained him within seconds, then Thor used Stormbreaker to slice off the arm that bore the Infinity Gauntlet. Hermione saw the limb drop to the floor as she strode through the entrance to his farm alongside Nat and Iron Man, with Vision and Nebula bringing up the rear. Thanos groaned at the pain but Hermione was unmoved. His suffering was nothing compared to what she'd endured at his hand over the years. Their eyes met and a surge of volatile emotion threatened to burst out of her.

The quiet, 'Oh no,' from Rocket broke her from the intense gaze. The raccoon was standing over the gauntlet. As Hermione got closer, she saw what had brought the comment from him. Despair pooled in her stomach - the Stones were gone.

"Where are they?" Hermione asked, her voice low and menacing.

When Thanos made no move to reply, Carol tightened the arm that was held across his throat. "Answer the question."

"The universe required correction. After that, the Stones served no purpose beyond temptation," Thanos replied, his words ending in a snarl.

"You murdered trillions!" Bruce cried, shoving Thanos to the ground.

"You should be grateful!" he retorted angrily and Bruce punched him across the face.

"Tell us where the Stones are," Tony demanded icily, "Or Hermione will get it from your mind - and I doubt she'll be particularly bothered about doing it pleasantly."

Thanos looked back defiantly. "Gone," he spat. "Reduced to atoms."

A wave of dread swept through Hermione. No. That couldn't be true.

"You used them just hours ago," Natasha pointed out, shaking her head in denial.

"I used the Stones to destroy the Stones. It nearly killed me," he explained and his eyes found their way back to Hermione's. "But the work is done. It always will be. I am inevitable."

Her mind was blank. Refusing to accept what he was telling them.

"We have to tear this place apart," Rhodey said, looking around the sparse building. "He has to be lying!"

"Hermione?" Vision prompted. "Can you tell?"

Every eye turned to her. She could scarcely breathe. Right now, there was uncertainty, the awful truth could be denied. But she was aware that the moment she looked into Thanos's mind, her worst fear might be confirmed. There would be no turning back. Thanos was meeting her gaze steadily and she knew with sick certainty what she would see. It took every ounce of courage she possessed to push into his mind.

She came across the memories at once. He wanted her to see. He wanted to hurt her with the truth.

She pulled out of his mind and viciously struck out at him with her magic. He was thrown against the back wall and the whole building shook at the impact.

"What is it? What did you see?" Bruce asked anxiously.

"You took them on purpose!" Hermione screamed at Thanos, lashing out at him again so hard that he spat a couple of teeth onto the floor.

He glared at her. "You took Gamora from me," he accused bitterly, his own anger rising to the surface. "She changed after she encountered you. I lost my treasured daughter then, and later I had to lose her all over again. I wanted you to know what that felt like."

"Bastard," Tony spat.

"Hermione - the Stones," Natasha pressed, her voice shaking.

"They're gone," Hermione confirmed, her throat choking around the words. "I've lost Steve and Lucy forever."

"They made you weak," Thanos rasped. "I've done you a favour - taking your husband and child from you will only make you stronger in the end."

Hermione's eyes blazed with fury.

There was a yell of rage - but not from her. Thor surged forwards, swinging Stormbreaker, and in one, clean stroke he sliced the head off of Thanos's body. There were two soft thumps as they hit the ground and everyone stared in stunned silence.

"What… What did you do?" Rocket asked Thor in horror.

"I went for the head," Thor said, looking dazed and uncertain. He stumbled past them all, out into the sunshine.

"What do we do now?" Bruce asked blankly.

There was no answer.

A/N This was originally going to be the first chapter of the next story but it made more sense to go here. In case you were wondering, the confrontation with Thanos happens so much quicker in this fic than in the MCU because Hermione can do things so much more quickly and Thanos was more than aware of that and got rid of the stones almost as soon as he could. Also, yes, he blipped Steve and Lucy intentionally - that wasn't just me changing the story for dramatic purposes, it's what I think he genuinely would have done in revenge. I debated over it for such a long time - it feels like I'm always coming up with a way to hurt Hermione and keep her away from Steve lately - but this just felt like the way it had to be.

So... the next story 'Sorceress: Journey's End' will be the final instalment. Look out for it in the next week or so.

Lots of love,

LilDropOfMagic