"I'm sure you all know why I'm here," Ross starts off, his eyes landing on each of them in turn, even if his gaze slips off of Bruce rather quickly. "The world, owes the Avengers an un-payable debt," he continues rather flatly.
Steve flicks his eyes around the room and none of them seem to be particularly moved by the declaration. They are tense. They know something is coming. "You have fought for us," Ross continues. "Protected us, risked your lives…" He dips his chin. "But, while a great many people see you as heroes, there are some… who would prefer the word 'vigilantes'."
Next to him, Natasha doesn't even move as she speaks up, her face completely composed as she looks at Ross. "And what word would you use, Mr. Secretary?"
Ross' gaze glints for a split-second off of both Bruce and Bucky before he looks at Natasha. "How about 'dangerous'?" he says, his voice hardening slightly. "What else would you call a group of US-based, enhanced individuals who routinely ignore sovereign borders and inflict their will wherever they choose, and who, frankly, seem unconcerned about what they leave behind?"
Steve's jaw tightens at the last line. One look at his team should be enough to know that none of them are 'unconcerned' by what had happened in Nigeria, or about any of the unintentional damage that occurs during their missions. Next to him, Bucky nudges his foot under the table and Steve reluctantly loosens his jaw, sitting back as Ross turns to his presentation.
It turns out that his opening statements had been the highlight of the meeting, and they can only go downhill from there, because Ross seems intent on demonstrating just how damaging the Avengers can be, the screen behind him lighting up with a visual representation.
"New York," he says, as the screen flickers with shaky footage from the alien invasion four years ago.
The hackles that Steve had managed to lower just seconds ago rise up again, because New York hadn't even been their fault, and they had done their best to control the damage, and Ross seems to have conveniently forgotten the fact that the WSC had sent a nuclear missile to New York, which would have blown up the city if Tony hadn't literally killed himself to intervene.
He grits his teeth as Ross moves on to the next scene (not before pointedly showing the Hulk in a rage against the alien invaders though.) "Washington DC," he says, as the screen changes to the three Insight Helicarriers firing at each other, destruction raining down into the Potomac and risking civilians.
This example too, Steve finds to be unfair. If they hadn't neutralised the Helicarriers, then twenty million people would be dead. Maybe if they had had time, they could have found a way to stop the Helicarriers without destroying them, but he finds that he is not all that upset that the military is now lacking them. Fury's plan for them hadn't been all that much better than Hydra's.
He wonders if that is part of the reason Ross resents them.
"Lagos," the man says as he flicks to the final scene. Steve glances down at this one, because he can't deny that that one can be placed squarely on their shoulders. He doubts – he hopes – that Rumlow wouldn't have set off the bomb if they hadn't been chasing him, so, if they hadn't been there, then it probably wouldn't have happened.
Rumlow might have gotten into the disease institute instead, but that is only a what-if at this point.
In front of him, Ross nods at the aid to turn off the presentation, and then turns to them, his eyes piercing. "And that isn't counting the fact that – without prior authorisation – you went into Sokovia, took the sceptre, and gave it away to Thor," he says, his gaze cutting to Steve.
Steve stares back at him and wonders internally if the man is more mad about their circumventing of protocol, or the fact that they had very thoroughly removed the scepter from the planet – and away from anyone who might want to use it — Hydra or otherwise.
"And then there is what you did in Siberia," the man continues, his mustache bristling. "You went into foreign territory and purposely executed their citizens. You consulted no one before you did this. What you did could have set off an international incident, even war."
Steve's eyes drop and he glares at the table, keeping his mouth shut. While what Ross is saying might be technically true, he can't help thinking bitterly of the 'Operation Paperclip' that had brought Zola from Hydra into SHIELD. He glances up at Ross and does not ask how likely it would have been for the Siberian Winter Soldiers to have been recruited in a similar way, if the Avengers had taken them prisoner, rather than killing them.
He is pretty sure he won't like the answer.
In front of them, Ross raises his chin. "For the past four years, you've operated with unlimited power and no supervision," he says, moving to stand with his hands clasped behind his back as he looks down at them. "That's an arrangement the governments of the world can no longer tolerate. "But–" He turns to look at his aid. "I think we have a solution."
Behind him, the aid reaches down into the mysterious bag, and pulls out a thick book. He hands it over to Ross, who then sets it down in front of the person closest to him, which happens to be Clint.
"The Avenger Accords," Ross states as Clint raises an eyebrow and slides the manual over to Tony.
Ross continues to hand out the books and soon Steve has his own copy, the white and blue title staring up at him. "Approved by 117 countries," Ross continues, and Steve feels a jolt of shock at the fact that these 'Accords' have progressed so far without any of their knowledge. His eyes flick up to Ross, the man now pacing slowly at the front of the room.
"It states that the Avengers shall no longer be a private organization," he says, as he begins to step around the table, walking into everyone's individual blind spots. Bruce keeps very still as he goes behind him and Steve grits his teeth. "Instead," the man continues, moving to go around the other side of the table. "They will operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel, only when, and if, that panel deems it necessary."
The last line sends a tendril of panic to squirm down in Steve's stomach, and he fights back a flash of anger. He supposes he should have expected something like this, after what had happened in Lagos, but the Avengers have done good too, they are not simply the disasters that Ross has chosen to show. He knows how slow the UN is at things, and Hydra will surely be aware of it too. They will be crippled by this panel.
His hands tighten slightly on the thick manual in front of him. "The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place," he says, because he has to say something in the face of this. "I feel we've done that."
Ross pauses next to him and looks down at him. "Tell me, Captain," he says, shifting knowingly. "When was the last time you've heard from Thor?"
Steve looks up and meets his eyes. "Thor checked in last year," he says evenly, and Ross' mouth twitches.
"See that…" he shakes a hand at him, "is dangerous. You have an alien on your team, Captain, and you can't even keep track of him, or regulate his presence on Earth. I can tell you right now that if I were so blasé about a couple of 30 megaton nukes… you can bet there would be consequences."
Steve feels his jaw clench and he has to consciously keep from gripping his book too tightly. Ross' words grate on him because, for one thing, Thor isn't an inanimate weapon, he is a person. A thousand-year-old person in fact, and Steve is pretty sure that checking in every few years is probably regular contact in Thor's eyes.
Ross continues back to the front of the room and his eyes dart to Bruce. Steve scowls at that, and he knows that the man is used to seeing powerful people as tools at best, and dangerous at worst. Ross doesn't provoke the doctor though, instead his eyes turn to Bucky.
Ross' gaze flickers to Bucky's metal arm, and Steve can feel himself tense. "Sergeant Barnes' position is particularly contentious," Ross says, and out of the corner of his eye, Steve sees Bucky stiffen, his hands moving to clench together under the table, his jaw tightening at Ross' words.
"How do you expect the world governments to be comfortable with him," Ross continues, "when he has spent the last seventy years terrorising them? Are we supposed to simply trust you that he is completely harmless now? Are we supposed to simply ignore his past actions?" He raises his chin. "Do his victims get no justice?"
Steve's breath catches at the implications and a wave of fury rolls over him. Bucky isn't even part of the Avengers, and Ross is busy acting like his very existence is a crime. His eyes burn and he isn't exactly sure what his hands are doing anymore, but his mouth opens as the last of his patience gives out and he gets ready to tell Ross exactly what he thinks.
"Sir," JARVIS cuts in, and Steve pauses, his train of thought jack-knifing as he looks up to the ceiling, the rest of the Avengers looking equally startled at the AI's interruption. "The 'Test of Character' protocol has been activated," JARVIS continues, his tone achingly dry. "Secretary Ross has failed the 'Being a dick to Barnes' category."
Across from him, Clint chokes, and the noise prompts other muffled smiles from the Avengers as Ross' eyes narrow. Steve breathes in as JARVIS' interruption gives him a chance to calm down slightly, and he flicks his gaze up to Tony, the man sitting with a hint of a smile on his face, looking thoroughly pleased with himself.
He hadn't realised that Tony had actually implemented the program Clint had jokingly suggested all those years ago, but apparently he had, and Steve gets the impression that JARVIS' decision to interrupt everything to inform them of it had been more of a strategic decision on the AI's part than a strict adherence to any programming from Tony.
Either way, it had cut off Ross' roll, and the man tugs stiffly on his suit jacket as he pulls back, attempting to get the room under his control again. "Three days from now," he says, frowning at them. "The UN meets in Vienna to ratify the Accords."
Three days? Steve thinks, meeting Tony's gaze with a flare of alarm. Why hadn't they been warned of this before? He looks down at the thick manual and swallows. Three days to make an informed decision about it.
"Talk it over," Ross tells them coldly.
Next to him, Natasha shifts and looks up at him. "And if we come to a decision you don't like?" she asks smoothly.
Ross turns to look them over. "Then you retire," he says flatly.
oOo
If we all retire, Steve wonders, as he and the Avengers gather to sit in one of the living rooms, the book of accords open on his lap. I wonder if they would change the Accords to entice us back, or if they really are willing to risk losing this defense team entirely?
At the moment though, he isn't certain if the whole team will want to retire. They still need to figure out what the Accords even are, before they can make a decision. Not that they have a lot of time to actually do that.
"If I have to read any more legalese my brain is going to melt," Clint grumbles, his brow furled as he glares down at his book. "How do they expect us to get through this in three days?"
"They don't," Sam replies darkly, waving at his book. "You think they came up with this a few days ago? They've probably been working on this for a while. Before Lagos I bet. There's a reason they haven't given it to us until now."
"Wait." They all look up as Natasha speaks up, her fingers tapping against her book. "Do you think they told Lang?" she asks. "He isn't officially an Avenger, but if this gets ratified and he does any vigilante stuff, he could get stung. He has Cassie, you know. He'll want to be careful."
Steve's eyes widen and he reaches to pull out his phone. "I'll text him," he says. "Ross didn't say anything about how they were going to get any other enhanced people besides us to sign it…"
And that is probably significant, isn't it? The Avengers aren't the only people out there who have powers and use them in one way or another. If the Accords go through without any warning… He glances down at the book in his lap, and wonders when he will get to the 'enforcement' part of the Accords.
Shaking his head, he turns back to his phone, clicking on Scott's contact. "Ross didn't say anything about staying silent," he says. "But it's too much to explain over text. I'll tell him to keep out of the suit for the next few weeks." He finishes his text and glances up to where Tony is sitting across from him, his manual on the coffee table. "You should probably do the same for Spider-man," he says quietly.
Tony's eyes widen and he reaches immediately for his phone. "Right," he says. "Geez, I didn't even think of that."
Steve nods and can't help smiling at the reminder of Tony's protegee. The kid had come to his attention when he'd left behind some interesting webs on Tony's Tower one day, and the man had very quickly become intent on tracking him down. For the most part, Spider-man keeps to New York, and Steve has only met him a few times, but the kid and Tony seem to bounce well off each other.
He glances down at his manual, his eyes glancing over the section header reading, Registration of Enhanced Individuals, and he bites his lip, his finger tapping against the page. He is pretty sure that Tony knows the identity of Spider-man, but the kid has so far kept his identity secret from the rest of them. If the Accords go through and Spider-man were required to sign them… he'd have to reveal his identity to an entire panel.
His eyes glance up to Tony and he wonders if he's thought of that either.
He looks down again at the book and flips through it, the pages falling open on the blueprints of a tall cylindrical building. The Raft, the title reads, and as he scans the labels and the accompanying page of explanation, he can't help the anxious tightening in his gut. It's a prison, a prison for enhanced individuals, built under the sea.
Is this already built? he thinks a little frantically, flipping through a few more pages. How long has this been in the works? More importantly, what kinds of things warrant incarceration in this prison? How strict is the policy? Who will be policing it?
Will it be us? Steve thinks suddenly, stilling over the page. Is there a reason the Avengers are getting the Accords first – besides Lagos? You will operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel, Ross had said. Only when, and if, that panel deems it necessary. What kinds of missions do they deem as 'necessary'? Are the Avengers to be their new police force?
The more he reads about the Accords, the less and less he likes them, and he doesn't seem to be the only one. With a sigh, Bruce pulls off his reading glasses and tosses his book onto the coffee table. "Well, I'm out," he says, wiping his glasses with his shirt and shaking his head. "Not that I'd be comfortable doing something with Ross anyways."
Sam glances over at him. "You're not signing?"
Bruce shakes his head again. "No," he says, gesturing at the book. "I have my own thing I want to do with the Other guy, and there's no way he would be able to follow orders well enough for these people. Besides, Ross already wants me in a cage so…"
Steve blinks and his mind flashes back to his army days, and the blurry line as to how much his new body was actually the property of the military. He can remember the doctors who had been just a little too interested in him, and even Colonel Phillips, who had originally wanted to put him in a lab somewhere. His eyes flick up to Bucky and he wonders just how deep these Accords go. How much of his autonomy would he be signing away?
"I doubt Ross will be on the panel," Rhodey argues, bringing Steve's mind back to the matter at hand. "And besides, wouldn't they avoid sending Hulk into delicate situations?"
"How can we guarantee that?" Sam cuts in, waving his hand. "We're expected to believe that this 'panel' will know the best way to deploy us? I'll bet you most of them haven't been in recent combat, and the rest have definitely not fought aliens or Hydra. We're going to get a bunch of politicians trying to wind us up like toy soldiers."
"Okay…" Rhodey says slowly. "First of all, we don't know that. Second of all," he taps his finger on his book. "If we don't sign it, then we don't get to fight at all. Isn't it better to fight when we can? Isn't that why you joined the Avengers, even though you left the military?"
Sam huffs and folds his arms. "I joined the Avengers because I believed in what we were doing. When it's just us, we can be sure we're doing what's right. We don't have that certainty with the panel."
Across from him, Natasha looks up. "But what if we don't do the right thing?" she asks, leaning forward to place her elbows on her knees. "You heard Ross, some of our missions into other countries have been dangerous to world peace. If we're sanctioned by the UN, then we can be sure that we aren't invading anyone."
Next to her, Clint purses his lips. "They'll still be a lot of places we won't be able to get in though," he says, thumbing his book pages as he speaks. "We don't know what kind of time it takes to get sanctioned missions approved."
"We won't be able to go anywhere anyways," Tony counters, reaching up a hand to rub at his temple. "These Accords are going to go through. If we want to keep fighting, we sign them. Otherwise we won't be going into any countries."
Silence descends for a moment after that, and Tony sighs, rubbing his hands over his face. "Look," he says. "This was coming the moment that bomb blew up in Nigeria. They had everything prepared, this just gave them a concrete reason." He looks up at them. "The fact remains that we have power, and that scares people." He gives them a rueful smile. "And maybe we do need to be put in check." He shrugs and looks away. "Heaven knows I'm reckless enough by myself. Wouldn't it be better to have safeguards?"
Steve swallows. "I don't know," he says quietly, calling Tony's eyes to him. "Before we could take responsibility for our actions. With this we will have no control. We won't know who we're working for."
He looks over as Rhodey shakes his head. "We do know who we're working for," he says. "This is the United Nations, it's not the World Security Council, it's not SHIELD or Hydra, Steve."
Steve presses his lips together. Who says the United Nations isn't like SHIELD or Hydra? he thinks. How will we know before it's too late?
Almost no one at SHIELD had known the evil the organisation had been used for… but he had seen it. He'd seen it everyday when he'd gone undercover. And even if Hydra has somehow been unable to infiltrate the United Nations, Steve knows better to put his blind faith in them. He had been alive for their predecessor; he had seen how the League of Nations had dithered around and shied away from stopping the Second World War before it could break out.
"Even if that's true," he says, looking at Rhodey. "It's still run by people with agendas, and agendas change."
He looks over as Tony jumps in. "Okay, but nobody's saying that they can't change for the better. When I realised what my weapons were capable of in the wrong hands, I shut down and stopped manufacturing."
Steve blinks as he suddenly understands better where Tony is coming from. The man has already seen the devastation his own plans could bring, and Steve wonders if he has trouble trusting himself now, questioning his own morality and judgement.
He shouldn't, he thinks, a touch sadly. He's seen the news reports from when Tony had shut down production. He hadn't dithered at all, he'd realised his mistake, and he'd fixed it.
"Tony," he says, meeting his eyes. "You chose to do that. If we sign this, we surrender our right to choose." He waves his hand. "What if this panel sends us somewhere we don't think we should go?" His mind flashes back to his time in the USO, shunted off to the side because he was too valuable as an asset. "What if there is somewhere we need to go, and they don't let us?" He thinks about how he had to break protocol to rescue Bucky and finally be used properly in the war effort.
He thinks about how frustrating and painful it had been to work for Hydra, how much he'd hated following their orders, even if it had been 'for the greater good'.
He cannot do that again.
Tony looks pained as he looks up at him. "If we don't do this now," he says. "It's gonna be done to us later. That's a fact." He shakes his head. "It won't be pretty."
Contrary to what Tony was probably intending, his statement make Steve even less disposed towards the Accords. He does not like being forced into things. He understands why the UN wants to regulate them, but their stipulations feel more dangerous than helpful. He does not want to be helpless again, like he had been with Hydra.
"Maybe he's right," Natasha says quietly, and Steve glances towards her. "Even if we don't sign, these will go forward and effect a lot of other people. Maybe if we have one hand on the wheel, we can still steer."
Tony sits up and points at her. "Exactly," he says. "I won't lie that there's some stuff in here–" He gestures at the book on the coffee table. "–that isn't pretty. But we don't have the time to change that right now. But we might be able to later. I have my lawyers; we can make it better."
On the couch, Clint puffs out his cheeks. "Maybe," he concedes, glancing over at Natasha and Tony. "But… there's no guarantee how long that will take." He shakes his head, looking down. "In the meantime, the Accords will be in control." He sucks in a breath and lets it out. "I've had enough being controlled," he says, glancing up at them all. "And I hated finding out what SHIELD was. I think… I think it would be best for me and my family if I retired."
Steve nods slowly, glancing down at the manual in his lap as he wonders if Clint would be legally required to disclose his family to the UN if he signed. His mind flashes back to the family, Laura, Cooper, Lila, and now baby Nathaniel, and he knows that Clint would never knowingly put them in danger.
Clint bringing up retirement again makes him think though. Could he stand retirement? He doesn't want to sign the Accords, but if he doesn't, he can't fight anymore. He almost chuckles at the realisation, because hadn't Jason just been talking to him about taking a break?
Maybe I can, he thinks, flipping through a few more pages of the Accords and wondering vaguely if there is some kind of 'release' date on it. Will whoever signs be able to stop at will? How long are they contracted out to the UN?
The lack of clarity over it makes him nervous, and he isn't the only one. "I don't think I can sign it either," Sam states. "I mean, I don't want to stop fighting, but I was done marching to the beat of someone else's drum when I left the army."
Across from him, Rhodey folds his arms. "I don't mind signing," he says, darting his eyes around them. "I'm used to following orders, and I think we can do more good inside the UN than out of it."
Steve sees Tony nod and Natasha look thoughtful at Rhodey's words, and he glances over the group, before looking over to his left. "What do you think, Buck?" he asks quietly, noticing how his friend hasn't spoken yet.
In the chair a few feet from him, Bucky blinks and shrugs his shoulder, his arms folded. "I think you guys both have good points," he says. "But I'm glad I'm not an Avenger, and I don't gotta worry about this."
His gaze flicks over them and he slouches slightly in his chair. "I don't think I could sign it though," he admits. "I've had enough people controlling me." He glances up and locks eyes with Steve. "I think the world governments have had enough super soldiers at their beck and call." He swallows and shakes his head, looking down at the book in Steve's lap. "The Accords will give certain people a lot of power."
Steve swallows and nods slowly. He has never been more grateful that Bucky isn't an Avenger right now, although if the look in Ross' eye had been any indication, there are people who seem to feel that Bucky needs permission to live, no matter what he is doing.
"That power will be there regardless," Tony speaks up, drawing his eyes over. "We won't be able to do anything about it on the outside." He sets his jaw. "So, I'm gonna sign."
Steve's eyes linger on Tony for a moment and he thinks back to the files he had read about how Tony's own Board of Directors had attempted to stonewall him and turn him into a puppet for his own company. We won't be able to do anything about it on the outside, he'd said, and he wonders if by signing he will really be able to help 'steer' like Natasha had said.
His eyes dart to her as she nods along with Tony's words, her jaw flexing. "Me too," she says firmly, looking down at her hands clasped in her lap, before flicking her eyes to the rest of them. "Some of us need to be there for this," she says solemnly. "Hydra is still out there. I don't feel comfortable ignoring that. If this is how we fight, then so be it."
Steve presses his lips together, and thinks back to his arguments with Jason when the man had tried to convince him to take a break. Hydra is still out there, but… but… but in signing the Accords, he doesn't actually have a guarantee that he will be able to fight Hydra. He has no idea what he is getting into with the Accords. There is not enough time to get comfortable with them and figure out what exactly he is signing.
And… he is supposed to figure out how to take a break anyways…
Forced retirement is certainly one way to go.
He sighs and closes the book in his lap, looking up at the group around him. "I can't do it," he says, his stomach squirming around as he speaks. "I can't sign."
There is silence, and Tony stares at him for a long moment, before he rubs a hand over his face. "Alright then," he says quietly, his eyes dropping. "I guess we're all decided."
Steve's heart twists at his words, because this is not how he'd imagined leaving the Avengers. This team had grown with him for years, and now they have to more or less split ways, legally unable to fight together anymore.
He bites his cheek and looks down, wishing they had longer to come to terms with all of this. Everything is just so fast— the buzzing of his phone distracts him from his thoughts and he reaches for it, expecting it to be a reply from Scott.
Instead his heart stops as he recognises the number of Peggy's son.
She's gone, the text reads. In her sleep.
The words are a punch to the gut, and time seems to slow as he reads the text, his heart stuttering in his chest as his breath freezes, his eyes staring down at the words. He'd— He'd known that Peggy— that it was getting bad. But somehow he hadn't actually expected her to die. Not right now, not like this. He hadn't— he hadn't even been able to visit her. He'd been so busy—
His heart squeezes in his chest and he stands up abruptly, his mind spinning as a buzzing settles in his ears and he sets his Accords book on the coffee table. "I have to go," he gets out, functioning mostly on autopilot as he turns away from the worried stares around him.
Go where? He isn't sure. Away from this right now. Away from the Accords and that problem because now he has to deal with this problem and he hadn't even visited her—
He makes it to the bottom of the stairs before he stops, the trip from point A to point B mostly a blur in his mind. His hand shakes slightly as he raises it to his eyes and he bows his head, breathing in a few times in an attempt to calm down.
He had known this was coming, he had, but it just— on top of everything else—
"Steve?"
He looks up to find Bucky at the top of the stairs, a worried expression on his face as he comes down to meet him, his eyes flicking over him searchingly. "What's wrong?"
Steve swallows down a growing lump in his throat and wipes at his eyes, which are determinedly wet. He fishes out his phone from his pocket and pulls up the text, his voice tight and trapped in his throat as he shows it to Bucky. "Peggy," he gets out. "She's…"
He trails off because his throat closes up, but Bucky understands anyways, sorrow spiking through his eyes as he looks up at him, sadness lining his face. Steve's breath hitches at his reaction and he swallows again. "We didn't—" The phone in his hand shakes. "We didn't even—"
And then Bucky is pulling him into a hug, his hand coming up to cup his head as his chin goes into his shoulder. Steve shudders and brings his arm up to wrap around Bucky, his eyes squeezing shut as Bucky tightens his grip.
"Why're you always going off to mourn in private, Stevie?" he mumbles roughly into his ear.
Steve lets out a watery laugh and presses his face deeper into Bucky's shoulder. "Habit, I guess," he mumbles back, earning a muffled 'humph' from his friend.
Eventually he pulls back, his breathing more even now as he wipes his face, pocketing his phone again. He sucks in a deep breath and lets it out again, pressing his lips up at Bucky as he runs a hand through his hair and looks up the stairs. "I'll have to tell everyone," he realises, dragging his hand down his face.
As if we didn't already have enough to worry about, he thinks tiredly, turning to climb back up again, the three-day deadline for the Accords sitting heavily in the back of his mind.
Bucky follows him up the stairs, and Steve takes in a breath as he reaches the landing, before he clenches his jaw and heads over to the collection of couches, mentally trying to figure out what he is going to say.
He doesn't need to say anything though, because when he gets to his chair, Tony is staring down at his phone, the horror Steve had felt plain on his face, and Steve realises that Peggy's son must have just texted him.
He stops behind his chair, and Tony darts his head up to look at him, pain evident in his eyes as his hand tightens on his phone. His voice, when it comes out, is rough and low. "Aunt Peggy's… gone."
AN: So, introduction of the Accords. These ones are interesting, because as Ross says, we also have the history of some Avenger missions that didn't happen in the MCU.
For this fic, I decided not to change anyone's choice for signing, because my goal wasn't to decided whether they should or shouldn't do it, rather, I wanted to explore their reasons, and show that it could be done with good communication and no hard feelings between each other.
Of course, Peggy's death just comes at the worst time though.
Also, I have a tumblr now! I thought it might be a nice place to chat with people about my stories. You can find it under the same username I use here.