Make You Feel My Love
~Book IV~

Disclaimer: I do not own Civil War or any other Marvel characters in this story. All I own is the story I've come up with and my own characters.

Chapter 9

Gently and without waking Steve, Maria snuck out of the bed and put on a morning robe. Her mouth and throat was as dry as a desert and she craved tea immensely. It was early in the morning and the sun was only slightly visible yet. Normally, Steve would be up by then, but their night had been rather… long and active, which meant he would stay asleep at least two or three more hours still.

To her surprise, Sam was up. Sam was never much of a morning bird (pun intended) and would only leave his bedroom if the sun was already up in the sky, so to see him sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee in front of him was rather surprising to Maria. He did not look up at her as she passed him by to go to the water kettle, nor did he react to her greeting him. As Maria had suspected, something was up with him, and she determined to find out what.

With the strong scent of coffee burning in her nose, she poured herself a cup of hot water before adding the small tea bag. Almost immediately, the scent of coffee in the kitchen was replaced by the sweet scent of tea. Maria joined Sam at the kitchen table, seeing him staring down at the table in front of him. His coffee was no longer warm, no steam coming from the top of the beverage as it did from Maria's cup of tea.

"Sam?" she asked quietly. "Are you alright?"

His eyes moved from the table up to Maria's eyes, though he still did not reply. At least, he did not reply with words. But Maria could see exactly what was wrong in his eyes and in that very moment, she was glad that Logan had opened up to her enough to share with her what happened to a man, or woman, during wars. She had not only Logan to thank for it, but also Steve.

"You're not used to this anymore, are you?"

"I thought I was," said Sam. "I helped you last year with Bucky and Hydra… and I felt alright, I felt alive again, you know? But this time, people died. People who weren't bad guys. It just…"

"Brought up bad memories from the past," ended Maria for him before leaning forwards and offering him her hand.

He hesitated slightly, not sure what she was going to do, before he gently placed his hand on hers. She intertwined their fingers and with a single squeeze and a single soft smile, caused Sam's shoulders to relax visibly.

"You don't have to talk about it. Just know that you helped a lot of people, just like you said. And I'm sure it will get better with time, because it got better with time for a certain friend of mine, and for Steve."

Sam smiled at her, obviously thankful, "You know, you might not be able to heal people with your powers, but you can certainly do so with your words."

A blush appeared on her cheeks at those words and her heart warmed up, "Thank you."

Suddenly, Sam looked over at something behind Maria, making her turn around. There, seeming to have been sitting the entire time, was Wanda on the couch. Sam had probably been too upset to notice her, and Maria had simply not looked that way since she came to the kitchen, having been too occupied with Sam.

"Does it?" she asked, her accent still noticeable, even if it was staring to go away.

Maria and Sam let go of each other.

"It gets better, yes," said Maria, the two of them watching as Wanda stood up and walked over to them, sitting down at the table as well.

"Does it ever go away completely?" asked Wanda, and although Sam and Maria were not a hundred percent sure of what she was talking about, they had the same theory of what it might be.

"Not completely," said Maria honestly. "Sometimes, the thing you regret or that haunts you, will suddenly resurface again and you'll have to fight to get it back down again. But you'll be able to get it back down again. Because while you might not feel like that at the moment, you'll become strong enough to get over whatever it is that is haunting you, and you'll be able to push it down into the depths of your mind, and lock it into a cell that only you have the key to. And when you've got that key in your hand, and you've got that thought tucked away, you'll feel better. I promise."

Wanda leaned forward and placed her hand on the table, like Maria had done earlier. Clearly, Wanda had been listening and watching. Sam placed his hand on hers, silently sympathizing with her while at the same time comforting her, before Maria placed hers on top of theirs.

"We might be heroes in some peoples' eyes, but we're no superhumans when it comes to feelings. In that particular field, we still have to do as everyone else on Earth. Grieve."

One month later

"11 Wakandans were among those killed during a confrontation... between the Avengers and a group of mercenaries in Lagos, Nigeria last month. The traditionally reclusive Wakandans were on an outreach mission in Lagos, when the attack occurred."

Maria sighed, walking over to Steve as he sat in front of the screen in his office. Well, it was his office, though he barely ever used it as there really was not much use of an office when on was an Avenger. Steve used the computer for research from time to time, though he did rather use other means to do just that, such as books or old files.

She placed her hands on his shoulders, feeling the tension that was evident there. Her eyes stayed glued on the screen as the king of Wakanda came into view, with the words "demands accountability from the Avengers" underneath of him. Even now, a month after the incident, it was still haunting them all. Now more than ever, as the Wakandians were trying to, indeed, make the Avengers be the ones accountable for the incident. In her point of view, she found they had suffered enough mentally already and did not need to go public with an apology and what not. But on the other hand, the whole story was never published either, seeing as no one in Wakanda knew the story behind what had happened, and how they actually had saved the entire city and a lot more people then they knew of. Though the explosions… there was no real excuse for that.

"Our people's blood is spilled on foreign soil... not only because of the actions of criminals... but by the indifference of those pledged to stop them. Victory at the expense of the innocent... is no victory at all."

Maria leaned forwards, letting her hands slide down Steve's chest as she leaned her chin on his shoulder. He gently grabbed her hands, holding them against him before he turned off the computer.

"Perhaps we should say something to the news… I'm sure Stark could help us go public somehow…" mumbled Maria quietly.

Steve didn't reply, but instead turned his head to the right, hearing something which Maria had barely noticed yet. The news was turned on in someone else's room as well, and Maria was sure she knew whoms.

"Go to her…" she said quietly, standing back up again. "She needs some guidance in her life."

Without a word, Steve stood up and walked away, leaving Maria to stand alone in the office. She sat down, intertwining her fingers over her stomach as she leaned back in Steve's chair. With her powers, she turned the screen back on by pushing down the button, continuing to watch the news as they spoke of Wanda's 'impulsive and destructible' actions in Lagos. None of them took notice of the fact that Maria had started it all, or the fact that they had saved people from being exploded to death by that bomb vest. It bothered her greatly, though she knew not what to do about it. Unless Steve suddenly wanted to go out and talk about their point of view, they would simply have to deal with what was said and deal with the consequences that came from it. In a way, keeping quiet might be the best action after all. Steve probably did not want to seem like the Avengers were defending what had happened, as it was not good after all.

Sam walked into the room, turning the screen off in front of her face. She looked up at him and saw the seriousness in his eyes, which caused her to straighten up again.

"Stark's here…" he said. "He's brought a guest…"

"Who?"

"The secretary of State. He wants to meet us all."

Maria nodded, following Sam into the Briefing room. In front of the large screen, was stood an older man, who Maria deduced was the Secretary of State, whom Sam had said that Tony had brought with him. It confused her as to why he had done that, but she tried not to speculate too much yet, as she wanted to hear what the man had to say.

Sitting down next to Vision and Sam, and opposite of Steve, she looked over at the Secretary of State who almost immediately began his story. Maria shortly noticed that Tony was sat all the way in the back, in the shadows, simply staring at the Secretary of State, and looking at no one else.

The man from the army spoke with a soft voice; slowly and clearly. It was obvious that he was trying to sell something to them and be extra kind so as to not lose their interest. Though Maria could not help but feel there was something else behind that fake mask, something horrible that simply said that he did not anything to do with either of them.

"Five years ago... I had a heart attack... and dropped right in the middle of my backswing. Turned out it was the best round of my life because after 13 hours of surgery and a triple bypass, I found something 40 years in the Army had never taught me; perspective. The world owes the Avengers an unpayable debt. You have fought for us, protected us, risked your lives - but while a great many people see you as heroes, there are some... who would prefer the word 'vigilantes'."

Maria noticed Wanda glance back at her, and although Wanda's eyes were filled with emotions and regret, there was also a hint of humour; and Maria knew exactly why. It was unprofessional to make internal jokes when listening to something serious and obviously important, though the two women had both just recently had a Batman marathon and could not stop making Batman jokes, even during dark times as such. The word 'vigilantes' had simply made them both think of Batman, and via barely noticeable smirks exchanged between each other, the two shared a short joke before quickly turned back to the Secretary of State and putting up their serious faces again.

"What word would you use, Mr Secretary?" asked Steve.

"How about 'dangerous'?" said the man, causing Sam to scoff, which only earned him a harsh look from the Secretary of State. "What 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?"

Sam kept a straight face, staring back at the Secretary of State, who turned around and turned the screen off, showing to them the Battle of New York. It brought back memories to Maria – memories of how she was back then, of who she was; her fears, her doubts and the beginning of her love for Steve. It brought back memories of redemption and a second chance; all memories which she had not thought of for a long time.

"New York."

Loki…

The images changed into what used to be the SHIELD headquarters as the helicarriers crashed into it. Horribles memories of pain, confusion and Artur came back to her and she looked away from the screen.

"Washington, D.C."

Hydra…

The images changed again, though this time they were of Sokovia, where they had managed to eradicate the last of Hydra and where they destroyed Ultron – but at a cost which Maria had not thought about. The civilians had been on their mind and to her, they had saved almost everyone. Though she had never really followed up on the story, mostly because she had died.

"Sokovia."

Ultron…

She looked over at Wanda as the images changed again, but to where they had been only a month back. Maria noticed, along with many others, that Wanda had a hard time looking at the images.

"Lagos."

Rumlow…

"Okay, that's enough," said Steve as the Secretary of State kept the images of hurt people and the burning building stay on, clearly causing pain to Wanda.

Finally, the screen was turned off and Wanda could look back up at the Secretary of State.

"For the past four years, you've operated with unlimited power and no supervision. That's an arrangement the governments of the world can no longer tolerate. But I think we have a solution. The Sokovia Accords. Approved by 117 countries." The secretary of State placed a heavy, thick book on the table, which Wanda cautiously grabbed to read through the first couple of pages. "It states that the Avengers shall no longer be a private organisation. Instead, they'll operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel. Only when and if that panel deems it necessary."

Wanda glanced up at Rhodes, not quite sure what to make of it. He opened his hand, and Wanda carefully pushed it over to him so he could read too.

"The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place. I feel we've done that," said Steve quietly.

"Tell me Captain, do you know where Thor and Banner are right now?"

"Come on, you know that they are not a threat to us. So what would it matter if they are MIA for a little while?" asked Maria.

"It matters because of previous damage they've done," said the Secretary of State calmly. "Would you like me to show you those images as well?"

Maria leaned back in her chair, pursing her lips and biting down on her teeth so the muscles in her jaw jumped.

"If I misplaced a couple of 30 megaton nukes you can bet there'd be consequences," added the Secretary of State, still staring at Maria.

"Bruce is no nuke. And neither is Thor."

"Maria," said Steve gently, causing her to look over at him and lean back even more in her chair at the soft look he gave her, silently telling her to back down.

"Compromise. Reassurance. That's how the world works," the Secretary of State continued, a smug look on his face as he finally looked away from Maria. "Believe me, this is the middle ground. So, there are contingencies. Three days from now, the UN meets in Vienna... to ratify the Accords. Talk it over."

With that said, the Secretary of State left the briefing room. A man who wanted to control them – that was what he was. He wanted to use them when needed, and not when they wanted to interfere. They would become pawns in someone else's game. No more research on their own, no more work according to their own agreements. Everything would be controlled.

She glanced over at Steve and to her relief, she saw in his eyes the same thoughts and doubts as he looked at the book Rhodes was still holding in his hands. Why was she relieved? Well, if they had not been on the same page on this one, Maria would not have been able to follow Steve the way she had promised she would always do. To herself, she had promised to always be by his side, but if Steve had wanted to sign the accord, she would not have been able to follow him. She had been controlled before – worked underneath of people who simply used her. She was not about to do that again.