𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐘-𝐒𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍 — ashes to ashes

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 𝐓𝐎𝐍𝐘 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐊 𝐇𝐀𝐃 thought that things might end this way.

 From the moment he and Emilia had completed the impossible and built their very own time machine, he knew that something would go wrong. The feeling you'd get in the very depths of your stomach when you were called upon by your doctor, ready to hear the news you'd been waiting months for. The feeling when you'd approach the drop of a rollercoaster that you'd severely underestimated, or perhaps the feeling when you didn't know if a car was going to stop in time, headlights blurring your vision... the same feeling that would ignite a spark so volatile you thought you might vomit.

 It'd been lingering within the pits of his belly the entire time.

 It had only grown worse when he'd watched as Stephen Strange swallowed and looked away from him, unable to meet his gaze at all. When Tony had asked if they were on course to win... Stephen had paused.

 Now, Tony might not have known Stephen himself for all that long, but even he knew the Doctor wasn't a man to hesitate, nor to steer his eyes away from a man who irritated him endlessly.

 So yeah, Tony had thought that perhaps he wouldn't make it out alive... but he'd make what little time he had left count. So when Thanos had been towering over him, Stone's glistening upon the gauntlet... Tony knew what he had to do, and he had no reservations about it.

 He knew there wouldn't be a chance in hell to take back the gauntlet itself; they'd tried that five years ago, and look where it had gotten them. So with greedy little fingers, a little slip of the hand, he'd swiped up the stones and let them sink into his suit.

 It burned. It felt as though somebody had swapped his blood for gasoline and struck a match against his flesh. The metal surrounding his limbs did little to banish the sensation... actually, Tony doubted it was doing anything at all.

 He could feel the power of the stones running up the length of his arm, the swell of pain that came with every pulse of his heart. But the look on Thanos' ugly face was worth every ounce of suffering he was facing... even if the worst was still yet to come.

 He'd planned for this, left behind a recording tucked away within his suit... he couldn't leave his little girl without a goodbye, could he? He couldn't leave Pepper Potts behind once more without a heartfelt apology. Rhodey and Happy, he thanked them for everything they'd ever done, for staying by his side even when he really hadn't been worth the hassle.

 He left a little something for Peter, the boy who'd been his motivation to bring everybody home — as long as Peter was alive, the world wouldn't need Tony Stark anymore, that was something Tony firmly believed.

 Emilia... She'd been the other reason, the other source of motivation. He wanted Peter to come home, and he wanted Emilia to be happy. He wanted Morgan to know them both at their best; so, really, Tony was quite alright with ending his journey here. After all... part of the journey was the end, right?

 When the cloud around Emilia and Stephen had finally settled, Emilia had torn her eyes away from the bodies they'd left in the dirt. Blood pooled beneath them, black and red intertwining in a vile concoction.

 But that wasn't the worst sight she'd see that day.

 Emilia felt Stephen close by, she felt the cloak around his shoulders brushing her side as though soothing any worries... she had no idea why, not until she heard the clink of the gauntlet.

 The fight against the Black Order had stolen all of her focus, and Emilia hadn't registered their surroundings at all. It was almost as though the battlefield had fallen silent as she fought, each hero and enemy turning into mere silent spectators... but then, as she spied Thanos with his hand held high, all noise flooded straight back in.

 Thanos had snapped once more, only this time... nothing seemed to follow. no spark, no rush of light, and no sensation trailing over Emilia's skin like a terrible omen. A snarl tore from Thanos' purple lips, yet Emilia and Stephen seemed to be the only ones to hear. The others were far too busy fighting the mounds of Chitauri that seemed to never cease their onslaught.

 Thanos wasn't alone. The Stones were void from his knuckles, no glowing and shining to be seen, but as Emilia's widening eyes trailed over the scorched earth... there was Tony.

 There were the stones, decorating his hand as though they were just simple accessories.

 There was a sharp sting on one of Emilia's palms as she scrambled to pry herself from the dirt, as she tried to scuttle to Tony's aid. Her movements were halted entirely by the Cloak of Levitation settling around her shoulders, coddling her close like a scared little child.

 Stephen had tossed it towards her, a silent command to keep her right where she was... he couldn't risk it, not even for a second... and when Emilia inevitably thrashed and cried out, eyes stagnant upon Tony's pained expression, Stephen joined.

 Emilia felt the warmth of his arms curling around her waist from behind. He pulled her close, each of them toppling backwards until Stephen was sat upon dust and stone with Emilia right on his lap. She struggled and writhed and tried to break free...

 Tony looked at her then, and even despite the grim pain tearing through his flesh, despite the way his arm was burning as though wildfire was tearing across his skin... he managed one of those rare smiles of his. Not the uptick of a single corner, no smug chortle falling from his lips. Just something careful, grateful even.

 "Stephen, please let me go," You'd think she'd be shouting and screaming. You;d have thought she'd have been banging her fists against his arms, trying to tear him away... but really, Emilia knew her pleas would be in vain.

 Stephen shook his head, arms tightening, fingers rattling against one another, "I'm sorry."

 He was sorry. Sorry for all of the lies. For disappearing without warning her. Sorry for choosing that path that favoured him most of all, yet would cause her further pain.

 Emilia could feel tears already sliding down the lengths of her dirtied cheeks. Dust and grit mingled with salt, each ruddy dewdrop gathering upon the scar that marred her chin. They toppled to the ground as she shook her head... this couldn't happen again.

 Tony rose his hand higher, unintelligible words whispered to nobody but himself and Thanos as the Stones sparked.

 "Tony!" Her cry fell upon deaf ears...

 Then, 

 SNAP.

 The sky was flooded with nothing but ash.

 As far as the eye could see, there was only a cloud of smog, the ashes of the Chitauri, the ashes from the bodies strewn around Emilia and Stephen... when Stephen finally felt that light dusting of ash flutter to his cheek... he let go.

 Emilia was gone in an instant.

 She couldn't seem to find stable ground. Her feet entangled, boots hastening even faster despite the rocks before her. She hurled one out of the way, even as tears continued to flood dust-smeared cheeks.

 Blast upon desperate blast shook her fingers as she cleared a steady path towards him. Closer and closer until she stopped just a pace or two away... Hope soon fled her body and Emilia swallowed the sharpness scaling her throat.

 Tony didn't even look like himself anymore. His chest struggled to rise and fall at even a snail's pace. Each inhale of air wheezed and echoed... his right side was almost burnt entirely. From the tips of his fingers, right to the hair atop his head... even as he blinked, only one eye managed to flutter open and closed.

 The Infinity Stones were still right there, glistening upon his knuckles...

 "F.R.I.D.A.Y?" Emilia whispered, and her voice broke the moment Tony shuddered, "Detach the gauntlet."

 "Gauntlet detached." F.R.I.D.A.Y.'s Irish lilt responded not a moment later, and the metal that had hidden Tony's hand toppled to the ground. It had to have killed as it fell from him, dragging singed skin with it... but Emilia simply couldn't stomach the sight of the Stone's sending surges of power through his veins a second longer.

 Emilia hardly paid mind to the nanotech on the ground as she scooped it up within a bubble made of blue. She didn't dare touch it, one Stone pressed against her skull had been more than enough to deter her forever.

 She fell upon one knee, and the crunch of gravel behind her signalled that Stephen had finally joined her... "Tones?" Her voice was in a miserable state. She'd practically blurted his name while a sob dribbled from her tongue.

 Tony blinked so very slowly, eyes hardly seeing as they fell upon her form, "Em?"

 It was all he could manage.

 A sound rumbled from the back of Emilia's throat as she shuffled closer, an arm finding his back. She wouldn't leave him there, struggling to stay upright as pain swallowed him whole.

 Stephen assisted and soon enough, Tony Stark was propped against an old piece of discarded metal... likely an old remnant of the ship Carol had destroyed. He barely moved, barely breathed... yet Still Tony managed to keep his eyes open.

 Emilia was right there, kneeling right before him. Her fingers drifted over the side of his face, the one that still looked like the man she knew. Here and there, her fingertips knocked against him as they rattled and shook like leaves swallowed by a hurricane.

 "Hey," She managed. If this was it, and it was, Emilia would make sure that he was alright. That he had absolutely no regrets.

 She needed him to know just how thankful she was for everything he'd ever done. From making sure that every night there was a cup of gross-ass coffee by her bedside just so he could steal it back, to making sure that the lost piece of her heart had come home. Emilia needed Tony to know that he was a hero... and not in the familiar sense, not in the 'he beat the monster and saved the day' sort of way... no... he'd saved her.

 Now... Now Emilia had to watch him leave. How was it fair? Did the world really hate her so much that she had to trade Tony for Stephen? Did the world really hate him so much that he had to give his life... right when his family had finally become whole again?

 "I'm —" Emilia choked, head dipping towards the ground as the tears began to spill, "I'll make sure they're okay. Pep, Morgan, Peter... I'll make sure they're alright. I promise." She took ahold of his hand, squeezing it as gently as she possibly could.

 They were never really like this, Emilia and Tony. The relationship they'd built had been stacked upon a foundation of despair. That day, those five years ago... they'd both lost people who meant more than the world to them, and so... for a while they allowed each other to try and mend that hole.

 Two people who had been lonely little kids, no siblings to taunt and tease... suddenly it felt as though they'd been born right beside one another. To say goodbye... it wasn't something Emilia had even considered.

 She'd pondered tirelessly about the ways in which they could have lost. She'd made peace with the fact that she'd give up her life should the cause demand it... But Tony? He'd always seemed... untouchable. He carried on despite everything happening around him.

 He spent time trying to fix his mistakes and make the world better... and now, right on the cusp of securing a better future for everybody, he had to leave? He couldn't even experience it for himself? He wasn't even allowed to see the legacy he'd crafted.

 Emilia tightened her fingers around his and almost burst when she felt the most miserable squeeze back, "Thank you for bringing him home to me. Thank you for being the most annoying idiot I've ever known... Thanks for — Thanks for saving me, Tones."

 She meant every word. Tony Stark had saved her in a way she didn't think anybody else would have ever been able to do. He'd taken her into his home, into his family. He'd never turned away even when the anger from her grief was directed his way. Tony had joked and teased, and every single time he managed to get her to smile.

 Stephen Strange had been the only person capable of such a feat before him.

 Even Stephen himself crouched down, cloak toiling with the dirt beneath his shadow. There was no pity in his eyes, Tony would have hated that... but Stephen knew Tony could see guilt shining through like the sun through parting clouds.

 Stephen said nothing, but he nodded just once... and that was enough to convey his endless gratitude.

 Emilia felt others approach before she even heard them. Rhodey's suit was never one to be silent as he trudged through the soil. Each step clanged and creaked... and when his metal-encased hand landed on Emilia's shoulder, he exhaled.

 Emilia took his hand, shaking and scarred fingers taught around metal as Rhodey pulled her from the ground, Stephen rising right beside her. They cleared away, even if Emilia's heart begged and pleaded to stay right where she was, right until Tony's last breath.

 But she'd had her time. She'd said goodbye and thanked him for everything he'd ever done... there was more to their family. Rhodey could hardly move a step before somebody else kicked up dust right before his eyes... Peter Parker landed upon the ground, bare of his helmet. He looked utterly destroyed as he stumbled over his own feet, tipping forth until his knees were in the dirt.

 Emilia could feel her own knees knocking together, even as Stephen kept her upright, but the sight before them did little to bring any of them strength. Peter choked on his own sob, leaning closer and closer to his mentor... his glazed eyes avoided the burns and grazes.

 "H — Hey mister Stark." Peter's voice was no more than a miserable whisper almost swallowed high by the dull breath of wind. His hands scrambled for Tony's... just twenty minutes ago they'd reunited. Just twenty minutes ago tony had swamped Peter within his arms... now... "We did it Mister Stark... we won. We won Mister —"

 Peter ducked, tears trailing down those round and youthful cheeks, "You did it, Mister Stark."

 Then, as another choke made his entire body shudder, Peter gave in to yet another loss within his life. He ducked further, forehead grazing Tony's knee as his shoulders shook, as tears continued to tumble.

 Emilia had thought for a moment, that this part would be the hardest — watching Peter Parker say goodbye to the man that had inspired him to become a hero. The man who had... well, been far more than a mentor.

 But then Pepper Potts landed just behind them all. Emilia had heard the gasp slip from her tongue while metal-clad feet ploughed forth. Pepper smoothed Peter's hair, and while Peter was ever so reluctant to leave, to let go... soon enough, he accepted Rhodey's hand.

 Tony had forced himself to meet each of their eyes... but when Pepper came into view, just a hint of that light returned. All for her. The woman who had given him a chance and worried when nobody else cared to. Pepper Potts, the very person to convince Tony Stark that he did, indeed, have a heart that she'd soon steal for herself.

 Pepper's voice was softer than silk as she gazed at her husband as her fingers intertwined with his own, "Hi, Tony," She whispered, and even despite the evident cracking of her heart, she still smiled as his eyes glazed over her features, drinking in that look of utter adoration her eyes seemed to coddle, just for him.

 The impossible struck, and Tony tightened his hold around his wife's hand. It was the last of his strength, the last act he could perform, "Pep..." His voice was no more than a croak, almost a mere memory of that loud-mouthed man they'd all come to somehow loathe... yet love.

 "Friday?" Pepper questioned, yet even her voice betrayed her, she knew the response she'd receive.

 Even the A.I seemed to join them in mourning, her tone lower and far more sombre than any of them had ever heard it, "Life functions critical."

 But Pepper only nodded. This... this was something she'd made peace with already. Now, that didn't make it easy to look into Tony's eyes, to see that fading light or to see his chest rising and falling with less vigour as the seconds ticked, but Pepper had known this was how things would end. She'd always known.

 At first, she'd fought it at every turn as her desperation took hold. She'd tried to deter Tony, to make him choose between being Iron Man, or their relationship. She had only wanted to protect him, to keep him alive.

 The problem was... there was no universe in which Tony Stark could be anything less than a hero. It was who he was, and so Pepper had accepted it. When he'd arrived home as nothing but skin and bones after Thanos had left dust and blood in his wake, she'd been resolute.

 Pepper would accept that she and Tony would never live to grow old together and die as wrinkles consumed their faces, as their family surrounded them. It would always end with Tony sacrificing himself for the world that had abandoned him at every turn.

 So there was little point in finding anger at the world, or anger at Tony for giving his life. Pepper drew closer, "Tony, look at me."

 His eyes found her own, and he saw nothing but gratitude. There was nothing but love staring back at him. It made it infinitely easier to say his silent goodbyes.

 "We're gonna be okay," Tony knew she wasn't only talking about herself or Morgan. She meant every single person that had come to stand behind her, everybody who had dropped their heads in mourning. The heroes that had all come together to save their world, their universe.

 But mostly, Pepper meant their family. Herself. Their daughter... Rhodey and Happy. Peter and Bruce and Nebula. Emilia...

 They'd all be okay. There would always be a hole left behind to remind them of the impact he'd had in all of their lives... but time would heal their wounds and leave but a scar behind.

 Pepper felt her tears finally drop, "You can rest now."

 Emilia crumbled completely and she almost resented the hiccup that spurred from her tongue as she soon found the earth once more. One knee buried into the dirt, the other keeping her elbow on a pedestal while her hand smothered her lips.

 Stephen shortly followed, a flurry of material fleeing his shoulds; the cloak had always favoured Emilia, even if it would always be eternally loyal to Stephen. Its frayed edges curled around her like warm fingers seeking to offer solace.

 Stephen kneeled beside her, an arm encasing her shoulder as he pulled her close.

 But those small movements had started something unintended, yet entirely deserved. Thud after thud tolled from behind them, where the heroes they'd fought alongside had once been standing.

 Emilia twisted her head, solemn eyes flooded with tears spying the source of the sound. She hadn't meant to kneel, to make it look as though she were bending the knee for their fallen hero — for her fallen friend but the others still followed.

 One by one, heroes young and old, new and returning... each of them dropped to one knee for Tony Stark.

 Pepper's final words to her husband, and the greatest hero the world would ever know... there couldn't have been anything else more fitting. There had been heroes before Tony, and there would always be heroes after... but none would ever be him. Nobody would ever come close to the hero that was Tony Stark.

 He'd grown up in the shadow of another, trying to live up to man thought dead beneath the sea just so that he could have a sliver of his father's approval. His ego had grown, his arrogance building so tall it seemed impossible to knock it back down. But it had. Tony had changed, and from that moment he'd fought to right his wrongs, he'd set a path to make the world better.

 He just wanted a legacy to be proud of... those kneeling around him were that very legacy. Peter Parker was his legacy, Morgan Stark was his legacy.

 Rest. That was what he deserved. Even if he was leaving behind a wife and child, a best friend that would always feel a ghost by his side, a kid who'd looked at him as though he'd hung the stars... and a woman who had lost herself time and time again, only to be kept standing thanks to Tony's encompassing warmth.

 Tony cast a final look over the crowd around him as the darkness began to edge its way closer. Right at the very centre, it was bright, it was those he'd fought alongside. His team. His friends and family... Then, they too, were swallowed.

 His final breath would rattle the earth itself. How could the world possibly move on without Tony Stark to guide its rocky path?

 The arc reactor that had once lit up the battlefield with nothing but hope... It powered down, flickering for just a moment until his chest was undeniably still. Silence encased them as Pepper toppled forth, planting her lips against Tony's forehead for what would be the very last time.

 Emilia tried her hardest to blink through the haze before her, to squint and see if she could just catch another flicker, another flash of his arc reactor... but nothing came. That was the cost of their win... and Tony Stark had known it from the beginning.

 Tony had known that a sacrifice had to be made. As ever, that was what made him a hero to them all.

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DATE: 23-03-2023

:･ﾟ★ no you don't understand... I SOBBED writing this. It took three separate attempts. i was even documenting my snivelling to xonceuponatimex 

yes, i did include the kneeling scene that was SHAMEFULLY CUT FROM THE MOVIE! (idc if it's corny as hell)

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