When I woke in the morning, I felt a million times better than the day before. My body was still unbelievably sore, however, and the bruises that littered my skin made it look like I was some sort of walking corpse. Despite the pain and the gruesome sight, it served as a sort of reminder that I was alive, that I had made it through, and that was enough for me.

I threw on a casual tank top and pair of jeans and headed out towards the breakfast area of the helicarrier, humming a soft melody to myself on the way there. When I entered the cafeteria most everyone was already seated and eating their food, chatting amongst themselves as they did.

Clint and Natasha were sitting with Thor and Bruce, while Steve and Tony were sitting nearby, deep in conversation with Johnny and the rest of the Fantastic Four. As I passed by Clint, I swooped down and pecked him on the cheek, before grabbing a salad and plopping down next to Tony at his table.

"Hey sunshine," He murmured, not looking up from the data he was scrolling through on a handheld screen.

I snuck a peek over his shoulder at the data, but only saw calculations that made little to no sense to me. Shrugging, I went back to eating my salad. I caught Steve's eye and grinned at him, trying to catch a part of the conversation that was going on.

"Johnny's right, though, we don't need a whole team to check out the warehouse. Five or less, I'd say. Get in, search, and then get out." Sue spoke and everyone else at the table nodded, even Tony, who was still engrossed in his data.

"Are we talking about the energy readings? I want to be on the team that goes in," I spoke up.

At this Tony let out a laugh, and placed his screen down on the table. He looked over at me with disbelief and shook his head.

"If this actually has something to do with Loki, what makes you think that we'd ever let you near that place. We're not going to hand you back to him when we just rescued you."

"Tony-" I started, only to be cut off by Steve.

"Tony, if we go check this place out and leave Sam behind he'd just have an easier time grabbing her. She'd be safer with us anyways." He finished.

I sent Steve an appreciative look, and he smiled back in response. At this point, Johnny jumped in.

"Sam seems to be able to handle herself, so I don't see why she shouldn't go. If this Loki guy wants to go after her again, we might as well make him work for it."

I beamed.

"See, Tony? They make sense and you're outvoted. So ha." I bumped my shoulder against his and felt the tenseness of his muscles. "I'll be okay, I promise. You'll go too, and everything will be just fine."

His face showed his blatant distrust of the plan, but after a moment his features softened, and he nodded.

"Alright, kid. You win," He paused, and gently nudged my shoulder back. "This time."

I smiled, and went back to my salad.

"So, who should we send in? Tony was the one who has been to the warehouse, and Sam has experience with Loki, so they're a sure bet." Reed joined in the conversation now and looked around the table.

"I'm in." Steve and Johnny both spoke at the same time, much to my own amusement.

They both looked at each other, and Johnny grinned, holding out a fist towards Steve. Steve only glanced down with a single raised eyebrow, before he begrudgingly reciprocated the motion. Johnny let out a loud cheer.

"I just fist bumped Captain America, and honestly I think that's the coolest thing I've ever done in my life." He looked towards his friends for encouragement.

They, as well as Steve, looked thoroughly unimpressed.

"Tony, Sam, Steve, and Johnny. Anyone else?" Sue smiled at her brother and shook her head in amusement.

"I'm going." A voice spoke from the table next to us, and I turned my head to see Clint glancing over at us with a determined expression.

No one in the group questioned him, and I couldn't think of any reason why I wouldn't want him with us. Reed nodded.

"It's settled then. Sue and I will be on comms watching you guys, as well as Dr. Banner." He commented.

Clint nodded in satisfaction, and turned back to his conversation with Natasha.

As the conversation resumed at the table around me, I found myself staring at my brother and the redhead seated next to him. They sat a professional distance apart from each other, but something in their mannerisms made it seem as though they were leaning closer than they actually were. My brother had a genuine grin on his lips as he spoke words that were too far away to hear, and Natasha had a sparkle in her eyes that made her seem more alive than I've ever seen her before.

They were in love. I had known of their feelings for each other a long time before they did, but seeing them in motion was surreal. They seemed to be in sync, their movements and conversation intertwining perfectly around each other.

Love looked good on them, and I couldn't help the smile that grew on my face at the thought. With all the hardship we've been through in the past few months, they deserved to be happy. Even as I smiled, a pang of sadness shot through my chest.

I wanted that.

Happiness. The freedom to be with someone who cared for you as you were, who wanted nothing more from you than your love. A gentle, uncomplicated love that strengthens you, instead of weakening you.

I took a deep breath in, and tried releasing some of the pent up sorrow in me. I had my family. A family who had been through hell and back with me and would do anything to make sure I was okay. They loved me, and that was what mattered now, them.

As I watched Nat put a gentle hand on my brother's arm, I couldn't shake the sudden image of the two of them old and gray, smiling from their chairs as they watched their grown children bustling around the house, a grandchild or two running barefoot across the backyard.

They deserved a happy ending like that.

And god, being an aunt would be a dream come true. I'd take great pleasure in spoiling those kids, that's for sure.

"Sam?" A voice spoke, drawing me out of my thoughts.

I glanced up to see Steve looking at me with an amused expression.

"Sorry, I was lost in thought for a bit," I apologized with a smile. "What were we talking about?"

"No worries, Sam. I was just asking if you wanted to spar for a bit before we head to check out the warehouse." He answered.

Sparring. My very sore muscles tightened painfully at the thought of any physical exercise, especially with Steve, who could beat me in a sparring match with hardly a thought. My sense of pride, however, made it incredibly difficult to say no. I was an official Avenger now, I could handle sparring with one of my teammates, no problem. One of my super strong teammates. One that could probably pick up a car with no effort.

No problem at all.

"Of course, Steve. Wouldn't want to let an old man get out of shape before a real fight. I respect my elders too much." I beamed.

As I got up from the table to toss away my salad, Steve's expression of absolute disdain was burned pleasantly into my mind.

Tony chuckled, and patted my shoulder in pride as I passed by.

"Nice one, kid."

Steve only grumbled in response, and followed closely at my side as I headed down the hall towards the gym area of the helicarrier. Steve was already in sparring suitable clothing, so he waited patiently for me as I found a pair of athletic pants, as I was unwilling to damage any of my precious jeans.

"So," I started, stretching gently in preparation for the match. "Steve."

"Yeah?" He was also stretching, though he wasn't nearly as thorough as me, seeing as he didn't really need to be.

"What do you think of this whole Loki thing?" I asked cautiously, pointedly looking at the ground rather that his face.

Steve didn't seem as taken aback as I thought he would be, however, and I was grateful for that. He was becoming one of my closest friends, and I truly hoped that he could understand my predicament without judging me too harshly.

"The current situation?" He asked. "Well, we dealt with Loki once and that ended fairly disastrously. It seems different this time, though. He feels more desperate than he did when we faced him last. Whether that's more or less dangerous than before, I have no idea."

I nodded, taking in his words silently. I agreed with all of them, though I didn't voice it out loud. Loki was working with someone, that much was becoming obvious. But who? Surely not the Chitauri from before, as they were defeated and many of their forces killed. But who else would work with Loki? 

I had no idea, honestly. The workings of space and other planets remained a mystery to me, and I couldn't hope to understand all of the possibilities. I was just a human, just me. A boring human from Earth who didn't even have powers that matched the strength that other humans had. All I had was a decent skill with weapons and a stubbornness that was too strong for my own good.

"Hey, Sam," Steve spoke, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Are you okay?"

His words echoed through my mind. Was I okay? I sighed softly, and looked up at Steve, hoping my expression conveyed enough of what I was feeling.

"I don't know, Steve. The more that happens, the more lost I feel. Loki is back and working with someone, someone who could be just as powerful as those he partnered with last time. And we beat him, I know we did. But I nearly died, Steve."

I leaned into his hand that was still on my shoulder, taking comfort from the weight of it.

"I can handle threats like Fisk. Human beings who make bad decisions and take it out on other people. Those people are problems that I can solve. But aliens? Gods? All of these strange, unknown factors just set me on edge. I have a gun, Steve. And sometimes I can throw a good punch, but mostly I just sit behind those of you who have talents beyond my imagination and hope to come out of the other end alive. What good am I in all of that?" I asked, my voice wavering with more emotion than I expected.

Steve pushed on my shoulder, gently turning me to face him.

"Where is this coming from, Sam? You're a valuable member of the team, you know that. We couldn't have done half of the things we have without you." His eyes searched mine, and I could feel how genuine his words were.

I smiled softly.

"Sorry, Steve. I've just been having nightmares recently. I think we all probably have, it's just that I don't know how to feel sometimes. I'm only useful on this mission because I'm the girl who fell in love with the God of Mischief. Had none of that happened, I would have been sitting this one out and letting you or Tony deal with this. I'd only get in the way, or get someone killed."

Steve placed both of his hands on me now, and pulled me closer.

"Samantha Barton," He paused, giving me a small shake. "You are so much more than someone who fell in love with the wrong person, and you need to know that. You are so incredibly strong, I don't know how you do it. You're the most stubborn person I've ever met, and as frustrating as it can be, it's saved our asses on more than one occasion. You're a badass, Sam, but more than that, you're kind. I've seen a lot of horror in this world; greed, corruption, ugly hatred. This new world has plenty of that, just like the times I grew up in."

"But you. You've dealt with so much already, suffering and loss and despair. Despite all of that, you're here. You're helping those who can't help themselves, you're putting your life on the line in order to make the world a better place, and you call that weakness?"

I felt my eyes tear up at his words, and I gave Steve a watery smile.

"Steve-" I started.

"No, Sam. You're one of the bravest people I know, and I want you to know that. What we're doing now? Going up against gods and aliens and who knows what? You're not weak for having nightmares. You're human. And even if you think that might be your downfall, I call it your strength." He finished, and rubbed his thumbs against my skin.

"You're braver than you know, Sam. And that's what makes you a threat to whatever dares to stand in your way."

He barely managed to finish his sentence before I launched forward, wrapping my arms tightly around his middle. Despite his towering height and rock hard abdomen, he somehow had one of the most comforting embraces I've ever felt in my life.

Just the knowledge that Captain America believed in me, that Steve believed in me, was more than enough to quell the recent doubts that had been floating around in my head. Sure, I didn't have superpowers or fancy machines to fight for me. But I had one of the best friends in the world at my side, and if he was to be believed, plenty of my own stubbornness to help get me through anything I was going to face.

Steve held me gently for a few more moments, before leaning back and looking down at me with a grin.

"Ready to lose?" He asked, stepping back and positioning himself into a defensive stance.

I laughed, and pulled my loose brown waves into a ponytail.

"Lose? I've got this in the bag, Cap. You don't stand a chance."

And a few minutes later, lying exhausted on the ground after very definitely losing, I couldn't help but feel lighter than I had in weeks.

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