You watched Peter crumble in Tony’s arms, his voice a strangled murmur as his skin dissolved into dust. Your heart fractured with each fading breath, each grain of ash that drifted on the wind. You pushed forward, hand reaching for Tony’s arm as the last of Peter slipped through his grasp. Gone. Peter was gone. Steve, too. Starlord, Mantis, Drax – all ghosts of battles fought, all swallowed by Thanos’s victory.
Tony’s hand tightened around your wrist, pulling you close as a sob tore from his chest. “We lost,” he whispered, his voice raw with grief. You clung to him, arms tightening around his waist, holding him as if you could shield him from the devastation.
“We can fix this,” you urged, a tremor in your voice. You felt the familiar ache begin to spread through your fingertips. “Tony…” you started, his eyes widening with dawning horror.
“No,” he choked out, watching his own hand begin to disintegrate, dust swirling like a phantom echo of Peter’s fate. “Not you. I can’t… I can’t do this without you.”
“Darling,” you breathed, using the last solid grip of your hands to cup his face, pressing your lips to his. “Just pretend I’m still there. You’ll find the answers.” You pulled away, feeling the final traces of warmth leave your touch.
“Please,” he whimpered, reaching for your arm, only to grasp at swirling dust.
“Find Steve,” you commanded, your voice strained with urgency. “Promise me you won’t let pride blind you.” Tony closed his eyes for a moment, and you forced a steely resolve into your tone. “Promise me, Tony.”
“I promise,” he whispered. A small smile touched your lips.
“I love you, Darling.” As if triggered by your final words, the last of your face cracked, dissolving into ash carried away on the wind. Tony collapsed, a guttural sob escaping his lips as he clung to the fading remnants of you.
*Time Skip*
It took Tony weeks to return to Earth, each day haunted by the promise he’d made. He knew you wouldn’t know if he broke it, if he succumbed to the bitterness that threatened to consume him. He needed to rebuild, to find a way to restore what was lost, but not without you. Reaching New York, he barely registered the abandoned streets, the overturned cars, the forgotten prams. He imagined your face, your beautiful city in ruin, and a fresh wave of grief washed over him.
He hijacked an empty car, pushing it to its limits as he drove toward the Avengers facility. If anyone was left, they’d be there, following the plan. He slowed as he approached the facility, sitting in silence, steeling himself for what awaited him.
“She’ll hate me, Y/N,” he murmured to the empty car. “They’ll all hate me.” He closed his eyes, feeling a chill in the air. When he opened them, he was still sitting in the car, still delaying the inevitable. “Thank you, darling,” he whispered, a smile tugging at his lips as he imagined you pushing him forward.
The facility was quiet, almost eerily empty. Tony crept forward, attempting to ascend the stairs unnoticed, but Captain America was waiting at the top, his face grim. “Stark,” Steve said quietly, stepping aside to let him pass.
“Captain,” Tony started, standing still as he looked up at the man before him. He continued to stare until he felt the air go frigid around him again, causing him to smile and take a few steps forward, bringing the others into his view. They all looked wrecked, but he was sure that if he had taken a single moment to look at himself in the mirror he would have thought the same about himself. “Is this all of us?” he asked quietly, receiving nods around the room.
“The only ones we know of,” Nat started, only to be cut off by Steve’s words.
“Y/N and the kid?” he asked quietly, watching as Tony’s shoulders went rigid.
“Turned to dust,” he mumbled softly, pressing his eyes shut for a moment.
“I’m sorry,” Steve started, watching as Tony shook his head.
“She made me promise to find you guys and fix this shit, so quit apologising and lets get to work.”