Fading

by f_romanoff_13

Summary:

In the moments following the snap, Ava is completely alone...

Notes:

The characters belong to Marvel and not to me, unfortunately.
No Beta. All mistakes are my own.
Kudos and comments make my day, so please be kind :)

I just wanted to show the snap from Ava's perspective and explain how she ended up working with O.X.E and Valentina.

"I thought this was supposed to fix me -" Ava’s voice hitched; tightly laced with the pain and desperation she’d lived with for so long.

"Ava-"

"Bill, it hurts" her body shimmered in and out of focus as if to emphasise her words.

"I've spoken with Hank, they've gone to collect more quantum particles. Enough to-"

"Cure me?" she interrupts, her voice full of disbelief.

Bill hesitated before answering, "Yes"

Ava's physical form flickered as she forced herself to her feet. For weeks now - she'd maintained control, lived without pain or fear - thanks to Janet's selfless transfer of quantum energy. But all of a sudden that stability was unravelling, that pain free existence disappeared.

Her tired gaze moved over to the quantum chamber, still broken following their confrontation with Scott and Hope. Repairs had fallen down Bill’s list of priorities - they’d thought Janet’s transfer would last. That she was finally cured…

The suit too, was still damaged; being on the run from the authorities hadn’t been conducive to repairs.

A fresh wave of pain washed over her and forced Ava to the floor. She curled up, pulling her legs to her chest and focused on her breathing; sure it had never been this bad before… Bill’s heart twisted; she looked so small and broken that Bill couldn’t help but promise they’ll find something, anything to help. This was supposed to have been Ava’s fresh start, giving her the freedom to live without relying on anyone else for her survival. Instead, the false hope and disappointment was crippling.

“I’ll call them, see where they’re up to” he told her for lack of a better idea, moving to the other room to find his phone.

Ava remained where she was, curled on her cold bedroom floor, every breath becoming a battle. They’d fled to the East Coast - far from Scott and the others who were back in San Francisco. Even if they had the particles by now, it would take them days to drive back.

Days Ava might not have…

 

There was a faint clatter from the other room, and Ava opened her eyes in surprise; “Bill?..”

Ava forced herself back to her feet, moving on unsteady legs to find him. Rounding the doorway, she staggered when she saw Bill on the floor; seemingly fading to ash in front of her eyes. “No-” His eyes met hers for one brief moment as she moved to reach for him, but her hand phased through his, slipping through the air as he crumbled to ash before her.

“No—no, no—!” Ava gasped, sinking to her knees where he’d been. She stared at the pile of dust that moments ago had been the only person who had ever truly cared. For more than twenty years, Ava’s greatest fear had been to fade away, to disappear into nothing, but in the end it had been Bill who’d turned to dust.

The physical pain didn’t stop, but it dulled slightly behind the sharp stab of grief. With the same desperation which had driven her most of her life; Ava pushed both aside and scrambled to find the phone Bill had dropped. Hands shaking as she pulled it from under the sofa, she tried to call Scott; no signal. Then Janet. Hope. Hank…

Each call greeted her with the same cold tone: No service.

Whatever had happened to Bill, could it have also happened to them? Was she really completely alone?

Panic rising, Ava reached for the TV remote and managed to grasp it on her third attempt. Every channel was the same—an emergency broadcast signal and nothing more. Just that horrible, lonely tone.

Despite everything she’d been through, Ava had never felt so alone. Everyone she knew was gone…

 

She gave herself five minutes.

Five minutes to grieve. She curled up on the couch, tucked into herself like the child she never got the chance to be. She cried for Bill. For herself. For the life she’d almost had.

And then she forced herself up; Ava Starr had not fought so hard, for so long just to fade away…

With a renewed determination, Ava moved to Bill’s desk and pulled his journals from the drawers. The handwriting was familiar— messy scribbles, margin notes, formulas she couldn’t follow without thinking of the hours he’d spent attempting to teach her. He’d been searching for alternatives before Hank had arrived— that was Bill; always thinking ahead.

Her fingers fumbled as they passed through the pages. The journals slipped through her hands again and again. Finally, she opened one that felt heavier, full of notes and clipped documents. Among them, unexpected medical letters.

Her chest tightened.

Letter after letter—missed appointments. Cancelled treatments. Unfulfilled prescriptions. Quiet signs that Bill had been sick. He hadn’t told her, had kept it from her. Because she was his priority, always.

She pressed the pages to her chest for a moment, wanting to scream at him, desperate to thank him, wishing she could make it right.

But he wasn’t there.

Ava squeezed her eyes shut, as tears rolled down her cheek.

 

By the following morning, she had once again pulled on the Ghost suit.
Her suit was damaged, unreliable, but it grounded her. Gave her something to cling to in a world that had gone eerily silent.

Ava had spent the night reading all of Bill’s notes. His ideas, potential solutions, desperate attempts to find more time. And though most of it was too complex for her to understand, there was one piece of information that gave her some hope.

She’d made her way across town, to an address Bill had circled in his journal; an office complex owned by a company named O.X.E. Ava stood and looked up at the skyscraper, wondering what it was Bill had thought would help them here. Eventually, deciding she couldn’t wait any longer, she stumbled into the lobby and asked for the name Bill had left for her; “Valentina?”

 

The woman who eventually greeted her was not at all who Ava had imagined. She was shorter, a little older, fiercer… Not a scientist like she had expected, but a business woman.

“It’s good to finally meet you, Ava” she said with a cold smile, though the gesture never met her eyes. “Bill told me a lot about you”

Ava watched her, untrusting. Bill had never told anyone about her, not since Shield…

“I have a prototype suit for you, that’s why you’re here isn’t it?” Val added, sensing Ava’s disbelief.

Once again, she remained silent. The surprise she feels, carefully hidden.

“Ava” Valentina finally sits down, carefully using the name Bill had always used in their correspondence. She knew, thanks to him, that the easiest way to earn the girl's trust was to use her real name and not the ghastly codename Shield had assigned her. Those Agents had used it to dehumanise her, to forget that the person they were experimenting on was no more than a child...
Valentina paused while Ava grimaced against another wave of uncontrolled phasing. “I’ve had scientists working on a suit for you for months. Bill came to me, asked me to help you”

Ava shook her head, once again in disbelief; “Why?”

“Why did I agree to help you?-”

“Why did Bill come to you?” she clarified

Valentina stifled a small laugh, grinning as she answered truthfully “He had nowhere else to go…”

 

It wasn’t long until Ava had a contract placed in front of her.

Valentina had it all ready: a prototype suit, her own quantum chamber, an apartment within the facility. In return? Ava would work for O.X.E. Espionage, assassinations, covert ops… Whatever Valentina wanted.

It felt like Shield -Hydra- all over again.

Like most of her life, Ava had a decision to make. She might have a choice, but there were no good options...
If she wanted to figure out how to get Bill back, how to help Scott, Hope and Janet, Ava needed to stay alive.

 

Her new apartment was several floors below Valentina’s office. Plain, sterile, lacking any familiar comforts—but the bedroom was outfitted to function as a quantum chamber. A place where she could exist without the suit.

The situation unnerved Ava. It was too convenient, too prepared. Like Valentina had been waiting for her. But Bill had never even mentioned this potential deal. Never said a single word…

Val handed over a keycard with a tight smile. “Pleasure doing business with you, Ghost.”

Valentina left and the door closed behind her with a soft hiss. Ava stood for a long moment, staring at the empty room.

She tested the handle. It turned freely.

It might not be locked.
But it was still a cage…