[ she knows a little of what that’s like—wanting, with every fibre of your being, to protect someone so dear to you. some might think steve rogers didn’t need protecting; peggy knows better. ]

I’m sorry. [ not for his troubles, exactly, but because he’s separated from someone he cares for so deeply. she knows a little of what that’s like, too. ] I do find that in times of crisis we mistakenly belief we only have the two options. In this case, yours might be either to keep him safe or to rejoin your family.

[ she pauses. ]

Mightn’t there be a third option?

[ something less romantic, maybe. something less satisfying. she doesn’t dare to know what it might be—he knows his life better than she, a stranger, ever could. ]