[ She radiates intensity, purpose, in a way that doesn't surprise Sam in the slightest. In a way that almost feels like home, used as he is to standing next to people like Steve and Natasha and hell, even T'Challa.

It means that he doesn't flinch when she reaches for him, that he makes no attempt to move away as she pulls him in and presses them close. Even as she makes it clear what the stakes are, as her words settle deep in his mind. Part of him rails against it, the same way it had when Cathaway asked if he could keep the Nest safe, when Ilde told him to guide the Nest - he's just a soldier.

But he hasn't been just anything in a long time. His hands cover hers, touch warm and gentle despite calluses and rough spots. ]

I won't. We're on our own here, Rani. Cathaway warned me that if things go bad and our cover's blown, there's no extraction plan. But I've got no intention of dying here.