Shades of Morality

by ChaoticParadise

Summary: This is my first dark work and is inspired by the "Captain America: Civil War" trailer. Captain America/ Steve Rogers is dead and Tony and his team have won the fight. Now superhuman identities must be made known to the government. The identities were kept in a data base that was hacked and released by a radical group called the Purists. Unfortunately many heroes are now e

Shades of Morality

Disclaimers: I do not own Marvel, Disney, or any companies affiliated with the before mentioned companies. All characters -except Tara Rells - are owned by Marvel and it's affiliate companies. This is a work of pure entertainment and no copyright infringement is intended.

Summary: This is my first dark work and is inspired by the "Captain America: Civil War" trailer. Captain America/ Steve Rogers is dead and Tony and his team have won the fight. Now superhuman identities must be made known to the government. The identities were kept in a data base that was hacked and released by a radical group called the Purists. Unfortunately many heroes are now either forced into hiding, outcast from their communities, or killed by their enemies. Tony understands why Steve fought so hard against the Superhuman Registration Act after Pepper suffers from an attack aimed at Tony. Tony needs help fixing his mess and Natasha finds a team ready to save the world he destroyed. The team consists of a hacker, the man who killed his parents, a super speed runner, and a demi-god. Each has a reason for wanting to protect the world but when the team discovers a horrifying truth will they continue to play the heroes or will they breakaway and face a world where good and evil are one and the same?

Chapter 1: Life After His Death

Pepper is lying in a hospital bed hooked to tubes and machines as nurses and doctors monitor her progress. Tony watches helplessly as they change her bandages and clean her wounds. He rubs his face and mentally screams. That bomb was meant for me! Not her!

Tony's thoughts are derailed when a doctor taps him on the shoulder. Tony turns and looks at the woman."Is she going to be okay Dr. Williams?"

The woman nods. "Her condition is stable. If you would like we could set you up a cot so you can stay with her tonight."

Tony nods. "Please. I will be back I just need to get a few things from home."

The doctor nods and walks away leaving Tony alone again. He looks at Pepper before leaving to get some basic items for his stay with Pepper. He gets in his car and grips the wheel as he starts the engine. The voice in his head won't go away. It's all your fault.

Tony wants to scream because the nagging little voice in his head is right. Pepper laying in a cold hospital bed in a coma is his fault. The people that Hydra kidnapped and experimented on until they became Enhancements who are being forced out of their homes and killed that's his fault. Cap's death is his fault.

Steve kept telling him to look at all the options but Tony wouldn't listen. Tony slams his fist against the steering wheel and screams. If he would have just listened and actually talked with Cap none of this would have happened. No, he was too stubborn to compromise and now everyone he cares about is either hurt, dead, or running.

Tony gets out of his car and goes up to his penthouse. He sees Natasha sitting at his bar nursing a bottle of vodka and speaking to herself in Russian. "Natasha?"

Natasha turns and looks at him and spits on him. "You had to have your way didn't you Stark? You just had to have everything your own fucking way!"

Tony stands terrified as Natasha staggers to her feet. "Nat, what happened?"

Natasha looks at him and laughs hysterically. "The people who sent you a bomb also sent another bomb to someone else." She turns up the bottle of vodka and drinks. "Guess who got a bomb."

Tony looks at Natasha and sees tears fill her eyes. She was covered in soot and dirt and her eyes were haunted. He finally puts two and two together. "Clint."

Natasha nods and empties the bottle. "Clint is alive but is now ninety percent deaf. His- his wife and those gorgeous children are dead. They're dead because you don't listen!"

Natasha pulls out a gun and aims it at his head. "I want to kill you Stark and maybe it's the vodka talking, but I think that your blood would clean my ledger. Unfortunately for you Stark, I'm not that kind." She puts her gun back and staggers behind the bar. "You need to suffer, you deserve to suffer. You did this!"

She grabs three more bottles of vodka and walks up to Tony. "All you had to do was listen and put your differences aside. Steve was never opposed to the idea, but the act had so many flaws -as it was- that he wouldn't support it. You pushed it as it was though. You didn't care what it said or did as long as it made you sound responsible. Look how it worked out for you."

Natasha puts the bottles in her purse and walks out. She hails a taxi and steps inside. "842 Cedar Trail."

The cab driver nods and goes. He doesn't know what she's been through but he can tell she's heart broken. He stays silent and drives.

Tony grabs his things and looks in the mirror. The dreams are coming true. Everyone is dying because of him. He splashes water on his face and goes to the hospital.

Pepper is still in a coma but the doctors say she's okay. He gently takes her hand and kisses it. He wants to say so many things but all he can do is sob silently as the machines that monitor her vitals and pump medicine into her beep steadily. It is all his fault.

Natasha staggers up to an old wood cabin and knocks on the door. The door opens and Sam Wilson looks at his friend. "Nat? What the hell! Get inside!"

Natasha stumbles inside and immediately falls into a chair. "Clint's family is dead, Stark's girlfriend is in a coma, I already knew the world was going to hell but this is worse than hell."

Sam nods and sits facing her. "What made you come here?"

Nat looks at Sam and shrugs. "I didn't know where else to go. Sam, the world needs heroes and Stark has no clue how to fix this."

Sam bites his lip. "I may know a few unregistered heroes."

Natasha perks up and looks at him. "Who?"

Sam looks at her and shakes his head. "First, you sleep off your bender. Number two, they like to be called ahead of time and warned of guests. Three, I'm pretty sure you can barely stand and they wouldn't be happy if you puked on their carpet."

Nat nods and passes out in the chair. Sam sighs and grabs a blanket from his closet. He drapes it over her and rubs his face. As long as she's sitting up she can't choke on her own vomit. He takes out his cell phone and and dials a Canadian number.

A gruff voices answers. "Jay's Auto repair, I'm Jay what can I do for you?"
Sam smirks. "I can't believe an asshole like you can blend into a nice place like Canada."

The voice on the other end laughs. "Jerk, what do you want?"

Sam sucks his teeth. "I would like to visit. We have a mutual friend who needs to see a familiar face."

The voice hums and the sounds of rummaging in a toolbox are heard. "Tomorrow at 12 pm and does my place sound good? That should give us time to clean up and get the others in order."

Sam smirks. "See you then Winter Ass."

The other voice chuckles. "Bye Feather Ass."

Sam smiles and lays on the couch. Natasha is too drunk to be left alone and if he's honest with himself he doesn't want to be alone. He needs familiar company.

Bucky goes upstairs and knocks on a door with a green tie on the handle. "Hey, sex birds! We have company tomorrow! Don't be jerks or Tara will have your asses in a sling!"

He hears a familiar Slavic grunt. "Fine! Go away!"

He goes one floor down to the home office and sees Tara sitting in front of a computer. He watches her for a moment and feels a pang of sadness. Her eyes are glazed over and he realizes that she's connected to the computer. He knocks against the door frame and smiles when she looks at him. "Hey, we are going to have company tomorrow. I know how you like to prepare the place for guests."

He walks over and smiles as the computer begins to shut down. He places his right hand on her shoulder and kneads the tense muscle. He watches as her mirror like brown eyes regain focus. "Did you find anything?"

She looks at him and smiles, her face tainted by exhaustion. "Nothing useful. I need to go deeper. Would you mind unhooking me?"

Bucky shakes his head and using his right hand he gently unplugs the USB connector from the base of her skull. He rubs her arm as she jumps from the suddenly loss. He watches as the metal port shuts itself and hides away beneath an auto-closing plate. "You okay?"

She nods and leans into his touch as his right hand moves to her scalp. "Just tired. Everyone is being eerily quiet on the web. I'm not used to it being that quiet. I'm still unlocking the code to go deeper."

He leans down and rests his scruffy chin against her short dark brown curly hair. He inhales and smiles as her arms reach up to touch both of his arms. He smiles and kisses the top of her head. "I've got to go back down stairs. I also have a few work orders that need mailing so let's pretend to be regular schmoes and do the whole regular schmoe work routine."

Tara smiles and moves her head to look at him. "You know exactly what to say to make me feel ordinary."

Bucky grins and leads her out of the computer chair. "That's what we are here. A couple of ordinary schmoes running a small business. Living the life of bills, a rickety old house, and a chain link fence."

Tara smiles and rubs his scruffy face. "All we need is a dog and a few kids and we are living the life."

Bucky smirks and pulls her closer. "A huge dog that slobbers all over everything and a boy who is constantly aggravating the neighborhood and a couple of girls that I guard with a shot gun."

Tara smiles and goes to kiss him when someone bangs on the door. She buries her face in his chest and laughs. "I love our roommates."

Bucky sighs and nods. "If by love you mean want to kill, then yes, I love them very much."

Tara smiles and opens the door and sees Pietro smiling like an idiot. His hair is everywhere and he is only wearing sweatpants. "Work calls and lunch still isn't ready."

Bucky walks up and stands behind Tara. "We are going downstairs and lunch isn't ready because it is your turn to cook. If you want food the kitchen is that way."

Pietro smirks. "Yeah, yeah, you eat Russian tonight. I suppose though that Tara maybe be a little tired of it considering she eats Russian sausage every night!"

Tara goes to smack Pietro but he's already gone. She yells up the stairs. "I'm going to kill your boyfriend Lo'!"

Bucky smiles and leads Tara downstairs. "Ignore them, you know they are kids in grown men's bodies."

Tara nods and sees a client in the garage. "Welcome to Jay's Automotive, how may we help you?"

The man gets up and straightens his blazer. "Lola needs a tuneup."

Bucky pulls Tara close to himself and looks at the client. "We don't want trouble. We have documentation. Please, just leave us alone."

Phil shakes his head and looks at them. He sees a frightened young couple and he knows that Steve was right. "I'm here for business. Lola really does need a tuneup. Steve said you're the best mechanic he knew."

Bucky looks at him then at Tara. He nods at Tara and she goes into the garage office. Bucky turns to Agent Coulson. "It will take a few hours. Tara will get your information and we will call you when Lola is ready."

Phil nods and looks at Bucky. "Thanks. You two make a lovely couple. If you need anything don't hesitate to call me."

Bucky nods and takes the keys to Lola. "There is a diner down the street if you're hungry. Second best pot roast in town."

Phil looks at Bucky and tilts his head. "Who has the best in town?"

Bucky smiles and drives Lola on to the car lift. "My wife."

Phil smiles and leaves. He knows that Barnes was once the Winter Soldier-a ruthless killer- but that young man is Bucky Barnes. A young husband making a life for himself. He won't be lying when he tells Fury that he didn't find the Winter Soldier.

Tony wakes up to Pepper moaning. She turns her head and looks at him. "Tony?"

Tony gently takes her hand into his and smiles through his tears. "Hey babe. How are you feeling?"

Pepper looks at him and blinks. "Everything hurts."

Tony nods and kisses her hand. "I will call the nurses to help you. Okay?"

She nods and keeps her eyes on Tony. As much trouble as he is she still loves him and feels so much pride when she looks at him. She's his rock during the stormy times but now that she's hit a storm he's there with her as her rock.

A doctor and a nurse come in and look at Pepper. They didn't expect her to be awake but she is awake and responsive and cognizant. The doctor looks at Pepper as the nurse adjusts her morphine drip. "Ms. Virginia Potts, I need to tell you something regarding your injuries."

Pepper nods and looks at the doctor. "Okay."

The doctor looks at Tony and back at Pepper. "Do you want your medical information disclosed with Mr. Stark in the room?"

Pepper nods feeling a knot forming in her stomach. "Yes, he's my fiancee. "

The doctor nods and looks at them both. "Ms. Potts, the explosion resulted in massive internal damages. Mr. Stark has disclosed the nature of Extremis and how it aids in human recovery. Keep in mind that Extremis may also repair this damage-"

Pepper interrupts the doctor. "What are you trying to say?"

The doctor looks at Pepper and Tony and nervously puts her hands into her coat pockets. "I'm trying to say that unless Extremis can repair extensive tissue damage you will be unable to have children."

Pepper's face goes blank and her grip on Tony's hand goes limp. "Never- never have children?"

The doctor looks at her with pain filled eyes. "I'm sorry, but as I've stated before with Extremis improving your recovery rate there still maybe a chance."

Pepper nods and looks away from Tony and everyone in the room. "Thank you for telling me. I-I would like to be alone now."

The doctor nods and leaves with the nurse. She steps outside and rubs her face. She went into the medical profession to save lives and heal people. Despite her years as a doctor telling a patient that -despite your best efforts- there is nothing you can do to help them never gets easier. She shakes her head and finishes her rounds. Tonight she's getting an after work drink.

Tony watches as Pepper breaks down. They had both discussed having kids. She wanted them and he didn't. He regrets saying that now as Pepper cries uncontrollably in his arms. He seems to be getting everything he's ever wanted but in the worst ways possible. His selfish desires has cost innocent people their dreams and lives. He cries with Pepper because he feels that Natasha is right. This is his fault.

Natasha is riding with Sam as they drive through a small Canadian town. It is full of small town diners and shops. She watches as parents play in the yards with their children. It is peaceful.

Sam smiles and pulls up to a three story house with a professional garage where a normal one should have been. He looks at her and smirks at her confused expression. "Trust me. You will want to meet Jay and his wife. Good people, a little quirky, weird ass roomates, but they can help."

Natasha stays quiet as they walk up the steps and Sam knocks on the door. The door opens and Natasha sees a man who looks exactly like Loki except his hair is short and forms a mass of black curls around his head. He smiles and let's them in and takes their coats. He leads them to family room where a familiar silver haired speed demon is watching soccer. He waves at them and curses in Slavic when the other teams scores. He turns his head towards kitchen. "The guests are here!"

Natasha looks shocked as the man who looks like a less evil Loki sits on the couch and puts his feet in the presumed dead Pietro's lap. She turns her head towards the kitchen when she hears voices. A female voice rings through the air. "Go make sure they aren't terrorizing our guests. Get away from the cake it needs to cool!"

She hears a gruff male laugh. "Yes, dear."

Sam looks at Natasha and smiles. "Trust me. Good people and amazing food. Smells like lasagna."

Natasha nods dumbly as she hears the female voice again. "Get out of the icing! You're worse than Lo'! Get out! Go!" The sounds of a spatula hitting clothed flesh can be heard mixed with male laughter.

A man with long messy brown hair emerges from the kitchen. He's licking chocolate icing from his right hand. His long sleeved red thermal shirt has flour hand prints as does the backside of his blue jeans. He turns smiling and sees Sam and Natasha. "Hi, hope these two didn't give you too much trouble."

Natasha looks at him for a moment. All of her years of training and assassin work couldn't prepare her for this. She looks at the clean shaven young man in front her. "Bucky?"

He smiles and extends his right hand. "Nice to see you again Natasha. Welcome to my humble home. My wife is still working on lunch if you would like to meet her."

Sam nods to Natasha and she nods. She walks in with Sam and Bucky. She's sees a petite young woman wearing a royal blue turtle neck tasting a stalk of asparagus. She nods and turns the heat off before removing the pan. Bucky sneaks behind her and bites the stalk still in her hand. "The guests are here. One you already know and the other I would like you to meet."

She turns and smiles. "Hello, please forgive The mess, I thought since we were having friends over a little something extra would be nice." She smiles and extends her hand. "I'm Tara Rells- Barnes."

Natasha smiles and shakes her hand. "Natasha Romanov."

Tara smiles and pats Bucky on the arm. "Why don't you show our guests to the dining room and keep the idiots out of the kitchen."

Bucky nods and his left arm reflexively shoots out over the cake. Natasha blinks as Pietro stops centimeters short of the metal limb. "If I can't have cake yet you two can't either, come on knuckle head!"

Pietro nods and leads the way out of the kitchen. Bucky motions for Sam and Natasha to follow him. Natasha looks around and sees a normal home. Nothing indicating that these people had a past that was anything but ordinary. She watches as Bucky, Pietro, and Loki set the table and knows that appearances are deceiving. They share a camaraderie only forged from the bonds and brotherhood of battle. She looks at the kitchen and mentally shrugs. "Do you think Tara would mind a helping hand who doesn't steal cake and icing?"

Bucky looks at Natasha and shakes his head. "She would probably welcome it. Go ask."

Natasha nods and walks to the kitchen. She sees Tara cutting the lasagna. "Hi, need any help?"

Tara nods and points to a platter of asparagus. "Please, I want to get everything ready to go out before I ice the cake."

Natasha nods and looks at her. "So. How did you meet Bucky?"

Tara looks at her and nods. "Even outside the uniform you're still an agent. How about this, you help me get through this and when the boys settle down and watch the hockey game we can talk over a glass of wine."

Natasha smiles and looks at Tara as she is handed a flat spatula. "Sounds like a plan. I take it she who ices the cake gets to lick the bowl."

Tara nods and they clink spatulas. "This will be the start of a beautiful friendship."

Natasha smiles and helps ice the cake. She sees that Tara has an eye for detail and steady hands as she pipes shell patterns on to the cake but she sees something else. She sees fear, sadness, and regret in her eyes.

Natasha smiles and looks at Tara. "He's lucky to have you. Most women today can't boil water."

Tara laughs and nods as she looks at the cake. "Cooking is therapeutic. It helps me take my mind off my worries."

Natasha nods and picks up the platter of asparagus. "Maybe I should take cooking classes."

Tara grins and looks at Natasha as she carries the lasagna. "Only if you promise to take Bucky with you."

Bucky walks in and sees The ladies laughing. "Already getting along I see. Anything I need to know about?"

Tara smirks and looks at Bucky. "Just discussing your dismal cooking skills."

Bucky takes the lasagna from her and mock pouts. "I can make a mean salad and a great sandwich."

Natasha watches them banter and mentally tilts her head. Their life would seem perfect on the outside but their eyes indicate they have been through hell. She looks at the four that occupy the home and realizes that they still go through hell but they keep up the mask of normalcy to hide their true pain.

The dinner is excellent. Sam jokes about how this is the only time he's seen Bucky quiet and happy at the same time. This earns same a bionic bird. Natasha laughs as Tara regales them with tales of Bucky versus the kitchen. Sam laughs when Pietro and Loki make overly sexual remarks regarding Bucky and Tara. Dinner is normal but Sam knows better.

He watches as Tara and Natasha go to the kitchen as he and the other guys sit to watch hockey. He knows the drill. The "how we met" story is going to be told. He sees Bucky and Tara exchange glances before she nods. Bucky gives her a small smile and a nod before returning his attention to the game.

Natasha and Tara sit at the small kitchen island sipping red wine and eating chocolate cake. Tara looks at Natasha and sips her wine. "So you want to know how Bucky and I met. Do you want the abridged version or the full version?"

Natasha looks at her and licks the icing off of her fork. "Which do you prefer?"

Tara looks at her and smiles bitterly. "Neither version but I think you will understand better with the full version."

Natasha nods and looks at Tara as she sips her wine and fills the glass. "Five years ago I was a soldier. Sergeant Tara Rells, Medic. I served with a group of extraordinary people who lost their lives the day mine was ripped from me." Tara takes another sip of wine and swirls it around in her glass. "We were on a relief mission in Symkaria-super top secret mission because Doom had recently taken a neighboring country and had his eyes on Symkaria - it was a simple supply and med-check run. We go in at night, deliver supplies, check the locals, treat illnesses, and get out before sunrise. It was my fifth run. I remember it because the locals didn't send out their usual greeters and everything was quiet."

Natasha watches as her eyes glaze over and her face becomes haunted by the phantoms of her past. The transformation from bubbly young wife to haunted soldier was unnerving. Natasha pours herself another glass of wine.

Tara takes a large gulp of wine and rubs her face. "I remember being confused because the call-check was verified. We heard our scout give the okay three times but nothing was okay. I remember Dukakis going towards one the houses and he turned to shout when a bullet hit him in the throat. He went down and we were suddenly surrounded by hostile fire. I remember taking cover behind an old stone barn and trying to save Dukakis. He wouldn't stop bleeding and died right there, away from home, three days before he was due to go home. The other medics and I tried to get the wounded out of harm's way but the gun fire was so thick that fewer of us were returning. I remember hearing out squad leader -Lieutenant Erik Marsh- shout in pain. I ran out into the fight and saw him being held up by this giant robot. I was in shock when I saw this giant tank-robot machine thing take it's hand out of Marsh's chest and throw his corpse on the ground. I turned to shout "fall back" when I saw soldiers clad in all black shooting the last of my team. I gripped my gun and fired until I felt something hit my back. I look down and see a bullet wound gushing blood through my kevlar vest. I remember feeling numb and falling into a heap. The machine stomped over and picked me up. It had a face like something out of "The Matrix." I watched as it smiled and laughed as it stuck something over my mouth and was messing around at my abdomen. I later realized It was a high tech respirator and it was stemming my bleeding. The bullet severed my spine and paralyzed me from the neck down."

Natasha looks at her confused. "But you're walking just fine."

Tara looked at Natasha and sipped her wine. "That's were everything gets interesting. The robot has me dangling by the neck and I remember it talking in a thick German accent. It said "This one is perfect, a prime candidate. She will work perfectly." I look around and see my team dead as these men start pouring gasoline everywhere. Suddenly another group of soldiers carrying flamethrowers burn the village to the ground. The machine laughed as I dangled there unable to move. He kept saying "Watch and learn frau, you and your progeny will be doing this very soon." I remember being confused at the moment because it was obvious that I was paralyzed and wouldn't be of any use as a foot soldier. The robot puts me on a stretcher and I remember staring at the ceiling of a helicopter as we took off. I don't know how long into the flight we were but one of the soldiers came over to me with a syringe and I fell asleep minutes later." She looks at the empty wine bottle and gets another bottle.

She offers Natasha another glass. Natasha nods and let's her fill the glass. Tara fills her glass and takes another sip. "I woke up and saw another robot. This one was smaller and had a mannequin like body but a screen where the face should be. It was the same face as the one on the giant war-bot. He touches my face and smiles as he says "Ladies and Gentleman, today we take what nature made perfect and make it better! Hail Hydra!"

Tara shivers and looks into her wine. "I was put to sleep again. I woke up strapped face down on a table in excruciating pain. Every nerve in my body was on fire as feet scurried around me. I heard voices shouting "success! The serum and procedure is successful!" I was put under again. I woke up again but not in pain. I was strapped into a chair and looking around. The robot was there again smiling. It walked over to me and it shoved a rubber mouth guard into my mouth. He grinned as a scientist put tape over it to keep me from spitting it out. It looked at me and started talking again. "Today frau you will become part of a greater plan. You will serve us in mission that The Asset couldn't accomplish alone. You will be mother to a new world. First you must become a new being." He flipped a switch and everything was gone. I spent almost three years controlling weapons of mass destruction. What the Asset couldn't destroy I could. Towns, villages, bunkers. You name it. I did everything from the comfort of a specially built chair that plugged me into Hydra's mainframe. I became known as The Controller. When Bucky went rogue Hydra put me in charge of tracking him down but by that time he had destroyed his tracking chip. After about three months of searching Hydra knew I couldn't find him from my chair. Six months after his escape he found me in a secret bunker meant to keep me hidden until I was needed again. I remember being confused by him. I had met him before and was told that when the world was perfect we would serve a greater purpose. I thought he was there because Hydra won so I asked him "Is the world perfect?" He shook his head as he disconnected me from the information feed. He lead me out and took me to Canada. He set me up here and would check on me every so often until one day he didn't. I worried for weeks until he came back beaten, bloodied, and exhausted. I remember asking him again "Is the world perfect?" He just shook his head and sat on the couch. His arm was damaged. I opened it and fixed it. He looked at me with sad eyes and said thanks and went to sleep on the couch."

Natasha looks at Tara and wonders where the connection ports are hidden but doesn't ask. She sips her third glass of wine and looks at Tara. "So, how did you two fall in love? I remember Bucky disappearing again after Cap died but you make it sound like you weren't in love then."

Tara nods. "We weren't because my memories still hadn't returned. I was literally a walking machine for months. Then one day I was in the shower and I got hit by a memory. Bucky was working on an old car and the engine had backfired. It sounded enough like a gunshot to trigger a memory. I screamed and ran to the nearest closet as images flew through my head. I was reliving my capture. Bucky ran into the house and found me dripping wet huddled in the towel closet staring at nothing. He wrapped me up and held me tight as the memory played out. I finally came back and saw him for the first time. He had five o'clock shadow and his face was smudged with grease. I cried into his chest for hours. We did this for months. He even took me out into the town to help me become reacquainted with people. One night it was raining and I heard him having a nightmare. I went into his room and saw him thrashing. I walked over and gently shook him. His left arm darted out and went to grab my neck but I caught it and held it. He stared at me wide eyed and he brought his arm down. He apologized but I just took him in my arms and held him. I read in the history books that he was a ladies man, but he never pressured me into sex. We went to the Superhuman Underground and had documents made. We were married by one their priests and we've been happily married for a year now."

Natasha smiles and looks behind Tara. Bucky is standing there looking at Tara with nothing less than affection. "Sounds like you turned hell into paradise."

Tara smiles. "Well, we are two imperfect souls in an imperfect world. Hydra may have crossed our paths for us but we love each other because that is our choice. Not because Hydra said we had to be a breeding pair."

Natasha nods and watches as Bucky walks up behind Tara quietly. "So, I have to know. Is Bucky as good a lover as he was an assassin?"

Tara smirks and looks behind her. "It certainly isn't his cooking skills that keep us married."

Bucky laughs and kisses her head. "Really? I thought you married me for my looks."

Natasha smiles and realizes that she's had too much wine. "I think we may need to stay the night. I'm not a supersoldier and apparently after two bottles of wine I'm a little buzzed."

Bucky nods and gets four beers out of the fridge. "Good thing Sarge makes up two guest rooms every time someone visits."

Tara rolls her eyes and leads Natasha upstairs. "I know you're here for another purpose. I'm not sure what you need but we will try to help you."

Natasha nods and walks into the guest room. "Thanks for dinner. It was great."

Tara nods. "Get some sleep. We can talk in the morning."

Tony holds Pepper as she cries. He hates himself because she's been crying for hours because the one thing she's ever truly wanted for herself she will never have. He holds her close. "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry."

Pepper holds him close and cries. She wants to be angry at him but she can't. No one saw this coming and no one could have. She looks at Tony and touches his face. "We couldn't have predicted this, no one could. The world isn't perfect we can't predict everything."

Tony nods and holds her. "I promise to get us through this."

Pepper nods and cries herself to sleep in his arms. Tony looks at her as she sleeps and kisses her head. "I will fix this. I can't promise a perfect world but I promise to make it better."

He would give anything to change what has happened. The world isn't perfect and the fact that so many innocent people have suffered because of him reminds him of that. He would give anything to make the world better.

Bucky climbs into bed with Tara and smiles. "Hey, sexy. Wanna keep a lonely soldier warm?"

She turns to him and smiles. "Only if you don't mind keeping a lonely soldier warm too."

Bucky smirks and cuddles up to her. He gently traces the curve of her hips. "Do you still want children?"

Tara nods and looks at him. She faces him and gently runs her hands over his chest and shoulders. "Yeah. Our world may not be perfect but we can make it better and through our actions and what we teach our children. It may take a while but we can make it a better place."

Bucky kisses her and smiles as he steps out of bed and to the closet. He pulls out a tie and hangs it outside the door. "Just to keep anyone from knocking."

Tara smiles and tosses her night gown at Bucky. "Better hurry soldier. I'm getting cold."

Bucky smirks and jumps into the bed. The world may not be perfect but he knows that this moment he's living in right now is the most perfect thing in the world. He promises that when the time comes he will make it a better world for his family.