Strong in the Broken Places

by jazzywazzy08

When Bonnie Bennett, inhuman and former HYDRA captive, has to leave the safe haven of the Xavier Institute For Higher Learning to join the battle in DC after the "death" of her father Nick Fury she captures the hearts of four broken people. Over time, somehow, together they make something whole.

4. PART FOUR:HUMAN

Title: Strong in the Broken Places

Rating: M

Fandom: TVD/MCU

Genre: AU/AH/Crossover

Pairings: Bonnie Bennett/James "Bucky" Barnes, Bonnie Bennett/Natasha Romanoff, James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, Bonnie Bennett/Sam Wilson, Steve Rogers/Natasha Romanoff, Bonnie Bennett/Steve Rogers, Steve Rogers/Sam Wilson, James "Bucky" Barnes/Sam Wilson, Natasha Romanoff/Sam Wilson, James "Bucky" Barnes/Natasha Romanoff, Bonnie Bennett/James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers/Sam Wilson/Natasha Romanoff, Ororo "Storm" Munroe/Thor Odinson, Thor Odinson/Jane Foster, Jane Foster/Ororo "Storm" Munroe, Ororo "Storm" Munroe/Thor Odinson/Jane Foster, Damon Salvatore/Darcy Lewis, mentions of other canon pairings, ect.

Summary: When Bonnie Bennett, inhuman and former HYDRA captive, has to leave the safe haven of the Xavier Institute For Higher Learning to join the battle in DC after the "death" of her father Nick Fury she captures the hearts of four broken people. Over time, somehow, together they make something whole.

Warnings: Polyamorous Relationships, Violence, Language, Mentions of Torture, Minor Character Death, etc.

A/N:No editing here and for that I am sorry. This update took a ridiculously long time to finish so my bad. Hopefully its an enjoyable read. Please excuse all errors! Also review folks!

PART FOUR: HUMAN

Sam Wilson watched as Natasha tucked a blanket around Bonnie and Steve. The two were still asleep on the couch. They had shifted when Sam and Natasha had gotten up. Though Bonnie was much smaller in stature, Steve had managed to curl himself around her, his arms wrapped around her torso, legs splayed over her legs and the couch, and his head pillowed on her chest. Sam had to laugh a little at the sight.

"Must be an instinct from when he was smaller," Sam said as Natasha turned to face him.

"Must be," Natasha said stiffly, glancing back at the two of them, a sigh on her lips.

Sam raised an eyebrow at her expression. She was good a being stoic, at hiding things. She was good a manipulating to. He hadn't known her long at all but he was sure of both. So if she was letting him see some kind of emotion there was likely an ulterior motive for on her part. Still, he wanted to ask her something that had been bugging him since they all had arrived.

"Can I ask something without getting my ass kicked?" Sam asked, as he walked towards the kitchen to prepare dinner.

"Depends on what you ask?" Natasha voiced deadpan, as she followed.

"Which one of them was that mournful sigh for?" Sam questioned, "I mean clearly you got it bad for Bonnie but what's the deal with you and Steve?"

Sam opened the door to his refrigerator and scanned the contents. He would order a pizza if he wasn't sure they couldn't even trust someone enough to deliver it without suspecting them to be an undercover HYRDA agent at the moment.

"There's isn't a deal," Natasha frowned, "No deal with Bonnie. No deal with Steve."

Sam looked up and blinked at her with the same straight face that he had seen on her since she arrived. The blank expression might've rivaled her own at any given moment. "You trying to convince me or you?"

Natasha frowned. "What about you? You're interested in Steve right?"

"And Bonnie," Sam nodded, "I'm not being overtly thirsty about it or anything but I'm pretty sure it's obvious to them both. Even if nothing comes of it, I figure I may as well shoot my shot. Even if I'm subtle. But since I got some competition it might be for naught."

Natasha moved to the refrigerator and gently pushed Sam out of the way. She spoke as she picked through his produce. "I'm not the competition you need to worry about for either of them," she said, "Besides that...they're both the kind of people that love and love hard. They draw people in but they also gravitate towards certain kinds of people. Even with the competition you're the kind they would gravitate towards. That doesn't mean that they'll drop someone else for you either."

"Who says I would ask them to?" Sam asked, "We're all adults here. We all just met. I'm not asking for commitment or to buy a house with a white picket fence. I'd be happy to just take one or both of them out sometime. They want something casual cool. They want to try something serious, I mean look at them I'm game either way. They want to date around that's fine too. Might not be if I catch feelings but I figure I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. They're into each other obviously, but I can't help but think that's not the competition you're talking about. They both have someone else?"

"The same someone else I would venture to guess," Natasha admitted, "Steve doesn't know it yet and I'm not one hundred percent sure if it's even true. If my information is wrong or my wires got crossed or if this person even really still exists. I don't know if that someone else is into sharing or if Steve will want to share that someone else with Bonnie when he finds out if that's what's really going on. Or if that someone else will want either or them or just run given what they might've been through. Either way, things are going to get complicated enough without adding myself into the mix."

Sam crossed his arms over his chest. "Whoever it is, they're going to want them. Whatever it takes I bet. Bonnie and Steve, they're not the kind you run from, they're the kind you hold on to for dear life. You know that, even if you won't admit it. You're already in the mix."

Natasha pulled out some asparagus from the bottom crisper and stood up to face him. "Yeah," she scowled, "And it sucks because I know when all is said and done I won't be what either of them chooses. So save yourself the trouble and stay out as much as you can."

"I'm in," Sam said, "You all brought me in when you came here." He took the asparagus from her hands and she reached back into the refrigerator to sift through the butcher's packages on the top shelf for some kind of meat. "And for the record," he continued, "When the three of you decided to take over my couch earlier I had no problem sitting somewhere else but Steve had no problem making room for me."

Natasha froze, picking up on what he was implying. "Did you ask him to?"

"I didn't have to," Sam shrugged, "He's more perceptive than you give him credit for. They both are. They care about you more too."

Natasha stared at the contents of the fridge for another couple of minutes. Sam knew that she wasn't really debating over whether he should cook fish or chicken. "You figure out what you want yet?" he pressed, his tone dry, not even bothering to hide the double meaning of his words.

Natasha stood abruptly and shoved a package of chicken breasts into Sam's chest. "Yes, I have."

Sam rolled his eyes as he took both packages and placed them on the kitchen counter but couldn't help but return Natasha's smirk.

"I get it," Natasha said as she closed the door the fridge, "Why they trust you. I trust you, too."

Sam paused and glanced back over his shoulder to find Natasha giving him an assessing look. Something passed between them as Sam gave her one in turn. It would seem she was right, things were definitely going to get complicated.

:::

Hill had been watching the footage for almost an hour now. Watching Bonnie so vulnerable and the Soldier so human felt almost intrusive, but she couldn't look away. In this particular video the moment was too private to be shared. Bonnie was laying on her bed her back propped against the wall. The Soldier had his arms wrapped around her middle, his head pillowed on her chest. His eyes were closed as she carded her fingers through his hair. Her lips were moving but as there was no sound, Hill couldn't hear what she was saying. Still she recognized the movement and Hill was almost sure that Bonnie was singing.

When the girl had first been rescued she had had night terrors every night. One of the few ways that Salvatore had been able to calm her down was music. One song in particular seemed to work magic on her no matter how far gone she was. Dream A Little Dream Of Me. She had asked Hill to find her the earliest recording she could. The earliest the Hill had managed was the Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong rendition that came out in the 1950s. Salvatore had found a recording by Doris Day. Natasha had beat them all and managed to scare up a copy recorded by Ozzie Nelson recorded in 1931, that was the one Bonnie had been looking for apparently. Though, she favored the Ella Fitzgerald one, a friend she'd said, had liked the Nelson version.

"A friend," Hill laughed without humor, now knowing the friend that she was speaking of and more sure than ever that that was the song she was singing in the video.

Hill watched as the Soldier shifted in the video and even though he had yet to hurt Bonnie, Hill still feared it a possibility. He didn't move to harm her however, he simply lifted his head to press their lips together. Bonnie smiled into the kiss and Hill watched as the orchids in the pot on the table in the corner bloomed.

"They were each other's happiness in a world worse than hell," Hill jumped as Salvatore came up to stand behind her. "They loved each other. Still do."

Hill cleared her throat. "Be that as it may, there are other factors that are in play here."

"You think I don't know that," Damon frowned, "I know you want to bring him in but at the end of the day he's a prisoner just like we were. He's doing what they programed him to do. Following orders. He's been stuck in that hell for decades and he still managed to give a damn about Bonnie and care that she gave a damn about me enough to rescue us both. I know you want to bring him in and take him into whatever is left of S.H.I.E.L.D custody, but remember before he's anything else he's human and he has someone out there who cares about him. More than one someone and I think you know who else I'm talking about."

Hill nodded, dumbstruck. "I'll keep that in mind."

"See that you do," Damon sighed, "Because I'm not sure Fury will and you won't like the outcome if you don't. Bonnie isn't the only one willing to go to bat for him and you know it."

Hill knew it, she knew it all too well. She looked at the file on the desk in front of her that she had pulled upon discovering the Soldier's identity. It was time she started to know the man behind the programing. Taking a deep breath Hill opened the file labeled James Buchanan Barnes and began to read.

:::

When Steve was small and sickly he had spent most of his days in bed. On those days Bucky had been his almost constant companion. He had gotten into the habit of curling himself around Bucky. Bucky had never minded it much. He would just play a record or two to amuse himself and lay very still as not to wake Steve on those days. Sometimes Steve would wake with Bucky's fingers in his hair.

When the war had happened and Steve had grown twice his size, things had been much the same except they had occurred in encampments. They had been in the company of the Commandos. Still when they slept Steve curled himself around Bucky, no matter how much smaller than him Bucky had been and Bucky had carded his fingers through Steve's hair while Gabe and Dum Dum argued over what music to play on the old junk radio they'd found on a raid.

Bucky had loved all kinds of music. Though, he and Gabe could go back and forth about jazz for hours, especially. But during the war when he had been taken captive Bucky hadn't stayed sane by just humming jazz standards before Steve and the Howling Commandos had gotten to him. He'd clung to one song in particular. The song that he had used when he'd attempted to teach Steve how to waltz before their first double date. He'd failed miserably. Steve was too small, too stiff and too lanky at the time. He couldn't keep the steps right and he was always stumbling over his feet and Bucky's feet and Bucky's larger frame. He'd never been able to learn the dance let alone lead it.

Bucky had needed the skill much more than Steve had, and used it more than Steve could've ever dreamed of. In those days, Steve was just a small sickly shadow eclipsed by Bucky's charm and light and too scared to ask a girl to dance. Until Peggy. The song was Dream a Little Dream of Me. The something slow that had kept Bucky sane and that Steve was going to have the band play for his first dance with Peggy.

Steve felt like he was still dreaming as he shifted from sleep to wakefulness. He was wrapped around someone, but where his head had once rested on a hard chest there was now soft and pliant skin. Cloth covered smooth and pillow-like breasts. Small hands were carding through his hair, nails scratching at the nape of his neck, making him sigh. The voice of an angel, beautiful and melodious singing a song that made him want to cry.

"Stars shining bright above you,

Night breezes seem to whisper "I love you".

Birds singing in the sycamore trees.

Dream a little dream of me."

Steve squeezed his eyes shut and wrapped his arms tighter around the body beneath him. It was like being in the past and present all at once. The present was something that he didn't understand. Didn't recognize. He felt so separate from it. No one knew him as anything other than he appeared. Captain America. National icon. Soldier. No one knew that scrappy punk kid from Brooklyn anymore and as detached as the world was from his true self, he was just as detached from the world.

He hadn't tried to connect. Not really. He was observing. Trying to understand, but not to connect. He had a notebook full of things to experience that he had yet to even attempt and he wasn't sure he ever would.

The thing was in that moment he felt connected, he felt present, even if the song was an allusion to his past. The voice wasn't. The soft small hands stroking through his hair and down his back weren't. The song was old but the rift she put on it was new. The floral scent of the person beneath him was new.

"Say nighty-night and kiss me

Just hold me tight and tell me you'll miss me

While I'm alone and blue as can be

Dream a little dream of me."

Steve finally lifted his head, his lips brushing against skin and his nose nuzzling a neck as he did so, causing the person beneath him to pause in singing and sigh breathily. Steve raised his head up completely and opened his eyes. He wasn't too surprised to find that the person he had curled himself around was Bonnie.

She smiled down at him not seeming at all bothered that his arms were still wrapped tightly around her or that his chin was resting between her breast, something that might've embarrassed him in another life, or still might've in this one, even if there was the barrier of clothing between them. For once Steve didn't feel like a blushing bumbling idiot, it felt natural to be there with their arms around each other squished together beneath a blanket that made him just a touch too warm on a couch that was barely enough to fit his stretched out frame.

"You've got a nice set of pipes," he told her, his voice low as to not break the moment.

Bonnie laughed and he felt the movement of it. He realized that one of her legs was around his hip in an effort to keep them both balanced on the couch. It was intimate in a way he hadn't let himself be with anyone in a very long time. Not since Bucky. He and Peggy had never made it that far.

"That's a funny way of putting it," Bonnie whispered with a grin.

Steve shrugged, shifting their bodies slightly. "The only way I ever put it before," he said, "But that was a different time. Why that song?"

Bonnie seemed to hesitate and Steve waited. He leaned up and placed a kiss on her collarbone in an effort to comfort her. It had always worked on Bucky during the war when he got lost in his own head on the hard days. But this woman wasn't someone he knew as well and it was strange that he felt comfortable with initiating the gesture. As she squirmed beneath him Steve found that the kiss had had a different effect on her, not calming, but rather caused her cheeks to flush and breathing to quicken. Steve found that the reaction was just as pleasant for him to witness, however, and so he did it again as he spoke. He was either being bold or going insane, either way he felt that Bucky would've been proud.

"I could tell you that my grandmother always kept music in the house," she said breathily, "Walls of records that she played all the time, which is true. But honestly, a…friend…someone I care about liked the song and I thought you might too. Given the time you left, you know?"

Steve nodded absently as he pressed his lips to her skin again. It was hard to stop once he had started. Her skin was soft and he liked feel of her touch. She hadn't pushed him away yet and so he supposed he was doing something right.

"I like the Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong version, myself," Bonnie continued as Steve trailed kisses up her neck, "You might not have heard it before. It came out just a little after your time."

"I'll have to add it to my list," Steve said as he reached her jaw and stopped. "Is this okay?" Steve could hear laughter and low chatter coming from the kitchen. Sam and Natasha. He liked all of what he was feeling, and experiencing. He wanted more of it. Of waking up to Bonnie. Of kisses on soft skin. More of listening to Natasha laugh at all of Sam's bad jokes as the smell of food wafted out of the kitchen.

When he had gone to see Peggy she'd said that the only thing that she had regretted about living her life was that he hadn't gotten a chance to live his. He felt alive in that moment. His regrets were many but the only one he felt as Bonnie ran her fingers through his hair was that Bucky wouldn't get to live his life. That he had gotten to survive his fall but Bucky hadn't.

"Is this okay?" Steve asked again, but this time he was asking something else. Was it okay for him to live on? Was it okay for him to make connections? Was it okay for him to start over?

Bonnie seemed to sense it and as she smiled and nodded. "It's alright, Steve," she whispered.

Steve kissed her then, on the lips, soft and slow. It was different than it had been to Natasha. There was no adrenaline rush or looking over his shoulder. This was peaceful and yet passionate. As Bonnie opened her mouth beneath him Steve's tongue met hers eagerly, one hand gripping the thigh hooked around his hip and the other tilting Bonnie's neck back until he was able to deepen the further.

Steve couldn't help but rock his hips forward and Bonnie whimpered before going stiff. Steven pulled back slowly, resting his forehead against hers. "It was too much," he whispered, "I'm sorry."

Bonnie shook her head and she ran her hands through his hair again. "No," she sighed, "It's me. I keep messing things up. Making things complicated. There's so much I want to tell you but I can't. Not yet. I just…and there's someone I…someone I love so much…and then there's this whole other thing with Nat. I don't want to hurt anyone. I know that you've had so many people you've lost but I look at you and I talk to you and I just feel like I know you and I want…" She trailed and looked away from him.

Steven grabbed her chin and gently turned her to face him. "What do you want Bonnie?"

Steve watched as Bonnie swallowed and waited. He wouldn't judge her. He knew what it was to love more than one person at once. To fall and then fall again without being able to stop it. He knew what it was to see someone and be dazed. He'd been dazed by Peggy's beauty. By her strength. By Bucky's smile. By his loyalty. The first being things he'd noticed head-on and the second being things that had formed over time. He'd love them both. He knew the signs.

He knew the signs and he recognized them all at once. Bonnie's beauty. Her softness. Her heroism. Her strength in the face of adversity. Natasha's smirk. Her humor. Her determination. Sam's smile. His genuineness. His willingness to do what was right. They were all mirrors of him in different ways. Just like Bucky had been. Just like Peggy had been. Steve had always been a punk, a fool. He was reckless. Fell hard and fast. He had been then and he would be now.

"What do you want Bonnie?" he repeated.

Bonnie opened her mouth to answer but stopped as someone cleared their throat. Steven turned toward the sound and sighed as Natasha stood in the doorway of the kitchen, watching them with one eyebrow raised. Natasha didn't look surprised or upset and so Steve didn't feel guilty.

"Dinner's ready," she said, her tone giving nothing of what she felt away.

Bonnie gently pushed Steve off of her and he allowed it. He untangled himself from the blanket on top of them and stood. Once he was standing her adjusted his clothes and reached out a hand to help Bonnie up. She took hand and as he pulled her up he deliberately used enough force to propel her into his body.

Steve smiled as she placed and hand on his chest to steady herself and said, "Whatever it is you're afraid to tell me, you'll get your chance. I'll hear you, whenever you're ready. I won't get upset, no matter what it is."

Bonnie made a scoffing noise and shook her head. "You can't promise that," she said, seriously.

Steve glanced at Natasha before bending down and gently kissing Bonnie's lips. "I can for you," he whispered as he pulled back.

Bonnie nodded once and then began to walk towards the kitchen. Natasha's hand reached out to stop her as she passed. Bonnie looked in her direction and they seemed to communicate something to one another before Natasha kissed Bonnie on the cheek and squeezed her hand. "Go eat," she said, "Sam's waiting."

Bonnie continued towards the kitchen and Steve braced himself as Natasha looked towards him, eyes narrowed.

"So you're just planning on kissing every person with shared life experience until something sticks?" She asked, one eyebrow raised.

Steve shrugged. "You're the one who said I needed practice."

Natasha laughed. "For a national treasure you're kind of an asshole," she muttered, crossing her arms over her chest.

"You're jealous," Steve said walking towards her until he stopped in front of her, "Which means for a manipulative spy, you're kind of human."

Natasha bit her lip and looked down. "The two of you are good for each other," she said, her tone sounded subdued, resigned.

Steve reached out and brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "Yeah we are," he smiled, "We're good for you too Natasha."

Natasha gave him a sort of self-deprecating smile. "But I'm not good for anyone." She muttered.

"The verdict's still out on that," Steve said as he bent down and kissed her forehead. "You can't change the things you've done and I can't relive the past. We can't go back," Steve said, repeating Peggy's words, "All we can do is our best, and sometimes the best we can do is start over. When all of this ends and it will end, maybe we'll finally have the chance."

"So in this new world where we get to start over," Natasha said seriously, "And be honest. Let's say I'm someone that Bonnie can care about in that way…am I also someone you can trust."

"You are now," Steve answered, "And I'm always honest." He noted the surprised on her face and grinned wider. "Now let's go eat before the food gets cold."

"One more question, Mr. Honesty," Natasha pressed, "What was it like, kissing Bonnie?"

"Honest answer?" Steve asked, and Natasha nodded. "Honestly, a gentlemen never kisses and tells."

Natasha laughed. "Such an ass and a grandpa," she muttered. Steve couldn't help but laugh with her.

:::

Bonnie couldn't sleep. She was sharing a bed with Natasha and the spy had said not much of anything since dinner but her silence had spoken volumes. Bonnie had wanted to talk about he things that they left silent but Natasha was closed off, in thought and she had fallen asleep before Bonnie could broach the topic.

Bonnie couldn't sleep in foreign places at the best of times and the thought of what was coming, made sleep even more out of reach that it normally would have been. She kept thinking about things she couldn't change and didn't know what to do anything about. Things like kissing Steve and hurting Natasha even though she hadn't meant to. Things like the secrets that she kept and what she would do when she saw James again.

Getting out of bed Bonnie left the guest room and walked through Sam's house until she reached the kitchen. She was the surprised to find that the light was already on. When she walked inside she came upon Sam standing at the counter, dressed in a t-shirt and boxers. He was putting on water to boil for tea.

"Couldn't sleep?" He asked, as Bonnie stood in the doorway.

Bonnie shook her head. "It's never really that easy for me," she frowned, "Sometimes I have night terrors. It's usually better when someone else is there but Nat's not that happy with me right now and I keep thinking about...stuff I shouldn't. You?"

Sam shrugged as she pulled down two mugs from the top cabinet. "Sometimes its nightmares but tonight," he paused, "It's kind of weird sharing my bed with someone. Since I got back if I get involved…its casual. No sleepovers. Haven't had anyone in my bed since Riley. It's different."

Bonnie walked over to sit down at the kitchen table. "In what way?" She asked, partially curious and partly because she needed a distraction.

"Just never thought I would have someone there that I could care about in that way again and Steve is," Sam sighed, "He's a good guy. But he's got his own baggage."

Bonnie smiled softly. She thought about it, but she couldn't find it in herself to be jealous in spite of the kiss she shared with Steve. She knew that there was history between Steve and Bucky and so she figured she had somewhere along the way gotten used to the idea she would have to share James. But now she felt like Steve was hers too in a weird kind of way, she supposed the idea of sharing him with someone else was something she would continue to have to be accustomed to.

"We all have baggage," Bonnie said.

"Yeah," Sam conceded, "But he's got Natasha and…you. And I talked a good game to Natasha but I don't know if there's any room for me in that and I don't know if there's any interest on his end to begin with."

"He's interested," Bonnie said, "He'd be crazy not to be." There's was something thick in the air between all of them that Bonnie couldn't quite name and she wasn't sure where it would lead. It was confusing and not something that she wanted to deal with. Too much was uncertain and too many people could get hurt.

"Are you?" Sam asked bluntly, eyeing her as he turned off the stove as the kettle whistled.

Bonnie crossed her arms over her chest. "You don't want to go down that road with me," Bonnie said seriously, "I'm causing enough trouble already."

Sam walked over to her, the tea forgotten as he knelt down in front of where Bonnie was sitting. "In case it wasn't obvious by being jumping to join you guys on this suicide mission you got going on tomorrow," he said, "I'll go down any road you want to take me. I don't know what it is…but there's something about you…all of you. I know no one has it figured out right now but whenever you do, if there's room for me I'm all in."

Bonnie felt it again, that pull that was thick in the air that she had felt with Steve. That same intoxicating energy that had made her kiss him. Bonnie thought that Sam might kissed her then, she saw in his eyes that he wanted to but instead of kissing her lips, he kissed her forehead. Bonnie wondered what that meant about her that she felt disappointed as he pulled away.

"Don't look like that," Sam grinned, "I'm just trying not to confuse you even more right now." He glanced behind him at the counter. "You want to tea or you want to try to sleep?"

Bonnie stood and stretched her arms over head and Sam stood with her. "I should probably sleep," she said.

"But you're still wary about Natasha," Sam guessed. He stared at her a moment and then, "I'm probably couching it anyway so if you'd feel better sleeping with Steve, then my bed is all yours. I'll handle Natasha if she gets up looking for you."

Bonnie thought about Steve. Steve who was good and kind and honest. Steve who was beautiful on the inside and out. Steve who wrapped himself around her in his sleep the same way that James did, who James had probably gotten the habit from in the first place. Her only reminder of James and the one person who would ever understand how much she missed him, even if she couldn't tell him the truth just yet. Steve who might hate her once he learned everything, whom she might not get another chance to share the same space with.

"I think I'll take you up on that," Bonnie said finally and Sam gave her a knowing smile. Bonnie stood on her toes and gave Sam a lingering kiss on the cheek. "Thanks Sam, for everything."

"Anytime," Sam nodded.

Bonnie told him goodnight and left him to his tea and his thoughts. She would have to make sure the others kept him close the next day. Sam didn't have any powers or serum to fall back on. He was capable but also more vulnerable than the rest of them.

Bonnie walked down the hall until she reached Sam's room. She opened the door and went inside, careful not to make too much noise as she shut it behind her.

Steve was in the middle of the bed, curled in on himself slightly. Bonnie smiled as she climbed in next to him. He seemed to sense her presence even before she grabbed one of his arms and wrapped it around her waist. He instinctively pulled her closer to him and his eyes opened slowly as she nestled into his side.

"Hi," she whispered.

"Hi," he smiled back, "Not that I'm not happy to see you but where's Sam?"

"He gave up his bed for me because I couldn't sleep and he felt weird sleeping in his bed with someone who wasn't Riley," Bonnie explained.

Steve frowned, his brows knitting together and Bonnie reached out to touch the side of his face. "I feel like I've just been causing him trouble since we met," Steve sighed, "You too."

Bonnie shook her head. "I was involved in this way before I met you and Sam wouldn't be involved if he didn't want to be," Bonnie replied.

"It's just," Steve said, "I know what its like to lose someone and Sam shouldn't have to share the space he shared with someone else if he doesn't want to."

"He wants to share it with us, though," Bonnie said, "It just takes some getting used to." Bonnie felt the weight of what she was implying and she could tell by Steve's expression even in the dark that he did as well. "But getting used to it, it's worth it though, right?"

Steve's smile grew as his hands found her hair and he leaned forward to kiss her gently on the lips. "Yeah," he said, as he pulled back, "It's worth it."

"Goodnight, Steve," Bonnie whispered.

"Goodnight, Bonnie."

As Bonnie closed her eyes she felt for the first time in a long time that she would sleep undisturbed. She wished in that moment that Steve could be there to quiet Bucky's nightmares the way that his presence would hers.

:::

The next morning Bonnie got word from her source and they planned. Bonnie was able to steal Sam's wing pack without any problems, but when the time came to kidnap Jasper Sitwell she told them she had to meet up with her team. Steve hesitated only a moment before kissing her and she smiled as he pulls back. "Take care of each other," she told him and Nat, "Look after Sam."

She moved to leave and Nat stopped her with a hand on her arm. Steve watched as Nat pulled Bonnie into her and kissed her. Perhaps he should've been jealous. Though, he's still wasn't sure of who. All he thought in that moment as he watched their lips meet however, was, "Finally." Maybe he said it out loud.

When Natasha pulled away she didn't make some big declaration or even tell Bonnie how they all knew she felt. She just said, "Just in case we all die, you know?" and Bonnie laughed, shaking her head before teleporting away.

The look Natasha gave him was so smug that he wanted to kiss it off her face, but instead he brushed the thought away as they herded into Sam's car, because they had a mission to accomplish.

All it took was one drop from the roof of a skyscraper and Agent Sitwell talked. As he faell Natasha commented about what their sleeping arrangements would be when all of this is over. Some passing sarcastic remark about threesomes.

"I don't think I'm ready for that," Steve joked, all the while thinking about what it had been like to wake up with Bonnie in his arms, "Got a bad hip."

"Grandpa jokes," Natasha laughed, "I'm rubbing off on you in one way at least. Even if it's not the way I want."

Sitwell told them about Zola's algorithm, about how it could assess threats to HYDRA in the present and the future. How the plan was for the Insight helicarriers to scratch people off the list a few million at a time.

They just barely managed to get the information to Bonnie over the phone before they were intercepted by the Winter Soldier.

The fight on the bridge was a shit show from the beginning. By the time the steering wheel was ripped out of his hands, Steve's knew he had to get them out of the car. He managed it, just barely, but he lost Sam at the last minute and he thought of his promise to Bonnie as he watched Sam slip from his grip and roll down the asphalt.

Sam recovered quickly though and then there was no time for Steve to think about broken promises because he was getting blown off the bridge and into a fucking bus. Shit show.

The Soldier was flanked by gunmen and Steve knew that no matter how much ammo they had with them it'd never be enough to fight them all off. But they fight. The Soldier came for Nat first and Sam seemed to be the only one who didn't actually need that much looking after, disarming a man of a gun the size of his thigh with a knife the size of his hand before kicking him off the bridge, as Steve was trapped inside of an overturned bus getting shot at. Fucking shit show.

When he broke out of the bus Steve only had his shield for cover and then Sam was there, looking out for him and clearing the way for him to go after Nat.

Nat laid a trap and was able to hold her own for a while, but got hit in spite of it. Shot to the shoulder. Then it was the Soldier and Steve. Steve wanted to say they were evenly matched but there were enough narrow misses and he loses his shield enough times to know, he was on borrowed time. Complete and utter shit show.

Then Bonnie appeared like some avenging angel out of thin air, masked and suited up and Steve could have kissed her right there but she was already going for the attack and the Soldier descended on his new target.

However, as Steve watched them fight, something seemed off. The Soldier's movements were all defensive when it came to Bonnie. No matter how hard she hit or how many blows she landed, he didn't fight back. It was like he was watching someone spar instead of fight. All the single-minded aggression the Soldier had for him seemed to have disappeared.

Steve didn't know what to make of it but used the moment of distraction to attack the Soldier from behind. Steve landed his own blows with his shield and fist before he flipped the Soldier over his shoulder by the mask. The mask flew off and the Soldier recovered. Unending shit show.

"Bucky?" Steve said as the Soldier turned to face him.

But it wasn't a question, not really. As the man walked towards him unfazed, eyes glazed and detached, Steve knows. Knows that this mad was Bucky. There was shock and horror and fucking relief down to his toes because Bucky was alive. But this, this wasn't Bucky. Not the Bucky he remembered. Not the Bucky he'd loved.

"Who the hell is Bucky?"

Before Bucky could attack him again Sam came flying out of the sky and kicked him in the head. Steve stood there shocked and useless as Bucky, the Soldier, recovered again. Natasha sent a shot through the air that narrowly missed Bucky. Bucky kept moving, picked up a gun off the ground and lifted it, pointing it straight at Steve.

Steve stood open mouthed unable to react as Bucky moved to pull the trigger, until… "James," Bonnie's voice, "Please."

Bucky froze. No, the Soldier froze. His eyes that were cold, so cold when they'd looked at Steve, softened as he looked at Bonnie. His hand trembled. He hesitated.

"You know him," Bonnie said, gesturing towards Steve. "You can't do this."

"I have orders," Bucky said, his tone empty and somehow full of emotion all at one. "I made a promise. If I follow orders I can come home. I can come back to you."

Steve felt like he'd been hit in the face with a brick as things began to come together all at once. Bonnie had been a HYDRA captive. Natasha had said that she'd had someone special, someone she loved. Bonnie had secrets, specific secrets she wanted to tell Steve. It was Bucky, it'd been about Bucky the entire time.

Steve watched as Bonnie walked around him and right up to Bucky. She was calm. So calm. As if he hadn't just tried to kill them all. She didn't hesitate as she cupped his face with one and took the gun in his with the other.

"You made a promise to me too," Bonnie said, "That you wouldn't hurt the people I care about. I care about them." She looked back at Steve. "We care about him."

Steve watched as Bucky's face crumbled and he wrapped his arms around Bonnie's waist. Then the armored cars came and they were surrounded. Bucky pushed Bonnie away gently and then. "You have to go," he demanded, "they'll take you again. They know how to push your buttons. They know you're weakness."

Bonnie shook her head. "I can't leave them," she said, "I can't leave you again. I'll deal with the consequences."

Steve snapped out of his daze at the thought of Bonnie subjecting herself to further captivity and possibly torture for them. "He's right," he said, "You have to leave. We'll be fine. You have to finish what we started and stop Insight."

"I'll get them out," Bucky said, "I'll find a way. You care about them so I'll find a way. Like I did for Nosferatu."

Steve frowned, wondering what the hell he was talking about, what the hell was going on period really. But Bonnie smiled and but shook her head. "They'll wipe you again," she argue, "You might not remember."

Steve watched as Bucky leaned down and kissed her. Kissed her long. Hard. Desperate. "They take a lot from me," he said as he pulled away, "But they can never touch the spring."

Steve remembered meeting Bonnie and he felt his heartbreak as he made another connection. The spring. HYDRA had given her a codename. Persephone. Bucky didn't remember Steve, that much was clear, but he remembered the spring.

"Go," Bucky repeated and then, "I love you."

"I love you." Finally Bonnie gave a stiff nod before turning away from him.

Bonnie turned to Steve and gave him a sad smile before whispering, "I'm sorry." Steve knew, as she vanished into thin air; that she wasn't apologizing for leaving them behind in that moment. Steve was sorry too, sorry that he had fallen for the same woman the man he'd loved was in love with.

:::

Hill listened from behind a cramp helmet as Steve spoke about Barnes. Listened as Natasha said wasn't Steve's fault. Listened as who Bonnie had identified as Sam Wilson demanded they get Natasha medical attention. By the time she revealed herself and they escaped the vehicle, Hill knew that Salvatore had been right, things would only get more complicated.

The others were quiet and stoic as Hill introduced them to Salvatore and Munroe. None of them spoke until they reached Fury. Hill noted that they looked less surprised to see him alive than they should have been.

"Another secret that Bonnie was keeping," Steve said and Hill sighed.

"Bennett saved his life," Hill said, "And I'm sure Romanoff alluded to that. Any attempt at the director's life had to look successful. Some secrets have reasons Steve."

"She tried to tell me about Barnes when she was rescued," Fury said, "I didn't listen. I'm sorry for that."

"If you had believe her," Steve said, "Would you have told me?"

Fury doesn't answer and Hill sighs as she tends brushes Sam aside as he tries to tend to Natasha's wound. "Bennett has it covered," Hill said, "She'll be here soon."

She went over to Rogers and took him aside with a murmured, "There's something that you need to see."

Steve followed her reluctantly. "Whatever it is I'm sure it can wait," he said.

"It probably could but you're out of it and your heads a mess," Hill said, "We need you in the game Rogers and I think that I have something that may help." She led him into an empty room with her laptop in it. "Barnes gave us some intel on Bonnie and Salvatore. Himself too. We have all his files. You're welcome to take a look. There's video footage as well. I've watched everything except for one. It was a message. For you."

Hill left the room as Steve sat down in front of the computer. She waited outside of the door until she couldn't give Roger's anymore time.

As she walked back into the room, she heard Barnes' voice at the tale end of the recording. "I know you're probably blubbering like an idiot by now but don't feel bad for me, you punk," Barnes said, "It hasn't been all bad. I got me a girl. You're probably wondering how I could find one in here but we both know I've always been the charmer." Rogers laughed at the screen as Barnes continued. "Her name's Bonnie. She's beautiful Steve. Sings like an angel. She can perform miracles like one too. Bring dead things back to life. I guess it's kind of fitting, huh, considering? She makes it bearable. She loves me, Stevie. The same way you did. That unconditional kind. No matter what they make me do she always has a smile for me when I see her. You'll love her. She's brave and kind and good. She could kick your ass too. You'd probably fall for her right off. I told her about you and she said…she'd be okay with us making a home together. The three of us. When the war is over."

Hill felt like she was intruding but she couldn't look away.

"I told her to look after you," Barnes said, "Make sure you didn't do anything stupid. The thing is Stevie, she needs looking after too. She thinks about everybody but herself. That's how they get to her. Torture other people to keep her in line." Barnes face became blank as he spoke as if there were things he was trying to shut out. "I brought her here and of all the horrible things they got me doing, that's one of my biggest regrets. Taking her. Even if it worked out for me in the end. She's done so much for me Stevie. She's been the only good thing. The only one. She's been protecting my mind. So if I don't know you when I see you, I will. You got to trust that and you got to look after her. You take care of our girl until I come home. And I will come home, Stevie. Remember, I'm with you till the end of the line."

The video went dead and Hill let her presence be known. Rogers stood and Hill pretended not to notice as he wiped the tears from his cheeks.

They didn't speak as they returned to the others. Bonnie was there when they got back. She'd healed Natasha and was standing behind Fury's chair refusing to make eye contact with anyone in particular. Tension was thick in the air as they all discussed things and finally agreed that when HYDRA fell, S.H.I.E.L.D would have to go with it.

Bonnie placed a comforting hand on Fury's shoulder and as he grabbed it and laced their fingers together Hill noticed that Rogers wasn't the only one to take note. From the varying expressions on their face Hill could imagine what Rogers, Wilson and Romanoff were thinking. She shook her head as Bonnie leaned down and kissed Fury's cheek. It was clear they were jealous as they didn't yet know Bonnie's relationship to Fury yet.

"You want to tell them, Director or should I?" Hill asked.

"What else could you possibly be hiding?" Natasha said and she sounded tired.

Rogers hadn't taken his eyes off Bonnie and Hill knew that the reaction would be comical even if it wasn't intentional.

"You all know that Bonnie is a former HYDRA captive and inhuman," Fury stated, squeezing Bonnie's hand, "What you don't know is that she's also my daughter."

The shock that followed did not disappoint. As the Rogers, Wilson and Romanoff all looked from Fury to Bonnie and back again, Hill wondered which one of them Director Fury would murder first once he figured out that they were all interested in his daughter and that Rogers in particular was likely falling in love with her already. Hill had to say, given the odds her money was actually on Barnes being the first to go.

:::

The Soldier was remembering. Flashes of things. Falling. Snow. Cold. A lab table. A face. The man on the bridge. Persephone had been right. He knew him.

When the Soldier is approached by Alexander Pierce for a mission report he doesn't answer. He doesn't answer when Pierce slaps him across the fast. The sting of it doesn't take away the softness he remembers. The softness of his girl's lips. Of the man's eyes.

When he asked Pierce about the man on the bridge, he knew what would follow. Even before he reiterated the words, "I knew him."

When Pierce tells the handlers to wipe him, the Soldier's expression is resigned. His girl had told him that they would. He think about her as they strap him down and shove the mouth guard between his lips.

He thought about her lips on his. He thought about her saying, "I love you." He thought about the man. His blue gaze full of pain. He thought about him saying the name, "Bucky". The Soldier closed his eyes to the pain as they activated the machine and he knew that no matter what they did, they could take a lot of things from him, but they would never take the spring.

:::

Bonnie finds Steve in time to hear Sam tell him that Bucky is the kind that you stop and not the kind you save. She could understand Sam's perspective even if she didn't agree with it.

When Sam saw her, he smiled and Bonnie couldn't help but hug him when he reached out to her. Her secrets had come to light and still Sam had a smile for her. Natasha had become more guarded and Bonnie knew she would need space before Bonnie could try talking to her. Knowing that Bonnie loved James was one thing but now that Natasha had seen them together, now that Natasha knew that Bonnie was Nick Fury's daughter….things were tense between them. Steve was the only one that Bonnie wasn't sure where she stood with.

Sam looked in between the two of them as Bonnie pulled away and gave her shoulder a squeeze. "I got to get suited up," he said, "I'll leave you two alone."

Bonnie watched Sam walk away and when she turned back it was to find Steve's blue gaze boring into her. She dropped the duffle bag in her hand on the ground and sighed. "I know we don't really have time to hash all this out and I completely understand if you hate me. I lied to you."

"You had your reasons. I don't hate you, Bonnie," Steve shook his head, "I can't. Not when you took care of him when I couldn't, even if it was a short time. He left me a message in the Intel he got to you. It was one of the good days I guess because he remembered me. He said that you were the only good thing he had in all this time. The only one. And even without all that you saved my life and you've been…I can't even put it all into words but I don't hate you Bonnie."

"Good," Bonnie said, "I don't think I could handle it if you did."

Bonnie had no idea that James had left Steve a message but it gave her hope. "I have to know one thing," Steve said, "He said some things and I need to know…did you kiss me because you thought that was what he would want?"

This time Bonnie shook her head. "He talked about it," Bonnie revealed, "On the good days sometimes. I agreed to it. Sharing him with you. I knew it would be complicated though. At the time I couldn't see it ever working out that way. I love him. I'd do anything for him but I couldn't…see myself with you. I just knew he'd be with you and I'd be with him and he'd be happy. I was jealous of you for a long time. When I got out, I researched you. I wanted to understand his feelings and I started to. Then I met you and I got it. As much as I couldn't see it before, I can't see me not wanting to be with you now. It would be really hard not to fall for you Steve. I feel like after someone meets you, it kind of comes with the territory."

"He said I'd fall for you right off," Steve laughed, "As soon as I found out you could kick my ass. But…he was wrong…" Bonnie swallowed and prepared for a rejection that never came, "It was before that. Before I knew who you were or how you were involved in all of this. When I saw you on the escalator at the mall in that green dress. That's when it started. Everything that happened after that just made things fall into place."

As Steve kissed her Bonnie might have cried if she wasn't so happy in that moment. She felt like they would be alright and she finally had someone that was on her side where James was concerned, that believed that Bucky could be saved.

"We're going to bring him home?" Bonnie asked, needing to hear it.

"We're going to bring him home," Steve vowed as he kissed her again, "And in the meantime, I'm going to keep my promise to him and take care of our girl."

"'Our girl', huh?" Bonnie grinned, "I think that I can live with that."

Bonnie beamed up at him until Steve frowned. "Your father is going to kill me isn't he?"

Bonnie snorted. "Probably," she conceded, "I can always bring you back though."

Steve looked down at the bag at Bonnie's feet as she pulled away from him slowly. "What's in the bag?"

Smiling Bonnie bent down to open it. "The reason I wasn't here when Hill brought you guys back," she said, as she unzipped the back, "I had to pick something up from the Smithsonian."

Bonnie pulled out Steve's uniform and held it up to his chest.

End Notes: And so continues the Marvel harem fic. Not sure when the next update is coming but please let me know what you guys think!