A/N: Hello again, everyone!

I pray all of you are safe and well!

Reviews!

TheJollyRoger:Well, it would certainly be interesting if Ultron showed up, no matter what his form. And yes, I did hear about Coulson being on the cast list! This makes me very happy! And yes, I did bring Banner into this. He has a purpose. I'm not going to just leave him hanging or bash the heck out of him. And it's okay to be curious! Unfortunately, you're at my mercy for answers. But I'll be kind. We'll get to see a bit of Banner in this chapter.

Qweb: Well...not extremely bad of an idea, since he's only got 1st degree burns and they'll be gone by the next morning at the earliest because Super Soldier Serum. And here you go! I hope you like!

LilyRose14: I'm sorry I missed your review! Yes! I thought that the Lava was a cute touch. Feelzy but cute. Team Tangled FTW! And the horses were a spur of the moment idea. But I thought, eh what the heck, they are on a ranch anyway! We'll see more of the horses later, promise.

Notes:

Like I said at the end of the last chapter, this is a direct continuation of the previous chapter. I hope it does it justice.

Natalia will be referred to as Natasha a lot in this chapter. I've decided to poke into the heads of the other Avengers present in the story, and they don't know/use Natasha's real name. So, sorry in advance about the confusion.

Alright! Enough of me. I own nothing and all that jazz!

Enjoy!

Warning: Blood/blood donation mentioned. Nothing graphic.


ICU (Part 2)

Later on that morning

Shortly after speaking with Natalia's doctor, the order for admission to the hospital had been placed for the red head. Steve had wanted to remain by her side the whole time, but he wasn't permitted to go to the radiology tests with her.

Regardless of the fact that radiation probably wouldn't do a damn thing to him…

But he understood their caution and, afraid that he would get in the way, decided to slip out, find the others, and get a cup of coffee.

While looking for Kim, the patient advocate, to ask where he could find a good cup-a-joe, he ran into Tony. The billionaire was having a rather muted (and with a shocking lack of flirting in his posture and face) conversation with one of the women at the front desk. As Steve came closer, he heard the tail end of the conversation as Tony pointed to a piece of paper he placed for the woman to pick up.

"…Be sure that all bills for Ms. Romanoff and Mr. Rogers come to this address." The brunette said solemnly.

"That won't be necessary, Tony." Steve cut in, lightly, surprising the billionaire.

The other man turned his brown eyes on to the Soldier, his eyes pointedly avoiding Steve's hands. "No," He said, softly, his tone leaving no room for argument. "It is absolutely necessary."

"I can take care of the bills," Steve continued, his voice still soft, not wanting to pick a fight. "You don't have to do this."

"But I want to, Steve." There was a flash of something in the man's brown eyes. Something Steve hadn't seen in them in a long time.

Guilt.

"This isn't your fault."

The woman at the desk, who had been politely allowing them to speak quietly, broke into the conversation. "Excuse me. I need to assist a patient. I'll be right back."

Steve nodded at her and guided Tony away from the desk.

"I know," The billionaire replied. "Please let me do this, Steve. As a penance. I've messed up a lot in the past, hurting both you and Natasha. Please…just let me help."

The soldier had never seen Stark beg before. Hell, he had never seen him admit to hurting people or being wrong.

Anthony Stark was really shook up, and Steve relented.

"Alright." He conceded.

"And no paying me back, Cap."

"Okay," Steve said, smiling slightly, his blue eyes glistening a bit. "Thank you."

The other man looked pretty close to losing it. Steve would have put a hand on the man's shoulder if it wasn't for the burn bandages. Instead he settles for wrapping an arm across the brunette's shoulders. "You are forgiven, Tony. Nat and I forgave you years ago."

That statement seemed to make the other man both relax and look closer to crying. "I wish things had been better between us. That we hadn't been at odds with each other for so long and so often."

"Hey," Steve broke through the man's sorrow with a light shake of his shoulder. "Water under the bridge, Tony. Really. We were two alphas in the same pack, it was only natural we would butt heads. But now, we have a new start. So, let's make the most of it. Let's take care of our team."

Tony nodded, blinking a bit as he straightened, and wrapped his own arm around Steve's back. "To new beginnings."

Steve smiled. "To new beginnings."


Steve ultimately decided that getting a hot cup of coffee wouldn't do his hands any good, and settled for water. It wasn't like caffeine actually kept him awake longer, anyway. His metabolism burned it off. Just like alcohol.

Cradling the cup of water in his bandaged hands, he returned to Natalia's room just as she was returning from another test.

He waited outside, like a guard, reminding himself of their time in S.H.I.E.L.D. when they would check in with medical. They would wait for each other outside of each other's room, depending on their particular injuries. Shaking his head of the memory, focusing on the here and now.

The nurse got Natalia all settled and beckoned for him to return to the room. Smiling, he entered, taking a sip of the cool liquid in the cup in his hands, soothing his throat. He was about to resume his position in the chair beside her bed, when another nurse, a tall male, rushes in with an IV bag.

Red filled bag.

The ice that he thought he had escaped years ago crawled back into his bones, and he stood there, helpless and frozen, breath stalled in his chest, as the two nurses added the red fluid to Natalia's IV lines.

He'd seen a transfusion before. And that's exactly what this looked like.

When he finally found his voice, he spoke up. "W-why is she receiving blood?" He asked, wishing his voice sounded calmer.

The nurse that had been there since his arrival looked up at him. "Her platelet count is low. Dr. Tomas said it most likely has to do with the burnt lacerations on her back."

Lacerations…

He tried to place that, then remembered the beam. It must have scratched her back up before the fire got to her flesh.

The nurse was continuing to speak, so Steve focused on her voice.

"…we will be taking her soon to relieve the pressure that the burnt tissue is building on her back. The extra blood also helps the healing process."

The male nurse leaned over towards the other nurse and spoke softly. And he did his best to not eavesdrop, but his hearing wasn't something he could just turn off.

"That's the last bag of O Neg we can spare. We could get another trauma…"

Steve froze again at that information, before moving. "I'm O Negative." He began to roll up his sleeve.

Both nurses turned to look at him, as if surprised that he had figured out what he said.

"Please, I'll gladly give a donation." His voice was begging now, wanting more than anything to be useful. For her.

The male nurse straighten and nodded, walking to the door. "I'll see if there is someone available to take a donation."


Later that day

Sam leaned hard against the walk, trying to make himself as small as possible in the hallway as patients were move back and forth in the Emergency hallways. He'd been in many Emergency Rooms over the years. It never really got easier being among as much suffering, but it was worth being there for a friend.

Or in his case, two.

Steve had been taken by another member of the staff about an hour and a half ago and Sam had followed him as far as the door, where he watched Steve sit in a recliner chair and get hooked up for a…blood donation.

He should have known that Steve would do this. He holds up buildings the night before and is well enough to give blood the next day.

Shaking his head, Sam had taken to keeping guard at the door.

So, when Steve finally emerged, he gave him an almost ridiculous look, looking pointedly at the pressure bandage wrapped around the crook of Steve's elbow.

"What?" The super soldier said. "They need the blood."

"Let me guess," Sam began, shifting comfortably. "You are O Negative."

"Guilty," Steve replied, looking a bit sheepish.

Sam laughed, slapping the other man on the back lightly. "Even your blood wants to save everyone!"

The blonde returned the laugh, shaking his head as he rolled down his sleeve. "How's our favorite CIA agent doing?" He asked, changing the topic.

And Sam let him. "Sharon's been well. She was certainly surprised, but not too much, when you vanished two years ago. That message you left for us really eased her mind, however."

Steve nodded. Although running away with Natalia had been an easy decision to make, leaving his teammates without a word had been impossible to do. So, he had left a few notes for his team, notably for Sam, Sharon, Wanda, Scott, and Tony.

He had contemplated leaving a message for Vision, Bruce, and Thor, but he didn't have time. He knew word would get around, so he hadn't worried about it.

After all, he had been worried about Natalia.

As he was now.

Speaking about Sharon was just a courtesy, and Steve was sure Sam knew that.

It wasn't that he didn't care about Sharon, far from that. And if the situation was different, and Sharon was injured in the hospital instead of Natalia he'd probably be acting the same.

That's a lie and you know it.

Okay. Maybe not exactly the same. But he would certainly be concerned.

"They brought Natasha upstairs about forty-five minutes ago." Sam said, volunteering the information he was sure his Captain really wanted to hear. "Wanda went with her and Clint took everyone else back to his place."

Steve nodded. It made sense that Clint would open his doors to the team. He'd have to let Clint know later that his three rooms would be available for the team to settle in.

He doubted very much that he would be able to sleep at home while Natalia was in here. "Let's join Wanda."

Sam looked his friend up and down. He didn't look like he would fall over anytime soon after all the blood he donated, but you couldn't be too careful. Super Soldier serum or no, Steve was still very much human, something that his battle with the Winter Soldier all those years ago had proven to the man who wore metal wings into battle. "Were you able to get any sleep?"

Steve shook his head, deciding it would be best to be honest. "Maybe an hour or so last night, but I haven't really slept since before the fire." His voice was soft. 48 hours without sleep, without real sleep, wasn't that big of a deal for him. He had gone for longer. But if he was to keep his wits about him, it probably wouldn't be a good idea for him to stay awake much longer.

"Maybe we should get you home so you ca—"

"No." Steve cut him off, looking straight ahead as he walked towards the elevator. "Please, Sam. I don't want to leave without her." As he reached the doors and pressed the call button, he turned a grin towards his friend. "Plus, I hear the chairs upstairs are more comfortable and better for the back than the ones down here."

Sam couldn't help but chuckle at that. "That alone makes you sound like an old man, Steve."

The soldier shrugged. "Being on a Ranch does that to ya."

Still smiling, the shorter man dropped the subject and decided that if the man beside him didn't get some rest once they made it to Natasha's room, he'd knock the Super Soldier out himself.

Well…if he figured out a way to do that.


Fortunately for Sam, it never came to that.

Almost instantly after sitting in those much-more-comfortable-than-the-ER chairs in Natasha's room in the Burn Unit, Steve had been out like a light, his hands resting in his lap and his head lulled back. And the Falcon wasn't sure if his near-instantaneous sleep was from pure exhaustion, or the fact that he gave blood earlier that hour.

Frankly, it might have been a combination of both.

And Sam wasn't going to look this gift horse in the mouth. Steve needed his rest. So he pulled out his iPod and portable speakers, setting them on a table between the two sleeping former superheroes, setting it up just like he had when Steve had been the one laying in a hospital bed. Turning on some soft, comfortable music, he left the room, Wanda not far behind him.

"How's he doing?" The Scarlet Witch asked as he closed the door to the room behind them. "He didn't say anything to me, though he acknowledged my presence. Granted, I'm not surprised. He only had eyes for Natasha."

Sam nodded in agreement, leading her down the hall to the small waiting area where they could talk freely. "He's pretty worried. He doesn't want to leave her without her."

A sly smile, that Sam could only conclude had been brought into being after her tutelage under the Black Widow, crawled along her lips. "I wonder if they finally decided drop the acts and confess." She speculated, resting a thoughtful hand on her chin as they walked into the waiting room.

"I wouldn't hold your breath." A new voice said, startling the young Avengers.

They both turned to look, blinking at Clint who sat there, arm slung over the back of the chair he sat in and legs stretched out before him. The man smiled at their faces. "That never gets old…" He whispered to himself, before shifting a bit, beckoning them to have a seat. "I talked to our dear Captain about that very subject about a year ago, and he has yet to take Nat out on a date."

Sam chuckled, shaking his head as he sat in a chair opposite the Hawkeye. "Classic Cap and Widow. If this," He gestured vaguely in the direction of Natasha's hospital room. "Doesn't change that, we may have to have an intervention."

Wanda sank into her own chair near Clint and frowned. "Why haven't they said anything? You'd think with the amount of espionage training they have they wouldn't be able to keep secrets from each other for this long."

"You'd be surprised." Clint said, moving slightly so that he was facing both of them. "Remember that Nat is a spy and Steve is a soldier. They have both been trained to retain information under any circumstance. That includes about what they feel and think. And even if they were able to read it from the other, with all the lies that they've told themselves and each other, do you really think they would take such an observation seriously?"

Sam didn't say a word, his face impassive, but he could see where the marksman was coming from.

Wanda, however, rolled her eyes. "If that's the case, they are stupidly in love."

"Try telling them that."

"I just might."

There was a long silence in the waiting room, as if they were trying to figure out just what to say next…or do about the two sleeping former Avengers down the hall.

"You both know why Steve brought Nat out here, right?"

The question from Clint pulled the two younger members out of their thoughts. They nodded slowly.

"Well, vaguely anyway." Wanda added.

"Steve said in his letter that they were leaving to rebuild themselves and heal from all the madness that they had fought against in the world." Sam agreed.

The archer nodded, moving so his elbows were resting on his knees and his chin in his hands. He stared at the floor for a moment before speaking. "When Steve and Nat arrived at my door two months after Thanos they were both exhausted and broken." He began slowly, and the two younger occupants of the room listened closely. "They were holding each other upright, and looked like demons had been closing in on them. The light that had burned so bright in their eyes was missing, as if it had been snuffed out by the terrors that followed them. It was a hard thing to see…and the first night was the worst. They both had horrendous nightmares that neither would speak about later, and Laura and I could never console them in those moments. Steve could only be awoken and soothed by Nat, and Nat could only be awoken and soothed by Steve."

Sam didn't look so surprised by this. He had dealt with his own demons after Thanos and didn't expect anyone to not be suffering after everything that had happened.

Wanda, on the other hand, looked very distraught at the news of what her mentors had suffered.

"Even after they bought the ranch, they didn't sleep well, but it eventually got better. Nat spent time with my kids and Steve worked on the barn. Eventually, the spark in their eyes started to return, and I could see they were healing better together." Clint looked down at the floor again. "But the demons are still there, and I don't think they'll be ready to move forward together just yet. Especially after this." He pointed at the door. "I wouldn't be surprised if Steve is blaming himself for this. And when Nat wakes up," He shook his head, not really knowing what to say about that. "Things could be very different."

"But it's not his fault." Wanda stated firmly.

Clint shook his head. "No. No, it's not."

Sam leaned his head back against the wall behind his chair. "I hope she wakes up soon."

"Me too."


Tony found himself in Steve's office at the ranch house. He had been wandering aimlessly around the Barton property for hours, not really wanting to go back to the hospital. He always hated those places… Eventually he asked Laura for directions to get to Steve and Nat's home, and found himself at their door.

Which had been unlocked, and he let himself in.

The home was warm and inviting, reminding Tony of the soldier who enjoyed making people comfortable, but it also had a stylish edge, suggesting that Steve had left most of the furniture selection to The Widow while he painted the walls.

The office was neat and organized, shelves of books on various topics – mainly horses – organized in alphabetical order by author and the desk had several stacks of different sized paper atop it. The largest set of paper drew his attention.

They were architectural plans.

Tony touched the paper delicately. He could see Steve's precise handwriting in the margins, giving the plans more personality, explaining just what Steve was trying to do or what each plan was for. Steve had always put his very self into everything he did.

That's why he had such a hard time with the Accords.

Tony had mulled over that time in their lives in the years between the start of the Accords and Thanos, and even after that. And eventually, he had concluded that Steve had been right, to a certain extent.

Having the government make the final call as to where and when they were deployed greatly diminished their effectiveness. But Steve had never fully disagreed with the concept of oversight - he had worked under S.H.I.E.L.D. and SSR before that after all – but had concluded that it needed to be someone or somebody who wasn't biased for or against the Avengers.

And true neutrality had been hard to find.

Ross was a prime example of that.

Thaddeus Ross had been a thorn in the signers of the Accords' side since the beginning, and even before that. Most notably with Bruce Banner. The former Lieutenant General turned Secretary of State had been searching for Bruce like a bloodhound after an allusive prey.

Tony couldn't help but thank whatever higher power was out there watching over Bruce considering he had avoided the Accords and Ross.

But even Tony had been able to see the man's grudge against "vigilantes".

A whinny pulled the man out of his thoughts about the past, and he turned to look. A large, black stallion stood just beyond the window, led by a halter by Clint's eldest son – Cooper, right? A fitted blanket was draped around the horse and his ears kept twitching as the young brunette lead him past the house.

Intrigued, Tony looked between the horse and the plans.

The plans were of the barn. The barn that housed this graceful animal.

The barn that had burned.

Almost without thinking, Tony pulled out his phone. "F.R.I.D.A.Y."

"Good afternoon, boss." The female sounding, Irish accented program replied.

"Scan these plans and update them to the best fire and flooding prevention standards. We've got a few animals to help."


Tony nearly barreled into Bruce and Thor on his way out of the house.

"How was it in there?" the physicist asked, falling into step beside the genius on the right while Thor took up the left.

"Cozy, warm, inviting, but with just enough style to suggest that Cap let Romanoff have her way with the décor. They live comfortably, have the Bartons over regularly. Steve cooks, Natasha does the laundry. It's quite domestic." His words have a bit of edge to them, as if he is gnawing on a problem that just won't let up, and that sets the doctor on edge.

"It sounds like they are doing quite well for themselves." Thor adds, sounding calm, as if ignoring the edge in his friend's voice. "It is quite peaceful out here."

"See, that's what I don't get." Tony adds after a moment, stopping in his tracks. His companions looked at him, stopping as well. "Back, after Ultron, Cap and I had a talk about this kind of life. And he specifically said that the man who wanted all of this," He waived at the house and the openness around them. "Went into the Ice back in 1945 and another man came out. So, what exactly are he and Widow doing out here?"

The two other men blinked, Banner looking more confused and Thor looked at Tony like he was missing the point.

"For the same reason that Barton settled out here, Stark." Thor spoke up, his tone suggesting that it was obvious, without being patronizing. "To find peace. You saw how our Captain was during the battle with Thanos. How exhausted and desperate he was for it all to end. The man has suffered enough, Stark. And I do believe that Lady Natasha has as well."

Tony openly stared at the Asgardian, puzzle pieces falling into place, but the whole picture wasn't revealed just yet.

"The Captain must have realized that Lady Natasha was just as broken as he was, and, ever being the noble man, took her away from everything so she could heal."

And suddenly, it all made sense. Every single plan that had been on Steve's desk had been about small projects (save the Barn, that was a huge undertaking), but all of them had been for making Natasha's life easier. A window seat design that was both functional and comfortable, a larger laundry room so she could maneuver around the space better and get more accomplished in a shorter amount of time, the fact that her room was almost personally constructed by Steve's hands, and even the barn and the horses that lived within it – a safe place for companions to help her heal.

Everything had been about her.

And it was so stupidly like Steve.

He laughed a bit, shaking his head. "Ever putting others before himself," He said, mostly to himself.

Thor nodded in agreement, smiling.

But Bruce's face was a mask of uncertainty, as if he was still missing a few of the puzzle pieces. Which…granted he was, since he hadn't entered the Rogers/Romanoff sanctuary. Not like Tony had.

Tony shook his head. "They live like roommates, similarly to how they did at the tower. She sleeps upstairs, he down stairs." He said, casually, walking again around the house towards the backyard. "Ever the gentleman, Captain Chivalry gave Romanoff the Master."

Thor chuckled and slapped Tony on the back. "I would expect nothing less from our Captain."

Bruce remained silent. And it didn't take a super genius like Tony to guess why.

Ever since Steve and Natasha had run off two years ago, the genius billionaire would prod (read: harass) the genius with two personalities about why he and the Widow hadn't been the ones to run off. Banner had been very short in his answers. Saying things like "it wasn't our time" or "I'm done with running" (which was most likely a lie, considering he still ran from fights) or "plans changed."

Tony had a suspicion that Bruce still had a thing for Natasha, even if it was not nearly as fierce as it had been during the whole Ultron debacle. But, Natasha's behavior suggested that it was strongly one side if that was the case.

I mean…she ran away and started a new life out here with the Bartons and Steve of all people.

He had known Natasha for a while, and concluded that she wasn't one to wallow in couldas, shouldas, and wouldas. She was ever on the move, sometimes on the run. And while this particular venture wasn't like the ones she had gone off on after S.H.I.E.L.D. fell, it was still an escape, a new life.

A fresh start. The thing she had always wanted.

No more blood in her ledger.

And Bruce needed to move on.

Shaking his head of these thoughts, Tony looked up at the wreckage that had been the barn. "I found the plans Cap had for the barn." He said simply, pulling out his phone again. "They are pretty good. All safety standards met and exceeded."

"So…" Banner started, crossing his arms as he stopped next to the billionaire. "How did it go up in flames?"

"Lightning." Thor cut in, moving towards the right side of the barn and kneeling down by the burned wood. "A powerful strike."

"High voltage," Tony confirmed, standing beside Thor and looking at the cord that had once run from the lightning rod to the ground rods. "Possibly a positive lightning strike."

"Clint had said the storm had moved away when the barn went up," Bruce added, standing opposite to Tony next to Thor.

"A bolt from the blue." The billionaire said softly. "Or in this case, black."

Bruce nodded, and Thor shrugged, not entirely getting the idiom.

After a moment of silence, Tony spoke up again, lifting up his phone and having F.R.I.D.A.Y. project the plans before them. "F.R.I.D.A.Y. has updated Steve's design. This isn't going to happen again, and if it does," He paused for a moment. "Natasha and Steve are going to be safe getting their horses out."

Thor smiled. "I think that would be a lovely coming home present."

None of them dare mention that it probably will be a while before the two former Avengers actually come home.


A/N: Long chapter, FTW!

Note: Burns + Previously damaged skin = problems. It's a real thing. Especially if the damage involves a laceration. The deeper the laceration, the deeper the burn can go and the more damage it causes. Basically, Nat's got some bad burns.

Alright, the next chapter will be a direct sequel to this half of the chapter, taking place mere hours after this one.

Until next time!
~Rachel