A/N: Thanks for reviewing!

My turn to be the victim

He had been in a lot of fights, both before he worked for HYDRA and during. But none of them were anything like this. His opponents included two men in mechanical suits and they were hardly out of the ordinary here. There was a – an android? Or something? One of the guys on his team could shrink. And the kid in red and blue spandex who could climb walls and had incredible strength for such a small person. Not to mention the woman on their team who was just magic apparently – even all the science fiction he read when he was younger couldn't prepare him for this reality.

The Avengers included a god and he knew that, but knowing it and actually dealing with even their less powerful members were completely different things. He supposed it was fortunate that he was mainly fighting the man in black – the King of Wakanda, he'd learned. As though that explained anything. At any rate, he could handle fighting under those circumstances, even if he wasn't really winning at any point.

It had not been the plan to fight, of course. They had come to the airport to meet the recruits Steve could find and intended to go to stop the doctor from waking the other soldiers. Or, more likely, stop the Soldiers themselves. There was little time for pleasantries, so he didn't know too much about their allies who were not Avengers. Especially as an alarm sounded soon after they arrived at the airport and people were being evacuated.

So Steve devised a plan to give everyone the best chance possible. He'd been teamed up with Sam, which was alright. He wasn't sure how the others felt about him, or what they knew. Sam seemed to know everything and it was nice to work with someone for once. And Sam was a no-nonsense military guy, who treated their fantastical allies and teammates with some skepticism. Which was honestly a breath of fresh air after everything else.

When he'd been thrown by the youth of the red and blue guy, Sam had flown in and attacked. It was somewhat embarrassing that the kid had the upper hand for most of that fight, but they worked well together. He hadn't expected Sam's willingness to help him, especially after his aloofness in the car. But it was apparent he was just being snarky, and that was something Bucky Barnes could do back – even if it felt a little strange.

They'd regrouped with the rest of the team and ran toward the quinjet – but their opponents had time to regroup, too. The android drew a line in the sand and they'd squared off. Unsurprisingly, King T'challa was across from him, and attacked as soon as they were close enough. Though he generally didn't like to, he'd used his left arm to defend himself. He'd tried to tell the man the truth about what happened to his father, but he wasn't interested. And it was just fortunate that Wanda chose to intervene, or he might have gotten killed.

When it looked bad, he and Steve had to make a run for it. Both teams were getting a little desperate by that point and it was a relief to get away. Until they got to the quinjet and the Black Widow was standing in front of it. He knew that she and Steve had been through a lot together. And that having to fight her would be hard for Steve. So he'd have to do it. Even if he hated the idea of hurting her again.

She'd shot behind them, and both were surprised to find King T'Challa behind them – not many people could sneak up on him. They'd run passed her to get on the jet. And finally taken off. But Stark wasn't going to let them go that easily, and he and War Machine gave chase. Until something knocked War Machine out of the sky. They didn't turn back.


It was a long way to Siberia. He thought over and over about what he should say to Steve, to make him understand. To explain why he'd stayed hidden and never come to find his old friend. To apologize.

"What's going to happen to your friends?" he asked eventually. Because he wanted Steve to understand that those people were really the ones he could trust.

"Whatever it is, I'll deal with it," Steve replied stoically. Always taking on burdens that weren't his to bear.

Staring off into the distance, he considered. "I don't know if I'm worth all this, Steve."

He could tell Steve didn't like that kind of talk. "What you did all those years – it wasn't you," he said firmly.

Grimacing slightly, he turned his attention to his friend. "I know. But I did it."

Steve didn't have an answer to that. He hadn't expected him to, so it was strange to feel disappointed. Not because he had wanted to be reassured, not because he wanted Steve to say again that it wasn't his fault. Because, on some level, it was. And he needed Steve to understand that. But he didn't know what else to say, so they were silent as they flew to somewhere he'd hoped never to return.


When they landed, it was apparent that the doctor was already here – tracks in the snow and a clean truck gave him away. He headed back to where Steve told him that there would be weapons. Romanoff's locker – the selection was impressive. There was an M249 SAW paratrooper that should prove useful. Steve didn't get anything except his shield, and they headed toward the hatch.

He could feel Steve's eyes on him for a moment – could he tell how afraid he was? Not afraid like he had been earlier, when King T'Challa attacked him and had the upper hand. Or when the German special forces were closing in. No, this was a different kind of fear. Because it meant a different kind of death – one he might wake up from and have to go on living with.

The doctor knew the words. He'd already used them. What was to stop him from using them again now? What would stop him from ordering the Soldier to kill Steve? And, even if he chose not to use those godamned words, the other Soldiers were terrifying. They could certainly kill Steve. And then go on to destabilize whatever government the doctor chose. So he would put on a brave face, enter the place where he'd lost everything, and hope not to repeat the experience.

"Do you remember that time we had to ride back from Rockaway Beach in the back of that freezer truck?" Steve asked suddenly, unexpectedly.

Ever since he'd started contemplating seeing Steve again, he'd been terrified to consider that he might not remember everything Steve did. But this, fortunately, he did remember. "Was that the time we used our train money to buy hot dogs?" he responded, smiling a little.

"You blew three bucks trying to win that stuffed bear for a redhead," Steve admonished.

He grinned at the memory and Steve's ire. "What was her name again?"

"Dolores. You called her Dot."

"She's got to be a hundred years old right now," he said, shaking his head.

"So are we, pal," Steve pointed out, and he smiled.

Leave it to Steve to know how to settle his nerves. It was just like it used to be, a long time ago. He met Steve's eye and Steve put his hand on his shoulder. Time to do this.

They left the quinjet and headed across the frozen tundra – it was cold. He was always cold. The door was open, which was good, because he didn't think he knew the code. They made their way stealthily and intently through the facility to the elevator. In the tense silence, he looked up at Steve, who gave him a nod. He returned it, relieved. Like old times.

It was a big place. It took time to search it, since there was no guarantee that the Soldiers would all still be in the main room. And allowing even one to escape was unacceptable. He led the way, since he'd been here before, with Steve guarding his six. They were climbing some stairs when there was a noise behind them – creaking metal.

They whirled around to face it, him leveling his machine gun and Steve using his shield to cover them. "Ready?" Steve asked.

"Yeah," he replied resignedly.

But then – it wasn't the doctor or any Soldiers. It was Stark. He approached them, taking off his helmet as he did so. "You seem a little defensive."

"It's been a long day," Steve replied warily. He stood up and walked over slowly.

"Ross has no idea I'm here, I'd like to keep it that way. Otherwise I've got to arrest myself," Stark continued, leaning against a nearby pillar. He was just like his father.

"That sounds like a lot of paperwork," was Steve's commiserating response as he lowered his shield. "It's good to see you, Tony."

Stark's joking manner disappeared. "You too, Cap." But only for a moment. "Hey, Manchurian candidate, you're killing me. There's a truce here, you can drop it."

When Steve held up his hand, he lowered his weapon. Then the three of them continued to explore the base together as a team.