Riding Out the Day's Events

Chapter 29- 'I need your grace… to remind me… to find my own.'

OOOOO

More recovery and regrouping...

OOOOO

Darcy woke slowly. Judging from the light she saw through her closed eyelids, the sun was rising on a new day. She wished the previous day 'good bye and good riddance'! The aching of her head, her continued nausea, and a disjointed feel to her thoughts told her that she had a concussion. She frowned against the ache and furrowed her brow slightly as she compared it to the ache of a hangover, complete with an embarrassing sense of having said things she might not normally just yell out. She swallowed hard, suspecting narcotics might have played a role in that. There were also aches and pains all over her body, but they weren't as severe as she would expect, another reason to guess she'd been given strong medicine.

Soft music was playing. She listened to the lyrics, and drifted along on the melody for a bit.

If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

I don't quite know
How to say
How I feel

Those three words
Are said too much
They're not enough…

I need your grace
To remind me
To find my own

If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?...

She glanced at the bedside table. It held a water bottle, new glasses, and ANOTHER new StarkPhone. She wondered how many times her glasses and phone would be destroyed. The phone made a noise as an email arrived. From the seat over by the window, Steve murmured, "I just sent you this song, too. I wish I could…"

Her eyes fluttered as a memory pierced the fog in her mind. She groaned and put a hand to her head. "Oh, dear gods…bite? Oh! What did I say about your ass?"

Steve laughed softly. "It's okay, Sweetheart. I know it was the pain meds talking. So long as mine is the only ass you're interested in, I'm good."

She groaned again. "Gah!"

There was a rap at the door. Darcy whined. "You may not want to come in unless you're bringing more pain meds… even if they do make me babble!"

Natasha slipped into the room, shaking her head and smiling slightly, "Sorry! No drugs. Just… a friend…" She made a slight face as Steve smiled at her.

Darcy smoothed her hair back, "a really good friend…" She held Natasha's gaze. "I could hear your voice inside my head, all calm and cool, telling me what to do…"

Beyond his appreciation for the role Natasha had played in helping Darcy, Steve was almost amused by Natasha's reaction. She swallowed hard and blinked slowly, trying to maintain her habitual detachment, though Darcy's words affected her deeply. Natasha nodded and spoke in a clipped tone. "That's good to hear. We've got a lot more work to do, though." Natasha glanced at Steve, and while he tried to keep a straight face, he was very pleased, and didn't do very well. Natasha's grin of admission regarding her feelings was slight. It shifted quickly to a teasing look, and he braced himself. Natasha smiled sweetly. "I'll try to be patient about that until you're cleared for physical activity again. Could be a while…"

Steve winced, sighed, and bowed his head, muttering. "Point… and match. But you still let your guard down and let a friend in… for real." He returned his attention to his reading.

Darcy made a noise of disgust. "You heroes and all the posturing!" She pushed herself up further, glanced at Steve regretfully as she understood Natasha's tease, and sighed. "Will training ever end?"

Natasha's grin spread. "Nope." She shrugged. "It hasn't for me yet, at least." She glanced at Steve. "I'd like to spar sometime soon, if you're game? I spent an hour training with an old friend from Coulson's team this morning, and she showed me some of her moves. I want to see what you make of 'em."

Steve nodded and shrugged. "Sure. It'll be fun."

Darcy's interest was piqued. "I'd actually like to see that. I trust you two not to try to kill each other, and I'd like to see a woman hold her own against a super-soldier." She blinked a bit as she looked down and thought about Bucky standing over her threateningly. Steve frowned, though he didn't look up from what he was doing.

Natasha grinned ferally. "I do more than hold my own."

Steve's eyes were on his pad as he continued to read reports from the previous day. He shook his head, and smiled slightly. "I'll be prone to showing off if Darcy's watching… So, you'll have to work hard…"

Darcy made a face. "Does this mean that Natasha will try to attack me to throw you off your game?" Steve glanced at Darcy sharply, then looked back down.

Natasha made a harsh noise. "No! Attacking you would just blur out all of his filters and incite him to a level of rage I'm not interested in challenging…" She remarked to Steve an aside. "I saw video of you on your way into the building yesterday…"

He made a face, kept reading for a minute, and finally asked. "Did the others watch it, too?"

She chuckled. "Stark nearly wet his pants! He didn't realize just how deadly you can be." Steve shook his head and sighed.

Darcy noted. "Bucky said something about me not knowing what you're like when you're REALLY pissed off…"

Steve finished typing a note on his pad and sighed again, looking at her somberly., "I'd rather you didn't search out that video, Sweetheart."

Darcy nodded and smiled sadly. "As you wish…" She'd seen how haggard and bloody he'd looked and didn't need to see the violence of his rage in action. She thought she'd had enough of violence to last her… well, forever.

Natasha moved closer to Darcy. "I'm glad you made it through, Darcy. I was proud of how well you applied what we've worked on." She gave Darcy a friendly grin and added. "I'm ready for more, when you are…" She glanced at Steve and laughed knowingly at his slight frown and huff of frustration.

A nurse knocked on the door as she entered with medicines, including burn cream. Natasha nodded to Steve and Darcy. "My cue! I'm relieving Barton now, so he can get a few hours of sleep before noon. You two take care." She looked at Steve again. "Sam and I are gonna split the meeting this afternoon. He'll relieve me down here at 3:00. I'll be up for the second half." Steve frowned again, but nodded. She waved as she left them.

The doctor also entered the room for her early rounds. She talked to Darcy while the nurse applied the burn cream. Darcy was delighted to have more burn cream applied. It felt wonderfully soothing. She moaned lightly as it went on, and commented. "This stuff is the best. How often can I have it?" She didn't remember anyone applying the cream once she'd taken medication the previous evening, but the doctor said they were applying it every four hours. Knowing that they were doing things to her that she didn't remember made Darcy anxious, despite Steve's presence. And as she suspected that Steve would soon be required to leave, she was determined to take control of her treatment.

She argued with the doctor about the pain killers, urging. "Please, step it down to something that doesn't mess me up so much! Give me a chance deal with the overall aches and pains. I want to try to manage the pain without going out of my head. I can't remember stuff I said last night, or stuff that happened, and I hate it! Strong meds make me loopy, and we can't know if my confusion is from them, or from my head smacking into a wall… until we cut the meds!" She saw Steve smile faintly, and figured that compared to him, she resembled an unruly kitten unsheathing its claws, but she continued to push her agenda.

The doctor relented. With a quick glance at Steve, Darcy asked how long she would be restricted from vigorous activity, and was told it would probably be at least a week with a gradual step-up approach, depending on her afternoon scan results. She didn't mind a week away from self-defense training or Cardio-Dance (or, God forbid, strength training), but couldn't help thinking of Steve with enough apparent longing that the doctor tried to encourage her that the week would pass quickly. Steve continued to read, the tips of his ears showing a slight blush. Finally, the nurse helped Darcy to the restroom and let her brush her teeth and tend to other basic necessities, promising that she would get Darcy up and walking after lunch.

After the doctor and nurse were gone, Darcy was sitting up in her bed, eager for breakfast but a bit apprehensive as she asked Steve, "So… you have a meeting later?" Her heartbeat raced audibly, thanks to the monitor, at the thought of Steve leaving her side, and she vowed to rip the damned electrodes off as soon as possible. Steve glanced at the monitor. Darcy let out a deep breath and waved her hands. "Of COURSE you do. Stuff to avenge, secure, etc. I KNOW it. Sorry." She blushed deeply and turned away from him.

Steve tossed his pad down and moved to her side, sitting on the edge of her bed. "I don't want to go." There was a taut catch to his voice.

She shrugged and tried to feign nonchalance. "You'll be just a few floors away, right?" He kissed her forehead and moved closer so he could put an arm around her. She swallowed hard, and hated herself for the excessively clingy vulnerability she felt. Finally, she forced a smile. "You're here now." He kissed her lips softly. She deepened the kiss and mourned. "I want to erase the last couple of days and get back to our last date… without any of my current restrictions…"

Steve smiled into the next kiss. "Me, too… But, it'll be good for me to work on being gentle… as part of that 'step-up' plan she mentioned…" Darcy raised a brow and smiled teasingly. Steve chuckled. "I'm gonna kiss you silent so you don't say whatever it is that you're thinking… I don't know if I can take it." He kissed her again and again. He shifted so that he encircled her with his arms, and she was half-laying on him.

She relaxed against his chest and sighed. "I guess it would be awkward for you to just carry me around with you like this…" He nuzzled his cheek against her head and chuckled. She let one of her hands play over the taut muscles of his chest and arms, fascinating as they always were to her. After a few moments savoring the closeness, curiosity got the best of her. "What are Natasha, Hawkeye, and Sam taking turns with?"

Steve shifted slightly. "Watching out for Bucky…" She looked at him quizzically. He sighed. "One of the orderlies tried to kill him."

Darcy shuddered. "Oh, my God! How badly is the orderly injured for trying that?"

Steve squeezed her gently. "See… That's another part of the problem… not at all. Bucky didn't try to protect himself, and it struck a chord with Barton. Hawkeye stopped the guy and kicked him out. Coulson's people took him into temporary custody, and then handed him over to the NYPD."

Darcy blinked hard. "He… would've let the guy kill him?" Her heart rate accelerated again, and she swallowed hard.

Steve kissed her head, pensive and sad. "Yeah… He would've…"

Darcy grimaced. "Thank goodness for Hawkeye!" She bit her lip. "Loki did the same stuff to Hawkeye that he did to Erik, didn't he?" She frowned, thinking back over so many things Erik had said and done since suffering the trauma of being under Loki's control. It wasn't much of a stretch to apply her concern over that to Hawkeye… and Bucky. Even so, it took some effort in Bucky's case, given how threatened she'd felt. She shuddered again.

Steve nodded. "Hawkeye sees Bucky's experiences with Hydra in a sympathetic light, especially after watching Bucky being ordered to hurt a friend." He kissed her on the temple, tenderly, grateful beyond measure that Bucky had not done worse to her.

She turned and looked at Steve with a distressed expression. "Did Loki make Hawkeye hurt Coulson? I thought they said that Loki killed him…"

Steve sighed. "Loki used the people he enchanted for their best talents. He used Erik to work on the Tesseract so that he could have a big enough portal for the Chitauri army to come to Earth. He used Hawkeye to plan and lead an attack against SHIELD's main helicarrier and the Avengers. When Loki was released from a cell in the helicarrier during that attack, Loki killed Phil." She nodded, absorbing the information.

She asked. "How'd your visit with Bucky go? I was too drugged to ask you about that until now…" She shivered slightly and felt guilty that she'd basically checked out when Steve was going through so much.

Steve shook his head, tense. "He's pretty banged up. He protected you and Jane from the bomb with his own body, so he has a broken leg from the support beam that fell, other broken bones, terrible burns, and several GSWs, too. Healing's hard. No painkillers, ya know… downside of the serum… though his isn't quite as fast-acting as mine, apparently. I'm glad they're able to help with the burns some… though I still don't want you to leave me for Bruce over that cream." She shook her head, grinning self-consciously as he kissed her forehead again and chuckled.

He turned serious again and sighed. "We apologized to each other a lot. He wants me to continue to keep tabs on him through JARVIS, with just me reading the transcripts… not Tony. He wants to be able to trust himself and have control of his own life… eventually…though he knows that he doesn't yet. So, it was as good as it could be. He's pretty torn up. I hated to leave him, but, after he flirted some with Sharon Carter, he kicked me out. He insisted the only way I could make him feel better would be for me to look after you."

She reacted as he'd expected. "Bucky flirted?! With Sharon Carter?! Awesome sauce!" She smiled with her typical enthusiasm for the first time since he'd been back, and Steve felt his heart swell at the sight. Her smile warmed him through.

Steve smiled, too. "Then, you might be pleased to hear that I asked Sharon to look in on him last night. She's staying with Peggy since they're short staffed here." Darcy gave him a double thumbs-up. He shook his head and grinned. "She seems interested in Bucky… the way she was eyeing him…"

Darcy nodded, thinking that anyone would objectively see that Bucky was handsome… if they got past the terror he could inspire. She felt Steve's gaze on her, but felt too conflicted to want to discuss her impressions of Bucky at the moment. So, she was relieved when breakfast arrived, one plate for her and three for Steve. He moved to a chair while they ate, but as soon as he was done, she asked plaintively. "Will you get back up here on the bed, and hold me 'til you have to go be all Avengerly?"

He nodded and eased back onto the bed beside her. She held onto his shirt tightly as she curled against him. She closed her eyes, finding that she was struggling not to freak out over the fact that he was going to leave her in a few hours. He stroked her back gently. She tried a meditation Chau had taught her, and then accidentally drifted into thoughts of Chau and her loss. She struggled a few minutes more, flashes of the previous day's terrors intruding, though she tried to force the panic away on her own. Finally, she hit the nurse call button. "Can I have something for anxiety? Meditation's not cuttin' it." The nurse said she'd check with a doctor.

Steve bit his lip, "I'm sorry you're anxious. I understand. I wish they had something that would help me, too."

Darcy chuckled, and buried her face against his chest, her voice muffled. "I feel like the most pitiful of pitiful. I've got to stop goin' crazy over the thought of you going to a damned meeting. You have lots of meetings, and the world to save, and Hydra goons to stop… I can't ask you to skip those things so we can cuddle, for fuck's sake!" She was shaking with tension.

Steve carefully peeked in the back of her gown to verify the location and extent of her bruises, winced at those visible, and then began to massage muscles he could touch without hurting her. She sighed, and told him about her massage appointment, laughing over the thought of him watching and holding her hand for one. His slight grin encouraged her to keep talking while he continued trying to help her relax. So, she cast her thoughts to her tumblr feed and started to ask him questions… favorite color, author, movie, songs, foods, and more… telling him her answers as she went. The nurse brought Darcy anxiety medication. Darcy continued to talk about light and easy things, something Steve appreciated immensely as time ticked on. He needed to step away from more serious thoughts as much as Darcy did, possibly more.

When it was time for him to leave, Darcy turned on the TV and started channel –flipping to fill the tense silence.

Steve cleared his throat reluctantly. "Darcy?"

She let out a shuddering breath. "Don't let it run long, please. I love you." She bit her lip and clenched her hands tightly.

He kissed her cheek. She could see that his fists were clenched, too. He choked out, "Say the word, and I'll stay." She shook her head, lips pursed tightly together. He leaned his head against hers and whispered. "I love you so much. I'll be back soon, by dinner time at the latest. If you need me sooner, tell JARVIS, and I'll come runnin'. I swear." She smiled wanly. He kissed her again and left, struggling to take each and every step.

When Steve reached the Avengers' conference room, he was startled by the way Tony started cussing at the sight of him. He looked around the table and saw Hawkeye smirking and holding his hand out. "Pay up, Stark! I told you he'd show!" Sam laughed at Tony. Bruce sighed and shook his head. Steve noticed that the look Bruce shot him was disapproving.

Steve nearly broke his StarkPad as he slammed it on the table. "You guys are sick! Let's get to work. I want to understand everything I possibly can about how that lab tech shut JARVIS out, and how the hell we can stop something like that from EVER happening again. I have general response and defense plans, of course, but I want to hear what each of you has to suggest first." He looked around the room, frowning at the number of Avengers not yet in attendance.

Tony smirked, his tone acidic. "We could be here all night if you really want to understand how that little bastard worked around JARVIS. He's been working on it for weeks, slackin' off on his other work… which is why Lewis recommended firing him even before we discovered he's a traitor. I swear I'm gonna ask Pepper to promote her again, just for that." His look to Steve was disdainful.

Steve bit back a harsh reply and shook his head. "I'm not staying here one minute past six tonight. I want to finish up early, if at all possible." A few minutes later while Tony was pulling lines of code up for everyone to see, Steve leaned over to Hawkeye. "How'd you know I'd come?"

Hawkeye chuckled. "I don't underestimate your girl, Cap. She's in it for the long haul. She's not gonna try to change you."

Steve nodded, a bit reassured, though privately unsure of whether or not some change was in order. It had been horribly hard to walk away from Darcy again so soon. He wasn't accustomed to dealing with emotional concerns as he worked, having been mostly alone since emerging from the ice of the Arctic, and caught up in one battle after another before that.

OOOOO

Darcy thought she'd done well. For over four minutes after Steve left her side, she pushed down the tears, digging crescents from her fingernails into her palms, body trembling with her fear of being alone for the first time since the attack on the Tower. The Hydra commander's words still echoed in her ears, and in her mind's eye she saw the Winter Soldier looming over her, stalking closer. She forced herself to wait so that Steve would be out of earshot when she began to cry. Her throat was tight, and her eyes hot with unshed tears. Finally, she rolled to one side and curled in on herself, sobbing noisily to cry out her terror.

Seconds later, she shrieked as her door flew open so hard that it dented the wall behind it. Thor filled the doorway, hammer at the ready. "What has happened, Sister?" He moved into the room quickly, to her side, looking around for the cause of her distress. Seeing nothing, he relaxed slightly and took her hand in his. Then, they both stilled as an odd, quick bumping sound approached. There was also the sound of Natasha's voice, displeased.

Bucky stood at the doorway, bracing against the opening with his hands, looking around wildly and balancing on his good leg. "Why'd you scream, Doll?" Darcy gasped at the sight of him and their gazes locked while she reflexively tightened her grip on Thor's hand. She blinked at the reassuring sight of Bucky's concerned expression. He looked at Thor, and then all around Darcy's room. Seeing no threat, Bucky swallowed and murmured. "Uh, sorry…" He looked away guiltily, and turned to leave. Darcy gasped in horror at the sight of his wounds, especially his back.

Darcy blinked back more tears. "Thanks, Bucky… Sorry I worried you." Warmth spread through her at the concerned overreactions of her friends. Bucky glanced back and nodded awkwardly, then hobbled back to his room. Natasha grimaced at Darcy, rolled her eyes and shrugged at Bucky, then followed him.

Thor knelt by Darcy's side. "Why do you cry so, little one?"

Her tears began to flow again, embarrassment mixing with the rest of her jumbled emotions. "I'm sorry, Thor! I just… Steve had to leave… and I…"

Thor nodded and laid a hand against her head with great tenderness. "His presence chased your fears from the room, and his absence allowed their return."

She nodded miserably. "You're late to your meeting. Aren't you?"

Thor smiled. "My Captain will not mind when he knows my reason."

She shook her head slightly, mindful not to make large movements. "Please, please don't tell him!"

Thor chuckled. "Stubborn, valiant sister! I will not distress your suitor… by your command." He looked around the room and declared. "Your protector from before is absent, the ursine toy wearing my garments. I will bring it here to act as sentry and remind you that you are treasured… far from truly alone."

Darcy giggled tearily. "Thor! It doesn't make me feel any less silly when you say I need a teddy bear."

Thor sighed. "We are all as children in the face of overwhelming terror, Lady Darcy, at least some part of us. I think you should be more gentle with yourself, more patient. You try so to comfort others… Steven, Jane… everyone but you. Use your time here to comfort yourself and regain strength, so that you will then have it to share again." He leaned down and kissed her forehead gently, then left her room. He returned moments later with both her Thor Bear and her Cap Bear, laying one on each side of her for her to hug close, and causing her laugh through tears.

OOOOO

Steve looked up as Thor finally arrived, apologizing for his tardiness, and urging that they get on with the discussion so that they might reach the meeting's end quickly. Steve exchanged glances with Thor, wondering what was behind the tight smile the god gave him, and if Thor might be able to advise him on how to compartmentalize better. No one who saw them together could doubt Thor's devotion to Jane Foster, nor could they fault his performance as a warrior and Avenger (tardiness to this meeting aside). Steve didn't have ambition of compartmentalizing like Natasha or Nick Fury, but wanted to continue to be the best soldier and leader he could, without compromising his relationship with Darcy at all.

Steve found it harder and harder to concentrate as the afternoon wore on. All of the Avengers were still on edge from the previous day's events, quick to argue and cast blame. Each had lost friends and acquaintances in the attack. Each felt responsible for those losses. Most had been reminded of some bad event they'd survived another time, and carried that weight into the discussions. People were taking things personally and sniping at each other regularly. Even Sam's temper was frayed to the point that he seemed glad to leave the meeting when it was his turn to relieve Natasha. Trying to keep them on task, to begin to break down the different aspects of the attack for thorough tactical analysis, was nearly impossible, even for Steve.

His temper rose to the surface more quickly than usual, too. While it wasn't rare for him to snap at Tony, he rarely growled at the others. Shortly after 5:00, as Natasha had to be briefed on a third thing that had been discussed while she was with Bucky during the first hours of the meeting, his hold on his temper snapped. "Damn this repetition to hell! It's inefficient! We have to come up with a different way to manage Bucky's guard duty during meetings. Either we need to see if Phil will send one of his principle team members over until we can vet one of our own people enough, or we just have to bring Bucky in on the meetings. I can't stand watching time tick by while we rehash things!" He saw Tony glancing at Bruce and smirking. The sight did nothing for Steve's temper. He barely stifled a howl of frustration.

Natasha's eyes narrowed as she bit back. "Fine! We can put in a request with Phil. He's having dinner with me and Hawkeye at our place tonight. He was unable to reach Hawkeye before we had to leave for Afghanistan, and they need to talk." She sat back, looked at Steve evenly, checked her watch and asked in an overly polite tone. "Captain? May we compile a list of assignments, and call this meeting early?"

Steve stared at the lists on screens on the walls, at the 3-D data, at his pad and paper notepads strewn across the table. They included information on JARVIS' coding, the Blood Brothers' origin, the Ten Rings, the Convergence, Erik Selvig's work, Jane Foster's various energy generators, gravometric energy portals, Svartalfheim, Bruce's energy studies, the Winter Soldier and Hydra's efforts to retake him, reports from different department heads and administrators (Darcy included, he noticed, something that was likely against her doctor's orders), the Hydra mole's extensive confession to Natasha and Tony (the methods of which Steve didn't care to examine too closely), casualties in the City from the air battles outside the Tower, the casualty list from inside the Tower, early staff resignations from all departments, protests from the Mayor and Governor and NYPD and NYFD, schematics of the new Quinjet engine, medical reports, information on Phil Coulson and the new SHIELD, and more. It would take ages to sift through all of the information they were discussing.

Finally, he nodded. "Yes, Natasha. You're right. Let's call it a day. I don't give a damn who wins what bet at this moment, guys. I feel like hell for being away from Darcy this afternoon. My focus and patience are both gone. Most of us are strung out from failing to protect our people. I'll try to get a better grip on my emotions before tomorrow, and ask each of you to do the same. Let's get back together tomorrow, 8-1:00, all of us. If anyone wants to meet individually before that, let me know. He looked at the others staring at him, unmoving, and snarled edgily. "Well, isn't anyone gonna hand someone else their winnings, now?"

Hawkeye shook his head and grinned. "No one would bet that you could make it all the way to 6:00, Cap. You're possibly crazier for her than she is for you. We're happy for you."

Steve turned and looked at Thor apprehensively. "Were you late because you were with Darcy?"

Thor crossed his arms, his expression enigmatic. "I thought that she would be happier if my ursine representation was with her." He made a face and shared., "I also took yours to her. She seemed appreciative, and was hugging both as I left."

Steve knew Thor was holding out on him, but didn't have enough patience left to pursue it. He looked around at the others and wished them a good night and left, heading quickly back to Darcy's room in the Healing Ward.

OOOOO

Darcy, wearing a robe, slippers and ear buds, was standing by the large entry window of the Healing Ward, staring out at the city skyline and listening to music, the song Steve had sent her that morning. Steve stepped off the elevator and walked towards her slowly. She smiled with delight and pulled out an ear bud as she turned and saw him. "You're early!" She noticed his expression and stepped towards him. "What happened? What's wrong?""

He shook his head, and took her hand in his and led her back to her room. Once inside, he moved to a chair and pulled her into his lap and held her close against him. His breath shuddered as he breathed in her scent, savored the feel of her soft strength against him, and felt the warmth of holding her close again. The sense of relief nearly overwhelmed him. He whispered. "I need you so much…"

Darcy kissed his lips lightly, and smiled. "I'm glad to hear that. I thought I needed you more…"

He closed his eyes and blew out a breath. "I hope not. Hard to imagine…" He kissed her hungrily, still holding her firmly against him. He pulled back after a long time. Darcy's cheeks were prettily pinked. He kissed along one of her cheeks, then lightly down her neck to her collarbone. She shivered with pleasure, running her hands over his arms and shoulders lightly, and then leaning closer to hug him tightly. He asked, "Anything new from the doctors?"

She nodded. "I had a few scans this afternoon, and they looked good. My head's feeling better, and the nausea's died down, so I may get out as soon as tomorrow. My left side looks a lot like an old banana, but it's nothing dire. I really may marry Bruce, though. My burn is totally healed. It's like super-soldier healing burn cream!"

He chuckled ruefully, pained. "You probably should marry Bruce. He looked at me like a nasty, low form of life when I showed up at the meeting today. I don't think HE would have left your side…"

She kissed him again and admitted. "I went to pieces a bit after you left…" Steve looked stricken over her admission. She kissed his cheek. "Sorry 'bout that… But, I was reminded that I have friends, after both Thor and Bucky came running…" She grimaced. "Seems like everyone's wound up like crazy today!"

Steve chuckled grimly. "Yeah… I noticed that…"

Darcy quirked a small, sympathetic smile. "Then, I got busy, too. They did the scans, both CT and MRI... I read over reports about damage to the labs, and did some of my work. Don't tell on me. I thought 'the powers that be' might need the info." She winked and grinned at his exasperated look, then continued. "A nurse helped me shower… and helped me get going on pacing the halls, which is big since it's a step-up in my activity..."

He pulled her closer and closed his eyes tightly. Darcy sighed happily as they cuddled. "You're way better than a teddy bear."

OOOOO

After dinner that evening, Jane and Thor came to Darcy's room. The four of them watched the movie 'The Princess Bride', Steve holding Darcy close against him on her bed, while Thor sat next to Jane's wheelchair and held her hand, kissing it repeatedly. For a short time, they all ignored the outside world and its threats and enjoyed laughing and talking together.

Darcy looked happy as she fell asleep after the movie. Steve sat by her side, holding her hand while he studied data on his StarkPad, collected important passages to a file for discussion, and replied to and sent questions to the other Avengers. For the moment, all seemed peaceful. After a routine late-night vitals check by the nurse, Steve settled to sleep on the bench again. He watched Darcy, curled on her side and sleeping peacefully, for a long time before he closed his eyes.

Regardless, he wasn't surprised when he woke to Darcy's cries and then screams a few hours later. He knew she'd had the doctor cut her medications. He gradually came out of sleep as he heard her whimpering and crying softly, then jumped to his feet and moved to her side as she screamed. "No! Oh, God, no, Bucky! Stop, please!" Steve called to her, moved into the bed beside Darcy, and held her to him and whispered assurances that she was safe and loved while she struggled to control her breathing and stop crying. The nurse looked in, but Steve shook his head and gestured for her to leave.

A few minutes after Darcy settled down, she gasped and began to cry again silently and shake her head as though in pain. She groaned with nearly silent anguish.

Steve asked urgently. "What is it, Sweetheart? Does your head hurt again? Why are you shaking it like that?"

Darcy buried her head against Steve's chest, her voice cracking as she cried… "Bucky heard me. You know he heard me."

OOOOO

When the doctor arrived at 7:00 am for her rounds, she grudgingly gave in to Darcy's firm insistence on releasing Darcy to her own quarters later that day. Steve promised that he would help her home at 1:00 pm, after his team meeting, and then stay with her. They promised to arrange to have someone else stay with her when he couldn't, for the next three days, or until Darcy was cleared to resume her normal activities. She agreed to come in for a check-up each day, too.

There was no question in Darcy's mind, or Steve's, that it would be best for her to leave the Healing Ward.

to be continued...

Note-Song at start of this chapter is'Chasing Cars' by Snow Patrol. Next chapter/update coming soon, title is "We're gonna be okay."