Upstairs from the Director's office, Bucky stared at the hyperbaric chamber. It looked marginally friendlier with colorful sheets, a comforter, and three pillows instead of the hospital white sheets and blanket and the one pillow it had previously been outfitted with. The room was cozier too, having been redecorated over the past day and a half. Fabric and cushy artwork softened the walls, a colorful cotton rug adorned the floor, and an inviting looking double bed had been added since Bucky had last slept in the chamber.
"You'll be all right," Steve said. "I'll be right here the whole time."
"I don't know if I can make myself get in there." Pupils blown out with terror, Bucky turned his gaze to Steve.
"You are one of the bravest men I've ever known," Steve said. "Hell, you were brave as a kid. This will be a piece of cake for you."
"I don't think so."
"You became a soldier before I did." Steve crossed his arms. "I was envious. It's like you were born with the makings of a fine soldier."
Bucky pressed his fingers to his temple and scrunched his eyes closed. "I went somewhere. It showed me as a soldier, and it showed you." He looked at Steve. "Before that, I pulled you out of the water."
Steve sucked in a breath and straightened a little more. "Yes, you did. That's why I knew I had to find you, that the man—the hero—I'd always known was still inside you and worth saving."
Bucky blinked and his eyes changed focus as though he were seeing something at a distance. "I'm with you 'til the end of the line."
Steve nodded. "You stood by me in my darkest time. How could I abandon you?"
"We...lived together."
"Shared an apartment. It was your apartment, really. You were a better friend than I could have asked for. I would never have asked you for anything more."
Pupils still wide and dark, Bucky gave his friend a hard look. His gray eyes were more lucid and knowing than Steve had seen them in a long, long time. "What are you saying?" Bucky asked softly.
"Nothing."
"Steve, I can't rely on my own memory right now, so I have to rely on yours. I need you to tell me—"
The door opened and Tony poked his head in. "Aha, so here's where my two favorite walking dead men are. You're here way early."
Steve exhaled, whether in relief or frustration, he wasn't sure.
Eyes somewhat unfocused again, Bucky frowned. "Walking dead men?"
"The tower's full of them." Tony touched the reactor in his chest through his shirt. "I could be counted as one of that number. And Bruce."
"And Director Coulson," came Fitz's voice from out in the hallway.
"Oh yeah." Tony nodded. "Agent is definitely a walking dead man." He took several steps into the room followed by Fitz.
Fitz brandished a sort of sandwich shaped device festooned with buttons, knobs, and a pair of small screens. "The science bros helped me finish a wireless controller in record time. That means you can take it inside and independently manage the pressure chamber."
Steve raised his eyebrows. "Science bros?"
"Me and Bruce. Fitz is the little bro." Tony gestured at the controller. "You can also contact Jarvis, send texts, and play games. Made it out of a Nintendo handheld. A thoroughly pimped Nintendo handheld."
Tony and Fitz spent a few minutes showing Bucky and Steve how the controller worked and its various features. As Tony continued demonstrating the features, Fitz wandered over to the pressure chamber and rested one hand against the glass. When Tony finished talking, gesturing, and pressing buttons, Fitz said, "Wish I'd had one of those when I spent time in one of these."
Bucky went and stood beside the Scotsman, voicing everyone's surprise when he said, "You spent time in one of these?"
Fitz nodded. "Not as nice as this one—this has a lot more glass and seems a lot less claustrophobic—and not as cozy looking, but yeah."
Bucky frowned. "A metal tube?"
"Mostly. It did have a window."
Bucky looked askance at Fitz. "Did you get in it willingly?"
Fitz shrugged. "Sure. Well, the first time I wasn't actually conscious, but after that, yeah. It was better than having no hope of improving."
Bucky flinched away and went to stand behind Steve. He clutched at Steve's arm. "Don't we need to go to the kitchen? Isn't it...dinner time?"
Tony looked from Bucky to Fitz. "Yeah, let's get out of here for a while." He placed the controller on the bed inside the chamber. "Pepper ordered up some kind of phyllo crusted trout dish with leeks and mixed vegetables. I have some steaks thawing, just in case."
