Chapter 37

You're A Scary One

"Stark, stop that." Winter said, frowning at Tony.

"Stop what?"

"Pacing. It is annoying."

"You sound like Loki." Tony said, frowning at Winter.

"I take that as an insult, though I do not know who it is."

"He- hang on, I can show you. Friday, could you get Peter to come here with his phone?"

"Of course Boss."

They waited a few minutes, and Tony fell back into work, looking at documents on his tablet; he jumped backwards, wedding himself into the back of the couch when Peter dropped from a vent and landed on the coffee table.

"What did I say about that?!"

"I was already in the vent!"

"I…why?"

"…I'd rather not say."

"…Fine, whatever, give me your phone."

"…Why?"

"I need to show…Winter? Something. Gimme!"

"What are you showing him?"

"Who Loki is!"

"Oh…why do you need my phone for that?"

"Because that girl has an Instagram and she was the closest thing to Loki besides himself. Gimme it here!" Tony shouted, reaching for the phone, which Peter held out of the man's reach. They hadn't noticed Winter move, until he leant over the couch and plucked the phone from Peter's grip and took a step backwards.

"No!" Peter shouted but Tony grabbed the boy's arm and pulled him down onto the couch in a pile. "I didn't lock the screen! Don't look!"

Winter stared at Peter, then slowly moved his gaze down to the strange device; he had seen them a few times around the tower, though hadn't used one himself. He saw someone on the screen; a woman, with dark hair pulled into a braid that fell over her shoulder. She had a mask on, covering her nose and mouth as well as her jawline.

She was wearing a suit similar to his own asset gear, and had a metal arm to match his. Her eyes were smudged, heavy black makeup surrounding each one.

"Mister Stark!" Peter shouted, desperate to get the phone back. "He wasn't meant to see!"

"See what?"

"Who is this?" Winter asked, holing the screen out so Peter and Tony could see; Tony's face went white.

"No one. Don't worry about it. It's not wha-"

"Who is it?" Winter asked, voice steady and cold.

"I really…don't like that Winter has his own voice." Tony said softly.

"Then tell me."

"Peter, penthouse."

"No. Tell me."

"Win-"

"Why would they dress like me? Tell me!" He dropped the phone, and stepped towards the couch, eyes flashing.

"Peter." Tony said, and Peter nodded, darting from the couch and running into the elevator. Winter didn't move his eyes from Tony, and had moved even closer to the couch now. He was staring at Tony, ready to move if the other man did.

"Tell me."

"Please don't make Winter's voice scarier." Tony said quietly, moving back from the couch. He was cornered, he couldn't get away without calling in a suit. "Don't look for her. Leave her alone. She's already in hospital. Just please don-"

"Why is she in the hospital?"

"S-She got shot."

"Why?"

"I need the phone. I'll show you."

Winter nodded, and picked the phone up, so he could pass it to Tony.

Tony fumbled with it, glad Peter hadn't changed his lock code; he brought up the Instagram post of the girl in her Loki get up, and passed it to Winter, who took it in his metal hand.

"Who is this?"

"The s-same girl. Dressed as…he tried to take over the world, ages ago; under control of someone else, we found out when he got brought back here by his brother, Thor. She…got shot, because someone thought she was the actual him; they wanted revenge I guess. Very drunk revenge."

Winter was frowning at the phone; it can't have been the same person. She looked so different.

"It can not be the same person."

"Makeup, costumes. She's…good. I guess, I don't really understand the cosplay thing…she was good though, and got shot for absolutely no reason and I can't fix it." Tony said, voice falling into a desperate at the end; he hadn't meant that to happen. That seemed to happen around Winter.

"I want to meet her." Winter said, finally.

"No!" Tony shouted; he was officially freaking out. "Absolutely not! Do not go near her!"

"Why? I do not intend to harm her."

"I don't care!"

"Barnes then. Barnes gets to meet her."

"I-I…what?"

"When Barnes is back. Let him meet her."

"When he's back?"

"I am aware you are working on a way to bring him back."

"I-we- yes. Okay, yes. We didn't want to mention it because…it…I can't think of the right words."

"You worry you will be removing me completely; you feel it to be unethical."

"That…yes, that works."

"I am difficult to remove. Barnes had been split in two for a long time. He finds it tiresome, keeping me at bay."

"Uh huh."

"Make it easier for him; I will always be in the background. I am far too deep in his head now. Try and…make it easier for him, to manage me. He enjoys being here, though he is…uncertain."

"About?"

"I have seen his nightmares, he is frightened. Of you."

"Of me?!"

"Yes. He knows what he did, and fears he is here out of pity, or purely to keep…his friend…happy. He fears he would be kicked out when he does something wrong. Even when he is teasing, the fear is there."

"Well. Shit."

"Yes."

Tony nodded, and quickly scrambled away from the couch to run to the elevator. As the doors opened, he heard from behind him.

"You are a Stark."

"Y-yeah…" Tony said, turning slowly to look at Winter but the man was still standing next to the couch.

"I could not figure out who you were. The child called you by name, earlier."

"Okay…"

"I am aware, of what I did, previously."

"Okay."

"I am not…I am actively working against the orders. The boy will not be harmed. I am not stupid enough to risk losing the safe place that Barnes' has here."

"Great to know, goodnight." Tony said, ducking into the elevator and not looking back.

"Are you okay?" Peter asked from the couch where he was curled up, when Tony walked out of the elevator.

"Fine, great. Just…he wants to meet her."

"What? Why?"

"I said no, obviously and…he said to let Barnes meet her."

"Why?"

"I don't know…I don't think he should but…"

"You know Bucky; you guys get along pretty well. We could go with him."

"Yeah. I just…how do we deal with Winter?"

"Mister Stark, I've been handler before. It's fine."

"That was a fight, under shitty forced circumstances. Not in your home."

"These circumstances are pretty forced. Mister Stark, really, it'll be fine."

"Peter I don't want-"

"Please?"

"You've got nothing left to bargain with, kid."

"I'll think of something."

"Yeah, good luck." Tony said, ruffling Peter's hair before heading to bed.

Days passed, and on the fourth day, Tony found a piece of paper on the kitchen counter, under his favourite coffee cup.

"That little shit!" Tony shouted, then shouted again when Clint dropped out of a vent. "Stop doing that!"

"What's that?" Clint asked, ignoring Tony's startled expression.

"I…Peter's been trying to convince me of something, and I told him he had no bargaining chips left."

"Oops. What did he do?"

"…Put me down to go to his school, for a meet the parents day."

Clint let a whistle, and grinned at Tony.

"Well?" He asked.

"I have to go, don't I."

"Yep."

"Crap."

"Morning!" Peter said, coming into the kitchen. "See you two later, early start at school. Have a good day!" He said, jumping into the elevator, smirking as the doors shut in front of him.

"Shit." Is all Tony had to say.

He thought over the paper for the entire day. He needed a distraction, and coffee, so later that night he headed to the kitchen for something to snack on, and a hot cup of coffee.

The kitchen was empty.

"Hey Friday, where's Winter?"

"He has gone for a walk. He is attempting to test the orders restricting his movement in regards to Peter's location. He is aware of Peter being in the tower, and is seeing how far he can move his body from Peter."

The walk was quiet; rain was falling gently against his jacket and he was glad it had the hood of soft fabric attached to the collar, to keep his head dry. He passed by a storefront, when a young girl and who he guessed was her friend, a young man, stepped out and ran into him.

The young man stumbled back, and caught the girl, keeping her steady as she readjusted herself.

"Sorry man, didn't see you!" The young man said, letting go of the girl now that she was stable. "Usually quiet here at night, didn't expect anyone to be there; specially not someone the size of a mountain."

"It is fine." Winter said, stepping away to continue his walk.

"Where you headed, darl? You look a little lost." The girl said.

"Just walking."

"Sounds good sweet, if you walk by a place called The Flipside, come in and say hi." She said, smiling at him as the two walked past him, and headed off into the street, chatting to one another. Winter walked for an hour or so, trying to ignore the pulling sensation in his chest.

He needed something else to think about; he needed a distraction. A light above him buzzed gently, and he looked up to see a LED light of a pool table which was upside down; the name The Flipside was scrawled on a heavy wooden sigh hanging above him, on the wall. He took a deep breath, told himself it was a bad idea, then pushed the door open and stepped inside. It was…dark, and loud. Music played from a large stereo in the corner of the dark room, which was filled with tables and chairs to one side, a bar to the other and the middle of the room had a number of pool tables set up. The room was crammed full of people, engaged in lively conversations over drinks or games of pool.

"Heya scary!" A voice came from his side, near the tables and chairs; someone was waving at him, a man with black hair that was cut shaggy, a fringe sitting over his eyes, just enough to obscure them.

"Who are you talking to? Oh!" The young girl beside him asked, then saw who the man was waving at, and joined in, beckoning for him to join them. Again, he told himself it was a bad idea; he did it as he walked over to their table and slid into one of the booth seats, across from them.

"Hey scary, glad you came." The man said, smiling at Winter.

"Don't call him that. God you're rude. Ignore him, darl." She said, smacking the man on the arm, but smiling at Winter. "Drinks either of you?"

"Yeah thanks." The man said, and moved so she could climb out of the seat. "You want anything, scary?"

"Don't drink." Winter said; glad she simply nodded and bounced away from the table, disappearing into the crowd at the bar. She returned a few minutes later with three glasses; the one she sat at her seat was full of something pink, with wedges of fruit on the rim of the glass. She set a glass of something fizzy and clear in front of her friend, then a glass of something dark, almost black, for Winter.

"Got you a coke sweet, in case you wanted something to drink." She said, and climbed back into her spot in the booth seat.

"Hey you two!" A blonde lady said cheerfully, stopping to hug the two people across the table. "You two been good?"

"As ever; heya darl, how are you doing?" The girl asked, smiling at the newcomer.

"Work's killing me slowly but we get a whole new team next week so that'll cut my workload by heaps."

"Oh that's good to hear; enjoy your night hun." The two said goodbyes, waving at each other. The girl took a sip of her drink, but glared at something behind Winter.

"Evening Max, how are you doing?" A man with light red hair asked, stopping at their table. Winter expected the man to reply, and was surprised when the girl shrugged.

"Fine. Busy."

"Who's this?" The man asked, glancing at Winter, before looking back to her. "You got a bodyguard now or something? Bit overkill, huh?"

"You go get shot and tell me if it's overkill." She said, looking at her drink, then moving her eyes back to the man. "He's just someone who decided to join us, we didn't see any reason to say no."

Someone walked past, and dragged the man away, chatting to him with a drink in hand.

"Can't believe he's still hanging around." The young man said, and she shrugged.

"What else is he gonna do?"

"You did not use a name for him."

"Huh?" She asked, looking at him. He wished he hadn't said anything.

"You use names for other people you talk to; terms of affection."

"He's talking about how you talk like an old lady." The young man said, grinning at her.

"I do not!" She snapped at him, smacking his arm again. "I don't mean to, just happens. Habit from work. I can stop, if it bothers you."

Did it bother him?

He was unsure.

"Why did you not use one for the man who was talking to you?"

"I use them for people I like."

"You use them for me."

"Yeah darl, I like you." She said, grinning.

"Why?"

"Dunno, you seem nice." She said, shrugging.

"Scary as fuck though." The man added, nodding intently. She rolled her eyes.

"You said something before, about being shot." Winter said.

"Oh yeah, I got shot a little while ago. Let me tell you; it's no fun."

"I am aware."

"Ah man, that's shit. It sucked; all because of a fucking costume too. That shit cost so much as well." She grumbled, sipping on her drink.

"What costume?"

"Here man, you'll love it." The young man said, holding his phone out, to show Bucky the same picture he had seen on the Target's phone earlier. He stood up suddenly, slamming his hands against the table.

"I need to leave." He said, and climbed out of the booth.

"Hey, wait! What's wrong?" She called out after him, and he could hear movement. He stumbled into the street, needing to get back to the tower, but a flash distracted him. A group was standing in a half circle, surrounding the outer doorway.

"Winter Soldier! What do you say to the accusations you are involved in the recent bombings?"

"Do you have anything to comment on, about the attacks on Tony Stark's life?"

"Does Captain America still feel the same way towards you, knowing your past?"

He stepped back; he wanted to run but he knew that anything that could be seen as an attack would be frowned upon. Someone was behind him suddenly, then in front of him and a cloud of paper exploded; small rectangles of cardboard. Playing cards. He hadn't seen them in a long time. These were much nicer than any he'd had before. He was being pushed, breaking through the wall of people; something smashed behind him, then they turned a corner into an odd little alleyway, with a brick wall at the end, and an old metal staircase going up through it, to a higher street.

"You right darl?" She asked, crouching next to him. When had he sat down? He nodded, but didn't look at her. "Alright. Let's get you home then."

"Home?" He asked, frowning.

"Yeah darl. Or hell, even just somewhere you're happy to wait for a pick up. Can you think of anywhere?"

"Do not know anywhere safe."

"Well, what about a phone number? We can take you to ours so you can wait for a pick up. You got anyone to call?" She asked, as the young man watched the street.

He nodded, and pulled the small black notebook from his jacket pocket. Rogers had left it outside his room, Rogers hadn't pressured him about it; he was thankful for it. He would thank Rogers later.

"Great, come on sweet. My friend makes a great hot chocolate if you want one." She said gently, as he stood up. He nodded, though he was unsure if he wanted a drink. Did he like hot chocolate?

"What broke earlier?" he asked during the walk; he didn't know where they were going.

"A camera." The young man said.

"What broke it?" He asked.

"The ground." She answered, as they came to an apartment building and headed to the third floor.

"Alright, who should we call?"

"Not sure." He answered; who would answer? Would they come get him? He didn't expect so.

"Right then, leave it with me sweetheart; and you can go relax with a hot chocolate, maybe a biscuit if Ma left any for me." She said gently, and he let the young man lead him into the small kitchen, though he made sure to listen to what she was saying on the phone.

"Hello? No I- I'm calling for someone! He's…he seems a bit lost; I'm not sure what his name is, but he was being bothered by some reporters outside a bar when he tried to leave. Yes. Not sure, okay that's fine. Don't know; his prosthetic looks pretty neat, I guessed the reporters were bothering him for information, seeing if it's one of the new Stark ones. Okay, thank you, goodnight." He heard her sigh, and throw something against the couch; maybe a phone.

"How'd it go?" The young man asked as she joined them at the dining table, a cup of hot chocolate for each of them. He liked the drink. He would have to ask computer lady if the coffee machine could make it; then he would figure the machine out.

"Someone's on their way. She didn't seem happy I had the number, but man what a turn around when she knew why I had it." She said, shrugging. "They said it wouldn't be long."

It wasn't; it was only half an hour later when there was a knock at the door. The girl answered it, letting Pepper into the small apartment.

"Alright Scary, home time." The young man said, ducking away as the girl tried to hit him.

"Stop saying that." She hissed, then turned to Pepper. "He's alright, a little confused I guess, probably eager to get home."

"I imagine so. Thank you both so much for your help tonight." Pepper said, smiling weakly at them; she was tired.

"He's got a box of biscuits to take home; my Ma made them, I've only got about four dozen of them, I'm glad he's taking some."

Winter found Pepper, a box in his hands; he looked nervous.

"Fantastic, that'll be my snack for the drive back. Come on, let's get you home." She said gently, and he nodded, following her out. He was nervous, during the drive back, though he couldn't place why.

It was when he saw Tony the next morning in the kitchen, eating one of the biscuits that had been in the box on the counter, that he figured it out. Barnes was meant to meet her; not him. He had seen Tony Stark angry before. He had lived it; would this time be worse?

Brandon and Max are my new favourites and I don't apologise for it at all. I don't have any major plotlines or story bits for them, but they are so much fun to write it's not funny.