Bucky was her favorite, it's official. Seal of approval, ten out of ten. Sure, maybe it tended to flip flop with varying degrees when I would be feeling ever so slightly petty but generally things tended to stay mostly the same. Bucky got me food, without me having to ask! How freaking awesome is this dude?

Yeah, he was trying to be distracting with the whole being kidnapped thing, he hadn't yet once asked about it even though we've been driving for about ten hours. It was actually disconcerting, Dad would have demanded answers before I even got into the car so the silence was...interesting.

"Why haven't you started the Spanish Inquisition yet?" I wasn't trying to demand answers myself, the air in the car was incredibly relaxed. It was almost as if we could pretend that they were out on a road trip going camping. The radio was playing softly in the background, more or less just white noise from how quiet it was. The middle console held the remains of their meal, including the cup of root beer that I actually should be finishing before the ice melts and makes it watery.

"Wasn't as high on my list of priorities, if you want to tell me you can tell me. I do want to look closer at those wounds on your arms." He glowered at the reminder of them, eyes glinting like steel for a miniscule second before relaxing once more.

"Those happened in the explosion, well mostly," I amended my statement, "the big one on my arm was from them removing the watch." I was surprised when he nodded.

"I know the watch was removed, it made me think you were dead. Up until I found you and was following at a distance." He changed lanes before continuing, "He's not the only one who's connected to that thing."

I snickered, "Are you two ever going to get along?"

"We do enough, we share a goal and that is all that is needed." This time he clipped the response, letting me know not to press the issue further. And boy oh boy oh BOY is that literally the hardest thing in the goddamn world. I don't know how I'm managing to keep a lid on it all, if only because my natural instinct is to pick at things until I get to what I'm looking for.

So, I went for the easiest way to change the tone of the moment, "I got accused of being a terrorist." Sure enough, he at first sighed into his free hand before being taken over by throaty chuckles at the reminder of what I said in New Mexico. He was trying SO hard not to laugh, bless.

"You wouldn't say it that way if you didn't mean it literally, so what did you do?" Now I kind of blushed, this guy was literally the best of the very best at taking down people in power and being an assassin, seems a little odd to be regaling the tales quite like this.

"I uh… may or may not, uh erm well…" My face was heating further but somehow I mumbled out the rest, "Created a chemical bomb and launched a cyber attack on the base."

"You what?!"

"Allegedly!" I said hoping that it would save me from a lecture...or three...dozen.

"What made you think it was a good idea to do that?" Oh here we go.

"Ah ah ah! Allegedly," Man I was really in the doghouse now. It was clear distraction plans were out what with him quickly spending more time glaring at me over looking out at the road. If it was Dad I would have been kind of terrified, but Bucky being a super soldier meant I could trust his reflexes to at least not get me killed...hopefully.

"Don't you use that 'allegedly' bullshit with me young lady," Shit, "that may fly with your Dad but that certainly doesn't with me."

I rolled my eyes with a groan, "How long until we get to New York again?"

Of course he managed to overhear that, bloody stupid superhearing. "That depends, I can make it go a lot longer. It can even seem like you will be stuck here having to listen to this, forever." Now I was glowering directly at him, using the energy to personify as the storm cloud emoji. "Yeah, not going to work on me rugrat. Knew a stubborn piece of stupid who could pull it off much better than you ever could, and even then it didn't work."

"Are we just going to write off the fact that I was kidnapped?" I said exasperated with my hands flying up in my frustration. "I think it's a perfectly good excuse to blow something up! And as for the digital attack," I pouted trying not to be cowed under his expression, "they deserved it. Gave me a Fig Newton bar." Bucky pinched at the bridge of his nose, and was silent yet hilariously tense, "What are you doing?"

"Counting to ten, Pepper suggested it, it's not working. I'm mostly trying to figure out who I pissed off to have deserved this."

Now I shrugged, "Preaching to the choir, I also managed to get an actual god, alien thingie look at me as if someone just walked over his grave." Looking at him inquisitively I asked, "Are you counting again?"

"Mhm, only higher."

Rolling my eyes I scoffed at the dramatics, "Oh I am not that bad! There are literally so many ways I could make everyone's lives a complete and utter misery." At the deadly serious expression I was QUICK to hop lanes, "Which I totally would never ever do because I choose life."

He nodded with satisfaction and things were quiet for a while, I almost thought he was going to let the whole thing go after lecturing me for a while. "I'm still going to tell Pepper."

"Oh come on!"

I.F.I.F.I.F.

"Honestly I'm confused as to why we need to go all the way to New York," I grumbled from the backseat where I was sprawled out not quite tired enough to have a nap.

"Oh usual reasons, your Dad's in trouble and it will only get solved once everyone is involved and has to get their hands dirty." At the reminder of Dad my thoughts went back to the watch, the missing weight was actually weirding me out. Then my eyes opened wide in a flash along with a gasp.

"Buck? Please help me keep him from putting a subdermal chip in me. He will immediately jump to literally the most extreme solution possible."

He was silent for only a moment before saying, "Yeah that does sound like something he would do wouldn't he?"

"Seriously? Is that ALL you have to say regarding that?!"

"Yup, just about. Certainly would make all our lives easier with it not being able to be removed, might even tell him to have it placed in a bone. Good idea kid!" The only sound that followed was the smack of my palm hitting my forehead and a groan of annoyance. "Traitor."

I.F.I.F.I.F

Have you ever been in a car for like thirty hours? You can only sleep for so much of it to kill some of the time but the rest you had to spend spinning your wheels. I hated car rides, when you have a private jet that cuts the time exponentially you kind of only want to use cars for immediate distances.

I was avoiding bothering Bucky further by complaining about how bored I happened to be, more than a little worried he would actually make due on his threat of making the ride longer. I would hate to have to attempt to kill him over something so stupid.

Frankly the problem was just I kind of was flying blind, how could Dad still be in trouble if whats his face was dead? Because he was the one who upgraded Hammer's really shitty tech that was going to go off the rails once the expo started. God my brain hurts.

I.F.I.F.I.F

It was night when we FINALLY got to the expo centre, seeing it was enough for me to just about throw myself from the car and kiss the ground for joy...almost. There wasn't anything that could quite get me to do that myself. Someone else could, I just wouldn't, the ground is nasty.

It was difficult paying literally any attention to what I was supposed to be, i.e. the upcoming showdown that was possible. The cause of my distraction? I'm in New York! Broadway and musical theatre central! Oh my god this was literally my dramatic self's idea of paradise.

With Bucky it was easy to get away with singing musicals that haven't come out yet, he wouldn't know any better because he hasn't gotten past the seventies music wise. Plus being in a world before the new musical upheaval is literally the worst...who was I kidding there are so many ways things could be worse.

"We're in New York, Broadway is just down that street...and we are going to an expo that is most likely going to get blown up." I scoffed while staring longingly towards the lights, craning my head the further onwards we drove.

"Aren't you actually in theatre Anika? Broadway isn't that special."

"I'm going to pretend you didn't say that, you may be Brooklyn born n' raised, but that doesn't give you a freebie to diss the gods."

"Why are you so weird?" He sounded exhausted, another sin to tally on my back. He's done nothing but get me home each time I was taken, and he's treated no better than a nanny.

"Sorry, Bucky."

"For what? Being yourself?" Ouch, deserved but still just fricken ouch. I had no real response to that one, I knew I was an asshole and any further apologies wouldn't actually have any meaning to them. Mostly because changing myself would be a bit difficult, rather set in my ways being mentally an adult still no matter how much I seemed to be losing it. I've been noticing it more and more with the time shorter between each episode. I never wanted to pay attention to it because...it scared me. I keep losing my grip on the reality that I wasn't a seven year old, slipping into thinking my body was supposed to be this way and that I didn't have moments where...I forget. Moments where ridiculous small details that I knew perfectly, ingrained into my memory just over two years ago, were completely forgotten.

Frankly I was...terrified. Well and truly terrified over what else I am going to forget. It could be anything from little future events, changes caused already notwithstanding, or hell even the big one itself! What if I forget and he...no, not an option. I suddenly blanched feeling all the color drain from my face which I already did not quite have enough to lose any more. I was forgetting my family, my actual family on the outside. I already couldn't remember any names of my extended family, what would be next? I, I can't forget my mom. I can't! This entire thing, it just wasn't natural this was something that seemed as nefarious as using my death to pull me from my world into this one.

Something was making me forget, little by little, piece by piece, any memory which wasn't suitable has been slowly taken away. Whatever did it was smart it took me a ridiculously long time to notice, everyone's memories fade with time so if it was slow enough I wouldn't have noticed it. Had I been less aware I would never have noticed until all my memories were well and gone in the garbage can. Now the problem, I can't keep a digital log Dad WILL find it and that would be, like, super duper bad. Can't keep it written down anywhere hard copies can be lost, stolen, destroyed, tampered with, etc. Stuck between a rock and a hard place where both ends have sharp points that are Problems with a capital P.

These Problems with a capital P, however, would have to wait. We had just arrived at the expo and something was wrong. Hammer was still showing a thing and wasn't called off, Vanco was still alive.

"Showtime?" I asked Bucky when he parked the car.

"Showtime."

I kind of expected for us to go in all sneaky spy like, through some back entrance or another. A bit of cinematic quality if you will. Instead he seemed to be feeling rather boring today. When I commented on this he just snorted, "You just escaped from a spy organisation, by yourself, while exploding things and committing espionage yourself at seven. One would think you've had enough spy work for one week."

I...actually didn't have a witty response and just allowed him to plunk a plastic child Iron Man mask over my face. He was using the power of multiple faces to fool the human eye, which I'll give it to him it always works. In crowds faces become meaningless, much like when you repeat a word over and over until it doesn't even sound like a word anymore.

Bucky lifted me up to be upon his hip, specifically his right as his habits never really seemed to die. I could just barely see how he was scanning the area for familiar faces, be it friend or foe, through the holes of the mask. They really muddled with my depth perception; it was quite disorienting.

"I see you've got an Iron Man fan as well," a rather happy sounding male's voice came from beside us. Bucky didn't startle, yet he still was surprised to be addressed. "Ours is obsessed with him, always tinkering away. Practicing to become an engineer or scientist some day, how about yours?" He was a middle aged man, looked like he had at least some Italian heritage if I were to pander a wild ass guess. I could just about make out a woman next to him, who must be the other in the 'ours' thing. She was holding the hand of a boy who looked to be round my height.

"She's smart, knows all sorts of sciencey stuff. Though she is much more passionate about musical theatre. Just don't ask her about Cats." Bucky gruffed out yet still managed to beam a tad if I was hearing right.

"How old's your daughter?" The other man asked with a grin, "My nephew, Peter, is going to be eight in August."

Now Bucky flinched, which set off all sorts of weird radars and red alerts in my brain. What the hell, why was that the thing to make him react? "Also eight, only December."

The jovial man guffawed, "What are the chances? I'm Ben, this is my wife May and as I've mentioned my nephew Peter."

Now, THAT was enough to have me ripping my mask off just to see uninhibited exactly what was going on because like what Ben said what were the chances?! Sure enough, May was right there where I at least knew what she looked like. Ben looked like a real nice man, such a family going nice guy.

"Bucky, this is Anika."

"Have to say haven't heard of anyone called 'Bucky' in a long time. Brooklyn?"

"Off my middle name, family thing." Bucky waved it off, which I found quite amusing. I jerked my leg slightly wanting to be on my own feet.

"Down?" I asked hopefully.

"What kind of a way to ask is that?" Man...I have got a comically short fuse. Holding back the acidic words I levelled him with a dirty look, that was hidden by the way I held the mask between my face and the Parkers. "Well?"

"Опусти меня." 'Put me down', sure seemed simple enough of a request.

"Это не то, как мы говорим, и вы это знаете." 'That's not how we say it and you know it', he responded with a tone that was fit to match the twin movements of his eyebrows going up to his hairline.

"Это унизительно!" 'This is demeaning', we were hissing back in a rather short lived argument that rather well matched a mayfly. Besides, the Parkers were watching us with nothing short of a raised brow giving me little wiggle room except to fold. "Please." I gritted out the word, it felt as if dirt were on my tongue from having to give up my end of it.

True to his word he placed me on my feet, I wanted to talk to Peter and get a read on him. He was going to be important, not just to everyone else but what I was interested in was how he was going to be important to Dad. That warranted my meddling...right?

A/N

Hello hello, how are you all hello again. How are you holding up with covid? I've got loads of writing ahead of me with all this new free time so more chapters to come. Also! For anyone who is interested and has not seen it I have started a Doctor Who story as well under 'What a Wonderful World'. Anyhoo, much love from me, comments, questions, concerns? See you all in the next one.

P.S. To that one anonymous reader. The enshielf sooth is neith'r simple n'r gross in sense. Yet in death all answ'rs can beest hath found…;)