Disclaimer: I don't own anything Marvel.

Dedication: Long live the kind of Wakanda.


Chapter 37

Political Asylum

To say nothing was good the several hours following Steve and Bucky's departure was an understatement. Rhodey had been kept in his armor for the majority of his exam in the field because Tony had a way of making sure it wouldn't move to risk shifting him with a broken neck or back, or possibly both. It was helping keep him alive. Once he was stable enough, the team - or what was left of it - flew back to the Avengers Compound in New York.

He was finally getting checked out by their medical staff. They knew some information, but not too much at the moment. He'd shattered his L4 through his S1 with extreme lacerations to his spinal cord. If he was lucky, he'd be able to move some parts of him, but he was most likely looking at some form of paralysis.

Sam, Wanda, Clint, and Scott were all taken into custody and shipped off to a prison Anna wasn't at liberty to know the location of. She'd tried to reassure Sam, and Vision, that neither of them were at fault for what had happened to Rhodey, but it was clear neither of them were listening to her words. They went in one ear and out the other.

Statements and paperwork were done on the flight back home for the most part, at least for Anna. Tony was hovering too closely to Rhodey. Vision was sulking alone in a corner, eyes never leaving the injured man. Nat was trying to distance herself after it was revealed that she'd allowed the others to escape. Peter was hanging back with Anna. He didn't want to be stuck in the tense air of the other room with everyone else. And Natasha seemed to make him nervous.

Once back at the compound, though, there was more work to be done. There were so many statements and reports that had to be done for Secretary Ross. Peter was overwhelmed. Anna, having done most of her work beforehand on the flight, had managed to run into Natasha before she went to get herself cleaned up.

"Thank you," she said, first and foremost.

"I know," Nat said. "This just all got so…"

"I know," Anna said, taking her words. "I feel like if it had been up to the two of us, we would've been able to solve this way before all of this happened."

"Seems to me you already had most of it figured out," Nat said, raising a brow. "Especially since you sent Rey with them. You tried to tell us about the other agents, and everything, but we just wouldn't listen. Now we're paying the price for it."

"I'm sorry," she said. "I tried to talk T'Challa out of it, but he's...beyond reason right now."

"Grief does that to a person," she answered. "I'll be in touch."

"You better," Anna said. "What use are these untraceable glasses if I can't use them to talk to my friends on the run?"

Nat rolled her eyes, but there was a small smirk gracing her lips. "Take care of yourself, Anna. And take care of them. They need it. More than they'll admit."


The news that Tony and T'Challa had gotten a hold of Zemo in Siberia, while Steve and Bucky disappeared after an epic (though not exactly a good sort of epic) battle with Tony, left Anna feeling conflicted. One one had, clearly she was happy that T'Challa hadn't killed her husband that was being framed for the death of the royals father. The man was in custody now in the very same type of contraption Bucky had been held in. The truth was out there, but that didn't mean the manhunt was over. People still wanted Bucky's head on a platter.

That was what was on the other hand. Bucky and Steve were now on the run, just like Natasha. They broke the Accords. And even though Anna had as well, the only people that were aware of her treason were unwilling to turn her in. So while the others were on the run, she was free.

There was clearly suspicion from Tony's Team on Anna's involvement, but nobody was voicing their thoughts to her. They wouldn't dare. At least, not at the present moment. Not after Tony turned up in an awful state. It was even more clear how Tony was feeling. He was completely ignoring Anna, so obviously thought she had something to do with all this. But he had to have suspected before too, so why was he acting this way now?

It wasn't until later that evening, after Tony had gotten patched up and gotten done with his meetings that Anna managed to stop him in the hall while he was on his way to his room to make some calls to see how Rhodey was doing.

"Hey, Tony, you okay? What the hell happened?" Anna asked. "I thought you were going up there because you knew it was Zemo."

Tony ignored her as he continued to head to his room.

The cold shoulder, really? Anna thought, following on his heels. "Tony, seriously, what's going on?"

Tony stopped on a dime and turned to her, his expression both cold, and hot at the same time. Cold because of the way he was looking at her, and hot because it was evident he was in a rage beyond all comparison to how she'd ever seen him. Anna's steps faltered. The last time she saw a look like that in his eyes was when he'd found out she was working for SHIELD and had been spying on him.

"Don't play dumb," Tony spat. "You knew, didn't you! Of course you knew, Steve knew. You're his wife." The word wife came out completely disgusted. "You sent Rey out there to protect him so I wouldn't do anything to him because of it. It's so obvious."

"Tony, what the hell!" Anna snapped back. "What are you talking about!?"

"He killed my parents!" Tony yelled, his face as red as a tomato. "It wasn't a car accident. He ran them off the road and killed them!"

Anna's heart sank. Anna knew there was a chance, back when she'd read over all the files she needed for her undercover work for Tony, that it wasn't an accident. She hadn't had high enough clearance for the photos and all the reports on the "accident" but with how big of celeb Howard was, and Maria for that matter, it wasn't a surprise. Not that the thought of Bucky killing their friend, charismatic, flirtatious, brilliant Howard Stark didn't rattle her.

"He shot my dad." Tony went on to Anna's horror. "And he strangled my mom."

"I didn't know," Anna muttered.

"And Steve knew! How could you not know! He's your husband. You've always been on their side, Anna. Always. I'm not surprised you turned on us. You're lucky nobody's turned you into Ross."

"Tony!" Anna shouted to snap him out of his rant, tears welling in her eyes. "I didn't know."

Tony deflated a bit, leaning back against the hallway wall. He ran his hands over his face. It was evident he was exhausted. He needed to put his arm back in its sling, and he really should've been on bedrest. Tony was never one for following the rules though. Maybe Pepper would be able to get him to stop for just a little bit.

"I…" Anna started, but trailed off. What was there to really say? "I'm so sorry, Tony. I know nothing I say or do can really make up for what's happened. But I didn't know."

"Doesn't mean I don't still want him dead," Tony said, refusing to look at Anna. He knew what he was saying, and he knew their relationship. He was essentially saying he wanted to murder his son-in-law.

"I know how you feel, Tony. I wanted the people that killed my parents dead too, but whether or not they are doesn't change the fact that they're gone. Bucky did it, but it was out of his control."

"That's utter bullshit," Tony answered. "He did it. Doesn't matter who gave the order."

"Then I should be in prison too," Anna said. "Because if Bucky is at fault for what he did after having been tortured and having his mind erased, then I'm at fault for what I did when under Loki's control."

"That's not the s-"

"Just, think about it," Anna said, interrupting what she knew he was going to say. "Do you hold it against me that Bucky's the one that killed them?"

Tony took a deep breath as he seemed to think about that. "I don't know." Honesty. It was clear Tony was feeling so many emotions right then that he might not have really been fully aware of how he was feeling about something so specific.

"Just really think about what I said before you push me out of your life, alright?" Anna said. "We've come so far, after what I did. I don't think I'd be able to handle you throwing me out of it again. So, please?"

Anna was essentially begging Tony not to shut her out again. She really didn't think that she'd be able to continue working with the Avengers if Tony cut her out of his life again. She had been in painful situations for more of her life than she could remember, but this was one thing she really didn't think she could handle putting herself through.

He debated with himself for a moment before he nodded, finally looking back at the young girl. "I hate this. All of it."

"Me too," Anna said, moving closer to Tony. She hugged him, something he didn't really expect to get from her after she'd found out he had tried to kill the man she loved. "I love you, Tony. Always will. And I'll always be here when you need me. Okay? Don't forget that."


There had been so much going on that Anna missed seeing Peter off. The main reason for missing her opportunity to talk to the young man was because of a phone call from an unknown number. It was Steve telling her that he'd be in New York City to pick her up to take her to Wakanda with T'Challa, Rey, and Bucky.

That was big news to her. That was really all she got from the call though. It was kept short and sweet. She still had a few hours before she was to be picked up at the old Avengers Tower, so with her bag packed, Anna headed to Queens for one last task.

It was how she found herself standing outside the creme colored door waiting for an answer after having knocked. It was getting rather late, so it was a long shot on if there would actually be an answer, but Peter had only gotten home a short time before her, so the changes of May and Peter Parker being still awake was pretty decent. After all, Anna bet Peter was going to tell May all about how exciting his trip was.

A tall woman wearing a pretty black blouse and extremely long brown hair answered the door, removing her glasses so that her deep, warm brown eyes could look at the woman before her without any barriers. She smiled softly, but confused as to why there was a visitor at such a late hour in the evening. "Hi, may I help you?"

"You must be Mrs. Parker," Anna said, holding out her hand. "My name is Anna Barnes. I was wondering if I could speak to Peter for a moment."

"May I ask in regards to what?" May asked, crossing her arms protectively.

"Anna?"

May turned at the sound of Peter's voice, allowing Anna to see past her to the boy that was standing across the apartment with an ice pack in his hands. He was standing in a red Midtown High sweatshirt and jeans, fuzzy socks on his feet. Anna smiled at him from the doorway.

"You know her, Peter?" May asked.

"Yeah, she uh, is Mr. Starks daughter," Peter answered, but then crunched his nose. He wasn't pleased with his answer. "Ward? Employee?"

Anna chuckled. "We could go with D. All of the above. I was with Peter this weekend at the Internship Retreat. I was hoping to have a few moments with him to talk about some of the finer details that I didn't get to discuss with him before he left. I was in the neighborhood anyway."

May smiled and nodded. "Thank you for coming. Can I get you anything to eat? Drink?"

"Oh, no," Anna said. "That's very kind, but I'm alright. Thank you."

"We can talk in my room," Peter said, showing her the way to the small blue bedroom where he'd come out from.

"You're Aunt is very sweet," Anna said, taking a seat on the bed next to Peter.

"Yeah, she's the best," Peter said. "Is something wrong? I mean, Mr. Stark just dropped me off. Wait, you guys aren't changing your minds, are you?"

"No, no," Anna said. "Nothing's wrong. I just wanted to come by and thank you for helping, and to make sure you're okay. How are you feeling?" Anna asked, reaching forward to gently check on how he eye was doing.

"I'm okay," he answered, a faint blush on his cheeks at the pretty girl checking on him. Her concern was touching. "And, uh, thanks for not saying anything to May about, you know what…"

Anna smiled. "I grew up a spy," she said. "I know when someone wants to keep a secret. Just consider filling her in eventually. A secret like this can rip people apart in more ways than one. I don't want to see that happen to you two."

"Was that the only reason you came all the way here for?" Peter asked.

"There's a lot I want to say," Anna said. "Firstly, I want you to know if you ever need anything, please don't be afraid to call. I know Happy is your guy, but he's not the only one you have in your corner." Anna reached into her pocket to pull out a card with her number. "For anything; to talk, for help, girl advice, though I'm pretty sure you don't need my help with homework, that too. I never even ended up graduating from Midtown. Got my GED not too long ago."

"Wait, you went to Midtown?" Peter asked.

"Yeah, really didn't fit in there though. Math, science, tech are so not my thing," Anna said. "I left to work full time at SHIELD. And even though that was the right choice for me, I just wanted to make sure this is really what you want to do. With great power comes great responsibility."

"I told Mr. Stark that when you can do what I can, and you don't and then bad things happen that you could've stopped, that's on you. I just want to be able to help those that need it," Peter explained. "I mean, if you don't stand for something, what do you fall for?"

"Did you just quote Hamilton to me?" Anna asked.

"Maybe," Peter muttered embarrassed.

"Clearly you don't want to waste your shot," Anna said, muttering back with a smirk. "I just wanted to be sure you knew what you were getting into. There's always going to be things you could've done differently, people you couldn't save, things you weren't there to help with. You're going to regret things, and it'll eat you up. It's hard to get through it, but you're not alone. And I don't want you to ever feel like you have to do it by yourself. So, if you need anything at all…"

"I'll call," Peter said, nodding.

Anna stood up off the bed and put her hand on Peter's shoulder. "You're a good guy, Peter Parker. You make one hell of a hero."


The Wakandan plane was so high tech that Anna couldn't even really recognize any of the mechanics inside. If she ever had to fly the thing from inside she would never be able to if she didn't have hours upon hours of extensive training. Once they'd taken off nobody seemed to be even flying the plane.

T'Challa greeted Anna and led her inside. "I would like to apologize to you for everything that has happened in regards to my actions," he said. "I was rash, overcome with grief and wanted vengeance for my father that I did not stop to consider. There may have been something further to consider."

"It takes a big man to admit when he's made a mistake," Anna said. "And an even bigger one to apologize for it. Thank you."

"We are headed to Wakanda to help heal your friend and your husband," T'Challa said. "We are offering Sergeant Barnes Political Asylum. He has a place in Wakanda for as long as he wishes, as do all of the members of Captain Rogers teams."

"All of whom are in prison," Anna said.

"They may not be for long."

"You're breaking them out?" Anna asked. "Won't that cause more bad press for all of us? Not that I'm saying they deserve to be there, or that I don't want them out, but-"

"Captain Rogers will do what he pleases," T'Challa interjected. "As you well know. I have no part in what he may do next for his comrades. I suggest you allow him to do this on his own, as you have avoided suspicion for aiding the Captain and your husband."

"So you're taking me to Wakanda?" Anna asked.

"Yes," he said. "So you may reunite properly with your husband."

Anna nodded. "Thank you."

She was truly grateful, but there was still so much uncertainty about what was going to happen next.


So we have a bit more of alone time with Peter, and we also know where Anna is headed off to next.

Thanks to the following for their review on the previous chapter:

SomebodyWhoCares - I know, i always felt so bad for Sam in that scene. It wasn't his fault, and it wasn't really Vision's either.