Author's Note: Marvel owns what it owns, and I own what I own, let's keep it that way, shall we? Don't Sue me!

TW: for mentioned death.

Recommended Listening: Dreams by The Cranberries; Sitting in Limbo by Jimmy Clif


Chapter 42: A Journey Through The Stars

It was New Year's Eve, and it had been a few days since she'd fallen asleep during Gone With the Wind. She'd been embarrassed, but Barnes had been kind enough to wake her for the dramatic last line and had made her a cup of coffee before walking her home.

He'd insisted, of course, that he couldn't 'have you staggering around the Wakandan countryside half asleep in the middle of the night.'

She'd protested feebly, but ultimately he'd prevailed and had walked her all the way home.

He'd sent her a text when he'd made it back, and that was the last time she'd heard from him. It had been radio silence, and Maggie wasn't sure if she should be concerned. She hoped he was okay, or at the very least, being kind to himself. She'd thought about reaching out to him today, considering it was the last day of Hanukah and New Year's Eve.

Maggie had been so close to texting him that she'd typed out the message and had nearly sent it before deleting the damn thing. If he wanted her around, he'd reach out to her.

Yes, but you want him around.

Yes. She did. But she'd decided when she'd first come to Wakanda that she was going to let Barnes set the parameters of their relationship, whatever it was, and so she'd refrain from texting or calling him.

They'd been working on drills again today. She'd tried her best to focus, but all she could think about was being thrown, and what could happen. She'd been around horses all of her life, long enough to know what exactly the worst-case scenario. Jelani had taken notice, and then taken pity, giving her the rest of the day off. She'd decided to go into town to do some shopping and walk through a few of the Royal Wakandan museums. Do anything to distract or get her out of her head.

Maggie adjusted her bag on her shoulder and sighed, trying to ease some of the tension in her chest. Her eyes darted up and down the busy streets.

Easier said than done.

Coming into town was stressful. It was intimidating, and people starred. Not that she blamed them. She was an outsider, and her Wakandan wasn't for shit. They were kind enough to correct her pronunciation and likely overcharged her because she couldn't haggle regardless of what language she was speaking.

Even more than that, Maggie didn't like crowds, and while she knew Wakanda wasn't Juarez, there was still that edge of anxiety as she waited for something to go wrong.

She'd been on edge all week. Falling off Skywalker had done that to her. Barnes and his shitty day had actually helped distract her from what she was feeling and thinking. Not exactly the best coping mechanism, but it had done in a pinch.

But she knew she couldn't continue to rely upon Barnes's various crises to distract her from what her trauma was doing, which is why she was here in the market, buying odds and ends, and this and that. She'd even purchased herself a journal. Whether or not she'd use it was a different story, but she figured, perhaps in vain, that it was indeed the thought that counted.

On top of day time anxiety, Maggie hadn't been sleeping well, her mind occupied with well, with everything. Barnes, being thrown from the horse, memories of Juarez, memories of the house fire. It hadn't been a good time, and now she was looking for a distraction

"Funny running into you here."

Maggie whirled around to see none another than James Barnes, a few feet behind her. "Hey." She forced a quick smile. "It is a funny coincidence. What are you doing here?"

"Brain checkup with the Princess." He shrugged, "What about you?"

"Oh, you know. Feeling a little stir crazy. Asked Jelani for the day off. I was just doing a little shopping. Then I was going to walk through the Royal Museum. I've heard they have an excellent Astronomy and Space exploration exhibit." She said as lightly as she could manage.

"Sounds like a full day."

"Yeah. Something like that." She nodded with a short sigh. "Everything's good with you, though, right?" Maggie winced internally at the edge in her voice. Was it too eager? Too obvious? I mean, they were talking about his brain here. That wasn't something to be dealt with lightly.

"Yes. Usual appointment." He said as if sensing her uncertainty.

"Oh. Usual appointment. That's good." She practically stammered.

What is wrong with you? Why are you acting so weird? She silently scolded herself.

"Yeah." Barnes agreed. "How long are you in town?"

"Oh. Well. I'm more or less done with my shopping and was going to head over to the museum here in a few minutes. How about you?"

"My appointment is in half an hour, but it shouldn't take to long."

"Would you like to join me after? It seems like it's your type of thing." Maggie rushed like if she didn't get all the words out, he might turn and leave, and she wouldn't get another chance.

"My type of thing?" He echoed.

Shit. Had she overstepped? Her mind raced as she examined his expression for context clues. Much to her surprise, rather than angry or reserved, he looked relaxed. His hair was pulled back in half up, half down, and he was wearing a more traditional Wakandan style shirt and pants, with his usual scarf. He was at ease. Everything about him was soft lines. "Yeah." She continued, uncertainly. "You know, science, technology. Nerd Stuff." She tossed in at the end for good measure.

"Nerd stuff." He chuckled, shaking his head. "You have spent too much time around Steve and Becca."

"I've spent a fair bit of time around you too, James Barnes. I can certify that you're a nerd too." She smiled again, but this time it came a little bit easier for her.

Barnes nodded, "I can meet you after. You headed over now?"

"Yeah." She replied.

"It's in the same building as the laboratory." There was a hesitance to his expression before he asked. "Do you mind if I walk with you?"

"No. Not at all. I wouldn't mind the company. Just let me pay for my stuff, and we'll be on our way." Maggie said as she removed her wallet from her bag.

Before she could turn to the shop keeper, Barnes had slipped between them and was talking in quick Wakandan, negotiating the price, before he slid the appropriate coinage across the counter.

"Barnes. You didn't have to do that." Maggie stammered, collecting her things as they started walking.

"No." He agreed, nodding. "I didn't."

"But?" Maggie led.

At this again, he paused, "I never did say thank you. For helping me the other day."

"Of course. I meant to ask, how's your hand and arm?"

"Good. They're good."

"I'm glad to hear."

"You didn't have to do that, you know." He continued after a moment.

"Do what?"

"Patching me up, yet again."

"I wasn't just going to stand there and watch you bleed."

"I mean," He began again, haltingly. "I wouldn't have been able to clean and dress my wound if you hadn't been there." He admitted.

Ah. Maggie nodded. She knew he was fishing, that he was looking for some sort of reaction. She wasn't sure what she was feeling, never mind what he was expecting her to say. But he did expect some kind of reaction. He'd expected some kind of reaction when they'd been at the falls, and then she was reasonably sure he'd expected her to coddle him when he'd cut himself.

She really didn't know what he wanted her to say. He hadn't her given her much to go on if he did. 'Let him set the parameters of the relationship,' that's what she'd told herself, and so if he wanted to talk about it, he'd have to do more than just drop hints.

"You're resourceful. I have no doubt you would've figured something out, James Barnes." She managed finally.

There was a pause as he looked her over. "You know that you can just call me Bucky if you'd like, doll."

He tensed as soon as he'd said it, and she couldn't help but smile. "If I do, will you stop calling me doll?" She laughed. "You can call me Maggie if you like, although it doesn't have the same ring."

"Now you're just making fun of me."

"Come on, Barnes, this is the 21st century!"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

Maggie opened her mouth but found that a blush had started to rise on her cheeks. Women like a man who doesn't take himself too seriously. Is what she was going to say. And she had no reason why she shouldn't, but the way Barnes was looking at her, combined with the rising blush, she found that she couldn't quite form the words.

"Is this about how the nature of women and men has changed since I've been out of the world?" he asked, raising a playfully skeptical eyebrow.

"No." She shook her head. "No. I was simply going to say, don't take yourself too seriously."

"Uh, huh."

"What?"

"You weren't actually going to say that, were you?"

Was the lie that obvious? She couldn't quite tell, but now she had to either lie some more or find a way to say what she was going to say. "No," Maggie said slowly. "I was, frankly, getting ready to be quite heteronormative, and I was a little embarrassed at myself."

"Ah," he answered shortly. "Well, now, I'm curious."

She took a deep breath but was cut off before she could answer. "You don't have to say it, if you don't want to, Ramirez."

Maggie glanced up at him. There was a faint hint of a satisfied smile on his face. Not that he was mocking her per-say, but that he was thoroughly enjoying this entire exchange, which by all accounts, was a good thing. "Don't you mean doll?"

"Would you prefer that over Ramirez?"

"As I said, Maggie is perfectly fine."

"All right, all right. Maggie." He said, pronouncing her name first name with care, as if afraid if it was mishandled, it might break.

Much to her embarrassment, her stomach fluttered. She chewed on the corner of her mouth, trying to clamp the feeling down, she charged on, "It's the 21st century Barnes, women like a man who doesn't take himself too seriously."

A thoughtful expression crossed over his face, and he nodded. "Not the most heteronormative thing I've ever heard." He chuckled. "Does it apply to men as well? Do men like men who don't take themselves too seriously? Or women for that matter?"

Maggie exhaled slightly, adjusting her bag again. "Well, as far as men liking men is concerned, you'd have to ask Steve or Sam about all of that."

"It is good to know how men and women fit into the equation in this modern world of yours." He said with not too much sarcasm.

"Modern world of mine?" She echoed. "I don't think I can take that much credit for things."

"Well, you are a millennial."

"Oh. Getting into some generational warfare are we, Bucky Barnes?" She raised an eyebrow. "And how, dare I ask, are we doing, seeing as you're the poster boy of The Greatest Generation."

"Me?" Bucky snorted, shaking his head. "You're talking to the wrong person." He paused as they reached the lobby of the massive Royal Laboratory, stopping outside the doors. He glanced around before leveling his watchful gaze. "But I think if you were to ask Steve. I think he'd say that you kids are doing all right."

"But I didn't ask Steve, did I?" Now she knew she was being coy, but she wanted to hear what he had to say. Particularly as a representative of the so-called "greatest generation."

"No." He agreed. "But unfortunately, I have an appointment to get to."

"Right. You do." She nodded, doing her best to quell her disappointment, but he wasn't wrong. He did have his appointment to get to. "Meet you down here in an hour?"

"Sure. I'll see you then!"

"Good luck!"

Bucky paused, surveying her, an odd expression passing only momentarily over his face. "Thanks. You too."

Maggie watched as he walked to the lift that would take him to the laboratory. You can call me Bucky if you'd like, doll.

She couldn't help but smile as she glanced down at the fabric he'd bought for her. She'd have to make him something out of the scraps if there was anything left after she made a dress for herself.

What the afternoon held in store for her, for them, she didn't know, but she was glad. Glad he was here, glad that she wasn't alone, that she and Bucky were together, here, now.


It had been a strange day already, and Bucky felt slightly lightheaded as he entered the laboratory where the Princess was waiting for him.

"Hey, White boy! Right on time." She called playfully. "You know the drill, up on the table." They moved in silent unison in their familiar routine.

The Princess started the scan as usual, and he could feel his mind raced. It had been a surprise running into Ramirez...Maggie. He hadn't seen her since they'd watched 'Gone With the Wind.' He'd wanted to reach out, wanted to ask her over for dinner again. He'd perfected his latke recipe in the meantime, and he owed her dinner—a real dinner, one that didn't involve her patching him up.

When he'd seen her today, in the market, she'd looked...well upset wasn't quite the right word for it, but there was an edge to her. But she had laughed and smiled at him and had seemed perfectly cordial. Seemed, of course, being the operative word. What had happened since the last time they'd seen each other? Had he done something to upset her? He hadn't seen her. How could he have upset her?

She had invited him to go to the museum with him. She'd been under no obligation to do that. So it was logical that she wanted him around. Right?

"So any plans for tonight?"

"Pardon?" He stammered, glancing up at her through the holographic displays as she worked.

"It's the News Years, and I believe the last day of Hanukkah for you. Any big plans?"

"Oh. Magg-Ramirez and I are going to the Wakandan Royal Museum this afternoon." Bucky answered truthfully. Silently kicking himself for tripping up and almost using her first name, which would likely lead to merciless teasing from the Princess.

"Again?" The Princess asked.

"Yes. Again." Bucky winced. He hadn't mentioned it to Maggie, but he'd first been to the museum shortly after he'd been pulled from cryo. He'd sort of wandered into the museum in between the various scans and tests. He'd spent hours going through the museum that first day, and since then, he'd been back two or three times, usually just after his scans.

"I take it, Ms. Ramirez doesn't know?" The Princess commented, a knowing tone in her voice.

"She didn't ask."

"Did you invite her, or did she invite you?"

"Does it matter?"

"Well, certainly, it would determine whether or not it's a date."

Bucky rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "No. It's not a date."

"So. She asked you." The Princess practically giggled. "It's good. You two spending time together. Social interaction, it's good for you. What does she like?"

"What do you mean?"

"It means what it means, what does she like? What are you two going to see in our museum today?"

Bucky had to stop himself from sighing. Of course. Of course, the Princess was going to get involved. I shouldn't have mentioned anything. But there wasn't any shame in it, in them spending time together. He enjoyed her company. So he trudged on. "I think she wanted to see the Astronomy and Space exploration exhibits."

"You'll have to take her into the planetarium."

Bucky paused, thinking back to that time that he'd found her in the field. She'd talked about being unable to sleep and wanting to stargaze. "Yeah. I think she'd like that." He hesitated, licking his lips. "Does the planetarium...does it have a set...program?" He asked slowly.

"No. Why?" She leaned into his field of vision just enough to where he could see her forehead and eyes.

Bucky sighed, rolling his eyes, bobbing his head in a conciliatory gesture. "She mentioned that she liked stargazing." He said shortly, leaving out how he'd gathered that information.

In his defense, that had been purely accidental and hadn't happened again. Although he would be a liar if he didn't admit, at least to himself, that the thought had occurred to him to walk over one of his many sleepless nights to see if he'd find her out there again.

A huge grin spread over The Princess's face.

"Why do I feel like I've missed something?" He asked uncertainly.

"Not at all. I'll have to give you the override code, so Ms. Ramirez can stargaze wherever her heart desires," She said, her hands manipulating the holographic readout. "Your brain looks good, White boy. I'll have you out of here in a moment so you can get to your date with Magdalene."

Not a date. He would've quipped back, but he knew that she was playing the role of the younger sibling spectacularly, and any response on his part would only provide fuel to that particular fire.

Instead, he just listened as she started humming something that vaguely resembled a Disney song.

The Princess finished up her work, gave him the override, and sent him on his way. His mind was still spinning. He was still concerned about her, and now The Princess had put it into his head that what they were doing was considered a "date." They were acquaintances, friends, if even. It wasn't a date. They were just spending time together doing something they both enjoyed. Oh, shi-

"Hey, Bucky!" Ramirez's voice interrupted his thoughts, and he found her sitting on a bench outside the main entrance to the museum waving him over, the museum map spread across her lap.

"You didn't wait on me, did you?" He asked as he approached.

"Oh. No. I went through most of the history wing. I figured I'd come out here and wait for you, so you didn't have to track me down." She said, standing up and adjusting the strap to her bag. "Good appointment?"

"Yeah. Everything looks good."

"Wrinkly and fatty?" She inquired with a quick smile.

"So far as I'm aware."

"Good good. So, where do you wanna start?"

"Pardon?"

"Well, as you're the science nerd between the two of us."

"Thanks for that," He snorted.

"Come on, Barnes. You spent your last night stateside at a science expo. That's absolutely prime nerd activity."

"Okay, yes, what's your point? Other than making fun of me."

"I'm not making fun. I'm just curious. What bit's your favorite? So I know where we should start in the science and technology wing. So come on science nerd, what's your favorite?" She laughed.

"Technological innovations and engineering." He said shortly.

"Awesome. Sounds good. It's right near the front of that wing anyway." Ram-Maggie said. "Shall we?"

"After you."

They walked side by side through a few of the exhibits before she spoke again. "So why technology and engineering?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, what sparks your interest?"

"Oh. Umm. I mean. What isn't interesting about computers, flying cars, electric machines to wash and dry your clothes for you or do the dishes? I always wanted to figure out how they worked and how such technology could make our lives better."

He winced as he heard the sickening sincerity in his voice. He believed it, and he meant it. It just sounded so very naive, and he braced himself, waiting for her to laugh at him.

Instead, she just nodded thoughtfully, "That makes sense to me."

"It does?" His disbelief was palpable.

"Well, sure. Better living through technology. Certainly, a product of the era you were born and raised. In the same way that I came of age where we were all fairly convinced that technology was going to destroy us all."

You're welcome for that. He would've said had he felt up to it. It had been rattling around in his brain since she'd asked how he'd thought her generation was doing as the "poster boy" for the greatest generation. If he was the "poster boy" for the Greatest Generation, then it was a pretty damning indictment of what his generation has accomplished. After all, he'd shaped the century, as Pierce had so often remarked. He'd murdered, infiltrated, assassinated, and sabotaged to create the conditions for the Cold War, its proxy wars, and much much more.

"You all right there, Barnes?" Ramirez asked.

"Yeah. Got lost in my head a bit." He managed, lamely. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

"You enjoy walking around museums all day. I'd say that qualifies you as a bit of a nerd."

"Oh. No. Absolutely. Although, I'm far less interested in what could be loosely classified as the 'hard sciences.' I enjoy my social sciences and humanities. I like figuring out how people work."

"Hence your fascination with me?" He commented, perhaps a little more unkindly than he'd intended.

To her credit, she shook her head and snorted. "No, Bucky Barnes, believe it or not, I enjoy your company. You're not one of my social science projects, and I'm very glad about that."

"Why's that?"

She looked up at him, her brow wrinkled in confusion. "I'd much rather have you as a friend than a client."

"Oh."

Ramirez...Maggie smiled before returning her attention to the next exhibit as they entered the medical technology and innovations wing.

They walked through in silence, reading each of the little cards, which had been conveniently translated into a number of languages. Bucky could feel his heart pounding in his throat as they approached a case of prosthetic limbs. He and the Princess had sat and talked multiple times in front of that case. Talked about his options, talked about all that Wakandan technology could do for him, talked about the inevitable. Dread set in as she moved closer to the case, her brows furrowed, and focused on one of the artifacts, an impressive articulating prosthesis from the 18th century, made of steel and vibranium.

Here we go. She's going to ask. He wasn't entirely quite sure if he wanted her to ask about his prosthesis (and lack thereof) or not, or if it was just the anticipation of her asking was what was putting him entirely on edge.

"Hmm." She murmured more to herself than the room at large. "Better living through technology." She muttered before looking back down at the map of the exhibit halls.

No questions came.

Say something. Why won't you say something?

He wanted her to ask, wanted her to say something. It would relieve the pressure, relieve the unknown. The silence grew and swelled and expanded between them until it rose like a buzzing in his ears, crackling with energy until it neared a deafening roar. "You haven't asked." He blurted out.

"Asked what?"

What did she mean asked what? Bucky couldn't believe it. How did she not know what he was talking about? But he was the one who wanted answers, and so he pressed onward. "Why the Wakandans haven't given me a new one." He said, hoping to clarify things a bit.

"Oh." She said shortly, as she turned to face him. "No. I guess I haven't." There was a hesitance in her voice before she continued. "I figured you had your reasons, but that it really wasn't any of my business."

"But you must be curious." He continued as they moved to the next display. "After everything you've seen and heard, and read...well?" Bucky felt stupid as he spoke, but he needed to know.

"Well. I guess I should say this upfront." She said, picking out her words deliberately. "I'm not ignoring your disability. I'm trying to give you the space and dignity of deciding when and how you want or need accommodation, or when and how you want to talk about...well, everything. You don't need me, or anyone else, for that matter ogling or asking invasive and tremendously personal questions just because you're very clearly missing a limb."

"So, you do have questions."

"Well. Yes."

But you're going to let me talk about it when I wanna talk about it.

It only made sense, considering her background. "I forget you're a therapist."

"Well, these days, I'm mostly a beautiful dame. I do my best to keep my therapist voice out of it. It's not what you signed up for."

No. It wasn't. But it still surprised him how she approached things, how she was doing her best not to ogle or make him uncomfortable. "So, what do you want to know?" He was going to push her. Just a bit. Not because he could, but because he wanted to know what she thought, what she thought of all of it. After all, she had spent two years researching him.

"What do you want to share with me?"

Yet again, she was going to let him guide the discussion. He'd just assumed she had a laundry list of questions. Bucky paused, licking his lips.

What did he want to share?

"You were right about nearly all of it. You knew more than I certainly ever did while I was with Hydra." He admitted slowly. "You asked me about feeling in the prosthesis. Back on your ranch."

"Yeah." She nodded, urging him on.

"It wasn't sensation, per-say. It was more like knowing where it was, what it was doing, how much pressure was being exerted, size shape, weight, rather than texture or temperature."

Ramirez...Maggie nodded. "How'd my repair hold up?"

"Good, it was good." Up until the moment Stark blew the arm off. He didn't say it. "The stab wound healed up nicely as well. No infection or problems."

"That's good. I'm glad." She hesitated.

Ahh, okay, here it comes.

"How are your pain levels now that you aren't dragging that thing around?" She practically spat.

The anger and bitterness she said it with him took him aback. She knew what they'd done to him. She'd seen it in Hydra's files. He knew that she knew, and now knowing what he knew about her, it shouldn't surprise him that she'd be angry about that particular detail of his medical history. And yet the vitriol she'd compressed into a single syllable was shocking.

Of all the things to ask, all the personal, probing questions, she asks about my pain level. It was

"Better. Much better." He answered, honestly. "Whatever they did to me gave me back and shoulder problems, but now that the weight isn't there anymore, it hurts far less."

She winced, but nodded, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Good. That's really all that matters."

Bucky hesitated, "you didn't tell Steve or Romanoff about what you found, did you? Medically I mean."

"I didn't. It felt invasive and not at all related to trying to find you. I wrote out what I knew so you'd know, but I figured you'd tell Steve, Nat, or whoever what you wanted them to know when you had a chance to make that decision for yourself." She paused, glancing up at him. "Plus, between you and me, Steve was looking like a kicked puppy as it was. I didn't want to personally contribute to any of that."

Bucky nodded, "Yeah, that makes sense."

"Why? What happened?" She asked, her eyes searching his expression.

"He uhhh, had some particular prosthesis related questions, shortly after Stark blew it off," He admitted, feeling as if he was snitching on the other man. Still, she'd asked a completely fair and honest question, and so he'd give her an equally straightforward answer.

"Oh. Sorry. I guess I should've given him the talk." Ramirez admitted sheepishly.

"The talk?" He echoed.

"Yeah, The talk. That it's generally not polite to ask how you lost it, did it hurt, and are you getting another one. It's a lot like asking veterans if they'd killed anyone."

"Yeah. That's a stupid question."

"Yeah, it is." She nodded, trailing off as she glanced back toward the case. "Better living through technology." She scoffed, shaking her head. "I saw some of what they did to you, and I can only imagine the type of pain you were in hauling that horrible piece of tech around with you. After all that, I imagine you have a variety of reasons to not want a prosthesis." Ram-Maggie glanced up at him. "But it's none of my business to ask, nor are you obligated, required, or expected to give me, Steve, or anyone else your reasoning. In the same way that you're not obligated, required, or expected to explain why you might want one again. But, as I said before, I'm not ignoring your disability. I am aware you're missing a limb and that it wasn't a particularly pleasant situation for you either time. I just want to give you the dignity of choice."

Choice. He could feel a lump form in his throat at the very idea. Choice. "Thank you...Thank you, Maggie." He managed after a moment.

For what? She was going to say.

"It really is you I should be thanking, Bucky Barnes."

"For what?" He spluttered before he could stop himself.

"You've been incredibly gracious and forgiving when you really have no reason to be as far as how much information I have on you rattling around in my head. Never mind in relation to what I did, or a didn't share with your various significant others."

He hesitated. Had he been gracious and forgiving? He'd sort of resigned himself to the fact that there were people out there who knew more about him and what had happened to him than he did. The fact that Ramirez...Maggie had been conscientious about how his information had been collected, stored, and disseminated had been surprising, and he hadn't given it much thought this way or that.

"You did the best you could in a shitty situation and were very thoughtful in how you tried to regulate and protect my information. That's really all I could ask."

She nodded shyly. "I do my best."

But her best, Bucky couldn't help but observe, was far and away better than any of them would've managed. She'd carried all that information around in her head and hadn't told anyone else. Furthermore, she'd handed over all that information the moment they'd come into proximity and had given him complete and total control of the ways that they discussed that information. He wasn't sure he could exercise the same amount of self-control, or that he was deserving of such a display of kind thoughtfulness after everything that had happened to her because of him.

"Are we ready to go to the next exhibit?" She asked brightly.

"Yeah." He nodded. "Can I see the map?"

"Sure." She said, their fingertips brushing as she passed it to him.

They made eye contact a moment, and Maggie cracked a small smile, the tips of her ears going pink. "Thanks," He mumbled as he broke her gaze and looked down at the paper map. It was all a show, of course, he knew what he was looking for, but he couldn't tell her that.

"No problem." She cleared her throat. "So what are you thinking? I'm open to anything, now that we've gotten through most of the Wakandan technology and engineering." She commented as she craned her neck to look over his shoulder at the map.

"The Princess mentioned a planetarium," Bucky answered his eyes, scanning the now very crumpled paper.

"Oh. Yeah. I was looking for that." She said brightly.

"Would you like to go there next?" He glanced up at her.

"Yeah. Sure. I mean. I mean, if you want." Maggie stammered.

"Then let's go." He mentioned with his head.

"Okay." She nodded, "I follow your lead."

"That could be dangerous." He commented wryly as they started the winding path through the museum. "I could step on your toes."

Maggie chuckled. "Well, luckily for you, I'm wearing boots."

"Well, with any luck, that won't be necessary." He commented as they came to the planetarium. Grabbing the door, he held it open for her and filed in after. Blinking as his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he watched her closely as they entered the darkened space, her face tilting upward, expression transforming in wonder.

She sighed, almost wistfully, releasing the tension in her shoulders.

It was a remarkable change. Watching as she walked into the center of the room, Bucky couldn't help but notice the smile that spread across her face. "We can change the coordinates if you'd like." He said in low tones after a moment, almost sad to break the silence and draw her attention away from the display above.

Her head snapped to where he was standing, eyes wide. "Really? I mean, you think they'd let us?"

"The Princess gave me the access code to the controls. So I'm pretty sure." He said.

"I mean. If you don't mind."

"Not at all." Bucky shook his head.

Without further prompting, she bounded over to the controls, turning to watch as he trailed behind. He typed in the authorization and stepped aside so she could type in the new coordinates. Glancing up, he watched as the stars shifted, before watching as she drifted to the center of the room, her neck craned, looking up.

Standing there a moment, she sunk to the floor, a grin spread across her lips and her pure delight filling every inch of her face. "Join me?" She asked, turning her head only momentarily to meet his gaze.

"Sure." He replied, walking over to where she was sitting and sat down to her left, and watched as she leaned back on the floor, her face illuminated in the dim light of the display.

"Do you know them?" He asked, watching as she gazed upward.

"Some." She answered, eyes scanning the fake night sky. "There." She pointed. "That's Ursa Major."

Bucky followed where she was pointing. "I don't see it." He said, squinting.

"You're going to have to layback to see where I'm pointing."

He looked down at her, his brain working to come up with some sort of witty comeback, but faltered at the earnest expression on her face. "Alright," Bucky said, as he lay down on the floor beside her, shoulder to shoulder. "Show me."

"There." She motioned with her pointer finger. "That cluster of stars. That's the Ursa Major."

"Uh, Huh." Bucky nodded.

"And then there is Leo Minor and Leo major." She made a motion with her pointer finger.

"Right."

Maggie glanced over at him, "You still have no idea what I'm talking about." It was an absolute statement of fact.

"Correct."

"You mean to tell me that you've never star gazed, James Barnes?" She asked, total disbelief in her voice.

"Can't say that I have." He paused.

Liar.

He'd star gazed with Steve when they were out in the field with the howling commandos, too wired to sleep. So they'd just held hands and watched the night sky, ears trained for the enemy. Then there had also been a few times he could remember, when he was the Soldier, looking up at the sky on clear moonless nights with Nat while on a mission, where they'd been taken, if only momentarily, by the beauty of the night sky. It had been a very long time since he'd just looked up at the sky just to look up.

"I know the North Star. But that was mostly for navigation, in the era before GPS and satellites."

She gave a small nod, "Give me your hand. " She said so softly that Bucky was almost sure that he'd imagined it.

"What?" He stammered.

"I wanna show you." Maggie motioned with her chin up toward the ceiling.

"All right." He extended his hand to her.

Gently she wrapped her thumb, middle, ring, and pinky finger around his right wrist, doing her best to align her pointer finger with his, "All right, bear with me a moment." She said, adjusting her position where she was pressed flush against him. "Comfortable?" She looked over at him with a small smile.

"As much as anyone can be laying on the ground." He answered with a wry smile.

"Okay. Well. Let me show you." She chuckled, the noise was small but hummed in her chest, and the vibrations spread into his own.

Clearing her throat, she began, using their pointer fingers like a gun sight and very carefully traced each constellation in the hemisphere, only pausing to ask if he could see it, or if he had questions. Bucky could, of course, see each of the constellations, but he found he was far more interested in how her face seemed to positively glow as she spoke in the dim light, talking about what each star formation was and what time of the year they could be best seen.

"What?"

"Huh?" He stammered, her voice pulling him back.

"You're starring. Where did I lose you?" She asked.

"Oh. No. You didn't." He shook his head. "It's just." He faltered.

"What?"

"How do you know all this stuff?"

"Oh." She breathed as if relived that was his question. "West Texas is nothing but flat and dry, which means a lot of open sky. That and my family used to go out to the McDonald's observatory in the Davis Mountains when I was little. My brother loved it. He'd drag me out of bed in the early hours of dawn to watch meteor showers."

"Your brother Antonio."

"Yeah, Toni." She nodded. "Before Toni died, we used to go camping for two weeks every Christmas break and just sit out under the stars by the fire. Toni knew all the constellations and where the planets were depending on the time of year." Ramirez shook her head. "God, it's been forever since I've thought about those camping trips."

Her brother, during his research, Bucky, had read that he'd died when she was ten. He'd never figured out what had happened, but he could imagine it had been traumatic. Bucky could tell just by how she talked about him the admiration and love that she still felt for him, all these years later. Was that how Becca had talked about him? "What happened to him?" The question slipped out before he could stop it, and he winced.

"It's okay. It was a long time ago." She said slowly. "He was killed in a freak accident. Trying to break a horse," She said. It was all fact, not a hint of emotion in her voice. "He was seventeen and my hero, I guess in the way big brothers normally are. Now that I think back on it, he never should've been allowed to get up on that horse, but my dad and granddad thought he was ready and so they let him. I was sitting by the fence, watching when it happened. The horse threw him, and when he hit the ground..." Maggie winced, shaking her head. "I knew immediately what had happened. I tried to get into the enclosure, but my Aunt Gloria dragged me into the house. They were trying to protect me. They didn't want me to see the body. But I just remember screaming Toni's name." She paused, trying to swallow the lump in her throat. "The other day, when I was thrown, it brought what happened to Toni back. After that happened to him, I didn't go near horses or any of it for years." She chuckled weakly. "So. Uhh. I can positively say that neither of us was having a good day the other day."

"Yeah. I think that's an accurate summary." Bucky nodded, silently astounded.

She trusts me. He realized. She trusted him not only not to hurt her as they lay there in the dark but also enough to tell him something that had obviously been and was still in many ways very painful for her.

Bucky paused, glancing down, he found that she was still holding onto his wrist. She didn't have a tight grip. He could've easily pulled away. What surprised him was that he didn't mind and was actually savoring the contact between them. Her hand was callused, but her grip was gentle. Did she realize she was still holding onto his wrist? Or had his question taken her far beyond the fake night sky.

"I think we should do a re-do."

"Re-do?" She echoed.

"Well, you said it yourself. Neither of us was having a good day last time we had dinner and a movie. Tonight is the last night of Hanukkah, and by my count, New Year's Eve. If you don't have any other plans, I'd like to make dinner for you."

Maggie turned her head to him, cracking a small, nearly fragile smile. "I'd like that, Bucky."

Bucky looked back up at the ceiling and the starry scene swirling over him. A year ago, he'd been in Romania, hauling cinderblocks up the stairs. A year ago, he'd discovered she was alive when he'd seen her in the photograph in his youngest sister's obituary. A year ago, he was on the run, alone, and in pain, and had been content to be so. He'd had no idea what awaited him, or what he was going to endure. In a thousand years, he never would've imagined he would be laying side by side with the woman whose life he'd so completely and utterly ruined, stargazing and talking about having dinner.

A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. It was inappropriate and stupid, and she'd probably roll her eyes at him, but it was to good an opportunity to pass up. "Well then," He said slowly, turning his head to meet her gaze. "Here's looking at you, kid."

Sure enough, she rolled her eyes, pulling her hand away to brush hair out of her face, but her smile widened as she shook her head. "You're a cheeseball, Barnes." Maggie chuckled as she pushed herself into a seated position. "But thank you."

"For being a cheeseball?" He raised an eyebrow as he sat up beside her.

"Getting the access codes from The Princess. Listening to me ramble on about my childhood, my dead brother, and the stars." She replied.

Bucky paused. "For being a friend?" He offered after a moment.

"Yeah. For being my friend." She agreed. "Now come on. We have the rest of the museum to see, and items for dinner to acquire." She rose to her feet and extended her hand to him.

He took it, and she helped him to his feet. They changed the coordinates back and left the planetarium in silence. Following her blinking out into the comparatively bright light of the museum, Bucky trailed behind her as she led them from room to room, chatting excitedly about each of the exhibits.

If this was a sign of things to come, and Bucky hoped they were, 2017 was going to be a much better year than 2016. That was something to celebrate, and he was going to celebrate it with a friend. He was going to celebrate with her.


A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Thanks to those of you who are leaving reviews, it really means a lot, and I appreciate hearing how the story makes you feel/impacts you!

Until next time! Happy Reading!