"Home."
We hadn't been there in two years, if not a little longer. Sam looked at me, and I knew we felt the same. Going back there would be risky, not that I wanted to go back anyway. Then again, it seemed we were left with little choice. I touched the wound on my face that had yet to heal, and then jumped when Steve squatted in front of me.
"Here," he rumbled, holding a few things.
"Are you okay?" I asked, keeping my voice soft.
"It doesn't matter how I feel," he replied, his voice quiet. "We need to do what needs to be done."
"Of course we do, but only if we're at our best," I offered, and he gave me a slight smirk.
"I'm rubbing off on you," he teased softly, cleaning the blood from the side of my face.
"Great," I grunted dryly, and he smiled again.
The wounds were healing, but the blood was left behind, so he simply cleaned it off the side of my face. I sighed quietly as he worked, closing my eyes as he shifted over my temple and wiped the last of the blood off.
"There, like it never happened," he murmured.
"Thank you," I replied gently.
Over the two years we had been running, the only thing that was real and not in danger was our relationship. If anything, it had grown stronger over the last two years. I knew I was lucky, being as loved as I was. Beside that, the four of us had all grown closer than before. Running did that to people.
"It'll be fine," I rumbled, pressing my forehead against his shoulder. "You might find it easier than you think."
"I hope so," he sighed, and so I leaned back.
He briefly touched my cheek, giving me the affection I was seeking. Even if it was a small gesture, it was good enough. When he stood up and moved to join Sam, I leaned back. Natasha slowly walked over and sat down beside me. She sighed in irritation and rested the back of her head against the metal.
"Well aren't you a ball of sunshine," I mused, and she arched her brow.
"I should hit you for that," she replied easily, and I bumped my shoulder against her.
"I'd have to hit you back," I answered, and she chuckled. "It's only because I love you."
"Oh, yea, that's love," she teased, and I laughed. "You knew this was going to happen..."
"I didn't know...I just had a feeling something bad was coming," I murmured.
"Well...good thing we were close enough when this happened. I've trained you well, paying attention to those instincts," she sighed, giving herself an ego boost.
"Oh, yea keep telling yourself that," I snorted, grinning.
"I will," she managed to smile again, and I leaned against her gently. "I need a drink..."
"Boss would frown upon that," I whispered, and we grinned as Steve looked back with a glare.
"Since when do you listen?" she asked, and I laughed again.
Getting to my feet, I walked over to the fridge on the jet and pulled out a bottle of whiskey. Grabbing some glasses, I poured her a shot, and myself. Wanda arched her brow so I gave her one too. Vision shook his head quietly, so I gave him a gentle look.
"Is the boss too mad to have a drink? And Sam, I don't know if it's okay to drink and fly," I muse, glancing their way.
"You two…." Steve grunted, as Sam instantly put the jet on autopilot.
"Gotta grab the peace before the war," I said, pouring them some as well. "I have to make sure all of you don't brood. Remember?"
I made everyone on the jet snort with laughter, as we lifted our glasses and took the drink.
"She's right….this is probably the only chance we'll get," Sam sighed, glancing at Steve.
"I know," he rumbled, his shoulders a little tense. "Do you need a thank you?"
"Nah," I grinned. "I got you to drink on the job, I'm good."
He elbowed me in the side, making me grunt, but I didn't shove him back. It was going to be a long flight, so after we shared a drink, I retreated to the back of the jet and laid on the bench. So many hours had been spent on this plane sleeping.
By the time we made it to the facility it was sometime in the afternoon. I had slept for a few hours, before Steve woke me up with a hand on my shoulder. He had woken me just before we had landed. Being back here was strange, and I knew that everyone felt the same way.
"Come on," Sam sighed, after we landed.
He helped Vision to his feet, and we were walking into the facility we had once called home. I followed alongside Wanda as we walked in to where Rhodey was talking to the Secretary of Defense. I hated that man. It was a good thing that he was a hologram, or whatever they called it. Rhodey looked over the same time Ross did. I watched the fury ripple across Ross's expression and I almost smiled.
"Mr. Secretary," Steve greeted, his voice calm.
"You got some nerve," Ross grunted. "I'll give you that."
"You could use some of that right now," Natasha replied, giving him a look that could kill.
"The world's on fire. And you think all is forgiven?" Ross asked, looking at us.
"I'm not looking for forgiveness, and I'm way past asking permission," Steve replied, flat. "Earth just lost her best defender. So we're here to fight. And if you wanna stand in our way...we'll fight you too."
Ross stared icily at Steve, and glanced at us before turning around and looking at Rhodey. "Arrest them," he growled.
"All over it," Rhodey nodded, and effectively swiped the meeting away. There was a beep, and he glanced up. "That's a court-martial. It's great to see you, Cap."
"You too, Rhodey," Steve replied, all the tension draining from him as he shook his friend's hand.
Natasha walked over, and they exchanged a hug before shifting backward. Rhodey smiled back at me, so I slowly walked forward.
"Glad to see you alive," he murmured, hugging me.
"Glad to see you walking," I whispered, and he smiled.
He sighed a little, and glanced over all of us. "Wow...you guys really look like crap. Must have been a rough couple of years."
"Yeah, well the hotels weren't exactly five star," Sam replied, a smile on his face.
"Uh...I think you look great."
At the sound of Bruce's voice, we all turned slightly in surprise. Even though he had called Steve, I had not expected to see him here. I glanced at Steve quickly, to see him relax a little.
"Uh...yea...I'm back," Bruce smiled, weakly.
"Hi Bruce," Natasha said, unable to say anything else.
"Nat..." he replied, and we all fell silent for a moment.
"Well...this is awkward," I heard Sam whisper.
"Come on," Rhodey gestured, and we followed him into the office.
I followed last, watching as Vision walked quietly to go lean against the window. Steve shifted just slightly when I glanced at him, and I looked out the window again. I didn't like being back here. Even though we were safe, I didn't feel like it. That was probably because of the fight that was about to come.
"So we got to assume they're coming back, right?" Rhodey asked.
"And they can clearly find us," Wanda murmured.
"We need all hands on deck, where's Clint?" Bruce asked.
"After the whole Accords situation, he and Scott took a deal. It was too tough on their families, they're on house arrest," Natasha replied.
"Who's Scott?" Bruce asked, blinking.
"Ant Man," Steve replied.
"There's an Ant Man and a Spiderman?" Bruce demanded, and grunted. "Ok look, Thanos has the biggest army in the universe...and he is not going to stop until he gets...Vision's stone."
"Well then we have to protect it," Natasha nodded, and we all agreed with that.
"No, we have to destroy it," Vision countered. "I've been giving a good deal of thought about this entity in my head. About its nature. But also its composition. I think if it were exposed to a sufficiently powerful energy source, something very similar to its own signature, perhaps its molecular integrity could fail."
As he spoke, he approached Wanda quietly, and she gave him a distraught look. She then glared at him.
"Yea, and you with it," she replied. "We're not having this conversation."
"Eliminating the stone is the only way to be certain that Thanos can't get it," Vision murmured.
Beside me, Steve took a breath and I saw several things go through his expression. Well...his eyes. I was shocked to even hear Vision suggest giving up his life for this. Tensing a little, Steve listened quietly, and I put my hand on his back without being seen.
"That's too high a price," Wanda replied, shaking her head as Vision cupped her cheeks.
"Only you have the power to pay it," he whispered, and she yanked smoothly away from him. "Thanos threatens half the universe. One life cannot stand in the way of defeating him."
Steve shook his head and looked down from that, and he glanced at me for just a second. "But it should," he said, and shook his head again. "We don't trade lives, Vision."
"Captain, 70 years ago you laid down your life to save how many millions of people?" Vision asked, turning toward him. "Tell me, why is this any different?"
"Because….you might have a choice," Bruce countered, when Steve didn't answer right away. "Your mind is made up of a complex construct of overlays. Jarvis, Ultron, Tony, me, the stone. All of them mixed together, all of them learning from one another."
"You're saying Vision isn't just the stone?" Wanda asked.
"I'm saying that if we take out the stone, there's a whole lot of Vision left," Bruce replied, looking at her. "Perhaps...the best parts."
"Can we do that?" Natasha asked.
"Not me...not here," Bruce sighed, glancing down.
"Well then you better find someone, and fast," Rhodey nodded. "Because Ross isn't going to let you guys have your old rooms back."
I knew where we could take him, and as Steve shifted I knew that he was thinking the same thing. He let out a soft sight and nodded toward me quietly when we made eye contact.
"I know somewhere," he rumbled.