The lake house was expansive but, although few mourners still occupied the spaces after the service, it seemed claustrophobic. Steve took a walk past the gardens and picnic tables to clear his head and clarify what exactly had passed in the previous 48 hours. His wounds from Thanos ached still. With a sigh he found himself in the middle of the verdant woods, bird song his only companion.

"Come out from your hidey hole, Bucky." he said over his shoulder.

The dark shadow of the former Winter Soldier appeared from behind a tree. "For an old shell-shocked guy, you have pretty good ears."

"I always know when I'm being tailed. Especially from you."

"How touching."

"Well, when you spent the better part of your life following me around, you get used to it."

Bucky smirked and stood next to his friend, in the woods, a soft sigh of wind brushing the tops of the trees. The earth smelled of fresh and summer, such a counterpoint to the dust and evil that had surrounded them only a few days ago.

They stood for a long while, simply gazing into the green, taking in the serenity of the moment. Steve was the first to break the silence.

"What was it like, Buck?"

"Whad'ya mean?"

"Did you feel anything during the snap? Did you…. Suffer?" Steve looked at him, his eyes worried.

Bucky inhaled and thought for a moment, "No. I don't remember much. Just one minute I was there, and then not." He swallowed, "It sure wasn't Heaven, but it wasn't Hell either. It was… nothing."

Steve blinked, a tear flicking from his eyelashes. "I'm sorry that happened to you."

Bucky gave a dry chuckle, "It's not like you knew I was marked half off discount."

Steve smiled weakly in response. Bucky always had a joke when he was down.

"You know, you gotta go back."

Steve glanced at his shoes in the new summer undergrowth of trillium above last year's fallen leaves; an ironic counterpoint to what they had just been through. He missed what Bucky really meant. "I'm going to put the stones back, of course."

"Steve, have you thought about what you would do? Could do?" Bucky suggested softly with hope.

"Whad'ya mean?"

Bucky's eyes looked slightly mischievous and simultaneously infinitely sad. "Don't just return the stones- you can have a life."

Steve looked at him as if he was just sucker punched. He was not prepared for the depth of that thought.

Bucky turned to face his best friend, "Think about it, Steve. You can go back, put the stones back, and start a new timeline with Peggy. You can have the life you never had! How many people get a chance to really do it all over again?"

The mere suggestion of a 'normal' life made his knees go weak but then he steeled himself and crushed that glimmer of hope, "But I have to come back here, or the timeline will be disrupted."

"Well, no kidding, genius. Everybody knows that. But think about it Steve. You can put the stones back, hang around a while, get your girl and just hope you outlive that crazy strong dame that never looked twice at me."

Steve colored a bit when Bucky referenced Peggy's strength but then narrowed his eyes, "Why are you bringing this up?"

"I'm your best bud, Steve. I want the best for you."

Steve maintained his silence, his mind thinking hard.

"Rogers- how much of your life have you devoted to the safety of the world?" Before Steve could answer, Bucky interrupted him, "All of it, Steve. All your life you have sacrificed for the nation, the world, for… me." Bucky's throat bobbed.

"But Buck-"

"No. No butts! You have America's ass, remember?"

Rogers rolled his eyes and then became more revenant, "Stark told you that before …. We lost him?"

"I may have heard it from a certain furry creature cyborg raccoon." Bucky smiled, "But joking aside, you deserve it so much more than anyone I know. Here's your good deed, your gold medal, your 'thank you' from the Universe or whatever you want to call it."

"But what about you?"

Bucky looked at him surprised, "Me?"

Steve became slightly frustrated at Bucky's ambivalence, "If I go back, I can fix your life too. If I go back, I can find you, free you from Hydra and let you have a life too."

Barnes looked sad in a way that had only come to him after being freed from Hydra, "No, Steve, you can't."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm still here in this timeline. The other Bucky in the splinter line wouldn't know what a real jackass you are. It be wasted on him. He is not me." Barnes sighed and adjusted his posture, "Anyway, anything you change in the past doesn't really change the future… well… the now, I guess. It just makes a new timeline. So, I won't even notice a thing."

Steve looked crushed not being able to truly fix seventy years of suffering. Bucky lightly punched him in the shoulder. "C'mon punk. Chin up! You know I'm right."

"I guess."

"Say you'll do it. Please."

"Then who gets my shield when I come back a real geezer?"

Bucky got quiet.

"You want it?"

Barnes's eyes widened in horror, "No. Absolutely not."

"Why not?"

"I am not worthy."

"This isn't Moljinr we're talking about here."

"Yeah. It wouldn't feel right Steve. I killed the man who made that shield. I worked for seventy years against what that shield represents. I can't take it. I'm not the right guy."

"I think you'd be a great Cap." Steve said warmly. "You're selfless and dedicated."

"I'm stained, Steve." His eyes glimmered a hint of bitter tears. "No. No thank you." Bucky said remorsefully. Rogers gave his shoulder a supportive nudge. "But I know who you have to give it to. Sam is the next in line. The guy is a giant pain in my ass and a total jerk, but his heart is in the right place. He's a lot like you." Bucky's tone was gruff but respectful.

"What if he doesn't want it?"

"Why wouldn't he?"

Rogers looked at Bucky once again glad to have his guidance and support and nodded. "I do have something for you, though."

Bucky looked at him as Steve reached into his inner coat pocket and pulled out a small notebook. Barnes twitched- it reminded him of all the notebooks he filled with the memories he recaptured after escaping from Hydra.

"You ok?"

"Yeah." Bucky lied, "What's that?"

"When I came out of the ice, 70 years ago, Nick Fury told me a lot has changed. So, I wrote it down- all the things I missed while I was a capcicle." Steve's eyes were a mixture of mirth and sadness because some of those things he finally experienced with were gone, like the discotheque he and Natasha went to one night and all the Star Wars movies that Tony binge watched once at the Avengers tower. He had insisted they start with the fourth one. "And I want you do have this so you can catch up too." He handed the dogeared notebook to him and Barnes took it.

Flipping it open, he saw foods that he'd never eaten, music he missed and historical events, all written neatly Steve's clean script. Each one had a simple line through them. He had crossed all his "To Do's" out despite saving the world multiple times.

"You'll really love Marvin Gaye- Trouble Man. Great album. Sam introduced me to that." Steve suggested enthusiastically.

"Thanks Steve." Bucky wasn't sure what else to say as he looked over all things he had missed too; things that Hydra had taken away from him with everything else.

A moment of quiet passed between the two as they both contemplated the great depth of their conversation.

"I'm going to miss you." Bucky's eyes got shiny; his voice quiet.

"You'll be fine." Steve said confidently.

"You will come back old. I'm going to outlive you in the here and now."

The realization hit Rogers like a ton of bricks. He felt suddenly breathless.

"But it's ok. We'll be ok." Bucky reassured him and his own self, giving Steve's arm a brotherly squeeze.

Steve looked down at his feet again and then to Bucky, eyes full of unshed tears.

"I'll miss you too, punk."

"Jerk." The men opened their arms into a brotherly hug. Above them the birds continued to sing and the trees sigh.

Steve knew what he had to do. He had a late dance to make up.