A/N: This is going to span the three days Banner and Stark work on Ultron.

Avengers: Age of Ultron | Saviors | You are not Alone

The next day, Avery finds herself in Central Park - she sits on the grass, her arms wrapped around her legs as they tuck themselves against her chest. Her fingers fiddle with the grass threads she has previously ripped up from the ground while gazing at the lake that makes her feel peaceful, she wants some clarity and time away from the tower after technically coming back from the dead.

Central Park is still as lively and populated as last time, kids are running around to avoid a dog from catching up to them and couples are just holding hands with joyful smiles. She envies them, something she and Winter also have in common. The Winter Soldier sometimes hates being the odd one out, the one who will never get any of this - but she's a trained, soulless killer so all in all, she doesn't have it as a priority.

A footstep on the crunchy part of the grass sounds. "Can I sit?" A voice asks her, a female one. And when Ava looks behind and up, she sees Natasha standing there with a small bag and wearing normal public clothing rather than her usual spy gear. Natasha wears a small smile, but there's slight hesitation in it - like she doesn't know if this is a good idea or not.

Ava doesn't say anything, other than nodding mutely. She turns back around to the lake, staring at it once again. Natalia Romanova, the little redhead she nearly and unsuccessfully tried to save from the hands of the KGB. "What are you doing here, Natalia?" She says softly, too tired to try and fight to just be alone. She knows Natasha would try and find her after the news of the memories returning, the little redhead is one of many things she tried to direct down another path. And again, she failed to save the child - she always fails it seems.

Natasha can't help but flinch a little at her old name, the one she made sure to change as soon as she could. She sits next to the dark-haired woman. Her past isn't a bright one, and it isn't one any child would want. So she puts on a smile, trying to block away the memories momentarily. "I brought lunch," she says, opening up the little bag she has with her. "You've been here for nearly five hours and I know for a fact that you didn't have breakfast." She holds out a chicken Caesar wrap, one that is handmade from the grocers down the street.

Avery turns to her, frowning, not stopping herself from looking confused. She slowly grabs the wrap from the redhead, accepting the food gratefully. "Thank you," she begins on a good note. "But that's not why you're here." Knowing all too well.

Natasha sighs. "You're right," she nods, putting the bag down next to her. She's now sitting cross-legged near Ava, not too close but not too far so she can be heard. "I'll get straight to the point. Supposedly you have all your memories back, so, tell me, what the hell happened 15 years ago?" Ava can sense anger in the words, almost the same display for when Winter met all the Avengers together - she understands the well-deserved anger. Avery would have been confused if there wasn't. To Natasha, who doesn't know all the facts, it probably seems like she was left on purpose and if Madame B had anything to say about it, she would have made sure that's what Natalia's thoughts were left with.

Avery lets out a steady breath, slowly. The memory starts to come back to her, it was one of the ones that plagued her the most.

Winter is heading down a hallway towards the main stage, the set up for where Natalia will be facing her last opponent before the Graduation Ceremony. Today is the day, today she's going to save the little redhead from her own fate. Winter isn't going to fail, Natalia deserves a life away from all this fighting - she deserves to have a normal life without death, without fear. Something she, herself, never remembers having not even once in her life.

All the plans are set, she just needs to wait for the right moment to break both herself and Natalia out of this place. "Winter," a voice calls behind her, Madame B. She's still the same stuck-up, self-centered woman in this place - it honestly makes The Winter Soldier want to kill her at times. Maybe she should just kill her anyway for the fun of it? Then at least there won't be a bigger price on their heads - Winter can already imagine the looks on Hydra's faces when they realize their prized possession has gone off the reservation for the last time.

Winter blinks, turning around to the blonde woman, eyeing her for just a moment. A feeling of confusion gets to her, seeing a small, nearly untraceable smirk starts to make its way onto the woman's face. "Yes…Madame B?" She links her metal and human hand together behind her back, wondering what this is about. The match between Natalia and her opponent is to be starting any moment.

"There's been a slight change in plans," she says, the smirk now more pronounced. Winter tilts her head, the confusion now clear on her face. "You won't be watching the last fight Natalia has, you're needed somewhere else."

Winter unconsciously grips her equal hands a bit too tightly, a worrying feeling actually starts to make its way in her chest. "What do you mean?" She questions, narrowing her eyes in suspicion. "I'm Natalia's handler. I'm needed by her side. Just like we planned, remember?"

"Not anymore," Madame B tells her. "Your little plans have failed, Winter. And your bosses sure aren't happy with you." Without even a moment to comprehend what's happening. Winter feels four sharp pinches on her thigh. Looking down with a startled gasp and a now wobble leg, she notices four large darts that hold a blue liquid - a very familiar one at that - it's the strong knock-out drug that can take effect within seconds.

"I won't let you ruin one of the best spies the KGB has come to grips with. Natalia is, and will always be one of our most magnificent spies." Winter looks up with a snarl of protectiveness but the blackness of the drug is already starting to crawl in her vision. She goes to take a step forwards, but as soon as she moves, her body crumbles to the floor.

And before darkness completely shuts her down, all she can think is 'I've failed…again.'

"Let's just say, Madame B was a better spy than I took her to be," Ava says, shaking her head at her own stupidity. "The plan I made to break you out, it failed." She turns to Natasha who is listening intently. "There was nothing I could do Natasha," her shoulders shrug, feeling a lot of weight being placed on them with guilt and loss. "Hydra didn't tolerate me disobeying orders, especially when it was about to spoil everything they've worked so hard for. It's one of the reasons why they've had to strip me of my memories so many times.

There's a pause. "How many?" Natasha asks, interested but in a worried way - she's taking in everything Ava is saying as the truth. A good spy knows when someone is lying, and Ava isn't lying.

Avery smiles sarcastically, but it melts into sadness. "I honestly can't count them, I may have my memories back but remembering each time I was wiped…the mind plays tricks. So I'm just going to assume more than enough." She starts to unwrap the food given to her, taking a big bite out of it. It tastes amazing, especially on an empty stomach.

And for the next hour, Natasha and Ava just sit there, eating and talking to each other for the first time in 15 years. Avery is finally able to gather the courage to ask Natasha what happened to her after the graduation ceremony, and she's pained to finally find out that the little redhead still went down the same path drawn out for her. And it wasn't until Agent Barton stepped in that she was actually able to escape the KGB. Ava makes a note to thank Barton at a given chance, for saving Natasha before more damage could be done. At least someone was able to save her, even when she couldn't do it herself.

….

"You should be proud of yourself, Pegs," Ava sits beside her old and only girl best friend, Peggy Carter. Peggy looks entirely different from the last time they met, she's getting to the end of her road. Her hair is a mix between a solid gray and snowy white, her skin is entirely covered with aged wrinkles and there's a spark in her eyes that Ava has a feeling won't be there for much longer. Ava holds one of the photo frames that is sitting on the bedside table, it's Peggy at the age of forty with her kids standing in front of her, and the husband she talked about in the museum video has his arms around her lovingly. It looks like the perfect family, but Ava knows, Peggy always has the longing for Steve in her heart.

Peggy gives a low hum tiredly, exhaustion hitting her after finding out her best friend is alive - and not how she used to be. "I was able to live a life," she says sadly, the small smile of pity and regret falling on her lips for the dark-haired girl sitting in front of her. "My only regret is that we didn't try harder to find you, we should have known that you could have still been alive if your body couldn't be found." Her words are full of guilt, they really should have tried harder. But after Bucky and Steve were lost at sea, everyone's hopes of any of their heroes coming back ceased and the world began to move on again. Leaving the past in the past before making a better future for the next generations to come.

Ava ignores the pinch in her heart, the reminder of a search for her stopping - it hurts, she can't deny that. But after so long, she understands why a search was called off. Deep down she can understand it, but it doesn't make it any less painful to think about or feel. "Don't worry about it, Pegs," she smiles sadly, looking back down at the picture for a moment before placing it back on the bedside table where it belongs. "I'm okay now."

Peggy doesn't believe her. "No, you're not, sweetheart," she shakes her head, looking tearful. There was a slight age difference between them back then. And even though Ava and Peggy were best friends, sometimes they were like sisters from different families. It's one of the reasons Peggy helped Ava achieve everything she did before the war all those years ago. Peggy was like the older sister Ava never got.

Ava is silent for a moment before a nod is released. "You're right, Pegs," she admits, looking down with a complex feeling inside. "I'm not, and I don't think I ever will be again."

"Talk to me, Ava," Peggy pleads, reaching out her hand before grasping the human one of the dark-haired girl that lays upon the side of the bed. Avery flinches at the contact at first, but reminds herself that this is only Peggy - she's never done anything to hurt anyone, and Peggy sure as hell hasn't done anything bad to deserve Winter's wrath. "Let it out, hun." Knowing there are a lot of things troubling the young girl's mind, and even though Ava still looks the same as she used to, maybe just a touch older than before, it's hard to think of her as anything other than the age she disappeared as.

Avery lets out a breath, looking back up to her old friend. "For as long as I can remember, Peggy," she says, looking conflicted in her features. "I've always wanted to do what was right, but then I was stripped of everything I knew, everything I felt and everything I believed in. I was torn out, only to be replaced by something I despised most of all - a heartless killer."

"You could never be a heartless killer, Ava-"

"But I was, I still am as far as I can see," Avery stops her, a hardness in her tone. "Everyone's going to want me to be who I was back before The Winter Soldier became me, but I can't! It's not possible!"

Peggy listens. "Have you talked to the boys?" She asks, speaking of Bucky and Steve, the only two people Ava could care for more than anything else in the world.

"No," Ava says, after pausing another moment to gather her thoughts. "Not really since I got my memories back." But then she starts to look guilty. "But James…" A layer of salty water begins to brim against her eyelids. "I broke his heart, I did the one thing he feared I would do. I broke off the engagement. He proposed before all this…crap happened."

Peggy tightens the grip on Ava's hand. "The boys will love you for who you are, Avery," she tells the girl. "You just have to believe that love can conquer all. You're not alone, sweetheart. You are never alone."

….

The next day comes, and luckily Ava's been able to avoid Steve and Bucky again. Today, she feels the need to just walk about, explore so to speak. As The Winter Soldier she could never go out, and whenever she did, it was for a mission. So, in order to start accepting the past in her head, she travels a little further than usual to Brooklyn, her hometown. But the place she more specifically wants to go to today, is Coney Island. One of the good memories from her younger self; the Cyclone she made Bucky and Steve go one.

Ava doesn't realize, but she lets out a small amused chuckle, remembering the event still clearly even after all this time. Going on the Cyclone was something the three of them did together before the war broke out - they were just over the teenage stage at that point.

So now, she stands just across the street, looking up at the now New York City Landmark. She can't help but feel surprised it's still standing, or even running for that matter. It's got to be close to a hundred years old at this point. "Surprised it's still standing?" A familiar voice sounds behind her, thinking the exact same thing. Her head snaps behind her. She didn't hear anyone sneaking up behind her, she must have been too intrigued by old memories rising up to the surface to figure it out.

But it isn't just one familiar person standing behind her, there are two. Steve and Bucky.

Ava narrows her eyes, annoyed. "Did you follow me?" She demands, not liking that they did. They would be lying to her if they said it was a coincidence because otherwise they shouldn't have easily guessed she would come to visit a monument of the past.

"Yeah," Steve nods, not looking at all concerned about her tone. "We need to talk, you've been practically avoiding us from the moment you woke up."

Bucky continues for him, "And if it wasn't avoiding us, it was pushing us away both verbally and physically." Thinking about the moment she ended their engagement, she held him against the wall in a choke-hold. Although he doesn't blame her, he never really can, it still hurts just like the fact she's been pushing them away every chance she has.

Avery's eyes flick away guiltily for a moment before her guard goes back up, not wanting to show any feelings towards the pain she's caused. Because that's all she's ever seemed to do, and that's causing pain. She turns to them fully so her back is now facing the Cyclone. "What's that modern saying people use nowadays…take a hint?!"

Bucky chuckles, finding it amusing along with Steve who smiles, however, Ava looks between them both confused and agitated. "Oh, we got the hint, Ava," Bucky says, nodding his head before shoving his hands in his pockets just like Steve is doing. Avery crosses her arms over her chest, giving each of them a look that basically says 'Explain.'

"Avery, we know you," Steve speaks this time, a small smile on his lips. "You're my twin sister. We were inseparable ever since we were born." He gestures to Bucky, "And when he came along, we became 'three peas in a pod.' You really can't believe that we'll stop leaving you alone when you're clearly hurting."

Aver tenses, and Bucky sees this. "We don't care what you've done Avery, whether you knew what you were doing at the time or not. We're family." Emotions are starting to get to Ava again, she's looking between the two with a growing sense of love being thrown towards her. Tears start to reappear before she can even stop them. They are peeling her down, pushing past the barrier she's been trying to build ever since her memories returned. She's finding it hard to keep herself together.

"You should be hating me right now, the both of you. You can't even imagine the things that I've done. And the things that were done to me…I'I can't even think about them without breaking. I'm not stable enough to be around anyone."

"Then tell us," Steve begs, taking a step towards her. "Let us help you, please, don't push us away." Ava looks up at him, his eyes are glistening just as James' are starting to. "You're not alone. You're never alone."

Avery lets out something between a laugh and a sob, bringing her hand up to her mouth. "You sound just like Peggy." She feels a pinch in her heart, talking about her old friend. A very big wave of sadness rushes over her. Yesterday, when she went to see Peggy, Ava was the last one to see the woman alive. She died hours later; heart failure. It seems like Peggy was holding out just long enough to see her little sister one last time.

After that first sob, it's like a dam breaks. Ava starts to completely crumble, she starts to bawl in her place and immediately, Steve and Bucky both rush to her side, catching her body as her legs give out. They wrap their arms around her, almost cradling her against their bodies. Ava's head is resting against Bucky's shoulder, his familiar scent making her cry even more - a reminder of everything she's done - but it's almost like a comfort, like internally, she knows that what they are saying is true. That they won't leave her, even after they find out all the ghastly things she's done.

Avery just prays that when she does reveal all in due time, that the promise to never leave her alone will never break. Her emotional and physical state just can't handle it if she were to be left alone in the dusk.