Author's note! I own nothing of Marvel-verse except my OC character, everything else belongs to the amazing Stan Lee, may his wonderful self Rest in Peace, Jack Kirby and all the other amazing men and women who helped bring about the Marvel-Verse in Comic AND live-actions well as cartoon and animations. All my work and creativity put in here is purely fictional and fanfiction based on the MCU-verse. All my work here and creativity put into this storyline is purely fictional AND fanfiction based on the MCU-verse. Thank you, and have a wonderful adventure! also have a great Day/Afternoon/Night.

Chapter 20

-N.Y.-

M.J.

MJ sighed as she walked into her and her mother's apartment and straight into her room to get started on homework, when she walked into her room and switched on her light, she stopped cold in her steps upon seeing the strange package on her bed with a note on top. 'Happy very belated Birthday, wish I could have been here in person to give this to you - L' Knowing that had to be impossible, MJ set her backpack down and opened the folded flaps of the package. The outfit she found inside had her smiling at the orange two-piece outfit with the tribal designs over both the long skirt, the top was a short crop halter style and orange short heels with another note attached to it; 'Skirt is adjustable, thought you might want something for homecoming,' MJ smiled at the lovely gift. Setting the outfit aside she looked back inside the box and lifted up the small metal-framed screen and looked it over curiously, running her fingers over the sides. MJ jumped back with slight fright when it buzzed and she laughed at herself for being so jumpy, her laugh and smile faded into a slow frown of disbelief at the person that came over the screen. "Oh my God," She whispered to herself as she took a crumbling seat to the floor in front of her bed, her brown eyes tearing with hot tears as she watched the video.

-N.Y.-

Peter Ned

Peter sighed tiredly as he opened the small mail slot to his and May's apartment, the last two months had been hell really, he'd lost a friend, Mr. Stark and Happy weren't responding to him, and no one had believed him about those weird guys robbing that small bank. The worse part of it all, May had been hiding Bianca's letter from him since she had found it in the mail. They'd clearly talked about it, and she had unwillingly handed it over to him because frankly he wasn't just going to take it from her like a thief because he wasn't one. He wanted her to hand it to him, even if she hadn't wanted to, he was glad she had. The latter had made him cry, obviously, but it had been her last letter from him. "Parker, you have a package, couldn't fit in the box so I told the mailman I'd hold it for ya until you got here." The clerk said and set a small but too large of a box to fit into the mail slot. Smiling at the clerk, Peter nodded, "Thank you Mr. Vorheese," he said and made his way up to his apartment. When he got into his room and opened the cardboard box he found a strange metal display screen with a note;

'Have Ned with you, both fingerprints are needed to turn on message,'

- L.

Confused and curious, Peter pulled his phone from his jacket pocket and called Ned, "Hey, I kinda need you to come over, I got a really weird package,"

Confused himself, Ned looked at his homework he'd just sat down to do and set his pencil off to the side, "Package? From who?"

Taking in a shuttered and sad breath, Peter sighed out the inhaled breath and reread the handwritten note. It was her handwriting, he knew that much. Or maybe he was just hopeful and placing his desire for it to be her onto this message. "I think it's from Louie, Ned."

That was all Peter had to say and Ned was out the door like a tornado and running to his best friend's place. He'd almost plowed the front door down, nearly scaring the life out of May, "Sorry May!" he said running to Peter's room.

"What on earth is going on!" May shouted with fright, a pot of hot water in hand as Ned came bursting through the door like a stampede on his way onto Peter's room!

Dropping his bag at Peter's door he jumped onto his friend's bed and looked at the strange tablet-like screen then read the message over and over again that Peter had handed him. "Oh my God, you think this is really from Lou?" he asked out of breath, he'd run as fast as he could as hard as he could, and that had been the hardest he'd ever run before. This was the girl they were talking about.

"I think so, only one way to find out," Peter said, moving beside Ned and holding the tablet screen between them, "It says it needs both out fingerprints, so, I don't see a-"

"Here, on-on the top, here? See?" Ned pointed out the two spots on the top of the thin metal framing. The two shared a curious and scared expression and pressed their index fingers to the scanners. When the display screen turned on there they saw the one smiling face they thought never to see again. "Hey, guys! Miss me? I know I have been dying to see you guys- oh, wow, sorry, maybe I shouldn't use that reference, um, I've missed you guys a whole lot?" Bianca's smiling face said on the screen, the background was wildlife and sunsets, birds behind her, and a lake. A white tank-top crop top and a pale blue tribal-designed wrap-around long skirt they could see as she set the camera down on something. They could see the bottom half of under her long strawberry blonde hair was braided into multiple thin braids with teal, green, orange, and red beads through them. They knew it was her, Bianca, but she looked so different to them now.

"As you guys can see I am very much alive, see, my nails are intact, T'Challa's sister actually just panted them, I love this color, but they only make it in their home setting so I'll have to figure out how to order it from them," she said with her smiling face as she held her arm out for someone likely watching her be all her goofy happy self, "Oh come on, I wanna show you off, you're too pretty to stay hiding over there," she said stepping out of the viewing screen and easily pulled a smiling and blushing young teenager into the screen with her, her long braids hung loosely around her as she hid her smiling face from the camera, "Come on Shuri, show that gorgeous smile, yes," Bianca said with excitement when Shuri turned and waved at the camera. "Peter, Ned, this is Shuri, T'Challa's sister, yes, Peter as we remember I was also technically paralyzed, Doctor Cho actually helped with that, thankfully she was able to save my spine, it was a total accident. T'Challa thought they were empty crates, or harmless really, turns out someone was smuggling ancient artifacts out of Germany through a few of those crates, so, really if we're technical, we helped stop the illegal sales of ancient artifacts that have been safely returned to Egypt, India, Africa, and… Where else was it again?"

"Oh, um, Rome, it was an already half-broken spear that went through your spine,"

"Shuri, please, the last thing I wish to know is what I un-intentionally put through the girl," T'Challa said walking into the view screen with a soft smile, hugged his sister, and ruffling Bianca's head of hair.

"Sorry brother," Shuri said softly.

"Sorry T'Challa," Bianca said equally as soft as Shuri. Neither one wanted to make the man feel bad for it, it hadn't really been his fault it had happened. Bianca had challenged him to distract him and the creates had displayed non-hazard and non-fragile stamps on them. Not exactly the wisest thing to stamp on something that was, in truth, very important artifacts the person(s) were wishing to sell.

"Anyways, I must steal my sister back, there are a few things back at the lab that require her attention," T'Challa told the girl, and the three said their goodbyes for the time being.

Sighing and shrugged as she looked back to the recording station on the large rock, "Anyways, I wanted to let you know that I was alive and very well. Unfortunately, I can't tell you where I actually am, they're just giving me a lot of help getting this to you since everything else was traceable, Wakandan tech isn't exactly easily traceable by the U.N. which is fantastic by the way. Have to keep you guys safe. I will try to be in contact as soon as I can with you guys, hopefully, next time I see you I can actually get really big bear hugs, and hopefully, that can be soon. But, until Ross is no longer hunting me or my parents, I can't come home to you guys, to school. Which, really sucks because I really wanted to graduate. But, I'll figure it out." They watched her take a breath, her smile fading into a sad one as she began to twiddle with her figures, "I'm sorry the news scared you, but um, I… I have to tell you that that girl that was found, the girl identified as me, even though it wasn't me, it was still a girl who was murdered in my place, and I'm responsible for that, whether I did it or not, it was still done because of me, because of my foolishness and stupidity. The Red Room found me, I fell right into their bull shit of a trap and I got caught. But the Red Room has been destroyed, permanently, at least we're under that assumption since Dreykov is officially dead. But that doesn't make up for the fact that he had a random girl murdered, a girl that no one in the world, has no idea who this girl was, all of her identifying factors were stripped away from her and replaced with mine to make everything believe I was dead, so, for now, she is going to remain under my tombstone, because even though I'm standing here, alive, heart beating, lungs working…" She took a deep breath of remorse that she knew she'd been feeling, the death she felt she too was suffering over the girls' murder and having been stripped of her identity then buried another innocent life with it. Legally, Bianca was dead to the world. "Bianca Margaret Lou Rogers died with that girl. This means I guess I have to find out who this new person is I'm standing in the skin of now. My mind was ripped apart, put back together, invaded, my identity was stripped from me and buried with someone who the world never knew existed, so. Maybe this is for a better path for someone? I don't know. But I'm still Lou, and that is not going to change, love you guys," she whispered, blowing a kiss to the camera and the recording shut off. Leaving the boys sitting there in total shock.

Confused and shocked at what she'd confessed to them, Ned felt like he'd buried her all over again. "What the hell?"

Peter had no words, she'd been alive this entire time, and no one knew it, and that girl they'd found, the trauma she was describing was appalling. Not only towards her but the fact that an innocent girl around their age, who no one could find any identifying markers to find her true identity, was tortured then butchered like she was nothing just to traumatize those who still loved the very girl who was still very much alive. It wasn't fair to any of them. Not to the murdered girl, not to Bianca, not to Peter, Ned, MJ, none of them, especially not Bianca's family.

-Wakanda-

3 days later

She walked nervously towards the hut looking for a certain someone, to apologize to him. Twiddling with her fingers she took a deep breath for courage as she walked closer and closer to the hut, but the soft splashing, dripping, and rippling of the water caught her attention. She turned towards the Lake and her face began to heat up at the sight she found. Fine, tone muscles dripping with water and dirt rolling off his skin, down his legs, and the rolling muscles of his back. The red and angry scars of the metal anchored into his flesh just over his shoulder blade. Her eyes refused to blink, to look away as she stared, mouth gaping at his back and traveling down his spine to a very nice butt that went further down to even nicer legs. Her heart hammered in her chest then fell into her stomach before leaping right back up into her throat as she turned her back to the very naked man and held her breath. Covering her face with her hands as she tried to breathe and closed her eyes, wishing she could wish she wanted to unsee what she'd just seen. But it was still very inappropriate of her to even see what she had just seen.

Feeling someone's eyes on him, Bucky turned and he panicked at seeing the strawberry blond turning her back to him, there was no doubt in his mind she had seen him, but it hadn't meant he hadn't been startled by her being there, "Lou- oh shit!"

SPLASH!

Turning to see if he was alright, she quickly turned back around and covered her face as he came up just as quickly as she had turned, "Oh God," she breathed, trying to calm herself from the humiliation she had just caused him and the sight that just about anyone would be telling her was what a glorious and seductive sight he was as he shook the water out of his face and sputtering the water out from his mouth, and wiping his hand down his face and over his head to move his long hair out of his face. Clearing her throat, Bianca dropped her head and pinched the bridge of her nose, "I-I am so sorry, I, um, whoa. I-I should leave. Real-really ba-bad timing," she stuttered shuffling in her spot where she stood, slightly fixing the tightening of her tank top up near her throat and the heat that began to burn in her belly and lower just a little bit too dangerously. "This is not good," she whispered to herself as she looked up to the skies, trying to breathe then began to leave.

Grabbing the only towel he owned there, Bucky stumbled to get out, trying to wrap the towel around his waist, but with his only good side and shoulder injured from the Mining collapse one of the mines had suffered a few days ago that he and many others had been inside of, he was finding this much more difficult to do on his own. Hell, bathing just a moment ago had been painful because he was moving. "Lo-Lou, wait- ouch, shit," he grumbled as he stumbled and stubbed his foot on a rock getting out of the water. His head hung when he almost lost the towel and simply decided it was best to just… Cover himself while he found his footing. "Steve is going to kill me," he breathed out with defeat as he thought he was going to die after this. Sighing, Bucky looked around with full humiliation, hoping, praying was most like it, that no one else was there or watching from a distance. "Lou," he mumbled after her, she hadn't moved far, just a few steps in her attempts to flee. Honestly, he was shocked she was walking quickly rather than running from him after the accidental show he'd just given her.

Her face was burning with heat and her spine shivering, and goosebumps rolling over her skin as he called after her. When she heard him stumbling through the water and possibly stub his foot and curse, Bianca had turned to see if he was alright, but she had returned to looking the other way. She just had to pick today to try to come to see him at the exact hour that he as wanting to bathe. Hearing his sigh of defeat, she looked over her shoulder a little and found him standing there with the towel in front of him covering a very personal and intimate part of his anatomy. Then she saw the nasty bruises over the right side of his ribs, wrapping around from the front right and without a doubt wrapping around his side more than likely to his back and up along his pec and collarbone over his shoulder. It had her worried about what had done this. "Bucky, what-"

"I need help," he muttered quickly, "Kinda hard to move with the pain," he admitted sheepishly.

Trying not to smile at the fact he was even admitting that, to her even, Bianca nodded and took a deep breath to be rid of her burning blush and the heat in her belly that was continuing to sink lower as she approached him, took part of the towel as he held it in front of him and wrapped it back around him then back around up front, holding the towel in place for him and tucked the corner of the towel in at his left hip.

Being this close, she took the time to look at the dark and gross bruising, a very bad injury was more like it, that he had been referring to. "What happened?" she asked him, raising a hand to his ribs, she instantly blushed when she realized she'd stupidly touched the poor man who was still very much naked. Because, frankly, the towel did not count. Pulling her hand from his hot skin as if he'd burned her, Bianca blushed and looked over towards the lake and cleared her throat as she licked her dry lips, "Sorry," she whispered. Feeling a chill roll over her, she shivered a little and stepped back from him and glanced up to his face as she bit her bottom lip then nodded, "Right, I should leave, so sorry I bothered you, Sergeant Barnes." She said breathlessly, "You should really ask someone to help you with those injuries, not good to leave them unchecked. Have a good day," she told him and turned to leave again.

Unable to help it, Bucky cracked a grin and began to lightly laugh at her behavior. "Lou, wait, come on, don't make me run after you, I'm in a towel." He laughed. That had been absolutely funny, humiliating, humbling in some form, and adorable, all rolled into one moment. When she hadn't stopped, his amusement slowly began to fall. "Lou?" he called after her. He'd run after her if he had to, even if it would hurt, but because it hurt he didn't exactly want to. Sighing, he licked his lips and looked down at his bare feet, then a thought hit him. She had told him to get his injuries looked at. "I'll need help looking after these injuries at some point, Lou. Kinda be nice if it was someone I knew!" he called after her between the distance.

"You know Shuri!" she called over her shoulder at him.

Sighing, Bucky remained where he stood, rubbing the back of his head, "Lou, please! …" He could not believe he was doing this. 'Yeah, Steve is gonna kill me,' "Don't leave," he said after her. He had no idea what the hell it was about this girl, but he didn't feel like a loser around her. Didn't feel like the mindless monster HYDRA had turned him into, he didn't feel like a murderer. He felt like Bucky Barnes. At least in some way he did. Watching her stop, he felt a slim amount of hope.

Sighing, she looked back at him, the bruising and the other injures he had to have made her worry. He was such a stubborn man to ask for help, but he appreciated all the help he was always given. That much she had learned with the short time of being in Germany with him. Looking down to her sandaled feet, Bianca looked back up to him, "Thers' herbs nearby that can help. Give me a while, I'll be back." She told him. And left, not giving him a moment to stop her.

She had looked through the forest line carefully for the berries, herbs, and roots, for some time. Using part of her skirt as a form of a carrier so she didn't lose anything, and because she did not have a basket with her to carry the herbs she had wanted to gather for him since she was unsure of what he had. Making her way back to Bucky's hut she continued to scold herself the entire way back. When she got there, Bianca gasped and cover her mouth, and shuffled back outside. "I am so sorry," she said through her covered mouth and a burning blush, "You need to get, uh, uh, oh God, a door, or a cover or-or something," she stuttered with a deep blush.

Bucky fell in his attempt of pulling his pants on and began to laugh at how this had happened twice in one late afternoon. But, he knew she was right about a few things, a cover for the doorway would be great, and she had terrible timing. Sighing at how ridiculous and embarrassing this was for them both, Bucky finished getting his pants up over his hips, zipped and buttoned to before walking out the front and leaned on his covered metal arm he kept wrapped over with a red cloth to keep water and bugs out of it. "You weren't kidding, bad timing. But, uh, I think a cover for the entryway is a good idea," he joked, feeling his own face blush a little. "Sorry about that," he told her. Seeing the herbs, berries, and roots held in her skirt while she refused to look at him, Bucky leaned over beside the inside of his door and picked up a basket and held it out around to her, "You left without me trying to give this to you. Didn't mean for you to get your skirt dirty," he said with a smile when she uncovered her mouth and took the basket from his hand and carefully dumped the contents from her skirt into the basket and began to re-sort them. Watching her for a moment, Bucky reached out to her and gently combed her long soft hair behind her ear, exposing the new ear piercings in her left ear, all but one were studs.

Obviously, she had her lobs and upper lobs pierced previously, but the newer additions were the Helix, Tragus, Rook and the Conch was looped with a hoop piercing.

"Are you ever gonna look at me again, Eyes?" He asked her a little nervous. He had to be careful, as in very careful. She'd grown way too much since the last time he saw her. However, Bucky felt a spark of heat and fire ignite in his chest when her head snapped up and her turquoise eyes burned with something that had Bucky's smile falling just a little.

Feeling his hand comb through her hair and brush her hair over her ear, to move her hair from the side of her face Bianca closed her eyes to enjoy that much, something positive that was related to a man's touch to burn away the Red Room's coldness, their cruelty. Even after all his time under HYDRA's control, he could still be this gentle. His thumb brushed over the crest of her jaw. When he spoke, asking if she'd ever look at him again, the way the nickname rolled off his lips had her heart throbbing and her head snapping over to look up at him, she could feel the blush spreading down her neck. Liking an older man was one thing, but the continuation of her falling for the guy was a dangerous thing for both parties. Very dangerous for him. Especially, with the way his blue eyes stared down into her, as if he was recognizing something, the way they held a certain heat to them. And she prayed he wasn't realizing she did, in fact, like him. "You shouldn't call me that anymore, Sergeant," she breathed.

Seeing the searing look on his blue eyes, Bianca closed her mouth and looked away from him, ahead of her, and out towards the lake as she took in a deep breath, "Um, I found an Aloe plant not far from you, one leaf should be good for a little while, it'll help with the aches and help heal the bruising. The herbs and roots can be ground and drank in tea, so, um," she wasn't sure where to go from there really. Pinching the bridge of her nose she sighed, unable to believe how stupid she was half the time.

Seeing her behavior changing on a different scale, Bucky dropped his hand from her hair and face, "Are you alright, Lou?" the way she was behaving had him wondering if he was making her uncomfortable. So, he took a step outside from his hut and a small step back from her to give her some space.

"Hm?" she asked, looking over to him, her brow frowning at seeing he'd stepped back from her. "Yeah, I- I just… I'm making myself flustered, you're fine. Come on, you need your ribs checked." She said walked into the hut and set the basket down and grabbed a small pot, grabbed the water cup from the small countertop, and dipped it into the large jug holding the rainwater to start the water.

"The Village healer looked at them already after the Mine fell in on us, nothing's broken," he told her, walking in after her. He'd said it so nonchalantly that he didn't understand why she was giving him a sideways glare. "What?"

Shocked and frankly a little irritated that he seemed less than bothered by that event, "A Mine fell on you and others? While you were inside?" she questioned him.

"Uh, yeah. I've had worse, trust me," Bucky muttered under his breath.

Scuffing at him, she took in a deep breath and shook her head at him, "That's not exactly something to be okay with Sergeant-"

"Really wish you wouldn't call me that, Doll," he told her.

Looking up from the fire pit as she lit it and set the pot to start boiling, Bianca sighed and shrugged, "Well, what do you want me to call you then?" she asked, looking back to the water.

Sighing he stepped over near the small table on the ground and looked around his hut for a moment then looked back at her with a shrug that said it was obvious, "My name, you know it," he said, softly biting back a painful grunt as he took a careful set on a woven mat he used as a seat. He hadn't been there for long, he was still trying to figure out the few things he wanted in the hut because frankly, he didn't know if he wanted to leave. It was quiet, peaceful. Calming. Looking over to her as she worked on grinding the roots and herbs separately, and cutting the aloe leaf in sections to be used. There was a burning question- okay, a few burning questions, he'd been wanting to talk to her about. And he figured while he had her here, he might as well try to get some answers. Taking a deep breath, Bucky began to cough at the pain his ribs went into spasm.

Turning as she worked on the herbs and roots and sectioning the aloe, Bianca rushed over to Bucky's seated self at the round of coughing he started and the pained expression on his face as he held his ribs, "You okay?"

She spent the rest of the afternoon there at his hut, the sun close to setting, getting the herbs grounded and some aloe mixed with some of the grounded roots and herbs before gently rubbing the mixture over his bruises white he slowly drank the bitter tea. "Sorry about the bitterness, the berries kind of give it that extra kick,"

"No, it's-" he took a calming breath as her hand smoothed over a very tender spot over the side of his ribs, "It's fine," he told her, looking over to her as she came full circle and started rubbing the aloe mixture over the front of his ribs, chest, and collarbone, "Thank you," he said with a soft smile.

Smiling at his appreciation, Bianca nodded, "You are very welcome," she answered back softly.

Clearing his throat for a moment, Bucky sighed and set the small cup on the side table and took hold of her hand over his chest and held her palm where it was, "Lou, the dream you walked in on-"

Watching him as he held her palm against his chest, her heart racing like a jack-rabbit running from the Fox's hunt, she nodded as he brought that up, it was actually the whole reason she had gone to see him. When he mentioned the dream, she blushed at him, "Right, yeah, um, I'm sorry about that, I shouldn't have-"

"No, please, don't apologize for coming to me, it's- it's alright, I just… What exactly did you see?" he asked with small nervousness.

Looking at him with sudden confusion, she sat back on her feet. He sounded, heck, he looked, nervous. Why? "Why?" she asked curiously.

Laughing nervously at her question, he sighed and looked out the opening of the hut before looking back to her, studying him curiously. Suddenly, his brown frowned at realizing that she'd been trying to tell him something in his dream, and his nightmares since then had only consisted of Bianca coming into the house, them talking, him seeing her fear, the shock of him having two real arms, then vanishing after whispering his name. "What were you trying to tell me, before you disappeared?" he asked her. "What did they do in there? The Red Room." He asked her. There, right there. The flood of fear, the burning memories flashing through her gorgeous eyes. "Lou? Talk to me, Doll, what'd they do?" He watched her, but she choked.

Trying to get the words out, Bianca found they were locked in her throat as she stared at him, the small and painful intake of breath she was able to get into her lungs when he grabbed her face in his one hand, her palm still pressed against his chest as his thumb ghosting over her cheek, brushing away the runaway tear that rolled down her eye. Her mind was blurring in and out, she was there with him in Wakanda, his hut, then she'd be suddenly back in the Red Room, the surgery room, the ring-fights.

Wishing he had both his hands, here and now like he had when she had come to him in his dream, but he knew that look, he'd had it himself after he'd woken up. She was fazing in and out of memories, from here in reality back to being their prisoner, their little toy to fuck around with in the head, and all those things. "Lou?" he asked, her name whispered out in a pleading tone, and regretting even asking her about it. "Lou, come back to me, come on, come back to me. It's okay, you're here, right here with me, they can't hurt you here." He told her, sliding his hand back around to the back of her neck and gently shaking her. But she was like a rag doll in his hand. His heart was hammering in his chest, not sure if it wanted to jump up and down in his chest, explode or implode as she continued to stare through him, like he wasn't even there. "Lou, come on, Doll, wake up, please. I am right here, listen to my voice, it is okay, you're safe. I swear you're safe." He repeated over and over again. This was enough information, he didn't need to know any more than this right here. They had done enough damage to last her three lifetimes. When she suddenly sucked in a breath of air back into her lungs, Bucky breathed easy himself. "Breath, there ya go, in an out, slow breathes, I got you, you're safe."

She could hear him, but she could not see him as she stared dead ahead of her at the memories flashing before her, the fights, the sound of monitors in her ears, and the muffled voices of the Doctors talking over her. It felt like an eternity. When she finally found her way back to Bucky, to his hut, she sucked in a breath of relief and fear. Her hand held onto his arm, his warm hand holding the back of her neck trying to wake her up. "Bucky," she whispered his name as if it were a prayer answered.

Forcing himself to smile at her, Bucky nodded, "Yeah, it's me, Doll. You're safe," he told her. Watching her glance around the hut, her hand holding his arm, squeezing and letting go like his arm was a stress-ball, an anchor to reality. It was what he did every time he woke up from his nightmares. he looked around him to make sure he was in the hut, somewhere safe, and used the sheet he used as a cover as a form of grounding, to let himself know he wasn't in his HYDRA uniform, or in the compound that he in Wakanda. Safe from the world and the world was safe from him. But he was shattered, knowing that they'd done this to her. No one deserved this to be done to this. "Come on, let's get you back to your Uncle, or whatever Steve is." He said with a slight mutter.

Standing as he stood and grabbing his shirt she crossed her arms over her chest as she saw the sun slowly setting, "Technically he's a lot of things," she answered, "I'll be fine, you need rest-"

Pulling his shirt on with a grimace, he sighed and turned on her, "I am not letting you vanish on me again, Lou, I lost you once as it was, and that still gives me nightmares. Even if it was just a stupid fairy tale of a dream." He hadn't meant to snap at her, but the thought alone of her walking out and just suddenly being gone sent chilling fear through him that made him want to vomit every time he thought of her just disappearing. Just like she had when he'd been dreaming. But even then he'd told himself she was dead, that it was his deep subconscious wanting her to be alive… To be there. Grabbing her the back of her neck again, Bucky sighed as he looked at her again, reminding himself that she was not four years younger than him, that in fact, she was eighty-some years younger than him. Him being an adult and about thirty years old physically, but eighty-four legally, and her being sixteen. It was completely illegal. Sighing again, he looked away from her, but like an idiot, he stepped closer to her and kissed the top of her head, "Steve is gonna kill me," he said under his breath to himself.

After getting her back to Steve and Natasha, Bucky was expecting the talk where Steve told him to stay the hell away from Bianca, all he got was a raised brow and a smirking grin. It had Bucky softly chuckling at his friend, "You know, any uncle and father would be slaughtering me right now," he told his friend as Natasha took off on the jet to take Bianca back to St. Petersburg.

"Yeah? Have you done something to make me want to do that?" Steve asked him.

Cracking a smile, Bucky nodded, "No, she just helped me with my injuries. Mine fell on several mining people and myself. I got hurt kind of bad, no broken bones though. The village healer wanted to keep me for a while, I politely declined. The pain, makes me aware that I'm awake. That this isn't a dream. I know where I'm at." He explained.

Nodding, Steve sighed as he looked after the jet and it disappeared in the night sky. "Just make sure she's eighteen if something ever does happen, please?" Steve told him.

"Is that permission I just got," Bucky teased his friend.

Laughing, Steve sighed and nodded towards the bike, "Come on, I'll give you a ride back to your hut,"

"Na, it's okay, the walk will be good for me," Bucky told him.

"Bucky, come on-"

"Night Steve," he said with a smile and started on his way back to his home.

Mid-September to December

2016

Training had been hell with these ladies, but Bianca was getting so much better than she had been.

They'd done an evolution recording from when she got back, they had her training recorded, her sparing and practices, tests even; Languages and Hacking skills, Chemistry, Psychology, all that jazz, and every three months she would be re-tested. Bianca even helped Melina re-creating the Red Dust to free the next set of Widows' when Yelena would bring the empty containers back and a few of the widows with her.

Antonia was had taken to being Bianca's instructor, and she was no push-over, in fact, Antonia was a rather fantastic teacher, being the Taskmaster previously, and with Yelena not around so much Bianca had grown close with the other widows when the wonderful blonde wasn't around to train with her, growing closer with her even as an Aunt, especially Melina and Alexie as a family as well.

Lerato had chosen to go to school, to be a normal teenager, but was living with Antonia on the Widows compound they'd built on Melina's property.

Over the many months of Bianca being there, they'd celebrated birthdays, laughed with one another, each one listening to the Widow's making up history for themselves, to have their imaginary families for a time before they had to return to reality. But they still had one another, helping each other and helping the next group of Widows that may have chosen to come with Yelena, with nowhere to go, women who needed rehabilitating back into life, to making their own choices. To laugh for once.

October 2017

New Year had been a blast for them, to have fun and unwind, get drunk. Alexie was a blast to be around, an all-around goof in good nature. But today was no playing around. Dressed in her black sports bra, black spandex leggings, and black tennis shoes and drenched in sweat from the three previous rounds she had gone with two other widows and the run they'd made her do. It was an intense workout for her today because today was her evaluation day. And she was facing Antonia.

She dodged and dropped down into a crouch, throwing a punch into Antonia's stomach and doubling up with two more swings, one to Antonia's right hip and the second into the woman's ribcage, and swept her leg out, taking Antonia's leg out from under her, making her drop to her knees. Wrapping her legs around her neck, Bianca flipped them. She grunted when Antonia brought her legs up and locked her legs up around Bianca's neck, forcing her to bend backward before punching Bianca in her ribs, causing her to shout out from the strike, but she kept her legs locked, her knee against Antonia's neck. Rolling away from one another, they both stayed in their crouched places, studying one another before they charged, Bianca ducked at Antonia's swing and blocked her knee when she'd brought her knee up to strike her again in the ribs, only to be struck herself and stumbling back from Bianca charging her again, jumping up and locking her legs around her again and flipped the woman successfully, flattening her for the first time in a year. Not taking this victory to victorious just yet, Bianca rolled out of the way of her if she decided to get back up, and knowing Antonia, she would.

As the widow's watching cheered them both on, Bianca watched as Antonia smirked as she stood, "Khorosho," Antonia said, with a proud nod, "Much better than last time," she continued. "Continue," she told Bianca. Readying herself when Bianca charged her, she stood there with complete shock when Bianca was suddenly gone. Her body had quit literally shimmed out of the existence of the compound. Looking around curiously, Antonia looked at the now silent Widows with her own worries and saw the fearful shock on both Melina's and Alexie's faces. "I didn't-"

Translation:

Antonia: "Khorosho" = "Good,"

"No, no, of course not, no," Melina rushed the woman, seeing the fear brewing in her eyes. Making her way onto the mat of the dojo building they'd all helped build over the many months. Grabbing Antonia's hands, she looked around the room, "Bia?" Melina whispered with fear. Her tears choked her. "Moya malen'kaya myshka," she softly called for the girl. "Bia!" she screamed, looking over to Alexie who rushed her and Antonia, his arms wrapping around Melina and rubbing Antonia's back, knowing she feared for the girl as well. "Bianca Margaret Romanova!" Alexie shouted out around with his stern tone, "Eto ne smeshno! Ty pugayesh' svoyu babushku"

Translation

Melina: "Moya malen'kaya myshka," = "My little mouse,"

Alexie: "Eto ne smeshno, vy pugayete svoyu babushku!" = "This is not funny! You are scaring your grandmother!"

Norway

Bianca skidded to a stop as the area around her shifted from the dojo to a grassy cliffside and a gorgeous ocean view. But the two men that stood there, one blonde long hair dressed in his Asgardian armor and his hammer in hand, the other with his long black hair, dark brown, gold linning and green leather outfit staring at her with utmost shock had her staring at them in return. Looking around the area, she saw a woman standing there, her black skin-tight outfit ripped or worn away as she stared at her with shock of her own.

"I don't believe it," the woman whispered.

Her whispered tone made her shiver, or had that been the chilling air of the oceanfront mountainside. Her blue eyes were like the sharpest steel blades she had even come across as the woman studied her. Looking to the two men, Bianca breathed in a frightened breath, "Thor? Wh-what's going on?"

"Bianca, run!" Thor screamed, throwing his hammer at the woman when she moved, her two steps towards Bianca had been close enough for him. "Get behind Loki!" he ordered.

Doing as he was screaming, Bianca bolted into a run towards Thor and Loki. Upon reaching Loki, the mischievous Asgardian man had wrapped his arms around her protectively. And frankly, she was not going to object right now. Because if these two were fighting side-by-side, then this was much more worse than she thought.

"That is not possible," Thor whispered under his breath.

Curious about what he was talking about, Bianca looked in the direction of the brothers, towards the woman. Her smirking grin was amusing to herself, but it sent fear through all three of them.

"Da'ling, you have no idea what is possible," the woman said amused, and before their very eyes, she crushed Thor's hammer. Like it was nothing. The blast, the heat of the lightning, and the roaring of the thunder that came back at them was warm to Bianca, she imagined it was more or less like a tickle to Loki and Thor. But it was still frightening.

Fear floored him, his blue eyes widening as he stared at their sister with horror, "Bring us back!" He screamed to the skies.

Sucking in a terrified breath, Bianca looked at Loki, then up, "What!" seeing the light coming towards them, Bianca screamed, clenched her eyes tightly closed, and buried her face into Loki's chest.

"NO!" Thor screamed.

The light enveloped them and they were jettisoned up off the mountainside.