Chapter 60: Sunrise, Sunset

He could get used to this life, Bucky thought.

He usually woke with the sun, the early light spilling into their bedroom and gently pulling him from his sleep. He still had his restless nights, of course, and still had his occasional nightmares - but they didn't grip him like a bear trap, didn't make him feel like he was stuck in his own mind. He would wake with his heart hammering, his body sweating, but his muscles weren't frozen in fear, and his joints didn't ache with the resistance. Instead, he could shower, put his arm around his girl, and go back to sleep.

He almost always woke up first, which was fine by him. He liked to take the first few moments of the day to center himself, his mantra different than it used to be, but still just as grounding. My name is Bucky. I live in Wakanda. I'm in love with a girl named Mika. Said girl was usually sprawled across the bed next to him, her state of dress questionable and her dark hair a tangled halo around her as she slept. Unlike him, she was a heavy sleeper, and often turned away from the light in an effort to get a few more moments of rest. The sunrise painted her skin gold, and while he always wanted to reach out and touch her, he instead would get up, leaving her to her last minutes of peace.

She often woke to the sounds of him cooking breakfast. He tried his best to be quiet, but there was only so much stealth he could afford when attempting to do things with one arm. He always had a mug of coffee waiting for her as she sauntered into the kitchen, her eyes still heavy from the last clinging bits of sleep. Bare legs swung idly as she sat on the island, watching as he made them their most important meal of the day. He loved this little morning bubble, starting every day as if time and pain and the rest of the world didn't exist. God, how long had it been since he was this happy?

While it was normally just the two of them in the house, they'd had some guests over the past few days. Steve and Sam took Nicoletta back to her home after their little party, but instead of going back out into the world to whatever mayhem they could find, they'd returned to Wakanda to recharge and refuel. It was kind of weird having a full house for the first time since he lived with his parents, but it wasn't unpleasant. There was something nostalgic about having Steve in a room down the hall, even if they were still relearning each other. Bucky couldn't count the ways he'd changed during his years with Hydra, but Steve wasn't the same either. He didn't know if the other man saw the differences in himself, but to Bucky, who only remembered the time before, they were obvious. He'd always been a little impulsive and too smart for his own good, but those qualities seemed to be compounded, and the sense of urgency that was usually simmering beneath the surface was now boiling over. But for all the inflation that Steve had from before, Bucky felt like all his own qualities were now subdued. He wasn't the life of the party, wasn't trying to be the best and brightest. He no longer had the energy to carry it all out; now, he just wanted to rest. Well, rest and tend to his goats.

The open field down the hill from their home was slowly turning into the farm he never knew he wanted. The animals were starting to know him, and having a list of chores to do every day was helping his mind in the last few miles of recovery that he had left to go. Change he could handle, but being idle he could not, and he was so grateful to the King for giving him this opportunity. First, he took care of the goats, checking on the new baby that he'd mentioned to Steve and getting all their food out and situated so that they wouldn't go searching for food in other places, as he learned the hard way. Luckily his tracking skills extended to hooved farm animals, who left obvious paths as they wandered away from their home. After the goats, he walked to the other side of the abandoned barn (that he was gonna fix up one of these days...probably) to the chicken coop, ducking in with his bowl and collecting the eggs in the nests. They had an extra one today, which would make Mika happy - she'd been wanting to make some challah, which required a lot of eggs. And butter. Speaking of, their one cow wandered out from the trees, mooing at him as she ambled over. He grinned, pulling a dinner roll from his pocket as she wandered up, her nose immediately nuzzling his hand searching for the treat.

"You're spoiled, you know that?" he murmured, though she seemed unconcerned with the jab. She just lipped at his pocket in case there were more snacks, nudging him harder and harder until he was nearly pushing him over, making him laugh and pull the second roll from his pocket. He scratched her between the ears and started back towards the barn, knowing that she would follow him. Poor cow, she was very sweet, but she wasn't the brightest, as every day she followed him to where he milked her and acted surprised whenever they got there. He was just dumping the bucket of milk into the fancy pasteurizer that Shuri made them (which looked quite out of place in the old barn) when Steve wandered in, clearly fresh from the shower (and also looking a bit out of place).

"I know you're in hiding, but damn I wish the world could see this." he remarked, eyeing Bucky's various farming equipment and the disgruntled cow. Bucky laughed, shaking his head.

"What, think it's funny to see the Winter Soldier turned into a farm hand?" he asked, waving with his one arm. Steve rolled his eyes at the lame quip, not dignifying it with even a chuckle.

"Seventy-something years, and somehow you've gotten even less funny." he said in return, helping him place the now-full milk bottles in a carrier. Bucky handed him the bucket of eggs.

"Careful with those, Mika will kill me if we lose them." he said, making his way back towards the house. "And to be fair, I was not allowed to be funny for most of that time."

Steve winced, as if for a moment he forgot exactly why Bucky had been gone this whole time. He didn't blame him for that; sometimes, the way they interacted seemed so normal and familiar that he could almost forget it too. "If you don't take that look off your face, I'ma punch it off." he said. He didn't want pity, and he didn't want Steve to feel guilty. After decades of asking why me and where did I go wrong, Bucky had decided that it was no fault except for the scientists who had taken him and brainwashed him. He would carry the deaths he'd caused for the rest of his life, but at least he was slowly realizing that they may not have been his fault.

"No excuses then. Be funnier." Steve said, though his voice didn't quite measure up to the jab. Bucky shot him a look, but didn't respond, only shifting his grip on the milk bottles. Mika thought he was funny, that should be enough, right?

"Question." he started, figuring it was time to change the subject since he didn't have her here to help him win the discussion. There was something he'd been thinking about for a while, and even moreso with recent events. He was just a little afraid of the answer.

"Answer." Steve said without thinking, readying himself for something painful, or emotional. He had no idea what was going on in Bucky's head anymore; before, his emotions were plain on his face, and he wore his heart on his sleeve. Now, his expression was neutral and collected most of the time, and the only time he really saw him break the facade was with Mika.

"Do you know what happened to my safe deposit box? At Williamsburg?" he asked. He'd opened the account with them when he was thirteen and his father passed away, figuring he could put a few keepsakes in there that could either serve as sentimental pieces for his mother, or could bring in quick cash if they needed it. Of course, he ended up just adding to the collection a few years later, when his mother also passed away. It was supposed to be a backup if his sister ever needed money, or to help him start a new life after the War. Of course, now he couldn't remember most of the things that were in it, but he knew they were important.

"Oh, uh, I think I may have it." Steve said, his brows furrowed. "I'll have to make some calls and see, but I know Peg-Agent Carter put a lot of my things in storage with the SSR, so it's probably there." His face turned sad. "I tried to give it to your sister but uh...she wouldn't agree to see me."

"What? Why not?" Bucky asked, confused. Sure, she was still a young girl the last time they'd seen her, but she'd always liked Steve, as far as he knew. Was he just misremembering? Steve's face turned red, and he had to clear his throat before continuing.

"She blamed me. For your death." he finally admitted. Bucky had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. He wanted to make a joke about how his sister was always so dramatic and how she probably would have gotten over it, but the look on Steve's face and the little bit that Bucky was able to read about him in the museum made him hold his tongue.

"It wasn't your fault, you know." he said, saying the same words that Mika had been telling him for the past few months, ever since he told her about his past as the Winter Soldier. "You didn't make me do anything. You didn't push me off that train." He said it so bluntly that it surprised Steve, who gave a dry laugh and looked off towards the house instead of at him.

"Sure felt like it was my fault." he said. He shifted the basket of eggs in his hand so he could clap Bucky on the shoulder. "But no matter, we both somehow made it out alive."

"We always were too stubborn to die." Bucky agreed, grinning. They continued up the path towards the house, but slowed as they spotted a vehicle that they didn't recognize. There was no reason for him to feel alarm, but that didn't stop Bucky from analyzing the surroundings, looking for signs of struggle and listening for screams of distress. Steve noticed the change in his posture and scanned the area, looking for the same things. But all was quiet, so Bucky knew either everything was fine, or they were already too late.

They came through the front door and heard voices in the kitchen. Mika's accent and Sam's tenor were easily recognizable, but there was a third voice present that, while vaguely familiar, did not make sense in this context. But Natasha Romanoff did not need context, she only needed to be where she wanted to be. The redhead stood leaning against the island as if it were a normal occurrence, smirking over a cup of coffee as Steve and Bucky wandered in. Bucky hesitated, not knowing how this meeting was going to go; he remembered seeing her in Berlin, though under completely different circumstances, and he remembered seeing her long before that, in an assassin's den disguised as a ballet studio. And he had no doubt that she remembered him perfectly.

"Nat." Steve said shortly, his posture straight and his tone defensive. He didn't know which side she was coming from, and was prepared for anything. She gave him an annoyed look, clearly not appreciating his attitude.

"Do you really think I'd be sitting here chatting it up over coffee if I was coming to arrest you? Please, Rogers, you know me better than that." she said. Mika perked up at their entrance, coming to get the farm fresh milk and eggs from the men.

"Natasha was just challenging me to a spar, and I was politely declining." she said, not really sensing the tension between them. Or, perhaps she sensed the tension, and was trying her best to dissipate it. Either way, she placed the eggs on the counter, just in case Steve decided to use them as projectiles.

"Why are you here then?" Steve asked, ignoring Mika's comment and only answering to Natasha. Mika looked to Bucky, who shrugged. If he needed to, he could take out the Black Widow, even with just one arm.

"I finished negotiations with the UN." she said, figuring she better get right to the point. "They will allow you back in the United States if you promise to retire. And live under house arrest on the Avengers compound."

"For how long?" Steve asked, glancing at Sam. The other man nodded; Natasha had given him the same deal.

"Indefinite." she responded. "And they made the point to mention multiple times that they would not be calling on us unless the threat is perceived to be outside of their ability."

"Us?" Steve asked. Mika slowly moved around them, trying not to draw attention to herself as she came to stand next to Bucky.

"Any idea what's going on?" she whispered in Romanian, her eyes flicking between each member of the conversation as if she were watching a weird three-person tennis match.

"Not a clue." Bucky replied in kind. He was more concerned with how Natasha not only got into Wakanda, but also found their little corner of the world. Were they that traceable? Was it that easy to track them? Did he have some sort of device in him now that he didn't know about, signalling his whereabouts to the world?

"The Avengers Initiative was officially terminated." she said. "With no intention of revival."

"So that's it then." Sam said, his arms crossed over his chest. "Y'all are just done?"

"Oh don't worry, known associates are also included in this termination." she added. So, all of them were being shut down? That didn't sit well with Mika, though to be fair, she was still relatively new to this whole superhero business, and was quite biased towards the men in her kitchen.

"I don't like the sound of that." Steve said. He didn't sound angry, or combative. He just sounded...tired. Natasha's trademark smirk got even wider.

"That's what I thought you'd say." she replied, taking a sip of her coffee for dramatic effect. "That's why I told them I'd come find you, and then decided to completely ghost them."

"You did what now?" Sam asked. Bucky and Steve both looked confused, and Mika found herself hurriedly explaining the slang to Bucky in a fervent whisper. His brows shot towards his hairline in surprise. Natasha looked nonplussed.

"I still stand by what I said before. We're better together, no matter how it is that we're together." she said. She pushed off the island, putting her empty cup in the sink. "But the fact of the matter is, things are so far gone that their only response it to make an example of us - to chain us up and keep us quiet. And I don't know about you, but there's only certain situations where I like being tied up."

"Oh shit." Mika whispered, and Bucky prodded her ribs with his elbow to shut her up. This was not their conversation.

"So we really are just gonna live outside the law now, huh?" Sam asked, looking to Steve for confirmation. But before he could answer, Natasha spoke again.

"You're welcome to go back to the compound. That was the deal. You won't be punished for anything we decide." she said. She turned to Mika then, and Mika froze now that the full attention was on her. "They even included you in the deal."

"Me? Why me? What about Bucky?" she asked, alarmed. She looked to Bucky, but he had no more information than she did. He was very still, his eyes alert as he tried to gauge exactly what was going on. Every light feeling he had that morning was gone, and dread and uncertainty had settled like a stone in his stomach.

"You were a known associate, and thus included in the negotiations. As for Barnes…" her eyes slid over to his, and she left the sentence hanging. Mika didn't know what she meant, but Bucky did. All that would be waiting for him back in America was imprisonment. Life sentence, no parole. Do not pass go. Do not collect two hundred dollars. Do not ever see his girl without metal bars between them ever again.

But at the same time, Bucky thought, this could be her freedom. She didn't have to hide here, didn't have to limit her communication with her friends and family. Perhaps one day they'd even let her move back to her home.

"Absolutely not, then." Mika said definitively. Bucky held his hand out, putting it on her wrist to stop her from saying anything more.

"Not so fast." he said softly in Romanian. She pulled away from him, looking alarmed and borderline offended.

"What?" she asked him. She couldn't believe what she'd just heard from him.

"You have a chance to go back to a normal life, to be cleared of everything-" he started to make his case, but she quite literally stomped her foot, halting his statement.

"Bucky Barnes don't you dare." she seethed in Romanian, not caring that they had an audience or that Natasha could technically understand them.

"I'm just saying, this is your chance at freedom." he said, trying to keep his voice calm even though his heart was cracking and breaking in a blaze in his chest.

"And I'm just saying no. We talked about this." she retorted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Think about it." he said. He didn't want to be the reason that she was separated from her entire life, didn't want her to end up miserable because she was trapped in the bubble of Wakanda. She blinked twice.

"I thought about it. I'm staying." she said. He opened his mouth again, but she silenced him with a glare. He chanced a look at their guests, and as his gaze met theirs they all suddenly averted their eyes, as if they hadn't been completely eavesdropping on the heated conversation awkwardly happening in the middle of them.

"Anyways." Bucky said in English. He would try to talk to Mika about it later, make sure that this was the decision she really wanted. It was one thing when they talked about it at first, when she had no option but to stay here (unless she wanted to return to the Raft). But now...now things were changing.

"So you're not going back?" Sam asked Natasha, and she nodded. He turned to Steve. "And you're not going back?"

"No." he replied. Bucky had a feeling he had some more colorful sentiments he wanted to add to the word, but he kept them to himself. Sam nodded, thinking to himself for a minute before sighing.

"Well hell, I don't want to deal with Stark all on my own. Guess I'm going outlaw too." he said. There was a tense moment where it sunk in exactly what they were doing, but it didn't last long as they realized what would be waiting for them otherwise.

"I still have contacts in the KGB. They can give us enough information to keep busy." Natasha offered. Sam scoffed.

"Trust me, Cap can find his own trouble to keep busy." he said, shooting a look at the other man. Steve didn't even bother trying to defend himself, instead just grinning and tilting his head slightly in acknowledgement.

"Either way, it'll be a little less trouble with you around." he said, directing the words at Natasha. Mika could see the way his shoulders relaxed now, how he carried himself a little easier. Like Bucky, he was a man who needed a plan. But unlike Bucky, he was also a man in search of a fight. As if the three of them had the same thought at the same time, they all turned and looked at Mika and Bucky. She didn't know the question that they weren't asking with words; did they want them to join? Or were they seeing if they were going to give in and take the deal?

"And when you need a break, we'll always have a home for you." Mika offered. Sure, she missed some aspects of her old life: she missed her Friday night dates with Elena, and the way Hans always knew what drink she wanted, and how Nicolae always had some sort of party for them to go to. But the thought of sitting at a desk writing the same old codes and going back to an empty apartment was enough to make a shiver go down her spine. Compounding that with the thought that Bucky would either be jailed or a world away? No. This was where she wanted to be - where she needed to be.

Bucky was still hesitant, but Mika didn't let him voice his concerns. Not yet, anyway. She reached down and took his hand, intertwining their fingers and gripping his tightly. His chest felt tight with emotion, and he fought to keep it from showing on his face. With Hydra, he couldn't show weakness because it would lead to pain; here, he had to keep his feelings in check to avoid ridicule. But perhaps he wouldn't mind the ridicule so much.

"I love you." he murmured in Romanian. Sure, Natasha could understand them, but what was she going to do about it? Make fun of him? That was the least of his worries.

"I love you too." Mika said back, squeezing his hand once more before letting go. She turned her attention to Natasha. "Now, I believe you mentioned something about sparring earlier…"

Natasha gave her a devilish smirk. "Oh, I did. Do you think you can keep up?" she asked, her head tipped in a challenge. Mika laughed, her body already buzzing with adrenaline. She knew what it was like sparring with Bucky, and with the Dora Milaje. What would it be like with Natasha?

"Not at all, but I'm going to try." she said with a laugh, gesturing towards their training room at the back of the house and leading the other woman off. Bucky shook his head, going to put away everything they'd gotten earlier.

"So what's next?" he asked, trying to make conversation. He didn't care about the minimal tension left strung in the room, but he figured the other men did. And he knew enough about people now to shift the attention to something else.

"Sounds like Nat will find something for us." Sam said, though he didn't sound terribly excited about it. Given his knowledge of Steve and the healing bruises that were mostly hidden by the color of Sam's skin, Bucky couldn't blame him.

"At least with her we'll have one person with a decent head on their shoulders." Steve said. Ah, so he knew about the impulsivity and recklessness. Bucky didn't know if that was good, or if that somehow made it even worse. "What about you, Buck?"

He thought for a minute, both men looking at him in interest. He could hear the vague invite in Steve's question, do you want to come with us? He chose to blatantly ignore it. "Well, the garden needs tending to. I'll probably start with that." he said. No, I'm happy here.

"God, you're so old." Steve groaned, making Sam laugh and a smile appear on Bucky's face. Yes, he was old. But after ninety-something years, he could finally do what he wanted.

And that's what he was going to stick to.

Aw, a little fluff, a little drama - perfect, right? I got a little more fluffy stuff on the way, so get ready...more than likely, there will be a good time jump between this chapter and next chapter, just so y'all are ready!

Thank you so so so much to those of you who reviewed! I live for your input, and I'm seriously so grateful cause even those that preferred Nicky and Sam were still super nice in the way they said it. I was honestly nervous cause sometimes people can be mean, and even if I'm a grown ass woman, I still love me some validation from strangers on the internet.

I hope you liked this chapter! Please let me know what y'all thought!

-XM