Reunion

The HQ was partially demolished. All but one corner of Combat was flattened where it had been crushed under Gi-Ant Man, and there was a gaping hole in the side of the Commons that marked where Tony's lab had been. All that was left of the wheat field, the cow paddock, and Laura's gardens was a sprawling expanse of churned-up dirt—some furrows as deep as trenches, and some mounds and walls as much as ten or fifteen feet tall—and a few stubborn, scraggly grasses and wheat stalks still clinging to the loose soil. There were pockets in the surrounding forest where the trees had been crushed down, and a new bald chunk on the other side of the Hudson where part of the bank had been blasted off and into the river.

Strangely, though, there was no sign of the downed spaceships or Outrider bodies. Bucky couldn't find a single shard of metal, or a single black claw.

Most of the debris from the HQ had been cleared and heaped up in piles outside the building, and the holes in the walls had been covered with blue and grey tarp to keep out the elements. They were pinned in place, of course, but the loose edges and corners of the tarps fluttered slightly in the early morning breeze.

The whole thing seemed uncomfortably familiar. Bucky couldn't figure out what it reminded him of, until, like a bolt from the blue, his mind suddenly offered him an image of Steve—back when he was tiny and skinny—lying in a hospital bed and shivering in a thin gown that barely kept him modest while a few dark purple bruises peeked out under the bandages on his face.

Weak, wounded, and fragile. Bruised, battered, and bleeding.

But still holding on. Still breathing. Still kicking.

Still alive.

He followed Steve, Clint, and Pietro as they ducked under a tarp, stepped through a door that had plywood where the glass should have been, and walked down the main corridor of the Commons. Clint and Pietro were talking over each other, excitedly trying to catch him up on the battle he'd missed, and Bucky was barely able to keep up with what they were saying.

"And then Tony shot him with this huge laser like dzjaaaang—" Clint said, and spread his fingers wide and mimed Tony's repulsors, "but then Thanos shot him into the dirt, and then Thor pulled all of this lightning down on him like POW, POW, POW, but he blasted him away and pounded him up real good too, and we all thought Thor was a goner before Steve picked up the hammer and socked him on the jaw like—" he wound up with a spin of the wrist and then swung his arm upwards "—BAM!"

"The ham—" Bucky's jaw dropped, and then he whirled around to stare at Steve, who was trailing sheepishly behind. "You picked up the hammer?!"

Steve's ears were red, and he looked like he wanted to disappear into the floor.

"What, he not tell you already?" cried Pietro.

"No!" cried Bucky, and then he turned back to Steve. "When were you gonna tell me that you can lift Thor's hammer?!"

Steve rubbed the back of his neck. "I didn't...didn't want to call attention to it..."

"Aw, you missed it, it was so awesome!" enthused Clint.

Pietro's hands were flying. "He hit him and lightning shoot out like CRACK-A-PAH!"

Bucky's voice was nearly a squeak. "Lightning came out?!"

"We gotta get the recording from Tony's suit," Clint said with a giddy laugh. "You have to see this."

Bucky shook his head. "Damn straight, I do!"

"It's...it's not really a big deal..." Steve said lamely.

"Yes it is!" the other three chorused back at him.

They stepped through a door that, blessedly, hadn't fallen off its hinges, and Bucky found that they were in the Common Room. Peter was on the couch, lying on his back with his head hanging off the cushions, and Sam was looking over some papers on the nearby kitchen island, but they both looked up and sprouted huge grins when the door opened.

"Oh my god!" cried Peter, flipping off the couch and disentangling himself before making a beeline for Bucky. "You're not dead!"

Bucky laughed, grunted when the lanky teen hit his chest, hugged him, and ruffled his hair. "Could say the same about you, punk. I thought the old raisin had smashed every bone in your body."

Peter shrugged. His skin looked purple and yellow in places, and a split on his lip was still healing, but he was smiling and still as alive as ever. "I'm good. I heal fast."

There was a bark of "hey!" from Pietro, and Peter looked over Bucky's shoulder and lit up like the sun. He and Pietro yelled and laughed and charged at each other, and Clint grabbed them both and dragged them into a raucous group hug.

"Prank Kings back together again, baby!" crowed Clint. "Look out, upstate New York!"

Bucky stood by, grinning at them, and Sam quietly slipped up to his side and elbowed him with a smile. He was sporting a dark bruise under one eye, and there was a cut near his temple that was still healing, but he he couldn't have looked happier or prouder.

Pietro pushed Peter away from him and looked him up and down as the younger teen just grinned. "You are tall as me! How is that fair?!"

"Yeah, we had 'ta borrow same of your shirts, Pietro," Bucky piped up. "Hope ya don't mind."

"Without ask me first?!" cried Pietro.

Peter rolled his eyes. "You were kinda dead, dude."

Sam snorted, shook his head, and threw his arm over Bucky's shoulders, and Bucky let himself be steered away and down another hallway as the happy conversation went on behind them.

"So," said Sam in his Team Leader Voice, "I've been taking care of things while you were out of commission."

"Good," Bucky said immediately, and with relief. There's no one else he would have trusted more, and discussing logistics with Sam felt familiar and good.

Sam began counting on his fingers. "Bjorn went down to the Sound to see if he could find his family. I think Rich went back to Missouri—"

"Yeah, the Bartons said he moved back in."

"Oh, yeah, you were with 'em, weren'cha?" Sam shook his head. "Sorry, lotta things to keep track of."

Bucky allowed himself a chuckle. "You're good."

Sam kept counting. "Uh, the Ant-Dudes left their regards, but they were in a hurry to get back to San Francisco. Think they were looking for someone called Janet."

Bucky frowned. "How are they gonna get cross-country?"

"Strange portal-ed 'em."

The frown left. "Oh, okay, okay."

"Yeah. So they went to San Fran; T'Challa and the princess went back to Wakanda; Sarah's still here with the boys, but we're planning to go down to Louisiana and look for my folks; and they haven't left yet, but Thor and his people are planning to fly down to New Mexico. Said they gotta find their friend Darcy."

Bucky nodded, still trying to take it all in. It was a lot of information to absorb at once, and he still wasn't back up to his normal speed. "Well, best of luck to 'em," is all he said, at last.

Sam seemed to see that he was a little overwhelmed. He stopped mid-stride and said quietly, "The world is coming back together. People are looking for their loved ones."

Bucky set his mouth in a grim line. "Now all we gotta do is figure out how to feed 'em all."

A little smile crossed Sam's face. "At this point, I think that's a good problem to have."

Bucky met his eye and returned the smile. Sam was right; as always. Half of the entire universe had their lives back; friends were reunited, and families restored, when they had been torn apart. Better to have them all alive and figure out what to do with them than have them all gone and have all the riches in the world.

The others had been trailing behind them, talking among themselves, but Peter suddenly caught on to Sam and Bucky's conversation and butted in. "Oh! And you gotta talk to the space dudes. They just got back, and they brought this...this talking raccoon called Rocket."

Bucky raised an eyebrow at Sam. He didn't need to say any more.

Sam raised both eyebrows back and shrugged. "He's not lyin'."

"Really."

"Nope."

"A talking ra—" Bucky finally shook his head. "Y'know what," he said through his laughter, "the last two years have been really weird, so that might as well happen."

The whole group laughed and pushed through another set of doors and into a conference room that was mostly intact. Plywood was propped up in place of a few broken windows, and there was still some debris and concrete dust on the carpet, but Bucky was far more interested in the familiar figures gathered around the table in the center of the room.

"Hey, there he is!" Tony threw his arms out wide, and the arc reactor glowed blue in his chest. "The million-dollar man."

"Friend James!" boomed Thor right beside him. "Bless the Allfathers, you live!"

Bucky felt like he'd break his face if he grinned any wider. "Tony! Thor!"

Thor, naturally, was the first to charge up and hug him, but thankfully he had the restraint to make it marginally less rib-crushing than normal. "You were magnificent, my friend!" he cried through laughter that could shake a city block. "A final stand against the tyrant himself, up to your dying breath! Ah, but your forefathers would be proud."

Bucky grunted, slapped Thor on the back, and chuckled when he was finally released. "I'm jus' glad the dyin' part wasn't permanent."

"Aren't we all," said a softer voice. Natasha had circled around the table and now stood nearby, one hand on her hip, watching with a smile.
Bucky's smile softened. "Natka."

"Yasha." She stepped forward, put her arms around his neck, and hugged him. "U vas khorosho poluchilos'."

The language was that of his handlers and old orders, but the words were ones that They never would have said, and they warmed him to his very core.

I'm so proud of you.

He didn't have the words to answer her properly, so he just returned the hug—as gently as he could with the metal arm—and whispered back, "Spasibo."

"Yeah, what she said," added someone who'd appeared meekly behind Natasha.

Bucky broke into a wider smile. "Bruce." He turned and hugged him too.

Bruce never quite seemed comfortable like this, straining just to be tall enough to put his chin on Bucky's shoulder, but he was smiling nonetheless. "You know, ah," he joked hesitantly, "when we started that whole 'stay alive' thing..."

Bucky shook his head and chuckled. He had a feeling he wasn't gonna hear the end of that one for a long time. "Yeah, yeah, I get it, very funny."

"Okay," Tony announced loudly before Bucky had even let Bruce go, "before anyone says anything, no, I'll pass on the mushy stuff—"

"Tony," said Pepper with a stern look, but she almost looked like she was hiding a smile.

Of course, Bucky was elated to see Tony and his entourage, but he knew an opportunity for a joke when he saw it. "How about I hug you," he suggested, turning to Rhodey, "and then you pass it on to him?"

Rhodey shrugged and played along. "Sure, if we wanna make a conga line out of it." He spread his arms. "Come on, Tones, bring it in."

"I think he should do it himself," interjected Pepper.

"Okay, fine, fine," cried Tony, and he stepped forward, trying his very best to look reluctant. "Just this once."

Bucky squeezed his shoulders and then backed away before Tony could have the chance to get anxious. "Missed ya, you maniac."

Tony sniffed and tried to play it off. "Yeah, most people would."

By this point, conversations had started among the others, and the room was full of excited voices and the exchange of news. Perhaps that's why Bucky noticed the two people who weren't joining in for the reunion: Loki and Nebula, huddled off in one corner.

Loki in particular was trying to make himself scarce, and he seemed to be avoiding one Avenger in particular. Unfortunately for him, the Avenger he was trying to evade had eyes like...well, a hawk.

After a long moment of silence, Clint stepped away from the happy conversation in the center of the room and headed towards that corner. Loki drew himself up taller, and some kind of aloof mask fell into place.

Bucky didn't say anything, but he watched, waiting to see if he'd have to intervene.

They stopped a few feet away from each other and sized one another up in guarded silence. Then, ever so slowly, Clint put forward his hand.

For a split second, Loki's mask slipped, and he looked surprised and almost genuinely grateful. He put his slender hand into Clint's square, tan one and shook it.

"I take it I passed the test?" he asked carefully.

Clint shrugged. "Well, you were willing to fight Thanos, anyway. Keep that up and maybe I'll start to trust you."

The words were harsh, but they were said with a smile, and Loki picked up on that and chuckled. "No promises."

Bucky took that as a nonaggression pact and a green light to join the conversation. As he made his way over to that corner, he found himself beside Nebula.

"Hey," he said.

Her gaze was expressionless as always, but her shoulders weren't rigid, and Bucky decided to take that as a win. "Hi," she said, very deliberately.

Bucky grinned. There was something endlessly adorable about her trying to act like a "normal" person. "You're not runnin' around the galaxy with the other space dudes?"

She turned away and said in a steely voice, "I couldn't leave until I knew the work here was done."

He nodded. "Ah."

They watched the other conversations in the room for a little while. Bucky checked on Loki and Clint again, and seeing as they didn't seem close to tearing each other's throats out, decided to leave them alone.

"And," Nebula said slowly, with a frown, as if she was unused to the feeling of the words in her mouth, "I had to say...goodbye."

Bucky looked at her and smiled. She was starting to open up after all. After all these years, he finally understood a little bit of what Steve must have felt.

But all he said was, "Anytime you want to come back, Earth is open. For you, and all of yours."

She looked up and met his eye; and maybe he was going crazy, or maybe she almost smiled. "Thank you."

Clint and Loki finished up their peace talks, and as Clint melted back into the group of the other Avengers, Loki retreated to the corner.

"Well," he said, with a smile at Bucky that would have been unbearably smug if not for the hint of sincerity in it, "he survived."

Bucky elbowed him back. Never hear the end of it, indeed. "Good to see you too. Stayin' out of trouble?"

"Never," was the immediate answer, and Bucky laughed.

After another long moment of watching the crowd, Loki leaned over and said quietly, "I suppose now that you are present, we can get started. Well, as soon as the Sorcerer makes his appearance, anyway."

"Strange?" Bucky looked around the room, as if he expected the Sorcerer Supreme to appear out of a wall. "Where is he?"

"Back at the Sanctum, of course," said Loki. "It appears he's running late."

Right on cue, a golden portal opened, and two people stepped out of it, deep in conversation; but Dr. Strange wasn't the first one that Bucky saw.

"There you are!" he exclaimed, and Wanda—because of course it was her—lit up at the sound of his voice and ran to his side. He put his arm around her and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Was wonderin' where you ran off to."

She nestled into his shoulder, looking utterly content. "We had to take care of some extra business."

"More brainwashin'?" piped up Sam.

Normally, Bucky would have flinched just at the sound of that word, but Sam's teasing tone caught him off guard and earned no more than a startled blink.

"For the greater good!" Wanda cried defensively.

Steve shook his head. "Now there's a sentence I'd never expect to hear."

"Except from HYDRA," Bucky muttered—because everyone was thinking it, and he was the only one allowed to say it.

Wanda rolled her eyes. "We just broke space-time. You all want migraines from your memories getting tied in knots, or no?"

"I'll go with 'no', thanks," said Sam.

"Then no complaining!" shot back Wanda.

As they continued to bicker, Bucky turned his head—and there was Dr. Strange, walking with quiet footsteps and head held high.

Bucky felt himself smile. "Strange."

The Sorcerer nodded slowly, like a low bow, and his angular face was softened with a smile. "Well done," he said simply, but the words seemed to echo in Bucky's mind.

Well done. From the man who'd seen every outcome—who'd walked between millions of possibilities—who'd nearly died to assure this one, and returned in the nick of time, because Bucky had stood up with lungs full of blood and chosen to hold the line just that precious second longer—well done.

It seemed to steal the air from Bucky's chest, and fill it with honor and pride, all at once.

Well done, soldier.

Dr. Strange turned to address the room at large, and all conversation began to quiet at the sound of his voice. "I'm sure you all have many ques—"

Bucky hugged him.

Dr. Strange made a small noise like oof, and froze as the others in the room began to snicker, but eventually he relaxed, laughed quietly, and gave two firm pats on Bucky's back with his gnarled hand.

With that, Bucky released him. "Last I saw you, ya had a hole in your chest," he said, as if that would explain the hug.

Dr. Strange's laughter came as a tiny huff. "Funny how those things tend to get undone," he said, and met his eye with a very deliberate Look.

Bucky just chuckled.

Yep, fair enough.

A/N: Well, it took a whole month and me getting oral surgery, but we finally have another chapter! I actually chopped this one in half so that you don't have to wait ANOTHER month for it. Also I got an ergonomic keyboard so that typing doesn't literally cause me pain! Yay! :-D

Natka is the diminutive of "Natasha", Yasha is the diminutive of "James", and spasibo means "thank you".

Anyway, time to disappear for another month!