Nat met them on the tarmac before dawn, greeting them with a genuine smile, hugging Steve and Shay and offering Bucky a friendly handshake.
"Congrats on the win Barnes."
"Thanks."
"You all, ready to get home?"
Steve nodded and led the way into the waiting quinjet.
"Shay, I need a co-pilot." Nat said briskly from the front, flipping switches as she did the pre-flight check.
Shay let go of Bucky's hand with an apologetic look, leaving him with Pippin and Steve. She settled in the spare seat in the cockpit and raised a sarcastic brow at the overqualified pilot. "You need a co-pilot? Really? I thought you were more subtle than that."
Nat rolled her eyes at Shay as the jet began its run. "Subtle? like you and Barnes holding hands and glowing?"
"You're one to judge, last time we spoke, you and Bruce were making moon eyes at each other."
The end of the runway approached and Nat focused on easing the control column into flight. The shadowed green and gold of Wakanda vanished in the brilliant light of the sunrise as they rose to 5000 feet and broke through the shimmering force field.
"I've always hated that feeling." Shay laughed, prying her fingers from the armrests experimentally and taking deep breaths to calm the rapid beating of her heart in her throat.
"And I used to think you had no secrets." Nat grinned to show she wasn't offended. "All the times you've flown with me, and you never let it show. Must say, I am impressed."
"No more secrets, Nat." Shay offered softly. "I'm working on it."
"I…" Nat surveyed her face thoughtfully. "I think its time I told you. What happened before I found you all in NOLA." Shay offered her hand, palm up and Nat took it as she began the long story. "I thought I'd killed Dreykov, and the red room with him- Before I joined shield… Turns out he wasn't quite dead enough."
Nat explained how she'd learned the Red-room remained operational even though it had never rebuilt to its original size, how Dreykov- burned and partially crippled, and Malina- a woman who had been part of Nat's fake American family had actually helped him mind control and 'recruit' the girls. She had helped Nat and Yelena (the sister) take the red room down in the end though, created the formula to counteract the mind control drugs they'd been given.
Africa shrunk into the ocean, the sky darkened and the edge of the North American continent was growing on the horizon as Nat simplified the ending.
"When Ross showed up at the destroyed warehouse with a task force, Malina distracted them long enough for us to get away." Nat's voice grew thick and she stared at the floor for a long moment. "I… I'm grateful to her, you know, but I still… she still helped him- broke them."
When Nat didn't continue, Shay whispered, "you can love a person and hate what they've done, it doesn't have to make sense."
Nat nodded, swallowing once, and again before turning her face back to the horizon. "Yeah."
"What happened to Yelena, the other girls?"
"I put her in touch with some people, got them all into a cult deprogramming center. They're learning to live in the real world, make their own choices, and it's a good cover for why none of them have official documents or normal life experience."
"You've stayed in touch?"
"Yelena keeps me updated, asks for advice. I think she's afraid I'll disappear again." Nat shook her head pensively. "I was an orphan for so long, I don't quite know how to be a sister."
"Its not that different from being a friend, I think. And you're pretty good at that." Shay reassured with a gentle squeeze.
The glow of their joined hands brightened and Nat smiled gratefully.
The jet settled with a gentle thud on the tarmac lit only by the glow of landing lights. Together they walked the short distance to the waiting shuttle.
Pippin opted out of the ride, preferring to run alongside and take numerous detours to sniff stop signs and fences, finally flopping down outside the residential complex, tongue lolling. Shay patted his head as they passed, murmuring her approval in low-German. "Bas du nue-ul tou'sigh? Du shmuckat yung, du." (Are you already *at-home-feeling*? You pretty boy, you.)
The dim night-lit hallway had them all blinking after the pitch-black night the doors shut out. 1 am. Day staff had left long ago and the residence seemed eerily quiet to Shay, having lived in the constant night buzz of insects in Wakanda. Their footsteps echoed down the cross halls and open spaces.
"We should try to sleep, avoid the jetlag." Steve murmured over his shoulder as he led the way to the common room. "You can bunk with me for tonight, Buck."
"There's a spare room between Steve and Shay's, used to be storage but we thought you'd prefer it to the guest rooms on the third floor." Nat added, turning to face them, and blocking the double doors as she softly spoke.
"Yeah," Bucky nodded, surprised by the consideration. "Thanks."
Light from the hall spilled onto the long dining table. A table set with boxes, a stack of plates and forks and a selection of cans and bottles. Shay's glow threaded through the dark room, finding the waiting party goers where they stood, frozen as though in a trance.
"Surprise." Wanda half whispered, letting the golden strand lead her to Shay's embrace. "Tony is going to set off fireworks, and Sam was going to shout as soon as you came in." she chuckled as she let go of Shay and with a twist of red vapor from her finger-tips, released the others from the hold she'd put on them.
"Surprise!" Sam shouted.
Tiny fireworks popped up from a cone on the table, showering the spread with glowing pinpricks of glorious colour.
"Thanks for the warning, Wanda." Shay said, tapping the back of Bucky's hand with her fingers. His grip relaxed but he didn't let go as the welcoming party flooded in around them.
Sam and Peter dished up pie and cake, Tony and Rhodey poured drinks. Bruce wrapping an arm around Nat's waist with a bashful expression as she kissed his cheek. Wanda smiled thinly and Shay felt the lingering echo of grief through the glow; but the comfort of home, with the people who mattered most in the world warmed every corner of the room.
Happy offered Shay a one shouldered hug, speaking gently in her ear over the buzz of the room. "Welcome back."
She returned the pressure. "It's been far too long, how've you been? How's Queens?"
"Great, I'm good. Trying to keep the kid alive is taking what's left of my hairline, but there are perks."
"How is hot-Aunt-May?" Tony shouted from across the room.
"You've got to stop calling her that." Moaned a mortified Peter. "It's weird enough that they're dating, its just… agh- weird."
Happy ignored them both, speaking confidentially to Shay, "May is… well, she's great." A bashful smile overspread Happy's features, beautifying his naturally kind face. Shay squeezed his arm and shared in the warmth of his contentment. "It's good to have you back Shay."
"It's good to be back." Shay answered softly.
It was late, Wanda had retired, Happy had taken Peter home and Rhodes had taken a spare room for the night. Steve and Bucky chatted with Sam in the kitchen over third and fourth slices of pie and Shay stretched out on the ridiculously oversized horseshoe shaped couch dominating the lounge, with her head in Nat's lap, listening to Bruce and Tony exchange increasingly improbable and incomprehensible concepts as Nat rubbed little circles in her scalp.
A change in the electricity around her made Shay open her eyes. Steve, Sam, and Bucky had approached the sunken lounge, and a tipsy Tony had risen into a defensive posture as he locked eyes with the man he'd tried to kill.
Steve stepped into his line of sight, waving Bucky back and saying, "we'd better hit the hay, Buck, get an early start."
"Running away Barnes?" Tony warbled, "letting Steve save you. again."
"Tony, we can have this talk when you're sober."
"You're not my keeper Rogers. Besides, I shelled out my money to get him off, I think that gives me a right to have words with him anytime I please."
Bucky stopped Steve's further attempt at negotiation with a hand on his arm, spurred on by the look Shay gave him, the motion of her hand that indicated intent. Tony was on the edge of doing something physical, and that could only end badly.
In clear sight of Tony, he reached for the joint of his metal shoulder, pressed the coded sequence into the tiny, raised bumps. Catching the arm as it detached and setting it slowly down on the coffee table between him and Tony. Disarmed, he sat on the edge of the couch near Shay who was sitting up now.
Tony glanced from the arm to Bucky, back to the arm, finally resting on Shay's hand on Bucky's remaining forearm, and slumped, speechless onto the armchair he'd vacated.
"I-" Bucky stopped, swallowed, tried again. "I can't tell you how sorry I am. Or how grateful." Tears built on his lower lids, spilled as he looked down at his palm. "If I could change what happened…"
"But you can't," Tony interjected, his voice hard under the pretended apathy of his manner. "You can't fix it Barnes. And if it wasn't for these two," he motioned at Steve and Shay, "I'd rip your head off for what you did to my parents. Still tempted. But-" He emptied the glass in his hand, stood up, walked to the coffee table, and set it down next to the arm; every movement measured, intentional as he turned to lock eyes again. "As an expert in making the most of second chances, take my advice… don't screw this one up. You won't get another."
Bucky nodded, screwing up his chin and looking down again as Tony exited the lounge doors.
"Is he ok to drive?" Steve asked Bruce.
"Friday will get him home in one piece. Better driver than he is, even sober." Bruce answered, the curl of his lip dying as the joke fell flat in the emotionally charged room.
A long and uncomfortable silence fell. Broken by an obvious yawn from Sam.
"Time to turn in." Steve suggested.
Nods and murmurs of agreement answered him. Doors closed as everyone filtered out to their respective rooms.
Steve showed Bucky the room prepared for him, but he lingered at his own door, casting a concerned eye over Shay. "You'll be alright on your own?"
Shay chewed her lip thoughtfully, "I think so, but I promise to wake one of you if I have a nightmare."
"Don't forget you can ask Friday for anything you need, that goes for you too Buck, ok? Alright, well goodnight then." Steve's door closed on his last words.
Bucky was still carrying his prosthetic, but he wrapped his arm around Shay anyway, careful not to gouge her with the shoulder attachment. He spoke in a low voice, uncertain how thin the walls were, "you need anything, you call me first."
Shay bobbed her head, amused, "yessir."
"G'night Angel."
Notes:
I know its been a while since I last uploaded, fall is a very busy time for me and I just had all four wisdom removed, so forgive my slow pace as I attempt to recover on a diet of mushy foods. (oh chips, my favorite crispy snacks, and straws, how I miss thee!)
On a separate note, does this chapter feel good, bad or neutral? There are a few loose ends I didn't want to leave untied, but I'm hoping that it doesn't feel like story or character regression. Please, I live for your feedback, and rereading the thoughtful comments is a major motivation to finally finish this saga!
Luv ya, stay hydrated, keep warm and be safe.