Content warning: Sexual content suitable for readers aged 18+. Edited from original content posted on Wattpad, same user name, same title.
The time alone with her mother and sister while Bucky tended to his personal business helped Julia immensely. She told them everything about Mason and as harrowing as it was for them to hear the full extent of his cruelty to her they both were glad that she finally confided in them. Confiding in them also reinforced the necessity of Julia undergoing counselling. With Dr. Raynor's assistance a therapist in the Lake Tahoe area was found who took Julia on as a patient. As he promised, Bucky returned home within two days. He had a face to face visit with Dr. Raynor before he returned home where he described his feelings of murderous rage towards Mason Bender. To her credit she didn't judge him harshly for that. Instead she validated his feelings and commended him for allowing the justice system to deal with the man. It was probably one of the best sessions he ever had with her, primarily because he was completely open and communicative with her and she also suspended her usual attitudes towards him.
Rick video called just hours after Bucky returned to confirm they found the same type of BDSM rope in Mason's apartment that was identified not just on that cold case that Julia had reviewed but on ten other cold cases. Their boxes were found in a storage locker that Mason rented out. His dental records confirmed a match both before and after the dental work was done as he continued his murderous ways for some time after marrying Julia. At his arrest he put up a brave front, insisting that Rick had no case against him. When Rick told him they found the ten cold case boxes in his storage locker only then did he concede defeat.
"She found the 11th box, didn't she?" he asked Rick point blank, against the advice of his lawyer. "I should have finished her like the others but it was more fun pulling the wool over her eyes. I knew she would connect the dots if she ever saw any of those cases. The divorce should have shattered her but she proved she was smarter than me after all."
When Rick recounted that to Julia and Bucky on the video call he apologized again for not realizing what a monster Mason truly was.
"You take all the time you need to deal with this, Julia," he also said. "If you find you can't do it anymore let me know and I'll send someone to pick up the files. You've done more than your share as it is. I hope you resolve the other issue soon. Keep me in the loop on that."
For a month Bucky stayed home with Julia and Rebecca, reaffirming their relationship as a family. They worked on reestablishing the previous intimacy of their marriage. In many ways it was like their early courtship where Bucky gave all the power to Julia to decide when she was ready to go further. Once Rebecca was in bed they would put music on and dance closely in the living room with the lights turned low. One night, about two weeks into their relationship rebuilding, Julia asked him to play Northern Wind, the song that preceded their first kiss. As they danced she looked up at him.
"You've been so patient with me," she said softly. "I wanted to tell you how much I appreciate that."
"There was a lot for you to work through," he replied, lowering his face close to the side of her head. "I can see you're a lot calmer and less stressed about a lot of things."
"I do feel better," she agreed. "Dr. Sheldon has helped me a lot. I've noticed since your session with Dr. Raynor that you're calmer as well."
"You were right that I needed to talk with her," he said quietly. "It was a good session, probably the best I ever had with her."
The song ended and Julia looked up at him, just like she did that night almost two years before. Gently Bucky kissed her and she extended the kissing for several more minutes before pulling away. They hugged and Julia turned off the lights, then took Bucky by the hand to the stairs. Just by her body language Bucky knew what she had in mind.
"Are you sure?" he asked, with concern.
"I'm sure," she confirmed with a smile. "I want my husband back. I'm sure you want your wife back as well."
They went up the stairs together and entered the bedroom. Both undressed then stepped close to each other. Running his hand through her hair Bucky pulled her body close to his and kissed her sensuously, gently touching her tongue with his as he caressed her back, sliding it over the curve of her bottom. His body responded quickly to her proximity and Julia smoothed her hands over him bringing groans of desire out of Bucky. She laid back on top of the bed and he followed her on his hands and knees, mouthing her legs, thighs, and inside her hips. Several times she gasped as he brushed his mouth over her, teasing her with his tongue. Instead of staying there he moved his mouth up her body, gently nuzzling her breasts then caressing them as he moved on to her neck with his mouth.
"I missed you," he whispered as he massaged her pubic mound, gently caressing it.
"I missed you, too," she admitted as she looked into his eyes. "I want you in me, please."
Both of them moaned at the sensation they felt as he entered her, taking his time so they could both draw out their pleasure. Wrapping her legs around his Julia moved with each thrust Bucky made pressing herself back into him. The rhythm of their bodies moving was as if they had never been apart in the weeks before. With the touches and caresses they shared both felt the rise of passion within them. Julia reached her climax first and cried out Bucky's name which spurred him to come. In the bliss they shared after the only sounds between them were of soft wet kisses and loving whispers. There were no tears, just the acceptance they had weathered a terrible storm that threatened to pull them apart.
In the remaining two weeks of Bucky's leave he never told Julia about finding out it was HYDRA who wanted their daughter. They continued exploring each other physically, successfully regaining the loving intimacy of their marriage. On the final Monday morning of his leave Bucky received a coded message on his cell phone while he was brushing his teeth. The message, from Colonel Rhodes, indicated the Avengers had all the names of those still in the American military that were HYDRA sympathizers. The mission to find them all and arrest them was ready to be implemented under Bucky's command. He looked at the message but didn't answer it immediately. Julia was down in the kitchen with Rebecca getting breakfast ready. Bucky went downstairs and watched Julia, wearing her headphones so she could listen to some of her modern music that he didn't care for. She was dancing and singing at the same time, holding Rebecca and making her laugh. Suddenly, she became aware of Bucky watching her with that soft smile of his, and she pulled her headphones off.
"You were watching us," she stated.
"I was," he replied, then came forward to lift them both onto the counter so their faces were all at the same height. "You know I love watching you dance. So does Rebecca." He kissed Julia tenderly and she responded, placing her free arm around his neck while Rebecca giggled. "There's something I have to tell you."
A small shadow appeared on her face. "What is it?" she asked.
"A mission," he admitted. "Not just any mission. Do you remember when I took those two days for personal business? I confronted the two women we suspected of arranging your kidnapping. One of them admitted it in my presence, although she didn't know I was listening at the time. It was HYDRA who hired her and they wanted our daughter believing she had my abilities."
"They wanted to take Rebecca?" she repeated. "But she's normal. She hasn't shown any signs of extra strength or anything."
"I know," he replied. "But they assumed she would have them. We'll have to go to Wakanda sometime to confirm it but it's believed that because she's a girl she didn't inherit most of my abilities, as they are mostly tied to my Y chromosome."
"So, only our sons will inherit your abilities," stated Julia. "Because they'll inherit your Y chromosome."
Bucky slowly nodded. "We'll worry about that when we have a son," he said. "When I found this information out I was free lancing with Rhodey's blessing. Everything that I heard was also heard by Avenger's security and Rhodey. We also learned there are still many HYDRA sympathizers in the American military. This past month the Avengers have been gathering information that would identify them and they're ready to move on them. They want me to lead the mission."
He watched her face closely, looking for any signs of distress or fear. "They want you to arrest them because you have the most to lose if they stay free," she countered. "Not just for your own safety, but ours. You want to do this but you're telling me about a classified mission ..." she paused, looking for confirmation "...because you want my blessing to do this."
He nodded slowly again. "I could be gone for a while," he explained. "Once word gets out that I'm looking for them there's a good chance some will scatter. We're hoping to get most of them before that happens. But if any do escape it's my mission to find them and bring them in."
"You won't kill them?" she asked slightly frowning.
"No, they'll face justice but not mine," he answered. "I'm not a killer anymore, although I was tempted when I heard about Terry Edwards and Mason. Will you let me go for an extended time to deal with this so that we can live a normal life with our kids? It will be hard on you, I know. But this is me, fulfilling my pledge to keep you and Rebecca safe."
Gently Julia ran her hand down the side of Bucky's face, over the stubble of beard growth that he usually wore. His blue eyes gazed on her face as she did so and she pressed her forehead into his.
"It will be hard to be without you indefinitely," she whispered. "But you're right. This is your mission because you're invested in it personally. When do you leave?"
"Tomorrow," he said. "They're picking me up with the quinjet at Lake Tahoe Airport. I already have a team picked out because I've known for a month this mission would happen. I never said anything because for the past month you were more important than anything else."
"Is it safe for me to stay here?" she asked.
"You won't be alone," he assured her. "A married couple from the Avengers security team will stay with you. They'll disembark from the quinjet and you can bring them back here. The two women I confronted were warned to never try anything involving you or Rebecca. They got my message and I don't anticipate we'll have to worry about them, ever. The one who did arrange it swore she only gave the address of our home to her two henchmen that were arrested. So, if anyone comes looking I'll know she lied and she knows I'll come for her."
"You'll keep in touch?" Her eyes searched his.
"As much as I can," he promised. "I'll let Greg know I have to leave indefinitely. Your parent's place is almost done and Jason has done really well overseeing the renovation in my previous absences."
"Okay," she acquiesced, "it has to be done and you'll make sure it's done right." She took a breath. "After breakfast we should do something as a family."
"Let's go out for a hike with Rebecca," he suggested. "I've always wanted to see what the plateau is like during the day."
Julie smiled indulgently at him, remembering that night they went up there. Leaning forwards she took Bucky's face in her hands and kissed him passionately. While she returned to getting breakfast ready Bucky texted his acceptance code and the message was sent to his team, comprised of Sam, Yelena, Thor, and Shaun that the mission was a go. Yelena would pilot herself and Thor to Louisiana for Sam, then to Lake Tahoe for him and San Francisco for Shaun. From there they would go to Pearl Harbor and arrest the person who ordered the kidnapping of Rebecca; an admiral of the United States Navy Pacific fleet, found after Bucky cloned the Contessa's phone and Bob Johnson cracked the text message requesting the kidnapping. After that they would visit several American military bases around the world, arresting those officers and enlisted men who were named by a 3 star general still in custody in Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp. Another text was sent to the army task force, Captain Piper's team, minus Corporal Chambers, also in custody, who would be sent to support them.
Bucky didn't think of all that as he ate his breakfast with Julia and Rebecca. Today he was going to enjoy his time with his family. They bought a baby carrier for hiking and this would be the first opportunity to use it. For this day at least they would have their family moment and pretend he didn't have to leave for who knew how long.
The following day Bucky drove himself, Julia and Rebecca to the Lake Tahoe Airport. While they waited he took Rebecca out of her car seat and pointed out the private planes that were landing and taking off. There were a few forest fighting aircraft that also took off and he told her about how brave those pilots were as they dropped water on forest fires. She listened intently to everything he told her and he took in everything about her and Julia's face, realizing it could be weeks or even longer before he saw them in person again. From a distance he could hear the sound of the quinjet approaching and he pointed it out to Rebecca.
"That's the aircraft Daddy is going in," he said to her. "I have to work on something to keep you and Mommy safe. I might be gone for a while. You have to be a good girl for Mommy." Emotionally he kissed her head, then put his arm around Julia. "I will try to call as much as I can. Damn, this is harder than I thought it would be."
He sniffed and Julia saw that tears were forming in the corner of his eyes. Reaching into his pocket she pulled out his handkerchief and dabbed at his eyes. With a forced laugh, he accepted her ministrations and smiled wanly at her. As Yelena brought the aircraft in and landed it expertly in front of them he noticed how big Rebecca's eyes were.
"Plane," she said excitedly and both he and Julia laughed at what ended up being her first word.
The ramp came down and a man and woman exited bringing a large suitcase with them. Julia recognized the man as the one who led the Avengers security team on the day of the kidnapping attempt.
"Sarge," he said, greeting Bucky first. "Mrs. Barnes."
"Julia, this is Ted and Kathy Lassiter," said Bucky. "They're going to stay with you while I'm away. Ted was in charge of the security team who answered the call on the day of the attempt."
"I remember your face," said Julia. "You answered the call so quickly. It was reassuring."
Bucky looked up and saw three quarters of the team assembled at the top of the ramp. Taking his bag out of the car and slinging it over his shoulder he took Julia by the hand and together they went up the incline. She said hi to Sam and Thor, then Bucky brought her to the young woman who piloted the aircraft.
"Julia, this is Yelena Belova," he said. "Sister of Natasha Romanoff, she's an ex-employee of the Contessa, and a hell of a fighter. She's wanted to meet you for some time."
"Mrs. Barnes," said Yelena, in her Russian accent. "It is my pleasure. This is the baby Barnes? May I?"
Bucky looked at Julia who nodded her assent and he transferred Rebecca to Yelena.
"She looks like both of you," declared the petite blonde. "No wonder HYDRA wants her. Just on cuteness alone she is priceless. Little girl, I promise I will help your Papa find the bad guys who want you for their own. He is very brave and will protect you always. Mrs. Barnes, Julia, you are a lucky woman to have such a man."
"I agree with you," said Julia. "Keep him safe."
Yelena nodded and handed Rebecca back, then disappeared back into the quinjet. Julia noticed Yelena wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. Bucky whispered that Yelena could never have children and she felt a moment of sympathy for the young woman.
"How are Elinor and Amanda?" asked Thor. "I have tried to make plans several times to visit but New Asgard business has often kept me there."
"They still speak of you," smiled Julia. "To be honest I think you ruined them for other men."
He smiled broadly and hugged her, then kissed her cheek, returning back inside. Sam looked at her and Rebecca softly. Gently he stroked Rebecca's hair. Then he looked at Julia.
"Yes, I am still seeing Anna," he stated. "We're having a great time and I think it's safe to say it's reached the serious stage. Once this mission is over I probably have a decision to make. Thank you for finding her for me."
"She just happened to be at the rink that day," insisted Julia with a smile. "But I'm glad for you both."
They hugged and she kissed him on the cheek. "Bring him home to me Sam," she said with emotion.
He nodded at them both then returned inside the quinjet. Bucky wrapped both of them in his arms and kissed Rebecca on the forehead. Then he looked intently at Julia.
"I love you so much," he said, his voice almost breaking. "It's going to be hell without you."
"I love you, too," she whispered. "You get it done then you come home to me."
Fiercely he kissed her then watched her walk down the ramp and to the car. He waited to make sure she put Rebecca in the car seat before he turned and walked into the quinjet. As the ramp was raised he stowed his bag and strapped himself into his seat.
"Let's go pick up Shaun," he said tersely.
One day later, Pearl Harbor
The Avengers team and the Army task force waited outside the headquarters of the Pacific fleet. Captain Piper had the names of six enlisted men and non-commissioned officers. Bucky and the Avengers had the name of the Admiral, two Commanders and two Captains.
"You ready?" asked Piper. "Our informant says they are all in a meeting in the Admiral's boardroom.
"Ready," replied Bucky.
Both teams entered the headquarters, showed their orders and went to the Admiral's boardroom. Bucky, in his Sergeant's uniform, and Captain Piper, also in uniform entered together, saluted, then Captain Piper read out the reason for their visit.
"Admiral Mark Callaghan," began Piper. "Under the Uniform Code of Military Justice you are charged under Section 104, Aiding the Enemy; Section 106, Lurking as a Spy, or Acting as a Spy, Section 106a, Espionage. All these charges are punishable by death. You are hereby placed under arrest and will be transported to custody in Guantanamo Bay Detention Centre."
"What's the meaning of this?" demanded the Admiral. "Who the hell are you, an Army Captain and a Reserves Sergeant to be telling me I'm under arrest? Someone call the MPs."
"Belay that order," said Bucky, looking the Admiral in the eyes. "Every person in here is facing the same charges. The Fleet Admiral has been informed and approved the charges. You, Admiral, are also facing criminal charges for attempted kidnapping, and counselling to commit a criminal offence."
"I'm not going to stand here and listen to this nonsense," said the Admiral, standing up to leave.
Just before he got to the door the Army task force team entered, followed by the other Avengers. They all blocked the exit. Bucky stepped to the Admiral's ear and whispered "Hail HYDRA" to him, then flexed his vibranium hand.
"Barnes," snarled the Admiral. "Cut off one head ..."
Bucky knocked him down, shutting him up. "I've heard it all before," he said out loud. Then he looked at all of the Admiral's cohorts. "Ready for your walk of shame?"
Piper yanked the Admiral up, placing shackles on both his hands and feet. Shoving him off to one of the Avengers all the others were formally charged, shackled then led out of the boardroom and past the staring eyes of the rest of the staff. A large windowless truck waited outside the headquarters. Before loading the prisoners a hood was placed over their heads, not to be removed until they arrived in Guantanamo Bay. The task force entered the truck and Piper tipped his hat to Bucky. They would rendezvous at the quinjet for the next flight to Guam Air Force Base. The Avengers stepped into their transport back to Hickam.
"Eleven down, 193 to go," said Bucky out loud. "Let's hope they all go as smoothly as this arrest did."
Of course they didn't. Over the next seven weeks as the team and task force visited American military bases all over the world, landed on aircraft carriers, or dropped in on military exercises in remote locations they encountered some resistance necessitating the use of force on about half of those arrested. There were some that tried to outrun the arresting force, bringing smiles to the faces of Thor and Bucky who casually caught up to the individuals and tossed them up into the air to be caught by Captain America who gave them a flight to remember before dropping them in front of the task force where they were shackled immediately. Other individuals tried to physically resist and learned how much it hurt to be hit by a petite former Black Widow and a martial arts expert, as Yelena and Shaun showed their impressive skills in action.
The final man to be caught actually did them a favour as he led the team to a HYDRA facility in another country. A Marine Corps aviator, he took off in his jet just after the team arrived at the airfield to arrest him and his cell. Tipped off by one of the men under his command he left them to their fate. Bucky managed to run to the quinjet and followed, after putting their aircraft into stealth mode. Tracking him to a South American airfield normally associated with drug traffickers, he hovered and observed the man as he was picked up by a vehicle and transported to a well guarded facility. Using as much of the quinjet's technology as possible Bucky was able to discern it was a training facility as he watched teams of people go through training exercises. A section of the facility was heavily shielded resisting examination by the quinjet's sensors. Taking advantage of the Friday AI, he learned the facility belonged to a shell company connected to a drug cartel. Returning to the airfield where the rest of the team took the remaining cell members into custody he picked up his teammates, and the task force, then explained the situation.
"I'm sure we can get permission for all of us to attack the facility," he said to Captain Piper and his task force. "They aren't American military. In fact, they look like a private force for a cartel. If I'm wrong we're all in trouble. I'm going in regardless but I won't order any of you to follow me. It will be your choice if you do or not."
"We're in Buck," said Thor, after looking at Sam, Yelena and Shaun, who all nodded in agreement.
Piper looked at his task force then back at Bucky. "If we get busted can we join the Avengers?" he asked, to the smiles of both teams. "We've come too far to stop now. If that's a drug cartel you can bet they're looking at making serum and we can't let that happen, can we?"
"My thoughts, exactly," said Bucky. "Friday, send all the information on the cartel facility to Avengers HQ and advise we are going in."
Returning to the facility they continued to hover and observed the activity there. While observing with the others Bucky received a two word response from Rhodey.
"Omega Protocol."
Grimly, Bucky looked at the others. "Deadly force has been authorized for this incursion," he said, "followed by destruction of the facility. I won't kill but I'll fight and with the help of one of your corporals I think we can set up some demolition charges. We're still going to try and arrest that Marine so he faces justice. Take him alive if you can. I think we've done this enough times that we all know what we're doing. Keep your heads down. When the charges are set I will give the code Omega in 30. That gives you 30 seconds to get out of there."
He looked everyone in the eye making sure they understood. Then he returned to the pilot's seat and landed the quinjet in a wooded area about a mile from the facility. They waited for dark, changing into stealth clothing, testing their comms, and arming themselves. Lowering the ramp they all headed out towards the assortment of buildings. Suzuki, who had volunteered to help Bucky set the charges, carried the satchel with the devices. As they approached the chain link fence Yelena and Shaun set off in advance to cut through the fence and take out the guards. Bucky watched with a smile as the two gave a master class in infiltration. They all went through the fence then spread out. Bucky and Suzuki headed for the shielded section believing that was where the manufacturing area was. When they arrived there was only one heavily guarded door in and out but Bucky remembered seeing all sorts of venting hoods on the roof. He looked at Suzuki.
"We need to get up onto the roof," he said. "Trust me."
Grabbing Suzuki around the waist he jumped up, depositing both of them on top of the facility.
"That was fun," smiled Suzuki. "How high can you jump?"
"About twice this height if I can run up to it," replied Bucky, hurrying over to one of the vent hoods.
He pulled it up and jumped in then motioned to Suzuki to jump in and he would catch him. The corporal let go of the edge and allowed himself to fall, Bucky catching him smoothly and quietly. The venting system was large enough for them to get through it bent over and they followed it to a vent that looked out over what was definitely a production facility.
"Jesus, look how much serum they have," whispered Suzuki. "I thought you destroyed the formula on the ship."
"I did but it's obvious they had their own copy," replied Bucky. "It probably took them this long to set this facility up. Everything looks brand new. What concerns me the most is that they needed a sample of super soldier blood to do this. Where did they get it?" He pressed his comms button. "We've found the production facility and it's full of serum. The building is on the north west quadrant of the compound. Single door entry and exit. We entered through the roof. If you can help Suzuki and me we would appreciate it."
The sound of Red Wing behind him drew Bucky's attention and Sam's voice came out of the speaker. "We're all meeting with resistance," he explained. "This must be a major base for HYDRA. There's a lot of machinery and personnel here. We'll help when we can but you're on your own for now."
Bucky looked grimly at Suzuki. "I'm going to go all Winter Soldier on them," he said. "You'll know what I mean when you see it. You set the charges while I deal with them. As soon as you have the place rigged get out of here and set charges where the machinery is. Red Wing can guide you to that building."
Carefully Bucky removed the vent grill and pulled it into the vent. He looked out and saw a walkway about ten feet down. Suzuki looked and gave him a thumbs up before jumping out and landing on it. Bucky launched himself out with all of his strength somersaulting through the air, landing 60 feet below onto the floor. Immediately several men attacked him and he fought all of them, throwing some of them through the air to land wherever. As several others approached him Bucky took his handguns out and shot all of them in the knees, disabling them, before racing to each one and hitting them in the head to render them unconscious. He was hit from behind and staggered for a moment. Turning around he grinned wickedly at a big man taking a fighting stance.
"Show me what you have, big guy," he challenged him.
The man lunged forward trying to grab Bucky around the waist but he just jumped up and out of his reach. He kicked out with his boot as he did so, catching the man in the face and sending him backwards. The man shook his head and glared at Bucky who just smiled at him, then set up in his own fighting stance. They traded blows with Bucky's hits doing much more damage. As he was fighting Bucky kept tabs on Suzuki and watched as he set charges around the space. When Suzuki got to the door he waved and Bucky turned back to the big man.
"No offence but you're boring me," said Bucky, and he ran up the man's leg, wrapping his legs around the man's neck and squeezing. The man tried to pull Bucky off and flailed away trying to hit him so Bucky kept applying the pressure until the man fell over unconscious. Pulling a railing off of a set of stairs Bucky used it to sweep through the vials of serum, shattering as many of them as he could with each sweep. Then he ran out the door to join the fight in the other buildings. Several times he had to run up walls parkour style to get the drop on men with guns, kicking their firearms away before aiming his punches at their heads to knock them out. Then he heard his comms crackle in his ear.
"Last of the charges set, Sarge," said Suzuki. "Captain Piper has the prisoner in custody and is heading back to the transport."
"Roger that," said Bucky, then pressed his all comms button. "Omega in 30, repeat Omega in 30. On the count of five everyone out! Five, four, three, two, one!"
He reached inside his jacket and pulled out the remote control for the charges, pressing the button to start the 30 second countdown. Then he ran past the buildings to the hole in the fence and counted off the people arriving. Sam flew overhead doing his own count as he flew over the compound.
"All accounted for," he advised Bucky and swooped overhead as the others were running back to the quinjet.
The sounds of the charges going off stopped all of them in their tracks and they looked back watching the compound go up in a set of multiple explosions. They turned back and ran to the quinjet. The Marine still resisted as Captain Piper dragged him up the ramp. He started to spew the "Cut off one head" nonsense but received a cuff to the head by the Captain.
"I've heard enough of that shit, Major," he snarled. "Just get in there and shut up or I'll gag you."
Bucky grinned at him then gave Yelena the signal to lift off. He opened communications to Avengers HQ and Rhodey's face appeared.
"Facility destroyed, suspect apprehended," reported Bucky. "Any other HYDRA bases you found out about, since we're already out here?"
Rhodey smiled. "Nothing," he said. "There's been no chatter, no challenges or anything. I think for now we have them scattered and going deep underground. If you could drop the Major off at Guantanamo Bay on your way back I think it's safe to say this mission is finally over. We'll interrogate the lot of them and will find out more. They're not all hardcore. Good work Buck."
"Team effort, Rhodey," replied Bucky. "Captain Piper deserves a promotion. He and his team have been exemplary."
"I'll pass the word," said Rhodey. "Avengers, one month leave granted. Go home, get acquainted with your family again or visit with friends."
Rhodey's face disappeared. The other Avengers were gathered behind Bucky and he looked at them all in appreciation.
"Thank you," said Bucky sincerely. "If there are any remnants of HYDRA left hopefully they are so damaged they can't do anything meaningful for a long time. Let's get this asshole to his new home so we can start our leave."
After dropping Captain Piper, his team and the Marine Major off in Guantanamo Bay they dropped Sam off next. Anna and Sarah were both waiting for him at the airport and Bucky waved at them from the ramp. They were going to drop him off next but he convinced them to fly to San Francisco first and drop Shaun off. After that, with just Thor and Yelena in the aircraft with him Bucky turned to both of them.
"Come stay with Julia and me," he said. "Thor, you haven't seen Amanda and Elinor for a while. I'm sure you would like to reconnect with them. Yelena, I know you'll just go to the compound and train. That's no way to enjoy your leave. Stay with us for a week, two weeks. I promise you'll enjoy it."
"I couldn't," she demurred. "I would be a ... what do you call it, a third wheel. Besides I like training."
"You do need to learn how to relax and have fun," said Thor. "I have some business to attend to but I will come to Lake Tahoe and I will bring the little one here with me."
Yelena made no protest and Bucky knew Thor would follow through. He piloted the quinjet to the Lake Tahoe Airport and saw Julia waiting, standing with Rebecca in her arms. Although they talked by video call seeing them in person was so much better. The Lassiters were also waiting, looking tanned and relaxed. As Bucky came out of the quinjet, Ted Lassiter extended his hand as he approached.
"Sarge, you live in a beautiful place," he said. "Kathy and I just had the best extended vacation ever. Your wife is one of the best cooks I've ever met. She spoiled us both."
"Thanks Ted," replied Bucky, trying to be polite and not be distracted by the presence of Julia and Rebecca.
Ted noticed Bucky was focussed on his family so with a smile both he and his wife went up the ramp into the quinjet. Bucky looked softly at his wife and daughter.
"I'm back," he said quietly. "With a month's leave. You look so good."
"You look tired," replied Julia, exuding calm as she spoke. "Let's go home."
Bucky enveloped them both in his arms, bending his head to kiss Julia passionately. He kissed Rebecca and she kissed his cheek then called him Dada which surprised him, almost sending him into tears. Taking her in his arms he lifted her up high for a moment, making her laugh, then he put his arm around Julia, and left the ramp. At the bottom he looked back up at Thor and Yelena and smiled at both of them. With a wave, he continued on to Julia's car, strapping Rebecca into her car seat. It would take a little while to get used to normal life again but he was glad he was home.