When Bucky awoke, he found he had no sense of how much time had passed. His throat ached with dryness and he twisted, looking longingly at the water stored a few feet away. But he didn't retrieve any, resolute in keeping his promise not to let go of the woman still sleeping in his arms.

Sleep had lifted the fog from his mind and he was able to think with greater worry about what had happened between them. He had only seen Harper cry like that when she suffered from a cluster. The thought that she had been in an equal amount of emotional pain twisted his chest and turned his stomach. What had she gone through in the time he had missed?

A twinge of relief cut the worry creasing his brow when a familiar high pitched squeak parted Harper's lips – the telltale sign that she was losing her grips on sleep. She shifted slightly in his arms before freezing, bright brown eyes popping open. He easily saw the fear in them.

"James?"

"I'm here, doll," he assured, metal hand rising to bury itself in her dark hair. He scratched lightly at her scalp in the way she liked.

"I can't believe…" she trailed off quietly, eyes roaming his face.

"We should get going," Bucky pointed out gently. "Get back to Steve. The authorities have to be here by now."

"Shouldn't you be avoiding them?" Harper asked, eyes widening with a new wave of panic.

He lifted a palm to her cheek. "I'm sick of running, Harper, sick of hiding. If fighting Thanos twice counts for anything… I need to play things by the book for the chance of living a normal life. And I want that so bad. For myself, and for us."

"I just… I just got you back," she whispered, tears wetting her eyes again.

Bucky closed his eyes against the sadness in her face. "I have to take this chance, darlin'. But I promise to do whatever I can to be together."

It took a moment before she nodded once. They parted and began pulling their clothes back on. Bucky also got them both some water, desperate as he was for hydration. A gasp from Harper grabbed his attention and he rushed to her side. She had tried to stand from the cot to pull her jeans up her legs when her left knee had buckled inward.

The brunette fell back to the thin mattress behind her, gazing down at her leg with surprise and confusion. Bucky knelt in front of her, asking, "Are you hurt?"

"I didn't think so, but…"

Gently, the soldier peeled her pants back down her legs. Her left knee was discolored with dark bruising and swelling. His fingers skimmed the joint carefully, asking, "Any pain?"

"Um… it's tender?" He pressed just a little harder and she amended, "Yeah, that hurts."

He carefully tried to manipulate the joint, noticing the stiffness as he tried to do so. One of the nearby muscles jumped at his ministrations. Harper hissed at the painful spasm. Bucky spoke up, "I think it's sprained."

"Makes sense, I guess," she muttered. "I suppose I was sort of crushed by a blown apart building and a super soldier quite recently."

"Here, I'll help you," the brunet said gently, pulling Harper to her feet with an arm around her middle to support her.

Between the two of them, they pulled her jeans up over her hips and fastened them. Bucky then turned his back to her and bent down. "C'mon. You can't walk back like that without doing a lot more damage."

To his surprise, Harper maneuvered herself onto his back without a fight. She had never accepted his help so easily before, and had always hated it when he carried her. He didn't comment on the odd behavior, though; there were more important things at hand.

They set off out of the bunker and began the trek through the trees. The smell of smoke still hung oppressively in the air. The barest light of dawn filtered down through the leafy canopy above.

"I barely spoke with Steve before coming to get you," Bucky said. "He told me that half of the universe had been erased a few years ago and that you were here helping him and the others figure out how to gather the Stones through time travel to reverse it. He didn't say too much more than that, though, 'cause he knew you were out here on your own after the compound fell to a missile attack. So, I headed out here to make sure you were okay and… Well, what happened?"

"The first battle against Thanos… when you and so many others were snapped… James, that was a little over five years ago."

Her choked voice and the knowledge it imparted stole the breath from his lungs. Five years? He had lost five years of his life and of hers?

"Fuck," he hissed, stung by the revelation. "I'm so sorry, Harper."

"James, I know this is selfish and unfair of me. You must have so many questions, but… please, can we not talk about what happened yet?"

He nodded, reminding himself that while Harper was abundantly strong, she was also a civilian. Her near-death experience, flight from the battle of the millennium, and the reappearance of someone she had already grieved for had to be unspeakably overwhelming.

"Before we get back, you should know a few things from the fight," the former soldier said gently. "Thanos brought an army of aliens like the ones that attacked New York. Our side lost Tony Stark," Bucky admitted, voice tight. His feelings about the man were incredibly complex and marked by deep guilt and shame. "He used the Stones to Snap Thanos and his army."

"Oh my god," Harper breathed in horror. "Tony, he… he's the one who helped Steve and I after the missile. He's the one that brought me to the bunker and to safety. Oh, no, Pepper and Morgan…"

"Morgan?"

"Their daughter. She's four."

Bucky's heart fell. Tony's sacrifice was even greater than he had thought. Clearing the emotion from his throat, he said, "Pepper is here. She fought, too. Didn't know she had a suit, but…"

"In order to secure the Soul Stone… Natasha died," Harper muttered sadly.

Two major losses. Bucky couldn't help the bitter taste of guilt. He knew he was far from the only person saved, but he certainly didn't feel worth such loss. They were silent for the remainder of the walk to the battlefield. As they emerged from the woods and drew closer, the flashing lights of emergency vehicles and the hum of military radios were overwhelming. But Bucky was truthful when he told Harper he was going to play by the rules and comply with whatever powers that be. He had chosen his side and cast away the influences of HYDRA; he would stick to it.

"Tony's funeral is today," Bucky blurted. His cheeks flushed; he didn't know why he had immediately shared his latest burden with Harper when she was the one nursing an injury and when they still hadn't talked about what had happened in her life over the past five years. Catching up between all of the meetings he'd sat in to give testimonies of his time pre and post Alexander Pierce's death had been impossible. Yet he couldn't stop himself from continuing anyway, "I don't think I should go."

"Why not?" Harper asked evenly.

"He wouldn't want me there," the former assassin murmured.

"He wouldn't, or you don't want to be there?" she challenged.

Bucky winced against her words. "Both?"

"Funerals aren't just about the person who is no longer with us. They're about those who remain. They're about showing you care about the departed, and that you still care about those they left behind." The brunette leveled him with a questioning look. "Do you feel like that is something you can give?"

She was right, of course. His fear and guilt were begging him to hide away. He excelled at hiding. But maybe he needed to start stepping out into the open. "Then maybe… I should go."

"I'm not saying you are obligated," Harper added. "I hope you can make the choice that you can best live with."

More certain, he nodded. "I should go."

"Okay," she returned his nod. "Then I think we probably need to hurry up and get ready."

"Do you… have clothes?"

Harper bobbed her head again. "Yeah. Carol did me a solid and went to my apartment to get me a bag of my things. Who knew having friends who can fly would be so handy?"

Bucky looked on worriedly as Harper struggled to her feet. Her knee was indeed sprained, and quite badly. It was an MCL sprain that must have indeed been suffered from the explosion at the Avenger's compound. Harper's pain tolerance, warped by years of clusters, had initially blinded her to it. Evidently, the sprain had then been exacerbated by physical exertion after the injury was sustained. He had to flush whenever he thought about what kind of exertion was surely to blame. Regardless, her expected recovery was slowed by the extent of the injury. Surgery wasn't an option given the implications of her condition versus the absolutely nightmarish situation hospitals now found themselves in. This was partially a relief, but it left a lot of unknowns in terms of long-term effects of the severe sprain.

Harper's struggle continued as she moved around the small hotel room before disappearing into the bathroom. She had been needed to give testimonies, too, which had forced her to stay in the area. He was grateful that even if their busy days kept them apart, he could fall into bed and sleep beside her each night.

When the young woman emerged, he couldn't help but flush lightly at how beautiful she looked. In their rushed, hazy reunion and in the fleeting moments they had shared since, the former soldier had very slowly begun to notice the ways she had changed in the last five years. Her face looked more mature somehow and her hair was longer again. The soft waves fell prettily over shoulders. The way she carried herself was more assured, and her body seemed a little different. Maybe it was that her lower half carried a little bit more of her weight than before? Like some of the areas she had been so critical of had slimmed down just a touch while her hourglass shape became just the slightest bit more balanced rather than overtly top heavy? He wasn't sure exactly, but he loved it, especially in the simple black dress she wore. It was completely plain and featured a high neckline and long sleeves. The bottom hem floated around the tops of her knees, flowing downward in a way that skimmed her curves.

A new worry struck him. "I… don't have anything to wear to a funeral."

"It's okay, hun. Your support will be enough."

He didn't know if he believed that others would feel that way, but went through the motions of donning black pants, a black shirt, and a zip-up black jacket. It was the best he could do.

"Can you help me please?" Harper asked, looking up at him with sadness and frustration in her eyes, a simple black pump in hand.

"'Course, darlin'."

He knelt before her, taking the ankle of her injured leg in his palm. Her openness to his help was still shocking, especially because he was pretty certain she still hated needing it. But the old stubbornness and hostility he was used to had largely vanished. Carefully, he slid the shoe onto the foot she couldn't reach given her inability to bend her knee. His fingers moved up, helping her fasten her brace around the still swollen joint. She voiced her gratitude, and all Bucky could think for the rest of the day was that he was the one who should be thanking her.

She stood by his side in the back of the crowd throughout the funeral. This was despite her heels sinking into the grass and the deep ache in her knee. Sam stood at his other side. He kept his flesh arm around Harper's midsection, keeping her tucked against him. On the surface, he was supporting her weight as much as he could without drawing attention to either of them. And that was certainly part of it. But her presence anchored him. Her light provided a reprieve from the guilt chewing at his innards. He absorbed her strength as he tried to pay respects to a man whose life he had profoundly affected and to put a small piece of his past to rest as well.

Nine Days Later

Bucky watched as Harper strapped her knee back into her brace with some assistance from her physical therapist. The pair had hardly seen each other since the funeral. Harper had been cleared to go home, and she had so she could return to work. He had remained to testify on countless more occasions to an unnamable number of agents, doctors, psychologists, soldiers, lawyers, judges, politicians… But to his joy and relief he had received a pardon that very morning. He was released out into the world, a free man for the first time in 79 years. His first action was easily decided upon. He set out for Boston.

They both bid farewell to the physical therapist who threw one last reminder to ice the joint before closing the door behind her. Bucky stood immediately and procured the large ice pack from Harper's freezer, returning to set it gently on her knee.

"Thank you," she breathed, adjusting the pack on the sore area. "How did things go today?"

A grin split his lips. "Fully pardoned."

Harper gasped with excited joy, throwing her arms around him. "James! Congratulations! You deserve it and I am so, so happy for you!"

"I'm happy too," he admitted, pressing a kiss to her hair as he returned her embrace.

"So you're free to do as you want now?"

"Basically. I am mandated to go to therapy and obviously I can't be caught straying from the straight and narrow. But they've set me up with a small stipend and a grant through the VA, and I have some time to figure things out and settle somewhere and then they'll set me up with a therapist in the area."

Harper squeezed him tighter before releasing him. She gazed down at her knee, adjusting the ice pack on it. Bucky sat beside her on the couch, gently pulling her braced leg across his lap. He heard the light sigh of relief when she was able to stretch and elevate the limb.

Back on topic, Harper asked, "So what is it you want to do now?"

"Honestly, doll? All I want is to be with you, if you'll accept me."

"Of course," she nodded. Concern lined the area between her brows as she said, "I think we need some time and space together. For you, no time has passed. But for me, a lot has. And honestly? It's been an awful five years. I know that I've changed. I worry that those changes will get in the way of... us."

Blue eyes scanned her face as his metal hand absently cradled the ice pack to her knee. He could see the worry in her eyes and the embarrassment in the way she couldn't hold his gaze. Her concerns made sense, he could logically recognize. But his heart hurt at the implication that anything could change the way they fit together or the feelings they shared.

"I'd love to take some time and space with you. As a first step, do you want to talk about what's happened since the first fight against Thanos?" he asked.

Harper took a shuddering breath in an effort to steady herself, but dipped her head in confirmation. Bucky offered her his flesh hand, which she took gratefully. Her fingers squeezed tightly around his. Looking down at their joined digits, she said, "I learned that I had lost you first. Steve came for me in the safe room in T'Challa's palace and…

"Well, then he travelled with me back to Boston. When I got home, I went straight to my parents' house and discovered I'd lost my uncle, my father, and Jordan."

The former soldier felt his breath catch in his chest. He couldn't fathom what it must have felt like for Harper to learn that half of her small family was gone. The brunette continued, "And then I learned that Kat was gone, too."

Tears were streaming from her eyes from the lingering pain of being hit with so much grief all at once. Half her family, the closer of her two friends, and her partner. Mindful of her knee, Bucky used his metal hand to pull her closer to him. He showered the top of her head with kisses.

"I went with Steve to the Avengers compound soon after all of the funerals and memorials had been held. I met the others and we worked to find anything on Thanos, the Stones, or how to reverse what had been done. In the end, Thor killed Thanos, but the Stones had already been destroyed. Hope was totally gone.

"I spent a lot of that summer with my mom, grandmother, and Steve. Natalie was sort of in and out." She went on to describe her youngest sister's descent into alcohol and opiate use and the tensions that drove a massive wedge between them.

"Is she still…?"

"We don't talk, but my mother keeps me up to date. Her use just kept getting worse. I found it really comforting to talk to Steve during those times. He could relate because of his father, you know?"

That the other super soldier had confided in Harper about his past was shocking. Everything about Harper and Steve was shocking. As soon as they found Steve on the battlefield after snapping Thanos and his army, she and the blond had wrapped each other in a tight, relieved embrace that had stunned the former assassin. Even with the new knowledge that five years had gone by, it was unthinkable to see the two so close when he had only ever known discontent between them.

"Yeah," Bucky nodded, still slightly dazed. "His father always liked the drink a bit too much. Led him straight to an early grave." Refocusing on the woman who had shifted to lean her head on his shoulder, he asked, "So all this time, you've only had you mother, grandmother, and Tawny?"

"Sort of," Harper heaved a sigh. "Gram was hit hard by everything and started to decline. Then she had a fall and… well, she died a year and a handful of months ago."

His heart sunk further. "God, Harper, I'm so sorry."

"Thank you," she muttered reflexively.

"I can't even… I wish I could have been there for you."

She gave him a weak smile before saying, "While all that was going on, I finished school. That was a little over two years ago. Then I started a year-long fellowship where I now work at one of the Boston VA offices.

"You work at a VA?!" he asked, surprised. Taking a stab at humor, he asked, "I suppose it'd be impossible to count you as my therapist despite all the healing you've already done for me?"

Harper did chuckle and agreed, "Yes, very much impossible. I rather like having my license."

"And you like the work you've been doing?" he checked.

At last, Harper seemed to lighten. She told him about her experiences finishing school, getting her degree, and settling in with the veterans at her office. Helping others had always made her shine brightest, and that had not changed. Her passion for people and her commitment to doing what good she could in the world were just as obvious as always, and he had to think that she really hadn't changed in the ways that counted most.

A/N: Thank you so much for the continued support! I really love seeing folks who have been around for a while and folks who are new to this series following and reviewing. I was afraid my long hiatus would really get in the way of that. I hope to continue hearing from you. :)