February 16th, 2014 - Avengers Tower, NYC

"You're not coming, are you?" Steve asked as walked into AJ's personal bedroom in the Avengers Tower. She had her suitcase out and open, but there was nothing inside of it. Instead, she was sitting on her bed looking at the pictures Steve had drawn for her as her birthday present. AJ looked up from the book and over at Steve who stood near the door. She licked at her lower lip and shut the book.

"Steve," She said his name softly, "I," AJ closed her eyes, as if she were trying to work up the courage to say something to him that she knew he didn't want to hear. "There's still so much work that needs to be done here and we still haven't found out why I'm not healing properly."

He frowned, "But we know how to help you heal."

"An ice bath is a band aid at best, Steve. You know that." She was right. But Steve couldn't help but think AJ was just using it as an excuse to not leave New York to go find Bucky.

They had gotten a lead from a Hydra informant telling them that from their intel, they believed that Bucky left the country and was now in Central America in a small town on the coast. Steve, Sam, Andrew and AJ had all been ready to leave last night, agreeing to meet at 6 AM the next morning on the roof. But it was 6:30 AM and he was standing in AJ's room where her bags were unpacked.

"I'm vulnerable to an attack, Steve. And we can't carry a tub full of ice wherever I go." She started to say but Steve stopped her.

"Are you afraid of being vulnerable to an attack or are you afraid of being vulnerable about Bucky again?" She narrowed her eyes at him in frustration and he sighed, "Or are you just afraid of him?"

"No!" She now glared, "How can you – how could you even think that?!" AJ raised her voice. His waist band began to beep, letting him know that the temperature was dropping. He looked at AJ and raised his brows. She closed her eyes, trying to take in deep, calming breaths. "I'm not afraid of Bucky, Steve. I love him. I always will."

"So, what's stopping you?" Steve questioned her, "-Why aren't you on the quinjet right now with us to go find Bucky?"

AJ looked up at the ceiling, blowing out air from her nose. "Steve..." She looked back at him, "He doesn't want to be found."

"-It's only been a month," He argued.

"I know. I also know Bucky." AJ said back, "He doesn't want to be found – that's why we haven't been able to find him. He's...a ghost. You know that. He's spent decades learning from Hydra how to disappear and if he doesn't want to be found – we're not going to find him."

He knew she was right. But he had given up on finding Bucky once – he refused to do it again.

"Until he wants to be found...I'm not going to search for him or follow leads and get my hopes up or have my heart break each day that goes by and we haven't found him." AJ told Steve. "-I love Bucky with every part of me, Steve – but I can't handle another heartbreak. I'm barely holding it together now."

Steve understood. "Can I keep you updated?"

AJ smiled, getting off her bed and walking over to where Steve stood. "Of course, Steve."

He moved forward and pulled her into his arms, his arms wrapping around her body in a warm hug. Steve didn't like that he was leaving her again, that they'd be separated and he wouldn't be able to keep a close eye on her. But Steve knew that Tony would never let anything bad happen AJ. If there was one person he trusted AJ with more than himself, it was Tony.

The two had formed a close friendship which had surprised Steve. Tony wasn't exactly the biggest fan of his father and AJ had loved Howard like a brother, she had adored the man and the friendship they had. But Tony had described his father as cold and unloving. And Steve knew that it broke AJ's heart to hear that because the Howard she knew wouldn't have behaved that way.

But the Howard that they both knew had lost AJ, someone he had considered a little sister. He had lost Bucky, his good friend, and Steve, as well. Howard had gone through so much pain and heartbreak that would cause any man to become a cynic and close himself off to protect his own heart. That didn't mean Steve condoned the way Howard had raised his son.

He felt guilt creep in his chest at the thought of how Tony had lost Howard – how Hydra had sent Bucky to kill a man who was once a friend. Did AJ know? Steve pulled away from AJ and looked down at her.

"Jay...there's something I have to tell you."

"AJ, Mr. Stark requires your assistance in the lab." Jarvis said over the comm system in AJ's room.

"When you get back?" AJ asked Steve.

He nodded, "Okay."

AJ walked over to her bedroom door but stopped, looking back at Steve, "Do me a favor and look out for Andrew? He can be really impulsive sometimes."

Steve snorted, "A Frost who is impulsive? Must run in the genes." AJ playfully glared at Steve. "I'll look out for him, Jay. And I'll be in touch."

AJ smiled at him, though he could see the guilt and sadness in her eyes that she wasn't going with him. But Steve understood. He waited to leave her room until he knew she was gone. Steve took the elevator up to the roof and met up with Sam and Andrew.

"Where's AJ?" Andrew asked, seeing that Steve was alone.

"She's staying." Steve said, walking past Sam and Andrew into the quinjet. They followed after him but didn't speak. "Sam, you're piloting again." He told his friend.

"No problem." Sam said, walking to the cockpit and got into the pilot's seat.

They took off and Steve watched as the Avengers Tower slowly became a became a dot in his vision.

"She'll be alright, man." Sam said, causing Steve to look over his shoulder to the cockpit where Sam and Andrew were seated.

Steve sighed, looking again at the disappearing city. "I hope so."

_

March 27th, 2014 - AVENGERS TOWER

It had been a little over a month since Steve, Andrew and Sam left for Central America. AJ missed them all terribly, but more than anything – she missed Bucky. Knowing that he was alive was torture. Because AJ had to learn how to mourn Bucky, to live without him because she believed he had died. But now she was living without him knowing that he was alive. So, she buried herself in her work with Tony, Banner, and Palani.

Tony, Bruce, and Kai were on the verge of figuring out how to fix AJ's healing problem when it came to using her powers. When they had explained the situation to Kai, he suggested they test her blood for each toxin that didn't belong in her system. It meant that AJ would have to go under for surgery. Dr. Helen Cho and Dr. Jordan Connor was brought in to perform the surgery, taking a small piece off of her kidneys so that they could compare it to an ordinary person's kidney.

Steve had been furious when Tony told him about the surgery, but in the end, it was AJ's decision. No one had a say in it other than AJ – she didn't care if it were dangerous; she wanted answers. And the longer it took to try and get her ability to quickly heal after being injured – the longer she was in danger.

After the surgery, Cho, Connor, Banner, and Palani all studied the small piece of kidney that had been taken from AJ. It had been Kai who found the toxin in her system that was different from the ordinary kidney. The group, including Tony, and excluding AJ, began to create a device that would single out the toxin and take it out of her system, cleansing the blood. Normally, they would have tried to work with her kidney to get the toxins out – but Tony was sure that he could eliminate the single group of toxins that were not allowing AJ to heal. And she trusted him.

While they all worked; AJ was stuck in the lab alone to study the blood sample Kai had given them and compare them to other research done all over the world. But even Hydra had scrapped all of their information. AJ had thought that by going through Dr. Reinhardt's old studies and notes that Hydra kept that she might discover what she was. But she found nothing. And after SHIELD captured the mad doctor, he hadn't told them much about his experiments or why he had experimented on humans. He had talked about the object; the Obelisk.But he only gave the name, which AJ was already aware of.

So, she focused on studying the blood incase she missed something. Kai had joined her today, saying he was exhausted from Tony's work schedule and needed a break from the pop culture references. AJ chuckled and agreed to let Kai work with her on the blood samples.

"How's it lookin?" Kai asked AJ, her concentration still on the blood sample on her slate under the microscope. She pursed her lips. It was different.

AJ had already compared her blood to the blood Kai had given to her the day that Steve had left for Central America and saw that they were nearly identical. But this blood sample? Yes, they were still identical – but compared to the one she first studied (the one Kai was claiming was the same blood sample), this sample was fresh.

The blood she had first studied, it had been clear to see that it was a few months old, but this one? It was brand new. It was a fresh sample, not something that had been stored away. Which meant that Kai's story about the person he had gotten the blood sample from being killed by Hydra was a lie. Because AJ knew damn well that The Winter Soldier had been on the run for the last three months.

The biochemist moved away from the microscope and looked to Kai. "Was this a test?" She asked him, eyebrow raised up at him in suspicion.

"Hu?" He played dumb.

"I may have only just got back into the swing of biochemistry, but it was kinda my thing in the 40's." AJ said, holding out her hand in front of her and a gust of frost began to leave her fingers, not strong enough to hurt Kai, but it was more for dramatic flair. A way for him to know that she was on to him and that he better tell her when and where he got the blood sample from or else he would be a popsicle in the next 60 seconds. "I know the difference between a fresh blood sample and one that has been stored away. Where'd you get the blood?"

He audibly gulped when AJ cocked her head to the side, her hand now up, waiting for him to answer her question. "I," Kai closed his mouth and then sighed, "So, the sample isn't as old as I let on."

"I'd say it's about a week old. So, I know that your story about Hydra killing your buddy is complete bullshit. How about you tell me the truth, Kai, before I tell JARVIS to send one of the Iron Legions to come throw your ass out of the building."

The large man sighed and rubbed at his neck roughly. "-Yeah, it's a week old."

"So, your friend is alive?"

"No."

AJ narrowed her eyes at him in a glare, "Don't bullshit me, Palani. I know damn well that who you said Hydra had sent to kill your friend couldn't have possibly killed him last week." She spat out. "I want the truth."

"The Winter Soldier did kill my buddy Josh, just...not last week. He killed him a few years ago while we were studying in Cuba." He admitted, "But...the blood sample isn't his."

"Who's is it?"

He waited a moment before answering, "Mine." Kai said, just barely above a whisper.

"Yours?"

He nodded.

AJ shook her head, not believing him. "Prove it." She demanded.

Kai sighed and walked over to the large fridge where they stored the blood samples and bent down, lifting it up as if it weighed nothing at all. AJ walked forward and with wide eyes, she saw that Kai was only holding it up with one finger. "The mist made me...stronger."

What? "-But Bruce,"

He rolled his eyes, probably knowing that AJ was remembering the comment Bruce had made about how he had been skeptical about Kai being a scientist when he first met him. She assumed it was before he had always looked this muscular, "I could bench press Bruce back when I first met him but I couldn't lift an army tank well above my head, sis."

AJ raised her brow at his choice of phrase to call her but chalked it up to it being something he had grown up with in Hawaii. There was a time where Westley wrote her letters about his time in Hawaii and how the locals spoke differently than they did back in Brooklyn.

Kai set the fridge back down on the ground and moved to look down at AJ, she frowned, "Why didn't you just come out and say it? Why lie? Bruce campaigned so hard for Tony to finally trust you – does he know?"

"No," He shook his head. "I gave him one of my older blood samples to look at but...you're like me so, yeah. It was a test." Kai admitted and AJ could tell that he didn't like the fact that he had lied to Bruce. But these days, AJ understood the feeling of not knowing who to trust. Kai continued on, "-After I saw what you could do from the New York invasion and D.C attack footage, I knew you had to be like me. That I wasn't alone."

She frowned, AJ had felt alone for a very long time. None of her friends understood what it was like for her – or what she had gone through after she received the powers. Mostly because she didn't talk to them about it. AJ, when it came to her powers, had felt very alone, too.

But that was the only time she felt alone. Because she was surrounded by friends that she loved who tried their best to make her feel a part of a new world she knew nothing about, who rallied for her when Pierce had tried to keep her locked away at the compound to 'monitor' her. And now she had Andrew, too. Her nephew. She had Steve, her very best friend. AJ wasn't alone...but she still didn't have Bucky.

Sometimes that made her feel very alone.

"...Why did Hydra send the Winter Soldier after your friend?" AJ asked, her mind going back to what Kai had told her about his friend being killed while they were in Cuba.

"Because they were trying to get me." Kai said causing AJ to look down at her hands, feeling a little guilty. "-They hit Josh first and he died right away. The kid shouldn't have even been there with me – I told him it was too dangerous, but he wanted to make sure I was okay." Kai shook his head and closed his eyes, almost as if he were remembering. A scowl formed and Kai opened his eyes again and looked to AJ. "It was the Winter Soldier." He spat out, "Guy hit me a few times. But Hydra didn't know that bullets basically bounce off me."

AJ scoffed at that, not believing him. She really didn't want to talk about the Winter Soldier anymore, so she thought that changing the subject from the assassin who had killed Kai's friend to the fact that Kai was likely over-exaggerating would be a good way to end his angry rant about Bucky. No, it wasn't Bucky. The Winter Soldier had killed Josh Hendrix. Bucky wasn't in control.

"I'm not lying!" Kai told her, his tone sharp and irritated.

AJ laughed at Kai getting so defensive. "If a bullet bounces off your skin – how the hell were you able to give me a blood sample?" She challenged him.

Kai grabbed a blade off the table and held it out for AJ to grab. "Stab me."

She arched her brow. "Seriously?" Her voice was flat.

"Do it!" He urged her.

AJ took the blade, a little hesitant to do what Kai was asking her to do. But, she grabbed his arm and pressed the blade against his skin and tried to slice him.

Nothing happened. AJ frowned, pressing down harder on the blade with all her strength but the blade snapped in half causing Kai to laugh loudly. He grabbed another blade and handed it to AJ. "Now try." AJ snatched the blade away from him and did it again, pressing down just as hard as she had earlier causing Kai to wince. "Ow! Not that hard!" He complained as blood now oozed out of his arm.

"Oh my god!" AJ gasped, dropping the blade and ran to grab the first aid kit that was stored away in her locker. Tony was always getting hurt – AJ had insisted they have a first aid kit in the lab for the sake of not wasting towels on cleaning his blood. "I am so sorry, Kai – how the hell," She grabbed the kit, tearing the lid off of it and hurried back to Kai. AJ took out a large alcohol swab and began to clean the gash.

AJ motioned for Kai to sit down on the bench so that she could clean his wound. He did as she told him and sat down on the bench and AJ took a seat across from him, "Relaxation." Kai told her as she now dressed his wound. "When my body is totally relaxed, I am as vulnerable as any human." AJ looked up at Kai after hearing his choice of words.

Did that mean that they weren't human. "Do you know what we are? Were you born like this or did you touch the Obelisk?"

Kai chuckled, "Oh, trust me, sis. I wasn't born like this." He told her, "-And if you're talkin' about that weird silver thing – yeah. Found it in Qatar about five years ago."

"You don't know anything about it though?"

"Nah," He shook his head. "Do you? I mean, you were pretty vague in your testimony to congress but I figured that you were just trying to protect yourself."

"I know the name. And I know that a man named Dr. Reinhardt experimented on me and a woman like me. She was a Chinese immigrant, he had brought a lot of them to Austria to see what would happen if they touched the Obelisk. After too many of his men died trying to study the object; Reinhardt wanted people who were...expendable. That's when he found a woman who survived the mist. And that's when the experiments started."

Kai shifted a bit on the bench, "He experimented on you, too?"

She nodded her head, bandaging his wound now. AJ hated talking about that time. She had kept it to herself for so long – no one truly knew what she went through. Except for the other woman. "Yes." AJ answered. "He did."

"You said in your testimony that you infiltrated the Hydra base in March of '45." Kai said as AJ let go of his arm, his wound properly cleaned and covered. The woman got up from the bench and moved to grab the mop in the supplies closet so she could clean up the blood that had spilled on the ground after she had cut Kai. "-But the Howling Commandos didn't find you until May of '45."

"Yup." AJ replied. She already knew his next question. It was one that the people close to her had asked once they found out Reinhardt and her powers. How long did he experiment on you?

But it wasn't experiments. It was torture. Reinhardt didn't do it simply out of wanting to collect data – he liked to inflict pain. For a long time, anytime someone would touch AJ she would flinch and her powers would flare up. Clint called it PTSD. They talked a little about it; but AJ hadn't told Clint that there were times that she could still feel the slice of a blade tearing open her skin or when Reinhardt would perform surgery without anesthesia to see just how much pain her body could take before it shut down. AJ never talked about the needles or the tubes or the torture devices they would put her in all in the name of 'science' so they could gain more information.

"Maybe the Winter Soldier did know bullets wouldn't hurt me." Kai said, causing AJ to flinch. "Maybe Hydra only sent him after me so that they could bring me in and do to me what they did to you in 1945."

She took in a deep breath as she finished mopping up the floor.

"Maybe." AJ managed to say. Kai stepped in front of her and took the mop from her. She looked up at him and he was frowning down at her. She shook her head, "Don't pity me, Palani."

"I don't pity you." He disagreed. "I think you're rad. A bit of an attitude problem," Kai added causing AJ to give into a small smile. He was right. "-But you're loyal as hell and a badass. What you went through in '45 doesn't define you. Your powers don't either."

"Well, the powers help my badassery." AJ said with a smile, taking a step away from Kai and walked back over to the microscope.

"Pfft," Kai responded with a noise. "I saw you take on the Winter Soldier – you're badass." She flinched again, and Kai noticed. "Why do you do that?" He asked. "Every time I mention the dude you tense up. You two got a past?" He followed after her as AJ put away the blood sample in the refrigerator.

"You haven't read his file?" She asked, her voice quiet as she closed the fridge door, looking back over at Kai. He shook his head, "Yes, I do have a past with him." AJ said. "Or, the man before Hydra made him the Winter Soldier. His name is James Barnes...Bucky," Her voice got softer. But AJ quickly went back to her more serious tone, not wanting to reveal her true relationship with Bucky. That he was the man she had loved, still loved, and would always love. "-He is Steve's best friend, if you've seen the Captain America exhibit in D.C – you can learn all about him."

Kai squinted his eyes at AJ. "You love him."

It was a statement. Not a question.

She could lie to him. But no part of her that wanted to deny the fact that she was still very much in love with James Buchanan Barnes. It felt wrong to even think it, how could she possibly say it out loud and make a person believe it?

"Yes." AJ said honestly. "I do."

Kai shook his head, "How can you?"

She licked at her lips, trying not to be too offended by the disgust in Kai's voice. "For a long time, I thought that Bucky was dead. I had lost him in '44. I had no idea he had survived or what Hydra had done to him – what they made him." AJ explained, "I didn't know who the Winter Soldier was – I had a run in with him a few years back, but I did not know who he was until D.C."

"But you still love him?" She nodded her head, "After everything he'd done – the guy is a murderer, AJ. He killed my friend!"

"The Winter Soldier killed your friend." AJ corrected him.

"They're the same damn person!" He shouted.

She opened her mouth to protest but the sound of the door opening caused her to stop from saying anything further. She looked over her shoulder and saw that Bruce was now in the lab.

"Everything okay?" He asked, his voice slow and careful to avoid pissing anyone off in an already hostile environment.

AJ was mad. Furious. How dare Kai question why AJ still loved Bucky?! He didn't know him – he didn't know their connection, he knew nothing about James Barnes and his anger towards the Winter Soldier was clouding him from being able to understand. And he was pissing her off so AJ let her anger get the best of her and looked at Bruce, "-Yeah. Your friend is a liar. The blood samples belong to him, not his friend. He's like me." AJ said, throwing off her lab coat and stormed out of the lab.

It was childish to tattle on Kai just because he had pissed her off.

But Bucky was a really sore subject for AJ. She was fiercely protective of him, still. And that would never change. Just because she wasn't out there searching the world for him with Steve didn't mean that she didn't love him, that she wouldn't do just about anything to protect him. Kai running his mouth about Bucky was just the last straw today. He had lied to them all about the blood sample, he was infuriating on top of that, and now he was talking about Bucky like he knew him when he didn't.

AJ thought that now that she knew that she wasn't the only person who had gained their powers from the mist she would feel less alone. That she could form a friendship with Kai and together they could figure out what they were.

But AJ still felt alone. Even more so now.

Arrogant prick.

_

April 27th, 2014 - Brooklyn, New York

Fury had gotten in touch with Hill, who had gotten in touch with AJ to set up a time for the two of them to meet. Apparently, Fury was back from Europe, his vacation shut short and wanted to speak with AJ. They met up in Brooklyn in the apartment AJ and Steve had shared when he first woke up. It's where she had been currently staying.

AJ had refused to continue working with Kai Palani but after Bruce and Tony found out that he was like her, the two wanted to keep that arrogant asshole around. There was no arguing with them – but then Bruce gave Kai the wrist band he had given AJ for Bucky. And she just lost it. AJ moved her things out of the Avengers Tower and moved her things back to her apartment in Brooklyn. Steve had called, trying to get her to go back to the Tower, but she refused. AJ told Steve that Bruce had given Bucky's wristband to Kai – that Kai was a giant dick who thought he had the right to judge her for still loving Bucky – and that he had lied about the blood sample belonging to someone else; and that it was his.

But Steve already knew that. Tony had told him. And her one true ally still told AJ she should return back to the Tower. She hung up on him and not even two days later, Andrew arrived to her apartment with is bags and cat, Freckles (who Natasha and Jordan had been pet sitting), with him. She couldn't be angry that Steve had sent Andrew home – especially since he brought Freckles with him. It was nice to have her nephew around, it made AJ feel less alone.

Tony and Bruce still reached out to her trying to persuade her to come work with them again. But AJ put her foot down. She wanted a wristband for Bucky and Palani gone.

Natasha and Jordan were visiting Clint at the farm, Thor was off in Asgard or some other realm, and with Steve and Sam still searching for Bucky, AJ was thankful to have Andrew around. And Freckles.

"I hate cats."

She smirked, scooping up the cat and placing it on her lap, stroking her fingers through it's long hair. "Well, Freckles hates you." AJ replied back.

Fury huffed out a laugh. She smiled at Fury, realizing now just how much she missed him. "How are you doing, Frost?" Fury asked her.

She shrugged her shoulders, "Fine."

He gave her a skeptical look. "Yeah, I'm sure." Fury replied. He then sat forward, "Do you remember when you woke up and I showed you some of the old footage from the war?"

Of course. "Yes."

It had been a few days after she had woken up. It was footage of Steve and the Howling Commandos, including Bucky. They were going over strategies, though, the film was silent. When it panned to Bucky, she saw he was holding something in his hand.

A compass, with a picture of her in it.

AJ hadn't known about the compass or that Bucky even had a picture of her.

"It was the first and last time I really saw you smile." Fury told AJ. "Until Steve woke up, of course. But...even then. It wasn't like the way you had smiled when you saw the footage of Barnes."

She took in a deep breath and looked away from Fury, "-Why are you bringing this up?"

"You love Barnes. There's no doubting that. And hiding out in New York because you're afraid of getting hurt again is not something the Adelyn Frost from that day" He referred to the day that Fury had showed her the footage, "-would do. You would have seized the chance to find Bucky if you knew he were alive."

"I'm not fit to be out in the field right now."

"-Nope. Knock that shit off." Fury said causing AJ's eyes to widen in surprise. "Stark told me that he's been trying to call you to let you know that the device is ready but you are still refusing to go to the Tower because of some new guy." She rolled her eyes at Fury's comment. "-You're using ever excuse to stay in New York, but guess what, Frost? You dropped out of the projects you told Steve were keeping you from searching for Bucky and you have a solution to your healing problem. But you're not doing it because you're scared."

"-I'm not scared of Bucky!"

"I never said you were." Fury leaned back in the chair. "-I only said you were scared."

"Of what?"

"Losing him again. Of getting your heartbroken."

Yes, she was terrified of losing Bucky again. Because it would break her heart, "-Why would I put myself through that then, hu? Bucky doesn't want to be found, Fury! I told Steve the same thing! He doesn't," AJ took in a deep breath, "He would have come to me or Steve if he..." She looked down at her hands and tried to compose herself as she felt tears swell in her eyes. "He doesn't want to be found."

"Do you ever think that maybe he thinks you're afraid of him?" Fury questioned.

She blinked at Fury in confusion, "-Why would he think I'm afraid of him?"

"He tried to kill you, Frost."

"And I tried to kill him!" AJ remind Fury. "-We didn't know who the other was – there's no way he would believe that I'm afraid of him, not if he has his memory back."

"Then prove it to him."

Freckles jumped from her lap and scurried away down the hall at the sound of Andrew's bedroom door being opened. She looked over her shoulder and then back to Fury, "How?"

"By letting Tony fix you," AJ looked over her shoulder again when she heard Andrew talking. "-And then getting on a damn plane to help Steve, Sam, and I find the man you love."

"Andy," AJ said in a whisper, "I can't."

"-Yes, you can." He disagreed. "Not get off your ass," Andrew walked forward, moving around to stand in front of his Aunt and tossed her bag in her lap. "And get to the Tower, get fixed, and leave with me."

She didn't know what to say.

"Your nephew has got a point." Fury stood up from his seat and stood next to Andrew.

AJ looked up at the both of them, finding the courage to stand up and say; "Okay. I'll go."

_

July 16th, 2014 - Jakarta, Indonesia

Sometimes it felt so hopeless.

Somedays it felt like they were on a wild goose chase.

But it didn't stop her from searching for Bucky.

Fury and Andrew had been right. She had been hiding out in New York to keep herself from getting hurt. A long time ago when she first woke up, AJ had wondered how it was possible for Howard Stark to have become the man he had – to turn so cold that his own son wondered if his father ever really loved him. AJ wondered how the man who had fought so hard for her to give Bucky a chance, who believed in soulmates and fate; turned into such a cynic.

It was to protect himself.

AJ might not have drastically changed her personality like Howard had to protect himself; she didn't push away her friends or family – but she didn't open up to them either. AJ kept things to herself, holding them in until she felt like she would burst. And even then, she chose carefully who she would open up to.

She was afraid of loss. AJ was terrified of losing another person who had snuck into her heart. That's why she had hardened her heart.

AJ understood now how Howard had become the man Tony grew up with.

But she was done hiding in New York, she was done hiding her emotions and her heart. AJ would search the entire earth to try and find Bucky and bring him home. She'd follow every lead and deal with the pain of every dead end because she loved Bucky. And she was not going to give up on him.

That didn't mean that her work with the Avengers had come to a halt.

Which was how she found herself in Indonesia instead of Sweden with Sam and Steve.

The mission was to take down a Hydra factory they head word of where they had taken command, trying to rebuild their organization. It would be a simple job. It was AJ, Thor, Natasha, Clint, and Andrew. AJ always knew that when she was on a mission with Thor it would be over soon. They could kick, punch, shoot, stab, or use her powers and complete the mission successfully, but with Thor? He was the God of Thunder. He summoned lightening to strike down his enemies. Thor could throw his hammer and take out an entire group of people – it was good to be teamed up with Thor. It meant less work for AJ.

The device had worked; but it didn't mean that AJ's injuries no longer took a toll on her. She would heal quickly, but it took a while for her body to bounce back from the pain of getting hurt. AJ tried to hide it as best as she could, but Steve had always been so observant. After the mission with some of the Avengers, AJ was going to have to go back to New York so Tony could see what was happening. Tony hadn't wanted her to go on the mission and to simple fly to New York instead, but AJ didn't feel right about leaving Andrew. It was her first real mission with the avengers (yes, he had worked with Natasha, Clint, and Steve before; but never Thor.) She wanted to be there for her nephew to keep an eye on him and make sure he didn't do something impulsive or stupid.

Tony was speaking to them over the comm from New York. He, Bruce, and Palani were trying to go over what was making AJ still feel the effects of an injury while she had already been healed. She had spoken to Kai a few times since she left New York, but it didn't mean she forgot what he had said about Bucky. But she was pleasant for the sake of Bruce, who really enjoyed working with someone from his life before the Hulk. AJ was better out in the field anyway – the group needed every advantage they could get and with AJ's unique gifts; it was much easier to take out Hydra members. And add Thor to the mix of things? It was a piece of cake.

"Adelyn, I want you and Thor to take the roof. You good with that, Pointbreak?"

Thor rolled his eyes, and AJ quickly answered for him, "-We got it Tony."

"Romanoff and Barton, I want you coming in from the front – take out as many Hydra douchebags as you can. Baby Frost; you'll come in from the back while everyone else is doing the hard work. I want you to sneak in to their storage and tell me everything you see. I hear that they still have some of the paintings that the Nazi's stole in World War II – I think they'd look great in conference room."

"-Stark, are you done?" Natasha asked, her tone was bored – it was clear that she just wanted to get back to the States as soon as it was possible so she could be with Jordan again. It had been at least two months since Natasha had been stateside so AJ was sure that Natasha was counting down the seconds until they left for New York.

"Never."

AJ looked over at Andrew who was putting on his gear. She didn't like the idea of him going in alone. "I'll go with Andrew to the storage area." She told Tony.

"Nope." Tony replied. Her eyes met Andrew's briefly and saw the irritation in his eyes that she didn't want him going in on his own. "I need you to freeze the roof exit. We can't have any of them fleeing. I also need you to take out their helicopter with your ice fingers."

"Fine, Thor can go with Andrew."

"Jay," Andrew said, his voice sharp. "Stop."

"Oh, I'm sorry, Adelyn – have you gained the power to fly? Did you not mention this to me or have I just forgotten?" Tony said sarcastically. "You need Thor to get you up there and if anyone is already up there, you'll need Thor as your back up."

"-So, Andrew is just supposed to go in with no back-up?" She felt her temper rising.

"Adge," Clint said, walking over to where she was standing in the quinjet. "We need to go."

She rolled her neck, trying to relieve some of the stress she was feeling. "Fine," AJ agreed with the plan. She then walked over to where her nephew was standing, a smirk plastered on his face probably because he had gotten his way. Tony had gotten his way – Andrew was just part of that. "Andrew, stay on comm. Do not do anything stupid."

He rolled his eyes, not acting his age.

"I'm serious, Andy." She said quietly, pressing her hand to his arm. In eleven days; it would be three years since Brian Frost died after he took a bullet meant for AJ. After spending the last few months with Andrew, she had grown to know him – and she could see how hard this month was for him. He was moody, more impulsive than normal, too cocky, he overestimated his own strengths and pretended that his weaknesses didn't exist. AJ had fought hard against Andrew even going on the mission – but he had told her that it was something he really wanted to do.

And how could she say no to him?

His brother had died to save her – his twin. If this would help him in his grieving process to feel like he was part of something good, she wouldn't take that from him, too. He had already lost too much.

"I'll be fine." Andrew told her, securing a few more clips to his thigh holster. "You don't need to worry." She huffed out a laugh, "I'm serious, Jay. You worry too much. Brian would be pissed to know that he died just for you to become a stress case."

His words stung. But AJ knew that he was frustrated with her and her overprotectiveness – she wouldn't hold his words against them or let it hurt too much.

"I'll be on the roof." AJ told Andrew. "Keep your comms on."

Andrew nodded and walked away from AJ.

She turned and saw Clint heading in her direction. "You ready?" He asked.

AJ smirked, "Are you?"

He patted at his wristband, "Do your worst to the roof. Take everyone out in the building if you want to – I have chores waiting for me at home." AJ laughed at that. Clint then moved his hand to rest on AJ's shoulder, "Andrew will be fine."

She inhaled, nodding her head. "I know. I just..."

"Worry about him?"

"Yeah."

"Once Nat and I take everyone out from the front; we'll head over to the back to keep an eye on Andrew. You focus on your job, okay?" He squeezed her shoulder and AJ moved her hand on top of his, giving him a smile that read thank you.

The quinjet was still in the sky while the team moved on foot to the factory.

Natasha and Clint went in first, using an explosive to open the doors, alerting the members of Hydra that they had company.

"Ready?" Thor asked, looking down at AJ.

She hopped up a bit when Thor leaned down, his arm moving around her waist as hers wrapped around his neck. He swung his hammer and soon enough, they were in the air, dropping down onto the roof. They knew that there were people on the roof thanks to JARVIS being their eye in the sky, so AJ was ready for the guards to open fire one them. When they did, their bullets were blocked with a sheet of solid ice. Thor swung his hammer again and it went flying through the ice and took out each guard behind it. He held out his hand and the hammer returned to him.

AJ ran over to the roof's door and pressed her hands against the metal. She closed her eyes, concentrating hard as the metal began to freeze.

They had tested just how cold the ice AJ could create could get – how strong it could get. So far, AJ's ice was able to withstand Tony's rocket blasters on his Iron Man suit, a flame thrower (the fact that Tony had one of those handy was alarming), and Steve's shield. The only thing able to break the ice AJ created so far (since they didn't want to have Bruce 'Hulk out' to test his strength) was the heat that came from Thor's lightning bolts. Which meant that AJ was pushing herself harder to try and create stronger ice that would be able to withstand that kind of heat.

Bucky's metal arm had been able to break through the ice – that's when she knew she needed to work harder. Pierce had her use her powers while in the compound, testing just how much strength her powers had. It had been a way to weaken her and know what they would need to have to stop her. The right amount of heat, the amount of force they'd need to break one of her ice walls. It was all for Hydra to learn her weaknesses.

God, she really wished that she had been the one to kill Alexander Pierce.

The metal door was frozen solid and AJ looked back at Thor. They could hear gunfire from inside and AJ thought of what Clint had said earlier. She pursed her lips together and walked up to Thor. It'd get them home sooner, and it also meant that she'd be wiping out more hydra fanatics – that was definitely a bonus. "I'm going to go off books here, okay?" She said, bending down so she could press her hands to the roof. All she had to do to turn this building into a freezer was to think of all the horrible things they had done to Bucky, to her. She'd think of Dr. Reinhardt and Arnim Zola, she'd think of Johann Schmidt and the hydra spy who had killed Dr. Erskine. It would take all of her anger, but it was about time she finally let some of that anger out.

"Adelyn," Thor stopped her. "If you freeze the entire structure; there will be no survivors." She was breathing hard, and it wasn't until Thor moved his hands to rest on top of hers that she realized that most of the roof was already covered in a sheet of ice. "-I know you want your vengeance for what they did to your lover; but killing is not the answer. If you want information; you have to let them live. Take them prisoner and make them talk."

She looked up at Thor and took in a shaky breath. He was right. As good as it would feel to kill every last Hydra member – they had information that Fury and the Avengers still needed.

Thor lifted her hands off of the roof and clasped his own hands around hers. "We will go inside, yes?" AJ nodded her head slowly, still trying to even her breaths. Thor helped her stand and moved his arm around her waist. She moved her arm around his shoulder and closed her eyes. She felt the impact of them landing on the ground but kept her eyes closed.

She was ashamed.

Thor set her down and moved so he was standing in front of her when she finally did open her eyes. "Adelyn, you are stronger than you believe."

"Thank you." AJ smiled and then instructed Thor to go in from the front and she'd take the front to try and find Andrew.

She ran into Clint and Natasha who were heading towards the basement of the factory when she came running over to them. "You got this?" Natasha asked, hearing gun fire coming from outside of the factory.

"Yeah, you guys go on." AJ told them.

AJ searched the basement going through all the storage rooms but had yet to find Andrew. "Adelyn!" She heard Thor's voice from behind her. He hurried over to her, "Every prisoner is gathered up – have you found your cousin?"

She shook her head, starting to feel dread. "Did you see him upstairs or outside?"

"No." Thor answered.

Something clanked on the floor and AJ and Thor both looked in the direction where the noise came from. "Andrew," She whispered before running forward.

There was only one room left that AJ hadn't checked and the noise had come from that room – she had been headed that way before Thor had showed up. AJ pushed her legs harder than she ever had before until she was gripping onto the door to keep herself from falling forward.

"No!" She yelled.

"Jay?"

Andrew's words were muffled by the stone that encased him. The Obelisk was on the ground next opened up with crystals inside of it. "No, no, no!" AJ ran forward only to have Thor yank her back.

"Adelyn, no!" He warned her. "You can't go inside!"

The ground shook when the sound of a bomb went off from outside. Thor moved himself over AJ as the ceiling collapsed on top of them.

AJ could hear Clint and Natasha yelling their names – a piercing ringing in her ear and the pain of Thor's body crushing hers from protecting her from the impact of the explosion and then suddenly she was being lifted out from the rubble.

Thor was standing in front of her, his mouth moving and she could make out from reading his lips that he was saying her name over and over again. But other than the ringing in her ears, she heard nothing.

Andrew.

AJ pushed past Thor, climbing over the rubble to get inside the room. It hadn't suffered as much damage as the outside of the room had, the ceiling had only partially collapsed. She looked to where Andrew had been standing – he was gone.

She felt Thor grabbing at her as her hearing was coming back in patches of sounds. AJ yanked out of his hold when she saw that Andrew was on the ground, still encased in stone.

"Adelyn!" Thor was shouted, chasing after her.

"Andrew?" Her voice was an echo as her hand moved the rubble off of him. The stone hadn't shattered – that was a good thing! It meant that he was like her! AJ saw that the Obelisk was on the ground next to Andrew under some of the fallen roof. It was open – that meant that he was transitioning. He wasn't dead! Any person that wasn't like AJ, or Kai, or Andrew (it appeared) would turn to stone immediately after touching the Obelisk. But if it opened – that meant the person would survive.

Thor yanked at her arm when she reached for it, "Don't," His voice went in and out, "Diviner!" She used all her strength to pull away from Thor and grab the Obelisk. "No!" Thor yelled.

"-We need to get this back to Tony." AJ said, her voice only sounding like a whisper.

She looked up at Thor only to see him looking down at her in shock. "Adelyn," His voice came out as a whisper, too. "You're...Inhuman."

Inhuman?

_

July 17th, 2014 - Manhattan, New York

-Avengers Tower-

They were back in New York at the Avengers Tower. Steve and Sam were already there waiting for them when they returned. No one was allowed to touch the Obelisk – Diviner. That's what Thor said it was called. Only AJ was able place it in a protective case to keep it hidden away from the rest of the world. Andrew had yet to come out of the stone so they transported his body down into the lab so that when he did come to; they'd be able to run some work on him to make sure he was okay.

AJ remembered what is was like to wake up feeling like every cell in her body had changed, but she had also been heavily drugged so that Dr. Reinhardt could experiment on her. Either way, she didn't want Andrew to be alone when he woke up.

Steve sat next to her in the lab as Thor explained how he knew what the Obelisk (Diviner) was and what exactly an Inhuman was. Kai Palani was there as well; he deserved to hear what Thor had to tell them.

"The Kree?" AJ echoed Thor.

"Who are the Kree?" Steve asked.

"A hateful, deceitful race of savages." Thor said next. AJ frowned, looking down at her hands.

"And...I'm one of them." She said in a whisper.

"We're one of them." Kai said, sounding just as upset as AJ.

Hateful, deceitful, savages. That's who they were?

Thor grabbed AJ's hand, surprising her. "You are not one of them." He assured her.

"Dude, you just said we were." Kai argued with Thor only to have the God of Thunder narrow his eyes at him. Kai backed off, raising his hands in surrender so that Thor could continue on.

Thor dropped AJ's hand and stood up, walking over to the window in her room and looked up at the dark sky. "During one of their many wars, the Kree found themselves faced with far too many casualties, so a group of Kree known as the Reapers sent their scientists across the nine realms to experiment on alien races in order to create weapons for them to win the war, as well as gain more soldiers to fight."

AJ and Kai looked to one another, both frowning. Steve moved his hand on top of AJ's as her fingers tapped rapidly against her knee. She had spent so long wondering what she was – how she got her powers. And now Thor was telling her it was because of the Kree, an alien race who were worse than the Chitauri, apparently. Steve saw she was scared, he could always see it, so he grabbed her hand to hold it still while Thor continued his story.

"-They came to Midgard long ago."

"Midgard?" Kai said in confusion.

"Earth." AJ said quietly.

Thor turned around and glared at Kai before looking back at AJ, "The Kree scientist saw that humans were the most successful subjects to be experimented on. They gave the humans whom they were experimented on their blood, Kree blood – and created a new race known now as Inhumans. They wanted to change the genetic makeup of the humans and by doing so, they hoped that the humans who were experimented on would gain abilities that no other human could possess. But before they could complete their work, a new fraction of Kree came to Midgard and shut down their experiments and left your world after believing that the experiments were unsuccessful."

There was nothing in the world that hinted at an alien race coming to earth – when had it happened? AJ had looked everywhere for information on her blood, surely someone would have found some sort of information that would go back to this time Thor was talking about.

"-However, throughout generations, the descendants of those who were first experimented had been passed down the altered genes."

AJ breathed out in relief, "Okay, so Andrew is like me. He has the same genes so he should wake up soon, right?"

Thor looked to AJ, his face showing remorse. "It does not affect each family member, Adelyn. It is rare that two family members would have the Inhuman gene."

"But you don't know that for sure." AJ protested the idea of Andrew not being like her. "-There's still a chance!"

"Jay." Steve said her name softly, but Kai cut them off from saying anything by asking Thor a question.

"The Diviners, the ones that hold the Terrigen Crystals – how did they come to be?"

"The Kree left them behind on earth." Thor answered Kai. "The Diviner is a weapon of mass destruction to anyone one who is not Inhuman. It's no wonder why Hydra had wanted it." Thor looked to Steve and AJ.

"Is there a way to destroy it?" Steve asked.

"Not that I know of." Thor said with a sigh, "Though, if you allow me," Thor looked to AJ. "-I can take it from Midgard so no other human can be affected by it ever again."

"Why are you asking me?" AJ looked at Thor in confusion.

"You're Inhuman. The Diviner unleashed your Inhuman powers, it is a part of your history-"

AJ interrupted Thor, "-I don't want it." She told him. "Take it."

"-Wait," Kai said, "Why does she decided if it stays or goes? I'm Inhuman, too."

Thor glared at Kai again, "Because she is my friend who I trust. You? I don't know you. And I don't care for you much either."

AJ bit the inside of her lower lip to keep herself from laughing. She then looked to Kai, "It's too dangerous, Kai." She told him. "-Having it on earth – it puts too many people's lives at risk."

"Yeah, but it'll also help us know who is like us, Frost." Kai argued, "-Don't you want to know if there's any more of us out there?"

"No." AJ said, her answer had even surprised her. "For so long I felt so alone because of these powers – because I didn't know what I was. But I'm still me. And you're still you, Palani. Our powers don't define us, you said that."

"-But,"

"Take it, Thor." Steve cut off Kai and stood up, grabbing the case and handing it to Thor. "Get it off of earth."

"Dude!" Kai raised his voice as he stood up. AJ grabbed at his arm, yanking him to sit back down. He let out a low growl but sat back down. "-Look, you might not want to know if there's anyone out there like us – but I do. You might not be alone – but I am! My only friend died because of what I am. The man you love killed him!"

"Son," Steve walked towards Kai and AJ, "You better choose your next words carefully." Thor followed behind Steve and AJ knew that if she didn't intervene, the AJ Frost support squad was going to go after Kai.

"You guys, it's okay." AJ said, pressing her hand to Steve's chest and looking up at Thor who was standing behind Steve still. "Thor, take it." He nodded and walked out of the room. But Steve stayed. AJ looked at him, she looked at him, a look that said she didn't need his help. But he still stayed. AJ turned back to face Kai, Steve right behind her. "I know you want to know if there are more people like us out in the world – but you have to understand how dangerous the Diviner is. Do you really want to risk people's lives because you feel alone?"

Kai looked away from her, his jaw tensing. "No."

AJ smiled, glad that he was starting to see reason. "And for the record – you do have friends. Bruce, Tony...even me."

She saw the way Kai's twitched up into a smile, "You wanna be my friend?" He looked back at her.

"Oh God," AJ said, rolling her eyes, already regretting her words.

"-Hey, AJ," Maria walked into the lab while looking down at her tablet, "Tony wants you to come upstairs after-" She stopped speaking abruptly when her eyes landed on Kai. "Holy shit." She walked over to where AJ and Steve were standing, "I know I was in London for a while – but is there a new Asgardian in town?" She said quietly, her eyes still glued to Kai who smirked at her in return. AJ had to roll her eyes again, repressing a gag.

"-Maria, this is Dr. Kai Palani. He has been working with us." She explained, looking to Maria who had yet to look at her. "He's not an Asgardian, he's-"

"Inhuman," Kai moved to stand in front of Maria. "And very pleased to meet you."

Maria looked to AJ briefly, "In-what?"

"I'll explain on the way to see Tony," AJ said. She looked at Steve, "Stay with Andrew, okay?" Steve nodded his head, letting AJ know that he would stay with her nephew. "Let JARVIS know if anything happens."

"I will." Steve smiled. "He'll come through this, Jay."

"I know."

He had to.

AJ left Steve in the lab with Andrew and Kai, "Get along boys. And Kai, show Steve your power."

She had to forcibly pull Maria out of the room when Kai picked up the refrigerator with his pinky and she uttered yet again; holy shit.

"What is an Inhuman?" Maria whispered as they walked over to the elevator. "-Why haven't I been properly briefed?"

"It's a long story, Maria. But, I'm Inhuman."

"Oh," She drew the word out. "...Yeah, I still don't know what the hell an Inhuman is. But that guy is hot. Like, Thor hot." AJ chuckled and shook her head as they walked into the elevator that took them up to the top floor where Tony was waiting for AJ. She got off the elevator and Maria stayed inside to go back down to the lower level where she worked.

"Hey," Tony said as she walked over to him. "How are you?"

She smiled, "Really? No witty comment? Really, Stark?"

He frowned, "Adelyn, I'm really sorry about Andrew – I should have listened to you."

"Tony, it's fine." AJ tried to assure him, "He's like me. Otherwise when the stone hit the floor it would have broken – but it didn't. And the Diviner opened so he's going through transition."

Was she trying to assure Tony or herself?

Tony nodded his head and pulled something out of his pocket, "Here." He placed one of the wristbands that protected whoever wore one from AJ's powers. "For uh, for Barnes. When you find him."

All of her emotions from everything was finally hitting her. She put the wristband in her jacket coat and forced a smile, "Thank you, Tony." He must have sensed how she was feeling because before AJ could tell him that she was going to leave; he was moving forward and pulling her into a hug. AJ pressed her lips together in a thin line as she tried not to cry, but in the end, her emotions got the best of her.

AJ hugged Tony back tightly, burying her head into his shoulder as she let the tears flow.

Andrew as going to be okay, right? He'd come out of this – he had to. Because if AJ lost him...she wouldn't survive it. Not when Bucky was running around the world to avoid being found by AJ and Steve, not when Andrews twin brother had already died to save her life.

Andrew was the only family she had left – she couldn't lose him.

It would break her.

So, she would wait until Andrew came out of the stone.

No matter how long it took.

_

"What are you even writin', Barnes?" Dugan asked as they sat in the back of the plane that would take them to the train Arnim Zola would be on. "Love letter to Frost?"

He rolled his eyes at Dugan's comment. "Pipe down!" Bucky hollered over the loud noise of the engine. "I'm tryin' to concentrate!"

Steve chuckled from the seat next to Bucky, "You do realize that you're gonna see Jay in a few days." He reminded his friend. "I really doubt she'd be mad that you didn't write her."

"It's not a letter to AJ." Bucky admitted, trying to keep the pen steady as the plane shook. "It's uh," He cleared his throat, the sweat from his hand making it hard to hold the already shaking pen still. "-I'm writing a letter to her Dad."

"Her Dad?" Steve said back, probably confused as to why Bucky was writing to Mr. Frost. "Oh," There it was, it finally clicked for Steve. "Oh, wow!" He laughed, clapping Bucky on the back. "That's big, pal. How are you going to ask?"

Bucky couldn't help but laugh, "I got no idea, Steve." He admitted. "-I don't even know if AJ has ever told them about me – what am I supposed to say? Mr. Frost, I don't even know if you know who I am but I wanna marry your daughter. And I honestly don't care if you say no – I'm still gonna marry her because I don't want to live my life without her."

Steve chuckled, "Well, I wouldn't write that. Just...tell him who you are and how much you love Jay. It doesn't have to be a sonnet, Buck, just write how you feel. And then ask his permission to marry her at the end."

"And what if he writes back and says no."

Steve grinned at Bucky, "AJ loves you, Buck. I don't believe it would matter to her whether you got her father's permission or not. It's a curtsey to ask the Dad – but ultimately, it's up to Jay. And she's gonna say yes."

Bucky chuckled, his leg bouncing up and down as he tried to contain his excitement over the prospect that AJ might want to marry him. That someday she'd be his wife and he'd be her husband. "You really think she'll say yes?"

"Come on, Buck." Steve shook his head and laughed. "She probably won't even let you finish asking her before she says yes!"

Bucky grinned again, knowing that Steve was right. AJ loved him, and he loved her. He wished he would have told her that sooner – he wished he would have told her it right after their first kiss. But when he asked her to marry him; he would tell her he loved her again. And again, and again, and again and he wouldn't stop until the day he died.

He loved Adelyn Juliet Frost.

Nothing would ever change that.

Bucky's eyes opened, his chest moving up and down as he laid in the uncomfortable bed in Austria. He was remembering more and more each day – more about himself, but mostly about Adelyn.

So much time had passed and so much had changed – but he still loved her. And he would continue to love her until the end of time. Bucky had loved her through everything, even when he was the Winter Soldier. That's why he had never been able to go through with killing her. It didn't register in the Soldiers brain why he couldn't kill AJ. But Bucky understood now. It was his heart screaming at his mind to remember.

He'd had this dream before. It was a memory from the day he fallen off the train. Bucky had been planning his proposal with Steve for the rest of the train ride.

Bucky sat up in the bed, grabbing his small notebook off of the beside desk. He grabbed the pen out of the book and started to scribble down what he remembered from the letter he had been writing to Adelyn's father – he needed it to be written down so that if it were ever safe for him to be around AJ, he'd give it to her and tell her; I love you. I never stopped.

Dear Mr. Frost,

My name is James Barnes and I am in love with your daughter...