After Steve landed the quinjet on one of the icy mountain tops of Siberia, Bucky headed to the top floor where Steve was preparing , leaving AJ to get ready herself. His head was spinning, a smile on his lips as he walked out holding onto a machine gun; his weapon of choice for this mission. AJ had said yes. They were engaged and Bucky almost didn't believe it. Why the hell would she ever want to marry a monster like him? How could she be so tender and loving; how could she allow his hands to touch her after all the damage they had caused? His Frosty, his fiancee, loved him unconditionally and it left Bucky feeling like the luckiest man to walk the earth. He saw Steve, waiting for him at the exit ramp of the jet.
"You two catch up?" He smirked, clapping Bucky's shoulder when they were standing side by side.
Bucky chuckled, looking down at the ground. He wanted to tell Steve that AJ had said yes to his proposal, wanted to tell the whole damn world. But she wanted to focus on tracking down the other Winter Soldiers and clearing Bucky's name before they did any more celebrating.
"Jeez," Bucky said, feeling the bite of cold air as the doors opened. Even as a super soldier, the harsh Siberian weather left him shivering.
"You remember that time we had to ride back from Rockaway Beach in the back of that freezer truck?" Steve asked.
Bucky smiled. "Was that the time we used our train money to buy hot dogs?"
"You blew three bucks trying to win that stuffed bear for a redhead," Steve teased.
He shook his head, chuckling. "What was her name again?"
"Dolores. You called her Dot." He imitated the smooth voice Bucky always used back then while picking up women.
"She's gotta be a hundred years old right now," Bucky replied.
"So are we, pal," Steve said, clamping his hand on Bucky's shoulder.
"And you both are looking mighty fine for a couple of old geezers." AJ's voice came from behind them, causing Bucky to grin.
"You don't look too bad yourself, sweetheart." He winked causing AJ to roll her eyes with a soft smile. God, he loved her smile.
"That his truck?" AJ asked, her focus back on the mission. It was odd to see AJ this way - she hadn't been lying when she told him that SHIELD had trained her to become a soldier. Steve nodded, signaling for them to follow his lead.
Once they were outside, Bucky kept alert, eyes scanning the area. AJ was between him and Steve. Bucky wondered about the missions AJ and Steve had gone on together - or did they work with a team? They were pretty in sync with the other, almost so in sync that Bucky felt out of place. He remembered the days of working with Steve and the Howling Commandos. They had all worked together so well as a team. Was that how it was with AJ, Steve and the other Avengers? Who was she close with aside from Steve, Barton, and Romanoff? Bucky remembered watching footage of Lagos after it had happened, how the media had torn into the Avengers for the damage caused by Maximoff. The Sokovia Accords. AJ and Steve had refused to sign them. He wondered why that was? Stark and a few others signed the Accords but AJ and Steve had refused. He had a feeling that it had something to do with him.
"Doors open." AJ brought Bucky back to reality.
"He can't have been here more than a few hours."
"Long enough to wake them up."
Following Steve into the bunker, the trio found an elevator. Things were starting to come back to Bucky, his memory of this place jarring. Once inside the caged elevator, Bucky looked down at AJ, giving her a worried look. He didn't like this. If the Soldiers were awake; they were more than outnumbered. She gave him a reassuring smile. It wasn't enough to calm his worry over something happening to her.
The elevator stopped, the doors sliding open and Steve lifted up the cage. Bucky readied the machine gun he held, going out first to clear the area. AJ was behind him, a simple hand pistol held up as she looked around. She wasn't wearing any sort of armor besides a bullet proof vest; one that he insisted she wear. Steve was behind her, wearing even less protection - his only weapon, the damn shield. It felt reckless going in so empty handed but both Steve and AJ assured him that if things got messy, her Inhuman abilities would be helpful to them.
"Tony can track me when I use them," AJ had told Bucky. "Well, he tracks abnormal weather patterns. A drastic drop in the temperature."
"That's why it's our last resort," Steve had added.
Bucky focused on his surroundings, staying close to the wall before they made it up the stairs.
A loud thud caused Bucky to spin, gun raised. AJ was in front of him, too out in the open. He gritted his teeth. Steve moved to block her with his shield and Bucky relaxed momentarily. "You ready?" Steve asked as the noise grew closer.
"Yeah." Bucky swallowed hard.
"On your call." AJ told Steve, gun raised and pointed at the door.
The doors slowly slid open. Bucky could feel his heart hammering in his chest. The room was dark, but he could see now who had opened the doors. Tony Stark.
"Christ, Tony." AJ cursed, lowering her weapon. But Steve kept his shield up, and Bucky kept his gun raised.
"You seem a little defensive, Adelyn."
"It's been a long day." Steve said, slowly walking over to Tony, shield still raised up to protect them if need be.
"At ease, Soldier. I'm not currently after you." Stark said, looking at Bucky.
"Then why are you here?" Steve asked Tony.
"Besides the obvious," He motioned to AJ. Bucky looked down at her, not understanding. Tony was here for her? "Could be your story's not so crazy. Maybe. Ross has no idea I'm here. I'd like to keep it that way. Otherwise, I gotta arrest myself."
"Well, that sounds like a lot of paperwork," Steve said, lowering his shield. "It's good to see you, Tony."
"You too, Cap," Tony said. He then looked to Bucky. "Hey, Manchurian Candidate, you're killing me. There's a truce here. You can drop it." AJ turned around to look at Bucky, signaling for him to lower his gun. He looked at her for a moment before his gun lowered. "I see you've got him trained well, Adelyn."
"Piss off, Tony." AJ told him.
"Oh, don't tell me you're still mad at me." Tony let out an exasperated sigh. "Come on, Addie. You know that you can't ever stay mad at me." He opened his arms, motioning for AJ to come forward. "Come on, come to Daddy. Give us a hug."
Bucky gripped his gun, not liking the way Tony spoke to AJ. However, he knew that AJ was more than capable of holding her ground.
"You had a choice, Tony. Believe me - trust me," she emphasized. "Or follow Ross. You want to talk about training?" She scoffed. "You've been Ross' lapdog since he brought us the Accords."
Tony's smile disappeared. "I see how it is." He walked up to AJ. "You get your boyfriend back and suddenly everything between us changes."
"He's not my boyfriend, Tony. He's my fiance."
Bucky watched as Steve looked at him in shock.
"Fiance!" Tony laughed bitterly. "I must have missed the big announcement. So who is going to walk you down the aisle, Adelyn? Me or Gramps?"
"Okay, enough." Steve stepped in. "You two can sort out your problems when this is over." He told them.
AJ shook her head but walked forward, heading down the hall. Tony, Steve and Bucky were quick to follow her. The man with a suit of armor moved to stand in front of AJ, still choosing to protect her even after their fight. Steve hung back a bit with Bucky, giving him a look.
"Are they always like this?" He asked his friend.
"No," Steve said honestly. "Things have been tense since Lagos."
He understood, nodding his head.
"He's terrified of losing her," Steve said quietly. "He considers her family."
Bucky swallowed hard. He understood why Tony didn't want to help him. He was taking away his family from him...again.
Steve was smiling suddenly. "You proposed?" Bucky couldn't help it when his lips twitched up. "You really got shit timing, you know that?"
Bucky simply shrugged. "Didn't want to wait any longer than I've had to."
"I get it." Steve smiled. "I'm happy for you two. She's been waiting a long time for this."
Bucky nodded. "Me too."
"I got heat signatures," Tony said, heading towards a giant chamber with capsules standing in it.
"How many?" Steve asked, walking forward to join Tony.
"Uh, one," Tony said as the four of them entered the chamber, the lights coming on. A hazy yellow mist came from within the capsules, showing that each soldier had been executed. Bucky shook his head, not understanding.
"They're all dead," AJ said quietly, walking closer to the capsules.
"If it's any comfort," a voice came over the speakers, "they died in their sleep."
Bucky walked up to one of the capsules, seeing the soldier had been shot in the head. "Did you really think I wanted more of you?" The voice asked.
This was a trap. The soldiers were all dead - they had walked right into a god damn trap. "What the hell?" He said in anger.
"I'm grateful to them, though. They brought you here." A light turned on from the control room, revealing Zemo. He smiled as he looked at Bucky. Steve was quick to hurl his shield at him, but the glass didn't even crack. "Please, Captain. The Soviets built this chamber to withstand the launch blast of UR-100 rockets."
"I'm betting I could beat that." Tony heckled the man.
"Oh, I'm sure you could, Mr. Stark. Given time. But then you'd never know why you came."
"You killed innocent people in Vienna just to bring us here?" AJ asked, disgust in her tone.
"Why?" Steve walked over to the control room, looking through the glass at Zemo.
"I thought about nothing else for over a year. I studied you. I followed you. But now that you're standing here, I just realized...there's a bit of green in the blue of your eyes. How nice to find a flaw."
"You're Sokovian. Is that what this is about?"
"Sokovia was a failed state long before you blew it to hell," Zemo said. "No. I'm here because I made a promise."
"You lost someone?" AJ said, walking forward only to have Bucky step in front of her. He didn't want her any closer to Zemo
He clicked his tongue, watching AJ and Bucky. "I lost everyone," He told them. "And so will you." He looked directly at Bucky before he began to hit a button - surveillance footage playing. Bucky's heart dropped when he walked forward seeing the date on the tape that was playing. December 16th, 1991. Bucky watched as AJ and Steve walked over to look at the small screen that played the footage. "An empire toppled by its enemies can rise again. But one which crumbles from within? That's dead...forever."
Tony shook his head, looking at the footage. "I know that road. What is this?" He had an edge in his tone.
AJ looked down at the tape and then quickly looked to Bucky. Her breathing sped up and Bucky watched as a cold mist left her fingers. "Turn it off," she ordered Zemo.
The man smirked at her.
AJ moved her hand over to the tape, the tape deck starting to freeze but Tony pushed her hand away. "What is this, Adelyn?" He asked her in anger, stopping her from destroying the footage.
She knew.
Bucky looked at AJ, her eyes red with tears. She knew what he had done. She knew what Zemo was trying to get Tony to see. He had to look away, unable to look her in the eyes.
Memories of that mission flashed in his mind.
He could hear the footage playing. "Help my wife, please. Help." Howard had begged him. Bucky remembered seeing the confusion in Howard's eyes when he saw his face. "Bucky?" He whispered his name. "Buck?"
"Howard!" His wife screamed. Bucky didn't need to watch the footage to know what happened next. He still could remember the sound of Howard's bones crunching when his metal hand connected with his face. "Howard!" his wife cried out again.
The impact of his metal fist with Howard's face had killed him instantly. Bucky remembered how his body had slumped to the ground. The Soldier had to place him back in the car, stage it to look like an accident. His wife continued to cry. That's when the Soldier had walked around the car and over to where Stark's wife was crying. He gripped her throat. Snap. Bucky could hear the sound of a gunshot - he knew the footage was over.
"Tony," AJ said his name softly, her voice thick with tears. Tony lunged towards Bucky, but AJ placed herself between them. "Tony!" She cried. "Please!"
"Did you know?" Tony asked AJ, his face showing nothing but grief, tears threatening to spill. "Did you know?" He yelled at her. She didn't answer him. "How 'bout you, Cap?" He asked Steve next. "Did you know, too?"
"I didn't know it was him." Steve lied.
"Don't bullshit me, Rogers!" Tony yelled. "You two knew."
AJ took a step forward. "Yeah," she confessed. "We knew."
Tony's face contorted with anger. He stepped forward, seething. Steve quickly moved himself between AJ and Tony, only to be punched in the face. Bucky moved in front of AJ and raised his gun, shooting at Tony, only to have the bullets deflected by his suit. Tony was fast, disarming Bucky. "No!" AJ shouted in horror as Tony grabbed Bucky and threw him across the room by the throat. He slammed him onto the floor only to be blasted with harsh cold wind, knocking him off of Bucky.
Bucky looked at AJ in surprise, watching her walk forward with her hand stretched out. Steve threw his shield at Tony, distracting him further. "Go!" AJ told Bucky. He shook his head, not wanting to leave her. "Now!"
Steve was handling Stark, keeping him from going after Bucky but he couldn't move. He promised AJ he'd never leave her again and he intended to keep that promise. Bucky grabbed her hand and dragged her with him as he ran. Tony blasted Steve off him, throwing shackles around his feet to keep him still. Bucky felt himself being grabbed by his hair, yanked back and thrown away from AJ. Tony flew at him, iron fist swinging at him. Bucky grabbed it before he could hit him. Twisting it caused the fireball Tony shot at him to shoot in the direction of one of the capsules, creating an explosion.
Bucky watched as Steve swung his shield against his shackles, breaking free and ran in AJ's direction, grabbing her as the structure began to collapse. Good. She was safe. Bucky yelled as both he and Tony were thrown down by the structure collapse. Sparks were flying everywhere and Bucky could just barely see Steve signaling for him to leave.
"Get out of here!" Steve told him.
Bucky shook his head. Not without her. He began to run in AJ's direction, reaching out his hand for her to take. Stark fired at him just as he was about to grab her hand - he missed. AJ didn't argue as Bucky grabbed her by the arm and pulled her along with him. He needed to get them the hell out of here. Bucky and AJ ran over to the control panel in the room and a silo-style door began to open above them. Bucky could hear Tony and Steve fighting.
"It wasn't him, Tony! Hydra had control of his mind!"
"Move!"
"It wasn't him!"
"We need to get up there!" AJ told Bucky as they ran away from Steve and Tony.
Bucky held AJ close as he jumped platform to platform. Just as he was about to jump, he felt a kick to his legs, causing him to fall. One arm held AJ tightly to his body while the other gripped the edge of the platform. And then he felt her being yanked from him.
"Tony, let go!" He heard AJ yell. Bucky climbed onto the platform and watched as Tony held AJ in the air, his hand raised out as a blast hurtled towards Bucky. AJ screamed and Bucky closed his eyes, waiting for the impact.
Nothing hit him. He opened his eyes to see Steve hunched in front of him with his shield raised, blocking him. The blast hit Stark causing him to drop AJ. Steve grabbed her at the last second as Tony fell. Bucky let out a breath of relief as he helped Steve pull AJ up. She wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly.
"He's not going to stop," Steve told them. "Go."
He gave Steve one last look before he and AJ ran.
"You go first," he told AJ once they made it to the top.
"No," she said. "I'll watch your back."
"Jay."
"Now is not the time to start a fight, James!" She shouted. "Move your ass!"
He couldn't help but smirk slightly. Climbing up the ladder, Bucky made it halfway to the top when Stark fired something at the door, causing an explosion. The door began to collapse and Bucky fell back onto the platform. AJ ran to help him up, only to be knocked down. Bucky just barely had time to react, catching Tony's fist. Tony flew behind him, placing Bucky into a choke hold.
"Do you even remember them?" He seethed.
"I remember all of them," Bucky said as he pushed them both from the walkway. Steve jumped into them to deflect their fall. Bucky crashed onto a lower platform while Tony and Steve landed on the concrete floor. He groaned, looking around for AJ.
"Bucky!" She shouted, a few floors above. He watched as she ran down the platform to try and get to him.
"This isn't going to change what happened," Bucky heard Steve say, taking his attention away from AJ.
"I don't care," Tony told him. "He killed my mom."
Bucky watched as Tony and Steve began to fight. Picking up Steve's shield, Bucky leapt off the platform to the ground to help Steve.
Fighting together in tandem, Steve and Bucky went up against Tony. A blast from Tony's hand sent Steve flying backwards and Tony swung at Bucky over and over again. Stumbling backwards, Bucky watched as Tony raised his hand to fire at him. He was helpless, unable to move - until he felt himself being pushed back, hands against his chest shoving hard until he was knocked out of the way. His eyes widened in horror as the blast from Tony's suit that was meant for him sent AJ flying backwards, the sound of her screaming in pain causing everything in the room to still. She hit the ground hard and Bucky instantly ran to her. He dropped to his knees, looking down at her shoulder. Badly bleeding and burnt, a circular shaped hole in her shoulder revealing part of her bone. AJ wasn't screaming anymore. She was shaking in shock, eyes wide in fear as she looked up at Bucky.
He could hear Tony shouting her name. Bucky looked over his shoulder at Tony to see Steve taking a swing at him. At the sound of AJ's shuddered breathing, Bucky turned his focus back to her. He pressed down on her wound only to have her yell out in pain. Bucky just needed to stop the bleeding. He couldn't let her bleed out in front of him. He couldn't let her die, not when he just got her back- no, he fucking refused to lose her again. "Breathe, sweetheart," Bucky said, putting pressure on the wound. He watched as she took in deep breaths, the coolness of his hand healing her slightly, but not enough to stop the bleeding. "Why'd you have to go and do that, Frosty?" He asked, tears filling his eyes as the color in her cheeks started to disappear, a pale white replacing the usual soft pink.
"Be-cause," she managed to get out. "I love you." He watched as her eyes started to close, a whisper leaving her lips. "I love you, Bucky." AJ whispered before they closed.
He let out a choked sob, his blood soaked hands leaving her wound. He looked down, seeing that it was now healed, the same shade of pale white as the rest of her skin. Her whole body was cold, too cold. She was...gone.
No.
No, no, no.
He felt a rage fill him. Suddenly, his resolution not to kill any more innocent people was gone - he wanted Tony to pay for what he did to AJ. Bucky killed Tony's parents, and Tony had killed the love of Bucky's life; some might say they were even. No. Bucky wanted revenge. He charged at Tony, planning his attack. He'd rip him apart piece by piece
"Open your eyes,"
AJ heard a familiar voice.
"I know you're stronger than this, open your eyes."
For the first time since before she picked up the Diviner, AJ felt cold.
"Don't do this, Adelyn. Don't be selfish."
She could start feeling a bit of warmth enter her body.
"Don't be weak." The voice hissed. "I still have much to teach you." — "WAKE UP!"
A shot of warmth caused AJ's eyes to fly open. Loki. He was crouched over her. He grinned down at her, hand moving to touch her face. "Much better."
"How?" AJ asked. "I...I thought I died."
Where were they? Was she in Asgard? Had Loki brought her to him again? Memories of each time he invaded her dreams played in her head. This wasn't the first time — he did this often. Almost every night. AJ...was his student — he was teaching her how to use her powers. She didn't feel hatred towards him...they were friends.
"You healed yourself," Loki told her.
AJ shook her head. "I...I couldn't have. I wasn't strong enough." She looked up at him. "Did you save me?" He must have. AJ didn't know how to heal herself yet — only during REM. Every morning that she'd wake up, AJ would forget about her training with Loki. There was no way she'd be able to heal herself while awake; not without his guidance.
More memories flashed in her mind. The party before Ultron attacked — the necklace Thor gave her! That's how she thought Loki had been communicating with her. No. They shared a psychic link. They had shared it since he tried to use his Scepter on her and failed. The only way he was able to get into her head was when she was at her most vulnerable — in her sleep. While under the influence, or near death.
Why wasn't she furious?
He's your friend, her own voice told her. You can trust him.
No...that wasn't possible.
AJ started to feel reality come back, Loki's image becoming more and more transparent. She closed her eyes, listening as he guided her back to Bucky and Steve. "Give Stark Hell, Adelyn," he instructed her.
Her eyes opened, and unlike the other times, AJ remembered everything. Loki, her training, their friendship. She looked over at her side to search for him but found Bucky crumpled next to her — his metal arm was gone. It looked like it had been blown off, ripped from his body. AJ felt anger fill her.
Tony.
He did this.
AJ stood, the blast of cold air leaving her hand causing her to levitate. Tony was looking at her in shock, eyes wide in horror as she hovered over to him. "Adelyn," he gasped out, his breath a cold cloud.
His entire suit froze, the wristband used to keep him safe from AJ's powers snapped off his wrist.
"Jay!" Steve shouted. "Enough!"
AJ cocked her head slightly, watching as Tony's suit began to malfunction and frost began to build up in his hair and eyebrows. Loki's words echoed in her head, but Steve's were louder.
"Stop!" He grabbed her by the arm. "You'll kill him."
No...no. She couldn't kill him. She had to stop. AJ held up her hand and created a fist — the ice around Tony shattered. He fell onto his back, shaking furiously.
"Come on, AJ," Steve said, pulling her away from Tony.
She looked at Steve, eyes locked with his. For the first time, she could see fear in his eyes — fear of her. AJ breathed in deeply and nodded her head.
"We need to get Bucky out of here," Steve told her. "We have to fix his arm."
"I know someone who can help him."
T'Challa.
His hands were raised up in surrender. "I know Sergeant Barnes wasn't responsible for my father's death," he told them. "I would like to help."
"You signed the Accords." AJ reminded him.
"That was a mistake, I see that now." T'Challa spoke calmly. "Please, let me make this right."
Steve touched AJs hand. She looked over at him, watching him nod. "If you betray us," AJ began to threaten.
"I wouldn't dream of it, Miss Frost," he said, eyes directed towards where Tony was crumpled up on the ground, still shaking. Good. He knew what she was capable of. "Let's get Sergeant Barnes the help he needs."
AJ watched as T'Challa walked over to Bucky and helped him up. He was breathing hard, eyes dazed. AJ hurried over to him, helping T'Challa hold him up.
"AJ…" Bucky mumbled.
"I'm here, Buck." She whispered, pushing his hair out of his eyes so that he could see her. "I'm right here."
"You...you died."
AJ shook her head. "No," she told him. "I couldn't die," she smiled, "not before I got a chance to marry you."
Bucky let out a harsh chuckle, shaking his head. "Stubborn woman."
AJ looked at T'Challa. "Will someone come for him?" She asked, hearing Tony's shaky breath.
He nodded. "I'll contact Secretary Ross once we're in the sky."
Once they were inside the quinjet, T'Challa sat in the pilot's seat while AJ and Steve stayed in Medbay with Bucky, AJ doing her best to keep him comfortable.
"Do you feel any pain?" AJ asked.
Bucky nodded. "Just a little."
AJ frowned. Steve was oddly quiet and AJ could feel his eyes on her. She looked over at him, watching as Steve motioned for her to follow him. "I'll be right back," AJ whispered to Bucky, pressing her lips to his forehead.
Steve stood with his arms crossed over his chest once they were alone. "What the hell was that?" He asked her. "Jay...I've never seen you like that before — and your powers...did they enhance? Have they been enhanced and you didn't say anything?" He shook his head. "Jay...you were dead."
"I know." AJ knew there was no point in lying to Steve.
"How the hell are you standing in front of me then?"
"Loki."
Steve jerked his chin back. "Loki?"
This was going to be a long ride to wherever the hell T'Challa was taking them.
"You're probably going to want to sit down," She told Steve, ready to explain everything.
Loki was alive.
He had been training her how to use her powers.
They shared a psychic link.
Good lord, she thought. Steve's head was about to explode.
In the back of her head, she could hear a very familiar chuckle.
Keep laughing, AJ thought. I'm telling Thor too.
Shit.
