Chapter 5: The Loft - Clint's Farmhouse

"Get up here, or get Inessa out of sight because I need to talk to you all now!" Bucky snapped over the comms. He was pacing the loft furiously with his heart pounding in his ears. Secrecy be damned- he didn't care anymore if this dream was just for him or not, he was going to tell the others.

Steve sounded annoyed when he replied, "What is it?"

"I need to talk to you! Let Sam watch Inessa and come up here!"

"Oh, I see how it is," Sam now.

"Your part of this is different than theirs," Bucky snapped, "Look, just come up here. I'm not joking about coming to you. I'll take apart this damned machine bolt by bolt if I have to," he eyed Tony's remote suit that was acting as prison-guard.

There was silence on the line for a while- they were probably arguing, "Give us ten minutes," Steve finally replied, "this had better be good."

It didn't take long to fill the group in on what he'd dreamed about. He kept the line open for Sam to listen in, but he was very clear that none of this was to be passed on to Inessa. Natasha looked at him like he was crazy- actually most of them did. Thor seemed willing to believe him, Banner figured something was probably psychologically wrong with Bucky.

"So let me get this straight," Clint frowned, "you saw what was going to happen in the battle before it did?"

"Yes! Only I didn't know that was what it was- the only parts I saw in person were the two things that happened to Steve and to myself, and those were two of the last things to happen period."

"And this new dream," Tony continued, "Avengers Tower was destroyed?"

Bucky shook his head, "That's not the new part- Avengers Tower is always destroyed. Some kind of bomb or something. Only the Avengers floors."

"And I'm trying to kill Inessa?" Sam was most confused about that.

Thor stroked his chin as he thought, "The Counsel of Yggdrasil is a group comprised of the leaders of eight of the nine realms- only Midgard is unrepresented. A meeting of the counsel almost always ends in an all-out war on one realm. It is how the war with Jotunheim and the Dark Elves was initiated. Based on what you described they would have had to issue a declaration of war on Midgard, with the provision that if Inessa was killed, the declaration would be rescinded."

"What gets the Counsel to issue a declaration like that?" Steve asked.

"The death of Asgard's Prince and Ambassador at the hands of a Midgardian would be more than sufficient," he seemed slightly nervous.

Tony spoke up, "OK Barnes, let's pretend we believe you- where are you getting this information from?"

Bucky shook his head, "I have no idea. I don't know why someone is showing me this stuff or where it's coming from or how they know what they know."

Natasha sighed, "You said the second dream ended with 'stay in the light'? And it was before Inessa spoke to you?"

"Yes- and based off what I remember of Inessa back when she did speak and the version of her I saw in my dream, it was her voice."

"Her powers don't include time travel or visions- right?" Clint was confused.

"Did she look the same as she does now? What kind of timeline are we talking about?" Banner asked from a faded couch in the corner of the small living room.

"She was older," Bucky was positive.

"How much older? Thirty? Forty? She's roughly sixteen now, how old was she in your dream?" Tony was still trying to get a clear picture.

Bucky thought about it, "I'm shit at guessing ages, but maybe early 20s? Older than now, but not by a lot."

Steve considered it, then shook his head, "I don't see Inessa willingly doing anything to hurt us. She's a good kid."

"It might not have been her. That metal device on the back of her neck? Maybe it's some kind of-"

Tony sighed as Bucky spoke and pulled a box out of his jacket pocket. He opened it and held it up for Bucky to see, "-some kind of neural interface?"

Everyone gathered around the device, and Bucky's stomach clenched. A black square with four small silver squares surrounding it on the edges, all attached by metal cables, "Exactly like that."

"What is it?" Sam was dying not being able to see what was going on.

"I was tinkering on vacation and came up with this for Inessa. I was going to run more tests before giving it to her though."

"What does it do?" Clint wasn't about to let Tony stick some metal contraption on Inessa' neck.

"It's a lot of things," he explained, "It attaches with the help of some pretty intricate needles- you'd have a hard time removing it once it's on. Attached it can monitor her vitals, do a live-scan to calculate how much venom is in her system, inject a controlled stream of Simmons' anti-toxin with room to store up to a full week's worth, and, if I can get it to work, produce a frequency of its own to counter the paralytic effects of the other frequency I invented. Stuff to keep her safe. There are other features I was thinking about programming into it, but that's what it does for now. Nothing in it can make a person evil."

"And it's not going within a hundred feet of Inessa," Natasha shot him down, "she's not a science experiment Tony!"

Bucky had to step in before Nat and Tony started arguing, "If it's not that then maybe she has a twin- maybe Dimitri just took one of them and not the other- or we haven't even found the other one yet! Hydra wiped Inessa from the system, they could have erased her too. Inessa might not even know!"

"Evil twin?" Steve looked at Bucky like he was crazy- then suddenly he smiled and it felt like the room chilled ten degrees, "I'll tell you what," the challenge was evident in his voice, "we'll let this sit on back-burner until SHIELD tracks down Inessa's uncle. We've got years to figure this out, right? What's the rush? We can wait to ask him if there's a twin. Unless-" he looked around innocently then turned back to Bucky, "-unless you have a reason why SHIELD might not find him. Do you, Bucky?"

There it was. He'd steered himself into a trap. If he admitted to killing Aristov, he was fucked. If he kept playing innocent, his friends could die. Bucky didn't even have time to consider his options- hesitation was practically admitting guilt- and he had nothing to feel guilty about! Take a scumbag off the streets, show him what he sold his niece into- since when was taking out some Hydra goon a bad thing? Bucky's blood burned and gave him the courage to lie to his best friend, "The only way SHIELD won't find him is if Hydra takes him in. We just have to hope they get to him quickly."

"Then it's settled," Steve wasn't done with this yet, "until Dimitri turns back up, we don't give your little nightmare any further thought." his tone made it very clear the discussion was over, and no Avenger was willing to argue.

Fine, Bucky thought, I'll just have to save your sorry ass on my own.

Thor and Banner stayed behind once the others left to try and cheer Bucky up. It only made him uncomfortable. Banner just felt sorry for him (which made him angry) and the way Thor looked at him- he knew already what Bucky did. He'd probably known as long as Steve suspected. There was no animosity though- understanding, pity, a willingness to help- it pissed Bucky off more than Banner's stares. Eventually he just locked himself in his small bedroom and waited for them to go to the farmhouse for the evening.

From the window, Bucky could see the Avengers sitting around a fire, talking and laughing. Steve and Tony looked to be arguing, but it was good-natured. It had to be- arguments between those two could turn volatile fast, and none of the others seemed worried. Bucky grabbed a random DVD from the stack by the television and sat in the dark to watch- hoping it would distract him from his thoughts. Some comedy about two idiots and a time-traveling pay-phone. Normally he'd enjoy it, but at present it only served to agitate him further.

There was a cool breeze in the room and Bucky froze. He didn't move- barely dared to breathe. On the far side of the couch, Inessa sat as if she'd been there the entire time. All thoughts of his dream were banished instantly- whoever that was wearing her face, it wasn't Inessa. It couldn't be. She stared at the floor, likewise frozen. As slowly as he could, Bucky found the series of switches hidden in his metal arm to release it. He pulled it away and leaned forward to set it on the coffee table. The wires that allowed him to move it recoiled back into the metal plate it attached to. It was the only gesture of peace he could think of- to literally disarm himself.

She eyed the arm as if it might move on its own. Bucky slowly stood up and walked away from her to the far side of the living room, then sat down on the floor. This was the first time he'd seen her since New York- but it felt like the first time since Astana all those years ago. He couldn't think of what to say until. "I'm sorry I hurt you," he said it quietly, in the calmest voice he could muster. Inessa raised her hand to touch the bandage on her cheek, and Bucky shook his head, "Not just that- but if I'd known it was you I would have never- I didn't mean to-," he couldn't put the words together. "I know what I did to you, and what Dennisson did to you. I'm sorry I didn't turn around a kill him the first day. I'm sorry I-" his voice broke and he stopped.

Inessa turned and clicked on the lamp next to her, illuminating half the room. Bucky looked down at his hands in his lap. He thought it was hard seeing her in the Tower before- that dead look in her eyes haunted him still- but this? Seeing the suffering on her face as he spoke, somehow it cut deeper. He wanted nothing more than for an army of Hydra to descend on the farm for him to slaughter. For every bit of harm he'd inflicted on people over the last several decades he would kill one Hydra agent. Then maybe he wouldn't feel so guilty. Then he could face Inessa.

Bucky jumped when two small hands lifted his. He stared at the scars around her wrists from the chains he'd used to bind her. He looked up at Inessa, but she wasn't looking at him. She kept her head turned away so she couldn't see him and pulled him to his feet. Bucky's mouth hung open slightly as Inessa led him into a shadow.

He saw a flash of the Valley- but his eyes were drawn to a thick column of silver fog. It seemed like they'd only just stepped into the Valley before they stepped out again next to the fire pit.

Natasha jumped up when she saw Inessa leading Bucky. The Avengers all watched, silent, as Inessa pointed to an empty seat- the one she had vacated only recently when Clint sent her off to sleep. "What?"

In response to his question, Inessa quickly walked around Bucky and gave him a small shove, then jumped back. Confused, he sat down in the chair, then looked up at her. She immediately turned and ran back into the farmhouse. Tony broke the silence with a surprised laugh, "Well Rogers," he elbowed Steve, "you did say Bucky could join the team when Nessa said so- and I think she just did."

There were surprised chuckles from the others and Clint patted Bucky on the back, "If she forgives you, I guess we have to cut you some slack as well."

Steve's expression softened slightly. He leaned over and grabbed a beer from the cooler next to Tony and threw it over the fire to Bucky, "This doesn't mean you're off the hook," he warned, but he at least attempted a smile.

Somehow Inessa's act of kindness only made him feel worse.

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