Tony sped down the streets of New York, cursing every time he had to go slow due to the inevitable traffic. I watched anxiously from the passenger seat, uncertain whether I should say something or should just keep quiet. I was also torn, because as badly as I wanted to know what Uncle Bucky's story was, I didn't want to learn it like this — I'd wanted it to be his choice. I sighed and stared out the window.

"You deserve to know. Don't feel guilty."

I glanced over at Tony, then looked back away without saying anything.

"Hey, speak to me, kid. I'm not the enemy here." There was a pleading tone to his voice, and I gave in.

"What if my deserving to know isn't as important as his right to privacy?"

Tony snorted, but quickly resumed a serious expression at my glare. "Look, kid, it's great that you're so respectful of a person's right to privacy, but this isn't about privacy. Most of what he needs to tell you, that's public knowledge. Easily found on google. The fact that you've had the impulse control not to try that—and to not ask FRIDAY—is very impressive. Makes me wonder if you're my daughter," he gave a small laugh at his own joke before continuing, "but impressive nonetheless. And the stuff that's not public knowledge, that's important for you to have a better understanding of the group dynamics. It affects how I behave with him and Steve. It affected my family directly. And that includes you now. It's your family history—on both sides. You have every right to know. And he has no real reason to keep it from you, because every other Avenger and inner circle person already knows."

I hummed vaguely in response, fidgeting with my grandma's silver bracelet. I'd been wearing it ever since Uncle Bucky had given it to me, only taking it off for showers and training.

I turned to my dad, "So, if Uncle Bucky is so dangerous, why did you send him with me to pack up my house?"

He let out a heavy breath, "Those were special circumstances, and you had enough others with you that I felt the overall risk level from Barnes was low. But I was still counting the minutes until I had you back here safe."

I looked back out the window, uncertain how to respond to that. I was saved from having to come up with something as Tony pulled to a stop in front of a small apartment building.

He sighed, "We're here."

He got out of the car and walked around, opening my door and giving me a hand to help me out.

He looked around uncertainly. "Not a great neighbourhood—though I suppose that's not a problem for him. Fits right in."

I glared at him, chidingly say, "Tony."

"You'll see what I mean. C'mon, in we go."

I went with him into the building, staying close to his side as we started climbing the stairs.

I tried one last time, "Are you sure we should be doing this?"

His voice came out with a determined roughness, "Yes. There's been enough secret keeping around this."

I swallowed and resignedly followed him out of the stairwell and over to an apartment door, where he aggressively banged on the door. "Barnes, open up!"

The door opened, interrupting Tony's banging mid-movement, revealing an annoyed Uncle Bucky. He eyed Tony grumpily, "What do you want, Stark?"

Tony gestured at me, and I gave a sheepish wave. Uncle Bucky's eyes widened, his expression turning uncertain. That uncertainty turned to dismay at Tony's next words, "You're going to tell her everything, and you're going to tell her now. Now let us in."

Tony didn't even give him an opportunity to open the door further, instead simply pushing on it and brushing his way past Uncle Bucky. I followed him slowly, mouthing a 'Sorry' to Uncle Bucky, who was looking at me like I'd betrayed him.

Once we were in the room, Uncle Bucky closed the door with a resigned sigh. I glanced around, taking in my uncle's living space. It was cluttered with books, newspapers, and various other items. It was small, but clean. I liked it instantly, eying an afghan on the couch that made me want to curl up with a cup of hot chocolate while listening to one of Uncle Bucky's stories about Grandma. Tony didn't seem to share my opinion, giving the whole place a look of disdain. I elbowed him, but he ignored my glare, looking at my uncle instead, "Well?"

Uncle Bucky sighed, running his hand through his hair, "I don't suppose you'd let me talk to her alone."

"Not a chance in hell."

I frowned at Tony. Clearly this wasn't an easy thing for Uncle Bucky, and I'm sure having Tony aggressively staring at him wasn't going to help. I crossed my arms, giving my father a determined look. "How about you just stay close-by? Just go in another room or something?"

"How many times do I have to tell you he's dangerous? I'm not leaving you alone with him again!"

I rolled my eyes and pointed at the door. "Out. I'm sure you and your suit could smash through the wall in the not-gonna-happen situation of me needing help."

He glared at me, but I just stared back with a set expression, not planning on giving in anytime soon. After a beat, he sighed, and turned to Uncle Bucky, threatening, "I'll be right outside," then went back into the hallway.

Uncle Bucky gave me a grateful look. "Thanks, Y/N."

I gave him a small smile, "No worries, Uncle. I'm sorry this is being forced on you…"

He shrugged and sighed, "It is something you should know, I just have a hard time talking about it, so I've been putting it off…but well…it's time…" he gestured at the couch, "Have a seat."

I sat down, Uncle Bucky sitting across from me his elbows resting on his splayed knees. He exhaled and looked up at me, "So I guess to start, what do you already know?"

I shrugged, "Well, I know you're a super soldier, like Steve, but I don't know how. I know you were in the war. I know you somehow didn't age between the war and now. Obviously, something happened with your arm…and I know a lot of the information I'm missing was probably not a fun time for anyone involved based off everyone's behaviour."

He leaned back, thinking for a moment before beginning to speak.

"Well, I'll start at the beginning then. With the super soldier part…"

He told me all about the mission him and Steve had been on, the fall from the train, and how he'd been captured by Hydra. How they turned him into a super soldier and gave him the metal arm. Avoiding my eyes, he told me about the Winter soldier, the trigger words and how he'd been frozen and thawed for missions. That he'd killed people. He told me how he'd remembered who he was and how Steve had helped him. How he'd gone to Wakanda to gain control of his mind again.

He finally looked up at me again, where I'd just been sitting, silently taking it all, frozen in place staring at him, slowly processing everything he'd been through. He looked me over a for a moment, "Those trigger words…they're part of the reason Tony thinks I'm dangerous—which is fair, because there is always the possibility that despite everything I did in Wakanda, I could be turned back into the Winter Soldier again."

I frowned, "But that's not your fault. And you went through all that work…I think he should at least have a little faith."

Uncle Bucky's mouth twitched into a half smile before flattening into a thin line. He looked down at his hands, "I appreciate that, but like I said, that's only part of it. Another reason…well, that's the hard part when it comes to you being a Stark. This is the beginning of the reasons Tony hates me as much as he does. The reasons why he has every right to hate me."

My brow furrowed, and I began playing with my hands, suddenly anxious about what I was about to hear.

Uncle Bucky noticed my fidgeting and sighed, standing up to look out the window as he continued, "I mentioned I got sent on missions…well, one of those was on December 16, 1991," I tilted my head, trying to figure out why that date sounded familiar. He continued, "I was sent on a mission to kill a couple…to make it look like an accident…"

He turned to face me, staring at the floor, "A car accident." He took a deep breath. "The victims were Howard and Maria Stark…" Sad, guilty eyes flicked up to look into mine, "Your grandparents."

I inhaled sharply, unable to look away from his expression, unsure of what my own showed. Inside, there was a storm of conflicting emotions. Hearing about the Winter Soldier killing random unknown people, knowing that that person was a part of Uncle Bucky's past, had been hard. But, he'd been under mind control. He hadn't had a choice. And really, which of the Avengers had not directly or indirectly killed someone—even if those someones were bad guys. In a way, it wasn't much different than knowing that Uncle Bucky had killed people during the war. It was a difficult fact to grasp, it felt foreign and untouchable. Intangible. And I could tell it bothered him, which was honestly the part that bothered me the most, because I didn't like knowing my uncle was suffering.

But this? Knowing that he'd killed people that were related to me. People who, if they hadn't been assassinated, might have become a part of my new life. Tony had told me a few stories about his parents. Their death had had a huge impact on my father, on who he was and what he'd accomplished. He'd always glossed over Howard, not seeming to have a great opinion of him, but still mourning him. His mother however, it was clear he adored, and there was a deep sadness in him anytime he spoke about her. And now I learned that Uncle Bucky was the reason Tony had had the experiences he had. Why he had to feel the way he did. And suddenly, the reality of my uncle having been Hydra's killer felt a little more real.

I swallowed hard, trying to figure out what this really meant for me though. I'd never met my grandparents. They were characters in my father's stories, but I had no attachment of my own to them. And it hadn't been Uncle Bucky's choice. It had been Hydra's.

I focused on that thought. Hydra had wanted Tony's parents dead. If it hadn't been through the Winter Soldier, it would have been some other way. The Winter Soldier was just the weapon they used, no different than if they'd chosen a gun or a knife, because that's probably all Hydra saw him as anyway. With or without Uncle Bucky, Tony's life would not have been very different. Up until now anyway.

Because, with them now working together, there was a new opportunity. Tony could have the opportunity to face his parents' death in a more concrete way, and perhaps get some closure from it. And Uncle Bucky had the opportunity to make amends for one of the assassin missions he'd had to do as the Winter Soldier. It probably wouldn't be easy, but I thought there was a real chance they could both use this opportunity to be able to move on with their lives.

Then I looked up at Bucky, noticing the agitation in his features. My heart dropped. "There's more, isn't there?"

He nodded, his voice coming out in almost a whisper, "Do you know about the Accords fight?"

"Yes? Everyone took sides, and there was that big fight in Germany?"

"Yeah…well, after that…"

He told me how him and Steve had gone against the Accords, chasing Zemo to Siberia. How Tony had followed them to help. How Zemo had used the opportunity to reveal to Tony that the Winter Soldier had killed his parents.

He told me about the fight afterwards.

Him and Steve versus my father.

Leaving my father for dead.

I stood up, crossing the room to look out the window into the night. The streetlights flickered, illuminating small circles of pavement. A few people walked by. It was a quiet scene, contrasting with the noise in my mind as I tried to process.

Steve and Uncle Bucky—and this time, it was Uncle Bucky, not the mind-controlled Winter Soldier—had almost killed my dad.

If they'd succeeded, I would never have had the chance to meet him. I would never have discovered Uncle Bucky either. I would probably be somewhere in the CPS system right now. I would be alone.

No wonder Tony hated him.

Except, he seemed to be mostly over the attack—at least when it came to Steve. Sure, they were tense and not exactly buddy-buddy. But, he trusted him not to hurt me. Why wasn't he applying that to Uncle Bucky too?

It was all so confusing.

I frowned and looked down. I heard a sigh, glancing up to notice a flash of pain cross Uncle Bucky's features. He stood up, his voice dull, "I'll get Tony."

I watched him open the door, confused at his sudden ending of the conversation. In the same dull voice, he motioned listlessly towards me, speaking to Tony, "All done."

Tony nodded, looking somewhat satisfied with himself, but also incredibly exhausted. He turned and raised an eyebrow at me, "Shall we go?"

I stared at the two of them, bewildered. "What?"

Uncle Bucky glanced at me, "Don't you want to leave? Now that you know what I've done. Who I am."

I turned, hands on my hips, "You dump all that on me, and then expect me to just go? We're not going to talk about it?"

Uncle Bucky looked lost, "I mean, of course if you want to talk, we can—"

"What is there to talk about?! He's a killer! killed your grandparents! He almost killed me! He could turn at anytime and hurt you!" Tony glared at Uncle Bucky.

I straightened my stance, standing as tall as I could, levelling a look at the two of them. I was mostly addressing Tony, but spoke to them both as my inner emotional turmoil pushed me past my tendency to overthink and I went on the defence, "You think that was easy to hear? It wasn't! But it also can't be the end of everything. Yes, the Winter Soldier killed people. Yes, that included my grandparents. But that was all Hydra. The Winter Soldier just happened to be the weapon they used, and the Winter Soldier just happened to be Uncle Bucky, who just happened to end up teaming up with the Avengers which you have happened to be a part of."

My brain spun, and even as I spoke, I had no idea where I was going with it, as surprised with the words coming out of my mouth as they were. Yet, I couldn't stop, as desperate to get my point across as I was to figure out how I felt about all of this.

I gestured emphatically as I continued,

"And no, I'm not saying I'm okay with all of this, because how could I be? Knowing that you," I inclined my head towards Uncle Bucky," almost killed you." I lifted my chin in Tony's direction.

"That is going to be hard to process. But I think it's something worth working through. And I think there's hope for it, if you," I looked again at Tony, "could get to the working relationship you have with Steve, then I think it should be possible with Uncle Bucky too."

I gazed pleadingly at my father.

"Yes, this whole situation sucks, and that is a major understatement. It sucks that Uncle Bucky had to do Hydra's work as the Winter Soldier, it sucks that one of those missions were your parents. It more than sucks that you had a fight where you almost died. It sucks that you have to interact with him now."

I paused to take a deep breath, then continued, "But that last bit…it doesn't have to be a thing that only sucks. It can be an opportunity too. An opportunity for personal growth. For forgiveness—you, Tony, of Uncle Bucky, and you, Uncle Bucky, for yourself. An opportunity to be able to move on. To not let Hydra win. To be better. To not let Zemo succeed at fracturing the Avengers."

Uncle Bucky was gaping at me, and Tony was angrily sputtering. I ignored both their reactions and kept going,

I glanced between them, "That all being said…Tony, I can understand better now why you wouldn't want me alone with Uncle Bucky. So, I'll accept that, I'll accept rules around spending time with him. But I will spend time with him, he is still my family too. And Uncle Bucky, even if I'm shaken by this and may need some time to process, you're still my uncle. And you're still important to me. It doesn't change how I see you. Both of you… this changes nothing but my perspective on the situation. You're both my family. Which means you're also family to each other…and I know it won't be easy, but I want us to try and find a way to make that work."

Noticing their skeptical and wary expressions, I added, "I know it won't happen instantly. Probably not even quickly. But I do want us to try. For you two to try. Please. For me."