Hallowed (B. Barnes)

Chapter Forty-Six

It's dark when Bucky's bike pulls up outside of an antique store. The same antique store in which the report of the spontaneous combustion came from. It's quiet. Dark. Not much to see from the outside. A black impala is parked up against the curb but there is no sign of the owner. He lets out a breath and then pulls off his helmet, setting it behind him as he waits on Natasha. She'll park up away from the location, just in case, and then walk to meet him. The RV is a little less inconspicuous. Bucky pulls his phone out of his pocket, just to look like he's doing something rather than sitting here looking suspicious. Natasha then turns the corner, tucking her hands into her coat pockets, heading toward him as he stands from his bike to greet her. The two of them are then moving to the front of the store where the yellow police tape across the doors of the Antique store has been broken. Bucky and Natasha share a look before Natasha pulls her gun out the back of her trousers, holding it out at her side, she nods and Bucky heads through the door first. As the door closes behind them, the two of them are dropped into the silence. Bucky lets out a breath and moves forward, Natasha behind him, gun lifted up, ready to go. But there are no sounds from anywhere within the store. The only thing of note is the two ash piles on the floor and the fact that nothing else around it seems to be scorched in any way. Not even the carpet beneath them.

"Elizabeth Lloyd and Marvin Brickle" Natasha comments, reading from her phone screen. "Nothing else in the store was touched by fire"

"Well, consider me leaning towards believing" Bucky comments as he crouches to look at the ashes on the floor. He wasn't thinking of putting much stock in the concept of spontaneous combustion. It's something that's been around forever but never been proven. But vampires are real, why not this. He leans on his knees and lets out a breath when the muzzle of a gun presses into the back of his head. Dean stands behind him and Sam behind Natasha. Both with their weapons aimed and ready.

"Nice and slow" Dean warns. "Hands where I can see them...." Bucky holds up his hands and glances at Natasha, the two of them sharing a look. "On your feet" Bucky stands, keeping his hands up. They have no idea what they're dealing with. Best to get information before they fight back. Intel first. These guys might have something to do with what happened.

......

A few minutes later Natasha and Bucky are tied to chairs, ropes binding their hands behind their backs, their eyes tracking Sam and Dean who talk away from them, but close enough that they can still be heard. Dean folds his arms over his chest.

"Dude's stacked" Dean points out, Bucky smirks a little. "Like seriously stacked...."

"I know Cas' been away for a few weeks" Sam counters. "But come on, you have a boyfriend"

"That's not what I meant..." Dean argues. "Just check out his arm" He tells Sam who raises an eyebrow at him before moving to Bucky to check out his arm. He snorts and stands once he does.

"You're an idiot" Sam comments, Dean gives him a look. "It's fake" Sam adds. "A prosthetic arm"

"Oh" Dean whispers and Sam snorts and then nods to the two of them

"Watch them," Sam tells Dean who nods, perching on the edge of the table, his gun in hand on his thigh, a warning. Dean pulls out his cell phone as it rings, he frowns and answers it.

"Why are you calling me when you're just upstairs?" He asks.

"Did you deal with whoever it was?" Sydney asks him back, Dean hums and glances at Bucky and Natasha.

"Yeah, all trussed up and ready for compulsion" He answers.

"Well, I think I found something" She offers and he can hear the sound of something heavy moving. Dean looks at Sam who works on the computer.

"Hey" Dean calls out and Sam looks at him. "She thinks she's found something" Sam raises an eyebrow.

"So have I" Sam offers. "It looks like the victims were meeting about an antique pocket watch the night they died"

"Pocket watch?" Dean asks. Bucky frowns a little, they have no idea what happened, just like them. These guys aren't to blame for it. they're investigating too.

"Yeah, according to Marv's e-mail, at least" Sam answers.

"Dean" Sydney states into the phone.

"Yeah, hold up" Dean stops her.

"Get this..." Sam continues. "I hacked into Marv's hard drive. It...it looks like he was conducting...an entire underground business, uh, catering to, uh..."

"Nazi nutjobs?" Sam and Dean turn to Sydney at the bottom of the stairs, Sam frowns a little.

"Yeah. How'd you know that?"

"Might wanna come take a look at what I fou..." She stops and sniffs. She narrows her eyes a little, thoughtful. It's familiar. That smell. She knows she knows it. It invokes something inside of her. Bucky's eyes are on her from his seat. He literally can't believe what he's seeing. That she is here. She is here and she is involved in this. Whatever this is. This nazi thing that they've apparently stumbled on. That's a surprise too. But none more so than Sydney. Standing there.

"Syd?" Bucky whispers, she snaps her head around, eyes landing right on him. He then smiles and frees himself from his bindings, then is on his feet, moving towards her. Dean moves to intercept him but Sam grabs his shoulder and pulls him back with a look. He gets it. Bucky grabs Sydney's face and kisses her, her hands coming up to touch his arms, clutching to him as she kisses him back. Two years. Two very long very lonely years. And that fear that they were both victims of Thanos and his snap. Neither of them had any idea the other was alive. They hoped, of course, but they had no idea. But they are both alive. And reunited.