Loki Misses the Asgardian Prison System

Chapter 187

They finally reach the compound, and by then, everyone is exhausted.

Steve glances at Bucky, almost warily. They're here. Their journey together is done. They proved that he's not responsible for the bombing in Vienna. This could be the end of the line for them – for now, at least; until the next world-ending catastrophe. He could just pick up his cat and leave, and that would be it.

God, he hopes that's not it.

When Bucky looks back at him, he wears a somewhat wary look of his own. Steve can't tell if that bodes well for him or not. He's almost afraid to ask, but he has to. He has to know. And, if worst comes to worst, at least he knows that he'll get to say goodbye this time.

Before he can ask, Tony very quickly and very pointedly walks away, which grabs everyone's attention whether he wanted to or not.

"Tony, where are you going?" Natasha asks.

"California," Tony answers without looking back.

Rhodey scoffs. "Tony!"

"If you need me, shoot me a text and I might get back to you," he says. "Don't bother calling; I'm not going to pick up."

Everybody just stands there, silent, as Tony walks away. A part of Steve wonders if he should stop him. They should talk. That much is obvious. But is it worth trying to stop him? Should he just wait until Tony comes back? Or, at the very least, give him a day or two before he tries texting him? He's sure they could all use a day to unwind.

Bruce pats Peter on the back. "Let's get you home," he says. "I'll bring you back here someday when everyone's in a better mood – and, you know, not trying to kill each other."

Peter gives him a smile. "Thanks, Dr. Banner."

"Hey," Scott says, "any chance I can hitch a ride to an airport?"

Bruce shrugs a shoulder. "If you don't mind me dropping Peter off first."

"Yeah, no, that's fine," Scott says. "I have to book a flight anyway."

So Bruce leads Peter and Scott to the garage, and as they walk away, he says to the kid, "If you still want to grab a picture, we can take one in the car – or if you want to make one of those video blogs – what do you call them?"

"Oh, my vlogs?" Peter says eagerly, and the rest of his words are drowned out by the distance between them. At least those two are having fun.

Sam pats Steve on the back to get his attention. "Hey, Cap, is it cool if I spend the night?"

Steve waves him on. "Compound's always open for you; you know that."

"Just makin' sure," Sam says.

"That goes for you, too, Rhodes," Natasha adds.

Rhodey shakes his head. "I'm heading back to DC," he says. "I gotta have a lot of talks with a lot of people; try to clean up this mess."

Clint gives him an appreciative nod. "Good luck."

"Thanks; I'm gonna need it."

So Sam heads inside. Rhodey heads out. Wanda and Pietro both agree it's time for bed, and Natasha and Clint follow suit. And that just leaves Steve and Bucky.

Steve offers him a hesitant smile. He doesn't really know where they stand right now. He definitely doesn't know where they're going to go from here. And, honestly, he's not sure he's ready to find out.

Bucky seems just as uncomfortable as Steve feels, but he's still the one to break the silence. "The world still thinks I was behind the bombing," he says. "I don't know if I could make it home without..."

"We have a spare room you could use," Steve assures him. "You can stay as long as you want."

Bucky gives him a small smile. "Thanks."

"C'mon, I'll show you around," he says. "It's a big place; it'll probably take some getting used to, but FRIDAY's pretty good at helping you out when you're lost."

Bucky raises his brows. "FRIDAY?"

"I'll show you," Steve says. He's not sure a man of their age could process the idea of what FRIDAY is without seeing – or, perhaps more accurately, hearing – it for himself.

They head inside together, and he revels in that. They're doing it together. They proved his innocence together. They're going home together. It's been seventy years since he lost his Bucky, but, against all odds, they're together again. He can hardly believe it.

Once they've made it inside, Steve says, "FRIDAY, would you like to introduce yourself to my friend Bucky?"

Bucky gives him a weird look. Steve doesn't blame him. This doubtlessly sounds strange with no context of who FRIDAY is.

"Good evening, Mr. Barnes," FRIDAY's voice says, seemingly from nowhere. Steve's never managed to figure out how Tony did that.

Bucky looks around, a silent question in his expression that Steve's now willing to answer.

"It's an AI," Steve tells him. "Artificial intelligence. FRIDAY pretty much runs the place. She can answer questions; give you directions if you're lost. If you're ever trying to find someone, FRIDAY will tell you where they are. She's a good tool."

Bucky's face scrunches in distaste. "That sounds... invasive."

Steve shakes his head. "It's the same AI that runs Tony's suits," he tells him. "Anything she knows stays between us."

Bucky still doesn't seem convinced.

"Loki doesn't like her, either," Steve tells him. It's for a very different reason, but it's no less true. "Tony took out all the sensors in his hall so he doesn't have to deal with her unless he's in one of the common areas. I'm sure he could do the same thing to your room – if you decide to stay."

Bucky's quiet for a few moments, until finally, he answers simply, "Maybe." It's certainly not confidence-inspiring, but it's something.

"You want me to show you your room now?" Steve asks.

"Is there anything here to eat?" Bucky asks.

Now that he says that, Steve has to admit, he is pretty hungry. Food hasn't exactly been his top priority these last couple of days. He's sure Bucky's feeling the same way.

So Steve gestures for him to follow. "Let's go see what we got."