Embered Coal ° BUCKY BARNES | VOL. 3

twelve; the darkness took

Tony stepped forward after the tape was done, ready to kill Barnes before Steve caught him. Lara blinked, realization hitting her. Steve knew, and he never told Tony. He never told Tony. Lara's gut wrenched, and she felt like she was going to throw up as she stared at the two men over by the screen.

"Did you know?" Tony whispered to Cap, making Lara close her eyes. Her head was pounding, and she had forgot about the concussion until now. She realized that things were about to go down very, very soon, and it was going to be bad. That's what the gut feeling was trying to warn her about. And you're always supposed to trust your gut. Or, at least, that's what Lara had been taught in this day and age's life.

"I didn't know it was him," Steve answered, obviously trying to calm Tony down. Though, Lara guessed it only riled the man in the metal suit up more.

"Don't bullshit me," he spat, voice dripping with venom as he stared at Steve, glared seemingly ever-present. "Did you know?"

There was a pause, Steve and Tony staring at each other. Steve looked sad, and Lara felt herself feeling the need to throw up again. This was going to end badly. It was obvious by the way Tony was reacting that this was going to end very, very badly.

"Yes."

Tony shoved Steve away, looking at him with a disgusted face. Lara wanted to walk forward, comfort him, but she knew it wouldn't work. He had just found out that his parents' murderer – his mother's murderer– was in the very room. If you could avenge your loved one, would you not do it?

Lara glanced over to Zemo, who was looking prideful on his angry state. Though, she could see the tears in his eyes, and knew he was thinking about whoever he had lost. She cursed him. Cursed him for wanted to seek the revenge on Steve when it wasn't his fault. Sokovia wasn't the Avengers' fault. It was that big hunk of scrap metal named Ultron's.

Tony back handed Steve, Captain flying a few feet from the force. He then turned to Barnes, sending a repulser beam as Bucky shot the assault rifle in his hands. However, Tony hit the rifle out of his hand, Bucky letting it go, sending a punch to Tony. Tony caught it, grabbing Bucky by the neck as Lara screamed.

Bucky and Tony flew over the tailed off middle, Bucky landing hard on his back. Lara teleported over to them, trying to get Tony off of Bucky. It was no use as Tony trapped Bucky's metal arm underneath his foot, and aimed a repulser beam at Bucky's head. Lara, thinking quick, kicked Tony's arm, the beam missing Bucky's face narrowly. Steve then threw his shield at Tony, obviously meaning to distract the genius from his best friend, and Lara's fiancé.

As the two men fought, Lara made sure Bucky was okay by getting him up on his feet, and checking his face. When everything seemed to be all right, she turned back to the task at hand; Tony. He had just cuffed Steve's feet together, about to turn back to Bucky and her, Lara quickly telling Bucky to swing her. He did so, the girl kicking Tony in the helmet before she was back on her feet, watching Bucky punch Tony with his metal arm.

Tony caught Bucky by the neck again, flying the two into a wall, where Steve and Lara couldn't get to them. She watched, feeling useless as Tony tried to shoot things at Bucky, none of them working or hitting Bucky. Though, a small missile hit one of the towers as Steve broke the cuffs around his ankles, Lara getting tackled out of the way by Steve.

They landed on different sides of the tower, and Steve quickly yelled at Bucky to get out of here. The man listened, getting up and running to some unknown place, as Lara and Steve turned to Tony.

He was going after Bucky, and Lara teleported to the spot in the rubble that led to where Bucky had gone. Steve jumped beside her, both of them blocking Tony from going any farther. Tony started to hover off the ground, obviously going to fly over them.