The North Star (B. Barnes & S. Rogers)

Chapter Seven

Loki sleeps with his head on North's arm, his fingers clutching to hers as he waits for her to wake up. He's refused to leave her side since they got back to the facility. He's still wearing his armor. He can't leave her. He can't bring himself to go just in case this has all been a dream and that she'll be gone again when he wakes. He can't....lose her again. Thor stands behind him, a short distance away, with Steve and Wanda. Thor looks pissed as he steps closer to Steve, pointing his finger into Steve's chest.

"You want to take her from one prison and put her straight into another one?" Thor asks through his teeth trying to remain quiet for the sake of his little sister still recovering and resting.

"It's protocol" Steve argues. "We did it with Bucky...and we have to do it with her"

"She's not some soldier plucked from battle and twisted into a weapon" Wanda counters. "She was a child...."

"Some would argue that that means it was easier for them to warp her" Steve points out, Wanda shakes her head at him. "I don't want to do this" Steve admits looking to Thor. "But we have to...."

"If you go ahead with this" Thor starts in warning. "I will return her to Asgard and out of your reach...." Steve opens his mouth to argue. "She is my sister" Thor interrupts. "My baby sister...She's only still here because you are my friends and I believe she could have information to help bring down Hydra, I could have easily taken her to Asgard to heal but I didn't.....I allowed her to come back here but should I feel that she is being threatened in any way, I will remove her, I will take her home" Thor promises and moves away, leaving no room for them to argue. Steve closes his eyes and sighs running his fingers through his hair.

"They've been waiting for this day for more than 1,000 years, Steve" Wanda reminds him. "You can't take that away from them"

"No, I know" Steve whispers. "But these policies are in place to protect us and civilians"

"She's currently unconscious, surely this could have waited until she woke up" Wanda scolds and moves to Loki's side. Steve sighs and glances to Bucky who lingers in the shadows, his eyes locked on North. Steve's not stupid. Far from it. So he knows something else is going on with Bucky. Bucky glances to his boyfriend who raises an eyebrow back at him, Bucky then flees leaving Steve even more confused. Steve follows Bucky out of the medical bay.

....................

"What is going on with you?" Steve asks Bucky who lingers looking out the window in front of him, the lights low as he watches the rain outside. Bucky closes his eyes and takes a breath before releasing it again. Readying himself for what he is about to admit to Steve.

"We had a thing" Bucky admits. "Me and...North" he looks to Steve. "She and the Soldat had a thing" Bucky corrects, Steve raises an eyebrow and then clenches his jaw.

"A....sexual thing?" Steve asks, Bucky nods sharply and then shakes his head. "A feelings thing?" Steve asks quieter now. Bucky swallows and clenches his jaw. He nods surer now. "Do you....have feelings for her?"

"It's not that simple" Bucky argues looking away and back out the window. "They would take me to her" Bucky admits. "After every mission....to wind down" he looks back at Steve. "She'd...look after me, she took care of me...." he adds. "Undress me, clean me and yeah, sometimes there was sex but not always. Then she'd hum to me, to keep me calm when they came for me...Steve, they had her so docile and controlled....she never spoke to me. She just took care of me" he brushes his fingers through his hair. "I had more control then she did" he admits sniffling. "Maybe I took advantage of her...."

"Buck" Steve whispers standing next to him. "It's not on you....or her" he assures him. "You are both victims here..."

"But what we did together" Bucky starts. "I don't remember if she...." he looks down dragging his hands over his face.

"That's why you've been lingering around her" Steve mumbles. "It's why you've been so....shifty"

"I need to know whether what I did was...." Bucky starts and then stops. "What we did...if it was..." he takes a deep breath and lets it out. "I did love her but I don't know how she felt about me...." he admits. "And I don't know how to explain it...it wasn't like what we have, it was something different" Bucky takes Steve's hand. Steve kisses his head.

"But it's not invalid either" Steve mumbles into his hair. He needs to accept that they had something. He can't ignore that. "What about now?" Steve asks. "What do you feel?"

"For her?" Bucky asks quietly. "Well......It's not like that anymore....things are different now. And I'm with you, I love you...." Steve is aware that Bucky has avoided the question. 

"I know that" Steve assures him. "But you still....." he sighs a little. "You have to talk to her" Steve points out. "About what happened.....once everything is sorted though, she still needs to go through the protocols but you should talk to her"

"You're still pushing them, even after what Thor said...."

"They're in place to protect her as much as us....we need to make sure she's in the right head space....there's a lot of people living here and that is just as likely to overwhelm her as it is everyone else...." Bucky sighs but nods, that makes sense, she's been alone for 20 years, suddenly throwing her into a living environment with all of the Avengers may overwhelm her and she may lash out at them.

"Want me to talk to Thor?" Bucky asks him, Steve glances to him and nods a little. Thor and Bucky surprisingly got along a lot better then anyone thought possible. Bucky and Loki too actually.