Miss America

Chapter Fifteen

You're brought to Steve by armed guards and almost thrown at him, a sling on your arm and a bruise on your face. Before he can say anything, he watches you watching Bucky in a prison pod being carried away by a forklift. You Sam and T'Challa are greeted by Sharron and another man with grey hair you'd not met. 
"What's gonna happen to him?"
"Same thing that ought to happen to you. Psychological evaluation and extradition." The man says to you in a searing reply. 
"This is Everett Ross, Deputy Task Force Commander." Sharron jumps in quickly. 
"What about our lawyer?" Steve says firmly."Lawyer. That's funny. See their weapons are placed in lockup. Oh, we'll write you a receipt." He says quickly. "She's only here because we managed to prove you can't sense her with heat detectors." Everett says sharply as he begins to walk. 

"I better not look out the window and see anybody flying around in that." You enter a covered sky walk as Everett talks to you about what the deal is now. 
"You'll be provided with an office instead of a cell. Now, do me a favour, stay in it?" He looks behind at you all. 
"I don't intend on going anywhere." T'Challa looks at you with the most suspicion. 

"For the record, this is what making things worse looks like." Natasha turns up walking alongside you. 

"He's alive." You say not looking her way. You enter a room to find Tony in it, talking down the phone. 

"No. Romania was not Accords-sanctioned. And, Colonel Rhodes is supervising cleanup." 

"Try not to break anything while we fix this." Natasha looks at the three of you. 

"Consequences? You bet there'll be consequences. Obviously you can quote me on that 'cause I just said it. Anything else? Thank you, sir." Tony finishes on the phone, you sit on the chair. 

"'Consequences'?" Steve looks at Tony. 

"Secretary Ross wants you both prosecuted. Had to give him something." 

"I'm not getting that shield back, am I?" Steve says looking at Tony and Natasha. 

"Technically, it's the government's property. Wings, too." 

"That's cold." 

"Warmer than jail." Tony adds softly as he can. "Come walk with me, got something to show you." Tony walks towards a glass room nearby as Sharron and Natasha try to link up the video so you could see Bucky's cell. 
"They're not going to hurt him." Natasha says gently. 
"How do you know?" You reply coldly looking at him, knowing he could bust out of that thing if he wanted but knowing he wouldn't because he's a good man. 
. . . . . . Meanwhile with Tony and Steve. . . . . .

"So, I pulled something from Dad's archives. Felt timely."  Tony shows Steve two pens in a black presentation box. "FDR signed the Lend-Lease bill with these in 1941. Provided support to the Allies when they needed it most." 

"Some would say it brought our country closer to war." Steve replies looking at the pen holding it. 

"See? If not for these, you wouldn't be here. I'm trying to . . . what do you call it? That's an olive branch. Is that what you call it?" 

"Is Pepper here? I didn't see her." Steve looks around. 

"We're kinda . . . well, not kinda . . ."
"Pregnant?" 

"No. Definitely not. We're taking a break. It's nobody's fault." 

"I'm so sorry, Tony. I didn't know." 

"A few years ago, I almost lost her, so I trashed all my suits. Then, we had to mop up HYDRA . . . and then Ultron. My fault. And then, and then, and then, I never stopped. Because the truth is I don't wanna stop. I don't wanna lose her. I thought maybe the Accords could split the difference."  Tony stands up and paces. "In her defence, I'm a handful. Yet, Dad was a pain in the ass, but he and Mom always made it work." 

"You know, I'm glad Howard got married. I only knew him when he was young and single." Steve says warmly. 

"Oh, really? You two knew each other? He never mentioned that. Maybe only a thousand times. God, I hated you." But there was a little smile there. 

"I don't mean to make things difficult." 

"I know, because you're a very polite person." 

"If I see a situation pointed south . . . I can't ignore it. Sometimes I wish I could."

"No, you don't." 

Steve smiles thinly "No, I don't. Sometimes . . ." 
"Sometimes I wanna punch you in your perfect teeth. But I don't wanna see you gone. We need you, Cap. So far, nothing's happened that can't be undone, if you sign. We can make the last 24 hours legit. Barnes gets transferred to an American psych-center . . . instead of a Wakandan prison and you get your fiencé back." Steve looks at him then. "I've seen it, you're not going to have a happy every after while your fiencé is gallivanting round protecting him." 
Steve frowns thoughtfully and picks up one of the fountain pens. He stands up and paces, then turns to Tony. "I'm not saying it's impossible, but there would have to be safeguards." 
"Sure." Tony seems happier "Once we put out the PR fire, those documents can be amended. I'd file a motion to have you and Y/N reinstated but she'll have to live carefully."

"What do you mean carefully?" 
"She'll be confined to the compound until we can prove to the world she's not. . ." 

"Oh God, Tony! Every time. Every time I think you see things the right way . . ." 

"What? It's a 100 acres with a lap pool. It's got a screening room. There's worse ways to protect people." Tony seems flabbergasted at the notion. 
"Protection? Is that how you see this? This is protection? It's internment, Tony." 
"She's just been on the run protecting Barnes and people know what her powers can do if she looses control, powers HYDRA gave her remember. 
"Oh, come on, Tony." 

"People don't take to kindly to weapons of mass destruction." 

"Thats my wife you're talking about!!"
"Not yet she's not Steve!" He calms himself "I'm doing what has to be done . . . to stave off something worse." 

"You keep telling yourself that." Steve shakes his head and puts then pen down. "Hate to break up the set."  He leaves the office and rueful Tony watches Bucky on one of the control room's screens.

  . . . . . Back to normal POV. . . . . .Steve walks in as you and Sam watch the screen as the evaluator sits at a desk facing Bucky's pod.
"Hello, Mr. Barnes. I've been sent by the United Nations to evaluate you. Do you mind if I sit? Your first name is James?" 

"The receipt for your gear." Sharron walks in. 
"'Bird costume'? Come on." Sam looks at her "
"I didn't write it." 
"Can we turn this up?" you ask quietly, feeling a warm hand on your shoulder from Steve, Sharron turns the audio up. 
"I'm not here to judge you. I just want to ask you a few questions. Do you know where you are, James? I can't help you if you don't talk to me, James." 

"My name is Bucky, only one person calls me James." He says deadpan. Everyone looks at you. Natasha drops off some paper work. 

"Though you might want to look."  Steve studies the blurry photograph of the man who bombed the congress in Vienna.
"Why would the Task Force release this photo to begin with?" 

"Get the word out, involve as many eyes as we can?" Sharron says crossing her arms. 

"Right. It's a good way to flush a guy out of hiding. Set off a bomb, get your picture taken. Get seven billion people looking for the Winter Soldier." 

"You're saying someone framed him to find him?" Sharron asks in reply to Steve. 

"Steve, we looked for him and Y/N and found nothing." 

"We didn't bomb the UN. That turns a lot of heads." 

"Yeah, but that doesn't guarantee that whoever framed him would get him. It guarantees that we would."  you stand. 
"Of course someone framed him, he didn't do it." Your eyes are red with anger "and now you've gone and left him in a room with the person did it." They look at the screen eyes narrowed. 
"Tell me, Bucky. You've seen a great deal, haven't you?" 

"I don't want to talk about it." 

"You fear that... if you open your mouth, the horrors might never stop. Don't worry. We only have to talk about one." You panic and then, the lights and the power go out. 

"We need to get to him now!!!" You barge everyone out the way running towards where he should be. Past Tony who's talking to FRIDAY.  As you arrive in the chamber you walk over, the Red emergency lights flashing. There are many agents slumped on the floor. All of them out cold.
"Help me. Help." You run to the man who had been talking to Bucky, using your good hand you use your powers to pin him against the wall. 
"Who are you? What do you want?"
"To see an empire fall." You look at Steve who looks at you concerned as you throw the man across the room. As Sam comes closer to you,  Bucky comes out go nowhere, swings his fist which smashes through the wall as Sam ducks. Bucky grabs him by the jaw and throws him at the open pod. Steve lurches into the fight and lands a punch which Bucky barely feels. Bucky kicks and punches Steve out of the chamber. A punch from Bucky goes through the elevator door. Steve blocks the next one but the power of Bucky's fist sends Steve tumbling into the darkened elevator shaft. You spot the same man looking down the elevator shaft.
"Oi!" Zemo bolts, Sam rises. At the bottom of the shaft Steve pushes himself off the floor. 
"Y/N please tell me your powers can fix that arm of yours." 
"Thats what I've been doing" you take the sling off but still wince "Its not perfect but we gotta go."  You run to follow Bucky as he gets zapped by Tony's Iron Man glove. Tony rushes him, firing again. Bucky ducks the blast then trades blows with Tony, firing the gun. Tony has the Iron Man-glove over the barrel, blocking the bullet. He pulls the gun barrel loose then Bucky smacks him backwards. Natasha rushes Bucky, then you as well.  Bucky flips Natasha, head over heels smashing her into a table, before you run and jump ontop of him, legs around his neck, he backs up and slams you onto another table and grabs your  throat.
"You could at least recognize me." You struggle for breath. He looks at you quizzically before you can say nothing else. T'Challa comes from nowhere and kicks Bucky off you. He fights with Bucky, landing lightning fast kicks and some punches. Bucky gets a counter punch in and T'Challa falls, but  not for long, Bucky rushes up some stairs. "I can get in his head someone keep him still!" You yell jumping up to him, using your powers. T'Challa leaps the levels and vaults a railing, landing between you and Bucky. T'Challa spin-kicks and grabs Bucky's metal arm which he tries to twist then looks worried as he realises it isn't going to work. "Please T'Challa he didn't do it!" But he's not listening, Bucky is thrown backwards but keeps hold, you watch as they both tumble down the stairs. Resuming their fighting on the small landing and a leg sweep sends Bucky over the railing. T'Challa leaps down after him but finds the wide reception empty. He scans around. He looks up to find you but you've gone changing after Bucky, you catch up with him on the helipad. He marches up to a chopper, and finds a scarlet haze breaks the lock he turns round to you, you walk closer and whisper 'Hail Hydra' and look at him. He then looks behind you, grabbing you and taking you into the helicopter you land in the passenger seat, exhausted. Your arm aching. Steve grabs the landing gear and  pulls hard and the helicopter, as it struggles to gain height Steve pulls grabbing the railing with one hand and clings to the landing gear with the other. Bucky glowers from inside the chopper then throws the joystick left and the chopper's nose slams into the edge of the helipad. The rotor-blades are smashed to pieces and Steve ducks as the tail swings around. You try to hold on to something . 
"Give me back my wife Bucky!" Steve yells but as the helicopter lies twisted on the mesh at the edge of the pad. Steve rises beside the canopy. Bucky's arm smashes through the glass and growling he grabs Steve's throat.