Fire and Ice - (Bucky Barnes x OC) 18+

Chapter 74

After taking a day to rest, Alex and Bucky packed up their backpacks and met in the kitchen. She opted to wear the clothes from Bucharest. And Bucky had the same thought in mind, gloves included.

"Where are we headed?" He asked, stuffing a water bottle into his backpack and zipping it closed. Exhaling through her nose, Alex stood up, slinging her bag over a shoulder. 

"Paris." She said. "It's the last safe house..."

There was no denying the hint hidden between her words. One that basically meant they couldn't afford to fuck up again. Because if they did, then they would be on their own.

Bucky nodded. "Paris..." He breathed.

Alex stole a glance at him, then slid her gaze out to the ocean view one last time. She was going to miss it dearly. While their stay ended in a not so pleasant way, there were still a bunch of wonderful memories she would savour.

Alex came to a stop beside him, and without dragging on the inevitable any longer, she offered him her hand. When he took it, her eyes closed and she took a deep breath, focusing on their next destination, then teleported.

**

Back at the Compound...

The majority of team members parted ways after some time under watchful scrutiny.

Sam kept up his Captain America duties when called upon, staying with Tony and Natasha at the base. Jace remained there too, having nowhere else to really go anyway. Wanda and Vision decided to visit other places in the world, catching up on the time they missed. Eventually they fell off grid for privacy purposes.

Scott and Clint returned to their families, visiting now and then to show face. And Bruce was still MIA, the last coordinates saw him somewhere in space. Though, how he got to space...no one knew. And he wasn't the only one to be missing in action either.

Thor and Loki had not shown up to date, which was slightly concerning but there wasn't anything any one of the team could do to gain information about the two gods whereabouts.

Natasha and Jace became training partners, leaning on each other for emotional support, and in turn, a friendship blossomed between them. And Rhodes took most of the heat off Tony by handling Ross and Fury. Though despite that, the secretary still loved calling, hounding the brunette for information about his sister. It didn't take long for word of Alex's powerful outburst to get around.

Jace was beside himself with worry, because he knew that it meant she was in pain. And the worst thing was, there wasn't anything he could do to help. The boxing bag and his fist became real good friends.

Natasha walked into Tony's office while he was on a call with Secretary Ross. She leaned a shoulder against the wall and listened.

"I told you Ross, i don't know where they are." Tony confessed, no emotion in his voice, clearly annoyed already.

"Really Stark? First Bucharest, now Spain. There's a pattern, and you can't tell me you don't know something. Those residences were found under non registered owners. I know for a fact they're yours." The secretary's voice filled the office.

Natasha glared at the phone from afar, as if she could will the old man away. Tony shook his head, then replied. 

"First off, sir. You don't have any proof that those residences belong to me. Secondly, stop assuming you know everything."

"It's illegal to withhold information when it comes to criminals." Ross reminded him, clear agitation in his tone.

Tony scoffed, "Tis a good thing i don't know any criminals then." There was a deep sigh on the other end of the line, then a moments pause before Ross spoke again.

"We'll find them Tony, it's only a matter of time."

"Yeah you keep telling me that," Tony quipped. "Oh sorry, the-the reception's b-bad i'm-shhh-need—shhh—digital-shhh, ta ta for now," And with that, he ended the call. It was pure savage of him to have done it, but he wasn't phased. 

Natasha rolled her lips together, stifling a smirk. "Gotta hand it to you Stark, you've got some big balls," she quipped, receiving a wide grin in reply. It was rare when anyone got a smile from him these days. 

Tony leaned back in his chair while Natasha sat down opposite his desk. 

"She's playing with fire..." He muttered, twirling a pen with his fingers. The black widow didn't need to ask who he was talking about. It was plainly obvious.

"Do you think it was her?"

He nodded. "Without a doubt. I just wish i knew what was going on... That outburst was felt across multiple countries. The last time she had one of them was when..." He trailed off, pausing to sigh deeply. "I just-i hope she's okay..."

Natasha bit her lip, lowering her gaze and crossing a leg over her knee. They both shared a knowing look.

"I mean it's not like we can find out...if we tried, agents would be all over. We just have to hope for the best, no negative thinking..." Natasha suggested. "In saying that, it's clear they got away considering there's no news about their capture."

Tony nodded, slowly, then pinched the bridge of his nose. The man was a mess most days, but he masked it well. They'd lost too much already and it was a shitstorm trying to keep the team together. Not wanting to dwell on the sorrow filled aspect of life, Tony did what he did best; he deflected.

"Does your visit have a purpose Romanoff?" He asked, and she narrowed her gaze at his sudden shift in mood. It wasn't nearly as surprising to her anymore.

"Your wife has already decorated half the compound for Christmas, she sent me in to remind you what time of the year it is." Natasha divulged, watching Tony's face change. The way his eyes softened and his face lowered.

"Shit...it's December already?" He asked, and she nodded. The end of the year had crept up on them like a predator.

Together they left the office, heading down the hallways. Most of them were already decorated with lights and garlands strung up around the bannisters, and doorframes. The traditional massive tree that always took its place in the main common room was being set up. A few helpers Pepper had hired were bringing in boxes, then helping hook everything up.

"Oh! I see you've made your way out of your man cave this time," Pepper chimed, flashing Tony a sarcastic smile. He walked over, placing a kiss to her cheek.

"Sorry, the old man had me in a chokehold." He said. 

Natasha snorted, "More like you had him in one, but i digress," She threw her hands in the air in surrender. Tony shot her a look with a quick shake of his head. But when he looked back at his wife, he copped a glare.

Pepper began, "Try not to rile up the secretary Tony, the last thing we need is-"

"Shush, i'm not riling him up anymore than he is me." Tony responded, waving off the concern. Pepper rolled her eyes then her mouth curved into a sweet smile.

"Try to get into the festive feeling. It's what all of you need, after the year we've all had." She said, then addressed one of the delivery men on where to place the head of the tree. Walking off to show him.

"She's got a point," Natasha appeared beside him. Tony bristled, whipping his head in her direction. 

"God damn Romanoff, wear a bell next time," 

Natasha brought her hand up and jingled an ornament of bells. 

"Like this one?" She teased, and he rolled his eyes as if her presence was exhausting.

"Come on Stark, get in the spirit or we'll start calling you, Scrooge," Her lips quirked upwards in one corner. When she walked away, a small smile crept onto his face.