Road to War Part III: I Would For You

If I Could Be Somebody Else

Silently, he slips inside and presses a button on his arm. Barton rigged it to release an EMP signal, after he explained what the arrow he'd given him on the last mission was. It's very useful, and the room immediately goes dark.

"What the hell?" Stark mutters, not immediately aware of the situation.

"Funny, I was about to say the same thing," he replies, grabbing Stark by the collar and tossing him away from the lab table. Away from any tools he might use to defend himself.

Stark climbs to his feet, blinking in the darkness, taking in the situation. "Barnes?" he asks incredulously. "Thought you were getting your head shrunk."

Frowning slightly, he takes a menacing step toward the smaller man. "What were you thinking?" he snarls. "Captain America's not dead."

With a cold smile, Stark shakes his head slowly. "No, but they froze him."

"What?!" Without thinking, he reaches out with his left hand and grabs him by the throat.

"Whoa, that's a little close, buddy," Stark says, grasping ineffectually at the metal.

"What do you mean they froze him?" he demands slowly, enunciating carefully.

Stark swallows a little painfully around his hold. "I mean they thought operating might kill him, and doing nothing would kill him, so they put him in cryofreeze to, you know, delay having to make a decision. Why, is it unpleasant? Because I was thinking I might want to take some time off one of these days."

He tightens his grip so Stark will shut up. Steve's frozen? Like he was? It wasn't a good experience, but probably not the worst that he's had. "Is that why you told them we need a new Cap?" he wants to know.

Stark struggles a little bit and he relents but doesn't release him. "I screwed up, kid, I know. Cap was right. But the bad guys are taking advantage of our little tiff, and it's going to take more than just me to bring them down. Look, I'm glad you came by and I'd love to chat, but this isn't exactly comfortable," he whines.

Glaring, he drops him and steps back a few feet. "Who?"

"Well, HYDRA's still a thing, you know. And that one fella, that guy who survived the helicarrier crashing into the Triskelion. Yeah, it seems he's got quite the following these days, especially since they're saying he killed Captain America."

"Rumlow?"

"That's the guy," Stark says, nodding.

He looks hard at the other man, considering his truthfulness. "So, why haven't you tracked him down? Killed him or taken him in?"

"My hands are a little full these days, what with country-wide protests and the general distrust of the intelligence agency I'm trying to get off the ground again."

"Sam's right," he says.

"What?"

He shakes his head, refusing to answer. "I have the shield. I'm not going to give it to someone else just because you think they should be Captain America. Just because you think we need one. You're not exactly the most qualified person to determine Steve's legacy," he growls.

Stark actually smiles at him, causing his frown to deepen. "I was hoping you'd bring that up. You're completely right. Bucky Barnes is definitely the most qualified person to represent Steve Rogers' Legacy. So, tell me, Soldier, do you think Bucky's available?"

"What are you talking about?" he asks warily, fists clenching.

"Come with me," Stark replies, turning and heading deeper into the lab. Slowly, suspiciously, he follows him back to an area that resembles an office. Stark opens the drawers until he finds a folded piece of paper, which he hands over.

Still watching Stark, he opens it and is startled to see Steve's handwriting. "What is this?" he gasps.

"He sent it to me the day he got shot. Trying to make amends. Wish I'd have listened sooner," Stark mutters, busying himself with arranging the papers strewn on the desk.

Glancing carefully at Stark every few moments, he reads the letter. Most of it addresses the cause of their schism, but he is surprised to find himself mentioned. Steve insisted that he not be monitored like Stark wanted, and it was obvious that he was at least a strong influence in Steve's decision to oppose Stark's plan. As he continues to read, it strikes him that Steve might have known someone would try something at the press conference. It reads too much like a last request, and he swallows painfully.

Steve was, as always, worried about the people he cared most about. He asked Stark to take care of Bucky, to give him a way to help. He said that, if it came to it, the country would need a new Captain America, one with the same qualifications. It's not specifically stated, but Steve clearly hinted at whom he considered an acceptable replacement.

"It's not me anymore," he murmurs, struggling to keep the tears from his eyes as he reads what his friend wanted.

Stark looks up at him. "But it could be," he offers.

P