Life in the Multiverse

If Y/N and Bucky Worked Together

Y/N Stark P.O.V
Earth 005
March, 2025
Berlin, Germany
11:17 am

I followed the guard down the hallway, my fingers intertwined with Bucky's metal ones, his glove in between my flesh and his metal. Sam walked on the other side of Bucky.
"He's just through that corridor," the guard said.
"Alright," Bucky said. "Give us a sec."
The guard nodded and walked over to the door.
Bucky turned to Sam and I.
"We're going in alone," he said to Sam.
I was surprised, but didn't protest.
"Why?" Sam said.
"Cause you're an Avenger," Bucky said. "You know how he feels about that."
"It's not like you two were known for frolickin' in the sun together," Sam said. "Besides, Y/N's an Avenger too, why's he get to go in?"
"Because I know better than to fight this with him. Besides, Zemo respects Y/N and his intelligence, this much I'm sure of."
Sam sighed and broke eye contact for a moment, then looked back to us.
"He was obsessed with HYDRA," Bucky said. "We have a history together. Trust me. I got it."
Sam didn't respond and Bucky and I walked over to where the guard was waiting. He buzzed us in and we walked through the first door, then the second. We walked into the cell where Zemo sat on the edge of his bed. There was a thick pane of glass separating us from him.
He began to speak in Russian as he stood up and walked over to us. Smoak translated the words on my glasses as he spoke them. I immediately recognized them as the words that once controlled Bucky. I glanced over to him to check on him.
"Those days are over," Bucky said.
"I know," Zemo said knowingly. "I just wanted to see how the new you reacts to the old words."
I took Bucky's hand and got close to him as Zemo walked as close as possible to the glass to look in Bucky's eyes.
"Something is still in there," he said to him, then let his eyes flick down to our hands, then back up to us. "It appears my plan to place a wedge between the Winter Solider and the Stark family did not succeed with all of the Starks."
Zemo looked to the side for a moment, then shook his head and looked back to Bucky.
"At least you were not conscious for most of your imprisonment," he said.
"That time wasn't exactly a picnic," Bucky replied, causing me to give his hand a squeeze.
"For what it's worth," Zemo said. "I'm sorry."
I sneered a little at that and let a soft scoff escape my lips.
"It was never personal," he continued. "You were simply a means to a necessary end."
Bucky dropped the topic of the past and spoke up again.
"Someone recreated the Super-Soldier Serum," he said. "I need to find out who."
"You have one of the most dangerous men in the world standing next to you. The man who could find any single person or thing on the globe in a week's time. And yet, you come to me," he said calculatingly. "You are assuming HYDRA has something to do with this, which is why you came to me, which means you are desperate. Luckily for you, I know where to begin."
As he spoke memories began to resurface from the past. Bucky attacking us after he broke containment. The airport battle. Seeing him kill my grandparents in Siberia. Zemo nearly severing the connection I had made with Bucky only hours before. He nearly made it impossible for me to be holding Bucky's hand right now.
Zemo and I made eye contact as my eyes began to glow blue. I turned my head a little as I looked into his mind, searching for anything worth using. He smirked and scoffed.
"That's cute," he said. "You won't find anything up there, believe me. I've trained to resist such invasive tactics."
I broke the connection and looked at the ground.
"What's that book you're reading?" Bucky said to him.
"Machiavelli," he replied.
Zemo narrowed his eyes and walked over to it, but I was still lost in my own mind. I shook my head and took a shaky breath. I let go of Bucky's hand causing him to look over to me concerned.
"You okay?" he said quietly.
I nodded and gave a forced smile.
"I'll be outside," I said.
He gave me a look of pity, then nodded and let me go. I walked over to the door and knocked heavily as Bucky went back to talking to Zemo.
The guard opened the door and let me out. I walked back into the hallway where Sam was waiting.
"Where's Buck?" he said.
"He doesn't like when you call him that," I said halfheartedly as I lowered myself to the ground and leaned against the wall.
"Whatever," he said. "Where is he?"
"Still talking to Zemo," I said.
"You left him in there alone?"
"Bucky can handle himself and Zemo won't try to do anything to get in Bucky's head. I read his mind before I left the room."
"You find anything else useful while you were ruffling around up there?" he said, pointing at his own head.
I shook my head.
"No," I said. "Either he doesn't know anything concrete. Or he wasn't kidding when he said he knew how to keep his thoughts private."
Sam sighed and cursed as he turned away, then looked back to me.
"You alright?" he said quietly.
"Yeah," I said exasperated, shaking my head slowly. "Just...bringing back some old memories."