Longing •Bucky Barnes•

•Twenty Five•

It had been 20 days now since he had been missing after the snap. I had no idea where he was or if he was anywhere at all. I had just called it quits for the evening. I had done my best to keep my promise to Bucky. I wanted to look as much as possible, but I was a fool if I didn't at least appreciate him. I was lucky he was alive and I would be an idiot to waste it.

I was in bed half asleep next to Bucky as the moon had been down for hours now. He had been back to normal for the most part since that night. He has clung himself around me loosely as he was passing out. I reached over to the shut off of the light and I wrapped myself around him feeling the pull of sleep.

I closed my eyes and the dreams I hadn't been expecting had started. I came to sleep easily but I wasn't expecting to see Tony. I was shocked for a moment, but I knew it was a dream. Tony was standing in a meeting room and I could see arguments everywhere. I was standing in the back of the room almost out of sight of everyone else.

I could tell this was the day after the fight with Loki for the Tesseract. We all looked to be still quite the mess and beaten from combat. Steve and Tony seemed to be arguing pretty heavily and all of them, except me seemed to be taking part. My hearing came to and I was able to hear everything as it was happening.

"Fury you've lost your damn mind." Tony screamed.

"After today Tony, she saved almost all of us. It's time." Fury said. "She's just as much of an Avenger as you are."

"No, absolutely not, she's a kid!" Tony yelled. "Why are we even discussing this right now? After everything today why are we talking about letting some stupid kid into the Avengers?"

"That stupid kid was raised by you, and she save your ass Tony! She's proved herself to deserve a spot on this team" Fury said standing up for me.

"I know she's only 17, but with everything that's to come we need more people like her." Steve said. "She's old enough to make that choice herself."

"She doesn't know wrong from right, she's not equipped to make that choice." Tony said. "She doesn't understand half of what's going on, she's just a kid."

"Tony, let the bird fly from the damn nest. She's not as young as you're making it seem. I was younger than her when I started my work and you know that." Nat said lowly but firm.

I was hiding off in a corner away from most everyone. They didn't even know I was here. I had snuck in after leaving the medical bay where they were fixing me up. I had taken a mean hit to the shoulder, but I had left before the doctor could have dismissed me. I knew they'd be in here talking and I was tired of being left out of meetings, but having to fight just as hard.

"I don't want that for her, she wasn't even supposed to be here today." Tony yelled. "She was on small mission restrictions only, not intergalactic god of mischief duty."

"Tony, you're holding onto her too tightly. She wants to be here, she's proven herself a part of this team." Clint said shaking his head. "I have kids Tony, I know the feeling, but she's going to resent you if you hold her back."

"I don't care was she wants. You won't take her from me." He said angrily.

"She's not yours to take Tony." Fury said cautiously.

"Fury don't you dare." He said and I stepped out from behind the corner.

"I'll make this easy." I said and I could feel myself furious. "I don't belong to anyone, and I intend to keep it that way."

"Val-"

"No, I'm not just some stupid kid." I said fiercely.

"I didn't mean it like that." He said trying to back track but I didn't want to hear it.