Fields of Bone // TFATWS

17

[Truth]

Bucky and Irina ran to the warehouse while Sam flew.

They found John kneeling in the warehouse, shield and hands bloody. The Avengers stopped and John stood and said, "Time to go to work."

John marched towards them and Sam called, "Walker..."

"You guys should see a medic, you don't look so good."

"Stop, Walker."

John looked at Sam. "What? You saw what happened. You know what I had to do. I killed him because I had to! He killed Lemar!"

Irina shook her head. "He didn't kill Lemar, John. But you did nearly kill me."

Bucky sighed. "Don't go down that road. Believe me, it doesn't end well. You hurt Irina. You're lucky she's okay. Because if she wasn't-"

"I'm not like you or Rina."

Irina tone dripped with ice as she said, "Enough, Walker."

Sam looked between the others before saying, "Listen, it was the heat of the battle. Okay? If you explain what happened, they may consider your record. We don't want anyone else to get hurt. John... You gotta give me the shield, man."

"Oh, so that's what this is," John said, looking up before staring at the three Avengers. "You almost got me."

"You made a mistake."

"You don't wanna do this."

Bucky and Irina exchanged a look before replying, "Yeah, we do."

They ran at John at the same time, but he managed to fight them off. He dodged kicks and punches before kicking Sam away, then shoved Irina away and turned his attention to Bucky.

Bucky swung at John, breaking one of the metal supports when he hit it. John dodged it and threw the shield at Bucky, sending him back into a forklift. "Why are you making me do this?" John yelled.

John picked up the shield and pushed Bucky against the lift before throwing him into a pole.

Bucky fell as electricity surged through his Vibranium arm and body. Irina rushed over to Bucky, wincing slightly, to make sure he was all right and he gave her a weak nod.

Sam moved between the couple and John before saying, "This isn't you, John."

John panted and said, "We could've been a team." He and Sam fought, Sam in the air and John on the ground.

Irina stood and shook her head. "Never." She punched John, causing him to stumble back. He kicked her back and she fell to the ground with an angry yell.

John went to stab Sam with the shield and Bucky lunged at him, knocking him away from Sam. The two exchanged punches, with Bucky ending up on the ground. Once again, John raised the shield.

Irina stood up and she, Bucky and Sam managed to get the shield away from John at the expense of his elbow.

Bucky and Irina walked towards Sam and heard John say behind them, "That's mine."

Sam panted and said, "It's over, John."

"It's mine."

Irina pursed her lips and spat, "No, it isn't. If you need the shield to be Captain America, then you don't deserve it."

Bucky sat up and stared at the shield. He picked it up and dropped it next to Sam. He turned to Irina. "We dealt with Walker. You're going to the hospital."

Irina put a hand to her neck and her hand came back crimson. She wiped at her neck and said, "It doesn't hurt. I think it healed. It'll leave a nasty scar I guarantee, but I don't feel blood."

Bucky checked her neck and nodded. "Looks like it did. But we're still going to the hospital."

She shook her head. "Please no. It healed. Why do I have to go to the hospital?"

"To make sure you're okay, doll. Please."

Irina nodded. "That's fair. Let's go."

The two walked away.

Sam picked up the shield and tried to wipe the blood off. A downcast expression crossed his face, like he was ashamed by what had happened.

---

Irina's wounds were looked over and deemed not very serious and she was told she could go, but to be careful and see a doctor if they opened again.

She turned to Bucky. "Thank you."

Bucky kissed her forehead. "I'd do anything for you, doll. Irina, if I lost you-"

"You haven't lost me, Buck." Irina wrapped her arms around his neck, resting her head on his chest. "I'm still here."

Bucky wrapped his arms around her, relishing in the fact that he hadn't lost her. He ran a gentle hand through her hair, smiling softly.

---

The three regrouped and changed before making their way to a refugee camp. Sam got word that Torres had arrived. Callie saw her parents and ran up to them. Irina picked the little girl up with a small smile.

Irina watched as police cars took escorted people away, walked up to Sam and Torres and asked, "What's going on?"

"The GRC is conducting raids to try and find Karli, but so far they've only found her followers," Sam replied, glancing at Irina. "They've searched this camp, and just like the last camp, nothing. She's gone. We're never gonna find her."

Torres chuckled before turning to Bucky. "Hey, you got your sleeve back."

Bucky shook his head and headed for the door. Irina looked between Bucky, Sam and Torres.

Sam nodded. "Go. I got this."

"Really? Are you-" she was cut off.

"I'm sure. You guys need each other." Irina walked towards the door as Sam leaned on the table. "Are you off to take care of Zemo?"

Bucky turned back to Sam and Torres, remaining silent. He left and Irina, still holding Callie, followed.

"All right, good to know you survived." He gave a little wave. "They seem sweet together. Callie's adorable and is a joy."

Sam nodded. "They are. Yeah she is. What's our next steps, Torres?"

"Captain America killing a foreign national in public, it's kinda like a big deal. Like incident big. Folks, uh, higher up on the payroll are all over it now. So, unfortunately..."

"They're taking jurisdiction."

"Yeah." He nodded, noticing the wings Sam had broke. "What happened to these?" He grunted, picking them up.

"So is there anything we can do?"

"Not really. As you can see, they've cordoned off the whole camp, and Karli's a ghost. After what went down, she is laying extra low. Like, under-underground."

"And that's why it makes sense for us to get involved. The longer we let her regroup, the harder it's gonna be to find her."

"She's got people helping her from all over the world, on all platforms. She's really, really good at this thing."

"Yeah."

Torres put a hand on the wings he'd been unpacking. "How'd these break?" Sam let out a sigh. "Anyway, all we can do now is sit tight and just chill. Sometimes, there's nothing to do until there's something to do."

"That's bizarrely wise."

He chuckled. "Well, I'm a bizarrely wise man, Sam."

"Yeah, all right." He chuckled. "Thanks, Torres."

"For sure." He walked to the door.

"Wait, yo, you forgot the wings."

"Keep 'em." He left.