Where Do You Run // TFATWS

17

[Truth]

Bucky and Katherine 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!"

Katherine shook her head. "He didn't kill Lemar, John."

Bucky sighed. "Don't go down that road. Believe me, it doesn't end well. You hurt Katie. You're lucky she's okay. Because if she wasn't, things would end up a lot worse for you."

"I'm not like you or Katie."

Katherine's tone was laced with icy venom as she said, "That's enough, Walker."

Sam looked between the group 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 Katherine shared a look before saying, "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 Katherine back 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, pushing Bucky against the lift before throwing him into a pole.

Bucky fell as electricity surged through his Vibranium arm and body. Katherine rushed over to Bucky to make sure he was okay 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.

Katherine stood and shook her head. "That was never going to happen." She punched John, causing him to stumble back. He kicked her back and she fell to the ground with a scream.

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.

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

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

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

"It's mine."

Katherine narrowed her eyes. "The fact that you think you need it proves you're not, nor will ever be Captain America."

Bucky sat up and stared at the shield. He picked it up and dropped it next to Sam. He turned to Katherine. "We dealt with Walker. Now it's time you go to the hospital."

Katherine lifted her shirt slightly and wiped away the blood. "There's a small line, but no red."

Bucky took a closer look. "You're right, but I'd feel better if we got confirmation from a doctor."

Katherine's lip curled. "You know how I feel about doctors."

"Please? For me?" Katherine's expression remained blank. "How about for Nick and Mya?"

"That's low, bringing the kids into this."

"Please, Katie."

Katherine met his pleading eyes and nodded. "Fine. Let's go."

The two left, leaving Sam alone.

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

---

Katherine's wound was looked over and was bandaged and she was soon released.

She turned to Bucky. "I suppose a thank you is in order."

Bucky kissed her forehead. "I can't have my best girl- I can't lose you, doll."

"Bucky, you haven't lost me." Katherine stroked his cheek with a hand and he closed his eyes at her touch. "It'll take a lot more than that."

Bucky pulled her into a tight embrace as he ran a gentle hand through her hair.

---

The three regrouped and changed before making their way to a refugee camp. Sam got word that Torres had arrived. Nicolas and Mya saw their parents and ran up to them. Katherine smiled and hugged her children.

Katherine watched as police cars took escorted people away before walking 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 Katherine. "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. Katherine glanced between Bucky, Sam and Torres.

Sam nodded. "Go. I got this."

"Are you-" Before she could finish, she was cut off.

"I'm sure. You guys need each other." Katherine, followed by Nicolas and Mya, 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 Katherine followed, the children close behind.

"All right, good to know you survived." He gave a little wave. "They seem pretty sweet together. Nicolas and Mya are a lot of fun."

Sam nodded. "They are. They're great kids. 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 the room Torres was in.