Fire and Ice

•52•

The effects of the Cryo are wearing off now, as Bucky wakes up again not too long after going to bed. He sighs softly, laying there, now realizing that sleeping all day was probably not the best idea. But what else was there to do? It's much safer when he's asleep anyway.

For a while, the night is quiet, but he soon hears soft footsteps outside. He sits up, waiting. It must be Kate, not likely one of those kids, but she's not coming over here. She's just... going outside? Why? But he lays back down. It's not his business anyway. He doesn't have a right to ask. So, he rolls over, trying to go back to sleep and not wonder.

A few minutes later, he hears a quiet sob.

He sits up again.

Is it his business? No, it's really not. And that's his own fault. He doesn't deserve to know what's happening or why she's crying, she doesn't owe him that. But he owes her. She fought for him, she's doing everything she can to help him, and she's sitting out there crying. He owes her. At the very least, he'll go out there, see if she wants company, and if she doesn't, he'll leave. But he at least owes her going out there to ask.

He finds her laying in the grass, staring up at the night sky, tears pouring down her cheeks. She doesn't see him at first, and he doesn't know what to say. "Um..."

She sits up, starts hastily wiping her eyes. "Oh. Oh, hey."

"Hey..." he says. Despite herself, she can't stop crying. His chest forms knots, and his brain stops working. What is he supposed to do? "Do you wanna... talk about it?"

She looks at the ground, arms hugging her knees. "No."

"That's okay. That's fine," he says. And he isn't sure what this is all about. He could probably guess, if he tried, but then again maybe not. He doesn't know enough about her yet, as much as he'd like to. Even so, there is something, something uncomfortable in his chest, pushing him to say something. He sits next to her. "Hey."

She looks at him with red, tired eyes. "What?"

"I don't know if it'll help — I don't want to make it worse, of course, but I want to say something-"

"Say it."

She looks at him through the dark, eyes waiting, hugging herself. He sits there, feeling that empty space on his left now more than ever. Feeling more vulnerable, more human now than he has this whole weird trip. And he says it. "I... I have spent the last two years trying to sort my brain out. To readjust. And then I'm thrust into this whole new environment. Being here, it's strange — and I'm grateful. I owe T'Challa — and Shuri and the scientists and-and everybody — a great debt. It's beautiful. I mean, look at these flowers. It's just... it's a strange place. I've never been here before. I don't know anybody, I'm trying to get my bearings. Being out here, it's weird. But... you're here. So... thank you. Thank you for being here. Thank you for staying."

She closes her eyes and goes silent for a long time, and he begins to get nervous though he doesn't know why. Finally, she wipes her eyes again. "I'm sorry."

His brows furrow. "For what?"

"I'm sorry we haven't fixed what HYDRA did to you yet."

"That's okay. Take your time. I'm sure it's not an easy thing to figure out..." he trails off, feeling a bit stupider with every word. He sighs. "Do you wanna go make some food?"

"Yeah, sure."

He gets something out of the hut, and she takes it, evidently knowing what it is. She sits down and lights the fire in her hands, then catches the wood. The flames on her hands go out, and she begins cooking their food. Bucky offers help wherever he can, learning more even as he goes, but his hair keeps getting in his eyes. Kate chuckles at him.