Chasing Shadows ;; Steve Rogers

nine.

They had made quick work of getting back to the Quinjet. The moment Yelena went down, Ana was back. She had broken out of the haze that had taken hold of her, and waved one hand, holding Yelena still in the other. A gust of wind knocked the mercenaries down, and Tony sent his nanobots to tie them up.

Yelena was unconscious the whole time as Bruce worked on her, trying to stabilize her before they could make it back to The Tower. Natasha had sat her by side, holding her hand. Ana was seating further away, but her eyes remained on the girl.

Yelena had taken a bullet that was meant for her. The sniper was aiming for her. She didn't understand why Yelena had done it. They had been calling her sister since she arrived, but they'd betrayed her. They were afraid of her. She was nothing to them. Then why did she take that bullet for her? Ana didn't understand.

"How are you holding up?" Steve came over to her.

"I'm fine," Ana said shortly, her eyes still on Yelena.

"Ana, in that video—," Steve started.

"Why did she do it?" Ana cut him off. She couldn't talk about what they had seen. She wished they had never seen it. That was not a part of her life she wished to remember. She looked over at Steve. "Why would she ever do that?"

Steve was quiet for a moment as he looked over at Yelena before looking back at her. "Because she's your sister," he said simply.

"They keep saying that word like it means something," Ana shook her head. "It meant nothing when they went to Madame B and told her they were afraid of me. It meant nothing when they dragged me away."

Steve sighed. "Look, Natasha told me a little bit about what happened after what you said to her during your fight," he said. "And I think you need to talk to them. It's not my story to tell, but I think you need to hear their side of it. Couldn't it be possible whoever took you didn't tell you the truth?"

Ana didn't answer, staring at Yelena again. It looked like Bruce had gotten the bleeding under control, and she was stable enough. She still needed proper treatment, but at least she wasn't on death's door at the moment. That was good. Ana didn't want the guilt if Yelena died for her.

"I know the word doesn't mean much to you right now," Steve continued. "But it did once, right?"

"That was a long time ago," Ana said softly.

"Maybe," he said. "But there's no reason it can't be again. She'll be okay, Ana. They'll get her in the Regeneration Cradle, and she'll be okay. Then you can ask her yourself."

She sighed and looked away. She wasn't sure how she felt about this, short of confusion. She needed time to figure out what it meant. She needed time to decide how to feel.

"Ana," Steve went quiet for a moment. She could practically feel the tension rolling off of him. She knew what he was thinking about. Of course she did. But she didn't want to talk about the video. She just couldn't.

"Did they find the microchip?" She changed the subject on him again.

He watched her for a moment, as if deciding if he was going to push. He must have decided against it as he said, "Yes. It was in a safe on the third floor."

She nodded. That made her feel better. "Good, then it was worth it."

"We don't trade lives, Ana," Steve said softly.

She didn't respond, because what could she say. She knew that wasn't true. The mission was what was important. People, lives, they had always been expendable in her life. She was expendable. She had learned that a long time ago, when she discovered the word sister had no meaning.