AVENGERS CIVIL WAR

Chapter 13

Bucky awoke the next morning, stunned to discover that he'd actually slept. He hadn't been thrust awake in a horrified trance. He had been sleeping soundly, calmly and peacefully. That fact was almost more alarming than the nightmares.

He was still tied down but was queerly serene. He looked upwards attentively when Natasha came into his cell.

"Hi." She cautiously approached, unlatching in the restraints.

Guilt came over Bucky. He'd yelled at her yesterday when she was only trying to protect his feelings. She reached across his waist and unlaced his other wrist restraint. He sat up and grasped her arms. Her eyes darted over towards him but she was not frightened.

"I'm sorry." It was soft, almost a whisper. Regret hung in his words, his dark eyes pleading.

"About what?" Natasha tilted her head.

"Everything. Everything I've done. Especially to you." He bit down on his lip until the taste of blood was in his mouth.

"It's going to be okay," she murmured quietly. He almost melted; kind words, gentle and touching words, reassuring words. They were so rare in his life. "We'll take care of you here."

----

Zemo rummaged in his bag, unearthing his phone. He pressed it to his ear and woman's voice spoke in a recorded message. Zemo listened in a trance, her words echoing in his mind. He snapped the phone shut and set it back in the bag, next to a red notebook.

He was ready for The Soldier.

----

Peggy knew she'd have to face Steve soon. Any moment they would pass each other in a hallway and Steve would probably have a heart attack. Peggy could not think of any way to spring on him that she was still alive. She remained hidden in her room, with only Sharon and Tony visiting her. When she would tell Steve, she had yet to know.

She anxiously waited for the right time.

----

Natasha packed her suitcase, only half paying attention to it. She was concerned about leaving the Avengers in a time of such inner turmoil and she did not have any desire to leave Bucky. She was aware that he only showed vulnerability and felt safety when he was around her; everyone else felt like a threat. She wished she could stay with him, try to help him remember his past. His real past, not the one as the Winter Soldier, but the one as Bucky Barnes.

She couldn't get out of this meeting though. She didn't tell Bucky she was leaving; he'd not even be aware that she was gone.

Tony appeared in her doorframe. "Getting ready to go?"

"Yep." Natasha zipped the suitcase and heaved it to the floor. Tony watched her as she grasped her purse and was ready to go.

"Tony," Natasha remarked, going through her purse to check for her cell phone, "I haven't seen Pepper in a while. Is she okay?"

Tony didn't answer right away, causing Natasha to gaze over at him. "Is everything okay with you two?"

"We..um, we broke up a while ago," Tony stuttered. Natasha could tell he was still grappling with that fact. She knew that Pepper had been Tony's whole world.