oh captain! my captain! | barnes

punching bag

8:56 pm
Tower

"Steve, I know it might not be what you want to hear," she paused, "But it might be time to let him go." The words rattled in the room, not by noise but by weight. Everyone waited.

Steve couldn't meet Wanda's eyes. Or anyone's for that matter. He ran his finger around the lip of his glass, pondering the words.

"And what if someone had let me go?" he questioned, "What if they decided to pull the plug on me?" He looked at them curtly, knowing full and well they'd probably have some pretty different rules to abide by if that were the case.

They were quiet.

"We're not going to pull the plug on him. We're going to find Audrey; reunite them. Maybe her presence will bring him back," he stood.

Tony's voice stopped the tiring Captain, "As much as we'd all love that dream world where the lover brings the loved back, it's almost impossible. What if it takes him 70 years? What if she's dying then, like Peggy was," Steve stiffened, "You want to put him through that pain?"

"It won't. I know Bucky, it won't be like it was with me," he said tightly. Every fiber in his body resisted the idea of losing his friend. Every fiber was tense with worry.

With this unreasonable response, he left the room.

Meanwhile...

Audrey made her way up the collapsing stairs of the barn. She stood in the loft and discovered three old punching bags. She rolled them to the edge and dropped them below.

She hopped off, landing on the hay-covered floor of the barn.

"Oh captain, my captain," she muttered as she towed the bags to the tree outside.

She held the long chain as she worked her way up the tree, the bark would have left tiny incisions in her hands had she not pre-wrapped them. Instead, the tree dirtied the tape.

"Our fearful trip is done. The port is near, the bells I hear," she leaped down from the highest branch after she secured the chain, "The people all exulting."

"But oh heart!" punch, "heart!" punch, "heart!"

"Oh the bleeding drops of red," she continued to punch rhythmically as she recalled the dead clerk. She ignored the pain in her left hand, as she recalled the only man she loved. She couldn't be remind of him right now. She couldn't.

"Where on the deck, my captain lies," she reached for the gun that was tucked in the back of her pants and turned swiftly. It was pointed at the listening Captain, "Fallen cold and dead."

"Audrey, I found you."

"It's not that hard to find a murderer, Captain. Just follow the dead bodies. That's why it was so easy, before all of this, for me to find Mister Stark," she watched him coldly. She replaced the gun in the back of her pants and continued to beat on the punching bag.

"Why're you here?" she asked him. She began sweating with more and more blows.

"I should be asking you-"

"Cut the shit, Steve. I don't have time for games."

"Oh right, you're too busy killing innocent teenage boys-"

She turned quickly and nailed him in the nose, "You shut up. You know nothing about me." She was hostile, her trademark.

He remained calm, which only angered her more. He wiped his bleeding nose with the back of his hand.

"I know Bucky loved - loves," he corrected himself, "you."

"And you know I love him, that's why I'm here. I love him too much to hurt him," she sounded tired as she hit the bag, yet again. She was weakening under pressure and tightened her muscles.

"I also know he stopped hurting you when he realized how much he loves you. He's his best self when he's with you, Audrey. And he's fully aware when he's with you."

She stopped and held her left hand as it throbbed. She walked into the house, he followed. She found her tape and re-taped her hand as she spoke:

"So you're thinking if I'm with him, he'll wake up?"

"Exactly."

"And what happens when he wakes up? What happens when he sees the scar I've engraved into him?"

"Then he forgives you. You have to remember, he was under HYDRA's control during that too-"

"Yeah but he recognized me, he stopped. I didn't stop until he was dead, like they trained me to. He's a hell of a lot stronger. I can't endanger him like that. I don't trust myself enough."

"How did you recite the poem, just now, without being triggered to do something?" he asked out of no where. She stood.

"Hell if I knew," she went to the kitchen.

"No, you do know," he paused, looking over the breakfast bar to her. She rummaged through soup cans to find her tomato soup.

"The love between you guys far exceeds HYDRA's pure hate for him," he was being cheesy again. "Your good memories are cancelling out HYDRA's bad ones. The ones they made up to make you hate him."

She took it off the stove.

"So what now?" she asked, finally addressing a homecoming.

"We fix it."