First the Sokovia Accords and now Peggy...
Steve just couldn't keep up. Tony wanted to surrender their choice to save innocents while Peggy had just passed in her sleep. He really couldn't keep up. He just wanted Peggy, the Peggy he knew as a young man, to tell him everything would be okay, that's she's tough, but things had changed.
He may still have Bucky, somewhere out in the world, but Peggy had been his pillar of strength when Bucky died, his hope for their final victory. In the end, he didn't even get his dance.
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After the funeral, Sharon's words - well, Peggy's - stuck with him.
'Compromise where you can. Where you can't, don't. Even when everyone is telling you that something wrong is something right. Even if the whole world is telling you to move, it is your duty to plant yourself like a tree, looking them in the eye and say "No, you move".'
Steve agreed with Peggy's words. And right now, he needed those words more then anything.
He heard Natasha's heels click along the floor of the church. Her face spoke for itself. Spill, it said. So he did.
"When I came out of the ice, I thought everyone I had known was gone. Then I found out she was alive. I was just lucky to have her."
"She had you back too." Tense silence went between them.
"Who else signed?" Natasha sighed
"Tony, Rhodey, Vision."
"Clint?"
"Says he's retired."
"Wanda?"
"TBD." He looked down solemnly as she continued. "I'm off to Vienna for the signing of the Accords. There's plenty of room on the jet." He sighed audibly at her words. "Just because it's the path of least resistance, doesn't mean it's the wrong path." He looked up at her with eyes that seemed to question her words. "Staying together is more important then how we stay together."
"What are we giving up to do it?" This time she was that one to sigh as his serious tone. "I'm sorry, Nat. I can't sign it."
"I know."
"Then what are you doing here?"
"...I didn't want you to be alone." He stared at her before she squeezed his shoulder, pulling him closer for a hug that he had been craving. It was all he needed in that moment.
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Something didn't sit right with Steve as he watched the news, how they figured that it was Bucky who set off the bomb. The picture was low quality and didn't have his shoulder length hair. Steve knew that Bucky always wore his beanies and hats loosely because he had a sensitive scalp. He wouldn't tuck his hair, and if he was an assassin, he most definitely wouldn't look at the camera unless he was taking it out. Something was up and Steve was going to find out.
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"You alright?" Steve asked through the phone.
"Uh, yeah, thanks. I got lucky." Natasha replied. There was a drawn out pause. "I know how much Barnes means to you. I really do. Stay home. You'll only make this worse... for all of us. Please."
"Are you saying you'll arrest me?" Steve questioned.
"No. Someone will. If you interfere, that's how it works now."
"If he's this far gone, Nat, I should be the one to bring him in."
"Why?"
"Because I'm the one least likely to die trying. Perks of being a super-soldier, kinda ex-boyfriend of an assassin super-soldier." He joked lightly before hanging up.
He left towards the cafe. He didn't expect Sharon to give him a head start, but it helped. He should probably tell her he's off limits someday though...
4 LINES CUT
A/N: Sorry this is sorry, but the next chapter is more Bucky centric. This probably seems choppy, but it's supposed to be a bit choppy as it's just snippets of the lead up to seeing Bucky again.
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I'm With You To The End Of The Line [STUCKY]
FanfictionSequel to 'Burn Me Slowly With Your Love'. Steve finds out Bucky's alive, and he's not letting him go ever again. Bucky is his, he is Bucky's. He's with him to the end of the line. Set in CA:TWS & CA:CW