The usual all black cat suit that she'd had refitted over the years clung to her new found curves. Thank you, puberty. She hadn't really worn it since the whole Headquarters incident in 2014. She didn't even think she'd get to wear it now, considering her and her dad had opted for normal civilian clothes to avoid standing out.
The iron suits flew through the air and landed in front of Steve. Tony being dramatic as ever. Tony being Tony, she guessed.
"Wow, it's so weird how you run into people at the airport. Don't you think that's weird?" He asked Rhodes. She blew a laugh through her nose, shaking her head. He could be funny in the worst scenarios, which was probably why they had gotten along so well.
"Definitely weird."
"Hear me out, Tony." Steve said. "That doctor, the psychiatrist, he's behind all of this."
When Steve finished, their friend Mr. Kitty came out to play. Once a line like that gets written, it stays in the act forever.
"Captain." He said.
"Your Highness." Steve replied. Carissa looked over at Sam.
"High-hsss." She said, making a scratching motion with her hand. Sam and Bucky laughed. Bucky's laugh echoed through her head as her face heated up. He thought she was adorable, but not much like Steve. He hadn't seen her make any crazy dumb decisions yet, which surprised him. Maybe stupidity wasn't hereditary.
"Anyway...Ross gave me 36 hours to bring you in. That was 24 hours ago. Can you help a brother out?" Tony asked Steve.
"You're after the wrong guy." Steve said.
"Your judgement is askew." Tony replied.
"This feels like we're in the middle of a divorce." Riss whispered to Sam.
Sam nodded. "Tony is definitely the wife."
"No shit." Riss replied. "Stay at home wife who does nothing but drink and look pretty."
Sam laughed. Bucky smiled. Her face reddens. He was surprised to hear her cuss so openly, knowing how much Steve was against that. She didn't seem to care about rules, a trait she definitely got from her father.
"Your old war buddy killed innocent people yesterday." Tony told Steve.
"We read the newspaper, Tony. What else is new?" Riss asked. She had forgotten that their earpieces only connected with their side. She frowned, realizing Tony couldn't hear her rebuttals.
"And there are five more super soldiers just like him." Steve said. "I can't let the doctor find them first, Tony. I can't."
"Are you sure my dad isn't the wife? Both are quite dramatic." She told Sam. "They're the kind that are like 'I don't care about the kids, I want the Porsche.'"
Bucky laughed before Sam could respond, his blue eyes sparkling as they look into hers.
She watched Tash walk out and join the men. This wasn't about to end well.
"All right. I've run out of patience." Tony said. "Underoos!"
"Oh no." She mumbled. "This isn't gonna be pretty, either. What trick have you got now, little man?"
A web flies out and grabs Steve's shield, pulling it towards the webber.
"Spider-Man." The girl whispered.
"Who?" Sam asked. She just shook her head at him.
"Holy shit he got Spider-Man." Carissa started to fangirl slightly.
She watched Spider-Man flip over Steve, landing with the shield.
"Nice job, kid." Tony said.
"Thanks." Spider-Man replied.
"I know that voice." She announced.
"Yeah, it's Spider-Man's. The one guy who's stolen your attention from Bucky." Sam said. She backhanded his shoulder.
"What?" Bucky asked. He'd noticed her looking, but hadn't realized how much of her attention he had held.
"Nothing." She replied as Sam laughed. Bucky glared at Sam before returning his attetion to the girl.
"I could have stuck the landing a little better, it's just new suit. It's nothing, Mr. Stark. It's perfect. Thank you." Spider-Man said.
"I know that voice." She said again.
"Yeah, we don't really need to start a conversation." Tony told him.
"Okay. Cap. Captain." Spider-Man continued. "Big fan. I'm Spider-Man."
"Why the fuck do I know that voice?" She was grwoing frustrated with herself.
"Yeah, we'll talk about it later." Tony said.
"Hey, everyone." He said.
"Good job." Tony told him.
"This is getting more and more awkward the more Tony tries to fix it." She commented.
"You've been busy." Steve said.
"And you've been a complete idiot." Tony replied.
"We all know but, hey." Riss said.
"Is that a John Mulaney reference?" Sam asked.
"Don't judge me." She replied. "The fact that you know that added you to the top of my best friend list. You get to take Tony's spot."
"Dragging in Clint, rescuing Wanda from a place she doesn't even wanna leave, a safe place. I'm trying to keep...I'm trying to keep you from tearing the Avengers apart."
Realization hits Carissa like a truck. "That's what this is all about?" She whispered to herself. Tony didn't want the family ripped apart by its own hands. Bucky appeared as an outsider to Tony, unlike her and her dad.
"You did that when you signed." Steve replied.
"No-" Carissa cried, but Tony couldn't hear her. Steve turned to face her momentarily. Her face held a cold expression towards her father. She actually couldn't believe this shit. She'd never been so conflicted, seeing both sides of the fight and hating the fact she had to pick a side.
"All right, we're done." Tony said. "You're gonna turn Barnes over, you're gonna come with us, now, because it's us or a squad of J-SOC guys with no compunction about being impolite."
Bucky grabbed Carissa's hand at the mention of him and only squeezed tighter as Tony continued. Butterflies swarmed in her stomach, but she was still hurt over her realization. She just wanted to run out there and hug Tony. She felt Bucky's hand slip out of her. She looked up, Sam motioned for her to keep following him and Bucky. She'd gotten distracted listening intently to what was happening on the earpieces. Bucky's hand slipped back into hers when she caught up.
"Come on." Tony whispered.
Sam touched his ear piece. "We found it." He said to Steve. "Their Quinjet's in hangar five, north runway."
Steve lifts his hands and Clint shot an arrow through the webbing, setting him free.
"All right, Lang." Steve said.
"Hey, guys, something-" Spider-Man got cut off as Lang grew, taking the shield from him to give to Steve.
They start running as Tony spotted Wanda. Rhodey gave off the trio's location. Bucky never let's go of the girl's hand.
"Got three in the terminal." She heard though the earpiece. "Wilson, Barnes and Riss." He said.
She frowned. It didn't seem fair that they could hear Tony and Rhodey but they couldn't hear their opposing side.
Tony smiled. "I knew the mouthy little princess was missing."
"How come he didn't say your last name?" Sam whined.
"Didn't you hear? I'm the princess." She replied.
They kept running and Sam noticed Bucky holding the girl's hand. He sent her a look and she smiled. She turned around to see Spider-Man jump on the window.
"What the hell is that?" Bucky asked.
"Spider-man." The girl answered.
"Everyone's got a gimmick now." Sam said.
"Yeah, like you?" She asked.
"Shut up, princess." Sam replied.
"Be nice." She whined, sticking her tongue out at Sam as they keep running.
Spider-Man broke the glass, coming straight for Sam. Sam was taken down as Bucky lets Carissa go, lunging at Spider-Man with his metal arm. The punch is stopped halfway through.
"You have a metal arm? That's awesome." He told Bucky.
"I know that voice." She said again. It was like repeating that sentence was going to remind her. It didn't.
"Carissa?" Spider-Man asked. That's not fair, he can see her face. Sam rushed towards him as his wings came out, pulling Spider-Man into the air. Sam spun, throwing him in the air and Spider-Man just started swinging to catch himself. Bucky grabbed her hand again, tuggung her along as she watched after Spider-Man. He'd recognized her, too.
She heard crashes outside. She turned toward the window to see cars flying out at Tony. Her hand flew up to the ear piece.
"Dad, don't hurt him!" She begged into the mic. Bucky's features laced in concern as he heard the panic in hers. He hated that he'd been the cause of this. She obviously loved Tony, wishing even now that he wasn't hurt, despite the fact that they were all out for each other's throats, or maybe they were all collectively out for his throat.
She looked away from the window to see Spider-Man still swinging. Bucky picked up a sign and threw it at him, moving back quickly, covering himself with the nearest pillar. He'd let go of Carissa a little bit ago but he'd wished he hadn't. It was easier to make sure she was okay when his hand was interlaced with hers.
"Hey, buddy, I think you lost this!" Spider-Man said, throwing it back at him. Bucky felt a tug at his hand. He allowed the small girl to pull him off of the pillar and back into the open.
Sam yelled somewhere behind the pair, forcing them both to turn around as he crashed into an information desk. Carissa fought her urge to glare at Spider-Man as she made sure Sam was okay.
"Sam!" Carissa called.
"I'm fine, Blondie." He replied.
He got up and ran over to the glass railing. Spider-Man webbed him there.
"Those wings carbon fiber?" He asked.
"Is this stuff coming out of you?" Sam asked in reference to the webs.
"That would explain the rigidity-flexibility ratio, which, gotta say, that's awesome, man." Spider-Man said.
"Oh, my god." She whispered. "He's a nerd. I know-"
"I don't know if you've ever been in a fight before but there's usually not this much talking." Sam cut the girl off.
"All right, sorry. My bad." Spider-Man said.
He swings down and Bucky runs in front of Sam, tugging Carissa along. Spider-Man hit into them sending them all falling through the glass. Bucky pulled Carissa on top of him mid-fall. Bucky's back hit the floor as she came crashing down onto his chest, both of them groaning at the impact. She hated falling. Spider-Man webbed Bucky's left hand down.
"Carissa-" Sam started, but she stopped him.
"Don't. I'm fine." She said. Bucky wondered why she'd reacted that way. He assumed Sam was just going to ask if she was okay.
"Guys, look, I'd love to keep this up, but I've only got one job here today and I gotta impress Mr. Stark, so, I'm really sorry. And I'm sorry, Carissa." Spider-Man said.
"It's fine, Peter." She replied. She couldn't see his face behind the mask but she knew it held a shocked expression. He hadn't expected her to remember him, it had been a few years.
"Who's-" Before he could finish, Red-Wing flew by, pulling him out of another window.
"You couldn't have done that earlier?" Bucky asked.
"I hate you." Sam replied. "Blondie, unweb us."
She reached into her holster and pulled her knife out, reaching up to cut the webbing holding down Bucky's hand.
"Thanks, doll." He said. She smiled.
She hovered the knife over the webbing covering Sam. "Say please."
He rolled his eyes. "Please. I take it back. I hate both of you. I was worried about how pale you were, but I take back all that concern."
Bucky's face reads pure amusement at the girl. He wondered about who her mom was, impressed that Steve had been smart enough to choose a dame that raised a great girl. It was obvious Steve hadn't done it alone, just look at her.
"You know why." She simply replied. "I'm fine."
Bucky grabbed her hand again, after checking to see how pale she actually had been and they go to meet up with Steve. She was thankful he hadn't asked any questions. Their team ran towards the Quinjet just as Vision stopped them all. Vision was soon joined by the rest of his team plus Peter. They stood face to face. She'd never seen a divorce get so messy. Well, she'd never seen a divorce. Just take the fucking Porsche, Tony.
"What do we do, Cap?" Sam asked.
"We fight." He said. She had been worried that was going to be the answer.
Bucky looked down at her and nodded. She nodded back. He hesitantly let go of her hand and they all walk forward. Soon they were running at each other until they all clashed in the middle. Wanda fought off the webbing of Peter, Sam flew around with Rhodes, Bucky fought Mr. Kitty, Natasha flipped Lang over her shoulder and Steve was head to head with Tony.
She watched Wanda throw Natasha off of Clint. Carissa flinched as she cried in pain. Messy divorce, kids involved. Kids heavily involved.
"Carissa." Steve called. That was the wrong thing to do because not only did it distract him, but it also momentarily distracted Bucky. But on a good note, it also distracted Peter. She pulled her gun out of its holster and aimed for the webbing. Steve beat her to it, slicing through it with the shield.
"Fuck." She mumbled.
Peter grabbed Steve by the arm and leg, pulling him. She shook her head. He didn't want her help, she knew that.
She turned around, facing the fight. Clint's arrows were being shot midair by Tony. She hesitantly raised her gun.
"This isn't gonna hurt him." She whispered to herself. "This isn't gonna hurt him."
"The rest of us aren't getting out of here." She heard Sam say though the ear piece.
"Go." She told Bucky. "Go, both of you."
"I can't leave you." Bucky said.
"You have to. Go. Dad, go. I'll be fine." And with that, a shot rang out. It made a clinking sound as her bullet hit Tony.
"Did you just-"
"I had to." She cut him off. He shook his head at her. A look of disappointment crossed his face. A look Tony had never directed at Carissa before. She slid her gun into her holster, not sure if she wanted to hit something or cry. Or both. He wasn't mad that she'd tried to hurt him, he knew she hadn't but it was the fact that
in his eyes, she picked the wrong side.
"We need a diversion. Something big." Sam said.
"I got something kinda big." Lang said. She took this opportunity to sneak her way back to Steve and Bucky.
They both look at each other then at her. She knew the raw emotion was plastered all across her face, she lacked the energy she needed to hide it. Tony looked disappointed, maybe even hurt. It hurt her that she had caused that reaction. She tried to shake it off, not needing Tony's shit to fuck her up.
"On my signal, run like hell." Lang said. "And if I tear myself in half, don't come back for me."
"He's gonna tear himself in half?" Bucky asked.
"I don't think that's the plan, I think that's what happens if the plan goes wrong." Carissa told him.
A loud grunting sound echoed through the airport. The three of them turn back to see what the hell was happening.
"Holy shit." She mumbled. She heard Peter exclaim the same thing. "Go, go." She told Bucky.
"I guess that's the signal." Steve said.
Bucky looked at the girl. "I don't want to leave you." He knew that if he left her, she could get hurt. He couldn't keep an eye on her when he wasn't near her.
"Go. I'll be fine." She tired to convince them, mainly Bucky.
He nodded. He kissed the girl's forehead before going. Steve sent him a confused look, but didn't say anything.
"Be careful." Steve tells her.
"Always." She replied.
They take off running. She turned back around, face first into the fight.
"Sam!" She yelled. He swooped down, grabbed her by the arm and pulled her on.
She aimed her gun down at Mr. Kitty.
"Watch it, Clint." She said into the ear piece as she pulled the trigger. The bullet bounced off. "Fuck."
"Language." She heard her dad say.
"I'm pretty useless in this fight, dad." She told him.
"You're doing fine, doll." Bucky said. He couldn't see her, but he could hear the defeat in her voice.
"Sam, could you drop me onto Lang?" Riss asked.
"Sure thing, Blondie." He answered, grabbing her on his way by.
She slid off of Sam and onto Lang's shoulder. She had a better idea of what the hell was going on from here. She aimed and shot at Rhodes, which was easier now than it was before as he flew by her. She was impressed she could make a shot with her target moving so damn much. Everything was fine until Peter started wrapping webbing around Lang's ankles.
She started panicking. Lang started falling backwards, sending the girl flying upwards.
She felt herself falling down. A strangled scream left her throat. The scream carried through the earpiece. Bucky stopped, seeing her falling. Steve grabbed his arm, pulling him back.
"Steve, she's falling." Bucky said.
"Tony will catch her." Steve replied.
"Are you sure?" Bucky asked.
"Positive. Tony would never let her fall."
"Kid!" Tony yelled, gaining Peter's attention.
"I got her!" Peter answered.
"They haven't caught her yet, Steve." Bucky announced.
"Carissa!" Steve yelled into the earpiece. "Tony, catch her."
"I'm working on it, Steve." Tony replied.
The wind was whipping her hair around her face as she continued to fall. She couldn't see the ground. She abruptly hit a hard surface, but to her surprise, it wasn't the ground. She was still alive.
"I got you, Carissa." Peter said.
"I'm fine, dad." She whined into the earpiece.
Lang smacked Peter out of the air as the two were swinging, sending them both spiraling towards the ground. They both hit the ground hard and roll. Tony flew down to check on Peter.
"Kid, you all right?" Tony asked. Peter's fists came flying up towards Tony.
"Same side. Guess who. Hi. It's me." Tony said.
"Hey, man." Peter said. "That was scary."
"You're done, all right. You too, Carissa." Tony said.
"What? I'm good, I'm fine." Peter said.
"You did a good job. Stay down with Carissa. Make sure she's okay." Tony said.
Peter continued to argue. Peter attempted to get up as Tony left but came crashing back down to the ground.
"You okay?" He asked the girl who had remained quiet. She rolled over.
"Yeah. I'm good." She replied.
"How did you recognize me?" He asked.
"I knew the voice, but it took a while to place it. The nerd talk gave it away."
"You remembered me." He said.
"You were my first friend when dad threw me into public school. He ripped me out pretty quickly." She replied.
"That was years ago." Peter said.
"And your voice hasn't changed since we were twelve." She replied.
"So that guy you were running with, is that your boyfriend?" He asked.
"Not yet." She told him.
"He's like 100."
"He almost is, actually. My dad, too." She said.
"You're sixteen. Almost sixteen." Peter replied.
"Which is why I said not yet." Riss panted out.
"So, when you turn eighteen..." Peter connected the dots.
"Yeah." She answered. Her eyelids started to grow heavy. "I'm tired, Peter."
"I know. You can go to sleep, Riss." He told her, pulling her closer so she could rest her head on his chest. She fell asleep there, on the ground of the airport as the sound of fighting surrounded her. Her breathing evened and Peter felt her heart slow. He twirled a piece of her hair in his fingers. She grew up to be pretty, he had noticed. He wondered what she had thought of him now.
She woke up in a horribly lit room. Her vision blurred as she took in her surroundings. She felt like throwing up, her breath was shaky. One of the walls of the place were see-through.
"You okay, Blondie?" She heard Sam ask. She nodded before realizing he couldn't see her.
"I'm fine." She replied.
"You don't sound it." He said. She nodded before standing. She wasn't in her cat suit anymore. She was now in an ugly blue prison jumpsuit.
Tony stopped in front of Sam's cell. She watched through the glass wall. From here, she could see into Sam's cell as well as Scott's and Clint's. She could barely make out the dark hair of Wanda. Tony asked Sam a bunch of questions before turning to her.
"They locked up a kid." Tony said. "Do you need anything? They feed you yet?" Tony asked her.
She shook her head. "They locked up two." She argued. "Get me out of here, Tony."
"You don't look so good. You look pale." He turned to Sam. "She look pale to you?" He asked.
"I'm always pale, Tony."
"She always looks pale, especially after falling." Sam added.
"Paper pale. Where's your boyfriend?" Tony asked.
"He's not my boyfriend." She replied.
"Had me fooled." Tony said. "Especially when you chose him over me."
The sentence stung her, but she refused to show it. "Tony, you just asked Sam the same damn thing and he answered you. What do you want from me?"
"Nothing." He replied. "Just wanted to tease you. I'll get you a doctor."
"Thanks." She bitterly replied.
It wasn't very long before someone walked into her cell. She rolled her eyes, already over this shit. She just wanted to get the hell out of here.
"I was informed you need medical attention. You look pale." The doctor told her.
"That's what they've been telling me." She replied.
The doctor did an external check, seeing nothing was wrong. A few cuts and bruises, which was normal.
Part way through the check, she had gotten a horrible headache. She spun around, emptying her stomach into the floor of her cell. It was somewhat chunky, looking like coffee grounds. She turned to the doctor and pointed.
"That's a sign of internal bleeding." He said.
"Fantastic." She replied. She wiped at her mouth, hating the feeling of throwing up. It sure as hell beat falling.
They ran tests on the girl to determine how bad it actually was.
"It appears to have been caused by blunt trauma." The doctor told her. "A fall from great height."
"Oh." She replied, recalling falling from the shoulder of Scott before getting caught by Peter only to fall again. She felt nauseous all over again just thinking about it. Her fear of falling wasn't getting any better anytime soon.
"I'll have to put an order in for emergency surgery." The doctor said before leaving.
"Did he just say emergency surgery?" Sam asked.
"Internal bleeding." She replied. "And my ribs. Again." She remembered when Rumlow had cracked her ribs. This was different though. This time, they were broken. They didn't feel broken to her, the half of her with Super Solider Serum doing its job.
It wasn't long before she got rushed into surgery. When she was released, she had been told recovery time will be about six weeks to two months. Not for her, she knew that much. Thank you, Steve. She'd be fine in three to four.
"Six hours later, you're still pale." Sam said.
"I'll be okay." She replied.
"Bucky's gonna be pissed." Sam said.
"Don't." She replied. "Not my boyfriend."
"I know. Yet." Sam teases. "Get some sleep, Blondie."
And for the second time that day, she had fallen asleep on command. Sam watched the girl until he could no longer see her, thinking about her as he heard her soft snores. Bucky was gonna lose his shit when he found out she'd gotten hurt. Hell, him and Steve both. Maybe even Tony. He'd pay to watch that.
Her entire body ached, which had made it hard to stay asleep. She knew the Super Soldier blood was making it more bearable. She wasn't useful like she used to be. She wasn't anything. She wasn't even a member of the team anymore. There wasn't a team to be a part of. Her sense of belonging flew out the window.
When she woke up, she was in a whole new cell. She didn't like it, having been moved away from everyone else. Tony came in raising hell after hearing about her surgery. Demanded she was released, but they had refused. She was just a kid and she was in pain. She didn't need to be here. They disagreed, moving her cell for show. Telling a very livid Tony that she would be isolated. But once Tony left, she was moved back with Sam. She was complaining, she highly preferred it. The fact she had been isolated was more traumatizing than being held in this prison cell.
She couldn't stand to lay down anymore. She had to get up. So, she did. She looked over at Sam, who nodded at her. She smiled. Then his attention was pulled away from her as her dad walked over to him. She smiled again, brighter this time. Then, she saw Bucky.
"Buck." She called. He turned to face her. He walked over, placing his hands on the glass. They smiled at each other. Everything was going to be okay. Buck's smile faded as he took in her hunched over posture. He looked over at Sam, who was already looking at her, along with Steve. She knew what they saw. She was pale, barely able to really stand.
"Emergency surgery?" Steve asked. She glared at Sam.
"What?" Bucky sharply asked.
"Internal bleeding, broken ribs..." Sam listed.
"Shut up, Sam." The blonde girl ordered.
"No, keep going." Steve told Sam. Sam eyes the girl carefully.
"Maybe later." He replied.
To add to their criminal offenses, Steve and Bucky broke them out of the prison. Bucky held her as upright as he could but it wasn't easy. The poor girl was in too much pain to stand upright, but she was happy now. She thought everything was going to be okay.
Until the trip to Wakanda.
"You sure about this?" Steve asked Bucky. She wiped away a tear.
"I can't trust my own mind. So, until they figure out how to get this stuff out of my head, I think going back under is the best thing. For everybody." Bucky replied. He looked over at the girl. "Come here." He said.
She walked over to Bucky. He placed his hands on her hips lightly. "Now isn't the time for anything but when I come back out, I'll be safe and you'll be older. When I come back, we'll figure something out, doll. I promise. I'll come back to you." He pressed a kiss to her forehead as he finished. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he got up. He hugged her back as tightly as he could without hurting her before he released the girl and walked over to the tube. He stepped in, sending her one last glance as the glass froze over.
"He'll come back to us." Steve told her. It was awkward and sad. She wasn't sure which one was more prominent, but both were there.
"He promised." She said.
Carissa and Steve looked out the window as T'Challa walked over to them. Beautiful view, but just like Berlin, it had nothing on Bucky.
"Thank you for this." Steve said.
"Your friend and my father, they were both victims." T'Challa said.
She smiled. Bucky wasn't a bad guy. He was a victim. A survivor.
"If I can help one of them find peace..."
"You know if they find out he's here they'll come for him." Dad said.
"Let them try." T'Challa says.
She knew he was safe here. And she knew Bucky was coming back to her. Now it was only a matter of when. She's never had enough patience for the waiting game.
word count: 4710