It had now been three months since you left Tony.

It wasn't easy by any means, and the fights were epically loud and exquisitely cruel. He tried so hard to legitimize his actions in blocking Bucky from your mind, pleading with you that all he was doing was trying to protect you, and not understanding how you didn't get it. He couldn't see the break in trust and the insane plan he had dragged both Stephen and Wanda into; you didn't blame them as severely, but your friendship was beyond strained now. They had all betrayed you, and you couldn't live in that building for one more minute once you had realized just how far they had taken it.

In the beginning, his calls came in every day, and you left them unanswered. As the weeks passed by, they became less frequent, until you were now getting a call here and there if at all. You weren't sure if his plan was to get your curiosity piqued so that you would seek him out for resolution, or if he was really giving up. Tony wasn't one to give up, though, and you wouldn't believe that of him even after you asked him to stop.

You still loved the man, too much and too easily, despite it all. Yes, you understood what he was doing, but it didn't allow him absolution from his choice in method. Bucky had all but killed you that night when you had gone out to find him, and you had forgiven him, so why couldn't you do the same for your own husband? Why were you sitting here now, in your gear and in the dark, searching for a man who may try to kill you again when you wouldn't so much as accept an apology from the man you had promised your life to?

"Hey, you okay?"

"Hmm?" you startled, jolting back to attention from the thoughts that tried to keep on. "Uh...yeah, I'm good. Why?"

"Because you've been staring at your feet for the last five minutes," Nat sighed cautiously. She had been at your side in the search for the last two weeks, refusing to go back home when you had all but begged her to. You could only imagine the betrayal that Tony was feeling to have both his estranged wife and his soulmate looking for the one man on the planet that he wanted them both kept the farthest from. "(Y/N), you can call him. All he wants to hear is your voice."

"Then why did he stop trying to call me?"

"Because you've made it pretty clear that you're not gonna answer, genius."

"I have no idea what to say that I haven't already said, Nat. I'm still mad...for the most part," you hesitated. "He took it too far."

"Yeah, because that's what he does. You knew that going in."

"Really," you huffed loudly, slapping your hand over your mouth at the sound that echoed around you. Taking a deep breath, you lowered your voice and tried again, "really? I knew that he would try to wipe out my brain because he didn't trust me to take care of myself?"

"He doesn't trust Bucky, (Y/N). He trusts you more than anyone else in his life. Ever. With Bucky out here and back in Hydra's grip, he's terrified that history is about to replay itself. He has no idea that you're out here right now, and if he did, he'd still tear the world apart to find you and keep you safe, even after everything that's been said. He's always going to love you."

All you could do was turn away; it was unthinkable to cry at a time like this, in the middle of a stealth op with the calmest teammate you've ever worked with. Maybe she was right, and that it was time to reconsider it all, and try to talk to him again. You missed him. You missed his stupid humor, his perfect face and his hugs that could make even the worst problem better. You missed how he held you as he slept to keep the nightmares away, and how his t-shirt fit you in the middle of the night when he snuck away to the lab and left you in bed alone. You missed how he could always know how to make you smile on even the worst days, and yes, how he protected you when the world got just a little too...heavy.

"Yeah, Nat, maybe...I don't know," you sighed, "I suppose we could try-"

"I can call him for you if you want," she offered immediately, almost too quickly with a voice that forced out the words faster than her lips could move, "right now, even. He'll be so happy for just that much."

"Wait a damn minute," you paused, your eyes wide with revelation, "are you two connected? Is he watching this? Is that why you're here? Did Steve put you up to this? Is that why he brought you in, to get me to go back to Tony?"

"No, of course not!"

"That was more than one question."

"No," she began again slowly, "Steve didn't put me up to this." She didn't offer any more, and when you looked at your friend now, you weren't seeing her when you searched her eyes for truth; you were looking at Tony as if he were watching you back.

"Tell Tony that if he wants me to come home so that we can talk, then shit like this needs to stop. If he trusts me, then he needs to start acting like it."

~~~

A week later you returned to the compound to see Tony, with the resolve that this wasn't coming back for good unless you saw what you needed and that the two of you could talk civilly about the situation now that months had passed by. Not much had changed there in your absence; it was quiet that day, with a large portion of the team out working off-site. Despite the mess you knew Tony's mind to be right now, the building was still immaculate as if he hadn't even been living there. You first stopped at the room you two had shared, and it had the eerie essence of sterility and frigidity with your first step inside.

"Tony?"

But there was no reply, and you set your bags down with a sigh, the reality of being back there beginning to fully set in. The two of you had this conversation before you left; it was why you had decided to go. Screaming at each other was doing nothing but pushing you further apart, and you ran before you could destroy each other more than had already been done.

The next stop was the lab, but he wasn't there. You tried the gym, the library, and the kitchen, but nothing. Maybe he didn't realize that you were coming back so soon. "FRIDAY?"

"Welcome home, ma'am."

"Thanks. Where's Tony?"

"Boss is in the basement, awaiting your return. Should I call him to come up?"

"No, I'll go down there, thanks," you hurried before she could announce your arrival. "Do you know what he's working on down there?"

"I'm been locked out from visual surveillance, but I can tell you that he's in the detention area."

"Really? Okay, that's weird." Since she had nothing more to offer you in the way of information, you made your way to the elevator, your mind racing and growing almost worried about what you were going to find Tony working on. The detention area was so rarely used that it was almost forgotten; it had been built to hold nearly anyone, even the Hulk. It was a state-of-the-art maximum-security jail that you were thankful had been simply gathering dust all of these years.

The elevator seemed to be moving in slow-motion on the way down, but you quickly attributed it to nerves. You hadn't spoken more than a sentence to Tony since you left him, and this would be the first time being in the same room together; you had no idea how he would react even though he was the one asking you to come back. With each agonizing step, you built up your nerves to near their breaking point, until your hand rested on the door that would be the last barrier between you and him.

He must have sensed that you were there, or maybe FRIDAY tipped him off, but you barely had a chance to try opening the door before it was moving, and the man on the other side was abruptly in your view and blocking your way.

"Steve?"

"(Y/N)."

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm gonna need you to stay close, okay? Let me lead the way."

"Give me a break, I'm done with secrecy, Steve. Tell me why you're here or I'll toss you down the stairs to get past you."

"(Y/N), come on, don't make this any harder than it already is, okay? Just follow me and you'll know everything once we get down there. I promise."

"Fine, I had better," you snapped, holding out a hand to make him lead the way despite your overwhelming urge to give him a solid push instead. The lowest level of the compound was dark, almost as if no one was actually down there, and you couldn't hear anyone to make you think that you were wrong. Steve took the steps cautiously, allowing you to follow within the reach of his hand should you need to take it. "I know how to walk down stairs."

"Just take my hand, would ya?"

"Fine," you hissed under your breath, following his order. Once you had a solid grip, his hand tightened around yours so much so that you couldn't move, and the sensation in your fingers began to diminish. "Are you afraid of the dark, Cap?"

He didn't say another word, instead leading you into the room, only to release your hand and give you a solid push, turning and hurrying away to slam one of the cell doors closed with you still inside. "Now, stay calm, (Y/N). We just need to test something before we let you out."

"We? Since when are you and Tony working together again? I assume he's here? Hiding in the shadows like a coward?"

"I'm not hiding," Tony whispered, stepping out and into view. His right eye had a dark shine of bruising covering its swollen lid, and his lip had been torn so severely that several stitches were now holding the skin gently back together. "I'm not living up to my usual handsome standards right now."

You were taken aback at the sight of him, and your heart stung with the immediate need to go to him and console him. It warmed you some to know that you still had that empathy within you, and that the reaction was still a natural one. "Tony, tell me what's going on. Why did Steve throw me in this cage and why aren't you letting me out?"

Your husband glanced over at his teammate and gave a subtle nod before taking a step back and towards the shadows again without another word. You were about to interrupt and followed his steps back with your own forward towards him, but when Steve switched the glaring lights of the cells on, you blinked away the shocking pain in your eyes, nearly dropping to the floor at the sight staring back at you, cold and expressionless. You tried to shake away the dizzying swirl of your mind as the nausea hit, and the sounds of screaming filling your ears.

"Bucky?"