WITH THE SHIELD now taken back, it was one thing crossed of their list. But the most important task at hand, apprehending Karli Morgenthau, was still a priority.

Sam, Bucky, and Y/N stood in a room now out of their suits and wearing casual clothes. The authorities were outside arresting the unlucky Flag Smashers that were taken down earlier.

"The GRC is conducting raids to try and find Karli, but so far they've only found her followers. They've searched this camp, and just like the last camp, nothing. She's gone. We'll never find her." Sam explained.

Y/N listened to Sam while Bucky was staring at the shield that laid on the table. Sam just looked at Barnes, scoffing at the thought that he didn't care.

Joaquin Torres walked in. He noticed Bucky, "Hey, you got your sleeve back."

Bucky rolled his eyes and started walking away.

"Are you off to take care of Zemo?" Sam asked.

Bucky looked back but didn't reply. He walked out of the room.

Sam looked at Y/N, "You grumpy too? I give you the right to leave."

He chuckled and crossed his arms, sitting against the table but not answering.

"All right, good to know you three survived." Torres remarked at the awkwardness.

"What's our next steps, Torres?" Sam asked.

"Captain America killing a foreign national in public, it's kinda like a big deal. Like international incident big. Folks, uh, higher up on the payroll are all over it now. So, unfortunately—"

"They're taking jurisdiction." Y/N interjected.

"Yeah." Torres replied.

They sighed. Torres noticed the duffel bag containing Sam's broken wings.

"What happened to these?" He asked and placed the bag on the table.

"The bird got grounded." Y/N joked.

Sam rolled his eyes before asking Joaquin about the job again, "So is there anything we can do?"

"Not really. As you can see, they've cordoned off the whole camp, and Karli's a ghost. After what went down, she is laying extra low. Like, under-underground."

"And that's why it makes sense for us to get involved." Sam replied, "The longer we let her regroup, the harder it's gonna be to find her."

"She's got people helping her all over the world, on all platforms." Torres said.

"She's really, really good at this thing." Y/N remarked.

"Yeah." Sam simply responded.

"All we can do now is sit tight and just chill. Sometimes, there's nothing to do until there's something to do." Torres told them.

"That's bizarrely wise." Sam said.

He chuckled, "Well, I'm a bizarrely wise man, Sam."

Y/N chuckled as well. Sam picked up the shield from the table and bid farewell to the young soldier.

"Thanks, Torres."

"For sure."

Y/N followed Sam as Torres called out before they left, "Wait, yo, you forgot the wings."

Sam turned around, "Keep them."

They both walked down the streets of the town. Sam held the shield at his side while Y/N had his hands in his coat pockets.

"So no wings now, huh?" He asked Sam.

"Like you said, I'm grounded. Unless I beg the government for new ones, which I'm not going to." He replied.

Y/N nodded, understanding that after the whole handing-over-the-shield fiasco, Sam wasn't keen on communicating with them.

"I noticed you got your powers back." Sam added.

"Not all of them. Just strength. For now I guess."

"So, you're like a discount Bucky?"

Y/N raised a brow, "Why am I the discount?"

"For starters, you don't have a metal arm."

"I can beat Buck. Remember D.C?"

"Yes. And I definitely don't recall you ever beating him."

They both laughed before Y/N added, "He kicked your ass too, Wilson."

They continued walking until Sam started thinking of how to get back to the States.

"I gotta check flight times and get back home. I hope Sarah and the boys are okay." He remarked.

"Yeah, I gotta call Wanda and see how she's doing." Y/N replied.

"You won't need to call." A voice spoke from behind them.

They turned around, and to their surprise, saw Wanda walking up to them in casual wear.

"Wanda?" Y/N asked, "How are you here? And why?"

She grabbed his shoulders and planted a kiss on his lips, "What? Are you not happy to see me?"

"Yes. Of course, hun."

"Sam." She greeted him.

"Great to see you, Wanda."

She put her hands on her waist and continued to speak, "The whole situation with Walker is on the news. I had a feeling you'd be here, so I came."

"What happened really is worldwide news ain't it?" Sam asked.

Wanda nodded, thinking of how the extensive news coverage mirrored the Lagos incident years ago. She snapped out of her thoughts upon looking down at Y/N's torso and seeing blood seeping through the shirt beneath his coat.

"My God? What happened?" She asked as she got closer to him.

"Tag team match versus Walker. He got a few hits in, but you should see how he turned out." Y/N replied, "I'm okay."

He was touched by her worry, and pulled her in for a side-hug. He kissed the top of her head as they embraced.

"Hey. I'm bruised up here too, you know?" Sam remarked.

As Wanda was hugging her partner, she could feel a certain energy within him. It wasn't as faint as before, but getting stronger.

"Y/N? Your aura—"

"Oh, yeah. I seemed to have gotten one of my abilities back. It's not flying, unfortunately. God, I miss that."

Wanda smiled at Y/N's elation at his recouped power. Seconds later, Sam decided to speak up again.

"The third wheel here kinda misses the states. Can we get going now?" He asked.

"I'll check the flights then." Y/N said, but Wanda stopped him before he can pull out his phone.

"We won't need a plane." She said.

Y/N gave a questioning look, and so did Sam.

"You're going to fly us there or...?" He asked.

"God, no. I don't like being carried." Sam cut in.

Wanda shook her head and walked in front of them. She looked at Sam, "Where to?"

Sam still had a brow raised, "Uh...my home. Delacroix, Louisiana."

Wanda moved her hands in a circular motion, and moments later a portal opened. It looked similar to the ones Doctor Strange would conjure, but Wanda's had a crimson hue to it. The two men looked on in awe as they could see Sam's yard through it.

"Well...that's new." Y/N remarked.

"I assume the wizard taught you that." Sam said mentioning Strange.

"He's a sorcerer." She replied.

"Whatever." Sam brushed it off, then neared the portal, "So...do I just step in?"

"Didn't you fly through one during the battle last year?" Y/N asked him, remembering how Falcon appeared during the fight versus Thanos.

"Yeah, but that was in the heat of the moment. And I don't know if Wanda's is going to melt me or something."

"Hey. I've had a lot of practice." Wanda said.

"Okay." Sam exhaled, then stepped through the portal. Y/N looked at Wanda before they got through next.

"This is gonna save a lot of gas. At this point who needs a car?"

• • •

LATER THAT DAY Sam's family moved back into their home. Wanda and Y/N decided to stay a while with the former actually getting to know Sam's sister, Sarah.

Sam wanted to go to Baltimore to speak with Isaiah again, and Y/N offered to go with him. Sam obliged, and also took the shield with him.

It was nighttime, and the two friends walked down the street. They saw Elijah playing basketball with one of his neighbors. The teenager noticed the men, and immediately stopped playing to question them.

"Whoa. Whoa. Whoa. What y'all doing, man?" Elijah asked.

"I'm going to see your grandfather." Sam replied.

Elijah took a moment to think, but ultimately chose to let him go, "All right, he's in the back."

Sam nodded, "Thanks." He started walking away and motioned Y/N to say behind. He agreed, wanting to give Sam and Isaiah privacy.

With hands in his pockets, Y/N just stood by as Elijah called over his friend to continue the game. The other boy looked at Y/N and his eyes widened.

"Oh my God." He said.

"What is it?" Elijah asked with the ball in hand.

"Don't you know who that is? It's the Specter."

Elijah rolled his eyes as Y/N chuckled upon hearing him. He walked up to the boy.

"It is I."

"I thought you were dead. My cousin and I are big fans." He spoke, "How are you...?"

"Trust me, you wouldn't understand the explanation." Y/N replied, "Why don't we just play ball?"

He was eager to play with the former Avenger, and Elijah reluctantly agreed. They played a couple games of 1v1 constantly switching who guards who. After a while, Elijah's friend got a text.

"Ma's calling me. I gotta run home."

"All right. Good night, bro." Elijah dapped him up, and Y/N bid farewell as the kid started walking away.

Y/N looked at Elijah, and noticed him looking down at his feet amidst the awkward tension between them.

"Don't think I didn't notice how hard you went at me during the game." He spoke, "What's the matter?"

"Nothing, man." Elijah replied, palming the ball and bouncing it.

Y/N nodded, "Okay. Want to continue—"

Elijah decided to actually speak up this time, "It's not you. Or Sam. Or anybody." He sighed, "It's my grandfather."

Y/N crossed his arms and listened.

"It sucks to see him isolated like he is. He deserves better for what he did." Elijah said.

"You're 100% right." Y/N replied.

"He chose to be a soldier at a young age. He fought for his country. He was a hero. Like you. But they didn't care."

Y/N dropped his head, understanding his point and also upset that the country did Isaiah wrong.

"My grandfather was a patriot. And they treated him otherwise." Elijah continued.

"I know that, Elijah. And Sam and I are going to do our best to make sure he's regarded as such." Y/N sighed, "It hurts to know that he was thrown aside like that...that isn't the cause I fought for."

Elijah nodded, still palming his basketball.

"Isaiah fought for what he thought was right even in the face of adversary. He's an inspiration. A hero." Y/N continued, "The world needs more of that, especially today."

Later, Sam came out of Isaiah's house still holding the shield. Y/N took that as the time to say goodbye and Elijah knew that.

"Thank you, Y/N."

He nodded back, "Take care of yourself, Elijah. Hope we see each other again soon."

• • •

SAM DECIDED TO take a break after his visit with Isaiah, but was also waiting for a new lead on Karli. In those couple days, he tried to fix his parents' boat with the help of people in his community.

After greeting a few familiar faces, he looked at the large crate on top of the truck bed.

"How are we going to get this off?" He asked.

To his surprise, Bucky showed up and used his enhanced strength to lift the crate and place it down, "You're welcome."

Sam simply looked on as Bucky picked up a metal case and placed it on the truck bed, "Just dropping this off. You can sign for it and I'll go."

"What is this?" He asked.

"I called in a favor from the Wakandans." Bucky said, then walked over next to the boat, "Is this the boat?"

"Yeah." Sam replied.

"It's nice. Do you need any help?"

Sam shrugged his shoulders, "Honestly, I'd like it. Are you a handyman yourself?"

Bucky raised his metal arm, "I do have this, and it's pretty handy."

Sam chuckled, "Well, best if we get started then."

"Not without us." A voice called out. They looked ahead at the dock and saw Y/N and Wanda walking up to them.

"Hey. Surprised to see you here." Sam greeted.

"Word got around that the Wilson family needed assistance on their boat." Y/N said.

"All the way to Chicago?" Bucky asked.

"Okay. Wanda checked Facebook. So word still got around that way."

"And we weren't going to just sit around and not help." She added.

Sam smiled, appreciating that he had the support of three of his closest friends, "Thank you."

They smiled back as Sam clapped his hands, "All right. So we got two strong dudes and a girl who can lift things with her mind. I think we'll manage."

Sam's sister walked up to them and immediately greeted Wanda and Y/N. She then looked at Bucky, who smiled at her.

"Hi, I'm Bucky."

"Ah." Sarah smiled back, "Sarah."

"Sarah..." Bucky repeated.

Sam turned around and looked at the two of them, a brow raised at Bucky's attempt at flirting. Y/N and Wanda chuckled amongst themselves as they walked away.

• • •

AFTER A LONG day of repairing and cleaning the vessel along with sorting out supplies at the dock, the four friends sat in the cockpit of the boat enjoying a drink.

"You think Karli's gonna throw in the towel?" Bucky asked.

"I think she's gonna double down." Sam replied.

"Do we have an idea on how to stop her?" Y/N asked as he took a swig of his beer.

"I got Joaquin working on something." Sam answered.

"Well, Zemo says there's only one way." Bucky remarked, and Sam immediately knew what he was inferring.

"How is our favorite Sokovian?" Y/N asked about Zemo, but immediately darted his eyes at Wanda, "I'm joking. I hate that guy. He had me wearing an eyepatch in Madripoor."

"Yeah, your man looked pretty funny." Sam looked at her with a smirk.

"The money I'd pay to see how he looked." Wanda chuckled.

"Hey, you should've seen the heels Wilson wore." Y/N added.

They shared a laughed before Bucky answered Y/N's question from before, "The Wakandans took him back to the Raft. He's out of our hair, finally."

"The Raft." Wanda said, remembering their time there after the Avengers Civil War, "God, I hated that place."

"Hope Secretary Ross has a blast dealing with Zemo." Y/N stated.

Bucky sipped his beer before getting up from his seat. He put down the bottle.

"Gotta catch my flight tomorrow." He said, "Get a hotel room for the night. Crash, you know?"

Sam chuckled as he looked at the metal case that Bucky gave him. It laid on the table near them.

"You're just gonna set me up like that, huh?" He asked.

"I don't wanna make it weird for your family. They're used to Y/N and Wanda, but me—"

"Just stay here. The people in this town are the most welcoming people in the world. They don't care if you wear small T-shirts, or if you have six toes, or if your mom's your aunt."

"Or if you have a staring problem." Wanda added.

Bucky chuckled as he looked at Y/N, "You told her about that?"

"Not me. Must've been Sam." He replied, garnering another laugh from each of them.

Bucky exhaled and agreed to stay at the Wilson household.

"Okay, I get it. I mean, you know, the people are nice." Bucky admitted.

Sam chuckled, but then got semi-serious, "But don't flirt with my sister. If you do, I'll have Carlos cut you up and feed you to the fish."

"Okay. For sure." Bucky nodded, then waved at Y/N and Wanda to bid farewell. He got off of the boat and walked away.

Y/N looked at the time before getting up, "Well, unless you're cooking up some crawfish later, we best be going."

"Y/N." Wanda scolded, then looked at Sam, "You don't need anymore help?"

"We did everything we needed to do. Thank you." Sam said with genuine appreciation, "Now go on back home before Y/N's garden starts to miss him."

Y/N laughed before clasping hands with Sam.

"Let me know when you get a lead on Karli." He said.

"I will." Sam replied.

Sam hugged Wanda next and then they left boat, with the witch conjuring a portal soon after and leaving with her partner.

Sam sat back down and kept looking at the metal case, drink still in hand as he wondered what was within it.

• • •

Y/N AND WANDA took most of the next day helping the Wilson family and Bucky with the boat again. Afterwards, the couple went back home and spent their day there. To the young man, it felt good being back home again after the hectic couple weeks dealing with the Flag Smashers.

The couple laid in their bed as the TV aired the evening news. It was mostly background noise though, as Wanda rested her head against Y/N's chest and ran her fingers lightly around the scar caused by his stabbing. It had healed quickly, thanks to Y/N also getting some of his regenerative healing back.

"I can't believe he did this to you." Wanda muttered, her Sokovian accent resurfacing amongst her anger. Y/N noticed that would happen often, wondering why but never giving it a second thought.

"I let my guard down." Y/N began, then thought of Lemar, "But...he was angry. And hurt. He saw his best friend die, and that anger along with the serum clouded his mentality. I won't hold it against him."

Wanda took that information in before replying, "Still, he shouldn't have hurt you."

"We broke his arm, so I call it even." Y/N responded, "It's probably healed by now, too."

Wanda nodded against his chest, and he ran his hands along her hair as he smirked.

"Someone's protective." Y/N said, noticing her worry.

She looked up at him, still nestled closely, "You were gone for several days and the next time I see you you're bruised and bleeding. I had every right to be worried."

"And I understand that completely. That's why I love you." He replied.

Wanda smiled, "Nikto sa nedotýka toho, čo je moje (Nobody touches what's mine)."

"I'm yours?" Y/N chuckled, "Am I property?"

"Now you're just putting words in my mouth." She replied.

He laughed, then looked into her eyes, "Well, I am yours. And you are mine."

The two kissed, and Wanda pulled him closer as the embrace deepened. They were prepared to end the evening off passionately, but the ring of Y/N's cell phone interrupted their plans.

Y/N pulled back and leaned over to get his phone, "Just great. Thanos better have resurrected if they're calling me this late."

He checked the caller I.D and saw that it was Sam. He sat at the edge of the bed as he answered the phone.

"Sam?"

"Y/N. I got word that Karli's in New York. We gotta move."

Y/N nodded as he looked back at Wanda. She already knew what the call was about.

"All right, Sam. Let's do this."