Chapter Text
Natasha set her bags down on the hotel room floor, exhausted. Flights took it out of her, especially ones that were so damn long. She didn't bother to change or shower; she damped her face with a washcloth and proceeded to collapse on the bed. No sooner did she shut her eyes than her cell phone rang. She groaned before rolling over and picking it up.
"Natasha?"
"Wanda?" Natasha incredulously asked. She wasn't accustomed to having Wanda calling her as Wanda didn't use phones much. She'd explained why once; something about the telephone lines. She'd said that she could hear other people's conversations through the lines and it was distracting. Natasha hadn't pressed the matter.
"Bucky is gone," Wanda sounded alarmed, frightened. "I sense that he's in pain and being taken somewhere."
Natasha in concern, asked, "Where is he being taken?"
"I don't know, he doesn't know. But it's far."
"Alright, as soon as this meeting is over, I can join the search for him. But I can't leave now. They expect the Avengers to represent and I have to be there and make a favourable impression. Not showing up would be anything but good in our favour. Until then, just try to follow the leads you are getting and stay calm."
"I will. Bye, Natasha."
"See you soon, Wanda."
----
Bucky felt hot. That was, in fact, what awoke him from a heavy sedation. He cracked open his eyes, feeling sweaty and flushed. It took a long moment before he got his surroundings; the back of a van, laying on the floor.
"Good, he's awake." A heavily accented voice echoed down to him. Bucky realised that he was chained down with some kind of Velcro, except that it was made of steel and metal. He struggled against it.
"It's impossible to penetrate, James. Not even the Hulk could."
Zemo stooped to eye level with Bucky. "You look thirsty." He held out a bottle of water. Bucky's mouth was achingly dry but he did not trust him or the water at all.
"It's fine to drink. I want you alive, not dead."
Bucky knew this to be true; he hesitantly took a sip of the water that Zemo held to his mouth. The coolness calmed Bucky's frayed nerves.
"James, I need you to do something for me." Zemo was entirely placid. He sat down on the floor beside Bucky. "I need you to do the work that you do best. For me."
"You don't own me," Bucky said through gritted teeth.
"No. But as long as I have this red notebook, I own your mind." Zemo flipped it open and words began to fall from his lips.
Everything in Bucky's mind went black.
----
Wanda was comforted by Vision's presence during that long night. She didn't sleep at all, she just focused and felt Bucky's pain. And then it went black, completely dark. His tempest of a mind vanished into an abyss of lack of control. Wanda lost connection to him, which was a chilling sensation.
Vision managed to say a few words of consolation; he couldn't understand emotion but he understood that someone he was fond of was in pain. He managed to speak a few choppy phrases of comfort. Wanda raised an eyebrow.
"Why does it sound like everything you're saying comes from the Internet?"
"I have been studying how to console someone in duress as of late," Vision explained. Wanda, despite her pain, actually gave a shaky smile, her heart warming towards him. He tried his best to be a human and she found it to be sweet.
"Thank you, Vision," Wanda said with gratefulness. She rested her head on his shoulder, lost in her thoughts.
Bucky, where are you?
----
Bucky pushed his way amongst the crowded streets blindly. He stumbled, feeling his confusion rise to the surface. He was doing something, his feet knew what they were doing yet his mind could not catch up. He was stuck, hanging in a glitch.
The target building was massive, towering, Bucky did not even pause to notice it. He walked by the front door, glancing inwards briefly.
A redhead stood in the doorway, shaking someone's hand. She was talking easily with the numerous government officials. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled at someone.
Bucky stopped moving. I know her, I know her, I know her.
A flash of images passed through his brain; spiders, music, dancing, passion. Bucky's breath was hitched in his throat. He felt as though he were suddenly slammed into reality. He looked down at the concealed weapon in his gloved fist, realising what he was about to do. Bucky panicked, bolted in the other direction. The sickening recall that he was been brainwashed again horrified him, but what was most mortifying was what he almost had done. He weaved throughout the streets, trying to get as far away from his target as possible.
----
Natasha stood in the lobby of the impressive governmental headquarters in Wakanda. She did not have a shred of anxiety about the meeting about to take place, her mind was far too busy and preoccupied on Bucky's possible whereabouts. She was eager to leave as quickly as she could.
She was greeted by an ambassador for Canada. Despite her presence, there did not seem to be any tensions between the government representatives. Natasha knew one way to help win them over was to play up her innocence and humanity. She flashed smiles, shook hands, chatted about how beautiful Wakanda was and how happy she was to be there.
The meeting began at nine o'clock sharp. Natasha smoothed her skirt and sat down. She was focused, she was calm, she was prepared. Her expression was blank, unrevealing of any inner conflict or doubts. They could not have chosen a better ambassador for the Avengers than Natasha Romanoff.
----
Steve went up to the observatory again; it was the only place he could collect himself. He was deeply worried about Natasha: she was alone, about to represent the Avengers in front of the most important men in the world.
Steve rested a hand against the window glass, looking out at the city and sky.
"It's changed, hasn't it?"
A voice; a voice from his past. A voice he'd remembered since years and years ago. Steve whirled around and laid his eyes upon Peggy. She stood, her eyes searching his for a reaction.
"Peggy?" For sure this is a hallucination, Steve reasoned.
"Hello, my darling."
"You-you're dead. You had a funeral, you were elderly, you were sick..."
"Well, I'm none of those things now," Peggy said, her voice sounding nervous and almost shaky. She was anxious to discover whether Steve was happy to see her or not.
"How...?" Steve trailed off, coming closer to Peggy.
"I don't think you'd be able to believe me even if I told you." Peggy bit her lip, her worries rising. He did not seem to register a reaction at all. "Steve, please say something."
Steve found words after a long and tense moment. "I'm going to say something I meant to say to you but never got to."
"What is it?"
"My best girl owes me a dance now."
----
Natasha listened intensely as the representatives came to the final verdict for the Accords case. A handsome and stately man, T'challa, stood up and looked out at the room full of the officials. He turned his eyes over to Natasha when he spoke.
"It has been deemed by the numerous and wise representatives of nations all around the world, that the Sokovia Accords are now a legal document and must be upheld by all countries and organisations, namely the Avengers. The Avengers will no longer operate on their own, they will answer to the United Nations and to them alone."
Natasha showed no reaction. She couldn't; she did not know how she felt about the matter. Part of her sided with Steve's views on the Accords, the other part of her agreed with Tony. She just kept her eyes focused on her hands which rested in her lap.
So. The Sokovia Accords were now signed and legal.
Natasha wondered what would happen next.