Work Text:
Bucky burrowed deeper in his thick coat, thinking fondly of the warm days at Sarah Wilson’s family home. He would see Sam again soon, but he was a New Yorker born and bred, even if he had to remind himself of that on bitter days like this. Making his way along the edge of Rockefeller Center, Bucky found himself brought up short at the sight of the famous tree splayed over the ice, unconscious bodies fanning out from a central, empty, point. Unless he was mistaken, this looked like the kind of mess an Avenger would make. Looking around for a familiar face, Bucky found one he hadn’t seen in years.
‘’Lena?’ She was older now, her hair intricately braided, and trying to avoid people’s gaze as she managed to “lift” an unattended overcoat to cover her black fight suit, but Bucky would recognize Natasha’s little sister anywhere. She looked up at him, her eyes brimming with held-back tears and he was instantly curious.
‘Yasha?’ she asked quietly. She stepped forward tentatively and tipped her head back to look him over. Suddenly she reached out and started punching him on the nearest shoulder. “Zasranets! Kozyol! I looked for you and they told me you were “gone”. I thought you were dead!”
“Hey!” Bucky grabbed the punching arm and held it easily out of reach, while she struggled against his metal arm. “How am I supposed to know you’re looking for me?”
Rolling her eyes exaggeratedly, Yelena slid a foot forward and hooked it behind Bucky’s ankle, yanking forward. He recovered quickly enough to avoid hitting the ground, but he had to let go of her arm to regain his balance. “Okay, yeah,” she said scathingly, once she was free, “I’ve got the antidote to the chemical programming that was developed on the winter soldier and I’m not going to take it to the actual winter soldier. That makes total sense.” She crossed her arms across her chest and cocked an eyebrow at him.
“Look, Nat said-‘ he broke off, feeling the still sharp pain in his chest at mention of the lost Avenger. He and Nat might not have been what they once were to each other, but he remembered that time and she had been a good friend in this time. Yelena looked away, her plum-painted lips parting slightly as she heaved in a deep breath to hold back the tears he had seen filling her eyes earlier. ‘She said you were going to help the remaining victims. I didn’t think that included me.’
Yelena let out a watery laugh and looked back at him. ‘Well you’re an idiot then, aren’t you,’ she said, smacking him gently on the chest. She smiled up at him and softly muttered ‘Jerk.’ He could see, in her widened eyes, the moment she realized what she’d said.
He smiled sadly. ‘So, what,’ he said, gesturing to the fallen tree, ‘you’re being hired by the Grinch now?’
‘It was like that when I got here,’ Yelena said, shrugging. ‘I was only sent for Barton. Relax,’ she said, when Bucky immediately turned to scan the fallen bodies, ‘I didn’t kill him. I really,really wanted to, but Nat spent so much time fighting to make her own choices, I kind of have to respect the ones she makes.’ Yelena looked away again for a second as she muttered, ‘Even the stupid, self-sacrificing ones.’ She looked up at Bucky. ‘So, what do you do when you’ve decided not to complete your mission?’
‘Well, first of all you hide,’ he responded, watching her carefully. ‘You got somewhere to hide?’
She seemed to falter for the first time. ‘I…maybe?’
‘You do now,’ he said, gently taking her elbow and turning her away from the battle. ‘You can stay with me.’
‘Can we get ice cream?’ Yelena asked, surreptitiously brushing at her eyes now that he wasn’t looking directly at her.
‘We can even get that terrible mac and cheese you love.’
’What! It’s wonderful, you- Ah,’ Yelena laughed at the smirk on his face, ‘you love it! I knew it.’