Chapter Text
Bob was softly humming to himself, tapping out a beat on the armrests his wrists were strapped to, when Walker entered the room. He was being escorted by Hawkeye, who looked torn between analytical and confused. The SHIELD agent’s bow was in his hand, but it wasn’t nocked.
Small victories.
He raised his fingers in the closest gesture to a wave that he could manage. “Hey, man.”
“Hey, Bob.” Walker said, stepping a tad closer. Hawkeye’s grip shifted on his bow- something Walker seemed equally aware of- and he stopped again, instead using his nervous energy to shrug off his jacket and ball it up in his arms. “You’re looking… thirty.”
“You’re not.” Bob craned his neck forward and squinted to try to get a better look. “How old are you?”
“24. No, uh, abilities yet either.” Walker’s gaze strayed to Hawkeye behind him, carefully avoiding naming his own super serum. “But you got to keep yours, I take it?”
“Uh, yeah.” He nodded. “Woke up in Avengers Tower awhile ago.”
“Avengers Tower?” Walker asked incredulously. “I was back in Afghanistan , how is that fair?”
“Sorry.” Bob winced.
“No, don’t be.” Walker raised a hand to massage the bridge of his nose. “I’m guessing you don’t know what happened anymore than I do.”
“So you time travelled as well?” Hawkeye asked casually.
Walker’s grip tightened on his jacket, but his eyes stayed on Bob. “You told them?”
“I… Sentry…” Bob sighed. “ I may have… held future knowledge over their head.”
“That knowledge being…?”
“Black Widow’s sister.”
“Shit, Bob.” Walker whistled appreciatively. “You don’t hold back, do you?”
“I don’t think Sentry knows the meaning of ‘holding back’.”
“Okay,” Hawkeye interrupted. “I’m getting confused. Is Sentry you, or someone else?”
“Uhhhh-” Bob and Walker exchanged glances.
“Me.” Bob decided. “Sort of. Before my powers, I was never exactly the most… emotionally stable? Family history of mental illness, childhood trauma, made worse by addiction- I’m sure Fury gave you the entire rundown when he dug into my past.”
“He what ?” Walker said sharply.
Bob ignored him, trying to finish his explanation before he lost his courage. “The highs, they became Sentry. I explained this to Captain America, I thought?” He steadily kept his eyes on Hawkeye to ignore Walker’s flinch at his old title.
“Cap is a strong believer in confidentiality.”
“Tell him he can tell you guys,” Bob said. “I don’t want to have to go over it with every separate Avenger.”
“Have you met all the Avengers?” Walker asked.
“Uh, sort of. All at once. When I first got here. But I’ve only really talked to Black Widow and Captain America.”
“Right.” Walker sighed. “Her sister.”
“Okay, but you’re not Sentry at the moment.” Hawkeye attempted to drag them back on track. “So right now, you’re… what, off your high?”
Bob huffed a laugh. “Pretty much. But the highs are always followed by the lows.”
“The Void.” Walker cut in grimly. “Not pleasant.”
“No,” Bob agreed. “And I learned, somewhat recently, that my teammates.. my friends. They help. Hence,” he nodded towards Walker. “Captain John Walker.”
“First Lieutenant."
“First Lieutenant?" Bob raised an eyebrow at Walker’s correction.
Walker shrugged. “I would’ve gotten a promotion in a month or so.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Bob said awkwardly. “Did I pull you away from that?”
“No.” Walker grimaced. “I got put on… medical leave, sort of? Apparently, I’ve been acting odd and irrational. Lemar took notice.”
“Oh my god, Lemar.” Everyone on the team knew at least vaguely of Lemar Hoskins. His death haunted Walker, and it only took a few bad nightmares, dissociative episodes, and quiet explanations from Bucky for them to get the gist of the story. “How is he? Is he okay?”
“Last I checked.” Walker gave a hint of a smile- clearly trying to go for reassuring but missing by a mile. “Still in Afghanistan, too. And on track for his own promotion.”
“Well.” Bob shifted uncomfortably under the restraints. “That’s good.”
“Alright, so you’re steady? You got your emotional regulator? No Sentry or The Void?” Hawkeye sounded inherently confused, like he wasn’t sure what he was even saying. Bob imagined that he didn’t, but he nodded anyway.
“Wait-” Walker stalled. “You called me in to be your emotional regulator? How am I not your last choice?”
“Uh, no offense, but you were.” Bob probably would’ve felt bad for saying this if Walker didn’t bring it up first. “But you’re probably the least alarming person I could have asked for.”
Walker fell silent, probably running through the same mental track Bob had. Russian prisoner, Assassin #1, Assassin #2, Assassin #3. Their team was truly stacked in the worst way possible.
“You make a good point.” Walker conceded. He turned back to Hawkeye. “Any way we could let him out of that cell?”
“No can do.” Hawkeye shook his head. “He attacked a SHIELD operative, and threatened the Avengers and the Director.”
“You attacked a SHIELD operative ?”
“Rumlow.”
“Oh.” Walker visibly recoiled. He knew more of Bucky’s background than anyone else on the team, and clearly recognized the name. “And they threw you in a cell instead of giving you an award?”
“His allegiances weren’t previously known.”
“And are they now?” Walker asked, turning to clearly ask Hawkeye the question rather than Bob.
“They’re being investigated.” Hawkeye replied stiffly.
“And yet you referred to him as a SHIELD operative.” Walker sounded judgemental. Bob suspected he was a little too familiar with bad guys being forgiven because they were from government authorities pretending to be good guys. It was an oddly specific situation, but one truly too common in the past timeline.
“Innoccent until proven guilty.” Hawkeye said, but he did look like he was tasting something particularly sour as he said it. “But no, we can’t let him out.”
“Okay.” Walker nodded. “Can I get a chair, then?”
Bob startled. He thought Walker would come, sure, but he wasn’t really expecting him to stay .
Walker seemed to notice this out of the corner of his eye, and nodded at Bob. He felt himself breathe a sigh of relief as Hawkeye slipped out of the room to grab a chair for Walker.