The North Star (B. Barnes & S. Rogers)

Chapter Twelve

Frigga sticks around for weeks, not really wanting to leave the facility except for an hour or two to talk to Odin about North. To be fair, she's terrified that if she stays away too long then....her daughter will disappear again. And Frigga can't go through that again. She wouldn't survive it. And whilst she's at the facility; North hides from her mother. Disappears and finds an empty hallway. Her mother is a hoverer, and as someone that has spent the last 20 years in solitude the sudden increase in people around her is overwhelming. She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes resting her head back against the wall. It's not long before she actually falls asleep.

.............

Later: Footsteps wake her, footsteps approaching her. She sighs and hangs her head, her fingers rubbing away the sleep from her eyes. She just wanted to be left alone, and here she is....someone interrupting her peace and her sleep.

"What are you doing down here?" Bucky asks now stood in front of her, he cocks his head a little as she looks up at him.

"I'm hiding" North whispers, Bucky motions to the floor.

"Can I?" he asks her, she shrugs a little and he takes this as a reluctant yes. He slides down the wall across from her. "Who are you hiding from?" he asks her, she glances to him.

"My mother" she answers. "I'm not....I'm not used to the attention" he hums a little watching her.

"You've been avoiding me too" he points out.

"Yes," she admits pulling her sleeves down her hands.

"Why?" he asks her, watching her reaction, she struggles with this question.

"Because you're not him" she answers quietly, he frowns leaning forward slightly.

"Not who?" she looks down.

"My Winter Soldier" she answers weakly. Bucky pats his pockets down before slipping his hand into the side one and pulls a small red and white striped paper bag from it. Candy. He gives her a small smile and then sets the bag into her lap. She glances down at the bag before lifting her eyes back to him.

"They used to cheer you up" he admits. "I thought...." he shrugs. He doesn't know what he was thinking. He'd seen her earlier looking a little lost and then promptly found himself in the small town not far from here buying candy for her. Back with Hydra, he couldn't buy them, so he'd just steal them from the security guard that watched her cell. To be fair, since his recovery he's been candy weekly and then eating it himself. He thinks subconsciously he was buying it for her. Steve watches them from the end of the hall, tucked behind the wall. His eyes watch the way North looks at Bucky who is talking to her. She's in love with him. Steve can see it. Bucky pops one of the candies into his mouth and glances to North, she looks away and to her hands where she turns a candy piece around, her gaze turning sad, full of longing and grief. She lost him. Her version of him. The Winter Soldier is gone. Because Bucky's not the man she fell in love with. She can't see him anymore when she looks at him. She takes a deep breath and looks up meeting Steve's eyes. There is so much sadness in her eyes he feels he could drown in them. She's not getting better. They're making her worse. North looks away from Steve and then stands without a word. Bucky frowns and looks up to watch her walk away from him. "Where are you going?" Bucky asks her, she doesn't answer him. Bucky stares at her until she disappears through a door, he then sighs and looks down at his candy. He misses her and he can't admit it to anyone. Steve wouldn't understand. None of them would.

..............

North finds Loki in her little apartment thing waiting for her, a book held open in his lap. She sits next to Loki who turns to her setting his arm along the back of the couch to touch her hair. She doesn't say anything, neither does he, but he can sense something is wrong.

"What's wrong, Snowdrop?" he asks her. She takes a breath and turns to him.

"Take me home," she tells him, he frowns at her. "I want to go home" he strokes her hair a little.

"But..." he starts but stops himself from continuing as he sees the expression on her face. She looks so broken. Barnes. It has to be because of Bucky. He's the only one capable of hurting her this much. He also knows that Bucky doesn't even know how much he's hurting her.

"Please?" she asks him, her voice breaking. He nods and cups her cheek brushing his thumb over the flesh.

"Okay," he answers. "Whatever you need" she shuffles into his side curling up against him. He kisses her forehead and wraps his arm around her.

A/N - THIS IS A LITTLE SHORTER BECAUSE THE NEXT PART DIDN'T SIT RIGHT WITH ME BEING IN THE SAME CHAPTER. THIS CHAPTER WAS ABOUT NORTH AND HER STRUGGLE STAYING AROUND BUCKY. THE NEXT IS MORE BUCKY AND STEVE.