Chapter 32: Family Isn't Always Blood

"They made you into a weapon and told you to find peace." —Unknown

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JOINT COUNTER TERRORIST CENTRE

LOCATION: BERLIN, GERMANY

JUNE 21, 2016

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"WHAT'S gonna happen to him?" Steve got off the vehicle as he saw how Bucky was being taken away, both sparing one last glance that this was just the beginning. Aurora wasn't far behind as they pushed her forward towards her friends, muttering in annoyance about the restraints still on her wrists. There was a small group ahead with Sharon standing beside an unfamiliar man who seemed disappointed in them. Many agents filed behind the young girl with their tasers in hand, almost preparing in case she did something impulsive. Other officers unloading their possessions which made her pissed that she wouldn't get those daggers back, even noticing how her mirror and A.I. were taken away too.

"Same thing that ought to happen to you. Psychological evaluation and extradition." The man spoke, and neither one recognized who he was. Dressed professionally yet his demeanor wasn't intimidating, rather it was comforting in some sort that the girl could perceive.

"This is Everett Ross, Deputy Task Force Commander," Sharon introduced to the fugitives, wavering her glance from Steve, Sam, and then Aurora. She hasn't had the pleasure of officially meeting the young Stark, only that one incident two years ago when her wallet was stolen. Hearing many stories about her, a small smirk appeared at the thought of how they didn't lie about her being the best. A girl like her doesn't need anyone's permission, reminding her of Peggy.

"What about a lawyer?" Steve retaliated with a serious tone, Aurora already knowing they couldn't press charges against her for many reasons. One being a minor, two is never agreeing to be part of an illegal experimentation nor joining a terrorist organization, and three with she's the daughter of fucking Tony Stark. Yeah, she's totally safe.

"Lawyer. That's funny. See their weapons are placed in lockup. We'll write you a receipt." Ross remarked with a displeasure tone, placing his hands above the chest as he started leading them to another location. Steve was the first to move forward followed by Sam and Aurora sharing similar looks at the seriousness of the situation.

"I better not look out the window and see anybody flying around in that." Wilson retorted, which caused the young Stark to silently chuckle at the comment. Nudging his shoulder as he wasn't alone on that until she was suddenly stopped by some agents surrounding her. The last thing Bucky saw was her being restrained by some officers yet couldn't do anything but watch. It was heart-wrenching that she always was so strong that she never got the chance of being a kid.

"One last thing, escort Miss Stark to a separate cell, she'll have a visitor soon." The Commander ordered them, pulling her back as she hissed in pain from the cuffs yet held back her strength and replaced it with venom in her eyes. Even Sam couldn't hold back his anger at the mistreatment she faced, they might not be friends but he cared about her.

"What? Hey! Stop touching me or else...." Aurora demanded at one of them who brushed against her back weirdly. Trying to get away in disgust, however, no one paid attention to her pleas as they held her down.

"Rory, don't make it worse." Steve insisted, his gentle eyes staring down as she knew he wasn't kidding. Sighing in agreement, she stopped resisting for the sake of hers and everyone else, still not pleased with what it has come to.

"Fine... I may be a fugitive but there's no way in hell I'm going to be treated like this." Aurora groaned in annoyance, sensing how they were tugging her forward as she momentarily glanced over to her friends.

"See ya later, kid." Sam waved in salute, unsure if he was joking or being serious. She would think it was the first opinion yet the more they got to know each other, Aurora started to think it was the latter.

"Did I hear that correctly? I thought you didn't like me?" The girl joked with a large smile, causing the soldier to roll his eyes in amazement. The men were placed temporarily in a small room before meeting up with the other Avengers. She was put in a maximum secured cell with the restraints activated as Aurora felt her energy getting low and slightly dizzy from the lack of sleep. The young Stark observed there were two guards posted outside to prevent anyone lurking inside, hearing the heavy footsteps from a distance.

"Miss Stark, how nice of you to join us this time." Thaddeus Ross greeted the girl, his intimidating stance cast a shadow on her small figure sitting against the wall while humming. She didn't turn at first, instead toying with the hidden dagger from the necklace, seeing it was the only thing she had right now.

"Considering I wasn't invited to the last one, I'd like to reconsider." Aurora declined his offer, smiling to herself as she put it back and started to get up swiftly. Looking over at the man with a neutral glance, thinking if she should get a lawyer before speaking to him.

"This isn't a negotiation. May I remind you that you broke many laws, entered foreign soil, and expect not to be detained? That's not what we do here in the UN." He further pressed the issue, arms placed behind his back as he didn't seem pleased with her current expression.

"With all due respect Secretary Ross, if HYDRA couldn't contain me nor SHIELD... What makes you think the world government can?" Aurora leaned forward as she answered, hands on the cell door with a bored look as if it wasn't obvious about it. The last time she spoke with Fury personally was during the new facility was being built and explained he had reliable contacts in case she needed help.

"Thought you might say that— looks like your visitor has arrived. I'll leave you two alone for the meantime." Ross replied calmly, stepping out as she was left alone once again. Her curiosity piqued on the visitor, almost wagering against herself on who it was. Pacing around the small confinement she was in, wondering what her last options are at the moment.

"AURORA SELENE STARK! If you don't tell me right now why you're here I'll—." His voice echoed within the chamber as the door closed behind him, cringing that she never really heard him this serious since a few months ago. Aurora saw how exhausted he was with a sullen look, guessing another thing they shared between them.

"Ground me? We both know it wouldn't do anything to me." She disputed in a snarky tone, silently scuffing that it was the same thing that happened last week. And what did he accomplish? She'll only find another way to get out.

"Alright then... you're staying in New York for the summer with me. You can forget about visiting Olympus." Tony at first agreed until he changed his mind which made her immediately regret her decision. Staring at him in disbelief as if he was joking— only this time it wasn't.

"WHAT? Why?" Aurora shrieked in panic, eyes widening every passing moment as she let out an exaggerating groan.

"Why? I'll tell you— going behind my back, disobeying me, lying to your mother! Should I continue? Here's a thought, maybe you should thank me for not letting Secretary Ross put your ass in federal prison, young lady." He spelled out the reasons sarcastically, yet the last part struck her the most.

"You're right... I'm sorry, dad. I just thought—." She slowly responded as she recalled what someone told her. However, was caught off by Tony who had enough with arguing, his headaches were moderately coming back now.

"Thought what?" The older Stark snapped, gently rubbing his forehead tiredly as he looked at her current state.

"Wanda told me the reason why you did it, or at least signed the Accords. I get it now, you did it for me. But why didn't you tell me?" Aurora confessed that made his harsh expressions go soft, a moment of silence passed between them.

"Because you're the most important person in my life now, I may not always be there but I am. You know that Firecracker." Tony admitted with a small grin appearing on his lips.

"I haven't heard that nickname in a long time," She smiled at the name, remembering how it was something special— well, more like how they first met. The young girl can relate to that, having someone that matters to you, therefore she gave a short sigh before saying, "I know how it is to not want to lose someone important to me, that's why I did this dad. And I can't leave unless I know what's going to happen to him."

"Capiscle's friend? The one who's from HYDRA?" He questioned rudely, causing her to feel upset how he didn't understand. It offended her that Bucky was a guardian to her when she had no one back in the old days with HYDRA.

"Was. And I've only agreed to help Steve if it meant proving his innocence." She retaliated slightly aggravated by the comment, leaning against the wall away from him purposely. A certain distance between them as the situation was quickly escalating, becoming too stubborn for their own good.

"Kid, I'd hate to break it to you but—," Tony remarked but she couldn't listen much longer as he didn't believe her.

"He's innocent and I know it!" She shouted persistently, going forward to look directly in his eyes. She risked her neck to keep him safe, sneaking out at night to check on Bucky, and so much more, and yet he didn't understand the danger she put herself in.

"For damn sake, can't you stop and listen for once! Don't you get it? I did all this to keep you safe! That's all I've ever wanted!" Tony yelled at her, flinching as the cell door rang loudly as he hit it. She covered her eyes for a moment, staring ahead as he breathed heavily while the girl stood still.

"I don't need to be safe, I just needed someone to be there for me!" Aurora shouted back in frustration, slamming her hand against the door as she grunted in exasperation.

"I never meant to abandon you, Rory! Hell! I didn't even know you existed until we showed up in London! But, if I knew a long time ago, I would have done anything to be with you." He raised his voice, she felt how her body slowly wanted to release the pain she hid so much.

"But, you were never there! YOU WERE NEVER THERE!" Aurora croaked with glistening tears rolling down her cheeks, banging the restraints in anger. He took a step back yet she whispered while holding back a sob, "You know... I wished that you would one day find me. But, I gave up on that wish when I was nine! NINE! A little girl that shouldn't have gone through all that just to be turned into a weapon!"

"I KNOW THAT!" Tony hollered as he could never forget everything that happened to her. The young Stark glared without caving into the intimidation, however, he calmed down as it was futile to yell until their eardrums exploded. Instead, he stated seriously, "That's why I'm trying to help you but for that to work, you have to trust me."

"I do! I just— I wish I could but you wouldn't be able to handle the truth." Aurora fumbled with her words, yet something was holding her back.

"...Is that how you really feel?" His murmured voice rang, she couldn't look at him now. It was the one thing Aurora can't share with anyone, and he was hurt that she didn't trust him. His footsteps steadily went away, before leaving he declared firmly, "After I sort things out with the others I'll be taking you home."

She was left in the darkness again.

Meanwhile, Steve and Sam finished giving their statements, being placed in a conference room as they watched Bucky's interrogation. Having another fallout with Tony on signing the Accords, the duo listens attentively with Sharon giving them access to do so. However, Rogers wasn't easily convinced on something, in fact, the whole UN bombing situation was a beacon to have Barnes captured. The group shared their thoughts, not realizing that the mastermind was right in front of them. Suddenly, the lights inside the building go out, confusing themselves knowing something wasn't normal. Sharon quickly gave them directions, leaving the room as they searched for Bucky first and Aurora.

The young girl stopped what she was doing, getting up from the wall and calling out to the guards outside what was going on. There was no answer. She tried to make noise with the restraints against the cell door, only to discover that it got worn out and broke into two pieces. Taking the chance to escape, she ripped them off and got the door open with a single tug of her sheer strength. That was until she heard someone coming over and holding an unnerving expression, keeping the main entrance shut as he spoke in Russian, "Ты готов к следующей миссии, солдат?"

"What?" She vocalized her confusion about what he meant, the man began to say a series of words and she soon comprehend he was going to activate her. Trying to muffle out the voice, yet her body twitched, and couldn't bring herself to stop overcoming the sensation. Pounding on the door violently as he finished, causing the girl to fall unconscious. It was to restart her old self, a sort of hypnosis as he commanded the following orders. Sam was the first closest to her, finding Zemo saying something as he shouted for his attention. Instead, he bolted to escape and when Wilson was about to catch him, Aurora woke up and got him.

"Kid, you're alright?" Sam questioned, seeing how she was laying on the ground however, the girl appeared odd. He helped her up yet held a firm grip on his hand, seeing how her eyes slowly turned dark that matched her widening smirk.

"Должен выполнить мою миссию... Слава ГИДРЕ!" Aurora shouted, squeezing his hand tightly as he gasped in pain to let go. Once he kicked her away, she created a dent on the wall but eventually got back on her feet as she became agitated.

"What the hell?" Wilson yelled as she started to chase him in his direction, therefore, he regrettably threw direct punches at her body. Aurora blocked them with ease until he grabbed her wrists and tossed her through the hallway to make a quick getaway.

Bucky stalks through the building's ground floor, battling two guards with ease as Natasha, Sharon, and Tony stay in position. Stark was the first to zap him with a stun-burst before rushing forward to fire again. The soldier ducks the blast then trades blows with Tony, using the gun to shoot him yet the Iron Man-glove blocked the bullet. He pulls the gun barrel loose then Bucky smacks him backward, Agent 13 quickly intervening with Black Widow behind her. They both land kicks and punches, then he flips Sharon head over heels, landing on a table. That was when Natasha leaps onto him, legs around his neck but manages to slam her onto another table and grabs her throat.

"You could at least recognize me." She choked through her words, wrapping her hands around his metal one to loosen the grip. That's when T'Challa comes from nowhere and kicks Bucky off Natasha, engaging in some fast kicks and some punches. The soldier countered a punch and the Wakandan Prince falls yet recovers swiftly, unaware that the other ex-HYDRA assassin was coming their way.

"Watch out! That's not Aurora!" Sam warned everyone around, trying to spread out for less civilians to be injured. Tony heard the commotion and saw her running after him, sprinting as she knocked Wilson off his feet.

"What do you mean it's not her?!" Stark shouted as he saw how his daughter retrieved her hidden dagger and tried swiping at Sam. Therefore, he swiftly lifted his Iron Man-glove and used the sonar frequency to slow her down.

"She's being activated like Barnes!" Falcon countered as he found sight of Zemo once again and started chasing him. Aurora screamed in pain at the sound... that was until she wiped her nosebleed and smiled in a sinister manner. She raised her hand to use an energy blast which he quickly hid behind some tables. The girl was going after him until she noticed Bucky, deciding on following her superior.

"I need a visual of my daughter right now!" Tony screamed through his device, having some agents being ordered to shoot on sight. Equipped with a special fluid to knock her unconscious for a full day with the dose, unaware that it was part of Ross' plan.

The two super soldiers walked to the rooftop helipad, she walked around to the other side and buckled her seatbelt. Placing the headphones on to listen to air traffic control, while turning on the gears to start rising in the sky. Steve managed to find a way out of the building and sprinted towards the chopper who held both of them inside. He leaps and grabs the landing gear, being dragged to the edge until he holds onto a safety rail. Gritting his teeth and his neck straining with incredible effort, Bucky jolted the joystick left and the chopper's nose slammed into the edge of the helipad. Aurora braced herself as she felt the rotor-blades smashed to pieces and Steve ducked as the tail swung around.

The chopper lies twisted on the mesh at the edge of the pad, thus Rogers gets closer only for  Bucky's arm to smash through the glass and grabs his throat. The helicopter started to lean on the edge and fell into the river below, the two men always fell in and knocked Barnes out cold. Water was swiftly filling inside, Steve had to decide to save his friend first as he grabbed him and went to the surface. She continued to kick and use all her strength to escape, not sure how much time had passed. The freezing waters consume her energy, her core temperature rapidly dropping as she went to the top of the machine to grasp the last bits of air.

Then she blacked out. Her body sank as she twitched and struggled to save her breath, that was when Steve came back and opened the door to retrieve her. She was motionless after that, he carried her limp body across the bay as he tried to do CPR by the looks of her pale skin. Doing chest compressions and checked her pulse since it was faint, hoping by some god-given miracle she wakes up. Bucky's body was beside hers but he needed to find a way to hide since it's likely they'll be searched for them. Muttering under his breath, "Come on, kid. You got this."

Tilting her head upwards and slightly opened her mouth, blowing air inside to hopefully get the water out of the lungs. Timing was critical for she didn't show signs of activity, doing some more compressions until Aurora moved to the side and spilled out the salt water. Coughing before groaning at the pain, Steve finally could relax as she was awake. The girl took a while to get her senses together as she gave a small smile to him, to which he returned one and answered, "Thought I lost you there for a moment...."

"Lost me... What happened?" She got up briskly but regretted doing that as her ribs ached, hissing as she squinted her hands. He helped her become steady, Aurora observed the aftermath of the destroyed helipad, the chopper in the water, and her being soaked to the bones. Concluding what might have happened, she asked in a whisper, "...Did I do that?"

"Don't worry you didn't." Steve insisted firmly, his eyes gave away to the unconscious man so she nodded hesitantly. Heavy breaths could be heard as they sat there contemplating their next move, forgetting she practically almost died from the sudden incident.

"I don't remember anything besides a man talking to me and I—." Aurora declared as her mind was still fuzzy, he told her to not stress about it too much since it wouldn't do any good. Heeding to his advice, Steve told her to help with Bucky and then search for Sam. Going towards the alleyways, they tried to go along the quieter side and find some sort of sign from Wilson.

"Do you think your phone works?" He asked to which she nodded, taking it out and dialing it before handing it over to Steve. She was the first to settle Bucky down and lean against the dumpster, shivering violently as they waited. Hopefully, they have a plan... unless they're screwed.

Tony's tracker on her malfunctioned after the blunt force from falling, sighing that he lost her once again. Checking on his device for the last signal but it didn't help that she wasn't in the building anymore. Ross was already in his ass on getting the four fugitives back in their custody, warning him that if there's another slip-up he'll no longer be Aurora's guardian. Exhaling sharply and slumped on his seat, a slight nerve pricked from his bruised eye as he tried relaxing his arm. Natasha pats him on the shoulder, seeing how silent he was, "You alright?"

"Always. 36 hours, jeez." Tony commented after his short hesitation, thinking of his next move to have them back. Romanoff knew what he must be dealing with, even though she felt a bit hurt that Steve abandoned them as if they didn't matter to him.

"Don't worry, we'll bring her back," Natasha reassured with a tiny smile, looking at the surveillance and monitors for any signs of them. Time was being wasted if they continued to sit around and wait, the woman could only think about what happened that made everything fall apart.

"I'm not worried about that... the problem is she won't give up Barnes without a fight. She cares for him too much," He tried to look calm yet Tony could only feel his heart churn that Aurora cared for Bucky more than him. Of course, he understands he was the only guardian she had throughout childhood, but she preferred him over family.

"Then we'll need a team. We're seriously understaffed." She remarked playfully, crossing her arms for a moment to think about who to recruit. A few come to mind.

"Yeah... It'd be great if we had a Hulk right about now. Any shot?" Stark suggested in a soft tone, looking up at her as he already got his answer.

"No. You really think he'd be on our side?" Natasha replied in an assertive manner, getting a single no as she silently agreed. There were still some members of the group that signed the Accords so they'll have to tag along, however, there was another person who could potentially help. She smoothly mentioned, "I have an idea."

"Me too. Where's yours?" Tony nodded, looking up at her with a small smile. Her eyebrows knitted together at his odd question, wondering who else was he thinking of.

"Downstairs. Where's yours?"

TRANSLATIONS

Ты готов к следующей миссии, солдат? — Are you ready for your next mission, soldier?

Должен выполнить мою миссию.... Слава ГИДРЕ! — Must complete my mission. Hail HYDRA!