#captbrnes

{Set 2 months earlier}

It didn’t take a genius to figure out that he was outnumbered in this war. Sure, there was an impressive force on his side, ones who didn’t necessarily back his actions 100%, but they fought for the same cause - freedom.  But Tony has the government, hell, he had the world against him, and not even a band of misfit superheroes could take on impressive armies and government officials - that’s exactly why he was laying low.

But it had been far too long since Bucky went back into cryo, and there was so much more that they needed to do, and Steve couldn’t do it by himself anymore. He had a team, but he didn’t have his partner, his right hand man. Sure, some could speculate that his actions were fueled by selfishness, but he had a much broader vision in mind. Maybe it was a glimmer of optimism that finally struck him that hoped Bucky could be redeemed at the same time as the rest of them, that somehow, they could win this war and gain back their rights. 

At this point  though, they were fugitives, and nothing could change the opinions of a fearful world, one that didn’t understand what they were, and lost sight of what these heroes stood for. 

That thought process is what lead him to this moment, safely powering down the system and watching as the ice melted away, evaporating as the glass that separated Bucky from the world slid back and revealed his friend. It was bittersweet, and as happy as he was to welcome him back, he knew it was bringing him back into a world that wanted him dead.