If there was one thing Elizabeth knew for certain, it was that Natasha was a lot better at driving a motorcycle than her. She had always known but now as she drove against the traffic on the road shakily she would've killed for the redheads skill.

Elizabeth weaved in between oncoming cars on the road as the wind blew harshly in her face. The loud sounds of cars honking and cars swerving made her irritated. It didn't help that Alpine tried to constantly jump out of the backpack she was in, making Elizabeth take a hand off the clutch to gently push the cat back into the bag.

The tunnel she drove down was dark, only illuminated from the limited yellow lights overhead. Squinting past the cars coming in her direction, she looked ahead to see a break in the tunnel coming up. The sunlight casting down onto the road.

She saw a familiar person running past all the cars, his baseball cap long gone. She sighed in relief to herself, happy that she had caught up to him. Turning the throttle of the bike towards her, she sped up and made her way towards Bucky.

Bucky heard Elizabeth before he saw her. The revving of the engine rang through the air, making him stop his running just in time to see her drive up to a stop right beside him. All the cars making a wide berth around the two, not bothering to get out of the cars to see what was going on.

"I was wondering when you were gonna show up," Bucky said sarcastically before swinging a leg over the back of the motorcycle, his right arm going around Elizabeth's waist.

She had turned around to give him a snarky response but stopped when she saw what looked like a person in a sleek black suit on the hood of a car. Looking closer inside the car, she saw Steve behind the wheel. She took that as her cue to twist the throttle once more before driving off with Bucky behind her.

"That's a big cat," she yelled to Bucky over the loud wind. Taking small glances back every once in a while to see the car following closely behind them, the 'cat man' still there.

"Eyes on the road," Bucky chided as she went just a little bit too close to a car beside them.

Not saying anything back, Elizabeth focused on driving between the cars now headed in the same direction as the two. The loud sound of sirens came from behind them, startling her slightly.

Suddenly, Elizabeth heard a thud and felt some extra weight dragging the back of the motorcycle. "Bucky?" She questioned worriedly when she sense the emotions from a third person behind them.

She turned around to see Bucky holding the 'cat man' by the neck, holding him up. Elizabeth turned her eyes back to the road, making sure all three of them didn't go crashing into the wall beside them.

Getting a hold on the unknown persons emotion, she was about to put him to sleep when the whole motorcycle tilted to the left. The only thing stopping them from falling over completely was Bucky's metal arm that scraped across the road with a loud screech.

She gripped onto the handles as tight as she could, only hoping that Alpine wasn't going to throw up in the bag. The screeching came to a halt when she felt the bike being pushed upright. She sat up straight and looked back just in time to see the man jump off the ground and come up onto them.

Raising one hand off the handle, Elizabeth shot a blast of energy over Bucky's head. Her shot found its mark right into the chest of the man, sending him flat out on his back on the ground.

Seeing the exit of the tunnel coming up ahead, she tapped Bucky's hand that rested on her waist lightly, giving him a signal. He understood what she meant and rummaged through the bag for the device. When he saw his opening, he threw the device up, hearing its soft beeping as the bomb counted down.

When the sound of the explosion ran out they both thought that they had made it until someone scratched their tyre, making the bike once again, fall to the side. Without hesitating, Bucky wrapped her in his arms before they both went tumbling across the ground. He shielded her from the harsh ground with his own body before she rolled out of his arms.

Elizabeth lay on her stomach, already feeling the bruises forming all over her body. The muffled meows from Alpine reassuring her that the cat wasn't squished in all the chaos. Looking to the side, she saw Bucky a few feet away from her. He lay on his back as the same man in the cat suit from before ran up to him, and Elizabeth saw the sharp claws extended from the tips of his fingers.

However, before anything could happen Steve tackled the man to the ground. Behind him, an overturned car lay by all of the rubble at the entrance to the tunnel, cars and people could be seen from a small opening amongst all of the destruction.

Steve stood beside her face, staring down the man in front of him. Elizabeth ignored the two. She stood up and quickly made her way over to Bucky, pulling him to his feet. He put a hand on the side of her face, giving her a once over before pulling her into his chest protectively.

Elizabeth was going to propose that they could still continue to run but stopped when the bright blue and red lights accompanied by loud sirens came closer to them. A couple of big black SUV's circled their small group. From above, she heard the hum of a suit before Rhodey landed in front of them, both arms raised.

"Stand down," his voice came from the inside of the metal suit. "Now," he continued when he saw the slight move in her hand.

Turning around slowly, she saw that a whole group of armed personnel had their guns raised at the group. Beside her, Steve kept his shield on his back with his eyes still trained on the unknown person inside the cat suit.

"Congratulations, Cap," Rhodey said sarcastically. "You're officially a criminal."

There was some bustling from behind her and she saw Sam being escorted out from inside the tunnel. By the way he glared at her, she could tell that she was going to get an earful from him the minute he got the chance.

Guards slowly made their way towards the group, choosing to advance on Bucky first, pinning him to the ground harshly and handcuffing his hands behind his back. Elizabeth and Steve were next, both being brought to their knees.

Someone removed the bag on her shoulders before securing her hands behind her back. She felt an extra layer of material being placed around her hands, most likely to stop her from using her powers. She doubted they worked but she decided not to test that theory anyway.

Watching as one of the guards manhandled her backpack she quickly called out to him, earning a couple of guns pointed in her direction. "Easy there," she said, mainly to Rhodey as he told them all to stand down. "I was just going to say that there's a cat in there, so be careful."

Not knowing if she was being serious or not, the man proceeded to hold the bag out at arms length before placing it carefully in a car. Elizabeth, Bucky and Steve were all brought to their feet just as the man in the suit took off his helmet.

Elizabeth's eyes widened in surprise when she saw who she thought to be the prince of Wakanda standing before them. She had recognised him from the news before. The rest of the guards looked around in confusion, not knowing whether to restrain him as well or not.

"You highness," Rhodey said and Elizabeth thought she heard a twinge of surprise in his voice. T'Challa looked at the three of them carefully as they were loaded into the trucks, wanting to make sure that it all went smoothly.

***

Elizabeth heard that Berlin was supposed to be nice this time of year. But she'd never know since all she had done since landing in the foreign country was sit in a truck with both her hands locked together.

The CIA, who had apparently picked up their case, wanted to bring them all to the JCTC Headquarters in Berlin. Resulting in a painfully long two hour flight where her, Sam, Steve and T'Challa had all been sat on opposite ends of the plane. Limiting their interactions together, which was somewhat wise considering that Elizabeth could feel Sam's annoyance the whole time. Bucky on the other hand had been seated in an entirely different plane, much to her dismay.

The dysfunctional group went from the plane to the truck they now sat in. Elizabeth and T'Challa in the front with Sam and Steve in the back. It was tense and she didn't need her powers to know that.

"So," Elizabeth began as she tried to create small talk with the man next to her. "You like cats?" She asked T'Challa.

The man did nothing but glance at her out of the corner of his eye, unamused. "It's cool," Elizabeth tried once more, making the man turn his head to her slowly, unsure if she was making fun of him or not. "I like cats too."

"Lizzie," Steve chided from behind her. "Maybe try not to insult the king of a whole country."

"King?" Elizabeth repeated in confusion with a frown on her face. "But I thought-" she quickly closed her mouth once she realised what that meant. The casualties in Vienna.

T'Challa spoke up for the first time since the two had met, "Yes, king." He looked at her with a shake of his head. "Your lover killed my father, making me king."

"He didn't do it," Elizabeth told him. "He was with me the whole time."

"And why would I believe you?" The king asked with a scoff. Elizabeth kept her mouth shut, knowing that he had a good point.

She heard some rustling behind her and Sam's face came to lean in beside her. "Lover?" He repeated the word as she groaned. "Oh and if you think I was pissed before," Sam informed her with a raised eyebrow.

"Can we save this for later?" Elizabeth said through a clenched jaw and a roll of her eyes. Now clearly not being the right time, nor place for it. He gave her once last shake of his head, clearly disappointed before leaning back in his seat.

Steve looked between the two with a sigh before bringing his glance back to the king of Wakanda. "Your suit," he began, curiosity getting the best of him. "It's made of vibranium?"

"The Black Panther has been the protector of Wakanda for generations," the man answered with his gaze out the window. "A mantle passed form warrior to warrior. Now because my father was murdered, I wear the mantle of king as well."

T'Challa moved his face to the side with a determined expression on his face. "So I ask you, as both warrior and king," he looked between both Steve and Elizabeth. "How long do you think you can keep your friend safe from me?"

The rest of the ride to the building was coated in heavy silence, no one bothering with small talk anymore. After ten more minutes of the ride, they entered the building. Outside the windows she saw the bright white lights overhead, blinding her slightly.

Once the truck came to a full stop, the doors were opened and they were uncuffed one by one. The guard stopped at Elizabeth for a moment too long, not sure which side she was one. After some persuasion from Steve, both locks on her hands were lifted.

She was the last one out of the truck so when she hopped down, she saw Bucky being kept in a large glass container. Both his arms being strapped down to the metal chair he sat in. As if sensing her gaze, he looked up and met her eyes with a sad smile.

Elizabeth wished more than anything that she could just grab him and get out of there. But as usual, there would be consequences. Even worse ones than she already had to face, she was sure. So all she could do now was smile back at him with a pained expression.

Looking up ahead, she saw Steve, Sam and T'Challa stop in front of whom she presumed as the person in charge here. She could sense it in the way he stood proudly besides being shorter than Sharon Carter who stood next to him. She could also see it in the way people moved around him, as if trying not to get in his way.

She walked over to the man and stood in between Sam and Steve. "What's gonna happen to him?" Elizabeth asked, not bothering for pleasentries.

"Same thing that ought to happen to you," the man answered as he clasps his hands in front of him. "Psychological evaluation and extradition." It was then that she noticed the three guards that stood behind him, weapons in hand.

Sharon sighed beside the man with a grimace on her face. "This is Everett Ross," she introduced them. "Deputy task for commander."

"What about a lawyer?" Steve came up with a suggestion, willing to try anything to get his best friend out of the dilemma he was in.

Everett Ross let out a light laugh which he covered up with a scoff. "A lawyer," he repeated as if Steve had told a joke. "That's funny." He turned toward the guards that stood behind him. "See that their weapons are placed in lock-up."

Then he turned and let his eyes rest on Elizabeth as he tilted his head slightly. "Maybe place her in lock up-too, like Barnes," he added to the guards, clearly thinking that she was too dangerous to be left alone.

All at once, Steve and Sam both opened their mouth to protest. "Absolutely not," Sam said at the same time Steve let out a firm, "No." Both of them stood by her sides as they stared down the man. Elizabeth jumped at their sudden change in stature and looked up at the two.

"She goes where I go," Sam said sternly as he glared at the man in charge. "And right now, we're going." He grabbed her arm with his hand before dragging her inside the building, not waiting for anyone.

Sam dragged her through the glass sliding doors of the building and brought her into the nearest empty space he could find. He opened the glass doors to the empty office and closed the door behind her. There was a large wooden table in the middle of the room and a view of the city from the large windows.

"Let go of me." Elizabeth yanked her arm out of his grip and leaned against the edge of the table, watching as he paced back and forth by the windows.

"Oh I'm sorry," he said sarcastically as he put both his hands up exaggeratedly. "I just wasn't sure if you'd run off to Italy next!" He exclaimed, not once stopping his steps.

He came to a stop after a moment of silence, staring out the window with his back facing her. "All those shady phone calls and vacations you took," he said with a shake of his head. "I knew something was up, I just chose not to pry. Cause I thought 'Hey, I know Lizzie. She won't do anything bad.'" Sam let out a laugh before turning around to face her. His hands on his hips in a way that reminded her vaguely of her mother.

"But then you go off with the guy who probably has the least mental stability ever!" He continued on, not giving her a chance to get her own word in.

"I know I messed up," she informed him as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Steve already yelled at me, so you don't have to."

He stopped mid-rant and looked at her with wide eyes. "He yelled at you?" He asked with his lips pressed into a thin line.

"Not exactly yell," she corrected herself. "Why do you care? You're yelling at me."

"Yeah, me. I am," He said as if that explained everything. "No one gets to yell at you, no one except me. And you wanna know why?" He asked, his voice raising slightly but not in a threatening manner.

She held her hands open, waiting for what he had to say next. "It's cause you're my responsibility, mine."

"I am a grown woman," Elizabeth said in bewilderment at what he was trying to say. "I can take care of myself."

Sam held a hand out to say she was right. "I know, but to me, you're like my sister." He looked at her with his arms still wide open. "I'm supposed to protect you. So if anything happened to you, I feel like that'd be my fault." He dropped his arms to his sides with a sigh before sitting on the table next to where she stood.

"Who knew you cared about me," she muttered out playfully but Sam just remained quiet at her, his head hung low.

He brought his head back up to look at her, still not over with the questioning. "I mean what are you even doing there? T'Challa called this guy your 'lover', what the hell is that supposed to mean?" He managed to get himself as riled up as he was before, going from one to a hundred real quick.

Elizabeth pushed herself off the table and stood in front of him with both her hands on his shoulder. "You need to calm down," she told him but it was no use. He was still losing his mind.

"Lizzie," Sam began as he pushed her hands off him. "Are you sleeping with him?" He asked with a groan. While Steve was more disgruntled with the fact that she knew where Bucky was, Sam was going ballistic over the fact that Bucky and her were a thing.

"I'm not just sleeping with him," Elizabeth tried explaining. Sam put his head in his hands dramatically, muttering a quiet string of no's.

"Dear, god, please tell me I'm wrong," Sam said into his open palms before looking up at her once more. "Do you love him?"

Elizabeth scoffed at his wording and nodded her head. "Sorry to say this to you, but yes. I do love him."

"Oh man, this is worse than I thought." He groaned. "You couldn't have fallen for someone better? Like maybe even Pietro?"

Elizabeth's jaw dropped at his words, not believing that he'd rather her date Pietro than Bucky. "Don't you think he's a bit too young for me?" If Sam saw her as a little sister, then she saw the speedster as a little brother.

"So you went with the guy that's like a hundred years old?" Sam retorted with a raised eyebrow. "Like he's probably older than your grandad! I know he's older than mine, you know why? Cause my grandad's dead!" He said in one large breath. "But no, this dude is still alive and causing problems."

"I take it that we're back to normal us fighting?" Elizabeth asked, happy that the playfulness had returned to his voice.

He nodded before standing up and slinging a hand over her shoulders. "You bet," he answered before leading them both out of he empty office.