You had met Jemma and Fitz only once before, but it was memorable, and encountering them again was much the same as that day. They were a lively pair, constantly bickering in a playful way, both with each other and with you. Some of the things that they said to each other made it clear that they had worked with Phil for far too long, but it also made you miss your old friend and wish that he had come along for the trip.

"Was Phil too busy to tag along?" you asked, groaning under your breath as Jemma poked a needle through your skin.

"Sorry, can't be helped," she smiled sadly, though her eyes never left your arm. She waited for the flash of blood into the syringe before continuing, and you heard her release a held breath at her success. "I know that he would send his regards, but he's on vacation."

"Vacation? Phil Coulson takes vacation? That's new."

"Yeah, not as new as you'd think," Fitz joined in. "He and May have been reluctant agents from afar ever since they-"

"Woah, hold on," you interrupted, trying to sit up until Jemma pushed you back down.

"There still a needle in your arm, (Y/N)."

"Right, sorry," you apologized quickly and a bit half-heartedly, "but Phil and May?! When did that happen? I mean, that's great, and it's about time, but what made them finally see what's going on?"

Jemma and Fitz exchanged a knowing glance; it was quick but filled with understanding, and an entire conversation happened between them in mere seconds. "It's quite the long story," she answered. "Perhaps when this is all over, he'll be able to tell you himself."

"Pfft, right," Fitz scoffed, "if he can stop chasing May around like a lost puppy for more than five minutes."

"Didn't I tell you all that I don't want to hear one word about Coulson's love life?" Nick added as he entered the room. He had a somber look on his face, one that almost made you think he had either heard bad news, or that he was about to tell you something that you didn't want to know. At this point, it would simply be one more thing, and you would rather hear it now than later; you were pretty much a captive to Jemma's needle, so you couldn't do anything anyway.

"Spit it out, Nick."

Rather than giving you a direct answer, your friend took a wide step to the side, watching your reaction as the newest guest made his appearance through the door, though it didn't carry his usual attention-getting way. "Sweetheart, what are you doing?"

"No, Dad, what are you doing?" you grumbled under your breath. "Seriously, did you track me down after I explicitly asked you not to? I thought we trusted each other better after all this time."

Tony was trying to hurry to your side, the worry in his body nearly pushing him forward against his own will, but he controlled himself and moved slowly. He didn't want you to panic, and now that Jemma was clear of your arm and you were free to move again, he feared that you would do exactly that. "I do trust you, (Y/N). Well, for the most part," he clarified. "I was looking for you because I was worried that you would do something crazy, like you do, but I guess I was wrong. I fully expected to find you trashing a Hydra base somewhere looking for leftover serum."

"Wow, Dad, thanks. Not really selling your point very well."

"Give me a break, (Y/N). You know as well as I do that it sounds like a perfectly plausible idea for you."

"Yeah," you sighed heavily, standing up to meet him, "it really does. I'm kinda surprised that I didn't try that first."

Fitz took a long step towards you, tapping your shoulder to get your attention, "we're just going to take the sample to Nick's office and start analyzing. We'll let you know the second we have an answer."

"Thanks, Fitz."

Tony watched the exchange with wide eyes, but he understood what was happening without anyone having to explain it. He knew exactly what was being done after his first foot crossed the door. He likely knew once he had found you here, because he was historically always several steps ahead of everyone around him. "What if you're next, (Y/N)? What if we can't stop this?"

"We still have to try, Dad. I won't stop until we've exhausted every option. This is just the first one. I'll try to keep the crazy ideas to a minimum, but no guarantees."

"Boss," FRIDAY broke in, "we have a problem. The crazy ideas may have begun."

"Oh, come on," he whined, "now what? Just go, FRIDAY."

"Anthony has commandeered a suit and is on his way to Siberia."

"Siberia?" you both asked, nearly in unison. "Why would he be...going to...Siberia..." your voice faded as the recognition came to life in your mind. Siberia held memories for you both that neither of you wanted to relive, and neither of you had a desire to ever go back there. It was where your family was nearly destroyed irreparably. It was where Steve, Tony, and Bucky nearly ended each other when their rage silenced their rationality. The bunker there held only pain, and you didn't want to expose your son to it if you could stop him. Beyond that, you had no idea what was waiting for him there. Your family's actions caught the eye of the owners, and they were likely to have freshened up the place. "We need to go."

"No, you stay here," Tony answered, "wait for the results. I'll go get him."

"Seriously, Dad? Did you suit up to come here? You promised Pepper that you wouldn't."

"Really? Is now the time to discuss this?"

"Again with the trust issues."

"Listen, young lady-"

You really wanted to hear what was about to come out of his mouth next, because it was sure to be both epic and enraging, but your phone began to ring and Sam's face lit up the screen. Sam called only when it was really important, or really terrible. "Hey, Sam, what's up?"

"(Y/N), I think you need to come home."

"Why? Sam, what's wrong?"

"I need you here," he whispered, his voice trembling and ready to crack, "it's Buck. He collapsed about an hour ago and we're at the hospital. I just really need you here with me, if you can. I'm freaking out."

"Oh, honey, of course, I'll be there as soon as I can."

"(Y/N), Steve's not here. He left the hospital but didn't tell anyone. Did he call you?"

You could have sworn that your heart stopped beating in that moment; with the revelation that Ant had gone off on his own mission without help, then to hear that Bucky was the next to fall to whatever this was, and finally to have Sam tell you that Steve was missing, it was all just too much to take in. You could feel your knees weaken under the tremendous stress that was coursing through you, and Tony took immediate notice, stepping forward to take your arm.

"Honey, what is it?" he asked urgently. "(Y/N), are you alright?"

"No, Sam," you finally answered, "he didn't call me. I'll try to reach him and I'll be there soon. Tell Buck...tell him that I love him."

There was a long silence after that, other than the muffled sounds of Sam's emotions getting the best of him. He cleared his throat of the burning pain of crying, taking a deep breath to find his voice one more time, "I'll tell him. But, (Y/N), listen to me. Don't go anywhere alone, okay? I'm scared that you're next."

"Everyone keeps saying that, but I feel fine, I swear. I'm not going to stop living or hide myself at the compound just letting the clock tick by, Sam. Clearly, I couldn't if I wanted to anyway. I've got two runaways on my hands."

"(Y/N)?"

You turned to your name being called from yet another source, excited and terrified at the sound of Jemma's voice being the one to get your attention. "Sam, I gotta go, but I'll get there as soon as I can. I'll call you the second that I find Steve, okay? Tell Buck that I'll see him soon." After Sam's quick acknowledgement and goodbye, you hurriedly closed the line and shoved your phone in your pocket; you kept your hand over it, however, just in case Ant or Steve decided that running away wasn't the best idea. "Okay, Jemma, let's have it."

When both Fitz and Nick came into view and took places to stand behind her, you didn't need her to say a single word. It was clearly written on all of their faces, and your heart dropped into your stomach. You had to swallow the disappointment away, because your two boys needed you and you had no time for your own emotions. Those would have to come later.

"Really?" Tony groaned, getting the same read off of the trio. "You can't do anything? Are you sure?"

"The serum has been a part of her for so long now, that it is fully bonded to her DNA, and there's no way to separate it to even attempt to replicate it-"

"Which was a long shot anyway," Fitz added quickly, as if it would lessen your frustration to know the cause was lost before it started.

"What about me?" Tony continued. "I'm carrying around a chunk of this kid's liver, so there has to be traces of that blue Kool-Aid in me somewhere. I also took a little hit of the expired juice from a box of Dad's old stuff when my brain took a jolt, but that was so watered down that I had to have burned that off by now, right?"

"In that case, I would only assume that the concentrations aren't strong enough for us to try, Mr. Stark, I'm sorry. You would have shown physical changes such as those experienced by the three of them," Jemma explained carefully. When Tony's expression changed to one of offended humor, she stumbled over her attempt to clarify, looking to Nick and Fitz to help her and receiving none. "Not that you aren't quite physically fit, Mr. Stark...of course, you're very agile for your age...NO! That's not what I m-meant...I mean...you're a really attractive man-"

"Sweetie, stop," you chuckled, "you're only burying yourself deeper and it's not really offending him anyway. Other than Cap, he's probably the most secure man you'll ever meet."

"Okay, splendid, thank you." She turned to take her leave and gather up her supplies, but when Tony turned away to make a phone call before leaving, you hurried to catch up to her. "Jemma, would you mind if I kept the vial with the rest of my blood sample?"

"Sure, but why?"

"I'm not the biggest fan of needles, so if we want to try anything else I've already got it."

"Sounds fair," she shrugged, crossing the room to grab it, "here you go. I really am sorry that we couldn't make this work."

"I appreciate your time in coming out here, thank you. Please tell Phil hello for me, if he ever gets back to work." She simply nodded in reply and turned to leave, while you waited for your father to finish his call so that you could go after Anthony together. You rolled the vial between your hands, watching the thick liquid inside of it as it mixed within itself. You never once believed that Jemma and Fitz were the final answer here; they were simply the starting point because of Nick's proximity to where you were. The one you really needed was much farther away, and as soon as you had Ant safe and sound at home, you would be taking the long trip to see her. You pulled out your phone again and typed a fast text as you followed Tony outside.

Shuri, I've got a challenge for you.