"Are you sure you have to go?" Daisy asks, refusing to let me wiggle out of her vice grip of a hug. "S.H.I.E.L.D. isn't such a bad place to work now that all the Hydra goons are gone."

I laugh, finally managing to prize her arms away from my body. "Yeah, I'm sure. You've already managed to keep me here an extra two days. There's no way I can stay longer without someone worrying. They're my family and, as much as I hate to say it I need them." She pouts and crosses her arms over her chest. "It's not like I can't come back to visit or help out at all."

"Fine." She huffs. "But you have to come back soon."

I snort in amusement. "you went over a decade without seeing me, I think you can handle a couple months without me."

She rolls her eyes and pushes me towards the waiting quinjet. "Whatever. You'd better get your ass on that jet before it leaves without you."

"Okay," I laugh. "Call me if you need help lighting a fire."

"We will,"

I nod once before turning my back to her and quickly jogging up the ramp of the quinjet, my backpack slapping against the small of my back. As soon as the back hatch is closed, I drop my pack on one of the seats and plop down next to it.

"Where to, ma'am?" The agent asks from the pilot's chair.

"The Avengers compound in upstate New York."

"Are you sure?"

"Don't worry, you won't even have to land. Just hover over the compound and drop the back gate. I can make it to the ground just fine on my own."

I hear him sigh in exasperation and roll my eyes. "Whatever you say."

–

Bucky paces around the sitting room, scowling at the carpet, his hands shoved in his pockets. Steve and Tony watch from the kitchen. Steve leans on the counter, arms crossed over his chest, worrying over what's got his friend so worked up. He hasn't talked to Steve much recently, especially with (Y/N) gone. Up until now, Bucky hasn't really left her room, so to see him pacing in such a public place seems to be cause for concern.

Tony, on the other hand, just watches Bucky like a tennis match, sipping at his cup of coffee with a bored expression on his face. He knows exactly why Bucky's pacing, but he wants to wait for Steve's patience to run out so he doesn't have to be the one to bring it up.

"What is up with him?" Steve whispers to Tony. "I haven't seen him worked up like this since (Y/N) left."

Tony shrugs. "Who knows." Tony definitely knows. "You could just ask him. He's supposed to be your best friend."

Steve shakes his head. "I don't want to push him. He'll come around when he's ready."

Tony looks at him over the rim of his coffee mug, eyebrows raised. Steve sighs, shoulders slumping, and pushes himself off the counter to go talk to Bucky. "Atta boy."

Steve steps in front of Bucky, stopping the darker haired man in his tracks. Bucky looks up at his friend, blinking at him like he just realized he was even in the room.

"Steve?"

"Hey, Buck. You okay?"

Bucky shrugs. "I guess. Just worried."

"About what?"

"(Y/N) is flying back to New York today."

"What?" Tony blurts out. Turns out he didn't quite know what he thought he did.

"She was supposed to be there two days ago, but she was held up," Bucky glances over at Tony before focusing on Steve again. "I'm just anxious to see her again. There's a lot that she and I have to talk about."

Steve nods, understanding exactly how Bucky's feeling. "And you miss her, right?" Bucky nods and Steve smiles softly.

"I do miss her, a lot actually, but I've got a bad feeling about her coming back."

"Why?"

"I don't know," Bucky shakes his head. "I can't put my finger on it, something just doesn't feel right."

"I'm sure she'll be fine." Steve glances over at Tony, whose features appear to be set in a permanent frown. "She's strong. Capable. If something happens, she'll let us know, one way or another."

"Where is she going to be staying?" Tony asks.

"She said something about stopping off upstate to visit a friend."

"She's probably planning on visiting that girl we picked up when we were in England." Steve raises his eyebrows at Tony who only shrugs in response. "I set her up with a room at the facility upstate. Figured it would be safe for her there."

"See, Buck, she'll be at one of the safest facilities in the world. Nothing's gonna happen."

"I sure hope you're right."

–

"You sure you can make that jump?" The pilot calls from his chair. "It's a long way down. Wouldn't want you to get hurt."

"I'm sure. Just open the hatch, would you?"

The man just shrugs and presses the button. The sprawling footprint of the Avengers facility slowly comes into view standing out starkly against the vibrant green of the upstate New York countryside. I take a deep breath, clip the hip and chest straps of my backpack, and step backward several paces before sprinting forward and jumping out of a perfectly good airplane. I allow myself to freefall for a moment, my arms and legs outstretched, before angling my body towards the ground, feet first. I focus all of my energy into my hands and feet, cursing neglecting taking off my shoes before jumping, and large jets of flame erupt out of the palms of my hands and soles of my feet, slowing my descent, allowing me to direct myself safely to the grassy field below. I kick off my burnt out shoes and peel off the remnants of my socks and shove them into an old grocery bag I had tucked into my backpack before continuing on towards the compound.

It takes me the better part of half an hour to cross the entire compound to the main building. I bound up the steps to the main Avengers building and let myself in, discarding my trashed footwear in the first trash bin I find.

"Hello, Ms. (Y/L/N), how are you today?"

"I'm just fine, F.R.I.D.A.Y.," I answer the A.I. as I wander through the hall in search of my room. I remember Tony telling me he had one for me just in case the Avengers ever actually made the move upstate.

"May I ask what brings you here today?"

"You most certainly may, robot lady." I find a room with my name on the faceplate and run my finger over the grooves of the letters before pushing the door open. "I'm just stopping off to visit an old friend of mine before I head back home."

"Please let me know if you need anything. I will do my best to be of assistance."

"Thank you," I nod once and drop my pack on the floor before flopping down on the bed. "And thank heavens for Tony Stark and his pockets as deep as the ocean because this bed is the most comfortable thing in the world."

I take the time to crawl up to the head of the bed and pull back the covers, wiggle between them, and fall asleep almost instantly.

–

"It looks like (Y/N) made it upstate safely," Tony announces when he plops down on the couch beside Bruce. "F.R.I.D.A.Y. says that she's taking a nap right now, but will ask if she needs anything."

"I thought you were giving her space," Bruce quirks an eyebrow. "Having an AI spy on her doesn't sound like you're giving her space."

"As long as I'm not physically the one doing the spying, I'm going to count it as a viable loophole," Tony says, adding a quick smile before turning his attention to the quickly moving images on the TV. "Now that she's back in state, someone has to keep an eye on her."

–

I stretch, slowly peeking out of the mound of blankets on the bed. The time readout on my phone tells me that it's about 5 am the next day. I didn't realize that I had been tired enough to sleep for twelve hours.

I change my clothes and brush my teeth and wander out into the hallway in search of the kitchen. Scratching my head and combing my hands through my hair, I pour myself a bowl of some name brand cereal Tony always insists on having around and take it and myself out onto the roof to watch the sunrise.

The gentle breeze pushes my hair away from my face, and I sit down on the edge of the building, gently swinging my legs as I eat my breakfast. The sun slowly creeps over the horizon and colors the sky behind the trees that hide the Avengers compound from the rest of the world. The peace that this single sunrise brings me tells me that, as much as I miss my family, New York is my home now. The team is my family now, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I smile to myself at the thought of seeing Bucky again. Of seeing Steve and Pietro and Tony and everyone else.

When I finish my bowl of cereal, the sun has fully risen, and a few of the Avengers staff mill about the grounds, some of them drinking coffee and talking to each other about what the day will hold.

I pull my legs up and turn back to the roof and head inside. I head to the kitchen, clean my cereal bowl and place it on the dish rack to dry.

"Hey, F.R.I.D.A.Y.?"

"What can I do to help?"

"You wouldn't happen to know where Melissa is, would you?"

"I believe she is still in her room,"

"Which is where?"

"It should be five rooms away from yours if it's been put into the database correctly."

"And Tony loves his databases, so that probably where she is. Thanks."

"Happy to be of assistance,"

I dry my hands on the towel hanging off of the oven and wander down the hall. When I reach my door, I begin counting the rooms past mine and quickly find the room that Melissa is supposed to be in, labeled "Guest #6". I gently knock on the door and wait.

"Go away," comes the muffled reply.

"Open up, Melissa, it's me," I shoot back.

"(Y/N)?"

"The one and only,"

I can hear muted footsteps before the lock is undone, and the door is opened a crack. Her hazel eyes peer out at me, the rest of her body shielded from me by the door. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you," I answer, folding my arms over my chest.

"Why didn't you come sooner?"

"I couldn't," I say simply. "Other things came up, issues got in the way, but I'm here now. I didn't abandon you."

She looks me up and down several times. "I'm not coming out," she says and closes the door as an end to the conversation. I hear the door lock and my shoulders slump.

"Understandable. I'll bring you some dinner when it's time."

"I don't care about food," she says, her tone almost childish.

"Yeah, you do," I lean on the wall and stare at the closed door. "If you want anything, just tell F.R.I.D.A.Y., she'll do what she can to help."

She doesn't say anything for several minutes, and I decide my time could be put to better use elsewhere.

–

"Should I call her?"

"You know she's in state and that she is safe. What would be the point of calling her?"

Bucky rolls his eyes. "Just because she's back doesn't mean I'm going to stop worrying about her. Figured you'd understand."

"Stark understands. Why aren't you talking to him?" Pietro asks.

Bucky scowls. "You know damn well why I'm not talking to Stark about it."

Pietro sighs. "Yeah, I do." He looks Bucky over. "You really mean what you said the other day? That you've got a bad feeling about her coming back?"

"Yeah,"

"How do you know?"

Bucky shrugs. "I don't. I just have a gut feeling, and I've learned that it's best to pay attention to those."

Pietro nods absentmindedly. "Calling her couldn't hurt. Just let her know that we are thinking about her."

Bucky nods and watches as Pietro pushes himself up out of his chair and leaves. Bucky waits till Pietro is gone to find his phone and punch in (Y/N)'s number. It rings through to voicemail and he sighs quietly, silently debating whether or not he should leave a voicemail. In the end, he figures it'd be better to let her know why he called.

–

"Hey, (Y/N), it's James... er, Bucky. Listen, I know you probably don't want to hear from me right now, but I just wanted to call and talk for a bit. I miss you. I mean we all miss you but you... you know what I mean. Listen, I've got a weird feeling about you being back, not that I don't want you to come back! Something just feels off, is all. Just... take care of yourself and call if you have any trouble. I hope you're trip back was safe. I-" The message cuts off before I can hear what all he has to say and my stomach tightens at the mere thought of what it could have been.

Pulling the phone away from my ear, I sit and stare at it for a while, debating whether or not to call back. I wander back up to the roof and sit there for almost ten minutes before realizing that texting exists and that I don't have to actually talk to him.

I open up the phone and start typing out the message, only to erase it and start all over again five different times. I finally just give up and decide to record a message to send instead.

"Hey, it's good to hear your voice. I didn't mean to miss your call. I left my phone in my room when I went out for a bit." I pause, biting at my lip, not really knowing where to go from here, but hoping that whatever I say will be the right thing. "I miss you too. A lot, actually... I didn't really mean to be away this long, I don't think. Things just started happening and I couldn't stop everything from spiraling out of control. I'm sorry you got roped into all of this. I really hope we can sort everything out once I get back. I hope you're wrong about me coming back. It'd really put a damper on whatever party Tony's got planned." I trail off and laugh feebly. "I will try to take care of myself though. Don't wanna make you worry more than you already are. I'll be sure to let you know if anything comes up."

I stop the recording and hit send. I bite at the inside of my cheek and start the recording again.

"Tell everyone that I miss them and I'm safe. I'll be home in a few days. I'll see you soon, James."