You spent a fantastic day with Thor. After sneaking out of your room, you had snuck around the outside of the entire compound, certain that no one had seen you (or at least no one paid attention to you). You'd caught his eye through the window after you found him in the gym talking to Natasha, and he ran out to you, enveloping you in a giant bear hug that you could only tolerate because of the fact it was him doing it. Thor flew you both out the compound, and you spent the afternoon hopping between building roofs and catching up on the last few months.

Your phone started blowing up two hours after you'd escaped, but you took the battery out, knowing it was only Tony. He was smart enough to know where you'd gone, and while he'd be mad, he deserved the punishment after outright denying you your freedom. He might confine you back to your room for a few months, but by then, Thor would be gone so it wouldn't matter anyway. You would have no reason to leave anyway.

After a little show of the lightning powers, you and Thor headed back to the compound, dropping onto the roof so that you could sneak through the compound instead of up the side of the building to your bedroom window like you usually did. You were a bit emotional saying goodbye to him, but he assured you he would be back as soon as possible. You watched him, for lack of a better term, get beamed up to the sky, back to Asgard, and sighed, knowing what you had waiting for you downstairs.

You managed to get down the roof access stairs with no problem. You got through the top two levels of the compound with ease. You expertly crossed the training rooms without a problem.

The issue was when you checked behind you as you hurried past the common area.

And you slammed straight into someone.

You stumbled back, instantly whipping your head round in a panic to see who you'd bumped into.

Your panic quickly dissolved into apathy.

"Bucky." You spat before looking around him, and pushing past him once you saw that no one else was there. You heard his footsteps behind you. "You need to stop following me, or people might think you're in love with me."

"Doesn't matter, they don't know you exist."

"So you are in love with me? I'm touched. Now fuck off." You said as you continued to storm down the hall, checking each door you passed with paranoia that someone would join your little walking party.

"Where have you been?" He asked.

"Why in the flying fuck would I tell you?"

"You know doll, that language is worse than a sailor."

You groaned in embarrassment.

"Please, keep your 40s idioms out of this century. Also - stop stalking me." You turned a sharp corner, hoping it would dissuade him, but apparently he was rather nimble on his feet, because he managed to keep up.

"Did you go see Thor? He visited today didn't he?" Bucky continued, clearly unphased but your protests to his presence. You decided to keep quiet. "Stark won't like that, he said you couldn't go. I was there."

You whirled round to face him.

"You sound like a child. Gonna snitch on me?" You accused. He had a blank expression, almost like a poker face. Then he shook his head.

"Just wondering. Stark must have a reason for not wanting you out of the lab."

"That reason is none of your business, you robot puppet." You scoffed before starting to walk again. You heard Bucky laugh from behind you as he followed.

"Do you ever get tired of being so angry at me?"

"Do you ever get tired of annoying me all the time?"

"It's getting quite fun pushing your buttons actually. Plus, I've only seen you three times in the last week."

"Three times too many, mate." You muttered, knowing he could hear you, but not caring. You finally reached the corridor leading to the lab. "Now, if you don't mind, I have a disappointed bossman to get back to."

"You could just stay out." You looked round at him. "We could talk. I could find out why you're so mad at me. Maybe find out your name."

You frowned, your steps slowing to a stop.

"Why would I do that?" You asked in suspicion.

"Gotta be better than what's waiting for you in there." Bucky replied coolly, nodding his head to the lab door. You raised an eyebrow. You looked between the door and Bucky, who was standing there with a slight smile on his eyes, his eyes studying you.

"I'd rather deal with Tony, thanks." You smiled at him, sarcastically, before turning away from him and charging into the lab.

As you shut the door behind you, so that he couldn't follow you, and you closed your eyes, ready for the impending shouting match.

Except it never came.

You slowly opened one eye, then saw that the lab was empty, and even the lights were off. You opened your other eye and looked round.

Absolute silence.

You almost called out for Tony, but stopped yourself. Why announce your presence if it looked like you were gonna get away with it?

You slowly walked through the lab, carefully avoiding the counters so that you didn't make any noise. You crept to your room.

When you flicked your light on, your heart almost stopped.

Tony was at your bedroom window, fixing stuff to the frames.

You felt your stomach clench.

"I always wondered how FRIDAY never caught you sneaking out." Tony said, in a very bored tone that sounded like he could have been ordering a coffee at the shop. "While you were out, I decided to do a scan of the lab, of your room, and noticed a blind spot on your window."

He finally looked round to you.

"Do you think this is all a joke?" He asked, his voice quiet. He wasn't mad. He was disappointed. Ugh.

"No." You admitted. "But I also can't be kept a prisoner the whole time."

"I'm not trying to keep you a prisoner, I'm trying to keep you ."

You shut your door behind you.

"Your version of safe is the same as being a prisoner. Thor is the only person I can be myself around, I am entitled to see him and you can't keep me away from him."

"I'm not saying you can't see him-"

"You say it every time he visits."

Tony stood and walked over to you.

"Because I know you see him anyway. But this time was different!"

"Why? Because Freezer Boy has met me? If him knowing who I am is such a threat then why is he even in the compound?!"

"Now that he knows, he'll talk to the others, then they'll know, then you'll start wandering around, then the support staff will know, and if even ONE of those people know someone outside of this compound that could hurt you then we will have to relocate - AGAIN!"

His anger spilled over by the end of his sentence. You could almost taste it. You kept your mouth shut and actually started to feel bad as you thought about what he was saying.

The Chitari attack on the old Stark tower came just after you'd received information that someone knew who you were. Tony used the attack to cover up and coordinate a move of the compound, and a relocation of you. Before that, you'd actually resided in Asgard for a bit, along with Thor, until Heimdall had a vision of you being captured. Everything in the last 10 years had been about hiding, and staying hidden.

Yes, you always knew the reason you weren't allowed out, but after so long of being confined, the cabin fever made you so antsy that you sometimes forgot the real danger you were in.

You sighed.

"Look, Tony, I'm sorry." You muttered, watching his shoulders deflate slightly. "I am. I just get so sick of being inside I forget about all...that."

He nodded. His anger was disappearing.

"But you have to be aware that I can't spend much longer stuck in one space." You continued, cautiously. "There's been no threat, and no alerts, for almost 4 years. What's the point in staying safe if I'm not allowed to have a life."

You saw him breathe in. He put his hands on his hips. You stared at him, hoping he would finally take in what you were trying to say.

"I will..." He started, and your heart sped up as you waited for him to finish. "Consider it. Properly."

"I hope you do. Because I will find other ways to sneak out otherwise."

You caught his lips trying to fight off a smile.

"Let me consider it first." He countered. You nodded and held your hand out to him, which he took, and you shook on it.

"You know," You added. "Even if someone did try and threaten me, I'd kick their ass."

Tony laughed.

"I have no doubt about that, little Cyclone."