Visiting Wakanda
As soon as the group returned to Tothill Place, Hermione took one look at the anger colouring Steve’s expression and excused herself to look over the recovered files, leaving Kahlen to deal with the super soldier. After several minutes of strained silence, Steve spoke, his voice low and too calm.
“What the hell was that?” He tried to lock eyes with Kahlen but she averted her gaze, choosing to not answer. “You can’t just attack an enemy base with no warning and no backup,” he continued, growing frustrated with her silence. “We were lucky to get out of there uninjured.”
Kahlen, still upset by the things she’d heard at the base, finally spoke. “I couldn’t let them say that about my godson,” she explained, her anger at those despicable men misdirected at Steve. “The Lupins are my friends, my family, and those people hurt them, they wanted to kill them!”
“I get that,” Steve placated, “but you cannot go around storming Hydra bases with no plan. It could have gone so much worse because you let your emotions get the best of you.” The accusation made Kahlen flush, a mix of embarrassment and anger flooding her.
“I’m not one of your soldiers Steve,” she seethed. “Need I remind you, I fought a war, too.”
“And how often did you run toward danger with no thought of yours or anyone else's safety?” He shot back.
A lot, her subconscious replied, but she pushed that voice away.
“I didn’t ask you to come,” she replied instead.
“You didn’t have to, I’ll always follow you into danger if that’s what it takes to keep you safe!” They both paused, the truth and raw emotion of his statement derailing any anger or frustration they felt. Steve blushed, but made no move to correct himself.
“I’m sorry,” Kahlen sighed. “I can’t just stand by while the people I love are threatened or endangered. I would’ve done the same for you.” The second the words left her she realized what she’d said, her cheeks turning the same crimson as Steve’s. The two of them stood quietly for a moment, digesting their respective admissions before Steve broke their reverie.
“It’s been a long day,” he said softly. “I’m sure tomorrow will be just as busy, so we’d better get some rest.”
Kahlen nodded. “Yeah, you’re right.” She swallowed. “I’ll, uh… I’ll see you in the morning.” At his nod, they headed off to their rooms, gentle smiles adorning their faces.
— — —
The next morning they sat with Hermione in the living room, the previous night’s conversation taking a back seat as they looked over the recovered plans.
“We should inform King T’Challa,” Steve suggested. “He might be able to provide some insight into this ‘precious cargo’ Hydra is after.” Both witches agreed, so Steve pulled out his top-of-the-line Stark phone and called the Wakandan King. After several rings the phone displayed a holographic image of T’challa, his warm smile directed at the Kimoyo beads on his wrist.
“Captain, what a pleasant surprise.”
“Your Majesty,” Steve answered, making T’Challa laugh.
“As I have repeatedly explained, you can call me T’Challa, there’s no need to be so formal,” he teased.
Steve smiled sheepishly. “Sorry, force of habit.”
“What can I do for you?” T’Challa asked, noticing the tension in Steve’s expression.
“We recovered plans from a Hydra base yesterday detailing an attempt to ambush a delivery leaving Wakanda within the week,” he explained seriously.
“I see,” the King answered, thoughtful. “Perhaps this should be discussed in person. How soon can you be in Wakanda?”
Steve grimaced, watching Kahlen and Hermione try to stifle giggles. “Immediately,” he sighed.
— — —
Begrudgingly, Steve admitted that apparating got slightly easier the more you did it. Slightly. He managed to remain upright this time, and the sickly paleness only lasted about five minutes. All in all, he considered it an improvement.
Okoye was waiting for them on the landing pad, expecting a plane. Her experience with strange things allowed her to betray no more than minutely widened eyes at the three individuals popping into existence. Shuri, on the other hand, let out a surprised yelp and immediately bombarded them with questions.
“Captain Rogers, if you tell me how you cracked teleportation you will become my favourite colonizer,” she said seriously. Steve looked confused and slightly offended while Kahlen laughed.
“It wasn’t me,” Steve told her, still not sure what was so amusing. He looked to Kahlen to explain, not wanting to reveal anything she wasn’t comfortable with.
“It wasn’t teleportation. Well, not exactly,” she amended. “I’d be happy to explain if we could go somewhere more private.” Eager to pick her brain, Shuri turned on her heel and quickly led them to a sitting room where T’Challa stood waiting.
“Captain Rogers,” he greeted, extended a hand for Steve to shake.
“Your maje–” he stopped at the light glare from the king. “T’Challa,” he corrected. “If you insist on me calling you by your name then you should call me Steve.”
T’Challa smiled. “Very well, Steve.”
“Yes, yes, we’re all good friends,” Shuri rolled her eyes, turning to Kahlen. “Tell me,” she demanded, grinning and ignoring T’Challa’s confusion. “And while you’re at it, maybe tell us who you are,” she suggested as an afterthought.
Kahlen laughed.”My name is Kahlen, I’m Tony’s daughter.” The Wakandan’s surprise was evident, but she soldiered on, knowing that was the least surprising thing she would tell them. “This is Hermione Granger, my best friend. We’re witches, what you saw was called apparition. It’s a form of magic in which the body is separated into many pieces and put together in a new location.” Surprise now turned to shock as Shuri, Okoye and T’Challa tried to wrap their heads around what she’d said.
“That’s… not what I expected,” Shuri said, her face shifting into a frown. “I suppose I’ll have to keep working on teleportation through science.” The witches laughed as everyone settled into seats. In the world of superheroes and gods, very little becomes surprising.
“You said you recovered information from Hydra,” T’Challa prompted.
Hermione nodded, passing him the flashdrive. To her surprise, he attached it to his bracelet and the recovered plans were projected for them to see.
“Hydra plans to ambush this cargo plane leaving Wakanda in three days. They refer to their target only as ‘precious cargo’. We hoped you could tell us more about what they’re after,” Steve says.
T’Challa nods thoughtfully. “Perhaps he should tell you himself.”
Steve’s confusion quickly turned to excitement as a familiar man with a metal arm and long brown hair walked in.
“Bucky!” Steve laughed, rushing to embrace his best friend. The man chuckled, returning the hug before leading them back to the group. “Kahlen, Hermione, this is my best friend Bucky Barnes,” he introduced, grinning. “Buck, this is Kahlen, Tony’s daughter, and her friend, Hermione Granger.” The three of them exchanged greetings, Bucky barely reacting to the news of Kahlen’s parentage, though he looked at her strangely as if he knew her but couldn’t quite place her.
“So, what’s all the fuss about?” Bucky asked. “T’Challa just said you were here and had something important to discuss.” Steve’s smile faded.
“It’s… It’s Hydra,” Steve said cautiously, watching Bucky’s expression turn grim.
“It seems as though they planned to ambush your flight home,” T’Challa explained. Turning back to the rest of the group, he continued. “Mr. Barnes has undergone intensive treatments and therapies organized by Shuri to help rid him of Hydra’s influence. They have deemed his mind wholly his own once more and he was scheduled to fly to the tower in three days. Of course, that flight is no longer happening,” he added.
“I’m so proud of you, Buck,” Steve smiled, clapping his friend on the back and relishing in the familiar grin he received.
Bucky turned back to the group, his curious eyes drawn to Kahlen again when he gasped suddenly.
“You…” he trailed off while they all watched him curiously.
“What is it?” Steve asked, worried.
“I knew I recognized you from somewhere,” Bucky told Kahlen, ignoring Steve entirely. “Hydra… They tried to condition me to see you as the enemy, a few years ago. They were going to send me to… to kill you, but then Steve made too much trouble for them so they sent me to America instead.” Kahlen digested this, trying to make it fit with her timeline.
“When was this?” She asked, her tone gentle. She didn’t want Bucky to think she blamed him, she knew what it was like to have a madman in your head.
“Um…” he paused, trying to recall his jumbled memories. “2014, I think.”
“Karkaroff was in Azkaban then,” Hermione realized, causing Kahlen’s brows to furrow in frustration.
“So it couldn’t have been him,” she stated for those who were confused.
“Do you remember his name?” Steve asked Bucky softly. He didn’t like making his friend relive those experiences but they needed to get to the bottom of this.
Bucky shook his head. “I’m sorry, I don’t remember,” he apologized. “All I know is that he had just as much power and influence as Karkaroff, if not more.” Unsurprisingly, this did not make anyone feel better.
“How did wizards end up in Hydra anyway,” Steve questioned. “How did they get access to the Winter Soldier?”
“That’s it!” Hermione shouted suddenly, surprising those around her. Their stares made her blush. “Sorry,” she said. “I’ve just remembered something. One of the books I read in the restricted section of Hogwarts, it mentioned the Winter Soldier.”
“Hermione, that’s brilliant!” Kahlen grinned. “Your breaking into the restricted section pays off once again.”
“You broke into the restricted section?” Steve was clearly shocked, his impression of the young witch being that she was a stickler for the rules.
“Yes, well, being friends with Kahlen makes following rules quite difficult,” she accused with a smirk. Steve turned to Kahlen, expecting her to deny this, but she just shrugged.
“It’s true,” she replied, grinning. “It’s part of my charm.” Hermione laughed.
“What did the book say?” T’Challa was clearly invested in the mystery of it all, but Hermione’s frown made him realize he wouldn’t get all the answers just yet.
“I don’t remember,” she admitted. “It was a long time ago.” Their excitement at the possibility of a breakthrough deflated, disappointment setting in.
“The book is still there though, right?” Okoye asked. She’d thought it was obvious but apparently none of them had thought of it.
Kahlen’s smile returned. “Looks like we’re going to Hogwarts.” They stood to leave, thanking their hosts and assuring them they would ask for help if they needed it.
“I’ll see you soon, Buck,” Steve said, but the other man shook his head.
“Absolutely not,” he replied. “I’m coming with you.”
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea, Bucky,” Steve said carefully. “It could be dangerous, and you’ve just started to recover, maybe you should sit this one out.”
Bucky glared. “I can handle this Steve.”
“I know,” Steve admitted. “Doesn’t mean I can’t be worried about you.”
Bucky softened. “Let me help you, please. Let me do some good.”
Steve considered him, waiting for some sign of doubt but finding none. Finally, he sighed. “You’re sure?” He asked.
“I’m with you to the end of the line.” Bucky grinned. Reluctantly, Steve nodded.
Kahlen looped her arm through Steve’s, Hermione doing the same with Bucky as they said their final goodbyes.
“Hey Buck,” Steve grinned, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “You get nauseous easily?”
Bucky gulped. “Sometimes, why?”
They disappeared.