Saving Bucky (Bucky Barnes x Reader)

Chapter 29 - The Sleeping Soldat

Steve paces anxiously against the wall, casting glances towards your bed every few minutes. But you can't be rushed.

You need to make sure you do this right.

Silently, you swipe to the next page on the tablet, re-reading Barnes' file for the third time in the past hour. A push notification tells you 5% battery remains and you frown, flicking it away.

"Steve?" you call.

He races eagerly to your side and you hand him the tablet.

"Do we have any way to charge this thing?" you ask.

He shakes his head. "Nat checked the saddlebags on the bike. There wasn't a cable with it. This is all we've got."

You lean back, sighing as you close your eyes and mentally run through all the information you've just read, but have known by heart for weeks. There was nothing new in his files, but you're even more certain that somehow Barnes' Winter Soldier programming broke loose inside his head.

"So?" Steve asks hesitantly.

Your eyes fly open and you sit up, careful not to jostle your left shoulder or hip as you glance at Steve, who stands tense and eager.

"Steve," you say. "I can't promise you I'm going to figure this out," you say. "I still think you have a better chance of getting through to him."

Steve frowns and glances down at his feet. He bends over and picks up that moss-covered rock, handing it to you before shaking his head.

"I disagree," he says.

You bite your tongue, and hold the rock in your palm. You stare at it for a moment before sighing and handing it back.

"Fine," you say. "I'll give this a try. But I'm going to need your help."

"Just tell me what to do," Steve says.

You furrow your brow, mulling over your options as you try to put yourself back in your interrogator's mindset.

You're trying to break the Winter Soldier to get through to Barnes.

"We're dealing with two people here," you say confidently, gaze flitting over to Barnes who sits on his concrete blocks - still as stone. "I need to figure out how to communicate with the person we see. Once I can...maybe I can convince him to, I don't know, go away? Shut down?"

Steve casts you a skeptical glance.

"You disagree?" you question.

"No, no," he says quickly, raising both hands. "I've just never seen Buck ask the Soldier to go away nicely. He usually...puts up a fight."

"Then he might have to fight his way out," you sigh, bringing your right hand to your head. "Regardless, we have to start communicating to know."

"Okay," Steve says. "What do I do?"

"Try something simple. Try giving him a direct command," you say.

Steve nods and looks over at Barnes.

"Buck," he says firmly. "Stand up."

You watch Barnes closely, but he doesn't react.

"You're a Captain," you say quietly. "Give an order to your subordinate."

"Sergeant!" Steve barks. "Stand up!"

No reaction.

"SOLDIER!" Steve barks. "AT ATTENTION!"

At this, Barnes winces but demonstrates no other reaction. Still, a wince is something. It means you're getting closer. You try to think back to that report. You have to be missing something. Until it hits you. The entire file had been translated. The original documents hadn't all been in English. Maybe that's what's missing.