Blades & Ballet | Bucky x Reader

Twelve

Berlin, Germany.

"So, what's the deal with this guy?" Y/n asks us as a guard escorts us through the prison hallways.

"We had a run in with him a few years back," Sam explains. "He dug into HYDRA's history to find out where their Siberian base was... It caused a lot of problems. A lot of people got hurt."

Sam glances at me as his unspoken words hit home. Zemo triggered the Winter Soldier during his little escapade for information. I hurt a lot of people during that blackout.

"And you want to go talk to this guy?" Y/n asks.

I glance back at her expecting to see that feline glare or taunting smirk. But instead, I see a trace of genuine concern on her face. It throws me off, and I return my gaze forward. "Yes."

We turn another corner, and the guard gestures to a pair of nearby doors. "He's just through that corridor."

"Alright, give us a sec," I request. The guard nods, moving to wait next to the doors. I turn back to Sam and Y/n. "I'm gonna go in alone."

"Why?" Sam asks.

"'Cause you're an Avenger," I answer. "You know how he feels about that."

"Look, it's not like you two were known for frolickin' in the sun together," Sam retorts.

"He was obsessed with HYDRA," I argue. "We have a history together. Trust me. I got it."

"Relax, Sam," Y/n says. "I'll go with him."

"No, you won't," I argue. "Stay here."

"You can't stop me, Barnes," she replies, pushing through the doors.

I huff, following the guard as he leads us through the doors and down the next hall to Zemo's cell. The guard speaks into his radio, and the door ahead of us unlocks with a buzz. He pulls it open, gesturing us through before shutting it behind us.

Once inside the cell, I see Zemo sitting on his bed on the other side of a clear, glass wall. He looks up as we enter, his brown eyes finding ours.

"Longing," he says in Russian, the first in the chain of trigger words to activate the Winter Soldier. "Rusted. Seventeen."

"Those days are over," I state.

"I know," Zemo replies, approaching the glass wall between us. "I just wanted to see how the new you reacts to the old words. Something is still in there... At least you were not conscious for most of your imprisonment."

Y/n scowls, and Zemo's gaze shifts to her in curiosity before turning back to me.

"That time wasn't exactly a picnic," I tell him.

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry," Zemo offers as he begins pacing around his cell. "It was never personal. You were simply a means to a necessary end."

"Someone recreated the Super Soldier serum," Y/n cuts in, losing patience. "We need to know who."

Zemo's gaze snaps back to us, and he approaches the glass once more. "You are assuming HYDRA has something to do with this... which is why you came to me... which means you are desperate. Luckily for you, I know where to begin."

"What are you talking about?" Sam demands as we wander through a dark garage. "You wanna break Zemo outta jail? Have you lost your mind?"

"We have no leads," I remind him. "No moves, nothing."

"What we have is one of the most dangerous men in the world behind bars," Sam argues.

"We also have eight Super Soldiers on the loose," Y/n cuts in. "Or was that detail knocked out of your head when we got our asses kicked?"

"You're agreeing with him?" Sam questions, dumbfounded.

Y/n shrugs, crossing her arms. "Like you said, 'it's imperative that we stop the Flag Smashers,' and if Zemo can point us in the right direction, then he's an asset and it's a lead worth pursuing."

"Zemo's gonna mess with our minds," Sam reasons before turning back to me. "Especially yours. No offense."

Finally finding the fuse box, I switch on the lights before facing Sam. "Offense. Super Soldiers go against everything he believes in. He is crazy, but he still has a code."

"I've been on the wrong side of that code, Buck," Sam reminds me. "And so have you. He blew up the UN, he killed King T'Chaka and framed you for it. Did you forget that? You think the Wakandans forgot about it? It's a rhetorical question. They didn't. I know why this matters to you, but, come on, it's pushing you off the deep end."

"We don't know how they're gettin' the serum," I argue. "We don't even know how many of them there are. Look, let me just walk you through a hypothetical. Can I walk you through a hypothetical?"

Slowly, Sam turns back around to face me. "What did you do?"

"I didn't... do... anything," I reply before launching into my 'hypothetical' explanation. "The weakest point in any system isn't the software, or the hardware, it's the meatware, the human element. In this lockup, it's nine to one, prisoners to guards. And, if two prisoners start fighting, then the protocol says four guards have to respond."

"So why would two prisoners randomly start fighting at that moment?" Sam asks.

"Who knows?" I answer. "There could be many reasons... But the point is, these things escalate. Lockdown procedures would have to be initiated, and with all those bodies flying around left and right, it wouldn't be hard to slip a hallway or two. And if the fire alarm got tripped while the prisoners were being separated, someone could use the chaos to their advantage."

"I don't like how casual you two are bein' about this," Sam declares. "This is unnatural. Are you... where are we?"

At that moment, the garage doors open, and Zemo, dressed in a prison guard's uniform, pushes his way through the plastic screen.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Sam exclaims, moving quickly toward Zemo. "What are you doin' here?"

"No, listen," I request, stepping in his way. "I didn't wanna tell you 'cause I knew you wouldn't let this happen, okay?"

"What did you do?" Sam demands before shifting his gaze to Y/n. "And you helped him?!"

"I didn't help him," Y/n corrects. "I just didn't stop him..."

Sam turns back to Zemo. "You're going back to prison!"

"If I may..." Zemo suggests.

"No!" the three of us yell in unison.

"Apologies," Zemo mumbles.

I turn back to Sam. "When Steve refused to sign the Sokovia Accords, you backed him. You broke the law, and you stuck your neck out for me. I'm asking you to do it again."

"I really think I'm invaluable..." Zemo adds.

"Shut up," Sam orders. He pauses for a moment, thinking it over. "Okay. If we do this, you don't make a move without our permission."

Zemo shrugs and nods in agreement. "Fair."

"Okay, Zemo," Sam replies. "Where do we start?"

Zemo smiles, leading us further into the garage. He switches on the lights, revealing a collection of classic cars.

"So, our first move is grand theft auto?" Sam sarcastically questions.

"These are mine," Zemo informs us as he approaches one of the cars and opens the back door, pulling out a coat and duffle bag. "Collected by family over the generations. I spent years hunting people HYDRA recruited to recreate the serum. Because once it's out there... someone can create an army of people... like the Avengers. I ended the Winter Soldier program once before. I have no intention to leave my work unfinished... To do this, we'll have to scale a ladder of lowlifes."

"Well, join the party," Sam remarks. "We've already started."

"Our first stop is a woman named Selby," Zemo responds, leading us toward the garage doors. "She's a mid-level fence I still have a line on. From there, we climb."