THE PHANTOM ๏ BUCKY BARNES

Face From the Past

A pale yellow, was a colour you liked. That and all shades of green. Yellow would be the colour you preferred, but when trying not to stick out, darker colours are well liked.

So, in honour of that, you were dressed in darker clothes. A few layers as well, since it was cold out. You had a pretty little brown zip up jumper you stole and underneath was an army print shirt you took from a mannequin. Dark khakis and boots on the bottom half and for the final touch, a dark green cap that covered most of your face.

As you walked into the Smithsonian, nobody tried to stop you or search you. You were clear so far. You ignored at the signs and exhibits that were put on show, as you were only here for one thing.

The red, white and blue colour put on a circle gave away what you were looking for. You walked into the section, keeping your head down. There was a man speaking briefly about Captain America and his place in the USA.

A screen showed the skinny small boy you, but it faded into a taller and more buff man. The look on his face stayed the same. Kids put their backs against the wall to measure heights. Laughs and smiles were shared between them.
You walked past the artifacts. Captain America's old shield, the prop helmet he wore to save the 107th. There was also guns and dud grenades that were used during his time in the army.

You lost track of how long you were in the exhibit, reading each word. Looking at everything you could. And as you read the words and traced over every detail, little memories would pop into your head. Moments in time that seemed lost forever would come back to you.

The brunette with the bluest eyes you'll ever see had his own area. You read through, looking back to the picture on the side.
His name was James Buchanan 'Bucky' Barnes. He was born on March 10th, 1917. He was Captain America's personal friend and sidekick.

Dee...He used to call you Dee. As a nickname.

It hit you like a brick wall. You were friends with him. You knew him, he was Bucky. He lost his arm, HYDRA replaced it with a metal one that he hated so much he would try to scratch it off him. You remember him better than anything else.
You remember his voice, his smile, how much of a terrible liar he was, how he would be such a gentleman to everyone but you. He called you 'Dee' as a nickname, but when he would call you 'Doll' to tease you, to annoy you, to charm you. He wou-

"Daisy Lavigne went missing on the 12th of July 1937. Just 9 days After Captain America's 20th birthday." You froze at the sound of your name. Looking to your left, you saw yourself on stand with things about you.

You walked over to it. There was a small screen next to it. Photos that faded into one another sliding by. You were in them, smiling as bright as ever.

"Lavigne was first acquainted with Rogers in kindergarten. A strong friendship was born, and it soon became a powerful trio was Barnes strolled along." You listened intensively. "Lavigne was an icon in her time. Wearing pants and going against gender norms. She was first arrested when she was 12 after wearing pants to a restaurant and sitting without crossing her legs."

You raised your eyebrows, staring at the mugshot that appeared on screen. Also taking note at the smile on the mugshot.

"Then again, on her 14th birthday when she, Barnes and Rogers attended a women's right to vote protest. Daisy had a strong will, going to classes with all men and speaking her mind. She refused to let the men of the world push her back. Her final arrestment took place when she attended an illegal women's boxing fight underground and winning."

A photo showed up. You, Steve and Bucky together. You were at graduation, or rather, just after it. Steve was mid-laughter and you were mid-fall. Bucky had a mix of laughter and realisation on his face. The next photo stayed for longer.

Steve had a goofy smile on his face, his thumb up and with arm around Bucky's shoulder. Bucky had a smug, shit-eating grin on his face and you were almost horizontal, your body being held up by Bucky as you stroked a pose.
It was a good photo.

"Mummy! Mummy, look!" A child yelled loudly. "It's the girl in the picture!"

You looked to your left, seeing a young boy with no front teeth point at you. The room went silent, even the voice over stopped. All eyes were on you or the picture.

"...shit."

You looked across the room, people were whispering and staring at you. Phones started to come out of pockets and point at you.

"Some one grab her!" A person yelled.

A hand grabbed on to your forearm. You turned to smack the living, breathing shit out of the person. But you stop when you saw the bluest eyes you have ever seen stare right back at you.

Bucky stood before you, his head slightly downcast and a cap on his head. Your eyes widened, but before you said anything, he started to run. Since he hand had a good grip on your wrist, he kinda dragged you with him.

People jumped out of the way, as you both sped past them at an alarming speed. In no time, you were out of the Smithsonian and into the streets, you followed Bucky as he ran past people, who turned and gawked.
It wasn't everyday, you see two super soldiers from the past run at around 31 mph, funny, it wasn't even your top speed.

Bucky ran into an alley, slowing down near the end of it. You did the same, but Bucky turned around and pinned you against the wall.

"What's my name." He asked, not wasting any time, but panting slightly as he caught his breath from the long run.

"Your name is James. But we call you Bucky. Me and Steve, we call you Bucky." You said, taking deep breaths.

Bucky let go of your arms, backing up a little to give you space. You lean against the wall, looking over your shoulder to see if anyone followed you into the alley.

"What's my name?" You repeated Bucky's question.

"Daisy. But only I call you Dee." He said slowly, straightening his back.

"...or Doll." You add, not looking him in the eye. "You call me Doll."

He nodded his head, also looking to the front of the alley. "How'd you escape?"

"Yesterday, I think, I was sent to um...Avengers tower? They wanted me to delete what Na- Black Widow revealed...I did with some of it...they caught me, but the one with the hammer stopped me." You leaned off the wall.

You looked at Bucky, staring at his face, taking it all in. Not wanting to forget him again.
"...When...When do you think we last...recognised each other?"

Bucky looked down to you, his eyes flicking to each part of you. They couldn't decide which of your eyes to rest on.
"...That mission in Budapest. The one with the water tank."

"When we dropped it on a government official?" Bucky nodded. You tried to think back to when that was. "...It was December...1987, I think."

"I thought it was '91."

You brushed it off. "It was a long time ago...I missed you."

Bucky looked back to you, his lips pursing. He stepped forward, pulling you into a tight hug. You didn't expect it, but you hugged him back almost instantly.
"I thought I lost you again."

You breathed out a laugh. "What did I say? You can't lose me that easily."

The hug was longer than it should've been, but neither of you actually took the time to care.
When Bucky ended the hug, he cleared his throat.

"Well, we can't stay around here for longer. Sooner or later, someone will be able to track us down." Bucky said. "They had phones out, so some sort of video will be leaked. Considering...what we were, someone will try to find us."

"Then we need to move out of the country. We can go by boat. There has to be some shipping containments going somewhere." You add, resting your hands on your hips.

"There are docks nearby, but the ships lead to different places. We would be safer somewhere in Europe, but that depends on where we go."

"...Budapest?"