Living far away

Chapter 6

Rylie went to her room after she had a talk with Emily. She's sitting on her bed, Led Zeppelin blasting in her ears, when Bucky walks in. Rylie takes out her earpods.

"Fury told me what happened. He actually asked me to talk to you hours ago, but I didn't want to risk getting beaten up", he says with a chuckle.

"Yeah... I had to get the frustration off..." Rylie sits up.

"It's alright, I understand. HYDRA sucks."

"That's an understatement. I always dreamed of being superhero-ish, but I never expected being a HYDRA experiment."

"When I was the Winter Soldier I heard about kids like you. There was only one kid who survived the experiments. Apparently you."

"My mom, or whatever that bitch is to me, said they were going to come for me, since I was their greatest asset, next to you. What if they actually do? What if I'm in danger? What if I brought the Avengers in danger by coming here?"

"Calm down, you're not in danger, we're not in danger, you're safe. They won't get to you, you're surrounded by Earth's mightiest heroes."

"True... Yet, heroes don't always win..."

He chuckles. "We mostly do, though."

"That you do..."

"You should become an Avenger. Your strength would be very helpful to us."

"Well, I already live in the tower... Maybe I just might."

Bucky smiles. "I'm sure the team would love that."

"I would", Nat, who just appeared in the doorway, says. "Steve asked me to get you, he and Tony want to talk to you."

Rylie nods and gets up to follow Nat, but Bucky stops her.

"If they ask you anything about HYDRA and if you want to join them─" he starts, but she cuts him off.

"I'm never going back to that hellhole."

Bucky nods and lets her leave.

She follows Nat through the tower until they reach the meeting room. Tony and Steve are already waiting for her.

"Take a seat, Rylie", Tony says.

Rylie sits down in one of the chairs across from the men.

"Fury showed us the recording of the things that happened when you talked to your mother", Steve starts.

"Not my mother. Call her what you want but never call her my mother again."

"Okay. The female HYDRA agent, then. Fury also said you got the memories back from the six years in New York. The ones with HYDRA. You probably understand that we want to ask about your intentions now you know about your childhood with them."

"Steve, they tortured me for their experiments! I hate them as much as you do, hell, maybe even more. I want them all gone, I don't care what it takes."

Tony looks at her like a proud dad. "Told you we could trust her."

"Do you have any idea of possible locations for HYDRA bases?" Steve then asks.

"No, I do not. I was six when I left and I didn't really pay attention to the location."

Steve nods. "We'll come get you when we need more information. You can go now."

Rylie nods and goes back to her room. Bucky is leaning against the wall outside.

"Did they ask anything about HYDRA?" he asks.

"Yes, they asked me if I ever wanted to return and if I knew where their bases were. To both the answer was no."

He nods.

"Why are you so worried about me?" Rylie asks. "I know how to handle situations like this just fine."

"Yeah, I know... It's just, I never met anyone who went through the same hell as I did. I know it's hard and I don't want people to hate you for your past."

"People hate you?"

"Tony mostly. They hate me for the things I did when I was the Winter Soldier."

"Tony hates you? Why?"

"I... I killed his parents... As the Winter Soldier, obviously."

"Oh, shit, that's not good."

Her reaction makes Bucky chuckle. "'That's not good'? That's all you got? I was kinda expecting you to get in your room and slam the door in my face, scared, and never talk to me again."

"Bucky, I know it's actually HYDRA who killed his parents, never you. Also, to scare me you gotta do something really, really scary. I watch horror movies at midnight and sleep like an angel."

"You're crazy."

Rylie shrugs. "I know. I'm a HYDRA experiment." She pauses for a second and then asks: "Wanna come inside and watch a movie? I'm tired of having to use my brain all the time to process the newest memories and I just want to relax."

"Sure, but no horror."

"What? The Winter Soldier is afraid of horror?"

"I swear, if you tell anyone this I'm going to kill you."

"Fine. I'll keep it to myself."