RAISON D'ÊTRE ( bucky barnes ) 一 under editing

TWENTY-THIRD

RAISON D'ÊTRE
TWENTY-THIRD

ROME COULD SENSE THAT SOMEONE was above and waiting in their apartment, and the moment she did, she grabbed hold of Bucky's arm. Her eyes went wide with alarm, and she flicked them over to look at him. "Wait," she said, pursing her lips. "There's someone in there." She nodded her head up towards their apartment building.

She could almost feel his frustration as he let out a breath, and he squeezed his eyes shut. Bucky was muttering something under his breath, something she couldn't hear, then he lifted his head. "It's him," he whispered. "He's here."

She didn't need to ask to know who the him in question was 一 it was that captain from D.C., Steve Rogers. Several times she had asked Bucky if he would ever contact Steve; the question was never to hurt him or push him, simply if he ever planned on it. But each time Bucky would say no, that he couldn't face Steve yet, and he'd continue on as if nothing had happened. So she took his hand and asked, "Do you want me to go with you? I have a feeling he isn't here for a friendly visit."

"No, it's okay." Opening his eyes, he kissed Rome's forehead and sighed sadly. "The problem won't be getting out of there, it'll be the people who follow." Grabbing her upper arm, he rubbed at the skin beneath his thumb. "I'm sorry."

But the witch shook her head, smiling at him. "It's not your fault," she said. "I knew what I was getting myself into when I went with you, I don't regret it. And..." She sighed loudly, chewing on her lip. "I think we both knew this wouldn't last forever."

She hadn't realized she started to cry until Bucky moved to wipe a tear with his finger, and he pressed his forehead against hers. They remained like that for a few moments, holding each other. Once they let go, she knew everything would change for the worse. They'd have to run again, carrying only what they had on their backs as they fled, but the scary part was that she wasn't sure if they were escape this time. She didn't know if they would be able to leave it behind a second time.

When they pulled away, Rome kissed him long and hard. "Promise me you will be smart in there."

Bucky cupped her face and kissed her back just as long. "I promise," he whispered against her lips. "I'll meet you at our 'spot'. Make sure you're ready."

Rome nodded at him. "I'll be there." She squeezed his hand, smiled at him one last time, then turned on her heel and walked off.

∞ ∞ ∞

Steve took long, slow steps around the apartment. It looked so small, a tiny and desolate place that almost reminded him of home in Brooklyn, but there was the tiniest feeling of home in it. There wasn't much to it 一 a decorative rug to cover the squeaky floorboards, newspaper covered in doodles were placed over the windows, and the kitchen was covered in little knick-knacks that he vaguely recognized. Perhaps he had Ianna to thank for that. Tucked in the corner of the main room was a lone mattress, blankets and pillows covering it to make it look a little comfier than it must actually be, and by the looks of it, it looked as if its recipients hadn't been gone for very long. A bag of clothes lay on the ground beside it. The bathroom door was gone, replaced with a shoddy thick curtain, and when Steve took a peek inside, he saw it was almost bare. A small bag of toiletries sat atop the closed lid of the toilet, and resting on the sink counter was a pair of toothbrushes. The mirror had several spiderweb-like cracks to it, and Steve's heart ached when he imagined Bucky punching it in anger.

Walking back into the kitchen area, his eyes caught a small journal. Curiosity got the best of him and he picked it up, flicking through his pages slowly. Scattered across the pages were a series of notes and dates, and sometimes he found his own name written down. He eventually flipped to a particular page marked with a ribbon, and a smirk formed on his face when inside he found a polaroid of a pretty blonde girl, smiling at the camera. A note was written under the picture, the name ROME written in blue ink, as if he'd forget the girl.

When Steve had first started his search for Bucky, Natasha had revealed to him that the blonde witch from D.C. had gone with him. Apparently there were little files of her but from what they'd gotten, her name was Andromeda Molstad and she'd been taken sometime in the sixties. It wasn't until the other day when Ianna had helped do that tracking spell had she determined that it wasn't just any witch, but her own cousin Rome. The tribrid had nearly lost it, completely shocked and dumbfounded that it'd been her cousin that was aiding and abetting the Winter Soldier. Steve wondered what Ianna would make of the situation, that it appeared that Bucky and Rome weren't just friends but something much more.

He shut the journal back down and when he turned, Bucky was standing there. He held his breath. In the years since they'd last seen each other, his friend had changed 一 stubble grew across his jaw, his hair just a little bit shorter from the last time, and despite the hollowness in his eyes, there was almost the tiny flicker of happiness in them.

As the two old friends spoke, Bucky's mind wandered to Rome. He knew where she'd be at this time. When they had first moved into this apartment building, they had set up a series of escape routes, most of them ending up on the roof of the next building over. A backpack filled with the necessary supplies was hidden beneath the floorboards. So she sat atop the building, biting at her nails and twirling her necklace as she waited. Perhaps it was just a false alarm...

Pressing a hand to her chest, she started to mutter a few spells beneath her breath. They wouldn't be much, just enough to get her through the next few minutes without completely wearing herself out or injuring herself. She felt nauseous, more so than usual, and she tried to tell herself it was just the nervous making her feel bad.

But her casting was cut off when something heavy thudded beside her. Opening her eyes, she spotted their backpack sitting atop the gravel beside her, and she quickly shot up, grabbing the strap of the bag, knowing full well that Bucky would land there. And she was right 一 not even a minute later, Bucky had thrown himself from the opposite building and rolled onto the ground, grunting loudly as he did. "C'mon," he said, still continuing to move as he ran to her, "we gotta go."

Rough, sharp hands suddenly gripped at her shoulders, and she let out a yelp as she was tossed to the side. She landed hard on the ground, instantly feeling something sharp cut across her forehead and something wet pool on her shoulders. Looking down, she spotted blood starting to soak into her jacket, and Rome growled. A quick spell flew past her lips, just something to stop the bleeding so she could heal it later, but the pain still remained. Looking up, she spotted the man who'd thrown her. It was a man in an all black suit, the design making him appear almost like a large black wildcat.

The man launched himself at Bucky, who lay on the ground, and tried to claw at the ex-assassin's face. Anger pulsed through her veins, and she glared at him as she shoved herself onto her knees. "Phasmatos motus robix!" she shouted, a hand shot out at the black suited man.

Immediately, the man succumbed to the effects of the spell and yelled, gripping his head as she writhed, and Bucky managed to shove him off. He nodded his appreciation at her for a moment before turning his attention back to the unknown assailant.

The sound of helicopter threw Rome off, and she stopped the spell, eyes growing wide as she watched it near. She looked up and Bucky instantly moved towards her, lifting his metal arm to shield the bullets that rained down on the pair. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a man flying through the air with a pair of mechanical wings attached to his back. Rome watched as he kicked at the helicopter's propellers, knowing the aircraft off course. This was turning out to be a lot stranger and a lot harder than she originally believed...

Bucky looked down at Rome, eyes growing wide with fear when he saw the blood, but she shook her head. "I'm fine," she said quickly, "and like you said, we need to go."