RAISON D'ÊTRE ( bucky barnes ) 一 under editing

THIRTY-SEVENTH

RAISON D'ÊTRE
THIRTY-SEVENTH

SHE HADN'T BEEN TO SIBERIA in a very long time, the last time being when HYDRA had taken her to one of their bases, and she'd nearly forgotten how cold it was. She tugged on her coat, hoping it could warm her more than Ianna's old suit was. While yes, the material did give her a slight warmth, the random coat she'd found in the Quinjet had already provided much more and she relished in it. The bitter cold air was already biting at her skin, despite her not leaving the ship yet, and she groaned to herself. Rome had never been a rather big fan of the cold, especially the snow.

Once they landed, Steve lowered the ramp and Rome instantly shivered. Damn, the cold. Rome tugged harsher on the coat, and she nearly smiled when she felt Bucky's hand gently press against the small of her back. Turning her head slightly to the side, she kissed his jaw and smiled at him.

"He can't have been here more than a few hours," Steve said, unintentionally ruining the couple's small moment. When Rome followed his gaze, she saw the large metal door, creaked open in the side of the mountain.

Bucky pursed his lips. "Long enough to wake them up."

Rome nodded in agreement then added, "We should get inside." They could see how she was visibly shaking with cold now, body shivering as she pushed herself away from the Quinjet and towards the door. She could not wait until they were away from Siberia.

She was glad to know the two men followed her and upon them stepping inside the bunker, they shut the door behind them. In front of them was a slim elevator, one that looked like it hadn't been used in decades. They stepped inside and when Steve pushed a button, the machine roared to life. It caused Rome to jump at the sudden sound, but she pressed her lips together and reached down to take hold of Bucky's hand in hers. She didn't know what they were expecting from after this point; whoever this doctor was, he could control the Winter Soldiers. The witch didn't know what to expect and she squeezed Bucky's hand tight as they went down in the elevator. Quickly, she tossed a glance over at Bucky and saw the grim expression on his face. She gave him a sad smile; being back here must have brought back bad memories for him, ones that he would have rather buried deep into his head.

When the elevator finally came to a stop, Steve gave them a swift nod and pulled the elevator gate up. The three of them got out, with Bucky leading the two and Steve standing in the back. The latter wielded a large gun in his hands, one that he'd found in the Quinjet, and swiping to and fro across the hallway in case someone managed to pop out from the shadows. Rome stood in the middle of their group, brows furrowed and hands slightly twitching. There was something truly wrong about this place, and it sent shivers down her spine.

The brunet walked up a flight of steps with Rome quick on his heels, and the two whipped around quickly when they heard a loud clatter behind them. Bucky aimed his gun at the noise's source, just over Rome's shoulder, and Steve responded by raising his shield. The three heard more metallic screeching and clattering in front of them, behind a large door.

"Ready?" Steve whispered to them.

"Yeah."

Rome held one hand up, the one resting on Steve's shoulder and her eyes narrowed as she watched someone start to pry open the door. Pulling the doors open with his hands was a man dressed in a gold and red suit, his mask and chest plate glowing in the dark. Rome grit her teeth and the hand on Steve's shoulder clenched angrily. What the hell was he doing here? How did he follow them? Knowing Steve's friends and Ianna, she knew they wouldn't have revealed where the three of them were going, so there was no way he could have known where they were. When the door was finally fully opened, his mask unfolded itself to reveal Stark's beaten up face. "You seem a little defensive," he quipped, taking slow steps towards the three.

"It's been a long day," Steve said, walking forward to meet him. But Bucky and Rome didn't relax. Instead, Bucky kept his gun aimed straight at Stark's chest while Rome poised herself ready to attack.

Stark looked past Steve, eyeing the tense couple. "At ease, soldier, I'm not currently after you."

"Then why are you here?" Steve asked, still holding his shield to his chest and slowing his steps.

"Maybe your story isn't so crazy, Cap," Stark said.

"Maybe."

Stark gave a small shrug. "Ross has no idea I'm here," he said, "I'd like to keep it that way, otherwise I gotta arrest myself." He leaned back against a column, almost as if he were bored. Rome's eyes nearly widened at him; how the hell could he act so calmly knowing what just transpired a few hours ago, knowing that they were on opposite sides.

"Well, that sounds like a lot of paperwork," Steve teased, causing Stark to chuckle. The blond then lowered his shield and gave a nod to his friend. "It's good to see you, Tony."

"You too, Cap," Stark said. When he looked up, he spotted Bucky starting to push Rome behind him defensively with his gun still at eye level. Stark nearly sighed with frustration. "Manchurian Candidate, you're killing me. There's a truce here, you can drop 一"

Steve just held out his hand and Rome could see Bucky reluctantly lower the gun. But she kept her eyes hardened at Stark. She couldn't trust him. While Rome didn't know much about him, she did know that he was arrogant and proud and she couldn't trust him. How could she trust a man who so easily switched sides like this?

∞ ∞ ∞

They walked further into the base, Rome barely just out of arm's reach of Bucky. Stark and Steve led the way, both parties on their guard. Despite their tiny truce, Rome still made sure to keep herself just out of Stark's reach, glaring at the back of his head and pressing her lips together.

She decided to look away from him, instead her eyes focusing on all the little details of the base. Paint was chipped all over the place, some collecting into small piles along the ground. She'd stepped in a few of them on accident, and angrily shook her boot just to get some of it off. A few shards of glass had crunched under their feet, and she wondered how long it'd been since this place had been abandoned. Rome hadn't been to this one in particular, just a few scattered across the world, but it must had been years since someone breathing stepped foot down here.

A small sense of dread started to pool in the pit of her stomach. She couldn't help the memories that flooded her mind, of how study hands grabbed at her tightly and how harsh their fists felt against her. Back when she'd been beaten and bruised when she refused to do the simplest of spells, back when they forced her to torture and hurt people because they wanted to. She could remember all of it 一 the bloodcurdling screams, the unending torment, the nightmares that never left her dreams. How could she not fight back? She was an immortal witch that'd been alive for centuries yet she couldn't stop someone as weak as them from hurting and abusing her. She shivered, and shut her eyes.

A gentle hand was pressed against her shoulder and she jumped, startled to find Bucky standing beside her. He gave her a small smile, leaning forward to press a kiss to her cheek. "I know," he said softly, his hand descending to hold her upper arm. Bucky knew what was going through Rome's head, how all the horrors HYDRA had done to them stayed stuck in their memories.

"It'll all be over soon," he said softly and silently treads past her.

A/N: y'all game of thrones
is back & i'm so excited
and hyped ahhhhhhh