Saving Grace ★ BUCKY BARNES

Chapter 1

❊ SAVING GRACE ❊
❊ "Grief does not change you...it reveals you." ❊
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It was perfect synchronization. They worked like they had rehearsed every motion to the point that it felt like it was branded in their minds. Every notion was perfect and precise, no space for any errors or problems. Almost like they knew what the other was about to do and followed up with them in perfect timing.

Of course they had practiced this numerous times. All those times spent in training had made them the best tactical partners anybody had ever seen. Nobody knew how they made it work so well, but it was almost poetic.

Sure fighting people and killing them was nowhere near poetic, but to them it was almost an art. They had built a specific way of doing their own thing. A system of how to carry out their missions. Their own set of rules that only both of them understood.

And as always it worked out just fine, actually even more then fine...it was perfect. Hence the reason they were called the best tactical partners anybody had ever seen. Whether it was to extract some information or to kill some very highly known person, they always excelled and left people dumbstruck by making it seem like a walk in the park.

To them however, it really was a walk in the park, because this was what they were trained for. Day and night, this was all they worked on, reading each other's body language or facial expressions to know what was to happen next even without uttering a single word. Learning each other's form of fighting, weapon of choice, their strongest move. Everything had been noted down by each other and nothing was left out.

So when Hydra had sent the Winter Soldier and his handler Livia Gaston to go and extract some confidential information, they were assured that they would come back victorious.

So right after their training both of them were dropped off about five miles from the compound where the information was contained. They were supplied with a dozen of soldiers to help with the mission, just in case if something were to go wrong.

They knew the five mile journey was going to be a little tough because snow had piled up almost as high as their waists and the wind had picked up speed numbing their exposed skin from where the mask did not cover it.

Their attire was perfect. Heavily insulated so no cold could come in and no heat could go out. The backs of their clothes had clasps that magnetically attracted to their weapons so they could take it out with ease and clasp it back with ease too.

It was only the best for them, after all The Winter Soldier was their greatest invention so far, and they needed to provide him with the best of things to ensure that the mission would be a success.

As for Livia, she could work well with anything that was given to her. Her main goal for every mission was to make sure James was alive, hadn't turned rogue or did something that went against the mission parameters.

But that did not mean she could not help fight, in fact she was more involved in actually completing the missions with him then ever before.

Livia looked out in front of her and she could barely make out the figure of James in his all black armor blending into the dark scenery around them, the only thing that seem to give him away was the glint from his metal arm as the moon shone directly onto it.

She picked up her pace, finally walking in pace with him. He did not even turn to see who it was, because he knew only Livia was the one who could be brave enough to walk side by side with him.