Sane // A Winter Soldier Story

chapter eighteen // prepare

••

"And I know what's on your mind -- God knows I put it there." -Cold Arms by Mumford and Sons

••

《Athena》

James was fading fast. His bout as the Winter Soldier had clearly exhausted him, and he could hardly keep his eyes open. Not even an hour after Athena and Steve had first come in, James fell fast asleep in his hospital bed, much to Athena's contentedness.

Athena and Steve left his room the second they had noticed him asleep, not wanting to disturb him. It was good that he fell asleep anyway, because while Athena had decided to leave work early today to get some rest, she still had quite a bit to do concerning James' court case before she would be allowed to leave.

She checked the time as her and Steve headed back towards her office. James' lawyer had scheduled a meeting here in thirty minutes, and she was due to meet with him for a little while before he met with James himself. And before the lawyer arrived, she needed to get some of her evidence in order, and finish the statement she'd spent the last couple of weeks writing.

This 'statement' of hers wasn't an actual statement she would make -- it was more so what Athena wanted the lawyer to say in the closing. She wanted to make sure that the jury not only understood that James was an unwilling participant in his crimes, but also that he was a war veteran -- and that this lifetime of suffering had all come about because of a decision he'd made as a kid growing up in an era of war. He'd simply wanted to serve his country, and instead he had not only been taken advantage of, but had been physically and mentally tortured to the point where he could no longer remember even his own name.

James had enlisted as a young man who loved his country. How could anyone possibly punish that same young man for what happened to him afterwards?

Athena felt so strongly about James' story that she couldn't comprehend how someone could ever call this man a criminal once having gotten to know him. Although, if she thought about it, it was extremely likely that ever since Bucky had gotten himself back, the only person to ever try and get to know him had been Athena. And in that case, Athena was his only hope for him getting free.

But she was extremely worried that the jury would not decide that James was innocent. This was a very risky case already, and whatever the jury decides will likely be met with backlash from the public. If they decide he's not guilty, the jury will be met with harsh criticism, and likely some violent protests will break out. Technically, they should let him go free, because none of this was his doing or his fault. But how can they let him go free -- how can they tell the people that he is not guilty -- when technically he was the one who had physically committed all those crimes? The general public would not understand, and would be outraged.

Athena needed something huge -- a massive piece of evidence that would, without a doubt, convince the entire jury that something wasn't quite right...and something that, once released, would convince the whole goddamn world that James Buchanan Barnes was nothing more than the world's longest serving prisoner of war.

And as she sat down in her desk chair, Steve once again sitting across from her, a thought popped in to her mind. She suddenly knew exactly what piece of evidence she needed.

But she didn't know if she had it in her to use it.

However, her train of thought was promptly broken by an exaggerated sigh from the chair in front of her, and her eyes snapped up to Steve's. "What are you thinking about now, Athena?"

Athena tried to feign ignorance. "What?" She asked innocently, her mind still half trapped in the world of James Buchanan Barnes. Steve gave her a look.