BATTLE BORN ; Bucky Barnes

twenty ; one

"What's gonna happen to your friends, what's going to happen to that kid?" Bucky asked. Steve stared down at Scout, heavybrowed. He sighed and shook his head.
"Whatever it is... I'll deal with it." He said.
"I don't know if I'm worth all this, Steve." Bucky looked at Scout, the blood on her forehead as she lay unconscious on the floor of the jet.
"What you did all those years... It wasn't you. You didn't have a choice."
"I know. But I did it." Bucky said. He bent down, stroking a strand of hair off Scout's forehead. She'd gone to war for him, she'd given her life for him at least five times over. She was the most important thing in his life right now, a new start. Of course Steve would be his best friend, they'd shared a life together before the world war, but Scout, she was a symbol of a fresh start. He scooped her up and placed her on the bench.
"Scout's something alright." Steve said, a knowing smile on his face.
"What do you mean?"
"Have you never realised? She was raised by our Peggy, she took the weight of an entire building once to make sure three people got out. She dove into the river after you, she likes to think she isn't loyal, she likes to be a mystery wrapped in an enigma, but she will lay her life down for the sake of others, I'm almost ashamed at myself for how I treated her after New York." Steve said. Bucky wanted to ask about New York, but he knew that here was neither the time nor place. He looked back down at her, even though the blood and grime he could see her features clearly.
"And she's beautiful..." Bucky said quietly.

;

Steve piloted the Quinjet into land besides Zemo's caterpillar truck on the remote icy mountain top. The jet's wings folded up beside the fuselage.
On board Bucky pulled out rack of guns labeled 'Romanoff'. He took a light machine gun.
"You remember that time we had to ride back from Rockaway Beach in the back of that freezer truck?" Steve asked.
"Was that the time we used our train money to buy hot dogs?"
"You blew three bucks trying to win that stuffed bear for a redhead."
"What was her name again?" Bucky mused.
"Dolores. You called her Dot." Steve answered.
"She's gotta be a hundred years old right now."
"So are we, pal." She said, clamping his hand on Bucky's shoulder.
"Should we leave her here or..?" Bucky asked.
"No, if we leave her behind we'll never hear the end of it, you should wake her up but give her the option to stay." Steve ordered, grabbing his helmet as Bucky leant down. He shook her shoulder gently.
"Scout, we've arrived, we're going in, but you can st-." Bucky didn't even get to finish his sentence, Scout sat bolt upright.
"I'm coming with you." She said. The three of them descended the ramp onto the icy mountain.
"He can't have been here more than a few hours" Steve said.
"Long enough to wake them up." Bucky warned. Steve lead them into the cast bunker. They traveled down into the depths inside a caged elevator. Scout's heart rate rose, anxiety flooded her system. Something was off. She didn't like it, her gut feelings were almost always correct. The elevator stopped in the very centre of the bunker, and the doors slid open, rattling dangerously loud. Steve nodded to Bucky and the two of them heaved up the cage door. Scout had collected a small gun, and readied it at the room that was about to be revealed. Nothing. The silence only made Scout more nervous. With his shield up, Cap lead the way, followed by Scout, who had her machine gun trained at the walls, ready to shoot first and ask questions later. Bucky brought up the back, another machine gun was in his hands, allowing more protection. The three of them walked along a corridor, keeping close to a wall. Bucky looked into an alcove full of junk then he, Scout and Steve moved on up a flight of stairs. At the sound of a loud thud they spind around, aiming down the corridor.
"You ready?" Steve said.
"Yeah." Bucky whispered, and Scout nodded. The double doors parted, forced open by Iron Man. Steve stared in surprise. Tony walked toward Steve,  Bucky and Scout, and she lowered her gun ever so slightly. Tony retracted the suit's helmet.
"You seem a little defensive." He said. Bucky kept his gun up, while Steve and Scout walked ahed to meet Tony with his shield covering their bodies.
"It's been a long day." Steve said.
"At ease, Soldier. I'm not currently after you."
"Then why are you here?" Scout asked.
"Could be your story's not so crazy. Maybe. Ross has no idea I'm here. I'd like to keep it that way. Otherwise, I gotta arrest myself." Scout smirked.
"Well, that sounds like a lot of paperwork." Steve lowered his shield. "It's good to see you, Tony."
"You too, Cap, Scout." He said, then looked to Bucky. "Hey, Manchurian Candidate, you're killing me. There's a truce here. You can drop..." Scout looked at Bucky and nodded. James lowered his weapon. In two-by-two formation, the four of them cautiously walked along a dark corridor. With his helmet and face plate reengaged, Tony led the others towards the enormous chamber with the capsules standing in it.
"I got heat signatures."
"How many?" Scout asked.
"Uh, one." Tony said in confusion. As they entered the vast chamber the lights came on. Hazy, yellow mist descended within the capsules. Scout looked around, she had vowed to fix up a lot of places in her time, but not here. Never here. If she could help it, she wouldn't even consider ever coming back. The large room reminded her too much of where she spent the first six years of her life. It was horrifying. She looked at the chambers, each one contained an enhanced Soldier from the experiment. Each one had had a bullet through their head, shot, assassination style.
"If it's any comfort, they died in their sleep. Did you really think I wanted more of you?" Scout recognised the voice, it was the interrogator from the UN bunker.
"What the hell?" Bucky said.
"Who are you?" Scout added.
"I'm grateful to them, though. They brought you here." The man that the voice belonged to appeared in a control room. That still didn't answer Scout's question of who he was. Steve hurled his shield but it flew back. "Please, Captain. The Soviets built this chamber to withstand the launch blast of UR-100 rockets."
"I'm betting I could beat that." Tony said.
"Oh, I'm sure you could, Mr. Stark. Given time. But then you'd never know why you came."
"You killed innocent people in Vienna just to bring us here?" Scout said, anger in her eyes.
"Scout." Steve said, placing a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. "She's right though, why did you bring us here?"
"I thought about nothing else for over a year. I studied you. I followed you. But now that you're standing here, I just realized... there's a bit of green in the blue of your eyes. How nice to find a flaw."
"You're Sokovian. Is that what this is about?" Steve asked, ignoring the creepy statement.
"Sokovia was a failed state long before you blew it to hell. No. I'm here because I made a promise."
"You lost someone?" Scout asked.
"I lost everyone. And so will you." He said, pressing a button, a screen lit up, it was some sort of surveillance footage. December 16th 1991. The four of them stepped closer to the screen.
"An empire toppled by its enemies can rise again. But one which crumples from within? That's dead... forever." The man monologued.
"I know that road. What is this?" The video began to play. There was a car, it was being followed by a man on a motorbike. The motorbike forced the car off the road and into a tree. Scout let out a gasp. She watched Tony's face for any signs of recognition. Tony watched intently as the Winter Soldier rode up and got off his motorbike. Scout watched Tony's increasing unease. The driver lay on the ground beside the car.
"Howard." Scout whispered. She'd heard stories of his playboy ways from her Aunt Peggy.
"Help my wife. Please. Help." Howard's voice could be heard. The Winter Soldier walked over and hoisted him up by his hair. He stared at Howard's bloody face. Howard stared back pleadingly.
"Sergeant Barnes?" Scout knew, but she didn't want it to be true.
"Howard! Howard!" Maria's voice called out. Scout knew what happened next. She looked to Tony as he closed his eyes for a moment. On screen his father slumped dead. The Winter Soldier put him in the driver's seat with his face against the stearing wheel. Tony stared in horror. Scout stared in horror at Tony. The Winter Soldier walked around to the passenger side and gripped throat, Scout knew the feelings that Maria would have had. She'd been at the end of the metal arm before, Expressionless the Winter Soldier strangled Maria. Tony watched the screen stunned. The Winter Soldier walked up and aimed a gun at the surveillance camera. Scout watched Tony anxiously. Tony lunged towards Bucky, but Steve stepped in stopping him in his tracks.
"Tony. Tony." Steve said, trying to keep it together.
"Did you know?" Tony said, barely above a whisper.
"I didn't know it was him." Steve said. Scout watched on in horror as the small tears in the fabric of her makeshift family were torn further apart.
"Don't bullshit me, Rogers! Did you know?"
"Yes." Steve said. Scout almost turned to tears as her makeshift family finalised their divorce.