Monster [Book One]

Chapter 5

Just watched Captain America 2 again and I just realized that when Peggy says “The world has changed, and none of us can go back.  All we can do is our best, and sometimes, the best that we can do, is to start over,” she then loses her memory of that fact that Steve is there, that he’s alive, and that he’s there to see her and it just gave me a lot of feels because it’s a beautifully tragic transition.  On that cheery note, enjoy!

Chapter Quote:

“The world has changed, and none of us can go back.  All we can do is our best, and sometimes, the best that we can do, is to start over.”

~Peggy Carter in Captain America The Winter Soldier

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Chapter 5

Four years passed by, and I’d taken care of the Winter Soldier on twelve occasions.  I’d kept specific track of all the times I’d seen him and when HYDRA wiped his mind.  They’d wiped his mind four times, once per year.  But somehow, even after it, the Winter Soldier would still allow me to come near him and take care of him.  And only me.  It was this strange allowance he gave me that made me start to wonder what his real name was.  Where had he come from?  How old was he?  I wanted answers, and answers I was going to get.

On the computer, I had access to only very primitive files on the Winter Soldier, just past procedures that had been performed.  But there were other files in that folder, ones that I didn’t have access to, ones I needed a password to get into.  I didn’t know what was in them, but I intended to find out.  This is where my dad’s special skill came into play.  No one could beat him at hacking into others’ computers, but he’d taught me enough that I knew I’d be adept enough to break into at least some of these files.

I went to work, downloading the file onto a USB drive and hightailing it out of the Triskelion.  Once back at my flat, the process of breaking into the files was tedious, at times making me want to punch through the computer screen and say screw it.  The hacking took well over six hours total.  Between cracking each protection code and taking short breaks, it’s amazing it took just six hours.  But finally, my work paid off and the files were accessible.  They were all under codenames still so I just clicked on random ones.  The first one I clicked on happened to be the one I’d been looking forward to the most: who the Winter Soldier actually was.  The file was surprisingly short:

Name: James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes

Age: 28

Height: 180 cm

Weight: 78 kg

Born: 1917

Hometown: Brooklyn, New York

Notes:

- Served in the American Army in the 107th

- Rose to the ranks of Sergeant

- Oldest child of four

- Served as a Howling Commando

- “Killed In Action” while on a mission to capture Arnim Zola

- Tested on by Arnim Zola before being retrieved by Captain America

- Retested on by Arnim Zola after train fall; given metal arm

- Excels both physically and academically

- Captain America’s best friend