Chosen

Epilogue

    Slowly your eyes fluttered open, crimson curtains surrounded you, the soft feel of velvet wrapped around your body. Heavy spices infiltrated your senses as confusion rippled it's way through your body. Slowly you raised your hand to your neck, the coarse bandage wound its way around. You blinked trying to remember how you ended up here, you should be dead. Unless...
     You looked to your left, chocolate locks cascaded down around his face, his scruff longer then you remembered. He sighed in his sleep, lips slightly parted and your heart skipped a beat. Slowly you attempted to sit up and your vision swam, your head felt light with a heavy pounding.
    "Doll, take it easy." Bucky whispered from next you. "You lost a lot of blood."
    "What happened?" You breathed, looking around again before your eyes landed on his.
    "I didn't turn you if that's what you are asking." He replied softly, rolling over to face you.
    "I shouldn't be here, shouldn't be alive." You stressed, a shiver tore its way through your body.
    "It's.. whatever that makes me live on the blood of the living.. whether it's a disease or virus, you have a strain of it." He started, you nodded in agreement remembering what Rumlow had told you already. "When you, when you sliced your neck open on the sword it mutated, going from dormant to active."
     "So?" You questioned, eyes glued to his.
     "It kept you alive, slowed the blood flow from the wound and pulling it in to vital organs. A lot like body heat, the body would give up nonessential parts to keep the core running. The virus reroute blood flow different ways to keep the rest of you alive while it hurried to repair the damage." He explained, you slowly laid back running your hand over the bandage again. "We weren't sure when you'd wake if you would be human or vampire, so we took the precaution in case of infection."
    "Thank you?" You continued to stare up the heavy fabric above the bed, you didn't feel any different then you had before.
    "You willing sacrificed yourself for my family, why?" He asked, slowly you turned your head to face him. Blue eyes filled with pain and confusion.
     "Because they are yours, a part of you and I know you love them. I couldn't imagine them not being here. I know I haven't gotten to know them but they are doing good, willingly taking out the filth of society." You breathed, bring your hand over and linking your fingers in with his. "It was an easy decision, my life for all of them. Their life for mine, it wasn't your call. I couldn't have that on my head, knowing the only reason I lived was they were dead and you'd be a pawn. No."
    "Even Though we are what we are and you are a hunter? You traded your life for ours?" He asked bringing your knuckles to his lips.
     "I was a pawn." You shrugged, looking away from him. "They took me, not because they wanted another hunter, but because they knew one day they could use me. Unfortunately they didn't see how that could backfire."
     "How do you feel now?"
      "Confused.. angry. Very tired but relieved." You sighed as you scooted closer to him, allowing your body to mold into his. "I realized when I got there I made the wrong choice, I knew where I wanted to be but by that point it was too late and Rumlow had me."
    "And where was it you would rather be?" He murmured, kissing the top of your forehead.
     "Here with you." You told him lifting your face, your eyes connected with those blues.
    Bucky leaned in, his lips meeting yours tenderly. You pushed him to his back, feeling the bare skin of his chest beneath your hands. He chuckled into your lips as you straddled his body, your own feeling weak and shaky. He pulled his lips back way from you, feeling your body slump slightly against his.
    "Doll, you're weak. You need to rest." He said softly, wrapping his strong arms around you and rolling you back to the bed. A small whimper escaped you at your disappointment. "I promise though there will be time later."
—-
You woke again later, who knows how much later. Bucky was gone, his side of the bed cold and you rolled off the mattress. Finding something to wear before you left the room, feet unsteady as they made their way to the stairs. You leaned into the wall, bracing your weight against the wood railing. You were out of breath and light headed by the time you reached the base.
Voices filtered through from the parlor, you paused for a moment, the thundering of your heart making it difficult to hear. Taking a couple deep breathes you stepped out to cross the common room, your body feeling heavy on your own. The closer you got the smell of copper overrode anything else, your stomach soured and rumbled as you neared closer. Pausing as your finger tips touched the cool metal of the door knob, you leaned forward resting your forehead against the smooth wood.
"I should sentence you to death." You heard Bucky's voice crisply on the other side of the door. It took everything in you to pull the door open, all eyes trained on you at your sudden intrusion. "Y/n!"
Bucky rushed to you just as your legs gave out, catching you with ease, standing you up right. Your eyes traveled the room, heavy curtains hung over every wall, the bare wood floor stained red, marred by gouges that ran in parallel lines of five. In center knelt Natasha, her head bowed, she was wearing plain clothes and the cotton pants had dark spots from shed tears.
"What are doing?" He asked as you continued to look around. Candles lit, in glass holders along the walls, plush thick sofas lined the edges of the room. In the far corner laid a crumpled up body, skin snow white.
"What's going on?" You asked, eyes finally traveling their way to him.
"Deciding Natasha's future." He told you as he walked you over one of the sofas, gently setting you down.
"Why death?" You questioned looking up at him.
"She betrayed me, put you in danger on more then one accord, thought only of herself and not of the others." He replied simply. You lowered your eyes and nodded, looking over at the red head before looking back up at him.
"So have you." You told him, you watched as his brows furrowed. "And so have I."
"That's different." He remarked looking over at the other woman.
"How?" You asked him, reaching out and taking his hand. "Everything either of us has done has put not only my life in danger but everyone in this room. So if she is sentenced to death, then why shouldn't I?"
"Doll.." Bucky sighed, lifting his hand, slowly trailing a finger across your cheek.
"Let her live." You stated, Natasha's head snapped up. Her cheek glistening as red eyes met yours. "Everyone deserves a second chance."
"Very well." He smiled, sitting down next you on the plush sofa. You watched as the people around you moved out of the room leaving you and the vampire alone again, Natasha flashing a sad soft smile before exiting. "How are you feeling?"
    "Besides like I could sleep for a thousand years?" You half chuckled looking around the empty room. "Hungry but my stomach keeps turning into knots at the thought of food. Like everything is too bright and to loud. Feel like I have to worst hangover."
     "Sweetheart, you need rest." He told you, the scent of him washed over you again and slowly you could pick out the individual scents one by one. The strongest being cloves, relaxing you, allowing you to slowly lay into him.
     "I don't want to sleep." You murmured closing your eyes, allowing yourself to just be. Bucky wrapped his arms around you laying his head on top of yours, closing his own eyes.
    "Would you like Wanda to make you some food?" He asked softly, the thought of food made your stomach sour. And you shook your head. "Would you like to feed?"
    You sat up pulling away from him, his eyes glowing the vibrant blue you had grown to adore. Feeling your own face knot up at his suggestion, Bucky pulled the dagger you had tried to kill him with that first night from his hip. He extended his arm out rolling his sleeve back, then took the blade and pressed it into his flesh pulling back. A thin crimson streak appeared, the scent of copper greeted you making your mouth water.
     "Bucky?" You asked, suddenly confused.
     "It's okay Doll, you've got a lot to learn, and I'll be here to teach you, if you'll let me." He stated, your eyes lifted to meet his. "My pure."
    "There isn't another place or person I'd rather be with." You told him before leaning forward and pressing your lips to his.