Target [Winter Solider/Bucky Barnes short story]

11.

(Oh god, I seriously think this is the end. Nah, just kidding, I think I'll split the end into two chapters - 9/1)

HYDRA found us again. It had been months, but they did, mind James and I were prepared. We had a few others on our side. Those others being Captain America and Eli.

They came during the day, when we were just getting back from an afternoon movie date. Cliche, I know, but it was a great movie.

The first thing that should have given us a warning was the back of my neck had been burning all day. I had passed it off as nothing though, and that would be my first of three mistakes.

When we arrived home, German voices uttered commands I couldn't understand. The commands were repeated in Russian, and again in English.

"Winter Soldier, you have failed your mission. Return to headquarters and leave the girl for us."

James refused. He told me he would never leave me, not unless I wanted him to. That was his first mistake.

It seemed HYDRA would play a game with us, we were each allowed three mistakes. If we made four, we died, and each of us had used one.

So we fought. We fought like hell.

I lunged at the nearest agent, taking them down easily. The next wouldn't go down as quickly, he was stronger and faster.

He swung a fist at me, connecting a hit to my jaw. I took three more hits, to the stomach, nose, and jaw again. He took five hits, two to the nose, one to the groin, one to the stomach, and one to the jaw. Then he pulled a knife and slashed at me.

That was my second mistake, getting cut with the knife.

To my knowledge, HYDRA hadn't ever stooped as low as to poisoning their knifes, but this one was laced with a drug that caused pure pain. And god did that knife hurt.

James ended up taking that agent down as I faced a different opponent.

It appeared as if we were evenly matched, but HYDRA had the upper hand. We were alone at this point and neither of us were willing to take the risk of calling for help. And, by some miracle, we didn't have to call for help. Captain Rogers had planned on dropping off a book he borrowed from me, and I thank sanity he had because James and I had taken quite the beating and Were running out of time.

James made his second mistake when we thought the fight had ceased for a moment, he kissed me for a brief moment. But the moment was long enough for him to take a bullet to the shoulder.

Seeing him hurt made me go into some blind rage that honestly scared me a bit. I forced the agents down, content with using my powers to flatten them against the pavement, but Captain Rogers stopped me. That would make up for my second mistake.

So there we stood, three against a small army of psychotic idiots that knew no better than to follow their leader.

(Cliffhanger? Word count: 528)