| The Amelie Chronicles | (MCU)

Part Three: Chapter Five

"Amelie, we have incoming."

The teen jerked herself awake, looking around trying to figure out where she was and what time it was. Then, she mentally smacked herself.

"Scheisse! How long was I out? Why didn't you wake me?"

"Because you needed to rest. You were tired." Bucky nodded to the rear view mirror, "They found us."

The girl peeked behind her seat, three black vans taking up all three lanes behind them on the highway. Slowly, they were edging closer.

"I wasn't covering us..." Amie hit her head against the headrest, cursing again, "I could have prevented it."

"They would have followed us either way. Where else would we be headed?" Bucky sped up the car, "Are you strapped in, kid? I'm going to try and lose them."

Amie closed her eyes, listening in on the nearby frequencies.

"-we get the girl and the asset... there's no way the Avengers will stand a chance against us. Have transport ready to move to HQ ASAP."

It was Rumlow. The girl turned to Bucky, panic in her eyes.

"They're coming for us. If they get us... they want to use us to prevent the Avengers from tearing Hydra down." Amie explained quickly, her accent thick in her throat as fear rose in her chest.

"We won't let that happen." Bucky kept his eyes on the road, his foot pushing down on the accelerator, trying to put some distance between them and the Hydra vans.

In the distance, three more black vans- letting the traffic pass them until their car was isolated and blocked in. They were blocked from all sides, with two in the front, one on either side, and two in the back.

"Shit." Bucky muttered under his breath, slowing down so they wouldn't hit the vans. Amie gripped the sides of her seats with clammy hands, her eyes wide as they darted around in search of a plan.

"We need to do something." Amie pleaded, "Anything."

"I don't have a weapon... does Sam keep one in the car?"

"No. I meant me. I can do something." Amie turned around in her seat, keeping track of all the vans.

"No. Steve will kill me."

"Then don't tell Steve." Amelie took a deep breath, closing her eyes.

"On three, slam on the brakes-"

"Whatever happens... do not stop driving." Amie said. In her mind she reached out, feeling the presence of all six black vans.

"What the hell-"

The two vans in front slammed on the breaks. Like two Hulks punching down on them, the backs of the trucks were dented and thrown over their car, crushing the two in back of them.

"I didn't know you could do that." Bucky said as he sped the car. They still had the two vans on either side of them, but that was only a third of their prior troubles.

"Me neither..." Amie sighed, wiping the blood from her nose with a tissue from her bag.

"Can you lose the other two?"

"I can try."

Amie twitched her head to the left, which caused the truck on that side to flip over the other three lanes of traffic going in opposite direction- and then land in a ditch on the other side. She turned to the car on the right, which was closest to her.

The passenger behind the driver had the window rolled down, a gun pointed at their front tires. At the sight of the weapon Amie panicked, her head nodding upwards. She yelled, as if pushing the van with her own two hands.

The van flipped over, bouncing on each side until it slid to a halt.

Amie leaned her head back against the headrest, out of breath and tired. Her eyes were drooping, her face pale and sweaty.

"Are they gone?" She whispered, eyes shutting with exhaustion.

"Yes. They're gone." Bucky nodded, "Sit tight."

"Good." She smiled to herself, drifting off to well-needed sleep.

They arrived in New York barely three hours later. It was mid morning, and the sun was peaking through the sky scrapers of the city. Amelie had stayed fast asleep, curling herself into a ball, balling her hands into the long sleeves of her sweatshirt.

Everyone was waiting for them at the Tower, lined up in the underground parking garage like the team of superheroes they were.

"Is that my car?" Sam asked, giving the assassin a raised brow of disapproval.

Bucky tossed him the keys, "Yeah. Sorry... it was Amelie's idea."

"There better not be a scratch on it. It's a lease!" Sam shook his head. Steve nudged his friend, who then cleared his throat, "Glad you're both okay, though."

"Seriously, Birdie, you lease this? I can get you way better for pocket change." Tony walked up the Bucky and offered a hand, "Glad you're not killing people anymore."

Bucky stiffened, "Me too."

"How's Amie?" Steve asked, nodding the girl still knocked out in the passenger seat.

"She's sleeping" Bucky explained, "We ran into a Hydra crew in Jersey. She was able to stop them... literally. I told her not to, but she's damn stubborn."

"Yeah, she is." Steve chuckled, "Glad you're both okay, though."

"I am Thor, God of Thunder, and the strongest Avenger." Thor said, causing Bucky to awkwardly shake his hand. The others chuckled at the god's remark, as if he pulled this stunt a lot.

"Bucky." Said the former assassin.

"We've met. On several occasions." Natasha said, "Natasha."

"We haven't met. I've heard a lot about you.
I'm Clint." Said the archer with a causal wave.

"Dr. Bruce Banner." Said the scientist, shaking the hand of the former assassin.

"Glad everyone is acquainted. Let's head inside. We have a meeting with Fury at eleven." Tony announced as he headed inside. Some followed, but Steve and Nat stayed behind.

"It was a bad idea to have you two stay behind." Steve admitted, "I should have known they'd be watching the apartment."

"It's okay. No one could have been certain." Bucky shrugged, blinking the tiredness out of his bloodshot eyes, "Any chance there's a place in that big building to sleep?"

"Yeah." Steve nodded to the redhead, "Nat could you show him up?"

"Follow me, Sergeant Barnes. Quite a few floors to travel." Natasha nodded her head in the direction of the door, already starting the walk.

"And Buck," Steve smiled at his friend, "Thank you for looking out for her."

Bucky returned the grin, "Please, Steve, she was looking out for me more than I was for her."

With that, the two headed inside. Steve opened the passenger door, where Amie was still sound asleep. Her hands were clutched around the burner phone, her feet tucked underneath her. Some spots of blood poked through the bandages around her ankle- she must have reopened the wound when she was running from Hydra.

Carefully the Captain picked her up, and carried her inside, glad that the girl was safe.