Brock Rumlow made a terrible mistake 15 years ago. The one who had saved his life, he unknowingly condemned to a lifetime of misery by telling his bosses about her.
He had never forgotten the absolute terror he'd felt as he hung upside-down in that flipped over S.U.V., trapped, with the smell of gas and smoke engulfing him. He knew he was going to burn. He knew he was about to die a horrible death, screaming and alone with no one to know what happened.
As he struggled to accept his fate, a miracle happened. His crushed-in door was suddenly opened and he was dragged out and away from a would-be fiery death.
Roughly a year later, while Brock was away on a mission, the girl who had saved his life was captured. As it turned out, she was the only child of a Vietnam War era super-soldier experiment. Seeing what she was put through made him sick to his stomach.
He regretted ever saying anything about her, and had secretly been making plans to get both her and himself away from there. But it was not to be... Nearly four years into her capture, Brock was called away on an important mission, only to come back and discover that she had disappeared.
He never saw or heard from her again.
Then one day, nearly 10 years later, his whole world is upended when he sees her standing in the lobby of S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters!
He was suddenly afraid, afraid for what she might do. She was the only one left alive who knew about his involvement with Hydra. Though he had quit them after she disappeared, Rumlow wasn't sure just how the hell he had escaped detection after those Hydra files were leaked.
After S.H.I.E.L.D. had been rebuilt, Brock stayed with them, helping the Avengers.
But rounding that corner and seeing her there made everything rush back. Then her head turned, locking eyes with him.
What would she do now that she was free?
((All characters except Jesse belong to Marvel. Tags subject to change as story progresses.))
The Long Nights of Winter - An Alternative Bucky Barnes Story
23 parts Complete Mature
23 parts
Complete
Mature
Afghan War army veteran Bucky Barnes has spent the last nine years working as a private investigator, the only job he could get after being found responsible for the deaths of two young boys in Afghanistan. After a year in military prison and a dishonourable discharge he struggled to sustain himself with the odd case tracking a cheating spouse or looking for a lost pet. When his friend, Detective Steve Rogers of the NYPD, asks him to protect Natalie Madison, who witnessed the death of her twin sister at the hands of her boyfriend, he jumps at the chance to show he's up for the job. The two discover evidence of a conspiracy that reached into the highest level of the American military during the Afghan war and still continues to the present day. As they try to uncover the truth that could also overturn Bucky's conviction, betrayals expose them to danger as the boyfriend, Brock Rumlow, and his associates hunt them down. Despite his attempts to keep it professional with his client, Bucky and Natalie find themselves becoming emotionally involved.
This is an original story in an alternate universe using MCU characters in non-MCU roles. All original characters are my own creations. This story has moments of PTSD, violence, and sexuality but focuses on the realities of the relationship between Bucky and Natalie.