HI! I'm Coffi and this is my first Marvel fic as well as my first fic on this account (Brand Spankin' New). I hope you all enjoy this. I'm a huge Marvel fan(ever since i picked up my first Marvel comic) and thought maybe I could take a go at actually writing a fic for it. So , Yea, read and maybe review?
Prologue
"Natasha I'm just not sure it's the best plan of action" Steve tried to explain as he walked down the hall beside the ex-assassin. The team had been in the process of starting up a new S.H.I.E.L.D a better S.H.I.E.L.D, and it was going pretty well.
"Steve, I know what I'm doing, she's perfect for the job" the red head insisted, quickening her pace to keep up with the super soldier.
"SHE?!"
"Yes, she, and SHE is highly trained in hand to hand combat, a master knifes man and has a masters in communications. She's perfect "she explained enthusiastically, with a side grin. Steve remained silent for a moment. Then, stopping as they reached the end of the hall he sighed and turned to the petite woman beside him.
"I just think we should take some time and rethink our options" he said staring down at her.
"You know, as well as I do that we don't have any other options. Everyone's busy saving the world or rebuilding the new S.H.I.E.L.D". She gestured down the hallway of the large building they were standing in. "And it's imperative we get started on this as soon as possible." She added
Steve sighed again, running a hand through his short hair. Natasha smiled placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Trust me, she's a friend" she then opened the door and walked in, Steve following not too far behind.
The room was empty, a large desk and black chair were set up in near the middle of the farther wall. A meeting table with around 8 chairs circling it was placed off to the left. Steve raised an eyebrow.
"A friend huh?" He asked looking down at Natasha.
Natasha pursed her lips as she looked up at the man "mhmm, master knifes man, skilled in hand to hand combat, communications wiz..." She began. As Steve stared at her scoldingly, a dark figure dropped behind him. "And also... pretty bad ass when it comes to stealth" she smirked, crossing her arms.
"Well, I thought we were friends as well cap but... Maybe I misread our last encounter "Steve jumped slightly before turning swiftly to meet the shadowed figure. "But no, that can't be right, because, I'm never wrong" the voice said followed by a short giggle. The figure stepped closer to him.
She stood around 5'6, slightly larger than Natasha, with a more athletic build; she looked young probably in her early 20's.
She was wearing dark brown ankle boots, her black skinnies tucked into the cuffs of them and hugging her long legs tightly. It was topped off with an army green lightweight jacket with a drawstring tie in the middle, hugging her waist tightly, the green of her jacket contrasting gracefully with her caramel skin. Her hair was dark brown with a few natural highlights of auburn here and there. It was pulled into a low ponytail ending between her shoulder blades; a few stray strands fell at either side of her face.
She grinned at the man, her brown eyes glinting at him as his eyes adjusted to try and recognize her.
"Aleigra?" He asked cautiously, she grinned in response.
"Hey cap, long time no see" she laughed moving to wrap her arms around the large man. He leaned down and grabbed her in return, then picking her up to straighten his back.
Steve had met the young woman a little while after New York. A longtime friend of Natasha's, she was rather enthusiastic upon meeting The Captain America. And although she was barely of age to drink, she was avidly interested in the whole "saving the world thing", as she put it. At the time, she still had some loose ends to tie up overseas, which was the last time he'd seen her.
"Now try and tell me she isn't perfect for the job " Natasha nudged him as they broke their embrace. Steve grunted in response. He looked down at the young woman; he had seen what she could do. At one time accompanying Natasha on missions in her pre-S.H.I.E.l.D days, she was ranked above most in her level, as well as a few in higher levels than her. She had the ability yes, but-
"I just don't think-"
"Come on cap, it's basically a babysitting job right?" The brunette asked a smile itching one side of her mouth. Steve rolled his shoulders a bit at the question, turning and walking about the room.
Both women caught his discomfort and Natasha stepped in.
"It's a little more... complicated, than that" she explained. Aleigra raised an eyebrow glancing over at the hero who was looking out the window, his back turned to them.
"Like, the person is unpredictable and dangerous?" She asked, her tone hinting that she's handled worse.
"Like, he's my best friend, and has been brainwashed for the last 70 years" Steve murmured, from his spot by the window, only turning his head to glance over at her. She kept a blank expression, taking time to read him. His shoulders held tight and his breathing seemed thick. Stress and uncertainty. But why?
The room was silent for a while, an air of discomfort making its way around the area. Aleigra took a quick breath, pushing the stray hairs behind her ears before moving over to him.
"Hey, trust me, I can handle this, and who better than a friend to handle another friend?" She whispered up at him, a small smile following. Steve took a final deep sigh, his blue eyes meeting her brown. He could swear he saw a glint in them. "I work for free" she grinned, causing a small smile to form on the hero's face.
"...Alright" he finally said, both women smiled "BUT, there's a major detail you should probably know about before you solidify your decision" he warned.
"Well I doubt you can change my mind but shoot" she shrugged.
Steve hesitated and exchanged glances with Natasha who had made her way over to the two. Aleigra raised an eyebrow at the two.
"Any day now" she joked.
Steve nodded at the red head, who then turned to her friend.
"He's the Winter Soldier."
Aleigra P.O.V
"He's the Winter Soldier" Nat said, I tried to read her in hopes that maybe it was a joke.
All signs pointed to a big ol' nope.
We eventually moved to sit at the table in the room. I continued to read Steve as Nat went to the desk near the back wall. He wringed his hands together slowly, and the slight vibration I felt coming from the other side of the table showed he was shaking one leg. Nerves, sure signs of them, which meant what they were saying, was true.
The Winter Soldier? I have to 'babysit' THE WINTER SOLDIER. The same guy who supposedly got a bullet through Nat?
I mean, I love a challenge, but, I always thought he was just a myth, an eerie story that made its way around the spy community. Guess I was wrong. This guy had supposedly done a lot of things over the last seventy years but was still young? How could that be possible? I glanced back up at the man sitting across from me.
Well, I guess anything's possible.
Nat finally returned to the table sliding a thick file over to me as she sat down.
They both stared at me, patiently waiting for me to open it. I looked down at the item placed before me. The cover was written all over, mainly in German script. I stared down at the faded tan folder. Parts of the corners glossy with what could only be caused by the oil of constant fingering. The ink had long since faded, but I could still make out a bit of what it said.
Hydra-Subject-Cryo
I tried my best not to change my facial expression as I slowly opened the folder. An enlarged photo of a sleeping man, frost tinting him as well as his surroundings, was paper clipped to the inside of the first page.
A smaller photo, obviously outdated in its sepia glory, was paper clipped to the bottom right corner of the first photo. It held the image of another man, bearing similar traits to the man in the first photo. He wore what looked to be a brown suit with a matching hat, a get up assigned to those of Sergeant rank back in the early 40's, if I did recall right. He had a slight grin edging at one corner of his mouth.
I took less time turning to the next page, quickly reading over the information. I scanned every sentence thoroughly before resting my eyes on a few selective details.
ID number 3-2-5-5-7*
"James Buchanan Barnes" I muttered to myself as I flipped through the following pages. Slightly engrossed in the information I now had in my possession, I failed to hear the clearing of throats.
"ALEIGRA!" Nat finally caught my attention. I slammed the file shut quickly, before looking back up at the two sitting along with me. I grinned slightly at my embarrassment.
"S-sorry"
The two then began a short debriefing of just what exactly I would be doing in my assignment. Both rattled off details and goals that I only half had my attention on. I had reopened the file and continued to read about the man I would soon be spending a lot of time with.
James Buchanan Barnes
About 2 hours later, we had finished our meeting and stood to head our separate ways for the evening. I was allowed to take the file home and study up on it in preparation for meeting the man in question the next day.
I placed it in my bag and began my journey home.
Making my way out the extended exit of where we met and my new apartment I took a little time to think things over. What I had gotten myself into was just what the doctor ordered. I wanted to do some good, help others, but wasn't just yet ready to have everyone shooting at me again.
I walked home, opting out of taking a cab or the bus, a ten minute ride ,turned to maybe a half hour walk.
I smiled as I took in the humid air of the calm spring evening. I hadn't lived in New York for very long, 2 months Saturday to be exact, and I was still getting used to the slowness of it. It was calmer than what I was used to, and I guess that's saying something about my previous life, but it's also what I liked it about this new place. Calm never managed to really fit into my hectic life, and to think I finally got to experience it brewed a beautiful feeling in the pit of my stomach.
I looked up to the sky, the lights of the stark tower blocking any chance of stars. Stark, they mentioned him in the meeting, the notorious head of Stark industries, as well as active member of the avengers. Iron Man I think. I'd be meeting him along with a few of the others tomorrow. Can't say I'm not at least a little excited. These guys took on an alien race led by a god of Asgard. Pretty bad ass.
After little whiles longer of taking in the city, I finally made it to the apartment building I called home. Reaching into my bag I pulled out my set of keys and entered the building. It was a pretty nice place, I didn't want anything too fancy, and I wasn't too fancy to begin with. No doorman, no people there to park my car, or better yet, no one to park my car, if it existed.
The lobby was nice, a bit outdated, but they kept it clean. There were a few couches and arm chairs, floral print of course. A nice sized coffee table sat in the middle of the room, between the couches. Like I said nothing special.
My neighbors were nice. Though I had only met a few of them.
There was the owner of the building and his wife, the Lyons. A cute old couple in their 60's who lived on the first floor. They gave me a good deal on rent, but the wife was a little too interested in my love life, especially for someone who has only known me a few weeks. She insisted that i should meet her son, and that "we would really hit it off". I laughed to myself at the memory.
I made my way past the inboxes labeled for each member of the building, I didn't bother to check what I knew would be empty. Instead, I stepped on to the elevator. Pressing the button labeled 6 I watched as the doors closed and proceeded to move upward. I tapped my foot impatiently as i waited to reach my floor.
The car slowed to a stop as it hit the third floor. I silently prayed for deliverance from what exactly happened next.
On to the car stepped Ronnie, the thirty something menace to my well-being. He was about the same height as me and sported every name brand I could name and then some. I met him the second night after I moved in. Although there were washers and dryers on all the floors, the third had the best dryers. He wasn't doing laundry, just hanging around the areas like some desert lizard, attracted to the dampness of a wet towel. I introduced myself as common courtesy, but he hasn't left me alone since.
I rolled my eyes pressing myself to the far corner of the car, maybe I'd become invisible if I thought hard enough. A sly grin crossed his face as he caught sight of me.
"Alana!" His gruff voice boomed as he stepped over to me.
"It's Aleigra" I corrected pushing myself closer to the furnished wall of the elevator. A strange stench filled the once clear air. I barred the idea of wrinkling my nose in disgust.
"Are you sure? I'm positive it's Alana" he grinned, the whiteness of his teeth nearly blinding. What a contradiction.
"No, it's Aleigra, I'm uh, I'm pretty sure" I retorted lowly rummaging through my bag for any form of a distraction.
"If you say so" He shrugged at me as the door shut behind him. "So, anyway" he dragged on, leaning against the wall barely two inches from me." About that date we talked about last week" he continued, flashing another toothy smile. The elevator was moving too slow.
"Ronald you're old enough to be my father" I murmured keeping my eyes on the numbers at the top of the door; we had just reached the 6th floor. I quickly made my way out of the elevator and down the hall. To my dismay, he followed. I held off on taking out my keys, instead standing by my door.
"It's Ronnie, baby" he winked at me "and you're exaggerating girl, you're like 26 right?" he asked, leaning over me and resting his arm on the wall right above my head.
"23 Ronald, we go over this every time you talk to me" I sighed, looking off down the hallway.
"See we're not that far apart, we're babes of the same era" he laughed. Where was a gas mask when I needed one?
"Now why don't I come in and we can talk about locations, and who would pay what?" he continued. I looked away for a moment before a quick thought popped into my mind.
"How old ARE you exactly, Ronald?" I turned to meet his eyes. A quick twitch hit his body, one, followed by it tensing up all together, two. I smirked awaiting his reply. He swallowed hard, his Adams apple struggled to move up and down, and three.
"I- uh" he stammered as the ding of the elevator sounded. His body loosened as he scurried off down the hall.
"I'll talk to you later Aliyah" he called as he rounded the corner to his getaway.
I sighed in relief as I turned around to face my door, reaching into my bag to grab my keys once more. The sound of children's music faintly playing behind made me smile.
The woman who lived across from me, Beth I think, was pretty nice. She had two kids, a 14 year old boy and a three year old little girl, Jason and Bella. Nice family, dad wasn't in the picture as far as I knew, but I didn't really care to pry too deeply into her life. At least not yet.
Finally getting my door open I stepped into the dark apartment. Not bothering to turn anything on I kicked off my shoes and moved quickly to the larger bedroom of the apartment. Walking past the other room which was acting as storage for the few belongings I had yet to unpack, i really did luck up on this place. I'd have to do something nice for that little old man and woman.
Opening the door to my room, I switched on my light and smiled lovingly at my bed, it was all don up with a few decorative pillows, matching the plush black and white comforter. I always fixed it before I left. The rest of the house could be in total disarray, hell the whole world could be, but as long as my bed was fixed it was okay.
I climbed right on top of the blankets, and propped up the pillows so I could sit up straight. Pulling my bag up near me as I sat Indian style, I reached in and pulled out the file. I had a lot of studying to do before tomorrow.
A/N :
*I'm not completely sure of Bucky's dog tag number, but in the movie , those were the few numbers he listed off when he was getting rescued
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See ya next chapter! in..
The man with the metal arm