Never read the comics (want to) but I know Natasha loses her memories of Bucky at some point and all that jazz. I'M NOT FOLLOWING THAT PLOT. Here she knows who he is, and vice versa. Bucky doesn't remember who Steve is. Post Avengers. I hope you enjoy.
Disclaimer: MARVEL owns the characters and some objects. I just toy with them a bit.
I Knew Him
Natasha watched as Steve began walking down the corridor on the right. His grip on the gun S.H.I.E.L.D. provided him tightened, his body tensing in anticipation of any unexpected attack from their current enemy.
The image of her mission partner wasn't complete though. The star spangled uniform was bright as always but the shield, that nowadays many children had plastic replicas of, was missing. Captain America without his shield.
The object was stolen from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s facilities, under the noses of thousands of extremely trained agents. Nick Fury could've very well killed them all when he found out. Steve just stood perplexed for a moment and proceeded to ask questions the next.
The search for the Captain's shield started immediately. Security footage had been thoroughly looked at and the scene examined for even the tiniest detail.
She, Steve Rogers, and Clint Barton moving stealthily through different corridors in a Russian warehouse was the result of that investigation.
Black Widow sat beside Captain America at the conference table in the helicarrier. They'd been called in after the shield was stolen; Director Fury and Agent Hill were filling them in.
"…cameras recorded this feed of the room that held Captain Rogers' uniform..," the flat screen behind the man lit up, showing said room and a figure clad in black clothes, along with a mask covering the lower half of his face, shamelessly taking the famous shield.
Steve leaned on the table, his eyes scrutinizing the thief. "What's that on his arm?" he said.
Natasha opted for revising the event's report, searching for any details that could be overlooked. She was turning to the second page when Fury's voice tuned in again, his words making her hands freeze.
"The Winter Soldier. We ran that symbol through every possible database and several from East Europe confirmed the guy's identity. Not a real name, but there weren't any other aliases. He's wanted for several murders…"
At that moment, Natasha zoned out, memories coming afloat.
It was him.
James.
James Buchanan Barnes.
And of course she told them.
"Nat, the building's clear ahead", Clint's voice came through her earpiece. God knew where he was, he'd separated from them a while ago. The vents, perhaps?
"Not worried about that particularly".
She kept a steady pace, observing every inch of floor, wall, and empty space surrounding her. The brightness of her flashlight illuminated just a couple of meters in front of her. Paint had peeled off the walls a long time ago. It was eerily quiet. Only the soft, almost inaudible, sound of her footsteps disturbed the silence.
"Barton. Update on Rogers if you have one", she whispered into her comm. She waited for a response but it didn't come.
Her voice cracked a little, "Barton, Rogers, copy".
She reached an opening leading to a large room, darkness present there too. Her eyes moved to look back, with only a gulp showing her worry as she weighed her options. She could go back and search for them, but that wasn't protocol. Or keep going. As much as she felt she should turn around, the mission had to continue.
Her confidence faltered a little as she dove behind columns and shelves, an abnormal sense of uneasiness trickling down her spine. None of her partners had contacted her in several minutes. The logical reasoning was that they'd been either captured or couldn't speak without giving away their position; she wanted to believe it was the latter, but she'd trained and worked enough with Barnes to know what he was capable of. And, boy, did he have advantage over them...
A shadow hurried away on her left side and Natasha's hand fired the gun in the opposite direction, a surprised grunt of pain confirming the destination of the bullet. More figures began jumping out of their hiding places, sporting all sorts of weaponry. Her reflexes kicked in and she diverted multiple attacks with swift but asserted moves.
Kick. Duck. Move sideways. Punch. Avoid gun. Unbalance man. Shoot. Duck. Throw another kick. Slam against wall. Shoot behind. Take cover. Shoot. Shoot. Pain.
The force of the blow against her temple blurred her vision, disorienting her, a pounding inside her head. She tried to focus but another hit came; however, Black Widow fought the urge to pass out. She'd endured harder beatings, why was this throwing her off balance so quickly and easily?
She felt them wrapping handcuffs around her wrists and rope around her ankles. A blindfold followed and she was sitting on a chair the next moment.
"Glad you could join us. Natalia." His breath was on her ear. He slowly uncovered her eyes, his fingers brushing and lingering on her cheeks.
She was brought out of the haze by a muffled yelp on the ground in front of her. Barton had a wince on his face and was moving his shoulder in an attempt to reduce the pain. Rogers sat stoically not far from her position, but his clenched jaw gave away his discomfort.
"Very well, gentlemen and lady, of course. I would say we're ready for a chat" James Barnes said whilst he circled the captives.
None of the three Avengers replied.
"Come now. Surely you have something to say? I stole Captain America's precious shield and he's silent" he looked at his former best friend expectantly, but again, no answer came.
He turned to Clint and smirked "Oh, archer, my men might've broken your bow. Not sorry." Hawkeye shot him a murderous look and struggled against his bindings.
"Good, we almost got a response… did you tell them about me? Everything you know, Natalia?" he didn't face her though and neither did he wait for an answer. Barnes was looking at Steve once more, his bionic hand curled up in a fist. He caught the captain glancing at his metal limb curiously and he moved it sideways so he could have a better look. "You like it? Bionic arm. Beats the human one sometimes." He moved to stand behind Clint, "For instance, if I wanted to choke a certain person," he wrapped his hand around Hawkeye's throat, "the job is done in less than half a minute."
"Stop" Steve said, worry etched on his face as his partner started turning blue, "Bucky, you don't want to kill him."
Natasha bit her lip unconsciously; there was no point on using that nickname, James didn't remember any of it.
Barnes released his hold, patting Clint on the top of his head as the archer coughed and gasped for air. "Really?" he asked and crossed his arms, "Well, then, maybe I want to kill you. Or her."
Rogers shook his head, a lazy smile on his face "You don't. Much less her."
"Is that so? Does Captain America think he knows me?"
"I knew you. A long time ago."
"You still do", said Natasha, speaking for the first time. She avoided James' eyes as he gazed at her, looking at Steve instead "He has it in him to be that man again."
He closed the distance between them, resting his hands on the chair's arms. Up close Natasha could see the tiredness in his eyes, the annoyance on the corner of his lips. So much he looked like the James she once loved or still did (she wasn't very sure at the moment), and also so different. "And who might that man be?" he asked, his eyes boring into hers.
It really was impossible not to steal a glance at his lips, she'd become quite acquainted with them back in the day. "You know", she whispered. If recognition flashed on his eyes, it was lost to her.
"Bucky", Steve called again. Barnes smiled and tore himself away from Natasha.
"I really don't know who that is. Back to why you decided to come here: Shield's not here. And sorry to disappoint, but you're not bringing me in."
Barton snorted, "No problem, man. We'll catch you when we get outta here."
Barnes laughed and began clapping in mock "That's the spirit. When you get out, I'll have fun beating you again."
He signaled the guards around the room and all of them began to move out, "Fellas, this is my time to leave. Guess I'll see you around" he said. Facing Steve he added "Don't worry, captain. I'll give your shield some good use."
He glanced at the handcuffs around the three pairs of wrists and smirked. James stopped before Natasha and leaned in, pressing a soft kiss to her cheek and pushing something into her hand. "Don't miss me too much".
Steve Rogers watched him retreat and shut a metal door with a loud bang, leaving them alone.
Clint broke the silence, "What'd he give you, Nat?"
Natasha was smiling. An actual grin had settled on her lips as James left. "I knew him", she said, looking at Steve with reassurance. She opened her palm and showed them the silver key resting on it.
"He hasn't changed."
A/N: And that's about it. I hope I got the characters right (-ish).
If you read it all, kudos and thank you.
And… I can't wait to watch Winter Soldier!