While the streets of New York City were abuzz with people heading home from their five and six o'clock shifts, the edge of the city seemed a bit less that. It was a bit quieter, but the sounds of car horns could still be heard as a few people walked past to catch a cab or head to the train station. As the people hurried on, they completely ignored the punk girl sitting, cross-legged, on one of the benches outside of a coffee house. She was busy texting someone with a book sitting on her lap and one earbud in her ear. A small messenger bag was laying on the bench next to her.

She wore a pair of plaid pants that were tucked into her combat boots, which looked to have seen better years, but were holding together rather nicely. A black Good Charlotte tank top was partly covered by a black cropped cardigan with a pentagram on the back of it. The side of her head was buzzed, but it was hard to tell with some of her shoulder length hair covering it. Several facial piercings could be seen which included lip, nose, and left eyebrow, which had two. Her left ear was pierced 5 times and the right 4 times.

As soon as she placed her iPhone down on top of her book, she saw a small black blur out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head slightly to see a fake black rose with dark red glitter tips resting on her shoulder. She leaned back and tilted her head up to see a man with dirty blonde hair looking down at her. He wore a white shirt, leather jacket, jeans and a pair of gym shoes. She smiled lightly at him.

"Always bringing me gifts, even when you know I'm already with someone." She said before sitting back up and turning off the music on her phone.

"Well, I know you collect these. Found it in a store. Thought you might like it." He replied to her while holding the rose and waiting for her to pack up her book and earbuds.

"I haven't seen that kind yet. I have a feeling I'm going to need a bigger vase to put them in." The girl closed up her book and stuck it into her bag first before putting her earbuds in a small pocket within. After shoving her phone in her back pocket, she grabbed the strap of her bag and flung it over her shoulder while rising from her seat.

"That'll be my next gift, then."

She turned back to him, then jumped up on the bench. She was slightly taller than him now. She looked down at him, "I'm picky about what I put my roses in."

He grinned slightly, "I know you are."

She wrapped her arms around his neck, then leaned forward and kissed him on the cheeks, "Steve, how've you been, mein freund?"

Steve smiled at her as he hugged her, "You know…saving the world and kicking some butt, as always."

"Shouldn't you be in DC doing that?" She asked with a smile.

"Hey! Gotta come home sometimes, you know." He let her go, then held out his hand for her, "How about we get something to drink?"

She took his hand, then jumped over the back of the bench. When he offered the rose to her, she took it, then nodded, "I could so go for a hot chocolate right about now." She took his arm and allowed him to lead her to the coffee shop.

Steve, being the 'old school' man that he was, opened up the door for her to allow her to enter first.

She looked up at him, "You are such a gentleman, you know that."

"Can't help it, Zeryn. It's kind of in my blood…literally."

She smiled at him, "I have no problem with that." She replied before entering the shop with him close behind her. She went over to one of the coolers and grabbed a fruit cup before looking back at him, "Do you want to share?"

"Nah. I'm not too hungry right now. But, I don't mind 'stealing' some of yours…if I do get hungry."

"Of course." Zeryn said as she looked around and saw the couch by the fireplace was open. She handed the cup to him, "I'm going to steal that couch for us. You know what I want." She winked at him before running off to the abandon couch, which wouldn't be abandon for long.

While Steve ordered and paid for the drinks and the fruit, Zeryn got herself comfortable on the leather couch. She laid her bag on the coffee table in front of the couch, then grabbed her phone out of her pocket and replied to a message she had receive. She rolled her eyes slightly at the message seeing as the person didn't like the fact that she had taken their motorcycle for a 'joy ride' and said person wanted it back. Well, they'd get it back…once she returned to the mansion after her visit with her friend. After the message was sent, she put her phone on silent and laid it down on the table before removing her cardigan and laying it on the arm rest.

Steve walked over to her, several moments later, and put the fruit cup down on the table before handing her the drink, "Hope it's alright. I know you don't like it too hot. Plus, there's whipped cream." He said before seating himself down next to her and taking a sip of his coffee, "After this, I'm going for a run."

"I don't run. I power walk." Zeryn replied as she took a sip of her drink, "Not bad. A tad bit hot, but I'll live. Just dislike when it's super hot and I burn my tongue."

"Though you could heal yourself?" Steve asked while seating his coffee down before taking off his jacket and laying it on the couch. He picked up the coffee.

"I can…just not my tongue." Zeryn took another sip before setting the cup down and grabbing the fruit cup. She took the lid off, then grabbed the fork, that was attached to the side of the cup, and started to eat, "So, I got your message earlier. What's up?"

Steve held the cup in his hand for a moment before looking around, then down at the cup, "The…Winter Soldier." He spoke in a low, soft voice, but he was more than aware that Zeryn could hear him.

Zeryn put her hand to her mouth for a moment, finishing a piece a watermelon, before speaking, "What about him?"

Steve stayed silent for a very long while. A million emotions welled up inside of him as he thought about the man he had fought several long days back in DC…on the helicarrier. That man was someone he knew in the past. It was someone he loved and trusted. Someone who he looked up to. Someone who took care of him when he had no one. The one who promised him he'd be there till the end of the line.

It took all the courage Steve had within him to say, "Bucky. It was Bucky."

Zeryn didn't have the words to say. She knew that Steve was frozen for seventy years in ice, for he had told her that. He told her about being in World War Two and how Bucky had died. Even she couldn't gather how someone could have survived the fall Bucky had taken that faithful day. She was beyond lost for words.

She put the cup down before grabbing her drink. The only words that were able to come from her mouth were, "…what are you asking me to do?"

While she enjoyed hanging out with her friend when he was in the city, or in the state, she had a feeling he had something important for her to do. She didn't care what it was because she would do anything for her friends. She had a feeling this involved Bucky. She wasn't sure what he was going to ask of her, but…she did have an idea.

A huge weight was lifted from Steve's shoulders. He had been trying to think of a way to ask her, but he wasn't sure how to go about it. He was aware that she experienced memory loss, but she was still as sharp as a tack, just like she had been before losing her memory. He never knew her before that, but she had gone to see a psychic, who had informed her about her past self.

He looked over at her, "I'm pretty sure he was brainwashed. I told him who he was…as much as I could about his past before the helicarrier we were on was destroyed. I remember falling into the water below…after that…I woke up on the beach. I was certain I was going to die. But, someone pulled me out of the water."

"And, you think that someone was Bucky?" She watched as he slowly nodded his head. She leaned over to her bag and pulled it closer to her. She reached into the small pocket she had put her earbuds in, and pulled out a smaller looking iPhone. She put her drink down on the table, then turned on the device. She began to go through it.

Steve had managed to catch a glance at the back of the device as his eyes widened. Low and behold it was from S.H.I.E.L.D. He recognized it because he had seen some of the other agents use them as well as Nick Fury and some of his fellow Avengers, mainly Tony Stark and Dr. Bruce Banner. He knew that the devices held secret files that could be transported between agents while away from base, as well as other information S.H.I.E.L.D. had been keeping from the world. All the devices were assigned to the agents and returned before they were to be off duty. To find out that someone outside of S.H.I.E.L.D., mainly one of his friends, had one of the devices was beyond him. He was aware that her boyfriend was a master thief, but even Steve knew that there was no way he could have broken into S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters and gotten ahold of one of the devices.

"How did you…get that?" He asked her as she kept looking through the information.

"Relax, mon ami. I got this from Clint." She replied to him before pausing and looking up at him, "He grabbed me one of the older ones that Fury was going to throw out. I'm limited to what I can get on here, anyways. Most of the information, Clint was able to pass onto me."

Steve sat back with a sigh, "What if Fury finds out?"

"Then it gets shut down and I discard it into the river…or somewhere that they can't locate it." She turned the device to him and showed him a picture of Bucky pulling Steve out of the water, "You're not wrong that he was the one who saved you, if that's what you've been thinking about."

Steve kept his eyes locked to the device. Even he couldn't grasp the fact that it was Bucky who almost killed him several times. Who was the mysterious Winter Soldier that he committed so many deadly assassinations. All he remembered was seeing his friend fall to his death. Never in a million years could he imagine he'd run into him again. The question was, how in the world did HYDRA get ahold of Bucky? How was Bucky not dead from the fall? Could Bucky's memory be restored, if he was just brainwashed? There were way too many questions filling his brain that he felt he was about to have a headache. He drank some more of his coffee before deciding to speak.

"I might need an expresso…and a very long run."

Zeryn turned the device off, then reached over and touched his hand, "Keep calm. No need to have that much caffein…I don't think it'll help your running either."

"I just…I have so many questions. There are so many emotions whipping through my body at such a fast rate. I've never felt like this before. Unless you count crashing an airplane full of explosives into the Arctic Ocean. He's my best friend. If it weren't for Bucky, I'd have nothing."

"There, there, you'll get your chance. If Bucky really was brainwashed, then regaining his memory really shouldn't be a big issue. I'm sure there are things floating around inside of him trying to remember. Though, he may be having a tough time with it. A few small things should help jog his memory. He might not be the man you use to know, and he may never be, but there's no harm in trying."

"I understand that…I just want to see my friend again. I know he doesn't look the same, but I can see it in his face. He's still Bucky. He's still the guy who cared for me." He was desperately trying to hold back his emotions. He knew that a soldier never showed any signs of weakness, but he couldn't help but let a tear or two shed from his eye.

Zeryn always disliked when one of her friends was upset. It never failed to crush her inside, never failed to make her feel weak and helpless. However, she had an idea that Steve may need her help with Bucky. Whatever it was, she was up for the challenge.

She raised her hand and whipped the tears away, "What can I do to help?" She asked.

"I'm still afraid to confront him. I need more time. You've been through memory loss. I think if he talks to someone who's in the same position as him, it might make him feel better." Steve sat up a little more, so he was more comfortable, "All I want you to do is find him and I'll give you the place he grew up at, see if that might help. And, there's a display at the Smithsonian Institution that should be of much help. Not only does it display some of the things I've donated to them, but there's a section all about Bucky. I'm hoping that it'll jog his memory."

"I can't say that I suffered from brainwash. I've lost my memory permanently, but I was manipulated." She took his hand and gripped it tightly, "I'll get ahold of Clint to see if he can give me any leads on Bucky. I promise you, I'll do my best to bring Bucky back to you, no matter what. All I ask is that you hang around here. I'll keep you informed as to what's going on."

A slight smile came across Steve's face as another tear rolled down his cheek, "Why do you have such a big heart?"

"Why do you?" She smiled back at him before leaning over some more and hugging him tightly.

Steve hugged her back, but noticed that she was starting to lean on him. He quickly moved his coffee out of the way, "Hey. Don't fall asleep on me, now. Don't need your boyfriend to randomly walk in."

"He's busy packing for a trip to New Orleans. He's leaving in the morning and won't be back for about a week or so. As long as he keeps out of trouble and doesn't hustle anyone clean, then I'm not worried about him…but I should be."

"If I was dating someone who's a hustler and a thief, I'd be worried as well." Steve took a sip of his coffee as he rested his other hand on her side.

Zeryn shrugged a little, "He can handle himself. He's gotten himself into sticky situations before and he's handled those just fine. He's just over flooding his back account. I'm surprised the bank hasn't questioned him yet."

"You'd think that they would."

"Heck, as long as he has proof that he won it in a poker game, then it's not my problem." She was able to reach over to the table and grab the fruit cup. She began to eat some more while resting on her side with her head on Steve's chest.

"You really don't care about him, do you?"

"No, I do. Believe me, I do. If I didn't, then I wouldn't be dating him. Yes, he does things that make me question why I'm dating him, but his trust and loyalty will never cease to keep me attached to his side. He does care a lot about me. He, almost, didn't let me leave to come visit you. I fear what he's going to think when I tell him about this little mission."

"He had better stay out of it. I don't need Bucky to run off on us."

Zeryn turned her head and looked at him, "Oh, believe me, he ain't coming with me. He's going to New Orleans whether he likes it or not." She ate another piece of fruit.

"That's a relief." Steve said with a sigh. There was no way he was going allow Bucky to run anymore. If Zeryn couldn't convince Bucky, then he was going to have to do this on his own. But, for now, all he wanted to do was relax and…, "So, tell me the story about how you kicked that guy's butt in the casino."

Zeryn's mouth quickly turned into a big grin as she remembered that day her boyfriend had taken her into a casino to get some information on someone they were looking for. Oh, the twisted look on the guy's face when he found out that he shouldn't have made sexist comments to her. She still hadn't been able to figure out how her boyfriend managed to keep his 'poker face' on during the whole thing. Even though Steve had heard the story five or six times, she always enjoyed retelling it because she knew that Steve loved to hear her stories as much as she enjoyed hearing his.

"Well…it all began when…"