Disclaimer: I do not own Captain America or any of the other characters in the Marvel Universe. I only own the OCs that may appear in this story.
A/N: I got bit by the Winter Soldier bug. This character is very interesting. So much so, that I needed to write about him. This story will deal with a lot of flashbacks. At this point, Bucky and the Winter Soldier will be written as two separate people almost. They will eventually turn into one person as the Winter Soldier discovers who he used to be. Hope that whoever reads this fics enjoys the story I have thought up.
"Who the Hell is Bucky?"
He kept asking himself. From the images and archival footage, Sergeant James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes was a childhood friend and ally to Captain American. The two grew up in Brooklyn, New York. When Bucky was 13 years old, he was walking home from the movie theater and saw a scrawny, weak looking kid getting beat up by a group of bullies. Always one to step in to defend others, Bucky didn't hesitate to run over and save the poor kid.
"Kid, you need to learn how to defend yourself." Bucky suggested as helped Steve up from the ground.
"I had them on ropes." Steve replied shyly, "But, thanks anyways. You're the new kid that just moved here, right?"
"Yes. I'm James. James Buchanan Barnes. But I prefer Bucky." He introduced himself, sticking his hand out to the kid who willing shook it.
"I'm Steve Rogers. So, where are you from originally?" asked Steve getting up and patting the dirt off of his jacket.
"Shelbyville, Indiana."
"Indiana." Steve responded surprised. To him, Indiana seemed like a foreign land. The young boy didn't know of any other world, besides Brooklyn.
"Why did you and your family move to Brooklyn?" He inquired.
The toothy grin that appeared on Bucky's face fell slightly at the question, which did not go unnoticed by Steve.
"I am sorry. I…it is none of my business. I should not have asked." Steve said and started walking away with his head down.
"Hey, wait!" yelled Bucky and ran up to Steve.
"It's alright. My parents… they died. Now I live with my aunt and uncle, along with my younger sister Rebecca. She's only six years old."
"I'm sorry about your parents." Steve empathized, "My father died in the first World War. All I have his my mother."
Bucky gave a sympathetic nod and small smile to Steve.
In that moment the two young men, both only 13 years old, realized they experienced great loss and devastation. Other kids their age have dealt with a loss of father due to World War I, but none of them talked about it. Steve's mother, Sarah Rogers, rarely spoke of her about late husband, Joseph. At night, he could sometimes hear the sound of soft sobs coming from his mother's room. Whenever that happened, Steve felt useless as he didn't know how to comfort the one person he loved the most in the world.
With Bucky, the loss of his parents made the young boy angry. He felt betrayed and abandoned by their death. 'If only they had not gone out during the rainstorm. They should have known better. If only they had stayed home with Rebecca and me, then they would not have been in that car crash.' Bucky would tell himself.
But here he was, in a new place, in a new city, where he didn't know anyone. Except this scrawny kid in front of him who didn't appear to have anyone. Who knew loss and understood that life wasn't always fair. With that notions, Bucky knew he wasn't alone.
He smiled and put his arm around Steve.
"Steve, if anyone tries to mess with you let me know, alright."
"Why do you care if anything happens to me?"
"Because we are friends. And that is what friends do. They look out for one another."
'I am Bucky?' the Winter Soldier asked himself. He was confused. He thought he had no name. He was never given one. He was only referred to as Soldier. 'No. I have no name. I have orders. Missions. I have to go back. I have to find a safe house and wait for Hydra. I have to wait for orders.' He chastised himself.
However, another voice inside him told him not to. It wasn't the Winter Soldier, it was Bucky telling him to run away. It was Bucky telling him to escape from Hydra. It was Bucky yelling at him to go find Steve.
It was all too much. The memories. The emotions. It was getting to him. For decades, the Winter Soldier was trained to not feel, think, or question anything. He was machine, not a man.
Now, he didn't know what he was.
"Excuse me, sir. We are getting ready to close the Smithsonian." A voice spoke up.
The Winter Soldier peeked up to see an old man in a security guard uniform slowly walk towards him.
'Relax. It's just an old man. He isn't a threat to you.' Bucky explained as the Winter Soldier started to tense up.
"Amazing isn't it?" spoke the old man pointing the footage of Bucky and Captain America on the screen.
"What is?" the Winter Soldier asked quietly.
"Most people now a days don't know the value of friendship or family. Not like they did way back then. These two gentlemen," said the security guard as he pointed to Steve and Bucky on the screen, "they knew family didn't always have to mean blood related. No, family is finding someone who loves and cares for you. They accept you for who you are, but they also make you want to be better. You stand by them and never leave them behind." Said the old man.
"You go and find them when you have nothing else." the Winter Soldier added and walked away from the Captain America exhibit and out of the Smithsonian.
He didn't know where he was going or who to trust.
After the Winter Soldier dragged Captain America out of the waters he went to a Hydra safe house. He knew he only had five minutes before Hydra agents would arrived. He had to be quick. Gathering only the essentials: clothes, food. Whatever he could stuff into a knapsack. He didn't dare bring a computer as he knew Hydra would be able to track it.
'Goldie's Boxing Gym.' Bucky's voice spoke.
'Goldie's Boxing Gym; Brooklyn, New York.' The Sergeant spoke up again.
At this moment, the Winter Soldier had a place to start unraveling the mystery of who he was and where he came from. And he had someone he could trust; Bucky.