Pit bull; Natasha's View

"Alright Clint, find yourself a perch to snipe from- don't get distracted this time," I say to Clint.

"Sure, thing Nat," He says to me before he runs off into the darkness. I head inside the hideout, it took both of us months to find these guys who are LOADED. Rumor has it they use one-hundred-dollar bills as tissues when the sneeze. They mainly get their fortune from selling illegal animals and selling dogs who aren't worth as much as they price them. SHEILD, along with other organizations, have been after these guys for a long time, and I wasn't ready to let them slip away from me.

I discreetly enter the building, sneaking behind guards in their shadows where they least expect it. I'm outside the room we want when Clint starts talking on coms.

"Hey Nat, I'm in position. Guys here are bargaining a pit bull- looks like a runt, and is he? Yea he is. Wow, dog's missn a..." I clear my throat and Clint stops talking.

"Can we focus please?" I whisper into the coms.

"Fine," Clint responds.

"Count of three, all hell breaks loose, kay?" I say. Clint starts the countdown.

"Three," He says.

"Two," I add, coiling like a snake, ready to strike.

"One!" We both shout. The room erupted into gunfire, men falling fast. Out of the corner of my eye I see a sniper from in the rafters, shooting along with us.

"Clint! Did you invite anyone?" I say into the coms.

"No, why?" He responds. I manage to hold off the guards long enough to get a closer look. I see a glint of metal. I narrow my eyes, but a guard tackles me.

"Clint! Distract them outside!" I yell.

"Gotcha Nat," he responds. I find a hiding place and squat there for a bit, before I hear the exclaims of a fire on the outside of the building. Not what I had in mind for a diversion, but it will work. I emerge from my hiding spot and look at the damage. A few people here and there were on the ground, truly dead. I hear a whimper from the corner of the room and turn to the corner with my gun ready. I see a little puppy pit bull, cowering in the corner. I lower my gun for it and squat down to his level.

"Hey little guy! I won't hurt ya," I tell him in Russian. The pit bull starts to slowly walk towards me, and I realize why Clint was so engrossed in him. The poor guy was missing his left arm, nothing there. It almost reminded me of someone...

"You remind me of a friend," I tell him, as I sit down next the puppy. The dog lays his head in my lap and looks up, as if he wants to know more.

"You need a name," I tell him. "How about... Bucky?" I suggest. The dog looks to the rafters and growls. A figure drops down from the rafters.

"Natalia?" He asks. This is the exact opposite of who I wanted to run into today. It would have been nice to see Tony or Steve, who might have decided to help us last-minute, but not James Buchanan Barnes. The Dog sniffs the air around James and runs up to him, happy.

"Oh hey doggy!" He says. James starts to pet the dog, putting down his guns and sitting on the floor. An awkward silence comes between us.

"So... how have you been?" He asks finally.

"I'm better now, I still have a scar..." he looks up at me with worry, "Oh! No, James it's not your fault! Don't beat yourself up about it," I tell him.

"Hey Nat? Could you maybe speak English on the coms?" Clint asks. I turn away from James.

"Sorry, I ran into an old colleague... he umm... umm," that's as far as I get.

"Which one?" Clint asks. I turn back to James and I realize he can understand everything I say to Clint. I turn red with embarrassment.

"Hold on one moment Clint," I tell him.

"I didn't know you understood English," I tell James. He nods.

"Born and raised in Brooklyn," he responds.

"I'm back Clint," I say.

"Oh good, so while you were gone I researched some guys... let's see is it Klaus? Or Ringo? Or Harry?" He stops there.

"God Damnit Clint! Don't try to figure out who he is! Trust me, it's better if you didn't know," James looks at me with confusion.

"What the hell are you talking about Natalia? It's just you and me!" he exclaims. I do a total facepalm.

"Look, James, I'm on a COMM system right now with another person..."

"The Winter Soldier!" Clint yells in my ear.

"Damnit Clint! You're dead when I find you!" I exclaim.

"Oh and she means it too," James adds. I laugh a little at his joke.

"So your friend knows?" he asks. I slowly nod my head.

"But only the shadow part..." I stop, realizing I could be talking with the shadow and not with James. James recognizes my dilemma and shakes his head, scooting closer to me.

"It's truly me Natalia, I won't hurt you," he says sadly. This is what a strong romance has come to? Reassurance from one another that we aren't brainwashed to kill? Like all those years ago I realize how dangerous our game of Love was.

"James, why did you leave?" I finally get the big cat out of the bag, I wanted to know why he abandoned me for Hydra. James swallows, then puts his head in his hands. A moment later I realize he was crying, the last time I say him cry was when...

"They forced me to become even more of a monster than I was," his shoulders shake as he continues to cry. I lift his chin, so he can see my eyes. Like many years ago, his glacier-blue pierce my tropical ocean, freezing a part of it as if I was engulfed in his Tundra. I lean closer to kiss him, all the while he leans closer to me. Just before we kiss, Clint busts into the room.

"Holy F**king God Natasha!" James is up with his gun poised at Clint, James pushes me behind him for protection.

"James! Put the gun down! He's the guy I was talking to on the coms," James looks back at me.

"Hope you're telling him to put the gun down?" Clint suggests. James, instead, pokes the air where Clint stands.

"James," I say, reaching my hand out and lowering the gun for him. He smashes the stock against my hand and his metal one. I snatch my hand back and scream out in pain. James turns to me, looking horrified by what he did.

"Clint no!" James turns to Clint to see that he is ready with his bow and arrow, aiming directly at James. I run between the two.

"Guys! We can settle this out! Put you weapon down Clint, he won't hurt you!" I exclaim.

"Nat are you insane? He gave you that scar on your stomach- I don't see why you are protecting him! SHEILD has been after the Winter Soldier for years! We need to turn him in!" Clint tells me. James flinches when Clint mentions my scar, and flinches a second time when he says, "the Winter Soldier."

"I'm not the Winter Soldier, and for your information buddy, I protected her from the death penalty in Russia!" James tells Clint. It was the first time I heard James speak in English, and I was intrigued.

"Oh, so if you're not the Winter Soldier, then what's THAT?" Clint asks, motioning to James' arm.

"Clint he's not the Winter Soldier," I say flatly.

"Then who is he?" Clint asks.

I turn to James and he gestures for me to come to him, I walk towards him and lean he starts to whisper.

"Will any of this be reported to Steve Rogers?" He asks. I look back at Clint and then at James.

"Yes," I whisper back.

"Give him a fake name, like Jim Morita," he tells me. I turn back to Clint and tell him who James "is."

"That's Jim Morita," I tell Clint. Clint raises his eyebrow.

"A Howling Commando?" He asks. I turn back to James and he slowly nods.

"Yes..." I respond.

"Jim Morita's been dead for years," Clint tells me flatly. "Nat face facts! That's the Winter Soldier- SHEILD needs his identity," Clint says.

"I can't tell you who I am- Steve Rogers will flip," James tells Clint.

"I'd like to see that," Clint says.

"Ugh cut it out boys! Clint our mission is finished, start heading back," I tell Clint.

"What about you and Mr. Super-Assassin?" Clint asks.

"I'll catch up," I reassure him. Clint shakes his head and walks out of the room.

Before Clint has reached the door, he turns around to look at James.

"If you hurt her, I will personally hunt you down and kill," he tells James. James turns white as Clint leaves. Finally, Clint is gone, and this time I remove my coms.

"I'm sorry about that James," I tell him. James shakes his head.

"It's ok Natalia... you're bleeding," I look down at my hand as it drips blood on the floor.

"I knew this would happen if we saw each other again, I'm still a monster," James says.

"James, it's ok, you were protecting me, you're not a monster," I tell him.

"You need a hospital," James says. "I know one close by here, please check in there and get your hand looked at- for me. I couldn't live with myself if it didn't get fixed and got worse," he tells me.

"Will you be my escort?" I ask him. James looks like he really wants to walk me to the Hospital to make sure I'm OK.

"I don't want to hurt you again..." he responds. I swiftly come up to him and embrace, he stands there startled, then slowly closes his eyes, I can feel it. We pull away panting.

"Clint's waiting for me," I tell him. James nods.

"I love you Natalia," he says. I smile a little bit.

"That's good, so do I," I tell him. We embrace one more time.

"James, why didn't you want Steve Roger to know who you are?" I ask him finally.

"We've had our fair share of memories with each other in the past... I couldn't bear to have him recognize me like this," James says.

"Then I won't tell him," I say to James.

James looks at the pit bull.

"Would you like to come home with me or Natalia? I think you should go with Natalia," he says to the pit bull.

"He needs a name," I tell James.

"How about Howling?" James suggests.

"Nah- looks like a James Jr." I say playfully. James lightly punches me in the arm.

"Lets go with..."

"Commander?" I suggest.

"Yea, Commander. That's perfect," James says. I pick up Commander and start to walk out of the room. I turn to face James.

"Goodbye James," I say.

"Goodbye Natalia," he says.