Every muscle, every bone in his body aches as he makes his way to shore slowly treading water. His right arm, dislocated and practically useless, does little to propel him forward. The body of Captain America is heavy on his back. Everything is fuzzy and he can hardly process why he is helping this man.
His enemy
His mission
He can't remember being this drained after a job before, but a lot is fuzzy lately. It's like the years of not remembering have piled up and all that consumes him is the frustration of not being able to remember anything. HYDRA must be obeyed is the only thing constant in his universe.
He finally reaches the shallows where he can stand before his knees buckle beneath him. He briefly considers dropping his burden right there but something in him rebelled at the thought of leaving the man he just rescued to possibly drown in the few feet of water. He shook his head tiredly and dragged the unconscious body up to the bank before lowering him to the ground. He pauses for only a moment to look back before heading the opposite direction.
Walking into the museum he had no idea what he was even looking for. The streets had been buzzing with HYDRA intel, apparently leaked during or after his failed mission. Snatches of speculation from various civilian conversations on the street doesn't give him the complete picture he needs.
Now staring at the face that is his and yet is so different he can hardly reconcile the two, he still doesn't know all wants, but, as he steels his jaw, he realizes he knows enough.
Walking out of the museum he knows exactly where he is heading and what he will do when he gets there.
A/N: I was in the process of a Supernatural fic when I saw the Winter Soldier and Bucky's character just grabbed me. I don't think I've felt so sorry for a character in a long long time. Stay tuned!