"Might have to go where they don't know my name,

Float all over the world just to see her again,

And I won't show or fear any pain...,"

-Up With the Birds; by Coldplay

WWII, American Base in London: 1943

"If I'd known you were going to be coming, I wouldn't have been so worried beforehand." A small smirk spread across Lincoln's lips as she listened to her husband talk. It had been a relatively easy day — or as easy as it could be with the way things were — and Lincoln was happy enough to be able to spend a little bit of time with her significant other. "Honestly, Linny, why didn't you just tell me?" Bucky's teasing gaze hardened as he looked at his wife; he could see the smirk on her lipstick-stained lips, the mischievousness in her emerald green eyes.

"I wanted it to be a surprise," she responded, a soft accent lacing her words. Lincoln had spent a good portion of her childhood in Ireland, living with her mother's parents. Staying there until the age of nine, Lincoln Fitzsimmons had unconsciously mixed a soft Irish accent into her New Yorker accent. It hadn't been uncommon for people to comment on how odd Lincoln sounded when she spoke.

With a sigh, Bucky gently tangled one of his hands into his wife's reddish-brown hair, bringing her head closer to his. Placing a kiss on her forehead, Bucky looked at her with an arched brow. "I've got enough surprises going on here, doll," he muttered, "I don't need anymore."

"Trust me, at this point I'd tell you if there was anything else."

"You'd better." That signature smirk came across Bucky's face. "You're not gonna tell me you're pregnant, are you?"

"Didn't you want children?" It was Lincoln's turn to arch a brow at him.

"Of course I want children," he exclaimed. "Just...not right now, is all."

With a chuckle, Lincoln shook her head. "I'm not pregnant," she exclaimed. "So that's one more surprise out of the way."

"I promise you, once this war's over we're gonna have a whole army of babies."

"That's easy for you to say," Lincoln scoffed. "Besides, we agreed on two. I'm sticking with that."

"You're no fun."

"And you married me anyway."

"That I did." Bucky leaned down and placed a kiss on his wife's lips, causing Lincoln to giggle. "And I couldn't have been happier."

Present Day: 2014

"Sir, are you certain we should be doing this?"

"Of course not, but we don't have any options, now do we?"

"Uh...n-no...we don't, sir."

"That's right. We're all out of options. Operation Insight was a failure. Alexander Pierce is dead. All of H.Y.D.R.A.'s classified data has been released onto the internet. What other options do we have but to use her?"

"It's just...what if she turns out like the Soldier?"

"She won't. She's not like him."

There was a moment of silence between the two men. It had been bad enough that Operation Insight had been a failure and all of H.Y.D.R.A.'s confidential data had been released, but the Winter Soldier's defection had added an extra pound of stress H.Y.D.R.A. believed they didn't need. Which meant that their last assassin — their remaining Super Soldier — would be the only hope in not only helping to rebuild H.Y.D.R.A.'s status and power, but carry out all remaining missions with the hopes of bringing back the Winter Soldier. But the remnants of the former organization could only do so much. Which meant that bringing back the Winter Soldier would be the first on the to-do list.

"Is she still in cryostasis?"

"Yes."

"Should I release her?"

"...Yes."

O.O.O.O

H.Y.D.R.A. had been the only thing she had ever known. Everything she knew about the world had been provided by the extensive training she'd received, everything she had learned about politics and the real struggles humanity faced had been because of H.Y.D.R.A.. Whether or not she was grateful had remained to be seen.

She couldn't remember what life had been like before, only what was deemed necessary by her superiors. Which meant it was required she remember every person she had assassinated over the years. She had to relive her victims' murder every day, and she wasn't sure how to feel about that. Was she supposed to feel remorseful? Was she supposed to feel anything? Thoughts like that weren't important, they weren't what she had been programmed to think. Any thought that had nothing to do with the mission at hand was considered worthless and a distraction. Thoughts like that got her sent to the memory wipe. She hated the memory wipe; that was another thing she could remember.

Life didn't have much meaning aside from working for H.Y.D.R.A.; that was something she had to figure out. That was the way things had to be.

O.O.O.O

Standing near her cryotube, the H.Y.D.R.A. agent swallowed thickly. She had just as much of a reputation in the dark community H.Y.D.R.A. dabbled as the Winter Soldier did. Her prowess as an assassin rivalled the Winter Soldier's in many ways.

Typing in the code, he took a step back as a cold rush of steam came out of the openings. Once her cryogenic chamber was fully open, the H.Y.D.R.A. agent swallowed thickly. He made sure there were medical personnel nearby to assess her, to make sure she was fit for what was planned.

"You know the procedure," the doctor murmured as he walked to the chamber. "She can't do any immediate activity after being defrosted."

"I know."

"I understand your superiors have an agenda," the doctor muttered, "but she's still human." While the doctor's assistants got her out of the chamber and laid her on a metal berth, they stood for a moment, just looking at her form. She still looked so young. She looked...harmless. It was almost hard to believe she'd been with H.Y.D.R.A. for decades.

"I didn't think you cared for her so much."

"I'm a medical professional; her health is important." The doctor walked over and started performing a standard physical exam. "I know what'll happen to me if I step out of line."

"Don't take it personally."

"I don't intend to."

"Let's just get this over with, OK?"

(A/N):

Probably not the best first chapter, but hopefully you guys found it enjoyable anyway. Let me know what you guys think! Constructive criticism is important.

Do I own anything in the MCU? No. No I do not.

Leave a thought on anything I can improve on.

Thanks.

Judith W