Aaaand finally back with some action! I dropped a few hints here and there about where the plot line is going, so I wonder if anyone gets it. BUT anyway, finally some more information about Liz's past and where she comes from. I don't really feel the need to delve greatly into her past missions, not even with Bucky, because we know they did horrible missions and assassinations, there's no real need to explore the details of it. If you disagree and would like one of them (or both of them) to explain some of their memories, then just let me know and I'll add it in somewhere in the next chapter or whatever.
Also, I just want to let you know that I'm not sure when the next update will be. My brother's back from holiday later so I'm loosing his computer, and mine is still in repairs so I won't be able to write. Hopefully I'll be getting it back in the next few days but hey, who knows. If all goes well then I'll update in around a week like usual, but if I'm late well, you know why.
A huge thanks for all the support I'm getting. Seriously, I don't understand it but I'm ever so grateful for it, you guys are the best. Hope you enjoy this part!


Liz was sitting on the sofa talking about war movies with Sam when there was a knock at the front door. She froze, eyes going wide but Steve appeared in the room to tell them it was alright. " I told you Stark was sending us something! " He reminded her as he opened the door.

" Well, Rogers, you got a nice home here. " A woman's voice was heard. Liz stood up from the sofa and watched as Steve let the woman into their home. Though she was wearing civilian clothes – jeans and a leather jacket – the way she carried herself and the way she took in her surroundings hinted towards military training.

" Natasha! " Sam greeted her with a large grin.

Liz watched the three people greet each other as she stood by the sofa, feeling very uncomfortable. " That's Romanoff. " She heard Bucky say quietly as he came to stand beside her. " She was on the bridge. " He muttered.

" She's on our side? " Liz asked him quietly, even though Steve had told her all about Natasha already, but she still felt the need to check with Bucky as she turned to look up at him.

Bucky nodded just as Steve came over to them, the ginger woman and Sam in tail. " Bucky, Liz, this is Natasha Romanoff. She's a friend. " He said with a smile.

" Hey. " Natasha smiled, looking from Liz to Bucky. " You're not going to try to kill me again are you? " She asked Bucky jokingly with a small smirk tugging at her lips.

" I'm sorry. " Bucky immediately said, frowning darkly. " I don't want to - "

" Relax, it's a joke. " Natasha interrupted him, winking. " I got something for you. " She continued, turning to Liz who was glaring at her, feeling extremely defensive over Bucky.

She continued to glare at Natasha, even when Bucky put his hand on the small of her back to reassure her. She didn't like strangers. She may have gotten used to the three men she lived with, even gotten over her initial fear of being close to them, but strangers still made her uncomfortable, and this Natasha was no exception.

" Liz it's okay, she's been working on some things for us. " Steve said, realizing things weren't going according to plan.

Liz tore her gaze from Natasha to look up at Steve, then sighed and looked back at Natasha. " Fine. What's so important that you had to come all the way here? " She asked flatly.

The shield agent pulled out a printed e-mail from her bag and handed it to her. " I dug around, pulled some strings while I was in Europe. It's not much but it's a start. " She said, understanding why Liz was being so cold to her. She had been the same once, and Natasha recognized the look in Liz's eyes as she took the piece of paper from her hands, frowning as she started reading.

September 8th, 1984

Project Siren is now open. List of candidates is being drafted by Commander Hirsch.

July 10th, 1984

Project Siren has commenced. A special lab has been commissioned for the arrival of the subject.

May 5th, 1985

Subject 611 was born this morning at 2:15 am and taken into S.H.I.E.L.D protection by mother. Surveillance has begun.

May 5th, 1989

Subject 611 has been acquired and put into facility H10. Subject's mother was discarded.

Project Siren is now officially underway.

May 18th, 1989

Project Siren is proving more resistant than initially expected. Commander Hirsch ordered the subject to be wiped if it does not comply within the next week.

June 27th, 1989

Project Siren complying. Lessons to begin on the 30th.

February 6th, 1990

Project Siren going according to plan. Seems to have almost forgotten life before H.Y.D.R.A and is learning well. Commander Hirsch ordered the subject to be moved to facility B16.

July 14th, 1996

Project Siren began physical training under Project Winter Soldier.

August 2nd,1996

Project Winter Soldier put back into Cryo.

Project Siren to continue training in facility B22 under Commander Hirsch.

December 1st, 2000

Project Siren's first mission was a success.

Subject recommended for further physical training by the Winter Soldier.

Liz could barely breathe, gripping the piece of paper in her hands as she felt her knees give way as her eyes skimmed over the words again. She hadn't just been taken by Hydra, they had planned it all along, even before she was born. They had chosen her parents specifically and monitored her her whole life. She was nothing more than an experiment.

Bucky slumped to the floor in front of her, brushing her hair out of her face. " Babe? " He asked, lifting her head only to find she was staring into nothingness, her lips moving but her words incomprehensible. Panicked, he looked up to Steve as he kneeled beside them, looking worried.

" Liz it's okay. " Steve tried talking to her, but her breathing only got worse at the use of her name and Steve regretted using it. They had all learnt the hard way that calling her 'Liz' when she was having a crisis only made things worse, and she always started screaming that it wasn't her name. Giving her a nickname kept her happy, and made her feel closer to them.

'Taken into Shield protection by mother... Subject's mother was discarded'... They had killed her. She had been a Shield agent and they had killed her. Liz didn't know how to react, she could feel her body tremble, her breathing so jagged and uneven that she ended up whimpering.

Bucky was panicking. He brushed his hair out of his face and picked her up, carrying her to their room, hoping the peaceful atmosphere that seemed to constantly reign in there would help her come back to him. He sat her on the edge of their bed, but she seemed to not even register his presence, rocking herself backwards and forwards on the bed. Bucky sat next to her and took the piece of paper from her hands, his eyes skimming through the words in an attempt to understand why she had reacted so badly.

An hour later, Bucky joined the others in the kitchen. They had been talking amongst themselves bust fell quiet as he walked in to pour himself a glass of water. " How is she? " Sam asked, his voice full of worry.

Bucky shook his head as he leaned against the counter. " She uh... I got her to lie down and fall asleep. " He sighed, his throat tight, his eyes red. " It's all my fault... " He muttered.

" Hey... " Steve immediately went over to him and put a hand on his shoulder. " It's not your fault Buck, what happened to her is - "

" But it is! " Bucky growled. " They made me fight her when she was barely eleven years old. I remember... I... " He gritted his teeth, taking a deep, shaky breath. " I read through the file and I remembered training her. She was so small... She was a child Steve and I hit her. I beat her even though she was crying and could barely stand up. What kind of monster does that!? " He almost shouted, feeling his body shake.

" You weren't in your right mind Buck. " Steve tried to calm him down. " You knew this already, she had told you - "

" I couldn't remember it though. And back then I didn't... I didn't love her back then. " He said quietly, noticing that Sam and Natasha exchanged a glance at his words. " I broke her... "

Sam got out of his chair and put a hand on his shoulder. " I know you and I had a bit of a problem at first, but let me tell you something big guy. Liz is a tough woman, she's been dealing with this her whole life. She never got her memory wiped like you did, she knew as soon as she saw you what you had done to her and still she forgave you. " He told Bucky, who now had silent tears running down his cheeks. " She loves you, man. You need to be there for her, don't let this bury you back into some deep dark pit of self hatred because it doesn't solve anything. "

Bucky gritted his teeth and wiped his tears, lifting his head to look at Sam. He was right. He didn't know how Liz had managed to overcome what he had done to her and learn to love him, but she had. And if she had, then maybe Bucky needed to put it aside as well and help her. " The file had a name. " He said, his mouth dry as he turned to Steve. " Commander Hirsch. He seemed to be the one in charge right from the start, before she was even born. "

" What? " Steve blinked. " You mean she was... "

" Conceived and born especially for Hydra purposes. " Natasha confirmed, speaking for the first time since Bucky had came in. " I have Hirsch's location. "

" Then we need to find him. " Bucky growled, balling his fists.

It was mid afternoon when there was a knock on the bedroom door. Liz rolled over on the bed, watching as the door opened slowly, expecting to see Bucky check on her yet again. Instead, she saw Sam step inside, unsuccessfully hiding a plastic bag behind his back as he closed the door behind him, a large grin on his face. " Peek a boo! " He sung as he ignored her unamused glare, walking over to sit on Bucky's side of the bed. " How ya doin' angel? " He asked, remembering how she reacted earlier when Steve had used her name.

She only grunted in response, sighing heavily before closing her eyes and burying her head into Bucky's pillow again, finding his scent had almost gone because of her holding it all day.

She head the ruffling of a plastic bag but didn't look up. " I went to the shops for a bit with Nat earlier and look what we bought you. " He said, and she could hear the grin in his voice. She only lifted her head up because this was Sam, the guy who always seemed happy no matter what, even when he was feeling miserable deep down.

She looked up and her jaw fell open as she blinked several times, sitting up on the bed to take a better look at what Sam was holding up for her, a large grin on his face. " Is that... " Liz actually found herself snorting, chuckling lightly as she took the Captain America t-shirt into her hands. It was perfect, bright blue with Steve's shield on the front, the star covered in glitter. " That is actually rather hideous. " She giggled quietly, running her fingers over the glittery part.

" Yeah, it is. " Sam chuckled, nodding in agreement. " We got one for each of us, you, Nat, Buck and I. We thought we'd keep 'em for a special occasion so uh, keep it quiet eh. " He winked. " Steve doesn't know. "

Liz snorted again and nodded. " He'll hate us. " She smirked, chuckling once more when Sam only ginned wider.

" We're just about to watch a movie if you wanna join us. " He asked, his voice calmer and less confident than before. Sam noticed the way her body tensed as she thought about sitting with other people, but he kept his gaze locked to hers. He wanted her to join them, she was his friend and he had felt horrible all day knowing she was in there all by herself. " I chose it myself so it's a good one. " He added, winking again.

Liz paused a moment before giving him a soft smile. " It's a really crappy movie isn't it? "

The two of them made their way into the living room to find Natasha putting the DVD in the machine, and Steve and Bucky on the sofa arguing over a large bowl of popcorn. Sam nodded to Liz as she gazed up at him, looking for reassurance, and she made her way over to the sofa, squeezing in between Bucky and Steve, also landing herself the popcorn. Bucky wrapped an arm around her and she snuggled up against him, her hand searching out for Steve's and gripped it tight. Steve looked over to Bucky to make sure it was okay with him, and the soldier smiled sadly. Even though Liz didn't bat an eyelash about the reminder that he had taken part in the torture she had gone through, he still had trouble swallowing it himself. But Sam was right, if she could forgive him, then he could at least accept it. He may have hurt her in the past but he would only ever protect her from now on. It was his new mission.

Natasha stayed up late with Steve that night. Everyone else had gone to bed and they sat outside watching the clouds blow over them in the night sky. After the movie they had booked the flight, all agreeing to track down this Hirsch guy that was mentioned in Liz's folder. " How's Barnes doing? " Nat asked Steve, breaking the comfortable silence.

" Pretty good I think, all things considered. " He answered, watching the tops of the trees sway in the wind. " He's had his highs and lows and he still can't get more than four or five hours of sleep but... He's acting a lot more like himself. "

" He still gets pretty tense from what I've seen. " Nat commented, watching Steve frown. " But at least he's not attacking you guys anymore. "

Steve nodded absentmindedly, thinking back to the first night he had brought Bucky home. He had tried to attack him three times just that first night then tried to run away. The next few days were better but were still hell, with Bucky constantly switching from the Winter Soldier to a broken five year old. " I think you can thank Liz for that. " He said eventually. " As soon as she arrived he calmed down a lot. "

" Yeah, I noticed. " Nat chuckled. " And how are you doing? "

" Me? " Steve frowned, looking at her as he cocked an eyebrow.

" Oh come on, you think after everything we've been through that I don't see right through you Rogers? " She said simply. " Barnes changed everything for you. "

Steve sighed. She was right, finding Bucky again had changed everything. He went from feeling lonely all the time to having his family back, his best friend, the one person he had always loved the most. " It's hard sometimes. " He said quietly. " I keep getting glances of the old Buck and then when I look at him properly, he's not there. "

Nat didn't say anything, she knew not to. She let Steve think about his words before he spoke again, enjoying the calm night air around them. " He's my family Nat, I'll always have his back and I know he has mine. He's changed, but I guess when he first saw me after the serum, I had changed too. He never gave up on me, and I'm sure as hell not giving up on him. "

Nat smirked as she got up. " How cute. " She winked, going indoors.

Everyone was feeling rather gloomy the next morning. They had packed lightly, hoping to not be gone too long whilst they tracked down Commander Hirsch. To go with the general mood, the early morning was foggy and cold. Bucky wore a black hoodie and a leather glove to cover his metal hand, pulling his hood up to keep his neck warm, not yet used to having short hair. Liz had only gotten dressed because Bucky had helped her, otherwise she would have just let herself mope. Natasha put her bike in the garage – which they hadn't cleared out yet but at least it would keep the bike safe – and they set off to the airport together, all five of them crammed into the car.

The whole flight, Bucky kept his arms around Liz as she curled up on his lap. She had barely uttered a word since the day before, and he was determined to do everything he could to support her. She had always been there for him, always been the stronger one, but he understood her reaction. He had spoken with Steve about her Shield agent mother, hoping to be able to figure out who she could be, but Natasha had interrupted and said that it was impossible, that they would never be able to narrow down the candidates enough to pinpoint the exact Shield agent that gave birth to her.

The plane eventually landed. It was around six in the morning in the snowy capital of Sweden and everyone was shivering, save for Bucky who felt strangely at ease in the icy wind. He looked down, prepared to wrap his arms around Liz to keep her warm, only to find that she was looking much better in herself, her cheeks slightly flushed as her breath created a small cloud. " I've been here before. " She said, looking around. " I was nineteen... I had to tail the Swedish minister of foreign affairs and hack into her computer. "

Bucky took hold of her hand and they continued in silence. Liz had gotten off that plane with a fierce determination, promising herself that she wouldn't let herself weep or grieve until the job was done. She was closer than she had ever been to finding out the truth, closer than she had ever thought possible. She had no idea where Natasha had gotten that information but she reminded herself to thank her. As she watched Nat talk to Steve and Sam, falling into easy conversation with them both, she realized she had over reacted the previous day. Steve had told her a lot about Natasha, she knew she could be trusted, but still she had reacted badly. She cursed herself inside her head, promising herself that from now on she would at least try to be less defensive whenever she met new people. But before that could happen, they had to get to Commander Hirsch, and get whatever information out of him that they could.

The bunker they had to infiltrate had belonged to Shield until the Hellicarrier attack when Hydra had managed to overthrow Shield and claim the bunker as their own. It gave them an advantage though, as Natasha had the floorplans of the underground facility, and they could easily form a plan to minimize risk on their part and maximize the damage they caused. The five of them suited up – Steve in his Captain uniform, Sam in his wings, Natasha and Liz in their catsuit uniforms and Bucky simply replaced his hoodie with a leather jacket similar to the one Hydra had made him, but different enough for him to be comfortable wearing it. It was sleeveless on his left arm, and the metal shined brightly under the Swedish sun, contrasting against the white snow that covered the ground.

" Everyone clear on the plan? " Steve asked as they geared up on the hill overlooking the bunker's entrance, a small cement building that looked, to everyone else, like it was abandoned. They answered with a nod of the head, and Steve made sure they all looked confident. " Then let's go. Nat, Liz, you're up first. " He told the girls, who nodded nodded again and started off towards the bunker by themselves.

Bucky was on edge as he watched them, balling his fists by his side as he gritted his teeth. If anything happened to Liz he would destroy each and every life inside that building and not leave a trace of it left for anyone to find.

Liz fought against the mounting sick feeling inside her stomach as they got nearer to the building. She had to focus, she had to do this as flawlessly as every other mission she had done. She slowly crept through the snow, making sure she didn't disturb the bushes on the way down the small hill, knowing the base had eyes on their surroundings. She also knew there was a hidden machine gun hidden somewhere in the foliage, which they had to find and deactivate before it spotted them. She had her eyes open, scanning every inch of the ground, looking for any anomalies in the bushes around them when suddenly she saw it. It glinted in the sun similar to the way Bucky's arm did, and she froze, putting her hand up to signal to Natasha that she found it.

Natasha got to work and deactivated it and went back a little to signal to the men that they could move out. Meanwhile, Liz pushed on by herself just like they had planned. She got to the main entrance and successfully hacked into the front door, the usual Hydra coding still burnt into the back of her mind. Though she had unlocked the front door, she didn't open it, instead leaving it for easy access for the men. She instead snuck around the side of the cement building, looking for the ventilation shaft that should be around fifty meters to the right. When she found it, she looked back to see Natasha going around to the other side of the building to enter through the other ventilation shaft, and if she focused hard enough, she could see Sam, Bucky and Steve hiding behind some bushes not far away, waiting for their signal.

Liz removed the covering of the shaft and dropped inside. It was just about big enough for her to get in – which is why the men had to use the front door, they were far too big to go through the same was as her. She crawled through it quietly, keeping her phone hacked into the system so they didn't detect her or Natasha, who – if the plan was going well – was half way to the front desk.

Eventually Liz stopped crawling and looked down through the vents. Just like the floor plans suggested, she was over a small store room. She opened up the vent and dropped down into the room, barely making a sound. Looking through the keyhole, she saw no one, heard no one, and opened the door to the hallway. She went left and hurried down the corridor, checking her stopwatch – she had exactly 3 minutes and 45 seconds until the men charged in through the main entrance, so she had to hurry. She made her way through the maze of corridors, occasionally having to hide around corners or inside empty rooms to avoid being detected by Hydra guards and scientists, and finally got to the room she had been looking for.

The Operation's room was where they held all their information, where the higher ranking agents were stationed. It was where she had the most chance of finding Commander Hirsch, but also where she would find the most information kept on their databases. Liz hacked into the server to get into the room, and ducked behind one of the desks as soon as she got in.

The Operation's room was in two parts – the first part was lined with desks and computers facing a large board on one wall. The second part of the room was had a circular central table, against which were currently leaning three men, one of which Liz immediately recognized.

She took a moment to regain control of herself, feeling herself begin to panic, the image of the man behind her burnt into her memory. His cold laugh, his furious green eyes piercing through her, his thick German accent scaring her as he barked orders. Commander Hirsch. She had never known his name but she knew how he worked. He had been in command of Project Siren since Liz was first brought in, his small round glasses resting on his crooked nose as he inspected her. Over the years his blonde hair had gone grey, but he was still as tall and intimidating as he had always been even though he had needed a cane for the past five or six years.

With a deep breath, Liz pushed herself onto her knees and looked over the desk at him, watching as he was in deep discussion with the two men beside him, both wearing white lab coats and quite a lot younger than him. She silently plugged in a USB device into the computer she was beside and silently skimmed her fingers over the keyboards, trying to be as silent as possible as she downloaded every file they had onto the USB. She checked her watch again – 15 seconds.

She willed the computer to go faster and when the transfer was finally done, she pulled the USB out and stuffed it in her pocket just as the lights went out. Natasha was bang on time, and as soon as the lights were out, Liz jumped to her feet and pulled out her throwing knives, hitting each of the younger scientists straight between the eyes. By the time the emergency lights flickered on, they were dead on the floor, and Hirsch twisted around with wide eyes. When he recognized her, he visibly relaxed, a smirk pulling at his lips. " Well, if it isn't one of our failed subjects. " He sneered, his eyes skimming over her body.

" I suggest you keep your mouth shut unless you feel like screaming. " She spat, making her way over to him, holding a small gun in her hand in case he made a run for it. " You're coming with me. "

Hirsch laughed, his voice empty as it echoed around the room. " Two years in the wild and you think you can control me? "

Liz gritted her teeth as she let her fist fly into the side of his face, knocking him back a little but it failed to wipe the smirk off his face as she pushed him towards the door. From the corridor, gunfire could be heard as well as screaming and the sound of death. " Friends of yours I take it? " Hirsch asked in an amused voice, almost laughing as she pressed the gun to his back to keep him walking, though progress was slow as he learnt heavily on his cane.

They rounded the corner and the hairs on Liz's neck stood up, and she twisted around to find give fully armed Hydra soldiers running towards her. She shot one between the eyes, ducked out of the way of a punch and smashed her fist in the stomach of another guy. She fought tooth and claw but the four men were much bigger than her and covered in armor, and the narrow corridor didn't give her much room to move around so within minutes, she was being held by two of them, the other two checking that Commander Hirsch was unhurt. " We never trained you to be an expert in combat. " Hirsch sneered at her as she struggled in the men's arms, snarling at him. " Oh hush hush subject, you look like a wild beast with that expression. Dear god, did all that training go to waste? "

Liz spat at him and suffered the punch that came immediately after, her head flying to the side. She slowly looked back up at the soldier who had hit her, growling deeply as she glared at him. " Time we met your friends. We've been expecting you. " The soldier smirked at her before signaling to the men holding her that they should follow him.

Liz refused to comply. She let herself sag in their hold and the men ended up having to drag her along the corridor. It was undignified and to be honest they were so strong that it probably didn't even bother them that much, but Liz refused to comply in even the smallest of ways. The men dragged her to another room whilst she silently glared daggers into Hirsch's back, hoping that by some magic she would suddenly get psychic powers and could kill by thought, but it didn't happen. Instead, the soldiers pulled her into a room and her eyes wend wide.

Steve, Sam and Bucky were chained to the wall looking tired and beaten. Bucky was sporting a nasty looking cut over his eyebrow, Steve's face was black and blue and Sam's t-shirt was burnt and torn around his stomach. Liz looked around the room, gritting her teeth and refusing to make a sound as she looked for Natasha – but she was nowhere to be seen. Had she gotten away?

" Captain America! " Hirsch smiled as he stood in the middle of the room. " It's a pleasure to meet you at last, and I must thank you profoundly for returning not one but two of our greatest assets! " He grinned, waving his arm to first Liz then Bucky. " I must admit we were very... Disappointed when we lost this one. " He said as he hovered in front of Bucky.

Bucky snarled at him, pulling at the chains that kept him against the wall, trying his best to get free and wrap his metal fingers around his neck. " Don't touch him! " Liz shouted, screaming at hirsch before she realized what she had said.

As soon as Hirsch looked over to her, she realized her mistake. She had shown emotion, and emotion was a weakness. Hirsch now knew how to get to her, how to get to Bucky with more than just physical torture. She gritted her teeth and glared at Hirsch as he stepped towards her, struggling against the men who held her. " Chains won't hold us. " She threatened him in a dark voice. " You may have the upper hand now but believe me when I say this isn't the end. We will get free. And I will kill you. "

Hirsch simply smiled at her, keeping his head high as he looked down at her through his glasses. " You're a feisty little thing. Just like your mother. "

Liz's face fell and he smiled again, leaving the room. " Hirsch! HIRSCH! " She shouted after him, but she was already being dragged through another door into a room she knew all too well. The soldiers through her inside and she fell to the floor, scrambling to her feet and flinging herself at the heavy metal door just as it swang shut in her face, leaving her all alone.

After banging on the door for a while, Liz turned around, slumping against the door as she took the room in. Four plain white walls, plain cemented floor, with nothing but a matress against one wall and a toilet on another. Just like every room she had ever been given as she grew up. Liz let out a cry of anger and frustration and turned back to the door, hitting her head against it as she felt the tears build up, but she wouldn't give in. She wouldn't give them the satisfaction.

After a short while, she heard noises coming from the ventilation shaft in the ceiling. She looked up and waited, when suddenly Natasha's face came appeared through the hole. " Hey, need a lift? " She smirked.

Liz laughed, a few tears streaking down her face in relief. Natasha smiled sadly and dropped a rope down for her, attaching it to the side of the hole. Once Liz had climbed in, they pulled the rope back in and shut the shaft, removing any evidence of her escape. " Where are the others? " Liz asked, her stomach twisted in fear.

Natasha shook her head. " They're better guarded than you were. " She said quietly. " We gotta get out and think of another plan before we get them. "

" No! " Liz protested. " I'm not leaving them... I'm not leaving Bucky, I promised- "

" Unless you want to get yourself captured again, we need backup. Don't worry, someone's already on their way. " She reassured her.

" Who? " Liz asked, sniffing as she looked at Natasha.

" An old friend. " She said simply, turning around to crawl out of the facility.