A/N: Hey guys!
So, as always, to everyone who reviewed: YOU ARE AWESOME! Many of you have been reviewing every single chapter and that means a lot to me. You have no idea how excited I get when I come on to check this everyday and see the number of reviews has gone up.

I want to specifically mention Laurafxox, who left quite an in-depth review! She made a good point about something that I have impatiently been waiting to write, which is Lydia and Bucky actually together. I'm glad you can understand and appreciate that I'm attempting to ensure that the buildup is natural :) BUT I can promise you all that wonderful fluff and happy feels that aren't angst-ridden will come eventually.

So, without further adieu, I give you...Chapter 10.

Bucky angrily stormed out of the house, followed closely by Steve. He began cursing up a storm and muttering threats as he glanced around, looking for telltale signs of the snipers. He could feel his deep-rooted assassin instincts threatening to boil over inside of him, and for once they were useful rather than a burden. Steve interrupted his intense concentration as they headed down the street.

"I know what you're thinking of doing, but I think we should head back to the base first. Someone is returning home today from a mission, and we could really use his help."

Bucky grumbled some more about how he could take all of them down on his own, before climbing into the passenger seat of the car. Steve took an extremely long and confusing route to the base while Bucky's eyes were trained on the back window of the car, searching for any signs of followers on their tail. He parked a few blocks away and the two of them split up, once again searching for any signs of HYDRA snipers lurking in the shadows of the night.

They met back up and warily entered the headquarters, wondering why they hadn't run into any company. Steve quickly jogged down the halls, which were mostly empty, until he found whom he was looking for sitting in a small office.

"Welcome back, Barton."

"Good to see you, Rogers."

Clint Barton stood up from the desk and smiled, walking over to Steve to shake his hand with one arm while clapping him on the back with the other. Bucky entered the room behind him and eyed up the unfamiliar man.

"Bucky, this is Clint Barton."

Clint approached Bucky and nodded at him while the two sized one another up. Clint grinned.

"No offense, but you don't look as intimidating without the hair or the Winter Soldier get-up."

Bucky narrowed his eyes as he flexed his cybernetic arm.

"What are you trying to say?"

Steve cleared his throat.

"Guys, uh. Listen. Bucky, I know you think you can take down these men on your own, but Clint is extremely well-trained in this area as well. We need all the help we can get...so you're going to have to play nice."

Clint spoke up.

"Alright...so I have a hunch that something's going on..."

Steve explained the predicament to Clint as Clint walked around the room, picking up pieces of his outfit and equipment that he would need. They hurried further down the hallway to the office Steve and Bucky shared, and the two of them quickly suited up and grabbed their respective weapons as well. They took off down the hall once more at a run, only to be stopped by a woman who stepped out into the middle of it with her hands on her hips, blocking their path.

"Natasha."

She nodded to Clint as Steve spoke to her next,

"I thought you were going to lay low for a while?"

She shrugged.

"With a ledger this red, there's no such thing as laying low. My secrets are spilled out on the table now, so I might as well continue making a name for myself. I just got back in town."

Bucky grunted.

"Alright, well we've got places to be."

Natasha raised an eyebrow.

"You clean up well...Barnes, right? Should I be worried that you're casually walking the halls of S.H.I.E.L.D.? Last time I saw you, you tried to kill me."

Bucky smirked.

"I've got myself under control...for now at least."

Clint interrupted their bantering.

"Natasha, HYDRA's back in town and they've got Lydia."

"Well then, considering me officially a part of this mission. I've had a bit too much of a vacation, it's about time I get back to work."

Once they were piled into Steve's car and heading in the direction of the side of town Lydia lived on, Natasha leaned forward and poked her head between the two front seats.

"There's a really morbid vibe in this car right now. Steve, it's been too long since I've bugged you about women. What about Lydia? She threw you into the friend zone pretty hard with that whole 'fake boyfriend for the parents' stunt, but saving her life might turn the tables!"

Steve coughed loudly as Bucky dramatically rolled his eyes and mumbled.

"Definitely not her type..."

Clint shushed them all as Steve parked the car and they split into groups of two. Bucky grumbled for a moment about being stuck with Clint, until Steve elbowed him and reminded him about what was at stake. His heartbeat quickened with the mixture of anxiety and anticipation that flooded over him. He and Clint quickly found their way onto a rooftop that was down the block from Lydia's apartment and they both began to scan the area for signs of the HYDRA snipers that David spoke of.

"You know, Barnes, you're not the only poor bastard that's had a taste of mind control. I can't really complain because I wasn't under for nearly as long as you, but I can testify to the fact that it's not a fun experience."

Bucky glanced over at Clint, who had an arrow pulled back in his bow, prepared to shoot at any moment. He replied in a hushed voice.

"I don't know why Steve's making such a big deal out of this, I could have handled all of this on my own. It's my damn fault she's in this mess, anyway."

Clint shook his head.

"HYDRA would be causing some sort of trouble for us here no matter what, even if Lydia wasn't part of the equation."

The second Clint's lips stopped moving and his words faded into the night, something clicked in Bucky's head. His entire body stiffened as the gears began spinning, his intricately trained mind putting the pieces together.

"There are no snipers."

Clint scoffed.

"Yeah, I noticed. What gives?"

Words began to tumble out of Bucky's mouth faster than he could process them.

"He was bluffing, hoping that we would bring you and Natasha as backup. He somehow knew that you were both returning today."

Clint furrowed his brows.

"So, what's going on then?"

"It's a trap. He wants all of us inside of that apartment..."

"Well, there's an easy solution then. We don't go in the apartment."

Bucky shook his head furiously.

"No! I'm not leaving Lydia."

Clint shrugged.

"How are you so sure she's even in there, if this was all a bluff?"

"I'm not, but there's only one way to find out. Even if she's not in there, I know he definitely is. I will find her, one way or another."

Their discussion was interrupted by a scream that had become far too familiar to Bucky's ears.

Lydia sat on the couch, head in her hands. David sat in a chair across from her with a sick smile spread across his face. The laptop sitting on the coffee table in between them continued to play the raw security footage from the HYDRA base where her brother and his fellow S.H.I.E.L.D. agents had been captured. Her eyes swam with tears that threatened to fall as she tried to push the images of Bucky torturing the men and her brother out of her mind. David leaned forward and gently placed a hand on her knee, which she immediately shied away from. She spoke to him through gritted teeth.

"What do you want from me?"

"Oh, dear, Lydia. It's not particularly you that I want, you just happen to be the key to getting what I want. My mission was to come here and find a way to lure out Captain America and The Winter Soldier, because apparently HYDRA has had enough of them. When I realized that the bait I was assigned to use happened to be you, it made my job that much easier."

"They're not stupid, you know. This isn't the first time they've dealt with you HYDRA scum."

David shrugged.

"Oh, sure, of course. But you see, trial and error is always followed by eventual success. This time around, they won't be escaping."

"Bucky has grown much stronger and regained full control of his mind at this point. You're not going to be able to use one of those radio devices to control him again."

David smirked at her confident statement.

"I wasn't planning on it. There are other ways to tame him."

Lydia slammed the laptop screen shut, tears slowly falling down her cheeks. She knew Bucky had been under HYDRA's control at the time of the experiments, but she couldn't stop the sick and disgusted feeling that remained in her stomach. Her mind began to tick with foolish ideas to attempt to escape David. He wasn't exactly a sturdily built man, so she wondered if she could hold her own against him. She knew better than to try, though, because he wouldn't have left her hands free if he thought she would be able to escape.

"I still don't understand why you needed me for this. I'm sure it would have been easier to just show up at Steve's apartment?"

"I heard through the grapevine that there was a possibility of your boys bringing some extra company if I waited till tonight and let things play out this way."

Lydia barely had time to understand what he was insinuating before the door to her apartment was kicked open. Steve and Natasha entered the room and everything clicked into place. She realized HYDRA's whole plan was to pick off S.H.I.E.L.D.'s human defenses, so their next invasion would not be stopped.

"Steve, Natasha, NO! You can't be here, it's a set up!"

Steve reached for his shield, but his reaction time wasn't fast enough. Two figures wearing black jumpsuits quickly entered the apartment behind them and threw a glowing blue ring around Steve's neck. He felt to the ground in pain as it tightened against his throat. Lydia cried out,

"NO! YOU CAN'T DO THIS!"

David laughed menacingly.

"Impressive, isn't it? We just recently finished developing that collar. He's now even weaker than the average human being thanks to the electricity and radiation pulsing through his veins. Think of it as two magnets forcing one another in opposite directions"

Natasha, meanwhile, had one of the masked enemies in a headlock as she began to repeatedly knee them in the face. Lydia praised the upper hand she had gained, until a large group of the cloaked enemies appeared in the hall and restrained her with handcuffs. David glanced down at his watch.

"Now your knight in shining armor should be here any minute..."

Right on cue, four of the masked men were sent flying across the room. Bucky stomped in, taking ragged breaths, shortly followed by Clint. Lydia watched in horror as more members of HYDRA began to flood the hallways and enter the apartment. Clint, a man more skilled at distance where he could utilize his arrows, was quickly overwhelmed and handcuffed, thrown to the floor beside Natasha. Steve was slumped against the wall, struggling to fight off the effects of the collar around his neck. Lydia was too distracted as she nervously watched Bucky fight the men and didn't notice as David cuffed her hands as well. She began to kick and struggle as David pulled out a syringe and firmly grasped her arm.

Bucky, who had been lost in his rage as he skillfully took down the men surrounding him, glanced up as he heard Lydia cry out once more. It was in that moment of weakness that the men took advantage of him and slapped a collar around his neck, which brought him to his knees. One last cry escaped Lydia's throat before the sedative in the needle kicked in.

Lydia's eyes slowly opened and she found herself lying on a cold, damp concrete floor. She groaned and pushed herself into a sitting position, relieved to find that her handcuffs were removed. She glanced to her left to find Natasha sitting on an elevated slab of concrete that seemed to serve as joke of a bed, meanwhile Bucky sat slumped against the far wall.

"Hey. You're finally awake."

She looked around for Steve's voice, and realized he was in a cell beside them, merely separated by bars in between.

"Where the hell are we?"

Steve shot her a wary glance.

"I don't think you'll be too happy if I describe the location."

Lydia's heartbeat sped up as she replied,

"Please tell me we're not under water."

Steve nodded, fully aware of Lydia's intense phobia of deep, open water.

"There were so many of them, we didn't stand a chance. I don't know how they managed to pull it off, but they loaded us all into a truck, drove to a harbor, tossed us in a submarine, and brought us here. Bucky and I can't even attempt to break us out of here because of these collars and his cybernetic arm will barely move. I don't understand what they're planning on doing with us."

"They needed to remove us from the equation so we don't get in the way of their plans."

Lydia had almost forgotten Clint had been at her apartment and part of the mission until he spoke up from the cell that Steve was in. She let loose an exasperated sigh.

"So how are we going to get out of here if Steve and Bucky are both incapacitated?"

Natasha stood up and approached the three of them, leaning against the bars separating the two cells.

"Well, since our team's strength has been virtually eliminated we'll have to resort to outsmarting them, I guess."

"Good luck with that, these assholes are too intelligent for their own good."

All of them turned to glance at Bucky, who had finally lifted his head and spoken up. As he approached, Lydia backed away from him. The look of despair in his eyes told her that he knew what she had seen. She was relieved that he was okay, but she still couldn't look past the images that were burned into her mind.

"I'm sorry..."

He looked into her eyes and said the words quietly, so nobody else would hear them. She quickly averted her gaze and walked to the other side of the cell, leaning against the wall as she slowly slid down to the floor. She pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on her arms as she tuned out the sounds of the other four discussing possible escape tactics.

She was shaken out of her daze as Bucky slid down onto the floor beside her and gently tapped her shoulder.

"We should talk..."

She gave him a weary look.

"I don't see what there is to talk about. I don't want to talk about it."

Bucky bit his lip as he tried to find the right words to say.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner...but I'm sure you can understand wh-"

Lydia cut him off before he could continue speaking.

"I thought we trusted each other. You could have found a way to tell me. You don't understand how much it hurt having to watch it instead of hearing it from you."

"I know...I made a big mistake. I just didn't want to hurt you anymore than you've already been hurt. It tore me to pieces every time you would cry over him...I couldn't voluntarily make that wound even deeper.."

Lydia gave him a half-hearted shrug.

"I guess there was no easy way around it, but looking at you is really difficult right now. It hurts...a lot. This isn't really the most convenient time to be saying this...but I just need some space from you."

A somber look crossed over Bucky's face as he stood up and walked away, leaving her alone as she wished.

The halls outside of their cells were quiet, save for the occasional rumble above them. Bucky's stomach lurched every time that occurred as he wondered just how stable the underwater base could be. He glanced over at Lydia, who was sitting against the bars separating the two cells. She was talking to Steve and Clint in a hushed voice.

He wanted to laugh at the irony of every situation he was currently caught in the middle of. How did four of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s best get captured within a matter of minutes? How did he manage to fail Lydia yet again? How was it that she was now the one that didn't want to be near him? He was beginning to think that living life as a mindless assassin had been easier, because living with emotions was far too painful. Natasha's voice broke through his thoughts.

"I hope you're not beating yourself up over Lydia being involved in this. She knew the life she was signing up for when she joined S.H.I.E.L.D., and she's tough enough to handle it. Steve kind of filled me in on everything before we got to the apartment..."

"But she wouldn't be such a hot target if she hadn't been involved with me."

"You do realize that she stole very sensitive information from right under HYDRA's nose the day of the whole Project Insight fiasco, right? She was on their shit list regardless...you just helped make the situation a bit more sensitive, that's all. We've all made mistakes in our past, and you're not going to get anywhere if you can't forgive yourself."

"I guess you're right..."

Footsteps suddenly began to echo in the dark and empty space outside of the cells, and they all fell into a hushed silence as they waited for the source of the sound to appear. Alexander Pierce came into view, and Steve immediately jumped to his feet and approached the bars that separated them.

"What the hell are you doing here!?"

Pierce chuckled at Steve's outburst.

"I'm a very powerful man, Rogers. I would have thought you would have figured that out by now. Something as petty as a cell guarded by S.H.I.E.L.D. cannot keep me contained."

Natasha spoke up, glaring at Pierce with eyes full of hatred.

"You should be dead."

He shrugged in response.

"I could say the same for you. Now, enough with the hostility. You haven't even given me the chance to explain why you're here!"

Clint chimed in from the corner of the cell he and Steve were in,

"You've brought us to the main HYDRA base so we can finally destroy all of you scum once and for all?"

Pierce smirked.

"Oh, don't you wish. Unfortunately, you will not be given that glorious opportunity. See, I have gathered you all here so I can see your faces light up when I tell you that Project Insight will live to see another day!"

Steve furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"All three of the helicarriers and the weapons were destroyed."

"Ahhh, yes, of course they were. However, soldier, you do not give HYDRA enough credit. We planned for the possibility of failure, which is why our backup plan is already in the final stages of completion. While the helicarriers and weaponry were being developed, we were also creating ships here with the same technology. The ships aren't quite as convenient as an air attack to cleanse the Earth, but ships will allow us to truly make this event a surprise for everyone."

Lydia bravely stood up, hands balled into fists, as her body shook in anger.

"These aren't the only superheroes on Earth. When Fury realizes these four are gone, Stark and Banner will get involved."

Pierce made a 'tsk tsk' noise as he began to pace back and forth in front of the two cells.

"Honestly, it astounds me how much you all seem to doubt HYDRA, even after S.H.I.E.L.D. was compromised for so many years. Fury is a bit tied up at the moment...so you shouldn't count on anyone coming to rescue you."

Lydia angrily replied,

"You're a rotten bastard, Pierce."

Pierce took a step closer to Lydia, who was pressed up against the bars of the cell, holding them tightly. His menacing eyes bored into hers as he spoke.

"So feisty, Agent Fortona. I look forward to extinguishing that fiery passion that burns inside of you very shortly. We have a wonderful gift for you here, my dear."

Lydia, extremely confused at this point, narrowed her eyes.

"What are you talking about...?"

Bucky gently put his hand on her shoulder; his heart racing because he knew exactly what Pierce was talking about. Pierce grinned before he turned to walk away and he called out over his shoulder,

"Oh, you'll see. Perhaps tomorrow. You should all get some rest!"

Lydia turned to face the others as Bucky let his hand fall. Steve and Bucky exchanged a discreet and pained look, deciding whether or not to tell Lydia what Pierce was talking about. Neither of them spoke up, silently agreeing upon the fact that an educated guess could cause more trouble than it was worth if they were wrong about Pierce's threat. Mentally exhausted, they all decided to try and rest to prepare for whatever the next day would bear. Steve laid down on an elevated rectangle of concrete whilst Clint and Natasha sat side by side, or as close as they could get with the bars between the cells separating them.

Lydia glanced over at Bucky, who was sitting against the wall and forlornly staring down at his hands. She frowned at the conflicting feelings that bubbled up inside of her. Her heart desperately wanted to lay beside him and close her eyes, imagining tender, comforting moments like the nights spent together innocently lying side by side in her bed. However, her mind still felt sickened with the knowledge of what he had done. She knew she couldn't be angry with him forever though, because it would be cruel to punish him for his brainwashed actions.

As she fought to stay afloat amidst her stormy thoughts, Bucky slowly lifted his head. When his soft eyes met hers, an involuntary sigh escaped her lips. She felt as if a lump was nailed into her throat as her insides began to protest at the rushing flood of feelings that overcame her. Her feet began to carry her forward, and she was barely aware of what she was doing as she slid to the floor beside him. Their faces were inches apart as she turned to look into his eyes, fighting to maintain an even breathing pattern. The pain and regret in his eyes temporarily broke down her remaining resolve to keep a distance from him. He cautiously lifted his arm up, and she leaned into his side as he gently pulled her closer to him. A tear slid down her cheek as she closed her eyes and breathed in his familiar and comforting scent.

A/N: SIGH! Please don't hate me for the lack of Lydia and Bucky interaction in this chapter.
The plot needs to get moving before better things can happen, unfortunately.
Buuuuuuut I promise I'll be making up for it soon :)