Author's Note: Hurray! Lots of updates this week! I'm finally defeating my writer's block, so hopefully I can get as much as possible up before school starts. Enjoy!
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Welcome to your life. There's no turning back. Even while you sleep, you will find you acting on your best behavior. Turn your back on Mother Nature. Everybody wants to rule the world.
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The girl's breathing was shallow, but she'd stopped shaking a few hours previously; something that James was eternally thankful for. He had no idea what to completely expect once she came in contact with the serum, but he had his guesses.
Her muscle tissue was changing along with elements of her neurology. The plan had been to show her a normal life and if the serum came in contact with her, she'd show weakness and remorse for friends and family. However, if his previous experiences with HYDRA provided him with any insight, memories couldn't always be protected.
He leaned back in his armchair and kept his eyes on her sleeping form on the sofa. He'd created a safe house in New York a few years previously in case things got bad and he needed to lay low for a while. No one, not even Steve, knew of its location and he was careful to keep it that way. He kept it furnished in case a noisy landlord decided to peek their head in, but he hardly put any effort into its decoration aside from the necessities.
Dana let out a small grumble and shifted slightly, the sofa creaking with her movement.
She'd be awake soon and James was utterly unprepared for what would happen after that point. He disarmed her and hid most of the weapons in the apartment in case she woke up fighting, but there was always the possibility she'd awake with a completely distorted worldview and be relatively harmless until an opportunity arose.
"…" Dana rolled again and began to slowly open her eyes; her grey iris' shot around the room while she took in her location. Finally they fell on James' form in the armchair.
"I'd suggest drinking some water," he merely commented with a light gesture at a side table with an untouched glass of water. "You'll feel better."
Dana slowly sat up, her suspicious gaze never leaving James while she reached for the water.
"How are you feeling?" he asked when she took a small sip of the beverage.
"Where am I?" she responded instead. She set the water on the table, her eyes continuing to lock onto James. Her grey gaze was cold and dangerous.
"New York City," he offered, knowing better that small answers and questions would be better than a full-blown meltdown. "Do you know why you're here?"
"No," she stated after a moment of hesitation. James wasn't sure if she was calculating her next move or genuinely confused at the scene. "Do you know why I'm here?"
"I do."
"I see," she lifted her hand from her side and flexed it.
"Do you know who you are?" he pressed quietly. She paused and nodded.
"Dana Barton. Born and raised outside of Fort Yukon, Alaska," she lifted her other hand and flexed it as well.
"What is it?"
"Nothing."
James nodded in understanding; he knew the surreal experience of waking up from such an ordeal. The experiments during the war and following his time in HYDRA made him sensitive to any subtle changes in his body over the years. Thankfully a heightened metabolism kept any effects of disease or change at bay.
"Where were you before you woke up?"
"…" She hummed to herself and frowned. "How can I trust you?"
"You can't," he replied coolly and reached at his side and pulled a small firearm out. He set it on the coffee table in front of Dana and leaned back in his chair. "But I trust you."
It was partially true, she hadn't completely snapped and seemed semi-cognizant about the world around her. He'd have to get more information to see where her memory was at, as well as what physical effects the serum may have had on her.
"Why?"
"We're a lot alike."
"I don't know if I believe that," she studied his metal arm wearily. "Where did you come from?"
"Brooklyn," he admitted. "After that, Germany, Russia, China for a time, and now Brooklyn."
"I was with a friend in the city before this," she took another small sip of water. "He gave me something to read."
"What did he give you?"
"What does it matter?" her voice raised slightly in defense. Something was triggered in the question.
"I suppose it doesn't."
"Why am I here?"
"I took you away from your family and friends to protect them," James replied without flinching. He figured the truth would be the best way to handle this ordeal.
"My family?" Dana's hand shook and she set her water down.
"And the Avengers," James added. He leaned forward once again, ready to jump on the handgun if need be. She darted her eyes back to his and she squeezed the cushion of the sofa.
"Wouldn't you need protection as well?" She asked and before James had an opportunity to dart for the gun, she snatched it off of the table, locked a bullet into place and pointed it at him. She was fast, he noted, almost as fast as Natasha in the field. "I'm going to have to ask you a small favor."
"And what would that be?" James relaxed his body and let Dana circle the room toward the front door of the apartment.
"I need transportation, please," she lowered the gun and caught a set of keys that James tossed in her direction.
"Where are you going?" He asked with amusement, slowly standing from his position. He scanned Dana over and noted the way she held the weapon. She didn't have as much experience with a firearm as she did with the bow and arrow, that much was clear to him. However, he knew any shot she'd make would hit its mark.
"…"
"You have no idea, do you?"
"I could just kill you," Dana raised her weapon again and aimed it for his head. "You're wasting my time."
"Tell me about the things your friend gave you to read," James changed the subject quickly. She kept her attention fixed on her weapon and the area around her. He wasn't going to be able to disarm her as quickly as he'd hoped.
"Excuse me?"
"You said your friend gave you some things to read before you got here."
She fired her weapon toward James' leg, but he leapt out of the way and tackled the younger woman to the ground. They wrestled for the handgun and she dug the heel of her foot into his side.
He flipped her and hit the inside of her elbow where she was clutching the weapon. She shouted in pain and dropped the gun on the floor. He scooped it up, and pointed it at her.
"What is your mission?" James locked another bullet into place to emphasize his point.
"My mission is none of your business!" she snarled and kicked the glass of water off of the table toward his face. She jumped up and wrapped her arm around his neck, an attempt to knock him out. "I'm picking up where you failed, Winter Soldier."
James used his metal arm to pull the redhead off of him and tossed her toward the other end of the room. He had to be careful, Clint would probably toss him off of the side of a building if any harm came to Dana.
Groaning, Dana rolled to her side and held her arm. She'd landed completely wrong. Her lip was bleeding and James was certain more than a few bruises were hidden under her tee shirt.
"Is that your trigger word? Avengers?" he asked leering over the girl. She used her good arm to scoot herself away from him until she hit the back wall of the apartment. "Iron Man? Captain America?"
"I don't know these people!" Dana shouted in response.
"What about your father? You know him, Clint Barton?"
"Stop it!"
"Black Widow?"
"Please stop!" Dana was shaking; her hand went to her head where sweat was beginning to form small beads. She struggled to her feet and sought an escape. James had to admit, the girl looked like a trapped wild animal.
"State your mission," James demanded, his voice booming off of the small apartment's wall.
"Please…" she was moving slowly to the side, away from him.
"State your mission," he repeated. He hated pulling this on such an unstable individual but he knew from previous experience that such demands usually pulled what his handlers wanted from him.
"Operation Blackhawk, terminate any and all threats to HYDRA's mission of world peace," Dana suddenly stated. Her eyes misted over and began to shut, she swayed to the side and James caught her before she hit the wood floor of the apartment again.
Duel personalities, he thought to himself while he settled Dana into the master bedroom. He stripped back an appropriate amount of clothing and began mending her wounds. She was stronger than her form would suggest, the injuries she'd suffered would have taken any other human down in minutes.
She needed to avoid any mention of the Avengers, and perhaps other organizations. SHIELD was sure to trigger the response he'd seen tonight as well.
Once he'd set her broken arm, he tossed a blanket over her and double-checked the security of the room. No one would be able to get in or out. He flipped the light off and locked the bedroom door from the outside. He didn't want to be ambushed by her while he was trying to figure out his next step.
(-)
Steve felt personally accountable for what had happened to Dana. While Clint hadn't given too many specifics, he knew that HYDRA was on the winning side of the battle and Steve did not like that. He felt like he could have done so much more, he shouldn't have let her out of his sight.
There was also a traitor amongst the members of the team and he had no idea where some of their loyalties would lie.
Tony and Bruce had a very special interest in Dana and her origins on a molecular level. Perhaps they were feeding information to a third party that reported to HYDRA?
How easily could Wanda have slipped away from Bucky and Clint to get to Dana and hand her over to HYDRA? Did old HYDRA alliances come up?
Thor had been gone for some time with Jane, what kind of work was she doing? He'd insisted it was confidential, but Steve knew those words meant government secrets and projects.
Any of the Avengers could have set the young Barton aside for their own agenda. The team certainly had a number of them.
Hell, Nick could have tossed her aside in exchange for Romanoff. Nat hadn't been around in decades and she certainly didn't have the relationship Clint had with Dana. The only person in Steve's opinion that was in the clear was the older archer.
Clint was taking the loss terribly. He had barely spoken a word since his conversation with Steve during the ride back to the tower.
"So anyone care to tell me where Dana went?" Chris asked while his suit was being pulled away. "Because it kind of seems like we're trading the Barton's back and forth with HYDRA."
"They took her," Steve clarified for Chris. Only Clint, Wanda and Steve knew of Dana's true location. Any other member of the group who found out would point to any of the three as the traitor; meanwhile they would be able to work their way through the Avengers until the mole revealed themselves. "HYDRA captured Dana in the hillside and we're going to be getting her back."
"Are you sure?" Chris questioned with his brow furrowed in thought. "She kind of just disappeared after the explosion right? I thought HYDRA forces were surrounding the farmhouse."
"It's the only lead we have right now," Steve replied sternly. "Which is why we should get to work immediately. There's obviously some uprising of HYDRA that we'd ignored for far too long. We will take them out and find Dana."
The team murmured in agreement before splitting up and beginning their preparations. This left Clint and Steve in the meeting room.
"We will figure this out," Steve walked behind the archer and gave his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "You have my word."
With that, Steve turned and took his leave of the room.
It was time to break down the members of the team.
(-)
"So HYDRA definitely does not have the asset," Chris muttered to himself while he propped himself up against the toilet in his suite bathroom, his laptop in hand. It was the only place without JARVIS, FRIDAY, or any other level of security in the tower. He typed across his databases and scanned once again for the tracking device he'd implanted with the serum.
It wouldn't have gone active unless the Blackhawk mission was activated, so he'd have to be patient. That could take weeks, or even months if she wasn't properly exposed.
A small dot appeared on a map and he grinned. Maybe he didn't need to wait.
He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed an encrypted phone call.
"I found her," he simply stated. "I'll take care of it myself, but please send a STRIKE team to Brooklyn, just in case."
