GOODNIGHT SWEETHEART

{Author's Note: I'm so sorry that this hasn't been updated in so long. I've been really ill over the past couple of weeks and have only just managed to update :(. Thank you to everyone who keeps reading and reviewing; you guys are awesome! Please review, as I need some encouragement to keep writing to this. Thank you x}

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the character(s) you don't recognise.
A BIG thank you to Mammilloydia for the German translation. (English meaning is at the bottom of the page.)

~+~
{HYDRA-OWNED GOVERNMENT FACILITY| LONDON, ENGLAND| TWO WEEKS EARLIER…}

High heels could be heard click-clacking on the white marbled floor that decorated the grand building which housed top ranking HYDRA officials for an important meeting.
The subject matter had been a long time coming, but finally the impossible had been done with a large convention hall playing host to all of HYDRA's greatest minds.

The owner of the high heels had stopped pacing the room to stand perfectly still as she addressed the now silent room.
"Did you all really believe that if we buried our heads he would fade away?"
Her heavy Austrian accent was laced with irritation as she reached behind her to pull out a folder, throwing the contents out onto the table in front of her.

Two black and white photographs were laid out for all to see, the subject being a man who had fast became a bane on all of their otherwise perfect lives.
"Who can tell me who this is?"
Not one person had dared to raise their hand or voice in fear of irking the already irritable woman.

An awkward silence hung in the air for what felt like a lifetime until she slammed her fist down on the antique table to gain their attention, "No one can tell me?! That's funny…because here I was under the impression that all of you are top officers? Nein?"

A man whom had much of his face concealed beneath a thick beard had spoken up, "We are, Doctor!"

"Then why are you choosing now to be silent? TELL ME WHO HE IS!"

Again the man cleared his throat to answer shakily, "Captain America-"

She laughed humourlessly, "There! That was all I wanted! Captain America! So, answer me this: why is a man who is named so ridiculously, still a threat to us?"

This time another man replied to her question, "It is not all that easy-"

"Why is it not? Does he not bleed like other men? Does he not feel pain or suffering?" Pausing to further prove her point, she then continued with, "A man like him may seem indestructible, and perhaps physically he is. But, mentally he is vulnerable! You need to take away what makes him strong."

Every man and woman in the room looked thoughtful before a woman lifted her head up to ponder aloud.
"What about his partner? Agent Barnes?"

The Doctor's face lit up as she smirked smugly, "She is still alive? Ah, well then I believe we have a plan formulated already!"

A respectful silence descended upon the crowded room as every face turned towards their boss in interest whilst she enjoyed the attention.
"Agent Marilyn Barnes is our target for the first stage of our plan to seamlessly bring our grand scheme together. If you split her and Captain Rogers up-have them go on separate missions-then it shall be far easier to kill him!"

"But what about Agent Barnes?" Someone from the far end of the table had called out.

"She is not to be harmed! Nein…I believe we should take a risk that will pay off! Hart?"

A small, stocky man with long black hair and beady eyes had lifted his head up at the mention of his surname to answer, "Yes, Doctor Weismann?"

"I need you to go to Pierce and inform him of what is to happen. I will brief you on the plan once I have informed Baron Strucker. Any questions or can I finally trust that you will all do your jobs?"

No one dared to grumble as they all nodded.
"Good! Heil HYDRA!"

A chorus of voices rang out, "HEIL HYDRA!"

~+~
{HYDRA-OWNED GOVERNMENT FACILITY| LONDON, ENGLAND| A WEEK LATER…}

Doctor Klara Weismann was a woman who knew exactly how to get what she wanted in life.
Fear, seduction and wit were the three main rules she lived by when leading her men and women, only, there were some who never fell for her charms.

One was a man by the name of Baron Wolfgang Von Strucker who had a sort of immunity to whenever she would flirt and focus her striking blue eyes on him.
No matter how many times she would run her hands slowly and sensually up her long legs to distract him, or purse her lips seductively, he would still have that same expression of calmness.
It infuriated her to no end.

Right now she was sat opposite her superior with her eyes watching his every move as he paced in front of her.
"This Captain America, what do you know of him?"

She made a scene of slowly crossing her legs before answering, "He was a lab rat for Erskine. The Americans call him a 'super soldier', but he is not immortal!"

Baron Strucker looked thoughtful as he digested what was being said, "He was impressive during footage regarding the recent attack on New York…he will not be a problem?"

"No, he will not. I have more than enough men on hand to prevent him becoming a problem for us."

"Very good." He smirked whilst turning towards her, "What of Agent Barnes?"

Before Klara could answer him, noises surrounded the room outside with busy Londoners still commuting to their daily jobs.
It was at times like these that they were both reminded just how the walls had ears.

Effortlessly he had switched to speaking in German to keep some aspects of their meeting private.
"Erzähl ihr von dem Winter Soldier. Gib ihr Hoffnung - den Rest macht sie und wird uns nicht im Wege stehen." Strucker told her firmly.

"But she could find out information-"

He sighed in annoyance at being undermined, "Es wäre schlau dich daran zu erinnern wer deine Vorgesetzten sind!"

She knew that his word was final no matter how wrong he may be proven later.
"Of course. My apologies, Baron Strucker. What to do with this Captain?"

"Aber du musst ihn aus dem Weg räumen, da er sonst HYDRA's Pläne verhindern wird. Das Mädchen ist uns noch nicht von Nutzen, wir müssen abwarten."

Nodding to cement the plan, she then stood up, "I will see to it that your wishes are acted upon."

A general tilt of the head in acknowledgement was his answer before a familiar parting phrase was said, "Heil HYDRA…"

~+~
{THE TRISKELION| WASHINGTON, D.C.| MEANWHILE…}

Agent Hart was a man who with just one glance could send shivers down your spine.
Not one of the agents had wanted to work beside him due to his track record.
Every single one of his partners had died in a horrific way and some of the bodies still hadn't been found.
It was almost as though he had an aura of evil.

Striding confidently towards the office of Alexander Goodwin Pierce, he didn't even bother to knock or make his presence known, instead he announced his presence by clearing his throat and saying darkly, "We need to talk."

A brief expression of fear passed before Pierce caught himself and nodded, "Of course. I was expecting Klara though, is everything alright?"
Usually he could charm anyone that he came into contact with, but today he was having no such luck.

"Doctor Weismann has more pressing matters to attend to. She sent me in as her messenger, is there a problem?" A nasty sneer accompanied his words.

"No, of course not. I was just concerned. After all, she is our superior, correct?"

"She is. So, this is where you spend your waking hours?" A mocking tone rang out, "It is good to see you working hard."

Pierce stiffened at the not-so-subtle accusation before sitting down on the end of his desk, "So, how can I help you?"

Agent Hart leant against the expansion of glass that took up a whole wall, "We have received orders that need to be acted on immediately. Agent Barnes, you know of her?"

"I've heard of her but have yet to meet with her, why?" He raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

"We need to get rid of her influence on Captain Rogers, in order to advance with Project Insight."

"You wish for me to kill Agent Barnes?!" A scoff of disbelief resounded, "Fury keeps her on a very tight rein. Not to mention that she is a valuable agent! One which Klara herself had told me will play a fundamental role in our future-"

The HYDRA Agent raised his hand rudely to interrupt, "Not kill, but she will need to be kept away from Captain Rogers until we are sure that the trigger word will work."

"Trigger word?" Realisation had then dawned on him, "I see…Does Klara have anything in mind as to what we should do with Agent Barnes?"

"Send her away! You should tell her the barest minimal about The Winter Soldier! He is her brother after all; she will go looking for him without a second thought. You need to make sure that she will not keep in contact with anyone who could jeopardise our plans. This is your chance to prove to not only Doctor Weismann, but also Baron Strucker as to why you are still considered useful. Understood?"

Pierce nodded once, his smile forced as he asked, "Is that all?"

Agent Hart nodded, "That is all. Do not let us down; HYDRA does not accommodate failure..."

~+~
{THE TRISKELION| WASHINGTON, D.C.| MEANWHILE…}

ROSIE'S P.O.V.

I would be lying if I didn't admit that modern technology still scared me.
Suddenly I was made aware of how easy it is to gain information on someone and how spying is made easy by security cameras on every corner.
The Triskelion was a marvel of modern technology with huge glass elevators that still astounded me.
Whether I considered it good or bad that the world was advancing daily was still up for debate.

Whilst Steve did his morning jog, I decided to go and have a walk around the Triskelion.
Curiosity proved more effective than caffeine at keeping me from collapsing due to lack of sleep.

"Agent Barnes?"

Turning around swiftly, I smiled politely as an older gentleman with a warm and confident smile was making his way towards me, "I was wondering if you had a moment to talk? I'm Alexander Pierce; I am the Secretary to the World Security Council. I want to apologise for not getting a chance to converse with you sooner but it appears Director Fury likes to keep you under lock and key."

I laughed at his accurate description, "Of course I have time. Is something the matter?"

"Well…" He paused so that he could lead me into his office and shut the huge glass doors, "I have some sensitive information that I believe you need to know."

Already I was beginning to get worried as I sat down by his desk, "Is this to do with the attack on New York?"

Secretary Pierce shook his head as a grimace twisted his smile, "Not quite. You see, Here at SHIELD our secrets have their own little secrets. We are essentially an intelligence organisation."

"I see…"

He smiled lightly, "But those secrets are guarded by simple men, Agent Barnes. We are all just victims to our emotions."

"I don't understand what-"

"I was meant to keep certain things hidden, but it appears I'm not as deceptive as Director Fury. He had come across this file a long time ago Agent Barnes and kept this information secret from you. I feel that you have a right to know."
Nervously he pushed a file towards me, "I'm sorry…"

Furrowing my eyebrows in confusion, I quickly opened the file to come face-to-face with an image that will be forever imprinted in my memory.
"James…"
There in front of me was a picture of my brother inside some kind of a cryogenic chamber that dated back a few decades.

I was shocked to speechlessness.

"I'm sorry, Agent Barnes. This must be difficult for you."
He then leant over to place his hand over mine, "They call him The Winter Soldier. He is a KGB operative. I don't want to upset you, but he may be in turmoil trying to find you…"

A tear escaped down my cheek as I touched the photograph tentatively, "Where is he?"

Secretary Pierce moved to lean against the desk in front of me, "Russia. I can help you to go and find him? I want to help you, Marilyn-can I call you Marilyn?"

My head was swimming with all of the information that I struggled to comprehend, "I…Yes, of course…"
I breathed out shakily before lifting my head up from the photograph, "Why are you helping me? This is delicate information that would better benefit you being kept secret-"

He smiled warmly, "I have a daughter who you remind me of. I live by the rule that by doing some good, you will earn some serious brownie points with the man upstairs."
"But, you can not let Director Fury know that I am sending you down this path. He wanted to keep you in the dark so that your brother will be used as an agent once found. I want nothing more than to see a family reunited."

"I will need to tell Steve-"

"I would prefer that you tell Captain Rogers very little, as we do not know how much he has been told-"

Cutting him off, I said firmly, "Steve would never keep this from me."

He nodded soothingly, "I understand, but this is to keep him safe. He could be in danger from both sides, Marilyn. Only you should know why you going there."

I nodded after coming to the realisation that if I told Steve, he would be in danger too, "Of course. Thank you for your help."

Smiling, he stood up to take my hand and lead me towards the exit, "Go and find your brother, Agent Barnes. I will make sure that Captain Rogers is kept safe…"

German Translation:

'Erzähl ihr von dem Winter Soldier. Gib ihr Hoffnung - den Rest macht sie und wird uns nicht im Wege stehen.' [Tell her about the Winter Soldier. Give her hope-she will do the rest and not be in our way.]

'Aber du musst ihn aus dem Weg räumen, da er sonst HYDRA's Pläne verhindern wird. Das Mädchen ist uns noch nicht von Nutzen, wir müssen abwarten.' [But you need to remove him out of the picture, as he will hinder HYDRA's plans. The girl will not be of use yet, we must wait.]

'Es wäre schlau dich daran zu erinnern wer deine Vorgesetzten sind.' [You would be wise as to remember who your superiors are.]