Flashback

"No, no. Please don't." Lillian sobbed, struggling on the table that she was currently strapped to, causing her wounds to reopen and bleed. Her body was covered in dark bruises and cuts littered all over, but she could hardly feel the pain.

They've been experimenting on her for days now, her body filled with different serums, and she hasn't seen Bucky since that live video. Instead, she was shoved into a small room, being poked and prodded like a lab rat.

"The more you struggle, darling, the more it will hurt," the accented scientist said as a large hand held her down by the forehead.

Another needle entered into her veins, and fire erupted throughout her body, which caused her to scream out in agony. Her body started to convulse, and the familiar metallic taste filled her mouth. She couldn't respond to the man, which made him smile in amusement.

"See how much better that feels?" he asked as he grabbed another syringe. Usually, his patients either took to his serum quickly or they perished, but she was still fighting everything he was putting into her system, almost like her brother. "I am surprised at your endurance. You're a hard one to break."

She narrowed her eyes but still didn't respond since her jaw was clenched shut from the burning pain. The last of the spasms passed through her body just as he moved her head to the side to get better access to her neck.

"But they all break eventually," he continued on, as if they were having a legitimate conversation. "Just like your brother, I think we finally got him to come around. Especially after we showed him that we have you. He was really eager to do what we want when we threatened to hurt you."

"Fuck you," she hissed out, dark blood spilling over her lips. She kept her mouth shut when the next serum entered her blood stream, but her body flinched.

"Such harsh words from a pretty face," he said with a smile, slowly pulling out the needle from her skin. "The more you resist, the longer we keep you from your brother, little one."

Lillian exhaled a long breath through her nose once the hand let her head go, and she watched the scientist carefully. She could already feel the serum flowing through every inch within her body, doing whatever it did to her DNA. She's seen what these crazy HYDRA scientists have done to others, how they changed and brainwashed them. It took every last ounce of her will to not succumb like the others, but every day it was harder. She was growing tired from fighting, but she wouldn't give up until she saw her brother.

"You can't control me," she growled, trying to move forward to hit him, but the straps held her back. She couldn't help but feel amused when he jumped back, but the strong hands came back to push her down onto the steel table, and they tightened her down so she could hardly breath much less move.

"We'll see about that," he said, nodding at the guards that held her down before walking towards the exit. "No food, no water for two days. It's a new project, I don't want any outside variables to mess it up," he whispered to the one that was in charge before he exited.

The two days passed with a blur, and Lillian felt like she was dying. She was still strapped down on the same steel table, in the same dirty clothes, with the same blood dried and caked onto her skin. She wasn't allowed to get up, to eat, to drink, to do anything. Her veins still felt like they were on fire, and it was something that she was confused about. Usually whatever they injected her with, it wore off after hours at the most, but it felt like it was just injected seconds ago. Her heart was still racing, and every time she shifted on the table, her body screamed for her to break free.

She knew that her body has changed, but she didn't know to what extent. At least, not yet.

"Good morning, little one," the scientist said as he entered the lab, and her body tensed up. She kept her face forward, her eyes concentrating on the ceiling that was above her. "How are we feeling today?"

"Like I want to rip out your throat," she responded, her voice hoarse from the lack of water the past two days.

"So not much has changed," he hummed, and he leaned over to peer over her face. "You look quite pale, but that is to be expected from the starvation. Do you feel any different?" He paused a moment to see if she would respond, but he was greeted with silence. "Darling, I can't help you if you don't help me."

"I don't want to help you, I just want my brother," she snapped, her body lurching forward suddenly out of anger. The restraints around her arms started to to break, and multiple guards came froward to push her back down.

The scientist stepped back to watch with interest as she struggled, and the guards injected her with something to calm her down.

"That's new," he murmured, a smile slowly forming on his face. This is what he has been waiting for this past week, a serum that worked with her body. He moved closer once more and looked over her body. Her veins did look more prominent, and she obviously gained some sort of strength. He wanted to see how far he could push her, he wanted to see what exactly this new serum does.

"What did you do to me?" she asked, her anxiety starting to grow more as time passed. She didn't know that she had grown that strong, and it terrified her.

"I am making you better, little one," he said gleefully, "Much like your Captain America." He noticed her tense up at the mention of her lover, and his smirk grew. "Too bad he is no longer with us."

"What did you say?" she whispered, snapping her gaze over to him. Her whole body froze, and she started to breathe heavily.

"Your self-righteous soldier flew a plane straight into the ice," the scientist said, "for his country. I'm sure he'll be missed."

Lillian stared at him, her eyes starting to water as she tried to determine if he was lying or not. While he was mad and evil, he has not lied to her yet, and something in his eyes made her believe him. It was getting harder to breathe and her vision was getting blurry as her anger started to take control. Her Stevie was gone, and her emotions were going haywire.

A few silent seconds passed before her body shot forward, the straps snapping effortlessly, and she lunged her body at the scientist, tackling him to the ground. Rage overtook the once sweet woman, and she wasn't in control of her actions as she began throwing punches at his face.

The guards acted quickly and pulled her off, but that only made her attack them instead. She had no training, but she with her new found strength, she took down one of the guards with a swift punch in the face. Another man grabbed her by the arms, but her body acted on instinct, and she twisted her body around before flipping him over her shoulder, knocking him unconscious. She whipped her head around and glared at the others, who were standing there in complete shock.

"Exquisite," the scientist murmured, watching her with a gleam in his eyes. At the sound of his voice, she snapped her gaze to him and clenched her jaw. "Restrain her, she's ready to see her brother."

The mention of meeting her brother sent confusion through her body, and she didn't fight back when strong hands grabbed her and put her in heavy cuffs. She was finally allowed to leave this god-forsaken room and see her brother, and she was going to take this opportunity to do so. They led her to another enclosed room, where there another body sitting on the mattress. The guards pushed her in, and she stumbled forward before flinching at the sound of the door slamming shut.

"Jaime?" she asked softly, the door locking behind her.

The man turned to look at her, and she was met with a hollow gaze and a pale face.

"Who the hell is Jaime?"

End of Flashback

Lillian shot up and awoke with a sharp gasp, her body glistening in sheer sweat. She looked around frantically, and for a moment she forgot where she was. Movement next to her caused her gaze to shift over and she was out of bed in an instant, her body taut.

"Lily?" Steve mumbled, a yawn following his question. He squinted his eyes, not used to the darkness that was surrounding them, before he leaned over to turn on the light on the table beside the bed. He noticed how heavy she was breathing, and the wild look in her eyes, and it didn't take him long to realize she just had a nightmare. "Hey, hey, hey. You're okay, sweetheart," he kept his voice light as he slowly moved forward, his hands out to show that he meant no harm.

She watched him carefully as she started to calm down, her mind catching up to what was going on. With a large exhale, she leaned against the wall behind her and slid down to the ground, hugging her legs to her chest. In an instant, Steve was right beside her, his arms wrapping around her shoulder to pull into into his body.

"What was it this time?" he asked softly, pressing his lips softly against her hair. They've been at this motel for three days now, and every night so far has ended up like she. She was slowly remembering things, and it was taking a large toll on her mentally.

"You died," she whispered softly, leaning and relaxing into his touch. "Or I thought you did. I was injected with so many things, Steve, I was so scared. I found out you crashed that plane, and it felt like I wasn't even in control. Bucky didn't remember me. It hurt so much, I felt like I lost my way."

Steve sighed softly and ran his fingers through her hair as gently as he could so she would remain calm. When she got worked up, he found out, it was hard to control her emotions and actions.

"I'm here, I promise," he said, pulling back slowly so he could wipe the lone tears off her cheeks. "Memories are hard, but they can't come back to hurt you, okay? I am so proud of you."

Lillian laughed softly and shook her head, her eyes closing as she rested her head against his shoulder.

"I'm just so tired, Stevie," she yawned, pressing her whole body into his. These past few days, she has grown more comfortable around him, and was becoming more like her affectionate self.

"Then go to sleep, love," he responded softly, glancing over at the time. It was just past one in the morning, and he was quite tired himself.

"I'm scared to go to sleep. What if I have another nightmare?"

"Then I will be right here for you when you wake up."

She smiled softly to herself and let out a soft hum, getting comfortable against his warm body. Steve let her, because he didn't have the heart to move her just yet. He continued to run his fingers through her soft hair, which lulled her to a dreamless sleep. When he knew for sure that she was sleeping, he picked her up as slowly as he could, and laid her back onto the bed.

"I promise to always be here, Lily flower," he murmured to her sleeping self, kissing her forehead then nose. He pulled the blanket over her petite body before climbing back into the bed beside her, his arm draping over her waist, and his eyes closing.

He knew that they both needed their sleep. It's been quiet for too long, and he felt like something big and bad was happening.

He didn't know how long he could keep her safe.

unedited

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