Oh my God my life feels like its going through a washing machine. I can't explain it further than that; but its a very apt description.
*sigh*
Here's the chapter. Be kind to me my cupcakes.
Love you to crumbs,
Christianne
Anna POV
The only sounds in the room were the soft pats of my feet on the stone floor, and the breathing of the people around me. Now and then, the ice of a glass clinked as it was tipped back for a drink, followed seconds later by the sound of the glass hitting the tabletop again.
"Anna, what are you-"
"Shut up!" I snapped, cutting Kara off. I continued to pace around; four measured, slow strides followed by a sharp turn on my heel. "I'm thinking."
The Valkyrie fell silent, and I pinched my eyes closed.
It'd been forty-five minutes since Steve and Ellie urgently told us all about Jamie's call. The technopath was calling from a hospital in Barcelona; he'd overexerted himself with his mutation, and put himself in a coma for a little more than three days. He was alright, thank God, but what he had to say was enough to make me break the lovely coconut I was drinking out of against the metal table Bucky and I were sitting at. Once I got back to Steve and Ellie's suite, I'd put myself on the terrace and began pacing while grabbing harshly at my hair. After a brief explanation of who Enrico Slavic was, everyone turned to Anna for what to do next.
"Annie enough!" Bucky finally snapped at me, getting up from the back of the chair he was leaning on. He walked towards me and grabbed my shoulders, stopping me from pacing. "I've seen you like this before, back in London, and the only thing that helped was actually talking your thoughts through, because otherwise they're just bouncing around in your head and crashing into one another."
I just blinked up at him.
"So, tell us Annabelle Brightman," Bucky said, letting my shoulders go and taking a few steps back. "What's our first step?"
It took me a moment or two to clear my thoughts enough to make a coherent sentence, but I pulled myself together. "We need TJ."
Omniscient POV
As this was going on, the tech in question was hastily throwing some things in a small duffle bag; he was only going to be gone a day, two at most, so he didn't need much. When the duffle was zipped, he threw it by the door, then slung his backpack over his shoulders. TJ stood in front of the mirror on the back of the closet door, and briefly examined his appearance; he was still a willowy young man, on the short side, with boyishly rounded cheeks, scruffy brown hair that draped over his forehead, a sharp nose, and shockingly deep, blue eyes.
TJ sighed to himself, and cynically muttered the words his prom date snapped at him whilst half-drunk at an after party during her slurred break-up speech; "This is as good as it's gonna get."
With another sigh, he pushed a pair of glasses onto his face; they were square with black plastic frames, and an integral part of his persona of 'Eric Smith.' Truth be told, Eric was less of a persona, and more of a cover identity that had taken on a life of its own. It was the only one TJ would use when visiting Zoya; sure, he could use a different identity when he flew to see her, and just use Eric to enter the facility, but this way if anybody looked into the people visiting the residents, Eric Smith wouldn't have just appeared in Canada with no trace of a flight, a necessity since he lived in Hawaii.
Grabbing his duffle bag from the floor, he kissed his Great-Gran goodbye and promised to be back in no less than three days. Rebecca told him to take his time and give Zoya her best. He took the back stairs to get to the drive way, dodging his father and grandfather, but stopping by to let his mom know he was leaving. She gave him a tin of Russian Tea Cakes for Zoya, and made him promise not to eat them all on the plane.
With his goodbyes said, and his dad and granddad avoided, TJ got into his car (a clunker he and a friend from the academy rescued before it could be crushed for scrap) and began the drive to the airport.
"Hey Clarry!" Kára said cheerfully, bouncing into the kitchen of Rebecca's home with a grin on her face. "Got anything good for me to try?"
Clarisse, TJ's mother was, along with one of the best cryptographers S.H.I.E.L.D. had, a near gourmet-cook. The middle-aged woman laughed at the antics of the Valkyrie and handed her a chocolate chip cookie while she perched herself on the counter. The two women were quite close. Of course Anna adored Clarisse ("Any girl loved by JJ is loved by me"), but it was Kára and the cryptographer who really hit it off. It mostly had to do with their similar personalities; hot tempered, hungry for people to prove wrong and a little too blunt at some times.
"So where's that kid of yours?" Kára asked, mouthful after having taken a bite of the gooey, warm chocolate chip cookie. "Anna needs him for something."
After sighing once, Clarisse put down the spatula she was using to transfer warm cookies to a plate. "TJ went to see Zoya," she began simply. "You might be able to catching him before he gets on his flight. Anna would have to drive, though, 'cause he's flying as his favorite Smith, who has Pentagon roots—he flies military almost every time and you knows those dark flights don't always keep to their schedules."
"Thanks Clarry!" Kára said, licking some stray melted chocolate from her thumb before hopping off the counter.
"Hey, you keep me in the loop, got it?" Clarisse said, her tone drastically different from the conversational, motherly tone it had been only moments before. "I may not have seen any field work during my stint in the agency, but JJ taught me how to hunt on a double barrel shotgun and I'm a crack shot."
"Yeah yeah yeah, I'll keep you in the loop," Kára said with a smile, waving a hand at her friend as she scooped up another two cookies. The Valkyrie was mildly shocked when the human woman grasped her forearm and pulled her away from the door slightly to look her dead in the eye.
"Is James in danger?" She asked in a low voice. She only called TJ by his given first name when she was truly worried about him.
Kára, a being without a maternal bone in her body (since she was supposed to be a virgin for her entire existence) had always had a hard time understanding the bond parents had with their children. But having known Clarisse since she got with JJ, Kára understood just well enough to express a small amount of empathy for the mother, but make it look like she completely understood. She put her hand over Clarry's and squeezed it gently.
"Anna doesn't seem to think he, or any of you, are in any danger," Kára said honestly, giving a small smile. "And before you start spouting that I'm just saying that to make you feel better, I have wings on my back now so a shot to the back with a double barrel would do a lot more damage than it would have before!"
"Hold on, I found his car," Kára said into her phone, making Anna on the other line groan.
After leaving Rebecca's home, the Valkyrie got in her own car and blew past speed limit signs as she followed TJ's path to the military base. Halfway there, Anna called her. Hanging up on her longtime friend, Kára slammed her foot on the break, causing the highly expensive car to skid to a stop, her front bumper only inches away from TJ's rusted back one.
The Valkyrie was expecting to see TJ in the front seat on the phone with one of his gaming friends, or blushing hard as he spoke to Helen Cho via Skype. What she saw instead, though, made her begin to doubt her promise to Clarisse. There was a bloody smear on the steering wheel, like someone's head was smashed into it, a broken pair of glasses on the dash, and two packed bags undisturbed in the back seat.
Kára didn't have to look at the screen to know it was Anna angrily calling her back to yell at her for hanging up, no doubt. "Yeah, it's his car," she answered simply, frowning at the door, which was slightly ajar. "We have a bit of a problem."
Bucky had seen and been by his Glow's side as she went through countless different situations; he knew her expressions like the back of his hand. But the one she wore currently both intrigued and shocked him. Anna was standing in the middle of Rebecca's basement, arms crossed and her hip cocked to one side. Her finger was tapping on her bicep as she stared at the wall that would soon be hosting the video call that, as JJ said, 'might start World War III.' Her face was emotionless as Ellie fluttered over the computer set up in the corner of the room.
The observing beau was standing directly behind Ellie, his back pressed to the corner as he watched the others move around him. He wasn't supposed to be able to be seen by the camera JJ had put up, and Steve didn't want Ellie involved more than she had to be, so the pair was banished to the corner.
"Alright," Ellie said, her soft voice not breaking the lull of whispered conversation that hung in the room. "Al-Alright!" She tried again, a frustrated little crease growing between her brows as they furrowed. Her timid nature reminded Bucky of Anna when he first met her.
A sharp whistle made everyone look towards the brunet pair in the corner. Bucky was lowering his flesh fingers from his lips, a hint of a smirk on his face. "Go on, Ellie," he said with a grin. "The floor is yours, doll."
Blushing softly, Ellie nodded once. "Alright, so, I used TJ's program to set up the beacon, and once it's answered, the video conference will begin…Is everyone ready?"
"Bring him up, Maple," JJ said, moving to stand a few paces behind Anna. Anna would have preferred Jimmy, JJ and Clarisse not be here for this, but they insisted.
Ellie nodded at JJ, but glanced to Anna for conformation. The blonde gave a stern nod, and Ellie began typing quickly, then removed her hands from the keyboard to shove them under her thighs; she was trying to keep herself from tugging on her hair.
There was silence in the room for about two minutes, before an image was projected on the bedsheet screen. A man in his fifties was sitting in a waxed leather office chair in an expensive, classy looking study. He was dressed in a fine linen suit, and had a glass of something in his hand. He had a darker complexion, black hair, and a look in his eye that made Bucky want to punch him.
"Ah, Annabelle," the man said; his voice had a lingering Spanish accent. "I was wondering when I would be hearing from you."
Anna only blinked in response.
"I would like to apologize on behalf of my employees," Enrico Slavic drawled out, taking a sip from his glass. "They are not as through in their research as I had been told they were...But their enthusiasm for the cause is admirable, so this infraction will not stunt their careers too drastically. As I see it, just because they did not procure the right man, that does not mean he will not be useful."
"You know me by reputation only," Anna sated in a voice that was eerily calm and deadly even; if Bucky didn't know better, he would have said that the whole situation didn't affect his Glow at all. But he saw her an hour before they started to set this up; he held her tight, stroked her hair, drew shapes into her skin and pressed kisses to her skin in an effort to calm her down. Her body was shaking and her breathing wasn't even, and Bucky knew she was making herself keep the tears in. "So, you may not know that I don't care much for ten words when two will do the trick."
"Oh, I am very aware of how direct you prefer to be," Enrico said, a fond smile that made Ellie's skin crawl spread across his lips. "But I have always found war to be so…romantic, don't you agree, Captain Rodgers?"
Steve was standing towards the back edge of the frame, half in the shadows, and was a little surprised when he was called out directly. He took a few steps forward, his gaze hard, and stood next to Anna on the opposite side as JJ and angled his body in an effort to hide both Jimmy and Clarisse from the view of the camera.
"Have you ever been to war, Slavic?" Steve asked; he wasn't as good at keeping his anger in check and out of his voice as Anna was.
"Not the type you are accustomed to, no, Captain," Enrico admitted easily, taking a sip of his drink.
"Then you wouldn't understand how far from romantic it really is," Steve bit back. "It's a concentration of death, and-and blood and-"
Enrico began to chuckle, causing Steve to cut himself off. Anna put a hand wordlessly on his arm in an effort to calm him when he began working his jaw.
"Ah…I see the skills of the beautiful wordsmith known as Ellenore Maple have not rubbed off on you despite how close you've grown," the older Argentinian man said, clearly amused.
Bucky heard Ellie inhale sharply, and she sat up straighter, when she was mentioned. He frowned, and moved so he was now leaning on the front of the desk she was seated at, slouching down some as he crossed his arms, allowing his broad shoulders block most of Ellie from view, even if he could potentially be seen. Ellie peeked at the scene before her from under Bucky's elbow.
"She's not even a par-!"
"Enough!" Anna half yelled, making Steve look at her with wide, outraged eyes and softly shakings hands that began to form fists. "Steve, stand down."
The blond captain let out a sarcastic chuckle. "Anna, how can you-?" His second attempt of speaking was cut short by Anna as well.
"I said, stand down," her tone was practically and order, and left no room for argument. The others in the room watched Captain America stare down the petite blonde woman in the center of the room, who was just as strong willed. Soon, Steve let out a harsh breath through his nose, and walked back to his original spot, giving Slavic the same disgusted look he used to give Nazis over his shoulder.
"Let's keep this between you and me from now on," Anna offered, her face was still stone, but her tone was ironically light. "Sound like a plan, Slavic?"
The man projected on the wall sighed. "I'm afraid it is too late for that, Annabelle."
"What do you mean?" She questioned immediately.
"You see, you fractured my family, taking my father from me when I was just a boy," Enrico began. "When HYDRA approached me with the opportunity to bring you to your knees, I simply could not resist…While the murder of my father, whether it be by you or by Sargent Barnes, motivates me against you, I am far from the only one who wishes to see you begging for the mercy that you never gave."
"Oh, you should understand better than anybody, Slavic," Anna said, finally cracking a cynical, cold smile. "Some people just don't deserve mercy."
He chuckled again. "Oh, Annabelle, I believe, in my very soul, that if our paths had crossed in a different moment, we would have been good friends."
"I doubt it," Anna snapped.
There was a heavy pause, the only real sounds being the equipment in the room, and Jimmy's labored breathing. The basement was dusty, which was Hell on his aging lungs, but he refused to be left behind on the upper floors.
"I think it's pretty damn clear what I want, so why don't you just pretend to be a decent human being, and tell me what the Hell happened to my tech," Anna huffed, cocking her hip to the other side.
"Ah, yes, James Samuel Barnes the Third…TJ, I believe he likes to be called," Enrico said, as if he was recalling something that didn't really matter. "I'm afraid that my aforementioned employees picked up the first man by the name of 'James Barnes' they found. That, I believe, is the only problem with a man passing his name down to his son."
"I want proof of life," Anna demanded. There was a pained whisper behind her; JJ, who'd gone to stand with his wife, had made the mistake of allowing her to hold his hand. Clarisse was squeezing so tight, she could have potentially done some real damage.
"I have no reason to hurt the young Barnes boy," Enrico said with a dismissive shrug. "Consider him…A prisoner of war…There is only so much I can do when concerning TJ, if I am to adhere to the conventional terms of war…I am going to have to deny your request."
Anna chuckled once. "I'm sorry, did I ask if I can have proof of life? 'Cause I didn't mean to ask for it. I was going for more of a…Give it to me or I will kill you tone."
Enrico chuckled at her words, though even Bucky found them a little terrifying. "I do not currently have him at my disposal…Will you settle for another video conference in two days time?"
"You're not giving me much of a choice, are you?" Anna huffed, narrowing her eyes.
There was more silence, before an aged voice spoke up.
"You referred to my grandson as a prisoner of war," Jimmy said, slowly walking towards the screen, passing Anna to stand in front of her. "Which war is he a prisoner of?"
Enrico let out a whole hearted laugh at Jimmy's words. "Why, the war I am waging against Annabelle and the original James Barnes, of course!"
"Thanks for coming on such short notice," Anna said, walking with Tony off the tarmac and towards the sleek black SUV she'd kept running near by.
"Well, when your god mother calls you at two in the morning and threatens you with nuclear weapons, it's in your best interest to do what she says," Tony said dryly, glancing at the blonde.
Anna laughed once, and gave a small shrug paired with a nearly nonexistent smirk. "Yeah, well, I don't have the time for convenience."
Immediately after the call with Enrico ended, Anna called Tony and threatened to nuke his Malibu home unless he came to Hawaii as fast as he could. No one on the list of trusted agents had a prayer of understanding TJ's sophisticated code, and they needed some of his software to track the video call they were going to get. Anna was the one who chose to cut her losses and call the best; Tony. She didn't take her foot off the gas while she drove them to the base of their operations; Rebecca's house. It might seem strange to run such an operation out of an elderly woman's home, but it was done for a reason. Rebecca couldn't be easily moved for her protection, so they stayed very close by for her protection.
Once at the large, white, old house, Anna dashed off somewhere, and Ellie was left to lead Tony to what had been TJ's work station.
The brunette mutant greeted Tony with a polite smile, and began to lead him up the steps. She tried to make small talk, but was shut down by Tony dismissing her 'Snapple cap words' and 'fortune cookie phrases.'
When the billionaire saw the mess of homemade computers, processors and half-designed components that made him think of his bedroom as a kid. The thought of an accomplished engineer and programmer of TJ's (supposed) caliber in a set up like the one in the guest bedroom in front of him, was honestly a little sad. Before he could begin going through the actual computers, Tony needed to both clean up the work station, and see if TJ had written anything down. He dropped his bags by the door, and set to work.
Ellie, instead of leaving like Tony thought she would, she chose to sit cross-legged on the bed in the room, aimlessly paging through a book found on the nightstand.
"Don't you have a big, blond, patriotic boyfriend you could be bothering right now?" Tony asked, mildly irritated.
"Steve told me that I could never bother him," Ellie retorted without looking up. "He says I'm too small to make a scene, and my words at too pretty to do anything but distract him from what he's doing so he could listen."
Tony actually looked up dumbly and just stared at Ellie for a moment; she'd changed quite a bit since he'd seen her last. "Touché, little mutant," he responded. "What about Anna, can't you go bother her?"
"No," Ellie answered simply, picking up a dog-eared novel from the bedside table.
The billionaire gave a sigh, and looked towards the brunette contently sitting crosslegged on TJ's bed, opening up the book as she began to page through the beginning contents and forward. When she got to the first page of the first chapter, she looked back at Tony and blinked her big green eyes at him. "Am-Am I disturbing you, Mr. Stark?"
Tony narrowed his eyes, trying to find something she was doing that he could object to, and when he found none, he begrudgingly grunted out a 'no' as he continued to sort through the mess of computer components for anything remotely useful. "So, you and Capsicle, huh?"
Ellie looked up from the book with furrowed brows. "Capsicle?" She repeated questioningly.
"Yeah, you know, Steve," Tony further explained, trying to make mind-numbing conversation with Ellie as he sat down at the computer, finally starting to go through the files on the computer itself.
"Oh…Why did you call him Capsicle?" She asked in her curiously innocent voice; the one that Steve thought was endearing, but made Tony roll his eyes.
"It's like 'Captain Popsicle,' 'cause he was frozen, you know?" Tony explained with a bored shrug.
Ellie let out a soft 'Oh,' followed by an amused giggle, and shook her head. "Yes Steve and I are…Well, we haven't talked about it, but we're not just friends anymore. I don't think we are anymore, at least."
"Wow…That doesn't sound like anything I want to know or talk about," Tony sighed in a conversational tone.
"I never said we had to talk at all," Ellie responded in the same type of neutral tone, turning her attention to the book. "I just want quiet company and everyone in this house is being loud and nervous…I shouldn't be around all the noise and anxiety…Steve is really busy and since I've been expanding my powers, they're getting harder to control."
Tony responded by a grunt that somewhat resembled the sound 'hmph' while he continued to tap away on the keyboard.
A few moments later, the billionaire let out a few huffed curse words and lifted up the keyboard. It was on top of stacks of labeled hard drives that Tony had missed, making him groan. TJ was the least organized programmer Tony had ever seen; himself included.
A hard drive in the middle of the stack made him stop. A few pieces of white tape were unevenly across the slim black rectangle.
a.l.i.c.e. ai program
for tony stark
"Hey," Tony said over his shoulder, looking at Ellie engrossed in the book she'd taken from TJ's nightstand. She'd moved so her back was against the headboard, and her knees were up to her chest; she was also completely absorbed in the novel.
Frowning, he tried again. "Hey, you with the book and Bambi eyes!" he snapped, frustrated that in a nearly silent room, Ellie was essentially ignoring him.
"I was just finishing the paragraph, Mr. Stark…I would have answered you in just a few seconds," Ellie frowned.
Tony rolled his eyes. "You know what this is?" He asked, holding up the labeled hard drive.
"Oh, TJ made that for you," Ellie explained, leaning forward from her position against the headboard, letting her legs fall into a crosslegged position. She put her finger in the book to keep her place as it was closed in her lap. "He heard you complaining about how you don't like the interface on your suit that much after Vision came along and…Well, he said that Vision 'took J.A.R.V.I.S.' voice.' He reformatted A.L.I.C.E. using your original interface program."
Tony raised a brow. "Really?" He asked, his voice filled with surprise and a heavy dose of skepticism. "And why would he take the time to make an entire AI just to give it to me?"
Ellie shrugged, going back to her previous position. "I think he just wanted to try to make you hate him less."
