Well, this one's a little short, but some important stuff is coming up.

This chapter has the same warning as the last one;
This chapter has some...things in it that I'm really worried won't sit well with some people. I won't go into details, 'cause it'd just be a long, apologetic, anxious rambling, but know that it was meant to do nothing but entertain and make people feel feels in their squishy gushy lovable humany hearts.

Any questions you cupcakes had about the last chapter won't really be answered in here, but don't worry though; all will be answered eventually. I promise.

This is an authors note, not a diary, so I'll keep this next part short (something I'm not always good at).

I haven't had the best few days. And, I swear some nice reviews would make me, seriously, happy enough to cry. I'm not trying to be an attention grabber, alright? Things just haven't been well at all (**cough*cough** high school really sucks **cough*cough**), and just a few words would really lift my spirits. I'm not trying to be pushy or anything...

Expect next chapter by Monday.

~Christianne

PS~ I don not speak Romanian.


Omniscient POV

Daniel was sitting on a cot in a tent, his leg off the side and propped up on a table. Emilia was laying on the cot next to him, asleep, using his thigh as a pillow and bear hugged to her chest. Bucky and Phillips sat across from the siblings, Kára was standing in the back to translate if it was needed. Kára surprised everyone by being able to speak literally every language the kids did.

"Emilia and I are from Romania." Daniel started out, putting his hand protectively on his sister's shoulder.

"Where? What town?" Phillips asked, not as gruff, but gruff enough.

Daniel shook his head. "No, no town." Daniel corrected. "My family is țiganiRoma."

"Gypsies." Kára said, being the only one who recognized either term. Daniel looked at her and nodded.

"You told me you were Romanian," Bucky said, not accusingly; he just wanted the real answer.

Daniel looked down, almost in shame. "Romanians were not sent away…Romani were." He looked up at Bucky sadly. "I did not know who you were. I thought you take me to camp and not let me find Emilia."

Bucky nodded, and looked at the kid with a softer expression.

"The Nazis came while Emilia and I in field." Daniel continued his story; he said 'Nazi' the same way Steve, Bucky and Phillips did. To Kára, the way her friends said it sounded down right friendly compared to Daniel.

"They kill our parents," Daniel said, swallowing thickly. Phillips had to keep reminding himself that this boy was 13 when all of this happened. "And they kill our friends' parents. I was with children in field, we return and ev-everyone is dead.

"They take us to train, make us go in cars." Daniel kept explaining. "We ride all night, and all next day."

"How many?" Bucky asked when Daniel trailed off, he got a confused look. "How many kids?" he asked again. Daniel still seemed a little confused, and looked to Kára, who repeated the question in some language neither Phillips nor Bucky understood, the same language Daniel answered in.

Kára didn't respond right away; her face didn't even show a change in emotion. "…Twenty-nine." She said eventually, crossing her arms.

"The train stop at a large fence, they make us get out of train car and get in line…They separate Emilia from me." Daniel continued, looking down at his sister, to see if she was still there. "They cut our hair and take our clothes and give us numbers." Daniel said, pulling up his sleeve to show the row of numbers, just like his sister.

"What's the Z for?" Bucky asked curiously.

"Zigeuner." Daniel spat, shoving his sleeve down. "German for gypsy."

"What happened after you…after you got your number?" Kára asked.

"We were given clothes; scratchy, striped ones," Daniel said, frowning at the memory. "They separate me and other boys, some I know, some I not. They take us to large room and I fine Emilia again. Every boy found someone; a little brother or sister. That is when the man came."

"What man?" Bucky asked, what Emilia said about a man with the X and the octopus came to mind; Dieter was the only HYDRA he met with a swastika on the same shoulder.

"We call him Caracatiță de Moarte," Daniel spat. "You call him Dieter."

"He say if we take up arms, our siblings will be put in safe place, we can retrieve them when war is won." Daniel explained. Bucky's brow furrowed, remembering how Daniel had told him he joined to 'save his sister,' up until now, there was a part of Bucky that thought he was lying.

"Why'd you say yes?" Phillips asked.

Followed by Bucky asking the better question "What did they do if you said no?"

Daniel looked down at Emilia, and pulled her up slightly so he could hug her tightly. "Cezar said no." He said quietly. "He found his little brother, his fratele mai mic, and told the Caracatiță de Moarte he'd sooner die than leave him."

Everyone waited to hear what Daniel said next. "They kill his brother in front of him." He said shakily. "Sho-Shoot him in the…in the…" Daniel looked at Kára and patted his belly.

"Stomach," she offered, Daniel nodded.

"Stomach, yes…They shoot him there…It-It takes a very long time to die from shot in stomach." He said weakly, holding Emilia tighter. "They-They make Cezar watch as his brother died and hold him back so he could not help him."

Daniel paused before speaking again. "Me and all other boys say yes to Caracatiță de Moarte; we join his special army."

"How many boys?" Bucky asked.

"With me? Sixteen." Daniel answered. "The Caracatiță de Moarte had an army of 250."

"250 kids?" Kára asked, looking shocked.

"Some grown up," Daniel said, gnawing on his cheek. "Caracatiță de Moarte say our family being held safe in country side."

"The train." Bucky remembered, looking at the others. "It was heading towards form land."

Daniel shrugged, not knowing the answered, and looked back at Emilia. "If we disobey orders, we are given…" Daniel trailed off, swallowing thickly.

"Ach Was? Was machen Sie da?" Kára asked in German.

"We are given arm." Daniel said thickly. "Left arm." He added on, gently moving his sister's braid to reveal the numbers tattooed there.

Anna felt sick and had to sit down.

"Son, I'm going to ask this once." Phillips said, moving a chair closer to the boy. "Had HYDRA not captured your sister, would you have joined?"

"N-No sir." Daniel said, a little intimidated.

"Did you kill anyone?" Phillips asked.

Daniel shook his head furiously. "No, no sir—I not want to harm anyone, no matter side."

"If you were released from the custody of the US Army, what would you do?" Phillips asked.

"I..I do not know." He answered honestly. "Take care of Emilia." He said a moment later, nodding a little.

Phillips nodded, and put his hand on Daniel's shoulder. "Son, what do you need to take care of that girl?"

Daniel, who was a little stunned, got a smile on his face and was close to getting tears in his eyes.


"Jakov!"

Bucky reluctantly turned around and saw Daniel, on his crutches, hobbled towards Bucky.

"I-I do not know your real name," he admitted shyly once he got to over to Bucky.

Chuckling once, Bucky helped him towards a table where he could lean. "Call me Bucky."

"Bucky." Daniel repeated, nodding once. "I am staying here, with Emilia and the other children. When the war is over, we hope to return to our home." He said the last part with a smile. "I-I want to thank you."

Bucky shook his head. "Kid, there's no need," he told him honestly, but Daniel wouldn't hear it.

"Yes, yes there is. I hear Căpitan America speak of SOS, eh, shoot on sight." Daniel told him. "You should have killed me."

Bucky shook his head. "You're a kid." He said simply. "I was never going to kill you."

"And you bring Emilia to me." Daniel told him. "I-I can never repay you."

"Listen, Daniel," Bucky put his hands on the kid's shoulders. "You don't need to repay me."

"I-I do." Daniel insisted, then rummaged through his pockets, and pulled out a square silver lighter. "A man gave me yesterday," he said, gesturing to the lighter in his hand. "My father was metal worker, I-I found tools and drew." He held it out to Bucky so he could see the shallow groves in casing.

There were three symbol etched in the silver; a triangle with two lines ending in dots coming from the sides, a circle sitting on a line with a dot in the middle, and an X. Bucky looked at Daniel in confusion.

"Romani symbols," he explained. "We-We leave marks for the next travelers that come through."

He pointed to the triangle with the dots. "Man with gun."

The circle on the line. "Very friendly and generous."

The X. "Alright."

Bucky, realizing what Daniel meant by all of this, shook his head and handed the lighter back. "Kid, keep this." He insisted.

"No, no you must take it." Daniel said, thrusting the lighter back at Bucky. "You gave me my freedom and my sister. I will not see you again, most likely, so please," Daniel paused, put the lighter in Bucky's palm and closed his fingers around it. "Take it."

"Daniel-"

"I even put your name on it," Daniel added, pointing to the etched words on the cap. Bucky chuckled a little. JAKOV. "So you can remember us."

Bucky sighed, looking at the lighter in his palm. He flipped it around a few times and looked back at Daniel. "I'm not gonna forget you, kid." He said honestly, smiling a little as he slipped the lighter in his pocket.

Daniel grinned, and grabbed Bucky in a hug. "Thank you." He said one more time.

"Give that sister of yours a hug from me, alright?" Bucky said, walking towards the trucks. Daniel smiled and nodded as Bucky walked off.


"What'cha got there?" Steve asked, seeing Bucky playing with something silver in his hand. They were in the trucks again, driving to the airstrip to go back to London.

Bucky flipped the lighter right-way-up in his hand, flicked the top off and pushed his thumb down, making an orange flame appear. "Daniel gave it to me." Bucky sighed, flipping the top back and putting out the flame. "Told him I didn't want it…The kid insisted." Steve smiled a little at his best friend.

Bucky glanced at the other men in the truck; the Commandoes were all deep in conversation.

"You know…Emilia…She reminded me of Rebecca." Bucky said lowly, making Steve look at him oddly. Steve could count the number of times Bucky brought up his sister on one hand. When their parents died, they were sent to an orphanage. By the time Bucky was seven (Rebecca was three) it became clear it'd be harder for them both to be adopted to the same family. Everybody wanted a wavy-haired, twinkle-eyed, giggly little girl. Not too many wanted a smart-aleck, defensive, fight-starting seven-year-old. Bucky remembered telling the matron over breakfast that it'd be ok if Rebecca was adopted by another family without him; she was getting to be in poor health in the orphanage, and Bucky didn't want to see his baby sister sick. She was gone and adopted by lunch.

For the first few months, Rebecca's new family brought her to the park when Bucky and the other children were there so Bucky could play with her, but then a wave of TB went through the orphanage, and Bucky was sent to a different one. He had no idea if they didn't know he was moved, or if they did know and didn't want Bucky around his sister anymore.

"She'd be…Becky'd be almost 26, I think." Bucky mussed, frowning a little. "Think I should track her down when we get back?" Bucky asked, looking at Steve.

Not knowing what to say, Steve shrugged. "Why didn't you do it before?"

Bucky shrugged. "The people who adopted her…They-They were pretty well off…I figured she wouldn't be too thrilled to have her brother show up at her door step covered in grease 'n crap from work."

"I doubt she'd care." Steve put in, but Bucky just shrugged. "Did…Did you tell Anna?"

Bucky nodded. "Yeah…While ago…" he paused and laughed briefly. "We were talkin' 'bout the sister I practically sent away and she was the one cryin' for half an hour."

Steve smiled and nodded. "Yeah…Sounds like Anna."

Bucky grinned and flicked his lighter again. "That's 'muh girl alright."