This chapter takes place after chapter nine which also took place in The Soul World. As you can see, there is no memory. It's one present event.
Chapter Fourteen: The Soul World
Bucky has been watching the ballerina Natalia spin on her toe for what felt like hours. At least, he thought it was hours. He didn't know if time was passing wherever he was. Her routine kept on going because there was always someone in this world screaming. It was hypnotizing, but he resists. Even when his throat went raw from his yells, someone was filling the void. He didn't know his way out of here because he didn't understand how he got to whatever here is.
It's times like this he wishes he was back under.
How long has it been? How does time pass here? Does time pass?
He looks up at Natalia who bounces from one toe to the other. His body trembles, feeling like it will crumble again. He balls his hands into fists, pressing into his palms. This will not be the end of him. Bucky's about to scream to let it all out, but Natalia leaps.
She does one final jump, stretching her legs out with her toes pointed. Natalia's legs come back together but she doesn't stick the landing. She falls into the foggy ground and the mist flies up.
Bucky immediately runs over, calling her name. He slows his pace the closer he gets to where she landed. He looks down but the ballerina isn't there anymore. Instead, it's Natalia with her hair now braided and wearing a Black Widow spy suit with weapons on her belt and legs straps. Her arms are open by her sides, legs bent, and eyes dead open.
The ballerina became an assassin.
She was about to land on her feet and it looks like she jumped off a cliff.
Bucky's breath is shaky as he exhales, leaning downwards to get a closer look at her. When he meets her eyes, they flicker to maintain contact with his. She blinks rapidly as her chest shoots upwards to take a breath. She coughs, gasping for air and Bucky isn't sure what to do.
Bucky backs away as Natalia stands up, facing him with her lips parted. She's speechless, not believing that she's seeing him with recognition in his eyes.
Her eyes don't leave his as she takes a few steps closer to him. Bucky doesn't move but she stops when she's right in front of him. She looks at him, confused a little but then smiles. He can't help but mimic it because now it all makes sense. It feels like this moment answered any questions he had about her. All his memories came back without damaging his fragile mind. Natalia is Natasha. His ballerina from his past was the agent he's run into on the battlefield many times. It all makes sense.
"The Red Room never saw this coming…" Natasha mutters. "I'm sorry we never found each other the way we wanted to."
"She said I would never see you again," Bucky tells her, referring to when he asked the ballerina who she was.
Natasha exhales, seeming to already know what he means. Before she could explain what happened to get her here, all the screaming stops. Bucky and Natasha are now in silence. They look at each other and Natasha looks down at his arms with a growing smile. Bucky looks and sees his hands beginning to turn to dust. When Natasha looks at something behind him, Bucky turns around and sees a circular portal with lines and stars bordering around it.
Tears form in Natasha's eyes. "It worked."
"Natal - Natasha?" Bucky asks.
Natasha looks at him and the tears fall down her face. "Go get 'em."
Before he could respond or take her with him, his body disappears, flying through the portal. The last thing he sees is her watching him go. The world spent years torturing them but now they're someone else. They became their own weapons as people who will still save the world.
This chapter is short, I know, but I didn't know I needed it. And there's a final battle for Bucky to return to! (But that won't be the chapter. Instead, the next chapter will be a sort of epilogue chapter. It'll tie up any loose knots and be the final chapter).