Mimic
Disclaimer: I do not own the MCU.
A/N: Now, with Disney Plus, I can write more. Sorry for abandoning the story. I don't know if people were interested in the story or not.
Chapter 7: Bonding.
Bucky's POV
Bucky stared at Avery, who was going over her notes. They were on a train heading anywhere maybe Germany. Actually, he did not care. After finding the place he had fallen from the mountains, some of his memory returned. Although, he declared it was best not to continue. The next location would've been in Russia, one country neither of them wanted to go to. Avery made it clear she would not go to highly government-run and secured countries, not that he could blame her. Not when there is a possibility of the Super Soldier Serum running in her veins.
There was some guilt for what has transpired between them. Their encounter would have never happened if HYDRA wasn't serious about the Super Soldier Serum. He knows about the Super Soldiers that were hidden in Siberia stuck in Cryostasis. What he doesn't understand is why HYDRA wants Avery. What could be so advance about her version of the Serum that his or the previous Super Soldiers had?
From what he recalls over their months of travel, she has a good memory, and her body was adaptable. As he recalls the time, she tried to escape from him. But she was not super strong or fast. Based on Dr. Jocelyn Reynolds notes, the original super soldiers have artificially enhanced physiology. Mainly enhanced strength, durability, speed, agility, stamina, reflexes, and regenerative healing factors. Avery, on the other hand, Bucky might as well compare her speed and strength to an Olympian medalist. She was fast and strong than the average person, but when she fought him or smacked him, it wasn't the same as fighting Steve as Captain America. Though she does have good reflexes and her healing seems advanced than average, it is still not his level.
The only thing that makes her different is that advanced memory and copying people.
The thought of Steve made him sighed. He still doesn't have his childhood memories, only his life of the war. He knows Steve was once his friend. Yet the memories are so vague, it was like staring through a fog. After HYDRA attacked SHIELD, the confrontation with Captain America and saving him from drowning, he knew he could not stay after pulling the Avenger out of the river. At first, he wasn't sure what to do. His mind jumbled up as he stared at the river then had flashbacks of his previous mission of capturing Avery Reynolds.
HYDRA had managed to track her down after hacking into Captain Reynolds's flight plan and noticed he purchased a train ticket that did not match his schedule. So that was their indication of where his daughter was, after being missing for a few years. When collecting the assets that failed on the train, they took matters in Venice. He recalls watching Avery talking with her father happily. Bucky was not in charge of the mission at the time. HYDRA hadn't determined the level of her ability. So, his mission was to grab her.
When he did, he will give Avery credit in fighting while in shock after another HYDRA soldier shot her father. In the midst of the chaos in the abandoned building, as the foundations began to crack, Bucky noticed the older SHIELD agent trying to save her before the elevator sank into the water. Something snapped. He wasn't sure it was because Avery was the mission or it was something else. But he dived into the water. Lost in the motion, yet something stirred inside that he knew he had to save her. Thus, using his mechanical arm, he opened the locked elevator and brought her to the surface, just as the building collapsed. In the chaos, he took the distraction to another alleyway, pulling Avery out of the Canal. At the time, she was not breathing. Therefore, he performed CPR. Bucky desperately wanted her to live, not just because she was an asset but an innocent.
She gasped, turning around and puked out the water she had consumed. Bucky patted her back, trying to get the exes water out of her lungs. He didn't know what to do next, the brainwashing orders telling him to grab her and bring her back to base. However, something else told him to leave her be. She was young, an enigma that both SHIELD and HYDRA wanted. A possibility? Just as he was going to make his decision, Avery fainted, falling unconscious.
Seeing her face, something told him to let her be. Therefore, he picked her up, placing her in a safe location in the alley before leaving. Once she woke, Bucky followed her on the rooftops making sure she made it to the hotel and then the train station before returning to HYDRA.
Bucky Barnes as the Winter Soldier defied direct orders for the first time in over fifty years. HYDRA didn't even bother to question what happened, declaring that Avery Reynolds is most likely dead and he was put back into Cryostasis.
After Washington DC and seeing the Captain America Exhibit, he knew he had to find her. Remembering the Serum could be recreated in Avery's blood. It took some time, but going over Captain Reynolds's digital documents, he noticed a majority of that the man had links to Berlin. Along with private digital documents of Avery in Germany. Hence, he took a guess since he recalls rumors about mutants in the area.
His encounter wasn't what he expected. When she saw him taking an educated guess on who he was and running away before vanishing. Whatever she can do, he'll give her credit. But that won't stop HYDRA if they dare sent other operatives after her. If it wasn't for eavesdropping on a conversation about a club where mutants go, yet he couldn't get in. It wasn't until he saw her leave with another woman he followed. He intended to talk to her until confronting the Five. That mind reader was a pain, but it seems his mind was more messed up than he thought.
Avery's phone went off. She set the journal before going through her purse to take her medication. Pulling out the orange tube and taking out a red pill plopping in her mouth. Then grabbed a water bottle swallowing it. She then pulled out a pink case swallowing a white pill as well. This was a regular thing he noticed.
"Why do you take those pills?" he asked.
"Being in HYDRA, wouldn't you have read my file?" Avery countered.
Bucky sighed, knowing she got him there, "Mission report is not the same as reading."
Avery nodded, tossing him the medication bottle. He read the label of methylphenidate. A stimulus at 54 milligrams. Still, he was no chemist. He then looked up at her holding the pink case.
"Birth control," she said.
He tried his best not to blush, "and these?"
"I have ADHD. Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder. Combine type two if you want to be specific. My abilities with ADHD are enhanced, that I can't focus, everything is happening so much that I get these fits… my dad called me the beast," she said with a slight chuckle. "It was like taking so much information around me without a filter… that I zone out. So, I need to take this to help me focus."
"And if you don't?"
"Information overload, like a migraine, similar to Eloy invading my mind."
Bucky only nodded as he shook the bottle and looked through the clear plastic to see it was running low.
"And Eyes get you the medication?" he asked.
Avery nodded, "I've come back after three or so months to Berlin. She is the only friend I have who understands what I am going through."
He nodded since Eyes was related to Abraham Erskine, "So Berlin."
"Berlin," Avery confirmed.
"And where too?" he asked.
"Wherever feels right, "she answered, staring out the window.
Bucky sighed, knowing the feeling. If they had their way, they are back in America, living their lives without the government after them. No doubt Avery would have graduate college and be teaching right now. Not on the run. As for him, he wished to be back in his own time. Instead, here he was, protecting a girl who may hold the next generation of Super Soldiers running in her veins.
However, over the few months, they have been traveling together. He finds her an interesting person to hang out with. Especially when going out drinking. Despite that, alcohol doesn't affect him like it used to in the 1940s. But seeing Avery drunk is quite amusing, cursing like a sailor. No doubt he liked her, but he wasn't sure where it stands?
"You know, if you like, I can give you some fighting lessons," he offered
"I know how to fight," she replied. "I know karate and Krav Maga."
He snorted, "Still, you aren't fighting normal people."
"Fair point," she sighed. "Once we get to a safe location."
Bucky couldn't help but smile a little. "Say, where did you learn that move you did on me in Berlin."
Avery chuckled slightly, "Learned it from Miss Congeniality."
"Wait, a beauty pageant contestant taught you that?" he asked, utterly confused.
Avery laughed. She had a unique laugh, not restraint like the women from his time. It was open, a slight pitch. One would almost compare to a hyena. It was the kind of laugh that something hilarious can receive it. Some might find it annoying, but to him, it was humorous. Amusing since it showed she trusted him with her genuine laugh. Otherwise, it would have been a chuckle.
"No, it's from a comedy," she explained. "A movie."
"Oh," he said, with a slight smile.
"I got my work cut out with you," she said. "How about this, every night or when resting we watch a movie. All the best hits."
Bucky thought about it. He felt like a fish out of water when it comes to today's pop culture. Seeing celebrities on walls and buildings yet having no clue who they were. What people found entertaining. He tried to watch shows on an airplane from America to Europe, though he struggled. So, Avery offering him this can help.
"Deal," he said.
She pulled out her phone, "Let's start with music. The fifties were a huge change in music. Elvis being popular."
The music was a definite shift from what he remembered in his days. There was more variety. Either way, he was more interested in Avery enjoying the music. Sometimes she would sing famous hits, and other times she sways her head. She was different. Then again, she was in her early twenties, not thinking about the standards.
Right now, shows she was comfortable with him. Not on guard. It surprised him when she gave him a hug back in the mountains, along with her calling him Bucky instead of Barnes. Deep down, he wants to know her better. He knows the basics, but he doesn't know her likes and dislikes. Something he has to learn if they are going to be traveling all the time.
.o0o.
Avery's POV
It was nice listening to music and introducing Bucky to new things. His facial reactions are quite entertaining. We had reached Berlin and made our way to Eyes. It was late in the evening, and because of short notice, we decided to book ourselves a hotel. Thus, in the morning, we can grab supplies before going to Eyes hideout.
We grabbed some dinner at a food stand before stopping at a convenient store for the remainder of the night. It took some time, but we managed to find a hotel with two beds. The concierge stared at us, confused until I said.
"He hogs the bed," I explained in German.
The concierge tried not to smile as she nodded, giving us our keys. Once we were in the room, Bucky gave me a look. I ignored his stare, dropping my backpack on the couch, sighing in relief, followed by a stretch. There are times I hate backpacking. It has been two years since living a stable life. Or last time I had a home.
"Seriously, hogging the bed?" he asked.
"Well, it's not like we're dating," I countered. "And I can't use the snoring card."
"I don't snore," he grumbled.
"You snored in Italy," I reminded him.
He scoffed, shaking his head.
I grabbed the plastic bag and put the snacks in the fridge before sitting on the bed, removing my shoes. Bucky checked the room to make sure it was secured, and the curtain closed to ensure privacy. We did our routine, getting electronics charged and double-checking our supplies. It was clear we will need to do our laundry, but it can wait at Eyes' place. However, the seasons were changing, that we need to store and purchase our wardrobe for the climate.
Once we were done, Bucky went to take a shower. After a few weeks, it was clear I take too long of a shower that he complains the water is cold when he takes his. Well, not complain, just this look of irritation. When he pisses me off, I do it on purpose just to mess with him. Hence, Bucky takes the first shift.
As he took his shower, I turned on the TV to check on the news. There hasn't been much going on. There have been some questionable reports, yet nothing serious. Although a general or a politician is answering these questionable moments, I knew it was SHIELD and HYDRA related. As Bucky stated, just because the American HYDRA is disbanded doesn't mean they are gone. And being in Europe, we had to be careful.
When everything seems well around the world, that wasn't an action film in real life. I channel surf, trying to find anything good on. Until I found an episode of FRIENDS on in English. Smiling, I got comfortable and watched the episode. To see an English show in Europe that is not dubbed is a blessing.
Some time passed when Bucky came out in his pajama bottoms and shirt. He had a towel around his neck, wiping the water off his ears. I stared at him, seeing his muscles flex and some of the droplets sliding along his metal arm. How his metal arm moved so naturally, almost real. Not robotic. There are times I want to ask him about his arm…like what is it made out of, since it doesn't act like most prosthetics.
"What are you watching?" he asked.
"Friends," I said. "It's a classic sitcom."
"Sitcom," he repeated, taking a seat.
"Have you watched television while serving HYDRA?" I asked.
"Um…not really. It was mission then cryo," he answered. "Although the soldiers would talk about them."
"Well, you watch this while I take a shower," I instructed, getting up and grabbing my things.
Bucky shook his head as he watched.
I chuckled, getting into the bathroom and locked the door for privacy. So, stripping, I got in the shower and washed. My thoughts go back to how things have changed in the last few months. When Barnes arrived all, I wanted to do was run away. And look at me now, being friends with him. I rested my head on the tile, taking a deep breath. How does an enemy become my friend? If Dad was here, he is freaking out. And here I am, trying to help a hundred-year-old man gain his memory while up to date in social culture. I must have gone crazy.
Shaking my head, I started doing my routine to get ready for the night. Washing my body and hair before rinsing and turning the water. I dried off, putting on my pajamas, and brushed my teeth. When I put my hair up in a towel, I came out to find Bucky still watching the show. He seemed quite intrigued. A scene came in which Bucky couldn't help but chuckle.
Here we are, more relaxed than we have ever been in a long time.
I sat down on my bed watching the show, enjoying the humor that entertainment can provide.
Sorry for the long wait. My muse went to other stories. I will try my best to keep you guys up to date. Any ideas will be great.
Thanks for reading, and please leave a review!
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