Hi there!
So this is my first time publishing anything I've written, ever. I'm usually a huge reader on here, but I was so inspired by these characters' love stories I just had to share how I think they can tie into the greater MCU.
Disclaimers: I don't own any of these wonderful characters, some things are OOC to go with my plot, and this is my first ever written and published fic, please be nice when reviewing!
Bucky/Winter soldier & Natasha Romanoff/ Black Widow
SHIELD safe house in Russia, 2006
That red hair, pungent of peaches.
The sight and the scent stops me dead in my tracks.
She can't be here, they'll know and she can't be here. This can't be happening.
"Natalia - I - what are you doing?" I'm glued to the spot as she raises her gun, putting me in her crosshairs. Tears are streaming down her face, but her resolve shines bright in her eyes.
"I'm sorry James, I can't let you do this. Please, just come home. We can run away, we can put HYDRA and SHIELD all behind us." She is trembling now, but I know if she decides it, then her aim will be true.
"I can't." Her face falls at my admission as my fingers are itching for my gun holstered at my hip. My training is screaming at me to take her down, I am shaking with the need to fight my commands for her.
"Please Natalia, I'm barely holding on." I manage to choke out. The haze of the soldier becoming thicker in my veins.
"Then I will help you finish this and you will be free," Her chin is now raised in defiance and I can see the gleam of determination in her eyes while her posture goes straight, turning into the black widow once more.
The sound of her gun being tossed to the floor is deafening in the silence, the echo ringing in my ears. She lowers herself onto her knees in front of me, hands on her thighs, chin tilted back and to the side. The most vulnerable I've ever seen her, and in her moment of vulnerability I feel something inside of me break. This strong, beautiful woman is never meant to submit nor be controlled and tamed.
She takes my hand which has somehow moved to my gun without my notice, and raises the barrel to point at her heart.
"Take it, it's yours." She whispers the words across my hand, and I feel her finger tap three times over my pulse line.
In that instant, my resolve is shattered, and the haze of the winter soldier is cleared. I toss my gun across the room and I collapse to my knees in front of her, pulling her into my arms as I'm dragging the scent of peaches in her hair into my nostrils.
"They issued the command, it was a sleeper agent, and I - I couldn't - I couldn't stop." My shoulders are shaking as I'm holding her. "Please, Natalia, forgive me."
"James, of course I -" a loud bang across the room pulls us apart as a door we've yet to enter is slammed open. Men in HYDRA uniforms come streaming in. There's at least 30 of them, not bad odds. I feel Natalia grip my wrist with 2 fingers, as her other hand taps my left ribs three times, letting me know there are 3 sharpshooters up on my left. These odds are quickly getting worse.
"Ah, Mr. Barnes. I see you've failed your mission, but we didn't expect much since we had a feeling your program has been glitching as of late." Zola's smarmy voice fills the space around me, but I don't see him anywhere in sight. Lucky for him, since he will be the first on my list when we make it out of here.
"Zola, setting up a new challenge for me?" I catch Natalia's eye and nod once, silently asking her to cover my back. She moves into position while I continue to stall and buy us time. "Surely there are nicer, less bloody ways, to test my training?"
I'm reaching for my back-up guns at the small of my back when I feel a slight pinch in my neck. Weird, that's not a signal Natalia and I have ever used before. I glance over my shoulder to check on her, and her eyes are huge as she's reaching for my neck. In her small fist, I see the tail-end of a blow dart - "Well shit."
The room begins to swim as I feel Natalia's arms wrap around me as her small form tries to hold my weight. "Please James, I can't do this on my own, stay with me!" She's shaking my shoulder now, how did I end up on the ground?
I watch as she is dragged away from me, and I refuse to lose my grip on the soldier as I am committing her to memory.
I know what happens next, there is no happy ending. There was never a happy ending for the winter soldier.
I am dragged from the room since I am dead weight while sedated. Unfortunately for me, the serum prevents me from being knocked out with sedatives. Fortunately for me, I got to see her one last time. I'm creating a mantra of the most important things about her. It can't be much, but it's small enough I'm hoping I will remember it once I'm under the haze of the winter soldier again.
Red Hair. Pungent peaches. Marquis necklace. Three taps to my pulse line.
They strap me to the chair, and I feel the electricity coursing through me. With each pulse I hold onto the only thing that matters.
Red Hair. Pungent peaches. Marquis necklace. Three taps to my pulse line.
As Zola is looking me over, I smirk at him. Even if he revives the winter soldier, I will still be alive inside the recesses of his mind.
"You know Mr. Barnes, that smirk is unbecoming. We've no use for you at the moment. What do you say to being put on the bench?" He has an evil glint in his eye that is making my skin crawl. The anxiety that has settled into the pit of my stomach sits like a lead weight.
"Weird Doc, I didn't know a vacation or retirement was in the cards, but a beach in the Bahamas sounds nice." At least I didn't allow my voice to shake, this isn't going to be good. The tension between my shoulder blades has gotten itchy while my phantom limb feels like it's on fire.
"Such little imagination-"he sighs and moves around my chair, pushing some buttons that force the chair into an upright position and begins moving towards the wall behind me. "No worries, we shall be sure your little ballerina has a front row seat to your - suspension."
I feel my blood turn cold at my pet name for Natalia. No one knows about that. When we had discovered the ballerina experience was an implanted memory, we had laughed it off because it was a hobby she really enjoyed and was good at. In a way, it was her way of sticking one to the Red Room by actually enjoying one of the experiences they gave her. It was her way of repossessing her past. Ever since then, she had been my little ballerina, but I only ever dared call her that in the privacy of our hide away; which means they've always had eyes and ears on us.
"How dare you-" I'm pulling at my restraints, trying to fight free. Hopefully I can get out of here before they stick me with another sedative.
"No Mr. Barnes, how dare you! We have created the perfect soldier in you, and now your act of rebellion leaves us no choice but to start over. Goodbye Mr. Barnes. When you wake, there will be nothing left of you inside the Winter soldier." As he walks out of the room, a light turns on behind a window in front of me, and I see her face.
It is tear streaked and she has a bruise forming along her cheekbone along with a split lip. She still has defiance written on her face but I see the fear in her eyes. As she realizes she can now see me, I see that fear morph into despair, but she quickly covers it with adoration. Always putting on the brave face for my benefit. She has never been more radiant.
They close the door over my face and I'm left looking out of a peep hole. I feel the cold begin at my ankles as it works it's way up. I've locked eyes with her, and I refuse to let anything but her be the last thing I see.
Red Hair. Pungent peaches. Marquis necklace. Three taps to my pulse line.
I raise my hand to the glass, longing to caress her face one last time.
Red Hair. Pungent peaches. Marquis necklace. Three taps to my pulse line.
The cold has reached my waist now, I'm lucky they didn't leave my arm on. That would be incredibly uncomfortable if they wake me up later.
Red Hair. Pungent peaches. Marquis necklace. Three taps to my pulse line.
I'm holding her in my arms in my memory, listening to her say my name in the dark. As I watch her through the glass, I put on a brave face so she doesn't see my suffering.
Red Hair. Pungent peaches. Marquis necklace.
I vow to myself here and now, I will find her again. We have unfinished business.
Red Hair. Pungent peaches.
The cold has seeped into my neck, I exhale one last time with her name on my lips.
Red Hair.