It was hours before Bucky moved at all. To begin with, he only stirred, like anyone does when they're asleep. Then he shouted and sat up.

"'S OK Bucky." Steve set a hand on his shoulder. "It's OK, you're safe." Bucky curled forwards, head in his hands, shaking, panting. He cursed softly. This looked more like… Bucky than the Winter Soldier. That was kind of reassuring.

"Steve?" Steve. That was also reassuring. "Where am I?"

"Exactly where you were last time you asked."
"Infirmary, New York. What did you say the date was?"

"December 28th, 29th now, 2014." Bucky's breathing was starting to settle down.

"I blacked out, didn't I?" Steve hesitated.

"You were asleep a minute ago," Sam provided, Steve was kind of impressed Sam was still here. "before that, things got… kind of strange."

"I meant before I was asleep, I think. Before that, I blacked out."

"Break this down for me a little." Sam said, offering Bucky a cup of water, which he took. "What's the last thing you remember?" Bucky hesitated.

"You can talk to him." Steve said. "He's a friend, and he knows more about this stuff than I do."

Bucky drew a deep breath. "I was in here with you two, then someone else came in, then nothing. Not falling asleep, nothing."

"You didn't fall asleep then, Buck." Steve said. "I don't know what the hell that was, but it wasn't you falling asleep."

"Have you had blackouts like that before?" Sam asked. Bucky nodded. "How long are they usually?"

"It's hard to tell."

"Do you ever remember anything from them?"

"It comes back in flashes sometimes, when I'm asleep, or when I'm just quiet."

"So do you know what happens to you when you black out?" Bucky's head sank a quarter inch. "You don't have to answer me, not now, not ever." That was exactly what the shrink Steve had been sent to when he first woke up had said the first time they'd met. There was a silence. Sam drew breath to speak again, but Bucky got there first.

"Did I hurt anyone?"

"No Buck." Steve said. "You acted out, but you didn't hurt anyone." Bucky seemed to relax slightly.

"Do you know why it happens?" Sam asked. Bucky didn't move. He just went still. He didn't want to discuss this. Sam had also noticed, so didn't push him. There was a long silence. Bucky was very subdued now, he'd been different to this when he'd last been awake.

"Buck," Steve started, "what's the last thing you remember before you were here?" Bucky dropped his head forwards.

"I was running North, I didn't know why. I just… I knew I needed to get North somehow, I knew I needed to go undetected."

"Undetected by who?" Steve asked. Bucky frowned, still not looking at him. He shook his head.

"By the law, and by other people, by my target..."

"Who was your target?" Steve asked. Bucky frowned.

"I had more than one. I had the one in the North and another one that was wrong."

Steve looked at him. "A target that was wrong?"

"You, dumbass. I was meant to kill you again."

"So why were you...?" Steve tailed off. "I was hunting for you too, why couldn't we find each other."

"I found another target." Bucky said.

"HYDRA." Sam said. "You went after the people who'd been keeping you prisoner. How did you know where to look?"

"They don't hide well." Bucky said. Steve shook his head in disbelief. They'd hidden inside the very organisation that Peggy had founded to stamp them out. HYDRA hid well. "Not when they don't think they need to. They let assets know where too many bases are, they let too many assets access too many files, they communicate too openly. Once you're inside one, you can find others."

"You did a very good job of it." Steve said. "You took out nine, that we know of." Bucky frowned.

"I took two. I took two, I was going for a third, then… then something else happened. I don't remember."

"So who did the other six?" Sam asked. "They were clustered like the last three, same style of attack, two of them even had CCTV footage of a guy with a metal hand."

"I don't know. But I don't remember doing it." Sam frowned at Bucky.

"But you don't remember everything, do you?" Bucky shook his head. "You don't remember the fight at the third base."

"If I pick up too much memory, I spoil."