Time seemed to be irrelevant to Helmut. Days turned into weeks. Weeks turned into months. Months turned into years. He lived the same routine over and over again, but there was nothing to look forward to in order to disrupt it for a short while. There was no Amelia to look forward to seeing. A part of Helmut regretted what he had done sometimes when he thought about the life that he could have had with her. He thought about what it would have been like to be with her, spending every waking minute he had with the woman who loved him.
And the fact was, that as time went on without her and he remained locked away, he knew that he loved her too. He couldn't even deny it anymore. He still wore his wedding ring, of course, and the memory of Heike was still with him. Just because he loved Amelia didn't mean that he loved his wife any less. As a matter of fact, it didn't feel like his love for Amelia replaced that of his love for his wife. He couldn't explain it.
He was laid on his bed, five years after Amelia had disappeared. He didn't know the exact time, but it was around five years. Holding his book above his head, his eyes scanned the words on the paper before he flipped the page, feeling his stomach growl with hunger. The food in the prison wasn't exactly the type of cuisine that he was used to eating. In fact, most of the time he tried to pretend he didn't know what he was eating.
Flipping onto the next page, Helmut's brows arched as he heard a sudden rustle and he sat up on his elbows, book falling to the side of him before looking around. And there she was. He gasped, his body going into autopilot as he swung his legs from the bed and stood up. He didn't know if he could move, but he somehow managed to get away from the bed and towards the glass that separated him from her.
"I think I must have blacked out," she said. "Sorry…what happened?"
She was sat on the floor, dressed in the same clothes she had vanished in. Her skirt was still around her legs and she looked like she hadn't aged a day. Helmut laid his hand on the glass as she peered up to him, brows knitting together in confusion. He kept looking at her, wondering if this was real. Was he dreaming? Was this some cruel hallucination? He didn't know, but all he knew was that he wanted to reach out to her. He wanted to lay his hand on her cheek to make sure that this wasn't some cruel joke being played on him.
"Helmut, why are you looking at me like that?" she questioned him.
"Amelia…you…is it you?" he asked her.
She looked even more confused then. Moving to her feet, her skirt fell down to her ankles and she looked at him, head tilting to the side. "Yeah, what's going on? Did I pass out?"
"My God," Helmut whispered and shook his head as he watched her adjust the jumper in her skirt's waistband, altering it slightly around her body. "Amelia, you didn't pass out. You've been gone for five years."
Looking at him with a deadpan expression, her head tilted to the side. "Very funny," she said, suspecting that he was joking with her. But his face didn't crack. He was looking at her so seriously that she instantly began to wonder what was really going on.
"I'm not joking," Helmut informed her. "I'm being serious, Amelia. You've been gone for five years…half of the earth's population vanished in something called the Blip. Thanos, a titan, managed to make it happen…said that it would bring balance to the universe."
"You expect me to believe this? Have you fallen and hit your head?" Amelia questioned, but Helmut shook his head firmly as she folded her arms over her chest. But then she looked to his cell and her brows pinched together. It looked different. The bed looked like it had been moved to the other end of the cell. There were more books on a table and the chessboard had been moved. When had he done that?
"I'm not lying to you, Amelia, and I know that this is a lot to take in, but it is the truth," he said to her. "When have I ever lied to you?"
"You really want me to answer that?" she asked. He had lied to her a number of times before. He had form for this type of thing.
"Good point," he agreed, holding a finger up. "But believe me, Amelia, I am not lying about this. I only lied to protect you before, but this is different."
She thought about what he was telling her and she looked down to her body. She didn't feel any different. She didn't feel like she had aged five years. It took her a moment to gulp and she rested her arms by her sides. Her hands were shaking slightly as she took in what he had told her and tried to come to terms with it.
"Alright," she said in a low voice, agreeing with what he was saying. "But how is that even possible? I look exactly the same."
"It must be because you came back exactly as you were five years ago. You're wearing the same clothes…you look exactly the same."
"You remember what I was wearing?"
"That image is ingrained on my memory," Helmut confessed to her and she wondered just what he had gone through. He'd been alone for five years, if what he was telling her was true. Had anyone even bothered with him? "Seeing you disappear…knowing you were gone…I thought about it every day."
Amelia looked to him again, about to question him if he was certain on what had really happened. But, again, the look on his face told her that he wasn't joking, not about this. He looked so lost. He looked defeated. He looked at her as though he couldn't stand to look away, like she might disappear if she left his eyeline.
"Five years," Amelia whispered, still not believing it. How was any of it possible? "How am I back?"
"That, I do not know," he confessed to her as the alarm suddenly began blaring.
Amelia looked up, a red siren illuminating the room and the blaring alarm slightly murmured from behind the large steel door that kept Helmut in his own cell. Amelia moved over to it and tried to peer out of the window and into the corridor, but all she could see was guards running up and down. She wondered if they even knew she was in the room.
"If half the world has come back that means inmates will have reappeared," Helmut declared. "It is going to be a riot out there trying to get everyone under control. You are better off staying in here."
"Agreed," Amelia said to him and backed away from the door. "Can anyone get in here?"
"Not unless they have the access code and a key card," Helmut told her and he noted how she backed away from the door and towards him. He couldn't help her behind the glass and that was why he had to hope that no one got into the room. Amelia gulped and he noted her looking at the door, clearly worried.
"You know…there is something else that I have to tell you," Helmut said and Amelia looked to the flashing red light again.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Your boyfriend," he said and Amelia turned to look at him, eyes widening and he knew what she must have been beginning to think.
"I lied to him," Amelia said quickly. "I told him that I was going to Paris to visit Lukas's family, but I was coming here. Did he figure it out? Christ, is he okay? I haven't even thought about him-"
"-He's not James," Helmut interrupted her, unable to stand her worrying about him. He couldn't let her do that. "James is not who you think he is, Amelia. He came here to visit me and admitted everything…his plan…who he was…"
"What?" Amelia asked, turning to look at him and giving him her full attention again. Once again, confusion etched itself across her face. "What are you talking about, Helmut?"
"He's William Edgington's brother, Amelia," Helmut said to her and he saw horror flash across her eyes as she recalled exactly who William Edgington was. "He took great pride in coming here and telling me what he had intended to do to you for what had happened to his brother."
"He can't be," Amelia said with a firm shake of her head, refusing to believe it. She dropped her arms by her side and began pacing up and down. "How can he be his brother? I would have known…I should have known…"
"How could you?" Helmut queried from her. "My research did show a brother, but I did not consider him a threat. Andrew Edgington was living in Australia, seemingly having nothing to do with HYDRA. I didn't consider that he would come after you like he did."
"I mean, I never knew there was anything off about him because I thought that it was just me," Amelia began blabbering on, not sure she could stop herself from talking. "I thought that I didn't like him touching me because I didn't really like him that way…wondered if I would in time…but you…" she trailed off. She didn't tell him what she wanted to tell him. Instead, she just managed to think it and he knew what she was thinking too.
It was then when the lights went out and the alarm stopped. Helmut looked up and he knew that there was something wrong. The door to his cell snicked open slightly and he looked to it as Amelia did the same. And then she saw a face at the window, a man whose tongue was sticking out and he was breathing heavily.
He shouted something in German and Amelia wondered just what was going on. But Helmut knew. The prison was under attack.
"The backup generator must have gone out," Helmut said to Amelia and he moved to the door of his cell. Pushing it open, it felt strange stepping out of the small contained space without being handcuffed.
"What…where are the guards?" Amelia asked.
"I imagine they must be overrun," Helmut said, his voice not distorted by a wall of glass as he saw the man continue banging on the door and Amelia froze as he moved to stand in front of her. "I need you to get in that cell."
Amelia did as he asked without even a moment's hesitation. Backing into the cell, Helmut followed her as the inmates tried to get into the room. He knew the type of men who were in the jail. He wasn't intending on risking Amelia anytime soon and he knew that he couldn't fight all of them to get her out.
"They will be bringing in an armed response unit, I suspect," Helmut said, trying to calm her as he shut the door. He knew that it wouldn't lock and so he would need something heavy to put in front of it. "They'll be here soon, but until then, we need to barricade ourselves in here."
"What are they shouting?" Amelia asked.
She helped him move the bed to the door, dragging it across the cold, hard floor. It screeched loudly and Helmut managed to tip it onto its side. He kept it there and ensured it was caught against the handle, making access even harder.
"You don't want to know," was all he told her.
And she didn't. He heard her shriek as a yell came from just outside the room and he saw the panic rise up inside of her. Moving his hand to her cheek, Helmut brushed her hair from her sweating skin and behind her ear. Bending slightly, he whispered to her once he was her eye level.
"We're going to be alright," he promised her. "Amelia, listen to me, we're going to be fine."
Nodding, she wanted to believe him, but she was finding it increasingly difficult to. She took a deep breath as she realised that he was actually in front of her. There was no wall of glass separating them. He let his fingers linger on her skin, a sense of contentment taking hold of him for a moment at feeling her soft skin under his grip. He felt her cling onto his arm as he stood up straight and looked back to the door.
"But if the electric is down and the power…" Amelia said.
"That final door has a key that is needed," Helmut told her. He had been locked away long enough to know what was needed. "The door to my cell is only opened from the control room out there."
Amelia nodded, supposing that was something. They just had to hope that no one found the key. Amelia kept hold of Helmut's arm and he didn't complain. She stood just behind him and he was able to feel the warmth of her body against his. He could feel her breath on his neck as she tried to calm her breathing.
And then they heard the noise. It was the sound of a lock turning and Helmut shook his head. The door burst open and four men stormed into the room. Helmut moved to the bed, pushing it against the door and giving it added weight. Amelia did the same, trying not to shake too much as they continued yelling in German and Helmut pushed his shoulder against the bed, using all of his weight against the four of them as they tried to get into the room.
"Just keep pushing," Helmut urged from Amelia. "Just push."
She nodded at him, copying his stance and turning to the side, leaning on the bed with all of her weight as they continued yelling and she knew that she had to dig in. Her heels stuck to the ground and she told herself that she wasn't going to cry. She continued pushing with as much force as she could, but the four men were equally as strong.
As the door inched open slightly, Amelia ground her teeth together and then heard more yells. Looking to the door, she saw five guards move into the room, yelling loudly and aiming their guns at the men. They immediately put their hands in the air, giving in. Amelia sunk down to the ground, hiding behind the tipped over bed as the guards continued yelling at the men to get down. He guessed he was lucky that the armed response unit had arrived when they had.
Moving to his own knees, he looked to them over the top of the bed as one of them yelled something at him and he shouted back, snapping at him. Amelia wondered what they were discussing, but before she could say anything, the men who had been restrained were being led away, but three others stood in the doorway. Helmut shouted in German once more and one guard looked at him hesitantly. And then the door slammed shut, the key turning once more before the other men could get in.
"What did they say?"
"They wanted to get you out of here, but there was no chance you were getting out with more of them on the attack," Helmut said. "I told them that you'd be safe with me. They weren't convinced, but they didn't have much of a choice. They're outnumbered."
Amelia nodded. "I'd rather stay here with you," she said and collapsed against the upturned bed, her back pressing against its steel base and Helmut copied her movements. She stretched her legs out in front of her and her head fell back.
"You know that when you get out of here then you have to go, don't you?" Helmut said to her. "It's too dangerous for you to stay here, Amelia."
"I know," she said, finally catching her breath. "I just don't know where."
"Oeznik can help you," Helmut said to her. "Find him and he can help you. I have a number of houses…places where you can hide out…or you could tell the police. You could tell them who he is."
"And confess that I killed his brother?" Amelia asked from him. "Besides, do you really think that the police would be able to protect me? This is someone who knows about HYDRA…who knows their methods…the police couldn't stop them and so why should they help me?"
"Then there will only be one way to stop him," Helmut told her.
She nodded. She knew that much.
"There were hitmen for hire in Madripoor, Amelia," Helmut said to her. "You have the money, if not then I do. I know that it goes against everything you stand for, but if this is the only way to keep you alive then so be it. I would do anything to keep you alive."
"I know," she promised him. And she did know that. "I will take care of it. I'll figure something out, trust me."
"It's not you who I don't trust, it's everyone else out there," Helmut mumbled and, despite the situation, Amelia felt her lips arch upwards at hearing him say that. Turning to look across to him, she continued smiling gently in his direction and he took a moment to compose himself. He felt his breath hitch at the sight of her and he sighed. "I wish that I could help."
"It's too late to wish for things now," she responded. Didn't he know that was the truth?
"Just keep yourself safe," Helmut urged from her. "You need to be able to do that for me, alright?"
Amelia nodded her head. She could do that, not just for him, but for herself.
"You know, this is all a lot to take in, right?" she commented and Helmut nodded. He could appreciate that. It was another moment before he moved his hand to her hair and brushed it behind her shoulder delicately, letting his fingers tangle into her locks softly. "First you tell me that I've been gone for five years and now that my boyfriend is actually an Edgington looking for revenge on me."
"And now a prison riot too."
"I think that's enough excitement for one day," she said teasingly and he chuckled despite the situation as she moved his hand from her hair, her fingers entwining into his and holding his hand softly in between them.
"I spent every day missing you," Helmut whispered in a gentle tone. She turned to look up to him and he watched her intently. "Every day longing for you to come back…despite the fact I knew that it would make no difference…that I would still be locked up in here and you would be out there…but at least I would still see you."
"I can't imagine," Amelia confessed, squeezing his hand and letting it go. "And I've tried to forget you, but I can't. You don't just lose feelings, do you?"
"No," Helmut agreed on that point. "But you need to or else you'll never move on."
"Might not be a bad thing considering the last time I tried to move on it was with a guy who wanted to kill me," Amelia drawled.
"You know how to pick them," he commented.
"For my sins," she retorted before she heard the door open once more.
They peered through the glass to see a guard stood there. She was wearing her tactical gear, helmet on her head and a baton in her hands. Looking to Amelia, she nodded at her and moved to the glass. She said something in German, but Amelia shook her head.
"Sorry," she said. "I really don't speak German."
The woman sighed, but nodded. "You need to come with me. We've secured the wing and we're evacuating civilians," she said.
"Oh, yes, alright," Amelia said.
Helmut dragged the bed out from the door and the guard held it open, telling Helmut not to make a move. Amelia looked to him once more as he kept his hands in the air and she advanced towards the door. But Amelia turned to look to him, not wanting to say goodbye again.
"Just promise me you'll get away from him…do what you have to do…" Helmut urged from her and she nodded.
"I will," she promised him.
"Take care of yourself, Amelia," he said. "And do what you can to come back."
"I will," she assured him and he knew there was no chance of him being able to escape, not with the armed response unit there. If it was the normal guards, he might be able to do it. He was about to let her go out the door, but he couldn't.
He moved for her, but she was already turning to face him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and embraced him tightly as he took hold of her by the waist. The guard clucked her tongue, but said nothing for a moment. Amelia buried her face against his neck as the guard grew tired and Helmut's chin sat by the top of her head, letting him inhale the scent of her strawberry shampoo that still lingered in her hair.
The guard moved forwards and took hold of Amelia by the arm, drawing her away from Helmut, but not before she grasped hold of his neck and brought his lips down to meet hers. Not that he needed much encouragement. If they locked him in solitary confinement then it would be worth it, the feeling of Amelia's body pressed to his and her lips on his would be enough to keep him company.
She had no chance to deepen the kiss as the guard pulled her away, but her gaze remained on Helmut's as he placed his hands back in the air defensively and two other guards entered the room as Amelia was dragged from it. They said nothing to each other, knowing that the words they wanted to speak would be too painful. Only when she was gone from his view, did he long to do nothing more than fight every officer who stood in his way so that he could protect her. He needed that more than anything.
…
He felt lost. He didn't know what he was doing or where he was going, not truly. He had said goodbye to his best friend, seeing him go back in time and live a life that he had longed for. He had known that he would have to make his own way in the world, but he didn't know what that meant or what he should be doing. He'd managed to rent an apartment in Brooklyn and spent time wandering the streets. It was completely different to when he had last been there in the 1940s.
He didn't feel like he belonged anymore. Back in the day it felt as though he owned the streets. It was his stomping ground and he knew where he was going and what he was doing. But that wasn't the case anymore. He attended therapy and went about his business, but that was all he did.
His therapist had suggested that he start making amends with himself. He had thought about it and had compiled a list in a book of names of people he needed to see. There were corrupt officials in power who had gotten there because of HYDRA. He needed to bring them down, without using force or anyone getting hurt, of course. And then there was the other list. There was the list of people who he had hurt; families whose children, parents, uncles, aunts, he had stolen from them. That was the harder part. And then there was another name.
Amelia Baker.
For some reason, she had plagued his thoughts more than some of the others. He could still remember the look in her eye when he had confronted her in Siberia. He could remember how she looked so scared and vulnerable. He remembered all of it. She had told him what was going to happen in that facility and she had been correct. But why had she told him? She had been working with Zemo. By all accounts, she was madly in love with Zemo. But he had his own fight to take on with Zemo after what he had done.
But he knew he was locked up in some German jail. Out of intrigue, he reached for his laptop from the coffee table and opened it up. Typing in the name of the jail, he saw a news article from over a week ago. There had been some kind of riot there. Three guards had been seriously injured and another six had suffered minor injuries. He frowned, forehead creasing up as he looked at the article and saw aerial view images.
It was in one of those images where he spotted a familiar head of hair. Frowning, he zoomed in on the image. She was being escorted out by a guard, her face full of panic. But it was her. It was Amelia Baker.
Looking to her name in his book on the table, Bucky wondered if it was time he visited her to cross her name off. Maybe it was time to discover what other secrets she was hiding.
...
A/N: So we're going back to Madripoor and two characters are going to meet soon! Plus the TV show is coming up. Would love to know your thoughts as always!