Disclaimer: I have and will be introducing some comic book characters, obviously they are not mine and I've taken artistic licence with the majority of it. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy.


When Steve walked into their apartment later that evening he smiled. Caroline had put up the Christmas decorations and the twinkling lights around the fireplace and on the tree made the whole place look magical. Looking over at the dining table he noticed it was set for two, a large bouquet of flowers sat in the middle with a lit candle giving off the most glorious scent.

"Caroline?" he shouted.

"In the kitchen!" he heard her reply. Walking in he saw that she was in front of her stove stirring vigorously. "Surprise, do you like it?" she asked referring to the decorations.

"I love it," he told her coming to give her a kiss on the top of her head.

"You do? I'm glad, my orders for mince pies are going to be coming in thick and fast soon so you need to tell me what you'd like also. Ask the rest of the team will you? Sam's already told me he wants nothing but pork pies!" Caroline laughed as she continued to stir.

"How was your day?" he asked.

"Good, you?" she asked him as she poured the sauce into a jug and then pulled the roast potatoes form the oven. Steve nodded and then asking if he could help was tasked with taking in the sauce and vegetables to the dining room. Caroline followed him and when the pair were sat down she poured them each a glass of wine.

"I've left the star for you to put on the tree," she told him pointing to the gold star resting on the coffee table. "I hope that's alright?" she asked.

"That's perfect," Steve answered, immensely touched by the sentiment. "Who are the flowers from?" he asked a while later, winking at Caroline.

"Oh just my secret admirer," Caroline said sarcastically. "No they're from me, I bought them for you." Steve's eyes widened in surprise.

"I've never had someone buy me flowers before!" he told her and Caroline laughed. She wanted to tell him about the dream and the voice she kept hearing but seeing him sat there smiling at her, everything perfectly set out she changed her mind. It could wait.

"Well that's just terrible, everybody should have flowers bought for them." She told him giving him her sternest of looks.

After they had eaten, chatted about all manner of things and whilst Caroline cleared the table and washed up she told Steve to relax and as he stood in front of the tree and placed the star on top his eyes travelled to the window and the cold night outside.

A street lamp caught his attention but it was the figure that stood below it. Steve felt like his legs were about to give out and grabbing hold of the window his eyes narrowed as he tried to focus on the figure's face. The dark hair and eyes were unmistakable and without a moment's hesitation Steve bolted from the room and down the hallway. Ripping open the front door Steve heard Caroline shout after him but didn't stop. Racing down the stairs and out into the cold night, his t-shirt was instantly soaked by the heavy rain. The figure had gone but Steve set off down the street, running at lightning speed to catch up. Sprinting for what felt like miles Steve finally skidded against the ground and wiped the rain from his eyes. Looking around him his heart beat out of his chest as he tried to reconcile what he'd seen.

"Bucky?"


Steve pulled off his jacket and pushed off his boots wearily, walking down the hallway he saw that the lights were on in the living room. Turning the corner he stopped in his tracks when he saw Caroline on her phone whispering. Pulling himself back and hiding just out of sight he stood and listened carefully.

"No no he doesn't suspect anything…" Steve focused on her voice keenly. "Yes he's cooperating… I'll make contact when Agent Seven confirms the location." Steve's mind was reeling, pulling himself out of the shadows he stood in front of Caroline.

"Who are you?" he ground out through gritted teeth at her and a look he'd never seen before appeared on Caroline's face.

"You know who I am Steve," she told him smoothly.

"You're an agent?" he whispered as he felt himself losing control. Steve watched in horror as Caroline's hand came up to the back of her waistband and seeing her rapidly pull a gun on him his last thought was of absolute heartbreak.


"Steve!" Caroline shouted, scared out of her mind. "Steve! You're dreaming, it's just a bad dream!" Steve's eyes snapped open and Caroline barely had a chance to shout out before he'd pinned her down and held a hand round her throat, the book she'd been reading falling to the floor.

"Who are you?!" he shouted at her as he looked around the room. It was the middle of the night and all the lights were off except Caroline's bedside lamp, reality poured over him and seeped into his bones. Realising where he was and that they were in their own bed he pulled back and sat on the edge, his hands shaking and staring at Caroline in horror.

"Steve?" Caroline barely muttered, too shocked and scared to move.

"I thought… I thought you were…?" Caroline watched as a tear fell down Steve's cheek and when she held her hand out towards him and watched as he pulled himself as far away from her as possible her own tears began to flow. "I'm sorry," he said as he bolted from the room, the draft of the door closing blowing out the scented candle on the dresser and leaving Caroline without hope.


As Steve wondered the streets he tried to reconcile what had happened, he'd been positive he'd seen Bucky, he'd been positive she was an agent. He'd heard her on the phone, it had been as real as night and day. A passer-by bumping into his shoulder pulled him from his thoughts and turning to apologise Steve screwed up his face when he noticed the stranger wearing a military uniform. Continuing on his way he froze when he spotted a soldier with a Mauser 98 bolt-action rifle walk out of his view.

"Hey!" he shouted out but the man had already disappeared. Looking down at his watch he realised how late it was, Caroline would be on her way to work and he wanted to speak to her before she did. Turning back on himself, he needed to see Caroline and hopefully salvage what was left of his relationship with her.


"Sir it worked," the faceless man spoke into his phone.

"He saw you?"

"Yes Sir," Johann Fennhoff smiled.

"Good, well done. It amuses me highly to totally destroy him without the use of force, to simply watch him destroy himself." Laughing Fennhoff put his phone down and looked up to see Caroline Holland cooking in his kitchen. "And once he destroys the one thing most important to him they'll be nothing left to live for."


Caroline locked her door and threw the keys into her bag, balancing the two trays of food in one hand and her overstuffed bag in the other she started down the stairs.

"Sam?" seeing his face peering up at her from the bottom of the flight of stairs Caroline smiled.

"Hey, how are you?" Sam greeted her.

"I'm well," he knew instantly that something was wrong. He'd long since decided that Caroline Holland would be a terrible poker player.

"Tell me," he said as he took the two trays from her hands and made it clear she wasn't going anywhere until she did. Caroline contemplated her options but the truth was she was scared, not only because of what she had been experiencing but the fact that Steve all of a sudden appeared fraught with torment also.

"He's been having nightmares Sam, vivid ones." she started. "Last night he ran from the apartment with no explanation, when he came back he looked like he'd seen a ghost?" Sam took hold of her arm and squeezed, he could see how upset she was.

"Did he say anything?" he asked her.

"He wouldn't but later he said a name, when he thought I couldn't hear him." Sam nodded, silently telling her to go on. "Bucky? He said something about seeing Bucky?" Caroline creased her brow in confusion and felt like she'd been punched in the gut when she watched Sam's reaction to hearing what she'd just said. "I'm worried," she told him laughing sadly at how absurd her words sounded. "I have no idea to where to begin…?" trailing off she took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"Is he in?" Sam asked and Caroline shook her head.

"No, he…" Caroline stuttered. "He went out early, look Sam I have to go to work." The two friends hugged and then Caroline went on her way leaving Sam feeling very uneasy.


"Life in wartime London was miserable, we had lost everything. My father, Herr Fennhoff died during the Blitz, a broken man. My mother, Frau Fennhoff also fared badly I'm afraid to say but she poured everything she had left into my education." Caroline stood and listened as Johann sat opposite her in his kitchen, wine glass in hand and solemn look on his face. "They were both highly educated and successful, it was such a shame."

"I'm so sorry Mister Fennhoff," Caroline whispered.

"She wanted nothing more than for me to be a great doctor and a great man, a revenge of sorts against their poor culmination." Johann laughed sadly and took another sip of his wine. Caroline picked up the bottle on the kitchen island and walked over, taking his glass she poured him another. Johann took the opportunity to take her hand, quietly tapping her palm once more. Caroline felt like the lights dimmed around her until all she could see was Johann Fennhoff's expression. "Regrettably, she drove me far too harshly it would appear, none of my childhood or adulthood achievements would ever satisfy her resentful, toxic ambitions. I developed a condition where I was hounded by vivid hallucinations, my Mother you see, always urging me to become more important and successful." Caroline looked from her hand to him over and over, she felt intoxicated and the smallest, furthest part of her brain was telling her something was wrong.

"I… I don't understand?" Caroline tried to pull her hand from his but was unable to move. "What do you want?" she asked, feeling like her legs could no longer hold her weight.

"My dear Caroline, I want Captain America." Caroline barely heard his words as she felt herself sink to the floor. "You may not know Ms Holland, that I am known by another name." Johann Fennhoff stood from the stool and button his suit jacket. "Doctor Faustus," he said as he stood over her. "Has a certain ring to it don't you think?" Laughing he stroked Caroline's cheek with the back of his hand. "Can you imagine, destroying Captain America? That will prove my might once and for all!"


"I've found him," Nat said into her earpiece.

"Do you need help bringing him in?" Sam asked, watching as Doctor Banner set up his equipment in the large building situated on 890 Fifth Avenue.

"I'll let you know," ending the call Nat pulled the car over and parked up. Making her way through the park she ignored the looks from strangers that passed by. Sitting on the bench next to Steve she waited for him to look up.

"I feel like I'm losing my mind Nat," Steve whispered and Nat gave him a sympathetic smile.

"Funny, because Sam and I agree." Steve looked at Natasha confused. "You didn't think we'd notice?" Nat said carefully, hoping Steve would cotton on and realise what she was insinuating. "Sam thinks you're under the influence of something, Bruce is ready for you to come in, run a few tests and get to the bottom of this okay." Smiling warmly at her friend she watched as Steve nodded slowly. "Where's Caroline?" she asked.

"Err work I think?" Steve replied, still stunned by what he'd just heard.

"Okay, well let's get you up town shall we, see what's going on in that thawed out brain of yours?" Steve looked at Nat who was smirking at him.


"It's a hallucinogenic, it would explain what you think you saw." Bruce Banner looked at Steve sympathetically.

"It wasn't real? Steve asked, thinking about Caroline.

"No, none of it." Bruce took the small vial of Steve's blood and slotted it into a machine next to a bank of computers. "I'm trying to figure out where it was manufactured, we might be able to track down the origin." He said as he fiddled with the apparatus in front of him.

"Why would somebody want me to have visions?" Steve asked. Sam and Nat stood nearby, watching as Steve hopped off the medical bed and started pacing up and down.

"We don't know that yet?" Sam replied.

"Those soldiers I saw on the street, they were real I swear it!" Steve told Bruce who held his hands out in surrender.

"How do you know?" the Doctor whispered back.

"Because the dream I woke up from, that had felt real also but different somehow, much different to when I was walking in the city." Steve told him reluctantly.

"What dream?" Nat asked.

"I dreamt Caroline was an agent sent to spy on me," he told her solemnly and Nat saw the abject sadness in his eyes. "When I woke up I didn't realise…" Steve spun round to face Bruce. "We need to find out who's doing this, now!" he said angrily. "How could they have gotten this stuff near me?"

"It could have been released by a gas, something you ingested? I'll have to run more tests." Steve looked at Bruce severely.

"You need to solve this Doctor Banner, quickly."

"We will, we will."