Pre-Author's Note:
This fanfic is inspired by the absolutely breathtaking work of That's the Illusion in their video '||CROSSOVER|| Yelena x Bucky (and Sam)'. I first came across their work on this crossover video between Yelena, Sam, and Bucky on YouTube (to which this fanfic is dedicated to for the first portion of the video - and I can't for the life of me get the link onto here) and I cannot tell you how many times I wanted to click the like button! The editing and placement of scenes was incredible and it honestly looked like a trailer for a movie or a Falcon and the Winter Soldier episode.
So again, this fanfic was inspired by the video, and I HIGHLY encourage you to check it out!
Hope y'all enjoy!
Yelena could hear her stomach rumbling with anticipation as she placed the pot of food in the center of the table. Giving it a quick stir, she let herself sigh at the smell of fresh macaroni and cheese, and she just as eagerly picked up a bottle of hot sauce and squirted what was close to half the bottle in.
Fanny paced the table beside her, wagging her tail and nudging her leg impatiently for a bite. Yelena leaned her hand down and scratched behind her ear as she took a seat, putting an abrupt end to the attempts at more dinner.
Grabbing the remote, Yelena flipped on the TV and rushed through the channels, all the while scooping spoonful after spoonful into her bowl. She only paused her search for her evening show at the first bite to which she couldn't help but release a light moan. She really didn't care that it was only boxed mac-and-cheese; she was forever grateful to whoever invented the idea to combine the two.
Finally settling on an American true crime show, Yelena slumped back in her seat and started on her gourmet dinner. Outside, the silence down in the courtyard was disrupted as a flurry of pigeons flew by her window. She spared them a glance and caught herself looking out over a distant view over the skyline of Budapest; dim yet glittering with light all the same. Yelena let her eyes wander away from the window and around the living room of her safehouse - spacious but cozy, and with a rustic touch that showed on the paint that peeled away from the walls and the occasional leak from the ceiling.
Besides it having a few nicks and nacks here and there after the repairs were complete from their intrusion a few years back, it was nice to still have a place to call her own.
Well, to be fair, it wasn't her safehouse that had first housed an ex-widow.
She could already feel the tightening in her chest and took another bite of mac-and-cheese to push it away. It soothed it in the best way it could, and Yelena quickly averted her eyes back to the TV just in time to see another reenactment of the crime scene.
Despite feeling a twisted feeling in her gut upon knowing it, Yelena could already tell the killer was an amatuer; he had left far too much evidence for the authorities to go off of.
She released a sigh as the show's title appeared again on screen, and another roll of commercials would soon follow through. Licking away the last reminiscence of hot sauce from her fingers, and ignoring Fanny's large eyes as they looked up at her to plead for just one bite, Yelena picked up the remote and flipped to the next available channel. A reporter and an updated news report scrolled across the bottom of the screen, and after a moment of debate, Yelena shrugged her shoulders and spooned herself another bowlful of macaroni.
"...certainly is an exciting day as I am standing outside of the Smithsonian Institution now where there has been yet another addition to the Captain America exhibit. Earlier this morning, the public had their first glimpse about what it has to offer, but perhaps one of the most exciting instances for the fans and community that came today was the appearance of the man in stars and stripes himself, Captain America. Sam Wilson, previously the Avenger, the Falcon, recently resumed the role with the iconic shield and made another debut in public appearances today when opening the exhibit to public eyes for the first time."
Not in the mood to hear much more about what the new man in stars and stripes had to offer besides a few public appearances, Yelena made a move to grab the remote before the camera cut away from the reporter and to a frame of what she presumed was of earlier that day. Her hand froze in mid-air as her eyes widened.
"Accompanying Captain America at today's assembly and unveiling was also former Avenger, James Rhodes, a.k.a War Machine," the reporter explained as another shot moved to the new Captain shaking hands with him. "Afterwards, Captain made his rounds around the assembly and has left an impact there that is sure to last. Many were thrilled…"
The voice of the reporter seemed to fade away as Yelena's eyes glued themselves to the screen. The frame had moved onto another shot in which the new Captain was having a seemingly casual conversation with another man. He wasn't dressed to impress, rather like he was trying to blend in with the public crowd around them.
Beneath an old baseball cap, she could make out a head of shaggy brown hair, piercing dark blue eyes, and sharp features down to the light stubble on his chin. When he turned at just the right angle, Yelena's breath caught in her throat, and she felt the spoon slip out of her fingers and hit the floor with a clatter. Fanny raised her head and gave her an almost puzzled look, but Yelena couldn't dare take her eyes from the TV now.
Was she supposed to feel shocked? Angry? Confused? Yelena could feel her mind reeling with endless possibilities, but even as the shot shifted back to the reporter, the image of him there, a small smile curling his lips up whereas there had been nothing before, was still fresh and clear in her mind.
There was no doubt it was him. And she wasn't sure whether that was a good or bad thing yet.
It had started just like any other mission. She had been assigned her target by her superiors, and all it was supposed to have been was a quick get-in-and-leave-no-signs assignment. Yelena had been given so many before then, that time should have been no different.
And it was. Everything had gone over smoothly, and she could still remember every detail rather vividly to the point it's what scared her most. Remembering each and every memory of every kill and every swift escape only to report back and do the same thing again and again was what landed her in what was a prison of her own thoughts at times.
But that night had been clear. Cool breeze, easy surroundings, and another unaware victim. She had slipped in through the window of his apartment, and she had been quick to note this was the right place. Her superiors had given her specific information on this target, most notably was his fondness of alcohol.
Nonetheless, Yelena had carried it out like she always did. Not much of a scuffle, seeing as he was half drunk anyways. A quick zap to knock him out and a snap of the neck, and she was finished with her target in less than ten minutes.
She had crawled back out the apartment window and shimmied down the fire escape of the back alleyway. The street was quiet and unmoving, nothing she hadn't seen before, and Yelena found her way back into the shadows and melded into the darkness.
She hadn't made it halfway down the street before she felt the chill overtake her spine.
Yelena had slowed her pacing to a stop as she turned back to look down the empty street, nothing but one dim street lamp at the end. The apartments around her were quiet on the outskirts of the city, most of the lights off and the occupants asleep. So why feel like she was being followed?
She now knew if she had turned back a second sooner, she wouldn't have caught the glimpse of metal jumping from one roof to another. She had froze as she watched the form dart between the shadows as it worked its way around…towards the open window heading straight back towards her target's housing.
She should have left. She shouldn't have let that spark of curiosity get the better of her. Her mission was supposed to be quick and sharp, no back tracks or side paths.
But with that spark that there was a part of her that was still human at the time, Yelena had carefully blended herself back into the shadows and worked her way back up the fire escape. With slow and steady movements, Yelena positioned herself just below the window frame and prepared herself to steal a glance in.
Holding her breath as she did so, Yelena barely looked over to see a figure standing in the living room. From what she could make out, he was completely clad in black, aside from one glistening metal arm imprinted with a red star. His back was turned to her as long strands of dark hair barely brushed his shoulders, but even turned away, she could tell this was no amateur breaking in; towering figure, strong form, and too many weapons to take in at once.
She watched him for a moment more as he seemed to scan the room, the only sign of concern or emotion for the body in front of him shown through his clenched fists. Even then, she assumed it was in anger.
Not wanting to stick around any longer should he make an early escape, Yelena had managed as stealth-like as she could back down the metal steps, though she cursed every cold-hearted thing in all of Russia as an ear-piercing squeak split through the still night when she reached the second floor.
She didn't have much time to react beyond that other than steal a final glance back up at the window sill. She had forced her features to remain stoic and impassive just as her opposing operative looked out over and caught sight of her in the maze of stairs of the fire escape.
Yelena had chanced it and hoped the ground wasn't as far as it looked. Hoisting herself over, Yelena rolled out of her landing on the concrete and began her sprint back down the side-alley. Though it was faint, she could hear a few brief creaks of metal before another body hit the street. This time, she didn't trust herself to look behind her.
Rounding corner after corner in any possible way to lose her tail, Yelena kept her pace as she wound her way down through the back alleyways. The buildings slowly seemed to turn more and more into a maze with each turn that she took, but she didn't let it stop her. Her legs carried her farther into a place she didn't know, but with the not-so-distant sound of footsteps behind her, she pushed for as long as she could.
The dimmed street lights had no effect in the shadows as she finally came to a stop to catch her breath and looked up at the wall ahead of her with a twinge of worry. Dead end.
She pushed it away as soon as it had come, demanding more of herself and the training that came with it. She wasn't a little girl anymore. She could face her own fights. And one, she knew, was just around the corner.
Yelena let herself breathe and regain her heartbeat before slowly turning on the spot. Despite the still night, a small trickle of sweat dripped down her neck and disappeared beneath her suit, but she didn't even bother with it as she took him in full front.
She hadn't been wrong that he was no amateur. Guns holstered themselves to the belt around his waist, accompanied by a select few knives. His face, in particular, was what truly caught her attention. Mostly for the sake she couldn't see it.
Underneath a few loose strands of hair, the lower half of his face was covered by a black mask, leaving only his eyes in view. Even then, they had been painted over in a black and messy coating. Regardless of his form or not, Yelena hadn't moved a muscle, and she didn't intend to before he did.
It didn't take as long as she thought.
As they hadn't been far apart to begin with, her opponent lunged forward taking a swing. He was fast and his moves were precise, and Yelena barely missed the first blow to begin with. One swift step, and she turned to strike back. Her first came forward, and was met with near solid force. She didn't let her eyes widen, but her heart picked its pace back up again.
He didn't even stumble. Looking down at her with ferocious blue eyes, his elbow went towards her gut just as her knee had come forward. Yelena had bit back a grunt but kept her footing. Ducking beneath another swing, she had tried her approach again and brought up her entire foot and met it with his gut. Hard. For extra measures, she brought her punch back as hard as she could and threw one towards his chest. The only damage done had been with her kick, and his gaze had started to turn lethal.
She knew her mistake the moment it happened. She had turned her back on him for only a moment to determine the height of the wall. Her grappling line on her belt would suffice enough for an escape, but in the moment, she had been more concerned about the sudden pain ripping through her head.
Her opponent had switched to dirty tactics and grabbed a fistful of her hair. Yanking her back, she hit the concrete and couldn't hold back the gasp that escaped her. She barely rolled out of the way of the fist that had barreled for her head as she tried to learn how to breathe again. That, and the mental note she took that his punch had left a divot in the road.
Keeping herself low to the ground, Yelena ducked beneath another swing. Swinging her legs out and bringing them around in a quick kick, she met with the back of his ankles. Frankly, she had been surprised when he stumbled backwards to regain some of his footing. She took the open window opportunity.
Sprinting towards the nearest wall, Yelena had aimed the claw of her grappling line just above the rooftop ledge and pulled the trigger back to release. A sigh of relief could have escaped her when she felt the line pull tight. Instead, her chest suddenly lost its will to breathe again as for the second time that night, the wind was knocked clean out of her.
Her opponent had snuck up from behind and nearly ripped her shoulder away with the force he had used to spin her around and shoved her against the wall. For the briefest of seconds, her eyes locked with his, though all she could see behind the icy, cold-hearted blue was sizzling anger, frustration and…nothing.
She hadn't dwelled on it, rather pushed her legs up and wrapped them around his waist. With all the strength she could, Yelena reached her hands up and gripped his shoulders, as he still held her tightly back against the wall. She knew she would have a bruise in the morning anyway. She had brought her head forward as hard as she could and connected directly with the point of his mask. That was enough to catch him off guard. With full control of her arm's again, though now with her opponent practically carrying her, she brought her elbow down on his head as hard as she could. Brought it up again, and down. Again, and again, and again. She kept it up until she felt his hands previously beneath her thighs move towards her waist, and she already began to brace for the impact.
Ripping her away from him, her opponent threw her back towards the wall and began reaching for the hilt of his belt holding a small knife. She had other plans and ordeals to get to, though. Pressing the button on her belt, Yelena had felt a final rush of adrenaline as her line guided up the side of the wall. By the time she got to the roof, Yelena could already feel the left behind imprints of her fight beginning to bloom. She didn't have the time then to think on it, and already with a perfect and clear image in her mind of her opponent, she unclipped the claw from the roof and took off across the rooftops. Only once did she turn to glance behind her when she was at least ten blocks off from where they had scuffled. When she saw no one in the distance, she let her guard down ever-so-slightly.
She had kept her pace for the rest of the run back, but when she had turned to glance behind her, she missed the still figure hidden in the shadows, simply watching. His fists were clenched but he didn't run after her. His metal arm didn't glisten so much anymore, the shadows keeping him secret.
Hey y'all!
This will be the first 1/3 parts of the introduction and background of my first multi-chapter Bucky x Yelena fanfic, so let me know what you guys think in the reviews and comments! As the story goes on, the chapters will definitely be longer in length, but for these first three parts they'll be just a bit shorter.
And, as always, have a wonderful morning, afternoon, evening, or night!
-Summerwinds
