It has been brought to my attention by me, that I have been spelling marshmallow wrong. My deepest apologies, dear readers. I am too lazy to go fix this error.
Also, thanks to anyone reading this! It means a lot to me. Also, to the wonderful Fern Kelley, thank you for the review! I sadly won't be continuing the old version, but i'll leave it up so you can reread it if you want. I will try to keep the chapters coming!
Also, thanks to everyone who was reading my old story, and came over here to read this!
~PaleWolfsHowl.
(PS; This will not be Steve/Bucky. This is purely a friendship fanfiction. I just want to clear that up, because I don't want to have to deal with those reviews. So just so everyone knows, :) )
Steve had been having a nice day, a perfectly normal, nice day. One second he was taking a nice jog through the streets of New York the next second he found himself in a room with the other Avengers, a trained killer and an annoying girl.
He didn't know what had surprised him more; the fact that some random girl had kidnapped them, or that the supposedly trained killer's first words had been, 'What's a Marshmallow?'.
He decided to settle on the later of the two. Like, what lethal man asks that question? It wasn't even mildly scary.
Throughout the 'watching' he had been closely watching the Assassin. Something about the guy was just so familiar, hauntingly. Steve knew he should recognize The Soldier, but with the mask obscuring his face…
And after all, Steve didn't know anyone well that was alive besides the other Avengers. There was no reason he should know this Assassin. No reason at all. But yet, Steve knew he had once known this man.
So, with this odd sense of familiarity, he had watched the other man's every move. So he had noticed when The Assassin had stiffened in fear after he had spoken that one time.
(He watches as Natasha quickly pulls away and drives off.)
(flying over the Indian Ocean the duo are with SHIELD agents, led by Brock Rumlow.)
Steve nearly jumped out of his seat as the trained assassin next to him burst into a fit of coughing. Looking over at the mask wearing man, he caught the look of pure terror in the Assassin's icy blue eyes.
The Assassin's whole body was shaking in hysteria. It was rather concerning, was the guy having a mental breakdown? The even more shocking thing was that Steve had an odd impulse to reach out and try to… -comfort?- the other man.
Which didn't make sense, why would he want to comfort a random Assassin? Steve shook his head, trying to clear it of the brotherly protective instinct that had come from nowhere.
"Are you.. Okay?" He asked awkwardly, trying not to reach out and grab the man's shoulders.
The Assassin managed to stop coughing for a second, pausing as if in thought, then shaking his head. Steve didn't know if he was trying to say 'no', or just trying to clear his head of thoughts.
Steve glanced to his side and saw the other Avengers watching the interaction with trepidation. The Assassin finally managed to calm himself, taking a few deep breaths, before sinking as far back into his seat as humanly possible.
Brock Rumlow: The target is a mobile satellite launch platform: The Lemurian Star. They were sending up their last payload when pirates took them, 93 minutes ago.
Out of the corner of his eye, Steve could've sworn he saw The Assassin flinch at Rumlow's voice. 'He must have met Rumlow before, and their encounter most likely didn't go well.' The Captain thought grimly, glancing once again at the pale faced Assassin.
Steve Rogers: Any demands?
Brock Rumlow: A billion and a half.
Steve nor the other Avengers had anything to say to that, so they just kept their yappers shut. For once.
Steve Rogers: Why so steep?
Brock Rumlow: Because it SHIELD's.
Steve Rogers: So it's not off-course, it's trespassing.
Natasha Romanoff: I'm sure they have a good reason.
Steve Rogers: You know, I'm getting a little tired of being Fury's janitor.
Natasha Romanoff: Relax, it's not that complicated.
Steve Rogers: How many pirates?
Brock Rumlow: Twenty-five, top mercs, led by this guy. Georges Batroc.
(He shows them a photo of Batroc on the monitor.)
Brock Rumlow: Ex-DGSE, Action Division. He's at the top of Interpol's Red Notice. Before the French demobilized him, he had thirty-six kill missions. This guy's got a rep for maximum casualties.
Steve Rogers: Hostages?
Brock Rumlow: Uh...mostly techs. One officer, Jasper Sitwell.
(He pulls up Sitwell's photo on the monitor.)
The Assassin once again began coughing, earning looks of trepidation, and concern- which was from Steve.
"Do you know him?" Steve asked the metal armed man, doubting the Assassin would reply. To his shock, The Assassin nodded his head.
There was a pause before. "Hydra." The Assassin said quietly, "He's from Hydra."
Steve looked at the Winter Soldier with confusion in his blue eyes, Hydra was dead. He had defeated Hydra nearly seventy years ago. "Hydra's gone. I took it down nearly seventy years ago." Steve stated, voicing his thoughts. The Assassin shook his head.
"No. Kill one head, two more shall take its place." The Assassin stated in an emotionless voice. "Hydra is very much alive. It lurks within every corner of this forsaken world." And with that, the Assassin looked back towards the screen.
Steve was in a state of shock, he had failed! He had failed and Bucky had died for no good reason.
He sucked in a deep breath at that thought, Bucky, his best friend and brother in everything but blood, had died for no reason. A flashback of Bucky falling found its way into his head. Bucky's screams as he fell to his unstoppable doom. Steve fought to keep tears from falling from his eyes. Captain America did not cry. He couldn't be seen as weak. Ever.
Bucky had fallen only one month before Steve took down The Red Skull, and then been frozen over. And even in his last five years of being defrosted, he still hadn't gotten over the death of his brother. No one could.
He normally just pushed all thoughts of Bucky away. The pain that accompanied those thoughts…
Steve just couldn't take it. Not at all. Losing Bucky had been like losing a leg. He would never fully heal from the wound of his best friend's death. They'd promised they'd be with each other, Until The End Of The Line. But it meant nothing, because Bucky had fallen, and it was Steve's fault. He should have saved him! No matter what Peggy said, it was his fault.
The Assassin ended up being the one to yank Steve from his increasingly depressing thoughts. "Wait. Your Captain America?" The Assassin asked cautiously, looking over towards Steve warily. Steve gave a short nod.
Brock Rumlow: They're in the galley.
Steve Rogers: What's Sitwell doing on a launch ship? Alright, I'm gonna sweep the deck and find Batroc. Nat, you'll kill the engines and wait for instructions. Rumlow, you sweep aft, find the hostages, get them to the life-pods, get 'em out. Let's move.
Brock Rumlow: STRIKE, you heard the Cap. Gear up.
[as they are getting ready to dive off the jet; into his radio]
Steve Rogers: [talking into his wrist communicator] Secure channel seven.
Natasha Romanoff: Seven secure. Did you do anything fun Saturday night?
Steve Rogers: Well, all the guys from my barbershop quartet are dead, so... No, not really.
Pilot: [on radio] Coming up by the drop zone, Cap.
Natasha Romanoff: You know, if you ask Kristen out, from Statistics, she'd probably say yes.
Steve had to roll his eyes at that, Natasha had been trying to set him up for a while now. It was both amusing and annoying. Tony snickered at the Captain's bad luck, and Clint high fived the smirking Natasha.
Steve Rogers: That's why I don't ask.
Natasha Romanoff: Too shy or too scared?
Steve Rogers: Too busy!
[Steve jumps out of the jet]
STRIKE Agent: Was he wearing a parachute?
[Rumlow smiles]
Brock Rumlow: No. No, he wasn't.
Steve could've sworn he saw the Assassin's eyes twitch in amusement at that comment. Though he still seemed upset about Rumlow, The Assassin seemed to find amusement in the thought of Steve jumping from a plane without a parachute.
[after jumping out the jet Steve dives into the ocean and then climbs onto the ship, he then beats everyone on the deck swiftly before anyone raises the alarm when he's interrupted by one of the pirates pointing his gun at him]
French Pirate #1: Bouge pas! Bouge pas. (Don't move! Don't move.)
[he's shot dead by Rumlow as he parachutes down onto the deck behind Steve]
Steve Rogers: Thanks.
Brock Rumlow: Yeah. You seemed pretty helpless without me.
Steve now noticed that The Assassin winced. He really wanted to know when the two had met before? This Winter Soldier seemed terrified of Brock. He also wanted to know why he felt so protective of this Assassin.
[Natasha and another agent parachute down onto the deck to join them]
Natasha Romanoff: What about the nurse that lives across the hall from you? She seems kind of nice.
Steve Rogers: Secure the engine room, then find me a date.
Natasha Romanoff: I'm multitasking.
This was met with howls of laughter from the Avengers, and a confused look from the Assassin.
(Natasha Jumps down to the lower deck)
[below deck we see the pirates are holding the ship's crew, including Sitwell, hostage]
French Pirate #1: J'ai dit à Batroc que si on veut que le SHIELD nous paye, commence à leur envoyer des corps maintenant ! ([subtitled] I said to Batroc, if we want SHIELD to pay, we have to start sending them bodies now!)
"Delightful, aren't they?" Tony said, sarcasm lacing his voice. Steve huffed in amusement, though it was half hearted, half his mind still thinking about Bucky.
"Sure are." Clint said, but before the two could really get started, the timid Bruce spoke up. "If you two don't pay attention, we'll never finish this." He said quietly, nodding towards the two now pouting Avengers.
Steve glanced over at The Assassin to see him looking confused. Had this man never seen banter before? Never joined in on a silly conversation?
[to the hostages]. Une balle pour quelqu'un ([subtitled] I have a bullet for someone). [shouting in English] You want a bullet in your head?! T'en veux une. Hein ! (Do you want one? Eh?) [he kicks one of the hostage's leg]. Bouge ton pied. Tu veux une balle dans la tête ? ([subtitled] Move that leg. Want a bullet in your head?)
Steve felt indignation for the poor Hostages who had to go through this trauma, it would scar them for life.
[meanwhile on the deck Steve moves quickly to find the hostages; in the control room]
Georges Batroc: J'aime pas attendre. Appelle Durand. Je veux que l'on s'arrache dès que la ranson arrive. ([subtitled] I do not like to wait. Call Durand. I want the ship ready to move when the ransom arrives.)
French Pirate: Oui, Batroc ([subtitled] Yes, Batroc.)
[he makes the call]
French Pirate: Durand. Démarre le moteur.([subtitled] Durand. Start the engine.)
Durand: Okay.
[Durand puts the phone down, turns and sees Natasha behind him]
"Oh good grief Nat! You're going to give someone heart failure." Clint exclaimed, smirking at his fellow spy, who shrugged.
"It'd make the job go quicker." The former Russain Assassin said cheerfully, fluttering her eyes at her best friend mockingly.
Steve noticed The Assassin nodding his head lightly, as if he agreed with Natasha.
Great. Perfect. It was never good when someone agreed with The Shield Agent.
Natasha Romanoff: Hey, sailor.
[she quickly knocks him down and manages to swing down below deck shooting several of the pirates on the way]
[to one of the hostages]
French Pirate: Ferme ta gueule ! ([subtitled] Shut up.)
French Pirate #1: Bouge pas toi ! Mais qu'est ce qui se passe ! Tu veux jouer les héros, c'est ça ! T'as pas intérêt ! ([subtitled] What is it? Want to be a hero?)
[he looks at the hostages who keep their heads down]
French Pirate #1: Bon, j'ai trop attendu là. ([subtitled] Well, I've waited long enough.)
[he goes over to the locked door and bangs on it to get the attention of the pirate guarding outside]
French Pirate #1: Hé, trouve Batroc, si j'ai pas de nouvelles dans deux minutes, je commence à les tuer. ([subtitled] Hey, look for Batroc. If I do not hear anything in two minutes, I'll start to kill them!)
The Avengers grew tense, they hated seeing things like this and being unable to help. It was awful. They'd just have to believe in future- Natasha and Steve to get the Hostages in time.
Steve had always hated injustice, and to see it right in front of him, but be unable to help. That was awful. The feeling of helplessness, like when he'd been unable to catch Bucky when he fell…
Except no pain could match what he'd felt when Bucky had fallen, no injury nor death could ever hurt him so much. He shook his head, these thoughts got him nowhere.
French Pirate #2: D'accord. Je vais le chercher ! ([subtitled] Okay. I'll find him!)
[as the pirate turns to leave Rumlow, who's standing behind him with a stun gun, shoots him, on the other side of the door the other pirate senses something but dismisses it]
French Pirate #1: Deux minutes. ([subtitled] Two minutes.)
[we see Rumlow and another STRIKE Agent places a bomb on the locked door]
[in the control room]
French Pirate: Silence radio du SHIELD, Batroc. ([subtitled] Radio silence from SHIELD, Batroc.)
[Steve watches them from the deck, we see another STRIKE agent getting in position]
STRIKE Agent: Targets acquired.
[below deck Rumlow points his gun at the bomb placed against door where the hostages are being kept]
Brock Rumlow: STRIKE in position.
[into his radio]
Steve Rogers: Natasha, what's your status?
"I think I'm a little busy Steve." The Redhead said, while watching the screen, Steve just huffed at The Spy.
[we see Natasha jumping down below deck to knock out one of the pirates]
"See, busy." Natasha said brightly, smirking at Clint, who seemed to be enjoying the scene just as much as his fellow Avenger and Agent.
Steve Rogers: Status, Natasha?
Natasha Romanoff: Hang on!
[as the pirate attacks her she quickly knocks him out; into her radio]
Natasha Romanoff: Engine room secure.
Steve just sighed, he was supposed to be the Captain! Though he highly doubted Tony would ever listen to him. He and Tony had gotten off to a bad start. Seeing as Howard had spent all of Tony's life trying to find the still frozen Steve, The Bilinear had always resented The Captain.
Steve had been very upset when he'd learned of what Howard had done. While he appreciated the loyalty, Howard should have been taking care of his son. Not looking for lost war heros.
[Natasha grabs a pipe from the ground and knocks out one of the pirates]
French Pirate #1: Le temps est écoulé. Qui veut mourir en premier. Hé toi ! Prend la fille. [subtitled] Time's up. Who wants to die first? [to one of his men] Hey, you! Take the girl.
[into his radio]
Oh goodness, they had better hurry. If Steve or the STRIKE team arrived even a second to late, then that's a life lost.
Steve Rogers: On my mark. Three. Two. One.
[the STRIKE team start shooting at the pirates, blow open the door and Rumlow quickly kills the head pirate]
Jasper Sitwell: I told you, SHIELD doesn't negotiate.
"Neither does Hydra." The Assassin muttered quietly, thought Steve heard him and glanced over towards the other man curiously. It seemed that The Assassin knew a lot about Hydra. Though, it wouldn't make sense for him to be Hydra, after all, he'd betrayed them. Giving out the fact that Hydra was indeed still a thing.
[back in the control room one of Batroc's men tries to get hold of the pirate below deck]
French Pirate: Halo ? Je pense que la ligne est morte.J'ai perdu le contact. ([subtitled] Hello? Batroc, the line is dead. I lost contact with them.)
[just then Steve smashes in through the window using his shield but Batroc manages to escape]
[to Steve as he goes looking for Batroc]
Brock Rumlow: Hostages en route to extraction. Romanoff missed the rendezvous point, Cap. Hostiles are still in play.
Steve Rogers: Natasha, Batroc's on the move. Circle back to Rumlow and protect the hostages.
Steve saw Ntatsha's brow furrow then smooth over. "I must be on a double mission." She said with a shrug, as if this didn't matter.
"Without telling me.?" Steve asked in confusion, he was the leader of the mission! He should know if one of the Agents is performing more than one task.
"I'm multitasking." The Shield Agent said annoyingly, smirking at Steve's annoyed look.
[there's no reply from Natasha]
Steve Rogers: Natasha!
[suddenly Batroc attacks Steve, they fight on the deck of the ship, with Batroc getting quickly back up on his feet]
Georges Batroc: Je croyais que tu étais plus qu'un bouclier. ([subtitled:] I thought that you were more than just a shield.)
[Steve puts the shield on his back and takes off his mask]
Steve Rogers: On va voir. ([subtitled:] Let's see.)
Steve flushed as Bruce started grumbling about reckless teammates taking unnecessary risks, making the other Avengers snicker.
[they start fighting again, Steve manages to finally knock Batroc down by smashing through into one of the rooms where Natasha is downloading something from the computer]
Natasha Romanoff: Well, this is awkward.
Steve Rogers: What are you doing?
"Downloading data?" Natasha said with a shrug, looking over at Steve who just frowned at her.
Natasha Romanoff: Backing up the hard drive. It's a good habit to get into.
Steve Rogers: Rumlow needed your help. What the hell are you doing here?
[Steve goes over to Natasha and looks at what Natasha is backing up]
Steve Rogers: You're saving SHIELD Intel.
Natasha Romanoff: Whatever I can get my hands on.
"Of course you are. I mean why not? It's not like our mission was to rescue the hostages or something." Steve said with a glare at Natasha.
"No, that was your mission. Mine was to collect data." Natasha said, looking regretless.
Steve Rogers: Our mission is to rescue hostages.
Natasha Romanoff: No. That's your mission.
"Don't repeat yourselves." Tony said, smirking at Natasha and Steve's disgruntled expressions.
[she finishes backing up and pulls the flash drive out]
Natasha Romanoff: And you've done it beautifully.
[as Natasha goes to leave Steve grabs her arm]
Steve Rogers: You just jeopardized this whole operation.
Natasha Romanoff: I think that's overstating things.
[suddenly Batroc rises and throws a grenade at the two as he runs off, Steve deflects the bomb with his shield, grabs Natasha and jumps through a window before it explodes]
Natasha Romanoff: Okay. That one's on me.
"You dont say." Grumbled Steve, half heartedly glaring at the Agent.
"Ah, we've had worse before." She said with a shrug as Clint and Tony snickered.
Steve Rogers: You're damn right.
(Okay, so another note! YAY So just to clear this up, this fanfiction is taking place before Age of Ultron, so Clint's family hasn't been introduced yet, and I ship Clintasha. So deal with it.
Also, I've been typing Bucky's name out as 'The Asset' so much that when my dad and I were watching Civil war the other night, I accidently called Bucky 'The Asset', my dad was so confused. It was hilarious, because I didn't even notice I'd said it for a few minutes. Okay, I'm boring everyone. Oof, this Wolf just can't shut up.
-PaleWolfsHowl.