Hey, a quick update. Sorry for the wait and I apologize for any mistakes, I'm updating via my phone.

I hope you all enjoy xx Comet96 xx

"Perhaps I should—"

"No."

"If you think about it—"

"No."

"But I really think—"

"I said no," Bucky said, checking the pile of weapons he had set out on the table. He glanced up at me and I could tell from the determined look in his eyes that he adamant that I stay here.

"What's the point of us coming here together if I can't even go to the Hydra base with you?" I crossed my arms over my chest as I glared at him. "Who died and made you boss?"

Okay, so I may have been acting like a child, but it was a valid reason. Why was he suddenly in charge?

"It's too dangerous for you to be there."

"But it's fine for you to go out there and take on a whole Hydra base by yourself?"

Bucky paused, placing his gun down on the table. He was giving me a calculating look that made me think he had reverted back to his Winter Soldier personality. He stepped away from the table and slowly made his way to me.

I felt like he was trying to scare me with how slow he was coming closer, but I knew he was trying to asses the situation and probably find a way to convince me why it was safer for me to stay here.

"Bucky, I think it might be safer for me to go with you." The way his jaw clenched was a definite no. "Or at least let me call Steve and he and Nat can come and help you."

"I don't trust him," Bucky replied, shifting closer until he towered over me.

"But you trust me?" I asked, looking up at him and feeling butterflies scrambling in my stomach. From a distance, Bucky was clearly a handsome man, but up close he was so fricking beautiful it almost made me cry. Was there something in the water back during the war because between him and Steve I could only imagine what all the other men looked like.

"You helped, you're helping." I had a feeling he meant more than finding Hydra and discovering their secrets by hacking into their systems. From the look in his eyes, I knew he meant more. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" I asked confused but didn't have any time to think about it as his metal hand flashed out towards my head.

Buzz. Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

"What… what the hell?" I grumbled blinking my eyes open. I was staring at the motel room with bleary eyes. What happened?

Bucky.

It had something to do with Bucky.

"Frankie, where's Bucky?" I asked trying to sit up only to be pulled back down to the bed.

"Sergeant Barnes has gone to the Hydra base," she informed me, a slightly smug tone to her voice.

"And am I still in Big River?" I wondered hoping Bucky hadn't moved me while I was out for the count.

"Yes, in the Timberland Motel, room 14," Frankie replied, flicking the information across my lenses.

"And where had Bucky gone? Is he still in Big River?"

"Sergeant Barnes has asked me not to tell you that information," Frankie said quickly removing all information from my sight.

"Frankie, why can't I move my arms?" I asked, trying to tug myself up into a sitting position.

"Sergeant Barnes apprehended you before he went to the Hydra base."

He tied me up. That bastard.

"Ahhhhhh!"

"Do you feel better Ma'am?"

"Frankie, I would hit you if you were real," I spat at her, trying to fiddle with the rope holding me down.

"I would find that highly unlikely, Ma'am, seeing as you're tied up."

Really Frankie? You just had to go there? Why did it seem that my AI was on Bucky's side? Surely, she could have predicted what he was going to do and could have warned me, but she didn't.

I bet she helped him get to the Hydra base as well.

"Frankie, how long has Bucky been gone?"

"Seven hours, thirty-seven minutes, and seventeen seconds. He arrived at the Hydra base within two hours and thirty-three-minutes, scouted the area for approximately three hours, and fifty-seven-minutes before breaking into the base on the weakest side. He's currently making his way through the base and has killed 37% of Hydra."

Shaking my head, I rubbed at my wrists as I sat up on the bed, cursing the fact that Bucky had tied me to the bed. Did he really think I was going to stay tied up? Nat had me trained in an intense training where she left me in dangerous situations tied up in all the ways she could think.

I knew how to slip most knots within minutes.

"Frankie can we set up surveillance with the Hydra base. I'd like to have as many eyes on Bucky as possible. I also want a layout of the building, so I can warn him of any threats," I said to her setting up my laptops over the bed. I needed them in case I needed to hack anything alongside Frankie. "Does he have his comm in?"

"At my insistence, Sergeant Barnes is allowing me to communicate with him. He's been checking in to see how you are every hour or so."

That's comforting at least. Now I knew he felt bad about hitting me.

Taking a quick glance at the mirror hanging on the wall, I flinched at the purply-green bruise on my forehead. It looked a couple of days old and I was reminded of the possible healing factors I had been born with.

"Frankie call Natasha but block all information and data so she can't track us." I wasn't going to do it, but I knew they were all probably going crazy. Dad had been calling me none stop, and I felt guilty for ignoring him.

Natasha's text had asked if I was alive and had been concerned at first but after no reply for five days, she had grown more panicked.

"Are you sure that's wise, Ma'am? Sergeant Barnes asked me to warn him if you decided to call your friends."

"Frankie who made you? Where do your loyalties lay? With me or Bucky? Because it seems your leaning towards Bucky."

I was finding it hard to believe that she was listening to Bucky over me. Although in a sense, I could understand why she was doing it. Bucky was a leader, he was the Alpha and she probably felt like she had to listen to him – he had that sort of personality to him – I almost listened to him most of the time.

"Just call Nat and don't pass on the information to Bucky or I'll reset your system," I threatened knowing how much she hated it because it took her hours to get all her data back.

"Call Natasha," Frankie replied quickly, the call coming up on my lenses as I paced around the bed, setting up all the laptops and devices.

"Effie, thank God. We thought the worst when you didn't answer any of our calls. You're safe right? You're not hurt?" she rushed out, sounding very unlike herself.

"Tasha, I'm fine, but you're not going to like what I'm about to tell you," I said to her as I glanced at the screen that showed me Bucky. He looked okay, no injuries from what I could tell. I was actually surprised that he had made it this far without getting hurt or captured.

"Where are you? I'll come to pick you up."

"That's the problem. I'm not coming home."

"What do you mean you're not coming home?" she snapped before whispered something away from the phone. She was with someone. "Is there someone there with you? Are they keeping you captive? Pass the phone over to them."

"It's not that simple, Nat. He took me hostage at first, but I've decided to stick around and help him," I said knowing what she'd say next.

"That sounds like Stockholm syndrome, Effie. What's he done to you? Has he threatened us?" she asked, sounding unsure. I heard her say something else to whomever she was with before there was a rumbling sound on the line.

"Effie, you're with him, aren't you?" Steve questioned, a tired tone to his voice. Last I remembered, he'd almost been beaten to death by Bucky and I was concerned that he died. I only knew he was alive because of Frankie.

"He's not the Winter Soldier, Steve, but he isn't Bucky either. He said I was helping him." I thought honesty with Steve was the best I could do. We both knew I wouldn't be telling him where we were, but I could at least update him with Bucky.

"You're safe with him though? He hasn't hurt you?"

I wasn't going to mention the massive bruise on my head, that wouldn't sit well with Steve or Nat.

"We went to the Hydra base on Washington. Pierce's men were going to rape me, but Bucky stopped them before they could do anything. I stopped him from killing some scientists as well, so I think we can work well together."

"You're not going to tell me where you are, are you?" he asked, the lack of disappointment in his voice told me he always knew I wouldn't be giving away that information.

"Nope, but I'll tell you that we're going after Hydra. In a couple of months, once everything's settled down with the media and the government, I'll send you the location of a Hydra base."

"Effie, you should come home," Steve begged. I knew he was asking me to bring Bucky to him, but I couldn't do that. something was telling me that I had to stick with Bucky.

"I can't do that, Steve." I paused, taking a glance at the screens, seeing trouble heading straight for Bucky. "I've got to go."

"Effie, wait—"

"Bucky, you've got trouble coming around from the left, I'd say about fifteen men," I said to him, dropping to my knees as I zoomed in on him. he titled his head to the side as he paused.

"You're awake," he whispered, waiting for the men to turn around the corner. "How's your head?" I was certain he was smirking. I could hear it in his voice and see it clearly on the screen.

"A little sore, but I'll live. I'm actually more than a little pissed that you went without me," I hissed at him, tensing as the men came stomping around the corner. "I could be helping you right now."

Watching Bucky fight off the men was like watching a live action film, but with all the graphic gore. It was like he didn't even have to think about fighting the men in front of him. it all seemed effortless and I was certain he didn't even break a sweat as he took them all out.

"Yeah, well, I'm much happier knowing you're safe," he grunted, collecting ammunition from the bodies of his victims.

Should I call them victims? They were dead after all, and they had been Bucky's kills.

"Aww, that's so sweet Buck, you're making me blush," I teased him, knowing he'd get annoyed. On the drive up here, I'd found my entertainment by teasing Bucky and kind of flirting with him.

It went over his head, but boy could he give back just as much as I was given. He couldn't take it very well either and when he did realize what I was doing his cheeks flushed a bit reminding me of Steve, but he'd gotten my cheeks flaring just as much.

"Stop talking."

"Have I embarrassed you?" I asked, trying to keep my laughter at bay.

"I'm trying to concentrate, and I can't do that with you harping on in my ear," he grumbled, taking down another two men before he paused and glanced up at the ceiling. I smiled when I saw him looking directly at the camera. "Do something useful and hack into the system before they delete everything."

"What are you going to do if I don't do as you say?" I wondered, my fingers already flicking across my keyboard at his demand.

"Frankie, end the call," he said and within seconds his line cut off from me.

"Frankie, you really need to end this obeying Bucky over me thing," I said to her as I dropped onto the bed getting comfortable.

Hacking into Hydra was a piece of piss. They really needed to think about updating their systems. I would have thought they'd be well above this crappy tech after having dad install some hardcore tech on the helicarriers.

Bucky had managed to take out the rest of Hydra using their own weapons against them and he'd done it within twelve-hours, single-handedly. I'd been watching him on my screens and Frankie had his back covered when I wasn't shouting at this screen.

He'd refused to connect me calls since he hung up, so I was having to go through Frankie to talk to him. I also had the feeling that she was currently fangirling over him too, taking all his commands over mine and giving him more attention than me.

And now I sounded like a whiny brat.

"Incoming call from—"

"Hey!" I exclaimed cutting Frankie off excited to finally hear back from Bucky.

"Ethel-Rose Stark!" Dad snapped, causing the blood to drain from me. Fuck. I should have left my contacts on. At least that way I would have known it was him calling me.

"Hey, dad, how's everything with you?"

"Don't give me that shit. You're on the run with The Winter Soldier," dad said, causing me to scrunch my nose in distaste.

"Well I wouldn't put it like that, he didn't—"

"Come home now!"

"It's not that simple—"

"If I have to get in my suit and track you down, I will. Ethel, you're getting in a car, on a train, or a fucking bus and coming home."

"Dad, I really need to do this," I said to him, trying not to get too frustrated with him.

I knew he'd act like this. It was why I had been ignoring his calls.

"Ethel-Rose—"

"You named me after mom, didn't you? Rose comes from Roseanne, right? Did you know who she was? Did you know my grandfather was Pierce?"

The silence on the other end made me suspicious. Was it a good silence or a bad one? Did he know?

"I didn't know, but Pierce always seemed interested in you and I always struggled to understand why. It makes sense now." Dad paused, taking a struggling breath. "I read what they did to you. It helps me understand your childhood a bit better now. It explains why you were never ill or why you healed so fast. I'm sorry I never looked into it. I'm sorry I was such a shitty father."

"You're not too bad, dad," I said to him, smiling softly at his chuckle. My eyes flew to the door as it opened, and Bucky came in, dropping a heavy bag on the floor. He glanced at me as I held my finger to my lips and pointed at my ear. "You're okay though, right?"

"Everything Shield had on me was already public knowledge. Well, everything except you. It's all out there now, sweetheart."

"You know that never bothered me, dad. You kept me from the press to keep me safe." I watched Bucky as he tensed but waved him off as he took an uncertain step towards me. "Look, I've got to go, but I swear I'll keep you updated on my health every week."

"Come home, Ethel," dad begged, his voice breaking as a crash sounded in the background.

"You know I can't do that. I have to help him," I whispered locking my eyes with Bucky as I spoke. "I love you." I hung up before he could say anything else. Closing my eyes, I lifted my head towards the ceiling. I wasn't going to cry. I wasn't going to cry. "I didn't tell him where we are."

"I trust you."

Opening my eyes, I looked at him trying to see if he was lying to me. I was finding it hard to believe that he trusted me, considering he didn't even take me with him today.

"But you didn't let me go with you today."

"I didn't want you getting hurt. I couldn't keep my eyes on you and take down Hydra, something would have gone wrong."

"You know, I almost rolled my eyes at that. I'm not a child, Bucky." I snapped throwing myself from the bed towards him.

"You're acting like one, though," he growled, taking a step closer too. I think anyone could be intimidated by Bucky, but he didn't scare me not with all my anger directed at him.

"There's a lot of things I could do to you right now, Bucky, but I like to consider myself a lady," I hissed at him, turning quickly, stomping into the bathroom and slamming the door behind me.

I glanced at myself in the mirror, hating how much I looked like my mother. The red hair, the green eyes, it was all her. Bucky had known her too. He'd been her bodyguard while she was pregnant. I read it in one of the files I found while hacking into Hydra. It's why he looked at me as if he remembered me. He could see her in me.

Would he always see my mother? Would he one day look at me and see me?

My anger swelled up, rolling through me like a wave of lava, bubbling and consuming every inch of me.

"Ahhhhhh!" I screamed, ramming my fist into the mirror, shattering it and embedding shards into my knuckles. "Shit, shit, shit." Holding my hand over the sink, I fished around for the towel.

"Effie?" Bucky asked, the urgency in his voice clear through the door.

"Fuck off," I snapped, blinking furiously through my tears. "I'm a fucking idiot," I whispered to myself. "Frankie, turn on the lenses and pull up Nat's number."

With her contact in front of me, I hissed out a message and wrapped my hand in the towel as I sent it.

Is it always hard to live with guys? – E

Thank you for reading xx