Sorry this one is a tad shorter than usual. Wanted to leave it somewhere specific, but I didn't want to write too much filler-y crap.

Review and let me know what you think ;P

Chapter 23

Bucky decided he needed a routine. He got up and went on a run with Steve four times a week, letting himself catch up on sleep the other three mornings for when he spent sleepless nights avoiding nightmares by reading articles on the internet.

He'd gotten a kick out of his own Wikipedia page, laughing at the content that someone had decided was important enough to put into the page, like his ability to meet girls and habit of dragging Steve along to suffer with a girl who really didn't want anything to do with him. Less amusing and more informative was the very short page dedicated to his sister.

Another part of his routine was, on Tuesdays he met Clara at some little coffee shop she liked in DC. Not that he would admit it to anyone, but he looked forward to that day the most.

Bucky tried to feel calmer, but there was one other occasion during his lunch with Clara that he thought he saw someone watching them. That time, though, he had taken off after the person, managing to trail them for several blocks before he lost them. A tiny voice in the back of his head cursed not having Hydra's eyes in his ears helping him find his target.

Clara assured him that his jumpiness was not entirely misplaced—of course Hydra could be looking for him. She just didn't want him to be entirely uncomfortable and unwilling to relax at some point during the day.

"I've been to this place once or twice, with Natasha. It's pretty public, open," Steve said conversationally as he and Bucky walked to meet Clara for lunch one Tuesday.

"You keep bringing that dame up and I'm gonna start thinking you've moved on from Carter," Bucky smirked, shooting him a glance between his covert looks around the street.

"Just a friend," Steve muttered. "She went off the grid after everything was released from SHIELD. Haven't been able to get in contact. I think she went to meet up with Clint and Fury in Europe."

Bucky stopped walking, face contorted in confusion. "Fury?"

"What?" Steve stopped and looked back at him.

"Director of SHIELD? I thought he was…I had…"

Steve raised an eyebrow. "Between you and me, he's a lot less what you think he is." Steve smiled and the very clear relief that emanated from Bucky in that moment of realization. He went from visibly bothered to almost giddy, for lack of a better word. He perked up and Steve felt a warmth of happiness for his friend.

"I failed a mission," Bucky stated, a small smile on the corners of his lips.

"Maybe you're just not as good as you think you are," Steve said sarcastically, continuing down the road.

"Hey, Pal, I dunno where you'd be today if I hadn't been such a sharpshooter back in the day," Bucky argued. "I remember saving your red white and blue ass more than a couple times when you weren't paying attention."

"I wasn't not paying attention," Steve laughed. "I was busy with other people."

"Sure, sure," Bucky waved, "whatever you say, Pal."

"I've thought about reaching out to Agent Hill to see if we can get some help with finding Hydra's holes. She's working for Stark now, so she'll be easier to find than Fury."

Bucky only grunted in response, still basking in the thought that one of his missions hadn't been completed like he thought. One less person's blood on his hands was a small comfort, but still had a big impact.

"You look happy today," Clara noted as the boys sat down at the table. It was their usual table on the corner of the patio where Bucky could sit with his back to a brick wall, eyes able to see down both streets.

"Good day," Bucky muttered, watching Steve look over the menu.

A waitress passed by and took Steve and Bucky's orders, telling Clara that her tea would be right out.

"So, how have you been, Steve?" Clara asked, leaning into her elbow on the table. "What does Captain America do when he's not on missions?"

"Training, mostly," he chuckled. "And reading. Lately I've been trying to get in touch with the team, though. I've been finding trustworthy SHIELD agents, trying to put together what SHIELD was intended to be—what it was when Howard Stark and Peggy founded it."

"That's quite the task," Clara commented. "Well, if you need medical, you know where we are." Steve just smiled. She turned to Bucky who was nonchalantly scanning the area. He pulled his baseball cap down lower and scratched the back of his neck. "How are you doing? Adjusting to a routine?"

Bucky pressed his lips together and nodded. "Yeah, you could say that."

"He gets stir crazy sometimes," Steve noted.

"I do not, I'm fine," Bucky defended.

"The pacing thing you do sometimes?"

"I can't exactly go wherever I want, yet, Steve."

"I know—"

"I think I'm still on some of the government's wanted lists."

"I think I saw an episode of America's Most Wanted about you," Clara agreed. Both the boys stopped and stared at her. She sighed. "It was a TV years ago…nevermind."

"Well, we're almost ready to go take on Hydra again," Steve announced.

"Really?" Bucky breathed.

"That's great!" Clara exclaimed. Their chatter quieted while the waitress brought their food. "Do you know where you're going to start?"

Steve glanced at Bucky. "Buck has given us a few places to start, namely Siberia. It's the last place he was held before they brought him here for the attack on SHIELD."

"Ok, so you have a starting point," Clara confirmed before taking a bite of her sandwich.

"Yeah, but it's Hydra," Bucky muttered around a mouthful of his own sandwich. "Cut off one head, two more takes its place." Clara chuckled at his fake German accent.

"You know, Nat and I had a run-in with Zola not too long ago."

Bucky choked on his food, wide eyes on Steve. "How?"

"Fury gave me a flashdrive before he died. Led us to Camp Lehigh."

"Haven't been there in….decades," Bucky mumbled.

"Camp Lehigh?" Clara asked quietly, wanting to be included. "Who's Zola?"

"We trained at Camp Lehigh for the war," Bucky explained with a softness Steve hadn't yet seen from him in some time. "Zola was the one who experimented on me."

"His consciousness was on a computer. There was a fake building. It was where SHIELD started."

"Please tell me—" Bucky began harshly, but Steve held up a hand.

"He's gone. Permanently. The building was destroyed."

Bucky relaxed, a small part of him a little angry that he didn't get to end the bastard himself. "Takes the list of people to go after down a bit."

"No, Buck. We aren't killing anyone," Steve scolded.

"I'm not gonna kill anyone," Bucky defended quietly, but firmly.

A high pitched screech blasted through the street and people all around the trio jumped, ducking their heads and covering their ears. The silence that followed was eerie and dense. Bucky and Steve stood up looking up and down the street.

A crackling, static noise filled the air, followed by a voice.

"Longing…"

Bucky froze. No.