Chapter 1

Five months later

"See anything?" Steve yelled, jumping over a fallen tree. The whole rainforest was a maze of fallen trees and underbrush, with the loud nosies of animals going about their daily lives in the jungle. At least the sun was out, what little light that could make it through the rainforest canopy spilling over the ground. The rest of the area was bathed in a shadowy kind of darkness.

"Nothing at all!" A voice replied through Captain America's comm unit. "Are you sure he's here? This is the third lead in as many weeks, Cap!"

"I know, Falcon," Steve replied, looking around. "But I can't think of anything else. That villager did say he saw a man with a metal arm pass through here a week ago." The voice of his partner crackled through Steve's ear again.

"I get that you want to find this guy, Steve, but he ain't here. I'm sorry."

"Understood, Falcon." Steve couldn't keep the disappointment out of his voice. The longer he went without finding Bucky, the less of a chance he had of finding him. "Let's go back to base. I'm in the mood for some pasta."

Dejectedly, Captain America turned away from the rest of the rainforest and began trudging back to the wooden cabin five miles away, where he and Falcon had said up their base camp.

"Meet you there, slowpoke."

Steve Rogers smiled wryly as a dark shadow flew over his head, streaking in the direction of the cabin. Falcon would beat him there, no doubt, so Steve took his time heading back, enjoying the chance to stretch his muscles. The soreness from the injuries he had sustained in the SHIELD helicarrier had long since faded. Closing his eyes, Steve tried to remember that day, but the pain fogged his memory. All he could recall was flashes of agony, falling, and then water. However, Falcon told him that Steve had been found on shore, so how had he gotten there?

"It was you, Bucky," Steve muttered under his breath. "I know it." Of course, he had no proof, no evidence, and only circumstantial circumstances to think so, but that was all that Steve needed. He knew Bucky; it didn't matter if the man had been to hell and back, he was still Bucky.

It took Steve just over forty minutes to make it to the cabin, and that was after having a five-minute staring competition with a large animal that got too curious. Eventually, the animal had moved on, leaving Steve free to continue his rainforest stroll relatively undisturbed.

Falcon was waiting inside the large wooden cabin when Steve pushed the creaking wooden door open, a large smile on the man's face.

"I knew I could beat you!" Falcon declared, standing in front of the Captain. With a small smirk, Steve pushed past his friend and into the kitchen. As he passed by Falcon, Steve muttered a phrase that made Falcon's proud expression fade.

"On your left."

"That is so not cool, man!" Falcon complained, falling back into a chair. Next to him, the jetpack-like apparatus that held his flying equipment - hence his name, Falcon - sat on the floor, the metal wings folded. The machine's power source was developed by a company that Steve wasn't familiar with, but Steve knew enough to guess that Falcon wouldn't be falling out of the sky because of a lack of juice any time soon.

Thirty minutes later, both men were seated and eating the hearty dinner Steve had prepared.

"I don't care that you were a popsicle for seventy years," Falcon proclaimed, sitting back and putting a hand on his stomach, "you beat army rations every time!"

"You pick up some handy skills when you've got nothing better to do with your life," Steve replied softly, abruptly sobering the atmosphere.

"Well, if you want to say it like that," Falcon muttered, getting that Steve was withdrawing into himself again. He'd been doing this for a while now, spacing out and getting lost to the world. With a sigh, Falcon grabbed his friend's plate and quickly washed the dishes. If he was honest with himself, Falcon was beginning to get worried about Captain America. Ever since the Winter Soldier had disappeared, Steve Rogers had been wholly preoccupied with finding him. It was a bit of an obsession, really.

Falcon could somewhat sympathize with what the legendary soldier was going through, but he knew that what he had gone through in his two tours was nothing compared to what Captain America had been forced to endure. Hell, the guy had been dead for seventy years and was now expected to simply cope with waking up in a whole new century.

Falcon was hard-pressed to think of a soldier he'd met who had suffered through anything as bad as the Captain and came up with nothing. With one last glance at his flying gear, the man retired to one of the two small cots put up against one wall. With one last glance at his comrade, Falcon turned over and lost himself to sleep.

Outside, hidden by the night and its accompanying shadows, a troubled man watched the lights go out in the wooden cabin. His light blue eyes were pained and his body language spoke of trials no man should ever have to endure.

But he had endured, and he would continue to endure.

The man he had been following. What was his name? The man with the light blue eyes put his hands to his head and tried to force himself to remember, but to no avail. He wanted to sneak into the cabin, but he wasn't sure what he would do then. Echoes of orders long since given still played around in his head, only adding to the confusion the man felt.

"You knew who I was," the man eventually said, staring at the cabin. "You called me Bucky." His eyes narrowed as he spoke the name. It was familiar to him, that much was obvious, but the memories simply wouldn't connect. "I want to know more."

However, the man knew that if he got too close to that man from the helicarrier, the one who called him Bucky, he would only hurt him. Even now, his metal arm ached, the point where it connected to his body feeling ice cold. He'd been given a second chance, but it wasn't really the chance he'd wanted.

In a flash of silver, the man vanished into the darkness, leaving nothing but a small paper note in his wake.

Thirty meters away, the last of the light from the small wood cabin faded.

Please review! This is my first real effort at a fan fiction (my prior one will likely never be continued), and I want to know what you guys think!

-RoR