AN: Hey! I'm back! Doctor appointment was fun, if fun is code for she wants my blood (literally, not figuratively). The nurse is going to drain my blood today and then Doc will have my results next week...so much fun...

I left you guys on a horrible cliff hanger last time so I won't keep you from it any longer.

Enjoy! :)

Chapter 6 - Trouble

X23 blinked as her eyes connected with the striking blue ones of the ghost in front of her.

There he was, standing a bit more than a metre away from her.

She breathed through her nose, catching wisps of his scent and wondering why she hadn't been able to name it earlier. However in the back of her mind she knew why, she could physically see why.

It was weird to see the Winter Soldier, one of the most dangerous men she'd known, wearing jeans. He looked so casual, a leather jacket covering the powerful metal arm. He looked almost normal. He looked different.

He'd changed, and so had his scent. What was once a strong mixture of sweat, metal and gunpowder was more subtle and masked by other smells. Soap, fabric softener, male de-odorant, even what might have been someone else's scent seemed to cling to him.

It almost felt wrong in her head but she shoved the thought aside, focusing back onto the man himself. His sharp blue eyes almost seemed grey in the low light as they subtly searched her face. What was he looking for? Recognition or something else? What did he remember?

She'd heard about what happened in Washington last year, she'd suspected that he'd been involved but she didn't think he was free. Her brow creased as she glanced over her shoulder at the Avenger she'd just threatened.

The Avenger in question, Iron Man, sat half on his seat and half off it, looking ready to intervene if it was needed. The Captain must have saved Winter during the DC attack, it was the most logical way to explain how the Winter Soldier was working with an Avenger.

She wasn't about to start a fight but at the same time this wasn't the time or place to talk about "the good old days". She had a job to do and her arm was getting stiff from holding her tray full of drinks.

She could deal with the soldier later.

Right now, came work.

Bucky watched her as she looked back at Tony and could see the cogs turning in her head. She knew that he was working with him. Tony, the man who, judging from his reaction, she'd just threatened. Bucky had felt jumpy as soon as Tony started to push his luck while talking to the clearly angry woman, waiting to see if he needed to step in.

But when she started heading his way, he decided to scrap Stark plan. It clearly hadn't been working and he wasn't about to just let her walk by him. But now, standing in front of her, Bucky didn't feel as confident as he had when he'd said her name. Her attention came forward again and Bucky wondered what her first words to him would be.

So imagine his surprise as she started to walk, one step and then another, toward him.

His mind raced a hundred miles per hour in the space of a few seconds. What was she doing? Was she going to attack him or hug him? Shake his hand or smash that tray of glasses into his face?

However in those few seconds her direction changed slightly and Bucky realised with a jolt that she was going to walk past him, ignore him. Disappointment turned quickly into irritation as his metal hand reached out and caught her elbow, bring her to a stop. "Renee" His jaw clenched as she avoided eye contact.

There was a pause as Laura and Tony both looked in the same direction without knowing it.

Laura only glanced but Tony's eyes lingered on the nearby Bouncer currently watching the pair closely. He cursed Barnes for being stupid, knowing that he would only make the situation worse if he intervened now.

Laura took a deep breath to calm herself. She didn't want a fight but she'd sure as hell defend herself, the only issue was that if the Soldier tried to start a fight here then the security would get involved.

It would be chaos.

She was just about to snap at the man holding her when she realised that someone else had noticed her situation. The dirty blonde head of Lily was making her way towards them, weaving through the tables. Laura sighed silently. If it had been anyone else, she'd be worried but Lily knew her better than most. She knew that Laura or Renee could take care of herself and had seen her do so on more than one occasion.

The older blonde approached them, surprising the Soldier, judging by the way his grasp relaxed slightly. Lily's hands slipped under the tray, taking its weight and allowing Laura to remove her hand. "Thank you" She smiled tensely at Lily as the woman took the hint and backed off a bit.

Her smile dropped quickly before grabbing the metal wrist and twisting it behind his back.

She guessed she'd have to deal with the Winter Soldier now instead of later. Joy.

Bucky was caught off guard by her strength. He had allowed himself to relax when it appeared that she was going to pass on her job to another girl and talk to him. But instead she'd twisted his metal arm behind his back and gotten behind him.

Bucky vaguely wondered if she was trying to start a hostage situation with him but before he could act against her, she pushed him forward lightly, not even using half the power she'd yanked his arm back with. She released her grip on his arm and he stumbled forward a few steps, watching as Tony shot out of his seat, looking ready to call his suit.

"Move it" Her tone was harsh as she pushed him again. He gave more resistant this time, not understanding what she was doing but he still got knocked a step or two. "Out" with the following push, Bucky allowed himself to be moved, realising that she was manoeuvring him toward one of the side exits. He caught Stark's eye as they moved, trying to convey that this was fine.

Judging by the glare he got back, Tony didn't care. Bucky should have seen that coming. He didn't give her a chance to push him again, preferring to walk steadily to the exit than to be pushed there.

They made it to the door, Bucky shoving it open with enough force that it banged against the outside wall. The sound disturbing the almost eerie calm of the night. He didn't care, Bucky had more important things to worry about as he turned to face the furious green eyed girl.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Laura seethed as she confronted him. To get in her way like that, he had to be stupid. She could have attacked him! She could have killed him! The Winter Soldier didn't use to be this reckless.

Bucky beat down the smile that was trying to claw its way onto his lips, knowing it would probably start a fight. The anger and rage that had been trapped inside her in his dream was seething out of her and it reminded him that this was 'X'. He'd found her and she wasn't broken or dead, she was just different. She'd grown a bit since the time of his memory, maybe a little less than an inch taller than before. "I needed to talk to you"

Laura's anger melted into a strong defense as she scowled at him. "Well, you got my attention. What do you want to know?" That was the big question. What did he want from her? How much of his memories had he recovered? If he remember her, what else had he regained from his time at Hydra?

Bucky actually paused. What did he want to know? He been so consumed by the want to find her that he hadn't really thought about what he wanted from her. He'd mainly just wanted to make sure that she was okay but he figured that it would sound stupid to ask her such a simple question after the scene he'd just made.

Luckily, the awkward silence didn't drag on too long as another voice joined the conversation. "You can start with why you're out in the open?" They both snapped toward the sound of the new presence, further down the alleyway, and watched as Natasha and Steve stepped into said alley.

It was Natasha who had asked, seeing Buck struggle. She had also been the one to put two and two together and figure out which exit the dark haired girl was going to kick him out. Natasha had seen the way 'X's eyes had snapped onto the bouncer when Buck had grabbed her like an idiot. Being separated from the situation and watching from a distant, she could tell that 'X' wasn't looking to challenge him and no smart person would ignore the Winter Soldier when they stood in their path.

So she'd dragged a fretting Steve out the front door and round the side of the small building. She loved it when she was right. Now, she stood, maintaining eye contact with the green eyed girl, waiting for a response and watching as the anger slowly dissipated from her body language.

Laura processed the new arrivals quickly. More Avengers. She glanced at the Captain from the corner of her eye but kept her gaze firmly on the infamous Black Widow. They weren't in costume but she knew it was them. Not many normal folk were built like them. So Winter was working with more than just Iron man. It didn't particularly matter who he worked with, what did matter was what they wanted from her.

Leading Laura back to the Widow's question, causing a frown to appear on her face before she realised what that question meant to her. She turned back toward The Soldier. If he had all his memories he'd know the answer but he watched her as well, waiting for an answer. "You don't remember". It wasn't a question or even a statement, it was an acknowledgement.

And Buck felt suddenly inadequate, waves of self-pity ran through him at the sound of those three words. Was it so obvious that he hadn't recovered? Should he have waited to find her? Would it have been easier, if he remembered everything? None of his internal pain showed on the surface as he continued to stare at her expectantly. She sighed before turning back towards Natasha. "Hydra think I went MIA and they'll be busy with other matters at the moment." She glanced at Steve briefly before returning to Natasha. "I have nothing to fear".

"And if someone else comes after you, what then?" Steve questioned, arms crossed. He knew this talk meant a lot to Bucky but right now, Steve needed to remain objective.

He hadn't expected a smirk to crawl out her features "Then I'd wish them good luck, Captain Rogers" Laura turned back to face Winter but not before muttering under her breath "They'd need it". She caught the metal armed man's eyes easily, leaving no room for another question as she asked plainly "What do you remember?"

Bucky paused for a second, somewhat surprised that she'd taken control of the conversation. He didn't know if that was a good thing or not. "Meeting you. What happened in Belem?"

'X's eyebrows rose as did the others. He hadn't told Steve about the Acosta mission, deeming it to unimportant but now Bucky was curious.

"Nothing" Laura could tell that the answer caught the man by surprise. "It was a standard operation. Acosta wasn't as paranoid as they thought he'd be". She remembered the mission well, she remembered every introduction well. It was difficult to find another like The Winter Soldier, he was unique.

"Of course, you two would already be out here" The new but irritatingly familiar voice came from behind her and she turned to see a fed up looking, Tony Goddamn Stark.

"Your boss is a handful, lady" After trying to find Capsicle and Natalie, he'd bumped into Ford who felt that he should be blamed for the altercation that his bouncer had told him about. He obviously wanted compensation for distracting his employee. It took Tony sometime to lose the idiot in the crowd. "And looking for you, by the way"

Laura glared at the billionaire, mentally reminding herself to warn him against treating any of the other girls like he'd treated her. "Good, it will make breaking his arms easier to achieve."

Steve raised a disapproving eyebrow while Natasha grinned at the girl, finding her surprisingly likeable. Bucky on the other hand felt a small twinge of unease. She hadn't been this hostile in his dream, she'd been controlled and steady, and he wondered what could have cause this change in her. Was this the real her?

Stark appeared unfazed by her glare but decided to go stand near Steve, just in case. "Why are you working for the asshat, anyway?"

Laura frowned wondering if Stark's genius title should be revoked. "It pays well, better than other clubs"

"What do you need the money for?" Bucky questioned as he watched her, closely. He had only just realised that the night air was really quite cold as he caught Steve rubbing his still crossed arms. It had been un-noteworthy information until he remembered exactly what 'X' was wearing. So he watched her careful, seeing no sign that she was any colder than Steve. He'd have to ask about it later.

Laura's frown turned onto the ex-assassin, wondering why they were interrogating her on such trivial things. "Living expenses, it's not cheap to live in New York".

"But why work in um…this career?" Steve started off confident before floundering slightly so Natasha decided to step in as well.

"What he means is, why aren't you an assassin for hire?" She knew that is wasn't exactly what Steve meant but Nat liked Steve's arms and preferred them uninjured.

Laura's frown faded a bit, beginning to understand what they weren't getting. "Hydra think I'm MIA, probably dead. If I start leaving bodies in my wake they'll figure out that I'm not." That's not to say that she hadn't killed in over 10 years, because she had but it did mean that having employers who knew her reputation was a very bad idea.

"Then how about you move into the tower?" Everyone's heads snapped toward Tony as soon as the words left his mouth and a silence descended onto 4 of them as they realised what Tony had just proposed. Bucky was especially surprised, considering that the billionaire hated him. He'd questioned if Stark would even help him and now the man was offering his estranged friend a place to stay?

"What?" Laura had no idea how they got to this point in the conversation. When had she mentioned the need for accommodation because she was pretty sure that she hadn't?

"You know, Avenger tower? My-Our Tower…" Tony stumbled over his words but quickly corrected himself. "And before you ask, you won't have to pay rent or any other living expenses".

The other Avengers stared at Stark like some kind of imposter had taken his place as 'X's eyes narrowed at the man. "What's the catch?"

Tony smirked, enjoying the other's confusion and shock. "That depends…Do you like working here?"

Laura crossed her arms, feeling wary of what this condition was. She didn't exactly want to live in the same building as the Avenger team but she had to admit, zero living expenses sounded pretty appealing. She could save up money, instead of spending it on food. "Not particularly but money is money". She liked the dancing and the girls were nice but the patrons and Ford could die in a fire.

"Then my condition is quit."

Everyone seemed to have an opinion on that condition as people's voices seemed to overlap for a second.

"Tony what are you-?" Natasha was cut off.

"Stark..." Steve's warning growl was overpowered.

"What?" Laura looked at the 'genius' like he was mad. She had just said that she needed the money!

Bucky just watched Tony as the man revelled in the chaos he was causing, not understanding why he was doing any of this. He'd killed his parents. Tony hated him, it was a well-known fact so why do this?

Stark finally decided to address Natasha's question, smiling widely as he explained. "I'll hire her. Pep needs a bodyguard and she refused to have a sentry suit with her so Bodyguard…" Tony gestured toward 'X'. Personally, Stark thought this was an amazing idea and definitely worthy of gloating rights.

Personally Steve thought it was a stupid idea. "You don't even know her skill set, Tony".

"And what about Happy?" Natasha joined in, give the billionaire a stern look.

Stark merely rolled his eyes at them teaming up against him. "Happy's more like a chauffeur and plus he's practically part of the family, I don't want him to hurt himself".

"So you want her, just so she can take a bullet and you don't have to care?" Steve snarled, coming to the conclusion on his own. He didn't know why Tony thought this was a just punishment for Bucky but he'd be damned if he let it continue.

"Strange… I don't remember saying that"

"It's what you implied"

Laura watched as the two grown-ass-men had a full blown argument over a miscommunication and wondered if this happened often. If that was the case then life at Avenger Tower must have been hectic. Either way, she let them argue, taking the time to think over Stark's proposal. Free accommodation with no living expenses, only catch was she'd have to stop working for Ford and start working for Stark. Trading one self-indulged asshat for another.

But then again, she'd really be working for Pepper Potts. From the media Laura had seen on the woman, Miss Potts wasn't that bad a person and her only real fault was being in a relationship with Tony Stark. On top of that, Bodyguard was an easy job as long as your ward wasn't an idiot and Pepper Potts didn't seemed to be one. The thought that she might have to "take a bullet" didn't frighten her in the slightest plus she assumed that she'd be paid for her duties. If she negotiated it well then she could probably get more than Ford was paying her.

It was almost unfair how beneficial this deal was to her but then came the big obstacle.

She glanced at Winter to see him also watching the fight that now included the Black Widow as well. They'd be living in the same building and Laura wasn't stupid, she knew this deal had less to do with Stark and more to do with her old friend.

It had been 11 years since she'd put that life behind her. 11 years of recovery for her but 11 years of brainwashing and missions for him. His head had been messed up so many times that he barely remembered her. He barely remembered anything. It had to be hard on him and her heart constricted at the thought of him having to go through it alone.

His plight hit a little too close to home. The Avengers might be his allies for now but none of them had gone through the motions of finding an identity. She knew it was stupid to think that she could try and fix him but maybe she could help.

Her jaw clenched as her attention returned to the bickering Avengers, decision set. "I'll do it".

Whatever Steve had been saying was cut short as they all turned their attention onto her. "What?" It was Bucky who voiced the question on everyone's minds. He stared at her dumbfounded, observing the small smile on her face.

"I accept you're offer, Stark, and I agree to your terms as long as you pay me more than Ford" She looked forward to seeing the look on that idiot's face when she quit. Laura would miss the girls but she would have left in a couple of months anyway.

"How much does he pay you?" Tony was already walking forward with his hand held out to shake on it. It didn't really matter what Ford paid her, he could easily double it.

"9.29 an hour" It was a bit more than the minimum wage and Tony was actually a little saddened by the fact that she thought that was good pay for her job.

"Oh god, yes! We can discuss the final wage later" They shock hands, each looking quite pleased with the deal while everyone else was still adjusting to what was happening. "Right then!" Tony slapped his hands together, so pleased that he had now earned his gloating rights and he promised himself that he would save them for the best moments.

There was no way Pep could be angry with him when he'd just gotten her a new bodyguard. "Let's get this show on the road, shall we?"

He didn't receive an answer instead Natasha turned her attention to 'X'. "You're sure about this?" She watched the dark haired girl carefully, wondering if this woman knew what she was getting herself into.

"Not really but I'll give it a shot" Laura saw no reason to lie, it was probably useless to lie to the Black Widow anyway. If things went south then she could just leave, nothing could really stop her from doing so.

"Great! Now that we have that sorted, Renee can go quit and we can head home to celebrate". Bucky thought that Tony might already be a bit too merry for more "celebrations" but his main concern was 'X'. Did she understand what she'd agreed to? She was about to be thrust into the Avenger household and he could say from experience that it was difficult at times to keep up with them.

She was also about to be in the same household as him and he didn't know if she was going to be okay with that. "Renee…" He kept his voice stern, ready to ask if she was truly sure about what she was doing but she didn't give him a chance to continue.

"For starters, you can drop the name, Winter. It's fake. Call me Laura" She gave him a small smile, sending waves of nostalgia through him, but it quickly disappear at the sound of someone laughing. She turned to stare unimpressed at Stark, who was currently giggled like a child.

"Clint's going to enjoy that" The Black Widow smirked but that only succeeded in making Laura confused. Who was Clint?

Before she could ask her attention was drawn back to who she'd been talking to. "Bucky" Her old friend held out his flesh hand for her to shake but Laura ignored it as something clicked in her brain.

"Barnes?" She questioned, casting a glance back at Captain Rogers. Logan had told her tales about his time back in World War 2, just one or two. But one that he had regaled to her fondly was of his time with Captain Steven Rogers and the Howling Commandoes. He had described the strong bond Sargent Barnes and the Captain shared. But even Logan's words didn't compare to actually seeing them together in the 21st century.

She shock away her shock before shaking Barnes's hand, wondering what trouble this adventure would land her in.

AN: Looks like Laura is getting dragged into the Avengers world. Does she really know what she's getting into? Will she regret it?... Probably.

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