It was hard to find a happy medium: between walking fast enough to get back in time, but slow enough that Anna didn't draw attention to herself. At least no one had seemed to pay her much attention yet. That was always a good sign. She had managed to go unnoticed on the way to the store. Admittedly, she had been a little nervous walking into a store with a gun in her waistband, regardless that she had no intention of using it on anyone other than Hydra. Even if she had a permit to carry, it wouldn't be legal. DC had a no firearms law. Thankfully, her shirt was baggy enough that no one noticed anything.
That's not to say the whole shopping part went without a hitch. The experience as a whole had been a little awkward. Not only did Anna have no idea what size anything James would wear, she didn't know what guys really even wore anymore. The only men she saw were in uniform: SHIELD agents, and doctors and nurses in scrubs. Patients on the floors were normally in gowns on rounds and the clinic patients usually consisted of homeless veterans. It hadn't given Anna much to go on.
She ended up going with simple: a couple pair of jeans that she eyeballed the size for, a package of white and black tees, extra socks, a lightweight jacket she hoped would fit his shoulders, and a package of generic boxers. She only deviated from her simplicity plan when she grabbed the blue button up shirt. Its color had her thinking of James' eyes and she couldn't pass it up. She added one more item while waiting in line, a ball cap, figuring it'd be safer if they could both shield their faces as best as possible.
The girl at the register had taken forever ringing it out, asking her questions like if she'd seen what happened downtown, and if she was shopping for her boyfriend. Anna blurted out yes for lack of a better answer when asked the second question. She wasn't sure what to call her and James' relationship. He had started as her patient and it had just evolved from there. The best she could say was he was James. They had been prisoners of Hydra together, where they had each other's backs, and they had forged a special bond from it. Her simple yes answer had ended up being a wise choice as it hadn't prolonged the conversation.
Now she was hurrying along the street, trying to stay alert for any suspicious persons, while gripping the bag tightly in her hands. She felt herself breathing easier once she was in the familiar alley next to her building. But with one obstacle gone, another presented itself in the form of the fire escape. Getting back up to the fire escape proved to be much more of a challenge than getting down from it. She had to climb up on the nearby dumpster in order to reach the last rung of the ladder. Even then it required her to hop to make it.
By the time she finally reached her window, Anna felt rather accomplished. For a girl who didn't work out more than a couple times a month, she'd been doing pretty good keeping up with the physical challenges throughout this whole ordeal. Climbing through the window was awkward with the bag, and she admittedly stumbled a little before catching herself. She made sure to slide the lock back in place before turning to find a pair of blue eyes staring her down from across the room.
James stood leaning against the hallway wall with a slight accusatory look on his face. She was late. But any guilty feelings she had flew right out of Anna's mind when she took in the whole picture and realized he was standing in her living room with just a towel around his waist. Feeling her cheeks warm up, Anna attempted to avert her gaze to his face with some difficulty as she crossed the room. Because as soon as she looked at his face it was only to find water from his hair dripping down his shoulder and she'd end up following it as it trailed down his body to the towel. And it would start the whole process all over again as soon as she caught sight of the towel, causing her cheeks to grow warmer. Why was he so incredibly fit? It just wasn't fair, and it did little to help her wandering eye situation. Searching for a distraction she finally remembered the bag in her hand when she was standing before him.
"Hopefully everything fits. I had to guess the sizes," Anya murmured as she handed him the bag, avoiding eye contact. James took it with his left hand, keeping his focus on Anya. She had been late, she hadn't been there when he came out of the bathroom like she'd said she would. It had resulted in a tense ball of worry forming in his stomach as he stared down the window she had left from. It had been too late to go after her. By that time, if Hydra had gotten to her, they'd be long gone. All he could do was wait.
When she had finally gotten back, she hadn't even said a word. Though her eyes had seemed apologetic when she first noticed he was waiting for her, that had been before. Before she couldn't seem to keep eye contact with him and her cheeks began turning a slight pinkish color. He had no idea what it meant. Was she ill? Did she have a fever? Is that why her face was pink? And why wouldn't she look at him for more than five seconds? He might have been anxious, and a little frustrated that she hadn't returned until now, but he wasn't angry with her.
"Anya." He eventually spoke up, finally getting her eyes to meet his. "Are you okay?" His question held uncertainty in it.
"Huh? Oh yeah. I'm great. Sorry I was late. I don't normally shop for guys clothing. Obviously." Anna began babbling nervously, flustered at their proximity with James' current state of undress. It had her wincing at how weird she sounded. She was being silly. Being around a, practically, naked man shouldn't cause her to be that flustered. For most girls her age, this was a normal occurrence. But Anna wasn't most girls. The last time she'd seen a guy in a towel it had been on residency when Bradley Staub had forgotten his change of clothes in his locker, which was coincidentally right next to Anna's. It had been uncomfortable, but it hadn't made her feel near as flustered as she currently was.
"I'm just going to take my turn in the shower now. Feel free to use my room to dress." Anna added as she snuck around him, deciding the faster she got out of there, the faster she could pick her dignity up off the floor. Not wanting a repeat awkward situation by getting caught in a towel herself, Anna grabbed a quick change of clothes before locking herself in the bathroom.
She took her time in the shower, gathering her thoughts. Though the more she thought about her reaction to James' in a towel, the more embarrassed she felt. It didn't help that she couldn't get that picture of him out of her mind; it was making her heart rate speed up. Eventually she gave up with relaxing, turning off the water and stepping out into the steam filled room when she figured she couldn't hide out in the bathroom anymore.
Donned in striped pajama shorts and an old tee from her NYU pre-med days, Anna padded down the hall to the living room, ringing her hair out on the way. When she turned the corner it was to find James standing by the far wall, his back to her, studying the pictures that hung there. Seeing him in normal clothes made her pause. For the first time she could see what his life might be like without Hydra. No suit, no missions, no cage. Just the freedom to do and be who he wanted. It brought a smile to her lips, one that stayed there as she crossed the room to stand beside him.
"That's my mom and dad. Maria and Howard Stark." Anna commented when she noticed which picture was holding James' attention.
"Howard," James repeated the name Anya had given the man. There was something familiar about him. He just couldn't make the memory stay in focus. "I think I knew him."
"He made the weapons and armor during World War II, for the Howling Commandoes," Anna explained calmly. It was admittedly the first time she'd thought about the fact that her dad had met James before her. It was a strange thought. "You were their sniper. Fought beside Steve."
There was that name again. Steve. The man on the helicarrier. The skinny kid James kept seeing flashes of. The one his mind kept telling him he knew. If only he could get the pictures in his head to stop moving so fast, so he could try and put them all together. Anna helped make certain ones brighter, but they still weren't making sense. He just wanted them to make sense.
"The man from the helicarrier." James muttered more to himself as an attempt to focus the images. His mind chose to pause on the bruised image of the so called Steve after James had beaten him.
"Steve was on the helicarrier?" Anya's question pulled James away from the fractals of memories. There was slight surprise in her voice, and a hint of worry in her eyes. He simply nodded, studying her carefully to gauge her reaction. "What happened?" Concern colored her tone as she kept her eyes on his.
"I saved him," James finally admitted, noting the relief that flashed across Anya's face. It had his forehead creasing and his eyebrows pulling together. He didn't understand the feeling that was brewing inside him, sitting heavy in his chest, at Anya's concern over the man on the helicarrier, over Steve. He just knew he didn't like the feeling. "How do you know so much about him? About me?" James finally asked, hoping conversation might push the feeling away.
"Steve's my friend. Tony inadvertently introduced us when he coerced me into helping SHIELD." Of course, Tony hadn't intended for Steve and Anna to strike up a friendship. But that's what he got for guilt tripping Anna into helping heal SHIELD agents. "Steve wouldn't shut his big mouth up about you. Always telling me stories. From the war, and before. Practically singing your praises. You were his favorite conversation topic. He really misses you."
The feeling hadn't completely gone away, but it had subsided a little. James wasn't sure if it was Anya's voice, or the fact that hearing her talk about Steve had brought more flashes of memories that stole his focus from the undefinable emotion. Perhaps it was a mixture of both.
"Can you tell me more?" James asked after a moment of silence had fallen between them. Silence was making the memory fade away, and the feeling come swirling back.
"Of course," Anna immediately agreed, excited that James was interested in trying to remember. "But this conversation needs to move to the kitchen. I don't know about you, but I'm starving."
James didn't argue about moving the venue of their conversation. Admittedly, he could stand to eat as well, he just hadn't realized it until Anya mentioned something. He was used to ignoring his hunger until Hydra allowed him to eat and being free to decide things like when he ate would take some getting used to. Turning to follow Anya, James took notice of her apparel for the first time since she'd come to stand beside him. Mainly, the shorts that provided an unrestricted view of her legs. The sight had him momentarily paralyzed and it took Anya calling his name to snap him out of it.
"I hope you don't mind pasta. It's about the only thing that hasn't gone bad." Anna announced as she dug through her cupboard to pull out the box of spaghetti noodles and the jar of sauce. Setting up the pots on the stove, she didn't turn back to James until she got everything started.
"Would you like me to start with a pre-war or war story?" Anya asked him, leaning against the counter beside the stove. She had a wooden spoon in her hand and kept glancing between him and the pots.
"Pre-war." James had a feeling the snippets he was getting of the Steve that was tiny and bruised were pre-war. Mostly because he had a hard time believing the tinier version would be able to physically withstand war.
"Alright let's see," Anna murmured, trying to pick one of the many stories Steve had told her. When she finally settled on one, it had a smile playing on her lips. All of Steve's stories had had Anna liking James, but this one tugged on her heartstrings a little more. It was just so adorable. "Before the war Steve was…smaller, and not as healthy. He had asthma, like me, but about ten times worse. If the pollen count was too high, he couldn't open a window let alone go outside. So, when he was forced to miss summer camp because of abnormally high pollen levels, you brought the outdoors to him. You stacked up the couch cushions on the floor and built a fort with blankets, used a flashlight as a campfire, ate the hot dogs you brought from the stand on the corner, and told scary stories that kept you both up at night."
The lengths James had gone to in the past, to make sure Steve never felt left out or alone, had always left Anna smiling. There was no question that Steve and James were not just best friends, they were brothers. It was a little surreal, standing in her kitchen and telling James the stories Steve had told her in that very room. Especially when they were stories about James, ones he didn't remember. Anna could only hope the stories would help him to remember.
"Steve really appreciated that. He said you'd always brush off his insistence that you didn't have to stay with him. But it meant a lot to him that you did." Anna added as an afterthought before turning to stir the pasta so it wouldn't stick to the bottom.
Though the memories didn't come rushing back, it was nice to hear the stories. It was nice to think he had a past. And there were snippets that came back, like the smell of the hot dogs he had apparently brought Steve, and the blurry image of shadow puppets against a blanket. Images that paled and faded when he heard Anya cursing, pain and frustration in her voice. She had moved to the sink, trying to strain the pasta, and apparently splashing herself with the boiling water.
"It's okay, I'll be fine." Anna insisted when James came to stand beside her, trying to take the pot with his metal hand. "It's happened a thousand times before. I just have to run it under cold water and it'll be as good as new."
Allowing Anya to continue draining the pasta herself, James kept a watchful eye on her as she finished straining and moved on to holding her arm under the stream of water. It seemed to diminish her pain, as her face relaxed at the contact, which had James' relaxing again as well. He didn't like when Anya was in pain. It hurt him as well, which wasn't logical and had never happened with him before. He'd hurt dozens of people and had never felt there pain. But with Anya, every bruise, scrape, or burn she got he felt: his heart tightening until he knew she was okay.
"Dinner's ready," Anya announced, turning the water off and filling two plates with the pasta and sauce. James immediately reached out to help, carrying his plate to the table and sitting in the seat he had occupied much earlier.
As they ate, Anna continued to tell James stories as she remembered them. She wasn't sure if hearing about the time Steve and him went to a Yankee's game where Steve got a black eye from a foul ball, or how they spent every Sunday on Steve's couch reading the funny pages instead of doing homework helped James at all. But she continued telling the stories because, if he couldn't remember, James deserved to at least hear about his childhood.
"According to Steve, you were a bit of a science nerd. You always wanted to know how things worked, and you spent your last night before shipping out at a science convention. Well, before your date wanted to leave and then you went dancing while Steve stayed behind to try his luck at volunteering for the army, again." Whenever Steve had told Anna his trials when it came to trying to enlist in the army during World War II it always had her realizing just how genuinely good he was. There had been men who were making up excuses to keep from being drafted, and there had been Steve trying to enlist in several different cities because he wanted to help the cause. Not to kill people, but because he didn't liked bullies.
With each story Anya told, James kept getting flashes of memories. Nothing too big, just minor glimpses of faces or places that were more often than not blurred. Some images he knew were just repeats of earlier ones, playing in his mind when he couldn't conjure up new ones to go with the stories Anya was telling. When she mentioned his last night before the war, an image of the man in the picture, Howard, flashed through his mind.
"Your father was there." James commented, startling Anna. He had been so quite through her stories, never saying a word on whether he recalled any of it or not. Not that she had expected him to. Anna had been fully prepared to leave him to his thoughts. Hearing him speak up about remembering a detail to a story she told had a bubble of excitement rising within Anna. The fact that the story that resonated the most with him was a more recent one, compared to those of his childhood, didn't escape Anna. It had her realizing they might both have better luck if they started from the most recent memories and worked their way back.
"Yeah, he liked science too. I think he was demonstrating his attempt at Stark robotic reversion technology." The way Anya scrunched up her face, trying to remember if her father was there that night for his sake, had James' thoughts moving away from the past and settling in the present. He couldn't help feeling lucky for having Anya, who was trying so hard to help him. He hadn't done anything to be worthy of it, and he couldn't even imagine where he'd be now if he didn't have her.
"Thank you," James murmured, interrupting Anya. She seemed confused by this statement, pausing mid word to stare at him questioningly. "For doing this. For helping me."
Anna had never thought that she was doing anything special by helping James. She had wanted to help him. And she had a means of doing so, through the stories Steve had told her. Anna would tell James all the stories she knew if it would help him remember. He deserved to remember who he was, as well as to have the freedom to decide who he wanted to be.
"It's what we do. We help each other," Anna answered honestly, her cheeks warming up again when he kept his eyes on her. It had Anna turning back to her food to hide the effect he had on her body temperature.
In order to distract herself, and James, from her pink cheeks, Anna went right into another story and didn't stop talking until the meal was over. James remained nearby as she washed the dishes. He'd offered to help, but she denied. As much as he liked to think his arm was all better since she popped it back into place, it needed rest. She had already let him get away without taping it, mostly because she was too embarrassed to even think about doing it when he was in a towel and by the time she was out of her own shower he was already dressed.
"We should sleep in shifts tonight," James broke the silence that had settled since Anya had denied his help with the dishes. With Hydra out there looking for them, and this not being the most secure building, it was safest if someone kept watch at all times. Night was the prime time to strike a target, and for the first time, James wasn't the hunter but the target. Knowing that might be enough to keep him awake all night, as he had trouble sleeping even without that knowledge. However, he knew Anya wouldn't let him. Which was why he had suggested the shifts: to make her feel better. "I'll take first watch."
Anna reluctantly agreed, knowing she'd never make it if she took the first shift. Her body and mind were exhausted after the day they'd just had. So, after drying her hands on the dish towel, Anna took hold of James' hand and led the way back to her bedroom. She hadn't really thought about the fact that James had probably expected to spend his watch in the living room, to give him immediate access to any Hydra agents trying to enter. Her only thought was that they needed to stay together.
By the time James realized what Anya was doing, it was too late to turn around. Too late to insist he stay in the living room. So instead he silently accepted it, taking a seat on the floor with his back against her bed frame while she curled up under the covers behind him. His position gave him pretty good access to all the entry points of the room, while keeping Anya safe behind him should anyone enter.
"Wake me up in a couple hours, when it's my turn," Anya murmured sleepily once they'd both settled in. She ended up laying with her arm hanging over the side of the bed, reaching out until her hand slipped into his. James wrapped his fingers around hers as he answered affirmatively, without having any real intention of waking her up at all. She needed the sleep. While he could go days without it if necessary. No, he planned on staying just as he was all night: staring at the bedroom door with his gun at the ready in his left hand and Anya's small hand wrapped up in his right.
…
"Yes, she still needs to take the lie detector test." Tony insisted as he paced in the hospital waiting area, completely ignoring the no cell phone sign. "I don't care if it's Agent Hill, she was part of SHIELD which was basically just Hydra. She doesn't get special treatment just because she worked with the Avengers."
Pepper could be a little too trusting sometimes. It's what came from being a people person. Tony never had that problem. He hated people. They were annoying, rude, and not as smart as he was. Their inferior intelligence often frustrated him. So he preferred not to deal with them whenever possible.
"If that's what you want" Pepper answered, telling him to tell Steve hello from her when he woke up, and to call her as soon as he found out anything about Anna, before hanging up. It wasn't until after Tony had pocketed his phone that he turned to the nurse glaring daggers at him from the nurses' station.
"Oh come on, I'm not the only one who uses his cell phone. Your colleague over there is texting beneath her desk." Tony pointed out. The nurse simply continued to glare at him as he made his way past her down the hall. "Don't be that way. I've already threatened to buy a hospital and an apartment complex today; I'm not below threatening to buy this building too. I've got some extra funds sitting around I've been trying to figure out what to do with." Not that buying DC real estate had ever been in his financial plans. However, he would do what was necessary.
The nurse didn't seem very impressed. She simply huffed at him before turning back to her work. Feeling as though he'd won in that situation, Tony had a slight spring in his step as he continued back to Roger's room. When he got closer he slowly came to a stop at the door when he found the Capsicle sitting up, awake, and talking with the army man who arrived several hours after the Capsicle was admitted. Tony had found him in his chair when he came back from the cafeteria, and the man had refused to leave Tony's chair no matter how much money Tony offered him.
"Good, you're awake. We need to have a little chat," Tony interrupted the two as he strolled into the room, causing the two men's attention to snap to him. "For starters, just so you know, you're my least favorite Avenger right now."
"Because I destroyed the technology you helped create?" Steve answered wryly, wincing as he shifted his position on the bed.
"No. Because you lost Anna Banana. I know she's travel size, but how can you lose a person? I let her hang out with you because you're Captain America, a freaking super soldier. And you couldn't even keep tabs on my sister."
"I didn't lose her." Steve insisted forcefully, still feeling partially to blame for why Hydra had kidnapped her. "She was taken. And I had a plan to get her back: take down Hydra."
"And that plan worked wonderfully, didn't it?" Tony commented sarcastically.
"I stopped Hydra." Steve pointed out, trying to focus on that positive accomplishment.
"But Anna Banana is still missing now isn't she?" The plan hadn't worked. And Tony was seriously questioning whether the Cap had really stopped Hydra. Didn't he make that claim in the 40's? And look where they were now, Hydra was still going strong, moving into American territory this time around.
"Hey man, cut him some slack. He just saved over a million people's lives from a machine you helped create." Sam spoke up at that remark. Sam knew how much it hurt Steve, knowing that Hydra had Anna. He also knew Steve had done the best he could under the circumstances and with what he had.
"Did you even think about notifying me that Hydra had taken Anna?" Tony asked Steve, ignoring Sam completely. "Hello, Iron Man here. I could have helped the search party as well as bringing down Hydra. Better than this pigeon here," Tony added, pointing at Sam on the last part.
"Watch it man. You ain't no super soldier. Just a rich man with fancy toys. The name is Falcon, not Pigeon." Sam grumbled. He'd had just about enough of Tony Stark. He might be Iron Man, an Avenger, and Anna's brother but he was getting tired of the guy's 'mightier than thou' attitude.
"Toys with missiles and a Jarvis. Making my suit better than yours." Tony remarked confidently before turning to Steve. "Rest up. Once you're up and moving again you're helping me find Anna, got it grandpa?"
"I don't like that guy," Sam muttered once Tony had left the room to commandeer a bigger, better chair to sit on the other side of Steve's bed and wait in.
"Tony means well. He just stinks at showing it." Steve assured Sam, thinking of everything Tony had done for the Avengers. He might be a snarky, self-centered man, but when it came to the people he did care about, there was nothing Tony Stark wouldn't do.
A/N Hey guys! Sorry this took an extra day. Wednesday was super busy. Tomorrow stands to be too. But I keep trying my best to get these chapters posted quickly! Did any of you watch Captain America the First Avenger and the Avengers yesterday? I did :) Anyways Thanks for your patience and all your ongoing support. It truly is awesome! Hope you enjoyed this update! Let me know what you think! Oh and YAY for this story having over 200 reviews! You guys are awesome :)
Onto the Guest Review Responses! Plus the response to keshigomu
Keshigomu: I tried to respond via Personal message but it's saying you have yours turned off, so I will respond here: WOW all 13 chapters in 2 hours, impressive. I'm so glad you're enjoying he story and James/Anya. They have been my favorite couple to write to date. Hope you enjoyed the update!
To the guest who mentioned the last chapter was another fabulous chapter: Why thank you! I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed it. Anna is a very take-charge person, especially when it comes to medicine which she feels most confident in, so I'm glad ya liked that bit. As well as James' protective mode. I like his protective mode. It makes me smile. And OMG I am sooo glad to hear you say you think my writing of Tony is spot on. I know he has a huge fan base (Tony wouldn't have it any other way) and I just try to bring as much Tony sass to his character when I write him as possible. It was a delight receiving your review. Hope ya liked this chapter as much as the last!
To the guest who loved the hug and the chapter: Well, this chapter should have calmed your worries about Anna and the store. I'm glad you think Anna/James are cute. I totally ship them lol good thing I control their relationship I guess _ I am also looking forward to writing everyone's reaction to them, though I'm not exactly sure when it'll come up yet
To Arwen: Glad to hear you loved the last chapter! And I hope this chapter soothed your anxiety a little. I am going to try and thank you in Portuguese, but I'll be using an online translator so I apologize if it is horrible wrong. Obrigado, muito obrigado para sua revisão. Ele é muito apreciado, e isso me fez sorrir.
To the guest who can't wait for more James/Anna scenes: I hoped this chapter helped fill that requirement :) It will take a little bit for Tony and Steve to see them together, but you got to see Tony and Steve in this chapter. Yay.
To Avid Fan: So, I'm glad you appreciate the fact that James doesn't baby Anna, because I feel like he's seen enough of her personality to know that she's strong willed and can handle herself no matter the situation. Hope the half of you that wants to see what happens when their separated isn't too disappointed with this chapter. I'm sure the other half is doing a happy dance though :) Thank you for the complement, I'm glad you enjoy my writing style!
To the guest who commented on Tony only being 'pretty sure' he wouldn't drop Steve: Yeah, it seemed like something Tony would think. And I thought it was funny. I'm happy to hear you are liking Bucky's POV, with everyone's compliments on his POV sections I'm starting to get more confident in writing from his POV. If you couldn't tell, I've started to sneak it in a bit more. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I tried not to leave it too suspenseful
To Hannah: Awwww Your comment on me writing Anna/Bucky beautifully made me smile. Yes, Anna is inflicting a new sort of torture on James and she is completely unaware of it. Hope you enjoyed their moments as well as Tony's moment at the end of this update! No reason to be nervous quite yet, it will be several chapters before Tony finds Anna. At least, how I have it laid out right now.
To the guest who really couldn't wait to know what happens: Hope it was worth the wait!
Rach
xoxo