Chapter 4 :: Introductions ::
The Soldier followed the trio back to a car. It was a semi new Volkswagen. It was jet black and it had several chips and scratches along with a severe dent in the bumper. It still functioned though and when the Soldier climbed into the backseat he found that the inside was very clean.
Bucky and the winged man sat in the two front seats while the Soldier and Natalia sat in the back. It was quite for the first few minutes they drove. Bucky and the winged man talked in hushed tones but the Soldier pretended not to hear their conversation. Instead his gaze focused on Natalia, trying to place why he knew her so well.
He was lost in thoughts when Bucky suddenly spoke up from the front seat. "Steve." the Soldier gave no response, "Steve." Bucky tried again a little louder. Still the Soldier gave no indication that he'd heard him.
Finally Natalia poked him in the side lightly, "Hey. Your name's Steve remember?" she told him, gesturing towards Bucky who was glancing back at him as the winged man continued to drive.
The Soldier nodded at this, his name was Steve. He was sure of it, but it was still a new thing to him. Having an identity. A name, a personality, being a real person with traits and all. Capable of emotion. It was all something new to him. He looked at Bucky expectantly, waiting for him to speak again now that he had his attention.
"Guess I should have introduced you huh? Well you already know that I'm Bucky." he told the Soldier, who nodded once. He remembered that he was Bucky. "Well this is Sam Wilson." he told him, nodding towards the winged man who was driving them. "And that's Natasha Romanoff." he informed the Soldier, nodding at Natalia.
The Soldier looked at Bucky in confusion while he glanced over at Natalia, or Natasha? He wasn't sure if either he'd misheard Bucky, which was very unlikely, or if he's remembered something wrong, also unlikely. But why did she have two names? The Soldier had been sure her name was Natalia Romanov.
Natalia / Natasha noticed his confusion and piped up easily, "If he remembered anything about me Barnes he'll probably remember me as Natalia, not Natasha." she informed Bucky, giving the Soldier a small smile, assuring him that he wasn't mishearing things and that he wasn't going crazy.
"You have two names?" The Soldier asked questioningly, curios as to what her real name was or if she did in fact have two names. He hoped he didn't have two names, remembering Steve was hard enough, he didn't need another name on top.
Natalia / Natasha shook her head in response, "No, my real name is Natalia Romanov but when I moved to America I renamed myself Natasha Romanoff. You can call me either one though, I don't mind." she explained. The Soldier was still left with the question of why she needed to change her name and why had she moved to America but he kept silent. He still wasn't sure he trusted this Natalia / Natasha. The way her eyes were to bright with mischief and how they kept darting around as if she expected something to happen. He also didn't appreciate the fact that he could see the hand gun on her waist when she had told him she was unarmed.
She was too crafty for the Soldier. She was strong though, even he could see that. She was obviously somebody the others respected and feared a little, that made her dangerous.
Sam Wilson, the winged man. He didn't remember anything about him, wasn't even sure he'd met him before. He had a kind smile though and he seemed nice enough. The Soldier was confident that he wasn't a threat though.
Bucky was difficult to place. The Soldier was screaming to kill him. He was a mission that he had failed and he never failed. He was supposed to be dead but he wasn't. That confused the Soldier, he remembered shooting him but for some reason he was also sure that he had saved him. So as one side of his mind screamed for the man's death another side was ready to protect him at all costs. It was a strange thing really.
He stopped thinking about it though and his attention was back on Bucky as he had started speaking again. He was facing forward now so as the Soldier listened his eyes watched Natalia / Natasha, ready to stop her if she made any threatening move towards him.
"We're going to New York, it's just a couple of hours from here. Once we get there we're gonna take you to Stark Towers where you'll meet the other Avengers." Bucky told him, sounding happy at the idea of returning to New York with the Soldier. There was something though… the name Stark. It was all too familiar to him, yet he couldn't place why.
"You'll be safe there Steve, guarantee it. You'll have your own room and it'll be close to mine just in case you need me." the Soldier appreciated how he hadn't said 'in case you try to kill somebody' which he knew was what Bucky was thinking. "You'll be around people that won't ever try to hurt you and you'll have everything you'll ever need. It'll be amazing don't worry. Nobody will ever hurt you once we get there and…" Bucky trailed off when he realized the Soldier was no longer listening.
Somewhere in his spiel his eyes had started to droop and he'd fallen asleep without a sound. First time he'd slept in what seemed like forever. When they froze him he didn't really sleep so he was very low on rest and had gained the ability to fall asleep in seconds anywhere he could. So he lay against his seat, eyes closed lightly as if he were to wake at any moment.
"Shhh. Baby's sleeping." Natalia / Natasha said with a smile, earning a chuckle from Sam and a scowl from Bucky.
"Steve we're at the tower buddy." Bucky told him, while somebody poked him in the side to wake him up quickly. The moment the hand connected with his side though he had her wrist locked in his own hand, glaring at Natalia / Natasha.
"Don't touch me." he told her quietly, before releasing her hand as she rolled her eyes at him. The Soldier decided that he didn't like her very much, she was too cheeky for her own good. Obviously she covered up her fear with humor and sly comments. Bucky said nothing at the matter, turning a blind eye to the two bickering in the backseat.
The Soldier looked out the window as the car was parked. In front of him lay a skyscraper that looked like it could touch the clouds from where he was sitting. It was covered in silver paneling and near the top he could see a huge 'A' in some turquoise metal.
He waited until Bucky exited the car to follow him, opening the door quietly as he slipped out. His hand instinctively went to his side where his hand gun was concealed. It was a comfort to have the weapon near his side. Behind him he could hear the other two exit the car and soon Bucky was standing on his left while Sam stood on his right and Natalia / Natasha stood next to him.
"Sam go tell Stark we're back and that he needs to look at.." he paused to wince slightly as the Soldier moved his metal arm, causing a loud creak noise and some sparks to come off the metal. "needs to look at Steve's arm right away." he finished.
Sam nodded and headed into the tower. The Soldier soon lost track of him as he was swallowed by the crowds of people and was soon gone, at least for a couple of minutes.
"Does it hurt?" Bucky suddenly asked the Soldier, glancing at him and his arm. The concern in his eyes made the Soldier almost regret moving his arm, he didn't want the other man to so obviously worry about him.
"He'll be fine." Natalia / Natasha piped up from besides him, waving off Bucky's concern with ease. The Soldier was grateful that he didn't have to speak now but he was also upset that she had dismissed the other man so easily. The more time he spent with her the more he seemed to dislike her.
"I didn't ask you Natasha. He'll be fine once he's well rested and properly nourished." Bucky snapped at her, giving her a scowl while she rolled her eyes, obviously not as concerned about the Soldier was Bucky was.
After the two finished bickering Bucky lay a gentle hand on the Soldier's shoulder and started walking into the crowd of people. He followed the man the best he could, trying to avoid people as he walked but it was so noisy and all the commotion was like a stab in his brain.
When they finally reached the silence of the elevator the Soldier pressed a hand to his forehead, trying to calm himself down now that he was away from the noise.
"I'm going to go see Clint. Come find me if you need anything." Natalia / Natasha spoke up from besides the Soldier. Her words were directed at Bucky though and the other man nodded in response, keeping a careful eye on the Soldier as he steadied his breathing.
The elevator stopped on a floor and the Soldier moved to get out but Bucky kept him in place. Instead Natalia / Natasha moved to get out off the elevator. The Soldier caught sight of a man waiting for her. He had dirty blonde hair and slightly tanned skin and was looking at him curiously though he said nothing as the Soldier glared at him, daring him to speak.
"It's been fun. Try not to upset Stark too much." Natalia / Natasha told them as she walked out, casting them a wink before the elevator doors closed once more and the Soldier fell backwards slightly, leaning against the railing for support.
"Steve? Steve can you hear me?" Bucky said, on him in an instant. The Soldier managed to give him a short nod, before the memory took over him.
Her hands trailed the side of his face, her soft fingers trailing his cheekbones. He could feel her breath against his face as he gazed down at her. Her deep green eyes were locked onto his own blue ones as she leaned in dangerously close, her mouth inches from his. Her vibrant red hair lay down her back in waves as her other hand was tangled in his own blonde hair.
"Steven you're going to be the death of me." she told him quietly, her hand coming to rest against his cheek lightly as his own hands were against her back, pressing her closer to him.
"Then we'll enjoy our last moments." he replied in an equally quite tone. She only smirked devilishly, and he could no longer take it.
He closed the small gap between them and pressed his lips against hers, kissing her furiously. He hadn't known what real joy was for years but in that moment he was sure that this was it. In that moment of bliss he was sure that he could be human one day too that he and Natalia could be human together.
Away from the Red Room and HYDRA, they could be alone and free. Somewhere where nobody would challenge them and nobody would question their love for each other.
When she finally pulled away she smiled up at the Soldier, a rare thing in the Red Room there was hardly anything to smile about. This was the rare exception. "Are you sure you've never kissed somebody before?" she teased lightly, carefully untangling her hands form his hair as she headed away. They couldn't spend too much time together lest they were caught.
As she was out the door though she cast the Solider one last parting wink and he heard her whisper, "It's been fun." before the door closed behind her quietly, leaving him alone with the taste of her lips on his.
It seemed like an eternity later when the Soldier's attention finally returned to Bucky when in reality it had been around 15 seconds. He waved Bucky off easily as he stood back up. His face had been drained of color and his eyes were wide with shock.
"Steve are you alright?" Bucky asked him, shaking him slightly to get his attention.
The Soldier nodded, shaking himself slightly to get a hold of himself which wasn't a get idea since sparks flew off his metal arm when he moved it. "Whenever I remember things." he told Bucky in explanation, not having the time to explain in detail.
Bucky smiled at that, "Got it. That's good though, that your remembering things. That's great buddy." he told the Soldier, glad that he was remembering things. Even if he couldn't fathom what the Soldier had just remembered.
The rest of the elevator ride the Soldier was silent, trying to remember something else about Natalia / Natasha. Where had they been? Why had she left so suddenly? Why had he even kissed her? How long have they known each other?
All the questions were floating around his mind and he wasn't even listening to Bucky as he kept talking, explaining everything to him.
He didn't both to pay attention to Bucky until the elevator doors opened once again and there stood Sam and another man he'd never met before, at least that he could remember. He had dark hair and a goatee along with a mustache, all three were graying slightly.
"This is man you never shut up about Cap?" the man asked, stepping towards the Soldier and looking him over, though his eyes lingered on his metal arm. However his gaze was just curiosity, usually when people stared at his arm it was out of disgust, but not this man.
"I've never talked to you before." the Soldier told him. Then he frowned, confused at why he'd responded to the nickname 'Cap'. He couldn't remember anything about it but there was something familiar about it.
The man gave him a look that showed he was just as confused as the Soldier was but luckily Bucky didn't seem to be puzzled in the slightest. "I'll explain later." he told the man who just shrugged, "For now I need you to fix his arm." he said, gesturing towards the Soldier's metal arm.
"Can you move it for me?" the man asked the Soldier, turning away to grab some tools from his table as he looked at the Soldier, waiting. He nodded and moved his arm easily. The metal contraption let out a loud and sickening screech and sparks flew from his elbow and up. It sounded painful, and it was, but he didn't even show any sign that he felt anything.
The man sighed in response, gesturing for the Soldier to sit down on a stool that stood nearby. "Have a seat, this might take a while." he informed Bucky and the Soldier. The latter nodded stiffly and took the seat without comment. Bucky pulled up a stool and sat next to him, obviously not going anywhere, which was fine with the Soldier.
He wasn't sure who he could trust at this point and Natalia / Natasha was an entire mystery to him at the moment but he knew that he could count on Bucky if all else failed.
He could always trust the man with the brown eyes.
Alright next chapter!
Now I just wanna say that in the comics the Winter Soldier and Natasha are a canon couple and they did have a romantic relationship in the Red Room so I didn't include it just because I ship Romanogers [because I don't.]
Speaking of which I haven't really decided who, if anybody, Steve would be romantically involved with sooo go ahead and tell me who you think should be paired with Steve. Stucky? Romanogers? Stony? I wanna know what you guys think.
Feedback is always appreciated!
Lots of Love - F.Q.