Yay! I was going to post this over the weekend, but I got distracted by another project. But here it is anyways. And don't worry if things seem confusing, I'm being ambiguous on purpose. Things will be explained as the story goes on.

And Happy Independence Day to my American readers! I hope you enjoy the 4th, and be safe out there!

IvoryJames: I'm glad you like it! I hope you continue to enjoy it!

Guest: Things are going to get intense! What's confusing about soulmates? I'll try to explain as best I can if you let me know what's confusing to you...

Tiphanie: Yeah, I'm adding and taking some things away. Changing it up. My baby bird needs some love! He doesn't get enough recognition. And don't worry, we won't have a repeat of Friday. I'm gonna be careful with the Benadryl.

Dez10d2Rite: That sucks! I'm sorry! I gave up Word for Google Docs for that reason. At least if my computer crashes, everything's still on Google's server, and it saves automatically. And I can access it anywhere which is nice sometimes. Just an idea. That's too funny! Great minds do think alike. Sam doesn't get enough love. He deserves it though. But I'm glad you're enjoying it.

Guest: Yay! No, it doesn't make you sadistic. If anything I'm the sadistic one for writing it.

Book of Short Fandom Scenes: No, it's not bad. And it will be dark, but it's going to be a different kind of dark.

vain-gl0ry: More! Here's more!

Enjoy!

2015

The Manhattan streets were surprisingly quiet that night. No one looked twice at the figure standing under the great Avengers Tower, staring up at the very top, head tilted as far back as it would go. Many stopped and marveled at its grandeur. Those continuing down the sidewalk simply sidestepped out of the way, some without looking up.

The city lights were reflecting off the surface, one light like a beacon to the figure. She lowered her gaze, glancing around her, before slipping into the alley behind the tower. She rubbed her hands together, making sure she was ready, scuffing her shoes on the pavement a couple times for good luck before she started to climb. It would be a long way up, but she had been taught long ago not to feel fear. Fear caused doubt, which caused hesitation, which got you killed. She had long since forgotten how to feel a lot of things.

The tower was relatively empty this time of night. Most floors dark, uninhabited except for the stray janitor here and there, too busy to pay any mind to the dark figure scaling the building, or the stray scientist nose deep in an experiment. She had just a small amount of time before Stark's security would notice her, so she had to act fast.

She found the window she needed, cutting a small opening at the bottom. She caught the glass before it fell, sliding it along the wall inside. She slipped in, crawling towards the bed. He was on his back, arm flat by his side. Perfect. This would be easier than she thought.

She knelt beside him, using the small amount of light coming in through the window to find the spot she needed. She grabbed the screwdriver from her belt, slipping it between the metal plates, ready to pry one off before she was thrown back onto the floor, metal wrapping around her neck. Both figures in the room were posed, ready to strike: her target's hand wrapped around her neck, his partner blocking the door.

"You really don't want to kill me." She said, her eyes scanning over his hard set face. The same face she'd seen many times, but there was something behind his eyes this time...was that emotion? She was taken aback for a moment, not having seen that for a long time. But she quickly steeled herself, remembering why she was there. "HYDRA has a tracking chip in your arm. Stark's security has scrambled the signal and kept you hidden this long, but they're close to finding you. I'm just here to take it out and make sure your little 'Happily Ever After' isn't ruined."

"How do you know this?" He growled, eyes flashing in the semi darkness.

"Because they were going to send me to retrieve you."

His grip loosened just slightly, but he didn't move. "Who are you?"

"I was supposed to be you. But they had other things in mind for me. We're running out of time. I'll tell you everything when I get the chip out of your arm." She shoved him back, standing to her feet.

He was on his feet in a second, grabbing her arm in his hand. "I don't trust you." He growled, shoving her back against the wall.

"You don't have to. I came here on my own free will." She lifted the hem of her jacket, showing him the bandage over her hip. "I knew you had to have one when I dug mine out. They've been tracking you for weeks, but your signal is all over the place. It's bounced off Manhattan four times in the last two weeks. They're getting closer. It's surprising none of them picked up on it yet."

"But you did." The other man said, still guarding the door.

"Yes. Because it's my job."

"So what, you spew some story about removing the chip, when you're here to take me back." He shoved her harder against the wall, getting close to her face. She could feel his breath on her skin, warm and even. "I know your kind. What you do. Liars, thieves. Could worm your way out of getting caught stealing a diamond ring."

"If I were here to take you away, we wouldn't be having this conversation." Her eyes flicked to the other man in the room. "And your boyfriend over there, he wouldn't be alive right now."

"You can get the tracker out?" Steve asked, stepping closer to the two.

"Yes. Take it out, destroy it. Then we won't have to see each other again."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Because I may be able to lie my way out of stealing Vibranium from the King of Wakanda, but I'm not heartless. I know what they did to you. They were going to do the same thing to me, but they found other uses for me." She gulped a little, looking between them. "I know a lot about you two, during the war. My grandfather knew you two. And you knew him. I think I owe it to him to help you, at least this little bit."

Steve gulped, staring at her face in the dark for a moment. "Dugan." He breathed.

"My birth name is Annabelle Lillian Hanover. My mother was Timothy Dugan's granddaughter. I'm sure Stark can dig up my file since everything was dumped on the internet. Now, I'd like to get this over with as quickly as possible so I can disappear. In fact, it might be smart if you two disappeared as well."

"Fine. But one toe moves out of line and you'll be wishing you never came here."

Anna smirked at Steve. "That's not the first threat I've heard, Captain. And it won't be the last, I'm sure."

Bucky had handcuffed her as they made their way down to the lab. Tony was still up, unsurprisingly. He did a doubletake as they entered, staring at the girl for a moment. He thought he recognized her from somewhere, but it could have just been his tired mind playing tricks on him.

"This is surprisingly kinky. And kind of disturbing." He said, eyeing the handcuffs.

"She's here to take the tracker out of Bucky's arm." Steve said, still holding her arm.

"Your security system has been scrambling the signal, but it's narrowing in on him. It's only a matter of time until HYDRA's knocking on your door."

"Why is she in handcuffs?"

'She seems to have slipped past my security feed momentarily. I am unsure how she entered the tower.'

Anna jumped at the voice. "What was that?"

"My AI, who happens to bring up a serious issue. How did you get into my tower?"

"I climbed it." She shrugged.

"How…"

"I'm special. Now, please, can I get this over with. I have other places to be." She looked up at Bucky.

"Other things to steal?"

She shrugged. "A girl's gotta eat."

Bucky moved to the chair in the lab, dragging Anna with him. Steve grabbed her cuffed hands, pulling her close for a moment. "Like I said. One toe…"

"Wouldn't dream of it, Captain." She smirked.

He took the cuffs off and took a step back, watching her closely. Tony moved in as well, wanting to watch her work. Bucky hadn't let him touch his metal arm, and he was curious to how it worked. She tucked her honey colored hair behind her ears, grabbing the screwdriver again. She peeled back the plates on his shoulder, grabbing the tweezers from her back pocket. She went in, pushing wires and other important things out of the way.

"You need to clean your arm." She said, eyeing bits of lint and dirt in between the plates.

"How do clean it?" Tony asked, eyeing the intricate piece of technology.

"Handheld water jet, or air jet would work. Get in between the plates. When he flexes or moves his arm, the plates shift." She ran her finger along one seam on his bicep. "Makes it easier to get in between some plates when he holds his arm a certain way." She continued digging, getting down to where the support was in his shoulder. The support that acted like a bone, attached to his nervous system. "HYDRA used a lubricant to make sure he didn't get stiff, or the plates didn't start rubbing together."

"Huh." Tony said, studying her as she worked. "JARVIS, you get all that?"

'Yes, sir. Recorded and saved on file.'

"How do you know all this?" Steve asked, watching her carefully.

"I read his file." She said, glancing up at him. "When your friend Romanoff dumped everything on the internet, I pulled it off the internet, hiding it away in the deep recesses of HYDRA's server. Everything was there. How they built the arm, the structure, mechanics. How it works, what it's capable of doing. All the notes on small changes they made, updates, all the times they fixed it they took notes. I read it for hours, memorizing everything. They knew they were going to send me when they found you, so they never asked questions. Probably thought I was looking for ways to disable it." Steve tensed. "Calm yourself, Captain Righteousness, I'm here to help. If I wanted to disable it, I would have blown it off already."

Tony snorted, covering his laugh with his hand. "Captain Righteousness? That's a new one!"

Anna smiled a little, before she found what she was looking for. "I'm sorry." She said to Bucky. "This is probably really going to hurt."

She gripped it with the tweezers, pulling. He tensed, the metal arm whirring as he clenched his fist, the gears around her hands twisting and expanding. She tugged harder, a cry leaving Bucky before it came free, the small chip giving way. Bucky breathed heavily as Anna dropped the chip in Tony's outstretched hand. She made sure everything was normal and in its spot before placing the metal plates back where they were supposed to be, locking them back in place.

"Great." She said, replacing her tools. "Now that I've got that over with, I can go."

She turned, ready to leave the lab, but Steve grabbed her arm."Not yet. We have more questions that need answered."