you can forgive yourself now.

statistics —

NAME: RJ Boyle-Barnes AGE: Twenty-one FACECLAIM: Felix Mallard ALIAS:  The Winter Soldier, The Asset POWERS/SKILLS: Master marksman, expert swordsman, master martial artists, multilingual (english, russian, german, Italian, asl), master assassin, weapons proficiency, master of stealth, super-soldier serum, superhuman strength, superhuman agility, superhuman reflexes, superhuman durability, superhuman stamina, superhuman endurance, regenerative healing, enhanced balance, enhanced longevity, and peak human senses.     ↳ RJ also carries around a sword made out of vibranium. It’s his most cherished possession and will never part with it. ALLIANCE: Solo THREAT LEVEL (OUT OF TEN): Nine HISTORY FILE (LINK WIKI): Dossier I. NOTABLE CHANGES FROM 2012 TO THE TIMELINE THEY WERE PULLED FROM: There are several things to make note of when it comes to my portrayal. RJ received the super soldier serum and has all of the abilities that are associated with receiving the enhancement. He was trained to replace Bucky and they wanted him to be like their former asset but better. After the man he was modeled after gave him his freedom, RJ was adopted as his son fairly quickly and legally became a Barnes. Also, he has trigger words but doesn’t know them. His handler never used them since it was a backup plan if RJ ever became morally compromised. LAST MEMORY BEFORE ENDING UP IN NYC, 2012: Reading Bucky’s journal on a random rooftop in Indiana and thinking about finally starting one of his own.

@rewrittenintro

(   open  starter  for  @rewrittenstart   )

‘   look …   i  have  no  idea  how  that  got  in  there;  the  old  lady  over  there  slipped  it  in  my  purse.   ’   truth  be  told,  melissa  gold  had  been  caught …   again.   and  this  time,  things  weren’t  looking  too  pretty,  as  the  security  guard  manhandled  the  items  hidden  deep  within  the  recesses  of  her  black  handbag  and  brought  them  back  out  chronologically  –  a  necklace,  a  chanel  perfume  bottle,  a …  music  box?   her  eyes  caught  onto  a  stranger  attempting  to  squeeze  their  way  past  them  in  the  doorway  of  the  expensive  store,  and  melissa  suddenly  jumped  at  the  opportunity,  piping  up  with  a  loud   ‘   hey!   you  saw  that  old  lady  too,  right?   the  one  who  tried  to  take  the  fine  china?   ’

 the  last  few  days  have  been  a  lot  for  everyone  she  thought,  which  was  why  she  had  decided  to  to  enjoy  herself  and  discover  this  different  world  the  best  that  she  could.  donna  had  walked  through  many  streets  until  she  found  herself  in  a  bakery,  she  looked  at  the  options  in  front  of  her.  not  making  her  decision  she  turned  to  the  person  next  to  her  “  what  you  reckon  is  the  best  choice  here  ?  what  you  suggest  ?  i’m  open  to  try  anything.  ”  @rewrittenstart​

//

The bakery is somewhere that RJ hasn’t spent much time in. He feels out of place anywhere in the city but it’s a good idea to start learning how to be somewhat normal. He can mimic the feeling but worries about never fully understanding it. He never got the chance to visit, always meant to look from the outside looking in. He’s here and ready to try eating one of everything. Maybe just not all in one day. Someone speaks next him and looks up at her with a smile, trying to be friendly. “I’ve never been here before. I was just trying to decide what to get . . . . I want some of their cupcakes . . .   they seem to have some interesting flavors.”

          (  @penancing​  )    ‘  you’re  just  like  me  -  ’    statement  comes  from  her  lips  ,   she’ll  blink  in  surprise  that  she  even  said  such  a  thing  .    ‘  wanna  go  get  some  root  beer  floats ?  ’  

gamora was hardly an expert herself. she wished dying and coming back had provided her with more wisdom, some way to better understand what was going on here, but it hadn’t. “i’m not either, but if that’s the case, we have no idea what might happen next, or what is possible in this world. and more importantly, we have no idea how this might effect our regular worlds.”

        ‘  you  shoulda  visited  ,   woulda  prepared  you  for  new  york  .  ’    but  she  shrugs  ,   because  NO WORRIES  ,   there’s  no  time  like  the  past’s  present  to  get  used  to  things  .    ‘  that’s  a  sad  ,   boring  ,   childhood  .   i’d  wish  it  on  no  one  .  ’    and  it’s  probably  the  maternal  instinct  in  her  that  makes  her  realize  it  was  …  off  .    ‘  his  name  is  peter  ,   and  it  wouldn’t  be  a  bother  .  ’    she  holds  out  her  hand  .    ‘  may  .  ’  

Now he knows this boy is free from Hydra. Any sort of emotion is prohibited, especially tears. Despite the boy trying to hide them and wipe them away, Bucky can still see them. There was many things Hydra would do to get back to Bucky, but they would never resort to something like tears to prove their point. It’s a weakness to Hydra, so… Bucky believes him. With everything going on in the world, it’s not really that big of a surprise that someone’s landed here from another universe, not just thrown back in time. Besides, this whole bringing in a child who was a victim of Hydra didn’t sound too far off from something he’d actually do. It tugs on his heartstrings, while he wasn’t a child when Hydra took him he still was young. A young man dragged off a mountain side to play puppet. He supposes Hydra likes them young then, trading in a battle worn soldier for a child.  And here he thought that they couldn’t get any lower. Bucky’s mistake. “Hey – hey. You did nothing wrong. Nothing you did warranted what they did you. It took me a long time to realize that.. so don’t you start thinking like that now alright? It doesn’t lead to good places.” Bucky looks down at the journal for a moment, before finally offering it back to the boy. “Keep this, it’s from your world. You deserve to have a connection to it.. I’ve got my own back home.” But now it’s time to circle back to a few things that his boy said previously. He wasn’t raised in cryochambers and Siberian hideouts, so at least he’ll be a little more accustomed to real life but that’s not his concern here. If RJ was here, that handler of his could be as well. “Do you remember your handlers name? If you don’t want to say it, write it down for me.” Names have power, especially names that haunt someone’s every waking hour. Bucky’s got a list full of names that he’s not sure he could speak out loud to even Sam or Steve. “I’ll help you get a handle on the serum but I need to know the name so I can keep an ear out for it.” No doubt will send to Natasha to see what she can dig up on this handler and see what he’s up to during this time. 

Innocent lost in an instant when his foster parents decided to willingly give him to Hydra. RJ never heard from them again but wonders if they also worked for the organization. Any kindness shown to him had been a lie with intentions for gaining his trust. He doesn’t know what true honesty is but that wasn’t supposed to be his concern growing up. His handler made sure that one of the first lessons learned is that he’s only meant to speak when spoken to and even then RJ needed to choose his words carefully. There was always a look of disapproval that’s always followed up with punishment for going against his programming. The mistake was made once by asking what the target did to deserve being killed and RJ ate off the floor without a fork for the rest of the week. He can’t eat bacon anymore as a result but the Bucky that took him in as his own didn’t seem to mind keeping it off his plate. He knows that crying is prohibited, maybe that’s why for many it had been difficult allowing himself to show any emotion after gaining his freedom. He didn’t know how to feel. The tears staining his cheeks are a sign of not being under their control anymore. Hydra might see it as a weakness but RJ always thought it was more of a strength getting to himself again. “I don’t really remember the day it happened but maybe that’s what they wanted.” He wasn’t like other children, that’s for sure. RJ would see others his age playing outside and wonder what makes him so different? Why wasn’t he allowed to play too?

        ‘  and  isn’t  that  close  to  chicago ?  have  you  never  been  to  chicago  ,   either ?  ’   small  town  boys  ,   not  matter  the  age  ,   never  fail  to  amuse  her  .   it’s  just  …  off  to  her  ,   to  never  really  have  been  in  the  city  .    ‘  well  ,   i  have  a  nephew  .   he  could  show  you  around  .  ’  

now, gamora wasn’t on earth in the original timeline that lead to them traveling back to 2012. in fact, she hadn’t ever gone to earth, even if several of her friends had. but from what she gathered, an earthquake wasn’t part of the original 2012. at least, not in new york city. “shouldn’t we be concerned that this world is already changing? or, worse, that someone did this?” @rewrittenstart​​

This almost too insane for Bucky to handle. Talking about them having a home in Indiana… how would this kid even know Bucky was from there? Most everything that has recorded about him says he’s from Brooklyn – even Hydra assumed it. So that alone makes Bucky have to wonder if he does somehow have a connection to this kid. There were only a few people alive now that knew of his real origins. “I don’t know what hell you think you can show me in there that is so groundbreaking I wrote it. I don’t know how…” Bucky’s words trail off just as fast as they began. He sees the boy’s name written in his own handwriting. Big cursive letters filling up the page. This has to be a trick – but how can it be? The man reaches out and takes the journal from the boy, gentle rather than snatching it like he almost did a few moments before. His eyes eagerly scan over the page. Words detail his relationship with RJ. How Hydra used this boy was a weapon, took him from childhood and carved him into something far more sinister. He reads about saving the boy, trying to wash away that blood that stains his clothing and give him what he lost all those years forged in fire. Fingers run over the page, it’s worn. There was no way this could have been written between the time Bucky left the house and now. He flips back to other entries. The dates line up as do the words. He’s written this. This is his journal and well now? This is his child. “You were Hydra?” Bucky has to ask despite knowing it must be a touchy subject, it is for all survivors of Hydra for a good reason. Bucky needs to know this is real, that this isn’t some sick and twisted way to get him back into Hydra’s steel trap. “They took you as a child?” While Bucky was young when he was taken, he was still an adult. This was a child who’s innocence was tainted, Hydra was bad – but he didn’t realize that they’d go this low to take him out for good. 

          (  @penancing​  )    ‘  you  look  a  bit  lost  ,   kid  .   something  of  the  matter ?  i  heard  talking  to  strangers  help  .  ’    yep  ,   she’s  gonna  adopt  you  too  ,   rj  .  

It was supposed to be a quick walk through the city. A trip down to the local grocery store to get things he could throw in the freezer since Sam was tired of him throwing all the groceries he buys into it. It’s a funny sort of habit that somehow kicked back into full swing, living the depression had them freezing any food they have. Now there’s not need to but it’s a familiar habit that Bucky seems to fall right back into. He guesses after not living in a home for over 70 years, being in one again brings out all sorts of funny habits he didn’t realize he had. Bucky scans his surroundings as he walks, another habit he has. However this one it’s from childhood. This one is new, and for protection. Hydra can’t be happy that their favorite asset has disappeared into thin air. He’s got to be extra careful in New York, with SHIELD once again being Hydra, agents could be anywhere. Though a Hydra agent isn’t what makes Bucky stop dead in his tracks in the middle of a busy New York sidewalk – it’s his journal. He’d know it anywhere. In fact it’s tucked in a drawer in his bedroom right now. Or so he thought. But now it’s sitting in the hands of some kid in an cheap outdoor dining chair. While Bucky could be mistaken, as he stalks closer – he’s not. He sees his own damn handwriting and words written across the front cover. He’ll call Sam once he deals with this kid – given that it’s clear someone has broken into that apartment. “Where the hell did you get that?” Bucky’s voice is low but nothing short of venomous. He elects to ignore the strange boy calling him dad. Could be some strange slang kids have or a jab at his age – either way that isn’t the important thing here. 

Four long months of being in New York. It has been peaceful, nothing is expected of him for the first time in his life. RJ doesn’t know what to do with his time. Which contributed to the decision of becoming a mercenary as a means of affording his motel room. The bed is uncomfortable but still far better than anything that they gave him growing up. It’s obvious that this isn’t like Indiana but that doesn’t have to be a bad thing. He’s sitting outside at one of the tables of this local cafe with a journal in his hands. The cover a shade of red with torn edges and his adoptive father’s handwriting across the front. He didn’t mean to take it but reading the pages makes him feel close to Bucky even without him being here. RJ has never missed someone before but he does miss the older man. The pages are filled with many personal stories and he hangs onto every word, no matter how many times the journal is opened. He wants to return it but doesn’t know where to begin looking for his father. Only to look up from the entry, journal still in his hands. RJ is suddenly looking at the man on his mind, who’s staring right back at him. “Dad?”