11, 23, 22! with bucky barnes (preferably in that order but if not thatâs okay) iâm in the mood for some bucky angst
11: donât make promises you canât keep23: please let me help you22: you betrayed meâŚ
warnings: guns, i think thatâs it
a/n: this is set during civil war, hope you like it. also i have not proof read this so sorry for any mistakes :)
Bucky Barnes was your friend. Your best friend. Someone you cared deeply for. Someone you would risk your own life for. But he was also a criminal.
Youâve known Bucky all your life. Brooklyn was your home, itâs where you met him, young and so full of life, dancing and charming his way through a party. That was before he left for war, before he was branded missing in action, before he was turned into something so evil, before he became a criminal.
70 years you were in that ice. 70 years of not knowing where Bucky was or what happened to him. Youâre much like Steve. An old soul trapped in a young body.
He was The Winter Soldier and you were a devoted S.H.I.E.L.D agent. That day at the S.H.I.E.L.D headquarters, when The Winter Soldier had destroyed nearly all of itâs existence, he recognised you. He said your name. For a brief moment you saw something flash in his eyes. He knew you.Â
You were ordered to shut him down but you let him run. He was your friend, you couldnât do that to your beloved Bucky. You never saw him again after that.Â
Now he sits infront of you, locked up and looking conflicted. Heâd gone back to his old ways, his Winter Soldier days, and blown up a building in Vienna. When he was spotted fleeing the scene, you were immediately order to capture him, and you did. You thought he had changed. Heâd been off the grid for so long. But all that sits before you is a metal armed killer. Buckyâs gone.
Tony, a friend of yours which you have recently grown closer to more than Steve, eyes the long haired man before him. The Avengers are over, no more superheros to spontaneously save the day. You thought it was a good thing, they caused too much destruction. And locking The Winter Soldier up would reduce that.Â
But he wasnât The Winter Soldier anymore, he was Bucky Barnes and he recognised you. He kept his head low, avoiding everyoneâs eyes. He was ashamed of himself, even though he wasnât him who caused the explosion, he still felt ashamed.Â
A S.H.I.E.L.D official announces The Winter Soldier to be taken somewhere secure and orders other officials to unhand-cuff Steve and his new friend Sam. They had also been captured by you, they werenât helping themselves by helping The Winter Soldier and choosing to ignore that the Avengers are no longer allowed to dive into action when danger strikes. But they donât hold much of a threat and Tony is sure he can convince the Captain to change his mind.Â
Steve and Sam are lead away by heavily loaded agents. Steve throws a sorrowful look back at his childhood friend. All he wanted to do was help Bucky, but unlike you, he hasnât realised Buckyâs gone.Â
âLetâs go.â Tonyâs voice appears at your side, his hand is resting on your shoulder and he looks at you with sympathetic eyes. He knows Bucky was your friend and how hard it was to go against him.Â
You step forward to the glass container The Winter Soldier sits inside. He looks up and meets your eyes.
âI promise youâre safe now and weâre going to help fix you.â You say, looking deep into his stare, hoping that Bucky is still in there somewhere. He stares hard at you, studying your features with a clenched jaw. He doesnât look like himself anymore. You turn away from him and walk back over to Tony.
âDonât make promises you canât keep, (y/n).â The deep voice of The Winter Soldier grumbles behind you. Or was it The Winter Soldier? He knows your name.Â
You spin around, emotions running high. Maybe Bucky is really there, maybe he heard you.Â
âYou know my name?â You say.Â
âOf course I do, weâve known each other since before the war, havenât we?â Thereâs a jokey tone to his voice but his face remains expressionless. You stand awestruck, lost for words. His glass container is wheeled away before you can say anything and Tonyâs hand appears on your shoulder again. Heâs still looking sympathetic, maybe even more than before, did he hear what Bucky just said?
You follow Tony down a series of corridors and into a glass walled boardroom. A large table sits in the middle, with Steve, Sam and Natasha gathered around it. Tony takes a seat and you do the same, though not before you catch a glimpse of the other room through the glass. Monitors on the walls show a live feed of Bucky locked up.Â
Tony slides a piece of paper towards Steve. You know what it is, itâs The Accords, you signed it yourself not too long ago. Steve pushes it back, shaking his head. Thereâs no way heâs going to sign it, he lives for saving people, he wouldnât be able to sit and watch danger go by, killing and harming innocent people. He was made to risk his life to save others. He needs to jump into actions when he needs to, not when someone tells him he can.Â
Not wanting to listen to them argue, you leave the room and head straight for the monitors. Bucky is your main concern, he remembered you. The screen shows him looking defeated, his head hanging low and his wrists locked tightly to the chair he sits on. You did this. You hunted him down and locked him up. You. You who was supposed to be his friend. But you didnât know he was still there, you thought The Winter Soldier had taken over his mind completely.Â
âWhich room is he in?â You ask the agent sitting before the screen.Â
âIn the basement.â He replies without looking at you, keeping his eyes on the screen.Â
Youâre out of there straight away, streaming down the corridors, all the way down to the basement. Itâs grey and cold down here. The walls are thick and heavily locked. A secure place to keep a cold-blooded killer.Â
After turning many corners and peering into open rooms, you reach him. The glass box is situated in the middle of the room and he doesnât see you lingering in the doorway. Thereâs camera in all four corners of the room and you know the agent you spoke to earlier can see you.Â
âBucky.â You say softly. He head lifts up and you see how drained he looks. Heâs tired of running, tired of trying to hide from everyone.Â
âBucky, Iâm sorry.â You say as you move into the room. He stares at you with dark eyes.Â
âThis is all my fault, Iâm so sorry, I was supposed to be your friend.â You stop right in front of the glass.Â
âYou let me go last time when you knew Iâd done wrong, and now when Iâm innocent you lock me up?â He looks angry, hard features form over his face and his eyes bore into you.
âI know and Iâm sorry.â A sob almost escapes you but you hold it back. âI thought Iâd lost you, I thought Hydra had taken you again or maybe you were still The Winter Soldier.â
âI havenât been like that in a while, I was doing good, keeping out of the way and keeping to myself.â He talks with venom in his mouth, itâs such a contrast to how he spoke to you earlier when he said your name.Â
âIâm sorry.â You say again, dropping your head. There must be something you can do to make it up to him, or maybe even earn a little forgiveness.Â
You snap your head up to him. âIâll help you get out of here.â You say in low, rushed voice. He stares at you through the glass barrier, seemingly considering your offer.
âNo.â He says plainly after a short pause of silence. âIt will only make things worse. Maybe I should be kept locked up forever, it will be better for everyone that way.â
âWhat! No.â You exclaim, throwing nervous glances over your shoulder. âI can help you.â
Bucky turns his head away from you. âJust go.âÂ
âPlease let me help you.â You beg in a whisper, leaning close to glass, your hot breathing fogging it up.
âYou betrayed me!â He growls, snapping his head back round to glare at you. You step back, eyes wide and heart pumping fast. You know he canât hurt you inside while heâs locked up, but something about the way he looks at you sends fear running through your bones.Â
âI know I did and Iâm sorry. I believe you, youâre innocent, now let me help you.â You plea. You donât want Bucky to spend the rest of his life locked up, heâs been through enough already. You glance up at one of the cameras, surely the agents watching is getting suspicious now.Â
âIâm going back up to the monitoring room, when the shackles unlock and the doors open I want you to run. Donât wait for me, Iâll find you somehow.â The words pouring from your mouth in a rush, youâre guessing you donât have much time before people staring coming down to question where youâre here.Â
You turn away from and calmly walk out of the room so as not to draw more attention to yourself. Buckyâs voice makes you pause at the entrance way.
âIâm not do it.â He says and you turn your head to look at him.
âIâll hold off any agents, but it wonât be for long so be quick.â You say, choosing to ignore his disobedience. Ordering him what to do is better than pleading with him to run, that way heâll feel more compelled to go.Â
You dash off down the corridor and back up to the monitors by the boardroom. Tony, Steve, Nat and Sam are all gathered behind the agents monitoring the screens.Â
âWhat were you doing down there?â Steve asks, his arms folded across his chest. You ignore him.Â
âForgive me for doing this, but itâs the right thing to do.â You say and you pull a gun out of the back of your jeans and point it at the agents head. Someone gasps and from the corner of your eye you see Natasha pull out a gun too.
â(y/n) what are you doing?â Steve asks anxiously, his arms unfolded now and his body on guard.Â
You ignore him again and look directly at the agent. âUnlock the shackles and the doors.â You say. You would do it yourself but you donât know how.Â
âI canât do that.â The male says, his voice shaking.Â
âPut the gun down (y/n).â Tony says. He looks calm, like heâs got the situation under control.Â
âUnlock them.â You say again, a little firmer this time.Â
âWhy are you doing this?â Steve asks.Â
âHeâs innocent.â You snap, glaring at Steve. He of all people should be on your side, Buckyâs his friend too and he believed he was innocent when you didnât.
âBucky didnât cause the explosion and heâs not The Winter Soldier anymore.â You say and turn your attention back to the seated agent. âNow unlock the container and set him free.â
The agents fingers tremble over the controls.Â
âDonât do it.â Tony says to him. âHeâs still a criminal.â
âIâm not afraid to shoot you if you donât do it.â You snap, frustration and impatience flaring up inside of you. Regret is taking over you and youâre starting to fear that your plan isnât going to work.Â
âPlease.â You beg. âHeâs my friend and heâs innocent.â
The agents looks up at you with a slight turn of his head. Your near watery eyes catch his and you can tell he doesnât know what to do.Â
Then, all of a sudden, he presses something and you hear the sound of metal clinking and locks unlocking. On the screen you see the door of the container swing open. Bucky remains seated, staring at the open door and for a second you think heâs not going to run. But then he stands up and heâs gone in the blink of an eye.Â
Tony rushes to shout orders through an intercom and Natasha disappears down the corridor, still holding her gun.Â
âWhat have you done!â Tony hisses at you before following Natasha.Â
Alarm bells and flashing lights ring through the building. People pour out of various rooms and levels of the building. S.H.I.E.L.D agents and government officials dodge there way through the crowds, heading for all exits in hope of catching Bucky. You follow, pushing your way down the stairs and racing across the marble floor to the exit, where a hot sun beats down on you and your feet slam against hard concrete. The crowds are bigger out here and if Bucky is among them, thereâs no way heâd be spotted, he could easily slip away.Â
You run out onto the street and whip your head up and down both ways. No sign of Bucky. Heâs either long gone or still in the building. You hope itâs not the latter.
Panting, you look back at the building and the people emerging from it. They all look confused, throwing questions and assumptions at each other. Here and there agents with heavy weapons stand fixed to the spot, scanning the area. You look up at the building, the sunâs flare reflecting off the windows. Something at the top of the building catches your eyes. You shield your eyes with your hand as you look up at the roof of the building. A dark figure moves rapidly across the rooftop and from the silver shine attached to it, you know that itâs Bucky. You watch him disappear from sight, undetected by those after him. Heâs got away, heâs free.Â
You tell yourself youâll go looking for him when all of this has calmed down. You donât know if heâll want you to look for him or not, he might still be angry at you, but knowing that youâve set him free again gives you an odd satisfaction. Heâs free to live his life, maybe not in peace, heâll still be on the run, but at least heâs free. Free of false crimes and his old Hydra days.