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psl for Steve, Nat, and Bucky OT3
[The Winter Soldier had killed hundreds of people over seven decades, a flawless weapon that obeyed without question and was capable of amazing feats. And yet it had only taken one week trying to kill Steve Rogers for all of that to unravel and splinter into nothing, leaving him in the wind and running for both his life and his freedom.
He ought to have known that no matter how good he was, there were others in the world just as good.
The Soldier had always been an assassin first and anything else second, so although he was good at infiltration, he didn't have spy level skills for simply disappearing off the radar. HYDRA had usually taken care of his exfiltration. He had skills, and desperation bred ingenuity, but he should have known that Romanoff would be able to find him and that she'd lead Rogers right to his location.
He's in Paris.
He's found an empty apartment waiting to be let, all stark white walls and polished wooden floorboards, and set his sleeping bag up in the corner. He knows they're coming, but he's been running for weeks and he's tired. So hungry that he could pass out, and so exhausted that his eyes keep drooping. He doesn't have it in him to run any more, he'll wait and face them. If it ends in a fight, so be it.]
He ought to have known that no matter how good he was, there were others in the world just as good.
The Soldier had always been an assassin first and anything else second, so although he was good at infiltration, he didn't have spy level skills for simply disappearing off the radar. HYDRA had usually taken care of his exfiltration. He had skills, and desperation bred ingenuity, but he should have known that Romanoff would be able to find him and that she'd lead Rogers right to his location.
He's in Paris.
He's found an empty apartment waiting to be let, all stark white walls and polished wooden floorboards, and set his sleeping bag up in the corner. He knows they're coming, but he's been running for weeks and he's tired. So hungry that he could pass out, and so exhausted that his eyes keep drooping. He doesn't have it in him to run any more, he'll wait and face them. If it ends in a fight, so be it.]
no subject
That was what her file was made up of, in the end: deaths with no culprit, no trail, and no identifiable pattern. Thin pages in a safe box in the wall behind one of the cabinets in a safehouse she has in Virginia. Not the one from Kiev that she'd given Steve, but one born out of that moment in Odessa. A recognition of something-- that he was dangerous in a way she understood, and that was chilling. She'd never asked for the file in Kiev, not for herself. It was something she could do for Steve, but not herself. Not when she had a file in Kiev, too.
This time she's not alone for long. She calls Steve in once she tracks Bucky to France. And Steve might not be a spy, but he's a soldier, and a good one. With the two of them working together, things are never easy- Bucky is too good for that- but they don't lose the trail. Eventually they manage to track him down to a place in Paris.
Steve's getting food because his first worry is for Bucky's well-being. Natasha's first worry is what it means that Bucky's stopped running. So when Steve's not there the exact second when she told him to met her, she moves in without him. How many times has she given him Hell for starting without her? Not something she's thinking about as she slips in through the window. Steve will probably take the front door when he gets here. She's dressed down and casual, no guns, but she has her widow's bite under the sleeves of her jacket and a knife at the small of her waist. She's not looking for a fight, but she's prepared for one, anyway.
She holds her hands up, in that gesture of surrender as soon as she gets her feet. Green eyes cataloging for threats, and the target from the moment she made her entrance.] Bucky?
no subject
Who the hell is Bucky?
The words haunted him as they curled around his neck and choked the air from passing into his lungs too easily. The weight of it all and what it meant for the future slid along his skin and he would never stop fighting, never stop looking now that he knew of the truth. Bucky had survived and resulted in hydra turning him into a monster. It didn't seem possible but nothing about their world did. They were all nothing but an illusion, wisps of what should not exist. Some termed them superheroes, others wrote them off as monsters.
Only time would tell where things would shift.
The thundering beat of his heart sounded unnaturally loud as he moved through the markets to buy enough food for practically an army. He picked up clothes and other essentials because he knew Bucky wouldn't have been taking care of himself very well. A mixing breakdown just waiting to explode.
Taking a breath to steady himself, he let himself into the room, arms full of so many bags. Good thing he had enhanced strength to manage it. But he moved slowly as he set it all down, feeling the lump rising up in his throat. ]
Buck? [ His eyes drifted over to Natasha, wondering how she must feel to be there. ] We're not going to hurt you. We only want to help.
no subject
It hurt to see Steve, brought to the surface dozens of the new memories that he'd only recently regained, and made him aware of just how much he was still missing. He should be watching her more, she's the bigger threat here, and so he tears his eyes off Steve and back to Romanoff.]
...then you should stop chasing me.
[His voice sounds too hoarse and too quiet even to his own ears. How long has it been since he last spoke to someone aloud? Too long.]
no subject
She's still alert, a little bit on edge, but she can't help feeling a sort of kinship for Bucky, because she knows all too well how this feels. She remembers, still. She'd pulled a gun on Clint when she'd been on the other side of this, so from where she's standing things are going pretty well.]
Is that really what you want?
[A soft question, watching him. She doesn't think he really wants to keep running, or else she's pretty sure this would have been a lot harder. But it is a question, giving him space to answer.]
no subject
And even when he had nothing --
His hands swept over the bags at his feet, a smile coming to his lips. ]
I brought food and drinks. I know you have to be hungry. What do you feel like having? I cleaned out the market not too far from here. They probably thought I wad going to feed and army. Got you a warm coat. More fashionable than - this.
[ A joke, really, he knew nothing about fashion whatsoever. ]
no subject
Yeah.
[Chasing him just takes away his choice again. Maybe he'd like to come back and find Steve sometime in the future, when he's figured out who the hell he is, but he doesn't want to be forced into it.]
You both need to go now. I didn't want to be found, understand?
no subject
He stepped back from all the bags, hoping Bucky might accept them easier that way. ]
Buck. Natasha found information and you really are in danger. There are - others are coming for you. We just want to keep you safe. I never want you to be used against your will again.
no subject
His expression changes are minute, a remnant from decades of not being able to show emotion, but there's a slight unsure crease to his brow.]
You think I need protection?
no subject
Her kneejerk reaction is to respect that, more or less. Because they came here as people on his side, and that means respecting boundaries. Maybe not leaving now, but agreeing to leave in a few minutes if he talks to them, eats something. Natasha has a burner phone in her pocket. Not to give to him (she figures he can get one of his own) but in case he wants to check it, make sure it's clean. See if they can at least arrange something where he'll check in with them, let Steve know he's alive and she can give him any information she has, and she'll try to keep Steve from bolting after Bucky.
But Steve's pushing; of course he is. It's part of who he is, one of his most endearing and frustrating qualities. The boy that doesn't back down from a fight, no matter the odds.]
I think that if you do this out on your own, there's a chance it gets messy and uncomfortably public. They know you're running. Odds are they'll leverage that. [When she speaks, it's quiet and soft, watching James more than Steve. But she tends to shift close to Steve every now and then, maintaining that proximity.]
You don't have to do this alone. But-- that is a choice you should get to make.
[She sighs softly, a slight twitch of her lips. She's sure that Steve won't like that she's about to give Bucky the option to walk away, but she knows the importance of making your own choices. And fact is that he's not the danger, so she's not going to treat him like he is. Of course, there's a reason she says should-- she figures it's 50/50 on whether Steve goes along with her. It's not an intentional manipulation, but Nat does remember how claustrophobic the idea of Clint and SHIELD had felt when it seemed like her only option.]
We all work this together like Steve wants. Or, you take ten minutes with us to figure out some basic logistics, a way to establish contact as-needed, so we can get you information and Steve knows you're alive. Or you can just walk away- although I'd rather you didn't.