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Bucky stormed out of the building, needing and wanting the fresh air to clear his head - he didn’t want to leave Alex alone with this but he figured he had to do something bold to try and make her see that what she was doing was dangerous. A couple of months ago he was having to protect her from the bounty that her father’s work had put on her head and now she was going to put it right back there and Bucky couldn’t take it. Watching her lying in that bed and knowing she might not wake up and then finding out from Banner that she had actually been dead for a while was so hard and so emotionally exhausting that he knew he wouldn’t cope with going through it all again.

The anger boiled inside of Bucky and his fist shot out into the tree by his side, the bark cracking and splintering on impact. He felt the trunk rock a little under the force of his punch and he let out a deep sigh - why couldn’t Alex just listen to him? He wasn’t asking for a lot, just for her not to get herself killed. It wasn’t completely unreasonable.

A twig snapped somewhere in the forest behind him and immediately Bucky’s head snapped around, trying to locate the source of the noise. His eyes settled on a figure, obscured by branches, but as he started towards it, something hit against his head knocking him to the ground. Two sets of heavy boots stood in front of him as the world began to fade to black.

“Alex?”

She barely registered the other voice as her eyes remained on the door that Bucky had just escaped through. Alex had thought about following him, but he made it clear that if she was going to finish her father’s work, then he didn’t want to be a part of it.

“Alex?” The voice called out again and she jumped a little as a hand came to rest on her shoulder. Turning around she saw that Steve was stood beside her. “Are you okay?”

Her head shook before she even thought about a reply, and Steve’s features softened. He looked around and noticed a particular absence. “Where did Bucky go?”

“He left.” Even Alex could hear the disbelief in her own voice, “He told me that if I wanted to do this - to work on the serum - he couldn’t be here.” She looked at Steve, his jaw had tightened if only a little and for a minute Alex braced herself for Steve to give a few harsh words, but he didn’t. Instead, he just wrapped an arm around her, pulling her into a hug.

“I’m sorry, I know this must be hard - deciding whether or not to do this. And he had no right to put that pressure on you,” He let her go, stepping back a little, “But he’s got a point Alex. He cares about you so much - I know how much it hurts to lose the person you love and he’s already had to go through that once.”

Alex saw his eyes darken a little at the memory of Peggy. She knew a little about her, but when she found out that Steve had lost her a few months ago, Alex’s heart went out to him - he’d been given a second chance at his life and yet he wasn’t able to spend it with the one person that he wanted to. As much as she wanted to deny it, she couldn’t help but think that his story reminded her of what she was putting Bucky through right now. He’d been given his own second chance and yet here she was taking a chance that might kill her.

She nodded at Steve, looking to the door. It was all good her thinking about following in her father’s scientific footsteps but then again her father wasn’t here anymore, none of her family were - the only person she really had now was Bucky, she couldn’t lose him now, not like this. “You know Bucky, where do you think he’d go?”

Steve gave her a small smile, following her out the door, “He likes to go in there,” he nodded toward the cluster of trees near the building. “Helps him think. He went there a lot after you left.”

She swallowed hard, she’d never thought about what Bucky had done after she had gone. It had been too hard to begin with and then she just hadn’t wanted to because every time she did it brought back feelings that Alex didn’t want to feel.

So, she headed toward the trees with the intention of telling Bucky that she cared about him too much to work any further on the serum, but what she found instead was far more worrying than anything that she thought she would find. Just inside the tree line there was a large tree with a broken trunk, a space in the centre the size of Bucky’s mechanical fist. She had expected something like this but there was something more concerning at it’s base, Bucky’s dog tags lay on the ground, the earth around them tossed up as though there had been some kind of fight nearby.

Looking around her, there was no one to be seen. Alex bent down, taking the dog tags in her hand. Bucky never took them off, something was wrong. “Steve!” she called over her shoulder, the captain running over to her and taking in the scene. Seeing the tags in her hand, he realised straight away why she had called to him.

“Get back inside,” he said quietly to her, his eyes watchful of the area around them.

Alex ran towards the building, Steve close behind and once inside she put the tags around her neck, “What happened out there?”

Steve dropped his head and sighed, “Someone took him, Alex. You saw the ground, something happened - there were three types of footprint. One was Bucky’s, I saw them going into the forest, but the other two, they were only going the other way.”

“Okay, so we go back out there and follow them, right? They’ll lead us to whoever took Bucky.”

He shook his head, “I wish it were that easy, but we wouldn’t know what we were walking into and it could get more people into danger.”

“But Bucky’s missing!”

“And he wouldn’t want me putting you in danger just to find him!”

For a moment they stood in a stalemate, Alex huffing as she eyed Steve. But she knew he’d done things like this before, he was the captain here and it was his duty to keep his team safe. “We talk to Fury and we try to figure this out.” He told her, knowing that he needed to take a firm lead on this.

She nodded a little reluctantly and followed Steve toward the office where Fury spent most of his time. The captain knocked, ever the polite gentleman, and waited patiently for him to call them inside. When he did, the two of them wasted no time in storming inside, standing before a stoic looking Fury sat comfortably at his desk.

“You know who it was, don’t you?” Steve asked, the look on Fury’s face giving the answer he wanted.

He stood, coming around the desk to lean on the front, facing them, “I had my theories.”

“Had your-- and you didn’t think to tell us?” Alex let Steve do the talking, not trusting that she’d be able to talk to the director now that he’d shown his hand. “You just let them take him? It could’ve been any one of us! Who is it?”

“That’s above your pay grade, Rogers. It’s being taken care of.” The director moved back to his seat gesturing to the door. “You’ll be called on when you’re needed.”

“I’m not your assistant, Fury!” Steve’s rage was climbing higher every minute. “These people took my friend and I want to no who they are!”

Fury locked eyes with the captain, his expression much calmer than that of the man before him, “And you will. When we need you to.” His eyes returned to the screen of the computer before him on the desk. “Now if you wouldn’t mind.”

They both stood for a moment and Steve huffed, leaving the room, with Alex following close behind. She waited until the door was closed to say anything. “Are you just gonna let him do that?”

“No,” Steve mumbled, grabbing Alex’s arm and dragging her into the nearest empty room, “You’re good with computers, right?”

Alex shrugged a little, “I guess, why?”

“Because one of us needs to hack Fury’s system and find out what’s going on, and I think we both know it’s not going to be me.” He chuckled despite their situation.

“I’m good with computers, Steve, but I can’t hack SHIELD’s system. That’s next level stuff.”

His brow furrowed, “Then we’re gonna have to get outside help.”

“Who?”

“I know one person who could do it,” Steve sighed as though it pained him to say what he had to. “Stark.”

Description
Bucky stormed out of the building, needing and wanting the fresh air to clear his head - he didn’t want to leave Alex alone with this but he figured he had to do something bold to try and make her see that what she was doing was dangerous. A couple of months ago he was having to protect her from the bounty that her father’s work had put on her head and now she was going to put it right back there and Bucky couldn’t take it. Watching her lying in that bed and knowing she might not wake up and then finding out from Banner that she had actually been dead for a while was so hard and so emotionally exhausting that he knew he wouldn’t cope with going through it all again.

The anger boiled inside of Bucky and his fist shot out into the tree by his side, the bark cracking and splintering on impact. He felt the trunk rock a little under the force of his punch and he let out a deep sigh - why couldn’t Alex just listen to him? He wasn’t asking for a lot, just for her not to get herself killed. It wasn’t completely unreasonable.

A twig snapped somewhere in the forest behind him and immediately Bucky’s head snapped around, trying to locate the source of the noise. His eyes settled on a figure, obscured by branches, but as he started towards it, something hit against his head knocking him to the ground. Two sets of heavy boots stood in front of him as the world began to fade to black.

“Alex?”

She barely registered the other voice as her eyes remained on the door that Bucky had just escaped through. Alex had thought about following him, but he made it clear that if she was going to finish her father’s work, then he didn’t want to be a part of it.

“Alex?” The voice called out again and she jumped a little as a hand came to rest on her shoulder. Turning around she saw that Steve was stood beside her. “Are you okay?”

Her head shook before she even thought about a reply, and Steve’s features softened. He looked around and noticed a particular absence. “Where did Bucky go?”

“He left.” Even Alex could hear the disbelief in her own voice, “He told me that if I wanted to do this - to work on the serum - he couldn’t be here.” She looked at Steve, his jaw had tightened if only a little and for a minute Alex braced herself for Steve to give a few harsh words, but he didn’t. Instead, he just wrapped an arm around her, pulling her into a hug.

“I’m sorry, I know this must be hard - deciding whether or not to do this. And he had no right to put that pressure on you,” He let her go, stepping back a little, “But he’s got a point Alex. He cares about you so much - I know how much it hurts to lose the person you love and he’s already had to go through that once.”

Alex saw his eyes darken a little at the memory of Peggy. She knew a little about her, but when she found out that Steve had lost her a few months ago, Alex’s heart went out to him - he’d been given a second chance at his life and yet he wasn’t able to spend it with the one person that he wanted to. As much as she wanted to deny it, she couldn’t help but think that his story reminded her of what she was putting Bucky through right now. He’d been given his own second chance and yet here she was taking a chance that might kill her.

She nodded at Steve, looking to the door. It was all good her thinking about following in her father’s scientific footsteps but then again her father wasn’t here anymore, none of her family were - the only person she really had now was Bucky, she couldn’t lose him now, not like this. “You know Bucky, where do you think he’d go?”

Steve gave her a small smile, following her out the door, “He likes to go in there,” he nodded toward the cluster of trees near the building. “Helps him think. He went there a lot after you left.”

She swallowed hard, she’d never thought about what Bucky had done after she had gone. It had been too hard to begin with and then she just hadn’t wanted to because every time she did it brought back feelings that Alex didn’t want to feel.

So, she headed toward the trees with the intention of telling Bucky that she cared about him too much to work any further on the serum, but what she found instead was far more worrying than anything that she thought she would find. Just inside the tree line there was a large tree with a broken trunk, a space in the centre the size of Bucky’s mechanical fist. She had expected something like this but there was something more concerning at it’s base, Bucky’s dog tags lay on the ground, the earth around them tossed up as though there had been some kind of fight nearby.

Looking around her, there was no one to be seen. Alex bent down, taking the dog tags in her hand. Bucky never took them off, something was wrong. “Steve!” she called over her shoulder, the captain running over to her and taking in the scene. Seeing the tags in her hand, he realised straight away why she had called to him.

“Get back inside,” he said quietly to her, his eyes watchful of the area around them.

Alex ran towards the building, Steve close behind and once inside she put the tags around her neck, “What happened out there?”

Steve dropped his head and sighed, “Someone took him, Alex. You saw the ground, something happened - there were three types of footprint. One was Bucky’s, I saw them going into the forest, but the other two, they were only going the other way.”

“Okay, so we go back out there and follow them, right? They’ll lead us to whoever took Bucky.”

He shook his head, “I wish it were that easy, but we wouldn’t know what we were walking into and it could get more people into danger.”

“But Bucky’s missing!”

“And he wouldn’t want me putting you in danger just to find him!”

For a moment they stood in a stalemate, Alex huffing as she eyed Steve. But she knew he’d done things like this before, he was the captain here and it was his duty to keep his team safe. “We talk to Fury and we try to figure this out.” He told her, knowing that he needed to take a firm lead on this.

She nodded a little reluctantly and followed Steve toward the office where Fury spent most of his time. The captain knocked, ever the polite gentleman, and waited patiently for him to call them inside. When he did, the two of them wasted no time in storming inside, standing before a stoic looking Fury sat comfortably at his desk.

“You know who it was, don’t you?” Steve asked, the look on Fury’s face giving the answer he wanted.

He stood, coming around the desk to lean on the front, facing them, “I had my theories.”

“Had your-- and you didn’t think to tell us?” Alex let Steve do the talking, not trusting that she’d be able to talk to the director now that he’d shown his hand. “You just let them take him? It could’ve been any one of us! Who is it?”

“That’s above your pay grade, Rogers. It’s being taken care of.” The director moved back to his seat gesturing to the door. “You’ll be called on when you’re needed.”

“I’m not your assistant, Fury!” Steve’s rage was climbing higher every minute. “These people took my friend and I want to no who they are!”

Fury locked eyes with the captain, his expression much calmer than that of the man before him, “And you will. When we need you to.” His eyes returned to the screen of the computer before him on the desk. “Now if you wouldn’t mind.”

They both stood for a moment and Steve huffed, leaving the room, with Alex following close behind. She waited until the door was closed to say anything. “Are you just gonna let him do that?”

“No,” Steve mumbled, grabbing Alex’s arm and dragging her into the nearest empty room, “You’re good with computers, right?”

Alex shrugged a little, “I guess, why?”

“Because one of us needs to hack Fury’s system and find out what’s going on, and I think we both know it’s not going to be me.” He chuckled despite their situation.

“I’m good with computers, Steve, but I can’t hack SHIELD’s system. That’s next level stuff.”

His brow furrowed, “Then we’re gonna have to get outside help.”

“Who?”

“I know one person who could do it,” Steve sighed as though it pained him to say what he had to. “Stark.”