Another rising tide

Another storm to fight

Come and take me

I'm just a skipping stone

A black-dressed figure walks slowly down the aisle of the cathedral.

Natasha's body is glowing with different shades of the light that pours in through the stained glass windows. Her friend, one of her closest friends, stands at the end of the aisle and leans against a wooden pew. Steve glances back at her, tearing his gaze from the wilting flowers and black-wicked candles that were set out to honor the death of the woman he loved.

"When I came out of the ice..."

Natasha silently comes to a stop a few feet across from him; her eyes sympathetic and her expression solemn.

"I thought everyone I had known was gone." He looks back up at the golden picture frame that houses Peggy Carter's photo, shaking his head and saying quietly, "Then I found out she was alive. I was just lucky to have her."

Natasha looks at him from across her shoulder, giving a soft and encouraging smile, "She had you back, too."

The man just nods down a little, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with her. They both know that the woman only had him back sometimes. Yes, certainly, Steve had been busy with the Avengers and with S.H.I.E.L.D. before it fell, but that isn't what's meant. That strong-willed and fearless woman that stole Steve's heart could only remember him for maybe hours at a time before she was gone from him again, lost in her world of dementia and old age.

Natasha takes a deep breath, knowing that there isn't much else that she has to comfort him by. So, she uses the only things that she really has: the truth.

"After everything happened with S.H.I.E.L.D., during my little hiatus..."

Steve looks back up at her with his blonde brows slightly bent in, listening as the woman shares something personal and painful; something Natasha isn't very well known to do.

"I went back to Russia and tried to find Svet and my parents. An empty grave for my baby and then two little gravestones by a chain link fence for my parents." Steve's blue eyes pierce into Natasha's green ones as she nods with a sorrowful and bitter-sweet smile, "I pulled some weeds and left some flowers."

She's forgiven her parents from what they did to her, for selling her as they did. She knows that either she will find her daughter or her daughter will find her when the time is right, when they're both ready.

"We have what we have when we have it."

Natasha can't change anything. She's a survivor, but survivors can't change the past and they don't change the future. All they can do is try to keep the good memories close and the ones that hurt far away enough to still live.

Steve pauses for a moment, taking in her words as he looks down at the ground, "Who else signed?"

"Tony, Rhodey," she sighs out her list of answers, "Vision."

"Clint?"

Her eyes flick up to him, thinking of her best friend who's living off safe with his own family, "Says he's retired."

"Wanda and Lees?"

"TBD." Natasha nods and smiles a little, but Steve can see the frustration on her face.

She's not upset about what each person decides. She's just upset that they're not deciding together. She's upset that they're not agreeing. She's upset that this choice, that the possibility of a choice, is dividing them.

"Lisa and I are off to Vienna for the signing of the Accords. There's plenty of room on the jet." Steve just gives a quiet and long sigh as he looks down at his feet, making Natasha try to prompt him into listening, "Just because it's the path of least resistance... doesn't mean it's the wrong path." She steps closer, nodding at him with full-hearted belief in her voice, "Staying together is more important than how we stay together."

"What are we giving up to do it?" Her encouraging smile fades and she releases a heavy sigh of her own while Steve shakes his head, "I'm sorry, Nat. I can't sign it."

"I know."

"Then what are you doing here?"

She flicks her hair from her eyes, saying the words slowly and with measure, "I didn't want you to be alone."

His head tilts back a little as he stares at her; his face becoming slightly more broken and pained than before. Those two... they'll never let the other be alone. Even when everything turns against them, they always stand by each other. New York. Washington D.C. Sokovia. Lagos. And here and now. They have so far and they can only hope they always will.

"Come here." Natasha nods in understanding, reaching out and pulling him into an hug.

The two friends hold each other in the embrace for a few moments longer, neither knowing that what's going to happen next, what the next hours are going to hold, is going to change absolutely everything.

♛♕♛

Smoke still lingers in the air, hanging in the form of a thick cloud above the UN building. Responders try pouring water onto the still burning and twisted building while helicopters fly overhead and reporters line along the yellow tape that closes off the scene. Ambulance and police sirens blare, adding to the chaos of people weeping and paramedics running around in hopes of helping whoever they can.

They say James Buchanan Barnes, the Winter Soldier, was the mastermind of this attack that killed at least twelve. They don't know where the girl is, the one HYDRA called 'Plan B', but they say she can't be too far from the man, if he has left her still alive, that is. They say a task force is going after the two murderers, but there are numerous people here today who don't want the task force to get the chance.

Two.

There are two others.

The men in black tactical gear and the other task operatives try to quell all the questions that belong to those who rush around in the dazed fear that follows after every terrorist attack.

Because that's what James and Svetlana Barnes are: terrorists.

Two people can be seen sitting on a bench, both a little bloodied and a little disoriented. Neither of them speak as they stare off past everyone, still caught up in the moment that took place not twenty minutes ago.

"I'm very sorry." Natasha speaks in a low voice, sincerity lacing itself deep into her tone as she steps over towards the bench.

Two dark heads sharply turn to look at the red-haired woman who briefly glances down in apology. Lisa Stark slowly pulls her hand from Prince T'Challa's as his heavy gaze falls from the woman and to the ground a few feet from them. His fingers move to roll and twirl the metal ring that belongs to only a select few: the heirs to the throne of Wakanda.

"In my culture," T'Challa speaks smoothly, still staring off in a controlled daze, "death is not the end. It's more of a... stepping off point." He nods a bit as the two women watch him, "You reach out with both hands, and Bast and Sekhmet, they lead you into a green veldt where you can run forever."

The man's lips pull apart slightly, taking in a soft breath as the weight of his duty becomes more and more clear. Lisa gently leans her chin in his shoulder and his face slightly tilts towards her, acknowledging her touch.

Natasha swallows a little, nodding with a soft smile, "That sounds very peaceful."

T'Challa's jaw clenches as his eyes once again flicker to and from the woman's face, "My father thought so."

His movements suddenly change harsh as he slides the king's ring onto his trembling dark finger.

"T." Lisa speaks quietly with her eyes slightly narrowed, a strange sort of defensiveness taking over her.

Only, the question remains: just who is she defending?

"I am not my father." The new king shakes his head as he does little to fight the rageful emotion building in his eyes.

"T'Challa." Natasha's voice suddenly slips into one of negotiation because that's all that this is to her now: negotiation.

Natasha is negotiating for Barnes and she's negotiating for her daughter, the child that she always wanted.

The redhead keeps her gaze steady and firm while she attempts to hold her tone level, but it comes out raspy all the same, "The Task Force will decide who brings in the Barnes'."

T'Challa's hands clench into fists around his new ring and his shoulders tighten as he smoothly stands to his feet. Lisa's eyes follow him as he does so, her jaw clenching and her breathing growing tighter.

His eyes stare darkly down at her, "Don't bother, Ms. Romanoff." His eyes turn distant, "I will kill him myself."

Natasha's eyes narrow and Lisa's head tilts back as they watch the man walk away. Without another word and with a dark look in her own eyes, Lisa stiffly stands and walks in the opposite direction.

♛♛♛

Natasha's chest feels tight and it's hard to swallow as she thinks about what the king just promised. Her gaze shifts off until she's staring at nothing and memories quickly flash through her head. The shy and cautious redheaded girl and the Soldier that forgot how to be soft. She wants them back, but they're in so deep now, perhaps even too deep for Natasha to ever reach. The woman releases a calculated sharp breath, trying to relieve the tension that she feels in her lungs.

Her phone ringing brings her out of her thoughts and she flicks her hair back as she pulls it to her ear, "Yeah?"

"You all right?" Steve's concerned yet somehow reserved voice fills her ears.

"Uh, yeah, thanks." Her voice hesitates as she tries to decide if she really is all right and if she would even tell him if she wasn't, "I-I got lucky..."

Sirens go off all around her and her eyes can't help but travel along with the dead bodies that are rolled past. She swallows thickly and her hair slightly falls in her face as she pushes herself up from her sitting position. Her arm crosses over her stomach as she struggles for the right words.

"I-I know how much Barnes means to you." Her eyes fall closed and she holds them there for a moment.

She can hear his laughter from the months after they first met nearly sixteen years ago. It was so pure and full that she knew that it was real. She used to love the way his cheeks would pull and crinkle into a white-toothed smile and his head would dip and shake. He was the greatest part of her youth, the greatest part of that place. He didn't just mean something to her, he meant everything to her. And now he's a memory of the happiness that she felt, the memory of a family that she only felt when she was with him and pregnant with his child.

He means family to Natasha Romanoff.

He means the memory of a home.

She pulls her eyes open, "I really do."

She takes in a deep breath as the words sting her chest.

"Stay home." Her voice grows raspy once more, "You'll only make this worse."

The image of that small girl curling herself up into a ball and giggling in the back of that truck flits into Natasha's mind.

"For all of us."

Natasha can see that same small girl finding comfort in her arms as tears run down the girl's soot-covered face.

"Please."

"Are you saying you'll arrest me?"

"No." Natasha breathes and shakes her head quickly before eventually nodding, "Someone will. If you interfere. That's how it works now."

"If he's this far gone, Nat, then I should be the one to bring him in."

"Why?" She can hardly keep in her scoff.

"Because I'm the one least likely to die trying."

"And Svet?" The words echo over the line and Natasha's eyes squeeze shut as the pain comes back full force, "What about her? You going to bring her in?"

"It's the only way to keep her safe, Nat, you know that. If I don't step in for them, then they're not going to make it."

Natasha's feet shift her weight ever so slightly as she grits her teeth and swallows.

Steve's voice disappears and the line goes dead before the woman can argue anything else.

♛♛♛

Red hair blows softly in the cool wind, picking up from underneath a blue cap that fits just right and dusting off of gray-jacketed shoulders. Svetlana contentedly walks along with Bucky; her blue eyes lit up with happiness as she steps among the vendors and quietly buzzing crowd in the middle of Bucharest. The sky is still that submerged-shell gray and the father and daughter have to wear jackets to keep themselves warm against the wind that still carries on.

It's a Thursday so that means it's grocery day which, oddly enough, is one of Svet's favorite days of the week. It's likely because that's really one of the only days she and Bucky can just wander around together. As much as she loves being able to stay in the apartment by herself, Svetlana knows Bucky would sooner throw her off a balcony than let her go into the city alone. She doesn't argue, though. She knows Bucky is only so protective of her because he loves her. Besides, he always tries hard to make the days they do go out fun for her, so who can truly argue with that?

Bucky takes his arm from around Svetlana's slightly shivering shoulders when they stop near a fruit stand. After rubbing her icy nose, Svet bundles her arms around herself and gives a wide-mouthed and sleepy yawn. She silently watches Bucky's gloved metal hand feel through the deep-colored plums that are piled out before them, trying to find some that are ripe before they go back home. Bucky glances down at her as she yawns again and both he and the couple behind the stand give a quiet laugh when she blushes in light embarrassment.

There is still a hint of a smile on Bucky's face when he looks up to the sellers, saying in Romanian, "Cum sunt ei astăzi? Sunt bune?" How are they today? Are they good?

The couple replies in the affirmative and, after giving him the price, Bucky nods a little and looks back down at the purple fruit.

"Um," he presses his lips together and glances down at Svet, speaking so that she can read his lips, "Cati crezi?" How many do you think?

"Hm..." Svet goofily taps her chin in pretend thought before holding up six of her half-gloved fingers, "Şase? E suficient?" Six? Is that enough?

He nods in approval and, with a careful and grateful smile, he hands the plums over to the sellers to be bagged, "Dă-mi șase, mulțumesc." Give me six, thank you.

When the woman holds the small black bag out to Svet, the fifteen year old smiles and takes it from her.

Bucky lightly taps her shoulder, gaining her attention and raising an eyebrow, "Ce spui?" What do you say?

"Egh, Papa." Svet blushes once more, shyly looking down away from the chuckling sellers and her father, "Mulțumesc." Thank you.

The sellers quietly compliment his daughter on her sweetness, but, before Bucky can respond, a siren blares in the distance.

His ocean eyes immediately turn from the three others so that he can look over Svetlana's head to where the sound emanates. Even though he doesn't see anything for the moment, that doesn't stop him from slightly raising an eyebrow and taking in a quick and even breath. He's always a little more cautious on the days he brings Svet with him.

His daughter playfully bumps at his chest with the back of her hand and motions him onward. He nods and follows alongside her, and Svet notices how his pace grows slower and more cautious as they near the edge of the road. Bucky's hand returns to her shoulder as he looks further down street, watching the oncoming cars that still wildly blare sirens.

Svet steps just a bit closer to Bucky as she pieces together his concern. Sirens are never a good sign, and usually if they are headed your way, it means that they are coming for you. They both nearly wince when they stop at the curb of the street, still keeping their matching eyes on the vehicles rushing their way.

Bucky and Svet simultaneously release small relieved sighs and tear their gazes from the road when the sirens go by without paying them any mind.

The father briefly frowns at their pointless concern and blinks a few times to recompose himself for Svet's sake, still wanting her to have a good rest of the day. The fifteen year old takes his free hand with a quick smile before they both wait for the traffic to pass so that they can cross the street.

That's when it happens.

The beginning of the terrible awful.

A man with a small brown hat curiously watches them from inside a kiosk stand, twirling a lolly around between his yellowing teeth. It's Svet who notices his lingering gaze first and a thousand different scenarios play off in her mind. Her blue eyes instinctively shoot down as she squeezes Bucky's hand twice in warning. Her father doesn't react as he briefly glances over to the man who still just stares.

Following protocol, Bucky gives ten seconds of nonchalance where he lets his eyes drop to his daughter's face as she looks up at him. His eyes hold something close to reassurance, trying to make her calm as her hand slowly balls into a fist. They wait for a few more agonizing seconds before Bucky concernedly dips his chin down and his eyes dart up past the rim of his black baseball cap.

And the man still stares, and his curiosity has turned to fear.

"Papa..." Svet sucks in a quick breath, her balled fist slowly beginning to shake from the force she's applying to it.

"Keep your head down." Bucky rests a hand in her hair, lightly pushing her face closer to his chest, "Come on."

Neither are able to breathe as they watch the man cautiously, slowly stepping out into the street. The man panickedly backs from his newsstand, turning and stumbling away from the oncoming father and daughter as quick as he can. Svet's pace hurries as she leaves Bucky who stares after the man with analyzing eyes. The fifteen year old drops her hands onto the kiosk counter, eagerly snatching up the newspaper sprawled out there.

Svetlana bites down harshly into the inside of her lip when she sees a surveillance photo of someone who looks to be her father in black garb. Bucky comes up behind her, reaching a hand of his own to grab the other side of the newspaper. His lips are slightly parted and his face is pulled into one of grim confusion. Svetlana's small fingers trace over the big letters that cover the top of the paper, 'Winter Soldier cautat pentru Bombardmentul din Viena'. Her gaze falls from the big words painted in black; her eyes darting back and forth over the ground as panic rises up within her.

They're searching for them now. After months, no, after years of nearly nothing in the news about either of them, there is this? A picture that claims her father bombed some place in Austria?

"Papa?" Svet suddenly looks up at Bucky whose eyes are already scanning their surroundings, "We need to,"

He just nods slightly and rests his hand onto the back of her neck. His jaw clenches as he looks over his shoulder with caution lacing his every movement.

Bucky's hand moves over the rest of Svet's shoulder, pulling her close to him as they slip directly back into the training that HYDRA so forcefully ingrained into them. Their heads are ducked low, their pace is quick, and their bodies are ready to bolt and fight at any given moment.

Bucky has Svet run up the steps ahead of him while they slide back into their green-toned apartment building. Exit Plan A has already been set into motion. The plan is quick and simple; they grab their few limited items that are lying around and their backpack and then, just like that, they're gone. Another move. Another country. It'll be okay. They'll be okay. They have to be okay.

Their footsteps are silent and their motions seamless before Bucky unlocks their apartment door. Svet is quick to move down the small entryway, ready to pick up her book when her feet suddenly skate to a stop. Bucky immediately steps beside her, grabbing tight to her hand and pulling her slightly behind him. Neither of them speak. Neither of them move. Neither of them breathe.

They just stare at the broad-shouldered man that stands on the other side of their apartment.

The man's head is bent low as he stands by their refrigerator and carefully slides a few of Svetlana's chocolate bars off of a small leatherbound journal. He slowly sifts through the pages of the thing, glancing over the pictures and the words carefully placed inside. The man speaks quietly to someone Bucky imagines must be at the other end of a communication link. The man's left arm is covered in an all too familiar red, white, and blue shield. Svet only knows of only one person on the entire earth who has such a thing.

Steve.

Svetlana's Steve.

As if just then feeling someone behind him, Steve suddenly straightens and sharply looks over his shoulder. The sight causes him slowly to turn around and stand with a slight offensiveness to his form. A man and a girl stand across the apartment, staring at the captain with contrasting expressions. The man looks reserved and nearly confused while the girl has an entirely different look to her eyes. Steve imagines Natasha must have had that specific look when she was a child; that expression of pure relief and of this innocent and childlike joy in a pair of crystal eyes.

The girl steps towards Steve lightly and somewhat suddenly, but the man quickly catches the sleeve of her jacket and gently pulls her to be somewhat behind him once more. The man lets out a quiet breath, his shoulders slightly hunched and his expression so guarded. The girl looks up at her father quickly, but she doesn't do anything to argue against him. The man's ocean eyes don't ever trail from the captain, watching his every movement with dark uneasiness.

"You know me?" The question is so simple and yet it holds so much weight.

Bucky takes a few moments to respond while he just stares at him, "You're Steve."

Svet allows a small smile to break onto her cautious exterior, speaking to the man she hasn't seen in over two years, "Hi Mr. Soldier."

The captain's gaze shifts down to the fifteen year old and he gives a brief smile back, "Hey Kid."

"I read about you in a museum." With his chin, Bucky nods to the journal still held in Steve's hand and repositions his body on his feet.

Steve seems to hear something in his ear before he carefully sets Bucky's journal down onto the counter.

"I know you're nervous, and you have plenty of reason to be."

The captain steps forward a little, nodding to the way he still stands in front of Svet. The fifteen year old glances between the two men cautiously, not exactly certain what to expect. Are they to remain friends? Is she to prepare herself for some kind of a fight? Bucky's just presses his lips into a tight line, not saying anything.

Steve's voice drops low and he shakes his head a bit, "But you're lying."

The other man doesn't acknowledge that, not yet willing to admit what he does or doesn't know.

"We weren't in Vienna. We don't do that anymore."

"They're not blaming her." Steve's eyes cut to Svetlana in demonstration, "Just you."

Svet's face twists into an odd sort of scowl. It's nearly as if she wants to be blamed. If her father is to be blamed for something unjustly, then she should be too.

"And the people who think you did are coming here now." His voice raises as he steps closer and closer, trying to get the man who used to be his best friend and his niece to understand, "And they're not planning on taking either of you alive."

The father and daughter don't truly seem too fazed about that fact.

"That's smart." Bucky concedes, thinking about all of the damage he could do if he was left alive, "Good strategy."

Bucky and Svet set into a strange sort of motion, adjusting their shoulders and repositioning their footing once more. It's the kind that promises that they really are preparing for a battle. Heavy feet suddenly pound on the roof, giving a warning that who was coming is already here. Bucky's eyes snap up and he goes completely still, counting just how many he should be expecting.

Following her father's eyes, Svet mutters in growing nervousness, "Papa..."

Bucky tilts his chin back at her, ready with words they both know are all just lies but he says them anyway for her sake, "Vse budet khorosho, Lana." It's going to be okay, Lana.

The girl's eyes widened and she runs her fingers through her red hair; her breathing picking up and her hands curling into fists once more.

"This doesn't have to end in a fight, Buck."

Bucky slowly steps off to the side, letting out a heavy breath. Svet walks closer to him, resting her small hand on his arm in hopes of getting his attention. The man forces himself to look at his daughter who peers at him with eyes full of dread.

Still staring at her, he raspily breathes out with layers upon layers of guilt in his voice, "It always ends in a fight."

The girl doesn't try to convince him otherwise. Svetlana knows he's right. So, her jaw sets and her head nods in understanding, promising she's with him. The voice continues to warn in Steve's ear and he hurriedly looks to the newspaper-covered windows.

He grows more panicked and harsh, wanting to stop this before it starts, "You pulled me from the river! Why?"

Bucky looks almost tired as he slowly pulls off his black glove and raises up his metal hand.

He sighs, rolling his eyes back up to the captain, "I don't know."

"Yes, you do."

The three people within the small apartment say nothing as an eerie silence builds over them and then shatters like a glass wall. Steve suddenly looks over to the window where a small cylinder flies in through the curtains. The man just barely bounces the flashbang back before another is sent in through the opposite window, landing directly at Bucky and Svet's feet. The father's eyes narrow before he kicks the thin across the floor and Steve covers the bang with his shield. Bucky quickly yanks up the mattress and reaches out for Svetlana to slide behind him as another blast is thrown in.

While her father throws their table to barricade the door, Svet cautiously backs away only for two large men in tactical gear to burst through their windows. As the man closest lands before her, Svet smacks aside the barrel of his gun and kicks hard onto the side of his knee. The man yells before Bucky briefly silences him with a hard punch across the face and a toss across the room.

Their other attacker directs his gun at them, but Steve quickly yanks the rug out from underneath him and a spray of bullets penetrate the ceiling. The door in the kitchen is thrown open and still another soldier launches in with a gun in hand. Steve pushes the soldier's weapon up only for Bucky to grunt when he kicks the man back out onto the balcony.

The captain snatches onto Bucky's arm, yelling, "Buck, stop!" Even when the other man twists away, Steve still warns, "You're gonna kill someone."

Without a word, Bucky suddenly slams Steve to the ground and smashes his fist down. Steve barely dodges the punch, his eyes widening as Bucky has his hand dug into the wooden floor.

"I'm not gonna kill anyone."

Bucky yanks their black backpack from underneath the floorboards and then tosses it across the balcony, making the pack crash down onto the opposite building. Standing nearby, Svet's fists clench at her sides and she bounces on her toes while she stares at the crumbling wooden door. Her eyes widen when another soldier leaps through the window and begins firing at them. She doesn't even have to think when she twirls back and is immediately covered by her father's metal arm and then by Steve's shield. When a shooter appears in the window, Bucky grits his teeth and gives Steve a hard shove in that direction. The captain's body takes down the attacker, surely, but Steve also goes flying through the window.

Svet looks at her father sharply, "Papa!"

He pays her no mind as he raises his metal hand to block an oncoming fire of bullets. Svet sprints forward into one of the other soldiers that stands nearby, lifting her knee and making him crash into the wall. The two struggle over the gun for a long moment before Bucky suddenly turns around and smashes the soldier's chest with a cinder block, making him fly back into the closet.

"Exit Plan B, then?" Svetlana asks breathlessly, holding onto her aching chest.

Bucky doesn't reply to her words, only saying, "Stay behind me."

Her father begins to clear her path down the stairwell, brutally taking down soldier after soldier. Svet slides down the staircase after him, panickedly ducking when she sees flashes of light sent her direction from a soldier roping down from the glass ceiling. With a dark scowl, she snatches onto the barrel of his gun, yanks him closer, and then wraps her legs around his neck. The two go flying down past her father before they crash hard into the cement wall.

As Bucky fights his way down to her, Svet drops back to her feet before knocking the man's head into the wall once more. With a yell, she launches her fist into a glass panel on the wall and blood smears up her arm as she snatches onto the firehydrant. The fifteen year old then proceeds to smash the metal thing into whoever comes close. Steve runs out of the apartment, looking down at the two as they continue to make their way out. After harshly shoving one down to the stairwell a floor below, Svetlana's eyes worriedly shoot back up to her father as he still fights his way above.

His eyes meet hers and he gives a quick head shake, yelling, "Don't stop! I'll catch up!"

"You promise?!" She shouts before she's grabbed around the shoulders and slammed into the wall.

Bucky throws a man down the staircase and then punches another deep into the wall, "I promise, Svetka! Go!"

More and more soldiers begin to sprint up the staircase as the three continue to battle down. Steve leaps down the layers of staircases to catch up with Bucky as he fights three at a time, accidentally throwing one over the railing as another wraps their arms around his neck. The captain barely catches hold of the falling soldier, grunting and sighing in disbelief.

He just tiredly shakes his head and breathes out to Bucky, "Come on, Man."

As if to just irritate him, Bucky stares into his eyes and clenches his teeth as he throws his elbow back into his opponent's face. He runs a few steps down before he yanks the metal railing free and then swings the thing down to the floor where Svet is battling another soldier. He kicks the man through another door as Svet races forward to break through the ones that keep coming. The fighting doesn't pause again until a red, white, and blue shield suddenly snaps in at just the right moment, saving Bucky a chestful of bullets. The father and daughter look up at the captain with wide eyes before Bucky wraps his flesh arm around Svet's waist and throws the both of them off of the stairwell.

They drop story after story until Bucky finally throws out his metal hand and catches hold of the railing. In pain, he yells at the pull between where his metal and flesh connect. The metal of the railing bends to accommodate their weight before Svet curls her legs up over it and helps Bucky follow up after her. As they get to the next step of the plan, Svet's breathing tightens and she bounces on her toes a little.

After breaking down the door, Bucky quickly picks the girl up and stares out at the white sky, "Do you trust me?"

"You know I do." Svet gives him a flat and wary smile before looking over the ledge and cringing slightly, "Only... please, don't drop me."

"I'll do my best."

Svetlana looks up at him with wide eyes, but she doesn't have time to scold him. With a determined look on his face, Bucky takes a few running steps and then launches the two over the edge of the balcony. Svet can't stop herself from shrieking as they fly through the air, towards the building that lies just a little too far away.

As they drop closer to the concrete roof, Bucky thrusts her away from him before they both crash down hard on their backs and roll a good few feet. Bucky immediately curls up to his feet and grabs onto Svetlana's jacket, pulling her to her feet. As they begin to sprint to the other side of the roof, Svet swoops low to catch onto their backpack.

But then a shadow appears above their own and Bucky just catches sight of it before he tries to raise a hand over Svet's head. The girl grunts as the two are kicked forward, crashing down onto the cement roof once more. Bucky immediately rolls up as Svet breathlessly stays lying on her side. Her blue eyes widen when their black suited attacker slowly curves his body around and then shoots claws out of his fingertips.

"Bozhe moi." Svetlana breathes out. My God.

Bucky bares his teeth as he steps forward towards the cat-like man who immediately and forcefully kicks him back. The assassin stumbles back and quickly tries to swing at his head and misses before having to block numerous other attacks. The two men continue to struggle back and forth until the cat-like man spins around, kicking Bucky across the face and then kneeing him in the chest.

As her father goes lying back into a metal vent, Svetlana yanks one of their kitchen knives from their backpack and leaps onto the man's back. With all her might, the fifteen year old yells and stabs the knife into the man's shoulder. Her eyes widen in horror, however, the the blade simply bends and then the cat-like man throws her off of him. The man then thrusts his claws into the vents as Bucky panickedly slides away, trying to make his way back to Svet before he gets slashed across the back.

Svetlana lets out a cry of protest as Bucky yells in pain and turns back around to dodge another slash and then flip the man over his head. Bucky's lies on his back and the man stands over him, readying his claws before Svet snatches onto a nearby metal pole and whacks the thing across his head as hard as she can. All that occurs is a very loud clang that the girl can't even hear. Her shoulders droop and she lets out a discouraged sigh just as the cat-like man kicks her squarely in the chest, making her drop the pole and fall. Her father, in turn, hurriedly picks up the rusted thing and uses it to block the oncoming blow.

Still in the apartment building, Steve runs to the edge of the balcony and peers down to where a collection of three are fighting. A man with wings cuts through the pale sky and the captain backpedals a few steps, preparing himself for the jump.

"Sam, southwest rooftop."

"Who the heck's the other guy?!" Sam demands, sounding irritated.

"About to find out." Steve then launches himself from the balcony.

The pole suddenly breaks and Bucky catches the man's hard hands, trying to keep the claws from stabbing into his face. A black helicopter swings into view and Svet yells a warning, diving for cover as bullets begins to fly. The cat-like man only turns around and stares up at the helicopter, the bullets bouncing off of him as if they were nothing.

Sam and Steve continue doing their best to keep all others off of the father and daughter's tail, allowing them time to kick the cat-man away and then run to the edge of the roof. They gracefully jump down the edge of the building, only glancing up to see if the cat-man follows. And he does; his claws scraping against the side of the building as he slides down. The girl only groans before Bucky jumps them down the rest of the way, taking the brunt of the landing and then setting her back to her feet for her to run. The cat-man immediately follows and then Steve does too, a panicked line forming as one runs after another. As the helicopter continues shooting and the men continue following, Svetlana rasps for breath and clings tightly to where her lungs sit.

"Keep running, you're doing good!" Bucky encourages as he shields her head from the oncoming spray of bullets, "Don't look back!"

The father and daughter reach one last ledge and this is where they part ways.

Not intentionally.

No, no, they make the jump together.

But only one of them makes the landing.

♛♕♛

A being dressed entirely in matted black cuts through the air, harshly throwing her sharp arms around the fifteen year old Barnes child and catching her before she can run any farther. The young murderer shouts in a panic and her father looks quickly up in horror as the being's razor-blade like wings curl up the woman's black-covered back and arms and curves them up from the tunnel.

The other being dressed in black leaps down into the tunnel, forcing the Winter Soldier to sprint on as his daughter is yanked out of view. The being with razor metal wings says nothing as she blasts them through the cold air. The Barnes child shrieks while they fly over the streets and the panicked cars, throwing her legs and twisting her back in hopes of being let free. When the girl throws back a hard elbow that catches the being's chin, she only briefly twitches before her rounded black lenses set into her lifeless black mask narrow in anger.

The being suddenly twists and then the two go spiraling over and over and over, severing through the air like a knife. Svetlana Barnes screams in dizziness, sealing her eyes closed as the being pushes faster and harder. The being then snaps her own arms in, curling them around Svetlana's neck in an attempt to seal her away into unconsciousness. The child assassin struggles against the stronger being's hold, gasping as they sweep over the open tunnel. The child suddenly launches her feet back and crashes her booted feet into the being's mask, splitting the thing up the center and throwing her far away.

Svetlana is dropped down to the concrete road amongst the cars and sirens; her body hitting the ground hard. Still in the end, the being shouts while her body flies back and crashes into another black form that is racing after the motorcycle that zooms past them. The two bodies entangle wildly and they angrily shove at each other, trying to be freed while they continue to race after their targets. Steve and Sam quickly pursue the others, trying to stop the beings and the surrounding police. Svetlana is still trying to push herself up and grasp her bearings when suddenly a metal arm wraps around her waist and then she's being yanked through the air once more.

"Are you alright?!" Bucky yells back, trying to get her onto the backseat of the motorcycle he has apparently commandeered.

Her arms hurriedly wrap around her father's chest, shouting back over the sound she can't hear, "I will be much more better when we're not here!"

"Just hold on!"

Red and blue sirens flash all around them as the motorcycle careens from side to the side, cutting through the racing cars and away from all those who follow behind. The beings in black are still entangled as the man prepares himself against her form. The woman hisses and then shouts when the man leaps off of her.

As he stretches his claws out for the assassins, Bucky throws a hand back and catches the man tightly around the throat. He chokes and gags before throwing his feet out onto the wall and then forcing the bike onto its side. Svetlana shrieks and pulls herself away from the ground. As Bucky throws out his hand, the man climbs up the back of the motorcycle once more, but he doesn't get the chance to strike.

"Get off!" Svetlana shouts, throwing her foot back and kicking the man from the back of their motorcycle and onto his feet.

As the woman in black flies closer, she scoffs and angrily shakes her head as the man lies in wait of her. As he jumps off a car, the woman smirks ducks out of his reach, forcing him to fly over her head and, in turn, latch onto Sam Wilson and his set of wings instead. The woman swoops by the side of Steve's car and shoots at his tire, trying to make the man slow so she can get her chance.

So she can finally get her chance.

It doesn't go as planned though. Nothing ever goes as planned because, suddenly, Bucky tosses up a rounded explosive that latches onto the overhang above her. Cement and tiles shoot in every direction, making the woman flip out of control and watch as her opponent in black flies past her. He doesn't fully reach the father and daughter still driving the motorcycle, but he gets far enough to slash their tires and soon the two assassins are tumbling onto the road.

The two beings in black land down onto the ground, but the woman is faster than the man at the moment. In cut and brisk movements, she races towards the murderer and slides to a stop over his fallen form. She has her chance. She has to take it. She's got to take it and then something sharp and red flashes within her brain, startling her so much that she nearly forgets her purpose there.

It was 7:01 p.m.

"Help my granddaughter a-and my wife. Please. Help."

With a sharp gasp and her eyes squeezed shut, the woman raises her glowing hand towards his face. The man in black suddenly sprints up and gives the woman a hard kick in the side, making her fly off. She bares her teeth in fury, spinning her body around and glaring darkly across her forehead. The man in the cat-like armor raises his claws towards the Winter Soldier before he too is tackled and thrown away.

All those on the ground eagerly leap up, breathing heavily as they glare darkly at one another. Bucky keeps his shoulder slightly in front of his daughter, but this won't keep her safe from the enemies that are spilling in from all sides. Steve has this arms spread out, trying to keep a peace between his best friend and neice and the unknowns standing across from him. The woman in black, however, has no intention of keeping the peace when she steps forward.

She's absolutely ready to finish her mission when suddenly a man in black and gray metal suit plummets down onto the road in front of her, making a loud thud as he does. The woman immediately comes to a stop and the man raises his thrusters at the two groups. Black SUVS pull up on all sides of them as men in black uniforms raise their weapons, training their barrels upon their heads.

"Stand down, now!" Rhodey's gun trains on all of them.

Neither Bucky nor Svet move, breathing heavily as they refuse to take their eyes from the beings in black. Steve clamps his shield back to his back, straightening from his defensive posture while the unknown man looks around to find he's trapped.

Rhodey then looks sharply over at the two people wearing the black armor, "Take off the masks!"

The woman stiffens and hesitates for just a moment before she angrily yanks off her now split mask. The brown hair of none other than Lisa Stark falls to her shoulders and her blue eyes hold nothing but bitterness. Rhodey and Steve's eyes widen in shock and confusion while Svetlana's eyes only squint slightly, remembering having seen the young woman so many years ago in Washington. Lisa says nothing in defense of explanation, only clenching her fists in anger of having failed.

"Congratulations, Lees and Cap." Rhodey sounds so bitterly disappointed in them as he spits, "You're both criminals."

Lisa grits down hard onto her teeth, her eyes slicing from her uncle and then over to the still unknown man that stands beside her.

The soldiers converge on them all, yelling orders in German as they move to force their hands behind their backs. Svet looks over at her father with wide and terrified eyes as they come closer. The first one that touches her receives a hard backhand across the face and the men shout louder, raising their weapons to point directly at Bucky's head.

"Buck." Steve drops his voice, "This is the only way out of this one."

Bucky tightens his jaw and Svet closes her eyes, giving a soft nod of understanding. The father and daughter are thrown down to the ground and metal handcuffs are locked around the girl's skinny and pale wrists.

Lisa blinks and looks away as her own hands are torn behind her back and handcuffed. Her gaze lifts back up to the unknown man as he moves carefully. His hands rest at the bottom of his mask and then slowly he pulls it from around his face.

The face behind the mask makes Lisa Stark catch her breath and shudder back a little.

It had to be him.

Of course, it had to be him.

T'Challa, the prince of Wakanda.

AHHH! And now they've been arrested and they were so cute and happy and ugh! But hey! Did you like that Natasha introspection in the first half of the chapter? She just needs her people back okay? And next chapter, oh boy oh boy, [enter Zemo]. Yikes! By the way, I hope you approved of the tunnel scene. It was not at all easy to write, but I hope it pulled it off well. I really enjoyed writing some of these scenes and I hope you enjoyed reading it! It's late here and I need to sleep, but please do comment!

Go check out the corresponding chapter of Poison and Wine - Chapter Seventeen: The Path to Remembrance!

Funny Thingamabob:

Legit though