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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟔
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐃𝐈𝐄𝐑

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Three days had passed since Charlie walked out of the Avenger's discussion on the Sokovia Accords. It was the day that those who decided to sign would be going to Vienna. She didn't know exactly who decided to write their name down on the sheet of paper or how many made that choice. What she did know was that she received numerous messages from Natasha asking her to change her mind, all of which went ignored.

To try and keep her mind off of what was happening in the other country, Charlie sat with Alex on the couch and watched the first Star Wars movie. Over the last few months, the two girls would watch different movies and shows to make up for the things the younger girl missed during her time with HYDRA. An idea that Charlie stole from Sam, something the Wilson man would never know. Just as they made it to the pod racing scene, the Barton girl's phone started ringing. A silent sigh escaped through her nose as she pulled the device out of her back pocket to see a text from Steve telling her to turn on the news.

"This can't be good," Charlie muttered under her breath while Alex sent her a confused look before she paused the movie and did what his message told her to do.

"A bomb hidden in a news van ripped through the UN building in Vienna. More than seventy people have been injured. At least twelve are dead, including Wakanda's King T'Chaka. Officials released a video of a suspect who they have identified as James Buchanan Barnes, the Winter Soldier."

"Sh*t," Charlie mumbled as she stared at the blurry picture of Steve's best friend before her attention turned back to her phone. The Barton girl quickly left the Rogers man's message and dialed Natasha's number. She listened to it ring a few times then she was greeted by the woman's voicemail. Panic began to flow through the blonde girl's veins as she hit Steve's number.

"Have you heard from Nat?" the archer asked as soon as the Man Out of Time picked up the phone.

"She's fine. I just got off the phone with her," he responded while Charlie sensed the hesitation radiating off the man through the phone before he continued speaking, "but I could really use your help on this one."

"Steve-"

"Please, Charlie. Half the team has already signed the Accords...and I know that you know there's more to him than most people think."

The Barton girl didn't respond right away as she thought back to their conversation in the Quinjet after her first mission with the Avengers. Her eyes went back to the news when it showed a replay of what happened not even an hour ago. After staring at the blurry picture of Bucky Barnes for a moment longer, Charlie turned her attention to the girl sitting next to her. Pietro wouldn't want her hiding from who she was. That was why he led her to Alex. To remind her that people need her.

"I need to take care of something first," Charlie told the Man Out of Time while she kept her eyes on the Easton girl, "just let me know where I should meet you once everything is settled."

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After a long journey across several states, Charlie and Alex arrive at the Barton farmhouse. The two of them grabbed their bags from their Uber before they made their way toward the house. Once they reached the door, the archer brought her hand up to knock, only for the speedster to quickly pull it away. A wave of confusion washed over the Barton girl as she turned to look at the younger girl to find fear plastered on her face.

"Are you sure he'll let me stay here?" the Easton girl asked while keeping her hand tightly wrapped around the older girl's wrist, "can you even be sure we can trust him?"

"Of course, we can trust him. He's my dad," Charlie told her with a small smile before it slowly faded when she realized Alex never had the kind of relationship with her own father that she had with Clint, "I promise he'll keep you safe. Plus, Laura takes in just as many strays as I do."

Before Alex could stop her, Charlie knocked on the door. The two of them stared at the white wood as they waited for it to open. It didn't take long before the door swung open to reveal Clint standing there with a blank look on his face.

"Hey, Char," he greeted before he pulled his daughter in for a hug then he turned his attention to Alex after they ended their reunion, "this must be the girl you told me about."

Charlie watched her father study the Easton girl for a moment before he stepped aside to let them in. The two girls followed him through the empty house until they made it to the living room. While the girls sat down on the couch, the Barton man took the chair across from him with his eyes glancing over at the redhead every so often. "So...she's like Pietro?"

"Yeah," Charlie answered before letting out a long sigh and leaning forward on her knees in an attempt to get closer to Clint, "Steve called me. He needs my help with a mission. Alex hasn't decided what she wants to do but she knows that she doesn't want to sign the Accords yet. Is there any way she can stay here?"

"Are you sure you can trust her?" As soon as his words filled the air, the Barton girl looked over at Alex to study the look in her eyes...the fear in her eyes. She was just a kid that got forced into a life that she didn't want. When Charlie turned back to her father, she watched him stare at the girl next to her with a stone-cold look in his eyes. It quickly melted after he studied her for a moment longer and was replaced with one filled with sympathy when he saw the terrified look in Alex's eyes. "Okay. But if she steps out of line-"

"I won't," Alex told him, causing both of the archers to look over at her before she let out a small sigh, "I promise."

Clint sent her a nod in response before the two girls followed him upstairs and into Charlie's old bedroom. When Alex began unpacking her belongings, the Barton man grabbed his daughter's upper arm and pulled her out into the hall to be out of earshot of the young speedster. Charlie looked up at her father as soon as she got the courage to meet his gaze to find him staring back at her with a confused yet determined look in his eyes.

"You've had the same expression on your face the second you stepped into this house," Clint told her while he continued to study the uncertainty in his daughter's eyes, "what's going on in that head of yours?"

"Steve needs my help," Charlie responded then let out a quiet sigh to try and calm her nerves before she continued, "I just don't know if I'm ready for this. I don't even think I was ready the first time I fought with you and the Avengers."

The two of them stood there in silence as the Barton man just stared at the girl with no emotion on his face. After a moment that passed, Clint let out a long breath and placed his hands on his daughter's shoulders. "Remember that awesome speech I gave Wanda back in Sokovia? When we were in that building and she was scared out of her mind?"

"How could I forget? You bring it up all the time."

"I wasn't just talking to Wanda, Char. I was talking to you too. You stepped out that door, just like her. That means you're an Avenger now. You've been one since the first time you stepped into that tower. You've been ready. I believe in you, we all do. You just need to start believing in yourself."

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After getting Alex settled at the farmhouse, Charlie took another Uber to the airport before getting on a plane to meet up with Steve and Sam in Bucharest. Throughout her journey, the Barton girl was reading up on every file she could find on Bucky Barnes. She needed and wanted to know everything she possibly could about the man who may not know anything about who he truly was. The archer wanted to know exactly what she was up against.

As soon as she found the two heroes, the three of them immediately suited up and grabbed everything they'd need before heading out. Charlie was surprised at first to find out that the tip they were given on where the Winter Soldier was rumored to be staying came from Sharon Carter. But that was soon put to rest after Sam told her about the relationship she shared with Steve during their time in DC.

"What are the chances that he doesn't remember you?" the Barton girl asked the Man Out of Time as they made their way up the stairs of an old apartment building.

"I'd say 50-50."

"Great. Remind me not to come on a mission with you again until I know my odds of surviving."

"Would the odds have stopped you?" Steve questioned while glancing back at Charlie, who simply stared back at him before giving him a small shrug.

"Probably not."

After getting to the top floor of the building, the duo found the room Bucky was supposedly staying in before Charlie quickly picked the lock. As soon as she heard the clicking of the door opening, a small smile appeared on her face then she pushed the door open and they entered the room. It wasn't much but more than the Barton girl expected. In one corner was a small kitchen while a dirty mattress sat in the corner across from it. There wasn't much more than that other than a small dining table in the center of the room. As soon as they finished taking in our surroundings, the two of them began to look around the room for anything they could use to find the Barnes man.

After Sam warned them about the German authorities approaching, Charlie felt an arm snake its way around her neck before she was forced back into a body. The arm tightened around her just enough for her to breathe while keeping her from getting free. The Barton girl tried to keep herself composed as she looked up to find Bucky staring at Steve's back with no emotion on his face.

"Uh, Steve," the archer called out to the Man Out of Time as calmly as possible, causing him to finally turn around and see Charlie's current predicament.

"Do you know me?" the Rogers man asked as his eyes left Charlie's to meet his oldest friend's gaze.

"You're Steve. I read about you in a museum."

"They've set the perimeter," Sam told his allies, completely unaware of what was happening inside the apartment.

"I know you're nervous, and you have plenty of reasons to be," Steve said while Bucky's grip tightens around Charlie's neck, making it a bit difficult for her to breathe, "but you're lying."

"I wasn't in Vienna. I don't do that anymore."

"They're entering the building."

"Well, the people who think you did are coming here now," Steve stated as he took a few steps closer to Bucky while glancing between him and Charlie, "and they're not planning on taking you alive."

"That's smart. Good strategy," the Winter Soldier responded before loosening his hold around the blonde girl a bit, who used that as an opportunity to take a deep breath.

The two men paused their conversation while Charlie's entire body froze at the sound of footsteps above them before Sam's voice greeted them again. "They're on the roof. I'm compromised."

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

The Winter Soldier just stared at his friend for a long moment before he let go of Charlie. As she turned around to face the man, she caught the pain and confusion in his eyes. When that same look on Pietro's face flashed across her vision, she felt something twist in her gut.

"It always ends in a fight," Bucky sighed right as Sam gave them a five-second warning.

"You pulled me from the river. Why?" Steve questioned as the Barnes man took off his glove to reveal a small part of his vibranium arm.

"I don't know."

"Yes, you do."

After the friends had a staredown, Sam's panicked voice filled our ears. Bucky instantly grabbed Charlie's arm and pushed her away from the windows right as unknown objects flew into the room. Steve instantly used his shield to knock one out of the way before it exploded against the fridge while the Winter Soldier kicked one in Captain America's direction. The Man Out of Time didn't hesitate to use his shield to cover the explosion while Charlie watched everything take place with a slightly panicked look on her face.

The next thing she knew, Bucky used the mattress to shield the two of them from another blast that came through the window. A loud banging on the door filled the room as the Barnes man tossed his bed aside before kicking a table into the door to make it harder for them to open. The sound of glass shattering mixed with the banging as officers flew through the windows. Charlie managed to knock one of them out while the two super soldiers took out more as they came into the apartment. Once the Barton girl finished her task, she looked behind her to see Bucky standing over Steve. Fear filled her body as she watched the Winter Soldier bring his fist down to make a hole in the floor to pull out a backpack.

While the two men went out into the hall to fight more of the guards entering the building, Charlie continued to fight the ones left in the room until none were left standing. The first thing she saw when she walked out into the hall was a man on the floor calling for backup. Before he could finish, the Barton girl knocked the walkie-talkie out of his hand and threw it against the wall as hard as she could. Her eyes stayed glued to the shattered pieces for a moment before she looked down the stairwell to see Steve save a man from almost falling over the railing.

She felt someone grab her arm just as she was about to run down to help the Man Out of Time. The Barton girl instantly turned to strike whoever it was, only for her to freeze when she met Bucky's gaze. They just stared at each other for a moment before the Winter Soldier forced Charlie to follow him through another hall after kicking down a door. He then picked up the unwilling girl and ran towards the balcony despite her protests. The next thing she knew, the super-soldier leaped off of the balcony with her in his arms before they land on the building next door.

"Never do that again," Charlie said with her arms still gripped around the man's neck before she caught a ghost of a smile flash across his face.

Bucky set her back on her feet but didn't give the Barton girl a chance to gain her balance. The Winter Soldier instantly grabbed her wrist once again and continued to pull her across the rooftop with him. They didn't get very far because of a man in a black catsuit appearing out of nowhere and knocking the two to the floor. When Charlie got to her feet once again, she found the newcomer and Bucky fighting like it was a fight to the death, which it probably was by how determined the stranger was at attacking the Barnes man.

"Everyone wants to be a hero now," the archer sighed as she loaded her bow and aimed at the man in the catsuit.

To her dismay, instead of releasing the arrow when she found her target, Charlie's arms began to shake before the arrow fell out of her hands and landed at her feet. The beginning of the panic attack soon faded and her body filled with adrenaline when the newcomer sprinted at her. The Barton girl quickly managed to dodge most of his attacks and was keeping up with his rapid movements. That was until he landed one punch.

The force of his hit caused Charlie to slam into one of the air vents on the roof with her head taking most of the impact. The last thing she saw before the darkness took over was the blurry face of the Winter Soldier.

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