I’m not a political blog- nor do I intend to be but whoever doesn’t support a woman’s right to control her own body- a trans man’s right to control his own body, a nonbinary person’s right to control their own body, get the fuck off my blog. I’m not a political blog nor do I intend to be but for those of you who don’t understand roe v Wade please you can come to me and I will do my best to give you resources so you can get educated. This is a trying time for all people assigned female at birth and we need to support each other as best as possible. I love you guys and i’m trying to stay as educated as possible. Please if anyone needs anything, reach out.

I love you guys and good night.

Hey guys! Shey here! I had a question for the community!

I’m really REALLY short on money- and I like to think that i’m a pretty talented writer. So I was wondering if anyone would be wanting to commission perhaps a letter from their comfort character or a fan fiction! I’ve been roleplaying for YEARS so i’m pretty adaptable when it comes to characters and I’m willing to write anything and everything. If you need a motivation, if you need a little brightness. I’m definitely willing to do it.

Let me know if you guys are interested or if you have any questions because this is something that I love to do and I feel like it’ll bring in some money too. I can write ships, letters, fanfics, babes I don’t care! Slide into my messages if this is something that interests you at all and then we can talk pricing and stuff together! I’m really excited to start all of this!

Thanks!

List of Fandoms I write for:

AOT

Harry Potter

Percy Jackson

Lady Bug and Cat Noir

Anything Disney (princesses + Luca, Turning Red, Big Hero 6 literally anything Disney)

Star Wars

Marvel

Criminal Minds

Ouran High School Host Club

Fruits Basket

Yuri on Ice

MHA

Lore Olympus

DC

Sherlock BBC

And many many more!! Just send me a message and we can talk everything out!!

Mystery Of Bucharest

( @swordfiles - CLOSED RP )

“Oh come on, you’re kidding me…” Helena muttered under her breath with her microphone muted during a meeting with some fellow S.H.I.E.L.D agents and their boss, Nick Fury. Her slender fingers drummed against her desk, trying to disguise the obvious look of disappointment in her face; The crease in her forehead, the slightly raised eyebrows, the look in her eyes that sent daggers flying through the air if eyes and looks could kill. 

Looking at the calendar - or rather plan of sorts - set out in front of her on the screen, she wanted to roll her eyes. The meeting was dragging on for all of the solo agents it seemed, and it was clear their upcoming months weren’t going to be that eventful. Now, that may sound wrong, since who the hell would want disasters or acts of terror to happen just to be able to do their job and have something to do? It wasn’t that, it was more that, well… Helena knew she’d have to resort to some very long-term technological work in that division for a while, ‘cause for once there were almost too many people on one job. Even after the last train wreck the world had been through with the UN attack and the whole Winter Soldier ordeal that seemed to be firing up in the media.

No way in hell could she just take a seat, lean back and work in another division for a little while. She liked keeping her pace, keeping her solo agent work. When her mind seemed to think back to the Winter Soldier ordeal, an idea popped up in her mind. And she knew she had to act on it. Both for her own sanity, for her job and maybe to try and one-up that one Captain Rogers who had been rumoured to be set on finding the soldier. 

So, by capturing loose thread and various leads, Helena was on a good track and found a lot of witness testimonies that had a connection; All to one place. And there she was on a street in Bucharest.

-

Getting used to a somewhat normal life as a civilian wasn’t exactly an easy task; At least not when having a past of basically being a killing robot used by a Nazi organisation. When trying to pick a place that was good enough to try and build up a foundation for a steady and anything else than abnormal life, there were many things to think of and many questions to ask. The where, what, why and when. Somewhere off grid, but not too obviously off-grid so it could be a place somewhere would look and try and find him. Somewhere with people, a few too many, so there were a few too many to be able to blend in with. Somewhere he wouldn’t easily be singled out as the odd man out. So, Bucky chose Bucharest.

Barnes’ days were spent trying to get his life somewhat together, even though things weren’t looking amazing just yet. Who was he kidding- Things were looking shitty, and that’s how it was. The dirty mattress on the floor that he’d found dumped at some dumpsite, the cramped kitchen and the foggy windows. He was living in a shit-hole. But it was his, and he didn’t exactly have any other bigger or better places to go. Besides, he’d been through worse. He’d seen worse. Lived worse.

Bucky did his usual morning routine of making sure every lock worked and making sure his stash of items that were left beneath some floorboards were still there, all stuffed in a backpack. In it were general supplies, but even maps of the sewers and escape routes; Just in case.

Locking the door to his apartment, he kept his face down, adjusting his cap as he walked down the narrow hall to the stairwell. He was so focused on making sure no one really could get a good look at him that he bumped into a stranger’s shoulder on accident. “Oh- I’m sorry, I didn’t see you-”

Helena double-checked that her gun was loaded- just in case, of course. Making sure there were enough rounds, the silencer was on, that it couldn’t be seen beneath her jacket. It was all one big routine and habit, a good one too when it came to her line of work and career choice.  She hadn’t always wanted to be an agent, it was a bit of a sudden thing for her. She couldn’t explain it, but after university and after getting her degrees, something had flipped. A switch had been nagged with in her head and mind, and suddenly she felt as if that was the right job for her. It took work - Hell, a lot of it - But she knew what she was fighting for; A better place for those people in the world who deserved it to be a better place.

Maybe coming from a family with a mother who was in an infamous criminal group that was involved in many illegal activities drove her even more to have that will to fight, that urge, that natural adrenaline that could keep her going, as long as she knew where her goal was. She and her mother were obviously different in many ways, their paths in life clearly being one big difference between the two. Despite that fact, they had some similarities too. Helena could remember her mum being a workaholic, back when she didn’t know exactly what her profession was. There was never a day she didn’t have tired bags under her eyes, never a day she didn’t leave early and come home late only to sleep and start the same routine again. Her daughter ended up the same way, but using this hardworking nature elsewhere and for something better, a better cause.

A small sigh escaped her lips as she tugged down at the sleeves of her brown jacket, adjusting the hems as she hopped out of a bus, making sure to pay in cash so no one could trace her back to that vehicle. Her eyes flickered to the many people roaming the street, the different faces- the unfamiliar faces. Helena had worked missions in many place, but she couldn’t quite recall a place that seemed similar to Bucharest. That city seemed to be its own thing, but it had that familiar taste to it anyway. Like it wasn’t too hard to fade into the scene, which was exactly what she needed. Especially if she wanted to miss the attention of a certain Steve Rogers, who she knew most likely had gotten to the same leads she had. And once she spotted a familiar face in the sea of strangers, she knew she was in for it.

-

Days were always heavy in Bucharest, along with the foggy, polluted air. The city always stayed the same, never had that same spontaneous nature like New York or some other big city. It often felt like cities were alive in some way, but that area in Bucharest the ex-soldier found himself residing in felt barely alive. Rather it felt like a decaying place, half-ruins of buildings, tangled skylines, half-rotten trees, muggers and thieves waiting to strike at every market. But despite it all, he knew it was the place he had the biggest chance of even having a chance. A chance to just be a bit normal. Or act like it at least. The sky always seemed to be so damn dreary in that city Bucky now called home- Or rather had to call home.

Though he thought escaping and getting a small apartment would ease himself a little, the nightmares never stopped. The repeated images of bloody scenes with his bloody hands never left his mind. No matter what he tried, he couldn’t run away from those shitty nightmares. Hell, he was barely getting any sleep due to it, due to being afraid of shutting his eyes for just one moment. His super-soldier enhancements did help him with not having to sleep as much as the usual human being was required to, but it was getting to the point where it was unhealthy- Even for him.  Bucky often felt like just giving up at times, giving himself up to the world. Letting them have their fun, just so he could let go. He often pondered about if the world - or anyone at all - would be able to forgive him. Though a glimmer of hope sometimes did want to shine through, he only let himself be enveloped deeper into his own darkness.

As his shoulder collided with the stranger’s, he instinctively took a light hold of their arm, making sure the person didn’t fall or lose their balance. When Bucky looked up to see their face - her face - he felt like all thoughts in his head were put on hold. His bottom lip trembled a bit for a moment, there was something about her that was so familiar, just on the tip of his tongue. Her voice, her name- Was he imagining things?  He had to shake himself out of the trance. “Uhh, I’m James- Most people call me Bucky though.” He reached to shake her hand with his gloved one, and it seemed like his mind was just loading, recalling whatever the hell it was trying to recall.

Steve knew exactly what he was doing. He was tracking down his best friend. He couldn’t let a rogue SHIELD agent get involved. So that’s what he was going to get rid of first.

Not in the sinister way of course. He was would just deter her from stealing this from him again. He couldn’t lose Bucky. Not again. He wouldn’t let himself go through this again. He knew that his heart couldn’t stand it. He knew that things weren’t the most peaceful. It couldn’t be all rainbows and butterflies. It was just reality and reality wasn’t all happy. It was his strange reality that he couldn’t seem to escape.

Sometimes he found himself wondering if it was worth it to get close to people when all that happened was loss, hidden tears and pain. Sometimes he found himself thinking- day dreaming about a simpler life. A life where there was no pain or suffering. A life where he could live in peace. Or maybe no life at all. He stood in a difficult position- a position he never thought he would be in. He never really thought that he would lose his best friend, the love of his life AND get frozen- then wake up- lose the love of his life again- and realize that his best friend had been frozen too and was alive. There were a lot of things in his life that he didn’t quite understand, but standing in Bucharest, he couldn’t help but understand a bit better.

He needed to get to Helena though. He recognized her from a mile away. He could’ve anyway- he knew all the agents of SHIELD- rogue or other wise- and he just wanted to do all of this in peace.

“Agent.” He approached the young woman slowly with his shield in his hand, slightly dropped by his side but ready in hand just in case things went sideways. “It looks like we both followed the same trail.”

-

Carman was in Bucharest because it was genuinely quiet. She didn’t want to know about what was going on. If the avengers were off destroying whatever it was that they were destroying- she wasn’t going to be their clean up crew anymore. She was tired of living in fear and responsibility. She was disgusted by herself and letting herself get to that point. She was gloomy. Awfully gloomy.

She knew exactly who he was. Those bright eyes of his and dark hair… she couldn’t miss him for the world and there was just something about his soul that screamed pain. Something about his soul that was broken, battered and torn. As a deity, she was taught to recognize broken souls… but she could tell by the simple pain in his eyes and the fact that he was alive meant that he must’ve gone through a lot. She thought that he was dead- but she needed to take it slow. Maybe it wasn’t him- maybe it was a doppelgänger- maybe it was someone who looked incredibly like him-

Ok that wasn’t likely. Especially now that he had said his name. “Bucky.” She repeated his name gently under her breath as she thought for a moment. She wondered genuinely if she should tell him who she actually was… that she knew him. That she had adored him in a time before.

But she decided against him and instead she smiled ever so slightly. “Its nice to finally meet my neighbor.” She felt stupid. She felt like everything that she had put into her heart was… gone. Because he hadn’t recognized her name, her heart shattered once more.

It wasn’t his fault. Or at least that’s what she was telling herself. She didn’t look the same as she was so many years ago. But she had the same name. She had the same name as she did so many years ago… so many lives ago and she wondered if he would remember her eventually.

Maybe he would. There was a bit of hope in usually stoic expression. It wasn’t something that happened often… just ask Steve and he would know.

“I have lived here for a while. I’ve never seen you around.”

Making sure the green bag slung over her shoulder wasn’t slipping off, Helena grabbed ahold of it as she manouvered herself away from the bus and into Bucharest’s crowd of a population. She tugged down at her beige cap, eyes focused on her target, which was a specific apartment complex. And even better a specific number. She was lucky to grab ahold of the lead that led her there, and the lead did seem quite trustworthy based on the information she’d gathered. And it made her job a lot easier when having just one flat to focus on- For then she wouldn’t risk making a scene. Or at least not a as huge of a scene. Not yet.

When spotting Steve and that goddamn stripey and spangled shield, Helena knew it would be tough making an escape from his attention. After all, they were both agents, trained to get a mission done. With as little interference from others as possible. And she doubted it would be easy to get to the soldier before the Captain. It added just another fight to her mission, though she doubted it would end in a physical altercation. Or at least she didn’t hope so.

They both technically worked for the same people, but now with the Sokovia Accords seeming to split everyone apart, it felt as if there was no big team of people anymore. Not much information had been given about the accords just yet - or more specifically what was to happen with them - and it seemed a lot of people were feeling misplaced. Such as Helena. She didn’t know what to feel about the accords, but she knew that she still had a job to do, even if she’d gone a bit rogue with it. Someone had to track Barnes down, especially if a specific someone else was going to try and take him before he could face an interrogation for what happened at the UN meeting. She had to admit, something about the attack seemed… off, off in another way. But she didn’t quite know how to place it.

Helena found herself at a more hidden entrance to the flat building, about to head in, when a voice from behind her interrupted her. With a quirked eyebrow, she turned around swiftly and placed her hands in her innerpocket where her gun was. Just in case. “Captain. Not a surprise to see you here.” She admitted. “And it seems the trail has gotten too thin for the both of us to be on it, huh?”

-

It annoyed him. It bugged him. It went at him for what felt like an eternity, when in reality it was simply a few, mere moments. Why couldn’t Bucky place what it was about his neighbor that made something in his head tingle? He was an efficient agent, a trained soldier, a former robot who had been built to handle all tasks possible with an impeccable memory. Yet his neighbor was the one to make him scratch the back of his neck as he could only dwell.

There was just something about her. Something in the look of her eyes. Something about her voice and the way she spoke. Her name. Carman. That’s when it clicked for him, though he knew it wasn’t supposed to click. That name connected to a certain Carman he knew- Who he used to know. Someone who had held such a large meaning to him, someone he held so dear, someone he genuinely let in and cared about… But that person was long gone. Or supposed to be long gone at least. His mind seemed to set him back to a string of memories including his Carman from his past. And people had the same names, it was just a weird coincidence. A coincidence that made him yearn for those days before everything.

Bucky often thought back to the time where he didn’t have as much to worry about; Which was quite funny, since back then he felt like it couldn’t really get worse than that. The drenches, the fights, the hurting. He never knew it could get worse than that. But there he was, after everything. Still somewhat in one piece.

He felt guilty. He felt guilty for having this neighbor have to watch his hands tremble a bit at his sides, which they rarely ever did. Watch him as he obviously had an expression of blankness, not knowing what to say or think. Life was weird. Bucky knew that much. Could it be? Could it be her?

“I was just about to say that too- Don’t feel like I’ve seen you before either.” Bucky chuckled a bit sheepishly, trying to shake away that strong deja vu. “I moved her not too long ago, so wouldn’t be weird if I haven’t bumped into everyone around here.”

He was captain America. He was pretty much unstoppable and having Bucky by his side would definitely help with all of the pain that he had gone through. He knew that he needed to get Bucky back… he needed to get his damn best friend back because he genuinely didn’t know if he could do anything without that man knowing that he was alive and kind of well. He didn’t know much, but what he did know was that he didn’t want SHIELD or the government getting ahold of him.

He didn’t want Bucky to get hurt again and he would do absolutely everything in his power to keep that from happening. He was genuine when he was thinking about that. There wasn’t a day that went by that Bucky wasn’t on his mind. That man was always his best friend, before everything, after everything and now. They would forever be friends.

They’d be with each other til the end of the line. Steve would make sure of that.

He wouldn’t make it easy for Helena to get to Bucky. In fact, if she even tried, he would definitely make her time of trying a living hell even if that meant that he was a fugitive of justice. After all… he was a fugitive of justice more than once before. He wasn’t afraid of the government. He wasn’t afraid of SHIELD or Nick Fury. He wasn’t scared.

He was determined to get his goddamn friend back. And he wasn’t going to lose his best friend again. Not til the end of the line.

Here was the issue. He was in the middle of the accords, in the middle of being an avenger, the middle of being America’s armor… and the middle of being the best friend that he always knew that he needed to be. He needed to be the guy that could help Bucky with everything that he had. Everything that he had left. He needed to make sure that he preserved the things that he loved. He just couldn’t lose anyone else anymore.

“Its honestly not a surprise to see you here either,” he said softly as his dark blue eyes scanned the streets. “I think we’re here for the same thing aren’t we?” he said gruffly with a sigh.

-

There was a slight nod that came from her. In all honesty she was at a loss for words. She was speechless and her mind was truly blank. She wanted to tell him how much she missed him. Her heart broke more and more every single time she thought about him- every day that went by was a day that she thought of him. There was no night when she didn’t go to bed and think about her dear Bucky… when they would come out of the war… she would’ve told him she loved him. But during the war she didn’t want to burden him with emotions.

He didn’t come out of the war.

And every single day- every single night since then she was plagued by thoughts of him. She was plagued by the screams of the war and the many days that she would attempt to comfort Steve and have him crying on her shoulder… she was plagued by nightmares. Every day for centuries, the pain of losing him was genuinely the biggest pain that she had ever experienced in any of her lives. So now that he was standing right in front of her… she wondered what she should do.

Should she tell him all the things that had gone through her mind? Or should she continue to pretend as though she didn’t know him? She didn’t want to lose him again… she couldn’t lose him again.

“I don’t come out of my apartment a lot… its a bit strange but I prefer the comfort of my own floor than any other floor.” It was true. Although she had moved quite a long time ago, she had refused to get many pieces of furniture in case she would have to move again. She often would wake up on the floor when she did sleep on a bed anyway… so she didn’t really need much furniture or a bed- or a mattress for that matter. Her smile was slight, a bit awkward as she looked back at him. “It was nice meeting you.”

There was a pause. She was considering holing herself back into her apartment before she would pack up her things and go, not letting herself get attached again. But… she couldn’t. She couldn’t leave him. “Hey uh Bucky- did you want to get a cup of coffee or something?” She regretted it the minute she said it. She wanted to run and hide… but she couldn’t. Not now.

Helena knew when to meddle things and when not to. Most people did, by using their common sense, obviously. She was usually more careful with covering up her tracks and making sure she wouldn’t hit any problems along the way, but with this specific mission she knew that wasn’t going to be possible. To be honest, she knew she was a pain in the ass for Captain Rogers, but she was doing her job. 

Even if she’d gone a bit rogue about it.

And she didn’t want to be a pain in the ass. With everything going on with the UN, Wakanda’s murdered leader, the Winter Soldier, the Sokovia Accords, it seemed as if everything was walking into a path of chaos. Though the world always seemed to be chaotic, or at least always have a twinge of a sense of disorganisation, she knew things were starting to go really bad. It felt like the sense of justice was slowly decaying, and though details were fuzzy about a lot of things, she knew she had to do her job and do her best. That’s all she could do.

When Helena had realised S.H.I.E.L.D was simply letting German forces and polices get to Barnes instead, she was in no way going to have to trust them to do their job and just stand by as a member of an audience. It wasn’t that she didn’t have faith in those forces, but she knew it would be too noisy and too risky. She knew she could do it, making sure to have back-up with her. She did feel sympathy for Steve though, it was hard not to. From what she’d gathered, those two had been through quite a lot together. And though it was hard not to give into her sympathetic feelings, she knew she had to at least get the guy caught and interrogated. Give the government a chance of clearing things up.

But she would be lying if she said it wasn’t just a bit fun to piss Rogers off during the whole ordeal.

“Or rather, someone.” Helena retorted in a mild tone of voice, glancing down at the watch on her wrist. She knew she only had a certain amount of time before the GSF would get their hands dirty too, and that time had to be spent wisely. “Listen, I don’t want it to end up like this. But it’s work, I do what I do, you do what you do. And I’m guessing you’re going to want to stand in my way, so I’ll have to stand in yours.”

38 seconds ‘til she had to enter.

-

Thinking back to the war was never quite… pleasant. Though Bucky knew the friendships he’d gained with the Howling Commando’s had been a pro to all the many cons, there were still cons enough to outweigh any pros there ever could have been. Maybe the beginning war had actually been the easiest part- Since what had really messed him up was everything that occurred in between and after. 

The war itself gave him flashbacks enough. Blood-soaked uniforms, broken dog tags, disgusting drenches. It hurt enough to be there himself, but what was worse was when his best friend just had to get himself into it too. And though he knew they both were just men, trying to do something good for their country and offer their service, he still didn’t want Steve there.

War was a place where the friends you made were quickly lost in one way or the other, though death was by far the worst abductor. And no way in hell did he want to have to watch Steve sacrifice himself for the war, but it seemed like Bucky had been the one to get the tough, uneasy road when Hydra got to him and dug their claws into him.  Even more blood-soaked uniforms. Shattered name-tags that he had broken. The endless testing and brainwashing. It was all so much worse and so much harder to forget.

It seemed like the only thing that kept him going was the faint memories that at times came to him. As a fog and a haze, just barely there, always slipping through the gaps between his fingers when he tried to grasp it. And in that fog was Carman. Before his Hydra days he’d been planning to confess something important to her after he could return home from the war, tell her how much she truly meant to him. But any ideas of that were quickly ripped from him. In all senses, and he was just left to his haze and his confusion, though much more stuff was coming back to him.

Such as Steve. Such as Carman.

“No, no, I get it. I’m pretty much the same.” Bucky smiled a bit sheepishly and awkwardly, hoping he didn’t seem to out of it. It was as if his mind was constantly switching between memories he was recalling and the face in front of him, who, despite not matching the one in his blurred collection of moments, still had a twinge of familiarity to it. The name. The voice. He didn’t know what to make of it.

And she only seemed more distinct when she said his name. “Oh, uhh, sure. I’d like that.”

She was definitely being a pain to him in that moment and he kind of hated it. He wished that there would be some kind of path of least resistance- but there wasn’t. He knew that the special forces were going to move in soon, and he needed to get in there before they did so Bucky wouldn’t kill anyone accidentally. That wouldn’t look good for Bucky. That wouldn’t look good for any of them really. “You know that we want the same person- but for different reasons,” he said as he glanced over at the young woman with his dark blue eyes. “We can go in there together or go in there separately and make this much more complicated for the two of us.” It was genuinely upsetting that SHIELD had given orders to get through to Bucky. Or maybe they didn’t honestly at this point he had no idea what was going on. “But if we go in there separately you’re not going to get him.”

It wasn’t his pride talking. Its the fact that he knew Bucky and he had a feeling that things would go his way in that point of time. There was just something that told him that no matter what happened, Bucky would be okay. “The special forces are going to move in so either we do this together or you’re going to have to let this one go.” His tone was firm- serious. He wasnt going to play around with this one as he watched carefully. He had less than ten seconds. Less than ten seconds to make sure that Bucky was ok- alive and well. He had less than ten seconds to make sure the man had a warning or something- and he couldn’t think anymore.

He needed to act fast.

That was the thing about being a hero after all. It was something that he needed to learn. He needed to learn how to trust his instincts and he honestly learned that in the war. He learned that he needed to trust his gut- and right now his gut was telling him to wait for a response from the girl before doing anything else.

-

Carman could sense that there was something wrong. As a person who had lived through centuries of strife, war, pain… she learned that to escape her fears she would need to face them. To face them, she would need to be able to detect them. And to detect them she would need to be able to read the room. The room was not clear as of this moment and the way that she felt about it was unsettling. She cleared her throat slightly, looking around as a silence struck her and her body became rigid. “I might have to call a rain check on that coffee,” she said as she looked back at Bucky with a small smile. “I think we have company.”

She wanted to be as frank with him as possible without scaring him. She knew that he had been through quite a lot but she wanted to stick with him. She wanted to stick together with him because she couldn’t bare the idea of losing him again. She would protect him at all costs. If that meant having to get involved in this whole thing with the avengers, she would. She would trade up her life of peace for a life of chaos.

For him.

She took a gentle and slow breath. There was something about this all that was throwing her off. There was an energy inside the building- a threatening energy and it was one that she couldn’t shake away, one that followed her wherever she went… but this time it was different. She heard a creak come from a corner and her eyes widened slightly, her hands going up immediately, glowing a bright beautiful dark purple color. “I hope i’m not freaking you out- but you need to get behind me- or at least next to me.” The last time she had used her magic was… a while ago. She had used it on Bucky once to heal a gunshot would and made him vow not to tell anyone- and she had used it to reverse a building from falling- that kind of stuff really came in handy if she ever wanted to be the clean up crew again. She shifted her feet slightly feeling for any kind of vibration on the ground. “We got company and lots of them-“

Helena watched as in the distance she could see some vans and cars with a familiar corporation name painted in white on the blue vehicles. GSF. The special forces were most certainly going to take their chance before either on of the two could if they wasted more time. She did feel guilty for having to reel a person back to S.H.I.E.L.D, but that was the thing; She wanted to do it with as little harm done as possible. And though she knew it was only her job and she couldn’t meddle her own feelings or ethics, apart from her work ethics, into the mission, she still wanted to do it with a little of a mess as possible. With as few casualties at possible. Which was why she’d gone rogue instead of letting the German forces get to the ex-soldier first with that specific order of ‘shoot on sight’ and with no challenges other than the fight they automatically were up against.

And she knew Steve was right. They had a better chance as two parties instead of three. It was the only logical decision.

With a sigh, she glanced down at her watch once more, beckoning for him to follow her inside and move quickly up the stairwell. There was no working elevator, and stairs were the fastest option up anyway, and they really needed a fast option. “I don’t like admitting other people are right, but I’ll give you this one, Rogers.” Helena said, making sure to get her gun out of her holster and be more wary of her surroundings.

From what she understood, they were on the right floor, and she stood still as she saw none other than Barnes himself in the hallway with someone else. Someone else with some kind of non-human abilities, and that was certainly something she hadn’t expected for that mission. She’d - No, they’d - have to just go along with it and adjust. Compromise to their surroundings if they were going to get a chance at anything.

“You know him best. He’ll listen to you.”

Before Helena knew it, sounds of broken shards of glass could be heard coming from the bottom and top of the stairwell. Shit.

-

In the midst of a conversation, Bucky found himself off-guard. And shit was that a bad thing. After his past, after his thorough training, after all those missions and challenges, he knew not to ever stay off-guard. Especially not at a time like that, where he was a runaway criminal being searched for globally. His face was starting to get plastered every where along with sightings, he knew things wouldn’t stay quiet for long. He knew his short-lived serenity couldn’t last for long. Yet he’d been caught off-guard, and for a moment he wonder if his new acquaintance, Carman, was in on something.

Those thoughts were quickly wisked away as he saw her expression, clearly concerned as well by the change of atmosphere. Bucky seemed to close off once more, now only focused on what was going on around him. Footsteps could be heard from the rooftop as well as outside, those footsteps not trying to be concealed or quiet, unlike the ones he could just manage to catch from the stairwell. Just at his floor. Just near his flat.

He knew that meant one thing. Two groups were after him, most likely the authorities or government, and the other could belong to anyone else. He didn’t know, and to be frank, he didn’t want time to know. He had to get the hell out of there, no harm done. That was maybe the worst part; For he truly didn’t want to hurt anyone, he didn’t want any fights, he wanted to be left alone. But clearly it was too much to ask for, and wether there was sound reason for it or not, it was what he yearned for. Peace and quiet. Well, maybe not always. He wasn’t good at the whole peace and quiet thing.

And he knew one other thing. He didn’t want to drag Carman into this.

As Bucky looked towards her, his eyes widened at the sight of purple sparks grew from her palms, a strong glow emitting from them. He then realised it, realised what he hadn’t dared to even think earlier. It was her. Her. But he didn’t have much time to think much of it- Not yet. He’d have to get out of that mess first, then he could start talking. “God, why the hell does it always have to be a fight…” Barnes muttered, slipping of his glove as he looked down to his cold, metal hand. He didn’t want blood on it. Not again.

He recognized the GSF immediately. He wasn’t going to waste another second trying to contemplate any kind of plan. It was making him a bit nervous- after all he always had a plan- but then again he had no idea what the hell was going on. He was the man with the plan- he was the captain. He felt an added pressure though. This was more than just a mission- it was more than just some regular extraction or stopping of some villain. He needed to get his friend out of there alive and well, and he just hoped that he would genuinely be able to get his friend back into his life.

There was no hesitation when he followed her in. The GSF had already infiltrated the building, and he went inside, guns a blazing- or shield swinging. His shield was one of his prized possessions. It was something that he cared for so dearly- it was almost like Thor’s hammer... well it was exactly like Thor’s hammer. To him, his shield was his right hand- always with him and the thing that could protect him through anything and everything especially because of the vibranium that it was made by. He could throw it every now and again, but there was no way that he would ever lose it in his life. He didn’t plan on losing it any time soon anyway.

As he moved through the building, through the stairs there were people in military gear and guns. This would probably be a fight that he wouldn’t forget. A fight between him and the GSF to get his friend back. He was able to block gunshots and run in head first towards the loud sounds of the semi-automatic weapons and their wielders. He wasn’t afraid of anything at that point. His only fear was to lose his dear friend again. He knew that in all of the chaos, all of the fear... he would need to do his absolute best to protect both of the people- one person who was seemingly dragged into this, and the other person being that who he cared so deeply about. He heard a few screams which in turn scared him. He didn’t know if it was Bucky causing all of the pain- but he needed to get the ex soldier out of there before he accidentally killed someone.

If he killed someone it would make it much harder to plead his case. It would make it much more difficult to have everyone look at him as an innocent man. It was easy now because he had been brainwashed by HYDRA- he didn’t know what he was doing at that time. But now it was different and Steve knew the precautions that he needed to take.

As soon as he reached the top of the stairs he smiled ever so slightly, his boyish charm beginning to come out when he saw not just one but two of his friends.

“So this is where you’ve holed yourself up Carman-“

-

“Things don’t always end up in a fight- you just need to know when to pick your battles.”

Carman hadn’t used her powers in what seemed for... years. She had healed herself from minor scratches just so she wouldn’t necessarily become out of practice and lose control of the bright purple sparks which illuminated around her hands. She had been able throw a few guys across the floor and down the stairs and a she cringed slightly. “Sorry!” Maybe she wanted to convince herself that she was sorry- but in all honesty... she was kind of enjoying getting back into action. It had been quite some time since... since she had been given orders by Nick Fury- or even just stepped foot into the Avengers tower. She hated that this made her feel so alive. She hated how much she missed being wanted.

Being needed.

She couldn’t help but wonder for a moment if that was a weird way of saying that she weird or a bit messed up but all in all... she didn’t care in that moment. Her main priority in that moment was to fight like hell to protect the man she had lost so many years ago. A part of her wondered if she wanted to protect him for her own selfish gain- but then again... she was told in many of her lives that selflessness was the purest form of selfishness.

She could hear the screams of a few guys who had landed on the floor under her. It felt refreshing to use her powers again- it felt refreshing to live her truth for a bit more of this life. But when she saw Steve, she dropped her hands slightly. His comment made her smile ever so slightly. Man... even though she refused to acknowledge that she had maybe actually managed to make friends at the Avenger’s tower, the way that Steve was looking at both her and Bucky really made her feel like she had someone on her side for once in her many lives. Her and Steve had mourned together during the war, fought together, and lived through a lot of things together. And when she lost him too it was like her rock bottom had just become deeper.

“Yeah,” she said with a slight scoff as she used her powers to lift an GSF officer and slam him across the wall. Steve scowled slightly at her violence but she only shrugged. It was necessary in that moment. “I’m surprised you didn’t come looking earlier.” It was true. She was a bit disappointed when she had realized out that Steve had stopped looking. But she was also glad that respected her wishes of not wanting to be found. “Actually- no i’m not.” She ducked when he threw his shield and a grunt came from someplace behind her. “The three of us- just like old times.”

Mystery Of Bucharest

( @swordfiles - CLOSED RP )

“Oh come on, you’re kidding me…” Helena muttered under her breath with her microphone muted during a meeting with some fellow S.H.I.E.L.D agents and their boss, Nick Fury. Her slender fingers drummed against her desk, trying to disguise the obvious look of disappointment in her face; The crease in her forehead, the slightly raised eyebrows, the look in her eyes that sent daggers flying through the air if eyes and looks could kill. 

Looking at the calendar - or rather plan of sorts - set out in front of her on the screen, she wanted to roll her eyes. The meeting was dragging on for all of the solo agents it seemed, and it was clear their upcoming months weren’t going to be that eventful. Now, that may sound wrong, since who the hell would want disasters or acts of terror to happen just to be able to do their job and have something to do? It wasn’t that, it was more that, well… Helena knew she’d have to resort to some very long-term technological work in that division for a while, ‘cause for once there were almost too many people on one job. Even after the last train wreck the world had been through with the UN attack and the whole Winter Soldier ordeal that seemed to be firing up in the media.

No way in hell could she just take a seat, lean back and work in another division for a little while. She liked keeping her pace, keeping her solo agent work. When her mind seemed to think back to the Winter Soldier ordeal, an idea popped up in her mind. And she knew she had to act on it. Both for her own sanity, for her job and maybe to try and one-up that one Captain Rogers who had been rumoured to be set on finding the soldier. 

So, by capturing loose thread and various leads, Helena was on a good track and found a lot of witness testimonies that had a connection; All to one place. And there she was on a street in Bucharest.

-

Getting used to a somewhat normal life as a civilian wasn’t exactly an easy task; At least not when having a past of basically being a killing robot used by a Nazi organisation. When trying to pick a place that was good enough to try and build up a foundation for a steady and anything else than abnormal life, there were many things to think of and many questions to ask. The where, what, why and when. Somewhere off grid, but not too obviously off-grid so it could be a place somewhere would look and try and find him. Somewhere with people, a few too many, so there were a few too many to be able to blend in with. Somewhere he wouldn’t easily be singled out as the odd man out. So, Bucky chose Bucharest.

Barnes’ days were spent trying to get his life somewhat together, even though things weren’t looking amazing just yet. Who was he kidding- Things were looking shitty, and that’s how it was. The dirty mattress on the floor that he’d found dumped at some dumpsite, the cramped kitchen and the foggy windows. He was living in a shit-hole. But it was his, and he didn’t exactly have any other bigger or better places to go. Besides, he’d been through worse. He’d seen worse. Lived worse.

Bucky did his usual morning routine of making sure every lock worked and making sure his stash of items that were left beneath some floorboards were still there, all stuffed in a backpack. In it were general supplies, but even maps of the sewers and escape routes; Just in case.

Locking the door to his apartment, he kept his face down, adjusting his cap as he walked down the narrow hall to the stairwell. He was so focused on making sure no one really could get a good look at him that he bumped into a stranger’s shoulder on accident. “Oh- I’m sorry, I didn’t see you-”

Helena double-checked that her gun was loaded- just in case, of course. Making sure there were enough rounds, the silencer was on, that it couldn’t be seen beneath her jacket. It was all one big routine and habit, a good one too when it came to her line of work and career choice.  She hadn’t always wanted to be an agent, it was a bit of a sudden thing for her. She couldn’t explain it, but after university and after getting her degrees, something had flipped. A switch had been nagged with in her head and mind, and suddenly she felt as if that was the right job for her. It took work - Hell, a lot of it - But she knew what she was fighting for; A better place for those people in the world who deserved it to be a better place.

Maybe coming from a family with a mother who was in an infamous criminal group that was involved in many illegal activities drove her even more to have that will to fight, that urge, that natural adrenaline that could keep her going, as long as she knew where her goal was. She and her mother were obviously different in many ways, their paths in life clearly being one big difference between the two. Despite that fact, they had some similarities too. Helena could remember her mum being a workaholic, back when she didn’t know exactly what her profession was. There was never a day she didn’t have tired bags under her eyes, never a day she didn’t leave early and come home late only to sleep and start the same routine again. Her daughter ended up the same way, but using this hardworking nature elsewhere and for something better, a better cause.

A small sigh escaped her lips as she tugged down at the sleeves of her brown jacket, adjusting the hems as she hopped out of a bus, making sure to pay in cash so no one could trace her back to that vehicle. Her eyes flickered to the many people roaming the street, the different faces- the unfamiliar faces. Helena had worked missions in many place, but she couldn’t quite recall a place that seemed similar to Bucharest. That city seemed to be its own thing, but it had that familiar taste to it anyway. Like it wasn’t too hard to fade into the scene, which was exactly what she needed. Especially if she wanted to miss the attention of a certain Steve Rogers, who she knew most likely had gotten to the same leads she had. And once she spotted a familiar face in the sea of strangers, she knew she was in for it.

-

Days were always heavy in Bucharest, along with the foggy, polluted air. The city always stayed the same, never had that same spontaneous nature like New York or some other big city. It often felt like cities were alive in some way, but that area in Bucharest the ex-soldier found himself residing in felt barely alive. Rather it felt like a decaying place, half-ruins of buildings, tangled skylines, half-rotten trees, muggers and thieves waiting to strike at every market. But despite it all, he knew it was the place he had the biggest chance of even having a chance. A chance to just be a bit normal. Or act like it at least. The sky always seemed to be so damn dreary in that city Bucky now called home- Or rather had to call home.

Though he thought escaping and getting a small apartment would ease himself a little, the nightmares never stopped. The repeated images of bloody scenes with his bloody hands never left his mind. No matter what he tried, he couldn’t run away from those shitty nightmares. Hell, he was barely getting any sleep due to it, due to being afraid of shutting his eyes for just one moment. His super-soldier enhancements did help him with not having to sleep as much as the usual human being was required to, but it was getting to the point where it was unhealthy- Even for him.  Bucky often felt like just giving up at times, giving himself up to the world. Letting them have their fun, just so he could let go. He often pondered about if the world - or anyone at all - would be able to forgive him. Though a glimmer of hope sometimes did want to shine through, he only let himself be enveloped deeper into his own darkness.

As his shoulder collided with the stranger’s, he instinctively took a light hold of their arm, making sure the person didn’t fall or lose their balance. When Bucky looked up to see their face - her face - he felt like all thoughts in his head were put on hold. His bottom lip trembled a bit for a moment, there was something about her that was so familiar, just on the tip of his tongue. Her voice, her name- Was he imagining things?  He had to shake himself out of the trance. “Uhh, I’m James- Most people call me Bucky though.” He reached to shake her hand with his gloved one, and it seemed like his mind was just loading, recalling whatever the hell it was trying to recall.

Steve knew exactly what he was doing. He was tracking down his best friend. He couldn’t let a rogue SHIELD agent get involved. So that’s what he was going to get rid of first.

Not in the sinister way of course. He was would just deter her from stealing this from him again. He couldn’t lose Bucky. Not again. He wouldn’t let himself go through this again. He knew that his heart couldn’t stand it. He knew that things weren’t the most peaceful. It couldn’t be all rainbows and butterflies. It was just reality and reality wasn’t all happy. It was his strange reality that he couldn’t seem to escape.

Sometimes he found himself wondering if it was worth it to get close to people when all that happened was loss, hidden tears and pain. Sometimes he found himself thinking- day dreaming about a simpler life. A life where there was no pain or suffering. A life where he could live in peace. Or maybe no life at all. He stood in a difficult position- a position he never thought he would be in. He never really thought that he would lose his best friend, the love of his life AND get frozen- then wake up- lose the love of his life again- and realize that his best friend had been frozen too and was alive. There were a lot of things in his life that he didn’t quite understand, but standing in Bucharest, he couldn’t help but understand a bit better.

He needed to get to Helena though. He recognized her from a mile away. He could’ve anyway- he knew all the agents of SHIELD- rogue or other wise- and he just wanted to do all of this in peace.

“Agent.” He approached the young woman slowly with his shield in his hand, slightly dropped by his side but ready in hand just in case things went sideways. “It looks like we both followed the same trail.”

-

Carman was in Bucharest because it was genuinely quiet. She didn’t want to know about what was going on. If the avengers were off destroying whatever it was that they were destroying- she wasn’t going to be their clean up crew anymore. She was tired of living in fear and responsibility. She was disgusted by herself and letting herself get to that point. She was gloomy. Awfully gloomy.

She knew exactly who he was. Those bright eyes of his and dark hair… she couldn’t miss him for the world and there was just something about his soul that screamed pain. Something about his soul that was broken, battered and torn. As a deity, she was taught to recognize broken souls… but she could tell by the simple pain in his eyes and the fact that he was alive meant that he must’ve gone through a lot. She thought that he was dead- but she needed to take it slow. Maybe it wasn’t him- maybe it was a doppelgänger- maybe it was someone who looked incredibly like him-

Ok that wasn’t likely. Especially now that he had said his name. “Bucky.” She repeated his name gently under her breath as she thought for a moment. She wondered genuinely if she should tell him who she actually was… that she knew him. That she had adored him in a time before.

But she decided against him and instead she smiled ever so slightly. “Its nice to finally meet my neighbor.” She felt stupid. She felt like everything that she had put into her heart was… gone. Because he hadn’t recognized her name, her heart shattered once more.

It wasn’t his fault. Or at least that’s what she was telling herself. She didn’t look the same as she was so many years ago. But she had the same name. She had the same name as she did so many years ago… so many lives ago and she wondered if he would remember her eventually.

Maybe he would. There was a bit of hope in usually stoic expression. It wasn’t something that happened often… just ask Steve and he would know.

“I have lived here for a while. I’ve never seen you around.”

Making sure the green bag slung over her shoulder wasn’t slipping off, Helena grabbed ahold of it as she manouvered herself away from the bus and into Bucharest’s crowd of a population. She tugged down at her beige cap, eyes focused on her target, which was a specific apartment complex. And even better a specific number. She was lucky to grab ahold of the lead that led her there, and the lead did seem quite trustworthy based on the information she’d gathered. And it made her job a lot easier when having just one flat to focus on- For then she wouldn’t risk making a scene. Or at least not a as huge of a scene. Not yet.

When spotting Steve and that goddamn stripey and spangled shield, Helena knew it would be tough making an escape from his attention. After all, they were both agents, trained to get a mission done. With as little interference from others as possible. And she doubted it would be easy to get to the soldier before the Captain. It added just another fight to her mission, though she doubted it would end in a physical altercation. Or at least she didn’t hope so.

They both technically worked for the same people, but now with the Sokovia Accords seeming to split everyone apart, it felt as if there was no big team of people anymore. Not much information had been given about the accords just yet - or more specifically what was to happen with them - and it seemed a lot of people were feeling misplaced. Such as Helena. She didn’t know what to feel about the accords, but she knew that she still had a job to do, even if she’d gone a bit rogue with it. Someone had to track Barnes down, especially if a specific someone else was going to try and take him before he could face an interrogation for what happened at the UN meeting. She had to admit, something about the attack seemed… off, off in another way. But she didn’t quite know how to place it.

Helena found herself at a more hidden entrance to the flat building, about to head in, when a voice from behind her interrupted her. With a quirked eyebrow, she turned around swiftly and placed her hands in her innerpocket where her gun was. Just in case. “Captain. Not a surprise to see you here.” She admitted. “And it seems the trail has gotten too thin for the both of us to be on it, huh?”

-

It annoyed him. It bugged him. It went at him for what felt like an eternity, when in reality it was simply a few, mere moments. Why couldn’t Bucky place what it was about his neighbor that made something in his head tingle? He was an efficient agent, a trained soldier, a former robot who had been built to handle all tasks possible with an impeccable memory. Yet his neighbor was the one to make him scratch the back of his neck as he could only dwell.

There was just something about her. Something in the look of her eyes. Something about her voice and the way she spoke. Her name. Carman. That’s when it clicked for him, though he knew it wasn’t supposed to click. That name connected to a certain Carman he knew- Who he used to know. Someone who had held such a large meaning to him, someone he held so dear, someone he genuinely let in and cared about… But that person was long gone. Or supposed to be long gone at least. His mind seemed to set him back to a string of memories including his Carman from his past. And people had the same names, it was just a weird coincidence. A coincidence that made him yearn for those days before everything.

Bucky often thought back to the time where he didn’t have as much to worry about; Which was quite funny, since back then he felt like it couldn’t really get worse than that. The drenches, the fights, the hurting. He never knew it could get worse than that. But there he was, after everything. Still somewhat in one piece.

He felt guilty. He felt guilty for having this neighbor have to watch his hands tremble a bit at his sides, which they rarely ever did. Watch him as he obviously had an expression of blankness, not knowing what to say or think. Life was weird. Bucky knew that much. Could it be? Could it be her?

“I was just about to say that too- Don’t feel like I’ve seen you before either.” Bucky chuckled a bit sheepishly, trying to shake away that strong deja vu. “I moved her not too long ago, so wouldn’t be weird if I haven’t bumped into everyone around here.”

He was captain America. He was pretty much unstoppable and having Bucky by his side would definitely help with all of the pain that he had gone through. He knew that he needed to get Bucky back… he needed to get his damn best friend back because he genuinely didn’t know if he could do anything without that man knowing that he was alive and kind of well. He didn’t know much, but what he did know was that he didn’t want SHIELD or the government getting ahold of him.

He didn’t want Bucky to get hurt again and he would do absolutely everything in his power to keep that from happening. He was genuine when he was thinking about that. There wasn’t a day that went by that Bucky wasn’t on his mind. That man was always his best friend, before everything, after everything and now. They would forever be friends.

They’d be with each other til the end of the line. Steve would make sure of that.

He wouldn’t make it easy for Helena to get to Bucky. In fact, if she even tried, he would definitely make her time of trying a living hell even if that meant that he was a fugitive of justice. After all… he was a fugitive of justice more than once before. He wasn’t afraid of the government. He wasn’t afraid of SHIELD or Nick Fury. He wasn’t scared.

He was determined to get his goddamn friend back. And he wasn’t going to lose his best friend again. Not til the end of the line.

Here was the issue. He was in the middle of the accords, in the middle of being an avenger, the middle of being America’s armor… and the middle of being the best friend that he always knew that he needed to be. He needed to be the guy that could help Bucky with everything that he had. Everything that he had left. He needed to make sure that he preserved the things that he loved. He just couldn’t lose anyone else anymore.

“Its honestly not a surprise to see you here either,” he said softly as his dark blue eyes scanned the streets. “I think we’re here for the same thing aren’t we?” he said gruffly with a sigh.

-

There was a slight nod that came from her. In all honesty she was at a loss for words. She was speechless and her mind was truly blank. She wanted to tell him how much she missed him. Her heart broke more and more every single time she thought about him- every day that went by was a day that she thought of him. There was no night when she didn’t go to bed and think about her dear Bucky… when they would come out of the war… she would’ve told him she loved him. But during the war she didn’t want to burden him with emotions.

He didn’t come out of the war.

And every single day- every single night since then she was plagued by thoughts of him. She was plagued by the screams of the war and the many days that she would attempt to comfort Steve and have him crying on her shoulder… she was plagued by nightmares. Every day for centuries, the pain of losing him was genuinely the biggest pain that she had ever experienced in any of her lives. So now that he was standing right in front of her… she wondered what she should do.

Should she tell him all the things that had gone through her mind? Or should she continue to pretend as though she didn’t know him? She didn’t want to lose him again… she couldn’t lose him again.

“I don’t come out of my apartment a lot… its a bit strange but I prefer the comfort of my own floor than any other floor.” It was true. Although she had moved quite a long time ago, she had refused to get many pieces of furniture in case she would have to move again. She often would wake up on the floor when she did sleep on a bed anyway… so she didn’t really need much furniture or a bed- or a mattress for that matter. Her smile was slight, a bit awkward as she looked back at him. “It was nice meeting you.”

There was a pause. She was considering holing herself back into her apartment before she would pack up her things and go, not letting herself get attached again. But… she couldn’t. She couldn’t leave him. “Hey uh Bucky- did you want to get a cup of coffee or something?” She regretted it the minute she said it. She wanted to run and hide… but she couldn’t. Not now.

Helena knew when to meddle things and when not to. Most people did, by using their common sense, obviously. She was usually more careful with covering up her tracks and making sure she wouldn’t hit any problems along the way, but with this specific mission she knew that wasn’t going to be possible. To be honest, she knew she was a pain in the ass for Captain Rogers, but she was doing her job. 

Even if she’d gone a bit rogue about it.

And she didn’t want to be a pain in the ass. With everything going on with the UN, Wakanda’s murdered leader, the Winter Soldier, the Sokovia Accords, it seemed as if everything was walking into a path of chaos. Though the world always seemed to be chaotic, or at least always have a twinge of a sense of disorganisation, she knew things were starting to go really bad. It felt like the sense of justice was slowly decaying, and though details were fuzzy about a lot of things, she knew she had to do her job and do her best. That’s all she could do.

When Helena had realised S.H.I.E.L.D was simply letting German forces and polices get to Barnes instead, she was in no way going to have to trust them to do their job and just stand by as a member of an audience. It wasn’t that she didn’t have faith in those forces, but she knew it would be too noisy and too risky. She knew she could do it, making sure to have back-up with her. She did feel sympathy for Steve though, it was hard not to. From what she’d gathered, those two had been through quite a lot together. And though it was hard not to give into her sympathetic feelings, she knew she had to at least get the guy caught and interrogated. Give the government a chance of clearing things up.

But she would be lying if she said it wasn’t just a bit fun to piss Rogers off during the whole ordeal.

“Or rather, someone.” Helena retorted in a mild tone of voice, glancing down at the watch on her wrist. She knew she only had a certain amount of time before the GSF would get their hands dirty too, and that time had to be spent wisely. “Listen, I don’t want it to end up like this. But it’s work, I do what I do, you do what you do. And I’m guessing you’re going to want to stand in my way, so I’ll have to stand in yours.”

38 seconds ‘til she had to enter.

-

Thinking back to the war was never quite… pleasant. Though Bucky knew the friendships he’d gained with the Howling Commando’s had been a pro to all the many cons, there were still cons enough to outweigh any pros there ever could have been. Maybe the beginning war had actually been the easiest part- Since what had really messed him up was everything that occurred in between and after. 

The war itself gave him flashbacks enough. Blood-soaked uniforms, broken dog tags, disgusting drenches. It hurt enough to be there himself, but what was worse was when his best friend just had to get himself into it too. And though he knew they both were just men, trying to do something good for their country and offer their service, he still didn’t want Steve there.

War was a place where the friends you made were quickly lost in one way or the other, though death was by far the worst abductor. And no way in hell did he want to have to watch Steve sacrifice himself for the war, but it seemed like Bucky had been the one to get the tough, uneasy road when Hydra got to him and dug their claws into him.  Even more blood-soaked uniforms. Shattered name-tags that he had broken. The endless testing and brainwashing. It was all so much worse and so much harder to forget.

It seemed like the only thing that kept him going was the faint memories that at times came to him. As a fog and a haze, just barely there, always slipping through the gaps between his fingers when he tried to grasp it. And in that fog was Carman. Before his Hydra days he’d been planning to confess something important to her after he could return home from the war, tell her how much she truly meant to him. But any ideas of that were quickly ripped from him. In all senses, and he was just left to his haze and his confusion, though much more stuff was coming back to him.

Such as Steve. Such as Carman.

“No, no, I get it. I’m pretty much the same.” Bucky smiled a bit sheepishly and awkwardly, hoping he didn’t seem to out of it. It was as if his mind was constantly switching between memories he was recalling and the face in front of him, who, despite not matching the one in his blurred collection of moments, still had a twinge of familiarity to it. The name. The voice. He didn’t know what to make of it.

And she only seemed more distinct when she said his name. “Oh, uhh, sure. I’d like that.”

She was definitely being a pain to him in that moment and he kind of hated it. He wished that there would be some kind of path of least resistance- but there wasn’t. He knew that the special forces were going to move in soon, and he needed to get in there before they did so Bucky wouldn’t kill anyone accidentally. That wouldn’t look good for Bucky. That wouldn’t look good for any of them really. “You know that we want the same person- but for different reasons,” he said as he glanced over at the young woman with his dark blue eyes. “We can go in there together or go in there separately and make this much more complicated for the two of us.” It was genuinely upsetting that SHIELD had given orders to get through to Bucky. Or maybe they didn’t honestly at this point he had no idea what was going on. “But if we go in there separately you’re not going to get him.”

It wasn’t his pride talking. Its the fact that he knew Bucky and he had a feeling that things would go his way in that point of time. There was just something that told him that no matter what happened, Bucky would be okay. “The special forces are going to move in so either we do this together or you’re going to have to let this one go.” His tone was firm- serious. He wasnt going to play around with this one as he watched carefully. He had less than ten seconds. Less than ten seconds to make sure that Bucky was ok- alive and well. He had less than ten seconds to make sure the man had a warning or something- and he couldn’t think anymore.

He needed to act fast.

That was the thing about being a hero after all. It was something that he needed to learn. He needed to learn how to trust his instincts and he honestly learned that in the war. He learned that he needed to trust his gut- and right now his gut was telling him to wait for a response from the girl before doing anything else.

-

Carman could sense that there was something wrong. As a person who had lived through centuries of strife, war, pain... she learned that to escape her fears she would need to face them. To face them, she would need to be able to detect them. And to detect them she would need to be able to read the room. The room was not clear as of this moment and the way that she felt about it was unsettling. She cleared her throat slightly, looking around as a silence struck her and her body became rigid. “I might have to call a rain check on that coffee,” she said as she looked back at Bucky with a small smile. “I think we have company.”

She wanted to be as frank with him as possible without scaring him. She knew that he had been through quite a lot but she wanted to stick with him. She wanted to stick together with him because she couldn’t bare the idea of losing him again. She would protect him at all costs. If that meant having to get involved in this whole thing with the avengers, she would. She would trade up her life of peace for a life of chaos.

For him.

She took a gentle and slow breath. There was something about this all that was throwing her off. There was an energy inside the building- a threatening energy and it was one that she couldn’t shake away, one that followed her wherever she went... but this time it was different. She heard a creak come from a corner and her eyes widened slightly, her hands going up immediately, glowing a bright beautiful dark purple color. “I hope i’m not freaking you out- but you need to get behind me- or at least next to me.” The last time she had used her magic was... a while ago. She had used it on Bucky once to heal a gunshot would and made him vow not to tell anyone- and she had used it to reverse a building from falling- that kind of stuff really came in handy if she ever wanted to be the clean up crew again. She shifted her feet slightly feeling for any kind of vibration on the ground. “We got company and lots of them-“

Mystery Of Bucharest

( @swordfiles - CLOSED RP )

“Oh come on, you’re kidding me…” Helena muttered under her breath with her microphone muted during a meeting with some fellow S.H.I.E.L.D agents and their boss, Nick Fury. Her slender fingers drummed against her desk, trying to disguise the obvious look of disappointment in her face; The crease in her forehead, the slightly raised eyebrows, the look in her eyes that sent daggers flying through the air if eyes and looks could kill. 

Looking at the calendar - or rather plan of sorts - set out in front of her on the screen, she wanted to roll her eyes. The meeting was dragging on for all of the solo agents it seemed, and it was clear their upcoming months weren’t going to be that eventful. Now, that may sound wrong, since who the hell would want disasters or acts of terror to happen just to be able to do their job and have something to do? It wasn’t that, it was more that, well… Helena knew she’d have to resort to some very long-term technological work in that division for a while, ‘cause for once there were almost too many people on one job. Even after the last train wreck the world had been through with the UN attack and the whole Winter Soldier ordeal that seemed to be firing up in the media.

No way in hell could she just take a seat, lean back and work in another division for a little while. She liked keeping her pace, keeping her solo agent work. When her mind seemed to think back to the Winter Soldier ordeal, an idea popped up in her mind. And she knew she had to act on it. Both for her own sanity, for her job and maybe to try and one-up that one Captain Rogers who had been rumoured to be set on finding the soldier. 

So, by capturing loose thread and various leads, Helena was on a good track and found a lot of witness testimonies that had a connection; All to one place. And there she was on a street in Bucharest.

-

Getting used to a somewhat normal life as a civilian wasn’t exactly an easy task; At least not when having a past of basically being a killing robot used by a Nazi organisation. When trying to pick a place that was good enough to try and build up a foundation for a steady and anything else than abnormal life, there were many things to think of and many questions to ask. The where, what, why and when. Somewhere off grid, but not too obviously off-grid so it could be a place somewhere would look and try and find him. Somewhere with people, a few too many, so there were a few too many to be able to blend in with. Somewhere he wouldn’t easily be singled out as the odd man out. So, Bucky chose Bucharest.

Barnes’ days were spent trying to get his life somewhat together, even though things weren’t looking amazing just yet. Who was he kidding- Things were looking shitty, and that’s how it was. The dirty mattress on the floor that he’d found dumped at some dumpsite, the cramped kitchen and the foggy windows. He was living in a shit-hole. But it was his, and he didn’t exactly have any other bigger or better places to go. Besides, he’d been through worse. He’d seen worse. Lived worse.

Bucky did his usual morning routine of making sure every lock worked and making sure his stash of items that were left beneath some floorboards were still there, all stuffed in a backpack. In it were general supplies, but even maps of the sewers and escape routes; Just in case.

Locking the door to his apartment, he kept his face down, adjusting his cap as he walked down the narrow hall to the stairwell. He was so focused on making sure no one really could get a good look at him that he bumped into a stranger’s shoulder on accident. “Oh- I’m sorry, I didn’t see you-”

Helena double-checked that her gun was loaded- just in case, of course. Making sure there were enough rounds, the silencer was on, that it couldn’t be seen beneath her jacket. It was all one big routine and habit, a good one too when it came to her line of work and career choice.  She hadn’t always wanted to be an agent, it was a bit of a sudden thing for her. She couldn’t explain it, but after university and after getting her degrees, something had flipped. A switch had been nagged with in her head and mind, and suddenly she felt as if that was the right job for her. It took work - Hell, a lot of it - But she knew what she was fighting for; A better place for those people in the world who deserved it to be a better place.

Maybe coming from a family with a mother who was in an infamous criminal group that was involved in many illegal activities drove her even more to have that will to fight, that urge, that natural adrenaline that could keep her going, as long as she knew where her goal was. She and her mother were obviously different in many ways, their paths in life clearly being one big difference between the two. Despite that fact, they had some similarities too. Helena could remember her mum being a workaholic, back when she didn’t know exactly what her profession was. There was never a day she didn’t have tired bags under her eyes, never a day she didn’t leave early and come home late only to sleep and start the same routine again. Her daughter ended up the same way, but using this hardworking nature elsewhere and for something better, a better cause.

A small sigh escaped her lips as she tugged down at the sleeves of her brown jacket, adjusting the hems as she hopped out of a bus, making sure to pay in cash so no one could trace her back to that vehicle. Her eyes flickered to the many people roaming the street, the different faces- the unfamiliar faces. Helena had worked missions in many place, but she couldn’t quite recall a place that seemed similar to Bucharest. That city seemed to be its own thing, but it had that familiar taste to it anyway. Like it wasn’t too hard to fade into the scene, which was exactly what she needed. Especially if she wanted to miss the attention of a certain Steve Rogers, who she knew most likely had gotten to the same leads she had. And once she spotted a familiar face in the sea of strangers, she knew she was in for it.

-

Days were always heavy in Bucharest, along with the foggy, polluted air. The city always stayed the same, never had that same spontaneous nature like New York or some other big city. It often felt like cities were alive in some way, but that area in Bucharest the ex-soldier found himself residing in felt barely alive. Rather it felt like a decaying place, half-ruins of buildings, tangled skylines, half-rotten trees, muggers and thieves waiting to strike at every market. But despite it all, he knew it was the place he had the biggest chance of even having a chance. A chance to just be a bit normal. Or act like it at least. The sky always seemed to be so damn dreary in that city Bucky now called home- Or rather had to call home.

Though he thought escaping and getting a small apartment would ease himself a little, the nightmares never stopped. The repeated images of bloody scenes with his bloody hands never left his mind. No matter what he tried, he couldn’t run away from those shitty nightmares. Hell, he was barely getting any sleep due to it, due to being afraid of shutting his eyes for just one moment. His super-soldier enhancements did help him with not having to sleep as much as the usual human being was required to, but it was getting to the point where it was unhealthy- Even for him.  Bucky often felt like just giving up at times, giving himself up to the world. Letting them have their fun, just so he could let go. He often pondered about if the world - or anyone at all - would be able to forgive him. Though a glimmer of hope sometimes did want to shine through, he only let himself be enveloped deeper into his own darkness.

As his shoulder collided with the stranger’s, he instinctively took a light hold of their arm, making sure the person didn’t fall or lose their balance. When Bucky looked up to see their face - her face - he felt like all thoughts in his head were put on hold. His bottom lip trembled a bit for a moment, there was something about her that was so familiar, just on the tip of his tongue. Her voice, her name- Was he imagining things?  He had to shake himself out of the trance. “Uhh, I’m James- Most people call me Bucky though.” He reached to shake her hand with his gloved one, and it seemed like his mind was just loading, recalling whatever the hell it was trying to recall.

Steve knew exactly what he was doing. He was tracking down his best friend. He couldn’t let a rogue SHIELD agent get involved. So that’s what he was going to get rid of first.

Not in the sinister way of course. He was would just deter her from stealing this from him again. He couldn’t lose Bucky. Not again. He wouldn’t let himself go through this again. He knew that his heart couldn’t stand it. He knew that things weren’t the most peaceful. It couldn’t be all rainbows and butterflies. It was just reality and reality wasn’t all happy. It was his strange reality that he couldn’t seem to escape.

Sometimes he found himself wondering if it was worth it to get close to people when all that happened was loss, hidden tears and pain. Sometimes he found himself thinking- day dreaming about a simpler life. A life where there was no pain or suffering. A life where he could live in peace. Or maybe no life at all. He stood in a difficult position- a position he never thought he would be in. He never really thought that he would lose his best friend, the love of his life AND get frozen- then wake up- lose the love of his life again- and realize that his best friend had been frozen too and was alive. There were a lot of things in his life that he didn’t quite understand, but standing in Bucharest, he couldn’t help but understand a bit better.

He needed to get to Helena though. He recognized her from a mile away. He could’ve anyway- he knew all the agents of SHIELD- rogue or other wise- and he just wanted to do all of this in peace.

“Agent.” He approached the young woman slowly with his shield in his hand, slightly dropped by his side but ready in hand just in case things went sideways. “It looks like we both followed the same trail.”

-

Carman was in Bucharest because it was genuinely quiet. She didn’t want to know about what was going on. If the avengers were off destroying whatever it was that they were destroying- she wasn’t going to be their clean up crew anymore. She was tired of living in fear and responsibility. She was disgusted by herself and letting herself get to that point. She was gloomy. Awfully gloomy.

She knew exactly who he was. Those bright eyes of his and dark hair… she couldn’t miss him for the world and there was just something about his soul that screamed pain. Something about his soul that was broken, battered and torn. As a deity, she was taught to recognize broken souls… but she could tell by the simple pain in his eyes and the fact that he was alive meant that he must’ve gone through a lot. She thought that he was dead- but she needed to take it slow. Maybe it wasn’t him- maybe it was a doppelgänger- maybe it was someone who looked incredibly like him-

Ok that wasn’t likely. Especially now that he had said his name. “Bucky.” She repeated his name gently under her breath as she thought for a moment. She wondered genuinely if she should tell him who she actually was… that she knew him. That she had adored him in a time before.

But she decided against him and instead she smiled ever so slightly. “Its nice to finally meet my neighbor.” She felt stupid. She felt like everything that she had put into her heart was… gone. Because he hadn’t recognized her name, her heart shattered once more.

It wasn’t his fault. Or at least that’s what she was telling herself. She didn’t look the same as she was so many years ago. But she had the same name. She had the same name as she did so many years ago… so many lives ago and she wondered if he would remember her eventually.

Maybe he would. There was a bit of hope in usually stoic expression. It wasn’t something that happened often… just ask Steve and he would know.

“I have lived here for a while. I’ve never seen you around.”

Making sure the green bag slung over her shoulder wasn’t slipping off, Helena grabbed ahold of it as she manouvered herself away from the bus and into Bucharest’s crowd of a population. She tugged down at her beige cap, eyes focused on her target, which was a specific apartment complex. And even better a specific number. She was lucky to grab ahold of the lead that led her there, and the lead did seem quite trustworthy based on the information she’d gathered. And it made her job a lot easier when having just one flat to focus on- For then she wouldn’t risk making a scene. Or at least not a as huge of a scene. Not yet.

When spotting Steve and that goddamn stripey and spangled shield, Helena knew it would be tough making an escape from his attention. After all, they were both agents, trained to get a mission done. With as little interference from others as possible. And she doubted it would be easy to get to the soldier before the Captain. It added just another fight to her mission, though she doubted it would end in a physical altercation. Or at least she didn’t hope so.

They both technically worked for the same people, but now with the Sokovia Accords seeming to split everyone apart, it felt as if there was no big team of people anymore. Not much information had been given about the accords just yet - or more specifically what was to happen with them - and it seemed a lot of people were feeling misplaced. Such as Helena. She didn’t know what to feel about the accords, but she knew that she still had a job to do, even if she’d gone a bit rogue with it. Someone had to track Barnes down, especially if a specific someone else was going to try and take him before he could face an interrogation for what happened at the UN meeting. She had to admit, something about the attack seemed… off, off in another way. But she didn’t quite know how to place it.

Helena found herself at a more hidden entrance to the flat building, about to head in, when a voice from behind her interrupted her. With a quirked eyebrow, she turned around swiftly and placed her hands in her innerpocket where her gun was. Just in case. “Captain. Not a surprise to see you here.” She admitted. “And it seems the trail has gotten too thin for the both of us to be on it, huh?”

-

It annoyed him. It bugged him. It went at him for what felt like an eternity, when in reality it was simply a few, mere moments. Why couldn’t Bucky place what it was about his neighbor that made something in his head tingle? He was an efficient agent, a trained soldier, a former robot who had been built to handle all tasks possible with an impeccable memory. Yet his neighbor was the one to make him scratch the back of his neck as he could only dwell.

There was just something about her. Something in the look of her eyes. Something about her voice and the way she spoke. Her name. Carman. That’s when it clicked for him, though he knew it wasn’t supposed to click. That name connected to a certain Carman he knew- Who he used to know. Someone who had held such a large meaning to him, someone he held so dear, someone he genuinely let in and cared about… But that person was long gone. Or supposed to be long gone at least. His mind seemed to set him back to a string of memories including his Carman from his past. And people had the same names, it was just a weird coincidence. A coincidence that made him yearn for those days before everything.

Bucky often thought back to the time where he didn’t have as much to worry about; Which was quite funny, since back then he felt like it couldn’t really get worse than that. The drenches, the fights, the hurting. He never knew it could get worse than that. But there he was, after everything. Still somewhat in one piece.

He felt guilty. He felt guilty for having this neighbor have to watch his hands tremble a bit at his sides, which they rarely ever did. Watch him as he obviously had an expression of blankness, not knowing what to say or think. Life was weird. Bucky knew that much. Could it be? Could it be her?

“I was just about to say that too- Don’t feel like I’ve seen you before either.” Bucky chuckled a bit sheepishly, trying to shake away that strong deja vu. “I moved her not too long ago, so wouldn’t be weird if I haven’t bumped into everyone around here.”

He was captain America. He was pretty much unstoppable and having Bucky by his side would definitely help with all of the pain that he had gone through. He knew that he needed to get Bucky back... he needed to get his damn best friend back because he genuinely didn’t know if he could do anything without that man knowing that he was alive and kind of well. He didn’t know much, but what he did know was that he didn’t want SHIELD or the government getting ahold of him.

He didn’t want Bucky to get hurt again and he would do absolutely everything in his power to keep that from happening. He was genuine when he was thinking about that. There wasn’t a day that went by that Bucky wasn’t on his mind. That man was always his best friend, before everything, after everything and now. They would forever be friends.

They’d be with each other til the end of the line. Steve would make sure of that.

He wouldn’t make it easy for Helena to get to Bucky. In fact, if she even tried, he would definitely make her time of trying a living hell even if that meant that he was a fugitive of justice. After all... he was a fugitive of justice more than once before. He wasn’t afraid of the government. He wasn’t afraid of SHIELD or Nick Fury. He wasn’t scared.

He was determined to get his goddamn friend back. And he wasn’t going to lose his best friend again. Not til the end of the line.

Here was the issue. He was in the middle of the accords, in the middle of being an avenger, the middle of being America’s armor... and the middle of being the best friend that he always knew that he needed to be. He needed to be the guy that could help Bucky with everything that he had. Everything that he had left. He needed to make sure that he preserved the things that he loved. He just couldn’t lose anyone else anymore.

“Its honestly not a surprise to see you here either,” he said softly as his dark blue eyes scanned the streets. “I think we’re here for the same thing aren’t we?” he said gruffly with a sigh.

-

There was a slight nod that came from her. In all honesty she was at a loss for words. She was speechless and her mind was truly blank. She wanted to tell him how much she missed him. Her heart broke more and more every single time she thought about him- every day that went by was a day that she thought of him. There was no night when she didn’t go to bed and think about her dear Bucky... when they would come out of the war... she would’ve told him she loved him. But during the war she didn’t want to burden him with emotions.

He didn’t come out of the war.

And every single day- every single night since then she was plagued by thoughts of him. She was plagued by the screams of the war and the many days that she would attempt to comfort Steve and have him crying on her shoulder... she was plagued by nightmares. Every day for centuries, the pain of losing him was genuinely the biggest pain that she had ever experienced in any of her lives. So now that he was standing right in front of her... she wondered what she should do.

Should she tell him all the things that had gone through her mind? Or should she continue to pretend as though she didn’t know him? She didn’t want to lose him again... she couldn’t lose him again.

“I don’t come out of my apartment a lot... its a bit strange but I prefer the comfort of my own floor than any other floor.” It was true. Although she had moved quite a long time ago, she had refused to get many pieces of furniture in case she would have to move again. She often would wake up on the floor when she did sleep on a bed anyway... so she didn’t really need much furniture or a bed- or a mattress for that matter. Her smile was slight, a bit awkward as she looked back at him. “It was nice meeting you.”

There was a pause. She was considering holing herself back into her apartment before she would pack up her things and go, not letting herself get attached again. But... she couldn’t. She couldn’t leave him. “Hey uh Bucky- did you want to get a cup of coffee or something?” She regretted it the minute she said it. She wanted to run and hide... but she couldn’t. Not now.

Mystery Of Bucharest

( @swordfiles - CLOSED RP )

“Oh come on, you’re kidding me…” Helena muttered under her breath with her microphone muted during a meeting with some fellow S.H.I.E.L.D agents and their boss, Nick Fury. Her slender fingers drummed against her desk, trying to disguise the obvious look of disappointment in her face; The crease in her forehead, the slightly raised eyebrows, the look in her eyes that sent daggers flying through the air if eyes and looks could kill. 

Looking at the calendar - or rather plan of sorts - set out in front of her on the screen, she wanted to roll her eyes. The meeting was dragging on for all of the solo agents it seemed, and it was clear their upcoming months weren’t going to be that eventful. Now, that may sound wrong, since who the hell would want disasters or acts of terror to happen just to be able to do their job and have something to do? It wasn’t that, it was more that, well… Helena knew she’d have to resort to some very long-term technological work in that division for a while, ‘cause for once there were almost too many people on one job. Even after the last train wreck the world had been through with the UN attack and the whole Winter Soldier ordeal that seemed to be firing up in the media.

No way in hell could she just take a seat, lean back and work in another division for a little while. She liked keeping her pace, keeping her solo agent work. When her mind seemed to think back to the Winter Soldier ordeal, an idea popped up in her mind. And she knew she had to act on it. Both for her own sanity, for her job and maybe to try and one-up that one Captain Rogers who had been rumoured to be set on finding the soldier. 

So, by capturing loose thread and various leads, Helena was on a good track and found a lot of witness testimonies that had a connection; All to one place. And there she was on a street in Bucharest.

-

Getting used to a somewhat normal life as a civilian wasn’t exactly an easy task; At least not when having a past of basically being a killing robot used by a Nazi organisation. When trying to pick a place that was good enough to try and build up a foundation for a steady and anything else than abnormal life, there were many things to think of and many questions to ask. The where, what, why and when. Somewhere off grid, but not too obviously off-grid so it could be a place somewhere would look and try and find him. Somewhere with people, a few too many, so there were a few too many to be able to blend in with. Somewhere he wouldn’t easily be singled out as the odd man out. So, Bucky chose Bucharest.

Barnes’ days were spent trying to get his life somewhat together, even though things weren’t looking amazing just yet. Who was he kidding- Things were looking shitty, and that’s how it was. The dirty mattress on the floor that he’d found dumped at some dumpsite, the cramped kitchen and the foggy windows. He was living in a shit-hole. But it was his, and he didn’t exactly have any other bigger or better places to go. Besides, he’d been through worse. He’d seen worse. Lived worse.

Bucky did his usual morning routine of making sure every lock worked and making sure his stash of items that were left beneath some floorboards were still there, all stuffed in a backpack. In it were general supplies, but even maps of the sewers and escape routes; Just in case.

Locking the door to his apartment, he kept his face down, adjusting his cap as he walked down the narrow hall to the stairwell. He was so focused on making sure no one really could get a good look at him that he bumped into a stranger’s shoulder on accident. “Oh- I’m sorry, I didn’t see you-”

Helena double-checked that her gun was loaded- just in case, of course. Making sure there were enough rounds, the silencer was on, that it couldn’t be seen beneath her jacket. It was all one big routine and habit, a good one too when it came to her line of work and career choice.  She hadn’t always wanted to be an agent, it was a bit of a sudden thing for her. She couldn’t explain it, but after university and after getting her degrees, something had flipped. A switch had been nagged with in her head and mind, and suddenly she felt as if that was the right job for her. It took work - Hell, a lot of it - But she knew what she was fighting for; A better place for those people in the world who deserved it to be a better place.

Maybe coming from a family with a mother who was in an infamous criminal group that was involved in many illegal activities drove her even more to have that will to fight, that urge, that natural adrenaline that could keep her going, as long as she knew where her goal was. She and her mother were obviously different in many ways, their paths in life clearly being one big difference between the two. Despite that fact, they had some similarities too. Helena could remember her mum being a workaholic, back when she didn’t know exactly what her profession was. There was never a day she didn’t have tired bags under her eyes, never a day she didn’t leave early and come home late only to sleep and start the same routine again. Her daughter ended up the same way, but using this hardworking nature elsewhere and for something better, a better cause.

A small sigh escaped her lips as she tugged down at the sleeves of her brown jacket, adjusting the hems as she hopped out of a bus, making sure to pay in cash so no one could trace her back to that vehicle. Her eyes flickered to the many people roaming the street, the different faces- the unfamiliar faces. Helena had worked missions in many place, but she couldn’t quite recall a place that seemed similar to Bucharest. That city seemed to be its own thing, but it had that familiar taste to it anyway. Like it wasn’t too hard to fade into the scene, which was exactly what she needed. Especially if she wanted to miss the attention of a certain Steve Rogers, who she knew most likely had gotten to the same leads she had. And once she spotted a familiar face in the sea of strangers, she knew she was in for it.

-

Days were always heavy in Bucharest, along with the foggy, polluted air. The city always stayed the same, never had that same spontaneous nature like New York or some other big city. It often felt like cities were alive in some way, but that area in Bucharest the ex-soldier found himself residing in felt barely alive. Rather it felt like a decaying place, half-ruins of buildings, tangled skylines, half-rotten trees, muggers and thieves waiting to strike at every market. But despite it all, he knew it was the place he had the biggest chance of even having a chance. A chance to just be a bit normal. Or act like it at least. The sky always seemed to be so damn dreary in that city Bucky now called home- Or rather had to call home.

Though he thought escaping and getting a small apartment would ease himself a little, the nightmares never stopped. The repeated images of bloody scenes with his bloody hands never left his mind. No matter what he tried, he couldn’t run away from those shitty nightmares. Hell, he was barely getting any sleep due to it, due to being afraid of shutting his eyes for just one moment. His super-soldier enhancements did help him with not having to sleep as much as the usual human being was required to, but it was getting to the point where it was unhealthy- Even for him.  Bucky often felt like just giving up at times, giving himself up to the world. Letting them have their fun, just so he could let go. He often pondered about if the world - or anyone at all - would be able to forgive him. Though a glimmer of hope sometimes did want to shine through, he only let himself be enveloped deeper into his own darkness.

As his shoulder collided with the stranger’s, he instinctively took a light hold of their arm, making sure the person didn’t fall or lose their balance. When Bucky looked up to see their face - her face - he felt like all thoughts in his head were put on hold. His bottom lip trembled a bit for a moment, there was something about her that was so familiar, just on the tip of his tongue. Her voice, her name- Was he imagining things?  He had to shake himself out of the trance. “Uhh, I’m James- Most people call me Bucky though.” He reached to shake her hand with his gloved one, and it seemed like his mind was just loading, recalling whatever the hell it was trying to recall.

Steve knew exactly what he was doing. He was tracking down his best friend. He couldn’t let a rogue SHIELD agent get involved. So that’s what he was going to get rid of first.

Not in the sinister way of course. He was would just deter her from stealing this from him again. He couldn’t lose Bucky. Not again. He wouldn’t let himself go through this again. He knew that his heart couldn’t stand it. He knew that things weren’t the most peaceful. It couldn’t be all rainbows and butterflies. It was just reality and reality wasn’t all happy. It was his strange reality that he couldn’t seem to escape.

Sometimes he found himself wondering if it was worth it to get close to people when all that happened was loss, hidden tears and pain. Sometimes he found himself thinking- day dreaming about a simpler life. A life where there was no pain or suffering. A life where he could live in peace. Or maybe no life at all. He stood in a difficult position- a position he never thought he would be in. He never really thought that he would lose his best friend, the love of his life AND get frozen- then wake up- lose the love of his life again- and realize that his best friend had been frozen too and was alive. There were a lot of things in his life that he didn’t quite understand, but standing in Bucharest, he couldn’t help but understand a bit better.

He needed to get to Helena though. He recognized her from a mile away. He could’ve anyway- he knew all the agents of SHIELD- rogue or other wise- and he just wanted to do all of this in peace.

“Agent.” He approached the young woman slowly with his shield in his hand, slightly dropped by his side but ready in hand just in case things went sideways. “It looks like we both followed the same trail.”

-

Carman was in Bucharest because it was genuinely quiet. She didn’t want to know about what was going on. If the avengers were off destroying whatever it was that they were destroying- she wasn’t going to be their clean up crew anymore. She was tired of living in fear and responsibility. She was disgusted by herself and letting herself get to that point. She was gloomy. Awfully gloomy.

She knew exactly who he was. Those bright eyes of his and dark hair... she couldn’t miss him for the world and there was just something about his soul that screamed pain. Something about his soul that was broken, battered and torn. As a deity, she was taught to recognize broken souls... but she could tell by the simple pain in his eyes and the fact that he was alive meant that he must’ve gone through a lot. She thought that he was dead- but she needed to take it slow. Maybe it wasn’t him- maybe it was a doppelgänger- maybe it was someone who looked incredibly like him-

Ok that wasn’t likely. Especially now that he had said his name. “Bucky.” She repeated his name gently under her breath as she thought for a moment. She wondered genuinely if she should tell him who she actually was... that she knew him. That she had adored him in a time before.

But she decided against him and instead she smiled ever so slightly. “Its nice to finally meet my neighbor.” She felt stupid. She felt like everything that she had put into her heart was... gone. Because he hadn’t recognized her name, her heart shattered once more.

It wasn’t his fault. Or at least that’s what she was telling herself. She didn’t look the same as she was so many years ago. But she had the same name. She had the same name as she did so many years ago... so many lives ago and she wondered if he would remember her eventually.

Maybe he would. There was a bit of hope in usually stoic expression. It wasn’t something that happened often... just ask Steve and he would know.

“I have lived here for a while. I’ve never seen you around.”

Mystery Of Bucharest

( @swordfiles - CLOSED RP )

“Oh come on, you’re kidding me…” Helena muttered under her breath with her microphone muted during a meeting with some fellow S.H.I.E.L.D agents and their boss, Nick Fury. Her slender fingers drummed against her desk, trying to disguise the obvious look of disappointment in her face; The crease in her forehead, the slightly raised eyebrows, the look in her eyes that sent daggers flying through the air if eyes and looks could kill. 

Looking at the calendar - or rather plan of sorts - set out in front of her on the screen, she wanted to roll her eyes. The meeting was dragging on for all of the solo agents it seemed, and it was clear their upcoming months weren’t going to be that eventful. Now, that may sound wrong, since who the hell would want disasters or acts of terror to happen just to be able to do their job and have something to do? It wasn’t that, it was more that, well… Helena knew she’d have to resort to some very long-term technological work in that division for a while, ‘cause for once there were almost too many people on one job. Even after the last train wreck the world had been through with the UN attack and the whole Winter Soldier ordeal that seemed to be firing up in the media.

No way in hell could she just take a seat, lean back and work in another division for a little while. She liked keeping her pace, keeping her solo agent work. When her mind seemed to think back to the Winter Soldier ordeal, an idea popped up in her mind. And she knew she had to act on it. Both for her own sanity, for her job and maybe to try and one-up that one Captain Rogers who had been rumoured to be set on finding the soldier. 

So, by capturing loose thread and various leads, Helena was on a good track and found a lot of witness testimonies that had a connection; All to one place. And there she was on a street in Bucharest.

-

Getting used to a somewhat normal life as a civilian wasn’t exactly an easy task; At least not when having a past of basically being a killing robot used by a Nazi organisation. When trying to pick a place that was good enough to try and build up a foundation for a steady and anything else than abnormal life, there were many things to think of and many questions to ask. The where, what, why and when. Somewhere off grid, but not too obviously off-grid so it could be a place somewhere would look and try and find him. Somewhere with people, a few too many, so there were a few too many to be able to blend in with. Somewhere he wouldn’t easily be singled out as the odd man out. So, Bucky chose Bucharest.

Barnes’ days were spent trying to get his life somewhat together, even though things weren’t looking amazing just yet. Who was he kidding- Things were looking shitty, and that’s how it was. The dirty mattress on the floor that he’d found dumped at some dumpsite, the cramped kitchen and the foggy windows. He was living in a shit-hole. But it was his, and he didn’t exactly have any other bigger or better places to go. Besides, he’d been through worse. He’d seen worse. Lived worse.

Bucky did his usual morning routine of making sure every lock worked and making sure his stash of items that were left beneath some floorboards were still there, all stuffed in a backpack. In it were general supplies, but even maps of the sewers and escape routes; Just in case.

Locking the door to his apartment, he kept his face down, adjusting his cap as he walked down the narrow hall to the stairwell. He was so focused on making sure no one really could get a good look at him that he bumped into a stranger’s shoulder on accident. “Oh- I’m sorry, I didn’t see you-”

The days had become longer. Ever since he saw Bucky last- ever since he had been pulled from the water by Bucky- ever since the entire Winter Soldier ordeal and now the Sokovia Accords, he felt like he was falling apart. He genuinely felt like he was falling apart. He was Steve Rogers. He was Captain America. But now he was... he was falling apart. The UN attack had come as a surprise to him. As someone who couldn’t sign the Sokovia accords- as someone who just couldn’t give up his rights and his freedoms to the government, he also couldn’t help but wonder was it really Bucky who had done that? He would have to discover it for himself- he would have to find Bucky- he would have to find his friend and he would have to figure out what the actual hell was going on. It annoyed him really- it annoyed him how he found himself thinking that his blue eyed friend could have done this. But... after what happened with the Winter Soldier ordeal... he couldn’t help but hate himself. He couldn’t help but hate himself because he thought that Bucky could’ve been responsible. But what could he do? What was he really supposed to think? He knew what he had to do though. What he needed to do was get the hell to Bucharest and get to his dear friend before anyone else did. Steve Rogers was a bright eyed young man. He was someone with so much... of everything. Maybe it was because of the serum. Maybe it wasn’t... but honestly he just wanted to do the right thing. He wanted to do the right thing by the world. He wanted to do the right thing by his friend and by the people who had died. T’Challa’s father was one of them. And he knew that T’Challa hated him because of the fact that he was against the Sokovia Accords and for another reason much deeper than that. But Steve needed to follow his heart. And that’s what lead him here. To Bucharest. Bucharest was a quiet place. He didn’t mind the quietness. He didn’t mind everything that had been going on. What he did mind was simple. He knew that his best friend was here and he didn’t know exactly where. He needed to find the dark haired blue eyed man and fast. He had been looking around quite a bit- he disobeyed Nick Fury’s direct orders along with betraying the trust of many people that he had grown close to among the years. However, he spotted someone awfully familiar. Helena... Helena was her name- and it seemed as though she was looking for something- for someone as vigorously as he was. He didn’t like it.

Carman lived a quiet life. After she left the Avengers she found herself living silently. There was no more Tony to bother her. No more Thor to ask her about her past as a deity. No more training with Natasha or Steve. No more science with Bruce. It was nice. It was quiet. It was lonely. But she didn’t mind. Honestly she would’ve rather been lonely than bothered by every single being in the universe. She had gone through the worst but she had also been through the best with those people. But in all honesty, she was exhausted. She was exhausted of constantly worrying that she would lose yet another person. That she would get close to someone and lose them just as she had lost... no. She wasn’t going to think about him. In all fairness she had been thinking about him a lot since she had moved to Bucharest. She often times thought about her soldier. Her dear James Buchanan Barnes- the man she had fought with- the man who she had grown so dearly close to- the man she was going to love. The man she had lost. She had been thinking about him more and more recently. But she knew that he was dead. He couldn’t be alive. Not after the fact that she had seen him with her own two eyes falling of that train. She had cried so much after that. After she lost him it finally pushed her to say no I can’t attach myself to people I can’t get close to anyone anymore. And that’s exactly what happened. She closed off completely. She closed herself off completely and she just... she couldn’t let herself get close to people anymore. She lived alone. She was alone. And as much as she tried to convince herself that she was okay with being alone... she wasn’t really. She was sad. Plagued by the nightmares of her past lives- of all of the people she had lost, all the people she had accidentally killed while trying to master her powers. She had truly convinced herself that alone was the way to go. Until he had bumped into her. She lived in a shitty place it Bucharest. Honestly it was a shitshow but it wasn’t like she felt like she deserved any better. What she knew about her neighbors weren’t much but what she did know was something simple. She knew she had a neighbor. When he bumped into her and she looked up she felt herself become completely taken aback. She knew that face anywhere. He- there was no way that he was alive. Carman’s mind was blank for a moment for the first time in a long time she felt actual hope inside of her but she couldn’t scare him off- she needed to make sure that it was him. So in a quiet voice she spoke up. “Oh- uh it isn’t a problem,” she mumbled. She took a slight step back before she stuck out her hand. “My name is Carman- you can call me Celly- I believe we’re neighbors.”

MULTI FANDOM REQUEST: Star Wars, Marvel, Borderlands, Final Fantasy, DC, Umbrella Academy

Name/Alias: Anna Age: 25+ Preferred Pronouns/Gender: She/Her, They/Them RP Platform: Tumblr and Discord Group or 1x1 Roleplay: 1x1 Request Description:

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