- act 2 chap 3 of my wp book called winters light ⭐️ still debating on whether to post the whole book here but consider this a little snippet of whats over there <3
- takes place at the mall scene in captain america : the winter soldier
cw: explosion and kissing (thats it i think)
Washington, D.C
On the way to the mall, Steve explained as much as he could—what happened to Fury, why SHIELD was after him, how everything had turned inside out.
She already knew he wasn't the one who attacked Fury—she had completed that mission alongside the Asset. But hearing how the rest of SHIELD was reacting... that was new. That was dangerous.
Azaliya followed, quiet and observant, it was trained into her to be. They blended into the crowd at the shopping mall, tension hidden beneath a facade of civilian calm. The noise pressed in from all sides—music, footsteps, laughter. Azaliya kept close to Natasha, her senses on edge as she still wasn't sure if she could trust them.
"Stay near," Steve muttered. "We don't know who's watching."
Natasha nodded, her eyes scanning every reflective surface. Azaliya's gaze caught on a shop window displaying rows of pastel skirts glowing in the sunlight. She froze without meaning to; for one fleeting second, the world felt soft again—a glimmer of who she might have been if she hadn't been built in a lab.
Natasha noticed and asked, "You like those?" Azaliya startled and scoffed, "No." The faintest smile curved Natasha's lips. "You don't have to lie."
Before Azaliya could respond, Steve called, "This way." They slipped into the Apple Store.
"The drive has a Level Six homing program. As soon as we boot up, SHIELD will know exactly where we are."
"How much time?" Steve asked.
Natasha popped the flash drive into a MacBook. "About nine minutes from—now."
On the screen, the tracer pulsed. Several SHIELD vehicles were already on the move.
"Fury was right about the ship," she muttered. "Someone's hiding something. This drive keeps rewriting itself—annoying little AI."
"Can you override it?" Steve asked.
"The person who built it is slightly smarter than me. Slightly." She typed rapidly. "I'm running a tracer. If we can't read the file, maybe we can track where it came from."
Just then, an employee walked up—bright smile, lanyard bouncing.
"Hey, can I help you guys with anything?"
"Oh, no. My husband was just helping me with some family vacation destinations," Natasha answered smoothly.
Steve slid in easily. "Right. Uh—planning a little trip. For her good grades."
He let out an awkward chuckle that wasn't fooling anyone.
"Aw, that's great!" the employee said. "Where are you guys thinking of going?"
Steve glanced at the screen—New Jersey was glowing like a beacon.
"New Jersey."
"Nice!" The employee nodded—then paused.
His eyes slid from Steve... to Natasha... to Azaliya.
Then he stared.
Hard.
"Huh. That's... wild." He leaned closer to Azaliya. "She looks exactly like both of you. Like—exactly. Your hair—your eyes—like someone made a custom mash-up."
He laughed.
"Did you guys make her in a lab or something?"
Azaliya froze.
She'd never noticed. Never thought to notice.
Her hair really was Natasha's shade of red but her blue eyes were a different shade than Steve's—not quite like her papa's.
Natasha placed a gentle but firm hand on Azaliya's shoulder.
"Thanks. She's our perfect girl," she said smoothly going back to the computer.
The employee grinned. "Well, if you need anything, I'm Aaron."
He walked away.
After they gathered the information they needed, they realized the mall was already hosting the tactical teams coming after them. As they stepped onto the escalator, they spotted Rumlow coming up right beside them.
"Kiss me," Natasha said quietly.
"What?" Steve and Azaliya said in unison—one shocked, one deeply disgusted.
"Public displays of affection make people uncomfortable," Natasha hissed.
Steve blinked. "Yes, they do—"
But he didn't finish—Natasha grabbed his collar and yanked him down into a kiss.
Azaliya immediately turned away, burying her face in the back of Steve's jacket—not because she feared being recognized, but because she absolutely did not want to see that.
"It's not exactly the word I'd use," Steve muttered.
"Well, it's the one I'd use," Azaliya snapped, still hiding.
Steve straightened quickly. "C'mon, let's move. Two more up front."
He swept Azaliya into his arms without warning as they exited the escalator, carrying her as they pushed toward the back exit.
Azaliya didn't fight it. Not because she couldn't. But because, for the first time all day, she felt safe enough not to.
-ˋˏ ༻𖤓༺ ˎˊ-
After a couple of hours driving, they finally pulled up outside an abandoned military base indicated by the signal they were following.
Climbing out of the car, Natasha said, "This is it; the file came from these coordinates."
"So did I. This camp is where I was trained."
"Has it changed much?"
"A little," Steve replied, looking off into the distance as he recalled his time there.
"This is a dead end. Zero heat signatures, zero waves, not even radio signals. Whoever wrote the file must have used a router to throw people off." Natasha noticed that Steve was staring at a building ahead of them. "What is it?" she asked as they walked toward the structure.
"Army regulations forbid storing ammunition within five hundred yards of the barracks. This building is in the wrong place," Steve explained as he unlocked the door with his shield and they entered. When they turned on the lights, they realized they were in a SHIELD office.
"This is SHIELD," Natasha stated. Azaliya walked quietly behind them. The office was still filled with desks and older phones, making it seem like the place had been frozen in time.
"Maybe where is started," Steve said as they entered a room where they found old framed portraits of three people.
"There's Stark's father," Natasha noted. "Howard," Steve replied.
Azaliya decided to speak for the first time since they arrived. "Did you know them?"
"Yeah, I did," Steve replies almost sadly, turning away to walk further into the room. He stops by a massive bookshelf.
"If you're already working in a secret office," he says, pushing the bookshelf to slide it open, revealing an elevator behind it, "why do you need to hide the elevator?"
They enter the elevator, which took them to a room filled with older looking computers. Azaliya looks around, confused by the ancient technology surrounding her. She doesn't trust this place, it offered no quick exit.
"This can't be the data point; this technology is ancient." Suddenly, Natasha notices a small flash drive port. She inserts the flash drive, which activates the old computer in the room.
"Y-E-S spells yes," Natasha smiles as the old computer begins to crank up. "Shall we play a game?" she says in a different tone, then turns to Steve, who is looking at her with a blank expression. "It's from a movie that—"
"I know," Steve interrupts. "Eli made me watch it with him."
Eli? Who the heck is Eli?
Suddenly, the screen turns on, displaying a strange green pixelated interface. The technology around them comes to life, and a face appears on screen, complete with round glasses, starting to speak.
"Rogers, Steven. Born, 1918. Romanoff, Natasha. Born, 1984." An old camera moves above them, analyzing their features. "Project WSBW-3, born 2002."
Natasha's face pales. 2002. WSBW. There's no way. It isn't possible. No. No.
"It's some kind of recording," Natasha wispers trying to calm herself.
Almost offended, the computer begins talking again. "I may not be the man I was when the Captain took me prisoner in 1945, but I am." The screen shows an old photo of him.
"Do you know this thing?" Natasha asks. "Arnim Zola was a German scientist who worked for the Red Skull. He's been dead for years," Steve replies.
"First correction: I am Swiss." The lights flickered. "Second: look around you. I have never been more alive." He continued, explaining Operation Paperclip, HYDRA's infiltration of SHIELD, the decades of manipulation, the assassinations — including the Starks. Azaliya stood rigid, her pulse climbing. She really didn't like this.
By the end, Steve slammed the monitor with his shield.
Zola only chuckled. "As I was saying—"
"What's on this drive?" Steve barked.
"Project Insight requires insight. I wrote an algorithm—"
The air changed. Then Zola added "Unfortunately, you shall be too dead to hear it."
The mental doors began closing. Natasha grabbed Azaliya's arm. "Steve!"
"I am afraid I have been stalling, Captain. Admit it; it's better this way. We are both out of time." Noticing a small opening in the ground, Steve throws the metal door aside. "Jump!"
He threw Natasha and Azaliya down first, then dove after them, covering them with his shield as the entire facility detonated.
The world became fire and roaring metal.
Azaliya stayed conscious, although barely, the serum still maturing in her veins. Her ears rang. Her ribs throbbed. But she was alive. Awake.
Natasha wasn't as lucky. She was only beginning to stir when Steve hauled debris off them.They stumbled into daylight just as STRIKE teams arrived. "Truck," Azaliya gasped.
They sprinted silently through the trees and made it back to the Silverado.
Steve laid Natasha gently across the backseat, then turned to Azaliya, panic creeping into his voice.
"Are you hurt? What hurts? Are you bleeding anywhere? Do you need—"
Azaliya eased into the front seat. "I'm fine. Really. But we need to go."
That was enough. Steve gunned the engine. They vanished into the woods.
-ˋˏ ༻𖤓༺ ˎˊ-
Back in D.C., Pierce poured himself a glass of milk, only to find the Winter Soldier already seated at his table, silent and unreadable.
Renata's voice drifted from the hallway. "I'm heading out, Mr. Pierce — need anything before I go?"
"No, Renata. You can go home," Pierce called, forcing his voice even.
"Okay, night-night." She walked off.
Pierce turned back to the Soldier. "The timetable has moved. Two targets, Level Six. They already cost me Zola." He leaned closer, voice cold.
"They also have the girl. Do this well, and she'll be back where she belongs."
The Soldier didn't react.
Renata reappeared suddenly. "Sorry, I forgot my phone—" She froze when she saw the Soldier. Pierce sighed, almost regretful.
"Oh, Renata. I wish you'd knocked." He picked up the gun from the table and shot her.
I think Bucky would like to drink like fruity ass tea. Like instead of morning coffee he drinks pomegranate tea. I can picture him on the couch Natasha on his lap both of them with their hair in a high bun and comfy clothes sipping their morning tea watching a morning talk show. Deadly Russian Assasins sipping morning fruity tea. This is what I'm thinking about rn for some reason
