What Happened In Budapest *unedited*

Chapter 17: Not Asleep

The pain they inflicted upon me wasn’t as bad as watching Clint crack. It took a while, but he still broke down. He couldn’t scream anymore, it was hard for him to lift his head. And the only thing I could do about it was watch and scream obscenities as they hit him.

They fed and watered us poorly, and it was dark, so dark in the room whenever they came in I had to turn my head as to not be blinded, and they’d leave the door open so we could watch each other bleed. Then, they’d leave and shut the door behind them, and the blood they drew pooled under our feet.

It was after Clint broke that they started asking me questions.

“Who sent you?” Russian again.

“None of your business,” I reply, my voice raw from pain. “And besides, don’t you already know?”

“Well, yes,” She replies. “Let me rephrase this: why did S.H.I.E.L.D. send you?”

“They asked.” I snapped back.

“A specific reason,” She tries to pry deeper. “You must know,”

“I don’t.” I croak.

“Tomorrow, yes?” Heels click as she leaves. “Boys,”

And they’re back in.

~

But I don’t squeal, I hold out. I keep my mouth shut, I sing. I make noise. I don’t tell them anything. I only tell them to back off, to leave me alone, to let us go.

They keep hitting us, trying to get answers. Clint is unconscious, I start getting less food, and we both get thinner. The wounds in our backs don’t heal as quickly as they did, they start staying open.

The door opens, and only a thin sliver of light gets through. It closes, and the light is gone, just like that.

“You’re supposes to be asleep,” A voice says, but it’s male. I haven’t heard it before.

I don’t reply.

“I’m James Barnes.”

I still don’t recognize his voice.

“I’m here to help.”

“Great,” It’s Clint.

I sigh in relief. He’s alive.

A muffled patting noise fades away from me, and I can only imagine he’s going to Clint. A light flickers on, and it’s coming from a flashlight.

“You’ve got a metal arm,” I muttered.

“And so I do,” He said, “Problem?”

And then, I recognize his voice. He’s the Winter Soldier. My heart stops, and if I could, I’d touch my abdomen. I have a huge scar there, big and ugly. He shot me. My charge was killed.

“You,” I shake.

“I heard you screaming,” The flashlight is balanced in Clint’s chains, and he’s cleaning his wounds. “Thought I could help. Besides. They were talking about Captain America… they woke me up.”

“What?” Clint asked, and then moaned.

“Okay, I swear I’m trying to make it hurt less than it has to, I swear buddy,” He starts spreading ointment and starts talking to us. “I died. Kind of. I fell off a train, and Hydra found me. I’ve been an experiment for them, and sometimes I have to be reset. They might do that now, since I’m going to try and get you out.”

“Excuse me?!?!” I ask, as he’s done with Clint and starts walking over to me. “You’re going to wha- DON’T TOUCH ME.”

He backs off a bit. “Relax. I’m just going to get you to stop beeding,”

“NO,” I snarl. “Don’t touch me.”

“Tasha,” Clint’s voice is weary, but pleading. “Please.”

I gnash my teeth and let the Winter Soldier clean my wounds, a year after he inflicted some on me. I don’t like it, he could murder me at any moment.

“Better?” He asks.

I grunt in reply.

He turns to Clint. “I’ve got it all set up, I just hope they don’t reset me before you leave.”

“They’d better not,” Clint said. “We’d all die.”

The Winter Soldier grins. “And I haven’t even told you how I’m getting you out of here.”

“Of course you haven’t,” I snort. Clint glares at me. I notice the flashlight is still on.

“I was going to tell you now,” He says, haughtily.

“Bucky, go on. Ignore her.” Clint shoots me a warning look.

“Bucky?!” I exclaim. “Please, no nicknames!! He tried to kill me!”

“Tasha!”

“Sorry.”

The Winter Soldier just laughs. Then, he starts to tell us his plan.

It’ll be a miracle it he can get us out.

(◕‿◕✿)

HOLY CRAP 3.2k asdfghjkl; ahhhhhhhhhhh!

(Sorry, I love Bucky whhh-aa-y too much :D)