You're My Mission

After Tony had completed his work on Bucky’s arm, Steve informed me that Fury was alive and that Maria was going to track him down, since no one knew Fury better than her. I wasn’t going to believe it until I saw proof with my own two eyes that Fury was still standing. It was a similar situation when Fury had first given me my mission of retrieving the infamous Winter Soldier: I wouldn’t believe such a man existed until I saw him in action.

As Maria drove us to the secure meeting location, I looked across the backseat to Bucky as he stared with interest at the scenes passing by his window. I wondered why he was even still here. Was he just tagging along because he had nothing else to do? Or did he truly trust Steve and I with his life? It had to be nerve-racking. He was enduring a lot and he hadn’t gone insane. Yet.

We arrived at a lawyer’s firm and were given access to the basement level of their skyscraper. The first area we entered was entirely empty except for the man lurking in the shadows in the furthest corner. Despite the black room being lit by only one faint bulb, he still wore sunglasses and his arms were crossed over his chest with displeasure at us. But he was alive, and I finally allowed myself to let go of the tension and remorse I had held since giving the Winter Soldier the order to kill Fury. Thankfully, Bucky had failed his assignment.

The whole point of the rendezvous was to make plans for Bucky, and for me to debrief after my extensive mission. Fury wasted no time pulling me aside and into a separate room. We took a seat on opposite sides of a blank desk, once again in a dark and cold room. I gave him a quick rundown of the events since I had last contacted him, shortly before the Winter Soldier blew up his jeep.

“I want to start by saying that your intel saved my life. Maria and I are always on high alert, and we had been preparing for an attack for a while, but thanks to your warning we were able to plan for such a uniquely-trained assassin coming after me,” Fury began and I couldn’t help but smile.

Instead of blurting how honoured I was, I took an extra second to recompose myself.

“Just doing my job, sir,” I replied with a nod.

“Speaking of which, congratulations on being successful and retrieving the Winter Soldier. What do you know about him now?”

“His name is James Buchanan Barnes. He fought with Captain Rogers in the war,” I answered and Fury’s face fell.

“So Hydra’s been toying with him for longer than we originally thought,” he remarked and I nodded. “What’s the repercussions of his cryo? And the brainwashing?” My gaze automatically fell as I recalled watching the experiment for the first and only time, right before Pierce had dismissed me. The screams of torture from Bucky were something I would never forget.

“It’s made him unstable. I don’t think they had mastered the process. Since he’s been… awake for so long now, he’s remembering more things every day. The barriers they put inside his mind are breaking down,” I explained the best I could.

“But?” Fury questioned, hearing the doubt in my voice.

“But he’s remaining withdrawn… scared, even… I think he’s vulnerable and he knows that,” I said. I was unable to read Fury’s expression but I felt the need to give him some positive feedback on Bucky to encourage a beneficial outcome from our meeting. “That being said, sir, I see a lot of determination in him. He wants to recover, he wants to trust Steve and I, he wants to overcome his fears- he has a lot of potential.”

“Potential for what?”

I paused at Fury’s words, wondering if I had misinterpreted his original intentions for giving me my assignment.

“For recruitment… His skills are unparalleled,” I said as it sunk in that Fury had possibly wanted me to exterminate the Winter Soldier instead.

“Initially I thought he was too dangerous and needed to be eliminated once there was an opportunity. Over the years, I’ve had a change of heart, and would prefer that he was instead recruited,” Fury explained and my muscles relaxed slightly, pleased that I wasn’t going to have to walk out of the room and put a bullet in Bucky. “If you genuinely think that you can convert him to be a SHIELD agent, then I’m willing to give you a chance.” My brow crinkled.

“Why me, sir?” I wondered, confused that he wasn’t speaking of assigning Steve or someone more qualified.

“I can tell by the way you speak of him that you two have formed a bond. I would like to harness that, have him hold onto that during his recovery. It should speed up the process. You never know when there will be another attack on the world that we’ll need his skills for.”

“And if I fail?” I asked quietly.

“Then what needs to be done will be done,” was Fury’s bitter response.

I fell silent before realising I had so much to ask him.

“What happened to Pierce?”

“Dead.”

“You, sir?”

“It was a damn pleasure,” Fury spat, and I sensed that despite his words he held some regret for that action.

“Can we be provided with a secure location for Bucky’s rehabilitation? With Hydra still crawling everywhere, I’m afraid it’s only a matter of time before one of them recognises us and the fact that we’re no longer on Hydra’s side,” I asked. Fury nodded.

“I have some options. I’ll have Agent Hill take care of you. I need to stay under the radar for a bit longer,” he answered and I felt a burning question hurtle towards the front of my mind.

“What of SHIELD? Is it actually gone?”

Fury smirked at my question.

“We’ll be back before you know it, Agent. Enjoy the downtime while you can.”