Captain America: Civil War (Charlotte Stark)

Ch. 3 Bucky Barnes

The choir sang a dirge as Peggy Carter's casket was carried into the London cathedral. Steve was the lead pallbearer on the right. He guided the casket to the front of the sanctuary, and the pallbearers set it down on a pedestal next to a large photo of Peggy and wreaths of flowers. He sat in between Sam and I. We didn't want him to face this by himself.

A vicar, waiting in the pulpit, paused while everyone got to their seats, then welcomed them with a brief prayer. When he had finished, he said, "And now I would like to invite Sharon Carter to come up and say a few words."

Sharon reached the podium, and Sam, sitting on Steve's right, nudged him. Steve had been looking down, lost in thought. Now he looked up and realized that he recognized Sharon Carter.

Sharon took a moment to collect herself. "Margaret Carter was known to most as a founder of S.H.I.E.L.D.," she began. "But I just knew her as Aunt Peggy. She had a photograph in her office: Aunt Peggy standing next to JFK. As a kid, that was pretty cool. But it was a lot to live up to. Which is why I never told anyone we were related." She looked directly at Steve as she said that.

"I asked her once how she managed to master diplomacy and espionage at a time when no one wanted to see a woman succeed at either. And she said, 'Compromise when you can. When you can't, don't. Even if everyone is telling you that something wrong is something right.'" She caught Steve's eye again, and he felt like she was speaking directly to him. "'Even if the whole world is telling you to move, it is your duty to plant yourself like a tree, look them in the eye, and say, "No... you move."'

Steve and I waited for Sharon by ourselves in the beautiful stained-glass sanctuary. Natasha walked up to us. He was glad to see her, even though the question of the Sokovia Accords was the elephant in the room that neither of us wanted to talk about.

"When I came out of the ice, I thought everyone I'd known was gone," he said, looking at the photo of Peggy as he remembered her. Young, with beautiful dark hair swept up in a wave, gaze steady and strong. "When I found out that she was alive, I was just lucky to have her."

Natasha and I understood what he was getting at. We'd been torn out of her previous lives, too. We had to leave people behind. "She had you back, too." Nat says.

He was grateful to Natasha and I for taking a personal moment with him, but it was time to get down to business.

"Who else signed it?" I asked. I already knew Natasha had.

"Tony, Rhodey, Vision," she said.

"Clint?" I asked.

"Says he's retired."

If I had a family, maybe I would do the same thing, I thought.

"Wanda?" Steve asked.

"TBD," Natasha said. To be determined. Steve and I wondered why Wanda was wavering, after what she'd done in Lagos. I wanted to ask about Banner and Thor, but he knew they were in the wind—nobody could ask them.

"I'm off to Vienna for the signing of the accords," she said. Natasha paused and added quietly, "There is plenty of room on the jet."

When we didn't answer, she kept trying. "Just because it's the path of least resistance doesn't mean it's the wrong path. Staying together is more important than how we stay together."

He couldn't agree with that. "What are we giving up to do it?"

"Sorry, Nat. We can't sign it." I add.

"I know," she said.

"Well, then. What are you doing here?" Steve asked her.

"I didn't want you to be alone. Come here." They hugged. Steve and I wondered what it would be like if they ever really had to confront each other because of the accords. Natasha was wondering the same thing. All of us knew what was coming, but we hoped it wouldn't be as bad as we feared.

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In Sharon's hotel room, Steve, Sam, and I watched the shocking news. The government building in Vienna, its facade blown away and fires burning inside, dominated the TV screen. A British voice reported that a bomb hidden in a news van had partially destroyed the building.

Behind us, we heard Sharon talking with the Terrorism Task Force command center. "Who's coordinating?" she asked, and paused.

"More than seventy people have been injured," the broadcaster said. "At least twelve are dead, including Wakanda's King T'Chaka. Officials have released a video of a suspect, identified as James Buchanan Barnes, the Winter Soldier."

When Steve and I saw Bucky's picture, our first thought was, No. That's impossible. During my time in Red Room, they had worked with HYDRA. I was teamed up with him on a few missions. He would try to protect me any way that he could, on the field and off the field. But last I heard, he was dead, so hearing his name surprised me.

Then we realized just how possible it was. "The infamous Hydra agent, linked to numerous acts of terrorism and political assassinations..." the broadcaster droned on.

How could Bucky have done this? Why would he do it? Why did Hydra care about Vienna? Or was this an attack aimed at T'Chaka? Would Hydra go after Wakanda's Vibranium supply again? Too many questions, not enough information. But we knew we had to find Bucky.

Sharon appeared between us, now off the phone. She watched with them for another moment and then said, "I have to go to work."

Steve, Sam, and I immediately got on a quinjet, and left for Vienna. We had to try and find Bucky, but we also wanted to make sure some of our team was okay. Nat, Rhodey, and Tony were there.

Steve and I sat in the pilot and copilot seats of the quinjet, with Sam asleep in the back.

"I knew him." I say to Steve. "Bucky. During my time in Red Room. I knew him."

"What?" He questioned.

"Madame B. often joined forces with HYDRA during a mission, and I worked along side him multiple times." I answered. Steve just sat in silence. "He use to talk about you. When he wasn't being controlled. He remembered my father, and you."

"He did?"

"Yeah. And he would always do whatever he could to protect me. No matter the consequences for him." I pause and look Steve in the eye. "So I promise, I will do everything I can to help you find him, and bring him home."

"Thank you, Char."

When we got to Vienna, Steve and I walked around outside, spotting Nat on a park bench, then ducking behind a corner. We gave her a call.

"Are you all right?" I ask as she answers the phone.

"Yeah, thanks. I got lucky." She looked around. "I know how much Barnes means to you and Steve. I really do," she said. "Stay at home. You'll only make this worse for all of us. Please."

"Are you saying you'll arrest me?" I ask, with a grin.

"No. Someone will, if you interfere. That's how it works now."

"If he's this far gone, Nat... I should be the one to bring him in." Steve chimes in.

"Why?"

"Because I'm the one least likely to die trying."

We hung up then, and I knew immediately, there was going to be trouble.

Steve and I were trying to look like just American tourists in a baseball cap and aviator sunglasses when we met Sam at the counter of a coffee shop across town from the blast site. "Did she tell you to stay out of it?" Sam asked. He was dressed the same way. Steve and I didn't answer, so Sam added, "Might have a point."

"He'd do it for me," Steve said.

"In 1945, maybe. I just want to make sure we consider all our options. People who shoot at you usually wind up shooting at us." He gestured to himself and then to me.

Sharon joined us. "Tips have been pouring in since the footage went public. Everybody thinks the Winter Soldier goes to their gym. Most of it is noise, except for this." She slid a folder over to Steve. "My boss expects a briefing, so... that's all the answer you're going to get."

"Thank you."

She dropped some money on the counter to cover their drinks. "And you're going to have to hurry. We have orders to shoot on sight."