the strongest avenger (2)

ninety nine

Danika's dark hair is pulled back into a low bun, her eyes fixed on me. She wears a mask of false indifference as we enjoy lunch. A brief look into her mind says she doesn't suspect a thing.

I would expect more from the leader of Hydra.

Right now, I am implementing phase one of our plan.

She smiles as I tell her about my day, the breakfast I made James and I and how we did some training together. I leave out the parts with Loki, not wanting her to know about him and Sylvie being at the compound.

And then I listen as she talks about the training she does with her team and the boring side, which would be paperwork. But really I enter her mind and look through. Observing her as she changes codes and meets with directors and the generals, planning out attacks.

Seeing her with scientists working on weapons to use against us. Mainly, I feel her frustration seeping through at the fact that we have taken down almost all of Hydra's facilities.

"So, how's everything going with the team and Hydra? Any updates?" She asks while cutting up her chicken cutlet.

"Eh, pretty good. We're planning on wrapping everything up after the New Year, so we can finally be done."

She smiles and nods while taking a bite of her food.

"We're kind of expecting a big fight with whoever is left," I explain. "and then we'll take them down."

"Where do you think the last warehouse will be?"

I resist the urge to smirk as she tries to gain intel.

"We're anticipating the final stand off at the Moscow location." I provide.

Reaching into her mind, Danika feels confident in Hydra's abilities because she now knows our goal.

"But Moscow is freezing during this time."

I wave my hand. "No biggie."

We're able to keep ourselves warm, especially with Tony's technology, however, a little bit of doubt fills Danika as Hydra needs to step it up.

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️

"She knows Moscow is the goal after the new year," I say, locking gazes with the team as they sit around the conference table. "She's a little worried about the cold weather, but I'm hoping that Tony can help us with that." I give him a pointed look.

"Not a problem." He says, leaning back in his chair.

"And then I'm really hoping that they don't have those guns that send out pulses to us," I gesture to the other enhanced people in the room. "That would be unfortunate. But just in case, I would definitely make it a point to work on combat without powers."

I see Wanda nod and can tell she's not happy about that, but pretty much everyone around me seems content with the way things are going.

"Moving on," Steve starts as he leans forward on the table. "Tal, Buck, Nat, and I will be heading to Italy tomorrow, Wanda, Sam, Bruce, and Thor will be going to the Brazil facility."

"What about me?" Tony asks.

"You're retired," I say, fighting a smile. "You work on upgrading our suits for the cold weather and all that stuff."

Tony scowls but sits back, crossing his arms. Loki and Sylvie are not with us at the moment, but they will be staying back at the compound during our trips.

"So the schedule remains, this week's assignments, and then we have a few days off for Christmas, then another set of trips and then the New Year. By then all should be done and ready to go for Moscow." Steve says.

Nods go around the table at his words.

The rest of the meeting goes smoothly, with the final details coming into place. We're all prepared for the future fight against Hydra, and I'm very optimistic.

Bucky and I head back to our room, letting Alpine join us. The heaters in her area work well, but we try to let her inside as much as possible.

I flop down on the couch, our goat in my hands. My eyes are trained on Bucky as he walks over to the coffee table and grabs the keys to his bike.

"Where are you going?" I ask, my brows furrowed.

He turns towards me, a faint smile on his face.

"I have a few errands to run."

Rolling my eyes, I shake my head. "You're always doing errands. Stay in and watch a movie with me."

"I'll be quick." He moves close to me and presses a kiss against my forehead.

I mold my face into a pout and look up at his blue eyes. "Fine. But bring me back cookies from that place we like."

"Yes ma'am." Bucky fake salutes me and I watch as he heads out the door.

A frown settles on my face as I look through the channels of our TV. James is always doing something now a days. Always running errands, but he never tells me what they are. I'm trying to absorb all the time I can with him in case something happens with Hydra.

And, honestly, I'm not a fan of him leaving the compound as often as he does. Especially when he's alone.

But he said that he would be quick.

So, I watch The Hunger Games, one of my favorites, and make some popcorn. Alpine rests on my lap, nibbling on some carrots.

But I start to worry when the first movie finishes and James isn't home. And then the second one finishes too.

Part of me worries, but I know he'll be okay.  So, I stay up late and wait for him, movies playing one after the other, Alpine transferring to the floor.

But eventually I grow tired, and my eyes drift shut. My body shutting down after the long day and long week.

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️

A rustling sound jars me awake, my eyes fluttering open to find Bucky staring down at me.

"Hi Bubs." I mumble.

"Hi, my love."

He carefully lifts me up off the couch and towards our bedroom, setting me down under the covers. I strain to keep my eyes open as he shrugs his jacket off and climbs into bed with me.

"You're late."

He gives me a small smile. "I got caught up."

I frown and turn, putting my back to him while pulling the covers up to my chin.

Bucky shifts behind me and wraps an arm around my waist, pulling me flush against him.

"What's wrong?"

I bite my lip, and then sigh. "You're not cheating on me are you?" Bucky stiffens behind me.

"Never. Why would you think that?" I internally cringe at the hurt that fills his voice.

"You're gone a lot, doing these errands. And you never tell me what you're doing. You get caught up and come home late."

Bucky presses a kiss to my neck. "Once everything with Hydra is over, you'll see what I've been doing.

I turn so that I face him, his hand resting on my hip.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." He smiles slightly. "Trust me, you'll be happy."

"Okay." I lean forward and kiss him on the lips.

"Love you, Angel." He says as he pulls me closer to him.

"Love you too."