Red, White & Blue | Bucky x Reader

Chapter Twenty

I follow Bucky as he leads me through the city and into an empty field, dropping his bag on the ground.

"Alright," he says, lining up glass bottles along the fence, "if you're so set on coming with us, I need to make sure that you know how to defend yourself."

Bucky takes out a handgun form its holster and shows me how to remove the magazine to load the weapon before putting the gun in my hand, wrapping my fingers around the grip, and flicking the safety off.

"The trick is to squeeze the trigger, don't pull it," he explains, stepping behind me. "Take aim."

I do as he says and bring the gun up to eye level, aiming the barrel at one of the bottles and taking at deep breath in. Exhaling fully, I squeeze the trigger, and the gun kicks back as the bullet launches toward the bottle, shattering the glass as it passes through.

"Wow!" Bucky exclaims, clearly impressed.

"Beginner's luck..." I mumble, looking at the ground while a shy smile finds my lips.

"Try and do that again," he encourages.

We spend the next fifteen minutes shooting at bottles and cans, Bucky teaching me everything he knows. I manage to hit all but three of the targets.

"You're incredible!" Bucky states as we begin our walk back to Headquarters, and I blush at his compliment.

"I don't know if I can shoot someone," I admit. "When I became a nurse, I took an oath to do no harm."

"You may not have a choice," Bucky states. "This is war, it's either kill or be killed. If you're having second thoughts, you don't have to come with us."

"I want to come," I tell him. "If I stay behind, I'll only worry about you two. It's easier not to worry if I'm there, ready to stitch up any wounds."

Bucky smiles at the sentiment and we continue our walk back in silence. I consider his comment. If my life is on the line, does that justify breaking my oath and taking someone else's?

A few days later, Phillips gives us a mission to take out one of the HYDRA bases in Poland. When I arrive at Headquarters, Peggy leads me through the hallways and into a laboratory where we find a familiar, dark-haired man.

"Howard," Peggy calls to get his attention. "This is Y/n Y/l/n. Y/n, this is Howard Stark."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Y/l/n," Stark says, rushing over to shake my hand. I hide mine behind my back, respectfully nodding instead, Stark does the same. "If you follow me, I have a few things I think you'll find useful."

Stark leads me further into the laboratory, but as we pass one of his worktables, I remember moments from my capture and stumble backward, right into someone's chest.

"Woah, woah, hey," Bucky soothes, taking my arms and pulling me to the nearby shelf, out of the way. "What happened?"

"Flashback," I say, still looking around the room.

Bucky offers a comforting smile. "I get them too."

I take a few deep breaths as I look up at him, slowly relaxing. Stark approaches us, curiosity on his face as he looks between me and Bucky.

"Ah, Sergeant Barnes," Stark addresses. "I see you're here to collect as well. If you could both follow me."

With Bucky at my side, I allow myself to be led further into the laboratory, passing multiple shelves and tables full of different weapons and devices. Stark stops next to a table of guns.

"Take your pick," Stark offers before wandering over to another table.

I stand next to the table and stare at the different guns. They range from a variety of sizes and colours, each unique. Clearly out of my element, I glance around the table, not sure which one to pick. Bucky reaches around me.

"This one," he states, picking up a simple black gun and handing it to me. "It's small, light, and it won't overpower you."

"Thanks," I say, taking the gun from him and checking the safety before tucking it into my waistband.

Stark returns a moment later, handing us each a canvas bag. "You'll find your new uniforms in these."

Taking the bags from Stark, we exit the laboratory, and I find a small room to put on my uniform. It consists of a pair of form-fitted grey pants and a dark blue jacket that fit me perfectly, hugging my body at every angle while being loose enough to allow movement. After braiding back my hair and lacing up my combat boots, I return to Bucky, finding him wearing a similar uniform.

"Wow, look at you," he breathes, taking in my appearance. "The uniform suits you."

"Thank you," I say, following him out of the building.

When we arrive at the airfield, Steve waiting. Like us, he received a new uniform, the blue Kevlar suit has red and white stripes around his abdomen and a silver star on his chest. He holds a new shield as well, this one round with red circles painted around the silver star in the middle, like a target.

The three of us climb aboard the plane to see that the rest of the team has already gathered, the small space filled with their excited chatter.

"Welcome aboard, Y/l/n," Dugan greets me with a tip of his hat.

"Dugan," I nod to him. "So, who's flying this thing?"

"That would be me," Stark answers, climbing aboard behind me.

"Is there anything you can't do, Stark?" I joke as he passes, he winks at me.

We strap into the bench seats as Stark takes off and, once in the air, Dugan pulls out a deck of cards to deal out our hands.

"You know," Bucky muses as he concentrates on his cards, "we never did give ourselves a name."

We play round after round, considering potential names for our little band of commandos. Suddenly, Dugan slaps down his cards and lets out a victorious howl. The rest of the team groans at their loss and throw their cards into the pile, but inspiration strikes me.

"That's it!" I exclaim excitedly. "How about the 'Howling Commandos'?"

The men look around at each other, smiles slowly forming on their faces as they accept the new name. Dugan lets out another trademark howl as new hands are dealt.

"I guess that settles it," Bucky smiles.