Path to Protection (BuckyBarnes x OC)

The Key is to Stay Alive

     I stormed to Colonel Phillips' office early the next morning to share the information I got from Sergeant Barnes. Despite being tired, I couldn't shut an eye the entire night, my mind too active to be lulled into a peaceful sleep. My thoughts kept escaping to the daunting battlefield James described earlier that night. Being at the front seemed horrifying enough, but how could the soldiers simply disappear? What weaponry was Germany using? If Hydra had their dirty hands involved, it was up to our division to find out.

     "Colonel Phillips," I said the second I stepped in his office to announce my presence, but I wasn't the only one that required his attention. Peggy and Howard were already there, and they seemed to be arguing. Taking a second to observe the room, I decided not to intervene and waited patiently to the side.

     "I'm telling you, sir, without proper inspection, there's no way to find out what Hydra's using against us in this war! We need to get closer," Howard argued, pointing at some folders and papers to Phillips, who didn't appear to give a damn.

     "We'd lose too many men; I'm not about to give those Krauts the pleasure," the latter argued and pushed the folders off the table. Howard had no other choice but to start collecting them off the floor.

     "Sir," Peggy objected, "with all due respect, you keep mentioning how preservation of lives is our priority, yet you keep sending our men out there with no chance of return. We had 150 men in the 107th, which is our best troupe; we're now down to the last 30 that have yet to dispatch with only one that ever returned. There are only about 15 survivors still in Italy!"

     My mind quickly slipped back to James, and I respected him even more after knowing he was actually the only one who came back from Italy. He must've been angry about Hydra mowing down his soldiers as if it was an afternoon leisure activity.

     I decided to speak up. If we were all in disagreement against the Colonel, then, maybe, he'd let us suggest and seriously consider our advice. "There's something strange going on over there. We were sent here to investigate it, and I am not going back empty-handed. If there's no other way, send me."

     All three of them looked in my direction, eyes wide open. I knew my suggestion was a long shot, but I had to put the option out there. Phillips never saw me be anything more than a poorly trained agent; this could've been my chance to prove him wrong. Besides, I had proved that I was better than most in hand-to-hand combat and strategic thinking on multiple occasions during the experiments.

     "If you thought you're the solution to this problem, Agent, you're deeply mistaken," Colonel spoke curtly and walked out the office, much to the displeasure of us remaining.

     I collapsed on a chair nearby and buried my face in my palms. "Great, now he'll think I'm stupid, too," I muttered in my hand.

     "Don't take it so personally, Willow," Howard rubbed my back. "Peggy and I have been here for almost an hour. He's too stubborn to listen to reason."

     "So you've heard about what's happening in Italy?" I asked, my voice muffled by my palms.

     "We've heard it from the soldiers. Your friend's been very talkative lately," Peggy added, a wink joining the suggestive remark. Even if it was an inappropriate time, I felt the heat in my cheeks.

     I noticed Howard looking between the two of us, probably trying to figure out who we were talking about, but neither of us was going to explain it to him. I didn't want to get into a dispute over James with Howard, especially when we had more pressing matters. Besides, it was far more entertaining to let him try to figure it out by himself.