Bucky Barnes' Daughter

Chapter Thirty-Five

Mr. Johnson gently touched my shoulder, pulling me out of my memory.  I take one finally look at the newspaper before taking an empty seat towards the front of the class.  I fought the urge to go call my parents.

The Winter Soldier had my memories wiped when I was younger, that means I'm not fourteen but probably much older.

"Serenity, would you like to introduce yourself to the class?"  Mr. Johnson asks as class starts.  I nod before standing up and going to the front of the class.  "Feel free to speak Russian and English."  He whispers before taking a seat at his desk.

"Can we hear you speak Russian?"  One of my classmates asks.

"Sure, I'll say my speech in Russian then again in English."  I take a deep breath and I see the reassuring smiles from my classmates.

"My name is Serenity.  My last name is Romanov.  I was born in Russia in a small town outside Novgorod.  I grew up in St. Petersburg.  I am fourteen years old.  I have a dog named Dima and he's a Caucasian Mountain Dog.  My favorite color is red."  I repeated everything in English before taking my seat again.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I couldn't wait to get home.  Jason dropped me off at the end of my driveway and I ran all the way home.  I saw Nat's car parked outside the house but not Bucky's.  I was breathless when I finally got through the door.

"Slow down."  Nat says as she studies me.  "What's wrong?" 

"He erased my memories."  I managed to get the words out before I had to sit down.  My lung were trying to catch up with my wild emotions.

Nat kneels next to me as she waits for me to continue.  I spend a few minutes catching my breath before continuing.

"The Winter Soldier took me to a mutant who erased my memories.  I know this sounds crazy, but I remember Winter dragging me through the streets as people talked about how Soviet Troops were removed from Afghanistan.  I remember that but I can't remember what he erased.  It's all gone."  

I hear Bucky's car drive towards the house.  I stand up and I can feel the rage growing inside of me.  I scramble to my feet and I race outside.  I barely made it a few feet before Nat caught me around my waist.

"It isn't Bucky's fault."  She tells me as I struggle against her.  I wanted to make the Winter Soldier pay for taking my memories from me.  She doesn't let go and instead pulls me upstairs and into my bedroom.

She locks the door when she leaves.  I bang against the wood until I couldn't any more.  I collapse to the ground in a crying heap.

The guards shoved me into the interrogation room.  I refused to cooperate and torture the poor unfortunate soul who went against the Soviet Regime.  I couldn't do that to myself.  But, it didn't matter if I had a conscious or not.  I had to get the information out of him or I would be punished.

"Do you speak Russian?"  I ask the man.  He was in his mid-twenties with dark unruly hair and fierce blue eyes.  He eyes me suspiciously as I pull up a seat so I'm sitting across from him.

"I speak Ukrainian."  He replies in his native tongue.  I nod knowing the language well enough to have this work. "Do you speak my language?"  He asks and I nod.

"I speak enough that we can communicate.  Are you willing to tell me where the other rebels are hiding?  I want to help you."  He studies me for several moments without saying anything.

"I won't tell you anything."  He replies with a sneer.  "You can go to hell Winter Widow."  I feel a  moment of anger pass through me.  I hated it when people called me that.  I wanted to tell him that I wasn't the Red Room's little soldier but it would be no use.  I have a reputation for a reason.

"You will die if you don't tell me."  I inform him knowing he knew what awaited him.   I close my eyes hoping this wouldn't have to happen.  I stand up preparing to leave the room.

"Long live the Tsar."  I walk out not having anything else to say.

I had heard the rumors on the streets of Saint Petersburg.  Some people believed that one of Nicholas II's daughters survived.  I wanted to believe the rumors because it would mean the end of the Soviet Regime and my freedom.  But the truth was, no one survived the execution by the Bolsheviks.  That much I knew.

So, it was fruitless thinking about what was being said.  The rebels only believed in the living Tsar to ensure that they were doing these terrorist actions for a good reason.

"I don't see any information."  Winter appears in my path.  I stand my ground wanting to push him away.  He had no right bossing me around.  He was just a stupid puppet of the Red Room.  I wouldn't let him get to me.

"He wouldn't cooperate."  I reply as i attempt to go around him.  He grabs my arm and pulls me towards him.  "You're damaging the merchandise, soldier."  I kept my voice level and he smiles. 

I couldn't use my compulsion on him.  It never worked and he knows how much it frustrates me.  Instead he pulls me towards the torture room.

"What did she do this time?"  The soldier in charge of the room asks.

"Insubordination."  Winter's voice was even as he pushed me forward.  I didn't want to seem weak so I refused to beg for mercy.  I would take the punishment dealt to me.  This wasn't the first time Winter had tried to get me to stay in line.  It wouldn't work no matter how many times the whip cut into the flesh of my back.  

"Add Pride to her list of crimes."  Winter adds before leaving the room.

The door to my room opens and I catch myself before I fall forward.  Bucky kneels next to me and gently touches my shoulder.  I didn't pull away.  This wasn't the Winter Soldier, I had to keep reminding myself of that fact.  This was the person who cared about me.  This was my father.

"Tell me what you remember."  He tells me as I move so I'm curled against him.  My heart ached as the two memories threaten to suffocate me. 

The newspaper brought back memories I didn't know I had.  But what does this mean?  Am I really older that I appear?  If that's the case, when was I born and why don't I look a day over maybe sixteen. 

"I think the Winter Soldier tried to get rid of my memories but... he couldn't get rid of all of them."

Bucky tenses but doesn't say anything.  I wanted him to tell what was going through his mind but even I wouldn't read his mind.  I stopped doing that the day my brother died.