epiphany. (Bucky Barnes x Reader)

Chapter Twenty

Compromise where you can. But where you can't, don't.

Even if everyone is telling you that something wrong is something right.

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'."

~*~*~*~

HYDRA Safehouse. Bucharest, Romania. May 2016.

It had been three days since your and Bucky's fight, and so much had happened in those three days.

Former S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Peggy Carter had died. While her death wasn't shocking, it was still hard on you. You had grown up with stories of Peggy told to you by your grandfather. She was one of your first role models. You never had the chance to meet the woman, but you respected her all the same. Parts of her funeral were televised. You noted Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson to be among the attendees.

You had met Steve a few times before when you worked for S.H.I.E.L.D. He sometimes accompanied Clint to your office when he dropped off intel; he would make small talk with you and had made a point to learn your name. If he saw you in the hallways, he would always say hello.

It made sense for Steve to be there. He had served with Peggy during the war, and had things gone differently, he most likely would have married her. You couldn't imagine how he must have been feeling, to have the love of his life back only then to have her taken away a few years later.

You were also made aware of the United Nations' Peace Conference which looked to ratify the Sokovia Accords. On the surface, the Accords looked to be an international agreement regulating the missions of the Avengers by establishing a UN panel to supervise them if and when they were asked to meet. However, the whole ordeal seemed odd to you. There was absolutely no way in hell those Accords were drafted and approved by 117 countries within the span of a week, only to be ratified three days later. So, you did some research.

You discovered that the Accords did indeed prohibit those who refused to sign clearance to participate in any sort of conflict either within their own country or internationally. It indicated that if any enhanced individual who hadn't signed would be arrested should they use their powers to break the law or even help during any particular conflict. What worried you was the regulation that stated enhanced persons in those situations were to be detained indefinitely without a trial. That almost certainly was unconstitutional, at least in the United States. Even more insidious was the regulation which stipulated that those who agreed with them would be required to register with the United Nations as well as provide fingerprints and DNA samples. They would also be required to reveal their secret identities if they had one. Those with innate powers such as those of Wanda and Pietro Maximoff would be required to wear tracking bracelets.