The country backroads were quiet, in a way that might have almost been peaceful, had Kat's nerves not been so on edge as her bike whipped past the rolling fields of Eastern Germany. She could feel her entire body tensing when vehicles passed her in the opposite lane, but it never came to anything. She didn't meet any of the checkpoints or patrol cars she had been afraid of – the authorities must be keeping to the main roads. It meant she hadn't needed to stop to send any warnings to the boys who were following in her tracks, and she hoped it meant that they weren't being watched.
It wasn't a particularly long drive – or it wouldn't have been if they had dared to take the Autobahn, but the winding lanes added extra minutes to the ticking clock, stealing away the time they needed to reach Siberia. She could pick up a little speed now that she was running parallel to a train track, but it would make little difference.
She hated this, she hated the anticipation of knowing what was coming, and the frustrating sensation of being so helpless. Granted, she was currently doing everything in her power to hurl herself towards the upcoming fight as quickly as possible, but it still felt as though she wasn't doing enough. Her hands itched, aching to curl into fists, her muscles remained in a constant state of tension, ready to run, to lash out, anything. Sitting bent over the handlebars of her bike didn't feel like enough, she needed to be doing more, and still she knew there would be more waiting to come. The flight to Russia would undoubtably be worse than this – she would have to sit in a confined space for hours, simply waiting for the chaos to begin. She didn't doubt that the serum running through her veins was a contributing factor to her restlessness.
But at least Bucky would be there, if everything went to plan. If anything over the last agonising twenty-four hours had been able to soothe her anxious mind and distract her from thoughts of what was to come, it was him.
It wasn't even the thoughts of longing kisses that distracted her – as pleasant as those thoughts may be – it was the reassurance of his presence. The grounding warmth at her side that somehow reminded her that things would be alright. It was something she had missed so keenly over the last six months, that suddenly regaining it now almost left her reeling. The abrupt shifts between how safe she had felt waking in his arms in the early hours of the morning and now the teeth-gritting tension she experienced when left alone were staggering.
That tension only heightened when she caught sight of the concrete road bridge arcing over both her narrow country lane and the train track up ahead, the phone in her pocket vibrating demandingly against her ribs as she approached the coordinates Steve had marked as the meeting place for their contact.
The space under the industrial columns of concrete was deserted, however, leaving Kat to pull her bike to a cautious halt as she cast her gaze around the empty fields surrounding her. Perhaps she was early, she reasoned as she tugged her helmet from her head and shook her hair out, releasing a long sigh as she realised that would mean more waiting.
Carefully, she dismounted from the bike, angling herself so that she could see as much of the road as possible whilst still being concealed by one of the pillars, as she sent Sam a quick message to inform him that the roads were clear. She didn't have to wait long, though, as over the sound of the engine of her bike clunking as it cooled, she heard the purr of a newer engine approaching. Biting the inside of her cheek anxiously, she shoved her hands into her pockets, trying to appear as collected as possible as she watched the glossy black Audi speed up the lane, before it pulled up in front of where she leaned against her bike with a barely audible hiss of brakes.
Were the situation different, Kat would have been half-tempted to ask the blonde woman climbing out of the driver's seat if she'd let her take the car for a spin. Of course, she wasn't the same petrol-head kid she had been over two decades ago, and there were more pressing matters at hand. The most prominent being the fact that Steve had informed her that this woman worked for the Counter Terrorism Task Force, and that was enough to make her more than a little nervous as she considered her own status as a fugitive.
Still, it had been such a long time since she had driven a car.
"Sharon Carter?" She called softly, smothering her grimace as the name echoed off the concrete pillars and bounced back to her as the woman braced one hand on the roof of the car. A pair of intelligent, dark eyes latched onto hers for a moment, before scanning her up and down. Intelligent certainly felt like the right word to describe the young agent. Composed was another that sprung to mind, one which made Kat feel positively bedraggled in comparison to the woman whose smooth blonde waves so elegantly framed her face, her fitted black jacket cinching her waist whereas Kat found herself self-consciously brushing road dust from the sleeve of her motorcycle leathers as they took their measure of one another.
What mattered though, were those eyes, assessing her stance, her posture, the likelihood of concealed weapons. Kat knew that look, and had worn it herself often enough, but she was surprised to see it soften into one of near-curiosity as Sharon seemed to deem her an unlikely threat.
"You must be Kat."
A small smile curved her lips as she pushed herself off the bike, slipping one hand from her pocket as she moved to offer it in greeting in response to the cool, American-accented statement; "Steve told you I was coming?"
"No." A tight smile and a cautious shake of her hand caused Kat's brow to furrow in confusion as she looked at the woman.
"I didn't realise my reputation preceded me."
"Not yet." Sharon assured her as she released her hand, "But I had a little inside information."
Kat's frown deepened as she watched Sharon reach across the passenger seat, pulling out a familiar, battered black rucksack. Involuntarily, her stomach tightened as she realised that the last time she had seen that bag, it had been sitting beside her own, by the doorway of her apartment in Amsterdam. It belonged to Bucky.
"His book?" She guessed softly, knowing that he would have been carrying his whole life in that bag. If it had been taken off him when he was arrested, then whoever examined it would have seen his little black notebook. She didn't doubt that her name and address were still scrawled on one of the pages, meaning her cover was likely to be well and truly blown.
"I only read a little." Sharon nodded as she handed her the bag, "But you feature heavily. It wasn't difficult to guess that you might have found him – and the bike gave you away."
"Wow, heavily?" She let out a small, nervous laugh as she took it, weighing the rucksack in her hand before setting it at her feet, for a moment lingering on the temptation to investigate what Sharon had alluded to – what had he written about her? It was a thought that would have to wait, as another, more pressing worry crept to the forefront of her mind. "I guess that means I'll have the CTTF on my tail soon enough, huh?"
"Well..." Sharon cast her a small smile as she closed the car door and leaned against it casually, "Maybe I didn't have time to fully report on the evidence before everything kicked off at headquarters."
Another breath of relieved amusement left Kat at that, as she shook her head slightly and glanced up the road; "You're really putting yourself on the line for these guys, aren't you?"
"It's starting to look that way, isn't it?" Sharon sighed, slipping her hands into her pockets as she followed Kat's gaze in the direction they expected a car to come from. "Maybe I'll be kicking myself in a few hours, but right now... Right now this feels like the right thing to do."
"I've definitely had that thought once or twice." Kat conceded with a tight smile; "Having a conscience sucks sometimes."
A beat of consideration passed, as both women weighed up that statement, and how their individual consciences, values and decisions had led them to this point. Fugitives under a bridge, waiting on the men they had risked their freedom and lives for.
"Is that what's driving you?" She glanced back to the other woman at the question, seeing the raised eyebrow directed her way and then the pointed glance at the bag at her feet. "Just your conscience?"
"Well..." Kat felt her lip curl in a small wince as her motives were called out; "Maybe it's a few things... But he's part of it. Always has been. He's put himself on the line for me more times than I can count."
Sharon nodded slowly at that, thoughtfully casting her eyes along the road once more; "I can't say I got to see that side of him in person."
"Sorry." She grimaced at the thought of the side of Bucky that Sharon had seen.
"You're not the one who threw me through a table."
"Neither is he, not really." She defended him softly; "If anything, what happened is more my fault than his."
"It's alright." Sharon reassured her; "I get it, or... I think I do. The guy that wrote those letters isn't the same guy I met." Once again, she nodded to the bag, making Kat's stomach tense again as her eyes dropped to the unassuming rucksack laying at her feet. Letters. He'd kept writing to her, but had obviously never sent them. Unbidden, her mind drifted to a similar letter she had written, but had never sent, one that she had never intended for him to see. Maybe these were the same, maybe they weren't meant for her eyes, perhaps they were just an outlet. She couldn't betray his trust by looking at something she wasn't meant to read.
She was saved from her dilemma by the distant grumble of an engine, drawing her gaze back to the road where a cloud of dust was being kicked up by a tiny tin-can of a car.
"Do we need to move?"
"No, that's them." Kat reassured Sharon as her eyes picked out the navy paintwork of the beetle; "I'm amazed they weren't further behind. The suspension on that thing wasn't built to hold up Captain America's biceps."
She smiled as Sharon stifled a snort of laughter at her wry comment, both women stepping back as the little car pulled up beneath the bridge with a whine of complaint. Her gaze first landed on the small nod of reassurance Steve fired her from the driver's seat before latching onto the passenger in the back seat, watching as the small scowl of frustration creasing Bucky's features relaxed a little at the sight of her leaning against her bike. It was enough to tug her own features into an affectionate smile as his anxious, steely eyes met hers; some small part of her relaxing just a little now that they were within reach of each other once again.
"Not sure you understand the concept of a getaway car."
Sharon's teasing comment, directed at Steve as he climbed out of the Beetle, jerked Kat's gaze back to the situation at hand, her arms folding loosely across her chest as the super soldier strode across the space between the two cars to meet Sharon.
"It's low profile." He shot back, reaching to lay his large hand on Kat's shoulder as he passed her in a now-familiar gesture of companionship and gratitude – he had done the same as she had left the safehouse that morning.
"Very European." Kat countered with a smile, feeling his fingers tightening in a small squeeze as she met his eyes and saw his head incline slightly towards the car he had just exited – a clear invitation to go check in with Sam and Bucky.
"Good, because this stuff tends to draw a crowd."
Kat cast a backward glance at Sharon at her comment, trying not to let her eyes widen comically as she opened the trunk of her car to reveal the array of seized equipment stashed there, fronted prominently by Steve's shield. The sight of that emblazoned piece of vibranium truly drove home the fact that she was very much in over her head in this world of superhero vendettas, but it was too late to back out now.
Besides, she reasoned with herself as she stepped up to the navy car and rested one arm on the roof as she bent down level with the passenger window, she didn't want to.
"What are you two pouting about?" She teased lightly as Sam rolled down the window, just as Bucky shifted uncomfortably to the middle of the back seat.
"He's been moping since the moment you walked out the door."
Kat couldn't help but laugh at Sam's accusation, and the heavy exhale Bucky answered with from behind him. "Play nice you two, we've got a bit further to drive after this."
"Can't you take him?"
"Sure, driving around in broad daylight with the world's most wanted man clinging to my back sounds like a super idea." She snorted sarcastically in the face of Sam's suggestion, tilting her head slightly to catch Bucky's eye as he leaned forward; "How are you holding up?"
"M'good." He nodded stiffly, his eyes darting to stare out the windscreen of the car, his lips tugging into a small, satisfied smile, directing Kat to search for the reason for his expression.
"Go Sharon." She exhaled under her breath as she looked up to catch sight of the blonde agent locking lips with Steve over the open trunk of her car, her hand caressing the back of his head as they broke apart, sharing a smile and a whisper before she moved back to the driver's side of the car – just as Steve turned back to catch his three companions smirking at him from a few feet away. Judging by his faintly embarrassed, exasperated expression, and by Sam's barely concealed Cheshire Cat grin, it was a long overdue development. One that certainly made sense to Kat when she considered that, like herself, it may have been more than Sharon's conscience motivating her to take such a risk for them.
"We – uh – we should get ready to move." Steve cleared his throat awkwardly as he strode back towards them, one hand scrubbing over the back of his neck self-consciously as Kat straightened from where she was leant against the car; "Move our gear over and then make for the airport."
"Sure thing, Captain." She didn't bother hiding her grin as she drummed her knuckles on the roof of the car before sauntering back to where Sharon was busying herself pulling another bag out of the bag of her car. "So that's what was driving you?"
"I mean, not entirely." She laughed quietly, casting a glance over her shoulder at where Steve and Sam were now loading their gear into the back of the Beetle, passing Kat the bag she was holding; "It wouldn't look too good for us if we were risking everything just for a couple of guys, would it?"
"True." Kat cast her a smile as she stepped back, seeing that Sharon was clearly itching to start putting some distance between herself and the trouble that was likely to only be a few steps behind her; "I get it, that Forties charm is lethal." Shouldering the bag she had been handed, she cast a glance back at where Bucky was now helping the others; "Seriously though, thank you. You didn't have to risk so much for us, especially people you barely know."
"Well, hopefully it was worth it." Sharon nodded, leaning on the driver's side door as she opened it.
"Here..." Kat dug her hand into the pocket of her leather jacket as a thought struck her, tugging out the set of keys that had been stashed there since her hasty flight from Amsterdam; "If you need somewhere to hole up whilst this all settles, those match my address from the book. It's safe, and quiet – just tell the landlord you're a friend. He doesn't ask questions."
Sharon cast her a warm smile as Kat dropped the keys to her apartment in her outstretched hand; "I uh, I might just have to take you up on that. I have a feeling I won't be welcome in the States again after this." She nodded her head towards the three fugitives behind them; "Thank you, Kat."
"Hey, we owe you." She shrugged, mirroring the other woman's smile; "Don't forget to water the plants." She added cheekily as she stepped back to let the agent climb into the car, casting her a small wave as she pulled the door closed.
"Kat? You ready to move?" Sam's call pulled her from watching Sharon pulling off, her steps carrying her back towards the three men and grabbing Bucky's rucksack on the way.
"Just about." She smiled, handing Sam the last bag Sharon had unloaded and passing the other to Bucky; "You might need that."
"Didn't think I was going to see it again." He mused softly as he took the bag, his hands tightening around the straps momentarily as he looked down at her, his right hand drifting to graze down her arm in a subtle gesture of affection, reassuring himself that she was still alright. "You sure you want to keep going? This might be the last point you can back out."
"I think 1991 was the last chance I had to back out." She reminded him with a wry smile; "It's alright Buck, I'm not going anywhere, and I'm fine with that."
For a moment, it looked like his lips might be about to press into a thin line of disapproval, but instead they curved into a small smile, as he raised his hand to brush his knuckles over her cheek; "Thought you might say that."
"Am I so predictable?"
"Only sometimes." He chuckled as she leaned into his touch, just enjoying the flips her stomach was turning as she gazed up at him – until Sam pointedly cleared his throat behind them.
"Clock's ticking, lovebirds. Our backup is on their way to the airport."
"Got it." Kat huffed out an embarrassed laugh, stepping back from Bucky with a small smile, "I guess I'm leading the way again?"
"Let us know if you run into any trouble." Steve reminded her as she nodded.
"Sure – see you boys in Leipzig." She hummed, turning to stride back to her bike, "And no more moping in the car, y'hear me Barnes?" She called teasingly over her shoulder as she grabbed for her helmet. If he shot back a reply to her, she didn't hear it over her engine as she wasted no time in pulling back out onto the road.
[A/N: Oh my goodness guys, 20k reads? You fabulous readers never fail to floor me! So many of you have also had me all in my feels with suggesting songs that remind you of our darling Team Buckat, there may be a playlist on the horizon... (Is that something you'd want to see? I'm so bad at adding in extra multimedia elements to my stories beyond the little banners - any songs that you feel fit these two, throw them at me!)
I really hope you enjoyed this one and the next few chapters that are to come, introducing Kat to the rest of the MCU family is a daunting task and it's something I'm very much agonising over. If only we could have stayed in Amsterdam forever! X]