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GLORY DAYS
iii. BEWARE THE SPIDER'S WEB
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synopsis. In which Riley O'Dair is a Black Widow
timeline. Alternate Universe,
The Winter Soldier — Civil War
○ ○ ○
RUMOR HAS IT THAT S.H.I.E.L.D. is involved in some shady shit.
Well, it's not so much a rumor and more so a fact. You name it, it's in their ledger: alien embargo, human experimentation, nuclear weapons conventions, black market operations. They even smuggled a secret alliance with HYDRA, except it was such a well-kept secret that most of them didn't know it until 2014, and it was so extreme that S.H.I.E.L.D. had to collapse in order to remove the threat.
When you're in with S.H.I.E.L.D., you automatically make connections with all kinds of people. People who can get you places, people born without their sanity, shady motherfuckers who don't care about anyone other than themselves. Rob and Athena O'Dair were like that: selfish, shady, borderline criminal. They only cared about each other and their careers. Nothing more, nothing less. It made their lives easier, only ever focusing on their futures. They didn't simply go around obstacles; they fully bulldozed through them. Whatever stood in their way was dealt with, including their firstborn daughter, Riley.
Family means weakness. Family means distractions. So at the first chance they got, they used their resources and managed to make an ally out of a Russian organization called the Red Room. The Red Room's leader, Dreykov, promised the O'Dairs fame and fortune, all for the simple price of Riley. Enticed by his offer, they sold off their two-year-old daughter and never thought about her again.
The year is 2014, and 13-year-old Riley O'Dair can be found in the only place she belongs: the Red Room.
Riley wouldn't be the first to say she hates the Red Room. The Red Room stole her away and stripped her of her free will. The Red Room made her bleed, cry, and even beg for death some nights. Most nights, actually. She loathes it and the people and the abuse and the torture and the training and the killing. She hates all of it, even the tiniest details like the cracks in the wall and the creaks in her bedsprings. She hasn't smiled since she first came here. Part of her wonders if she even knows how to anymore.
But despite her fierce hatred for it, the Red Room is where she belongs. No matter where she goes or who she grows up to be, she will always be branded as Dreykov's property. A Black Widow until death.
THUD!
A body slams against the floor as two Widows spar each other. It's a slow day. It's one of those days where most of the girls are between missions, waiting for their next assignment. To pass the time, they're sparring in pairs — everyone except Riley. She sits in a corner alone, as per usual. She twirls a knife in her hand, watching innocently as the fluorescents in the room reflect off of it.
"Ahem." One of the older Widows, Freya, loudly clears her throat. Beside her is her sparring partner, Yelena Belova. "Вы собираетесь встать с ленивой задницы, Райли?" You planning on getting off your lazy ass, Riley?
Riley lazily drags her gaze up, an annoyed grimace on her face. She isn't fond of Freya. To be fair, she isn't fond of any of the Widows. She doesn't like them because she doesn't like the Red Room. It's as simple as that.
She shifts her attention back to her knife and simply says, "Я подумаю, если Елена перестанет надрывать тебе задницу." I'll consider it when Yelena stops kicking your ass.
Some of the Widows chuckle, exchanging glances childishly. It's moments like these where they feel kind of normal. Riley doesn't understand why they're so humored. She's being serious.
Yelena approaches the teenager, smirking. If you look past the dark eyeliner she wears around her green eyes, you can see the pride in them. "Надо работать над своим отношением, Райли." You have to work on your attitude, Riley.
Riley scoffs. "Как будто тебе лучше." Like you're any better.
Yelena is twice Riley's age, so you'd think they wouldn't interact very often. Dreykov is very particular with how he groups the Widows, usually keeping age groups together unless the mission requires otherwise. But even he cannot keep all of the Widows apart. It isn't reasonable nor necessary. All of the Widows know each other, and although Riley dislikes them all, she... kind of tolerates Yelena.
They're just too similar that it wouldn't make sense to hate her. They're equally as intense and cutthroat, not to mention incredibly masterful at their craft, and known for their unnecessarily snarky attitudes. To Riley, there's a fine line between Yelena and the other Widows.
"Вы знаете, что она слишком хороша, чтобы тренироваться с нами охотно," another Widow, Ingrid, taunts. You know she's too good to train with us willingly.
"I don't think that," Riley sourly says. Her Russian accent somehow sounds stronger when she speaks in English. "Just not in the mood."
"You never are," Freya mentions. "Aren't you supposed to be Dreykov's favorite?"
This is somewhat true. She isn't his favorite, but she's on his good side. She's currently the youngest Widow to complete her training ever, finishing her training at just 12-years-old last year. Why else do you think the girls are twice her age?
"He wouldn't like me as much if he knew how badly I want to get out of here," Riley bluntly says.
Freya shakes her head. "Вот и мы снова с вашими большими мечтами." Here we are again with your big dreams.
"It's not a dream, it's a goal," Riley argues. "I'm going to find a way out of this shithole. Just you watch."
Some of the girls cringe at how openly she speaks. Others roll their eyes. Riley isn't the first to think about escaping the Red Room. They all dream of it. The difference is that she's the only one ballsy enough to speak on it. All of the Widows can agree that maybe Riley just has a death wish. Again, she wouldn't be the first.
It's haunting to think about though: a girl so talented at her craft dreams of the day she can finally quit.
"You act like you can get past Dreykov so easily," Freya sneers. "Even with help—"
"I won't need help," Riley snaps. "Don't act like it's so impossible for someone like us to get out of here. It's happened before. The Avenger did it."
No one notices how Yelena frowns.
Riley stands up, knife dangling carelessly in her grasp as she fiercely goes on, "She got out of here, and she didn't bother coming back for us. She didn't even try. It's every Widow for herself. You'll see."
She turns to leave, but not without flicking her wrist, heedlessly throwing her knife through the air. It whips past Freya, lodging itself in the wall beside her head. A perfect shot. Riley rarely misses.
Her quiet footsteps are the only thing that's heard before Yelena begrudgingly sighs and follows her.
It doesn't take her long to catch up. Part of Yelena wants to think Riley purposely slowed down in hopes of her catching up, but... she isn't sure. She's never really sure when it comes to Riley. She understands the intricacies of every Widow's web except for Riley's.
"Are you ever not going to put on a show every time you open your mouth?" Yelena dryly wonders.
"Depends," Riley simply says. "Is Freya ever going to get off my ass?"
"You always get along with her when you're assigned to missions together."
"Well, it's not like I have any choice when Dreykov decides to start mind-controlling us," Riley jeers. She balls her hands into fists. "I fucking hate this place, Yelena. How can any of you stand here and pretend you don't?"
Yelena bitterly laughs. "You think we're pretending? You must be a complete idiot if you think we're pretending."
"I'm not an idiot," Riley hisses. "I just don't see the point in forcing myself to be friends with these people. It's bullshit. I gain nothing from it. Every time I go on another mission, I hope it's my last, and every time I regain awareness, I find out I did better than last time. I'm a shiny fucking gold star. I can't keep living like this."
If her words have any effect on Yelena, she doesn't let it show. She takes a moment before asking, "Are any of us really living?"
"Очевидно нет." Obviously not.
Almost as if reading each other's minds, they stop walking.
"Do you think we can live again?" Yelena lowly asks.
Riley shrugs. "I hope so."
"Huh. That's the first time I've ever heard you say anything remotely optimistic." Despite this admittedly happy realization, Yelena doesn't smile. She doesn't remember how to either. "You have a lot of nerve talking about leaving so openly. I'm surprised no one's turned you in yet."
"It's because I'm the only one with the guts to say what they're all thinking." Riley stuffs her hands into her pockets. "What would you do if you managed to leave this shithole?"
Yelena doesn't have to think twice about it. "I want a dog. What about you?"
Riley wants to make fun of her, but even she cannot deny the fact that having a dog would be awesome. Instead, she confesses, "I want to travel the world. And I want to eat some decent food for once. I wonder what plums taste like."
The specificity makes Yelena think that she's thought about this many times before. It makes her want to chuckle. All this grouchy, teenage assassin wants is to try a plum.
"So," Yelena eventually says, "I found some more earrings. Want me to pierce your cartilage?"
Riley's eyes light up. Piercing each other's ears is their favorite way to pass the time. It's admittedly fun, and they enjoy testing how high their pain tolerances truly are.
"Fuck yeah. Let's do it."
The next day, Riley awakens to some discomfort in her ear and a new mission from Dreykov himself.
Believe it or not, it's an honor to receive orders directly from Dreykov. Normally, one of his lackeys would deliver instructions on his behalf, but Dreykov has an abnormal obsession with Riley. Maybe it's because she's his youngest high-achieving Widow, or maybe it's because her mere existence is a direct link to S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers (not that she would know that). She doesn't know why he's so obsessed with her, and frankly, she doesn't care to know why.
Dreykov tells her she's been specially chosen for this next mission. She should feel lucky. She should probably thank him. But she does not. She knows by now that life is easier when she shuts up and only responds to direct orders and questions. Everyone at the Red Room learns that one way or another.
Her mission is to tie up some loose ends for Dreykov. She must track down an agent who recently escaped from HYDRA's clutches and assassinate him. According to inside sources, this agent is part of the reason why S.H.I.E.L.D. recently collapsed, and Dreykov has some bad blood with him. Plus, his death would lure in some interested parties that Dreykov wouldn't mind having by his side. Now that this agent is on the run alone, now is the perfect time to target him. Riley doesn't know what their past is, and she isn't surprised Dreykov doesn't tell her the dirty details.
Another murder mission. Great.
Though she'll admit, Riley becomes a little unsure of whether she's the right person for the job when Dreykov reveals that the agent she must kill is the Winter Soldier.
Of course, she knows who the Winter Soldier is. She's not stupid. He's a masterful assassin that's been around since World War II. Riley isn't sure how he survived this long, but hey, it's not in her job description to know these kinds of things.
All she knows is that she's definitely going to die carrying out this mission, but at this point, who cares? Either she's going to successfully murder the world's most famous assassin (and earn some serious street cred), or she's going to die trying.
It sounds like a win-win situation, honestly.
The worst part is knowing she isn't going to be in control when it happens. That's Dreykov's trick. He mind-controls all of the Widows once they're out on the field, stealing their awareness and free will. She doesn't know how he does it, but she knows it's all in her head. Whether she's successful or not, she won't be able to process the outcome until she awakens in the Red Room. Or the afterlife. Whichever comes first.
Dreykov's men knock her out. This is to ensure the location of the Red Room's headquarters remains a secret. When Riley opens her eyes again, she stands alone in Spain — the last place the Winter Soldier was last seen (according to Dreykov's allies. The rest of the world has no idea he's still alive after S.H.I.E.L.D.'s downfall, not even the Avengers).
She doesn't know why Dreykov believes she can take on the Winter Soldier, never mind alone, but she's thankful for the mind-control for once because it mitigates all of her worries and hesitations. Before she knows it, she's approaching a small, run-down apartment. The Winter Soldier's temporary hideout.
Knock-knock!
No response.
Knock-knock-knock!
Riley's too impatient for this shit.
Pistol in hand, she kicks the door open. There's no point in taking on a false identity, like a lost child or concerned neighbor. The Winter Soldier would see right through her, and Dreykov anticipated that.
Her stance is stiff and rehearsed as she vigilantly enters the apartment. There's hardly any sign anyone lives here. There's a bed with no sheets, some food, and in the corner, there's a black backpack with numerous tourist pins stuck to it. Stolen. Makes sense. She scans the room before turning the corner and discovering a man with long, brown hair. The Winter Soldier.
Neither of them moves. They mirror each other, each pointing a gun at the other. Something in his eyes shifts when he sees her. Uncertainty, hesitation, confusion. Why is there a child pointing a gun at him right now?
Well, he can make a fair guess.
"Who sent you?"
His voice is deep and firm, but there's something in it that catches her ear. Maybe it's his accent. It's American, but she swears the way he enunciates his words makes it sound like he doesn't usually speak English. She does not realize it's fear that she's hearing. He cannot go back to HYDRA under any circumstance.
"An old friend."
She is stone-faced as her finger hovers over the trigger. The sight is disconcerting to him: a young child with a desolate yet murderous gleam in her eyes. He's seen this before, but it's not often that his enemies send children to kill him. This might be the first, actually. Did they send a little kid to throw him off?
"...HYDRA?" he inquires.
"Закрывать. Думайте больше о Востоке." Close. Think more toward the East.
Her native tongue is enough for him to realize this kid belongs to the Red Room. Another Widow.
She gives him no time to react. She pulls the trigger and opens fire. He deflects the bullets with his metal arm and dives to the side. In a split second, he must decide what to do. He doesn't want to kill anyone else, never mind a child. But what choice does he have? Dreykov sent her.
He hastily decides he won't kill her, but he will fight her. Then, he'll make a run for it.
He charges at her, thinking his height will give him an edge. He's wrong. The girl's size makes it more difficult to predict her movements. She may be small, but she uses it to her advantage.
He sweeps her feet, causing her to roll onto her side. She bangs her head against the floor, but it's not enough to stop her. A knife is withdrawn from her utility belt, and she flings it at him without a moment to consider where it might hit. She rarely misses, even now. But it grinds across his metal arm. Useless.
He starts to get creative, grabbing furniture and throwing it at her. Chairs and tables fly across the apartment. Each one lands with newfound bullet holes and knife marks in them. Riley reaches for a grenade that swings from her belt, but the Winter Soldier shoots at her. It clatters onto the floor, and right away, they both dive for it. He opens fire, but she swiftly dodges. It's a dance, almost. They predict each other's movements with ease. A perfect partner.
When he runs out of bullets, Riley tries to seize the grenade again. She's willing to die to kill him, but he won't let her. He charges again, swinging his metal fist at her face. BOOM!
Her body slams against the floor, and the world goes dark.
When Riley awakens, her vision is briefly spotty. Her head pounds with the worst ache she's ever experienced. It seems that she's regained full awareness, for that blank expression on her face falls into a pained frown. What happened? Did she do it? Did she kill the Winter Soldier? If so, why isn't she at the Red Room? She's still in the Winter Soldier's temporary apartment, and she's tied up in a chair.
Riley scoffs. Did he seriously think some ropes could keep her down?
She doesn't understand why he didn't kill her, but she has more important things to worry about. She's mostly annoyed because she now has to figure out where he went and try to kill him again. There's also the fact that Dreykov's mind-control isn't working anymore—
Wait.
Riley wiggles her fingers behind her back. She tries adjusting her sitting position. She even moves her head side-to-side. Holy shit. She has full control over herself again. And she isn't in the Red Room. Holy shit. Holy fucking shit.
She thinks back to her last fight, and she remembers how hard the Winter Soldier punched her. She hit her head so hard that it deactivated Dreykov's mind-control? Is that really all it took? A not-so-minor concussion?
Riley doesn't care to work out the details right now. She just needs to free herself from these restraints, remove her tracker from her thigh, and then she's free. Dreykov will believe the Winter Soldier killed her, and... that's it. She'll never have to go back to the Red Room again. Ever.
Excitement shoots through her body, straight through her core, and reaches her head. She loudly groans, desperately wishing someone would hand her an Advil and some water. She's too busy trying to fight off the pain she's feeling to realize someone is in the room with her.
"You're awake."
The Winter Soldier stands before her. She can see him more clearly now that she cannot move and isn't so hellbent on killing him. But she isn't necessarily startled by his rugged appearance.
"Are you stupid?" Riley asks. She's different from before, and he notices it. She's more relaxed, calm. The look on her face is less desolate and more annoyed. Something changed between the last time they faced each other.
Her question takes him aback. "What?"
"You know I was sent here to kill you, right? Why are you still here?"
He hesitates. He actually hesitates. "You're a child."
The appalled look on her face is priceless. "Oh, so now, you decide you have some high and mighty moral compass? It's a little late for that." She squirms in her chair, maneuvering with the ropes. She doesn't have any of her weapons on her, no thanks to the Winter Soldier, so she has to free herself the old-fashioned way. "Aren't you supposed to be an assassin or something?"
For the first time in his life, he says, "Not anymore. That's not who I want to be. You wouldn't understand."
"Alright, Winter, then who are you?" she asks. Her bluntness doesn't make sense to him. She isn't like the other Widows he's encountered before. He doesn't answer. "You know, I saw what happened with S.H.I.E.L.D., and I have to say, I'm impressed. If it helps, not that I care, I'm done with this shit, too. I don't know what you did to me, but I haven't been this aware of the world outside the Red Room since... well, ever."
The Winter Soldier considers what she means. He isn't surprised that Dreykov utilizes mind-control in his practice. He isn't sure how she broke free from his mental manipulation, but he has a feeling she doesn't know either.
"Right." He isn't used to chatting this much. But he can't seem to bring himself to leave this kid alone. "Then... what do you plan on doing?"
Riley eyes him. "I could ask you the same thing. Why'd you pick Spain?"
Again, he hesitates. "Had to get out of the states. I don't plan on staying."
"Mhm, and where do you plan on going, Winter?"
The nickname invokes something within him. "Don't call me that," he irritably snaps.
"What do I call you then?" she calmly asks. He doesn't answer. "So, you don't seem to plan on leaving me alone, but you don't want to talk to me either. You're a real piece of work, Winter."
"I told you not to call me—"
She rises from her chair, ropes loosening and falling to the ground. It's not her fastest timing, but she isn't in a rush. Not yet, at least.
"I need a knife."
Winter stares at her blankly.
"Are you deaf? I need one of my knives. I know you have them on you," Riley presses. He doesn't budge. She sighs. "I need to remove my tracker. Come on, the longer we stay here, the sooner Dreykov is going to come after us. We might be able to convince him you killed me if we're smart."
"Hold on, us?"
"What? You're the last person I was seen with. I'm making up a story to sell to Dreykov—"
"Yeah, I know," Winter sharply interrupts. "But there is no us."
"There could be," Riley offers. "The key to going on the run is to do it with someone. The Avenger went on the run with that S.H.I.E.L.D. agent when she left the Red Room. The one with the bow and arrows. She seems to be doing alright. I'm taking a page from her book. I'm trying to help you. And myself. Mostly myself."
Winter rolls his eyes. "First, you try to kill me. Now, you want to help me? Make up your mind, kid."
"I could say the same thing about you. You're the one who stayed instead of leaving me here to fend for myself," Riley fires back. "I know a lot about you, Winter. You're a legend at the Red Room. And I know enough to know that you don't know what the real world is like anymore. Neither do I. I think our chances of surviving will be higher if we stick together."
Winter is stunned by her offer. What makes her think she can trust him? What makes her think he's willing to trust her? She's shooting darts in the dark. The worst part is that her idea isn't completely terrible.
"Just for a few days. I'll figure something out, and you'll never see me again," Riley encourages. "What do you say, Winter?"
His eyes flicker between her and the door. He could make a run for it. He could run and never look back. That's all he's wanted to do all these years. Run.
But she's right. Their chances of surviving would be higher if they stuck together for a little while. Besides, she's a kid. She's just a little kid. He can't leave her alone like this. What would that guy say? What was his name? Steve, was it?
Winter stalks toward her. She doesn't back down, holding her chin up high. Then, he withdraws a knife from his belt. He runs his hand over it thoughtfully.
"My name isn't Winter, but... you make a valid point. I'm in. Temporarily." He hands her the knife.
An eager grin carves out the girl's face. "Alright. So, what do I call you?"
His eyes flash to the floor. He doesn't know. Not really. But he liked the way that one name sounded when Steve spoke to him...
"I think my name's Bucky."
"Okay, Bucky. I'm Riley. I guess we're partners for the next few days."
○ ○ ○
A few days quickly turn into a few years.
The year is 2016, and Riley and Bucky are inseparable.
Neither is sure how it happened. They couldn't stand each other throughout those "few days" they were together. All they did was bicker, argue, and fight — physically. Every night, one of them would wake up to the other holding a knife to their throat. Those "few days" were miserable. Yet those were the most freeing days they ever experienced.
A "few days" becomes a week. A week becomes a month. A month becomes "until one of us accidentally kills the other."
They take their partnership seriously. They can't stand each other, even two years later, but they would do anything for each other, especially if it means keeping them safe.
Bucky hates Riley and all of her snarky side-comments, how she cries when she sleeps, and her obsession with throwing knives at him when he least expects it. But he always makes sure she's "home" (wherever it may be at the time) before dark, and that they're always stocked up on plums (because she loves them. He loves them, too, but he always makes sure to get them for her, specifically).
Riley hates Bucky and the weird noises his metal arm makes, how he always attacks her when she gets up at night to get a glass of water, and his staring problem. But she always watches his back when they go out, and she always steals books for him to read to her during lazy afternoons (not because she can't read, but because she knows he enjoys spending time with her. Secretly, she enjoys it, too).
Maybe Riley and Bucky hate each other, but they would set the world on fire if it meant keeping the other safe.
It's been admittedly nice being on the run with Bucky. It's not exactly pleasant (considering they're both formerly brainwashed assassins with PTSD), but anything is better than their old lives. They've taken residence all over Europe, never staying in the same place for too long. Seeing the world and basking in simple things like trying new foods and visiting the countryside has been the best experience of their lives.
They've taken a liking to Bucharest these past few months. Romania is quiet but always busy, just how they like it. It's easy to blend in. Bucharest is the first city they've come across where Riley feels like she can relax.
All this time, she has struggled to accept that she's far from Dreykov's grasp. She's surprised he hasn't come after her, maybe in search of a corpse or something, but she doesn't dare question it. She's relieved to be free.
They don't talk much about the past. Riley brings it up more than Bucky does. She's eternally curious about the adventures of the Winter Soldier, but she understands why he never humors her. He's particularly obsessed with trying to remember his life before he became the Winter Soldier though, always trying to jog his memory. Sometimes, memories will randomly come to him. He always tells her about those in case he needs to be reminded of them again. Memories mean a lot to him.
Riley can't say the same. She knows she got to start over, but she wishes she could forget everything.
Well, maybe not everything. Just everything up until she met Bucky.
Bucky is all she has. She has no home, no family, nothing. Only him. She wonders if he treasures the new memories they've made together as much as he honors those other memories he's always looking for. She hopes so.
Don't tell him, but she really treasures their time together. A lot.
They take life one day at a time. They live in the present, rarely discussing the future. It's too risky and unwise to talk about the future, like where they want to go next or what they want to see, because the future is never promised. They only discuss the future when they need to remind each other of their many escape plans in case Dreykov or HYDRA comes after them.
Thankfully, they've been careful. No one's ever known them long enough to grow suspicious, and they never leave pieces of themselves behind or ever become attached to any of their many homes. Bucharest is the one exception, the one place they've felt safe enough to call home.
Soon, they will live to regret settling down here for so long.
It starts with the bombing of the United Nations in Vienna. More specifically, the death of King T'Chaka Udaku of Wakanda.
The ex-assassins can be found at the marketplace. They split up for the time being. Bucky's in charge of purchasing fresh fruit (plums, to be exact) while Riley peruses the clothing stalls. She thinks Bucky could use a new shirt or something. Maybe a new hat. He's been wearing the same one for months now, and she fears he has some strange attachment to it now.
For some reason, it takes her longer to find him a hat than expected. She's suffering from a headache on the right side of her head, the kind that the world's strongest Advil can't chase away. Eventually, she purchases a navy blue baseball cap that she thinks will bring out the color of Bucky's eyes.
They're supposed to meet up by the newspaper stand when they're done. Riley isn't surprised that Bucky beats her there, though she's a bit concerned when she finds him standing there with no plums and a newspaper in his hands.
"Bucky?" Riley approaches him, a plastic bag dangling from her fingers. Despite her confusion, she offers him a warm smile. "Don't tell me you ate all the plums already—"
Bucky doesn't say a word. He holds up the newspaper, where she spots a headline about the UN bombing. She doesn't care much about that part. She's more interested in where the news claims the perpetrator is the Winter Soldier — the same Winter Soldier who's been hiding from the world alongside a teenager for the past two years. There's no way he could've bombed the UN. He's been with Riley this entire time!
Riley looks up at him, then the people around them. They're all staring at Bucky. They recognize his face from the news.
They don't have to speak. They know what they need to do. They need to get the hell out of Bucharest and go into hiding.
It's rather jarring how, despite everything going on, they calmly walk back to their apartment. Riley's heart beats out of her chest the entire time. But she cannot panic. They have to blend in for as long as possible.
They wait to cross the street. Cars zip by as Riley asks, "So... Someone set you up. Do you have any idea who?"
Bucky's patience is running thin. He grabs her wrist and pulls her across the busy streets. The cars swerve to dodge them, nearly colliding with others. All he can say is, "I don't know."
They enter their apartment complex and rush up the stairs.
"Is it someone from your past?"
"I don't know."
"Is there anything you do know?" Riley sasses, to which he shoots her a glare. "Right. Sorry. What's our move?"
"You go west, I'll head north. I don't care where you go as long as we aren't anywhere near each other," Bucky quickly decides. He grabs his backpack and starts to shove whatever he can find inside it. "We'll circle back and meet in Amsterdam after I figure this out."
"What?" Riley stops in her tracks. "No! I'm not leaving you!"
He sighs irritably. "Don't make this harder than it needs to be, kid."
"You're crazy! We're supposed to be a team!"
"That was before I made an enemy out of the UN," Bucky snaps.
"It's not like you did anything wrong!" Riley argues. "You've been with me this whole time!"
"I'm not arguing with you on this," he firmly says. "Hurry up. We don't have much time before—"
"Before what? Before the authorities show up? Before your buddy, Captain America, knocks on our door?" Riley interrupts, rolling her eyes. She knows Bucky cares deeply for the Avengers, or at least Captain America, but she still hates them. "You and I can take these guys in our sleep."
Bucky shakes his head. "I don't want to fight. And I'm not letting you get hurt."
"So you're just going to run away?"
"What other option do we have?" he demands, his voice scarcely treading the line between calm and madness. "The entire world believes I committed a crime I had nothing to do with. We need to leave. You can do whatever you want, but it can't be here and it can't be with me. Got it?"
Riley doesn't reply.
"Got it?" Bucky repeats.
Again, she's silent.
"We don't have time for this, Riley." He slings on his backpack and turns to face her, only to find her kneeling on the floor with her head in her hands. A pained grimace sculpts out her now paled face, and she's sweating profusely. He rushes to her side, but she doesn't move. She can't even bring herself to look at him. "Talk to me. What is it?"
"My head," Riley weakly groans. She whimpers, the pressure in her head worsening with every second. "Something's... not... not right."
"Kid, we can't deal with this right now," Bucky urges. "We need to go—"
"Don't you think I know that?" she breathlessly snaps. Her entire body shakes violently, but even he can see that this isn't her. She's usually so much calmer than this. What's causing this reaction? She's clearly fighting something they cannot see, and he feels helpless. Is there anything he can do? He doesn't know. He never knows. "I can't... I can't move."
Bucky doesn't understand. He swears he can hear footsteps outside their door. Maybe he's being paranoid. Maybe it's just their neighbors. Either way, they can't afford to stay here much longer.
He's about to tell her this (again), but that's when something shifts. All at once, her body stops shaking, her breathing steadies, and her quiet groaning seizes. It's as if nothing was wrong in the first place. But he knows this isn't true because when she looks up at him, her brown eyes are desolate, barren of warmth and light and any human emotion.
She hasn't looked at him like that since Dreykov had control of her mind.
For the first time, Bucky's almost afraid to speak her name.
"...Riley?"
○ ○ ○
Steve Rogers is running out of time.
He needs to find Bucky before it's too late. The entire world is out to kill him, but Steve can't let it happen. Not again. He can't lose Bucky again. He refuses. He has to save him. He's done it once before, he can do it again. He has to. The man he once knew is still in there, deep down. He knows it.
He and Sam Wilson manage to track Barnes to Bucharest, where locals report that he's been living around here with some teenager. Some claim she's his daughter, others claim she's his sister. Steve doesn't know who this teenager is supposed to be, but he doesn't have time to stop and do some extra research. The clock is ticking. Tick-tock, tick-tock.
"Heads up, Cap. German Special Forces, approaching from the south," Sam says into his earpiece. "You sure he's up here?"
"I'm betting on it," Steve replies.
He grips his shield as he stands before the run-down apartment door. He finds it hard to believe that Bucky's been living like this for so long — on the run, barely surviving each day, living between cities with nowhere to call home. All this time, Bucky has been just out of reach.
But this is it. Finally, Steve is going to see Bucky again.
He kicks the door open. His muscles are tense, jaw clenched. He's ready to fight if he has to, though he's hoping it won't come down to that. He inches inside in search of Bucky, but instead, all that greets him is the soft sound of someone crying.
The crying comes from the tiny kitchen in the corner of the apartment, and as Steve draws nearer, he discovers red. So much red. It's everywhere. It stains the floor, the destroyed couch, the walls with endless holes punched into them, even the broken coffee table in the living area. The path of blood drags across the apartment. It goes on and on, ending at the hands of the crying girl sitting on the kitchen floor. She hugs her knees, burying her face as she sobs. And laying beside her, unmoving, is a man.
Bucky.
Steve sharply gasps, and that's when the girl finally notices him. She peers up at him with misty eyes and cuts all over her cheeks. Blood smears across her face as she tries to wipe away her tears. She can't be older than 15 or 16. She's just a kid.
"P-Please help me," she pleads.
Steve stares at her as she cries. He doesn't speak. He doesn't know what to say. He kneels beside Bucky's body and goes to press two fingers to his neck in search of a pulse. But he refrains when he finds the deep gash in his neck. A knife is lodged in the side of his neck. A perfect shot.
The Winter Soldier is dead.
Bucky Barnes is dead.
"I didn't... I-I don't..." the girl whimpers.
Tears sting his eyes, but Steve doesn't let them fall. He can't lose his cool yet. He places his shield down and turns to the quivering girl.
"What happened?" he gently asks. She squeezes her eyes shut, forcing more tears out. "Hey, it's okay. You're alright. You're safe. I'm here to help you. Can you tell me what your name is?"
She opens her eyes again, nodding. "I'm Riley."
"Okay, Riley. I'm Steve. Can you tell me what happened here? Are you hurt?"
Riley's eyes trail to the body beside them. She sits just a few feet away from it, trying to put some distance between her and Bucky.
"He attacked me," she quietly says. "We... We were supposed to be friends, but... I don't know. He started acting differently after that stuff at the UN happened. I-I asked him if he hurt those people, and... and then he... he..." She took a deep breath. "I was just trying to defend myself, Steve. He was going to kill me."
Steve looks back at Bucky. The Winter Soldier... got struck down by this kid? Is that possible?
"I don't know how I managed to do it," Riley goes on. "I-I knew who he was when we became friends, but... He promised he would never hurt me."
Steve nods. Maybe it was possible, with a lot of luck. HYDRA's brainwashing changed Bucky, after all...
"Okay, Riley. Don't worry. I'm gonna help you now," Steve promises. "You're safe now."
Riley looks up at him and smiles. "Thank you. The Avengers really are heroes," she mumbles, awestruck.
Steve doesn't reply, left to look down at the body of his best friend. Always out of reach, always out of time...
Steve does not know that Riley is lying. Bucky never attacked her. She attacked him.
But it wasn't Riley who killed him. Not exactly. No, it was Dreykov who controlled Riley to kill the Winter Soldier.
All these years, they believed Riley freed herself from the clutches of the Red Room. They were so sure he couldn't control her anymore. Neither of them understood how, but they were too blind by freedom to question it. But the truth is, Dreykov has always had control of Riley O'Dair's mind. He simply let her believe he didn't. She thought she was in hiding, but the reality is, the Red Room never lost sight of her.
See, he's been waiting. He's been patient, watching the spider's web unravel before his eyes. It was beautiful. It was perfect. It was so intricate that even the Widow herself had no clue of the trap she was creating, luring the Winter Soldier in without realizing it.
He's waited a long time for this, and now, the Winter Soldier is dead.
It might be his greatest mission yet. Glorious victory.
Riley should have known better than to think she could ever leave the Red Room. The Red Room is her home. If she is not a Widow, she is nothing.
But Dreykov isn't done yet. He thought he would be once he ordered Riley to kill Bucky Barnes. But now, new players have entered the field, and his next targets are even more tempting than the Winter Soldier ever was.
The Avengers. The remains of S.H.I.E.L.D. Rob and Athena O'Dair. And most of all, the one Widow who managed to escape the Red Room all those years ago.
Soon, the Avengers will discover what Bucky never learned.
Always beware the spider's web.
○ ○ ○
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
I have no idea how I thought of this concept, tbh. But I like it! I know this was long, and there's a lot I wish I could've added (but I don't have the patience to really stretch this out, you know). It's very fast-paced, but I was trying something new by mimicking how fast-paced the What if...? episodes are!
Also, YES, some things in this are not exactly accurate to the MCU. Like, I'm 99% sure the Widows are mind-controlled 24/7, but I would have nothing to write if I just wrote them staring at each other in silence hahah.
This version of Riley is honestly very interesting to me because she never joined the Avengers, obviously. This means her parents are alive, the Avengers are alive, Roman is alive. I like to imagine that all of the Avengers empathize with Riley after learning that she allegedly escaped the Red Room, especially Nat, giving her the perfect opportunity to screw with the Avengers — thanks to Dreykov. It's really sad! It's kinda fucked up! Who knows if Riley will ever be freed of his mind control! Who knows if she'll ever realize what she did to Bucky!
As always, please let me know your thoughts and if you have any "What if" suggestions for the future!