Summary: a story where Bucky moves to Russia at 12 years old and when he returns to America for college, he brings Natasha back with him
Italics represent Russian
There are mentions of abuse in ballet and by Ivan, Natasha's stepfather, but it's not explicitly shown or mentioned.
When Bucky leaves New York City at the age of twelve and arrives in Russia, he's pretty sure he's going to be friendless and lonely forever. He may have been good at making friends, but saying goodbye to Stevie had been full of tears despite Bucky promising to return. They're twelve and even then, Bucky knows it's going to be years before he has the chance to see his friend again.
What Bucky does not expect is to meet a fiery redhead during his first dance class in Russia. Dance is the one thing that isn't different between Russia and the United States so Bucky is glad his mom let him continue.
Unfortunately, Bucky's Russian is not great and he stumbles through half a sentence when the redhead talks to him.
"Are you American?" she immediately asks.
With a hot face, Bucky nods sheepishly.
"Why Russia?" she asks, switching into English. Her accent is thick, but she speaks better English than he speaks Russian.
"My mom works for the embassy," Bucky answers. She frowns and he thinks she might not understand. "Um, the US. In Moscow, there's an―"
"I know what is an embassy," she tells him. Holding out her hand she finally introduces herself. "Natalia Romanova."
"James Barnes," Bucky says, "but in America, my friends call me Bucky."
"Why?"
Bucky shrugs. "It's my middle name."
Natalia asks him a dozen more questions before their teacher―Madam B―steps into the room and snaps for them to line up.
At the end of the class, Natalia walks with him out to the sidewalk where they both wait for a bus. She helps him find his stop on the map and waves before getting off the bus at her own stop. The next day, he sees her again at school and decides she's going to be his new best friend.
It only takes a year before they're inseparable. James may not have spoken very great Russian when he arrived, but Natalia is patient and, together, they work on improving his Russian and her English. Thanks to her help, it doesn't take long before he can debate any topic equally in English and Russian. After a few dinners with his family, Natalia is just as comfortable in English.
As their last year of high school rolls around, however, they start to encounter some problems. While James is adamant about returning to New York to go to college, Natalia is much less enthusiastic about the idea.
"Yasha." Natalia sighs. "I don't have anything in New York."
"You'd have me. Besides, it's not as if Ivan is a very compelling reason to stay here."
"I can't leave him," Natalia argues. She's sporting a new bruise, though, so her argument isn't very strong in James's opinion. "He's the only family I have left."
"Nonsense." James gently wraps an arm around her waist and brushes a kiss to her temple. "You have me. You have my family."
They argue about it until January. James already knows where he wants to go to college, but he still waits until the last minute to submit his application. Natalia is curled up on his bed, hidden in one of his hoodies, as he does. As soon as he submits the online application, he joins her.
"Come with me, Natasya," he murmurs, pulling her as close to his chest as he can. He tries to be gentle, all too aware of the new bruise on her abdomen where Madam B had hit her too hard during class, shouting for her to suck in her gut more.
It's not the first time Madam B has hit Natalia and the way she treats the girls makes him sick, but he won't fight back again. The last time he tried, Natalia only got angry with him and Madam B made him stay late to run more drills.
"Don't ask me to leave, Yasha," Natalia whispers in return. Her hand winds up around his neck and she drags his lips down to hers. "I can't keep doing this."
It kills him, but he does stop asking. However, that does not mean his mother does.
Two weeks later, Natalia is helping Winnie clean up after dinner when the woman turns to Natalia with tears in her eyes.
"Winnie, please don't," she whispers, setting aside a plate.
"You can do so much more, Natasha," Winnie says, gently reaching for Natalia's hands. They're soaked from the dishwashing water, but Winnie doesn't seem to mind. "New York―it could give you new opportunities. The School of American Ballet is still accepting applications."
Natalia sighs and although she wants to argue, she can't. Winnie has always been too kind to her and she knows James's mother only wants the best for her. The least she can do is apply. When she gets accepted, she's so shocked that the only thing she can think to do is call Winnie and start crying.
"I was accepted," she cries. She's not sure if they're happy tears or not yet. "I was―Winnie, I can't do this―I can't leave―"
She's sobbing now. On the other end of the line, she hears Winnie speaking but can't make herself understand the words. Ten minutes later, Winnie is knocking on the apartment door.
Natalia answers the door with tears still rolling down her cheeks. Her stepfather isn't home which is good because she surely would have been hit for causing such a raucous. Winnie, however, doesn't care about the snot coming from her nose or the way Natalia shakes when she pulls her into a hug.
"Oh, Natasha," Winnie coos softly.
Natalia clings to her and keeps crying. It takes quite a while for her to calm down and by then, she's starting to worry that Ivan will return any minute. Winnie doesn't let her think about that, though.
"Come on," she says, pulling Natalia into her room. "Let's pack an overnight bag, yeah?"
Natalia can merely nod, choking back another sob. She watches as Winnie finds her little duffel bag and carefully folds Natalia's pajamas inside. She doesn't forget to grab Natalia's dance bag and even finds James's old hoodie for Natalia to wear.
"It'll be okay, honey," Winnie promises. She pulls the overnight bag over her shoulder and wraps her other arm around Natalia. Pressing a kiss to her head, Winnie says, "Let's just go home and breathe, okay? No more tears, no more worries. Just some tea and cookies, okay?"
Again, Natalia can merely nod. She lets Winnie guide her down the apartment hallways and into the elevator. Her car is parked just down the street and even though it's blistering cold out, Natalia hardly notices. In fact, she doesn't really notice anything until they step into the Barnes home.
"Mom?" James's voice echoes from down the hall and a second later, he steps into view. "Nata!"
As James tugs her into his arms, Natalia feels new tears make their way into her eyes. She buries her face in James's neck and chokes on her breath. She doesn't dare let him go.
"What happened, Mom?"
"She's had a long day." Winnie rubs Natalia's back and she shakes in James's arms as she starts to cry again. "She needed to come home."
Natalia silently thanks Winnie for not sharing the real reason for why she's crying. She doesn't think she could handle seeing James's face if she told him she was upset about being accepted. She hadn't honestly expected it to happen so she hadn't told him. Now, she's worried she'll have to.
In the morning, after a long talk with Winnie, she does. As she should have expected, James's face lights up at the news and he moves to hug her as soon as the words are out of her mouth.
"Natalia, that's―" He stops short and Natalia frowns.
"What's wrong?" she asks him, surprised he isn't spinning her in circles.
"You aren't happy about it," he replies. Natalia bites her lip and James takes her hand. "Why aren't you happy about it?"
"I can't leave Russia, Yasha," she whispers. James almost rolls his eyes, but stops when she squeezes his hand. "I―this is all I've ever known," she admits. "You know New York. It's your home. It's not mine, though. I can't make the decision as easy as you."
"But you're thinking about it?" He looks hopeful for the first time in a while. Months ago, he stopped looking hopeful about the idea and more saddened by it.
"I―I am," she admits softly. She hasn't breathed a word about it to Ivan and she's terrified to, but she is considering the possibility now.
James pulls her into a hug that has her gasping for air. After spinning her in circles and pressing kisses to every inch of her face, he finally lets her breathe.
"I love you," he says breathlessly. Natalia's heart stops and he repeats it in English. "I love you. God, I fucking love you, Natalia."
Before she can properly think of a response, he kisses her. It's dizzying and full of promise. So much so that when he pulls away, Natalia can't help but pull him back down. After all, it's the first time either one of them has said it and she's too happy to let him get away from her that easily.
There is a catch, though.
Natalia isn't given much time to confirm her acceptance into the school which means she doesn't have much time to make her decision. Nine days after she receives the initial acceptance notification, she's back at the Barnes home in tears with Winnie.
"James will be there with you," Winnie assures her softly. "You won't be alone, honey. If you really hate it, I'll make all the arrangements for your return."
After a few more tears, Natalia nods in agreement.
"Okay," she agrees, wiping a hand under her eyes. "Okay."
It's clear that Winnie tries to hide her excitement, but Natalia can't help but laugh as she's pulled into a tight, excited hug. As soon as she's done hugging Natalia, they open up her laptop and Natalia officially confirms her acceptance.
That night, she tells the rest of the Barnes family over dinner.
"Oh my god!"
Rebecca launches herself at Natalia, knocking into the table and nearly breaking a dish or two. Natalia laughs as Rebecca hugs her tightly followed by the two younger girls. Buried by all three of James's sisters, Natalia almost misses the way he smiles softly and wipes his nose.
"You really said yes?" he asks later when they're alone.
Despite Winnie's usual insistence that Natalia stay in Rebecca's room, they've been allowed to stay together tonight. Taking advantage of this, Natalia had curled up in James's bed with him almost as soon as the door had shut.
"Yes." Natalia's hand finds his and she links their fingers.
"How did Ivan take the news?" James asks after a breath.
Natalia stills in his arms. "I, um, I haven't told him yet."
In all honesty, it's part of why she doesn't feel like she can go to New York. Even with an offer from the School of American Ballet, she doubts Ivan will offer her congratulations.
"Are you going to?" James asks. Natalia nods. "Do you want me to be there?"
"Yes." She wants him to be there whenever Ivan is around, but she can't very well say that. She's already fairly certain James has his suspicions about how Ivan treats her, but she doesn't want to cause any more tension between her stepfather and James if she can help it.
Unfortunately, everything falls apart almost as soon as she steps through the apartment door the following morning.
"Where the fuck have you been?" Ivan snarls as she walks inside. "Off with the American boy again?"
Before Natalia can intervene, James walks in behind her with a scowl directed towards Ivan.
"Yes," he says sharply. "Where have you been? Gambling?"
Ivan very nearly smacks James. She sees it in the angry way his fingers twitch and how his shoulder shifts backward. In no universe would Ivan ever hit James, but she still finds herself watching anxiously in case she needs to step in between them.
"What do you want?" Ivan demands, turning his attention back to Natalia.
"I need to tell you something," she tells him carefully. Ivan waves for her to continue, but she suddenly can't find the words she needs.
"Speak, girl," Ivan snaps. James scowls at him and Ivan glares right back.
Natalia carefully pulls Ivan's attention back to her before saying, "I was accepted to the School of American Ballet."
She watches as her words land on Ivan and slowly sink in. There's a deafening silence as both she and James wait for Ivan's reaction, but it doesn't come. She holds her breath and her shoulders start to ache from how wound up she feels, but Ivan just stares at her.
"Why the fuck did they do that?"
Natalia almost misunderstands his words. It hadn't been the response she had expected and for a full second, she thinks she must have passed out because Ivan hasn't started shouting.
"I applied," she tells him quietly. "Winnie offered to help with all my visa requirements and they accepted me."
"You want to leave Russia then?" Ivan snarls. "Leave the motherland for an American dream?"
Natalia doesn't answer, but Ivan hadn't expected her to.
"You are not going to America," he tells her, grabbing her wrist as he says, "You don't have the fucking money. New York?"
Ivan barks and Natalia flinches. It doesn't go unnoticed by James. Within the blink of an eye, James is between her and Ivan. His hand is cool and gentle around her arm, just above where Ivan is holding onto her too tightly.
"Let her go," he says. He doesn't give Ivan the time to react before grabbing the man's thumb and pushing it back until he's forced to release Natalia's arm.
Ivan's next move is to lash out. It happens in a blink of an eye, but Natalia sees it in slow motion.
As soon as Ivan's hand is forced off of her, his eyes narrow and his fingers twitch angrily. James's hand is cool on her wrist, but Ivan's right shoulder is being drawn back and his lip is curled. Her instant reaction is to cover her face, but James is standing between her and Ivan and she knows that Ivan is aiming to hit him, not her.
She moves before James has the time to blink. His hand is still cool on her wrist, but Ivan's is hot across her face. There's a loud smack that echoes through the apartment, but Natalia hardly gasps at the contact.
"How dare you touch her!"
James lunges towards Ivan, but Natalia stops him. Behind her, Ivan snickers and sneers, but she isn't listening to his angry Russian. Instead, she's focused on calming James down before he does something stupid like hit her stepfather.
"Yasha, stop." She presses a hand to his chest and winds the other up around his neck. "Hey, look at me." Forcefully, she tips his head down until he's only looking at her. "Don't do this, please. Don't."
"Natalia, he hit you!" His eyes flicker over to where Ivan is still shouting and cursing them, but Natalia draws his attention back down to her. "Don't tell me this is the first time, either," he warns.
"I won't," she promises, "but I need you to let it go."
It's clearly the last thing James wants to do, but Ivan's shouting is going to start disturbing the neighbors soon and Natalia doesn't want to make him angrier. The second she's certain James won't jump at Ivan again, she turns to address her stepfather.
"I'm going to New York," she tells him in Russian, cutting him off. "As soon as this year is finished, we're leaving."
Ivan laughs again. "You'll never make it. You'll never make it there and when you come home to Russia, you won't be welcomed."
She had expected him to be angry, but his words still make her eyes water. She refrains from rubbing at them until she and James are locked in her room, though. After a bit more shouting and a myriad of curses, Ivan had given them ten minutes to pack all her things and get out of the apartment.
"For good," he had sneered.
Ten minutes isn't nearly enough time to gather everything, but James is a quick packer and knows how to make the best of limited space. When Ivan pounds on her bedroom door, demanding that she get out of his apartment, they have three large trash bags and a duffel bag packed. It's almost everything and Natalia had been careful to pack the most important things first. If she has to leave behind her books and dance ribbons, she will.
"Mom will make some space for you in Rebecca's room," James promises. Ivan is still shouting at them from the apartment, but Natalia tries not to listen as James helps her carry her things to the bus stop. "If we play our cards right, though, she may let you stay with me."
Of course, that doesn't happen. Some of her clothes end up in James's closet anyway, but Winnie insists on keeping them in separate rooms even if she knows they'll be sharing an apartment in New York come August.
* * * * *
Seven months later, Winnie drives Natalia and James to the airport before the sun has risen. The rest of the Barnes family had to say goodbye at the house as the car was much too full to bring all of them. Between the two of them, they have three large bags and two carry-on bags. Natalia also has a small backpack. The car had been crowded enough with just the three of them.
"Now don't forget to give Sarah a call as soon as you land," Winnie instructs James. Her arm is wrapped tightly around Natalia, but she almost looks like she's scolding James in the way she looks at him. "She's already expecting it."
"Ma, I know," James says.
Natalia smiles. It's clear James is trying not to be annoyed, but Winnie has been a bit overbearing in the past week.
"And call me, too," Winnie tells him sharply. "I'll be worried sick until you both land."
"I know, Ma," James repeats. He shares a look with Natalia and she laughs softly. It draws Winnie's attention to her next.
"You have everything, right?" Winnie asks. "Your passport? Your visa? The letter―"
"Yes, Winnie," Natalia interrupts gently. She pats her backpack. "It's all in here."
The night before, Winnie had helped her organize all her papers so that Natalia knew where they were. After months of paperwork and visits to the American embassy (with Winnie at her side, thank goodness), she finally has everything she needs to leave.
For a moment, the only sound is the hum of the airport lighting and the muffled talking from the agents inside. It's still dark and even though it's August, it's cold enough that their breath comes out in slight puffs. Natalia counts three before Winnie starts to cry and pulls them both into a tight hug.
"I'm so proud of both of you," she cries, "but I'm going to miss you so much!"
"We'll miss you too, Ma," James says softly.
Natalia can't see him from where her face is squished against Winnie's shoulder, but when they finally break free, he wipes at his face. Winnie doesn't bother to hide her tears in the same way.
"Call me every week, okay?" Winnie begs. Natalia promises she will, but James just nods. "Alright." Winnie sniffles and waves them towards the airport doors. "Off you go, my darlings."
As Natalia grabs her suitcases, she feels her throat start to close up and her nose tickles. James is silent beside her and Winnie is still crying quietly. They make it all the way to the airport doors before Natalia turns around to hug Winnie one last time.
"Thank you," she whispers, "for everything."
Winnie presses a firm kiss to her temple and even though Natalia doesn't want to let go, she does when Winnie gently pushes her away.
"You don't have to thank family, Natasha," she says. "Now go." Winnie gently nudges her towards the door where James is waiting with teary eyes. "Show New York who's boss."
Natalia manages not to cry as they check in their bags, but James is too choked up to speak to the agent. By the time they make it through security, his eyes are less watery, but Natalia's throat is aching with the need to cry. They make it all the way to their gate before her first tear falls.
They find a seat in a tucked-away corner. With their bags at their feet and nearly two hours before boarding begins, Natalia and James sit together silently. She curls up against him and while her face is wet with tears, she doesn't try to wipe it dry. Above her, James sniffles and drops his forehead to the top of her head. They don't move until the boarding gate opens and they're called forward.
* * * * *
Arriving in New York is more stressful than Natalia had imagined. Despite having all her documents valid and ready to show to the customs agents, they encounter problems as soon as she shows an agent her Russian passport. Fortunately, James had stayed with her instead of going through the line designated for American citizens.
"Why are you coming to New York?" the agent asks, eyeing Natalia with thinly masked disdain.
"I was accepted at the School of American Ballet," Natalia tells him. She glances at James and he gives her an encouraging smile. It helps.
"She has the acceptance letter if you want it," James says. The agent glances warily at James, but James is unfazed. She's glad he doesn't address her in Russian when he says, "Show him the letter."
She does and after a bit of grumbling, the agent stamps her passport and lets them through. He hardly blinks at James's American passport, but she's too relieved to be walking away to be offended.
As soon as they're through security, James pulls out his phone to call Sarah. While Natalia has never met the woman or her son, she's heard enough about them from the Barnes family to know she'll probably get along well with them. That doesn't mean she isn't anxious as she waits for them.
"She'll meet us outside," James tells her as he hangs up.
Natalia nods and after a bit of maneuvering, they get all of their bags outside to the curb where they wait for the Rogers.
As a grey car comes to a stop in front of them, Natalia feels her stomach flip. She may not need to impress the Rogers, but she feels like she should. It's a little terrifying but the feeling doesn't last long.
"Bucky!"
A tall blond jumps out of the car almost before it's stopped. As the blond throws his arms around James, he nearly knocks over two of their bags. James stumbles, but he's laughing and hugging the blond in return so Natalia assumes he must be 'Stevie'.
"God, Steve." James chuckles. "You look a bit different than I remember."
"What can I say?" Steve says with a grin. "Puberty."
James laughs and even Natalia smiles. She's seen enough photos of James and Steve as kids to know that Steve has changed quite a bit since they were separated.
Turning to Natalia, Steve holds out his hand and smiles. "I'm Steve. Buck and I used to be best friends before he left the States."
"Natasha." She shakes his hand. "I've heard a lot about you."
"And I've heard a lot about you," Steve replies.
He grins at James, but the reunion is interrupted as someone honks loudly and shouts for them to move the car. Steve grimaces and rubs the back of his neck.
"We should probably go," he mutters.
Between the three of them, they load all the suitcases in the trunk of the car then climb inside. Steve lets her sit upfront with his mother which is both kind and a little nerve-wracking.
"Hello!" Mrs. Rogers is as blonde as Steve is, but she's clearly much shorter if the way her seat is pushed all the way forward is anything to go by. "You must be Natalia! I'm Sarah Rogers."
"Natasha," Natalia corrects softly. "Nice to meet you."
"Steve tells me you dance?"
The drive from the airport is long due to traffic, but it gives Natalia plenty of time to talk with Mrs. Rogers―who insists that Natalia call her Sarah. By the time they're stopping outside an old apartment building in Brooklyn, Natalia's grinning and she's as comfortable around Sarah as she is around Winnie.
"Since your apartment won't be available until Wednesday, we made up the guest room for you," Sarah tells her, leading Natalia into the Rogers home. It's small, but it smells like fresh bread and there's artwork hung up everywhere. Natalia decides immediately that she loves it.
Behind them, James and Steve struggle to drag all three of their large suitcases inside, but neither of them is complaining. Instead, they seem to be having fun catching up. They hardly seem to notice the way one of Natalia's suitcases isn't rolling correctly and how James's large duffel bag has a broken strap.
"Thank you," Natalia replies.
James and Steve take the suitcases to the bedrooms while Sarah insists Natalia sit down and have some tea with her.
"The boys will spend all day catching up," she says with a laugh.
Natalia doesn't doubt it. It's still morning in New York due to the time change, but Steve and James seem as energetic as if it were midday. While Natalia is starting to feel drowsy from the flight, James has only gotten more excited.
"I don't know where all the energy comes from," Natalia says. "We flew for nearly ten hours."
"Those two feed off each other," Sarah tells her. "When they were kids, Winnie and I couldn't let them have sleepovers or they would never fall asleep!"
Natalia grins.
The rest of the morning is spent in the Rogers home. James and Steve disappear into Steve's room and although she doesn't see either of them until lunch, she can hear them talking and laughing from down the hall. If Sarah wasn't half as nice or nearly as interesting to talk to, Natalia might have felt left out. Fortunately, that isn't the case. When the boys finally do rejoin them, James goes right to her.
"How are you?" He curls an arm around her from behind and presses his lips to her hairline. "I'm sorry I left you as soon as Steve showed up."
"It's okay," she assures him. Her hand finds his and she turns her head to look up at him. "Sarah is wonderful. I might replace you with her."
James laughs, but since they'd been speaking in Russian, Sarah and Steve don't join in. James doesn't bother enlightening them right away, though.
"I guess I'll have to fight her," he teases. He winks at Sarah then lets go of Natalia to sit at the table. "Apparently, I'm at risk of being replaced."
The next two days with the Rogers pass quickly and Wednesday rolls around too soon. Sarah drives them all to where James and Natalia's apartment is and while she and Natalia meet the landlord, James and Steve carry all their bags up from the car. By the time Natalia has two keys in hand, the last bag is being brought up and both James and Steve look a little tired.
"At least you're only on the third floor," Steve mutters. With no working elevator, carrying so many bags up any higher would have been more work than either he or James would have appreciated.
"We'll let you get settled in," Sarah says. She ushers Steve out of the door before he can insist on helping. "We'll see you at dinner, but call if you need anything before then!"
Sarah pulls the door shut and James and Natalia are officially left alone in their new apartment.
The first thing they do is figure out how the shower works. After hauling so many suitcases up three flights of stairs, James is sweaty and starting to stink. It takes a bit of trial and error, but eventually, they figure it out. While James showers, Natalia starts unpacking.
It's a studio apartment so there isn't a lot of space, but the loft bed provides some extra storage that is badly needed. Luckily for them, it's already built to be a closet. Even though she needs to bend over in order to avoid hitting her head, the closet is a godsend. There's plenty of space to hang both her and James's things and a little dresser just outside it for extra space.
They spend the day unpacking and by the time dinner rolls around, they've emptied all their suitcases.
The rest of the week is spent discovering New York. James may remember enough from his childhood to take her to interesting spots, but Steve is more experienced at avoiding crowds and taking the subways. With both boys at her side, there's no way Natalia could get lost.
Eventually, however, they have to settle into a routine. James needs to get ready for the start of university and Natalia needs to figure out where to find new pointe shoes. Her classes start in a week and while she does have one new pair, she'll need new shoes by the next week. She's already sure of it. Unfortunately, she isn't successful and has to resort to asking one of her classmates at the end of their first day.
"Here's where I get mine," the girl says, writing down an address for her. "Mr. Romanencko is the only person worth going to."
"Thank you so much." Natalia is so relieved she could hug her. "I'm Natasha, by the way."
"Yelena." The girl smiles. "Are you Russian?"
Natalia nods. "How'd you know?"
"I'm Russian too," the girl says, smirking when Natalia's eyes widen. "What? Did you think you were the only one to leave the motherland?"
"No." Natalia rolls her eyes playfully. "Where are you from?"
By the time Natalia actually leaves the building, Yelena has promised to show her around the Russian sector of New York and introduce her to her parents. While Natalia can't promise the same, she does tell Yelena that she's welcome to visit her and James anytime.
She arrives home with a smile on her face that only grows when she discovers James made borscht for dinner.
"You look like you had a good day," he says as she joins him by the stove.
"I did," she replies. Because she's in such a good mood, she pulls his head down to hers and kisses him deeply. "I love you," she whispers.
James smiles against her lips and kisses her again. It doesn't take long for the borscht to be forgotten as Natalia's new focus becomes showing James just how much she loves him.
He'd been right about New York, of course, but she'll never tell him that. Instead, she'll kiss him until he can't breathe and love him until he forgets his name. He seems to understand.