A/N: Hello, my loves! My intention was to post my 2nd part to "Cold" next, but I was rewatching TFATWS again... aaaaand decided to write this at 1 am. I hope you like it, and I'll see you next update!
-M <3
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It did not take long to find John Walker. At least, not on my own. The three of us had chosen to search for him separately in an effort to cover more ground, yet it did not take much detective work to locate him. At least, not after finding droplets of blood leading into this old warehouse.
"I found him," I whispered quietly, watching as the man who could never live up to the name of Captain America began to fall to pieces. "He's in the old warehouse, a few miles west from the square."
"Hold your ground. We'll be there soon." Sam's voice was firm in my ear.
"But - "
"That is an order, Y/N. Do not go in." I nearly rolled my eyes as Bucky chimed in after him, even more serious than Sam was. It almost felt like they believed I was unable to do anything on my own. I was not scared of John Walker, not even after watching him brutally murder that man in front of everyone only an hour ago.
My eyes focused back inside, watching as he fell to his knees, the bloody shield gripped in his hands. Despite the amount of destruction and devastation this man just caused, I could see how vulnerable he was. John Walker was a broken man. Maybe there was still hope to save him yet.
"Walker."
His head snapped up, as I walked into the warehouse. His lips moved, mumbling something under his breath, but he rose to his feet and walked towards me. "I'm surprised to see you here. Alone."
"I'm surprised to see you here at all, after that stunt you pulled this afternoon." I countered, crossing my arms as I watched him begin to pace. "I would've imagined you would be out of the country by now."
"Why would I be? I did nothing wrong." Walker's hand tightened into a fist. "You saw what happened. You know what I had to do. I killed him because I had to. He killed Lemar."
"You can tell yourself that all you want, John, but we both know that was not what happened." I shook my head slowly. "This wasn't revenge. This was murder."
"You speak as if your boyfriend hasn't done the same thing!" His words were venom and I held my ground as he took a step closer to me. "What I did was justice. What Barnes did-"
"Bucky did not have a choice, and you know that." My voice was sharp as I glared up at him. "There is no justice in what you've done. You have dishonored that shield and you have dishonored your country."
"I would watch your words if I were you." Walker's voice was deadly quiet, but if looks could kill, I would've been dead that very moment.
"You don't scare me, John Walker." I shook my head, a small huff of amusement escaping my lips. "I truly believe that there is good in you, but I don't know how far I'd have to dive into you to find it."
He scoffed and turned away from me, resuming his pacing again.
"Listen..." I sighed, letting my arms fall free and relaxing my stance. "I know that we have not gotten along well these past few weeks, but it is not my wish to hurt you as much as you have hurt other people. If you go home and could explain what happened, they might consider your previous record."
My gaze fell to the shield, my stomach twisting in knots at the sight of the scarlet that adorned it now. Staining the shield that had once belonged to a true hero, but was now in the hands of a murderer.
"We do not want anyone else hurt. And I'm sure you don't either. You are a good man, Walker. Deep down, I know that you are." I swallowed the lump that was continuing to grow in my throat as I continued. "But you have to give me the shield."
John's body froze, his gaze directed to the floor as if he did not hear my words or at the very least did not wish to address them. Slowly, he raised his gaze, meeting my eyes with a coldness I never expected from him.
"Oh. That's what this is." A humorless chuckle escaped his lips as he shook his head. "You almost got me, Y/L/N."
"This isn't something I'm eager to do, John." My hand slowly crept towards my waist band, my fingers searching for the gun I had placed there. "But you know you need to give it up. "
His eyes followed my hand, flashing as he understood what I was doing. John shook his head slowly. "You don't want to do this."
My hand grasped onto the grip and let out a shaky breath as I pulled it free, aiming it at him as I looked at him one more time. "No. But I will do what I must."
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Bucky's POV
The sound of bullets firing in the warehouse caught my attention as I approached the building. "Fuck!" I grunted, my pace picking up to a full sprint. "Sam?"
"I heard it too. Almost there."
In most other situations, I would've rolled my eyes at her inability to follow directions. Whether it was refusing to stay in bed when I insisted on making breakfast or sneaking out to her computer to write one more page for her thesis, it always brought some sort of amusement to me. But not this. Not when confronting a man who had just committed murder, and taken the serum.
I rounded the corner and entered the warehouse, my heart nearly stopping as I found the sight before me. Y/N was shoved against the wall, her fingers grasping onto the shield as Walker was trying to pry it from her grip. Blood was trickling from a gash on her forehead, her bottom lip busted.
"Why are you making me do this?" His voice was a growl, his face twisted with rage before screaming the words again. "Why are you making me do this?"
He yanked on the shield, pulling her away from the wall before quickly head-butting her, causing her grip to loosen but not fall away.
"You can do whatever you want to me...but it won't change the fact that you are not even half the man Steve Rogers was. " Y/N's voice was strained as she glared at Walker. "You do not deserve to carry that shield."
Fuming, Walker spun around, his grip tightening on the shield as the force of his movement threw Y/N across the room and slammed her body into an electrical box, shooting sparks into the air. She did not get up.
Before I could even move, Sam flew directly at Walker, his hands aiming for the shield. But the thrust of this shield upward connected with his chest stopped him altogether and onto the ground.
It took no more than five seconds for me to reach where Y/N had collapsed, my breath caught in my throat as I pulled her into my arms and took in the damage. Her face and neck were speckled with bruises, an even darker one forming over her left eye. She had taken one hell of a beating.
"Y/N..." My voice was nearly a whisper, as I gently shook her. "You gotta wake up for me, doll."
Her head lolled to the side at my movement, and I shook my head slowly, tears beginning to build in the corners of my eyes. I pulled her tight against me, cupping her face with my flesh hand, my thumb stroking cheek gently. "Please, baby. Come back to me."
The sound of grunting pulled my gaze away from her momentarily, watching as Walker pinned Sam to the ground, tearing his wings from his suit. I glanced back at Y/N, still finding her eyes closed. I pressed my lips gently against her forehead as I placed her down again. "I'll be back. I promise."
Just as Walker was raising the shield to strike Sam, I slammed into him, knocking him to the ground. After standing again, I rushed him quickly, my fist connecting with his jaw. It took everything in me not to beat the man to death, each blow following the next in rapid succession. A small smirk spread across his face after he landed on his back, glaring up at me.
"I'm guessing your girlfriend didn't wake up from her power nap, did she?"
My vision turned red, and as I moved to land a kick to the ribs, he swung his arm out, knocking me to the ground with a grunt. Before I could get myself up again, the shield struck me in the back, knocking me down again and taking my breath with it. I rolled onto my back, and looked up, watching as John Walker raised the shield above his head once again, prepared to knock my lights out, perhaps for good.
But before he could move a muscle, the sound of a gun firing broke into the fight. The scream of pain he released drew my eyes to his arm holding the shield, blood pouring steadily from a new wound.
Sam came up from behind him and yanked him backward, forcing the shield from his arm. I turned around and found Y/N standing behind me with her gun in her hands. Her eyes reflected exhaustion, and she looked mere moments from collapsing. I quickly stood up and caught her in my arms before she could fall, holding her against my body.
"Are you okay?" She asked as she let her gun drop to the ground, her fingers dancing across the skin of my face checking for any cuts or bruises. I couldn't help the small chuckle that left my body.
"You are asking me that? You got thrown into an electrical box and were nearly beaten to death. I feel like I should be asking you."
"Nothing that some ice and Aspirin won't fix." Y/N teased gently and I shook my head in amusement. "Maybe some bed rest, too. I think he may have broken a rib or two."
"How you manage to laugh after something like this is beyond me." I gently pressed my lips to her forehead. "I thought I lost you for a minute."
"You won't lose me, Buck." She looked up at me with a small smile before it faded. "And I'm sorry that I didn't follow your orders. I guess I thought that I was capable of taking him on my own."
"I forgive you, doll. You can defy them at home all you want, but I just ask you to follow them out here. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you." I leaned down and kissed her gently.
Although it took time for Walker to be punished accordingly, knowing that Y/N had survived was enough for me. I had never expected that it would ever come this close to losing her, and I would never allow it to happen again.
A/N: That ending was kinda meh, but tell me what you all think! :)