Dauntless

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Washington, America
April 1st 2014

Almost huddled around the coffee cup that was steadily cooling between her fingers, Harry pressed herself a little closer, a little more into the chair as the rain bounced off of the blacktop.

They'd taken cover from the weather under the awning of a cake shop, bought another coffee each along with a slice of dessert. Harry, for the first time since she'd landed in this world, was tucking into a delicious -though very expensive- slice of treacle tart, while Bucky's strawberry cheesecake sat untouched upon the tabletop.

Crossing her legs, Harry put the cup down, scooping a piece of tart onto her fork and almost inhaling it with the speed she took it into her mouth. Rolling the plastic fork about along her teeth, she considered the amount of money they actually had left, and found the number depressingly small. She'd not had to worry about this before, because there'd always been a vault full of gold -a multitude of them really- waiting for her back at Diagon.

But she'd just decided that she wasn't really going to keep trying to go back. Say what you wanted about Captain America, but never say he wasn't a pleasant guy. Helpful. Very helpful indeed.

Smiling slightly, Harry dipped her head forwards, well aware her eyes were flickering up to gaze at Bucky from beneath her eyelashes.

In a worn looking hoodie that Bill had left in her trunk -and would clearly not be getting back-, one she'd had to magically resize until it fit his fit physique, he looked the perfect part of a Washington tourist.

Attractive. So very attractive.

Harry was well aware that three female and one male had already passed by and their eyes had lingered on Bucky's still form. Watched the way he had a tendency to suck in his bottom lip, toy about with it. The way his tongue would dart out to wet the chapped flesh. He had some kind of oral fixation, that much was clear.

Harry certainly appreciated it.

But he only did that when he wasn't paying one hundred percent attention to what he was suppose to be focusing on.

Stretching, Harry managed to snag a bit of the cheesecake with her own fork, quickly stuffing it into her mouth as Bucky's eyes snapped around to stare at her in shock.

"You clearly weren't interested in finishing it," Harry mused after she'd finished swallowing the delicious dessert. Not as good as treacle tart, but close. Pretty damn close.

Harry squawked as the table suddenly shot up at her end, watching in dismay as her plate and coffee slid towards Bucky, who caught both effortlessly whilst balancing his own drink and cake on his thigh.

"I'll have you know we all didn't have fancy schools with fancy feasts growing up, some of us had to fight for our food." The little quirk at the edge of Bucky's lips had Harry returning the grin, scrambling across the table to retrieve her food. But not before Bucky had managed to get a mouthful of her own dessert.

Harry dropped back into her seat as Bucky set the table right, rolling her eyes but not quite able to suppress the smile on her face.

"How are we doing for money?"

He worried, over every cent. Something that had come to him from his days working back in the 1930/40s. Money was tight then, he'd been looking after Steve; he'd had to watch every cent that passed through his hands. And Harry, who'd not had to worry about money at any stage in her life was pleased to see at least one of them was fully conscious of their financial state.

"Low. But I was thinking, since… Since I decided to not go back, we could sell some of the galleons. They're solid gold, so should fetch a good price. It's not like we'll ever be able to buy a house or anything without documents or identification, so we don't have to worry about taxes and bills and stuff. Only food and clothes." Living in a tent wasn't so bad when it was a wizarding tent after all.

Running a hand down the side of her face, Harry put her elbow on the table and dropped her face into her hand.

Bucky watched her with blue eyes looking softer than normal; today was a very good day for him indeed. They were probably due a bad day, either her with a nightmare from the war or him having another breakdown over those returning memories from his time as the Winter Soldier.

Hell they could both end up with a bad day at the same time. Hopefully not though, because they struggled enough when it was just one of them as it was.

"I think we should hit up New York. I got a good photo of a place to apperate too. I'll busk while you go off and pull that scary face so they give you the right amount of money at a gold exchange shop."

A very quiet, husky laugh left Bucky's lips and he tried to cover it with the sleeve of his hoodie. But Harry heard it anyway.

Grinning just a little more, she finished off her tart, looking up in surprise when Bucky easily put away his cheesecake in the time it's taken her to finish off her last bite.

"I didn't want to have to wait for you to finish." He shrugged.

Scowling, Harry got to her feet and pulled her travelling companion after her. She had no desire to go out into the rain, and really, with her the only witch in the world, her skill set was eventually going to become public knowledge.

They apperated where they stood.

.

Bucky had gone off to sell the gold and in the bright sunshine of New York City, Harry had found an ideal place to host her show.

It'd been a good day overall, she'd made a decent amount of money, Bucky had probably gotten more than what the galleons were actually worth because even though he wasn't a Russian Assassin anymore, he still had the murderous stare down to a pat. They'd treated themselves to the biggest pizza they could find -one side covered in ham and pineapple, the other hosting peppers, nachos, spicy chicken and BBQ sauce, smothered in five different types of cheese because hey, Bucky was an adventurous sort of guy- and set up the tent in Central Park.

Stretched across a floor that was charmed much softer than what was probably appropriate, Harry took a hold of the pizza crust, slowly pulling a slice away from her half of the pizza, but not before nabbing a nacho off Bucky's side. Of course, the male replied by stealing away an entire slice from her side. Not that Harry cared too much; she'd never have managed an entire half of this giant pizza anyway.

"So, that thing you said earlier, you were being serious?" Harry really, really hoped she didn't have to expand on what she was talking about, because that'd seem desperate.

Instead, she watched as Bucky's arctic eyes flickered up to look at her, still wrestling with his copious amounts of cheese in an attempt to separate his mouthful from the remains of his slice. The strings of dairy product clung on insistently.

Quite unable to help herself, Harry summoned up the wizarding camera, snapping a quick picture before Bucky could managed to salvage his pride.

Losing a fight with pizza. Shameful.

It'd make a cute picture though, watching him struggle.

Anyway, it wasn't like he didn't have any embarrassing photos of her either. She should have never shown him how to use a camera, but it'd seemed like a good idea at the time, a way for him to be reassured that even if he forgot these memories -he hadn't so far, and hopefully never would- they'd at least be waiting for him this time. She knew for certain there was a photo of her half submerged in a shallow lake, where she'd lost her footing walking down a pier.

"What, the bit about you being a nice girl?" Bucky quirked an eyebrow up and a hot flush raced across Harry's cheeks.

Bucky wasn't like the guys at Hogwarts had been, like the string of failed dates afterwards had been. He held no disillusions regarding her greatness, he knew she had nightmares and that she hated certain shades of different colours. He accepted the faults, exposed his own before her. It was a very amiable, easy relationship they'd developed so far.

That wasn't to say they weren't problems, there would probably always be problems. But they pulled one another back together when the seams started to split. And right now, that was what they both needed.

Bucky wasn't like the other males she'd looked at in a romantic manner -or who'd look to her in that manner- because he was just as broken she was, just as faulty and lost.

Yet, he was also stubborn, slowly becoming determined to make something more of himself. He could be cocky and friendly and flirty when the mood struck him. Something that was becoming more often as the days kept on passing by. There was less brooding and staring into the distance, and more thoughtful, sneaky glances.

"Well maybe I like dame who can stand up for herself. More of a challenge that way."

Snorting, Harry inhaled another bite of pizza, chewing slowly.

"What happens if I like guys that just roll over and show their belly though?"

"Seriously doll, I'll change your mind if that's the case. Not that I wouldn't mind being at your mercy." He winked and Harry laughed herself silly. It wasn't so much that it was a truly spectacular joke, but it was the most flirty, jokey thing he'd ever said to her so far. And considering the state he'd been in when they first met, well, it just showed the improvement, slow going as it was.

All in all, it was a good night.

It wasn't much of a surprise that the nightmares struck only a few hours later.

.

Over the months, Harry had become attuned to Bucky's panicked gasps as he'd shoot up in bed. So what if his room was down the tent's hallway, maybe she'd used a spell to inform her in anyone in the vicinity was having a small panic attack.

Rolling out of bed, Harry tugged the holey shirt -one Bucky had been using to exercise in until a month ago, when he went out and got a better one, offering her the old one if she had any use for it- over her head and now, wearing a top and a pair of soft grey panties, she strode out of her room and towards Bucky's.

She didn't need to announce her arrival any more, just slid right into the room, sat herself down on the bed, and gently manoeuvred Bucky's head until it was resting against her collarbone, nose pressed into the warm junction of her neck and broad shoulders shaking in her arms.

The familiar scent of Bucky, something warm, human and male, mixing with the smell of soap and the lingering scent of zingy aftershave, washed over Harry's senses and she buried her face in his messy hair. Bucky's fingers, both flesh and metal, were curled up in the holey shirt, which was no doubt tearing just that little bit more. She didn't mind.

After nightmares, her wild magic had once stripped Bucky of all his hair before; it'd taken her three days to figure out how to undo that little piece of spell work. Bucky didn't do bald/stubbleless/eyebrowless well. She'd missed the little bit of chest hair that usually snuck out whenever he was wearing a low collared shirt.

Point being though, they'd both made things a little harder for the other when they had a bad day. They put up with it.

Because Harry needed Bucky and Bucky needed Harry, it was as simple as that.

"What was it this time?"

"Falling. The train again. I hate that one."

Humming at the low vibrations Bucky's chest gave as he spoke, Harry shifted about slightly on the bed, freezing up when Bucky took a hold of her waist and adjusted their positions until they were both lying on the bed, side by side.

"Stay?"

Vibrant green met ice blue and Harry bit her lip, nodding and pulling the covers back over them.

The metal arm was warm where Bucky had been laying on it, though he had been thoughtful enough to have his human arm being the one under her body, curled around her waist and still tangled in the holey shirt. The metal one rested on her hip, heavier than a human arm but lighter than she'd expected. Warmer too.

Bucky's bare chest was sensationally hot against her shoulders, hairy legs tangled around her smooth shins. However-

"Your feet are cold."

"Damn right they are doll. Warm me up."

.

New York, America
April 2nd 2014

There was a hand sized tear in the shirt, exposing almost all of her lower back.

Scowling into the mirror, Harry began rifling through Bucky's draws, looking for another one she could snaffle away. Oversized male shirts were so much easier to walk about the tent in than any of her fitted clothes or flowing dresses. Flipping red hair back over her shoulder, Harry turned on heel, walking out of Bucky's bedroom and heading towards the kitchen. Thankfully, she'd been thoughtful enough to stock up on groceries a few days ago, and there should still be enough left for a cooked breakfast.

It was to the scent of bacon, sausages and fried eggs that Bucky emerged from his room, dressed only in a pair of loose fitting sweatpants riding low on his hips, scratching lazily at his stubble. She didn't miss the distance in his eyes as he sat up to the kitchen table though.

Having not quite worked out the insane ratio of cream, to sugar to coffee that the ex-soldier preferred no matter how many attempts she made at it, Harry just dropped the cup of coffee and condiments before her companion, returning to the stove as he gave a grunt of thanks.

Neither of them were really morning people, Bucky having mostly worked during the dark of night and Harry keeping odd hours throughout her research sessions and travelling days. And yet, here they both were, wide awake, because attempting to sleep any longer was a goal beyond them.

"One egg or two?" Harry asked, plating her own up and looking at the male over her shoulder.

"Three."

Snorting at the oh so Bucky-like answer, Harry flicked the three eggs onto Bucky's plate, followed by the rest of the cooked food that, together, would probably qualify as two full English breakfasts. Her own was rather simple, just eggs and bacon, but Bucky; well, there was a reason most of their money went towards feeding him. Whatever the hell offered him that super endurance, super strength, and made him the pinnacle of human fitness, also ensured he'd win any eating contest, ever.

Hell, she could only picture what it'd be like if he decided to eat fast; Ron wouldn't have stood a chance.

Grimacing slightly at the thought of her old friend, Harry sat herself down up to the kitchen table, plopping Bucky's breakfast down in front of him. It was remarkable how bearlike he looked; lifting his head up and blinking those tired, bleary eyes, nose scrunched up and lips parting in a long yawn to reveal a set of sharp white teeth.

"Come on Bucky-bear, time for breakfast."

A low growl was her only response and Harry grinned, digging into her own food. Yeah, neither of them were really awake much for breakfast, and maybe that was a good thing. Neither of them had to pay attention to their surroundings, because they felt safe where they were. It was okay for them to not be on their best first thing in a morning. It felt a bit like what Harry would have once guessed normality to be. A point where she could be 'Just Harry'.

And wasn't that a relief?

.

"So, wanna show me around your old haunts?"

Carefully placing the dried plate down, Bucky twisted the dishcloth through the air with the same ease he handled his knives with.

"You want to see all my old kissing places?" He asked with dubious disbelief, teasing a snort out amusement from Harry's throat.

"If any of them still exist old-man. Seriously though, I'd like to go for a wander today, but you don't have to come with me. You can stay here, go buy a new jacket, scare some old ladies, whatever."

Bucky snickered, twirling the dishcloth once against before firing it at her.

"Why would I do that when I've got the offer to walk a pretty girl around town?" Smirking, he sauntered off, probably to go and get changed into clothes acceptable for going out in.

It was as Harry had gotten to her own feet that his call of, "what do you mean buy a new jacket?! What's wrong with what I've got?!" reached her and Harry chortled beneath her breath.

He was trying so hard to be the Bucky from before. And while it was cute, she was quite content waiting for him to realise that she didn't want the Bucky from before. She was quite satisfied with the Bucky of now.

Scratching lazily at her stomach through one of the soft cotton of Bucky's shirt, Harry gave a flick of her wand, leaving her magic to pack the cutlery and crockery away as she too went off to get changed.

.

Arm coiled around Bucky's -because out of the two of them, he was the one that didn't get swept away by the New York crowds- Harry Potter took in the tall buildings with a sceptical face and no little amount of awe.

"So tall," she whispered under her breath. Because they were, it would be possible to fit five Weasley homes on top of one another in them and still have enough room for more in those huge rectangles the muggles here called skyscrapers. She'd known, of course, that such buildings exist. But seeing it on paper, and seeing it right before your eyes, were two very different things.

Humming to herself, Harry scowled when another overly busy man smashed into her shoulder pushing her back. No doubt her tiny five foot two frame would have been lost in the rush of the crowd if she didn't have Bucky to anchor her in place. The near chilling snarl that escaped his lips sent a shiver down Harry's spine and she pressed closer into his side, accepting the arm he wrapped around her hips, leaving the left -and most dangerous one- free. In case anyone else tried to bump into them again.

While nobody would notice the glaring metal -with a bit of experimentation that morning, she'd learn that aiming the notice-me-not at the actual metal instead of Bucky got the magic to stick- Harry felt quite a bit safer with it now she was able to see it's brilliant shine.

Sure, she might have been a fighter, might have been a hero, but it felt good to be looked after. To know that Bucky was capable of physically protecting her, as her… Well, she wasn't sure exactly what they were; friends? Dating? It didn't matter really. Harry had Bucky and Bucky had Harry.

And for now, that was enough.

"So, where are we going?"

Bucky's eyes, which had been darting around them, assessing every person that he could catch a glimpse of, danced back around to look at her face and his lips twitched slightly.

"I was gonna show you where I used to live, if it's still here. Just have to get out of this crowd."

Pursing her lips, Harry scanned the mass of people, feeling her brow crinkle in confusion.

"Is the crowd getting thicker?" In fact, could she hear sirens?

Bucky groaned at the same time Harry figured out what was going on; some kind of robbery, hostage situation or something. Of course; they had to be near some sort of bank.

Reaching to wrap her fingers around Bucky's, Harry began tugging him forwards, muscling people out of the way as best she could.

"Come on, let's go help."

Jayden Williams huddled a little closer to his mother. He was scared, but he also had faith. Because Ironman lived in New York, and Ironman was a hero. A superhero who fought off bad guys and aliens. He'd come and save them.

It didn't stop him from pressing his face into his mother's pea green dress, biting his lip to stop the whimper that threatened to escape him as one of the big bad guys passed him by.

They'd only come into the bank for his Ma to draw some money out, so he could go and get a nice new bike. He'd outgrown his last one, and with his Ma's pay rise, she'd finally had enough money left over to go and buy him a new one. Jayden had been understandably excited, crying and calling out that they should go right away.

He wished he'd waited a day now. Because while there was a chance to meet Ironman here, his Ma was crying and she looked very upset and scared. He didn't like it when his Ma was upset and scared. She should always be happy, like when she was baking in their little apartment. She loved baking.

"You're gonna hand over the money-" a thick, big hand closed around Jayden's wrist, pulling him away from his Ma who cried at the sudden movement, "-or I'm gonna put a bullet through his head!"

Eyes wide, Jayden stared at the pasty white fingers -strong, big fingers- that were wrapped around his dark wrist, and a little whimpering cry escaped him lip.

He didn't want to die, didn't want to never get his new bike or see his Ma smile again. He didn't want to die!

There was a gunshot, and then the hand holding went slack, the man falling to the marble floor with blood pooling out from around his head.

For a moment, everyone stared, no more so than Jayden. He could see the hole, the brain bits splattered across the floor, but he couldn't quite accept what had just happened. The man had been alive one moment, and then the next, he was on the floor with a hole in his head.

What?

A thump had him looking up, and at the glint of metal and glimmer of red, Jayden's heart leapt into his throat. Ironman had come!

Only, it wasn't Ironman, wasn't a superhero in a metal suit.

It was two people, and while one was male and a part of him seemed to be made of metal, it wasn't a full body suit like Ironman. It was more like the metal was his entire arm; it seemed too tight to be any form of armour. And the girl; she had really dark red hair, her eyes were really bright, brighter than any felt tip pens that Jayden had ever seen. She said something in a funny language, and then there was a golden shield around everybody bullets bouncing off its surface.

Jayden stared in wonder, his Ma gathering him up in her arms as the two newcomers went about dispatching the bad guys. The girl was always stopping the bullets, protecting herself and her friend, who used guns and knives and at one point just punched a guy in the face with his cool metal arm. It was over in seconds, the bad guys all tied up by the girl -who made rope appear out of nowhere- and the only one that was dead was the one that had pulled him away from his Ma. All the others had been shot in the leg, had their guns knocked from their hands with knives.

These guys were so cool! But he didn't have the slightest idea who they were.

The two turned to look at them and Jayden registered that they weren't even in super-suits, instead just jeans and normal tee-shirts. The guy actually looked quite scary, but the girl was very pretty.

"Everyone okay? No one injured?"

There was a groan from one of the bad guys, and the man with the metal arm scowled and kicked him.

"You don't count."

.

The pretty lady introduced herself as Harry, and went around making sure each of them were okay, offering chocolate to anyone who would take it and giving general reassurances that everything was fine.

Her partner, Bucky, had collected all the guns the bad guys had dropped, pocketing two and crushing the rest with his metal arm. It was kinda cool. And now he was tearing down the barricade that the bad guys had made at the front door.

"Are you superheroes?" Jayden asked when Harry got to him and his Ma, watching as her bright red eyebrows went up her forehead at his question. As the only child here, not counting the teenager with his phone pointed at them, Jayden felt it was up to him to get the confirmation he needed.

Shaking her head slightly, Harry crouched down to his level, holding out a bar of chocolate she'd pulled out of the funny, tiny trunk she had on a necklace, a smile on her lips.

"Not really. But I knew we could help you here, so we came and helped. Bucky was actually just showing me around his hometown, so it was quite lucky we came here." She smiled again, ruffling his hair as she stood up, but Jayden snatched at her hand, staring with wide eyes.

"His name is Bucky? Like Captain America's friend? We're learning about it at school."

The woman paused, a funny look on her face and Jayden wondered if he'd said something wrong.

"The same one." A deep voice answered from behind him and the nine year old jumped, spinning around to look at the dark haired man that went by the name Bucky.

"The same one? But Miss Burnett said Bucky Barnes died falling off a train."

"I didn't." And then he was walking away, picking up two of the closes bad guys and throwing them into a pile with the others. The all let out a pained huff, and Jayden didn't feel sorry for them at all. In fact, he was quite pleased to see them hurt. They'd wanted to hurt him after all.

Turning back to Harry, Jayden pulled a little more at her hand, gathering her attention again from where she'd been talking to his Ma.

"But how can he be Bucky Barnes? And why does he have a metal arm? How's he here?"

"Would you believe me if I say he was frozen up?" The pretty lady was grinning again, pulling her hand out of his; instead she reached for the collar of her tee-shirt and pulled a necklace made of funny looking bottle-caps out from under her shirt.

And then, she dropped it around his neck. They clinked, resting on his torso the white standing out against his red shirt.

"He's got a metal arm because Captain America has a metal shield; only fair right? Look after that necklace for me, it's suppose to keep you safe." Harry smiled again and Jayden was one hundred percent sure she was a superhero. She had to be, she could make magical shields and tie people up with rope that came out of nowhere. Ironman might not have come, but Jayden had gotten to meet two new superheroes. And they were so cool.

One had even given him a gift and he was going to look after this necklace forever.

Even if it was made of funny looking bottle-caps.

"Sorry Jayden," she winked and Jayden stared because she knew his name and he hadn't even said it, "but we have to go."

Bucky -and now that he remembered his textbook he did look similar, only with longer hair- had appeared beside Harry, taking her hand. And then with loud crack that made everyone in the room jump, the two disappeared.

Teleporting! So cool!

Landing on the roof of a building nearby, Harry stared over the edge, intimately aware of Bucky's metal fingers wrapping themselves up in her shirt; to catch her if she leaned a bit too far over.

"Well, that went well," she murmured, watching as the hostages began pouring out of the bank, much to the bewilderment of the local police force. Bucky had only ended up shooting one person, and that had probably been for the best. He'd been going to kill that little kid…

Remembering the way Jayden's eyes had lit up when she'd given him that necklace, remembering the way his mother had looked so damn relieved, made Harry smile a bit more. She'd forgotten how good it felt, to help people out.

"Can you move away from the edge now?"

Scoffing, Harry complied, scooting backwards and then throwing her arms around Bucky's tall form. A lot of those bullets had come close to hitting him and had she been any slower to get her wand out-

"Thank you. For coming with me to stop that madness."

Warm metal rested on her shoulder blades, a fleshy palm pressing into the small of her back as Bucky hugged her back.

"Just, we make more of a plan next time. I don't like that we didn't have one."

Biting back a comment about how Gryffindors never had a tendency to plan, Harry pressed her face into Bucky's neck, having to stand on her tiptoes to accomplish such a task. Mmm, he smelt good. More of that delicious aftershave and the curious scent of gunpowder; an unknown back in the wizarding world. There were no magical healers here now, if either of them went down, it was only the two of them left to patch each other up or get them to hospital. So-

"Okay, we'll have a plan next time."

.

London, England
May 8th 2014

Bucky couldn't quite remember a panic like this. Then again, he couldn't quite remember ever having someone so close to him literally bleeding out in his arms either. HYDRA had found them, and before he could take them all but, one had managed to Harry with a stray bullet that she hasn't been able to shield.

And she'd gone down, bleeding out from a stomach wound and stomach wounds were never good news. He'd never ran as fast as he had these past few minutes, well aware Harry had already preformed enough magic to keep her conscious and alive until they reach the hospital around the corner, but still panicking anyway.

She was so light in his arms, and even though he knew that was a normal -a result of her being female, a bit shorter than average and malnourished as a child- that didn't help to comfort him at all.

Her grip on his neck was not as tight as it'd been when her first left the battlefield, and the soft reassuring words she'd been whispering in his ear had began to blur together, becoming mumbled, practically incoherent when he raced through the automatic doors of the emergency room. There, a startled doctor turned his gaze upon him, and then Harry when he realized she was the source of the blood.

"What happened?"

"She's been shot, stomach wound, she did something to stop the bleeding but I don't know how long it will hold."

"But the only place there's been gun fire was-"

"I run fast okay?!"

Carefully placing Harry down on the bed, Bucky turned his glare upon the doctor, taking great pleasure when he flinched back under his weighty stare. Harry's husky laugh drew his attention back to her pale face and Bucky quickly wrapped his flesh hand -because God knows she didn't care about the metal one at all but he needed that to defend them- around one of hers.

"Calm down Buckster, it'll take more than a stray bullet to kill me off." Her small, thin fingers tightened around his own and Bucky nodded. Harry was hard to kill, she'd said it herself. And Harry never lied to him.

"Okay."

And then she was rushed off into some emergency room or another, leaving Bucky stood, looking very lost, in the entrance way.

He'd know if something did happen to Harry, because if it did her magic would wear off and then everyone would be able to see his arm and guns and knives.

But so far no one was paying him the slightest bit of attention aside from some old woman tutting disapprovingly over the length of his hair. Gathering the brown strands up, Bucky pulled the elastic off his wrist and snapped it into a small bun resting high on the top of his head, though a few shorter pieces fell free around his face, it was nowhere near as much as before.

.

He felt the eyes before he saw them. It only took three seconds of since sensing the weighty stare, Bucky was well aware that someone was watching him, but he didn't immediately leap to his feet and go on the defensive. Because it wasn't a hateful stare, an angry one. The usual kind of looks he'd gotten from the remnants of HYDRA they'd run into over the past year.

He knew the difference, and this was more like the looks Harry used to give him back in the early days. When she'd watch him complete his physical exercise routine, and instead of saying it was too much or not enough, she'd always be stood off to a side with a bottle of water and a cloth for him to towel the sweat off with.

It wasn't a dangerous kind of stare, just, curious.

Gaze flickering up, Bucky scanned the room for the source, and stopped on the big, blond male stood on the opposite side of the room. He might have to readjust his thoughts, because the source was very much a physical threat. He was carrying around a large war hammer for god's sake.

But, he was also staring at Bucky with something close to wonder. No, wait, not actually at Bucky. More like, something around him.

That didn't mean his chest didn't tighten when the male came over, looking determined and hopeful and Bucky found himself palming a knife. No guns here, the hospital would panic and then Harry wouldn't get treated. And that was unacceptable.

"You are surrounded by magic." Okay, that wasn't the first thing he was expecting.

Narrowed eyes stared up at the blonde with deep sated suspicion as his mind whirled, attempting to source that accent. He'd never heard anything like it before, but he spoke English so fluently it had to be somewhere that could afford such tutoring in another language, or a place where English was the first language. But nothing was coming to mind, nothing at all.

"What of it." Bucky growled low in his throat, eyes darting over to the two that the blond had come into the hospital with. Both were female, both were slight with only the slightest hint of muscles, and one was crying from the pain of the burns on her arms. Neither were threats like the being stood before him. Bucky's eyes slid back over to look at the threat before him and found his muscles tensing under the sudden harshness of those storm blue eyes.

"Do you wish to visit violence upon My Lady Jane and the Lady Darcy?"

He'd considered it. If this man was a threat to himself and Harry, then it might be necessary to use the duo as human shields.

But only if he was left with no other option.

"Depends, you want to hurt me and mine?" He could see the moment when the male registered the slip of his tongue, that not only was he not alone, but that the comment of magic related to another.

"No, I wish no harm upon you or your trusted comrade. Tell me, was he injured in battle?" And then the man looked around, long blond hair swaying with the motion, as if fully expecting Bucky's injured comrade to appear out of thin air beside him. Well, if she wasn't injured, it was certainly a fair assessment of Harry.

Mentally reducing the male's threat level, Bucky folded his arms, sliding the knife he'd been playing with up his sleeve, not quite ready to face this stranger down without instant access to a weapon.

"How did you know about the magic?"

Here, the man looked pained.

"My…My brother was rather adapt at the art of magic. But he died mere months ago, and I was foolishly hoping that perhaps, I had been tricked again by him. But I understand now, this magic, it does not have the same flavour…. Oh, I am Thor Odinson." A large, meaty palm was held out between them, a gestured Bucky hesitantly accepted after a quick comparison of their arms. Odinson's were bigger than his, but neither were made of metal.

"James Barnes."

"It is nice to meet James Barnes!" Odinson's voice boomed through the room and Bucky cringed, watching as the two female's eyes snapped over to look at him. The smaller, thinner one only looked at him for a second before turning back to the nurse, but the female with the burns mouthed his name twice in suspicion. Thankfully, she was hustled away before she could do anything with the information.

"May I meet your comrade in arms James Barnes? I swear upon my honour I wish him no harm."

"Her," Bucky corrected absentmindedly, brain whirling. He knew who this was now, the damn God of Thunder. Of all the people to run into.

He'd rather not let a man of god level power anywhere near Harry when she was injured.

But he also knew that, despite Harry having given up her way to get home to stay with him, she also longed for any information she could get on magic. She wouldn't hurt him or get angry at him if he said no to Thor. But she would be very disappointed with him. Upset. Would get that crushed little pout on her face, and her eyes be dry but red around the edges as she struggled not to start tearing up.

God, he hated disappointing Harry.

"Fine. But the hammer stays with your companions."

Thor nodded sagely, grinning the entire time as he dropped his overly large body down into one of the waiting room chairs.

.

"You look at her the same way I look at my Lady Jane."

Sat beside Harry's bedside, Bucky's flickered his eyes up to look at Thor, who stood by the doorway, staring down at Harry with the oddest look upon his face.

Wistful, and sad. If he'd truly had a brother that shared powers similar to Harry, then Bucky assumed it would be difficult to see another like him.

Turning his gaze back to the female sleeping on the bed. It wasn't a natural sleep, he could tell because Harry wasn't shuffling about three minutes or so. She was so still, it wasn't right. Her face was pale from blood loss, making her red hair look even darker than normal.

"She was there when nothing else was. I can't lose that, can't lose her."

Thor gave a low hum of understanding, and though Bucky didn't look up from where he was sat by Harry's bedside, he could already tell the man's face would have softened like chocolate left out in the sun.

"I understand, my Lady Jane was there when my powers were stripped from me, she made me into a better man. Do not worry my friend, your lady is strong, she will pull through. I can sense it, her magic already heals her." Well, that was certainly a relief.

Taking a gentle hold of Harry's hand, Bucky threaded his fingers through hers, smiling slightly when the digits curled around his own. A sleepy mumble let him know that Harry's magic had long been waging war with the drugs that had her unconscious, a battle that was clearly seconds from being won.

As if on cue, Harry's eyes fluttered open and he heard Thor suck in a deep breath from the other side of the room.

"Harry?" She blinked again, hazy eyes taking in Thor's frozen form by the door before that brilliant green drifted over to look at him. A lazy grin bloomed across her face.

"Hey there Bucky. Told you I'd be fine."

Letting out a shaky laugh, Bucky lifted Harry's hand up, pressing his lips and nose into the back of her palm, breathing in the warm, comforting scent that clung to her skin. The limb was cold under his touch and he couldn't think of a time that Harry had been cold before. She'd told him that, usually, her magic kept her body at an optimal temperature. The only time it wouldn't was if her magic was drained doing other things. Like keeping her alive.

"Don't do that again."

"Okay. We'll take it easy, go somewhere nice and warm. Italy? Italy's got good pasta."

Closing his eyes, Bucky flipped Harry' palm over, pressing a gentle kiss into the plump flesh on the other side.

"Anywhere you want doll. Anywhere at all."

Harry's grin was tired, but no less meaningful. Her eyes flashed as she watched him press another kiss into her palm, cheeks slowly flushing a rosy red as she leaned further back into the pillows.

"You haven't introduced me to your new friend Buckster."

.

Harry got acquainted with Thor as she went about healing herself up. The huge wall of blond muscle had watched in complete fascination -apparently, his brother had never really looked into the healing arts- as she went about stitching her own skin up with her not-quite-herbal remedies.

They got talking on the different kinds of creatures that Thor had found on his adventures throughout the nine realms, and a mutual agreement was made; Thor would bring her different animal parts and plants from these far off places, and in exchange, he'd get half the potions made. Probably for his use on his nearest and dearest, considering they were all healing potions, as far as Bucky was aware.

Throughout it all, Harry didn't let go of his hand, and he spent his time tracing the veins he could see beneath her pale skin.

"Lady Harry, it has been wonderful talking to you, but I must go and seek out my Lady Jane. She will no doubt be worried by my prolonged absence. James Barnes, I wish you well on your courtship of Lady Harry." Thor grinned, rising from the chair he'd pulled over to rest beside Harry's bed at the same time Bucky's eyes snapped up to look at him.

"Courtship? as in, dating-courting?"

He and Harry weren't courting. Something close to that perhaps, but it'd never been officially acknowledge by either of them. Not aloud anyway. They were just too broken people trying to patch themselves back together, helping one another. Sometimes Harry was too pure, times when the Winter Soldier was closer to the surface than Bucky Barnes was.

And then sometimes, Harry was more distant and closed off when the 'The-Girl-Who-Loved' reared itself within her. Neither of them were whole, and that was okay. Bucky wanted all of Harry that she could give, and if Harry would accept it, she could have all that made up the man that was Bucky, the Winter Soldier.

"Aye," Thor continued, confusion flashing across his face for but a second as he looked between the two of them, "you trust each other with an intimacy shared only by the closest of couples. You share the same looks I remember my parents once sneaking one another. A sign of a good match if there ever were one. I wish the both of you well."

And with a regal nod, Thor, the God of Thunder, strode out the door.

.

Bucky sat there by the bed for a few minutes, just running his fingers across the back of Harry's hand for a bit longer before he peppered a kiss to the tips of her fingers.

"What do you say doll? Me, you, a dinner date in Italy?" This was normal, this was something Bucky Barnes had done before, invited a girl out for a day on the town. He'd never taken them to Italy before -would it really count this time, seeing as Harry would be the one getting them there?- but he could improvise. He might not be the Bucky of the past, but he was still a version of Bucky. A more world weary one, with a hell of a lot of baggage.

Then again, Harry wasn't travelling without any of her own either. They were equal in that respect.

"I'm pretty sure that living together is suppose to come after the dates, but yes. I would very much like to do dinner."

Now done with healing herself, Harry had clambered across the bed, righting herself when she stood beside him and one hand automatically going towards her recently healed midriff. It took very little effort on his part to steady her, metal arm wrapped around her waist and flesh one running through the wild curls of wine red hair.

"Right, let's get out of here then."

.

New York, America
May 16th 2014

"Is this a joke?"

Staring at the screen that Stark had pulled into existence before the two of them, Steve could only stare at the pair on the screen. It was a live feed from a small restaurant somewhere in Sicily, but Stark's facial recognition scanners had apparently picked up on Bucky.

With greedy eyes, Steve took in everything that was on the computer screen, feeling his heart hammer in his chest because Bucky was alive. He was alive, had lived from the train. He forcibly ignored the part about HYDRA being the reason he was still alive, instead focusing on the fact that Bucky was alive and not being used as a weapon any more.

He wasn't sure what to feel towards Bucky's new companion.

She was a pretty thing, Bucky's usual type. Her colouring was stunning, and his fingers flexed for the nearest pencil. He wanted to draw her, draw the two of them as they were now, sat across from one another in a small restaurant and looking so much more relaxed than that day they'd pulled him from the water.

Natasha might have been wary of the female that called herself 'Harry', but Steve felt nothing but gratitude for her. They'd met before, he remembered almost everything and certainly hadn't forgot the girl with such bright eyes that'd looked so distressed at the Smithsonian.

While part of him smarted over the fact he'd been so close to Bucky, so close and had clearly just missed him, another part of him was beyond pleased. Because 'Harry' had stuck it out with Bucky. There was no distress in her face now, she wasn't going to leave him on his own. Steve sent a pray of thanks to whatever was up there.

"Seems your bud's girl is a bit of big news over in Italy."

And there were files, newspaper reports and news-stories about a mysterious redhead woman making her way through a collection of Italian hospitals and healing children of diseases that'd been thought untreatable.

Natasha could say what she wanted, but Steve was pretty damn certain 'Harry' was good sorts. The kinda girl Mrs Barnes would have been happy to see her son bring home.

Steve watched as the duo accepted their meal from the waiter, unable to stop the smile when, as the girl stole a forkful of Bucky's pasta, his best friend retaliated by snatching up a whole slice of her garlic bread.

"What's the chance of us getting to Sicily before they're gone?"

"Zilch Cap, what with Red there being able to teleport. No point in flying out there when we'll only to have to turn around halfway there when they drop of radar again."

.

Trapani, Sicily
May 16th 2014

They had slowly made their way down from the North of Italy, to the South, before wandering into Sicily.

Sat in a small Piazza sharing a generous bowl of pasta between the two of them, Harry couldn't stop the smile spreading across her face if she wanted to.

Introducing Bucky to the wide variety of Italian cuisine had been a brilliant idea. The both of them appreciated food, and with the money from the galleons only dropping ever so slowly, they had more than enough time to enjoy the local food.

If Harry had just so happened to visit five different hospitals in history and cure several hundred children of diseases they'd been expected to die from now that she knew she'd be able to start making her healing potions again and didn't have to use them so sparingly, well… They were in the holy land, miracles were expected to happen here, were they not?

Though Bucky had been quite annoyed to realize she'd been caught on camera several times. She wasn't trained for espionage like he was, but really, that was a rookie mistake. And now the whole world was looking for the mysterious healer, especially when they compared notes and realized she'd been one of the two to stop a bank robbery back in the good old USA last month.

Hell, it was pure luck that no one had made the connection to the HYDRA attack in London though it was only a matter of time now. No doubt someone had caught something on video.

Blooming Muggles and their technology.

Rolling her eyes, Harry scooped up another mouthful of pasta, toes sliding out of her flip-flops and instead slowly dancing across the surface of Bucky's foot. His eyes snapped up to look at her, fork pausing halfway to his mouth and Harry felt her lips twist up at one corner in a flirty grin. And well, in for a penny-

Harry winked, toes drawing slow circles on Bucky's ankle. He laughed, covering the sound by shoving another forkful of pasta between his lips. But he was smiling back as he looked coyly up at her from beneath those thick black eyelashes, far lighter in spirit than she'd seen in him yet. Italy had been good for him, for both of them. The sun had worked it's magic, lightening both their moods as they spent longer beneath its warmth.

"So, done working miracles in Italy now?" Bucky mused, raising an eyebrow. The tendons of his ankle twitched beneath her toes and Harry grinned, curling the instep of her foot around the male's lower shin.

"I suppose I am… Do you want to try a country in East Europe?" She knew that making their way over there, going closer to Russia, left the two of them with a higher chance of Bucky falling into a bad memory. But if there was one thing that Harry believed in, it was that facing a problem head on was the way to get over it.

"Suppose it'll be best to get it over with. But someone warm next. Egypt?"

"Mmm, we can go tomb-raiding. My magic, your ninja skills, we'll walk away rich."

Bucky snorted, rolling his eyes but the sharp line of his shoulders relaxed as she spoke. Sliding smoothly free of her chair, Harry held out her hand to the dark haired male, grinning when the rough calluses' of his fingers brushed against her own.

They were gone with a sharp crack.

.

Ragonik, Sokovia

May 27th 2014

"Well it's nice to see our worlds do have a difference. There's certainly no Sokovia where I came from."

Dropping to the ground beside Bucky, Harry cocked her head back, admiring the sun through the thick leaves of the trees.

"'Where you came from'? Not 'your world'?"

Glancing over at Bucky, who was sat beside her and staring resolutely forwards, Harry's teeth dragged across the skin of her lower lip, coming dangerously close to puncturing the flesh. After a moment's hesitation, she shuffled the few inches closer to her companion, resting her head upon his shoulder and letting out a low sigh as she did so.

Metal whirled, plates shifting in the arm she was currently not using as a headrest, until a half defeated, half amused sigh escaped Bucky's lips. Then he shifted, arm coming to wrap around her waist instead and leaning back enough that she could rest on his chest without slipping down.

"Well yeah. Now that I'm staying here, this is kind of my world too… You can't claim the whole world for yourself Bucky." Poking the man in the stomach, Harry felt the muscles flutter under her fingertips as he laughed, a smooth low chuckle much unlike anything she would have heard a year ago.

"I don't need a world. Just a few of the people in it." Bucky's chin came to rest on her head before Harry could think too much on his words, leaving Harry to snuggle a bit closer to the human space heater that was her companion.

For the past week and a bit, the two of them had been jumping between countries, using public libraries to Google destinations they wanted to visit, and then Harry would apperate them to each different one. The only reason they were in Sokovia -an unappealing country in all honesty, what with the current political climate and its distinctive lack of anything interesting- was because Harry couldn't recall the country at all in her original world. The picture of the forest they'd gotten had reminded Harry of her time spent in the Forest of Dean with Hermione, and so, here they were.

"Mmm, I'm thinking we take off for Egypt when the new month graces us with its presence. I heard the sunsets there are particularly pretty. Thoughts, Buck-o?"

The steady rise and fall of Bucky's chest was slowly luring Harry into the promise of a peaceful sleep.

Really, she couldn't think of a time that she'd had so much peace as she had in the past year. True, they'd gotten into a few scuffles, the shooting with HYDRA in London, the bank, and then there was all her good deeds. Visiting the hospitals to heal sick kids, helping people just because she could… It felt good.

The Wizarding World had clamoured for every miracle she could give them; these people were thankful for what they could get.

"Don't care. As long as you stay with me doll, I'll have the best view in the world."

Okay, so maybe she was inexplicably fond of the forties charm that Bucky carried too. Sue her. She could remember sitting down with Hermione and watching the old movies when it was her twentieth birthday, could remember the suave and charm. Both of which Bucky oozed in his good moments.

Then again, she could manage charm could be soft and fluffy and cuddly when she was having a good day too. But that wasn't all that they were, and that was a good thing. Because too much of a good thing was a recipe for disaster.

.

She was feeling so tired, so relaxed, that she almost missed it.

Almost.

The first clue was Bucky tensing, the second was the slight prod at her mental barriers.

And then Bucky let out a wounded scream beside her, arm leaving her waist to clutch at his head with the metal one whirling.

Mind magics.

Someone was daring to use mind magics against them, against Bucky.

Anger that'd only been a cooling ember flared to life within Harry, with such an intensity that it took her a second to think clearly. As soon as she could though, the Elder Wand was in her hand and a wordless spell on her lips.

Regardless, a dark haired female was pulled from the bushes, seemingly by invisible hands in her hair, screaming as she went. Harry didn't feel much mercy as the bright hazel eyes landed on her and rounded with fear.

That was all Harry got to see, because something smacked her in the back and sent her flying into a tree. Harry heard Bucky roar with rage, star bursting to life behind her eyes even as her mind raced to pinpoint the source of her attacker. It wasn't magic, hadn't felt like magic. More like…

Like two hands pushing her. But it'd happened so fast.

Screaming as she was once again thrown across the clearing, Harry barrelled into Bucky, who managed to catch her in such a way that when they both hit the floor, it was he who absorbed the most of the damage.

Scowling, Harry pointed her wand upwards, casting the widespread version of 'Aresto Momentum'. To her absolute delight, a male appeared in the clearing. The one she'd slowed down to an average human.

So she wasn't going crazy, there really was a guy that could run faster than she could see.

It was only when a bang resounded unnervingly close to her ears that Harry realized Bucky had managed to pull out his gun and shot the speedy bugger in the leg. With the girl still incapacitated by her instinctive magic, and the male now on the ground and bleeding from a bullet wound to his thigh, forcibly slowed down by her magic, Harry let out the breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

The imminent danger had passed, so it seemed.

Carefully placing her hand on Bucky's gun, Harry forcibly lowered it, other hand reaching to cup his cheek.

"Are you okay?"

His eyes were a dulled grey, more grey than the blue they usually where.

Fury flared again because that woman had dared to mess with Bucky's mind. Just when he'd started to get it all sorted out, just when he was feeling more and more like himself.

Peppering a kiss to the tip of Bucky's nose, Harry shot two stunners at their unexpected guests, stopping the male from bleeding out as an afterthought.

"Help me cart these two into the tent. We'll find out exactly who they are and what they're up to."

Every tilt and line of his face suggested Bucky was very much against this course of action, and would probably much prefer to just leave them here on the forest floor until Harry's magic wore off.

It wasn't until Harry brushed the hair back from his forehead, stuck there by the sweat that'd come about from the mind magics, that he gave a very shallow nod.

"Fine. But one wrong move and I'm pumping them full of lead."

So, I don't know how long I'll be making this, whether it'll be two parts or three or four or whatever. I think two or three, but if I'm hit was more inspiration, who knows. Regardless, it's taking me more time to write this than it did Valiant, so I figured I'd do it in parts. Big parts, but parts. A few notes below;

That necklace given at the bank was a necklace Luna gave her, she's got about five in her trunk but always wears one for luck.

I gave the forest that the Avengers first meet Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver in a name. The country's made up, and thus, so is the name of the forest. Only difference being I made the name of the forest.

Tsume

xxx