~27~

                                    

                                          







                                      ~27~


                          
  "I was housed by your warmth
Thus transformed
By you're grounded and giving
And darkening scorn
Remember me, love."
                          
 <'Shrike'> Hozier





                          
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 DANIELLE SEEMS to be moving in slow motion. Everything is happening too fast. This shouldn't be happening at all. They were happy. They were relatively safe. They were OK. 
                          
 For a moment, she thought she could get out of this life, no SHIELD, no HYDRA, just live.
                          
 "Move Dani!"
                          
 Bucky's frantic call allows reality to claw her back. He kicks up a mattress, muffling the sounds from beyond the window. She ducks out of the way of a uniformed man's attack, swinging a foot behind his knees, sending him to the ground. A blur of uniforms surrounds her, she moves fast, muscle memory, throwing another in the Captain's direction.
                          
 "Steve!" she calls, turning him around to bring his shield across his head.
                          
 She feels a hand grip her arm and she whirls around, Bucky barely acknowledges her, tugging her through the door into the stairwell. She fights her way frantically down the stairwell, wincing as she's met with a few fists where she isn't quick enough.
                          
 There are too many.
                          
 She's not a super soldier.
                          
 She's slammed into the wall, taking a moment to cough violently before she swings her feet up to boot him into the chest. The man falls backwards over the railing. She glimpses Steve bringing him upright.
                          
 "You're both gonna kill someone!"
                          
 "We're not gonna kill anyone!"
                          
  Bucky pulls her into him, swinging onto the next floor, his metal arm bending the bannister. They're pushed forward by a two bodies and she crashes into the floor. She whips a knife from a leg holster, quickly bringing it across his stomach. She scrambles to her feet, darting after Bucky towards a window. 
                          
 He crashes through it first, allowing her to dive through the already broken hole. She winced, her shoeless feet skidding along the concrete. The man slows in order to place a hand on her back, pushing her into line with him.
                          
 "Steve," she pants breathlessly, automatically slowing.
                          
 "He'll be fine, they're not after him," he responds quickly, tugging her by the hand this time.
                          
 She shakes the guilt, pumping her legs faster. She cries out as something hard comes barrelling into the pair. Her head smacks against the roof, her eyes squeezing shut, a metallic taste on her tongue. She feels as though she's falling from a height, hoping if she gives herself a few minutes the feeling will pass.
                          
 But she doesn't have a few minutes.
                          
 She groans, pulling herself to her knees. The world sways around her. She grits her teeth, getting onto her feet. "Buck!" she calls, before her eyes settle on the combat happening a few feet away.
                          
 "Go!" He shouts, his attention not leaving his opponent.
                          
 She hesitates for a split second before she pushes herself to break into a sprint. She's convinced she's not running in a straight line. She runs unsteadily towards the edge of the roof.
                          
 "I can make that," she mutters. The gap becomes wider as she approaches it. "Maybe that's the concussion talking, maybe I should-"
                          
 A strong arm grips her waist and she's pulled from the ground. She wraps herself around Bucky as the wind rushes past her already bloodied face.