Clara couldn't complain about the rough awakening she received that morning, because that night she had slept the best sleep she had in weeks. Deep and uninterrupted, the night time flew by until the sun was peaking over the horizon. 

When she did wake from the slumber, it was with a jolt, Clara rushing to sit stark-upright as she searched the room at a the sound of a loud noise. It was a sort of metallic thud, one heavy object crashing against another hard surface. 

It was only when she met eyes with Bucky that she realised what it had been. For a brief moment, he looked disorientated and dazed - as if coming out of a bad dream too quickly, and not quite having enough time figure out that was all it was. 

It had been his vibranium arm striking the floor, sending out the reverberations that woke Clara. 'You okay?' She asked quietly, not wanting to wake Sam after the crash somehow didn't. She saw his expression harden as she did. 

'Fine,' he told her gruffly, moving the thin sheet from over him and getting to his feet. 

Sam turned over in the bed, looking to both Clara and Bucky in turn, before dropping his head back onto the pillow. He didn't give himself much more time on the bed, shuffling to the side and rubbing a hand over tired eyes. 'We're leaving in ten,' he told them, nodding to the washroom attached to the bedroom, the door slightly ajar. 'Who's first?'

Clara rushed to the door without hesitation, sweeping up her bag as she did, not wanting the two men to mess it up before she had a chance to use the utilities herself. Once she had freshened up as much as she could in the motel room, using what little she had brought in her rucksack, Clara went back out to the main room. 

'So, Torres is flying us to Berlin?' Clara asked, remembering the plan from Sam telling her last night, but wanting to fill the silence of everyone beginning their make-shift morning routine. 

Sam nodded, a yawn escaping as he looked at his phone, seeing the confirmation from Torres that he had never replied to, and a new series of messages that told him Torres was waiting for them.

Bucky used the bathroom next, and Sam took the opportunity to go over some things with Clara, thinking it was less likely he'd interrupt. 'Before we go anywhere,' Sam started. 'We need to set some ground rules.''

'Okay?' Clara looked at him dubiously as she tugged on a shoe. 'Like what?'

'Like, don't get in our way,' Bucky called through, spoiling Sam's hopes of an argument-free conversation. 

'Like don't get in our way,' Clara mimicked, rolling her eyes.

'He has a point,' Sam told her. Clara's jaw dropped, astonished that he was agreeing with Bucky instead of trying to stop him from sniping at her. 'You need to listen to us.'

'Well, yeah, obviously,' Clara shrugged, tightening her laces after putting on her second shoe. 

'No, you really need to listen to us,' Sam pressed. 'You have to follow orders, got it? We know how it works out there, we have-'

'More experience. You've said, and I've agreed. I'll listen to you.'

Sam nodded, seemingly pleased with her statement, and he continued with his short list of demands. 'If we're talking to someone, you stay out of it unless we say so.'

Clara made a face, just a little offended and somewhat annoyed by that one order alone. As she opened her mouth to speak, Bucky peered round the doorway. 'He means it,' he told her. 'You're very... emotional.'

Clara pulled her head back in a show of surprise. 'I'm emotional?' 

'Here we go,' Sam muttered. 

'That's rich coming from you,' she bit.

'Really?' Bucky said in a "are you kidding me" kind of way. He leant against the doorway and faced Clara fully, his arms folded over his chest. 

Clara stood up, not liking the way he had positioned himself to be looking down on her. She was still shorter than him of course, but it was less of a difference. 'Yes, Mr I-don't-need-a-parachute-to-jump-out-of-a-plane. Really.'

Bucky shot a glare at Sam, who held his hands up in defence. 'Don't look at me, I'm trying to recover the footage of it before telling anyone.'

Clara tried to hide a victorious grin as Bucky stared open mouthed at Sam. 'I...' He cut himself off, shaking his head in disbelief and walking back into the toilet. Closing the door behind him, Clara heard a mumble coming through the wall, but to muffled to understand any of what was being said by the man. 

'What else?' Clara asked, turning back to Sam as she sat back down, genuinely wanting to hear the next rule for her to follow so she could continue down the path they were headed. 

'I still want to talk to your S.O.,' Sam said. 'Just as soon as we get a minute.'

'Yep,' she nodded. 'I don't have a phone, though. So, I'll have to use one of yours', if that's alright.' 

'You don't have a phone?' He raised an eyebrow. 'How are you contacting S.H.I.E.L.D.?'

'I'm not. I have an ECS device that'll send them my location and a live feed of nearby audio it picks up when activated.' She rattled off the well-rehearsed explanation, seeing no doubt in Sam's expression that what she was saying wasn't the case - which it wasn't. 'Again, like I said, this is just a recon mission, no need to call for back-up unless it really goes side-ways.'

Bucky walked out of the washroom for the final time, letting Sam use it next. He and Clara sat in silence until Sam joined them again, heading for the door of the main room. 'Okay, let's go,' he told them, taking the lead as Torres sent him another message asking how long they were going to be, and if they wanted him to pick them up in the rover. 

As he finally typed out a response to the young man, Clara pulled her heavy bag onto her shoulders. Bucky was already out the door, waiting outside for the other two to join him.

With the contents of her bag weighing down, Clara kept pace with them, moving through the streets of Baltimore in the quiet hours of the morning and, as the next leg of her journey beginning, she sincerely hoped she had gotten past all the walking parts.

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