── REUNITED ──

── ☆ ──

Alessia woke up at some point, she guessed in the morning, noticing that she wasn't alone in the room. Turning her head to the side, she spotted Steve asleep in the chair, his short hair a mess while his face sat relaxed finally at peace with the sleep he was clearly fighting. She allowed herself a chance to process what had happened, She knew Marcus and the crew would be going mad by now but she only hoped that Jonas knew about her being here and had informed them of the situation to prevent any hysteria.

Steve's movement startled her as she looked at him, his tired eyes held a smirk once he realised, "I have a habit of startling you, don't I?" A smile rested on his face causing her to roll her eyes. He stood up and made his way over, shock and confusion filling his face. She followed his stare to her gunshot wound, "I was wondering how long till it would heal." She smirked as he looked at her, severely confused which caused her to laugh. She sat herself up and swung her legs off of the bed to stand, Steve catching me as she stumbled slightly. A laugh escaped both of their lips as Alessia steadied herself.

She noticed that she was in a tank and joggers, "Who changed me?" She looked at Steve who turned a faint pink causing her to smirk, "I'm guessing Natasha?" He nodded slowly as she linked their arms. "Well, let's go find her so I can thank her." He nodded and led her out the door with a smile. Eventually, they reached a staircase as Steve was telling her about the team. A sudden voice stopped me as she looked around, looking to the bottom of the stairs stood someone she believed to be dead, someone she thought she'd never see again.

Steve attempted to get her attention as she ran down the steps, stopping in front of him as Steve followed behind her. "Aiden?" Alessia's voice was soft as she looked up to the familiar face. The man stopped, frozen in place as the other man stood confused. Alessia's heart stopped as he turned around, only a few feet away from her. Tears dared to fall as the man stood before her, shock and confusion filling his eyes. "Alessia?!" Without a second thought, she ran forward wrapping her arms around him.

He responded instantly as more people turned their gazes, "I can't believe it, I-I thought you were dead." He spoke with pain echoing in his voice. Alessia blinked, letting the pain of everything leak with her tears as she stood in the arms of her older brother who she'd believed to be dead. "I saw your body laying there Aiden, you weren't breathing." His grip tightened around her as he sobbed into her shoulder. And for the first time in a very long time, all the pain felt like it was worth it.

── ☆ ──

They all sat in silence in the lounge area for quite some time, Steve bought over a glass of water for Alessia before sitting beside her. She took a sip as her brother analyzed her face, "You're no longer blonde." She smiled at his statement as she carefully ran her fingers through her dark brunette hair. She took in her surroundings, Steve seated next to her while the man who stood with Aiden earlier was leaning against the wall, a hearing aid clear on his right ear. She analyzed the man's stance as he eyed her down with a smirk, instantly it hit her about who he is, "Clint Barton, right?" He nodded, smiling proudly at being noticed.

They were silent for a few more minutes, everyone was trying to think of a way to get the conversation started, making Alessia feel uneasy. "Anyone know of any good jokes," She chuckled as all eyes turned to her, Steve's eyes held a tint of amusement. She turned to her brother who held a look of utter relief, almost as though he feared she was no longer that girl, little did he know, she was mostly just a shell of that little girl. An actor trying to play the game, to please not those around her, but her own aching mind that screamed of painful memories.

He placed his hand on hers, "I can't believe you are here in front of me." His eyes searched her face, she wasn't sure what he was looking for and what was left of her inner soldier was tempted to throw a punch into his face. She lowered her gaze to his hand and he slowly pulled it away, "I-I'm S-Sorry" He spoke hesitantly. She smiled lightly at him, taking his hand again as she looked around the room. "It's alright, it's just been a rough few years. I'm still adapting to the new changes." And she was, this freedom still feels so new and temporary.

Aiden smiled lightly before looking down, "They took you, didn't they?" His voice was deep and broken, almost like he was holding back the tears that threatened to fall. She tightened her grip on his hand, no words were needed, everyone knew the answer to that. He lifted his head to meet her gaze, he looked so defeated, believing he had failed her as an older brother which isn't anywhere near true. "Don't do that Aiden... I can't let you blame yourself for this." A tear fell down his face and she hated seeing him so sad.

Steve's hand rested on her shoulder as Aiden continued to cry, he had moved closer to rest his head on her shoulder. She held him in her arms, cursing silently to herself wishing she could take away that pain he felt. She felt sad that she'd missed growing up with her brother but she was thankful for her found family, knowing that without her painful life, they may have never come together. After a few hours of tears and talking, Aiden let Alessia call Marcus, who is currently explaining how freaked out everyone had been over the past few days.

She told him about what had happened and he agreed that she should stay put for now. He mentioned Jonas turning up at some point over the next few days. Aiden had to leave for the day and Steve lead her to a room for her to stay in, She walked up to the window that framed the city perfectly. The sun had started setting below the city, lights flickered to life. She lifted my hand to her chest where bandaging sat carefully, the bullet hit her right side almost cracking her collarbone.

She made her way over to the bed, pulling down the covers and climbing in, she tucked herself into the soft duvets, cuddling one of the spare pillows as she looked out to the sky. She couldn't believe how much her life had changed within twenty-four hours. And despite almost dying, she was glad that she saved Steve Rogers. She'd never regret that action, though she wished the bullet hit her shoulder instead of her collarbone, she was glad he was unharmed. Slowly, she dozed off allowing herself to give in to the exhaustion that overcame her body, sleeping peacefully in the safe comfort of The Avengers Tower.

── ☆ ──

Something didn't feel right, she opened her eyes slowly to gather her surroundings. Once again she was unable to move, her arms and legs were tied down. The darkness suddenly faded out and she was back on that damn chair she hated so much. Scientists surrounded her, injecting her with random liquids along with messing with the machinery. She turned her head, spotting the machine they used to wipe memories and knew what was about to happen when a voice spoke up.

"Good Morning, Miss Hart." She turned to see Alexander Pierce standing there. She looked past him and spotted a man who looked as dull as ever, his eyes focused ahead on Pierce while he stood like a soldier. "I see you've noticed our asset, Miss Hart." Pierce signalled for the Asset to step forward, which he hesitantly obliged. Their eyes made contact, even from the distance between us, his blue eyes were unmistakably beautiful. Her mind urged for him to wake from their stupid control as she looked him over.

His metal arm was shining in the dim lights as Pierce walked towards her, blocking her view of the man. "Now Miss Hart, I hear that you've been very defiant and we cannot have our soldiers being defiant now." She rolled her eyes and attempted to look to their 'asset' wondering how she could help him. She quickly noticed how the 'asset' had made his own curious attempt to find her eyes again, She smiled faintly at him reassuring him that she meant no harm. And for a moment, it seemed like something sparked across his eyes as he looked around the room.

Letting out a shaky breath, she finally tested how loose her restraints were before realising that she could easily break them. She waited for Pierce to step to the side, taking a glance at the 'asset' hoping that he'll understand her, She ripped her arms and legs out of the restraints. Jumping up, she punched the main scientist in the face knocking him out instantly before turning towards the rest of the room. Pierce stood a few feet behind the 'asset' and she laughed at the fear resting in his eyes. "Soldier, restrain her," A man in Hydra uniform spoke in Russian.

She turned her head to their 'asset' who seemed confused about what to do, she instantly smiled at the man barking orders before letting one Russian word leave her mouth, "Paradise." She broke some of the walls allowing him to break free from the rest. The 'asset' stood still as everything adjusted in his mind as Alessia made a run for Hydra soldiers. Pierce managed to sneak out just as the soldiers began firing their guns, dodging them as much as possible, Alessia noticed their 'asset' still standing there as a soldier pointed their gun towards him.

Alessia sighed before pushing herself off of a wall, shoving the 'asset' out of the way. Narrowly missing a bullet, she managed to push him to the ground before picking up a fallen gun and shooting at the remaining guards. "If you are gonna spend time adjusting, at least try not to get shot." She looked him in the eyes as he stared back. "You either fight back or stay out of my way!" She jumped back up, firing back at the soldiers.

She wasn't paying full attention when suddenly a bullet hit her side, causing her to stumble back wincing in pain. The soldiers made an attempt to overpower her knowing that they'll be punished for killing her, they fired for less deadly shots. Suddenly, the sound of metal hitting metal echoed through the room. After a while, the room went silent as she looked up noticing that the only person standing in the locked room was their 'asset'. He carefully made his way over to her before lifting my shirt slightly to look at my wound, gently applying pressure.

"Are you okay?" His raspy voice was full of worry. Their eyes locked and she could read the million different emotions rapidly flickering through them. She nodded lightly before moving herself to sit up with her back against the wall. "We make quite the team, huh?" She chuckled as a faint smile rested on his face. She lifted her hand, placing it lightly on his metal arm where the bullets had dented it. "I think I could fix that by the way," His eyes had followed her movements before noticing how relaxed she was touching his metal arm. "Got a name there bud?" she smirked as his eyes locked on hers.

He thought deeply for a moment, "James." She smiled as the name left his lips. "James," She repeated, testing his name herself. He looked down for a moment, hiding what looked like a smile. "Well, I'm Alessia." She smiled proudly as he looked up at her, "Alessia." He thought for a moment before helping her stand. James wrapped his arm around her shoulders allowing her to lean on him for support, "Let's get out of this place." She couldn't help but giggle at the sight of the room, all these men knocked out or potentially dead.

James broke the door and they made their way down the hall before reaching a door with a passcode lock. "You really believed the two of you would escape." Pierce's voice startled both of them as they turned around, James instantly tensed up at the sight of Pierce. "Didn't realise you'd miss us so much," Alessia mocked as James leaned into her in what seemed like a protective manner. She could feel her body weakening due to blood loss, James picked up on it too as Pierce began smirking. "You aren't looking too good there, Miss Hart." James and Alessia side glanced each other, concern filling his face.

She scoffed before forcing herself to stand up straight, causing her to winch slightly. James' arm tightened around her before glaring at Pierce, "Let's us leave." They both knew that she wasn't in the state to fight and there was no way James could protect her while fighting off soldiers. She leaned my head into James' shoulder catching his attention, "Leave without me." His shock was clear as he looked at her, "Not happening Ales." She smiled at his new chosen nickname for her. Just as a soldier began reading out the trigger words, She knew they weren't getting out any time soon.

James stood up straight after trying to fight them off, trying to stop the words before he lost himself again. Before they finished taking control of their soldier, he turned to Alessia and mouthed 'I'm sorry' before the man she had just met had disappeared. "Weaken her and take her to the cells," They ordered the Soldier, he turned to Alessia and with a singular punch he had knocked her out. The cell was the last place she remembered, those blue eyes staring into her soul with no recognition.

── ☆ ──

-Rose <3
{2394}