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Steve heard the quiet cursing as he ascended the stairs to his apartment. As he approached, Steve quickly realized that it was his… admittedly stunning, neighbour. Her door was opposite Sharon, and besides Steve; though she had a bit of a nocturnal schedule, Steve often caught her when Steve was finishing his missions. He knew her name was Holly from his brief glimpses, and he knew that she was rather petite with black curls, green eyes, and possessed worker's hands filled with calluses.
As Steve rounded the corner, he found Holly glaring at her front door. She had a righteously unhappy expression across her face; it was almost frightening how furious she looked. Steve approached with caution.
"Are you alright?" he asked both because he was concerned and because he had to step over her to get to his own apartment.
Holly's head jerked up, and she grimaced: "I'd love you tell you 'yes,' but I've had better days honestly."
The British accent nearly caused Steve to flinch, almost, he hadn't heard one since Peggy, and he hadn't realized she was British like his first love. Though, if he was honest with himself, it was because of the accent that he stepped forward with a touch more confidence.
It had nothing to do with Natasha's earlier comments about his lacking love life.
"Can I help?"
"Uh…" she made a face, "it's not so much a 'help' thing." Holly made air quotes, and Steve was quietly thankful he'd seen Tony do the same, or it would have gone over his head.
"Then an ear to vent to?" he offered instead.
He saw the struggle on her face, then surrender filling in a moment later: "yeah, I think I might like that. But… can you maybe help me with my lock?"
Holly accepted Steve's offered hand, and he pulled her to her feet, then shot a look at the door. "You got locked out?"
"I forgot my key, and… well, these electronic locks hate me." She grumbled under her breath, and Steve caught the words, "-electronics just break around me, sometimes-"
Steve felt a measure of kinship form with Holly then, "Gotta agree with you there, I can barely get my cell phone to work." It was due to lack of knowledge, but he certainly understood where Holly was coming from, or well, he did in a manner of speaking. "I think I have a tool that could help; let me grab it." A tool would be a decent cover story. Steve, after all, wasn't about to use his bare hands to burst the lock right off her door to get her in - even though he was capable of it. "Give me a minute."
"Mhm, oh, and you might want to turn off your radio. You left it on, I think."
What?
He blinked, and something in his stomach sank.
He hadn't.
"Of course, just… wait here, alright, I'll be right back?"
"Sure," she settled against the wall to wait, "I'll be here. Nowhere else to go, really." And laughed lightly.
Holly watched Steve leave, watched his door close and waited for precisely three minutes till she heard it; a thud and a cry of pain. Holly instantly shoved off from the wall and grabbed for her wand. She moved toward the door- only to be abruptly pushed aside and ordered back by her and Steve's other neighbour, Sharon. Who, Holly may like to add, was holding a gun. Not that Holly could judge, she was in America, and her wand was technically a weapon as well, but still- Americans.
Holly, regardless, was massively curious about what was happening; she was a Gryffindor after all. Holly quickly followed despite Sharon's order.
She wasn't quite in the door when Sharon spoke up, and Holly halted her steps to eavesdrop like a proper Weasley.
Sharon introduced herself as Agent Carter and spoke to 'Rogers' about her protection duty. Holly covered her mouth to that, blinking in surprise. Her neighbours were spies? That was wicked. The twins would be massively jealous, and Hermione endlessly smug. Because clearly, Holly couldn't possess an everyday life even in the Muggle world. Not with spies as neighbours.
"I'm in pursuit," said Steve before there was a crashing sound, and he was darting past her. Steve caught her eye as they glanced at each other in shock before he was racing past, unable to stop. Holly didn't much mind; the thrill-seeker in her thought her day had turned for the better.
Superspies and a villain! This was wicked!
"Yes!" Holly pumped the air with her fist and quickly darted after Steve. She left Sharon in the dust but was hard-pressed to keep pace with Steve, Merlin above he was fast. The man went crashing through doors, glass, and walls without a care or even slowing. Holly herself had always been the fastest of the people she knew, but Steve was greatly outrunning her.
Holly caught up to Steve in time to watch him hurl a large circular shield at the runner who had apparently gone running across the bloody roofs. Not that she could judge, she'd followed Steve across those same roofs and through two destroyed walls.
Holly darted forward, she got herself instantly involved as the man caught the shield, and then she was rushing past Steve. Holly ducked under the shield as the man tossed it back. She heard Steve's sound of surprise as she slid across the ground and kicked out at the unknowns legs. The man twisted to avoid her as Holly came up, his metal fist slammed into her shoulder. Holly didn't bother dodging it, but she should have. The sheer force of the blow struck against the shield she'd layered over her jacket, and a loud bang went off.
Holly swore instantly and staggered back; her ears were ringing like mad after that. She hadn't expected so much sound from that. True, she hadn't been hurt, but the volume had been brutal.
Shaking off the ringing, Holly lifted her wand as she shot several spells toward the man. He didn't look surprised by it like Steve currently was; the man didn't react at all, really. Still, Holly didn't care that he wasn't, not as her spell made contact with his fake arm, which he was using it to block her. That was stupid. She wasn't using a gun. He was wrong if he thought he could just deflect or block her magic with his unique arm, except he was wrong. The spell hit him, hit the metal of his limb, and he dropped on the spot.
"Hah!" Holly yelled happily, and straightened flipping her hair over her shoulder, "Me: one, weird masky guy: zero!"
"H-Holly?" Steve called, and she glanced over as he joined her.
"Oh," she blushed, ducking her head, "Sorry, I just thought you'd want some help? Honestly, this is so much better than talking. Taking down a masked villain and working with super spies!" she squealed a bit, "So what are you then? CIA?" she leaned in eyes sparkling, "can I join?" Screw the everyday life; this was so much better! The rush was fantastic.
"Y-you aren't an Agent?"
"No?" she answered with a tilt of her head, "plain old Holly Potter." Lie, that was such a lie; she was anything but plain. "I'm a civilian at least," because she hadn't been allowed to become an Auror, all thanks to Umbridge. Blasted woman.
"Right… well," Steve dropped it for the moment and looked to the stunned man. "What did you do, shock him?"
"Not exactly?" Holly hedged, rubbing the back of her neck, "it's a stun… sort of, it should work till I reverse it."
"I… see…" Steve stooped and grabbed for the mask covering the man's face, "Well, let's see who we have." Steve pulled the mask away, revealing a rather handsome face in Holly's opinion. She frowned curiously and turned to Steve… who had frozen in sheer shock. "Bucky?" he asked, horrified.
"You know him?" Holly asked blankly; she didn't.
"I did," Steve tried to say calmly, tried, "but he's supposed to be dead… he should have been- why is he here. No, I need to… this is too public. Let's take him back-" Steve hesitated, "to your apartment if that's alright? Can you keep him secret? and stunned?" He was planning at a mile a minute. Shield was compromised; Bucky was Fury's assailant and hadn't reacted to Steve at all. Sharon was a spy and had been spying on him. While Holly was clearly a bit more than human, was she a mutant?
"That's fine, but the door is still locked." Holly mused as Steve picked Bucky up and hefted him over a shoulder. "Should we tell Agent Carter? Also! I can't believe she was a spy too! That's wicked."
"I didn't know either," Steve admitted unhappily, "and no, we're not telling her. I don't think I can trust anyone right now." Except for Holly, it seemed, because he was giving her that trust. It might be a mistake, but he hoped not. She appeared genuinely uninvolved, and Carter hadn't reacted to her. Had treated her like a civilian just like Steve had.
"Are you witness protection?" Holly trotted after him as they headed back to the apartment.
"No… you really don't know who I am?"
"Should I?"
"No." Steve and Holly climbed back into their apartment, "its better this way." Refreshing in a way.
"If you say so…"