Work Text:
Bucky would not normally run away from HYDRA. He was all for destroying HYDRA, to the very last drone. Unfortunately, he had stumbled on a whole pack of them, and even he, the infamous, former Winter Soldier, had his limits.
So he opted for a tactical retreat. In a closet. Not ideal, a bit ironic, but Bucky had no other choice since this building was as barren as a toxic wasteland, and he didn't think he would fit into the filing cabinet standing on the other side. Into the closet he went, before pressing his ear to the door. Someone was approaching rapidly, then ran by his hiding spot, but stopped and… The door was yanked open and a guy with brilliant green eyes stared at him in shock. Not HYDRA, obviously, but a civvie, possibly a HYDRA prisoner? So Bucky refrained from strangling the interloper, hoping his death glare would be enough to convince him to scram. To Bucky's dismay, the guy glanced back the way he had come, then had the nerve to push him back so he had enough room to climb in and close the door behind him.
"Coloportus," he whispered.
It was a tight fit. Bucky was breathing down the other guy's neck, who in turn was elbowing him in the guts.
"I should throw you the fuck out," Bucky hissed under his breath, weary the HYDRA troop would march pass the closet any second now and hear them.
"You can try, but I guarantee it's your arse that'll end up out there," came the whisper in return, not sounding the least bit threatened.
Bucky would have given him the 'I'm going to kill you slowly' look, but it was pitch black in the damn closet. Instead, Bucky listened, ear back on the door, just in time to hear a couple of people run by, then another, sobbing and limping. One stopped, tried prying their closet open without success, then used the filing cabinet as cover judging by the metallic clang. Several shots were fired down the corridor, followed by Russian cursing and finally, the sound of heavy boots fleeing down the hallway.
Then silence. Bucky made a move to open the door, but the other guy put a hand on his hand to stop him. Bucky was about to shrug him off, and maybe rip his arm off for good measure, when there was a low growl on the other side of the door that made a shiver run down his spine.
Bucky couldn't remember the last time he experienced such a primal fear. The stranger, who might have just saved his life, was as tense as he was. They stayed that way for a while, listening to the chilling sounds of a feral animal tearing the building and its inhabitants to shreds.
"It doesn't sound like it's leaving," Bucky whispered.
"It won't. It's looking for me, or at least, it will be hunting me down again as soon as it stops being distracted by those soldiers."
Given they were in a HYDRA facility which wasn't as deserted as it appeared, Bucky estimated the monster outside would not run out of chew toys for several hours at least.
"It won't be a problem," Bucky said reluctantly.
He did owe this interloper his life, so it was the least he could do. However, after a while, Bucky was aching from staying in this cramped position for so long. So was his closet-mate, judging by his near-constant fidgeting.
"You," Bucky hissed when he got poked in the guts one time too many.
"Harry," the nuisance of a man supplied.
"Whatever," Bucky muttered. "You sit with your back to that side, and I'll do the same on this one. We'll gain some room to stretch our legs in the middle."
And you'll stop stabbing me with your goddamn elbows, Bucky added for good measure in Russian.
"Yeah, good idea," Harry agreed as he began shifting positions by grinding his shoulder in his arm.
The punk was lucky Bucky was trying to be a good guy for Stevie's sake, or he would have chopped him up to feed whatever monster lurked outside. Once they were done however, Bucky could finally breathe a little easier. He could even have taken a little nap if it weren't for the occasional howl and blood curdling scream outside which made his hair stand on end.
Without warning, a light appeared between them. It was beautiful, small and perfectly round, hovering between them like a fairy. Bucky had to fight the urge to poke it with his finger to see if it was solid or if it would burst like a soap bubble. Instead, he looked across at Harry, his green eyes glittering as his fingers played with the ball of light. The other man noticed his interest and nudged the ball in his direction. Bucky caught it reflexively with his metal hand and they were plunged in darkness once more. Slowly, Bucky uncurled his fingers, rays of light piercing through, until the little ball of light floated free once more.
How was this possible? Is this why HYDRA was after this man? And that beast too?
"What are you?" Bucky asked.
" What ? Bit insulting, that. I'm not really supposed to tell you, but since we might be stuck in here forever, I'll tell you if you promise not to tell anyone."
Bucky shrugged. He doubted they would be stuck in the closet forever. All night, maybe, but no more.
"Good enough," Harry continued with a wry smile. "I'm a wizard."
Holding his breath, Harry seemed to be waiting for something to happen.
"Damnit. Why can't I ever get busted when it matters?" Harry was talking to himself, but his focus shifted back to him once more. "What about you? You're not normal either. I've never seen someone react so little to magic."
"I've seen magic before. Not like your little trick of the light there," Bucky needled with a smirk. "It was more… impressive."
"Heh," Harry scoffed. "How about this, then? Expecto patronum! "
A light invaded the closet, swirling so bright and pure that it blinded Bucky.
"Are you trying to give away our location," Bucky hissed, grabbing blindly for the so-called wizard. "Turn it off!"
The light vanished immediately and Bucky had to blink away white spots from his vision, only to be faced by Harry's repentant smile. It was so much like Steve's whenever he did something he knew he shouldn't have, that Bucky tried to blink that vision away too.
"I...erm… didn't account for the space," Harry confessed.
"Uhu, I bet you didn't," Bucky grumbled. "What was it supposed to be anyway? A bigger ball of light?"
"No, it's-"
Bucky might never learn what it was, because huge claws dug through the closet's door, making the whole piece of furniture rock to the side. Bucky tipped and fell against Harry whose breath was knocked out of him with a loud 'oomph". The closet rocked the other way, landing hard on all fours, and this time, Bucky hit his head against the side board while Harry crashed into him.
Then, Harry suddenly pulled Bucky back, and the claws sunk into the wood right where his head had been. That was twice Harry had saved him from that beast.
"Alright," Bucky growled. "That's quite enough of that."
He unstrapped his smaller gun and aimed it at one of the gigantic, furry paws. The shot rang loud in the enclosed space, but that wasn't enough to make Bucky lose his focus. The claws retracted and Bucky looked through the hole to see a furry creature with a long snout standing on its rear legs. It was grotesque, the stuff of nightmares. Bucky aimed and shot again, right between its eyes, nodding grimly to himself when it dropped dead.
"There. Let's get out of here," Bucky said.
"Are you sure?" Harry asked, looking uncertain for the first time since he had barged into his closet.
Bucky did his best to smile reassuringly, like Steve. It must have been passable because Harry nodded and did some magic on the door, which popped open.
"Finally," Bucky groaned, stretching all his limbs. "Never getting stuck in a closet again."
"I dunno," Harry replied. "The company wasn't so bad."
Bucky stared at the other man, but he appeared completely serious.
"Let's go grab a beer," Bucky offered. "You promised me some real magic."