Avengers - Civil War AU - Kintsugi Golden Repair 2.0 - ABANDONED

One. Two. One. Two. Steve was punching the bag as hard as he could breathing hard in and out as he tried to empty his mind to anything but the punches. He couldn't be this useless, he couldn't be this weak. Hydra was so close, he could feel it in his veins and he couldn't do anything about it. Not until more information was given, which of course was a fact, but at the same time fuck it all there was a compound with his name written on the sides for taking.

"Steve?" Hesitant, unsure.

Steve didn't hear. He punched harder. Natasha was so badly hurt, he knew that he should go and see her. He felt guilty that he hadn't besides every once in a while. She probably thought he didn't care. Or she was going to wonder why the hell he was still here instead of over at the base.

"Steve." A bit firmer, though the next line was a bit offhanded, "Your knuckles are bleeding."

Breathe, he reminded himself as he noticed that he was holding his breath. Think. The Jungle was vast and open, and he would need a guide through it. The only person he could think of that would go through this would be Nyah or Draco. Well, technically they were the only people. It was too late to try to sneak a messenger bird to them, they'd only get confused, but he hoped that if they returned a message, T'Challa wouldn't use it right away and he could send off a request for them to sneak him out.

Bucky was going to think he lost his head.

"T'Challa deserves an award for that punching bag..." was a whispered grumble, followed by, "Steve!"

Bucky of course was probably going to follow him. He always followed Steve into the lines of danger, but he also knew how careless that would be. How reckless and stupid and insane Bucky would have to be to even think about coming along. Hydra could take them back. They weren't even sure if the passcodes were finally wearing out yet. It was taking longer to wake up the Solider...and sometimes they'd slip here and there. Bucky going into the Solider for some reason or another or Bucky coming out of it on his own accord. Nyah took it into stride, but it fucking terrified Steve.

"BRAVEHEART!" the snap rang through the gym, bouncing off the walls and coming back to them.

Steve blinked, snapping out of his thoughts quickly and turned towards the sound. He was breathing heavily, knuckles bleeding through the wraps and his body sore and sweaty. He looked at Kerica like he couldn't believe that she was standing there. "Kerica? What did you just call me?"

Kerica's hands were on her hips and she had a hard set to her features, but she softened just a bit as she stared at him squarely for a good minute, making sure his attention was on her, before answering, "I call you braveheart. The name's been playing in my head for a while but I didn't know how dumb it would sound. Your name wasn't working, though, so...I gave it a go."

"Oh." Steve looked towards the punching bag and sighed. "I was busy...lost in thoughts. Sorry."

A deep frown, "That's...why I'm here. Talk to me, braveheart," she sounded a bit shy as she said it in a normal phrase, "I don't want to be on the sidelines all the time when it comes to you and your head. Is it...because you don't think I'll understand? Do you not trust me enough like you do Sam and Bucky? Storms...I can get, the booming sounds like mortars hitting the ground...but...this..." she motion to his hands and the stains on the bag, but she dropped her arm helplessly, "How...do you think seeing you like this makes /me/ feel? I can't help you if you don't let me."

Steve sighed, looking away. He felt guilty. He didn't mean to make her think that he didn't trust her. "I'm sorry." He repeated after a moment. "It's just...not going after Hydra is making me feel...like I can't do anything. They're close by...and all we can do is wait. I can't bring Bucky into this because Hydra wants him back. They'd destroy all that work Nyah did...and I know he'd follow me to the ends of the earth and I'll have to trust that he can care for himself."

Kerica bit her lip and didn't know what to do besides standing there looking like a fool, so she just wrapped her arms around her waist, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have gone off like that. I was upset at seeing you hurting yourself, and you know how my mouth runs..." she wanted to go to him, but would that be okay? "I'm worried about them catching Bucky, too. He didn't look good when he saw the patch but you looked worse. I think he was too concerned for Natasha so he had something to focus on. You...just came in here and started wailing on that punching bag, and what did it ever do to deserve that, huh?" she fell back on humor, wanting to break this tension, "I know you'd rather be bashing Hydra faces instead, but you don't know where you're going and you'd be like an elephant plowing through the jungle giving away Draco's and /Nyah's/ position and you'd feel /worse/ if you got /Nyah/ hurt because you couldn't /wait/."

"That's true." Steve had to chuckle at the thought of being an elephant, but took another breath in and out. "No, it's fine. I get caught up in my head sometimes I don't focus on how it's affecting other people." He began unwrapping his hands to check the bleeding, it was probably already healing by now. "The punching bag is a good place to take out aggression. Considering I can't take them out on the people that really deserve it. Speaking of Nat, have you seen her?"

"No...I should, but hopefully she understands I was worried about my boyfriend. If I'd been with her, I feel like if she was awake she'd tell me she'd come knock some sense into you herself," she smiled, imagining the line in Nat's voice, and slowly reached a hand towards him, offering it palm-up, "Probably have a better way of doing it then shouting a silly pet name, anyway."

Steve laughed softly before taking her palm and gently pulled her into a hug. "Sorry." He muttered. "I didn't think this through I probably should've showered before I hugged you."

Touch was okay. That was all that passed through her head and she felt her whole body relax against him, hugging him back tightly, "No, It's fine, I'm okay with it, braveheart," she assured, hoping calling him that wouldn't feel so weird later, "Would you prefer I call you 'babe' or something?" she had to ask, though.

"Braveheart sounds fine." Steve shook his head from side to side. "Babe is a bit weird, but we can try different endearments see what works."

"I feel like we should leave them to their sappy moment, Wanda."

"I think so too." Wanda smiled softly. "It can wait for a little bit longer. Just a little."

Kerica pulled away, a goofy grin and a hot blush on her face, "You guys! Geez...how long were you there?"

"Since he hugged you. I should tell Bucky that you liking sweaty Steve is confirmed. Or should I tell him 'sweaty braveheart' is confirmed?" Clint grinned.

Kerica stuffed her face back into Steve's chest, her face going from pink to red, "Ugh!"

"I am sorry for disturbing....but...." Wanda took a breath. "Natasha is awake...and my brother." She clutched the note. "He was with her. But they split apart. They were with Gunslinger too...and a girl named Jayden. Hydra has those two for certain, at least to Natasha."

"Who's Gunslinger? Wait, didn't he proceed me? One of the youngest Agents before I came along?" Kerica looked up at Steve in confusion.

"Yeah." Steve looked at Kerica. "One of the few I was going to have on the Avengers. He's mad with a gun. Crazier than anything in the world. He used to be military but dropped because he couldn't take orders very well. Not when it meant destroying people." He smiled thinly. "It's a running joke that if we put him against Hawkeye, he'd win. There's a reason why he's called Gunslinger. He dropped off. After S.H.I.E.L.D fell apart, he disappeared. No one knows where he went. Just...vanished."

"A sniper and whips around pistols like a true Texan," Clint smirked, "We'd fight over targets in the range but never had a competition."

"He's a Hydra hostage now, too...fuck," Kerica ran her hand over her mouth, "What about Jayden?"

"I can only surmise that's his long-lost sister, I was able to sneak a peek at some files back in the day alone with Natasha. I don't know the full story, just that's another reason besides not being able to follow orders that he dropped out," Clint explained, "My guess he found her, was gunna bring her back, and then everything fell apart at the seams and he didn't bother trying to contact us again."

"Wanda...what about Pietro? You mentioned he split up from Natasha? There's no way they caught him, but why isn't he knocking on our door?" she gripped Steve's shirt, "Think he got lost? Nyah and Draco might find him out there."

"I don't know. I don't think that Hydra caught him either." Wanda shook her head from side to side. "I can only hope that they will find him. And that Pietro will accept their help."

()

He couldn't believe it. Trudging through the forest for a goddamn /week/ because he got a bullet through his calf.

/Again/.

It was a /miracle/ he didn't have an /infection/. The medical supplies in his own backpack made sure of that. It hadn't been like Jayden's or Slates or even Natasha's but it was basic and it was enough so he wouldn't need an amputation or something drastic, just antibiotics and painkillers. The jungle was full of unimaginable diseases and he didn't want any of them. It was bad enough he had felt like he had a fever the last two days. He traveled both day and night, barely resting, not wanting to give anyone that tailed him the benefit of the doubt. An enemy sniper had spotted him when he'd made the mistake of stopping as soon as he heard gunshots, and taken him down. He'd tumbled into a ravine, and managed to turn that into an advantage instead of a downside, wrapping his injury in a piece of his shirt and made his way through it until he could climb up.

He was honestly scared. Scared for his friends, scared for Jayden, scared for himself...he just wanted to find his sister and Clint and break down and just be /pathetic/ for /one day/ before he went back to being the chipper little shit everyone knew him as and helped locate the forsaken Hydra base.

Ugh, he definitely had a fever if he was feeling this way, and he looked up into a tree with a whimper before he jumped up, caught a branch, and swung himself up, effectively getting settled so he could lean against the tree trunk. He needed to rest. He didn't know how long he could keep doing this, and after that incident didn't trust a river for longer than two minutes to fill his canteen, so he couldn't follow one to civilization.

"You know. It's awfully weird you chose the same tree I'm in to hide out." Nyah carefully peered down from her perch, which happened to be above Pietro's. "You have the same soul as her. So I'm guessing you must be Pietro Maximoff." She casually swung herself upside down. "I'm sorry not to greet you in a formal manner. My name is Nyah." She placed her hands at her forehead in prayer before sending it off. "I'm Captain America's friend as well as King T'Challa's loyal subject."
Pietro stared at the woman with a dumbstruck expression, face blank for a long moment, face flushed from excursion and his fever, "Um...hi..." he slurred a bit. He hadn't spoken in a while, not even to himself, "Nyah..." he furrowed his brows in deep concentration, more than was necessary, before he copied her hand motion, "I'm Pietro..." A pause, "T'Challa? Steve? They're friends?" he knew he was speaking so /slow/ but he just was so /tired/ and she looked more perky in her brown eyes than she should, and he finally made the connection her whole face was covered in a blue mask, "Assassin?"

"Very good." Nyah smiled though it was sympathetic. "I wish I was a healer in the physical arts. Well...I suppose I'll have to ask this. Do you trust me enough to get you to the Palace?"
"'m heavy...can't move 'n' yer tiny like Keri..." Pietro mumbled, eyes drooping but he fought to keep them open.

"<This must be the jungle of the injured, this is the second one.>" Draco called from down below, also wearing his blues. He clicked his tongue as he grabbed the branch and swung himself upward. "<No good having two of us leave. You should stay behind.>" He looked at Pietro. "Your sister is waiting for you." He carefully started moving Pietro on him and jumped down from the tree. "We're going to do the fast way. Because I don't trust your fever." He walked over towards where the tree's shadow was long and powerful and stood in the middle of it before sinking into the ground and disappearing all together.

Nyah could only sigh as she watched them disappear. "I just hope you remember where you parked your bike after this."

~*~

"Fluids, rest, and medicine are the only things that he needs. I want to keep an eye on his leg so that we know for a fact that it's healing correctly, but other than that I'd say he's going to be okay." Teresa said as she watched Wanda hold her brother's hand in the hospital bed. Everyone was practically crowded around. "We found two out of four and Draco's still here. So he's probably going to tell you guys about the compound." Teresa frowned. "And if my tact wasn't enough I was going to say you all are crowding my patients room. I'm about to kick you all out besides Wanda."

"Let me stay, I don't care about Hydra, just my kids," Clint's hands were tight on Wanda's shoulders without hurting her, staring at Teresa firmly, "I can see Nat later, too. She's a tough lady."

Teresa rolled her eyes but smiled fondly. "Just you and Wanda. The rest of you," She pointed at the door and with murmured good lucks and well-wishes they all marched out of the hospital room.

"He's here, sweetheart, I told you he'd come home..." Clint whispered in Wanda's ear, sitting on the bed and he put his hand over her's that held Pietro's hand, "Hey...guess what...I didn't see this coming," he winked at her, wishing her to crack a smile.

Wanda smiled, and she brushed her brother's hair out of his face. "Always the unexpected one, troublemaker." She squeezed her brother's hand tightly.

~*~

"Those are faces that can curdle milk." Draco winced as he looked at everyone who came into the room. It was revenge, it was anger, and it was creepy seeing it so etched at home on their faces. Maybe that's why the name "Avenger" suited them so well way back when. "Nyah is still looking around, but we did find the compound. It's not a pretty sight. It's out of Wakanda's range, just a tad. They knew what they were doing when they built it, but since they keep coming over and trying to kill our people, well..." He shrugged. "Laws can't stop us."

"It's secluded? No one will be able to come down on us if we go in and take care of it?" Bucky asked, "T'Challa can't protect us outside of Wakanda."

"If it's not, we'll have to take the risk." Steve watched Draco for the longest moment. "What were you able to see when you were there?"

"It's small, indeed secluded, but heavily guarded. The shifts are too tight. One of us could do a distraction, while the other slips in, but it was too dangerous." Draco looked at Steve. "You will find this hard to believe, but there were times where Nyah and I could swear that instead of screams, we heard laughter."

"Jeez." Scott shivered. "I didn't have to deal with insane people before."

"I am not sure if it was Hydra or someone else." Draco pursed his lips together. "Nyah longs to go inside, as much as I do, but we have a bad feeling that if we do...we will be caught up in a bloodbath."

"A bloodbath?" Steve asked sharply

"I am not certain why they have the hostages." Draco looked sick. "But I know one thing for certain, Hydra's not going to just let them have the vacation of their lives. I'm worried about their minds, their souls. Torture, no matter how long someone is in it, can break someone in the most horrid of ways. The first day could be the last day, and it would be no one's fault. Nyah is worried about the same thing."

Steve practically growled. "Then bring us in."

"/Captain/," Buck turned to Steve, going completely and utterly serious, "We need to prepare and plan."

"As I created a new arm for Buck, I also created a new shield for you," T'Challa nodded to Steve firmly.

Steve shot T'Challa a grateful look. He hadn't had his shield in for so long. It made him happy that he was finally going to have his weapon back, and it made his shoulders straighten. A shield, no matter the symbol, was his silent promise of protection. He had felt empty without it. "Thank you." He said sincerely.

"Uniforms were repaired with a few touch-ups, and you have your wings, Sam," he looked at the man who was Falcon.

Sam's breath hitched, "Thank you, your highness," he bowed his head respectively.

"I won't allow you to go out to the compound without doing something, first...Buck, Kerica, come with me. The rest of you may follow if you wish," he said and without further ado, headed for the exit.

Kerica was /so/ confused, and looked at Bucky who did not look pleased, but it was the King, so she hesitantly followed. T'Challa led them right to the training room, and she became even more unsure, "What is going on, sir?" she asked carefully. Steve had followed of course, because 'what the fuck' as well as Sam and Draco both due to curiosity. Scott followed because 'he /had/ to see this'. It was more or less a full house, only missing those who were injured or otherwise preoccupied.

"Over the course of time since you started training with everyone, I enjoy watching the matches between you and Buck," T'Challa explained, "I need to test just one thing before I give you a gift I've been preparing. This test will determine whether or not you go with them."

"I.../what/? You won't /let/ me go without this test?" Kerica frowned deeply, slightly scowling.

"No, because with how either of them have been acting, your safety is second and if you were to get injured in any way, they would be inconsolable with guilt," T'Challa motioned to Steve and Buck, "Just fight. Fight well and hard, forget about what I am doing or why you two are doing this. Then I will put my test into motion." He said no more and walked away, leaving the room entirely.

Steve looked a little confused, but had to put in trust. He looked over at Bucky who was looking less than happy about this idea, whatever this idea was and he shrugged before giving him a supportive nod. Just fight, fight as well as they could. Whatever T'Challa was going to do, Steve had faith it meant Kerica was going to come with. He just wondered what the test was going to be.

He just scowled, ignoring the nod but registered that he wasn't going to protest, "This is just great. This is /not/ what I want to do! I want to get geared up and plan tactics with Steve, God damn it!" Bucky jumped onto the mat, his shoes flying towards the wall and hitting it with hard thumps, tumbling and rolling on the ground.

"Like hell if I want to fight before a fight, either!" Kerica snapped, doing the same and threw off her sweater as well, "King's orders and all, though, he'll be angry if we don't do this, and I /will be going/."

They got to the middle of the mat and Kerica didn't even waist time, swinging her arm but it was a feigning punch to get him to lean back, she swiped once more, causing him to step back and then she did a spin-kick. When he ducked down she brought both hands together to jab down, only for him to strike up, catching her arms and shoving them back only for her reflexes to strike his cheek with a quick punch and she watched his eyes flash. They were both angry, at Hydra for coming in and crashing their party, for hurting Natasha and Pietro, taking hostages Natasha seemed to care about, causing Steve to lose his shit on a punching bag because he felt helpless and T'Challa for dragging them here when they didn't want to be.

She threw her other arm out with a yell, he deflected it with a growl to match and she yelped, stumbling back when he did a quick jab at her side with his metal fist, barely keeping his strength in check, and then in her daze he back-handed her with his flesh hand. When she stumbled back he came at her, when she tried to punch he avoided it completely and tackled her to the ground. She easily slipped from his hold and rolled on her back onto her feet ending in a crouch and her hair framed her face wildly, her green eyes sharp and her teeth gritted, "Nice try!" she snapped and as he was also crouched, she flowed her body and connected the ball of her foot to his cheek, knocking him off balance and that allowed her to re-position and hop onto her feet.

Kerica punched his way with her right, he blocked, grabbing her arm, kicked up but she deflected, her eyes narrowing as it connected with the seam of her scar, but she spun, jerking his arm that held onto her and she elbowed him right in the chest, her hair flying around her, and she wished she's put it into a ponytail first. He jerked down and let her go and she brought her other elbow up and smacked him in the forehead, spun again and did a side-kick smack into his abdomen, using her heel and he grunted hard at that before he barely had time to bring his hands up to deflect another spinning kick.

She was relentless, not giving him an edge, and she wished T'Challa was here to see her prove she deserved to go, angry he thought she couldn't protect herself without whatever gift he had in store for her. He trained with Nat before, and fought with Clint, Wanda, and the slippery shithead Scott on a regular basis, just as often as Bucky, but she supposed Bucky was the truest, bringing out her real potential because they could be lying in a heap full of cuts, scrapes, and bruises galore but /laughing/ with the adrenaline.

If there was laughing after this on-slot, she would b surprised. He threw a few punches and she threw each arm up to push them to the side, but somehow in their flight of fists he managed to squeeze closer and grab her shoulders, pulling her in so he could bring his knee up into her gut, to which she barely managed to stop the first and second as he did it with both knees. Throwing her hands between his he spread them out and off of her, and quickly grabbed his neck, bringing him to meet his nose to her elbow, and shoved him back. He used his stumbling to his advantage as he spun to round-house kick her and she ducked down.

A very /angry/ and /feline/ roar met her ears and they both froze as their limbs were entangled and both of their heads snapped towards the sound as a huge black beast of a panther lept towards them, claws out, jaw unhinged and teeth menacing.

"Fuck!" Buck cursed and turned his previous actions into grabbing Kerica and bringing her down flat onto the mat as the jungle cat flew over them, bouncing and whirling on them, "Kerica, get-"

"NO!" Kerica elbowed Bucky in the face with as much force as her previous attacks just as the panther jumped at them again, and she was barely able to crawl from Bucky and hold her hand up, "STOP!"

Bucky half expected her hand to be eaten, only for the panther to drop onto it's stomach in a huff and it's long tail flicked around in the air.

"Shuri, good girl," T'Challa cooed as he stepped onto the mat and walked towards them, "And so it is decided," he reached down and took the hand Kerica had out to the panther and hauled her to her feet in a fluid motion, pressing what looked like a smaller of his own suit into her chest. Turning to Shuri, he knelt and petted her head, smiling as she started to purr.

"What...the actual fuck just happened?" Sam managed to say after opening and closing his mouth like a fish.

"That was the test? To see if she could stop a panther with the sound of her voice?" Scott wasn't sure if Kerica looked like she was about to throw a gasket or if she was just as surprised as the rest of them. "I guess she's on the team."

"No fear and commanding was the test. After hearing about what happened on her run with Sam and Steve a while back, I had this idea in mind," T'Challa looked up at Scott, "Buck was just about to fight her to save Kerica, to which he no doubt would've ended up with multiple injuries. Kerica had no intention to fight. Steve, it may have been in jest, but you also called her a Cat Whisperer, yes?" he smirked a bit, "I feel as though if she crossed that jaguar again she would be able to command it as she did Shuri just now."

Steve could only smirk back and shook his head. "While I'm glad she passed your test, we need to start planning." He was in serious mode, and already his mind was filled with dozens. "So, let's go somewhere so we can plan and start getting people out of there."

"This is really mine?" Kerica murmured to T'Challa as he and Buck both got to their feet.

"The shoes, gloves, and helmet are by the door. Go, change and hear what he has in mind. Draco, be ready to lead Steve and his group when he is ready," T'Challa called to the assassin who had been standing in the corner, unperturbed.

"Yes my leige." Draco nodded, pushing himself off of the wall and bowing in the traditional manner.

~*~

The plan was simple. Antman went in first, see if he could locate where the hostages were and how far they were inside the compound. Sam was using Redwing’s infra-scanner to see how many people were indoors and what the best course of action was to be or to go. Once they figured that out, Draco would be able to get them through the shadows and inside or at least to the guards.

There were two options so far that were on the table about what to do with them. The first idea was Draco’s and that was just to slaughter them. Quietly, quickly and efficiently and if people tried to call in on their radios, Nyah who had some practice with the bow and Nat, who managed to get out of the hospital for this mission both had long range weapons. They would take down anyone who attempted. Nyah might not be Hawkeye, but she was the closest thing that they had unfortunately. Clint was sticking with Wanda and Pietro.

Option two was to go up, knock them out, and head in.

Steve took a breath in and let it out slowly. The guard shifts were indeed tight. Too tight. It was a little impractical. But at the same time, he didn’t know what was going on. Why would Hydra come here? What were they looking for? He supposed it wouldn’t be too far-fetched that someone in Hydra made the connection of Wakanda to the Winter Solider. The guards being heavy would explain a lot.

“You sure you want to come inside, Buck?” Steve asked after a moment. “No one’s going to blame you if you take Nat’s gun and hide up in the trees.”

“My gun. I’d blame him.” Nat replied.

"I like Draco's plan. If we're non-lethal they'll just come back to bite us in the ass, and like fucking hell if I'm going to hide away just because they /might/ get into my head," Bucky grumbled, "I'm going in with you, and that's-" he stopped abruptly as there was a peeling /howl/ that tore out of the compound walls and echoed through the valley, reaching them as it petered off into a /cackle/ like a hyena that chilled Bucky's bones and made his stomach twist.

"Fucking hell," Sam cursed, looking at Steve and how a black man could look pale was beyond Buck.

"That's the laughter we've been hearing." Draco shivered as he stood close, waiting. "Sometimes it sounds like that. Sometimes it's...higher...or deeper."

"And...they've been going through this for a week..." Kerica's voice was quiet, horrified.

"I found hostage number one." Scott's voice suddenly buzzed in their ear. "She's not even perturbed. No...I'm wrong. She's scared, she's just good at hiding it." There was a breath. "She's chained....they have heavy cuffs on her...it's bruising her skin and she has a collar...it's practically choking her or at least it looks like it. Oh hold on." Scott quickly cut himself off and hid. "Hydra just came in. They're telling her that...that they want her to....holy fuck. They're asking her to bring the Winter Solider home. She's /fifteen/! Oh...she just spat on the guy and said something in French. I don't know what it was...but...the guy looks angry...I'm getting out of here before I blow this whole undercover thing. I'm seriously about to hit the guy..."

Buck looked at Steve, his eyes the only sign he was fearful, his face stone, "I'm still going. Just stay by me, call me before anyone else does if something happens. I'm trusting you severely here to be faster."

Steve clapped a hand on Bucky's shoulder. "Faster." He said softly. "And if we have to...we'll knock her out before she can say anything. Sam...we found one hostage already. We might have to go in early. Can you determine where we need to go? We might just have to wing it a bit."

"Your plans are are always wing it." Natasha laughed a little.

"Trust our Cap'n to be reckless," Kerica had a smile in her voice as her face was covered by her helmet.

"South side, they're right in the middle of a shift change so if we take out both at once we'd be able to slip right in, that's my two cents," Sam said after focusing through his goggles on Redwing's position.

"I'll go." Draco said quickly and immediately disappeared from their side.

"Once he kills, we get in fast." Steve said. "Nyah. Nat. You know to cover us. Everyone ready?"

"Let's go," Kerica purred and slipped down the dirt towards the compound first, blending with the shadows in a way that would make Nyah and Draco proud, her body sleek and every movement fluid in the skin-tight suit.

"Seriousness aside for a /split/ second," Buck smirked at Steve as he cocked his gun, posing to slide down next, "You're girlfriend is /sexy/."

"Hands off." Steve playfully shoved Bucky down to slide and also went down behind them.

Draco lifted his swords and stuck them both in the neck and once the bodies were on the ground, everyone practically hit the ground running and into the compound.

~*~

It was like being in an abandoned prison. The walls were dripping with condensation, the air even /more/ humid on the inside than outside due to the coming rains. The paint was peeling, stone stained like rust. Plenty of rust were on the railings and rafters as well. It wasn't a very taken care of place, probably re-commissioned after the whole incident with the Accords and the breakout. Hydra knew Buck was with the Captain and draw one out you draw out the other.

Kerica didn't like it. She crept silently, each corridor long and wide open, the guards on the outside betraying what was actually faced them...which wasn't much. Unless they all were concentrated further in? They split up, covering more ground and also positioning in case someone caught trouble, the rest of them could come from different sides and take them off-guard.

Sam was grumbling over the com because he couldn't spread his wings out here unless he was gliding down the many rows of cells and rooms to the ground floor. They hadn't realized it was actually quite high up where they'd entered. The fortress borrowed more downwards than it did up.

Their location was the basement. That was where Jayden and Slate were being held, and Kerica wondered just how Natasha and Nyah were going to cover them, "Anyone got anything?" she whispered low as she opened a door and peered inside, discovering the piping system and slipped further in. She followed the grate-style stairs down, down...As long as it led downwards, she was going the right way. This would also keep her out of sight.

"So far negative." Steve murmured into his comm. The silent plinks of water dripping into the puddles echoed around the room that they were in. It was a little bit like a maze. His shield was firm on his arm and he looked around the area. He stayed near the walls, listening for any sign of action. Bucky's rifle was also up and ready in case he needed to take a shot. "They picked their base well for once."

Bucky absently thought about how strange Steve looked dressed in all black instead of the flag colors, the only thing that stayed the red stripes on the lower torso of his uniform. His shield was all silver, too, except for the picture of a roaring panther head on the center where the star should be. It was T'Challa's gift, but he still felt horrible for causing Steve to drop his previous shield...dropping it for /him/. He snapped back to the present with a prolonged blink, his eyes returning to peering over the railing to check for guards, his rifle ready to fire at the pop of the trigger. "I vaguely wonder if this place is more terrifying now compared to what it must've looked like in it's prime when it was made," he hummed, "I can only imagine how many people they had to warrant so many rooms and cells."

Before Steve could say anything, there was a shriek of laughter that went through the fortress, sending the hair on Steve's arm and neck on end. It sounded like the Wicked Witch of the West, or even something from a horror movie from the classics. She screamed and laughed again before it died off. "Creepier." Steve said after a moment, the echo fading. "Especially with that."

"Especially with that..." Bucky agreed, voice barely above a whisper. They continued to push through to the basement, knowing they were closer by how /loud/ that had been compared to Slate's scream before when they were far away.

"We should be close by..." Steve took a breath in and out. "Probably around that corner." There was just one way they could go and he hoped it was an exit. He wanted out of here, and he was hoping to see someone dressed as Hydra. He really wanted to bash his shield in their face.

Slowly, cautiously getting closer so to have the upper hand, they jumped into the next hallway, prepared for a fight, only to be met with more emptiness. There were voices this time now, however. Soldiers, but they were speaking in English, and they were talking about Slate and the laughing that just happened. Edging closer to a door in the middle of the hall where it was coming from, he and Steve got on either side and listened to their conversation, hoping to get information.

"The brother is just as insane as his sister. I had wondered at first how he managed to steal her from us, but after experiencing him first hand I don't wonder anymore," the one grumbled, "Restrained to the point where he's immobile...he knows how to use any part of his body as a weapon. They have to /drug/ him into a stupor so he can't fight when they take him to piss, and even then he swings wildly and tries to bite on the way back to be strapped in. Shocked the only thing he does willingly is eat. I guess he knows we don't have a point in poisoning him."

"Only way she does anything anymore." The other solider responded, spitting on the ground as he adjusted his weapon. "She wouldn't kill those prisoners we took unless we threatened her. She's gone way too soft." He suddenly laughed. "Do you remember when the higher ups were really considering what would happen if they bred her with the Winter Soldier's genes? Sure we had /five/ of them, but I think they wanted a biological copy for some reason. Something about wanting to see if the copy could work as well as the original or something like that. Can't remember for the life of me why we wanted to chose her though. She's not exactly anything to look at unless she's wearing a skirt. Even then."

Buck paled, looking like a ghost, the contrast stark with his eye cameo, and he gripped his gun, but they were still talking. This explained so much, why he recognized the name Natasha had told him.

"The contrast between her green eyes and white hair is a bit fascinating, but yeah, besides that she's pretty terrible," the one agreed, "They wanted her for her powers, idiot. She can read minds, which is why only certain people go into her cell. Didn't you hear about how she /wrecked/ two of the soldiers that went after them a week ago? It was like they'd been lobotomized or something worse, they were so broken. Boss put a bullet in their head out of sheer pity."

That's why they wanted her to bring him home. Steve wanted to be sick, but he swallowed it down. It would be a deadly combination. Steve held his shield and decided that they heard enough. They knew enough. The girl, her powers, and why she was in Hydra's grip. They already knew the location. He looked at Bucky again and this time gestured with his head towards the guards. Let them live and sneak by? Knock them out? Or...kill them both?

"That's mind control. Damn those injections do something well." The Hydra guard snorted. "I forgot about that power. She'll figure it out. They always do in the end to start listening to us. She'll bring the Solider home and we can get out of this dirty jungle."

Buck knocked the door open, his kick sending the metal flying and the sound reverberated around him, but he pointed his gun at them, "I'm already home, and you're not taking me anywhere." He snarled and shot one clean in the head while Steve barreled passed him and took down the other on. Steve didn't like killing, but he watched in satisfaction as he cracked his skull with his shield, the crunch not even phasing Buck but he was sure it coiled Steve's gut, "They know we're here by now. Let's hurry."

"On it." Steve pressed the coms. "Guys. You might want to get the basement as /fast/ as you can. We ran into company."

"Why is it you two first? Why is it /always/ you two first?" Sam replied, "At least now I can pop my wings to get down there."

"Because we just can't seem to figure out the stealth thing." Steve retorted.

At the same Scott answered back, "They're huge what else are they going to shoot at?"

Buck rolled his eyes but he didn't reply, darting around the corner with Steve hot on his tail and they bounded down the stairs one leap at a time, running through corridors and sure enough, not two minutes later, the alarms started blaring, "All hands on deck," he drawled, "About time the fight started."

~*~

"On your left!" Sam shouted, Steve immediately knowing that was directed at him and he whipped around, shield at the ready in time to block a barrage of bullets, "Everybody get down!" and when they all ducked, he fired a rocket down a hallway, blasting back at least five soldiers into each other.

"Are we close to their cells at /all/?!" Bucky called.

"It's on the next floor down, the last one! They didn't want anybody having them!" Sam shouted back, redwing flitting around and firing disabling shots every which way.

"Geezus and then it's going to be a pain in the ass coming back /up/!" Buck groaned.

"I'm sure you'd rather Cap'n be the one being the pain in your ass instead of these guys," Kerica drawled on the com, causing a few chokes in surprise.

"You know, Cap, with that new suit of hers, you do realize we have nothing to call your lady?" Sam piped up as the chokes turned into snickering, and he was smirking at Steve's face flushed under his helmet.

"Shadow works." Steve replied as he swung his shield hard and fast at one of the soldiers and when it came back to him, he kicked it to send it flying at two others, one of which was trying to shoot at Bucky.

"I dunno if that's unique enough for your girl," Buck hummed as he fired off at a guy behind Steve. They'd reduced the level they were on to rubble by now with the rockets Sam fired and Steve and him sending soldiers through walls with their kicks and punches. It was a wonder the building didn't topple on them but he supposed it was sturdier than that.

"Tony had this whole 'Pixie' thing lined up before shit got real," Sam agreed, "Anything flashier and fancier, Scott? Give us somethin' to make Mr. Stark real jealous."

"I'm okay with Shadow, guys," Kerica giggled a bit followed by a grunt and a guy from somewhere came falling down the empty space, landing on the railing, and if he wasn't dead when she ripped him open with her shiny new claws, he was definitely dead from a broken back.

"Aw but we want your name to be special like you," Bucky cooed, looking up at her on the previous level just before she jumped down with ease and grace.

"It /is/ special, the Cap'n said it," Kerica responded sweetly.

"I'll figure something flashier later. I'll conspire with America." Scott replied through the comms. "Don't fret, sweetheart, it'll still be special when we're done."

Steve watched two men get knocked out by an unseen force and had to smirk. Sometimes Scott's powers really did come in handy.

"Uh, guys, redwing's got somethin'," Sam caught their attention after doing a whirling kick to send another guy flying on the opposite side of the opposing balcony's.

"What do you have?" Steve asked swiftly as he got his shield back, but the answer to his question came when the shooting just...stopped. The soldiers that were still alive were looking towards the doors and Steve felt his heart leap into his throat. The doors opened and....just like Scott said, a young girl walked out. Her hands and ankles were cuffed tight with metal and she wore a black, leather collar that was tight against her neck. What was horrifying to Steve was that there was a leash at the end of it, chain and metal. Her hair was short, to her shoulders and her eyes...a vibrant green. She had scars...bruises and newly made wounds. Burns and blisters. This was who the guards previously spoke of.

She didn't look to perturbed at the scene before her. She looked around, clearly taking in the environment around her. When her eyes went to the people before her. She blinked a few times when she noticed who it was that was standing before her. Captain America, Winter Solider, some girl in a cat suit, and some man with wings. /Go home/ She hoped someone, any one of them would get the message quick and clear. /You don't want to be here./

The words echoed in Kerica's head and she narrowed her eyes behind her mask, "Falcon...Antman...guys, we need to push back against the soldiers. We need to get away from her," Kerica's head snapped towards Sam who was floating above the rubble of the destroyed walls around them, and she wished they could see the worry her eyes held, but the helmet wouldn't allow it.

Buck waved his arm, not sure why Kerica suddenly said that, but he looked at Sam, "Go! Do as Shadow said! Cap and I got this."

Jayden looked at Bucky as she approached him, anyone who didn't matter running away. "<Longing.>" The Russian felt wrong on her tongue and wrong on her skin. She hated this language with a burning passion. But they were words that were the easiest to get, she didn't have to go far at all. It was all there on the surface. "<Rusted. Seventeen.>" She paused, the words dying on her lips.

"What are you doing?!" The Boss shouted at her. "Continue damn it!"

Bucky was breathing heavily, shoulders up, head tilted down, eyes dark and trained on her, body stiff, "Don't. Do it." He warned, voice low.

Jayden watched him and she took another step towards him, going in deeper into his mind. He was doing his very best to push her out, but he didn't know how. His mind was...peaceful. She was in a city. On the apartment balcony. The traffic going by was old as time itself. She could hear the music of jazz and swing. She smiled to herself. This was his sanctuary so she left it untouched and went to another part. A darker, colder part. "<Daybreak>." There was frost on her breath and skin. She could feel the mind crack like ice. "<Furnace. Nine. Benign.>"

"STOP!" Bucky screamed at her, falling to his knees, dropping his rifle and his hands flew to his head, Steve lunging forward in his defense out of the corner of his eye. It was different when he was safe at the castle with Nyah and Steve, but no...no...no...he had to trust Steve! He felt the glass forming in front of him and he pounded against it, blood turning to ice, "NO!"

Then suddenly before Jayden could continue, she was sucked into Buck's mind and blackness surrounded them, a sniper gun like the one he had been carrying pointed at her head, "Don't say the last words, golubka." Little dove.

Steve slammed his shield hard against the Boss forcing them to fight. He used his gun as his own way of blocking Steve, but Steve was faster and a lot more brutal. He kicked the man hard against the stomach, sending him flying across the room.

Jayden turned around slowly. The man who stood before her, she recognized instantly. His eyes had a little more life to them, but he was hardened. His mind was different as well. No...not different. It was the same. He was just pushing through. Not a personality. "Amazing..."

"What's amazing, hmm? That you're here with me?" He tilted his head as he heard the continued sounds of fighting outside of the blackness, and he glanced behind him, "The bright light I was beginning to see has dimmed. You terrified Bucky. It's going to take some time to get the brightness back. Nyah will be unhappy."

Jayden bowed her head. "I know." She said softly. "You got out. We got out. You before me." She smiled a little. "You found him and the voice stopped talking. You can't hear each other anymore. Line in the dirt. A wall. He told me not to. You tell me the same thing."

"You stupid girl finish the words!" The boss tried to take a shot over at the two who were standing completely like statues, but Steve blocked him with the shield and flung it. The Boss quickly ducked low and Steve called his shield back. The boss wasn't fooled in the slightest and had ducked again.

"I won't pull the trigger if you continue, I'm just warning you. I trust him to call for me before you can. Trust is strange that way...it makes you do stupid things," he pulled back and planted his rifle firmly in front of him, "Even if Hydra got me back, I'm not the same. I am no longer the Winter Soldier. I am James."

"I don't want you to go back." Jayden looked at him for a moment. "I want you to save my brother."

"Save your brother I shall. Natalia asked the same. I will save you as well, golubka," James promised, "We will all go home, but home is not with Hydra."

Jayden nodded and took a step back, and another. "<Homecoming. One. Freight Car.>"

From up above like she'd done before, Kerica dropped down as Jayden's mouth opened. Kerica called his name, "Soldat!" When Jay turned to faced her, the Boss of this fortress focused on her as well, turning his gun from Steve to her, and fired, Steve screaming as he heard the trigger pull. The bullet hit her stomach, but didn't damage the suit and she looked back up at Steve who looked shocked and relieved all at once. Jayden started to say "It's time-", but she knew it wouldn't work. They'd tried that before, saying each other's code phrases. Jayden stopped mid-sentence as that thought crossed her mind, reading it, and JJ turned back to Steve.

"I'm with you!" Steve called form where he was. He slammed his shield down hard against the man and turned quickly to dodge fire. "It's okay, James, but we can use a little fire power if you're able."

"Til the end of the line, Captain!" Jame's voice was giddy, "A good fight I see! Was starting to miss fighting, this is a nice change of pace!" he picked his rifle up with a swipe of his hand and his grin was feral, "Handle them yourself for a moment, Captain! I have a different mission from a certain golubka!" he cheered and headed for the cell doors instead of towards the gunfire, kicking open one of the doors, "Where's Draco, anyway? He needs to his shadow thing," he grumbled briefly as he watched Kerica go off to slice and dice some soldiers trying to overwhelm Steve.

"We switched places." Nyah answered for him, appearing from the cell that James had broken. Nat let her go and both women were frowning at James' appearance. "Hello, Aratoamin. You need my shadow abilities?"

"Gunslinger," James nodded to the man strapped to an X shaped torture stand, his shirt gone by now, his pants in tatters. His head was strapped to the back of the X by his forehead, his wrists dark red with dried blood from the straps on them. His ankles were also bound but his boots helped keep them from wear and tear. He had large gashes all over his body, both old and new, some infected. Several crisscrossed his torso, a few were dangerously close to his arteries on both arms, a few on his thighs and calves, and his bottom and top lips were split in multiple places, both eyes black but one more faded than the other.

He was staring at them, completely awake, but his dark grey-blue eyes were just starting to gain a little life, and he croaked, "Darlin'..."

"You...always you..." Slate whispered to Natasha, his limp body being caught by James, "You got hurt?" he frowned at her, noticing her movements were jerky.*

"Not as bad you." Natasha promised as both Nyah and herself took Slate away from James. "We're going to go and hide. Draco will probably join the fray sooner or later once he figures out how the compound works."

Slate clung to her, though tried to support his own weight in vain, "S'long as...m'with you...everythin' will be okay," he told her, fresh tears streaming from the corners of his eyes, streaking his already stained dirt and blood covered cheeks, but he was beaming at her.

"Aratoamin," Nyah looked at James as she shifted Slate's weight. "Come back home to me." Her eyes held a softness, adoration and love that was gentle. "We'll be waiting for a success."

"Bucky's hurt, his light dimmed. I'm sorry," James frowned at her, "I will come back, always."

"It's only dimmed not gone." Nyah assured. "I can bring it back. Go now. Amin mela lle." I love you. With that, she and Natasha went back to where the cell was and sunk into the shadows.

~

Back out of the cell, Kerica was slicing away the leather choker leash on Jayden's neck, "The Boss won't mess with you anymore after what Cap'n did to him, so you're okay, and your brother's okay, too. Soldier took care of that."

"I need a knife." Jayden looked at the woman who heard her before. "I want the packs."

"Packs? Backpacks?" Kerica asked curiously, and she pulled a hunting knife from her belt where her pistols also sat and handed it to Jayden, "Just give it back to me," she told her, "Any idea which direction the packs are?"

"Yes. I will. Thanks. That way." Jayden took the knife and twirled it before eyeing her victims pointing in the general direction before going off and getting herself in the middle of the fight.

Sam gave them cover fire from his back as he carried the bound bossman that had caused them so much trouble. Scott interjected where he could in the fight, and slowly but surely the whole group moved up and out of the base. Kerica found them, one backpack on her back, the other she had hooked on her arm until she gave it to Jayden. Steve was throwing and kicking and bashing his shield, and Buck was behind them, firing off his rifle to keep them safe.

Along with them they took the Boss who had planned the entire thing, or well, Draco had. Natasha and Slate were back at the palace, and it was Nyah who found the rest of them in the jungles, made them come close to the shadows, and sucked them in to also return to the palace.

()

"Nyah," James was the one who was still in control as he found the woman in her room, "I need you," he called softly, closing the door behind him. She'd only just removed her mask, and turned towards him in confusion. T'Challa and some of his men were interrogating their hostage, and everyone had split off to clean up and get comfortable. No dinner tonight. The morning would be left for any meetings. They were tired and wound up.

Nyah looked at him as she placed the mask on her bed. Worry etched on her face as she approached him. The atmosphere was...different. From all the other times he came into her room, this was different. It was charged, pent up tension and she could feel it vibrating within him. "Aratoamin...." She reached out and gently touched his cheek. "Whatever you need."

"We're so close...Nyah..." James whispered, "Let's finish it. I know what to do. I can't have this happen again. I don't want his light to fade anymore. /That/ scared me." He bent his head and kissed her firmly, fiercely, his hands on her hips with an intense grip.

Nyah gasped when he grabbed her, and how fast he kissed her. She kissed him back, pressing her body against his and wrapping her arms around his neck. She could feel his tongue slide against her mouth, her own tongue and she melted, giving off a soft mewl. She could feel him react to her, holding her closer, tighter nails practically bruising skin. She pulled her arms away, slipping down his body, feeling the hard lines and muscles before she gripped at his shirt. He started kissing down her neck as she started pulling it up and off. "James..." She whimpered as he bit down on a particularly sensitive area of her neck.

His hands undid the binds of her blue outfit and he stripped it off of her as well, both of their torso's bare except for the bindings around her bust in an old-school form of a bra. Finding the seam, he tugged it loose and it fell apart, pooling on the floor. A step back, he admired her form in the dim light of her room, the flash or lightning from the storm forming outside making her brown eyes glow like bronze metal. Picking her up with ease he tossed her onto the bed, removing his shoes and following after her, claiming her mouth with his eagerly, coaxing her legs around his waist.

She wrapped her legs firmly and close to him as he climbed up top. Her head going dizzy and muted with the passionate kisses. She shivered, not from the cold but where his hands would touch her skin, bringing goosebumps and eagerness. She ran her hands down his chest, his sides and back up his back trying to bring him a little closer to her. She pressed her hips up, trying to roll into his body. It was futile to try to tease him, considering his pants were so freaking thick and hers a bit on the thin side. She shifted, breaking the kiss to suck small love bites into his neck as her hands went down his back, gently scratching at the skin before going down his sides, to his navel and undoing the belt. "Off." She muttered.

He didn't waste words where they weren't needed, shifting back on his haunches and working his uniform pants off, shucking them and his underwear to join his shirt and boots, is socks coming off in the process, no doubt stuck somewhere between the folds. Completely naked now, he grabbed the hems of her own pants and unceremoniously yanked them down and off, tossing them in the void that was outside her bed. His eyes narrowed when he saw his fingers had failed to catch her underwear, which were a lovely green color and the practical sort, not some stupid pair of string called thongs.

Leaning his head down, he rectified this by scraping his teeth down her abdomen, feeling her shudder, and he caught them as he continued downwards, effectively dragging them to about halfway down her thighs before he got bored and finished with his hands, caressing her thighs as he finally got her completely naked.

"Now, prekrasnyy, for the real foreplay now that there are no clothes," he rumbled, towering over her and went back to kissing her fervently, his hands trailing hot fire on her latte colored skin. Tangling his hand in her hair, his tongue with her tongue, he hummed and felt his body start to lose some of it's tension, but it would take quite a lot for him to relax. The fight upwards had been intense, bullets grazing his suit and ripping skin, but nothing actually hitting him. He had felt more concerned for Steve, as he was the one who called him. It was funny how his mission had become his duty to protect.

He was going to be her undoing. His soul was not singing this time. Nor was it drumming. No. It was warm, attempting to connect to her. Connect /with/ her. He wasn’t going to leave her behind while he had his fun. She knew that. She knew that he knew that too. “Show me what you got then.” She whispered hotly.  Nyah could feel the desperation in his kiss. He held on to her with a grip so fierce, it was like being held on during a severe storm or a hurricane. He was, technically a hurricane of emotions. Her knees bracketed his waist and hips as she let him go from the kiss. She bit his earlobe, her nails digging into his skin. The contrast of the temperature in his hands teased her body in ways she didn’t imagine. His lips and teeth marked her neck while his hands wandered, one warm and leaving behind a unforgettable trace. The other cold, making her shiver, leaving behind a trail that promised sinister things. It made her wetter to imagine all of the things he could do now that he had her on display.

"If you don't like something, just tell me," he whispered hotly as trailed his tongue along the rim of her ear and then traveled back down her pulse, loving how it thrummed against his tongue, her sweat making his taste buds burst with the flavor, and he /bit/ her left collarbone just shy of breaking skin, then soothed it with tender licks, "Don't think about pleasuring me, either, just dissolve. Feel...think nothing but me and what I am doing to you," he found a perky nipple and swallowed it with his mouth, his metal hand palming the flesh of the other breast, taking care when he pinched and rolled the bud into a pebble.

Nyah let out  a soft moan and whine when he teased her breasts, sending small shockwaves down to pool in her abdomen. She closed her eyes and whimpered as she relaxed her body just slightly. The sensation of him teasing her only heightened without being able to see him. The small shocks and she felt her hips rock a little to get some movement going. She whimpered when cold air hit, and she could feel his lips pepper kisses across her chest to the other. She moaned when his lips wrapped around her nipple, and he teased her once more with the pinching, creating equal treatment. "I don't mind biting." She said after a particularly loud moan.

That was a good go-ahead, and he let his teeth play and nibble, only biting on her breast, knowing her areolas and nipples were tender flesh and didn't want to bite too hard. He left bites deep enough they were going to bruise later, marking her as his on both breasts before sliding down her body, his hands trailing above his head, ghosting where his lips touched. Where his teeth sank he would suck and lick to sooth, creating harsh red spots. The way she moaned and wiggled her body let him know she enjoyed every torturous second. Nosing her pubic hair, he gripped her hips and his tongue sought her clit, pressing firmly against it to tease and he enjoyed how he incited a heavy gasp from her.

“James….” Nyah muttered hotly as she opened her legs a little wider for him. The feeling of being licked brought a jolt down her spine and when he did it again, this time with a particularly hard suck she moaned. She wound her fingers in his hair, but took care not to pull to hard to cause pain. Her eyes opened just enough to see him through her lashes. “<You’re beautiful.>”

"Pull, tug...I like it," James growled against her core, sending sweet, sweet vibrations through her, followed but a deep approving groan when she tightened her grip. She spoke in her own tongue, so he didn't understand her, but he enjoyed it all the same. Her voice was adoring, so he hummed again and swirled is tongue in a circle on her clit and then up and down solidly. Diving deep into her juices he teased as far as the wet muscle could reach. The taste was exotic, like her. Not sweet, but he wasn't sure what to call it. He enjoyed how it flowed over his tongue, so he didn't care, and her scent was driving him up the wall. To keep up the onslaught, his flesh thumb massaged her, his metal one holding her down.

Nyah’s mind was going blissfully blank, but her body was going completely haywire. She could feel herself get riled up. She tried to move her hips without thinking, but James held her down, knowing that she was going to do that. She moaned as he continued to torture her. It felt weird to have something so soft inside of her, but it turned her on to a degree that she didn’t realize. His finger pressing against her clit might as well be a second thought. “James.” She begged, her voice hoarse and wrecked.

"I want you ready...before you're mine..." James' felt his voice vibrate in his chest more than he realized he even spoke. He switched his hand with his mouth, diving two inside her without hardly any resistance, delving deep and he curled them, feeling for the the pleasurable bulb. A shift of his wrist and another come-hither motion he felt it, and his eyes opened to watch her arch her back and choke out a cry. Perfect. Assulting her clitoris with his sucks, hums, scrapes of his teeth, and flicks of his tongue, he started pumping and scissoring and curving his digits, finding just the /right/ tempo that had her writhing beneath his ministrations. She was just so /tight/ and he moaned deeply at the very thought of the very squeezing she was currently doing around his pulsing cock, hot and heavy between his own thighs.

“You’re driving me insane.” Nyah’s voice was rough against her throat, she was pretty sure that she was gripping harder as her knees trembled with the effort to keep her legs upright and open. She felt her toes curl into the sheets, as well as her fingers gripping them. “I’m ready for you. Please. James. Get inside of me.” The coil threatened to break as James continued to torture her sweet spot inside of her. She was so, so close to the edge she could feel her body tensing with the effort of keeping her together, rather than falling apart.

He wanted one thing, she wanted another, and he fought with himself which to comply with. After about thirty seconds of debating, he chose her. He'd always choose her, he decided as he wiped his mouth to be rid of most of her juices before he kissed her deeply, guiding himself with his metal hand, rubbing the head of his cock up and down her slit, coating it, and when her legs found their home on his waist he moaned into her mouth, slipping inside her smoothly, pulling out when his skin stuck and edging inside little by little. When there was just a fraction left, he slipped his strong arm under her back and pulled her up and into his lap, allowing gravity to take hold and they both lolled their heads back, their moans filling the room as he became fully seated within her, "Prekrasnyy... he murmured hoarsely, deep and rough and full of satisfaction.

She moaned, gripping around his neck as he entered the rest of the way inside of her. It took a moment to control her head so that she could at least look at him. Her mouth wet with kisses and red and bruised from the force of them. Her body looked like a canvas filled with bites and she felt full, sated. Her eyes were half-closed, fingers gripped tightly around his shoulders, again her nails biting into his skin while her toes curled. Their bodies slick with sweat, and she never felt closer to him than in that moment. She could feel his heart beating hard against her, almost in time with her own.  His hands were rough, gripping down on her hips to keep her flushed to him. When he looked at her, her breath was quickly taken away. He looked at her…and for just a brief moment in time, Nyah could have sworn he was reading her. Seeing her. She was bare, vulnerable before him, and he looked not like he was relishing in it, but cherishing it.

She knew right then and there what her choice was. What her choice would always be. She cupped his cheek before tracing her finger on the swell of his bottom lip. Her heart swelled and she smiled. “Aratoamin.” She murmured to him. “Mela en' coiamin.”

"Mela en' coiamin," James husked, his ocean eyes bright even in the dark lighting of the room, and he put his flesh hand through her hair, feeling it's softness curl around his fingers and he put his forehead to hers, just...savoring everything. His body gave a deep shudder, and he felt how close he was, just by pleasing her and bringing her near her own release. They were more connected than he ever realized, and he felt...he gasped and his head snapped up, seeing nothing in the room, but seeing the glass. It glittered in the light, as if he'd been zoomed up close to it, the snow falling around them but it wasn't cold. It was calming, lazy instead of a flurry. "I see him." He explained, knowing she was wondering why he suddenly /stopped/.

He was still lost in his own mind, his mental vision, and he put his metal hand to the glass as Bucky put his flesh up. Two sides of the same coin. Bucky was saying something, his lips moving, but he couldn't hear him. This was why. They stared at each other, and on the same wavelength, they took a step back from the glass, raised their fists, reeled back, and he heard.../felt/ the roar they released as they took a swing at it.

It shattered at the duel point of impact, flying around them, and it was like it was slow-motion. The glass refracted the light even brighter...and suddenly...

"/Fuck!/" Bucky's eyes were huge and he was suddenly gripping her tightly. He was sure he was crushing her, but with one...two rocks of his hips in her vice-tight velvet heat he was screaming into her shoulder, "NYAH!" with that he was filling her to the brim as he shot his seed into her.

Nyah let out a cry that bordered on a scream as she grabbed James no…Bucky close to her. Her entire body was shivering and her fingers twitched. Her nails had /raked/ against his shoulders, bringing them up to his clavicle. They were deep and red, but his healing was already making them disappear. She could feel him pulse inside of her, and she felt warm and full from his release. She knew that if she got off of him, some of it would spill from between her legs. She breathed hard, sweat dripping from her forehead as she felt her thighs shake from the force of the orgasm. She smiled happily at her lover as she ran her fingers through his hair, pushing it out of his eyes as they stayed connected. “You feel wonderful inside of me, A'maelamin.” She kissed his mouth, slowly, sensually. “James was right, it worked.”

Dazed, even a bit dizzy, his return kiss was a lazy one, before he melted into it and his whole body relaxed as a huge wave of relief hit him, "I saw you though the glass...you're so beautiful," he murmured, his gaze full of adoration as he stared into her brown depths. The storm outside made her windows shake with a rumble, but he wasn't bothered. "I feel more complete now than I ever remember feeling. All of his memories...even the ones that were fuzzy from before, are all clear." He caressed both sides of her face, "/You/ make me feel so whole...I'm so sorry, for denying you this before. I had a block, and he pushed through it." An amused snort left him, "And just this morning you gave me my bracelet."

“Don’t feel sorry for not being ready,” Nyah murmured, stroking his brow and kissing his forehead, the tip of his nose, and back down his mouth. It was a little heated this time, a little more passion, but it was still lazy, still recovering from the beginning. “I came on too strongly, you needed time.  I’m proud of you, A'maelamin. Look how far you’ve come.” She smiled brightly as she kissed him again.“You make me feel brave and loved. You always been gorgeous to me.”

Buck lowered her back onto her back, nestling her head into the pillows, and he kissed her with a bit more fervor this time, his shaft pulsing with renewed interest, the serum bringing his recovery up faster than any normal man. He really /could/ go all night long, if he wanted to, but this...he would be content with just one more time, with more buildup than the fast, heady and hard way that other side of him had started it. His touch was gentle, coaxing, encouraging, and he started with a grind of hips instead of thrusting.

She whimpered as she wrapped her legs around him to bring him closer to her. He stayed close to her, his body covering her practically in a protective manner. She hummed softly in pleasure as he rotated his hips, not thrusting madly into her, but giving her a nudge in the right direction. Her eyes were already glazing over, but she kept more awareness here. She let her hands go down his back, fingers lightly tracing patterns on his skin as she went to his side and back up again. She licked her lips as she stared at him, “Am I not allowed to touch you still?”

"Touch me all you want, love," Bucky purred, kissing her neck and nuzzling her, the storm getting louder, but he focused on how the lightning flashes made her body glow, "You look...ethereal..." he murmured, "...in the storm's light.../fuck/ what did I do to deserve you?" he felt the tears prick his eyes and he butterfly-kissed her face, her forehead and nose, cheeks and back to her swollen cherry-red lips. He was rock-solid now, and he started a slow pull and push, groaning deeply at the way she clamped down around him, as if her body didn't want her to leave him, and the way she swallowed him back up when he returned.

Nyah’s heart swelled with love and adoration for this man. This beautiful, gorgeous man. She pressed her lips against his cheek down his neck and nipped at the skin. Not hard enough to leave a mark, but enough to bring sensation. “I wonder the same thing myself.” She admitted through a soft whine when he slid in at a particular angle. Not hard, but slow, and gentle.

"Right there, hon? You like it when I stroke there?" Buck's smirk grew on his face where it pressed into her skin, and he repeated the action with a bit more of a tilt to his hips, bracing his knees on the bed now, but was still slow and steady, feeling her G-spot this time when he thrust inside, and her mewl answered his question, "Cum as many times as you want, love...I'm going to enjoy my buildup," he rumbled deeply, finding a nipple to toy with, adding more swirls and flicks with his tongue and deeper suction.

"If you're going to build yourself up, doesn't that mean I'm supposed to seduce you? Not the other way around?" She teased as she hummed at a particular pinch and moaned when he slid at the angle that she found pleasure in.

"I don't think a blowjob, if that was what you're thinkin', is a good idea," Bucky chuckled, letting go of her nipple with a pop, "You can always give me one later, maybe in the morning?" he nuzzled her neck again, "Though, I can flip us over so you're on top, if you want to play a different game."

"That's more of my style." Nyah laughed. "I'm not exactly certain on my "blow job" abilities to even suggest it as a good idea to begin with." She let out a surprised squeak when he really did flip them over, and /fuck/ he slide in so deep, she whimpered as she held on his shoulders for support, her nails giving little scratches as she tried to breathe normally. "<Fuck>, warn me next time." She huffed a small laugh.

"Aw, why would I do that when your reactions are so cute, prekrasnyy?" Bucky teased, his grin wide like the Cheshire Cat. He lightly skimmed her thighs with his fingertips, enjoying the smoothness of her skin and how hot she was, both figuratively and literally. He rocked his hips, but gave her an expectant tilt of his brow, waiting for her to show him what she had to offer.

Nyah felt her cheeks heat up, she was certain that they were red. She took a breath, let it out and once she finally adjusted to the depth. She carefully climbed so that she was now over him and nosed against his neck, peppering soft kisses before biting his earlobe and giving it a gentle tug, going to his neck with the same intention, biting at the jugular and sucking against his skin. She might not be able to leave any marks, but she hoped that it would arouse him anyway, especially as she went down lower, "Steve should tell me some tricks to use against you." She murmured. "What words would sear your blood, what moves would make you see white." She ran her hands down his chest, teasing only a little at the nipples to see what worked. "Maybe I should watch, or have him help me perform. Kerica might enjoy that too."

"Kerica actually...hasn't joined us for anything. We've shared kisses, but the threesome thing didn't really happen...I've just been Steve's," Bucky's breathing was ragged, "Steve...likes to nibble on me, similar to what you're doing..." he told her, helping her along, "My...nipples are pretty sensitive, too. You'll have to find the sweet spots on your own, though," he rocked his hips again and his chest vibrated with a hum as she tested the information he gave her, "Steve does things half the time that I couldn't explain to you anyway."

"More reason to ask him to be my teacher." Nyah teased. It would be fun, to see what would make him snap. She had to think, what would make him hard. She recalled her sessions with herself and what she liked. She skimmed her fingers down his stomach. She couldn't exactly bend herself in half, but...she had a spark of an idea. She reached behind her, down, teased his balls with a slight squeeze before pressing a tiny spot that was behind them. If she remembered correctly there was a spot there that was supposed to drive men crazy. If she couldn't, well, there was /another/ spot she could try as well. She was thankful she could get away with just rocking for right now. She was trying to arouse him, not fuck him.

Bucky hissed hard through his teeth and his hips pistoned upwards when she managed to press against his prenium from behind his sacks, the pressure causing him to tighten his grip on her thighs just a bit, his brain short-circuiting before he managed to speak, "/Ah/, you little tease...you seem to know more than what you let on," he shuddered and gulped his air.

Nyah laughed a little as she let him go. She ground her hips against his pelvis before she slowly rolled her hips up and down. He was /much/ harder now. "No. I just like to explore."

"Well, good for you," he closed his eyes just briefly before looking back at her with adoration, "What else are you going to do to me, love? Gunna ride me good and long? Make me see the stars?" he stroked his hands up her sides, brushing the underside of her breasts before trailing back down.

"How /do/ you want me to ride you?" Nyah purred back as she rolled her hips again. "Do you want me to ride you slow? Do you want me fast?" She circled her hips when they met pelvis to pelvis again. "Do you want to grab my waist, hold me tight while you travel deep and leave me no option but to feel you and take the abuse? Do you want me to climb over you? Breasts in your face while I hold your wrists up, force you to prop your knees up so you can get me at a deep angle? It's up to you. How far do you want your seed to travel up in me?" She cooed. "I don't have to be on top. Hands and knees too, is an option if you think that gravity won't make you stick inside."

The deepest groan yet reverberated through is body and he gripped her tight, his body slightly arching as the different imagery played in his mind, "Nyah..." he breathed and he reached for her, tucking his fingers behind her neck and tugged her to him, but didn't connect their lips, just ghosted and teased as he /growled/ at her, "Right here, against me, sliding your body with mine...letting me feel all of you, outside and inside..." he propped his legs up anyway, her ass against his own rippling thighs, and he settled his heels into the mattress, "We'll start slow at first, grinding, and then I'll go faster until all you can do is hold onto me for dear life, head buried in my neck as you /scream/ for me when you cum...and I want you to bite my neck as hard as you can."

If it was possible, Nyah's eyes darkened as he told her what to do. She kept herself up with her hands, and she groaned as the angle changed as well as the depth. "How many times are you planning on making me cum? Or even filling me up?" She asked into his ear, lowering her voice as she felt his fingers grip into her hips. "Until I'm sore and begging?" Now that she knew that words played a powerful part, she decided to milk it for all it was worth. "Until I'm too fucked out to care where I am? Until I can't tell whose orgasm I'm feeling my own or yours? Where would you come? Inside me again and again until I'm leaking? On me, marked completely and filthy?" She let out a sharp cry when he slammed her hips /hard/ against her.

"If you can /handle/ it," Buck bit her bottom lip harshly, his ocean eyes swirling as he stared into her deep brown ones, "I'll do /both/...fuck you every position I can think of, only switching if you don't like it. You'll only remember your own name because I'll be chanting it over and over as I release into you /and/ on you. You'll have to beg me to stop, unable to take anymore." He ground his hips in a harsh circle, stirring her insides, hearing it's lewdness from her juices and his first load mixing together, "I don't do anything halfassed and I'm going to prove that to you," a hard thrust,"You want me to love you?" a slow drag as he pulled out until just his head was inside her, "All of you?" in as deep as he could go, jostling her above him, "Then you get me, raw, unadulterated, whole, dark and rough, light and gentle...because you saved me an you deserve nothing less."

Nyah had to admit, she didn't know /when/ dirty talk was able to become romantic, but that was romantic. She laughed, gently but it ended quick since he was fast to slam her hips down against him. She groaned, feeling her body tremble. "Amin mela lle. You amaze me." She murmured, feeling her heart pump and swell in more than just adoration and admiration. She loved him, she saw...so much in his soul right now it practically overwhelmed her. His song was strong, thrumming and vibrating. It made her soul /sing/. "To have you, to say I get to have all of you, is a gift. You, the cynic, the hopeful, as well as the solider of perseverance. I love you."

"As...I love you," Buck was seamless as his punishing thrusts became soft twists of his hips and he finally brought their lips together, "You're in for a very long night," he warned, "Are you ready for me?"

Nyah watched him for a moment, taking it in before she murmured softly. "For you? Always." She raked her fingers through his hair and pulled so that she could kiss him with a little more heat.

Just as he promised, his arms wrapped around her back to hold her secure as he started rocking their bodies together, humming as his cock was gripped tight with her vagina walls, but she was too slick to get him to stay and he felt the brush and pressure of her G-spot on his head, to which he started to go a little faster, a little harder, making sure to hit it each time, driving her wild. Their lips wandered anywhere and everywhere on their necks and faces, but he didn't allow her to move much farther away than his collarbone. The slow buildup he'd been seeking was taunting him, pooling in his abdomen but it was a slow sear, fueled only by her reactions to his movements.

She whimpered, cried out, and moaned. Sometimes he'd hit in a particular way that would make her hum in pleasure and sometimes a near scream. She could feel herself at the brink, so close to the edge it was painful. She tried to hold herself back, even if he did say she could cum as many times as she wanted. But she wanted to see how long she could keep herself at bay. The answer was it wasn't long enough. He hit her in a particular way, in a particular angle at a fast speed that she did exactly what he told her to do. She bit his neck, hard enough that it nearly drew blood, and screamed as he fucked her through her orgasm, not giving her time to recover.

When she bit him it threw him into the frenzy he had been prepared for, the pressure in his gut becoming hot an unbearable. He thrust into her as fast as he was able, almost hollowing her out, and he gripped her tighter, moaning when she wrapped her arms under his shoulders and clinging. "Nyah...'m close...love..." he panted, his heels digging into her sheets, "Love...N-Nyah.../fuck/!" he gasped and she bit him again in a different spot, driving him over and he saw white...and whether that was a flash of lightning or the force of his orgasm, he didn't know, nor did he care, because this was bliss. This was heaven, and he could die now and be happy.

~*~

When they had gotten home around two in the morning, it was still pitch-black outside, but the smell of rain had been a lot stronger, and Kerica had retreated to her room as soon as possible. She knew Buck and Steve wouldn't be able to console her, but it still hurt a bit even if she understood their reasons. PTSD wasn't a ballpark. Unfortunately, when she got changed the storm began to rumble and rattle her windows. Trying desperately to find the book she wanted to read, she realized albeit belatedly that she'd forgotten it out in one of the more secluded lounging corners scattered around.

Wincing as a tame crack and flash lit up her room and filled her ears, she steeled herself and left her room to go find it, turning off the light just in case it took her longer than expected. Wrapping her red silk robe around her royal blue silk gown tighter like one might do with a security blanket, she hurried through the compound to find her book before the storm got too bad. If she could play her music and read, she would be fine. That was how she always got through, even if she really wanted her boyfriend instead.

Sighing in relief when she got there and no one had taken it, Kerica bent down and scooped it up, turning around to go back the way she came, holding it close only to 'eep' and jump lightly as the wall of glass behind her rattled with an angrier rumble, but it was nothing too serious yet. Her eyes were closed and she took a deep breath. 'Just get to your room...it'll be okay...' she coached herself.

Steve wasn't in a good place either. Sometimes he was able to sleep after a hard battle and a good fight, but this time he just felt so...tight. His mind replayed the soldier's conversation as he walked along the hallways, having no destination in mind. To breed a young girl, who was frightened, who saw how hurt her brother was and broke down /crying/. The girl everyone deemed insane from laughter, cried at her brother's broken, beaten up form and the poor kid couldn't even get up a few words to comfort his sister. /No/ one could. Steve's anger only refueled itself. He knew that Bucky was just as disturbed by it, that if James was around and he heard it, might've been a little stricken too. Maybe would've said that it was the will of the master's, but his eyes would tell a different story. He should have done so much...and the girl certainly seemed to think the same thing. Her mutterings in French told Steve all of the ways they should have met their end, and even though a lot of them were a little /out/ there, he couldn't help it. He agreed. Not just for her, but for what they did to Bucky...did to James. Did to him.

He should have done it in 1945. That plane? He should have known that Hydra was going to do more. He should have trusted Peggy to find him a landing site. Trusted that Howard might have known a way to take it off of autopilot. He should have burned them to the ground, destroyed all the heads all at once before they could wiggle their way to destroy Peggy's legacy.

Just thinking this made him think of the war, of the smell of fire and earth and grime. It made him remember of what it was like to /fear/ every day and every night. Where everyone was forced never to regret the moves that they made. Never to think back on what they could or couldn't have done. There was no /time/ for that kind of shit and...he heard the loud KABOOM of dynamite. It rang in his ears and he froze. He waited, listening to see if he could catch the whistle of a bomb coming their way. He thought of ways he could get out of it, where were his men? Somewhere safe...somewhere....

He caught sight of a civilian. Young. A girl probably. Instinct propelled him to move and he did. He grabbed her, tight around the shoulders and pulled him close. Where was his shield?! Where he did throw it at? He didn't bring it? No...Bucky might've taken it...or he might've left it with Bucky. Why would he do that? Another loud KABOOM and he brought her tight against his body. He couldn't afford to give her a comforting message. He could feel her tremble underneath his finger tips. Was he going to die the same way his father did back in the Great War?

Kerica'd been shocked when Steve strode around the corner only to freeze and grab her suddenly when there was a huge boom. Her scream had died in favor of her shock, and at the second bang she pressed herself closer as he squeezed her. Looking up at him she was about to tell him about the wall when she saw his eyes. Clouded, unfocused. He didn't see her. Shit...racking her brain she blurted the most logical thing instead, "Cap'n...the tree..." she nodded to what to her was a wall, hoping he'd understand in his daze. He'd feel safer there than just standing in the open.

He didn't hear her, but his eyes started focusing on safe points. Trees could be good, but...the issue with them is that it was painful if they managed get blown up. Underneath a tree...he started to drag her carefully and hit the tree hard. He pulled her down low and placed a finger to his lips. No, quiet. Don't speak. Don't let them hear. He knew that she was scared, terrified. "It's going to be okay." He promised, hoping his voice didn't shake.

She got his message loud and clear, jumping and muffled her cry into his chest instead at another shockwave that made the glass of the windows sound like they were going to break, but they'd no doubt been through much worse. The rain was coming down in sheets now, hard against the panes, and she was blinded by a flash, curling her body into a ball, gripping his shirt until her knuckles were white, her eyes becoming hot as she felt the tears prickle them. Sure she'd wanted this, but the fights today and seeing Slate and Jayden made it so much worse than it normally was. Pietro still hadn't come too, either. They were together and yet they were a mangled mess of emotions, and feeling and seeing it was hard on anybody.

To think about how it affected Steve...it was no wonder he was lost in time, lost in memories of a much darker place. The carpet was dirt, the walls were trees...she could imagine, but she would never understand the /gravity/ of how it set his mind into a whirlwind. All she could do was hold on for the ride, trying to focus on anything but the storm outside.

However long it was…neither of them knew. They could have been in the hallway for hours, for minutes even. The rain finally died down into something more tolerable and the thunder and the lightning were becoming farther and farther away. Steve’s mind finally caught up that he was no longer in danger, that he wasn’t in the war anymore and he was holding on to Kerica who was breathing heavily against him. “Kerica?” He muttered as he pulled away to look at her. She was so pale and her cheeks were tear-stained, “Did I hurt you?”

"Opposite..." her breath hitched, raspy and tight from emotion, "You...protected me." She reached up and her fingers trailed on his cheek, "Are you back with me now, braveheart? Are the walls no longer trees?" his eyes were clearer, but still dark. It made her chest tight and she swallowed thickly.

"Yeah I'm here." Steve sighed as he gently let her go. "I wasn't expecting-I'm glad that I was able to protect you rather than hurt you." He looked at her worriedly. "Sometimes, it's the opposite."

"Sam told me when I asked him how to handle your PTSD, that staying away from you would be best..." Kerica nodded and wiped her eyes and face, sniffling, "My irrationality and recklessness make me think 'I'm not Sam' and that it could be different, but of course, I listened to logic and reason, doing a bit of research and asking more advice for this and that. I didn't want to make you uncomfortable or force anything on you. So...that's why I was out here. I forgot my book I was going to escape into on the table." She glanced for it, finding it in the same spot where he'd grabbed her, and shakily got to her feet so she could retrieve it yet again.

"Will you stay with me at least for tonight?" Steve knew that it was irrational. She just /told/ him that she thought staying away was best. But she was scared, and he was scared...and honestly he didn't want to be alone. "Just tonight." He got to his feet and watched her carefully.

Kerica whipped back around to face him, eyes wide, shock written all over her face. She obviously never thought that would be an option, but she bit her lip and smiled shyly, nodding, "Yeah...I'd like that." This was a big step, and she gripped her book to her chest again, joining his side and wrapped an arm around his waist, wanting.../needing/ to be near him, "Your room we go."

Through the halls they weaved and wound, silent but content to be together. It didn't take very long to reach his room, and while he turned on the light and bustled around doing whatever Steve does to get ready for bed, she walked over to his desk. She'd been /in/ his room before, their old-school music bonding moment a great example of that since she'd walked by hearing him play 'jingle-jangle' and freaked out. Also to draw, since they traded supplies. She would get tangled and way too warm if she kept her robe on, and placed it over the back of the chair to his desk. Book in hand, she walked around to the side of Steve's bed he didn't sleep on, and climbed on, crawling towards the pillows, completely oblivious to everything else besides comfortable bed was comfortable. Sometimes, she liked sleeping on a harder bed instead of a cloud, it was a nice change of pace. She'd slept on Bucky's bed a lot since he had late nights with Nyah, anyway, and Bucky was a great cuddler whenever he came back to his own room.

Steve came out of the bathroom from washing his face and teeth and blinked when he saw her sitting on his bed, reading a book. It was a strange sight, a domestic one. It made him wonder, /maybe/...He walked over to his side of the bed. "Can you read?" He asked after a moment. "Aloud? Just where you're at if it's okay."

"Only if you pick a book and do the same, and you're lucky, I just started Chapter 13..." Kerica flashed a cheerful smile at him, and at his nod her eyes scanned the page, processing it before she spoke, "/The rain had ceased by the time Sano arrived at the Black Lotus Temple. Sunlight sparkled in puddles along the central path where Sano walked. Worshipers strolled; children ran and laughed. The colors of their clothing, the dripping foliage, and the patches of blue sky among the fleeting clouds were bright in the clean, fresh air./"

Steve listened to her read the chapter, relaxing as he let the images of the story fill his mind. He might've jumped in the middle of the book, and some things that were going on he didn't understand since he wasn't at the beginning, but it was enough to calm him down. When she was done, he did the same reading the book that he was on as well. He let her snuggle into his chest and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders as he read the book. He didn't know how long he read, but when he finished the chapter, he looked to see her fast asleep, falling into his lap. He smiled as he brushed her hair and carefully moved so he could get down under the covers and turned off the light, bringing her close and letting her scent and breathing lull him to sleep.

()

Beep.

He shifted, the piercing sound of the beep boring into his brain.

Beep...Beep...

Pietro could feel his face contorting into a frown. Would that beeping just go away?

Beep...Beep...Beep...

It was steady...steadily annoying. He rolled onto his side just enough to try and reach for the alarm clock on his nightstand, swiping at air, trying to find it.

Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep...

"Mm...nurg...Wanda..." he groaned into his pillow, "Opriti ceasul cu alarma..." Turn off the alarm clock. He begged.

When her tinkling, wet-sounding giggle reached his ears, he jerked back to his original position and blinked his eyes open...

Only to immediately regret it and yelped, covering his eyes, "Inchideti blind-urile, la fel de bine!" Close the blinds, as well! he whined deeply, pathetically.

This was not a good morning.

"Nu se poate opri alarma este monitoriza inima." I can't turn off the alarm it's your heart monitor. Wanda told him as she wiped her eyes with her hands. "The blinds are already closed too, it's just the lights from the ceiling. You're in the hospital center."

Unclogging his throat with a few coughs Pietro tried to speak English, opening his eyes again, only to realize his sister was right. The ceiling above him was white which reflected the lighting around them easily, "Heart monitor...hospital..." he groaned and tried shifting in order to sit up, only to cry out and his head hit the pillow hard while he cover his mouth, teeth gritting as pain shot through his left leg. It came back to him in a rush, and once his mind clicked everything back to place, all he could really mutter was, "Oh..."

"You scared me." Wanda admitted. "Teresa told us that you were going to be fine. She was surprised that your leg wasn't infected at all." She reached over and hugged him close. "I missed you and I'm glad you managed to get here. I was worried about you." She pulled away. "But...you're sad..." She might not be able to read her brother's mind, but he was always expressive.

"I had to leave zem behind...Nat, Slate, J.J..." Pietro looked at her, silver-blue eyes forlorn, "You're sad, as vell...your teary laugh made me concerned." He reached up and caressed her cheek, wiping away a stray tear that managed to fall in spite of her best efforts, and it was like a piece fell into place. He had felt so /lost/ without his sister, and connecting to her again made him feel so much better.

"We found them." Wanda wasn't surprised that Pietro would be upset about leaving behind his comrades. Even when they were growing up, Pietro didn't leave behind anyone if he could help it. It only grew worse when he was able to run faster than the speed of sound. She wiped her eyes again. "They're here, and home." She took a breath. "I'm happy you're okay. I was scared that I was going to lose you before I got you back. How's Vision?"

Pietro felt like he would crack a tooth by how hard his teeth gritted together when he sat bolt-upright, the pain intense, but he looked around frantically, "My backpack! Vhat happened to it?!"

"Shhh." Wanda gently pushed his shoulders down. "I think Nyah put it underneath the bed." She scooted back to check and sure enough. She reached underneath and picked it up, wincing at how heavy it was before setting it down on the bed. "What in the world did you pack? Your entire closet?"

Pietro flashed her a smile, before unzipping it and she could see for herself. Food, an assortment of first aid, a coat, and other survival gear that took up a bunch of room. It /was/ a dufflebag-like backpack after all. He unzipped a specific zipper and pulled out a white envelope, Iubit written in red ink on the face of it, "Vision made zis for yu. I took good care of it, surata." He watched her take it and processed what she'd said earlier. Checking his forehead, he gathered he still had a fever, but it wasn't nearly as bad as before, "J.J. and the others...zey're really here? Zey're okay?"

"Nat is suffering through an illness as well as a bullet wound but she is fine." Wanda assured. "Slate and Jayden..." She took a breath but before she could say anything, she sensed that Meara and Teresa were heading their direction. "Pretend to be asleep." She muttered. "And listen. They can explain it better than I can."

Blinking at her, Pietro nodded and dropped his pack to the side and settled back down into his bed, closing his eyes but he reached for her hand anyway. Wanda could make it look like she grabbed him, anyway, instead of the other way around.

"Only ten in the morning and Slate's already woken up screaming five times, ripping open his injuries. It's a good thing I'm stronger than I look so I could restrain him. Are you alright from the first time when he threw you off?" Meara asked softly, reaching up to look at the cut Teresa had on her forehead. It really was minor, but by the pain in her eyes it had been a point of impact good enough to give her a headache.

"I wish I could say it was the first time, but I'll be alright." Teresa smiled at Meara's concern. "I'll suffer through a minor headache. If it gets worse, then I'll take the rest of the day off and rest. He's been through a lot, he still thinks he's there. It's going to be better overnight. Steve and Bucky have asked to see him a few times, but I keep denying them...Jayden wouldn't dare let them anywhere near him. It's surprising that she even let's us close, considering that she'll growl and threaten someone with a knife...whose idea was it anyway to let her have one?"

"My daughter's...Jayden needed a weapon to help them fight," Meara sighed, "I would think Buck would be allowed near because he saved Slate, but that's a theory I'm willing to wait and see play out when she's gotten more tired. She's still as awake as ever. I'm surprised she let me drug Slate as heavily as I did so his seizures would ease long enough to get maybe an /hour's/ worth of sleep. I really don't know what's worse, the nightmares or the seizures. I wonder if they injected him with whatever they put in Jayden?"

Pietro squeezed Wanda's hand but didn't stir, even as he felt like rolling over to throw up. That wasn't something he wanted to hear.

"They might've or they might've thought he was better off human as possible. Jayden's already dangerous, and he's proven himself to be a fighter and non-compliant." Teresa sighed. "Only time will tell though...if they did or not. I'm tempted to try to knock her out...but...I have a feeling that I'd only ruin what little trust we have. I'm thinking of having Nyah talk to her. Perhaps it'll ease her somewhat, since she's a Soul-Healer."

"I truly don't know...I haven't slept in nearly twenty-four hours and I know you haven't done much better. We'll get Buck and Nyah in here around noon, at the latest. Let's see how long Slate stays asleep this time first. She might relax if he doesn't move a muscle," Meara rubbed his duel-colored eyes.

Teresa reached and gently rubbed his neck as they continued walking down the corridor. Wanda waited for a breath longer before nodding and looking at her brother. "She's been growling. Every time I try to go in and see her, she would look at me and bare her teeth. She'd raise up, like a wolf, and just growl. She wouldn't do anything else...but the knife in her hand was always warning enough. So, I'd leave and come back to you. I sometimes also left to see Natasha...to tell her of what was going on. She wasn't surprised."

"Could yu help me? I vant to try...I saved her life, and she shared her story vith me," Pietro took deep breaths, willing his stomach to settle, "I like her, and she liked me."

"We can try....but the moment she growls I'm getting you out." Wanda warned and looked over at the heart monitor. She quickly got up and walked over to it to silence it and went over and unhooked it from his finger. She didn't dare unhook him from the I.V, instead she coaxed him to use it for balance as well as herself. It was slow, but soon enough they were standing and she was half-carrying, half-dragging her brother to Slate's room.

The room was...dark. The lights were off and Jayden's head was on the bed, staring at her brother whose eyes were closed. His own heart monitor beeping in a steady rhythm though sometimes it would increase here and there. She heard the wheels of the I.V stand long before she saw him. The moment she saw them approach at the door way, she bared her teeth. Where was Teresa? Didn't she keep them out before? She didn't move from her spot...something was familiar about the one that was injured.

"J.J?" Pietro motioned for his sister to stay back while he peeked his head around the corner, offering her a bright smile even though he could barely see her. Unbeknownst to him, his mind was slow, no longer static. Pain, concern, curiosity and even sickness were easily read in his thoughts. He couldn't see much of Slate, either, but winced as he did see white bandages stand stark against the dark interior of the room, covering most of his face. "It's hummingbird," he added, as the memory of her nickname came to him.

"Why are you out of bed?" Jayden's voice was hoarse, tired but snappish. He was sick, he was scared, he was...she didn't understand a few of his thoughts. They didn't make sense to her and they were slow and gentle and they spoke of things that she didn't...did she know what they meant? She doubted it. "Sleep. Rest. Heal."

"I vill, but yu...may I come in?" he wanted to be near her, that was clear, "If I sit I'll be okay," he promised.

Jayden wasn't certain. Wanda gripped Pietro's arm tightly, was this even a good idea. After a moment, she nodded after a moment and both of them carefully walked in. Wanda had to remind herself to breathe and breathe normally. It was like stepping into a trap...and she knew it. Pietro didn't seem to notice, or care. He sat down heavily and Wanda gripped the back of his chair tightly. Jayden didn't even move, nor flinch. "They hurt him." Jayden said after a moment, resting her head down and looking at her brother sadly. "I was there. Had a knife." She gripped the knife tightly. "Why didn't I kill all of them?"

Pietro didn't think twice about touching her, just reached out and his hand slowly trailed along her am, gripping her wrist but making no move for the knife, just more or less holding her hand, and he leaned down next to her on the bed, nosing her temple and her hair, smelling blood and grime and rust from the place she was kept, where /they/ were kept, "I didn't want to leave yu. Ve could've fought zem off...zey hurt both of yu because I didn't stay...hurt Natasha, too..."

Jayden didn't answer, and the only reaction she had to being touched was a flinch and a shudder. Her eyes flicked up to him, looked over at Wanda, before looking at her brother. In the back of her throat she made a sound that sounded so much like a dog's cry, Wanda's heart broke and she had to look away. Maybe it was good she didn't come along. Because for everything that happened, she was pretty sure she wouldn't have shown mercy.

"Wanda, vait outside?" Pietro asked softly, staring at Jayden, his mind just...blank, "I'm okay. I vant to be alone vith her."

Wanda gently gripped Pietro's shoulder before leaving him to Jayden. Jayden's eyes watched her leave, and only stopped looking when she was out of the room. She went back to looking at her brother, she didn't dare touch him. He was so hurt, so hurt...any touch would hurt him and Jayden couldn't bring him that kind of pain. She already brought him too much. Too much.

Strong arms wrapped around her and he held her tightly, close, "I'm here, J.J...He's safe, you're safe..." he promised, "This is a safe place..." he kissed her temple like he had done back in the jungle, "Yu did good...he protected yu like yu protected him. I remember. He vouldn't leave you behind. He vouldn't run. I'm sorry...for running..."

"Told you to run." Jayden reminded softly. "Can't apologize for it." She whimpered. "I did that." She couldn't stop looking at her brother. "All of it. I should have told him to run too. Told you to take him away. I don't know why I didn't...I don't know why I didn't...."

"Yu knew he would just ignore yu," Pietro answered easily, "He's your brother. I vouldn't leave Wanda...it's how it vorks." He had been barely been apart from Wanda's side before he went into cryo or the stupid wall back in Hydra's base kept them apart. "Yu both fought so well...yu didn't hurt him, J.J.../Hydra/ did. /Hydra/ did zat to him. Yu made zem pay, zough...Cap and ze others made zem pay...got yu out safe and sound..." He was going around in circles and sighed, moving both hands to her face and made her look at him instead. He stopped talking, it wasn't working. So instead he just stared into her eyes, bright green meeting silver-blue, and caressed her cheeks tenderly.

Jayden closed her eyes and leaned against his touch, but she didn't say anything either. They just sat there, in silence, in support and in vigil. Wanda took a breath and let it out as she listened from her position at the door. She really hoped that Nyah would be able to do a miracle on Jayden...like she did a miracle on Bucky.

~*~

Nyah watched as Jayden stared at them with cold, green eyes. She didn't growl or rise up, instead just watched the three of them block the doorway. Pietro had already went to his room, saddened that he couldn't reach her. Nyah could see the damage...and it was awful. It wasn't clear cut like Bucky's, but a mess. A tangle. She sighed softly. "I don't think we're going to get much closer than this."

"I saved Slate, though. /I/ promised I would get them both out, and I did, leaving Steve to his own devices to do so. I should at least get the privilege of seeing how he's doing, and damn if Natalia can't because that /look/ he gave her, face all puffed up and ugly was the most blatant display of adoration I've ever witnessed besides Steve's goo-goo eyes on his own girl," Bucky ranted. He was grumpy because Meara had blatantly dodged the bullet when he asked why he looked like shit and why Teresa had a cut on her head.

"No, James did." Steve looked at Bucky incredulously. "Wait, you mean...you finally aren't the Solider anymore? The pass codes won't work on you?"

Bucky pursed his lips and it hit him. He turned a guilty eye on Steve, "Ah...yeah...um, 'bout that..." he rubbed his neck and looked at Nyah, eyes getting just a little predatory as he eyeballed where her collar came up a bit higher than normal, "I broke the glass. The light was finally bright enough I saw it and after a well-placed duel punch it shattered."

Steve smiled brightly, "Good for you." He beamed before frowning a little. "But what will it mean for Jayden? If Bucky's healed, I'd say it's a cinch, but...I don't know soul-healing all that well so I wouldn't know what level Jayden's at."

Nyah hummed softly before looking at Bucky, "Tell me what you think of her. What do you see? Do you think there's a possibility that she can be saved?"

"I see an animal backed into a corner and no way out. This is unfamiliar territory," Buck answered smoothly, returning his attention to the task at hand. There could always be a proper celebration later, "Everyone but Pietro is a threat, but it's not just the knife that's her fangs. Her teeth would do just as much damage if she was weaponless, as well as her nails. Honestly, the knife is a distraction. She knows what she could do without it."

"Can you see the person behind the animal or is she just that? An animal that has no human qualities or traits?" Nyah questioned, titling her head.

"There was a human there a time and a half ago, but she's buried deep. Like I was...yet there isn't even a glass, just endless darkness and wandering," Bucky tapped his chin, "She can read minds, so she understands to an extent. I don't know enough about her to determine her mental patterns in more depth, but it's possible she'll always have animal-like qualities. There are some things you can't erase, especially if these behaviors were implanted as a child. That doesn't mean she can't be nudged in the right direction. Honestly, there's nothing wrong with her. She's not damaged, just lost. Human emotions are strange, especially the more complex ones."

"So here's the question," Nyah hummed. "Can she be saved?"

"Saved from the loony bin? Yes. The better question is she can be guided? Yes, she can be. She doesn't need doctors, she needs people who've been there. The Maximoff Twins, me...people who understand. I'm sure once he can walk without falling on his face Pietro will be glued to her," Buck rolled his eyes, "Considering he's the one who calmed her down."

"So then you'll be her healer." Nyah grinned while Steve stared at her dumbstruck at the decision. He had /wondered/ what was up with the twenty questions.

"Geez, not even twelve hours into being saved myself and you throw me to the wolf," Buck snorted playfully, leaning in to kiss her cheek.

Nyah smiled gently as she accepted the kiss and looked at him, though her eyes were serious. "You were my last patient. She'll be your first." She gestured to Jayden who was still staring at them, unblinking. "You see her, you know that she can be saved and guided, therefore she's yours. I have faith in your new found abilities of being whole."

"Steve, I know you have a pistol stuffed into the back of your belt under your jacket," Bucky drawled as he stared into Slate's room, "Give it to me."

"What the hell are you planning, Buck?" Steve asked as he carefully took his gun out of his holster. After making sure the safety was on, he handed it to Bucky. Jayden immediately rose up, growling. "Oh....jeez."

Buck just strode right into the room, twirling and flipping the gun, before he crouched and placed it on the ground. Standing back up, he made a wide circle around the room towards her, "I called you /golubka/ before, but I really think /volk shchenku/ fits you better," he said in amusement.

Jayden blinked, he didn't have a gun with him. Her eyes flicked back towards him. She wasn't even certain what he was calling her. She stepped back, eyes going back towards the gun and then to him. "Devil tongue." She said, her voice scratching at her throat as her eyes went to the gun and back to him again, the knife in her hand stayed close, catching on the light just outside the door. "I don't get it."

"Golubka means little dove, obviously picked because of your white hair," Buck shrugged, continuing his slow steps, "Volk Shchenku means wolf pup. I say /that/ because you're this cute ball of fuzz that thinks you're tough shit, gnashing your teeth and arfing so hard your body shakes and all it is, is just adorable instead of frightening."

Jayden knew better than to rise to the bait. He was teasing her and she knew it. Her eyes went to the gun again and she felt /really/ uncomfortable that he didn't have it. In response to his teasing, she ducked under her brother's bed and climbed out on the other side. She grabbed the gun. Steve nearly had a freaking heart attack, but Nyah calmly held him back from trying to jump in. Jayden approached with caution and pressed the gun to Bucky's chest before jumping away when he took it. "Keep it. Don't go without it."

There it was. Trust established and Buck put it in the back of his belt like Steve had had it before, "C'mon, Steve, don't pass out from holding your breath," he called playfully to the man who had his hand over his chest, "I'm hurt you didn't have more faith in me."

"He knows better." Jayden replied in Steve's defense. She watched him for the longest moment before sighing. "I don't get you." She headed back over to her brother's bedside and sat down heavily on the chair.

"You don't understand my jokes?" Buck asked as he came over and sat beside her in the extra chair, "Tell me, what in particular you don't understand?"

"You." Jayden looked at him with curiosity and a smidgen of fear. "Last night you didn't like me. Cold. Didn't know me. You left your gun. Your thoughts are different too. Organized better."

"I was two people in one body, two sides of one coin. I had to find the middle ground and push passed it, and while I can't say I won't have nightmares...hell, I feel like they'll be /worse/ now, I feel...so much better than I have in a long time," Buck explained, "I didn't like you at the time because you were forcing me to be the other coin, and I was scared I would be called by you instead of my comrades. Thankfully, Kerica was there, and got the drop on you," he smirked, since she had /literally/ dropped in, "You would've attacked me with the gun so I put it down, and with you giving it back to me showed me I was safe to you."

"You have weird trust abilities." Jayden looked away from him and toward her brother. "I don't know why you're here. You came out anyway. You saved my brother. What more could I have done with you? A machine needs a master, an animal can't control that. You know that." She frowned. "You used to know that. Doesn't matter now. We're out for now."

"Its not like I forgot about it overnight, J.J," Buck shook his head, "Yes, we are out. For now. They always come back." He frowned as he watched Slate. The bandages made him look so much worse, not that he had looked very good back at the fortress. "We can go back, look for more information and then blow it up. That sounds satisfying to me, anyway."

((Yeah that's cool))

Jayden was just silent and looked back over at her brother. She brought her arms back up onto the bed, knife still in hand. She rested her head down on the edge of the bed, tears pooling in her eyes again. A part of her wanted to do a lot worse than just blow things up. She wanted blood splattered on the walls, she wanted them to hurt like they hurt her brother. But she knew that it wasn't just them. She felt more tears fall down her cheeks and she tried to wipe them away.

Pietro tried to comfort her about her being safe. But this wasn't a /safe/ place. Hospitals, her brother lying on the cot, how was that in any shape or form /safe/? She had a dream that Wakanda was the place to be....had she been mislead? It wouldn't be the first time, queen of bad decisions. But she got her brother hurt, nearly killed. Hydra called her insane, called her dangerous.

"Are any of them here?" Jayden asked quietly.

"Just the Boss guy that had you on a leash. We were going to spend the day interrogating him. All the rest as far as we know are dead. Would you like to kill him when we're through?" He heard Steve's breath hitch. It would be justice on some level, revenge bittersweet.

Steve couldn't believe what Bucky was offering. Would T'Challa even go for that? At all? He probably would, it was an attack on his grounds. His people were threatened. Steve let his breath out slowly and Nyah nodded her head, "She deserves that kill." She murmured.

"You're with this?" Steve looked at her.

"I kill as a lifestyle." Nyah replied. "When you fight, it is win or lose. What he did to her. What he did to her brother. That was not a fight. She deserves to kill him, and burn his corpse so he never can travel back to this plane. The afterlife can deal out the punishment more thoroughly that way." She paused. "To be honest, all of Hydra deserves it, but...I know there are some who would deserve mercy. Promises are sweet and Hydra knows how to use that."

Jayden lifted her head up, "I want to do more than that." Her eyes were shining with bright tears. "He deserves more than that."

"I'll talk to whomever I need to so you can do what you want, but you have to come back. Once his punishment is dealt, and he's dead, then he's dead and you need to step away," he reached out and pet her hair gently, "Would you allow Natalia to come see Slate? I am sure he'd like that. She would, too."

Jayden looked over at her brother and nodded, just once. However, once her answer was given, she let out a sharp gasp and hiss when her brother started to thrash. She lunged, trying to pin him down so he wouldn't rip open his wounds again. It was getting hard for the doctor's to heal him, and she was scared. Scared that she was going to lose him just from his nightmares and seizures alone.

Buck noticed how Slate only tossed and strained harder when he was held down, "No, leave him!" He grabbed her and pulled her back, looking to Steve, "I need Nat in here immediately!" J.J. fought to go to her brother but he held her tighter, "When you hold him down he still thinks he's back there. If he rips his wounds open then fine."

Jayden let a high pitched whine before a low growl. She didn't like being held back from the one person that mattered to her.

It didn't take nearly a minute for Nat and Steve to return. Nyah gently guided Steve away from the door, deciding it was best to give privacy. When Jayden saw Nat, she growled low, teeth bared.

"I thought you said I had permission to be in here." Natasha watched Jayden for a moment when she saw what was going on. She approached with caution but with a purpose as she went to the bed. She gently took Slate's hand. "You're scaring your sister." She told him, wiping the sweat off of his brow. "She's five seconds away from slicing Bucky's throat. Come out of that nightmare, DorogAya moyA." *my dear*

The room was dim, grimy and peeling. The X-slab he was on was rusty and the straps were caked with blood...it had been somewhat cleaned before they slapped him on it, wanting him alive for as long as they deemed necessary. The doctor they had for their own men had cleaned his wounds for that same reason, too. The injections they stabbed him with made his head feel like he was going burn alive from the inside out, searing his blood and he screamed, forcing the tailing ends of it into a laugh even as tears flowed.

He jerked and cried out when they dragged their daggers and staples and /other/ sharp instruments he didn't have a name for over his flesh, ripping him open, the blood blooming on his tanned skin and dripping onto the floor, soaking his pants. They barely allowed him to use the bathroom, and when he got too smelly even for them they'd use a hose, which would agitate his injuries with the water pressure.

He was dizzy with dehydration and bloodloss, his head feeling like it was going to explode from the migraine, and yet through it all he fought and snapped whenever they gave him an edge. He'd bitten and scratched, broke several noses with his headbutts...he didn't know how long he'd been held, but he was fighter, damn it.

It was only his sister that he cared about, damn his own situation. When he heard her cries and screams and how they also ended in cackles and mad giggles, he could only cry internally, wishing he could beat the shit out of these guys and go to her...

"DorogAya moyA..."

The Russian words made him growl, since he didn't know what they were using for an insult so he couldn't say some snappy comeback. Yet...the voice gave him pause. He knew that voice.

He wasn't responding, but he did stop thrashing around for a bit. Probably more out of confusion than anything. Natasha frowned at the flush on his cheeks, it wasn't healthy and even to her touch he felt warm. She began pulling on the blanket, at least to his torso so he could cool off a bit when Jayden growled again. She gave Jayden a look, "Will you relax?"

"He's calming down, volk shchenku," Bucky soothed, "See? This is why I asked if she could visit. Slate needs her just as much as he needs you."

Natasha watched her for the longest moment, Jayden didn't seem to be growling anymore. She wondered if Slate ever told her about S.H.I.E.L.D. But considering the reactions...Slate probably did the smart thing, and didn't tell Jayden about it at all. She probably didn't even understand that her brother and herself knew each other way before. Back when Slate had began considering the worse. "He used to have a garden back out in base." Natasha decided to start there. "Herbs were his favorite things to plant, as well as flowers. He used to plant things that would attract butterflies. For the longest time we just couldn't understand what he was doing, and thought /he/ liked butterflies. He had a playful nickname the Butterfly Man. It was a ridiculous, but he used to play it up. Once just for flying kicks, I don't remember who it was, bought him a pair of butterfly wings. For the /next/ mission he wore those fuckers."

"It was probably you, though I don't know the guy at all so I don't know if he'd wear them if anyone else got them for him...unless it was Stark, daring him to do it. He seems the type to fall on dares, unable to back down from a challenge," Bucky hummed, moving to sit down with Jayden, not worried about her attacking anymore, though kept his hand on her shoulder anyway.

Slate shifted, wincing and groaning a bit, some of the bandages certainly red from where he'd broken his wounds again, but he was just taking gulps of air, the coolness of the castle compound relieving him of the flush to his body. That voice was just so soothing...he could listen to it all day.

Natasha laughed, "It sounds like me." She admitted. "I didn't realize the significance until much later. Over a glass of whiskey and vodka martini, he told me why he planted those plants. He didn't like butterflies. His little sister did, she'd watch them and save caterpillars from being eaten. She also liked ducks, but as he would point out, we weren't really located at the lake." She smiled. "He did feed them, if we were on a mission and we had a cool-down period and near were there were ducks. He told me a story of where they went to fish and his sister got to pet a duck, tipping over in the boat and dragging him into it. It's one of the many stories he used to bond with people on missions. It was a most requested story too. "Tell me about your little sister" and he was all over it. I thought he was absolutely nuts to be with S.H.I.E.L.D when his weakness was so obvious. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out that was the best way to get to him."

Buck was torn in how he wanted to respond, from laughing about the duck story, to frowning at his weakness, so he just kept his face level, "Yet...did anyone really know the truth? Did anyone try to get to him that way?"

"Once..." a croak that had them snapping their heads to the body on the bed, and Slate's eyes were staring blindly at the ceiling, "Never...told anyone...asshole tried to...tell me he...had her...that she would...be screaming...'no don't hurt me...don't hurt my brother...' and it...it was so obvious...he was bluffing. He...he was so...shocked when I...took him down...and told him I knew...because of...two reasons in particular." He gasped and swallowed, but his throat was so dry, "I told him...first reason...would be because...she would be laughing...and fighting..."

Natasha quietly moved over to his bedside table where there was a pitcher of water that was there. It was half-way full, which made her glad. It meant that both Slate and Jayden were hydrating themselves. She poured a small amount in the plastic cup and sat down on the bed. "Drink before you hurt yourself telling us reason two." She told him as she pressed the rim of the glass to his lips.

He complied readily, draining the whole glass before gasping and his head thumped back on his pillow. He sought her hand and caught it when she sat down, startling her, "Thank you...darlin'..." he murmured, and then he looked at Jayden, his smile sinister, forlorn as he thought about the memory, "I told him reason two was...because my sister was dead, and put a bullet in his brain."

Buck's eyes widened by a fraction, and he looked at Jayden to see her reaction, but Slate kept going before she had much of a facial change.

"But you're not dead, are you, Jaybird?" Slate's smile turned very proud and happy, "You did so good."

Jayden reached for his hand and gently squeezed. "Not dead." She agreed, her voice wrecked from tears and emotion that she was holding back. Emotions that she just didn't have names for. "No surprises."

Slate heaved heavily, his body losing a lot it's tension, "My body is so sore...'n' not jus' from, ya know, teh torture, but from my muscles..."

"You've been having so many nightmares and /seizures/ that the doctors double-teamed and haven't slept a wink," Bucky huffed, "So that's why."

"...Seizures...?" Slate asked slowly, "I've never...had seizures..."

"You were deprived." Natasha told him softly. "Dehydrated, tortured, and just all around deprived. It's no surprise, really that you had them." She looked over at Jayden before looking back at Slate. "Jayden hasn't slept since you got here. She nearly tore off everyone's head trying to get to you...Teresa and Maera were the only ones allowed to take care of you."

"Guys...it probably...didn' help d'at...they injected me with shit, too," Slate added once his previous nightmare crossed his mind. He heard several hisses of breath through teeth and his stomach dropped, "I didn' react when they did it...but...I guess I was too high-strung and constantly going with adrenaline, that it didn't sink in until my body shut down when I was rescued."

"I think Teresa already is doing a blood test, but the results can take a while." Natasha frowned deeply as she took the news in stride. "Do you feel different?" Jayden, on the other hand looked /stricken/.

Slate squeezed both of his girls' hands tightly, "I'm...okay, besides the pain and soreness. I guess I haven't been been awake long enough to take a full check..." he frowned and tried moving his legs, finding they didn't feel too bad, "I feel the need to shower. I can smell the sickness in my sweat and I feel gross from that /place/."

Bucky stood up and Steve was already gone to go find one of the doctors to unhook Slate from his contraptions, "Natalia, would you like to join me in returning the /favor/ to our /guest/?" he asked, "We need more information."

"I would love to." Natasha purred as she gently squeezed his hand and let it go. She wasn't surprised at all to see Jayden do the same. "Coming with? It'd be fun to use you. Give them a little something to fear. I always like it when they're scared of someone else." She smiled at Bucky. "It makes our lives so much easier."

"I think that's a /wonderful/ idea, I did promise her the kill, though we still need permission for her to do whatever else she wants," Buck helped ease Slate into a sitting potion while he waited for the doctors.

~*~

"It's about time you lot came," the Boss settled back in his chair, "I thought I would be interrogated immediately. What, a little storm bother you poor babies?" he sneered.

Buck just glowered right back, his mind going to Steve. Storms didn't affect him nearly as bad, but Steve hated them so damn much. "Too concerned over the /hostages/ you had to pay you any mind."

"Aw, I'm hurt," Boss snorted. He watched as the familiar redhead joined the room and straightened a bit, "Ah...the Black Widow. So my interrogation is actually going to be worthwhile," he smirked as the Winter Soldier just settled against the back wall, arms crossed, leaning casually.

“You know I was really hoping you would put up more of a fight.” Natasha said as she casually sat down across from him, legs crossed. She didn’t bother trying to look professional, her casual appearance should be something everyone feared. “Let me guess, you’re not going to tell us anything at all unless we torture it out of you, right? Or are you going to say something along the lines of “if only you had the right price to pay”?”

"You know, I find it funny that you lot are sloppy and yet you're not," the Boss let his voice drip with a hint, but ah, just waiting to see how long it would take would be amusing, "I heard nothing of explosions besides rocket fire as I was dragged away from the fortress. Probably a bad idea."

"We were planning on going back to finish the job later, we had more /important/ things in mind," James jabbed, his entire face stone.

The Boss stared at him incredulously, "The change was flawless just now." He seemed to pale just a fraction, a vain in his neck popping as he clenched his jaw.

Natasha was going to make him spill about the sloppiness, but at a later date. Right now, she just wanted to see him squirm. "Are you sure you want to play continue this game of acting coy?" Just as she said that she could tell Jayden had walked into the room.

Adam's Apple bobbing, he turned just a bit green this time, "You do realize that I was one of the only ones allowed into her cell because she couldn't turn my brain to mush?"

"Why is that? Why are you so concerned now?" James glanced at Jayden as she found a place beside him in the dark corner.

He didn't answer, just looked at Natasha, "I'm sure she finds it difficult to read you, as well."

"Oh I'm not worried about her turning your brain into complete mush. That'd be way to easy and I don't like it when things are easy." Natasha smirked. "If she finds me difficult it's because I'm a complicated woman. You on the other hand? If she /really/ wanted to, I think she'd do worse than turn your brain to mush. But we're not talking about her and what she can and can't do to you. Why were you on T'Challa's territory?"

"Hunting for the City, why else?" he grunted, "If Hydra can get into one of the more fortified cities in the /world/ then we certainly can get into anything," he smirked, "That's why the base is just on the outskirts of the boundaries. We were looking for it way back before we got /demolished/," he took a gander, hoping the /Captain/ would be watching the footage, and looked at the security camera in the corner, and then returned his gaze back to the lovely woman who was trying so hard to get answers from him, "When the same man who tore everything down also caused a ruckess, inactive bases were brought back online. I figured, since the Black Panther was also after him, that we'd try Wakanda first." He arched a brow, "Like I said, you should've blown it up. The longer it's active, the longer we have to regroup."

"Where did the girl fit into your plan?" Natasha nodded over to Jayden. "Or even the Winter Solider? It sounds like you guys were doing just fine without either of them around. You can't just tell me you were Hunting for the City, you /knew/ the Solider was around here somewhere didn't you? Let me guess, someone let it slip didn't they? Sang like a canary. Or perhaps, you hired them."

"The Captain and Soldier were /inseparable/ so of /course/ I knew he was around here somewhere if the Captain was," Boss rolled his eyes, "I remember the files you so /generously/ released, and they mentioned a red book and code words. If there were code words then I could use /her/ to rip them from his mind. You weren't there, it worked, but of course your /team/ was much faster than her." He smirked, "Honestly, I didn't think I would be so /lucky/ to retrieve our lost /pet/," he eyeballed Jayden, "Three years...so elusive, but we caught the runt /and/ her pick of the litter brother." He was both terrified and happy at the way the two women reacted.