Spam for littleguyfrombrooklyn

[endsinafight]

Bucky'd been fidgety throughout the debriefing with Fury, even if he hadn't moved a muscle as he listened to the mission -- another HYDRA target, smaller, on a remote island in the Pacific. Not the usual setup, which made him uneasy from the get-go. But there was something else, something nagging at him, something in Fury's tone that told him there was more to this mission than he was willing to divulge. It wasn't a surprise. Fury might not be HYDRA, but in some ways his methods were so similar that it felt like being back there anyway. He definitely believed in the need to know principle, and obviously he didn't feel like they needed to know whatever it was he was holding back. His gaze darted to Steve, wondering if he'd picked up on it, too.

But if Steve had, his expression didn't betray his thoughts.

He pressed his lips together as they were dismissed, Fury addressing him as the others agents involved in the mission filtered out of the room. "Barnes. Hang back a minute."

And there it was, he thought, meeting Steve's eyes only briefly before lingering as Fury requested. One the door was shut again, the other man turned to study him.

"You have a different mission while they're disabling all of HYDRA's operating systems and containing the operatives."

Bucky studied him just as intently, his voice flat when he responded. "Who'm I eliminating?"

If Fury was surprised by his response, he gave nothing away. "Your target is Katya Belyakov."

"Who is she?" His voice was wary.

"You sure you wanna know the details, Barnes?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.

"If you're asking me to murder someone, yes," Bucky said, jaw tightening.

Fury regarded him for a long moment. "Essentially, she's the of the most dangerous people in the galaxy. Mind control abilities that she's utilized to force others to commit her dirty work. She's likely being accompanied by a former SHIELD operative who turned out to be moonlighting for HYDRA, Grant Ward. I'd prefer him to remain alive. He's got a lot to answer for."

Every muscle in Bucky's body tensed at the information about Belyakov, but also the name Grant Ward, his stomach turning in recognition.

"Ah. See you're familiar with him then."

"Unfortunately," Bucky responded stiffly, struggling to maintain his composure. "I'm assuming this isn't an optional mission." There was a hint of bitterness in his voice.

"You knew when you signed the dotted line that there's no such thing here, Barnes. Is there a problem? Or do I need to go over the fine print of your contract to refresh your memory?"

Fuck you, he thought. "No, Sir. Am I free to go?"

"You're dismissed."

--

An hour later, he was suited up in his tac gear, breathing steady and even despite the wild pounding of his heart as he boarded the quinjet with a team he didn't know or trust, and the only person on the earth he truly did.

Comments

[endsinafight]

It wasn't really what he meant, but Bucky tucked that all away for another time and when Steve's knuckles grazed his cheek, his eyes fluttered shut almost involuntarily. He drew in a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "You don't have to explain," Bucky said quietly. And he didn't. Steve didn't owe that to him, or to anyone else.

"Steve, we weren't together and as far as you knew, I was dead." He kept his voice as gentle as he could. But if honesty was what they were going for, then...

"But I more meant...when I was in Wakanda. Sam was the one that was with you all the time. I wasn't really thinking about the two of you being involved like that. Just...it was supposed to be me watching your six. You know?" He'd been best friend jealous.

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

Steve went a little pinker, embarrassed at the misunderstanding. Steve worried, sometimes, that he was more invested in the romantic turn to their friendship than Bucky was. It wasn’t that he had been hesitant or anything, but Steve had been the one throwing himself into at every turn. He tried to avoid dwelling on it at the moment—and, genuinely, he smiled at Bucky.

“I was jealous of T’Challa, and Shuri, and your goats. Shuri once sent me a picture of you napping under a tree, with a baby goat next to you, and I actually accidentally cracked my screen.”

His voice was a little rueful. “So yeah, I get it. But I meant everything I said. I know what it was like living without you and I’m just done doing it.”

[endsinafight]

It never occurred to him that Steve might have been jealous of his friends in Wakanda. Or of his goats. The thought made him smile a little and he kept his gaze on Steve's face, enjoying the closeness and just looking at him. He remembered doing the same thing on cold winter nights when he'd crawl into bed with Steve to help keep him warm.

"Because you were jealous of the goat?" There was just the barest hint of teasing there.

Bucky nodded, because though their experiences were very different when it came to living without one another, he understood. "We're better when we're together."

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

Steve smiled. “Yeah. I can’t allow myself to be jealous of a goat again, that’s just to embarrassing. Feel free to tease me about it forever, I accept that as appropriate.”

And honestly, no part of Steve would mind Bucky reminding himself that Steve valued him that much—even if it took the form of mockery.

There was a quiet knock at the door. Steve’s nose twitched. “I smell burgers, I think.”

[endsinafight]

"I mean to be fair, the baby goats were adorable," he said with the faintest of smiles. "But I do fully intend to tease you about it in the future to come." His eyes held that twinkle of mischief again, a far cry from the panicked state he'd been in that morning, or the shutdown state he tended to default to when he was on emotional overload.

He nodded slightly, reluctantly pushing himself into a sitting position on the edge of the bed. "Come in," he called, glancing toward the door in anticipation.

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

Steve poured a little bit when Bucky got off of him, but he reached out and rested his uninjured hand on his hip, enjoying the easy touches.

The door opened and Monet’s little nose poked her way through. Her entire body was wagging in delight, even though she was too well behaved to tug. Wanda dropped the leash and she rushed to Bucky, so excited she finished the final approach crawling on her belly, wriggling with delight.

“And I have the burgers!” Clint said, holding up a huge bag of Five Guys. “I even threw in some fries.”

“Dibs on one!” Sam declared, trailing in after. His eyes landed on Bucky and Steve, studying them—before smiling softly. It was pretty obvious they had worked some stuff out.

[endsinafight]

He didn't protest the touch to his hip, despite the fact they had company once more. But his face lit up at the sight of Monet, and he laughed when she jumped up and put her paws on his thighs. "Hi, there," he whispered, picking her up even though she was starting to get too big for that. He didn't care, burying his face against her fur and letting her lick his cheek excitedly. "Good girl. I missed you, too." He glanced over his shoulder at Steve, arching his eyebrows. If he hadn't been injured, Bucky would have already let her go so she could pounce on him next.

Wanda smiled at the sight before her. She hadn't seen Bucky and Monet interact much, mostly because she tried to keep a respectful distance between herself and the older man when it was possible. She knew her powers unnerved him, and after she'd learned what he'd been through, she couldn't really blame him.

"Thanks," Bucky said, nodding at Clint in appreciation for the food.

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

Once Bucky had been thoroughly greeted, Monet turned her attention to Steve, wriggling in Bucky’s grip to try and get to him. Steve sat up, slowly—he couldn’t help but wince at how it jostled his hand. The pain there was throbbing, but he’d been doing well ignoring it and he aimed to continue.

He removed his hand from Bucky only to reach out and scratch the dog’s ears. “Hey, pretty girl. Nice to see ya.”

Steve looked over at Clint and tried to look pitiful. “Can I have the food please?”

The scent brought home that he really was starving. His body burned through calories like a wildfire when he was healing.

[endsinafight]

"Of course." Clint grinned at him, moving over to the bed and holding out the bag for Steve to take. "Got plenty of burgers. Charged it all to the Avengers account." He grabbed one of the burgers out for Sam and tossed it to him.

Bucky's right hand remained buried in Monet's fur as he watched Steve pull the food out to eat. He leaned against the railing of the bed, glancing over at Steve's friend's once more. "Thanks for bringing her. And the food." He shifted his gaze to Sam. "And for standing guard."

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

“Of course.”

“You’re welcome.”

“I love Monet.”

The collected Avengers smiled at Bucky. Wanda was keeping her powers as reined in as she could, but she could still tell that Bucky was more relaxed than he had been in awhile.

“Anyone hear from Natasha?” Steve said, after inhaling an entire burger.

[endsinafight]

Bucky gave a small smile to them in return, ducking his head and scratching behind the dog's ears the way she loved. She laid her head down on his shoulder sweetly, like she was giving him an actual hug. Knowing Monet, she probably was.

"Not yet," Clint offered, leaning back against the wall. "What's she up to?"

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

Steve looked at Bucky—at first his expression was serious, but seeing the way Monet was cuddled up on him made him smile like a dope.

He wanted Bucky’s permission before he said anything specific, though. They didn’t talk about filling Clint and Wanda in.

[endsinafight]

Sensing Steve's eyes on him, Bucky turned his head to look at him, meeting his gaze. He could see the question there -- Steve was leaving this up to him to decide. He drew in a slow breath, nodding his head wordlessly even if there was a twinge of anxiety in his gut. He didn't know Clint or Wanda all that well, but Steve trusted them.

And Bucky trusted Steve.

"She's trying to get her hands on a copy of the contract I signed with SHIELD. To see if there's any way to break it without causing another international incident."

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

Wanda went tense, her face instantly going a little fearful and glancing at Steve.

Clint, on the other hand, grinned. “Aww,” he said. “I’ve been craving an international incident. Can’t we just go with that?”

Sam smacked him in the shoulder and Steve rolled his eyes. He reached out and touched the back of Bucky’s neck, trying to be reassuring.

“Turns our SHIELD still can’t be trusted,” Steve said, mildly. “Though at least they’re less inclined to literal torture this time. It’s important for you both the know that there’s some risk to our legal status in the country. I’m not that worried. Neither is Natasha.

[endsinafight]

It was the fear on Wanda's face that made Bucky's stomach do a flip flop. He barely knew her but she was so goddamned young. She shouldn't have to worry about things like this, and especially not on account of him. "We'll get it sorted out," he said quietly, leaning back instinctively into Steve's touch, no thought involved in it at all.

"Shit. What now?" The smile left Clint's face and it was replaced by a deep frown.

He couldn't quite meet the other man's eyes. "The contract I signed when I came back to the country was -- life-long. And basically following any orders given in exchange for not prosecuting me for the things I did when I was with HYDRA. And...also that Steve, Sam, Wanda and Natasha are allowed to remain in the country as long as I obey."

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

“That’s not fair,” Wanda said, her voice a little tremulous. “They shouldn’t force you to work for them.”

“That’s right,” Steve said. “It’s deeply not fair. We’ll fix it, though. It’ll work out.”

Sam looked pensive. “You’re a good guy, JB. I’m not gonna keep letting you sacrifice yourself for us, but it means a lot that you would.”

[endsinafight]

He wasn't sure about fair, when it came down to it. There was a lot he'd done as the Winter Soldier that he couldn't make right. Even if he worked for SHIELD without pay for the rest of his life he wasn't sure he could ever truly balance the scales. So he fell silent, scratching behind Monet's ears again when she whined quietly and pushed her nose into his neck.

Clint's frown had only deepened. "Okay, there's no way that Fury will allow the four of you to be kicked out of the country. For one, Natasha is one of the few people he actually really likes. Two, he's not going to hold Captain America over the fire just to get to Barnes." He glanced at Wanda and then Sam. "And if the deal was for all four, and we know he won't follow through with Steve and Nat, it's safe to assume he won't follow through with either of you." He shook his head. "Besides, the American public would riot."

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

Clint was clearly saying good things, about Steve was a little distracted by Bucky—the way Monet responded to the minute shifts in his expression and composure.

It was only when Clint mentioned the American public that Steve looked back at him. “How little do you think we’d have to go public about to make sure the public insists it doesn’t happen?”

[endsinafight]

"I don't think it'd take much," Clint said honestly. "When Scott and I came back, people were pretty furious about how roughly half of the Avengers were treated after we stopped an alien invasion in New York. And then the whole Ultron thing..." He gestured vaguely. "I think if they even hear that it's a possibility, there'll be protests in the streets."

Wanda's gaze had shifted to Bucky, and she couldn't help wondering if he was even hearing what Clint was saying, or if he was too lost in his own thoughts and guilt that he'd missed it.

Bucky listened silently, even though his attention appeared to be on his dog. None of this was his area of expertise and he had no idea how to respond, really, so he simply nodded.

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

Steve nodded. He wasn’t entirely happy with that explanation—honestly, he cared more about Bucky not being prosecuted than he cared about staying in the United States. The other three, though. They deserved not to have their lives interrupted.

While this conversation was happening, Steve had plowed through a few more burgers. Finally no longer hungry, he realized Bucky hadn’t eaten either. Wordlessly, he nudged Bucky with the bag of food.

Monet was pretty interested in that, too.

“We’ll figure this out,” Clint said. “Definitely a solvable problem, if we have a little more time than last time.”

[endsinafight]

Bucky blinked a couple times and looked back at Steve before nodding a silent thanks in his direction, pulling one of the burgers out and feeding it to Monet. He didn't usually feed her people food, but once in awhile as a treat he couldn't resist the urge to spoil her. Especially when she was being so good. Her tail wagged excitedly as she wolfed down the burger in three bites.

"What do you want us to do, Steve?" Wanda asked softly. "We'll help however we can."

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

Steve chuckled helplessly. “Bucky, I meant for you to eat.”

His voice was so warm with fondness, a loving little murmur. He shook the bag again—there was another one or two in there. Monet’s ears pricked, hoping she was going to get another burger.

Steve looked almost startled when Wanda spoke to him. He was strained with pain and exhaustion and he kept on getting this odd tunnel vision, when the only thing he could see was Bucky.

“I think for now we sit tight,” Steve said, looking at Wanda. “We need information. Both about what the contract actually says and what Fury intends to do about it.”

[endsinafight]

Bucky grimaced at that, stomach too tied up in knots to be craving food of any kind, regardless of how good it smelled. "Yeah, I'll eat in a bit," he told him, reaching back and patting his leg momentarily.

She studied him, tucking a long strand of hair behind her ear and finally nodding. "Then that's what we'll do. I'm gonna head home, but if you need anything -- day or night, please don't hesitate." She shifted her gaze to Bucky. "You, too."

"Likewise. I'm gonna crash at Nat's tonight," Clint informed him. "But if something comes up, you know how to get a hold of me."

[littleguyfrombrooklyn]

Steve frowned at Bucky, but he forced himself to look away, smile warmly at Wanda.

“Come give me a hug,” he said, gently. “Don’t worry, Wanda. It’s all going to be fine.”

She came over, forcing herself not to look nervously at Bucky, though well aware he didn’t like her. She carefully gave Steve a half hug, not jostling him.

“It is going to fine,” she said, echoing him. “I’m glad you’re okay, too.”

“Yeah,” he said. “I’m going to be fine too. Everything is fine.”

Wanda waved to Bucky, Clint nodded farewell to them both, and then it was just Sam.

“Want me to get you a protein shake or something, man?” he said to Bucky, picking up the concern about calories.

[endsinafight]

Bucky watched Clint and Wanda head away, offering a wave as they departed and trying not to chuckle when Monet wiggled to try and get into the bag of burgers. "No more for you," he informed her. His gaze shifted to Sam when he offered to get him a protein shake.

"I'm really not all that hungry right now, but thanks," he said sincerely. And he wasn't. He knew he should be, but he was also aware of just how long he could go without eating and be completely fine. There wasn't a need to push it. He glanced over his shoulder at Steve, eying him for a few seconds. "I know you're not a fan of pain killers, but I know you're in pain and if they're letting you outta here tomorrow, you should take advantage of what they're offering. You'll heal faster when you're resting, too."