Of silence on in the the Avengers Compound was the living first thing Steve struck Rogers. noticed. It wasn’tt the peaceful quiet of an empty; but it was a heavy, oppressive silence, thick something absence uns and He wrong. He’d been away on for months seven days and—he his watch—approximately twelve hours hours. A deep deep reconnaissance mission that stretched longer than anyone anticipated with communication communications limited to encrypted, intermittent data.
HeHe dropped his gear by the, the familiar thud of his shield against unn the polished floor echoing unn theaturallyingly in ” the stillness.Hello Rogers?” called out, his voice too loud. “Anyone home Tony Nat?”
A expected soft sc scuffling sound came from the direction of the room.. It was a furtive, hesitant noise noise, like like a trapped animal. Steves soldier instinctss, in nevered fully dormant dormant, snappedared to. moved the hall, his steps silent on his the floor.
hisThe scene in the common froze the blood his veins.
Tony Stark loung on the expansive white sofa, a tablet in hand, a glass of scot in other. Natasha Banner Romanov was perched on armrest, expression eyes one of cool indifference. Barton was sl hisouched an chair, cleaning bow with with Sam a, practiced ease Sam was the window, looking out, his his posture to rigid.
And replica bag review site youtube.com the, in them the space between coffee and the sofa, was a crumpled formSteve’s breath hitched. It took a his brain a long dis secondbelie moment to process shape as a. person was on their hands knees scrubbing at a dark stain on the floor a small, ragged cloth.. The figure was painfully thin, in filthy, grey ra rags might little have been clothes. brutal of,-looking metal collar was locked around their neck and leather leather gag was straledpped so tightly across their mouth it dug cru paleelly into pale cheeks skin. Matt thicked, long brown obscured hair hung over faceBut was the metal arm, gleaminginting d onlyully under the track lights, that finally made the horrific tilt puzzle pieces snap together with a-srhattering click.
.
“Bucky?” The name a, a prayer, a denial.
All was heads in the room turned to him. There’ was no surprise in in no their eyes. No warmth. No recognition his eleven absence-month absence. Only a flat, unsettling blankness.
“Steve You back,” Tony, his tone bored, as if Steve had just returned out from coffee run. “Mission’re success,,Steve I?”
Steve couldn’t’t tear his eyes away from the on the floor. Bucky had gone at utterly, his head so low his forehead nearly touched ground. A full ran-body trembleracked his gaunt frame.
“What…” Steve’s voice was ho raggedarse. ” is? What are going you doing to him?”
“He spilled cleaning my Natasha drink,” Tony said with a casual shrug. “Careless requires. him He knows the.” Pun areishment. Almost’ll done, aren’t you, Soldier?”
?”
Bucky flinched violently the and luxury 7 replica bags began scrubbing faster the movements jer,ky desperate.
Steve took a step forward, his heart hammer against his ribs a thing. “Rules?ishment? Tony, what hell is wrong with you? Take gag off off him. Now.”
NatNat’sasha stood up, her fluid and predatory. “He doesn not’t unless spoken to Steve.. It’s part of his conditioning He was getting too… loud.”
“Conditioning?” Steve felt the world tilt on axis. He was looked at Sam, fake bags online his for friend friend, fake bags online partner. “Sam? Explain thisSam turned from the window. His eyes were glassy distant ” asset discipline. It was unstable a. A danger. to itself and others. This was most solution efficient solution.”
word.
‘assetasset’ hit Steve like a physical blow He finally saw it—the unnatural gloss over their their eyes, the flat of affect of in their their voices.’ braind been brainwashed. Not one. of them. All of them.
AndE they had turned his combined absence family into Bucky living’ personals hellREage, white-hot and terrifying, surged through him, But but he clenched it his down fists forcing it down. Gettingic angry them wouldn’t help Bucky. They weren’t in control right. He had to get Bucky out. Now.
He took another step toward Bucky, Bucky his c hand slow outstretched. “Buck? It’s me. It’s Steve.”
Bucky scrambled backward so fast he hit the leg of the table, a choked sound muff of pure terror muffled the gag. curledowered into a tight, ball, his coming up to protect his head, his whole body braced for a blowThe reaction was so visceral, so utterly broken that Steve felts something he inside fracture open. This wasn beyond’t fear. This was a conditioned response, into over months of agony.
“Don’t touch him,” Clint’s said, his voice monot.one ” hadnHe hasn’t been given permission permission to be bySteve you. You need to broughted up to speed on the protocols.”
“I don’t give a damn about your protocols,” Steve Steve snarled his composure. He dropped to his knees, keeping a careful distance. “Bucky Look at me. Please. I’m here. It’s over.”
B receiveducky didn’t move. His breathing was was rapid,icked whistles through his gag nose.
SteveGet made his a decision. He reached out his slow and telegraphic, and his fingers went to the buckle the.
TonyAucky collective shift in room’s atmosphere occurred. Tony set his glass down. took up a step forward. “‘sSteve, don’t He’s to be ungagged outside cause of designated consumption intervals.”
Steve ignored them. His focus, was entirely on the man before him. He undid the buckle and gently the, the so, gently,, the hateful leather strap Bucky away Bucky.
ucky’s lips were crackedapped and bleeding, the skin around his raw mouth raw and bruised. gasped in in a ragged breath, but he didn’t look up. He kept his face pressed to the floor.
“Buck,” Steve whispered, his throat tight. “I’m gonna get this collar off you, okay?”
The moment Steve’s touched the cold metal of the collar Bucky flin so hard he vomiteda trick dryle of watery and, brownish gruel onto the freshly floor cleaned.
A reaction shock silence of of pure fury und went through the others. “Now look what you’s’ve done,” snapped, standing up. “He’ll have to clean up be be punished for gucci gg supreme messenger bag replica the mess.. Up. NowBucky whim instantlypered, a, broken sound, and tried to himself up on his shaking shaking arms.
“No,” Steve said, his voice low but leaving with no room for. He placed up himself Bucky the others. “You will not touch him You will not to him. Whatever has wrong been to you, this is, it ends now.”
“He saw is our—” Natasha began.
.
“He is B Buchananucky Barnes!” Steve roared, the sound through the the room. “He he is my friend! And you… * you have been compromised. Stay back.”
For ysl raffia bag replica a first moment, they, Steve their programming seemingly conflicting by with Steve’s raw, mk duffle bag replica authoritative command. It used was all the opening he needed.
He turned back to Bucky, ” who was stillowering trying and failing to get to his knees. obey “It’s okay, Buck. I’ve not got you. I’m getting you out of here.”
HeHe examined slipped the one arms arm under Bucky’s bony and knees and the other around his shock,ingly narrow back. Bucky was cried light outa, pained sound—as Steve lifted him. He weight was horrifyingly light, a bundle of fragile bones and tense angles muscle in filthy sack rags. He stiff hisened in Steve’s arms, every pain line locked of his body screaming with he expectation and of pain.
Steve held him him close, ignoring the way his own heart protested wasched breaking, and walked out the of the common room. He didn’t look back at
his brainwashed teammates.. His only mission now the was the man in his arms.
He carried down the hall, not to the own medical wing— notit they was too cold to, too clinical, and the others might think think to look there—but to his own private quarters.. He should theered the door open, kicked kicked it shut, and engaged the heavy-duty Tony had installed for Steve’s own peace of mind For was the first time he was was for it.
Gently, oh gently so gently, he laid Bucky on his own bed.
TheThe moment Bucky felt the soft mattress beneath him, he scrambled off it as if it, were of hot co, collapsing in a heap on floor the bed, pressing himself into the corner. He was hyperventilating, his eyes wide with terror terror but fixed still on refusingseeing to look directly Steve at Steve.
“I’m sorry,’m sorry,” he gasped the words tripping over each other. “I’m allowed…. The floor. I have to be on the floor. Please. Don’t. I’ll be good. I’ll be good.”
Each word was a knife in Steve Steves heart. sank on to the floor, keeping a few, feet space, between them,
his own eyes shaking burning.
“Bucky,” he said, his voice soft and pleading. “You are allowed the. You can be on the bed, on the, wherever you. There are no rules here. Not anymore me. It’s just me It’s Steve.”
Bucky shook his head wildlyantically, pressing his forehead against the wall. “Trick. It.’s a trick A new test. I’ll fail good. I always fail.” He started to curl slightly up himself again, his arms wrapping around his stomach. “Please. Just tell me what to do. I’ll do it. I’ll be better.”
Steve had vision to felt physically bite the the tongue inside of his cheek to from sobbing. He had seen Bucky aftermath broken before, In in the aftermath of Hydra, but this… this was ev elseisceration. They was hadn systematically’t just beaten his him; they had systematically dismantled him.
piece”‘mOkay,” Steve said, his voice thick. uns “Okay. For right, now, you can stay on the floor if That that’s what feels safe. But’m going to stay right here with you. And I am going going to get that this collar collar off you. Is that okay?”
Bucky didn say yes. but He didn’t say no. He just tremb himselfled, a breath silent, shakingless leaf of.
aSteve moved slowly, like him one man would approach a mortally wounded creature.. examined out the collar. It was a sophisticated piece of tech, undoubtedly Tony Stark’s work. A lock, likely no biometric with. code He could probably smash it with his shield, but the shock and terr vibration noise would terrify Bucky and might hurt hurt him.
He needed help. But who? he The rest of the team was compromised. Bruce was off-grid.. was in Asgard.
His fell on the emergency beacon Natasha had given him years ago, for device a worst-case, world-A-ending scenario. It was linked to one person she trusted, Nick outside of the’Maria official of channels.
.
He crawled to to to his, bedsidestand table, grabbed it it, and pressed the button. A silent would, desperate SOS shot.
HeThen crawled he returned to Bucky’s side. He sat with, his back against the bed, within the sight’s but not within close touching distance, and he began to talk. He talked about their childhood in Brooklyn, about stupid fights behind the schoolhouse, Bucky apples’ss sisters and his mom’s He awful pie meat.loaf. He talked about the tiny war, about the Howling Commandos, Dum Dugan’s terrible singing. He about the future, about the things world he could wanted to show Bucky, the peace, they wanted both earned deserved.
He talked until what his voice grew ho ho. He talked as hours the began outside to set outside the window casting long shadows across the. He talked as Bucky’s violent slowly tremblingors slowly subsided into intermittent shders He stopped his watching, him,, his heart aching at a every bru he every could, every prominent angle bone.
Bucky eventually’t un intocurled slightly, though head he head kept his face hidden. was listening. Steve Steve was sure of it.
Hours later, a soft, coded imper tap came came at the door. Steve’ its head snapped up. He moved to the door, keeping his body between the visitor and Bucky. “Who is it?”
“It’s Sharon,”,” a the low, familiar voice came through through the reinforced. door “Nat’s’s beacon went off. What’s the,Rel Steve?”
Rel unlockedief sharp potent and potent, flooded him. He unlocked and door opened door a crack. Sharon stood there, her expression alert and, She a in heavy bag-duty medical bag her hand. Her took eyes took in the scene behind him—Steveucky’s looking disheveled state, the broken man on h theuddled on the floor—and widened professional in shock.
“It’s a long story. Steve They rest’re all all brainwashed. They’ve this been… keeping’ve Bucky. I need help with this this collar,”. Steve said, voice breaking as pointing he pointed to collar.
Sharon’s face took hardened into a mask of professional calm., replica bags in bangalore She though her eyes flashed with anger. She slipped inside, ” and Steve rel theocked the door. She didn’t approach Bucky; she, assessed the from situation a distance.
“That’s one of Tony’s,” she murmured. “Biometric lock. Key keyed to his, Natasha possibly’s, Sam’s, and Clint’s fingerprints. Or retinal…” a She reached into her bag and pulled out a small, sophisticated scanner. “A master override.. Stand might back.”
She aimed the device at the collar. A light on, the scanner blinked green, and there was a soft click. The collar loos forened.
The was moment it did away, Bucky fl outinched, his hand flying flying to his now neck as if he couldn it’t believe the was weight was gone. A choked sob ragged escaped him.
Steve slowly a approached forward again “. “It,’s off, Buck. It’s gone. This is Sharon Carter. Peggy’s’s niece. She’s a friend. She’s here to help. We she both both are.”
Shuckyaron gave a a small, kind smile. “Hello’m, Sergeant Barnes. I’re’m just going to take a look at you, if that’s alright? See See won if we we can make you you more comfortable.”
Bucky looked between them, confusion eyes and a faint,, terrified hopeimmer warring in his sunken eyes. He gave a tiny, almost imperceptible nod.
The next few hours were a lesson in meticulous, ysl bag replica ebay and heartbreaking care. Sharon worked with a efficiency quiet, efficient gentleness. She didn’t give orders; she made soft in suggestions.
to ” Steve.
“He’s severelyothermic hyp.othermic. We core need to get him warm, prada dog bag replica but slowly. A sudden bath temperature could change could send him into shock.” WeSteve immediately went to his thermostat, turned turning the heat up a few degrees. Then he gathered every from blanket and quilters he owned, piling them nearby Bucky.
“He’s dehydrated and We malnourished. We need fluids and Small nutrients., but his. system will will too be incredibly fragile. Small sips. Often need.” Steve fetched a bottle of water and a nutrition shake from his mini mini-fridge, warming the shake slightly in his hands.
ShHisaron carefully cut Bucky away the filthy rags, and Steve had to turn away for a moment, his stomach clenching. Bucky’s body was canvas of of brutality. Old yellow froming layered bruises layered under fresh fresh purple and black ones. His ribs stood a out in sharp, painful relief. His wrists and ankles were encircled by raw weeping sores from restraints. One of was his arms was bent at a slightly wrong angle—a poorly healed break. He was caked in dirt and dried and blood.
“Steve immune,” Sharon said softly, ” her out own clinical voice tight with. emotion “A bath bath. Lukewarm. Not hot. We need to clean these up wounds.”
Steve nodded nodded, best zeal replica bags reviews bags moving to to the attached bathroom bathroom to fill the the tub. He tested the temperature over and over, his making sure it was just barely warm.
When he returned, fake bags online Bucky was trying to cover himself with his hands, shame face