Tonic

Joaquín is a grown man in his thirties.

Alpha Flight

No subscription. Just program.

On your computer. You got to use it forever and ever and never had to worry about it going away.

Because it was physically on your computer. As a program. That you actually owned. Not because you got it separately, but because it was a standard inclusion with your computer.

I'm sorry but I'll just never get over it. I remember when companies cared about their products being usable out of the box. I remember when our things belonged to us.

In Captain America (1968) #174, we get the first textual acknowledgement of his powers. He is able to sense that some henchmen are coming - he calls it a "hunch" - and is receptive to Professor X's attempt to psychically communicate with him. Charles speculates that he's probably some kind of telepath.

This telepathy is most obvious when it comes to the relationship with Redwing (he can communicate with Redwing mentally, and they each seem to have an awareness of each other's location and mental state) but there's nothing originally stating that it's just a bird thing. More like, he has psychic powers that allow him to form an even closer relationship with Redwing than a (non-mutant) human could.

So - bear with me - in the 70s, you could easily interpret Sam's powers as not having anything to do with birds really. Instead, he's got these telepathic abilities that seem to focus on situational awareness and emotional bonds. Maybe he has some empathic abilities? Importantly, there's absolutely zero reason in canon at the time for his bond-forming abilities to be limited to Redwing. In fact, arguably they aren't.

So this happens at a point where Sam and Steve have broken up (they do that a lot) in #145. Sam has a inexplicably accurate dream about Steve's life being in danger, and he's right! He literally has a vision about a thing he has no non-telepathic way of knowing about!

So - again, bear with me - you could easily interpret this as foreshadowing Sam's powers AND as implying that Sam has actually formed some kind of psychic link with Steve, just like with Redwing.

This is like ~90% canon in my mind, at least as far as 70s 616 canon is concerned. But it could totally be used nowadays, or in fics. Sam having psychic bonds with Steve and Misty (he already sort of does with Joaquin). Or mcu-inspired Sam with Bucky et al. There are so many possibilities!

While I enjoy the wholesomeness of the "talking to birds" thing, I do think it's a shame that they narrowed down his powers so much. There's so many story options that psychic!Sam unlocks:

Access to the astral plane

Resistance to some psychic attacks

Vulnerability to other psychic attacks

He could host the Phoenix force! That's bird-themed!

Thanks for the tag @wiccamoody ❤️

Baby Come Back - SamBucky, 31.9K words

(Note: I’m cheating, lol. This is a series, not a single fic.)

Sam and Bucky are divorced, trying to co-parent, and possibly making their way back to each other. These are their stories. Dum dum dum.

Or: This is basically a soap opera.

It’s A Family Affair - Sam Wilson & Gideon Wilson, 1.2K words

Sam had just hit play on a documentary selected solely because he thought it might help put him to sleep, when his phone began to vibrate. It was his personal cell though - not the one that constantly brought doom and gloom, and maybe even a possible apocalypse or two with every ring - so he only felt slightly put out when he had to roll out of bed to answer it.

“Hello?”

“Can you talk to birds?”

Or: Sam can talk to birds, but can he talk to his brother?

Jealous Guy - SamBucky, 2.5K words

“Sam and Steve having one of their many ‘bro moments,’ while you stare at Wilson from the shadows like you can’t decide whether you want to take his head off or take him to bed,” she observed with a snort, then nudged his shoulder playfully with her own. “It’s all very nostalgic really.”

“Then again,” she added thoughtfully, after a few seconds. “Is ‘nostalgic’ the right word if the staring never really went away in the first place?”

Or: Are Sam and Steve too close? Well, Bucky certainly thinks so.

Something So Right - SamBucky, 4.7K words

Sarah frowned. “You just said you weren’t okay,” she said, slowly. “And since you seem to have called me in the middle of a firefight…” She trailed off, huffing in frustration. “Look, maybe just try using your words, Bucky. What do you want?”

“To know where Sam is,” he answered, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

She sighed. “I already told you he’s at the compound, so…”

“And I already told you he’s not, so…”

Or: Bucky really needs to talk to Sam, and maybe get some things off his chest, but first he has to find him.

Stolen Moments - SamSteve/SamBucky, 98K words

“No,” Sam said, chuckling. “I don’t cheat,” he swept his gaze up and down James’ body, “even with guys who look like you. But, I’m bored and a little pissed, so if you wanna sit here and shoot the shit ‘til my man shows back up, I’m game.”

Never one to back to back down from a challenge - especially a challenge who looked like Sam Wilson - Bucky took another swig from his bottle and replied, “Sure, doll. I’ve got nothing but time.”

Or: Steve has Sam. Bucky wants Sam. Sam wasn’t expecting any of this.