#captain-outoftime

Loki was grateful he couldn't meet Steve's gaze. The trickster so often contemplated his own mortality, both his drive to survive and those dark days when that drive vanished... but he hated dwelling on Steve's. There was a time when he thought Steve would be gone between one heartbeat and the next, before Eir told him the serum had extended his life to more closely match that of an Asgardian.

His poisonous dream of a throne, a dream that had never truly been his, ended a long time ago. His throne was the worn spot on the leather couch where they watched TV. His scepter was Steve's hand, loosely twined with his, when he woke in the middle of the night. His kingdom was the sun rising over the kitchen table, while he scowled into his coffee and Steve cooked breakfast.

No throne in the galaxy could replace what he already had. What neither of them thought they would have in life, let alone with each other.

He's different. Oh, he's still Steve Rogers, still every bit the man she'd fallen in love with. But he's older now, more tired. But perhaps, that is alright. Better even. She's older too, less idealistic than she was during the war. And he's still hers.

The reunion has been emotional on both sides. She's still in complete awe that they've had their dance, that she's gotten to hold him in her arms again. But though joy is the prevalent one, she can tell that there are still wounds left to be addressed, that his mind hasn't quite calmed and quieted yet.

Peggy reaches up, cupping his cheek before she pulls him down to meet her lips, standing on tiptoe to make up the difference. For a moment, she keeps it sweet, but it doesn't take long before the heat she's always felt for him comes roaring up, overtaking her. It turns desperate, she feels desperate to get as close to him as she possible can. Peggy nips at his bottom lip before trailing kisses along his jaw. "Take me to bed, Steve," she murmurs. They're still not close enough, he's still too far.

Avengers Compound. Bucky was probably wearing a hole in the floor with how he was pacing. Every so often, he'd try and head down to where he knew Steve's room was. But, no, no, he didn't have what he wanted to say planned out.

It was the first time they would see each other since Steve got back from dropping off all the Stones. Announced his retirement. Not that Bucky blamed him any. Steve deserved his rest. Bucky helped Sam with all the Flag Smasher stuff. Sam was doing a great job as Cap. Deserved it. Bucky just didn't know what to do now. Had been trying to atone but...

Fine. He'd just. Go for it. No plan. Old Bucky behavior. With a weary sigh, he wandered over to Steve's room and knocked on the door.

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@captain-outoftime​:

“I’m a freak in all kinds of ways,” he replied dryly.

Even people like Tony who knew him well often forgot he was more than just strong and fast - every sense he had was heightened. He could sit in his apartment and know when his neighbors were asleep by hearing the pace of their heartbeats. He could smell the acrid smoke of a firefight on someone’s hands even the next day. Erskine had done far more than make him just strong.

“Think we should go this way to get out. I can feel air moving. Hold my arm or somethin’ so you don’t trip, c’mere.”

hyperverbalbillionaire:

Tony smirked to himself in the dark at Steve’s answer to his question. “Don’t get my hopes up like that, Cap,” he teased back, pricking up his ears in the hopes of hearing Steve’s discomfort, however quiet it might be.

Even if he didn’t acknowledge it, Tony heard the glum undertone to Steve’s wry deflection. Not that he got it or anything. Tony would kill to have the physical enhancements Steve had. Tony, without his suit, was as vulnerable as any weak human. And at the moment, he was very much without his suit—now that it was trashed—and he was worryingly vulnerable. His outburst was mostly about his own discomfort on that very subject. In the suit, he had dual-color night vision, thermal imaging, infrared, x-ray—hell, he could use sonar if he really needed it. But as he was now, weak and no more than human, he had none of that. All he could do was rely on Steve to make sure he didn’t walk into a Raider’s style booby trap and get shish-kebabbed or fall through a trapdoor under his feet and dash his brains out in a rocky pit.

His relief was almost palpable when Steve told him he felt moving air. He told him to hold his arm and Tony couldn’t help snorting a laugh. “Hey, if you wanted to go steady, Cap, all you had to do was ask.”

Steve would recognize the signs of deep-rooted stress immediately. As much time as he spent with Sam, Steve knew him better than anyone, and it was Steve he barreled to and wrapped in a crushing embrace.

"I'm sorry," he croaked, arms protectively tight around the other man. "I know you're fine but this... I keep waking up thinking it's our old apartment, and I have to make sure you didn't die overnight because I stopped watching."

It would probably be medically impossible for Steve to get any illness after the serum, but that didn't shake the memories. It didn't erase the endless nights he fought sleep because Steve's immune system was non-existent, and he'd gotten sick despite how careful they tried to be.

“Alright,” he muttered, resigning himself to yet another sleepless night. “Which room’s he in?” 

@captain-outoftime

Nat strolled into the gym at the SHIELD compound with a file tucked under her arm. She knew she’d find the captain here. It’s where he spent most of his time when he wasn’t on a mission. She didn’t exactly blame him. Adjusting to waking up, after being frozen for 70 years, had to have been hard.

“You hit any harder, you’ll break another sand bag,” She joked over the deafening noise of Steve wailing against the punching bag. She walked up to him and held out the file. “Fury wanted me to give this to you. It’s an undercover assignment he’s selected you for. He also wanted me to tell you that if this was...too close to home, that you could refuse it.”

When Steve would open the file, he’d find a detailed, yet still limited file on Tony Stark, Howard Stark’s son. Nat knew about Steve’s history with the elder genius, and how this could effect Steve in a bad way, so that’s why she told Steve he could refuse. Fury hadn’t offered it. In fact, he said Steve was going to do it whether he liked it or not.

The former assassin glanced at Steve over his mug of coffee, having been mid-sip when he was given the birthday wishes.  Bucky arched a brow and moved to the coffee put to get himself more caffeine.