Mature Stucky Fic Rec - 8/12/19
Authors: unforth, cobaltmoony ( @unforth , @cobaltmoony)
Author Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Post-Captain America: The First Avenger, Torture, Psychological Torture, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Past Bucky Barnes/Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers, Past Bucky Barnes/Steve Rogers, switch steve rogers, Switch Bucky Barnes, Slow Burn, Steve thinks bucky is dead, Tentacles, Non-Consensual Body Modification, Aftermath of Torture, Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes, Two Person Love Triangle, Kraken Steve, Bottom Bucky Barnes, Tentacle Sex, Consentacles, Double Penetration, Overstimulation, Come Inflation, Multiple Orgasms, Unrealistic Sex, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Honestly Less Angst Than You'd Expect Given the Premise, Graphic Depictions of Torture, Hurt/Comfort, Protective Steve Rogers, Protective Bucky Barnes, Needles, First Aid without Anesthesia, Past Abuse, Blow Jobs, Facials
Our Tags: Stucky AU, Canon Divergent AU, Hydra Captures Steve AU, Post-Serum Steve Rogers, Creature Steve, Kraken Steve, Poor Steve, Winter Soldier Bucky, Brainwashed Bucky, Poor Bucky, Hydra, Angst, Experimentation, TW: Violence, TW: Torture, TW: Body Horror, TW: PTSD (and to be honest) Happy Ending Guarantee
Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10944618/chapters/24354222
And as determined as Captain Rogers is to survive, the whiny, weak, all-too-human part of him knows the truth.
He's going to freeze to death.
And then - crack, crack, crack - there's someone outside his icy prison. Rescue has come. Rogers is going to survive this, he's going to be alright, he's going to see the war through, retrieve the Tesseract, do his duty...
...but never Bucky, because Bucky is dead...
...and the ice over his face fractures.
A man wearing a hat embroidered with the many-tentacled skull of Hydra.
Some things are worse than dying...
Okay, now you may have noticed from the tags on this fic but...this one may not be for everyone.
This fic is fairly dark and a lot of bad shit happens to Steve, Bucky, and pretty much everyone. Then there is the creature tentacle aspect that may not be your cup of tea. If these are things you prefer not to read that is okay, however, if you are on the fence and none of the tags trigger you, I would ask that you give this fic a shot.
This fic is one of those stories where, even though it's dark and painful, it kind of beautiful in a way. Watching Steve being tortured and experimented on is extremely sad and heartbreaking but the fact that he just cannot stop wanting to take down Hydra is astounding. Steve's struggle with his internal Captain Rogers persona is a truly intriguing aspect as well. It's actually what really got me into this fic which is a very good thing because…
This was my first Stucky fic.
Yes, without this fic, I would probably not even be doing this blog. I tried this fic out when it was still being posted and something about Steve's fight to survive and take out his enemy juxtaposed with his determination to stay and save a fellow prisoner who doesn't make it an easy task really got to me. There was just something about the Steve and Bucky dynamic that really got me hooked and I guess the rest is history.
There is so much to talk about in this fic and and much as I would love to write an ode to this story, that might be a bit much but I will say this, I loved that despite angst and all the terrible things that happen to our boys, this fic actually ends in a happy place. In the end the boys do find something that resembles a peaceful existence and it felt so nice to see them have that after all that happens to them in this story.
Now, to address the elephant in the room, there's the tentacle thing. Honestly, when written well like this fic for example, that sort of thing doesn't bother me (this is fiction obviously) but I know that this is a squick for some people. If it is, obviously you should look out for you but I'd encourage you to at least look at the bulk of the fic that is not related to that subject matter. The sections that may make you uncomfortable aren't super plentiful and they are pretty easy to anticipate so you could in theory still enjoy this meaty, complex fic without reading something that's not your thing.
Finally, it would be a tragedy to not mention there is some absolutely gorgeous (and very NSFW, mind you) art for this fic (though if the above mentioned tentacles aren’t your thing, you might want to give it a pass). It is so cool and fantastically done and can be found at the end of the fic. Kudos to the artist for this amazing piece, especially since without it, this fic wouldn’t exist.
Anyway before I bore anyone else with my rambling fangirl review, I want to say hats off to the author. This was a fantastic read and it helped inspire my love of Stucky and I'd encourage those of you who are comfortable with the subject matter to try this fic out. And thank you to the artist for creating the art that inspired this fic.
