Duty to Wakanda

[ [ W a k a n d a F o r e v e r ! ] ]

“Did you think because we do not celebrate it here that I would not know about the tradition of it?” The mountain of a man sat down in his even larger chair, tugging the blond onto his lap as he did so. Putting a hand on his chin, he leaned in close and closed the distance between them, letting his lips enclose around the ex-captain’s.. briefly, with more tenderness than one would expect from a man of his size and build. 

The General had a smile on her face, albeit not one that looked like she meant it. She poured tea into two cups and offered one towards the Baron. 

as M’Baku

sunflowers

you're confident in your ideas and choose to remain standing just like the stems of sunflowers. you can learn how to adapt and you can learn how to be happy again. you are very resilient, maybe more than you really know. you are determined to make what you think your reality. your main wish is to be constantly content. the catch is, sometimes, this is just a lie you tell yourself in hopes it will become truth.

tagged by: @shieldretired​ ​

“Believers, yeah. An’ non-believah too. But when is it enough? Too much? Got six houses across t’ree country. Got a car dat I don’ like usin’ because I don’ wanna contribute to destroyin’ our world. A hand in marriage…if it’s goddah be gotten t’rough mana or wishes…is it real? Does dat person really love you, or only because dey compelled?” She lays her hand on his chest, feeling his heartbeat strong beneath her palm, and half-closes her eyes. “Power…mana…for its own sake is tyranny. Only reason t’ have it is how ya can raise oddah people who mebbe no have ya voice, ya privilege. In a life where everyone cut-t’roat to rule da world, I wanna save it. Guess dat makes me foolish, eh?” She leans into him, laying her head on his broad shoulder. She breathes him in and exhales a gentle sigh. “Would ya t’ink I’m delusional if I said I’m happy heah? Dat I have only evah felt dis comfortable some place once, back when I was home? Or mebbe…ya like heah dat…if I were f’ ask f’ any kine it would be…” Her voice drops to silence, but she graces the column of his neck with the softest sort of kiss.

He found himself slowly sitting back into his seat and blinked, listening to her words. He knows the world outside of Jabariland can be and is vastly different from what and how he grow up but if he had to be honest, he’d never set foot outside of Wakanda and anything he knows of the outside world he knows from third party retellings. He’d heard stories from this small shark girl of the islands and the mainland US before, but he’s still learning their traditions, social structures, politics, and.. well, it is all somewhat overwhelming. 

Speechless for a moment, his gaze shifted from her features to her hand on his chest and back. 

“Silly girl! If your goal and wish is to save the world, then it is not foolish. Go do it. Use the power and privileges to your advantage and do what it takes to make your dreams come true. Even if it means helping the helpless old grandmother cross the street...” He looked to her for the usage of the idiom and whether it is the correct use of it, trying to lighten the mood with it.

Hearing her confessing her happiness while she lived here in a place so foreign to her home eased some of the uneasiness he had felt through her. 

“I like that you are comfortable here.” He echoed, closing his eyes for a brief moment as she leaned in close to him, his large hand was brought up to gently caress her back. 

“We don’t have houses or cars here.” He chuckled lightly. “We the Jabari are a community and we look out for each other. We share more than a half-assed morning greeting and you know the rest, you’ve been here long enough.” The idea of individuals having more power than the society together is absurd to him. He knows she comes from a culture similar to his and he’s happy to share what he has with her.

He inhaled at the feeling of her lips on his neck, and without any hesitation, craned his neck and gently turned hers to press their lips together for a moment. When their kiss breaks, he pressed his forehead against hers and held them like that for another moment. 

                        "IF I DIDN’T KNOW ANY BETTER, LORD M'BAKU,“ Steve says, the corners of his lips twitching a little, "I’d almost believe that was a threat.” The Jabari might not have any enhanced reflexes like Steve, but he is tall and strong and knows what to do with all the muscles that… hug his body rather nicely, Steve has to admit. So what, it’s not often anymore that men are bigger than him, so that stands out in a sort of positive way, most of the time. “Of course, it could also mean you’re inviting me on a date. The wonders of the English language, I suppose.”

                        He thinks M'Baku wouldn’t feel too sore about it, so Steve even adds a wink to his last remark, showing that he’s only teasing. He’s rather grateful that most Wakandans speak English (and several other languages; their schools are definitely better than Americans) because he tried to learn some Xhosa to show his gratitude for effectively granting Bucky refuge and shelter and medical care –– but it’s hard. Xhosa requires sounds Steve’s tongue is unable to make without literally going into spasm, and he doesn’t even understand how you’re supposed to create those little clicks. So yeah, Steve knows hello and thank you and please, and everyone makes fun of him when he says it, but he thinks it’s a pleasing kind of fun, a ‘this white dude at least tries to be polite’, so it’s alright. 

“And if I didn’t know any better, Captain Rogers...” He chuckled before continuing on. “I’d believe you’d want me to fight you just to see who would win.” He stated matter-of-factly, with no question at all for what he said to be the truth and what he truly believed in. The matter of the fact is that, he had watched the Captain fight right here on Wakandan soil. If the reports of his prowess in the international news wasn’t indicator enough, seeing what the man can do with his own eyes makes him question a lot of things about the world as he understands it.. such as the science behind that magic potion that made him permanently on the level of the Black Panther and also.. well, that peak physical condition is something to be admired for what it is, for certain. And he’d be lying if he said anything to the sound of his not being curious of what that body can do off the battlefield.