Title: "Three Little Words"
Author: Pirate Turner
Dedicated To: Pirate Sparrow
Rating: R
Summary: Bucky and Jenny must face three little words that have the potential to destroy their friendship forever or bring them closer than they've ever been before.
Disclaimer: Bucky, Jenny, Bucky O'Hare, Felicia, the Toads, Deadeye Duck, Willy, Bruiser, Blinky, the Righteous Indignation, Al Negator, and all other characters mentioned are © & TM their respective owners and are used without permission. Everything else is © & TM the author. The author makes absolutely no profit whatsoever off of this story.
Author's Note: This fic is an early birthday present for my beloved Pirate Sparrow. Happy birthday, my darling!

"Jenny," the Captain softly spoke her name as he stepped into the cockpit, "how are you feeling?"

Without moving her eyes from the spaceway ahead of the ship, Jenny reassured him for the hundredth time since he'd awakened, "I'm fine, Bucky, really."

"That was a close call back there," he commented quietly as he slid the door closed and walked forward to take his seat next to hers.

She inclined her head into a slight nod of admission but did not speak again as both their thoughts played over the events of their last battle. It had began as a routine rescue mission, and things had gone so easy until they had reached the place where Felicia had been being held that they should have realized that they were walking into a trap. None of them had suspected a thing, however, and so they had walked straight into the Toads' trap. Although it had lasted only a couple of hours, the fierce battle had seemed to drag on forever. The action had been so intense that only Deadeye had been able to truly enjoy the fight.

Although they had succeeded in rescuing Felicia and all had escaped, their victory had not gone without its costs. Deadeye had an arm in a cast, and Felicia was still recovering in the med wing. Though she insisted on flying, Jenny had only been granted leave from the medical wing two hours ago. Bucky was still nursing several bruised ribs as well as other countless injuries, but seeing the bruises that marred her beautiful body and lovely fur hurt him far more than any physical pain possibly could have. Willy was still working fervently on Blinky despite his own injuries considerably slowing his progress. Only Bruiser had managed to escape unharmed. Still, however, despite all their wounds, their enemies had suffered a far more vicious defeat, and Bucky couldn't help thinking that it would be a very long time before Al Negator would help to trap his crew again. After all, Bruiser had nearly ripped out the reptile's tail by its roots when the gorilla had thrown him that last time.

Neither Bucky nor Jenny could keep their minds from continuously turning back to what had happened to cause her to become injured. During the fight, Bucky had been separated from the others. She had been the first to find him, but she had just arrived to find him being severely attacked from all sides. He had been so tightly surrounded with such a countless number of green, slimy fists raining down upon him that the only reason she had even known he was there was because she had sensed him. With never a thought for her own safety, Jenny had flown straight into the battle, and although she had finally succeeded in tossing all the Toads away from him, it had not been without becoming seriously wounded herself.

Jenny's hands tightened their grip on the steering wheel as all-too vivid images of what she had found when she had finally tossed that last Toad out of her way to her Captain resurfaced in her mind's eye. Bucky had lain beneath the pile of Toads, too weakened to even be able to stand, let alone continue struggling or fighting. Blood had been pouring from his body, and ugly bruises had marred his green fur. His long ears were ragged, and his little tail had nearly had all its fur yanked out. Her heart had nearly stopped when she had seen him, and her mind had still been trying to register that he was dead when his eyes had fluttered open. He'd tried to speak but had finally slipped into unconsciousness before he could utter even a single syllable. She had not been able to shake neither the expression in his eyes when he had looked up at her nor the fear that had clutched her heart and soul in its icy grip upon seeing him like that ever since; they had even haunted what little she could remember of her fevered dreams.

Still not trusting herself to look at him, Jenny spoke softly, "You really should be resting."

"I could say the same about you," Bucky replied quietly, "but we both know that neither of us is going to rest until we reach the next dock."

Knowing he was right, Jenny fell silent. In the silence that followed, Bucky watched her with the same intent gaze that he often wore when looking at her despite his best efforts to hide the fact that he was watching her as well as the emotions that raged within his heart while he did so. He loved her. He had known that for years, and yet he had never dared to voice his true feelings to her. For as long as he had realized that he had loved her, he had also feared that telling her so would cause her to run from him. He knew she cared deeply for him, but he also knew that she had been taught to never allow any male to get close to her.

Still, though, despite all his intense fear of risking losing her, Bucky had realized something when Jenny had rescued him the last time. He had thought he was dying for several minutes before she had found him. Although he had not feared dying, his biggest regret that had continued to repeat itself, tearing away at his brain until all of his thoughts had finally subsided, had been that he had never told her that he loved her. If he had died then, she would have never known just how much she meant to him and would never have known that he loved her. When he'd barely glimpsed her beautiful face after she'd forced the gang of Toads off of him, he'd tried to tell her that he loved her but had been unable to before everything had gone black.

It had been a long time afterward before he had woke again, and he had been struggling to keep from telling her ever since. Now, though, as he continued to gaze adoringly at her, Bucky realized that, even though he was eternally grateful to whatever God or Goddess had spared their lives, he still did not want either of them to die without her knowing that, even if she might not feel the same about him, he loved her. His eyes closed briefly as he inhaled deeply and squared his shoulders in preparation of what he was about to tell her. "Jenny," he spoke her name in a hushed voice as his eyes reopened and gazed once more at her face, "I love you."

Those three little words set her world to swirling. Her heart nearly stopped when she heard him, but she knew her ears were not deceiving her as they had been one of the few things on her that had not been damaged during the fight. Her green eyes flew wide in shock even as she struggled to remain calm. Her heart pounded with such ferocity that she almost expected it to leap out of her body at any second. Her mind whirled as it frantically searched for some way to answer him that would not hurt him for although she loved him, she knew she could not admit the truth no matter how desperately her every fiber of her being ached for her to. When she finally spoke, she stuttered but only at the very beginning, "I-I love you, too, Bucky." She paused, and in that one pause, his heart leapt for joy and his body nearly followed it into the air. Her swift words that followed, however, sent his world crashing down around his huge feet. "As a friend, of course."

"That's not what I meant," he admitted sadly, his voice barely audible to even their advanced hearing. "I love you, Jenny. Heart, mind, and soul, I love you more than I ever thought I could love any one."

Jenny's silence as she forced her eyes to stay focused on the spaceway that stretched out ahead of the spaceship spoke volumes. Bucky struggled to force his lungs to continue breathing even as the harsh realization set in. She loved him as a friend . . . but only as a friend. Of course. What in the galaxy had he been thinking! How could a female cat as beautiful, intelligent, and quite simply wondrous ever see in a lowly male rabbit like him! He struggled but failed miserably to keep the disappointment and extreme sadness that filled his being from showing on his face and in his eyes as he stood up and, without another word, began to walk away.

Jenny switched the ship to Autopilot as she closed her eyes, the warrioress and woman within her quarreling viciously with each other. She had seen the way her silence had destroyed him, but she knew that to admit her feelings aloud might very easily prove to be her disaster. If she allowed herself to follow her heart, she might be forbidden from ever again setting foot on Alderberan. According to Alderberan legend, her powers might even be stripped. Although she no longer cared so greatly about her role as an Alderberan Artificer, Jenny did not want to lose access to her home and family nor did she want to be powerless to help those she loved when they needed her. Still, though, she realized as tears filled her eyes, she could not allow Bucky to think that she did not love him for she could not bare even the mere thought of what life without him would be like. "Bucky, wait!" she swiftly called to him, jumping to her feet just as he reached the door.

"No, Jenny, it's okay," he told her, his miserable voice barely even a whisper. "I understand. I was out of bounds. I'm sorry."

"No, that's not it at all!" she exclaimed as she hurried after him. He tried to ignore her as he gripped the door. "Please, Bucky, listen to me! I . . . " She paused, her heart hammering so hard that it was almost giving her difficulty to breathe, as she again realized all that she might lose if she admitted to her feelings, but then again, she remembered that she would lose Bucky if she did not tell him how she truly felt about him. "I love you!"

Bucky's ears perked up at her exclamation, and his hopeful heart did not even register the pain that that small movement sent cascading downwards through his body. "You what?" he breathed as he turned slowly around to face her again.

"I love you," Jenny repeated more softly, her face and tear-filled eyes clearly displaying the truth of her words.

Bucky's furry brow creased in confusion. "But if you loved me, you would have . . ."

"Bucky," Jenny gently spoke his name as she closed the distance between them and her hands reached out to him, "just let me talk, please?" His silence as her hands took and held his in their tender grasp granted her request. She looked up into his eyes as she continued, "Although you know more about Alderberan than most outsiders ever will, my people's ways still remain almost a complete mystery to even you, Bucky. I was raised to believe that males are inferior and emotions, one of the greatest weaknesses."

"Even as a kitten, if I cried even one single tear, I was banished to my room and forbidden to eat until the sun rose again." Seeing the shock in his eyes and his mouth begin to open to condemn the punishment, she hurried to continue, "As terrible as you might think that was, it has always been the way things have been on my world, and the common cats were punished far more for such a supposedly foolish thing. We are even forbidden to cry at our own loved ones' deaths."

She allowed one of his hands to slip from her grasp, and he raised a single finger to gently wipe away one of her tears. She bowed her head in shame even as he did so, but his hand instantly moved to gently raise her chin again. His eyes met and locked with hers. Although his compassionate eyes told her that emotions and tears were nothing to be ashamed of, they also asked her what tears had to do with her hesitancy to admit that she loved him when he had finally told her that he loved her. However, he would not speak again until she gave him permission to do so.

Jenny smiled sadly at him. "Being with you and the others has taught me that emotions aren't always a terrible thing; only some of them are. Although it is strictly against Alderberan customs to allow any outsider into our hearts, I let you into my heart a long time ago, Bucky, as not only my Captain but also my best friend."

She paused for a second, his eyes filled with questions as they continued to look up into her eyes, before continuing again. "As much as tears are frowned upon by my race, my people see romantic love as being the worst emotion of all. Not even the Queen is allowed to love a man. Any woman of my race who dares to love is cast out of our kingdom, but even worse is any woman who dares to love a male outsider. Not only are such women publicly considered traitors to their own homeworld, but they are forbidden from ever again setting foot on Alderberan."

When Bucky looked at her with a new question in his eyes, Jenny nodded, granting him permission to speak again. "That's . . . " Bucky's shocked mind searched for a word to describe just how extremely horrible all that Jenny had just explained to him was, but the green rabbit's brain could come up with nothing that did not seem like a severe understatement. "I can't think of a word to say just how horrible that is!" he finally admitted. "I understand now why you were so hesitant to admit you love me. You were afraid."

Her mouth opened to speak, but he spoke again before she could, his hands reaching out to reassuringly rub her arms as he did so. He was careful to be extremely gentle with every single touch so as to not harm her any further than she already was. "You never have to hide your feelings from me, Jenny," he assured her, his voice firm yet also gentle and the truth of his words shining in his eyes. "Emotions are not a weakness, not even fear or anger. You have every right to be afraid of your world's government as long as they have such ignorant laws in place, but you never have to be afraid of me. I always knew that you had been taught that other races and all males were inferior to Alderberan females, but I could never have imagined that you could be put in such terrible danger just by loving me. I can't help my feelings and can not be sorry for finally letting you know that I love you, Jenny, but I am truly and deeply sorry for having put you in such a horrid position."

"Don't be, Bucky," Jenny softly told him. "Although I was initially shocked and afraid when you told me you love me, I've always dreamed that you might one day feel the same way about me that I have felt toward you for so long. I could have let you continue to think that I didn't love you, but the truth is the truth. Even if that truth might make me lose everything that I once held dear, it's a risk more than worth taking. Not even the Queen can stop the truth or love."

"But she can keep you from your family," Bucky protested.

"If my blood family allows her to do so, then they never truly loved me to begin with, and besides, they may be my blood but my real family is right here on this ship," Jenny told him confidently.

"Are you sure?" he asked, his deep concern for the woman he loved clear on his face and in his eyes.

She hesitated for only one moment longer. "Yes, but there is something more you should know, Bucky."

"On top of all of this?"

She nodded.

"Tell me," he gently told her.

"Alderberan legend says that if an Alderberan Artificer loves an outsider who is not her soul mate, she will lose her powers when it is proven that they are not true soul mates."

"I do not love you for your power, Jenny, but I still would not want you to lose your powers for your own sake. Do you believe the legend?"

Jenny thought for a moment before answering, "I have always believed in all the legends, but then I also believed that emotions were weaknesses before I met you. It remains to be seen, but I do not think we need to fear that for I honestly believe that we are meant to be, Bucky. If I did not, I would not be willing to take this risk, but . . . " She paused as she tried to find a way to tell him just how much she truly did love him only to realize that words alone could not possibly suffice. "By Bast," she finally exclaimed, drawing him closer to her, "I love you, Bucky O'Hare!"

Her lips touched his softly at first, but their kiss quickly deepened. His arms gently wrapped around her waist as he tenderly held her closer to him. Both was extremely gentle with the other, almost afraid that they might harm their beloved more than they already were. His hands caressed the small of her back even as her hands ran up his back. Their lips parted, allowing their tongues to sweep in and begin an erotic duel inside each other's heated mouths. Their eyes continued to gaze adoringly into each other's eyes, their gazes and actions full of all the undying love that they could not find a way to completely tell each other of. They clung tightly yet also gently to each other as they continued to kiss, their passion building steadily.

Finally, Bucky reluctantly pulled just far enough away from Jenny's lips that he was able to whisper softly, his breath tickling the fur around her lips as well as, slightly, her actual lips. "And I love you, Jenny." His eyes still gazing into hers, he reached one hand up to softly caress her cheek and, for the first time, he dared to stroke her fur, sending even more electric tingles of excited pleasure shooting through both. His lips then recaptured hers as he held her even closer to him though still being careful to be gentle with her. Neither knew for certain what would happen when the others learned of their love, but whatever happened, they would face it together from this moment forward until their very deaths.

The End