Rose watches Steve's eyes open and just breathes. She knows she's been breathing for the last couple of days (it would be pretty obvious if she hadn't been)- but it hadn't felt like she had. She'd been stuck in a sort of hellish unreality, every second weighed down by one terrible question.
What if?
What if she'd been quicker?
What if she hadn't been so clumsy?
What if he healed?
What if he didn't?
What if she had to live without him?
What if?
Finding out that she doesn't have to figure out the answer to that question? Euphoric. It's like that first breath after she'd been reborn, the sudden, overwhelming absence of pain lighting her up from the inside out. For one gleaming second, she feels like a supernova, joy and love cracking her open with the force of an explosion.
Then the darkness sets in.
Your fault.
The thought, which had never truly left her, seizes her by the throat and locks her in place. She's numbly aware of Bucky releasing her hands, the dark haired man rushing to the hospital bed and collapsing on his knees next to it. She can feel his love from the other side of the room, her battered heart cracking with every tear that slips out of his eyes. Steve, only just barely conscious, focuses on him first, a soft whisper of "Buck" leaving his mouth as he raises up a tender hand to caress the other man's stubbled cheek. Bucky makes a wounded noise, tipping forward enough to grab the blond by the shoulders before all but pulling him out of the bed, pressing an almost brutal kiss into his mouth. Steve kisses him back just as enthusiastically, the hand not pressed against his jaw coming up to hook around his shoulders to pull him more tightly into his chest. Bucky doesn't really say anything, but Rose knows that each press of his lips is a message- one that Steve hears and replies to with tender cajoling.
"I almost lost you."
"I know."
"You scared me."
"I know."
"The line came too soon."
"Not yet."
"I love you."
When they finally break apart, Bucky isn't the only one crying anymore. They're both red cheeked and red lipped, matching tears and matching smiles lingering on their faces. Bucky pulls back slightly, silver eyes tenderly running over the other man's face before he lets out a wet sounding chuckle, metal hand coming up to trace the tears sliding down Steve' face.
"Punk." Steve snorts at the familiar teasing, nudging the metal digits playfully as he responds.
"Jerk." There's a short, quiet moment where they sit in silence, seemingly savoring the moment. Then, Steve suddenly jerks like he's been struck by lightning, shoulders tightening and eyes widening as he begins scanning the room. Rose, still frozen in place, only has a second to guess at what's panicked him when he start's shooting rapid questions at the brunet. "Rose! Where's Rose? Is she okay? What happened with the Minotaur?!" Bucky cuts him off with a fond chuckle, reaching forward to squeeze his boyfriend's hand softly.
"Rosie's fine- you saved our girl's life." He squeezed his hand again, shifting slightly so that the blond had full view of Rose trembling on the other side of the room. "Then she returned the favor. Helped put that big cow out to market." She can tell the exact moment when Steve finally catches sight of her, his shoulders loosening and eyes softening in a way that was both terribly familiar and heart wrenchingly painful. His lips curl and his eyes light up and he whispers her name like she's the most precious thing he's ever seen.
You don't deserve that look.
Your fault.
Her legs come out from underneath her like they're made of sand, knees hitting the floor with a painful sounding "smack" as she crumbles in on herself. Both of her hands come up and grasp at the roots of her long hair, her mouth opening in a long, keening wail as the guilt and heartache of the last several days comes pouring out of her. She knows that she's hyperventilating, the sobbing sucking the air from her lungs, but she can't stop. Her broken noises echo in the sudden shocked silence of the hospital room- a silence only broken when she finally speaks.
"Steve- I'm sorry- so sorry." She breaks off with a wheezing hiccup, hands coming up to cover her eyes as she rocks back and forth on her knees. "It was my fault- I love you- I can't- I'm so sorry-"
Steve is out of the bed and at her side before the final apology can leave her lips.
He doesn't waste any time trying to cajole her or wipe the tears from her cheeks- he knows her too well for that (knows himself too well for that). Instead, he hauls her off her knees and into his lap, sandwiching her hands between their bodies while keeping her locked in place. To his shock, the blonde doesn't actually fight him. Too overwhelmed by the battle in her head (love and pain, relief and guilt), she slumps into his body, hands fisting into his hospital gown as she cries into his chest. Swallowing back the tightness in his throat, he presses a gentle kiss to the crown of her head, the hand not clutching her to him running soothingly down her spine.
"Rosie….Angel-" Rose cuts him off with a wounded noise, the shock of hearing her nickname along with the thought that she'd almost never heard him say it again punching her in the chest. Determined to get to the root of her distress he presses another kiss into her hair before continuing. "Why are you sorry? What could you possibly think is your fault?"
Is he…is he joking?
Maybe Damien didn't actually completely fix his brain damage?
"Are you…are you serious?" Her voice comes out thick and cracking, her sobbing making her sound like she'd been gargling broken glass. She continues before Steve has a chance to respond, pulling back slightly so she can glare at him with red rimmed eyes. "You died Steve- died. Your body was here but everything else was gone. I spent five days watching your corpse try and decide if it wanted to stay warm or give in and go cold." Steve hummed, face purposefully placid as he regarded her.
"I know." She sputtered at his dry tone, a fine tremor returning to her hands as she clutched at him.
"You know? You know? Well then you should know that it was my fucking fault." He hummed again, absently reaching up to touch the place where the hole in his skull used to reside.
"That's pretty interesting- I could have sworn that a monster hit me over the head with a club. I did have a pretty severe brain injury though. Was it you, then?" Unimpressed with his weak attempt to manipulate her, Rose scowled at him.
"You know it wasn't-" He cut her off, raising a brow at her while popping his lips.
"Right- so you threw me at the Minotaur? Just getting my facts straight." Now getting progressively more irritated, Rose responded.
"No- but that's not the point-" Steve cuts her off again, sky colored eyes regarding her severely.
"The point is that I can't see any conceivable way that what happened was your fault. You didn't hit me, you didn't throw me at what did hit me, and you sure as hell didn't send the damned thing, so unless I'm missing something-" This time Rose cut him off, a strangled scream leaving her as her frustration reached a boiling point.
"I tripped!" When Steve just starred at her, seemingly un-phased by her exclamation, she pushed on- almost desperate to convince him that she had been culpable. "We were running for our lives and I fucking tripped." She trailed off, voice gradually quieting as tears tightened her throat again. "I was stupid and clumsy and useless and you died, Steve." She glanced up at him from underneath her lashes, face etched in the perfect picture of misery as she traced his features with damp eyes. "I felt your heart stop."
It's such a simple sentence, but Steve can hear the message hiding underneath it. "I felt your heart stop- and mine stopped too."
Hadn't he been where she was? Left starring at your hands, heart hollow and aching, wondering if you had just been better- just been more- they'd still be there? He didn't think there was anything he could really say to make this better for her. There was a quote he'd once heard from one of Darcy's favorite shows- "There's nothing more hateful than failing to protect the one you love." And it was the truth. His girl was so resilient, but she was also a creature ruled by her heart; the only thing that could ever truly wound your heart was hatred.
Hearts broke and were remade all the time- hatred left scars.
Sighing to himself, Steve raised a hand and ran it tenderly down her tear stained cheeks. After thinking for a moment he finally settled on what he wanted to say, licking his lips before speaking, his voice little more than a baritone whisper.
"Sometimes, when it's very quiet, I can still hear you screaming on the beach." Rose regarded him quietly, the wound in her heart throbbing at the bare pain in his voice. "I'm not sure how to make this make sense to you- but you've never had to live in a world without you in it, Rosie. I did." He swallowed wetly, jaw subtly clenching as he shot a glance back at Bucky. "I've had to live in a world without both of you." He directed his eyes to the hand on Rose's cheek, fingers spasming as he regarded the digits. "I reached out, held your hands in mine, and then watched your eyes slip away when you died anyways. I'm not sure if it was fate, or chance, or just terrible timing- but I've lost you both." Brows furrowing with determination, he locked eyes with Rose, sky colored eyes darker than she'd ever seen them.
"You tripping? Rose- that was an accident. What came after? As terrible as it was for you, that was my choice. You and Bucky are the one thing I won't give up. I said I'd never be done with you, and I meant that. I would crawl into hell and rip the devil apart with my bare hands if it meant keeping you safe- so if you think for one god damn second I'd let some mythical cow take you from me, you've got another thing coming. Chance or time or fate- I don't care. I choose you." Rose gaped at him, heart pounding and heat prickling her skin from the sheer intensity radiating from the blond.
Pretty sure my panties just spontaneously combusted.
….
No comment?
If I didn't love him already, I would love him now.
…Not the exact emotion I was going for, but I'll take it.
He has a point though….
About what?
I choose him. I choose both of them. Tripping might have been an accident, but its one that won't happen again.
We can't just decide to not be a disaster.
No, but I can decide to not be useless. I froze out there- lost us time we didn't have. It won't happen again.
Damn right.
If that crazy bitch wants me dead, she'll just have to fucking fight me like everyone else. Life has tried to take too much from me already. The only way it's taking anything else is if it finally gets the balls to kill me first.
Bucky observed the two great loves of his life, and tried to swallow down the dread clawing its way up his throat. He could tell that the guilt that Rose had been suffering from had lessened somewhat, but in its place was a determination that he was all too familiar with. Both of them were fighters- protectors- and he loved them for it. Hell, he was somewhat of a protector himself (though he refused to see himself as a hero- not like they were).
That desire made them blind.
Both had decided "death before loss"- and it would make them stupid. They would throw themselves into harm's way to keep each other safe, blind to consequence and pain, and they would pay the price for it. The worst part? He could see it coming, and he couldn't do a damn thing to stop it. Hell, he couldn't even be angry about it. Given the choice between their deaths and his own? It wasn't even a choice.
He just prayed that his choice came before their own.
Next to him, Damien lets out a snort, smirking when the two blondes jump, apparently so stuck in their own worlds that they'd forgotten he was there.
"God, you guys are dramatic. Seriously. There's usually way less 'doom and gloom' after I heal someone on the brink of death, which-"He gave Steve a little smirk, jauntily winking at the still crouching blond. "-by the way, you're welcome. Glad I could pull you out of the vegetable patch, Cap." Steve raised a brow, unimpressed by the man's glibness, but gave him a little nod, silently acknowledging the truth of the statement and conveying his gratitude. A little guilty that she hadn't thanked the man, Rose began to stammer out apologies, intermingling them with her own gratitude for the dark haired god's help. Damien just rolled his eyes at her, waving the babbling blonde off with a fond smirk.
"Stop, Rosie-Posy- you'll make me blush." The sun god snickered, waggling his eyebrows teasingly. "Though, if you want to repay me you can start by replacing my bedroom door. You're probably going to have to buy a new one- pretty sure the old one is only good for kindling." Rose stuttered, flushing brilliantly at the startled and amused faces of her two slowly grinning boyfriends. Curious, but not terribly surprised, Steve gave her a playful nudge, sky colored eyes glinting down at her mischievously.
"Rosie- Angel- did you kick in Damien's door?" The man in question scoffed, interrupting Rose before she could reply.
"Kick in? How plebeian. She blew it up." Now genuinely shocked, both men gaped at the still stuttering blonde. Damien ignored their shock to elaborate. "You owe me a new shirt, too- you burnt holes in my only good one while you were kicking my ass." Somehow, the news that the blonde had all but fought the deity to enlist his help settled both men, lessening their shock and curiosity to a manageable level.
Because of course Rose would try to throw hands with arguably one of the most powerful men on the planet.
Satisfied that he'd broken the serious mood, Damien clapped his hands, grinning almost boyishly as a thought occurred to him.
"Now that that's settled- we should probably let everyone know how awesome I am." He paused, wrinkling his nose before waving the thought off. "And that you're not doing your best 'Terri Schiavo' impersonation- but I feel like how awesome I am is the more pressing issue." The brunet shrugged, continuing. "That's beside the point. The point is that, knowing my sister, there's definitely going to be a party."
-_-_-_-Page-Break-_-_-_-
There was, in fact, a party.
Rose thinks she probably would have enjoyed it more if Darcy hadn't punched her in the face.
Granted, she probably (definitely) deserved it, but that didn't actually lessen the sting (or reduce the swelling on her face).
Once she'd managed to blink back the stars from her eyes (and calm down her irate boyfriends), Rose had turned her attention to the fuming brunette.
"Darcy- I deserved that." The feral woman sniffed at her, arms crossed unrepentantly under her bosom. "I'm sorry I punched you when Steve was in the hospital." Rose swallowed tightly, the memory of that day still close and, as such, still terribly painful to recall. "I wasn't in a good place, but that doesn't excuse me hurting you." Darcy blinked at her, lips wobbling as she regarded her stubbornly. "You're my best friend- I should never have hit you. And, at the very least, I should have apologized sooner-" She cuts off with a startled squeak when the taller woman suddenly lunged forward, sandwiching her between her breasts in an exuberant hug.
"Shut up, Rosie- I forgave you the second it happened." Relieved that the brunette forgave her, Rose slumped into her embrace, closing her eyes in contentment as her friend gave her a fond squeeze. "That doesn't mean I didn't have to pay you back for it, though. I ain't no punk bitch." Rose snorted at the dry delivery, giving the brunette a return squeeze before opening her mouth to reply.
"Well- this is all very quaint." There was a sudden stillness as everyone acknowledged the new voice, collectively turning to face the dark haired woman lazily sprawled across one of the large leather couches in the Rec Room. Rose barely had a chance to blink before the room all but exploded, various Avengers and Gods lunging for their weapons and taking up defensive positions in the room.
All, Rose distractedly noticed, with the exception of Athena.
The pastel haired woman watched the proceedings with her familiar detached boredom, making eye contact with the teal eyed woman before relaxing on the bar stools, golden eyes alert but unbothered. The dark haired woman seemed similarly unbothered, thin lips stretched in an amused smile, revealing the tiniest gap between her front teeth.
"Come now- this is all a little dramatic, don't you think? I am family after all." Pietro, all but vibrating next to his sister, scoffed at the woman.
"Lady, I don't know who you think you are but-" The woman cut him off with a wave of her hand, aqua colored magic sparkling threateningly off her fingers.
"That's quite enough from you, little boy. I was not speaking to you." She cut her eyes to Jane, grin widening at the lightning sparking off of the blonde's hands. "I was speaking, to my King." She sat up slowly, the golden dress draped elegantly over her body shifting to reveal shades of teal and green as she adjusted herself. When the only response she got was Thor coming to stand in front of the blonde, she rolled her eyes, shifting her focus to Rose. On either side of her, Steve and Bucky tensed, silently running over every way they could extract the petite blonde from the room.
"Ah, little swan- surely you, at the very least, remember me." Rose frowned, eyes scanning the other woman as she struggled to figure out where exactly she knew her from.
It's when her eyes catch on the massive peacock tattooed on her shoulder, that the answer finally hits her.
Eyes lighting up rose-gold with rage, Rose snarled angrily at the smirking woman, light beginning to pulse and beam underneath her skin as protectiveness surged through her.
"Hera." The goddess glanced at the sparks dancing off her fingers and raised a sharp brow at her, smile taking on a harsh edge as she rose gracefully to her feet.
"My, my- but you have grown, my little swan." The smile slid off of her face, an almost cruel regality settling over her features as she regarded the heroes and gods gathered in the room. "It seems that we have quite a lot to discuss." There was a quiet ripple as the air around her distorted, eyes lighting up teal as her power spread oppressively through the room, delivering a message every single resident felt in the pit of their being.
The Queen of the Gods had arrived- and she would not be trifled with.
"Shall we begin?"
`~`~`A/N`~`~`
The Queen of the Bad Bitches has arrived! Hold on to your hats, guys- next chapter is going to have a lot of exposition and Big Dick Energy. Thoughts? Comments? Favorite lines/parts? I seriously love hearing from you guys!
