Title: Gold Rush
Pairing: CaptainAmerica-WinterSoldier-FemaleOC (poly)
First language isn't English, so please point out spelling or grammer mistakes. Be specific when pointing them out so I can correct them.
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Chapter 9 just doesn't seem to end!
Chapter 9 part 5
What was I thinking accepting to play a game of paintball with a bunch of super heroes? Sarah and I didn't stand a change! During the first two games we got shot within ten minutes and I think they even gave us some time wander around before they came after us. I thought I could focus on going after AJ and Cass and maybe even Sam, but they liked to team up with the Captain and the Sergeant, meaning I didn't stand a change. Not that I minded getting shot quickly perse but it did make me look rather pathetic. And Natasha was having way too much fun with hunting me down. During the first game I could feel her eyes on me the whole time and it freaked me out. I felt relieved when her bullets hit me, multiple time I might add. One of them hitting my upper arm and hurting a lot. Why do I always accept playing this game? It hurts like hell! I'm going to be sore tomorrow. During the second game the red head teamed up with Clint and they went after the Captain and Sarah's boys. I thought I was safe but ended up getting shot by the Sergeant. His bullet came out of nowhere and hit me in my back. It surprised me so much I nearly toppled over and a familiar pain went threw my body for a split second. I had to blink a few times to realize what had happened. The man's smirk made me snap out of it. Oh, I want to wipe that smirk of his face!
"I can't believe Sam outsmarted me, AGAIN!" Sarah complained as we sat down on the loser bench to wait for the others to finish. It was our third game and we didn't even last five minutes. I pulled of the protection vest and inspected the bruise that was forming on my upper arm thanks to Natasha. The skin was already changing color. Sarah kept puffing and complaining: "And I can't believe Cass shot me. He's not allowed on his Xbox for a week!"
"You are grounding him because he played a game that you told him he had to play?" I asked and raised an eyebrow at her. I liked this woman and her complete lack of keeping her cool while playing. During the third game we were on opposing teams and went after one and other. When we found each other, we emptied our register and only one shot landed on our bodies. Sarah kept ragging that it was impossible that we only managed to hit each other once, while standing so close.
"We need to come up with a plan to take down Sam because he will never let me live this down," Sarah growled, fuming over losing from her brother. Their sibling rivalry was funny to watch. Sam was a patient man who didn't let his emotions get to him, while Sarah was the complete opposite and couldn't keep her cool: "And I wane make Barnes pay for shooting me in the first game."
"I hear you, but do you really expect us to come up with a plan to outsmart the Sergeant?" I asked and eyed her. She can't expect us to come up with anything good. I hadn't been shot by the Captain, but that didn't surprise me. When I explained the game to him earlier, he didn't seem all that thrilled about shooting me.
"Good, because I'm a fan of shooting you and I'm a sore loser."
"You know, he does have a weakness we can use to our advantage," Sarah said after a few minutes of trying to come up with a plan. I raised an eyebrow at her and eyed her curiously. What could we possible do to surprise him and catch him of guard? He probably has enhanced hearing so he will hear us long before we even notice him: "And what would that be?"
"He is a sucker for a woman in distress," Sarah eyed me knowingly: "And I'm guessing from the way he looks at you, you could play that role."
"Excuse me?" I asked, my voice going higher than I intended it to go. I really don't want to get into that right now, but she assured me she didn't need to know the details: "I'm just wondering if you were to hurt yourself, would that throw him of his game?
"Maybe. Who would shoot a woman when she's in pain from maybe spraining her ankle?" I thought out loud and wondered if I could really act that well to make him help me. It would make him look bad if he didn't offer me help, but he's a trained agent. I doubt I can lie well enough to fool him.
"It's plausible, I mean the terrain is uneven and you are a clumsy woman," Sarah said and I stuck my tongue out at her: "You are forgetting one crucial thing though. I might get him distracted, but is your aim good enough to actually hit him?"
"I'll just open fire on him and pray I don't hit you," she joked and I let my head hang low: "This is going to hurt."
"Yeah, but it's for a good cause, so suck it up," Sarah slapped me on my back and we finalized our plans to get even with the Sergeant and Sam, who would most likely team up with him if they were on the same team.
"I would also love to get even with Natasha," I thought out loud and saw Clint walk towards us, his head hanging low in defeat. He was covered in multiple paint colors, telling us the others must have teamed up on him. But seeing him gave me an idea to get back at Natasha: "Hey Clint, I need a favor…"
…
"Okay guy's this is our last game. Do we make new teams or…?" Sam asked as we stood in a circle and reloaded our guns, but Sarah was quick to interrupt him: "My team will be AJ, Wanda, Clint and Alex."
"Do you really want to lose again Sarah?" Sam asked her and her sons snickered behind their uncle's back, resulting in her sending them an evil glare: "You know what Sam. You take both boys. Call it mom's revenge."
"Are you sure you don't want to be on our team?" the Captain whispered in my ear while I stuffed some extra bullets in my pockets. He saw but didn't mention it. The Sergeant stood on my other side, his arm softly brushing against mine. I noticed both men were covered in only two red stains, signaling they had been shot by Natasha, who only had one yellow stain on her. She seems to be really good at this game. I felt the Captain's hand gently touch my back as he continued: "We could keep you safe."
"Don't get me wrong, but I'd rather shoot the two of you," I got back at him, the corners of his lips turning up slightly. As Sam and Sarah's sibling rivalry was keeping the others entertained, the Sergeant leaned in as well and whispered in my ear, but loud enough for the Captain to hear: "I'd rather be doing others things to you, but if that's what you want."
The Captain shoved his friend quickly for his bold statement and sent him a look that he went too far. I tried to hide my red cheeks, not wanting anyone else to see me blushing. I can't believe the Sergeant sometimes. I didn't mind his bold words when it was in private, but everyone could have heard that. It seems the Captain shared my opinion on that. The Sergeant wasn't impressed by it though and sent us both his trusty grin before ruffling the blond man's hair: "Don't act all high and mighty punk. Don't let him fool you ma'am, he's not nearly as innocent as he'd like you to believe."
"Shut up jerk," the Captain cursed under his breath and avoided my eyes. Maybe the Sergeant is on to something. I leaned closer to the Captain and slide my hand into his and squeezed it. I whispered to him, pleased with his reddening cheeks: "Let's hope not."
"Guy's, let's go. You can chat her up later Steve," Natasha called out to us, getting our attention. The Captain and I immediately stepped back to have a more appropriate distance between us, but the Sergeant didn't move. As the others walked away, I noticed the man lay his hand on the Captain's shoulder, but the other man shrugged him off roughly. I scratched my ear as I watched them walk away.
"So, what's our plan?" Clint asked as we huddled together in our cabin once the others were out of sight. It was funny to see how serious everyone was taking this. No one wanted to get shot and have to do the walk of shame. Sarah and I had an excuse and so did her sons, but the others all had training of some sorts.
"Sarah and I are going to try and take out Barnes and Sam," I said, not really sounding confident. Clint and Wanda raised their eyebrows at me. I raised my shoulders at them: "With the emphasis on try."
"I'll go after Nat and do as we discussed," Clint said and winked at me. I wonder if it'll work. Sarah and Wanda didn't understand what we were up to, but didn't ask: "Fine, that leaves Steve and the boys for me. I'll keep the flag with me and try to lure out AJ and Cass."
"I would prefer it if my boy's stayed in one piece," Sarah warned Wanda with a rather stern smile, that felt a bit out of place. Wanda's usual strong appearance seemed to crumple because of Sarah's words and she lowered her eyes to the ground.
"I thought you wanted to get even with them?" I tried to humor the woman, but I seemed to only make it worse. Sarah's tone became even more stern as she told me that Wanda made her boy's fly during her last visit and Cass almost broke his wrist because of it. Wanda looked away guilty and I could feel the uplifting atmosphere from earlier change. I wonder what Wanda was doing to end up making the boy's fly. Clint laid his hand on Wanda's shoulder for comfort: "And that's why we have power rules."
"Okay, I'm not sure what motivating speeches you guy's give each other before heading into battle, but here's mine," I said and took a deep breath, trying to lighten the mood: "I have been shot enough and I want to at least win one round, so you a-holes better not fuck this up."
"Good speech," Clint said and the others chuckled at my words. We heard the warning shot that signaled the start of the game. Clint sent me a wink and pulled out his phone while he walked off. He was going to call his wife and pass my number along to them. His youngest son, Nate, had to call me in ten minutes. Wait a minute, I'm playing bait twice in this game? Wanda stayed with Sarah and me to track down the Sergeant and Sam, before I would try and get even with Natasha, who Clint would keep occupied until then. This is never going to work, our plan comes down to me distracting everyone and Sarah shooting everyone. We're doomed!
"I want to apologize about the last time I visited Sarah," Wanda started, but Sarah stopped her before she could say anything else. Her very riled-up attitude from playing the game, was replaced by a something else: "Listen, I get that my boy's find you and your powers cool and you like it that they look up at you. But the next time you think of showing of, think about this: what happens when someone breaks your concentration and they fall and break their necks because of it? Will the showing of still be cool then?"
Wanda realized that whatever had happened, Sarah's reaction was valid and her words were true. She noted in understanding, while I stood awkwardly between them: "I'll remember that."
"There's a reason I don't allow that shield of the good Captain on my property either," Sarah continued and I wonder if she was really okay with the group staying at her house. She seemed to be panting up some of her frustrations. When she discovered this morning that we had eaten all the chips last night, she had not been amused.
"He and Barnes were messing around with it one time, throwing it between them. AJ saw it and wanted to join them. The shield nearly hit him in the head," Sarah told us and I looked shocked at her. So did Wanda: "Steve would never…"
"Accidents happen, especially when people with super powers mingle with normal people and forget that. Luckily my son didn't get hurt. So, I mean it when I say to be careful and no powers around my boy's," Sarah made very clear and Wanda noted again, but she didn't look the woman in the eye. Sarah took a deep breath: "I know you are a good woman Wanda, but don't mess around in my house."
"Understood," Wanda accepted and I made a mental note to talk to her after the game to make sure she was alright. Sarah's words were hard, but true. As they sunk in, I realized they also applied to me. Super soldiers have super strength. What happens when they…
"Barnes is coming our way, Sam is following him," Wanda saved me from my thoughts and I was glad for it. She looked in the direction the two men were coming from and I tightened my grip on my paintball gun. I really hope this will work, because I want to save what is left of my pride, not that it is much.
"Good, let's find out if this one can act," Sarah said and noted her head to me, making me roll my eyes. I was pleased to see a slight grin appear on Wanda's face. I laid my hand on the witch her shoulder and squeezed it for comfort, but turned my attention to Sarah: "You just remember what I told you about hitting me in the process."
"You'll have to catch me first, so I'll take my changes," Sarah joked and we found her a hiding spot while Wanda disappeared in the woods, laying in wait for Sam. Sarah and I pushed some branches with leaves together and made a hideout for the woman. An awkward silence hung between us, so I scratched my throat: "This game really brings out the best in everyone, don't you think."
"I know, but she asked so I felt entitled to speak the truth. Did I go too hard on her?" Sarah asked me and looked a little guilty. Maybe she did, but can anyone blame her for trying to protect her children? I shook my head to get ride of a memory: "You can never be to hard on someone when you are protecting your kids, Sarah. I'll talk to her later."
"I did mean every word that I said. These guys tend to forget that we aren't as strong as they are. So, watch out," she warned me and looked me dead in the eye. I didn't know how to respond to that, so I stayed quiet.
"Now let's focus on shooting Barnes and my brother," Sarah ended the serious conversation and I was grateful for that. I understood what she meant and it had crossed my mind before, but I guess handsome smiles and devilish grins made me ignore that fact: "You're right, time for action. I'll head up, you watch my back. And if you shoot me, I'm switching sides and coming back to haunt you."
Sarah grinned at me and hid behind her self-made hideout while I continued walking ahead. Great, so I have to really fake this fall or else the Sergeant is never going to buy it. Up ahead the ground made a dip and I could use that to accidently hurt myself. My heart was already beating faster when I started to jog. I said a little prayer as I came up to the dip and pretended to twist my ankle. I fell down rather spectacularly, if I do say so myself. My gun lay forgotten on the ground as I cursed loudly. I rolled over, leaves sticking to my protection vest and grabbed my ankle, still cussing and cursing. Sure, enough the Sergeant showed himself after a minute, his gun in front of him, aimed at me: "What are you doing?"
I looked behind me in fake surprise and my face twisted in pain as I pretended that I hurt myself more: "Ah damn it! I think I sprained my ankle."
"And how did that happen?" he asked me and I could tell he was keeping his distance and not buying my story. His eyes were scanning the area and I prayed that Sarah stayed quite long enough for me to distract him. If I could cry on command, I would have: "What do you think? I was running and twisted it."
The Sergeant walked closer to me, but his focus was still on our surroundings. I need to get him to focus his attention on me: "Can you help me up Sergeant?"
His gaze was so intense it made me shiver. I knew it was a fake gun he was aiming at me, but a scarry thought still crossed my mind. God, he must be terrifying when facing his opponents. I scratched my ear again as I swallowed hard and held out my hand, trying to engage him in helping me up. His shoulders lowered slightly, but he didn't take my hand. I decided to stand up, struggling to keep my weight of my supposed injured foot. I cursed under my breath to emphasizes the fact I was in pain. The Sergeant lowered his gun slightly, but he kept looking around: "You're not alone, are you?"
"Neither are you," I said, continuing my great performance of being in pain and laid my hand on his arm for support. He scanned the area one more time, but then lowered his gun and laid his arm around my body. I adverted my eyes and bit the inside of my cheek to keep myself from grinning.
"Are you alright?" the Sergeant asked me and I looked up into his eyes and smiled weakly at him: "I think I'll live, but I could use some help getting back."
We were both rattled when we heard someone running in the bushes behind us. The Sergeant moved so fast, his arm tightening around my waist as he turned us both around and aimed his gun with one hand to where the noise came from. I turned my face into the man's chest and shrieked: "Don't shoot, I'm already injured!"
Some more noises followed but we realized it sounded like someone running away and not someone coming towards us. We looked at each other and I could see in his eyes he was wondering if it was Sam or someone from my team running away. I decided to goat him a little and rolled my eyes and cursed again: "Damn you Sarah for abandoning me."
"I don't know what you are playing at but I'm not buying your little act," the Sergeant told me and I was a little taken aback he didn't believe me. Then again, he is trained to interrogate someone, so it must be rather easy to see threw my lies: "Good to know Sergeant, now about you helping me get back. I'm ready whenever you are."
The man hesitated as he looked at me with weary eyes. I decided to call out to Sam, hoping he was still around: "Hey Sam, that was Sarah running of. If you hurry, you might be able to catch her. She seemed rather desperate to get back at you."
We heard more bushes rattling and branches breaking. Wanda was doing an excellent job at creating a distraction, while Sarah stayed hidden in the bushes, waiting for the opportunity to shoot the Sergeant.
"Bucky, you got this?" I heard Sam from behind me and we both looked at the man, who had been hiding behind a thick tree. The Sergeant lowered his gun and hung it on his back: "Yeah, you go get your sister. I'll help her get back to the front."
Sam ran in the direction he thought that Sarah had run of, shouting for her to run because he was coming for her. He sounded way to excited to go after her.
"Why would you tell him that?" the Sergeant asked me and before I could even say a word, he lifted me up and held me bridal style. I chuckled to try and hide my blush, but he still noticed. He leaned his head against mine and grinned at me: "Guess I got you all alone after all."
"Watch it Sergeant, the Captain's not around to defend my honor," I told him, but that only made his grin widen. I snuck my arms around his neck, making sure his attention was on me and hoping Sarah would make her move soon: "Besides, she bailed on me so she's on her own."
"Her loss is my gain," the Sergeant grinned at me and tightened his hold on my body. I laid one hand against his cheek and was about to say something inappropriate, when a sharp pain hit my other hand. I pulled it back cursing and saw a big yellow spot of paint in the middle of my hand, that had been resting on the Sergeants back. The man saw it too and he looked alarmed and concerned at me, his eyes betraying he didn't know how to react. Sarah took advantage of his hesitation and emptied her register on him. He pushed my head into his chest and protected my body from other incoming bullets. Two hit his back, making him grunt threw his teeth.
"This is some fun game you people like to play," the Sergeant growled at me when Sarah stopped firing. I would have loved to throw this victory in his face but the pain in my hand was preventing me from doing so: "Damn it, Sarah! That hurt!"
"Did you just…," the Sergeant asked me while I was preoccupied with whipping the paint of my hand to see if the impact of the paint bullet had bruised or maybe even broken anything: "Lie my ass of? Of course. Never heard of the saying all is fair in love and war? But it's good to know you wouldn't let the game get to your head."
"I'm going to get back at you for this," the Sergeant whispered and the look he gave me made me shiver significantly.
"Would you look at that? James Barnes taken down by two civilian women. What will his colleges say when they hear about this?" Sarah's voice sounded very cheery while she walked up to us. The Sergeant put me down slowly and I felt his hands slide up my sides before taking my injured hand in his: "This is going to hurt for a while."
"Wait, I actually shot you?" Sarah asked me when she saw my hand, that was shaking slightly from the pain. She immediately apologized for hurting me, but I waved it of saying it was rather incredible she had managed to hit my hand: "Really Sarah, it's just a bruise. It'll heal."
"We should get you some ice for that," Sarah suggested but I was not laying down in defeat, I could do this. I shook my head and pushed away the pain: "Hell no, we are going after Sam and then I want a piece of Natasha."
"You really should get some…" the Sergeant tried to talk me out of continuing, but I was not going to listen. I might be in pain, but I was not going to let show that in front of him. I had been humiliated enough in this game. I was going walk this of, even though I would probably regret it later. I met Sarah's eyes and she seemed to understand that I didn't want to back down: "You heard her, dead man. Start walking."
"It's your turn to do the walk of shame," I tried to grin at the Sergeant, but I couldn't hide away the pain. I quickly looked away from the man, who was not buying my story and pulled out the extra paint bullets I took at the beginning of game and handed them to Sarah. She started reloading her gun, while the Sergeant gently grabbed my upper arm, sending another shock of pain threw my body. He grabbed me right where Natasha had shot me during our first game. I tried to hide it, but he noticed it none the less: "You should head back to…"
"It's fine, honestly. Natasha shot my arm during the first game, so I really want to get back at her for that," I said while rubbing my arm, trying to get rid of the pain. The man looked at Sarah, who had gone to pick up my gun and cupped my cheek with one hand: "Please don't injure yourself more. Steve's already going to get angry with me for allowing you to continue."
Once the Sergeant was out of sight, Sarah turned to me and asked if I was really okay. I sent her a dark glare: "You better make the shot when we find Sam or Natasha, because if this doesn't work out and we get shot, I'm shooting you in your hand."
"Deal," Sarah sighed but also slapped me on my back as we went in search for her brother and the red head: "But I'm also impressed. You're tougher than you look."
…
I felt conflicted about letting her continue the game injured as I walked to the front, but there wasn't much I could do about it. She's a grown woman, capable of making her own decisions. I was also impressed by the way she tried to hide the pain. Back in the day women tended to exaggerate their pain in order to get your attention and sympathy. I was very pleased to find out she wasn't like that.
"How is it possible that we are the first one's shot?" I hear Steve's voice as I walk out into the clearing and see the man sitting on the bench, alone. A green stain on his shoulder, signaling Clint managed to shoot him. I sat down next to him, but he immediately moved and made sure there was a certain distance between us. I knew that comment earlier was going to come back and bite me.
"How the hell am I here before Sarah is?" the voice of Sam shouted and we saw the man walk up to us. His bruised ego quickly fading when he noticed the yellow stains on my protection vest: "You did not get taken down by my sister?"
"Afraid so," I admitted but I wasn't going to explain how they managed to do that: "Who shot you?"
Sam turned around and multiple green stains were covering his back. Clint seems to be on a roll during this game: "I thought I was running after Sarah, but turns out it was Wanda messing around and Clint shot me when I was trying to shoot Wanda."
Sam started walking up to the office, that was really just a shack, asking if we wanted something to drink. Steve declined but I asked for a bag if ice. She's going to need it when she gets here. Both men eyed me curious, but I ignored it. I didn't need Steve to get into protective mode with Sam standing nearby. As Sam walked up to the 'office', Steve asked me what had happened. His tone was far too serious and it confused me. I told him how Sarah and Alex managed to get me to lower my defenses, what brought a smile to the man's face, but that quickly disappeared when I told him that Alex got shot in her hand: "And you let her continue?"
"Relax Steve, she knows what she's doing," I tried to assure him, but knew he wasn't going to buy it. He has always been rather protective over others and when someone gets injured, he's the first one to offer a helping hand. Hell, he's travelled with me to Wakanda almost every time I went for repairs and updates on my metal arm or whenever my shoulder was acting up. He never leaves my side and keeps a close eye on whoever is working on me. Shuri is the only one who is able to ignore his intense stares and willing to put up with him.
Steve stayed quiet and that surprised me. When does he ever let things go? I did notice he kept fidgeted next to me. I laid my arm around his shoulder and wanted to ruffle his hair, but he pushed me back with more force then necessary. It bugged me that he looked around to make sure no one saw the harmless contact, but I didn't voice me annoyance and waited for him to continue.
"I felt her get shot. I still feel she's in pain," he confessed and I looked surprised at him. He admitted to me before that he can feel whenever I am in pain ever since I was brought back, but this was the first time he mentioned feeling her. When I still had my left human arm, I could feel whenever Steve would get sick. I was able to anticipate it by keeping him indoors for a few days, bring him soup, extra medicine or just keep an eye on him whenever his mother wasn't around. That hasn't happened since I lost my arm and my soul mark.
"Well, I guess that's a good thing, right?" I tried to cheer him up, but knew he wasn't happy about how this went down. Hopeless romantic Stevie probably wanted it to be more…romantic, not her suffering. Seeing her flinch away when I grabbed her arm said enough about how much those bullets hurt when they hit your skin. Strange game these people like to play.
"Don't say it like that," he growled at me. I couldn't help but roll my eyes at him because he was being ridiculous: "Like what?"
"Like I'm over reacting."
"I'm not. You're just expecting things to go a certain way, but they didn't and that pisses you off. I warned you to stop thinking with your head in the clouds," I told her sternly. He knew I was right and resented me for it. He's the dreamer and I'm the realist. And I'm pretty sure I have a better understanding of the female population because of that. He still likes to believe that meeting your soulmate will automatically mean happiness. I know better and I know she thinks the same way as I do about the subject.
"And don't be so coarse," he snapped at me and it made me chuckle because the only reason he would say that was because he lost our little argument. He's rather a sour loser once you get to know him. I looked over my shoulder and saw Sam wasn't on his way back yet, so I laid my arm around his neck and pulled him closer in a headlock, this time using more force. He tried to push me off, but I had the advantage. I let my fingers slide into his soft blond hair: "Don't be so uptight. She didn't seem to mind it and if she did, I'm sure she would tell me."
"Why are you always so forward and arrogant in your pursuit of someone?" Steve asked me and I quickly grabbed a handful of his hair roughly before releasing it again: "It's to even out your tenderness and timidity."
That made him laugh again. I let my finger slide threw his hair one more time before letting him go, my arm laying on the table behind his back. He noticed but didn't say anything about it. I know he's much more reserved than I am and he prefers to keep private matters private, so I indulged him a lot, but sometimes he has to indulge me.
