"No, you stop it! I need to get this done." I said laughing at Steve.
"I'm just trying to help." He pouted.
"Go clean something, you're killing me." I grinned.
Steve continued to pout but left the kitchen. I smiled to myself as I stirred the potatoes. Steve did try to help but his incompetence in the kitchen hindered him. It was 6:28 and dinner was almost done.
"Jay, come here please," Steve said voice coming from the front door.
I sighed when Nat and Maria's scent hit my nostrils. They were hesitant to come in until they knew I wasn't going to attack them. I felt awful. Nat was trying to protect Maria just in case I couldn't handle them being here. I wouldn't attack them, now that I was coming to terms with what Bucky had done, I wasn't so quick to snap. They weren't out to hurt me or Steve, I knew that.
"Hey Puppy!" Maria greeted.
"Hi," I said still unsure of how to handle her.
She stepped into the house and wrapped her arms around my neck. I embraced her and watched as Nat smiled at me. Maria stepped away from me grinning.
"Nat, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have taken out my frustrations on you." I said.
"It's okay, I understand." She said hugging me herself.
"Do you need any help in the kitchen?" Maria asked.
"Don't do it! He'll yell at you." Steve said pouting again.
"Only if you can't cook," I said sticking my tongue out at him.
Soon Tony and Pepper arrived and I apologized then we had dinner. Everyone enjoyed it. Pepper was also very sweet, she seemed to keep Tony in check.
That night we went to bed early. Steve curled up around me, keeping me warm. Several days later we were on out way to the Hydra base. Steve introduced me to Sam Wilson, one of his close friends also known as the Falcon. Sam was down to earth and seemed nice enough. He took all of the sarcasm that Tony had to give and threw it back at him. He also hung out with me while Fury was talking to Steve.
"So, you and the Captain?" He cut himself off seeming to hesitate.
"Yeah," I answered.
"Damn, who would have thought?" He said smiling.
"Not many." I gave him a shy smile.
"Does he treat you well?" Sam asked suddenly serious.
"Yeah, why?" I questioned.
"No reason really. I just know being a homosexual was illegal back in his time, just wanted to make sure he was coming to terms easily." He explained.
Come to think of it, Steve had come to terms with his sexuality well and quickly. Almost like whatever or whoever had written out our stories and intertwined our lives had forgotten for a moment that Captain America wasn't supposed to be gay.
I shrugged it off.
"I'm happy for you two. You both seem really happy." He said patting my back.
"Thanks," I said.
"Well, you two are getting along nicely," Steve said finally done talking to Fury.
"Of course, I got the ladies and the fellas after me." Sam joked.
"No offense but you're not really my type." I laughed pulling Steve closer to me.
"What? Not your type? Infeasible!" Sam said crossing his arms.
"Sorry, Sammy he's mine," Steve said kissing me.
"Hey if you ever get tired of this old man you can call me up." Sam joked, winking and patting Steve on the arm.
"So Fury wanted me to break the news to you. Bucky has been at this base recently, there's a chance he's either still there or close enough to come back and aid in their defense. If you want to stay back you can. We'll leave Nat and Thor with you." Steve warned.
"No, I knew that running into him was a possibility. I can't let that stop me from doing things. If he's there then so be it." I said resting my head on his chest.
"Alright, I'll be there with you," Steve reassured me.
When we landed and were ready to attack I got an odd feeling in my chest. Not a "something bad is going to happen" feeling just an off feeling.
"Alright guys, remember that this base is used to hold and train slaves. We need to be careful so none of them get caught in the crossfire." Nat reminded us.
We all nodded and entered the base. It was too quiet for their second largest base. We all glanced at each other looking around confused. I tried to ignore the assault on my senses. The whole place reeked of blood, BO, and other bodily fluids I didn't want to think about. The strong smell gagged me and I stood in the corner allowing myself to puke.
"Shit, if he's puking because of the smell then I'm glad for my weak human senses," Clint said.
"Are you good?" Steve asked rubbing my back.
"Yeah, I'm good," I said spitting the last bit of bile out of my mouth.
"Something it's right here," Nat said.
Flashbacks of my childhood suddenly came to the forefront of my mind.
"They expected us to hit this place at some point. Anyone or thing that would make them money has been relocated. If there are any innocent people left there aren't many." I said.
"That would make sense. How do you know this?" Sam asked.
"I use to be a weapon for Hydra. When I was about ten or so all of the student's got relocated to a different facility when the on we were in got threatened by shield." I said."That also means that the number of agents here will be minimal."
"That's not very comforting," Tony said.
"Our job now is to clear out who remains and then dismantle this place," Nat said.
"Alright, Tony and Hulk will go that way," Steve said pointed. "Thor, Nat, and Clint will go this way and Sam, Jayson, and I will take the last."
"Sounds good, Cap. You ready Big guy?" Tony asked.
Hulk justed grunted and we all split up.
"Jay, now maybe a good time to morph," Steve said pausing in his movement.
I nodded moving away from them and morphing. Sam seemed a bit put off but quickly recovered. We continued down the hall until I caught a whiff of three scents I recognized. My body froze and I could almost feel the metal prongs of the shock collar digging into my neck again. Steve and Sam both paused.
"What's up Jay?" Steve asked.
The hair on the back of my neck stood on end and I released a quiet growl. I slowly moved forward proceeding with caution. My ears swiveled listening for the sound of Hydra agents. I heard their breathing and heartbeats in the next room. Beyond that, I heard a woman crying and a man I recognized speaking to her aggressively. I was upset by that but when I heard a child whimper I shoved against Steve's legs and stared intensely at the door.
"Ready yourself, Sam," Steve said.
He kicked in the door and the agents opened fire. My sense of smell was not failing me. Amongst the thirteen agents stood two of the agents that paid me a visit while in "rehab" and the third was stepping out of a room where I could hear the woman's sobs coming from.
I went after one of the three I knew, taking him down by the throat and killing him more violently than I should have but I was angry. The second guy got the same treatment. The third ended up decapitated by Steve's shield. While Sam and Steve took care of the last few agents I carefully walked into the room where the woman sat huddled over a child. She seemed scared but the boy looked at me in wonderment. I lowered my head keeping my ears up trying to appear non-threatening. He held out his hand to me still looking at me with wide eyes. The woman finally seemed to notice me and confusion flashed in her eyes. I watched her carefully. Natural instinct told me to run from a distraught mother trying to protect her child but I took a step forward.
"I want to pet the puppy." The boy said still watching me.
The woman didn't respond still to awestruck to process what the child had said in his broken English. The boy beckoned me closer and I slowly approached them.
"Jay! Oh, uh, Sam call the others." Steve said from behind me.
The woman looked at him cautiously hold her child tighter. I laid down where I was putting myself between them and Steve in hopes of keeping her calm.
"Ma'am, we're not here to you or your child," Steve said putting his hands up.
She just continued to watch him. I belly crawled a bit closer leaning my head in when her hand reached out and gently touched my ear.
"What's going on?" Sam said coming in just to stop short as his eyes landed on the two extra people.
Steve held his arm out stopping Sam from attempting to move any closer.
"Ma'am, are you or the boy hurt?" Steve asked.
She took a deep breath then said," I think his arm is broken."
"Alright, my name is Steve, this is Sam and that's Jayson. We have others on their way, one of them will be able to splint his arm. Do you have any injuries?" Steve asked carefully.
"I'm fine." She said still stroking my ear.
"Where is your accent from?" Sam asked sitting down.
This was good. If he kept her talking, she was more likely to stay calm.
"Greece, I'm from the states though." she replied still guarded.
"Oh, cool. Where from in the states?" He asked.
"Nevada." She said curtly.
"Can I get a name for the both of you?" He questioned.
"I'm Sophia and this is Lukas." She replied bouncing the boy lightly.
"He's cute, looks a lot like you," Sam said. " How old is he?"
"He's two." She said moving her hand down my neck.
"Sorry, we came as quick as we could," Clint said.
"Is Nat still with you, this kid needs a splint on his arm," Steve explained.
"Right here," Nat said giving a light smile.
She approached the three of us carefully. Sophia seemed a bit more at ease but still didn't let Lukas go.
"Hi there, My name is Natasha, what's yours?" Nat said talking to the now scared child.
"Lukas." He said quietly.
"Oh, Lukas. What a handsome name for a handsome boy. Okay, I'm going to put a splint on your arm. I'll be gentle but it still might hurt, okay?" She was surprisingly good with children.
"I don't want it to hurt." He said.
"I know, we don't what it to hurt either. But putting a splint on it will help it heal faster so, soon it won't hurt at all." Nat said giving him a reassuring smile.
"Okay." He said giving in.
"Alright, I'll be slow and careful," Nat stated.
He showed her his bruised and swollen arm. Nat was very gentle only pulling a hiss from the child once. When she was done he looked over the bandage.
"Can I pet the puppy now?" He asked with an exasperated sigh.
"Yes, you can pet the puppy." She laughed.
I moved closer and the boy petted my head and neck with a huge smile.
"He's so soft." He said excitedly.
"Ma'am, now that he's bandaged will you come with us? We work for an organization called Shield. If you'll let us we'd like to help you and your son." Nat said.
"Shield is the organization that opposes Hydra?" Sophia questioned.
"Yes, we've been working hard to bring them down," Nat said.
"Alright," Sophia agreed reluctantly.