"You know, I think I actually liked you better when you were couldn't walk," Tony wheezed later the next day, clutching at his side.
Bucky glanced over his shoulder at him. "I could always carry you up the hill," he offered, straight-faced.
Tony scowled and took another step towards him, only for one foot to slip out from under him on the damp earth. Luckily he caught his balance before he could actually fall, arms flapping in a way that reminded Bucky of angry chickens.
"Shut up," Tony said, before Bucky could say anything.
Bucky grinned and raised his hands, but politely waited for Tony to catch up with him before he started walking again.
Despite their pace and injuries, they had made excellent time on their journey, and when Bucky had poked his head out of the cave that morning to check the weather, he had discovered two things: One, that the sun was out and the rain had long since stopped, and two - he could smell the sea.
They were almost to the coast. It had almost been enough to dispel the black mood that had overcome Bucky from the night before, and now that his leg was barely twinging - the hot bath having done wonders for the last of his pain - he'd made the executive decision that it was time to start climbing out of the valley.
Tony had seemed pretty enthused about the decision this morning - though that had been before any of the actual climbing had started.
"Are you sure you're not part mountain goat?" he'd demanded early on, gasping and sputtering up a particularly steep incline Bucky had cheerfully hopped up with hardly any effort.
Bucky had responded by offering him a piggyback ride, and had continued to do so just about every hour since, to increasingly colorful replies.
Though, truth be told, Bucky was just relieved he was getting replies at all after last night's debatical and ensuing awkward silence. Thankfully Tony seemed to have chosen to forget or ignore it, and had woken up as chatty and grumpy as ever, which had eased the knot in Bucky's stomach.
Bucky could stand his feeling for Tony being unreciprocated, but he didn't want to lose Tony as a friend.
"Seriously, though… is your leg okay?" Tony asked after a little more climbing, glancing sideways at Bucky and breaking him out of his reverie. "You're slowing down."
Bucky startled and looked down at his leg. It had started twinging again about an hour ago, but not enough to slow him down. "Yeah, it's fine," Bucky replied. "I don't want to push it, though." Or Tony, but Bucky wasn't going to say that out loud.
Tony frowned, looking as though he were trying to decide if Bucky was lying or not. "Okay," he said finally, though he still looked worried. "Just… say something if you want to stop, okay? We've come this far, a little longer isn't going to hurt anything."
Bucky grunted an affirmation, then smirked. "Are you sure you're not the one who wants to stop?" he teased.
Tony glared. "If you trip and fall, I'm not dragging you again," he sniffed, picking up his pace in an attempt to overtake Bucky.
Grinning to himself, Bucky let Tony stay ahead of him for a few paces, then picked up speed until they were walking side-by-side again.
"Sure you don't want to take a break?" he asked Tony innocently. "I think I saw some tasty moss on those rocks a little while back, and I could use a snack."
Tony opened his mouth to retort, but before he could say anything, his stomach rumbled.
Bucky raised his eyebrows. "I was actually joking, but if you're that hungry…"
Tony scowled. "I have made my position on moss very clear," he grumbled, putting a hand on his stomach when it growled again.
"Your stomach doesn't agree with you," Bucky said wryly.
Tony sniffed and rubbed his stomach, then sighed wistfully. "Steak," he said mournfully, closing his eyes and tilting his head back. "A nice, juicy steak, with bread and butter and maybe some potatoes…"
Bucky's mouth watered at the thought, his own stomach giving a few sympathy pangs. "Hey, now look what you did," he grumbled, and whacked Tony lightly on the arm. "Now I'm hungry, too."
Tony opened his eyes and grinned. "Oh, come on. If you could have any meal, here in front of you right now, what would it be?" he asked, lifting his arms and interlacing his fingers behind his head.
Bucky huffed, then bit his lip. "Stew," he admitted, then sighed longingly. "A giant bowl of stew, with a big slice of blueberry pie for dessert."
Tony actually whined. "Oh, God, dessert," he groaned, dropping his hands and tilting his head back again. "I think I'd have... hey, have you ever had ice cream before?" he asked, cocking his head and glancing sideways at Bucky.
Bucky shrugged. "No, but I've heard of it," he said, curiosity piqued. "It's a rich people thing, isn't it?"
Tony blinked in surprise, then chuckled. "Yeah, I guess it would be," he mused. "It's probably expensive for most folks to try and keep the ice if it isn't winter." He frowned to himself, as though surprised the thought hadn't occurred to him before, then shook his head and smiled sheepishly at Bucky. "Anyway, I had some at the Mar-Vell estate once. It's… cold and sweet and creamy, and cools you right off. One of the most amazing things you'll ever eat."
Tony sighed happily in memory, while Bucky wrinkled his nose.
"Like… sweet porridge that's been sitting out?" Bucky asked dubiously. That didn't sound amazing to him, but…
Tony made a face. "God, no. Nothing like that. It's…" He frowned thoughtfully, then brightened. "Have you ever had snow-cream in the winter?"
Bucky perked up. "Oh! Yeah, Stevie's ma used to make it every year. She'd make us - well, usually me, since winters were always rough on Steve's health - go out and gather buckets of snow whenever there was enough on the ground, and make a big batch of it." He smiled at the memory, then huffed and added, "Stevie used to make himself sick on the stuff."
Tony grinned. "Just Steve?" he teased, then shook his head. "Ice cream is like that, only ten times better. Like - well, since I had it when it was warm, there was still lots of fruit in season. So there was some with strawberries in it, and blueberries, and other stuff Carol had imported in."
Bucky tried to picture snow-cream with strawberries in it, and decided that yes, that did sound amazing.
"I think I'd like ice cream," Bucky agreed, digging into his pocket for some of their saved wildberries now that his stomach wouldn't stop growling.
"Then it's settled," Tony declared. "First thing we're doing when we get back - we're eating ice cream."
"And stew," Bucky added, offering Tony the berries.
Tony accepted a few, and nodded gravely. "And stew. And steak. And bread. And…"
They were still discussing the metaphorical feast they were going to have once they were home when Bucky started to get a twitchy, tingling sensation on the back of his neck.
Shoulders tensing, Bucky hummed in acknowledgement at something Tony said, and carefully scanned their surroundings, the twitchy sensation increasing all the while.
They were being watched. By whom, Bucky didn't know, but he could feel their eyes on him.
In the back of his mind, the Soldier shifting restlessly, and Bucky became hyper-aware of his surroundings.
"Stop here," Bucky said lowly, cutting off Tony's soliloquy on Ana's rack of lamb.
Tony looked startled, likely by Bucky's tone, but did as he was told.
"What's wrong?" he asked, following Bucky's lead and lowering his voice.
Bucky shook his head, and continued to scan their surroundings, focusing specifically on the hilltops. "Someone's watching us," he said, taking Tony's elbow and carefully pulling him towards the outcrop of rocks to their right.
Tony sucked in a sharp breath, but Bucky shook his head and put a finger to his lips. "Careful, we don't want them to know we're on to them," he said softly, pushing Tony into the outcrop's shade. There was a little niche between two boulders that looked like a good place to take cover, and Bucky didn't think anyone would be able to see them there from the top of the ridge, so he steered Tony into it.
"Can you see them?" Tony whispered, head tilted and eyes calculating.
"No," Bucky replied, reaching into his boot and freeing one of his knives. "They might not even be an unfriendly, but…"
He handed the knife to Tony, who blinked down at it in surprise and then frowned. "What's this for?"
"Stabbing," Bucky replied tersely, taking Tony's hand in order to adjust his grip on the hilt. "Hold it this way. I'm going to go scout ahead, and see if I can spot them. You stay and wait for me here, and -"
Tony startled. "What? No! We shouldn't split up," he protested, and nearly dropped the knife.
Bucky caught it - as well as Tony's hand - and firmly adjusted Tony's grip again.
"I have a better chance of sneaking up on them on my own," Bucky said, wrapping both of his hands around Tony's and squeezing. "I'm part mountain goat, remember?"
That didn't garner the reaction Bucky had expected, and instead of smiling, Tony looked even more mutinous.
"Then I should go ahead, so you can sneak up on them while they're distracted with me," he said, squaring his jaw.
"I'm not leaving you exposed out in the open," Bucky said sharply. Tony glared and opened his mouth to protest again, but Bucky didn't back down. "No, this isn't the cave, where we knew what we were dealing with. It might not even be something dangerous, but I'm not risking your life on it. You stay here, until I can asses the danger, and wait for me to come back. Understood?"
The Soldier was still simmering just under the surface, so Bucky let some of him slip into his voice. It must have worked, because Tony relented - but only a little.
"Ten minutes," Tony growled, twisting the hand that wasn't holding the knife around so he could grip Bucky's wrist. "If you're not back by then, I'm coming after you."
Bucky let out a frustrated hiss. The longer they stayed here and argued, the more likely it was that whoever was watching would get suspicious and come down to investigate, compromising the little hiding place entirely.
"Fine," Bucky snapped. "But not a second before, got it?"
Tony nodded, mollified, but didn't let go of Bucky's wrist. He leaned further into Bucky's space, then stopped himself, turning his head away and clearing his throat.
"If it does look like something, come back anyway. Don't try to take care of it yourself," he said, looking back up into Bucky's eyes and reluctantly letting go of Bucky's wrist.
"It might not be anything," Bucky said, even though his instincts were screaming otherwise.
Tony gave him a look, telling Bucky that he wasn't fooling anyone.
The hair on the back of Bucky's neck was still prickling when he stepped away from the outcrop, but he kept his stride even and his body language casual as he continued in the direction he and Tony had been heading.
Just scouting ahead a little, his body language said. Nothing to fear, just checking the path ahead, maybe foraging or looking for firewood.
Even though he was making an effort to remain calm and outwardly unworried, he could still feel the Soldier just under the surface, restless and unhappy with the way things were proceeding - and getting more so the further away Bucky got from Tony.
Danger, too much danger, the Soldier hissed, leaving Bucky struggling with the impulse to turn back.
Bucky took a deep breath and stomped the Soldier back down, surprised by how much effort it took. Other than a flash here and there, the Soldier had been noticeably calmer since he and Tony's escape - something Bucky hadn't truly realized until he'd started feeling him again now.
Monster, hissed a voice in the back of his head.
Bucky stumbled and then froze, heart hammering in his chest. That definitely hadn't been the Soldier, a realization that made his blood run cold.
Kill it, remove it from territory.
Bucky jerked his head upwards and towards the hilltop to his left, where several large boulders sat. He frowned at it and squinted, some instinct he didn't question telling him to remain focused on it, and noticed a few tiny, displaced pebbles and stones falling down the hill.
Throwing all subtlety out the window, Bucky reached back and drew one of his larger knives.
Because he never took his eyes off the hilltop, he saw it when one of the boulders started to move - and when the large shadow he'd thought was a second boulder jumped, and took a nosedive straight for him.
"You've got to be fucking kidding me!" Bucky snarled as he threw himself sideways and the dragon - an actual, honest-to-God dragon - whooshed over his head.
Its claws scraped at the place where Bucky had been standing, leaving a long, deep gouge in the earth, before it turned and landed with a loud thump Bucky could feel in the ground.
Well, at least we know what's been leaving those carcasses, Bucky thought hysterically as he scrambled to his feet.
The dragon growled at him, rising up to its full height - at least fifteen feet tall - and spreading its wings, which stretched to nearly twice its height. It let out an ear-piercing roar, then flapped its wings, creating a gust strong enough to knock Bucky off of his feet.
Bucky pushed himself to his feet as it roared and took to the sky again, then scurried backwards and put the steep hill to his back, hoping it would impede the dragon from dive-bombing him again.
The dust from the dragon's takeoff was making it hard to see, but Bucky could still hear its angry snorting, and the flapping of its wings as it circled overhead.
Like a cat waiting for a mouse to scurry from its hiding place, Bucky thought. Which would only work if the dragon stayed in the air; his position wouldn't cover him at all if the dragon landed and decided to attack him with claws and teeth.
Keeping low and out of the open, Bucky edged back the way he'd came. Maybe, if he could find some cover that would hold, he could wait the dragon out. He couldn't kill it - not with his bare hands and a few knives - but if he could get it to lose interest and fly off...
The dragon roared again, making Bucky brace himself and jerk his head up to see that it was diving - but not at him.
Bucky lowered his gaze, trying to gauge where the dragon would land, and felt his heart stop when he spotted the same thing the dragon had: Tony, completely exposed in what he probably thought was a safe crouch further down the path.
He was scanning the dust cloud, one hand up to shield his eyes, and because he was looking down rather than up, he didn't see the dragon flying towards him.
"TONY!" Bucky screamed, abandoning his poor excuse for cover and bolting towards the other man.
Tony jerked and dropped his hand at Bucky's cry, then jumped to his feet -
And promptly tripped and fell forwards.
The dragon gave an angry shriek and whooshed over him, claws inches from his back, then landed about twenty feet behind him, skidding downhill several more feet and leaving another deep gouge in the ground.
Tony rolled sideways and started scrambling towards Bucky, but he was unable to gain any footing and tripped again.
Bucky got to him just as the dragon turned and roared again, wings spread and tail whipping angrily.
"Is that a fucking dragon?!" Tony yelled shrilly while Bucky yanked him up by his arm.
"Maybe it found out about the bath!" Bucky shouted back, keeping a firm grip on Tony's arm as they started running.
"But they're supposed to be extinct!" Tony cried, glancing back over his shoulder and then speeding up.
"Guess it hasn't heard," Bucky panted back, before something large and heavy slammed into his side and sent him stumbling into Tony. He caught Tony around the shoulders and turned so that he would take the brunt of the fall instead of Tony, then turned the move into a roll when he caught the same thing that had hit him coming towards them again out of the corner of his eye.
The dragon's tail slammed down beside them, then whipped over their heads. Keeping his body wrapped protectively around Tony's, Bucky reached for the knife in his belt and slashed at the tail when it swung by again.
The dragon gave an angry howl and yanked its tail back, then turned and snarled at them with a mouthful of sharp teeth.
"Now you've just pissed it off!" Tony hissed, frantically pushing at Bucky to let him up.
"It was already pissed anyway!" Bucky hissed back. He rolled off of Tony and kicked himself to a standing position, keeping his knife up and his eyes on the dragon, then reached back and pulled Tony up by his shirt. "Stay behind me," he ordered, pushing Tony back when he pressed forward to stand at Bucky's side.
Tony sucked in a sharp breath, but whatever he'd been about to say was lost as the dragon roared and swiped at them with its claws.
Bucky shoved Tony backwards and twisted himself just out of reach, then stabbed his knife down into the fleshy part of the dragon's claw - only to have the knife shatter on impact rather than sink in.
Bucky swore and yanked his hand back to reach for another, but before he could get to it the dragon swiped at him with its other claw, knocking him onto his back and leaving a stinging line down Bucky's chest.
Bucky wheezed, the wind knocked out of him, and looked up in time to see the dragon's mouth coming towards him, open wide to display rows of razor-sharp teeth. Behind him, Bucky heard Tony cry his name, but he didn't have the breath to answer. Instead he raised his left arm just as the dragon chomped down, letting it get a mouthful of metal rather than his neck.
The dragon growled, hot, rancid breath blowing over Bucky's face, and locked its jaw around Bucky's arm, wings flapping as it prepared to take off. Bucky kicked out and smacked the dragon's snout, then fumbled for another knife, panic and adrenaline making his movements frantic and clumsy.
Bucky still couldn't see Tony, but he heard his angry cry - which was immediately followed by Tony crashing into Bucky's right side and burying the knife Bucky had given him earlier into the dragon's right eye.
The dragon shrieked in pain, its jaws loosening around Bucky's arm as it reared back. Bucky yanked his arm free and fell into Tony, who wrenched him backwards by one arm and the hood of Bucky's cloak.
The dragon screamed in rage and whipped its tail at them, its fury echoing through the mountains and in Bucky's head.
Tony and Bucky both scrambled backwards, tripping over each other as much as the rocks beneath their feet.
"Okay, now it's really pissed," Tony gasped, one arm still hooked through Bucky's. "What do we do now?"
Bucky gulped in a lungful of air, the dragon's rage making it hard for him to think.
Kill it kill it kill it KILL IT -
"It wants me more than it wants you," Bucky panted. "If we spl-"
The dragon's tail struck down right beside them, shaking the ground and knocking them both over again. Then the dragon gave an ear-splitting bellow and reared up on its back feat, wings spread and claws ready to tear through them -
A spear appeared in the middle of its right wing, followed by another and an arrow in its left.
The dragon screamed in fury and flipped its body in the direction of the assault, jaw snapping. Yet another arrow shot through its wing, making it howl in pain and whip its tail angrily.
Bucky's mind stuttered to a temporary stop, uncomprehending, before a pained hiss from Tony kicked him back into action. He struggled to stand, pulling Tony by his elbow, only to get knocked down yet again when something - someone - tackled him from the side with a shout of "Look out!"
Disoriented, Bucky wrapped himself around Tony and swung his arm back, hearing a yelp as his elbow connected with what felt like a stomach. He stopped short of flipping over and taking another swing when the dragon's tail whooshed over their heads, and turned to the newcomer instead.
"Who the hell are you?" Bucky demanded, at the same time the man asked, "Are you alright?"
They stared at each other, varying degrees bewilderment on their faces, until somebody shouted, "Fandral!"
The man jerked in surprise and bounded to his feet, then reached down to help Bucky and Tony up as well. "Right, right, help the citizens in danger," he said, apparently speaking to himself. "If we could just move a ways from the battle…"
"What battle?" Bucky asked, just as the dragon gave another pained, furious roar. Only this time, a hearty bellow, not unlike a war cry, answered it.
Startled, Bucky jerked his gaze back over to the dragon - and was shocked to see a huge, very human man in a bright red cape throw himself at the beast. The dragon snapped its jaws at him, wide, sharp teeth going straight for his arm, but the man only gave another mighty bellow, and slammed the massive hammer he was wielding into the beast's snout. The dragon shrieked and yanked its head back, only to howl louder when yet another warrior appeared, and slashed her sword over its blind eye.
"That battle," said the man standing beside Bucky and Tony, before carefully taking Bucky by the elbow. "Now, if you please..."
"Fandral!" someone called from behind them. "Are you planning on getting them away from danger, or feeding them to the beast yourself?"
Bucky spun around, dislodging the man - Fandral? - from his arm.
Yet another stranger - this one tall and pale, and with dark hair - stood a few feet away, looking bored despite the screams of battle going on just a few yards from them.
"I'm doing more than you are, Loki, so if I were you, I wouldn't cast stones," said Fandral(?), before turning to Bucky and Tony. "So, if we could - damn," he hissed, eyes widening and hand moving to the scabbard at his side.
Behind them, the dragon gave another unholy shriek, and the man called Loki's face twisted in alarm as he cried, "Thor!"
Bucky spun around just in time to see the huge man in the red cape being thrown at them. He ducked down as the man came sailing over their heads, landing with a thump somewhere behind them, but didn't dare look back to check on him as the dragon twirled to face them again.
It was thrashing its head, blind in both eyes now that there was an arrow sticking out of the eye Tony hadn't blinded as well. Around it, three warriors - the female one Bucky had noticed before, and two men Bucky hadn't seen until now - slashed at its legs with their weapons, making it stumble.
It gave another shriek when its right leg went out from under it, and then it fell on its front, head slamming into the ground just a few feet from where Bucky and Tony were standing. It snarled and convulsed, dust coming up from the ground as it snorted, and then started to raise its head…
...only to fall back down, twitch, and go still.
"Well," said Fandral, blinking owlishly. "That wasn't so bad."
"Who are you people?" Tony demanded, crossing his arms and glaring at the newcomers once they had assembled before him and Bucky.
The huge blond with the cape and the hammer - who looked quite well for having been thrown hard enough to crack his skull - beamed.
"I am Thor, son of Odin, the king of Asgard," he boomed proudly, raising his hammer and bowing.
While Bucky tried to work out if he meant he was king or his father was, the man continued, setting a hand on the shoulder of the pale, dark-haired man Bucky and Tony's original rescuer had called Loki.
"This is my brother, Loki," Loki inclined his head. "Lady Sif," The sole woman raised her sword. "And, of course, the Warriors Three: Volstagg, Hogun, and Fandral." The remaining three men all raised their hands or nodded as their names were called - Fandral somehow managing to make his nod look flirty, while the one called Hogun oozed so much solemness that Bucky wanted to offer his condolences on whomever must have recently died in his life.
Tony blinked in bemusement, and uncrossed his arms. "I, uh…" He cleared his throat, then awkwardly bowed his head. "I'm Lord Anthony Stark, of the Kingdom of Aavenge," he said, before motioning to Bucky and adding, "This is - Sir James Barnes, also known as, uh, Bucky."
Bucky gave Tony a look - he'd never been 'Sir' anything in his entire life, and thought Tony telling these strangers who they both were was a bad idea besides - but Tony quelled him with a look of his own. Then he turned back to the others and said, "I'm sorry, but if you're from Asgard… what are you doing here ? And how did you even find us?"
Though Tony had directed the question at Thor, it was Loki who answered. "Our ship dropped anchor a little ways from here," he explained, tilting his head in the direction of the coast Bucky and Tony had been trying so hard to get to. "We were hunting and exploring the area when we heard the commotion, and came to investigate."
Thor grinned. "And what a sight met us. You were quite brave, taking on such a beast without sword or shield!"
"It, er, wasn't quite by choice," Bucky replied, swaying a little and grabbing onto Tony's arm for support. He felt suddenly dizzy now that the action was over, and the pain in his chest was now cheerfully reminding him that he'd come dangerously close to being disemboweled by a dragon.
The grin slipped from Thor's face. "Are you in need of a doctor?" he asked worriedly, staring down at the wound on Bucky's chest.
"No," Bucky assured at the same time Tony said, "Yes."
They glared at each other.
The man with a bushy beard - Volstagg, Bucky thought - cleared his throat. "If I may, our ship has an excellent healer. Perhaps you would allow him to take a look at you?" he suggested.
Tony opened his mouth, but Bucky cut him off before he could accept.
"Thank you, but no thank you," Bucky said tersely, ignoring the dirty look Tony gave him. "We're trying to get back to our kingdom as quickly as possible, and we really can't afford a detour."
Thor looked briefly put out, then brightened. "You said you're from Aavenge, yes?" he asked, bouncing from foot to foot. "We're not far from there, by sea, and sailing in that direction besides. What if we took you there in our ship?"
"You would really do that?" Tony asked eagerly, completely ignoring Bucky's look of warning.
Thor's face split in a grin. "Why not? You look like you could use the rest," he said, clapping Tony on the shoulder. "Consider it our way of thanking you for introducing us to such a fine battle!"
"We really couldn't," Bucky said pointedly, staring at Tony and hoping he'd get the hint.
They'd made it this far by themselves, and Bucky wasn't inclined to trust their safety to a bunch of strangers he'd just met.
"Perhaps," Loki suggested cautiously, looking back and forth between them. "You could decide after our healer sees to Sir Barnes?"
Bucky opened his mouth, then shut it, carefully roving his gaze over Loki, then the rest of the Asgardians. Most of them looked indifferent, but Thor was smiling at him hopefully, and fidgeting like an excited puppy.
He felt a light touch on his arm and turned back to Tony, whose face was pinched in worry. "At least let them look at you?" he asked in an undertone, grip tightening on Bucky's arm. "For my peace of mind, if nothing else?"
Bucky hesitated. Then he looked into Tony's wide, pleading eyes, and sighed. "Fine," he muttered, for Tony's ears only. "But we can't let our guard down, okay?"
Tony beamed and nodded eagerly, then turned to the Asgardians and clapped their hands. "Lead the way," he said brightly.
AN: For a link to artwork by boredbeingregular that goes with this chapter, check out my profile. :)
