James was the first to exit the lake, Anna following behind him after sending a glare up to the second floor, hall window. Though she couldn't see him, she knew Tony was standing up there. Probably gloating. It had Anna rushing back into the room, immediately drew the drapes and locked the door in case Tony had any big ideas of interrupting any other potential moments. Although admittedly, she felt timid when she turned back towards James. In the water, in the dark, it was easier to get up her nerve. Change the setting and everything else changed with it.
Try as he might, James couldn't stop looking at Anya, even when she had turned back towards him. Her damp clothes clung to her body and her wet hair dripping on the floor kept reminding him of their interrupted moment in the lake. It had been the first time since her brother had found them that James had felt completely alone with Anya. And he'd let himself lose his control. The truth was, he'd never quite gotten it back, and now that the feeling of seclusion had returned, James stopped trying at all.
Before Anya could hide away in the bathroom, as James suspected she was considering, James closed the distance between them, wrapping his arms around her and leaning in for another kiss. And just like that, the fire was back. Anya slipped her arms around his neck, hanging on tightly to prevent him from pulling away. Her reaction had his hands tightening their grip on her waist, only to pull back his left arm a second later. He'd crushed throats with his mechanical arm as if they were nothing. Its strength was dangerous, and the last thing he wanted was to hurt Anya with it unintentionally.
"James, what's wrong?" Anna asked, pulling away when she felt him remove his grip. The weight of his hands on her had felt reassuring, and she couldn't understand what would have caused him to remove them. When his eyes shifted down, she followed their gaze to his metal arm. It was tensed, his hand clenched into a fist. No words were needed for her to understand what had him pulling away.
"James," Anna murmured, reaching up to rest her left hand against his cheek. It had her intended effect, forcing James' attention to turn towards her. Moving her right hand down, she brought his metal arm up, pulling gently at his fist until he let her intertwine their fingers. "It doesn't scare me. It's just a part of you. You're more than a man with a metal arm. And I know you would never hurt me."
Anya's words meant a lot, showing how much faith she had in him, but she didn't understand. He lost his senses when she was close to him. It took all of his control not to push too hard on her skin or lips. All it would take was one second of him losing his focus for him to slip up and crush whatever part of Anya he was holding at that moment. That made James all for standing his ground on the issue, before Anya moved his hand back to her waist and pulled him down to her. Her lips were effectively distractive and persuasive. Distracting enough that he didn't realize her hands had moved lower until she was already in the process of undoing his jeans.
It took Anna some time to work up the nerve to maneuver her hands to the hem of James' jeans. It's not like she had a lot of experience, and what she had, had certainly not been enjoyable nor desirable. Nor had she instigated it. But with James, it was different. She knew what she wanted, and she knew if she didn't make the move forward, they wouldn't take it for some time. She swore James saw her as a fragile China doll, despite the countless times she'd proven not to be. And it had only gotten worse since she'd told him what Brent had done to her. If she wanted anything to happen, she'd have to initiate it herself. Although even then, when James caught on to what she was doing, his hands immediately moved to still hers.
Not wanting Anya to make a rash decision which she would regret later, James stopped her from proceeding. At least he thought he had when she removed her hands from his pants. Instead, she only moved them to the hem of her shirt, pulling the damp clothing off before he could try to stop her.
"Anya," James warned, his voice serious. The sight of her in just her bra and jeans had his pulse rushing in his ears. It was hard enough for him to stay in control when she wasn't trying to undress them both.
"James," Anya mimicked, just as serious as she moved to unbutton her own jeans. Once again James' moved his hands to push hers away. However that time it was so he could finish what she had started. He was tired of trying to fight against something Anya was fighting so hard for. She wanted it as much as he did. James wasn't forcing anything on her. It was that realization that had him letting go, and it didn't take long before both of them were stripped down to their underwear. Seeing more of Anya's body than he'd ever had before had a tense coil of emotions tightening in his stomach.
Unable to resist, James placed his hands back on Anya's hips, pulling her closer as he ducked his head to meet her with a slow and heavy kiss. Tracing her curves slowly, taking his time to explore her skin, he swore to do this right. To make sure he did everything in his power to make this an enjoyable experience for her. And not to push her further than she wanted. That was most important: giving her all the control to make the end decision.
It took all he had to stick to that promise, as Anya seemed intent to do some exploring of her own. He felt her delicate hands tracing the muscles of his back. It was invigorating, sending shivers down his spine, and had him subconsciously pushing himself closer to her. He was worried he'd startle her, but if he did she gave no sign of it, her hands continuing their ministrations. Her fingers didn't falter at all until his found the clasp of her bra and, after struggling for a couple minutes when she didn't refute or pull away, he managed to unhook it.
Maneuvering her arms so the material fell from her body, there was a slight blush coloring Anya's cheeks as James took in her newly exposed form. His heart was thudding against his chest, so loud he wouldn't be surprised if Anya could hear it. She was truly beautiful, every inch of her. Deciding not to torture her too much, as with every second he stared, her cheeks darkened, James pulled her against him with his left arm. Lifting her and moving them back onto the bed, James pressed his lips against each of her burning cheeks as he hovered above her. Supporting most of his weight with his arms, he didn't make any further movements towards her or away. He was going to let her decide what she wanted to happen next. Whether that be pushing him away, or pulling him closer. He strongly hoped it would be the latter.
Anna was surprisingly at ease with their current position. It was surprising because the last time she'd been in that position with a man, she had been pleading him to let her go. Anxiety and fear had been the two emotions fighting for dominance in her that time. Now, it was excitement and desire. Though it was a similar position, it was the man who made all the difference. Anna trusted James. He wouldn't hurt her, physically or emotionally. She'd never been as certain of anyone as she was of James. If she was brave enough, she'd admit to herself that she'd moved past the liking him stage. But Starks had never been the best at admitting their feelings, especially when it came to the big L-word.
With a small smile, Anna reached up to run her fingers along the edge of James' scar, which was a darker shade of pink from the strain of his muscles flexing to keep his body above hers. He visibly shivered as well as tensed at her touch, his eyes closing as white hot desire flowed through him. Moving her attention to the other shoulder, Anna reached up, pressing a kiss against the two overlapping scars of the bullet wounds, before wrapping both of her arms around James' neck and pulling him down to her. It was a feeling that had hit her all at once, and all she knew, was she needed him closer to her, as close as possible. As if waiting for that cue, James' lips crashed down on hers, starting out rough before slowing his pace a little and pulling gently against hers. Her hands returned to his back, exploring the tensed muscles. It was almost ridiculous, just how fit he was. If her head wasn't already foggy from the emotions rushing through her, she'd feel self-conscious about her much less fit body.
As it was, Anna was perfectly content to drown in the emotions James was stirring inside her. Emotions that only intensified when he adjusted his position and she felt the fullness of him against her. It sent a wave of heat through her and had her wrapping her legs around him to pull him ever closer. The unexpected action had James grunting against her lips, and had him silently repeating a mantra in his head to keep hold of his own emotions. This was all about Anya. And he was not going to let his hormones take over and rush things. Not their first time. He wanted to be fully aware of every moment of it, to remember it all, which meant fighting against the cloudy haze that was threatening to settle in as his pulse reached an all-time high.
…
Anna could see the thin stream of light, probably leaking in from a crack in the curtains, through her eyelids. Memories of last night flashed through her mind, making her keep her eyes closed for a while longer; so she could relive them. James hadn't rushed it. He'd taken his time, and made sure she was alright with everything. The things he had done to her had stirred feelings inside her that Anna hadn't even known was possible, and had her cheeks warming at just the memory. He'd had her skin feeling like it was on fire, and everywhere his metal hand had grazed had sent a shiver through her at the cool contrast. It hadn't been a hindrance or a liability, as James thought it would be. It simply heightened the sensations inside her. Last night was, simply put, perfect.
James knew Anya was awake when a small smile pulled at her lips and her cheeks turned a light shade of pink. He'd had a similar response when he'd first woken up an hour earlier and recalled the previous night's events. Anya had still been sleeping then, and he had been relieved to find she had no physical signs of any injury. At least from what he could see, she was free from any bruises or broken bones. It was after his initial intake for injuries that he could relax and take in her mussed up hair and swollen lips. That image was enough to make his smile, as well as the desire to kiss those lips again, grow. He was able to restrain himself, only after reminding himself that Anya needed the sleep.
"I can feel you watching me," Anya murmured, her eyes fluttering open. Her smile widened when her eyes met his. It had his heart speeding up as he smiled back down at her. He could definitely get used to mornings like this. And nights like last night.
"How are you feeling?" James asked, smoothing back her hair as she shifted her position until her head lay across his lap. Though she showed no sign of injury, he wanted to know for sure if he had hurt her.
"Happy," Anna murmured, staring up at him with the same smile that she couldn't seem to wipe off her face. "Physically, my muscles are a little sore, but other than that I'm right as rain." In truth, her muscles felt like she had run a marathon yesterday, but she didn't want to worry James. She just wasn't used to that kind of exercise was all. There was nothing worrisome about her aches, they were all perfectly normal.
"Do you think we have enough time to shower before Tony comes looking for us for phase 2?" Anna asked after several minutes of content silence. She hadn't wanted to ruin the euphoric mood, in fact she'd liked to have lounged around with James all day. However, the reality was she didn't have that luxury. They weren't on vacation, they were on a mission. And the truth of it all was she'd feel a little less embarrassed about facing the others at a meeting if she could make herself look less like she'd had her world rocked last night. Which she had. Not that she wanted any of the others to be aware of that. Soundproof walls wouldn't mean anything if she left the room with bed head.
"What if we skip phase 2?" James muttered, his euphoria from last night muted some by the reminder of what the day would bring.
"Why are you so against this?" Anna asked. She'd made her own assumptions and guesses as to why he didn't want them to go through with her plan, but she'd never asked him point blank. She'd never given him a chance to explain to her why. Perhaps she was too afraid he'd convince her not to. Now that they were hours away from part 2 of the plan, she wasn't as concerned about him convincing her against it. She was simply curious why he was so determined she abandon the plan.
"Hydra has taken everything from me. They've taken 70 years of my life, and time after time they took my memories." James whispered, reaching down and tracing Anya's lips softly. The movement had her eyelids fluttering shut for a moment, before she brought her eyes back up to meet his. "I can't let them take you." He knew with certainty that losing Anya would be a thousand times worse than losing himself over and over again had been.
"They won't." Anna insisted seriously. "Stop worrying, you're starting to get wrinkles." She added in a lighter tone, smiling as she reached out to smooth the creases on his forehead. When that didn't seem to do the trick, she sat up until her lips could reach his, tracing from his hairline to his jaw as she kissed him lightly. That did seem to take his mind off his worries, as his hands moved to stop her when she moved to pull back. It had her smiling into the kiss as it awakened the butterflies in her stomach.
…
"Tony's going to kill me," Anna commented as they were about to head out to the kitchen, when she first noticed the headboard. How she hadn't noticed a huge chunk missing from the bed before that moment, Anna would never know. All she knew now, was that Tony was going to kill her. And perhaps James as well seeing as there weren't too many things that would cause that type of damage.
"Sorry about that," James responded, referring to Tony finding out about it. He was not at all remorseful about the actual damage he'd done. He'd rather his grip break a thousand headboards than hurt Anya. He was lucky he'd managed to shift his grip to the bedframe when the euphoria made restraining his strength difficult.
"At least I know last night was good for you too," Anya sent James a sly smile before making her way out to the kitchen. Having no idea that comment and that smile had his heart stuttering and stirred up feelings of desire all over again. Last night had been more than good for him. It was one of the best nights he could remember, and although he didn't remember them all, he was remembering more of them every day. Even out of those he couldn't remember, James was fairly certain it'd still be one of his best nights. Taking a deep breath to steady his emotions, James followed Anya out into the common area, where the rest of the team were already congregated.
The doctor looked half-awake, with his glasses skewed as he sat gripping a mug full of tea on the couch, Tony sitting across from him with a glass of scotch. Apparently it was never too early to drink. Sam was the one working the stove, cranking out omelets that Steve delivered to everyone while the Arrow assasin sat perched on a bar stool and picking at his toast.
"Look who finally decided to show up." Tony muttered, taking a swig of his drink as his attention fell on Tin Man and Anna Banana. "If Jarvis were here you'd have been on time."
"Then I'm glad Jarvis isn't here," Anna shot back, not dwelling much on Tony's comment as she made a beeline for the kitchen. The smell of eggs cooking had her stomach growling. She was way beyond hungry. So when James asked for a 4 egg, all inclusive omelet, Anna mimicked his order. Sam simply gave her a doubtful look before getting started on it. He couldn't fathom how a little thing like Anna could eat all that food.
Clint on the other hand managed put two and two together about the time Anna dug through the cabinet for Tylenol. Excessive hunger, unexplained pain, and the fact Tony had been in an extra pissy mood after catching Anna and James in the lake; it didn't take too much deductive reasoning to come to a plausible conclusion for all of that. The fact that he'd sporadically felt the house shake beneath him last night had also aided in his conclusion on how Anna and James had spent their night. Although he avoided dwelling on his conclusion, as that was an image he really didn't need seared into his brain.
Thankfully, Tony offered up a distraction, calling everyone together for the meeting once Anna and James had gotten their food. The second part of the plan, just like the first one, was fairly straightforward. They'd be broken into pairs. Capsicle and Tin Man would take the shoreline, the western border would go to Tony, while Hawkeye and Pigeon would watch from overhead via the trees. Bruce would wait until it was decided if he was needed before joining Tony on the Western border, as he didn't exactly relish giving control over to the other guy.
The point was to make Hydra believe Anna was alone. Which meant they'd need to stay at least 500 feet away. Enough to keep her in someone's sights at all times. Wherever Hydra attacked from, the nearest unit would respond, letting the others know via their ear coms what direction the others should head in for back up. The only prisoners they cared about were high ranking ones: Rumlow, Rollins, and Grant. But if they couldn't tell the difference it was better to debilitate them rather than kill. Any information could be helpful. During the attack, Anna's safety would always remain a top priority. Therefore, the second unit closest to Anna at the time of the attack would offer assistance to her.
Even after the plan had been laid out and everyone knew their assignment, the fact that a battle was nearing didn't actually feel real to Anna until James and her were back in their room and he was helping her into the bullet proof vest-tank-thing Tony had created. It was a lot more complicated than Anna had first expected. It didn't take more than a few minutes for her to have it all tangled and twisted. James immediately stepped forward to offer his assistance.
"Is it too tight?" James asked, once he'd secured the bullet proof vest around her. He'd wanted to make sure it was snug enough that it didn't slip and leave any openings. However being able to breath was also important, especially for an asthmatic.
"No, it's good," Anna insisted as she turned to grab a tee from her bag and pulled it over her head. Once she'd gotten her head through the hole, it was to find James handing her the ear piece and the gun. That made the danger of it all feel real. This would be the first time she might be required to shoot at a person rather than a paper target. That thought sort of freaked her out, and had her searching for a distraction. Of course, she turned her attention towards James first. He was always a good distraction.
However, the fact that James was already in his suit, looking ready to kick Hydra ass, didn't really provide much distraction from what they were about to do. The amount of weapons he had strapped to him seemed like enough to outfit a small platoon of men, and made Anna realize just how serious this was. Of course, he was probably over preparing, so Anna wasn't complaining. If it made him feel more at ease with the plan, he could carry whatever weapons he wanted.
"Remember to keep your hands steady and eyes on the target when you shoot." James instructed as he watched Anya tuck the gun into her jeans. Worry and anxiety were rushing through him and all he wanted was to wrap Anya up in his arms, or lock her in the bathroom until they dealt with Hydra. He settled for the first, capturing her lips with his briefly before pulling her closer and resting his cheek against the top of her head. "And don't do anything stupid," he added softly.
"It's time to move out." Tony's voice buzzed in both their ears before Anya could respond. Pulling away from one another, James slipped a small device into Anya's hand before she could get too far. When she glanced down to find it was an inhaler, she sent him a questioning look.
"I figured you'd forget one." Ever since witnessing three attacks where Anya hadn't had an inhaler, he'd made a point of keeping an inhaler on his person at all times. "Use it if you need it," he insisted seriously. The last thing he needed to worry about was Anya being unable to fight back because of her asthma. James was rewarded for his preparedness when Anya pressed one last kiss to his lips before Tony was nagging them to get moving. That time when they pulled apart they headed in different directions after a final good luck: Anna heading towards the front of the house while James went out the back doors to meet Steve by the water.
The plan had Anna heading North East on one of the trails in the forest. Staying on the path was crucial, as everyone was positioned around it. When she was completely immersed in trees, Anna began feeling restless and a little anxious. Normally these woods calmed her, being alone with nature had always been a welcomed escape. Somehow, knowing Hydra might be waiting somewhere out there for her made it a little more intimidating.
An hour into the trail, and Anna was beginning to think Hydra wasn't going to show. Of course that was when an agent literally appeared out of nowhere, having been totally decked in camouflage. Embarrassingly, Anna let out a high pitched scream before kicking the guy where the sun doesn't shine. It was a reflex movement, not one of the moves James had actually taught her, but it worked.
"Anya what happened?" James voice sounded in her ear, laced with worry. She'd moved into Sam's and the arrow assassin's area, so he didn't currently have a visual.
"I found Hydra. Or they found me." Anna huffed out as she ducked out of reach of another agent. It was insane how they all seemed to be popping up out of nowhere. Although, at least they had showed up. Anna had been starting to feel like the plan would be a bust.
"Where are you?" Tony demanded. Anna attempted to find some discerning landmark, but got interrupted by two more agents. Perhaps their insane motto had some truth to it, for she'd just gotten rid of one agent only for two more to take his place.
"Heck if I know." Anna answered as she blocked a punch from the one agent. When she couldn't manage to get a hit in herself, she disengaged and pulled the gun. Turned out she didn't need to use it as an arrow pierced the body of the agent before she'd managed to get the safety off. Directly after that Clint sounded over the coms stating their coordinates.
"Keep providing cover, Bucky and I are snaking in from the sides." Steve ordered, the muffled sounds of his shield cutting through foliage sounding over the ear coms. Tony echoed Steve, claiming he was looping around from behind. Of course, since Tony had his suit he arrived before Steve and James.
"Time to get Anna Banana out of the line of fire. She's done her job." Tony ordered as he blasted through a couple agents. Before Anna could question his statement, Sam was grabbing her from behind and his suit was lifting them off the ground.
"Sam! What are you doing? This was not part of the plan." Anna exclaimed as they climbed higher. Never had she agreed to be pulled away once Hydra got there. She'd been trained for a reason. And she hadn't thought that reason included being towed away from the fight like a child. True, she was probably in way over her head, but if this was part of the plan she would have at least liked Tony to have told her first.
"Sorry Anna, it was unanimous that we pull you out when Hydra…" Sam never got to finish that sentence, as a shot was fired, hitting his arm and causing him to veer into a tree after losing his grip on Anna. And once again Anna was screaming as she fell rapidly to the ground.
"You've gotta stop doing that Anna Banana," Tony exclaimed, referring to her screaming, as he caught her halfway to the ground.
"Just set me down!" Anna exclaimed, tired of flying. It was all well and good for those who had suits. But being cargo left her open for more falling. Thankfully, Tony listened to her, setting her down on the forest trail a little ways away from the fight, by the tree Clint was perched in, before telling her to stay put. Clint reassured Tony he'd keep an eye on her. Like they were talking about a wandering toddler.
…
As much as James disliked the plan, he liked it even less when Anya reached the bend in the trail that wasn't visible from his and Steve's station along the Lake. Retaining a visual had kept his nerves under control. Now that he couldn't' see Anya, he was completely on edge. When Anya's scream echoed both through the forest and over the ear com, a cold sweat had broken over him. Screaming was never a good thing. He was about to take off after her before Steve grabbed his wrist, reminding him that the 'team' had a protocol for this sort of thing. So, instead of tearing through the woods, as that would mean fighting off Steve which would probably delay him long enough for the other team members to reach Anya, James simply asked what had happened.
It was a relief to hear Anya answer, although her actual answer did anything but calm him. Hydra had found her. As soon as the arrow assassin gave the coordinates, James was tearing towards Anya, leaving Steve to tell the others they were on their way. Halfway there he ran into Hydra agents, not that they held him up too long. A couple bullets in the head and they were down for the count. Of course, Steve had caught up to him at that point and reminded him not to kill anyone too important. They could use all the inside information they could get. The next time they met up with agents, James put in a few good hits before twisting the agent around and putting him in a chokehold. Squeezing until the agent passed out, James sent Steve a pointed look.
"Was that so hard?" Steve commented as he reached up to catch his shield after it ricocheted back to him off the trees.
"Shooting him would have been easier," James responded with a shrug as he reached to his side to pull a knife out. Before Steve could stop him, James had slit the agent's Achilles tendons. "Now he won't run," James explained when he met Steve's disbelieving stare before continuing on.
Tony gave the order to evacuate Anya just before Steve and James reached the coordinate points. Not that they needed verification on that front, as the hoard of Hydra agents popping out of the forest kind of gave it away that they were in the right spot. Readying for the attack, James was glad to know Anya had been taken out of this. It would be hard to concentrate if she was still there.
Throwing himself into the mix, James met an agent head on, pushing the agent's gun with the outside of his left arm just before the agent's finger hit the trigger. Just as he was about to bring his knife down, Steve was in his ear, reminding him not to kill anyone important. James simply grumbled under his breath as he adjusted his grip on the knife and struck the agent unconscious with the hilt. It was around that time that Anya let out a second ear piercing scream, distracting James for a moment. That moment was enough time for another agent to grab him from behind and press a gun to his head.
Before he could pull the trigger James flipped the agent off of him, sending him flying against a tree. Picking up the agent's discarded gun, James fired a few rounds into the man before Steve could play the little white angel on his shoulder. Instead of bullets peppering the guy, the gun had fired what looked to be darts. Moving closer to the agent, James plucked a piece of ammo out of him to find a small syringe type dart. Hydra wasn't shooting to kill. Hydra were shooting to debilitate and capture. Just like they were.
"Their guns don't have bullets. They have some kind of darts as ammo. Probably filled with a tranquilizer of some sort." James stated hastily as another agent approached, shooting a dart into his chest. Thankfully the needle wasn't able to penetrate his new suit. Ripping the dart from his suit, James pulled the trigger of the Hydra gun, hitting the agent in the neck. It only took a second before he was out for the count. "A very powerful tranquilizer."
"They know bullets will only make the other guy angry," Tony commented dryly, though James hadn't a clue what he was talking about. He couldn't recall Tony ever using that nickname for any of them.
"Bullets or no bullets, I need some back up on the south end. Their closing in. Must have zoned in on Anna's location." Clint reported over the coms. He'd already dropped down from the tree, placing himself in front of Anna as he shot off one arrow after another. Truth was, he was running low. Soon he'd have to find out just how good Anna's training was.
"I'm coming," James answered back, ramming his metal fist into the face of the agent he was currently fighting before taking off. He was 10 feet away when it happened. One of the Hydra agents threw a bomb at the tree behind Anna. It latched into the bark, and the arrow assassin barley had enough time to tackle Anya to the ground before it went off, shattering pieces of wood and sending them flying. James had to duck, falling to the ground to avoid getting hit. As soon as it was over, James was sprinting through the cloud of dust towards Anya. His heart was beating sporadic, terrified that she might have been hit from the blow. When he arrived, and the cloud of smog had finally cleared, it was to find the arrow assassin lying alone in the dirt, one of the Hydra darts jabbed into the back of his neck.
"Anya!" James called out, glancing around frantically and trying to decipher which direction they had taken her. But there was no sign of a struggle, nothing to point him in her direction. The bastards had probably tranquilized her as well. "They've got her." James whispered to the others, his heart dropping at the realization.
"Don't sound so defeated Tin Man," Tony chided through the ear com, not sounding too perturbed that Hydra had gotten his sister. "Remember we've got a tracker on her."
It took a minute before Tony got a read on her coordinates. As soon as he did, James was off in that direction, letting one of the others help with the arrow assassin. It's not like he was in any danger. Anya was the one Hydra had wanted, that Hydra had taken. James couldn't let Anya slip away, and Hydra already had a head start.
"You do realize I have a flying suit. I can handle getting Anna. I don't want you slowing me down," Tony insisted, when he realized James was chasing after Hydra as well. The truth of the matter was Tony knew Tin Man could keep up just fine. Tony just wanted to be the one to save Anna. She was his sister.
"Just keep me updated on the coordinates," James growled as he sped up. It was Tony's fault that any of this had happened. He was the one who backed Anya up on her plan. James knew it had been a horrible idea. But since Tony agreed, they'd went through with it.
Tony was about to respond with another witty retort when the little red blinky dot disappeared from his navigation panel. "Damn it," Tony cursed under his breath. Though it was loud enough for Tin Man to hear, and demand what was wrong.
"I lost the signal," Tony muttered before he started vocally giving orders to the sceen to try and get it back. It had been there a second ago, coming through nice and strong. Then all of a sudden, it disappeared. Hydra must have found the ear com and destroyed it. That thought process had Ton giving up on the ear com signal, switching over to follow the second tracker. Problem was, he wasn't getting a signal from that one either. Which was impossible. It had been injected in her arm. There was no way Hydra could have found it and disabled it that fast. Not on the go.
"What do you mean you lost the signal?!" James demanded, dread filling his stomach. He kept sprinting in the direction the signal had pointed them in last, hoping that this was some sick joke on Tony's part. A way for him to leave James behind while he went to retrieve Anya.
"I'm not getting a reading from either device," Tony ground out, taking his frustration out on Tin Man. He still wasn't sure how it was possible. "I don't know where she went."
Tony's statement had James stopping short. He wasn't joking. He really didn't have a read on Anya's location. Hydra had Anya, and they didn't know where. That realization had James' heart constricting as he slammed his fist into a nearby tree, causing it to tremble and fall. This was his worst fear coming to life. He knew something bad was going to happen. "If anything happens to her, it's on you." James spat out.
"Jarvis, locate Anna Banana," Tony ordered desperately after Tin Man's warning. Tin man was right. This was on him. He was the one who had assured everyone, even Anna, that she would be fine. That they would be able to track her.
"I thought Jarvis wasn't at the lake house," James muttered accusingly, glaring daggers into a nearby tree and imagining it was Tony as he kicked it.
"He's not. He's in my suit." Tony's answer, though snarky, was met with relief. It had a bubble of hope rising in James. Over the weeks they'd been at the Tower, Jarvis had proven quite useful, albeit irritating. Perhaps the computer man could help them locate Anya.
"I'm sorry sir, I'm afraid my electronic connection with Anna Banana has been disrupted." Jarvis responded after a moment of hopeful silence. "We lost her sir." And then that hope was crushed.
"I'll round up the hostages," James muttered darkly, his despair turning to anger. He was trying very hard to keep that anger in check. He'd need to get it under control before he interrogated the hostages. Killing them wouldn't get him any closer to Anya. And he was determined to find her. By any means necessary.
A/N I must admit, I'm sad to say this is the last chapter in this story. Of course, there is a sequel coming and so Janya's story isn't finished yet. Still, I'm sad to end this. Lots of things happening in this chapter. First off, they got…close at the beginning. For those wanting a one shot that's more descriptive let me know. If there's enough interest I might make a one shot rated M. It won't be crass, but it'll have more details. I'll only write it if there's interest though. I'm sorry if the action fight scene was disappointing. I kept trying to include all of them in the fight, but it's incredibly hard and taxing. It would have taken me forever and I wanted to stay on my timeline. So I hope this version of the fight sufficed. There will be more action and fighting in the next story! Sequel's Title: Relentless. First chapter will be posted hopefully by Saturday Night (going to my boyfriend's parent's house again so wifi is questionable) As always thanks to all the favorites/follows and reviews. And for making this fic reach over 700 reviews, 500 followers, and 300 favorites. You all are amazing!
Guest Review Responses
To justfourmisfits: I'm so happy you liked the last update and I hope the 'big plan' satisfied you. If not, I'll try to rewrite it. I'm nice like that lol just tell me if ya wanted something more and I'll see what I can do. I loved your image of Tony smooshed against the glass. It was comical. I don't remember what the lake house from Vampire Diaries looked like, I have an inspiration image of a random lake house, but it's size nor layout doesn't match up with mine. Happy belated birthday! Glad I could give ya a present :) I think it's interesting that Anna was a character in the last few stories you read. I suppose it is gaining popularity. I'm not sure how I decided on Anna as my OC's name. Partly to have James call her Anya lol.
To the guest who commented about waiting 20 chapters for a kiss and still no 'taking the next step': well they took it. And even if they hadn't, how often do you kiss a guy for the first time then turn around and jump into bed with him? I don't know, maybe that's normal. I've only had my one boyfriend so it's not like I have experience with it. That was just my reasoning on waiting a little bit before they took the next step. Besides, with Anna's past she isn't one to just jump into bed with a guy.
To Keshigomu: Yay for Janya cuteness! Nice to know I had ya squealing for that ending scene. It's the reaction I was going for. Anna didn't yell at Tony. His interruption didn't seem as big the morning after. Yep Hawkeye made an appearance and I wish I could have had the patience to make his fighting more epic. There will be more epic fighting in the next story! Though Clint initially held it against James for shooting Nat, I agree. He will sympathize with James for what he went through since they both were sort of brainwashed.
Rach
xoxo