Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.

AmeKor: I'll be Your Hero

The superhero Star Spangle was posing in front of the cameras, after a victorious capture of a group of terrorists holding an office building hostage. The journalists were shooting several questions towards him, including his newfound 'powers'. In truth, only his great strength was a power. The rest of his abilities were attributed to the many different gadgets he owned.

Yong Soo leaned back in his chair, the sonar earpieces he was currently working on momentarily forgotten. Whenever Star Spangle was on the news, he tended to forget all about what he was doing to just stare at the man.

Star Spangle was wearing a dark blue spandex suit along with a bright red cape. He had a white belt with a red buckle, upon which some of his gadgets were stored. On his chest was a large, white star, with several smaller stars seemingly bursting from the larger star. And finally, he wore blue goggles to hide his identity, with the only clue being the blond hair with a cowlick.

Yong Soo watched as the media had their fun with the hero, and once the report moved over to something else, he turned away and shut off the TV. He needed to continue with his latest project.

He'd only managed a few more minutes of work, however, before he sensed a familiar, welcome presence.

"Dude, that ring is awesome!"

Yong Soo smiled as he turned to face Star Spangle, now without his goggles. Yong Soo was probably the only person who knew Star Spangle as Alfred Jones.

"I'm glad you liked it," Yong Soo said. "Did it come in handy?"

"Did it come in handy?" Alfred repeated jokingly. "Dude, it was what saved those people! Now I'm able to go invisible to help people in tricky situations. So… what are you working on now?"

Yong Soo spun around and smiled at the earpiece.

"It's a sonar earpiece," he explained. "It has two settings: First, it will allow you to listen to conversations taking place miles away. That way, you'd be able to find criminals that escaped before you had a chance to even arrive."

"So, it's going to help make the search part a lot easier?" Alfred asked, nodding his head. "That sounds like it could be really helpful. What's the second feature?"

"The second feature will allow you to continue fighting in a dark room. I'm going to calibrate your goggles to go with that. There's only so much that night-vision can do. With the sonar, it should be able to make things even clearer. It uses echolocation to paint a picture of the scene in front of you."

Alfred grinned when he heard that, affectionately ruffling Yong Soo's hair.

"That sounds awesome!" he exclaimed. "What would I have done without you?"

"Oh, I'm sure you would have been able to manage," Yong Soo said, trying to play off the other's praise.

"Sure, with just strength. It wouldn't really have helped me much. It's very limiting. You are the true hero here."

Yong Soo blushed at the compliment, but he couldn't help but feel happy that Alfred thought that about him. He just hoped that the American didn't grow suspicious of him.

Yong Soo had realised a long time ago that he was in love with Alfred, but he knew that it could never work out. Alfred was large and strong, and shone like a star. Yong Soo was small and weak, and tended to fade into the background. There was no way that Alfred would ever be interested in him.

…

The Korean grinned when he finally managed to calibrate the earpiece with the goggles. He'd asked Alfred to allow him to do this, since it would take some time. A few hours, actually. And instead of waiting there, Yong Soo had sent Alfred out.

He stretched out, before grabbing his cell phone. He quickly sent a text to Alfred, saying that his 'glasses' were fixed. A moment later, someone knocked on his apartment door.

Yong Soo froze. Alfred wasn't that fast, unless he was waiting nearby the whole time. Well, it might have been the case a few hours ago, but Alfred would have grown bored a long time ago. No, this was someone else.

Which was another strange thing. Asides from courier services, no one ever came to his door.

He narrowed his eyes, before throwing a cover over his work. He didn't want anyone to see Star Spangle's goggles at his apartment. He cautiously made his way to the door. Perhaps it was just someone looking for another apartment.

He opened the door, revealing three men on the other side.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

One of the men drew a gun, raising it to his head. He froze in fear.

"Im Yong Soo," another man said. "Lord Winter wants to see you."

Yong Soo felt a shiver of fear. Lord Winter was Star Spangle's arch enemy. Why would he even want him? How would he even know about him?

"I suggest that you come with us," the third man said. "Lord Winter isn't very forgiving."

Yong Soo trembled, but nodded his head. He knew all about Lord Winter, after all. And everyone knew that this wasn't a man to be crossed. He just hoped that Alfred would know where to find him.

The gun was thankfully put away, but Yong Soo's wrists were grabbed by two of the men. He winced in pain as they dragged him away, the third man falling behind him. Once they reached the main door, they released his wrists. Of course, they wouldn't have wanted everyone to know that they were committing a kidnapping.

Yong Soo was led to a car, forced to sit between two of Lord Winter's henchmen while the other moved behind the wheel. Yong Soo tried to make himself as small as possible. He didn't know what Lord Winter wanted with him, but he knew that it couldn't have been good. Not for him, not for the city, and not for Alfred.

…

When Alfred arrived at Yong Soo's apartment, he could immediately tell that something was wrong. The door was slightly ajar, and the Korean was nowhere to be seen.

"Yong?" Alfred called out, hesitantly looking through the apartment.

It was strange. Yong Soo never left his apartment. Not for anything. It was one of the things that Alfred would sometimes scold him for. Could it be possible that he had been kidnapped?

He searched around yet again, finally arriving at Yong Soo's workspace. He noticed that a cover had been thrown over his work, and Alfred threw it aside, hoping to find a clue pertaining to his whereabouts. Alfred could see only Star Spangle's goggles.

His eyes widened at the realisation. Yong Soo had been working on an earpiece that would have allowed him to hear from great distances. Perhaps… he could use it to find Yong Soo's location.

He just hoped that his friend would speak. Otherwise, he had no idea how to find him.

…

Yong Soo swallowed nervously when he was led inside the lair of the most unstable villain in the city. He was led to an office, where Lord Winter was standing in front of a large map of the city.

"Im Yong Soo, my lord," one of the henchmen said.

"Ah," Lord Winter said, turning around to face them. "Good job. Now, leave us."

Yong Soo jumped in surprise when the three henchmen left, and he was completely alone with the psychotic villain. Lord Winter had an easy smile on his face, but his eyes were cold.

"I'm really glad that you could join me," Lord Winter said. "Please, sit down."

Yong Soo glanced at the chairs in front of the desk, and he sat down in one of them. Lord Winter didn't sit down on the other side, instead standing near the end. In easy reach of Yong Soo.

"I hear that you're a very clever inventor," Lord Winter said. "The things that arrive at your apartment shows that you know what to do with your brain."

Yong Soo felt his stomach drop. Lord Winter had been monitoring his deliveries? What else did he know?

"I've also been monitoring the traffic in your area," Lord Winter said. "Particularly air traffic. Star Spangle seems to pay a lot of visits to your apartment building. And when I think of all the toys he has, I can only come to one conclusion: You're the one that made all his toys."

Yong Soo gasped nervously, and Lord Winter's smile widened.

"I have no interest in knowing who's underneath the suit," Lord Winter said. "What I am interested in is the tools that he uses, as well as the one that made them. His flying ability is particularly annoying. So, I want you to let me fly as well."

"Is that it?" Yong Soo asked.

"Of course not," Lord Winter said. "Think of it as a test. And if you fail, I would need to dispose of you."

Yong Soo quickly nodded his head.

"Alright," he said. "I'll do it."

Lord Winter ruffled his hair, and Yong Soo couldn't help but feel afraid. The hand was too large. Too strong. And he knew from experience that it had the ability to freeze anything it came into contact with.

"Now, is there anything you need for your task?" Lord Winter asked. "I'm not going to assume that you can conjure it out of thin air."

"W-well… I need your boots," Yong Soo said.

…

Alfred was seriously getting annoyed and worried. He still couldn't find Yong Soo. And the sonar earpiece wasn't helping much. Sure, he could hear far-away conversations, and he could at least filter it so that it wasn't too overwhelming, but there were a lot of conversations going on. But none of them had Yong Soo's voice.

Perhaps he was thinking small. What if it wasn't some common criminal that took him? What if… it was a villain?

Alfred's blood ran cold at that thought. What if it was one of his enemies? Lord Winter, The Gentleman, Señora Muerta… Any one of them could have taken Yong Soo. And no matter which one it was, he was in grave danger.

Alfred had to save him!

But how? He couldn't just go to one of their lairs and demand that they give back Yong Soo, only to find out that Yong Soo wasn't there. No, they would use the knowledge that he had someone he cared about against him in the future. Even if Alfred managed to save Yong Soo this time, he would only endanger him another time.

He needed to think about this!

Perhaps… Could he use Yong Soo's invention? Focus it on the villains' lairs? Listen for anything useful?

Well, only one way to find out.

…

Yong Soo sighed in relief when he managed to adjust the boot. Lord Winter had some decent technology, but Yong Soo couldn't help the suspicion that it was all stolen. Still, Lord Winter had provided everything he needed.

Now he just needed to do the other boot.

One of Lord Winter's henchmen was hovering nearby, watching him closely. Yong Soo wasn't too thrilled about having someone watch while he was working. He didn't even like it if Alfred watched him working. And to make this worse, it was the same henchman who had pulled a gun on him earlier.

"That took a long time," the henchman said.

"Some things take a bit of time," Yong Soo sighed. "I just need to do the other one now."

Yong Soo continued to work, and he was about halfway finished when Lord Winter arrived.

"What is taking so long?" he asked, sounding annoyed.

"S-sorry," Yong Soo said. "But these things take time."

"Can't you work faster?"

"Do you want these to malfunction in the middle of a battle?"

Lord Winter smiled at that, before ruffling his hair again.

"You are right about that," he said. "Fine. But don't let me find out that it was all a lie."

Yong Soo desperately shook his head. He knew that to double-cross the villain wouldn't end well for him. He waited for Lord Winter to leave before continuing with the boot, trying to work as swiftly and as carefully as possible.

…

Alfred sighed in frustration. He was passing by The Gentleman's lair, only to hear the master thief arguing with someone over the phone about how to prepare a dish. Perhaps it was a family member.

As entertaining as it might have been, Alfred had more important things to worry about. He needed to find Yong Soo, before one of his enemies hurt him.

How did they find out about him, anyway?

Alfred decided to leave that question for later. He had a friend that needed saving. And so, he made his way to the next villain's lair. This was the lair of The Dragon, and had quite a temper if antagonised.

…And he was scolding a child for leaving his toys out in the open.

Alfred frowned, wondering why The Dragon had a child with him. He hoped it wasn't a kidnapping. Perhaps he should come by later and do some investigating. Sighing in frustration, he made his way to the next lair.

And froze.

He could hear two familiar voices, and one of them was the voice he was looking for, while the other belonged to a man he did not want near his friend.

"This will allow me to fly, da?"

"Y-yes. You can test it, if you want."

"Why wasn't it tested before?"

"S-sorry! I needed to calibrate it to your w-weight. I'm puny, and I wouldn't be the best one to test if it would work for you."

Alfred narrowed his eyes. So, Lord Winter wanted to use Yong Soo to build things for him? Not if Alfred had anything to say about it.

Luckily, it wasn't the first time he'd come crashing into Lord Winter's lair, and he knew the layout well enough to know where they were. So that was exactly what he did: he crashed into the villain's lair.

"Stop, you vile fiend!" Alfred shouted, trying to sound as brave as possible.

In truth, he was scared when he saw Yong Soo standing so close to Lord Winter. The Korean looked so tiny compared to him. The villain slowly turned his gaze to Alfred, the temperature dropping.

"I see that I need to fire my guards again," Lord Winter said, his voice matching his powers.

"A… Star Spangle," Yong Soo whispered.

"Step away from the kid now," Alfred said.

"I don't think so," Lord Winter said, grabbing hold of Yong Soo's arm. "You see, I still have a project that I want your friend to complete. Until then…"

He gave a sharp whistle, and an army of goons flooded into the lab. Alfred gritted his teeth as he watched Lord Winter drag Yong Soo away, and he lashed out at the nearest henchman.

It took him a while to deal with all the henchmen, and by the time he was finished with them, Lord Winter and Yong Soo were gone.

Alfred gritted his teeth, before he tried to use the new earpiece to find Yong Soo and Lord Winter. He heard heavy footsteps retreating, and he quickly ran after them. Thankfully, Yong Soo had installed a speed component to his boots in the past.

He could see Lord Winter carrying Yong Soo under his arm, and with the earpiece, he could hear Yong Soo's whimper. Alfred narrowed his eyes, before he hurried to catch up to them. He stopped a few metres away, though.

"Let go of him right now!" Alfred demanded.

Lord Winter whirled around and used his icy powers, attempting to freeze Alfred. Alfred managed to get out of the way, but there was another issue: the ice was making it hard for Alfred to get close.

Alfred gritted his teeth, before he leapt over the icy field. Lord Winter's eyes widened, before he shifted his hold on Yong Soo. Alfred's eyes widened when Lord Winter wrapped his hand around Yong Soo's throat, keeping his back pressed towards the villain's front.

"Stop right there," Lord Winter said in a cold voice.

"Release the kid right now," Alfred said.

"I won't. Especially since I know that you care for him. I could have found any scientist to help me with my project, but I decided to go with this one. The one that gave you all of your toys. The one that knows who you are."

Yong Soo's eyes widened.

"You said… You're not interested in… his identity," the Korean gasped.

"I'm not," Lord Winter said. "The person underneath is not Star Spangle. But I won't hesitate to hurt him in some way."

Alfred gritted his teeth. He usually used his fists to deal with Lord Winter, but this was the first time he'd had a hostage with him. And the hostage was someone he cared about. Lord Winter was seriously despicable for doing this.

Lord Winter noticed his inner conflict, and wrapped his other arm around Yong Soo's chest. The hand around his throat was removed, and he used his powers to launch an attack towards Alfred. The hero's eyes widened, and he tried to dodge. It was sudden, and he had been distracted by Yong Soo's situation. He winced when his left hand was caught by the icy blast.

He looked up again to see that Lord Winter was running away, still carrying Yong Soo. Alfred gritted his teeth, before he removed something from his belt. It was a small sphere that, once thrown, emitted a frequency that would stun all who heard it. Alfred's goggles emitted a counter-frequency that prevented him from falling victim to that device.

Alfred threw it, and he could immediately tell that the frequency was being emitted. Lord Winter froze, doubling over as an automatic response. Alfred closed the distance between them, and Lord Winter had just enough time to turn around before Alfred punched him in the face.

As Lord Winter fell to the ground, Alfred quickly grabbed Yong Soo and held him protectively against his body. The Korean was trembling, and Alfred felt guilty that he was so scared.

"Are you alright?" he asked gently.

"I think so," Yong Soo said.

…

Yong Soo had been given a mug of hot chocolate, and he was cradling it while sitting on Alfred's couch. Lord Winter had been arrested, and the ordeal was over. Star Spangle had saved the day.

"Are you feeling better?" Alfred asked gently, before sitting down next to Yong Soo.

"I think so," Yong Soo said, before he smiled shakily. "Thank you."

"You're still shaking," Alfred pointed out.

Yong Soo glanced down at his hands, before he placed the mug down. He didn't want to spill anything.

He jumped in surprise when Alfred wrapped his arm around him in a hug.

"You have no idea how scared I was," Alfred whispered, before placing a kiss on the top of Yong Soo's head.

Yong Soo's eyes widened in surprise. Could it be…?

The prompt is: 'Imagine Person A of your OTP is a superhero and Person B is their friend who makes them cool gadgets. Person B is secretly in love with Person A, but they don't tell them for whatever reason (fear of rejection, not wanting to ruin their friendship, thinking A isn't attracted to their gender, etc). Person A, however, doesn't realise they love Person B until one day Person B is kidnapped by one of Person A's enemies and A has to rescue them.'

I think I failed. It's the first time I write something of the superhero genre, and it's been a while since I watched an episode of any superhero series (not movies, series, where there's a villain of the week and rescues might have to take place).

And yeah, I know this pairing is also called KimchiBun, but I need to stay with the naming scheme.