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[javajunkieao3]

Peggy and Cap Reunion: Part Three

The one where they rescue Bucky.

Steve wasn’t sleeping.  He fell asleep fine, but each night he was jolted awake in the dark room, staring up at an indiscernible ceiling as he tried to steady his breathing.  The dream was always the same.  It was him and Bucky, walking down the streets of Brooklyn before the war.  Their conversation changed depending on the night, but it always ended the same.  Each time, Steve saw the car coming, Bucky distracted and talking.  He knew he should say something.  Warn him. Push him out of the way.  Anything.  But, he never did.  

           Steve woke suddenly, his shirt sticking to his sweat slick back as he breathed heavily, his heart beating angrily beneath his chest.  He carefully sat up, not wanting to wake Peggy, and swung his legs over the bed.  He leaned forward and raked his hand through his hair.  He couldn’t shake the image from his dream.  The feelings of guilt that he could have saved his best friend, but did nothing.

           The bed shifted behind him and then he felt a small hand on his shoulder.

           “Steve, are you alright?”

           He reached up and covered her hand with his. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

           Peggy scooted over to him, wrapping her arms around him from behind and resting her chin on his shoulder.  “Are you sure?  This is the third night I’ve found you like this.  What’s going on?”

           “I’m just having some trouble sleeping.”

           “Yes, I gathered that,” she said.  She waited for him to say more, and when he didn’t she tentatively said, “You know, when people have trouble sleeping it’s usually because something’s bothering them.  What’s bothering you?”

           “I should be happy.  After all these years, I found my way back to you.  And we are happy.”

           “I’d agree with that,” she said softly.  “But something tells me this isn’t about us.”

           Steve was quiet for a long moment, and then said, “Bucky didn’t die.”

           “What?”

“He survived the fall from the train.  Soviet patrols found him and sold him to HYDRA, where they performed experiments on him and turned him into an assassin.”

           As he spoke Peggy moved to sit next to him, her eyes widening as he explained the rest of what happened, all the way to finding him again in modern day New York and his deprogramming in Wakanda.  He left out that Howard bit, hoping that Peggy could have a less biased view of this than him.  Because he needed one clear head, where his decidedly was not. He couldn’t prevent every known catastrophe to come, and it became a dangerous game when one began to pick and choose.

           “You want to find him,” Peggy said when he finished.

           Steve nodded, looking away from her.  He felt guilty for bringing the past into their future, and when he told her as much she grasped his hand in hers and said, “Don’t start that.  Frankly, I’m surprised you didn’t bring this up sooner.”

           “I don’t know what effects saving him will have here.  Sometimes I think that I messed with our worlds enough by coming back, but knowing that he’s out there…”

           Peggy reached over him to the nightstand and pulled out the drawer, grabbing a pad of paper and pen.  She flipped the notepad open to a blank page and said, “Tell me everything you know about where he’s being held.  I’ll see if we have any information at the SSR.”

           “I know exactly where he is,” Steve said. “He’s housed in a high security laboratory in Moscow.”

           He spent hours poring over the Winter Soldier’s file when he first crossed paths with him and he had practically memorized the contents.  

           “Well then, do we have a plan?”

           Steve rubbed at the back of his neck, his muscles tight from tension, and said, “We’d need a plane.”

           “Then I guess it’s lucky we know one of the most accomplished civilian pilots.”

That morning, Peggy and Steve made their way to Stark Industries.  Peggy whisked them through security, no doubt having frequented the towering skyscraper. The secretary up front knew her by name, and as they walked past her toward the laboratory, Peggy told him, “In case you are thinking it, no, Howard and I did not resort to fondue while you were gone.”

           Steve laughed, remembering their conversation from all those years ago.

           “Good to know.”

           “He’s actually met a lovely girl.  Maria.”

           Steve recognized her as Tony’s mother and said, “She sounds great.”

           “I hope he doesn’t do something stupid and muck it up.  I can actually hold a conversation with her.  That’s more than I can say for most of the girls he’s brought around.”  

           “Something tells me he’ll make it work.”

           They stopped in front of the laboratory. There was a locked door with an electronic keypad next to it.  Peggy typed in a code and the door unlocked.  Steve followed her into the lab and spotted Howard in the back.  He was bent over, examining something with a microscope.  

           “Howard?”

           “Hold on.  I’m just finishing this up.”

           “I have someone here to see you.”

           “Yeah yeah, I just…dammit!  I thought I had it and then – “ He stopped suddenly when he turned around and saw Steve.  

           “Hello Howard,” Steve said.

           “Holy shit.  Is…is it really you?”  He looked at Peggy.  “Is it really him?”            Peggy nodded.  “We need your help.”

           “Of course, you do,” Howard said.  He repeated himself and then strode over to Steve, giving him a tight hug.  “You really gave us all a scare there, buddy.  Taking a nose-dive into the Arctic like that.”

           Steve and Peggy exchanged a glance.  “About that…”

           Steve made quick work of the whole back-from-the-future bit, watching Howard grow whiter and whiter.  By the end, Howard had scooted all the way back to the counter, his back braced against the sturdy surface.  

           “You realize how crazy all of that sounds, right?”

           “I know,” Steve said.  “And, I get it if you don’t believe me, but –“

           “Hold on, I never said I didn’t believe you,” Howard said.  “It’s crazy, but what about the last few years hasn’t been crazy?  So, what do you two need?”

           Steve’s shoulders slackened with relief.  “We were hoping we could catch a ride on your airplane.”

           “You’re lucky the damn government didn’t seize that after the war.  They took about everything else.  But sure, I can give you a ride.  How far are we going?”

           “Moscow.”

           Howard laughed, but then sobered when he saw that it wasn’t a joke.  “You’re serious?  Moscow?”

           “We wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important, Howard,” Peggy implored.

           “Alright, alright.  I’ll take you.”

           “And there was one more thing,” Steve said.  “Where we’re going, I’m going to need a suit of sorts. Obviously, I can’t go the Captain America route again, but-“

           “Say no more,” Howard said, his eyes wide with excitement.  “I have just the thing.”  He rushed around the counter and pressed a button, a panel on the wall popping out and sliding over to reveal a stealth black suit.  “It’s a new prototype with woven vibranium.  It’s still a bit in the testing stage, but I think it should get the job done.”

           Steve walked over to the suit, an odd thrill running through him, not unlike the first time he wielded his shield.

           “I think this’ll do just fine.”  He looked back at his friend and said, “You don’t know what this means to me.  Thank you.”

           “You’re welcome, Steve.”  There was a pause, and then Howard asked, “So, tell me, you’re really from the future?”

           “Yes, I am.”

           “I can’t help asking.”  Steve braced himself for the question.  “Do I ever figure out a way to make a car fly?”

           Later that afternoon, they boarded Howard’s plane and began the long flight overseas.  Steve was nervous, running through all the potential ways this could go wrong. Bucky could have been moved to another location.  He could be unconscious.  They could activate him and neither could come out alive.  Complicating matters further, if Steve failed, his friendly pilot, Howard Stark, would die some forty years later with his wife, leaving behind an orphaned Tony Stark who didn’t take it particularly well.  

           “I think I should go in with you,” Peggy said, pulling him from his dark thoughts.

           “What?”

           “You shouldn’t go in alone.  Especially since you don’t know what you’re walking into.”

           “No.  I don’t want you in there,” Steve said immediately.  “You should stay here with Howard.”

           “You can’t be serious,” she said incredulously.

           “This is something I have to do alone, Peg.”

           “Don’t be so bone-headed.”

           “They are trained assassins, Peggy.  With super human strength.  I can’t have you in there.”

           “Are you saying I can’t handle it?” she returned defensively.

           “No, Peg-“

           Her eyes flashed and she snapped, “I am not some wallflower, Steve.  I am an SSR agent.  I have taken down my fair share of men who underestimate me, and-“

           “I’m not underestimating you,” he returned heatedly. “I’ve seen what these men and women can do, and I can’t have you in there and focus on getting Bucky back.  I’ll end up losing both of you.”

           “If I can cut in for a second,” Howard interjected with a slight clearing of his throat, breaking up the couple’s spat.  “Peggy, it sounds like you may be a bit of a distraction.”  Peggy shot him a glare and he said, “Just my two cents.”

           “Look, I know this is dangerous, but I’m choosing to do it.  You would be doing it for me.  And if anything happened to you, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”

           Peggy wanted to argue further, but she could see that Steve wouldn’t budge.  Grudgingly, she nodded and said, “Okay.  I’ll stay with Howard.  But, you need to promise me that you’ll come back.  I mean it, no funny business.  Losing you once was enough for this lifetime.”

           Steve grasped her hand tightly.  “I promise.”

           They arrived in Moscow early the next morning and landed the plane about half a mile away from the building.  Steve changed into his suit and gave Peggy a kiss.  She gripped his arm and said, “Be safe.”

           “I will,” he said.  “I’ll see you soon.”

           He set off in the direction of the laboratory and Peggy sat back down in her seat, already feeling anxious.  Howard looked back at her and said, “I’ll never understand your desire to be thrown into life threatening situations.  Most folks tend to avoid them at all costs.”

           “I hate just sitting around,” Peggy said.  “But, he was right.  I can hold my own, but I think the people in there are different. They’re like him.”

           “He’ll be alright, you know.  Just wait and see.  He’ll be back with that guy before you know it.”

           Peggy was moderately worried at the beginning, but she knew that Steve was more than capable of handling himself, which served to dull the worry somewhat.  An hour later, no such dulling was left, and what remained was panic.  She was just about to go off after him when she saw two figures approaching.  

           “They’re coming,” Peggy said, immediately going over to the window.  It was as she watched their approach that she caught movement to their left.  A man ran toward them, gun drawn and shot Bucky in the arm.  She could tell that Bucky was already injured, and the additional insult sent him staggering backwards.  Steve launched himself toward the man, taking him down to the ground.   The man had Steve pinned to the ground, struggling against’ Steve’s hand to level his gun down toward his head.

           “Stay here,” Peggy told Howard hurriedly.

           “Yes,” Howard said, watching the same events unfold outside the airplane.

           Peggy ran outside and raised her gun, taking only a moment to level the shot before pulling the trigger.  The man collapsed on top of Steve, who pried the gun out of his hands and tossed it to the side out of reach.  

           Steve grimaced as he pushed the man off of him.  Peggy quickly went to his side and helped him up. “Let’s get out of here before more of them show up, yes?”

           Steve nodded and then looked around worriedly for Bucky.

           “I’m fine,” Bucky said, although his arm was clearly bleeding.  He sized up Peggy and said, “That was a damn good shot.”

           “Thank you very much.”

           They all climbed into the plane and Howard wasted no time before getting them up in the air, but not before exchanging a brief hello with their new guest.

           “It’s nice to meet you, Bucky Barnes.”

           “You too, Howard.”

(**Let’s all just pretend that a 1940s plane could get to Moscow as quickly as they did in this.**.)

If you enjoyed this, you can read Part 1 HERE and Part 2 HERE.

[squarehere]

Library AU - Cosplay

RCPL adopts a mascot.  This a good thing, right?

Mako sighed in resignation.

With a notepad tucked under his arm and a cup of jasmine tea in the other, he was as ready for their monthly staff meeting as he'd ever be.  He didn't mind them so much when Kya led.  Because she didn't belabor agenda items, their meetings ended a half hour or an hour early.

No so when Bataar Jr was in charge.  He dragged on, and on, and on, and on to the point that almost everyone was ready to fling themselves into traffic.  Especially at their librarians' meetings.  And even when he had agenda items in Kya's pressence, their meetings were still too goddamn long.

Mako took his seat beside Zhu Li while his colleagues filed in.  Korra sat next to her, and they discussed their interviews for an extra page position later that day, and from their conversation, the candidates were less than spectacular.  Kya sat the head of the semi-circle of tables to Korra's right, with Baatar next to her.  Asami sat at the other set of tables directly across from him, doodling on her notepad.  He peered over at what she was drawing, and it appeared to be a detailed Satomobile and a human figure several feet in the air.  Probably Raiko getting hit by a car.  Though she was the branch's resident tech expert, she was also a talented sketch artist, more than she gave herself credit for.  Just then, Opal and Bumi took the empty seats beside her, complaining about one of her "fans" asking her out.  In his usual brusque manner, Bumi offered to "snuff the bastard out."  Just as an animated discussion of their more devoted followers began, Kya cut to the chase.

"As interesting as this is, we'll have to table it for next month.  Right now, I have some news from The Mothership."  Everyone soon came to attention.  "To highlight the upcoming summer reading initiative, the Board of Patrons had decided to adopt a mascot."

Everyone traded quizzical looks, except for Zhu Li, who was studiously recording the meeting, and Korra, who rolled her eyes.

"A mascot?  Why the hell do we need a mascot?" she asked skeptically, though she was 95% sure that one particular board member was responsible.

"I'm glad you asked, Korra."  Kya steeled herself for what was coming next.  Something told her at least half of them wouldn't be pleased.  "Bolin, that's your queue!"

Just then, Bolin nearly hopped into the room wearing an oversized fire ferret head, and a furry red costume dressed in an ugly green book sweater.  The getup had a long tail protruding from it's backside.  

Everyone was stunned into silence.  A few of them tried to stifle their snickering with varying degrees of success.

"THIS was your special presentation?!," Mako said in shock.  He knew his brother was working on a project, but he NEVER would've guessed it was this.  

"HEY KIDS!!!  WANNA BUY SOME DRUGS?!?" he shrieked in a high-pitched, squeaky voice.

The damn finally broke when Opal suddenly burst into laughter.  Asami, who tried so hard to keep it together, completely lost it as well.  Bumi, Korra, and Wei soon joined in.  Kya sat back wondering what sort of hell she unleashed.  Zhu Li bit her lip to maintain control because, dammit, someone to!

Bataar just looked horrified.  Only he, Kya, and Bolin knew about this, and he'd been against it from the start.  To him, libraries were places of study and learning, not cartoon figures and nonsense.  Varrick.  This was all Varrick.  That son of bitch.

"Careful, Bo!  You're gonna get dry-humped by a rabbiroo in that thing!" Bumi unhelpfully called out, which earned another round of laughter from everyone.  Even Zhu Li, who had an indefatigable reputation, managed a giggle.  

Bolin reached for the tail and spun it around with flair.  Opal, who'd recovered somewhat, was now on the verge of tears when Bumi nudged her and said, "this is how fetishes are are born!"

"I hate you!" she managed between breaths.  After drying her own tears, Asami passed her a handkerchief, which she accepted.  Bataar shot her a searing look, but she completely ignored him.  

Kya had to regain control of the meeting. "Ok, now that your initial shock is over, Bolin, how do you feel?"

Bolin removed the ferret head.  His hair was matted to his head, and his cheeks were red.  "Welp, aside from barely being able to see, and being hot, it was great!"

"It does have an ice vest to keep you cool.  In the meantime, this is the new mascot, and before you ask, it has no name yet.  And in case you were wagering, this was Varrick's idea."

At that, everyone's attention turned to Zhu Li.  Rumors swirled that she and the eccentric board member were dating.  She never confirmed it, but she also never denied it.  Only a certain few knew the truth, and they weren't saying anything.  "Don't look at me!  I had nothing to do with this."

"Which brings me to my next point.  Each branch is getting their own costume.  And within each branch, it'll rotate among the staff," Kya interjected.

Any remaining good humor was replaced with more shock.  "W-w-wait, what do you mean by 'rotate'?" Zhu Li asked as realization dawned on her and her colleagues.  

Kya drew a deep breath.  Here it comes.  "It means that we'll all take turns wearing the costume.  And I do mean ALL."

"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!?" Mako uncharacteristically blurted out.  Korra laughed at his reaction as well as the mental image of him looking miserable dressed as a deranged fire ferret.

"I refuse, I absolutely refuse!  This is beneath my dignity."  Bataar was mortified at the prospect of stooping to such a ridiculous level, but Kya was having none of it.

"It's not beneath mine, and if I have to do it, then so do you."

"Don't be such a killjoy, Bataar.  Think about the children," Asami chided, to which Korra and Bolin snickered.  

"Yeah, bro!  Better suit next time Mom visits!" Wei interjected.  Their mother Suyin managed the Dragon Flats Branch and occasionally visited Central for meetings and as desk coverage when needed.  

Bataar smiled wickedly, the type that spelled trouble for everyone else.  "In that case, I'll create the rotation list."

"And watch, he's gonna put himself last," Bumi again whispered to Opal, who looked at him sympathetically.

"Our family in a nutshell.  But this'll take him down a peg."

"And when's the start date?" Mako asked.  His feelings were mixed.  As a children's librarian, he always looked for new programs and activities to bring kids into the library.  He wasn't sure if this was it.  

"Two weeks."

He pinched the bridge of his nose and felt an incoming migraine.  Well shit.  This is going to be a LONG summer.