After multiple run-ins with death and many shocking self-discoveries in the course of a few months, all America Evans wants to do is hide away in Washington with Steve until she finds out who she really is. But life as an Avenger doesn't allow for a...
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(I know it's not of Steve, but in this scene, I can really imagine her looking at him like this so leave me alone 😂)
STEVE'S POV
"Sam!" I shout, getting his attention right before America throws the first punch. Bucky grabs Sam by the chin and flings him across the room. He smashes into a wall and crumples, and although he stays down, he's not unconscious. I dodge, instantly making the choice to stay on defense as long as I possibly can. I don't want to hurt her.
She, however, has no such reservations. Hit, dodge, kick, duck. Over and over. In some ways, I have the advantage. I've sparred with her before many times, while she doesn't remember my methods at all. I know her style like the back of my hand. Unfortunately, that style is fast, much faster than me. And in some ways, she has the advantage. I'm fighting to save her. She's fighting to kill me.
"Gehen! Ich werde aufholen!" She barks over her shoulder in a language I don't recognize. German? Russian? Bucky nods in understanding and runs out of the room. Sam makes brief eye contact with me over her shoulder before running out after the psychologist, leaving only Mer and me behind. The red lights flash above us as we circle each other.
"Mer!" I yell as watches me carefully, like a lioness on a hunt. I've really got to watch my back. The second I let my guard down is the second she'll strike. Bored with waiting for me to make the first move, she lunges for me, a small knife in hand. I throw her over my shoulder, but she lands easily on her feet. "America! It's me! It's Steve!"
She kicks me square in the chest and I stumble back, surprised by the sheer power she has. I've never seen her harness that much of her strength before. I'd be awed if I wasn't currently terrified of my own wife. But this isn't her. Mer is careful, not overly violent, and she almost never takes the offensive side in a fight. The Night Wind is ruthless. I stumble backward, and she closes in on me.
We should have stayed in Malibu.
"Mer, this isn't you. It's me, Steve. You love me." I try one more time knowing that nothing will change. Her dark eyes don't sparkle, her soft lips don't curve into a smile. Even though she looks completely deadly, I still find myself staring. Focus! I let out a frustrated sigh as I realize what I have to do. "I'm so sorry about this, doll."
This time when she attacks, I fight back. I land a solid punch at her side, causing her to wince. She aims with her right arm, but I catch her fist, wrestling the knife out of her hand. It clatters to the floor. She struggles within my grip for a moment while punching me hard in the face with her left fist, a move I certainly didn't expect. I ignore the immediate ache in my cheek and get back up on my feet.
I feint left and race to the right, grabbing her by the shoulders. Her build is slighter than mine, and I quickly tighten my arm across her windpipe, holding her against me. She struggles, but it's my muscles versus hers, and I'll win over and over in that category. I feel awful about doing this, but I don't want to knock her out by force. If I can just get her to pass out...a few more seconds...
She slips out of my grasp quicker than I could have ever imagined and kicks me with so much force that I fall backward into an elevator shaft, but not before I grab her arm and pull her down with me.
We free fall for a few seconds before I smack against the hard ground. Black consumes the edges of my vision as I lose consciousness.
After what must be a few minutes later, I blearily open my eyes. I forget why I'm in an empty elevator shaft for a moment, but it all comes back. Groaning, I push myself up as quickly as possible, ready to fight, but there's no opponent.
"Mer." I scramble over to where she lays limp on the ground, her coppery hair covering up her beautiful face. I pull her into my lap and check for a pulse, which I thankfully find. She probably just hit her head, the one thing I did not want to do, but the only thing that works to snap either of them out of it. Maybe I should have tried that before tumbling into an elevator shaft. "Aw, Mer, I'm so sorry." I press a light kiss to her forehead before trying to figure my way out of here. The chain looks strong, but is it strong enough for both of us? Questionable. I shake my head as I shrug off my brown leather jacket. It looks like we're going to find out.
I scoop America's unconscious form onto my back in a fireman's carry. The bruises from our fight make her seem heavier, although I don't spend a lot of time carrying her around, so what do I know? Usually she's ahead of me. What I do know is I'm going to have to pull us both out of here before we're caught by Ross or before Buck gets away. Both will happen soon.
With all of the strength I have, I begin to climb up the chain, ignoring the pain in my hands. Mer's hair gets in my face, but I blow it away impatiently and keep going until my fingers grip the floor. I roll her off of me onto the concrete, then wearily pull myself up.
They're going to lock her up for this. I don't even know how someone got ahold of her and into her head, but she was the same as Buck. She didn't recognize any of us. When she wakes up, she's never going to forgive herself. Even though she attacked me, I feel worse for her. She signed the Accords and put up with Ross to prove that she wasn't Hydra's puppet, and with a few words and a well-timed plan, all of that went to hell.
If the UN had hesitations about her before, all of them have just been answered. After the argument I had with Tony, I know she'll be treated as a criminal if we don't do something about it. I bite my lip and glance around, trying to find a spot to leave her other than the middle of the room, but I'm wasting precious time. I settle by laying her gently in a corner and hoping no one comes down until later before running the same direction Buck did, promising myself to come back as soon as I can for her. It's not because I want to, either.
It's because if she was in my place, that's what she would do.
Translation up top: Go! I'll catch up.
New chapter! This one's a little short, but I'm really excited for the next few ;)
