Sentinel/Guide AU for starkingenuity

[starspangledspandex]

Things have been going remarkably well between them. Even if the beginning was somewhat rocky, their compatibility was obvious and not just to them. Steve was old-fashioned and though his instincts made it clear what they wanted, he did things the "right" way. There were dates and gifts and just general wooing. They talked about it and they were ready.

He smiled at Tony, watching him as he worked and couldn't stand it anymore. "Tonight," he said, then added, for clarity, "We should bond tonight."

Maybe not the most romantic proposal but he figured he shouldn't smother Tony in it anyway or the man would get sick of it. No the rarity made it special.

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[starspangledspandex]

"Can you me tell how this thing works?" he asked, gesturing toward the machine Bucky was trapped in. He didn't feel like they had a lot of time. He should have called for more back up than this but it was too late.

[whothehellisbucky]

Sam had tried to tell you about this guy from the upstate Avengers HQ, Steve, but you just don't listen! Or you're too into finding Bucky. Or too into finding a way to get back into Tony... Sam wasn't going to blame him for any of that but he did roll his eyes as JARVIS analyzed the machine and told Steve where to hit it to release his friend.

The machine actually groaned and Bucky fell forward, mechanical arm uninjured by the joint it was in ached something feirce. Wisely, he didn't move to get up right away.

[starspangledspandex]

He paid attention but now wasn't the time to track down some random person that may or may not help them Sam. Steve preferred this way. He couldn't trust a stranger with knowing they found a man responsible for the majority of the assassinations in the last seventy years.

Steve crouched again, within arm's reach but on guard, though he didn't expect to be attacked. "Can you walk?"

[whothehellisbucky]

"Yeah. Shoulder isn't my legs," Bucky said, cheeky, and got to his feet as quickly as possible. Sam looked nervous so he lifted both hands. "I've--"

There was a sound below them that all three men turned towards the door to look at.

"Looks like whoever set that trap found us."

[starspangledspandex]

He shrugged, he couldn't be sure how long he was in that position or whether he was injured anywhere else. The sass did give him a little bit of hope though. Steve glanced toward Sam and started to raise his own hand, but his senses snapped outside to what was coming.

"We need to move," Steve said, reaching to pick up the bag he brought with his shield. "JARVIS, is the jet still hidden?"

[whothehellisbucky]

There was just a momentary pause. "I believe so, though no for long, Captain," the AI informed him as Sam bent to grab the backpack from the ground and toss it, shield and all, to it's owner.

Sam was the first out the door, banging it open because it didn't matter. They all knew there were people coming to intercept them. Bucky moved after, keeping low and trying to pop his arm back into place.

[starspangledspandex]

He caught the shield with ease, debating before he pulled it from the bag--it was past time to be subtle--and slid his arm through the holder.

Steve followed Sam, glancing behind toward Bucky and he hoped they all survived this. "Lock it down," he ordered. "But have it ready for us."

[whothehellisbucky]

JARVIS confirmed as the trio rushed down the stairs only to find themselves being shot at. Sam pressed himself back against the exposed brick to miss a few less precise shots and snorted as he checked the load of his magazine.

"Looks like you're up."

He did not have the acrobatic acumen of Captain America.

[starspangledspandex]

"On it," he agreed, stepping out with the shield leading and there were plenty of bullets that clanged off of it harmlessly before he took the majority out with a single, bouncing throw.

[whothehellisbucky]

Sam was always pretty impressed. Steve had done that since they had first met. On your left? He was a wonderful asshole. More wonderful than an asshole though.

He pushed Bucky out next... Which caused the other man just to jump down two landings over the banister and take out the other men that Steve had left behind.

[starspangledspandex]

The Sentinel straightened , watching the other man as he moved and he swallowed because he felt like he did when he was watching Tony. He loved them both, he did, but Bucky was family. He never envisioned bonding with the man. He wasn't sure he could even see it now but he felt for him anyway.

"We need to keep moving," he muttered, listening for more footsteps. "The longer we take, the more of them there are going to be."

[whothehellisbucky]

"So keep moving," Bucky almost teased, though he hadn't gotten that quality back to his voice yet. It was still in his eyes. He still meant it. He pushed passed Steve and smirked. "I'll lead then--"

He was caught off guard when he heard the firing piston of a gun and leaned to the left, dodging the bullet before he turned to kick the gun out of the man's hand. The man was taken down right after. "Okay okay, moving."

[starspangledspandex]

"Watch it, pal," Steve warned, unable to keep the amusement out of his voice as he followed. It was reassuring to hear the teasing from his friend even if he wasn't quite back to normal.

They were throwing a lot of man power at the three of them. Steve took out a number of other soldiers, snarling at a couple of unbonded Sentinels that got too close to Bucky and it was strange but he didn't really stop to think about it.

[whothehellisbucky]

Bucky didn't know when they got separated from Sam. It happened at a junction, the door blasting open into the stairwell. Sam told Steve to go ahead, he'd meet him back at the rendezvous point, and jumped out the window.

Bucky was so use to just keeping himself alive that he mostly just focused on getting somewhere out of line of sight.

He watched Steve spring passed him and he grabbed the Super Sentinel around the waist and tugged him back to a place of cover beneath the loading dock.

[starspangledspandex]

He was concerned for Sam but trusted that the man could get there himself. He was capable and he wasn't the one these men were after. They wanted Bucky above all and probably Captain America to go with him.

Steve was startled by being grabbed but he smelled Bucky so he didn't struggle, not beyond turning to confirm it was his friend.

"Thanks," he said with a smile, trying not to clang the shield off of anything. "What's out next move?"

[whothehellisbucky]

"It feels weird giving orders to Captain America," Bucky said, maybe a little too loudly, but they weren't using heat sensors against them and a group of soldiers ran passed.

It felt like being back in Europe. The buildings in the warehouse district could just as well be forests.

Bucky set his chin on Steve's shoulder as they crouched. It was just a little thing.

[starspangledspandex]

"We're a team," he responded quietly, watching as feet ran past them and not a single person thought to check under anything. "It's not giving orders. It's working together."

Steve smiled at the man, glancing at him as he adjusted his shield and then frowned, "If Tony is paying attention, he's going to be panicking."

[whothehellisbucky]

"Who's that?"

Bucky was curious. His memory was hardly back in place and what happened during the Winter Soldier program would probably never be gained. He didn't know that he had killed Howard. He didn't know how many people fell because of him.

And he certainly didn't know that his childhood friend had found someone to bond with because... Well he always thought Steve was normal and being a Super Sentinel later in life allowed him not to have to bond at all.

In fact he was pretty sure that the physical queues he was getting from the other was just emotion and his body having a literal loose wire.

[starspangledspandex]

This was not where he wanted to be having this conversation. It was a terrible time for this, particularly with Bucky barely back on his feet, but he wasn't going to hide from him.

"Tony Stark," Steve said, taking a deep breath. "My Guide, well, almost. I'm having trouble with the bond on my end but it exists on his. We have a team of scientists on it."

[whothehellisbucky]

Stark wasn't a name easy to forget. "Stark--" wait. "Howard's kid?" If he knew the truth he wouldn't be laughing, and in fact he wasn't laughing a few moments later when the rest of that caught up with him. "I figured he had kids. Too many. That man did like to get out of camp whenever possible."

But they were no longer living in the forties. There were cell phones, the strangest looking cars, weapons he could barely describe...

And Howard Stark's Guide son being with Steve.

And that brought up memories of couch cushion beds and yelling matches because didn't Steve know what was going to happen if they got caught? And they were absolutely going to get caught. Besides, they should have families. And Bucky would need a Guide. Their kids could be friends--

But that didn't happen. And now the kid from Brooklyn who he had pushed away because being gay was a death sentence even for Guides and Sentinels when they were kids, had a Guide. And that Guide was a man.

Bucky pressed his lips together.

"Doesn't matter. Let's get out of here. To the left."

[starspangledspandex]

"Yeah, Howard's son," Steve agreed because what else could he do? A name like Stark was pretty distinct. "He's in his forties. As far as I know, he's an only child."

He remembered those days too but it didn't work did it? They weren't compatible enough right? Of course, it wasn't like he manifested as a Guide either. Steve remembered the arguments. Hiding that sort of thing from whoever you bond was impossible. How could you do that to someone? It didn't sit right with him.

They would have time to talk later. Right now, they needed to get out of here. Bucky was right about that at least. Steve went, trying to keep quiet and they surprised a guard or two on the way out.

[whothehellisbucky]

The quinjet, however, was overrun. Jarvis had not alerted Steve because speaking could likely alert people to their position. The cloak had been breached easily--

Too easily.

Bucky had his metal hand pressed back on Steve's chest, holding him back as he ducked his darker head over the edge of a railing. There was no sign of Sam either.

They had to move on. Bucky had been staying here for a week now... He knew a way out. Theoretically.

That didn't make it any better, what he was feeling inside. There was a lot of jealousy working up in his gut.

[starspangledspandex]

"Jet's a no go," he muttered, without even looking over the railing and he turned to survey the area. Surely there was a way out of here? They could both move fast. He was concerned about Sam but he was still confident the man would get out of here.

"You know a better way out?"

[whothehellisbucky]

"Follow me."

They couldn't just move fast, they could move smart. They could scale buildings. It didn't quite feel like old times--

It felt better.

By the time they made it out of the rail yards and into a warehouse a mile awhile, Bucky was grinning again and breathing hard.

"I shouldn't be having fun but I'll admit that I kind of am. Thanks for saving me again."

[starspangledspandex]

He did, because they didn't have a choice, but also just because it felt right. Why wouldn't he follow Bucky? Steve kept up without any trouble though he was also breathing hard when they got to the warehouse.

Steve laughed, "Well at least someone is."