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]

"Were," he echoed, because it was no longer true. He was basically all Sentinel now except, it seemed, for some pesky genes that might be getting in the way. It was frustrating and annoying and above all sad for him. He felt the loss. He was a Sentinel and he had plenty of old-fashioned ideas of what that was supposed to mean.

He let Tony pull him out of their room and into a different one. The shove to the bed was unexpected but he did go along with it. He wanted the Guide to be happy. He was already failing at that today.

Steve pressed up into the kiss. Firm and steady and unmistakably Sentinel. He wanted to flip them over and finish what they started yesterday.

"You're not human if you don't cry at Bambi," Steve replied with a small smile.

[starkingenuity]

"Boop beep boop," Tony replied to the human comment, grinning as he leaned over Steve to kiss him. It was sweet, he was trying to be good, even if his hands smoothed over the large chest beneath him.

Nothing had really changed between them and it would be all right. Tony was trying to prove that as he looked down into blue eyes that so affectionately and fearfully looked up at him.

"If we can't bond, then we can't. But you're still my Sentinel. And I fully expect to get into your pants either way."

[starspangledspandex]

He chuckled lightly, appreciating his Guide lightening the mood a little and enjoying the feel of the man's hands on him. He was afraid of what was going to happen. Tony wasn't wrong. Steve already lost so many people to time. It would hurt so much to lose another one to this.

"You are more than welcome in my pants," Steve said, eyes amused as he added, "I'm not sure we'll both fit in here but we'll figure it out."

He cupped Tony's cheeks and pulled him gently down into another kiss, eyes serious. "I'm going to try everything to fix it. If we can't... you know the long term side effects. It might take longer for me to get to that point but it's still going to happen."

[starkingenuity]

Steve had to bring up the mental instability and eventual descent into a fugue that could never be broken. Tony stilled, large eyes narrowing. "Eventually means that we have a lot of time still to figure this out. We know I can pull you out of trances. You zoned during the Chitauri attack and I brought you out of it. So you're not a complete lost cause."

He stroked the blond stubble on the beautiful face of the man below him.

"I promise you that we're going to fix it. I intend for you to still be around when I transfer my brain into a young new body."

[starspangledspandex]

Jealousy. Paranoia. Protectiveness. Sentinels without Guides often got violent, especially if they were fixated on a Guide or dating one. The higher the compatibility the worse it tended to be. Then, there would be the memory loss. The patches of time lost to brief fugues. It would get worse and worse, until yes, he fell into a fugue nothing would pull him out of.

They called them the Walking Dead when he was a kid. Blank stares, shambling, filthy people that starved on the streets. It was apt, he supposed, that zombies shared a similar description. Even fugued Sentinels could be violent. He wondered if that was where the idea of the creatures originated.

He smiled, thankfully, for having a Guide so wonderful. He believed it when Tony said that and he meant it when he said it in turn.

Steve tilted his hand into the hand and teased, "You might need a younger body to keep up."

[starkingenuity]

"Says the virgin!" Tony gasped, pushing Steve away without much force and not expecting him to go anywhere. He was not going to consider their very brief connection in anyway being the breaker of Steve Rogers' virginity, thank you. That was still to come when the blond could accept a forming bond and they could become one person for a little while.

"I have so much experience that I could split off into multiple versions of myself and-- Actually no. One of me is just fine. Could you imagine two? You'd be a lucky man until I killed myself over design schematics or how much sugar goes into a latte."

At least they were joking. At least they weren't talking about the Sentinels locked away be use they had not been compatible with or accepted by a Guide.

It happened. It was rough but it happened.

[starspangledspandex]

"I have a lot of time to make up," he grinned and it wasn't quite as cheerful as normal. All those other thoughts were still at the back of his mind. He was, after all, the one that was going to go insane if they didn't fix this.

Steve didn't really want to consider that his first time either. He raised an eyebrow at his Guide's rambling. "I think that would be a little strange," he told him. "I like only having one of you."

[starkingenuity]

"Limited edition pressing," Tony agreed. "One of a kind. And I'm yours. Don't forget that." Even if it went bad, Tony would be there. Almost dying twice in the last two years did make him remember how precious it was to keep on breathing. Finding a Sentinel after years of believing that it was just pointless to will himself over to another person was precious too. Tony was going to hold onto that as best he could.

It would take two days for Steve to get a call to come down to DC. Banner and FitzSimmons were ready for him. "As much as if really love to bounce some ideas off of Mister Stark," the young Scot said over the phone, "we really ought to run controls without him. We should only need you for a few days at this stretch. And as soon as possible if you will, Captain."

[starspangledspandex]

"Oh I won't," the Sentinel promised. "Just so long as you remember you're mine." Even if the world was shocked that Tony Stark was finally settling down, he didn't have any doubts in that department. Sometimes you just knew.

"Give me two hours," he told Fitz. He didn't like going without Tony but he understood the man's concern. Steve could call a Guide from pretty far if he was in duress. He could sense Tony from a fair distance as well.

"I'll keep you updated," he promised, drawing Tony into his arms so he could kiss him.

[starkingenuity]

"Every hour on the hour," Tony insisted before he sent Steve away and kissed him twice more for good measure before he went to watch the quinjet leave from the roof. He hated it when Steve was away. They tended to sleep apart because of propriety on Steve's end but that didn t mean that they didn't spend much of the rest of their time together. This was like Steve going on missions that Tony couldn't follow him on.

It sucked.

He texted Banner to tell him as much and then sent him a kissy-duck faced picture because he loved Bruce like a brother.

FitzSimmons was there to meet Steve with big smiles and handshakes. They looked like they wanted to hug him...but they ignored the urge. "Right this way. Fitz will get you hooked up to the machine."

[starspangledspandex]

"If I can," he agreed, packing quickly and heading for the Quinjet. It might take him two and a half hours to fly there but he figured that was pretty timely. He was pleased that SHIELD seemed to be doing pretty well for itself again and he trusted that Hydra was out of the equation.

Bruce promised to have the Sentinel back as quickly as he could but he wanted to be as thorough as possible while Steve was free.

He tilted his head in greeting and shook both hands he was offered. "Which test is this?" he shook his head, "Or rather, what are you looking for with this one?"

[starkingenuity]

"Oh, you know," Fitz said, having to crane his neck to look up at Steve. "Just the use." Shortening 'usual' to 'use' with his accent was cute...and nerdy. He was trying too hard to be cool. Tony would have eaten this little boy alive. It was a good thing that Steve had come alone. "We'll do a base line and then we'll draw some more blood and see if we can't try to zap it into behaving."

Steve would likely know what 'base line' meant. Stress testing a Sentinel was dangerous. Especially one like Steve.

[starspangledspandex]

Yeah, Steve wasn't terribly impressed but he was used to Tony and the Guide was something else. Fitz hardly registered on his radar. He rubbed his fingers briefly at his temple and followed the man toward the machine.

"Do you have restraints that will hold me?" he asked, just in case. He would probably be alright but he didn't want to think that and something terrible happen. Sentinels could be finicky about pain, if Fitz was being literal about the zapping.

[starkingenuity]

A sheepish looking fanboy of a scientist nodded. "Doctor Banner produced them for himself." They wouldn't hold the Hulk, but made out of vibranium, like the shield, they were going to keep Steve in place. "Just.. Well, it's not going to come to that. We don't expect it to at least! A few easy tests and...poof! Done!" Or so he hoped. So he really, truly hoped.

No more wanted to see Captain America succeed like SHIELD did.

"But you might want to take your shirt off first..."

[starspangledspandex]

"Good," he said, because Steve was just being realistic here. He didn't need to go feral and accidentally, severely, injure someone. He just wanted to be safe.

Steve quietly grasped the hem of his shirt and pulled it over his head, folding it to put it aside as he did, then moved to sit down. "I hope it's that easy."

[starkingenuity]

"Just don't hold your breath." Zapping wasn't literal in this particular experiment but Steve was more or less strapped into a hamster wheel and worked out until he broke a sweat... And while that might have normally taken a long time, this machine could exceed his top speed and take a pounding.

While he was in there, Fifz' other half snuck in with a cup of tea and a grin. "How is it?"

"Brilliant, Jemma. Just look at him!"

"Oh, I am! Fascinating!"

Banner joined them, but only because he had Tony on the line. And Tony insisted on Skyping where he could see Steve. Overprotective? Probably.

[starspangledspandex]

This was a test he could do. Honestly, he appreciated that the zapping wasn't literal. There wasn't going to be any holding his breath while he was being pushed and worked out like this. It was a great work-out really and it made it obvious that Steve was very fit.

He was unaware that Tony was watching but it didn't really matter. It wasn't the first time the older man watched him run, nor would it be the last.

Steve was quiet and focused, following any instructions until the test was over. "How soon do you get results from these?"

[starkingenuity]

"Instantaneously," FitzSimmons said, one flowing into the other as they spoke. "This is just a base line. We're measuring your peak performance to tailor the additional tests to your stamina and metabolism."

Tony narrowed his eyes. "Why?" he asked Bruce directly. "Why is that important?"

Banner would have to outline the following procedures, knowing Tony wouldn't like them. "We are going to try to trigger his Huide abilities to see if any of them are still there."

And that meant pain. A lot of it.

[starspangledspandex]

Steve knew this was just a baseline but some things took longer than others. He was still caught off guard by how much medical technology had grown. He was glad it meant they could basically get started immediately.

He frowned, deeply, at the explanation. He didn't have anything against Guides, of course, but he didn't feel like one. He was comfortable in his identity as a Sentinel.

"Alright, how?" Steve asked, even if he didn't want to know if his Guide abilities were still there. He understood why they needed to know and he did say he would do anything to figure this out.

[starkingenuity]

Steve's staunch believe in who and what he was didn't really help anyone, least of all himself. He had been sickly during his puberty and his Guide side never showed itself when others did. There was probably a good reason Bucky had always come calling whenever Steve got himself in trouble.

He might have called out without knowing it. And Sentinels might have heard it without really knowing what it was, malformed perhaps.

"You need to be on distress. I'm afraid that this is where the zapping comes in. It will be painful but not physically damaging."

[starspangledspandex]

His staunch beliefs were based on his reactions to stimuli. Based on his reaction to Tony. He might have been a Guide once but he was a Sentinel now. There were plenty of things that proved. Maybe his Guide bits were dormant but they weren't helping him now.

"It's also where the restraints come in," Steve said, because he was still a Sentinel, even he had latent Guide abilities and they tended to not be fond of pain if it came down to instinct.

[starkingenuity]

"Exactly. And, Doctor Banner--". Fitz turned those too blue eyes on the other man. He wasn't a Sentinel but the Hulk was. And sometimes the pain of Guides could trigger him. It had happened at least twice... Once with Betty and once with Tony. It was better not to tempt fate.

Once Banner had removed himself and FitzSimmons outfitted Steve in vibranium, the testing could begin. Their instruments were set to record delta waves produced by distressed Guides. Hopefully it would give them a jumping off point...

Especially because Steve could take a whole, whole lot.

[starspangledspandex]

He cooperated completely as they strapped him in and he nodded as Dr. Banner excused himself. They definitely didn't want the Hulk showing up today. Steve wasn't sure he could deal with that on top of the stress of not knowing what was wrong with him.

Steve could take a lot. FitzSimmons were getting a first hand look. His reaction was heavily and obviously Sentinel. It hurt like hell and it went quickly thanks to them having their baseline, but it felt like much longer to him. His growls died down into the quiet whine of over-stimulation as his eyes unfocused and he slipped into a very Sentinel based fugue, which could make things difficult with his Guide so far away.

[starkingenuity]

"Hadn't expected that. His baseline is so obviously into the Guide range--"

"Probably best not to bring in Doctor Banner."

"We need to get a Guide in here--"

"Fitz. This isn't exactly-- We are working on very classified information here!"

"So no Guide--?"

"No one that has clearance--"

"Mister Stark?"

"Mister Stark!"

Well at least one of them was pretty excited. Tony, however, he was less excited. It would take him half an hour to suit up and get down to DC. He literally crashed through the roof to get to Steve and wrenched his arm trying to peel off the armor to get his hands on his Sentinel.

[starspangledspandex]

They unfastened him from most of the chair restraints. They had left on the ones to keep him in the chair, just in case. They didn't want him falling out of it. Just, less stimuli tended to be better and a bunch of vibranium at pressure points was probably bad.

Half an hour was a long time to be fugued, especially with his senses screaming at him thanks to the zapping and he whined quietly every once in awhile. He knew Tony was there even if he was gone and he keened slightly, instinctively turning into the hand that found his face.