Work Text:
VORMIR
2014
Space was beautiful, stars glimmering in the sky you couldn't even see down from earth. Sam and Bucky walked over to the glass window of the ship looking at what they assumed was vormir.
"Damn. Under different circumstances this would be amazing." Sam said with no response from Bucky, just his usual staring.
The ship then landed and they walked over the death mountain. It was like hiking up a mountain except there wouldn't be anything nice for when they got to the top.
"I bet the possum didn't have to walk up a mountain." Bucky complained as they had just gotten to the top. Bucky was taking his last steps up till he saw Sam's hand offering to help him up.
"I think he was a raccoon." Sam said as he helped Bucky up.
"Whatever, he eats garbage." Sam and Bucky were both facing the cliff still from afar but heard a mysterious whisper in the wind and after-
"Welcome."
Sam and Bucky both quickly turned around aiming their guns towards the voice where came from. They looked and saw what seemed like a shadowy figure in a cloak, similar to a grim reaper.
"James. Son of George"
the shadowy figure spoke.
"Samuel. Son of Darlene."
The two made no motion to lower their guns and still holding them up took a few steps towards Red skull.
"Who are you." Sam asked.
"Consider me a guide... to you. And to all who seek the soul stone."
"Great. You can tell us where it is then we'll be on our way." Bucky said and the red skull levitated closer towards them mumbling something in German. He stepped into the light of the sky and they could see his bloody red face.
"If only it were that easy. Winter Soldier."
The red skull levitated to the edge of the cliff and Sam and Bucky followed and had put down their weapons. "What you seek lies in front of you."
Sam walked closer towards the edge looking down at the long drop.
"As does what you fear." Red skull finished.
"The stones down there." Bucky said taking a few steps back from the edge.
"For one of you. For the other... In order to take the stone you must lose that which you love. An everlasting exchange. A soul for a soul."
Both looked towards each other then down from the cliff with chills running down their spines. A few minutes had passed, Bucky sat down on what appeared to be a crumpled part of this place walls while Sam was walking, pacing back and forth waving to red skull a few times with no response.
They both knew what it meant to get the stone, even told before but didn't have much to believe with or process it.
Friendship had grown between the ex hydra assassin and falcon, maybe something more it felt like but neither dared to admit. When Sam and Steve helped Bucky and he had his mind in conscious Sam saw that he wasn't a bad dude, sure they argued like an old married couple what felt like every day but it was fun.
Bucky liked sam. At first he thought he was probably the most annoying person he's ever met but he appreciated it, he took that as a sign Sam looked past the deadly killer in him and just saw a normal person, saw bucky.
Bucky didn't say but when he looked over edge he was terrified. Ge thought of when he went on the mission with steve, how he was holding on for dear life and Steve tried to help and it was too late.
"How's it going." Sam waved at the red skull again and his voice snapped bucky from his thoughts and he relaxed his tense expression.
"Shit. Maybe he's making this up." Sam said still pacing. "No. No, I don't think he is."
"You're doing that staring thing again."
Sam turned around standing still looking at Bucky.
"Thanos left here with the stone and without his daughter. That's not a coincidence." Bucky said fidgeted with his glove on his metal had thinking about the purple headed bastered remembering seeing the soul stone on his gauntlet before he snapped.
"No, it's not."Sam mumbled looking down.
"Whatever it takes." Sam glanced at Bucky then over at the cliff.
"Whatever it takes." Bucky repeated standing up walking over to Sam.
"We don't get that stone, billions of people stay dead." Sam said looking over at the cliff again.
"Well I guess we both know who it's gotta be." Bucky responded looking at Sam hardly glancing at the cliff.
"I guess we do."
Sam turned back to look at Bucky smiling slightly. He didn't look away from Bucky and gently reached for his non-metal hand. Bucky felt it, actually felt it and interlocked his fingers with Sam's.
They looked back up from their hands looking at one another in the eyes knowing that look the other was giving.
"I'm starting to think we mean different people here, Sam"
"For the last five years, I have been trying to do one thing."
"What to get yourself killed?"
"To get right here. To bring everyone back that's what this whole thing is about, that's why we're here." Sam's voice raised a bit.
"You don't think that's why I came here. Why I'm here with you?"
"Oh, don't you start getting decent with me now." Sam's voice lightened but yet was still stern.
"You think I want to do it?"
Sam didn't say anything but he had a terrible feeling when bucky said that.
"I'm trying to save your life, asshole."
"Oh well good I didn't ask you. How's that?"
There was a short pause of silence.
"Sam, you've known what I've done."
Bucky's voice cracked remembering as his eyes glistened with tears.
"I don't judge people on their worst mistakes."
"Maybe you should."
"You didn't do it."
Bucky's eyes still filled with tears, Sam's wear too but Bucky could hardly tell with the goggles.
"You're a real pain in the ass do you know that."
Bucky joked and Sam smiled.
Neither of them said anything and just enjoyed the silence and the beauty of each other's eyes both slowly leaning in without realizing. They stopped when they noticed they were an inch away from each other seeing if the other would back away but neither did.
They stopped when they rested their foreheads against each other closing their eyes. Sam slowly let go of Bucky's hand and slowly wrapped his arms around him as Bucky did the same. They adjusted their bodies moving their heads on each other's shoulders taking in each other's embrace.
"Okay." Sam said and they finally let go.
"You win." Bucky made no facial expressions and neither did Sam till he smiled and grabbed Bucky by his flesh shoulder and kicked his legs pushing him down. Bucky groaned takin aback from what just happened not expecting Sam to do that.
"Say bye to Steve for me."
Bucky punched Sam in his elbow not hard enough to hurt him but to lose his grip and then grabbed him by both of his shoulders flipping Sam over on his back. Bucky rolled on his knees and grabbed his pocket knife getting a bit of Sam's suit stuck on it and slammed the knife in the ground with his metal arm to make sure it stayed.
"You can tell him for me."
Bucky then started running over towards the cliff but before he got close enough Sam programmed red wing to stop Bucky and hit him out of the way. Red wing luckily did and Sam grabbed the knife throwing it to the side and quickly getting up running to the edge quickly unhoisting his falcon wings from his back.
Bucky groaned and punched red wing breaking it when he saw Sam up. Sam and Bucky made eye contact while Sam ran but he broke it when he got to the end and jumped but before he could even fall Bucky launched himself catching Sam and quickly grabbing his grappling hook attaching it to Sam and shooting it up to hold them.
When the sudden stop drop from falling Bucky fell but Sam quickly caught him by his metal arm holding him but the wrist. Sam looked at the grappling hook and realized he wasn't even holding it and it was attached to him so he couldn't let go.
"Agh, damn you." Sam groaned looking down at Bucky dangling. He hadn't looked down once, only keeping his eyes on sam. The grappling hook was attached to Sam's side so he tried to reach Bucky with his other arm across but the grappling hook moved a bit shaking them both.
Bucky, with a quick reaction out of fear moved his real hand to try and hold on and reach for Sam's but he quickly stopped at the little distance between his hand and Sam's, lowering his hand back down again.
"Wait!" Sam yelped still trying to get Bucky up.
Bucky's eyes were filling with tears again, he didn't want them to, he didn't want Sam to remember it with him scared.
"Sam..."
"No."
Sam spoke knowing what Bucky was going to say.
"You have to let me go."
Bucky could hardly see it but Sam had been crying too.
"No. please, no."
What was only a second of silence felt like an eternity. "I love you, man"
"Please." Sam tried to reason with him but it had been too late. Bucky kicked the wall to get from Sam's grip. Sam tried to catch Bucky one more time but he had been too far already.
Bucky was scared he remembered that feeling from when he fell with Steve. He wanted to scream but he didn't, he didn't want Sam to remember the horrors of this moment haunted by him and his screams.
Sam looked away he closed his eyes he didn't want to see but he couldn't help it. He turned around to look at him and saw Bucky on the ground, blood surrounding his head as he lied on his back. He wasn't moving, he wasn't breathing, Bucky was gone, for real this time.
The fog and clouds swirled around the mountain Sam didn't know or remembered what happened next, he assumed he blacked out. He shot his eyes open and sat up surrounded by water. He looked around till he felt something in his hand. He thought it was a rock but when he looked at it was the soul stone.
Getting his consciousness back he remembered how he had gotten this stone and began crying again, Sam dropped his hand with the soul stone in his lap and was about to get up till he felt something in his other hand.
He lifted his other hand from the water and blinked a few times to see if he saw it right. It was Bucky's dog tags. Sam didn't even know he had these or when Bucky had given it to him but right now he didn't even really want to remember.
~~~The End~~~