I found love where it wasn’t supposed to be, right in front of me, talk some sense to me. Below are my Top 5 Favorite stories where Bucky is Hades:
“Like Some Tender God” (T, 5k) by jinlinli
A loud crack rings through the air, and for an instant, Bucky thinks it’s the earth rumbling underneath him in response to his roiling emotions. Then something coils around his wrist and his torso, ensnaring, entangling. It pulls him back, and his legs are sinking into the trunk of the pomegranate tree, the branches twining around his arms. He wrenches forward, but this is Steve’s domain, and Bucky’s all but cut off from the sources of his own power. The tree shudders as it settles back into the ground.
Steve leans closer to inspect his handiwork, trailing a finger up the bark curving around Bucky’s chest. The garland is still draped over his shoulders, and Steve plucks the pomegranate blossom from the end, tucks it into Bucky’s hair. "Sir Hades, why don’t you stay a while," he whispers and presses another light kiss against the corner of Bucky’s mouth.
+ Origin. Steve knows what he wants, and what he wants is Bucky.
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“Down, Down, to the Underground” (E, 10k) by sarahyellow
In Greek legend, there is the tale of the goddess Persephone. Kidnapped by Hades, returned to save the Earth from her mother's crippling grief, and forced to go back every year. One month in the underworld for each seed of the pomegranate that she ate.
The time for Steve's third year in hell has come around.
+ Ancient. Enemy dubcon to lovers. Bucky begins to romance Steve, and Steve starts wanting to stay
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“listen to your heart (but don’t say goodbye to me)” (E, 9k) by CinnamonCake
There is a Hades, and there is a Persephone.
They’re just not the ones you’d expect.
+ Origin. Bucky stole Steve’s heart long before he stole Steve.
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“I have walked through the valley” (T, 8k) by liionne
"Listen, I'm on a very tight schedule here, I don't have time to talk to idiots--"
"Okay, fine, then I'll just hang onto your weird three headed dog thingy then, shall I?" Steve snaps.
"Cerberus?"
"That's what the tag says." Steve mutters.
"Who even is this?" Steve asks, feeling exhausted from the entire conversation.
"James Buchanan Barnes." The voice - James - answers. "Lord of the Underworld. Owner of Cerberus. I'll see you in three days, Steve."
Steve finds a puppy on a post-graduation road trip. It spirals from there.
+ Modern AU. Steve returns a dog, gains a live-in boyfriend.
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“Love for a Season” (T, 5k) by aislingdoheanta and Justgot1
Steve accidentally wanders into the Underworld and decides he's staying, much to the chagrin of the resident god of the Underworld.
+ Modern AU. Things the underworld has: a cute dog, a comfortable bed, and a handsome guy. Steve is going to stick around for science.
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*More mythology fics here
