Once upon a time, he would kidnap a princess, imprison her in his tower, guard the said tower, and await his doom delivered by a knight in shining armor.
But this wasn't that kind of fairy tale. No, in this story, Steve and the princess were friends. Her lover was a fae who was his platonic soulmate, and the knight in shining armor was his brother in arms.
Still, no one, even Steve himself, foreseen it when a handsome mercenary arrived at his tower and stole his heart.
Steve never felt so adored in his long and boring life, but Edwyn "Eddie" Munson managed to do the impossible.
The man was good with his words, even better with his fingers when he scratched the itchy spots beneath Steve's scales and drew runes of protection and love on Steve's human body.
Eddie was also an attentive lover who brought Steve sparkly gifts every time he visited the tower.
In turn, Steve let the mercenary ride on his back in their adventures, let the man guide him to wherever he was pleased, and let himself be consumed in the amorous looks Eddie would give him when the man thought he didn't notice.
Robin, Nancy, and Jonathan had been suspicious at first about Eddie's true motive. They worried that the mercenary would betray Steve because, despite his peaceful nature, Steve was the most powerful of his kind. And frankly, many had hunted him throughout his life given that even a piece of his scales cost a fortune in black markets.
Their concern was warranted, Steve supposed, but he trusted Eddie to not do him harm. Yet, sometimes, when Steve couldn't sleep at night, he would think about the worst and decide that if Eddie asked, he would give the man everything.
After all, Eddie already had his heart.
In the end, Eddie only asked of him a vial of his blood to cure Wayne's illness.
The day the truth came out was when Eddie approached him and stated that his uncle couldn't wait any longer.
Steve could see the desperation and hope in those chocolate eyes that he so loved, and knew for certain that Eddie wouldn't fight him but would be on his knees and beg until he agreed to help.
Before things could go any worse, Steve decided to take the matter into his own hands. Literally.
"So you had approached me because of my blood," Steve smiled wryly at the sting of the betrayal as he let Eddie dress the gash on his forearm. They both knew the cut would heal in a few minutes, but Steve didn't turn down Eddie's help. Couldn't.
"You should know that I didn't only have your blood in mind," Eddie fastened the bandage's knot securely.
"What? Are you asking for my organs next?" Steve huffed out a bitter laugh. "I heard they're quite useful ingredients for rituals and potions."
"No," Eddie met his eyes calmly and guided Steve's hand to rest on his chest. "Please listen to the song of my heart and do know that it is never a lie when I say this: I've been wanting all of you for myself since I first laid eyes on you."
Steve blinked rapidly in bewilderment and awe. Every dragon had an innate talent, and Steve's was the ability to see only the truth.
Thus, when Eddie opened himself up so freely like that, Steve could also see the man's deepest desire. And what he saw made him blush terribly. This man was truly hopeless.
"You never do anything in half, do you?" Steve snorted.
"Once Uncle Wayne gets better, I will return to the tower and never leave your side again," Eddie held his hand tightly as if fearing he would take it back and peppered feathery kisses on his knuckles.
Those words sung true to Steve's heart. Yet, he also sensed the wordless yearning from his lover. There was only one way, wasn't it?
"I'll go with you, then. I think it's time for you to introduce me to your family."
"Are you sure?"
Looking at Eddie's hopeful eyes, Steve leaned in to kiss the love of his life soundly.
"As sure as gold."
They both chuckled fondly at the memory together. After all, the first thing Eddie had given him upon their meeting was a sparkling bar of gold.
An AU in which Tony is sent to kill a dragon to prove he's fit to be the next king. Except that he doesn't want to. After a failed attempt to do his duty, he instead befriends the dragon, going by Steve in his common tongue. And soon after, they find that their meeting was practically preordained.
Already tweaked Steve’s dragon design. I don’t have a solid AU for this yet, but here are some scant ideas for one.
-Steve was born a dragon, but when he was month old he took the form of a human and never changed back. This helps a lot, as he doesn't have to worry about accidently transforming in public. For the most part he almost entirely forgets that he’s not completely human, well that is until his ‘Second puberty’ hits.
-Steve’s ’Second puberty’ happens during the second season of the show. His body basically forces him to randomly transform between human and dragon until he can learn to properly control it. His new instincts are a pain to deal with too, he tends to get really angry when he’s stressed out or scared, but he’s also immensely protective and gentle with the kids and his friends.
-Steve is odd for a dragon as he is very empathetic and sociable. Dragons are usually very territorial and reclusive, caring only about themselves and their hoard. Steve on the other hand has no desire for a ‘hoard’ and would much rather have a friend.
-Dragons ARE EXTREMELY RARE. People know about them but you’ve got a better chance of winning the lottery than seeing one. People are also very fearful of dragons, since they can be very aggressive and cruel, which is unfortunately for ture in most cases.
-The reason Steve’s family is rich is because they sell his father’s golden scales, a trait Steve also inherited. Steve’s mom and Dad are dragons and are actually quiet enamored with living as rich humans. They’re still very neglectful though, only bothering to visit once a year and show little interest in Steve.
-Steve tries to hide what he is, considering dragons have a shit reputation, but the kids are the first ones to find out. When they go to torch the tunnels, the Demodogs come out to greet them. The kids are screaming and Steve, who is still black and blue from Billy’s fists, just snaps and transforms.
-He curls his body around the kids and just goes to town on the monster dogs. It turns out to be a nice stress reliever for him, allowing himself to let go and tear something apart with his teeth and claws. Clearly outmatched, the demodogs try to retreat, only for a billowing wave of golden fire to wash over them and into the tunnels.
-The kids are dead quiet after, Steve is still standing protectively over them, his chest heaving for breath as wisps of flame slip between his teeth. He’s almost scared to move, unsure on how the kids are going to react, that is until he see’s Dustin’s huge grin and hears him shout “THAT WAS SO FUCKING AWSOME!”
For @falling-into-vacancies who had this brilliant idea about how the mind link between Tony and Bucky might subconsciously affect Bucky in his opinions on technology and certain people once he recovers from the brainwashing. I couldn’t resist. (All the luck with your assignment by the way!)
He Bucky frowns at the flat smartphone that looks oddly tiny in his metal hand. Fragile too, though it probably isn’t by normal human standards. Of course he isn’t a normal human anymore, is he?
It has taken a while--seven pointed comments, four in-depth conversations and seventy-six jokes--for that to sink in, to understand that Hydra hasn’t just turned him into a monster in the figurative sense. He has been turned into a dragon of all things. Half the time he Bucky is still convinced he is hallucinating.
A dragon. Just like Stevie. Would you look at that, apparently wishes do come true after all. And is the amount of bitterness contained in that thought really normal, like his sometimes-shrink Wilson insists?
“Why a phone?” he asks gruffly. It takes conscious effort to remember that he has to say the words out loud. Seems like such an unnecessary complication too.
Somewhere behind him Wilson snorts. He wonders whether the man knows that the phone is hard enough to kill him, should he decide to twist around and throw it at his head at full strength. Remembers that Bucky doesn’t think like that. Reminds himself that he is Bucky.
Steve is giving him a look that’s a cross between amusement and exasperation. “So the next time I’m ten minutes late from grocery shopping you don’t storm the supermarket in full battle gear,” he says.
Bucky scowls. He knows Steve is still far too happy about the fact that he’d come to his rescue--apparently a sign of the ‘old Buck’--to process that he had stormed a fucking supermarket, fully armed and in battle mentality. Sometimes he wonders who the crazy one between the two of them really is.
He stares down at the phone in his hand again. It’s a cheap one. The touch screen’s responsiveness is less than optimal, the battery doesn’t last half as long as the newest StarkPhone, screen quality is acceptable but not remarkable and the storage room is a nightmare.
The knowledge filters so quickly and precisely through his mind that it takes a scandalised, “Bucky!” from Rog Steve for him to realise he has crushed the phone in his metal palm.
Bucky stares at the hopelessly twisted and cracked pieces expressionlessly for a long moment, before he slowly looks up to meet Steve’s confused gaze.
“I don’t like it.”
It’s been two months since he’s first moved in with Steve and Sam and while Bucky is aware that he’s getting better, there is still much he isn’t sure about. The never silent voice in his head for one. The nature of Steve’s and Sam’s relationship for another.
The TV is running, but it hasn’t escaped his attention that Sam is more occupied with laughing at one of Steve’s stupid jokes, a fact that instantly makes him suspicious. Steve’s jokes are terrible. Yet there Sam is, laughing loudly, eyes twinkling.
Bucky is about to very purposefully ruin the mood when a comment from the TV makes him turn back around to watch a stocky, fair-haired man with thick-rimmed glasses and a terribly nasal voice that instantly grants on Bucky’s nerves blathering on and on. The guy’s--Justin Hammer, CEO of Hammer Industries, asshole--aura of self-importance is almost suffocating, even though he must be miles away.
Bucky is so distracted by his instant dislike for the man, it takes him a moment to catch up with the conversation and realise Hammer is listing reasons for why the Iron Man tech is outdated and poses a needlessly risk to civilians, as proven by the two avoidable deaths in the latest fight against-
He doesn’t hear the rest. It’s kind of hard to, what with the way he has slammed his metal hand--and really, it’s starting to grow on him--straight through the smug bastard’s fucking face with an enraged snarl.
“Bucky?” Steve’s voice filters through his fury after a moment.
When Bucky manages to turn his head, it is to find both Steve and Sam warily watching him in clear preparation of another Winter Soldier episode. He blinks. Tries to shrug, which isn’t as easy as it sounds, what with Sam’s precious TV dangling on his arm. Awkwardly tries to put the intense wave of dislike, disgust, hatred he can’t explain into proper words.
“I really don’t like him.”
“I’ll say,” Sam will mutter after a couple of seconds. Followed by “You owe me another TV, Rogers.”
