#febuwhump day4

[astaldis]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

@witcherwhumpweek​    @badthingshappenbingo​

Chapters: 1/1    Words: 919 Rating: Mature Relationships: Cahir Mawr Dyffryn aep Ceallach & Emhyr var Emreis   Additional Tags: Witcher Whump Week (The Witcher), Bad Things Happen Bingo, Febuwhump 2024, Young Cahir Mawr Dyffryn aep Ceallach, Cahir Mawr Dyffryn aep Ceallach Whump, Branding Series: Part 5 of Young Cahir Snippets

Summary: Just one day between Emhyr var Emrise and a young Cahir, but a very significant (and painful) one.

Inspired by the Witcher Whump Week prompt for day 2 "Keep still!", the Febuwhump prompts 3 "Bite down on this" and 4 "Obedience" and the Bad Things Happen Bingo prompt "Branding."

[ex0rin]

@febuwhump Day4: knife to the throat Steve/Bucky (implied) - 240 words

past abuse, panic, mild violence

Across the room he can see the way his handler… no, it’s not his handler, it’s Steve and Steve is looking at him right now like he’s something frail and broken. 

He’s not either of those things. 

He’s not the soldier either, not anymore.

He’s Bucky Barnes now. 

But sometimes when he’s still half asleep, uncomfortable in the soft bed Steve makes him sleep in, something will drag him back into that mindset that’s been conditioned into him. 

Beaten into him. 

There’s still a knife on the floor, kicked halfway across the room - it’s got blood on the blade that matches the thin swipe of red across Steve’s throat. 

“I’m not going to do that Buck,”

He doesn’t know what set him off, he doesn’t know if it was a dream (a nightmare, the voice that sounds like Steve in his head reminds him) or if it was the wrongness of the heavy weight of Steve’s arm curling around his waist - pulling him back until there was warmth along his spine and soft breath against his ear. 

Too gentle, too careful.

“You need to,” Bucky, no, still the soldier, starts - he watches the way Steve frowns, shaking his head while pressing his mouth into a firm line; Steve’s hands are down at his sides but the soldier knows they’d come up in front, placating and cautious if he took even one step closer, “it’s the only way I’ll learn.”

ALSO ON AO3 HERE: FebuWhump2023 (HTP Edition)