Hi! What if 🤼♂️ ... Brady and Bucky were brothers
Hi Elizabeth, thank you so much for the ask love! Also hi and thank you to Anon, who sent in this ask as well, i know this could be a short answer but this has literally made my mind go through so many scenarios so hold onto your hats my folks cause it’s going to be a long one 😁
If Brady and Bucky were brothers, oh boy would everything be different, in a much more emotional way.
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In my mind, maybe when they were little, Bucky and Brady were thick as thieves, always doing things together. In Brady’s mind, Bucky was not only the best big brother ever but also his hero. They would tell everything to each other, so imagine Brady’s surprise when he gets home one night and hears their parents arguing with Bucky over something, but they stop the minute they hear the door.
When he asks what’s wrong there’s just silence. That’s when he find out that Bucky signed up for the war and that he leaves in two weeks. Brady feels like his whole world has just fallen apart, and he’s more hurt that Bucky never told him anything beforehand, cause didn’t they tell each other everything?
Bucky and Brady talk and Bucky apologizes for not telling Brady beforehand and of course he forgives him cause that’s his big brother. During that same conversation Bucky starts to tell (or prepare in a sense) Brady what he needs to do while he’s gone, and just tells him how much he loves him and how proud he is of his little brother. They fall asleep in the same bed that night, after so many years, just like they did when they were children. That night while Bucky is already asleep, Brady makes a decision.
The next day, during an already awkward family dinner, Brady announces that he also signed up. There was a moment of silence, the three other people at the table trying to understand what came out of the youngest’s mouth, before chaos erupted.
Both of his parents started pleading with him to not go through with it, but when he repeated that he already signed up, that’s when his parents turn on Bucky and they start to blame him, saying that if anything were to happen to Brady it would be his fault, and while Brady tries to de-escalate the whole situation, he sees Bucky just staring out into the distance just taking all the words of anger, not even trying to defend himself. Soon it’s just them two and when Bucky asks “Why?”, Brady replies with how he couldn’t leave his big brother to go over there by himself.
The week leading up to both of them shipping off, they’re parents try to talk Brady out of his decision (Bucky never tried to, he already knew when Brady sent his mind on something he was going to go through with it.), but it never worked.
The day of when both boys are supposed to leave, it’s a somber event, their mom crying and their dad serious. They tell Brady to be careful and to write and all that, while with Bucky, his mother hugs him cause that is still her first born, but only ells him to make sure that he keeps Brady safe, his dad not telling him anything (Bucky knows that they both blame him for Brady following him over there).
Bucky can tell that Brady is nervous as they are on there way, everything seeming to be more real the more closer they get to their destination, so he being the good big brother that he is, tries his best to take Brady’s mind off of everything, telling him jokes and all the people that they both meet (and hopefully get lucky).
Once they get to the base where they are supposed to start basic and all that, they are separated but before, Bucky makes sure to grab Brady and give I’m the tightest hug and in the most serious tone he thinks he has ever heard his big brother speak, telling him to be careful and to not do anything stupid.
(“In other words, don’t do anything that you would do?” “Exactly.”)
Fast forward to them already being in Thorp Abbotts (both brothers in their pining era, (Buck and Benny)). I’m also imagining what must’ve been going through Bucky’s head when Brady’s plane was late, but that’s for another post
Brady being worried throughout the different missions, knowing that his brother has a great mask but knows him well enough to see the little cracks, how being air exec is hurting him. The say that he finds out that Bucky, thanks to Buck’s help, was demoted he was ecstatic, then later that night while everyone is sleeping all he can think about is his new fear, losing Bucky. He didn’t get any sleep that night (he got more than one worried looks from Bucky and Benny the next day.)
When they lose Curt, he sees a piece of Bucky break, and feels a sudden change begin to grow in his big brother, one that he didn’t like the look of whatsoever. (He was already worried that morning he saw Bucky with a black eye, especially after hearing that he asked Curt to give him one, to feel something.)
He tries his best to help Bucky and make sure he knows that he can count on him. Brady feels grateful for Buck in those moments, since he was the only one it seemed to get through to him but he couldn’t help feel jealous that he was able to help Bucky, his brother, when he couldn’t.
Brady feels relief when he Bucky tells him that he’s going to London to get a break and clear his mind. He feels reassured, hoping that this trip to London will do his brother some good. Then Buck goes down. If he had thought that losing Curt had broke a piece of Bucky, losing Buck broke everything that made him Bucky, only leaving a mess of anger, hurt, and nothingness behind. The jealousy he felt because of Buck turns into anger, anger for going down and breaking his brother beyond repair.
He feels guilty at ever being mad at Buck. (Bucky hugged Brady so tight when he got back, as if telling the universe to try and take him from Bucky as well. He didn’t mention the tears or the slight hiccups he heard, not daring to mention anything when he saw the look of pure relief when Bucky first saw him the minute he got back)
That night before the mission, once Bucky had gain a little more awareness he comforted Brady, knowing how much he cared about Benny and the rest of the crew, knowing how much they both needed each other in that moment. No one commented when they saw both brothers sleeping in the same bed.
Brady had a gut feeling that it was going to go wrong the minute he saw Bucky call out for Jack and trade in his sheepskin. Anytime he would try to talk to Bucky it was like talking to a wall, his brother was replaced by something else, someone else.
And the audacity that Bucky has to try and pull rank when they’re all starting to bail, like Brady’s stupid and knows for a fact that if he were to go first Bucky wouldn’t follow him, then he tries to pull out the big brother card (the quick annoyance that Brady felt in that moment was pure little brother energy)
Throughout the whole time that they were separated, Brady could not stop thinking of Bucky, wondering if he’s okay, if he made it, etc. The minute that he entered the Stalag with all the others from the Münster mission, and sees Benny he feels relief for himself, and then when he sees Buck he feels relief for his brother.
Relief that is short lived when he asks where Bucky’s at. The second he sees Buck’s face shutter and block off he feels the floor has wiped away and was falling. He spends days and nights waiting with Buck not wanting to even think of the other outcome, knowing that his big brother is out there.
Brady feels heartbreak/solace/anger all at once when he sees Bucky walk through those gates and sees all the injuries he has.
Those feelings continue as he sees Bucky start to lose himself, knowing that it’s not his brother’s fault, but there are days where he wants to lean on his big brother but is scared to and that night after the fight with Buck, Bucky can only feel immense guilt when he sees Brady give him a look of wariness, and anger at himself for being the reason it’s there.
(I also have the saddest thought about mail calls, mostly it being Brady receiving letters every single time while Bucky only received very little, while trying to play it off saying that their parents write to both of them in the letters and that they don’t want to wast paper)
Okay this has probably gone on way longer that I expected it to, I still have some more ideas for when the march and the whole escape/rescue and after the war but I’ll probably do it in another post
(Let me know if you guys would interested in more of this or one-shots of these scenarios) 💕💕💕