exorcising the ghost

[advanced]

who: Bucky and TOTALLY OPEN
what: Some spying, some clothes shopping, some rescuing
when: Throughout August
where: Quarantine
warnings: None. If any crop up, they'll go in the subject lines

[A: Open; sneaking around]

[Pierce might be gone, but that doesn't mean that Bucky feels like it's safe to relax. The man could easily have recruited, could have left planted spies and operatives behind, or files that could be very damaging in the wrong hands. He needs to make sure for himself that any of these people, or any of this information, is weeded out and dealt with appropriately.

Which is why if anyone is working in, or happens to be at, the hospital, any of the laboratories in the city, any buildings that deal with high level technology, or the perimeter guard; there's a late night visitor who definitely isn't authorised to be there. Sneaking through the hallways in black combat gear, obviously armed, and hacking into computer systems.]

[B: Open; shopping and rescuing]

[He's really trying to make an effort to get involved in life again, not just surviving. And part of that means coming into the city itself even if he hates it, making the skin between his shoulder blades itch as if a knife is coming right for him.

He's decided his first self appointed mission will be to get some new clothes, because the ones he has are falling off him from the weight he's lost hiding out for months, and have got threadbare besides. But he's also keeping an eye out for any trouble, and so if he notices anyone in danger from anything - speeding car, mugger, oddly strong breeze - he'll drop all his bags to intervene.]

[C: Closed to Tony Stark; memories]

[He's not sure whether Stark will still be willing to help him, after he blew up at him the last time and then literally disappeared for weeks on end to hide from Pierce. He's also not sure why he feels guilty, and it annoys him that he does. He's even got an apology gift tucked awkwardly under one arm, because he can vaguely remember his Ma telling him that this was the polite way to do things, and he already deeply regrets getting anything in the first place.

Too late now.

He forgoes knocking and slips into the lab, as long as he finds it open, and will take a perch on any of the nearby tables to wait for Stark to show up.]

Comments

[advanced]

[Bucky knows Tony Stark here and, weirdly enough, he's come to trust him. Even like him. It's an odd sort of relationship. But that doesn't mean Peter is telling the truth, or that he can be trusted.

Still, he nods slowly as if he's convinced and takes a step towards Peter.]

Fine. Lead the way.

[It's not a kind thing to do, but if Peter does turn his back then that's when Bucky will go for a sudden and hard strike at the base of the skull. He doesn't want to cause any major damage, just knock the kid out for a while.]

[madeupnames]

[The gangly kid who barfed on Bucky's shoes and went crazy excited over a dog suddenly appears to have inhuman reflexes; you think you know a guy, huh? His head sharply moves to the aside and away from the fist aimed at him, twisting around and ready to catch a punch should it be coming for him. He's watching that metal arm especially, Mr. Barnes.

It's a little unfair, because he got to see Bucky in action a little unlike poor Bucky here for him, but also...! He just tried to hit him? That's flippin' rude! Only replace flippin' with the f-word. Yessir.]

See now, you just made yourself untrustworthy!

Not cool, man!

[He aims and fires a grenade web right at Bucky the second he gets the chance. Hope you can avoid that, or else you'll go flying to a wall looking like... Well, not really a fly, because flies aren't usually shot with spider-web. But that would be a shitty way to end your cool espionage night?]

[advanced]

[Damn it, he's fast.

Lucky for Bucky and his pride, he's also fast, and so he dodges out of the way of the grenade web so that it spatters onto the wall behind him in a sticky splodge. He didn't actually want this to end in a fight, just wanted to knock Peter out so that he could do what he needed to do and get out, he doesn't actually want to hurt him.

There's reluctance and a muted sort of guilt on his face, before it's swallowed by resignation. It always ends in a fight.

He's so frustrated. Even when he's trying to do the right thing and protect people, things end up getting in his way. That frustration bubbles out of him in the form of a more practised style of combat. Peter might have the speed advantage, but Bucky has seventy years of training. He's feinting with his metal fist, as if to punch him, but it's only to try and get close enough for Peter to grab him or block. He's planning on using that proximity and distraction to go for a headbutt.]

[madeupnames]

[Now comes the ultimate fun: Bucky's experience versus how stupidly resilient this weird-ass kid is. And it goes as such: the headbutt lands, and totally cracks him right in the eyebrow with how not-remotely-tall the kid is. And with that enhanced strength, it definitely gashes him there under the mask, boxer-style.

And yet this little fucker is very conscious when nobody else probably would be, because he can fall off crashing airplanes and fall multiple stories without hurting anything too badly. So he staggers back a few steps (and annoyingly doesn't collapse), instead opting to leap up, stick his hands to the ceiling, and kick Bucky in the face if he can.

Also be careful, those are magically sticky feet he's got. He'll fling ya' with 'em. Just ask the fake Avenger from the bank robbery a few months back.]

Ow! [... Ah, a darker red is blooming on his eyebrow, which would explain why he's trying to blink his right eye through some blood. Crap. Also this guy is so stupidly fast, it's not fair-!] Why couldn't you be a crappy thug?!

[advanced]

[What the hell is this kid? Is he human? Another experiment like Wanda Maximoff? Even someone with a bastardised serum? He thought he remembered all of the other Soldier recipients, but God only knows his memory is unreliable at best, and he could be the work of another organisation.

It makes him feel less guilty about the fight, because there's no way that a normal human could take that kind of blow and stay standing. The sticky feet get him because he doesn't see it coming, and so he goes launching into the wall hard enough to crack a rib. It doesn't slow him down, he's fought through worse and he barely even feels it.

There's blood obscuring Peter's vision, that could work in his favour, so he feints left before swinging to the right towards his blind spot, aiming for the temple.]

[madeupnames]

[Funnily enough, sticking that throw on Bucky is what does him in; he doesn’t aim to hurt people when he fights, not really. He stuns and makes ‘em sore and all that, but he’s no good at actually doing serious damage on purpose. His hits are a bit held-back, and almost always are, but in the heat of fighting someone he knows to be dangerous, he isn’t careful with the power behind his throw.

So he lands on his feet and moves closer, and just before Bucky swings on him, he says hurriedly:]

Sorry, that was harder than I—

[And he entirely misses the fist angled for his head. It connects, throws him on the ground, and he cries out with a punctuated and strangled sound as his knees and palms smack the floor. His vision spins a little uncomfortably, the darker red from his gashed eyebrow spreading a bit more sharply on the mask.

He’s gonna get up and try to keep fighting if Bucky doesn’t take the next hit while he’s stunned. Frustratingly, again. His heart rate speeds up and he thinks, worriedly, about the possibility he misread Bucky entirely and he might decide to just kill him. He’s supposed to be a dude who wasn’t in control of his actions back when, but he’s also obviously a killer regardless, and maybe — maybe Peter Parker did the fucking up, not being more careful about the dogs he petted or the diner food he ate with the guy—]

Mr. Barnes, stop—

[—breaking the law? Being so difficult? Fighting? It sounds a little panicked either way.]

[advanced]

[He sounds so much like a teenager in distress in that moment, and it snaps something inside Bucky's head. It makes him remember other people who have been down and out in front of him, pleading with him to stop, and they never got any mercy. They never even got a moment of hesitation.

But this?

He doesn't want this. If he hurts someone else in pursuit of HYDRA, someone innocent, isn't he as bad as what they made him? He takes a half step back, face painted with horror, words a mumble.]

--sorry, I'm... sorry.

[And then he turns and starts to run.]

[madeupnames]

[He moves to chase, but then his vision gets all crazy swirly and he nearly faceplants — and while he lays there for five seconds to adjust, he figures it's probably better to just let the dude run off. Because he might barf on his feet (again), and that would be bad. No biggie Peter, he thinks, You've dealt with buildings falling on you, a couple hits to the noggin from a super soldier assassin won't kill ya'. Groaning, he gets to his feet, not daring pull off his mask to try and clear the blood out from under it until he's away from any possibility of cameras.

Instead he cleans up a little, straightening anything toppled over and making sure his gross web grenade is cleaned off. 'Peter, I'm reading you have a mild concussion; would you like me to route you to the nearest Urgent Care clinic?' To which Peter rolls his one eye.]

No, Karen, it's a head injury, not a gnawed-off leg. C'mon...

... I was pretty uncool back there, huh...?

[Any poor soul who comes in the next day will get a little signed note:

'SORRY FOR THE HOLE IN THE WALL, STOPPED INFO FROM BEING TAKEN - SPIDER-MAN'

He's gonna be sporting a sweet Rocky-style swollen eyelid for probably the next day, but it's fine.

Coulda been worse?]