wearingthestars | For Sinistral

Bucky cursed at Billy's quick explanation, then again as the Doom-bots moved to cut them off from the doors. A window was probably their best bet and he immediately began to angle his way toward the outer wall.

"Safety, trigger, aim for the face." He shoved a handgun into Billy's hands to turn his own attention to breaking the lock on the window, then breaking the windows itself. They were far enough up to make it painful but Bucky could see a ledge about 10 feet up from the ground; if he could catch that in their descent, they'd have a great chance of making it out. They needed to try, in any event. And likely they'd have to try with Billy clinging to him.

Damn Doom-bots not letting them escape in peace.

"I hope you don't mind a bit of a jump," he called as the Doom-bots closed in. Punching another in the face he reached for Billy right after. "You good?"

"Wh- O-okay," Billy mumbled, almost shoving the gun back, mentally repeating Bucky's instructions. Safety. Trigger. Face. Oh jeez....not quite face. Face.

"Don't really have much choice, do I? I trust you." And it was probably less painful to fall to his death than anything Doom might have planned.

Bucky didn't really expect Billy to fire the gun unless things got truly desperate, but with Doom one never knew. At least they had some good luck with the window breaking easily.

"Trust you too," he replied, pulling Billy close. Bucky's right arm snaked around Billy's waist, holding firmly. "Wrap your legs around me too, and hold on tight." Once Billy did Bucky wasted no time in tipping them out the window, left arm outstretched to catch the ledge he saw earlier. It would hurt like hell but better than being captured again.

Billy's grip tightened as they fell, and he murmured spells and curses that did nothing to slow their fall. It was an unfamiliar sensation to him these days- falling. And it felt like his heart had dropped out from under him.

"Bucky-" He pressed his forehead against him, eyes squeezed shut tight.

If they weren't free falling and relying on Bucky to catch them, then he probably could have focused on how it felt to have Billy pressed close. But he couldn't afford the distraction, as attractive as it was. Instead he focused on the wall, their fall, and his own reach.

The good news: he'd calculated the angle correctly when he tipped them out of the window and the ledge was within reach. The bad news: it hurt like hell when he caught it, their combined weight pulling painfully against shoulder and side. He couldn't quiet his grunt of pain, eyes squeezing closed momentarily.

"You okay?" he finally asked. They didn't have the time to just hang out — haha — but a moment to make sure Billy was still good before they dropped to the ground wouldn't hurt.

God, that grunt of pain cut through Billy, who squeezed extra tight, a sympathetic wince hissed through his teeth. He nodded guiltily. All of this was his fault. He'd messed up and the whole plan had gone sideways.

"....yeah-" he assured finally.

Or consider: maybe Doom was just an asshole who didn't want anyone else to have nice things, and Billy just happened to be convenient this time around. Bucky would love to punch the man extra hard right in the face, but they didn't have time for such indulgence when they still had an escape to finish. And better sooner rather than later.

To that end Bucky finally let go of the ledge, dropping the last few feet to the ground. He couldn't help being slow to let Billy go, but he did — and reclaimed his gun. "C'mon, let's find a set of wheels and get out of here."

Any vehicle they stole they'd eventually have to abandon, but if it could get them any distance away, he'd take it.

Total asshole.

Billy felt guilty for how reluctant he was to let go when their lives were still technically on the line, missing the sure hold once his feet were back on the ground.

"Cool, my first grand theft auto," Billy offered with a smile to lighten the mood.

Bucky grinned at the tease, happy to take the moment of levity though they were far from safe. "I'm such a bad influence on you." Clearly. And no doubt at least one person would agree with him. But right now Bucky's carjacking skills would be pretty handy for helping them get away.

"C'mon, this way." Toward a handful of what looked like jeeps, and at a quick jog. It wouldn't take long for the Doom-bots to find them; Bucky yanked at door handles, hoping to find an unlocked vehicle. They probably weren't lucky enough to find one with the keys still in it but he'd prefer if he didn't have to rip off a door too.

Billy breathed an amused laugh through his nose. "Clearly." he echoed.

He jogged after Bucky, still feeling breathless, but trying not to hinder them. He split off to try tugging at handles, nearly toppling over in surprise when one of them fell open.

"Here-"

Bucky meanwhile wasn't having any luck himself so he more than welcomed Billy's success. He quickly closed to Billy's side, breathing a sigh of relief.

"You still got it, Magic Man. C'mon, let's get out of here." No keys but an old enough vehicle that he was able to spark the wires under the dashboard to get the engine started.

"How's that for some movie-level shenanigans?" he joked as he slid in next to Billy. They'd waste no time getting out of the complex, hopefully before the Doom-bots figured out what road they'd take. And hopefully the jeep had some useful supplies they could pilfer before they had to dump it.

Billy climbed inside and watched Bucky work his magic, sure he couldn't replicate the move even with a few hours practice. How did Bucky make it look so easy?

He smiled breathlessly, settling into his seat and wiping at his bloody lip. "I'd pay to watch you up on the big screen," he said with an approving nod.

Edited 2022-01-24 18:08 (UTC)

In his defense, Bucky's ability to hotwire a car dated back to WWII. He'd had some practice. Really though, it didn't always work; he counted his blessings that this time he'd succeeded.

He smiled widely at Billy, still high on the adrenaline of their escape and ignoring the painful feeling in his own left side and shoulder. It'd heal; he just needed time, and to get that time, they needed to get away. "You're crazy. Could you even imagine me as, I don't know, James Bond? Shaken, not stirred." That last was in his best Sean Connery impression, which left something to be desired — a very big something.

"You okay though?" he asked after a few moments of quiet while driving. "I mean, aside from the magic thing. He didn't hurt you?"

"Mm-" Billy locked him over in consideration, smirking as he pictured him all dressed up. "I think you could pull it of, Mr. Barnes," he teased, putting on a dramatic accent.

His features softened then, and he nodded. "I'm okay. Doom's all talk. Mostly. You know how he likes his big monologues."

"You gonna be my Bond girl?" he shot back, then frowned. "Bond boy doesn't have quite the same feel to it, does it? That's just not right." What a conversation for steering the jeep through the terrain outside Doom's stronghold.

"I shouldn't have let you go alone." Not that it would've stopped Doom; the man was terribly persistent. And he loved his speeches. Really, he should have been a thespian. Or perhaps he was, in a past life.

"I was worried," Bucky finally admitted. "Still am, a bit. We're still too close for comfort. And the weather is starting to turn." Bad weather could very much work in their favor but Bucky wanted to be closer to his safehouse before any storm hit.

He laughed and briefly batted his eyelashes, thinking he wouldn't mind being whatever the equivalent was for real, cheeks flush, though he tried to pass it off as just part of their usual teasing.

"It was the plan.. Until it went all...not plan shaped," he tried to reassure.

He reached over to give Bucky's knee a squeeze. "I'm fine. And...we'll be fine. We've handled worse than this, right? No one I'd rather be stuck with."

Bucky laughed, because he couldn't help but imagine Billy in a sleek suit, gliding through a crowd with a cocktail and a dangerous smile. He found that he liked the image. A lot.

Better to focus on the conversation than how much a lot actually was.

"Doom does like to ruin plans," he agreed, turning the jeep onto a slippery slope. "You say stuck with... you might not like this idea too much, but if we take this a little ways, we can get out and push it over the edge. We'll have to hike a bit after that, but if the storm is blowing in fast it should cover any tracks we make."

"I guess with a name like 'Doom' no one should really be surprised, huh?" Billy teased, trying to keep from thinking just how fucked they really were.

"You say 'we' like you think I'm going to be any actual help when it comes to pushing a jeep." He tried to keep that light air, but he definitely looked...anxious at the thought, swallowing a bit thickly, but nodding. It wouldn't be pleasant, but it was probably the best plan they had.

Bucky laughed a little louder, because the name thing was kind of funny. Immature maybe, but funny.

"You get to be in charge of scavenging anything useful from in here," Bucky replied. Not that they'd luck into full camping gear, but he'd be happy with just a flashlight. Or even a few spare cloaks, just to keep the snow off. Still, he didn't expect Billy to help with the pushing, would rather keep him away from the edge of the ridge. Even Bucky's anticipated destination didn't feel safe enough, though the storm worked in their favor at least.

"We'll be fine once we get there," he tried to reassure. "Gonna keep you safe."

The sound of Bucky's laugh calmed him, and Billy smiled, starting with the glove box, though that was mostly just a lot of paperwork. He did find an old walkie in the back

"Would you believe I've never been camping?" he asked, pulling things out without much certainty as to what would be useful. He tried to smile though, believing Bucky's words. He didn't doubt his ability to keep him safe for a moment.

"I know you will."

Bucky knew how to laugh at danger, that was certain. Not in some kind of macho way, but in the way of a man who had seen far too much and was still alive — and good thing too, as those skills had been useful in rescuing his companion. Hopefully the trend would continue.

"Well, I guess your first time is going to be memorable." Doom made sure of that so far, lucky them. And Bucky doubted that Billy would really find much of use in the jeep; Doom's robots didn't need the kind of creature comforts that humans did, after all. But if the search kept Billy's focus rather than him concentrating on all the bad about their situation, that was a victory.

"We'll figure out your magic, too," he added, looking over at Billy. Bucky had no idea what he could possibly do to assist the other man, but he had to try, right? Whatever Billy needed, without hesitation. Whatever Billy wanted, without hesitation, though he kept that buried down deep.

Eventually he pulled the jeep over to the side, where the drop was steep and the trees on the other side thick. They'd have a few miles to cut through the forest to the little hunting cabin Bucky'd secured, and he knew the hike wouldn't be easy on his companion especially with the storm, but the snow and wind should hide their progress. Once Billy was ready, Bucky planted his feet and put his shoulder to the jeep, pushing and shoving until it went over the side and tumbled down the ridge.

Billy's cheeks flushed, and the comment drew a small smirk of childish amusement. "Lucky me."

He nodded, and if anyone could make him feel sure that promise would be fulfilled it was Bucky, as much as it felt impossible in the moment.

He managed to find a neglected flashlight, batteries corroding, but it was able to hold a small charge still, which was better than nothing.

Once the last sound echoed up from the tumbling jeep, Billy clapped a supportive hand over Bucky's bicep. "I'll get the next one," he promised with a cheeky smile, as though they were sure to find themselves in this position again.

Edited 2022-03-11 02:48 (UTC)

"Lucky you," Bucky echoed. "I'm not making you set up a tent. Unless you wanna stretch blankets over chairs and crawl underneath." Not that the little cabin had enough furniture to make a proper setup. But it had a bed, so at least Billy could sleep after his ordeal. Bucky would keep guard.

"Mmm," he mused, semi-seriously. "You can magic me up a tank, that would be fun. We can ride down the street in it, go through a drive thru for some bad takeout." A ridiculous notion, but why not laugh about something?

He looked up at the sky; the wind had picked up and snow flurries were just starting to fall. They'd be fully in it before they made it to shelter, which would work in their favor for hiding their trail. But Bucky couldn't help worrying how the weather might affect Billy. "We've gotta get going, storm will be here soon. What are you wearing under that cloak? A jacket? Or did Doom take everything useful?"

"Yeah, some how I don't think it would near the height limitations," he countered with a laugh, but man that would be fun.

Billy offered a sheepish expression. "Just the costume. Which...I didn't really design with practicality in mind." The cloak was probably the warmest part of the get up, and he pulled the hood up to try and get a little more protection out of it. "How bad do you think the storm will be?"

"Magic tank could be magic," he countered. "Or we'll just park it in the lot and ask them to bring our milkshakes out to us." Honestly Bucky was ready to take the tank out of it and just take Billy out for milkshakes. A date, not that Billy would ever say yes outside of Bucky's dreams.

His frown grew at the confirmation of no warmer clothing (though Bucky had no complaints about the costume, it showed off Billy's figure perfectly, especially those shapely legs and that ass). "Bad enough, in this area of the world. Which we want, it'll help us hide."

He unzipped his jacket, shedding it and holding it out. Two sleeves on this one because minimizing the light glare off the arm was important when sneaking up on Doom's stronghold, and because it was warmer that way. Underneath he had thermal layers that would be good enough if they kept moving. He'd trained in Siberia; he'd felt worse. "Put this on instead. There's gloves in the pocket." The leather and kevlar still held some of Bucky's body heat, and the faint scent of the cologne he occasionally wore.

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Oh hey, a tag

Look, a squirrel!

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i'm so sorry

never apologize for perfection

Re: never apologize for perfection

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