The Corrupt and the Pure; Chapter 17: The Balm
[INFO]Title: The Corrupt and the Pure
Author: Del Rion (delrion.mail (at) gmail.com)
Fandom: The Avengers & Captain America (MCU)
Timeline: post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Genre: Drama, action, hurt/comfort
Rating: MA / FRAO
Characters: Steve Rogers (Captain America), Tony Stark (Iron Man). Also: Bruce Banner (Hulk), James “Bucky” Barnes (Winter Soldier), Clint Barton (Hawkeye), J.A.R.V.I.S., James “Rhodey” Rhodes (War Machine), Natasha Romanoff (Black Widow), Thor, Sam Wilson (Falcon)
Pairing: Steve/Tony
Summary: When the Steve Rogers from an alternate universe appears in the middle of the Avengers Tower, two worlds are about to collide: one where Captain America became the tool of HYDRA and fell into a relationship with the hero Iron Man - and one where Tony and Steve are tentatively getting along. The latter are forced to reconsider their relationship when the Commander kidnaps Tony to replace his dead lover.
Complete.
Written for: A story commissioned by Susanne (ChickenHax @ AO3 / starkred @ Tumblr).
Warnings: Rape/non-con, major character death (alternate universe), graphic canonical violence, M/M sexual content, language.
~ ~ ~
Chapter 17: The Balm
Tony woke up to the taste of copper permeating the inside of his mouth.
As his consciousness returned, there was a moment when he was floating, miles away from touching anything corporeal save for the disgusting, metallic flavor on his tongue. That didn’t last, though, and plummeting back to harsh reality threatened to overpower his senses. Sadly, it didn’t, leaving him digesting a whole lot of pain that his body was currently feeling.
His head was pounding with every beat of his heart, and he could feel coagulated blood stuck to both sides of his face; his shoulders ached, which was by now familiar from being tied down, and his right arm was dancing with pinpricks of sharp, burning pain. He didn’t even realize his hands were untied until, belatedly, he discovered that his body was laid out on its left side on a hard floor.
“I’m sorry,” was the first thing that registered in his ears. A hand brushed over his face, threatening to disturb the dried blood. “I shouldn’t have hurt you.”
Steve…
It’s not Steve, his brain corrected. I’m not safe.
“I untied your hands. I hope it makes you feel slightly more comfortable.”
Considering everything, it didn’t make him feel better. Nor did he feel particularly safe, despite the other man’s soft tone.
Tony sighed and tried to coax more spit into his mouth to wash away the tang of blood, but it didn’t seem to work. Besides, his throat was a growing source of pain, aching every time he swallowed or even slightly moved his head - which also served to notify him that his neck was a single stiff mass of hurt.
It kind of made sense, seeing as he vaguely recalled getting kicked in the head.
“Shh,” the Commander soothed, his fingers ghosting over Tony’s face and combing through his hair, actually finding a spot that wasn’t bloody or particularly painful. “Just rest. Let your body heal. Extremis…” He didn’t finish, perhaps dumbfounded by how Extremis had failed to intervene so far. Tony was seriously starting to agree with him: he needed a more aggressive approach for it, to stop something like this from happening again.
How often would an evil copy of Steve Rogers drop in on them, though?
“I should try to understand this from your perspective,” the Commander went on, for all the world sounding like a contrite man learning from his mistakes. Tony thought that was highly doubtful in reality. “It is just so frustrating, knowing how well we fit together and waiting for you to realize that as well,” he went on. “I know I could have a future with you. A real future.”
Too late, Tony thought to himself. He tried to crane his neck, to move his head away from the gentle touch of the man who had hurt him in the first place, but all he got for his trouble was more pain. For the time being, the Commander’s fingers were the only sensation that didn’t hurt, and he wondered if he did that on purpose; an ingenious plan to win Tony over.
“I think I know how to fix this,” the Commander mused after a while. His fingers ceased moving and then disappeared altogether, and Tony squashed the tiny pinprick of remorse at losing the soothing caress of his touch; he wouldn’t have been in pain if not for the Commander, so there was no way he was really feeling thankful for his touch. Only, it kind of was distracting him from the pain…
The other man shifted around for a while. Tony was in too much pain to try and see what was going on, even though his instincts would have normally coaxed him to do so. Besides, as far as he could tell, they were still in the underground tunnel and there wouldn’t be much to see in the almost nonexistent light.
“This should do the trick,” the Commander said and something metallic was pressed against Tony’s temple. It wasn’t unlike the tiny disc that had caused him to lose consciousness before, and the memory made him stiffen in response. His anxiety wasn’t eased when he felt the other man press his lips to his forehead, like a lover or a parent might.
Instead of new pain or unconsciousness, Tony began to feel warm and tingly. It was followed by a blessed numbness that slowly dwarfed the pain in his body, lulling him into a much-needed reverie.
Tony must have actually slept because the next time he stirred, the pain was gone and the lingering tension of being stressed had vanished. He flexed his jaw and allowed his tongue to travel the inside of his mouth, but he could not taste blood nor feel his battered body protest. It was as if all of it had been a bad dream and he had just awoken safely in his own bed, the nightmare of the past few days just a memory gone by.
“It worked better than I expected,” Steve Rogers’ voice reached his ears, and Tony blinked his eyes to assess the situation. The darkness was still very much around them, and it would take several minutes for Tony’s eyes to adjust to it. Still, he could sense the other man at his side, slightly bent over him like a predator waiting for its prey to make a move so that it could lash out at it again.
They were still in the tunnel, and it was still the Commander, not Cap.
“What did you do to me?” Tony asked, shifting up on his arms. That he could do that surprised him; he was neither restricted nor in pain.
“I activated Extremis, prompting it to heal you,” the Commander told him. “How do you feel?”
“Peachy,” Tony replied as dryly as possible. Sure, he felt great, but it didn’t mean all was forgiven. Far from it.
“You are not happy,” the other mused, as if able to see his expression. Perhaps he did, supersoldier eyes and all.
“I’m still being held captive. Just because I’m no longer in pain doesn’t mean I’m overwhelmed with gratitude.”
The Commander huffed out a breath that may have originated from disappointment. “Alright… How could I make you happier? Aside from letting you go,” he added before Tony could say it.
“That’s not how this is going to go,” Tony informed him.
“You prefer being miserable?”
“I prefer being a free man, instead of being held by an abusive asshole who is driven to make his point no matter what the other parties involved might want.” He kind of wished he could stare the other man down, but knowing that it hadn’t worked very well before, Tony was glad for the darkness. “You’ll learn you can’t force me into doing something. If the two of us hooked up in your world, it means I wanted it. This is not what I want.”
“Then I suppose you’ll be miserable until you grow accustomed to it,” the Commander degreed, sounding just as unhappy as Tony felt. Clearly, this wasn’t working out for either of them, but the Commander was too stubborn to accept alternative options - which meant they were at an impasse until Tony managed to free himself or his team located him.
to be continued…
Story info
Author: Del Rion (delrion.mail (at) gmail.com)
Fandom: The Avengers & Captain America (MCU)
Timeline: post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Genre: Drama, action, hurt/comfort
Rating: MA / FRAO
Characters: Steve Rogers (Captain America), Tony Stark (Iron Man). Also: Bruce Banner (Hulk), James “Bucky” Barnes (Winter Soldier), Clint Barton (Hawkeye), J.A.R.V.I.S., James “Rhodey” Rhodes (War Machine), Natasha Romanoff (Black Widow), Thor, Sam Wilson (Falcon)
Pairing: Steve/Tony
Summary: When the Steve Rogers from an alternate universe appears in the middle of the Avengers Tower, two worlds are about to collide: one where Captain America became the tool of HYDRA and fell into a relationship with the hero Iron Man - and one where Tony and Steve are tentatively getting along. The latter are forced to reconsider their relationship when the Commander kidnaps Tony to replace his dead lover.
Complete.
Written for: A story commissioned by Susanne (ChickenHax @ AO3 / starkred @ Tumblr).
Warnings: Rape/non-con, major character death (alternate universe), graphic canonical violence, M/M sexual content, language.
~ ~ ~
Chapter 17: The Balm
Tony woke up to the taste of copper permeating the inside of his mouth.
As his consciousness returned, there was a moment when he was floating, miles away from touching anything corporeal save for the disgusting, metallic flavor on his tongue. That didn’t last, though, and plummeting back to harsh reality threatened to overpower his senses. Sadly, it didn’t, leaving him digesting a whole lot of pain that his body was currently feeling.
His head was pounding with every beat of his heart, and he could feel coagulated blood stuck to both sides of his face; his shoulders ached, which was by now familiar from being tied down, and his right arm was dancing with pinpricks of sharp, burning pain. He didn’t even realize his hands were untied until, belatedly, he discovered that his body was laid out on its left side on a hard floor.
“I’m sorry,” was the first thing that registered in his ears. A hand brushed over his face, threatening to disturb the dried blood. “I shouldn’t have hurt you.”
Steve…
It’s not Steve, his brain corrected. I’m not safe.
“I untied your hands. I hope it makes you feel slightly more comfortable.”
Considering everything, it didn’t make him feel better. Nor did he feel particularly safe, despite the other man’s soft tone.
Tony sighed and tried to coax more spit into his mouth to wash away the tang of blood, but it didn’t seem to work. Besides, his throat was a growing source of pain, aching every time he swallowed or even slightly moved his head - which also served to notify him that his neck was a single stiff mass of hurt.
It kind of made sense, seeing as he vaguely recalled getting kicked in the head.
“Shh,” the Commander soothed, his fingers ghosting over Tony’s face and combing through his hair, actually finding a spot that wasn’t bloody or particularly painful. “Just rest. Let your body heal. Extremis…” He didn’t finish, perhaps dumbfounded by how Extremis had failed to intervene so far. Tony was seriously starting to agree with him: he needed a more aggressive approach for it, to stop something like this from happening again.
How often would an evil copy of Steve Rogers drop in on them, though?
“I should try to understand this from your perspective,” the Commander went on, for all the world sounding like a contrite man learning from his mistakes. Tony thought that was highly doubtful in reality. “It is just so frustrating, knowing how well we fit together and waiting for you to realize that as well,” he went on. “I know I could have a future with you. A real future.”
Too late, Tony thought to himself. He tried to crane his neck, to move his head away from the gentle touch of the man who had hurt him in the first place, but all he got for his trouble was more pain. For the time being, the Commander’s fingers were the only sensation that didn’t hurt, and he wondered if he did that on purpose; an ingenious plan to win Tony over.
“I think I know how to fix this,” the Commander mused after a while. His fingers ceased moving and then disappeared altogether, and Tony squashed the tiny pinprick of remorse at losing the soothing caress of his touch; he wouldn’t have been in pain if not for the Commander, so there was no way he was really feeling thankful for his touch. Only, it kind of was distracting him from the pain…
The other man shifted around for a while. Tony was in too much pain to try and see what was going on, even though his instincts would have normally coaxed him to do so. Besides, as far as he could tell, they were still in the underground tunnel and there wouldn’t be much to see in the almost nonexistent light.
“This should do the trick,” the Commander said and something metallic was pressed against Tony’s temple. It wasn’t unlike the tiny disc that had caused him to lose consciousness before, and the memory made him stiffen in response. His anxiety wasn’t eased when he felt the other man press his lips to his forehead, like a lover or a parent might.
Instead of new pain or unconsciousness, Tony began to feel warm and tingly. It was followed by a blessed numbness that slowly dwarfed the pain in his body, lulling him into a much-needed reverie.
Tony must have actually slept because the next time he stirred, the pain was gone and the lingering tension of being stressed had vanished. He flexed his jaw and allowed his tongue to travel the inside of his mouth, but he could not taste blood nor feel his battered body protest. It was as if all of it had been a bad dream and he had just awoken safely in his own bed, the nightmare of the past few days just a memory gone by.
“It worked better than I expected,” Steve Rogers’ voice reached his ears, and Tony blinked his eyes to assess the situation. The darkness was still very much around them, and it would take several minutes for Tony’s eyes to adjust to it. Still, he could sense the other man at his side, slightly bent over him like a predator waiting for its prey to make a move so that it could lash out at it again.
They were still in the tunnel, and it was still the Commander, not Cap.
“What did you do to me?” Tony asked, shifting up on his arms. That he could do that surprised him; he was neither restricted nor in pain.
“I activated Extremis, prompting it to heal you,” the Commander told him. “How do you feel?”
“Peachy,” Tony replied as dryly as possible. Sure, he felt great, but it didn’t mean all was forgiven. Far from it.
“You are not happy,” the other mused, as if able to see his expression. Perhaps he did, supersoldier eyes and all.
“I’m still being held captive. Just because I’m no longer in pain doesn’t mean I’m overwhelmed with gratitude.”
The Commander huffed out a breath that may have originated from disappointment. “Alright… How could I make you happier? Aside from letting you go,” he added before Tony could say it.
“That’s not how this is going to go,” Tony informed him.
“You prefer being miserable?”
“I prefer being a free man, instead of being held by an abusive asshole who is driven to make his point no matter what the other parties involved might want.” He kind of wished he could stare the other man down, but knowing that it hadn’t worked very well before, Tony was glad for the darkness. “You’ll learn you can’t force me into doing something. If the two of us hooked up in your world, it means I wanted it. This is not what I want.”
“Then I suppose you’ll be miserable until you grow accustomed to it,” the Commander degreed, sounding just as unhappy as Tony felt. Clearly, this wasn’t working out for either of them, but the Commander was too stubborn to accept alternative options - which meant they were at an impasse until Tony managed to free himself or his team located him.
to be continued…
Story info