The Corrupt and the Pure; Chapter 24: The Guilt
[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 24: The Guilt
When Cap set off like he had suddenly found himself standing on fire-hot embers, it startled Tony. He had expected a stoic nod and a tension in the jaw area, but storming off?
It made Tony feel filthy, not to mention angry, and his hand shot out before he could think it through, grabbing onto Steve’s arm to stop his escape. The muscles tightened beneath his grip and the blue eyes flashed to check his face.
“What’s the rush, Cap?” he asked, voice tight - fingers tighter. He knew he couldn’t hurt the man, but oh, how he wanted to. “Can’t stand to be in my presence, knowing what happened? Grow up,” he snapped, anger pushing to the surface. “I don’t care how it makes you feel - how spectacularly it fails to reach the standards of your approval - but you don’t get to just walk away like my presence if going to taint you somehow.”
Something flickered over Steve’s expression. “I don’t think that,” he snapped back. “I just thought it best to remove myself from your presence because every second you spend looking at me, you’ll be reminded of him - and what he did.”
Tony blinked. “You’re not him.”
“Do you know the difference?” Steve challenged.
“I do,” Tony informed him, voice sharp with tension. He noticed he was still holding onto Steve, and forced his fingers to uncurl from around his arm. “You’re not him,” he repeated, lowering his gaze - not because Steve reminded him of the Commander, but because he had severely miscalculated the reason behind Steve’s escape from the scene. He refused to be embarrassed, though, because eventually Captain Righteous would come around and find some way to blame Tony for what had happened, or at least find him repulsive for allowing himself to be held captive and then sexually assaulted.
He would look at Tony and wonder why he hadn’t put up more of a fight, and the natural logical jump would be that perhaps he had wanted it, on some level.
The silence from around them was getting suspicious, and Tony snapped out of it, looking around at the rest of their team. They wore several different shades of confusion on their faces, and Tony was in no mood to explain - nor would he want to, even when the mood passed.
Steve seemed to be thinking along the same lines and started walking towards the Quinjet parked a short distance away. He was still stiff with tension, but at least he moved like the man Tony remembered fighting alongside. The Commander didn’t have a limp, exactly - he was too much of a supersoldier for that - but there was a definite difference between how they moved around.
Fewer threats of violence, too.
“Tony,” Bruce started.
“If you ask me again whether I’m fine, I’m going to punch you in the face,” Tony threatened, not even looking at the other man.
“We should get going,” Natasha said, a bit louder than necessary, to get them moving.
“Aye,” Thor nodded. “I shall join War Machine in the sky, to see whether we can locate our villain.”
“Don’t hold your breath,” Tony muttered, not being too optimistic. Captain America wasn’t so easily caught, and that was something the Commander shared with him. If he was still alive, he would find his way around unseen. The chances of him having died in the collapsing tunnel were small at best, but one could hope…
Thor took off, his magical hammer leading his ascent into the sky. Tony watched him go, then turned his gaze towards the waiting Quinjet.
“Let’s get going,” he decided. “I need to get the chip out of my head, and if that’s not happening here…”
“I would much prefer sanitized equipment, sir,” J.A.R.V.I.S. agreed through the armor’s speakers.
Tony cast Bruce a quick look, knowing the other was itching to add that he needed to be checked for injuries. That wasn’t the first thing on Tony’s list, although he would appreciate a shower and clean clothes.
He debated sending J.A.R.V.I.S. to join Rhodey and Thor on their patrol, but decided against it: the AI didn’t seem anxious to assist in the search for the Commander, and Tony would rather keep an armor handy, just in case…
They set out towards the aircraft as a unit, the armor’s motions loud enough to discourage any random conversation. Tony made sure to make himself as inaccessible as possible; he was less and less in a mood to talk, despite being safe.
He needed to get this experience out of his system. Nothing like a good reboot…
Steve was already sitting inside the Quinjet, staring at the opposite wall. His expression was hard to read, and he seemed startled when Tony walked up the ramp, the others following him. He must have known they would join him sooner rather than later, so maybe he had just been deep in thought.
Tony was glad he couldn’t read his mind, just in case.
Clint moved to the front of the aircraft, clearly to pilot them back to the Tower, and Tony quickly selected one of the seats away from the others, wanting to be left alone. The armor followed him, and Tony welcomed the clunky suit as a makeshift barrier.
Bruce didn’t seem to get the hint: he dodged past the armor and selected a seat opposite from Tony, strapping himself in.
Tony sighed and followed his lead, taking a page from Cap’s book and staring at a wall for the entire duration of the flight. Soon he could surround himself with familiarity and an environment that was purely under his control. He would feel a lot better once that was the case, and he couldn’t wait to get there.
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 24: The Guilt
When Cap set off like he had suddenly found himself standing on fire-hot embers, it startled Tony. He had expected a stoic nod and a tension in the jaw area, but storming off?
It made Tony feel filthy, not to mention angry, and his hand shot out before he could think it through, grabbing onto Steve’s arm to stop his escape. The muscles tightened beneath his grip and the blue eyes flashed to check his face.
“What’s the rush, Cap?” he asked, voice tight - fingers tighter. He knew he couldn’t hurt the man, but oh, how he wanted to. “Can’t stand to be in my presence, knowing what happened? Grow up,” he snapped, anger pushing to the surface. “I don’t care how it makes you feel - how spectacularly it fails to reach the standards of your approval - but you don’t get to just walk away like my presence if going to taint you somehow.”
Something flickered over Steve’s expression. “I don’t think that,” he snapped back. “I just thought it best to remove myself from your presence because every second you spend looking at me, you’ll be reminded of him - and what he did.”
Tony blinked. “You’re not him.”
“Do you know the difference?” Steve challenged.
“I do,” Tony informed him, voice sharp with tension. He noticed he was still holding onto Steve, and forced his fingers to uncurl from around his arm. “You’re not him,” he repeated, lowering his gaze - not because Steve reminded him of the Commander, but because he had severely miscalculated the reason behind Steve’s escape from the scene. He refused to be embarrassed, though, because eventually Captain Righteous would come around and find some way to blame Tony for what had happened, or at least find him repulsive for allowing himself to be held captive and then sexually assaulted.
He would look at Tony and wonder why he hadn’t put up more of a fight, and the natural logical jump would be that perhaps he had wanted it, on some level.
The silence from around them was getting suspicious, and Tony snapped out of it, looking around at the rest of their team. They wore several different shades of confusion on their faces, and Tony was in no mood to explain - nor would he want to, even when the mood passed.
Steve seemed to be thinking along the same lines and started walking towards the Quinjet parked a short distance away. He was still stiff with tension, but at least he moved like the man Tony remembered fighting alongside. The Commander didn’t have a limp, exactly - he was too much of a supersoldier for that - but there was a definite difference between how they moved around.
Fewer threats of violence, too.
“Tony,” Bruce started.
“If you ask me again whether I’m fine, I’m going to punch you in the face,” Tony threatened, not even looking at the other man.
“We should get going,” Natasha said, a bit louder than necessary, to get them moving.
“Aye,” Thor nodded. “I shall join War Machine in the sky, to see whether we can locate our villain.”
“Don’t hold your breath,” Tony muttered, not being too optimistic. Captain America wasn’t so easily caught, and that was something the Commander shared with him. If he was still alive, he would find his way around unseen. The chances of him having died in the collapsing tunnel were small at best, but one could hope…
Thor took off, his magical hammer leading his ascent into the sky. Tony watched him go, then turned his gaze towards the waiting Quinjet.
“Let’s get going,” he decided. “I need to get the chip out of my head, and if that’s not happening here…”
“I would much prefer sanitized equipment, sir,” J.A.R.V.I.S. agreed through the armor’s speakers.
Tony cast Bruce a quick look, knowing the other was itching to add that he needed to be checked for injuries. That wasn’t the first thing on Tony’s list, although he would appreciate a shower and clean clothes.
He debated sending J.A.R.V.I.S. to join Rhodey and Thor on their patrol, but decided against it: the AI didn’t seem anxious to assist in the search for the Commander, and Tony would rather keep an armor handy, just in case…
They set out towards the aircraft as a unit, the armor’s motions loud enough to discourage any random conversation. Tony made sure to make himself as inaccessible as possible; he was less and less in a mood to talk, despite being safe.
He needed to get this experience out of his system. Nothing like a good reboot…
Steve was already sitting inside the Quinjet, staring at the opposite wall. His expression was hard to read, and he seemed startled when Tony walked up the ramp, the others following him. He must have known they would join him sooner rather than later, so maybe he had just been deep in thought.
Tony was glad he couldn’t read his mind, just in case.
Clint moved to the front of the aircraft, clearly to pilot them back to the Tower, and Tony quickly selected one of the seats away from the others, wanting to be left alone. The armor followed him, and Tony welcomed the clunky suit as a makeshift barrier.
Bruce didn’t seem to get the hint: he dodged past the armor and selected a seat opposite from Tony, strapping himself in.
Tony sighed and followed his lead, taking a page from Cap’s book and staring at a wall for the entire duration of the flight. Soon he could surround himself with familiarity and an environment that was purely under his control. He would feel a lot better once that was the case, and he couldn’t wait to get there.
to be continued…
Story info