Lark

Butterflies

Steve's POV

Breathing hard, Steve knocked out the last Hydra agent that Mathew and him had been fighting. They'd been prepared for this but twenty verses three was a bit much in close quarters. Turning around he searched for Aria, but she was nowhere to be found.

No, no, no, no!

Finally able to hear past the ringing in his ears Steve called for her through the comms. “Aria, come in. Tell me your location.”

No answer. Shit!

“Donahue, on my six. We aren't leaving without her.” Mathew nodded once as he reloaded his gun and got in position to follow. The other man knew who Agent Stark was to him and to Sergeant Barnes. He liked the woman even if she could be a bit scary. But how scary could she be when she had those two men, not to mention Tony Stark and that Peter kid wrapped around her little finger?

“Ready, Captain.” Without another word, the men retrace their steps to where they last saw her. All they found was an empty hallway with a small depression in the wall leading towards the balcony and a hacked and dented metal baton discarded on the floor.

Going out onto the balcony showed them nothing until he noticed something moving in the wind on his right. Through the stone railing, close to the building was a collapsible ladder hooked over the side. Rushing over he didn't see anyone on the ground, but Mathew tapped his shoulder pointing towards the tree line. “There Captain! It's Agent Stark and two unknown females.”

It was hard to see if she was being chased or if she was leading them away from him and the others. Pressing his hand to his ear he relayed to the S.T.R.I.K.E. team that Aria was in need of assistance and that he and Mathew were in pursuit. “Everyone, fall back. We have the USB. Stark is with two unknown females and is headed towards the southeastern treeline. Looks like they'll be passing by the rendezvous point.”

Not waiting for Mathew he jumped over the railing and began to run after them as soon as his feet hit the ground. The voice of lead S.T.R.I.K.E agent, Robert Turner, came through the comm as he pushed himself to go into a full tilt sprint. “Turner and Jones here. We copy and are on our way.”

Unholstering his pistol as he hit the trees, Steve slowed down enough to not trip over fallen logs and other debris on the forest floor. His heart was pounding faster than he'd ever felt it before at the thought of losing her. He'd never forgive himself if she was hurt or worse. “Aria! Aria where are you?” He yelled knowingly giving away his position and not caring as long as he found her. Straining his ears he listened for her voice. For any kind of noise to tell him which direction to go.

"Steve, I'm here. Don't shoot!" Letting out a relieved breath when he heard her faint voice calling out to him, Steve closed his eyes for half a second before changing course. Noisily crashing through a large bush with his shield and gun raised, Steve glanced at the two women next to Aria who were dressed head to toe in crimson red and black leather holding up their hands in surrender. His girl stepped forward in front of them with a smile on her beautiful face rushing to his side. He had just enough time to holster his pistol before she leapt into his arms. Dropping his shield to the ground he held her tight, kissing her hard and desperate.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" He asked when he finally was able to pull back, checking her body over for injuries. Laughing she pressed her lips to his before resting her forehead against his, making his heart feel light at the sound.

"I'm fine. Come on, I want to introduce you to my ‘sisters’." Shimmying out of his arms until she was on her own two feet she waved over the two women who looked very much like his girlfriend. If he didn't know better he would say they were triplets. “Elena, Wren, this is my boyfriend Steve Rogers.”