Dominance (Dark!SteveRogers AU) - 1

15

Wren stepped into the elevator and swiped her ID card, doors closing as it whirring into life, taking her up for another day of wondering how she was going to navigating Steve's ever changing mood. His words had shaken her, he'd been distant and short with her. It was as though he'd just decided he didn't see her in the same light as he had anymore.

Perhaps he had a new woman to toy with? One who she'd obviously not met. Maybe by the end of this week she'd be replaced with someone who he found more enjoyable than her? The thought of that pained her.

The doors opened and her heels clicked over the floor as usual, signalling that she was here and ready to work. She knew Steve would always hear them; he'd told her once that he could recognise her by two things. Her heels and her perfume that she always wore.

"Good morning, Captain." She called as she hung up her coat and walked into the office. Steve was at his desk, glaring at the tabletop while deep in thought. He didn't look up as she crossed the room.

Great. He was still in a shit mood. "Captain?" she looked over at him. "Is something wrong?"

He pushed his chair back and rose from it, "You could say there is little bird..." and went out to the living area, beginning to pace back and forth by the window. "It's as I thought it may come to..."

"I'm not following?" She frowned. "Steve..." he now looked over at her, but his eyes were just as dark as his mood. This was not good, whatever it was had him pissed. He was wearing the same clothes as last night and Wren began to wonder whether he'd even slept. "What's happened?"

"I had a call last night, Pierce and Sitwell, the latter informing me that there is a traitor within our walls..."

Oh. Fuck.

Wren kept her composure as much as she could. Did they know about her? Fucking Sitwell, it was always the ones that they'd least expect. He'd been working for SHIELD for years and he was Hydra? Jesus the guy wouldn't say boo to a damn goose. And now he was snitching? She couldn't get ahead of herself. For all she knew he didn't know anything more. Instead she'd need to find out just how much had been said.

"Shit." She sighed. "How does he know."

"Sitwell has been a good agent of mine, he's been watching SHIELD for years – the other afternoon he overheard Fury talking to someone, and the exact words that he heard were 'you need to unmask Captain Hydra, I didn't put you in the serpents lair for nothing.'  He heard enough to know that there's someone here that's leaking information back to SHIELD."

Those were Nick Fury's exact words to her during the update she'd given him just a couple of days prior.

Double fuck.

The cogs in Wren's mind were working fast, as an agent she was used to quick thinking, and this would have to be another one of those times. It was a matter of life and death now. Steve knew that a SHIELD agent was lurking undercover.

Wren wanted to kill Sitwell. She was annoyed at having that little weasel try to expose her. But he wouldn't. Not if she could turn this around and fast. Steering Steve to the chair she sat him down, gently massaging his shoulders. "You're tense."

"Of course I'm fucking tense!" He snapped. "When I find this little rat – which I will – then heads are going to roll."

Wren carried on massaging his shoulders. "So what else did Sitwell say? Does he have any intel as to who it could be? I mean we have been getting a lot of new agents..." She pointed out innocently.

"Not much more than that, but we've got him watching and listening over there, just as we're going to do right here. It won't be long until we find them, and when we do it won't be pretty." Steve told her angrily and cracked his knuckles. He was all but ready to interrogate everyone if it meant sending SHIELD the corpse of their undercover agent.

"Do SHIELD know of the plans you have?"

"Project Insight." He finally confirmed. "They see it as protection, that's all they know about it. Only a select few of us know the truth, so the traitor isn't going to be confiding in Nick Fury for much longer...it'll be too late by then."

She kept her cool, even on hearing the deafening knuckle crack. It didn't surprise her anymore. Nothing did. Wren was used to Steve's moods, his traits, everything. Still the annoyance in her was rising almost as much as his temper. Wren knew now was the time that no one should mess with her. "What if it's Sitwell himself? And he's trying to throw you off the scent?" She suggested. If Steve could play the manipulation card then so could she – after all, she'd learnt from the best.

"You have a good point, I'll be watching everyone though, including Sitwell." He told her, bringing up his hand to place itself on one that was on his shoulder. Fingers interlocking.

Why was he doing this?

No. Too close.

He let his hand slip from hers.

Crossing the room to the bar, Wren poured him a drink and passed it to him. "He's always very timid...could be the perfect front." And threw Steve a devious look, anything to plant the seed in his mind that the traitor was anyone but her. She wasn't going anywhere.

He smirked and watched her over the rim of his glass as he drank. "Like I said. Eyes on everyone."

"Is there anything you'd have me do?" Wren asked, "To help in any way?" He batted her hand away as she went to place it on his. "Never mind...I'll be in the office." She sighed and left him alone, knowing that would have him rethink his actions.

He sank further into the chair and exhaled. "Wren!" He called as she emerged from the office.

"Yes?"

"I can't be who you want me to be. It's not in my nature."

"I wasn't asking you to be."

She wasn't. The only thing she asked (and hadn't verbally) was to have him feel the same about her. But that would always be asking for too much.

Steve couldn't help but laugh at this. "I know what you're trying to do. Just accept that we have what we have."

"Remember my place...I know sir, I'm here for whatever you need, whenever you need it – I know that I'm worth nothing to you." She echoed his words that he'd told her in malice last night and retreated back into the office.

Steve followed after her in a few paces, entering the office and slamming the door behind him. "You make me so fucking mad, you know that?"

"Well then I wouldn't be the first person, and I most certainly won't be the last." Wren snapped, eyes now like fire.

"Come. Here..." He growled.

She walked forward towards him as he grabbed her and pulled her against him. "Why do you push me away?" Her question was followed by her looking up at him from under her lashes. "You never did before?"

"Because I have a mission to see through, and I can't have anyone steering me away from that path. Not even you." and then he leant in and kissed her hard, unable to hold himself back for much longer.

"I will do whatever you ask, you know that don't you? You know I'm loyal. I'm not saying that you will ever trust me though because I know you don't with anyone."

He rested his forehead against hers, "I know you are loyal to me, but with how things have been, I cannot afford to open myself up to you anymore, not as much as I have already."

"I know, and I'm privileged that we have what we have. I'll ask of nothing else from you." She was transfixed and under his spell, just as he now knew he was with her.

"Now...back to work." Steve told her quietly.

Wren removed herself from his grasp and went back to her desk. It was imminent that Steve would soon find out about her, and she needed to think about how she was going to handle it. To say he'd be furious was an understatement. But would he kill her? Would he really do it after everything they'd shared together? She could see he was fighting showing her the humane side to him purely because he wanted to be seen in a certain light. She didn't care about that anymore. In her mind, Steve Rogers could still be Captain Hydra and still love in private, even if he didn't think that he could.

She'd find out soon enough though...