The Archangel (Avengers Fanfic)

Chapter Thirty One

*Bucky POV, I know you missed it*

The flight back to the golden city was quiet most of the way, each trying to comprehend what had happened. For Bucky, it was hardest. He was seeing Angel physically hurt and vulnerable for the first time and there was nothing he could do. He was used to the emotional wounds, they shared similar ones, and could heal together, but physical ones were far different, especially for a person who was close to being invulnerable.

Her wings looked awful, battered like someone had taken a mallet to a piece of sheet metal and wasn't kind in doing so. Every time he heard her bent feathers shriek against each other, it would send unpleasant shivers up his spine. It looked as if she was having a hard time moving them, either intentionally because of the pain it caused or if she physically couldn't move them due to the damage done. He wondered if she would even be able to fly with her wings so torn up.

An inkling of guilt wormed into his mind, which was stupid, he had nothing to do with her current state. However, he couldn't help but wonder if he hadn't been directly behind her, being shielded from the bullets by her wings, maybe she wouldn't be in such a state.

He hated looking at her like this, had a hard time making eye contact but he knew he had to. He had to keep reminding himself that the damage wasn't his fault, that she would have done it anyway to protect the hostages. He was just grateful that the weapon wasn't strong enough to puncture through her metal form. No one had any idea what that would do to her if it happened and Bucky never wanted to find out.

As he was looking at her, he could see more than what was on the surface. She was freaking out inside, the little micro-expressions he had grown so used to an easy tell for just how scared the incident had made her. Getting up from where he sat, he moved across the ship and folded her in his arms, keeping her close. He cupped her cheek and ran the pad of his thumb over the indent in her metal skin.

"I was so scared." Bucky murmured next to her ear. "I can't imagine my life without you in it."

"You needn't have been, you are my world, and I will protect you with my life to keep you in it." She murmured back. A notion that both humbled him and filled him with a sense of dread.

Bucky stayed by Angel's side the rest of the flight back to the capital, both quiet as they took comfort in each other's company. Okoye sat near the cockpit, trying to move as little as possible to keep from irritating her ribs too much. When the ship landed, all three of them were able to walk off the vessel of their own power, though in pain all the while.

T'Challa met them at the landing bay, looking somehow stone faced and hopeful all at once. When he saw that they returned without Nakia, his face fell slightly, and then filled with concern at the state they were in. "What happened? I want a full mission report." He asked as he sent a Dora Milaje to fetch Shuri and a Wakandan healer.

"They had a weapon I was unprepared to face and Okoye got blown up," Angel began, going over a list of their injuries before summarizing the events, "but we dealt with all hostile forces accordingly and rescued the hostages, Nakia is escorting them here as we speak."

T'Challa nodded solemnly, "I will await Nakia and my rescued subjects, you must have your wounds looked at before returning to active duty, both of you." Bucky found it funny that he had to specify that for both women, both hard headed and stubborn to the core. Loyal to a fault though and he loved them for it, though in two very different ways.

"I'll make sure of it." Bucky promised, one hand secured in Angel's grasp, the other on Okoye's shoulder.

As soon as T'Challa was out of earshot, Okoye knocked his hand off and grumbled, "do not think that you can best me simply because I am injured."

"Wouldn't dream of it." Okoye was one badass chick and she knew it.

Only a moment later, Shuri came bursting through the doors followed closely by a woman in a sterile white healer's garb, though the healer walked at a reasonably fast pace whereas Shuri ran.

"What happened? Did my beads not work?" Shuri questioned, alarmed by the state they were in.

"The beads worked great, kid," Bucky reassured her, to which she visibly relaxed.

"Then why are you so beat up? Did you forget that bullets hurt?" Typical Shuri, if the tech worked, she assumed it was user error, expecting people to be able to get the job done without obstacles.

Angel pulled out the weapon and the clip that she had taken off the hostile. "Actually, yes. But this weapon was the cause, not an ordinary gun. I was wondering if you would look into it for me?"

She shrugged in response, "sure, it'll take me two minutes." Bucky smirked at her response. The kid was cocky tech-wise but her skill always lived up to her attitude and sometimes surpassed it, which Bucky admired in a person. Shuri then turned to Okoye, "so what happened to you?"

"I was blown up." Okoye said bluntly just as the healer stepped into earshot.

"Cool!"

Shuri was interrupted before she could say anything else by the healer, "no, that is most certainly not cool. I must check you for injuries." The healer started moving about, kimoyo beads lighting up as they scanned her body.

"I'm fine, it is just my ribs." Okoye tried to dismiss the healer.

"I disagree, you have three broken ribs, a minor concussion and extensive bruising, you're lucky you don't have any internal injuries. However, you are moving of your own volition so I assume you have your motor capabilities, but please allow me to escort you to the medical lab to keep you comfortable and to minimize further damage."

Smirking, Bucky prompted, "T'Challa did tell you both to get checked out before you could get back to work." Okoye sent him a scathing look but sighed and allowed the healer to summon a levitating stretcher of sorts.

"Both? I was unaware there was a second patient," turning to Bucky, she commented, "you don't look injured."

Bucky quickly grew irritated at her demeanor and complete ignorance of Angel, who was clearly injured and standing right next to him. "No, I'm not. My girlfriend is." The healer gave him an expectant look that he didn't really know how to characterize. "She's standing right next to me."

The healer glanced at Angel and seemed to come alive with surprise, an actual emotion. "My apologies, I assumed you were one of Shuri's gadgets."

"Gadgets? Really? After everything I have built for you? Gadgets!?" Shuri huffed, giving the healer the most displeased look Bucky had ever seen.

Angel waved everyone off, "it's fine, I've been mistaken for worse." Bucky scowled at that particular memory, "No, I'm a human with wings who can turn myself to metal."

"Then I'm afraid I can't help you. If you were to return to normal the wounds would likely worsen. I suggest getting them fixed in this form before you turn back but I have no expertise in metal work." The healer said, then left with Okoye floating after her without warning.

Shuri snorted, "well, she's helpful." Bucky's lip quirked at the sarcastic comment, that was certainly one word for it. "Not to worry, I'm an expert at working with metal."