Blades & Ballet | Bucky x Reader

Twenty-Four

Back at the townhouse, Zemo lounges on the sofa with a cold compress resting on his head. Sam grabs his laptop and takes it over to the kitchen table, sending a message to Sharon to see if we can help track Walker's movements.

"Something's not right about Walker," I state, shucking off my jacket and heading into the kitchen.

"You don't say," Sam mocks.

"Well, I know a crazy when I see one," I remark, pulling a bottle of alcohol from the cupboard and pouring a glass. "Because I am crazy."

"Can't argue with that," Sam smiles.

"Shouldn't have given him the shield," I tell him.

"I didn't give him the shield," Sam retorts, standing from his chair to face me.

I take a swig from my drink. "Well, Steve definitely didn't."

Suddenly, the front doors are kicked open as Walker and Hoskins enter the room.

"Alright. That's it. Let's go," Walker announces. "I'm now ordering you to turn him over."

Y/n crosses the room in three strides, positioning herself in front of them. "You can't order us to do shit."

"I'm Captain America," Walker states.

Y/n laughs. "You know, Walker? You sure do say that a lot. Maybe if you actually acted like Captain America should, and not like an overgrown frat boy, we might consider hearing you out. But no, you go around spouting that title like it's an excuse for all of your assholery. Guess what, it's not. And you have no jurisdiction here, so stop trying to tell us what to do."

Walker seethes. "You know what? I've had enough of you!"

I move around the counter to defend Y/n, but Sam gets there first.

"Alright, break it up," he orders. "Let's be clear. Shield or no shield, the only thing you're runnin' here is your mouth. Now, I had Karli and you overstepped." Sam gestures to Zemo, who is now pacing the floor. "He's actually proven himself useful today. And we're gonna need all hands on deck for whatever's coming next."

"How do you want the rest of this conversation to go, Sam, huh?" Walker threatens. When Sam doesn't answer, Walker softly chuckles. "Yeah. Should I put down the shield? Male it fair?"

Y/n scoffs. "Ah, yes. Resorting to violence. The classic move of the Neanderthal."

Walker glares at her as he leans the shield against the pillar. But as he stands, a spear flies through the room, piercing the tiled pillar beside his head. We turn to the source, finding a Dora Milaje warrior standing at the back of the room. Ayo marches through the front door a second later, another warrior at her side.

"Even if he is a means to your end... Time's up," she informs me in Wakandan before switching to English. "Release him to us now."

Y/n puts her hands up, backing away from them. "I'm not getting in the middle of this."

Walker turns to Ayo. "Hi. John Walker. Captain America." Ayo doesn't respond, and he looks awkwardly between her and the other warriors in the room. "Well, let's, uh, put down the pointy sticks and we can talk this through, huh?"

"Hey, John, take it easy," Sam warns. "You might wanna fight Bucky before you tangle with the Dora Milaje."

"The Dora Milaje don't have jurisdiction here..." Walker replies.

"The Dora Milaje have jurisdiction wherever the Dora Milaje find themselves to be," Ayo declares.

Walker smirks. "Okay, look. I think we got off on the wrong foot."

Walker extends his arm to place his hand on Ayo's shoulder, but as he does, Ayo attacks. Sam and Y/n back further out of the way, joining me at the kitchen island. We watch from a distance as Ayo's spear hits Walker's arm, knee, and face before she kicks him backwards, where he crashes into the spear still stuck in the pillar.

Walker rolls as he hits the floor, grabbing the shield and hoisting it in front of him as the other Dora jumps toward his, stabbing her spear at his chest. The Dora at the back of the room charges in, and Ayo pulls the spear from the pillar, tossing it to her. Hoskins rushes in to defend his friend, and the two Dora warriors fight him off as Ayo takes on Walker, the men hopelessly outmatched.

"We should do something," Sam states.

"Looking strong, John," I yell in encouragement.

Y/n softly chuckles. "Nah, I think they got this, Sam."

"Guys..." Sam presses.

I roll my eyes as I approach Ayo, grabbing her spear before she can stab Walker. "Ayo. Ayo, let's talk about this!"

She turns on me, twirling her spear around her body as she attacks. I do my best to defend myself, and out of the corner of my eyes, I see Sam and Y/n are trying to defend Hoskins from the other two Dora.

Ayo hits my shoulder with the blunt end of her spear, and I grab it, putting it away. Her free hand slides forward, pressing against my metal shoulder, and my arm makes a mechanical sound before dropping to the floor with a clang. My eyes widen in shock.

"Bast damn you, James," Ayo states, walking toward the closed bathroom door. She opens it and steps inside, and I realize that Zemo is missing.

By the kitchen table, Walker struggles to pull a spear from the wood, desperately trying to release the shield from where it was pinned. A Dora warrior approaches him, effortlessly pulling the spear from the table. The shield topples to the floor, and she stomps on its edge, catching it as it flies up. Walker glares at her from the floor.

"He's gone," Ayo declares, turning to the Dora. "Leave it."

The Dora hands Walker the shield before following Ayo out. Slowly, I bend down to retrieve my metal arm, lifting it to the socket of my shoulder. It whirs and clicks into place.

"Did you know they could do that?" Sam asks, climbing to his feet.

"No," I answer, rotating the joint in a circle to reset it.

"You alright man?" Hoskins asks Walker.

It takes him a second to reply. "They weren't even Super Soldiers."

"Come on," Hoskins says, offering Walker a hand up. He takes it.

Sam glances at him as we pass to investigate the bathroom, finding an open drainage cover. "I can't believe he pulled an El Chapo."

"I can," I reply, grabbing my jacket and heading for the front door. "Come on."

We make it halfway down the street before Sam's phone rings. When he answers it, I hear the frantic voice of his sister echoing through the speaker.

"She said what?" Sam demands. "Right. Hold on, hold on. I know, I know. Listen, pack an overnight bag and take the boys."

"What happened?" I ask.

"Karli called Sarah. She threatened my nephews," Sam replies before turning back to the call. "Okay. Go somewhere safe. Only pay cash. Alright? Let me know when you get there... I know. Look, I love you... I'll never let anything happen to you and the boys. You know that. Okay. Bye." Sam comes to a halt as he hangs up, turning to us. "Karli wants to meet. She left a contact number."

His phone dings, and we look down to read the message: The rooftop above North Plaza. Now. Come alone.

"You're obviously not going alone," Y/n states. "We're coming with you."