Thoughts Can Hurt || Percy & Avengers Crossover

surprise: they know everything

On an asteroid, some odd couple hundred thousand miles away from Earth, an enraged-looking man throws his weapons at a nearby wall. "WHY IS IT NOT WORKING?"

A scared man with pink skin shoves shaking hands into a lab coat. "I-I am unsure, sir." His voice quivers. "As you know, our experiments with the staff have proved many useful subjects... No matter whether they have Greek blood running through them or not. It's just this-this Perseus we captured some time back, seems to have... fully come to his senses. There is no residue left so we can start again, like with many of the other subjects we've controlled. I am unsure as to whether or not it's because he is the son of one of the big three or-"

The other man cuts him off, yelling, "Well figure it out then!"

"Yes, sir. It's just, erm, sir, that there seems to be someone protecting him in the hospital he's currently staying at. All of our recon teams have been... put out of commission."

The man cusses. Loudly, and several times. He throws his hands up in the air. "Do I have to do everything around here?" He shoves the man out of the way. "Watch out, I'll do it myself!"

The man in the lab coat watches as he hits the button on the transport and disappears.

———
on earth, near the hospital Percy is in
———

"Bucky." Steve looks nervous, "Are you sure?"

"Confirm." Despite the firm tone, Bucky edges slightly closer to Steve, watching the people in the lobby with trepidation. "Percy is. mission assist."

"Yeah, but Tony's already got security posted up around the building and nothing has happened yet. You don't have to do this, Buck."

"Deny."

"What do you mean deny?" Steve and Althea had been working on getting Bucky out of his mission mindset. Althea said that it wasn't healthy, and that they should both work on communication instead of assuming what would be the correct course of action based on their separate assumptions.

So Bucky sighs long sufferingly like he can't believe Steve doesn't get it. "Steve. Pal. Percy is also your mission assist. Would cause. Negative emotional."

"It would cause negative emotions if something were to happen to Percy?"

"Confirm."

There's silence for a moment and then Steve speaks quietly as they take the stairs up to Percy's room since Bucky doesn't do good with enclosed spaces, "Do you... remember him? From before?"

"Pieces. Mission imperative is. Quiet."

"How come you didn't," he cuts himself off, looking ashamed at the question before he even asks it.

"Locate?"

"Yeah," Steve says quietly. "How come?"

"Safe." He says eventually, "Scared if I left. I would find. Dead. Or Hydra."

"Why did you leave?"

"Downloaded memories. Ran. Emotion identified: fear."

"Okay. Okay, Bucky. How long do you plan to stay with him?"

Bucky gives Steve a look and Steve sighs.

"If I'd known we'd be staying this long I would've grabbed us some spare clothes."

"Building?"

Bucky's phone lights up and Jarvis' voice comes out. "Barnes?" He says with a hint of amusement. "I would be led to believe you wish for some spare clothing and possibly an overnight bag?"