Superheroes

Let's Find Peace

Stiles glares at the Bane of his Existence, aka Steve Rogers, as he takes a seat to get comfortable in what the group has dubbed 'the Box', the negatively-pressurized room where he first triggered the Winter Soldier. Steve threw a hissy fit when it came to Derek finally sticking his claws in Barnes' neck and insisted that they experiment on him first, to make sure that Derek's claws could stay embedded in his neck without the skin healing.

His only consolation is that Barnes is right next to him, mirroring the crossed arms, with an air of equal parts exasperation and irritation and ocular fire.

They truly are a mirror for him and Scott. It makes his head hurt. This time literally.

"I just want to say again, in front of witnesses and shit, that I don't think this is a good idea and it's unnecessary."

"Noted," Steve replies in a light tone, not even looking at him. Fucking asshole. He's back to Rogers in Stiles' inner monologue. Maybe even Captain Asshole.

Barnes rolls his eyes. "Here you go with the stupid shit again."

Steve gives Barnes an exasperated look, like he's the unreasonable one in this scenario. "You're going to be doing this, too. At least you're going to see what you're getting into."

Derek doesn't say anything as he positions himself behind Steve. Stiles is there to hold the supersoldier down, although Steve thinks that he won't need the help.

Not Steve. Rogers. Damn it. Inner monologue fail. Whatever.

"Okay," Derek says, popping the claws on his right hand and placing his left on Steve's shoulder. "All three claws go into the skin at once. I know you think you can hold still, but Stiles is going to hold you down anyway. It's for your own safety."

Derek interrupts whatever Steve was going to say with his last statement. Stiles is amazed the man concedes without a fight and holds down the urge to stick his tongue out.

"Remember, you need to prepare your mind and allow the intrusion to happen," he continues. "When someone fights it, there's more risk. Having a scenario like what you and Lydia talked about will make this go smoother. It'll also help you when you go in as secondary."

The room goes still, the four of them watching. There's no recording and no one else is watching the process happen so the silence is loud. Stiles takes his own steady breath.

"Ready?" Steve nods. "Three, two, one."

Stiles' magic holds Steve down before Derek begins his countdown. He splits his concentration between Steve and Barnes' expressions. Steve winces, closing his eyes in pain, and to Stiles' surprise, he doesn't actually fight as much as expected. There are involuntary movements but he's able to reign in most of the jerking.

Barnes looks like he'd rather go through battle than watch Steve go through the pain, but the man doesn't blink. When Steve first revealed he wanted to be the first one to go under the claw, Barnes requested that Stiles and Derek give them the conference room for a private conversation. They hadn't gotten halfway down the hall before the shouting started. When Stiles went into the conference room next, one of the chairs was missing. He's not asking questions; all he knows is that a compromise happened and no one is happy. He and Derek have been there before.

Derek remains still, his left hand clenched on Steve's shoulder. Closing his eyes, he begins navigating Steve's mindscape. They all agree that the process shouldn't take long. It's more a test to get Steve's feet wet and check the healing factor anyway.

The moment Derek removes his claws, Stiles removes his magic and allows Steve freedom to move. He slumps forward, leaning his elbows on his knees and panting. Barnes is on his knees in front of Steve in the next moment. His hands hover in the air, like he isn't sure Steve even wants to be touched. The other man slumps forward and places his head on Barnes' shoulder.