Adamantine (A Post-Black Panther Bucky Barnes Love Story)

11

I sit in a dark conference room in the embassy, the only light coming from the cheap burner phone in my hand. I remember the day Steve gave it to me and grimace.

What a time that was, I think bitterly. Why did I agree to this? Not that Bucky even knows I'm actually doing it...

I shake my head defiantly and tap in the number I know will reach Steve. When I go to type the message, I pause for a second. I briefly think about not going through with this, but I toss the idea out immediately. I do close the text and instead call the number before I can stop myself. Because of the time difference and the way things were the last time we saw each other, I don't really expect Steve to answer, but he does.

"Aurea?" is his surprised, somewhat concerned greeting.

"Captain," I reply quietly. It's silent for a few seconds. "Listen, Bucky asked me-"

"Bucky? He's awake?" Steve interrupts, sounding shocked.

"Awake? What are you talking about?" I ask, alarmed.

"The cryo- nevermind. What did he ask?"

"He asked me to help him contact you. I'm going to text you the email address he'll be using. Expect a message soon."

"Wait- how are you talking to Bucky?" he asks before I can hang up.

"I'm in Wakanda for work," is my short, simple response before I end the call. I don't want any more questions, so I just text Steve the email address and turn the phone off once the message is sent. I scribble down a short note for Bucky with the information for the account. I tuck the note in my pocket and look at the clock.

5:49 AM.

"Why am I not surprised?" I mutter to myself as I leave the room. "Well, no point in sleeping now."

I go to the kitchen and am about to pour myself a bowl of cereal when I hear the security alarms go crazy. Acting on instinct, I run as fast as I can to Michael's room. I grab the- thankfully metal- door and rip it off its hinges, my powers doing most of the work. Michael is awake but drowsy.

"Aurea-?"

"Get in the closet," I instruct, grabbing the metal of the door and using it to seal the window shut. I use my powers to secure Michael in the closet once he's hurried inside. I hurry to the monitor in his room and check the cameras. Three masked men are breaking into the entryway.

Easy enough to handle, I tell myself.

"I'll be back," I tell Michael and pull my staff from my boot. I press the button to make the blade extend from the end. Silently, I go to the top of the stairs at the end of the hall and wait. I smirk slightly when I hear the men approaching. They're talking about killing Michael. They turn the corner and freeze. I narrow my eyes at their rifles.

"Holy sh-"

"Surprised to see me, boys?" I smirk, using my powers to launch the spear forward as soon as they raise their guns. It pierces through one guy's chest, and he screams as he falls over.

The other two fire their guns, and I deflect the bullets with a wave of my hand. They fire back into the men, going into their extremities. I pull metal from the chandelier and wrap it tightly around the two men's necks. The third struggles for his gun, so I flick my hand and send a shard of metal through his throat. He gurgles for a few moments, choking on his own blood. He soon goes silent. I look over at the other two and see that they have gone still. I tighten the metal even more, ensuring they are dead.

"Michael?" I call as I enter his room.

"Y-Yeah?" is his shaky reply as he cautiously leaves his closet.

"Call the Dora Milaje for clean-up please," I request, and he swallows thickly.

"Who was here?" he asks, and I shrug.

"Some people who wanted to kill you," I reply. I smile slightly. "They didn't get far."

"Any idea who they were?"

"No idea," I shake my head. "But you're unharmed, so that's all that matters."

•••••

I stand in the background as the Dora Milaje clean up the mess of bodies and blood. I keep my arms crossed and expression neutral. Bucky walks in with Okoye, and I'm surprised to say the least.

"What are you two doing here?" I ask, raising my eyebrows.

"The King wanted me to confirm the ambassador was safe," Okoye replies, and I nod.

"He's upstairs," I say, and she brushes past me to go speak with him. I turn my eyes on Bucky. He looks extremely worried as he steps forward and gathers me in his arms. He has his metal arm looped around my waist and his other hand gently cups my cheek.

"Are you okay?" he murmurs, a concerned frown on his beautiful face. I nod, leaning into his touch. He feels like home, as stupid as that sounds. "What happened?"

"Three people broke in and wanted to kill the ambassador," I reply quietly. I look away from his intense gaze. "I took care of it."

He sighs and presses a soft kiss to my forehead, which makes every nerve in my body light on fire. "They didn't hurt you, right?"

"They tried."

He doesn't really say much in response, instead responding by tightening his arm around me and pressing me to his chest. He moves his other hand from my cheek to the back of my head, his fingers thrust up into my hair. I enjoy his hug much more than I'd ever admit, but I show him by relaxing into his touch and slowly wrapping my arms around his waist.

"Aurea, I- oh." I jump and quickly face Michael, who's holding back a smile. "Well, you two look cozy."

"Michael," I hiss, narrowing my eyes at the ambassador.

"Okay, okay," he surrenders, putting both hands up. His smile breaks through. "Well, I was just going to say that we've been invited to stay at the palace indefinitely until they can revamp the security system here."

"Alright. We'll head over soon. You can pack up, if you'd like," I reply evenly, and he nods.

"Yep," Michael grins. "I'll pack your stuff up too so you two can have some more, uh, time."

I give him a smirk. "Okay."

I hear Bucky stifling a laugh behind me, and when Michael leaves, I turn to face Bucky. He lets out a chuckle, and I crack a smile.

"So," he says after a moment, taking my hands in his, "the palace, huh?"

"Apparently," I shrug, grinning up at him. "Where are you staying, by the way?"

Now, it's his turn to smirk.

"The palace. How convenient."

I laugh and shake my head. "And you had nothing to do with our invitation to stay there?"

He brings one of my hands up to his lips. "I might have had something to do with it."

His stare seems to lock me in place. The intensity in his blue eyes catches me off-guard, and it makes my breath catch.

"Thank you, Bucky," I murmur breathlessly, and he pulls me against him.

"Any time," he mumbles out, and my heart races as he presses his forehead to mine. He starts to lean in, when-

"Time to go!"

Michael...