#faad: a call with nat and peter

[babyjakes]

forever and a day | 37. a call with nat and peter.

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summary | a story in which america’s favorite captain gives a new life and family to a five-year-old girl who has suffered well beyond her years at the hands of hydra.

characters | dad!steve rogers, girl/willa rogers (original character)

warnings | AU similar enough to OU to include spoilers to many Marvel movies (Age of Ultron and beyond). action and fight scenes with violence and killing. injuries/mild gore. mature themes related to and semi-graphic depictions of child abuse/neglect, past CSA and CSM, and their aftermath (emaciation, wounds, scarring, etc). medical abuse and experimentation. ptsd/trauma symptoms in a child (developmental discrepancies, de-humanized behavior, detachment, extreme fears). medical treatment of CSM and other aftermath of abuse.trauma-informed therapeutic treatment of ECT. minor mentions of disordered eating. themes relating to abuse of power/authority and immoral interrogation tactics. evil!Tony Stark.

[Steve]

“Steve,” Natasha’s comfortingly familiar voice rings through my ear as I adjust my phone slightly against the side of my face, trying to hear her as clearly as possible.

“Hey Nat,” I say, a small smile finding its way across my lips. Shifting myself on the uneven mattress of the old bed, I turn to lean up against the wall. We’ve been staying in Bucky’s secret hide-out for a week now, and this morning my spy friend reached out and asked if we could have a call. Of course I said yes; I’ve been missing her like crazy. Been missing them all like crazy. I don’t know if I could ever get used to not living with a bunch of my closest friends. Of course, being with Bucky and Willa is great; I adore them both, but there’s so much to miss about the others. Clint’s dry humor and childish pranks. Bruce’s unmatched intelligence and warm demeanor. Peter’s chipper attitude and unmistakable innocence. Wanda’s wise, timeless soul. Thor’s… peculiar personality. “It’s really great to hear your voice.”

“Yours too,” Nat breathes, her relief evident in her tone. “Are you guys okay? I won’t ask where you are; it probably wouldn’t be wise to tell anyone that kind of information right now, but at least- are you alright? How’s Willa?” she rushes out, seemingly quite worried for the child.

“We’re alright,” I assure her. “We’re somewhere safe. Willa’s okay. Tony burnt her up pretty bad, but she’s healing quickly. Hopefully the scarring won’t be too permanent.” Natasha hums on the other end of the line, letting out a sigh.

“I still can’t believe… I’m never going to forgive him for that, you know,” she tells me seriously.

“I know,” I nod. “I’m right there with you. I had no idea he would take things that far.” I think what Tony did shocked everyone, regardless of allegiance.

“He’s got some serious self-control issues,” Nat seethes. I nod again, knowing she’s right.

“How are things over there?” I ask carefully. “Is Wanda okay? What about Clint and Sam?” Though I’ve sent a few hopeful texts over the past few days, I haven’t heard anything from the people who were on my side, which has been cause for great worry.

“Tony had them… detained,” Nat reveals. I sigh heavily, my head hanging in defeat.

“Are you serious? He had them arrested?”

“He turned them in to Secretary Ross,” she explains. “They’re being held in a secure unit offshore. Tony and I went to visit them yesterday. It’s- I don’t know what to say, Steve. They’re in prison uniforms, locked up in high-security cells.” Raising a hand to my mouth, I let out a muffled groan, guilt and anger building in my gut.

“What on earth are they being held for?” I ask.

“Helping you escape. And Ross is convinced they know where you are, which means they’re supposedly withholding information regarding fugitives.” I can hear the frustration in my friend’s voice, and it becomes clear to me that she’s truly just as unhappy about all this as I am.

“They don’t know where we are,” I tell her firmly. “I didn’t even know where we were going until Bucky landed the plane. Are they- oh god, Nat. Please tell me they’re not interrogating them; please tell me they aren’t trying to extract information from them like-”

“I don’t know, Steve,” Nat tells me quietly. “Clint said they were all questioned. Sam was pretty upset about the way he and Clint were being thrown around. And Wanda… Wanda wouldn’t say anything.”

“What do you mean?” I ask, my voice dropping to almost a mere whisper.

“She- she wouldn’t even look at us. They have her tied up in some sort of straight jacket to keep her from using her powers. She just kept herself huddled in the corner of her cell. I don’t want to assume anything, Steve, but she… she looked pretty rough,” Nat admits. My heart drops into the pit of my stomach as I swallow hard, a lump forming in my throat.

“Do you think they hurt her?” I ask, my entire body filling with dread. Natasha sighs and stays silent for a moment, a million worries beginning to swirl around in my head. “Did she have any marks, any bruises? Did she look like they were feeding her and taking care of her okay? She really didn’t say anything, didn’t even look at you?” I bombard my friend with questions, not wanting to believe that anyone could harm Wanda, especially because of something I caused.

“I don’t know, Steve. I’m sorry,” Nat says. “I wish I knew. I tried to negotiate and get her out of there, get them all out of there, but Ross won’t budge. Tony even tried; there’s nothing we can do.”

“God,” I huff, shaking my head and brushing my hair back anxiously through my shaking fingers. “This is all my fault. I should’ve known they would take them; I should’ve gotten us all on board-”

“Hey, don’t,” Nat warns, “none of this falls on you. If anyone’s to blame, it’s Tony. He should’ve been helping you resolve this whole mess with Bucky, not shooting at you as you tried to board the Quinjet.” I swallow again, wanting so badly to believe that Natasha’s right, but unable to fully convince myself that I truly hold no responsibility. “We’re gonna figure this out, okay? I’ve been doing as much digging as I can about what happened in Vienna. Bruce is helping me; he doesn’t think it was Bucky either. We don’t have anything solid yet, but we’re getting there. We will get through this. You’ll come home. And so will Wanda. So will all of them.”

“Thank you Nat,” I whisper softly, touched that she and Bruce would be putting in so much work to prove Bucky’s innocence. “I just hope this’ll all be over soon.”

“It will be,” she promises me. “Oh,” she adds, a sudden perk of interest clear in her voice. “Someone wants to say hi. You got the time?”

“Sure,” I shrug, not knowing who she’s talking about. “Not like I’ve got a busy schedule these days, anyway.” There’s a shuffling noise on the other end of the phone, and soon, a new voice pops up.

“H-hey Cap.”

“Peter,” I murmur, another smile forming on my face, this one laced with warmth and tenderness. “Hey buddy, how are you?”

“’m fine, sir. How are things over where- where you are? How’s Willa? And- and Bucky?”

“Things are just fine over here. We’ve got a safe place to stay with a roof over our heads, food to eat, and even a TV to watch. Willa’s getting her daily fix of Paw Patrol, so she’s all good. We’re alright, pal,” I tell him, not wanting him to worry excessively about us. Peter worries about practically everything under the sun, so whatever I can take off his plate, I’m happy to reassure him about. “How are you doing? Are things okay back at the tower?”

“We’re alright, sir,” the boy tells me, his repeated use of the title breaking my heart. It’s a well-known fact that Peter slips into a quite submissive state whenever he feels frightened, so his use of the word ‘sir’ is always a bad sign. “It’s… um… it’s weird, not having you here,” he admits. “Miss Willa, too. It’s- she-… I found one of her toys under the couch when Thor and I were playing hide-and-seek,” he mumbles. I soften at the sadness in his voice.

“Willa misses you too, bud. She talks about you a lot,” I tell him.

“She- she left her teddy bear here; he’s just sitting on her bed,” Peter sniffles, his voice cracking. “I-I know it’s probably weird that I go into her room but I… I do it anyway, just to s-see her stuff, and I-I… I sit on her bed and- and just think about when she was here, w-with me, y'know?”

“Oh Peter,” I breathe gently, the shakiness of his voice ripping my heart to shreds. “I know, buddy. I know how bad you must miss her; you love her a whole lot, don’t you?”

“M-more than anything,” he croaks, the pure vulnerability in his voice causing tears to build in my own eyes. “E-ever since she got here she- I-… I’ve tried to be her best friend, like a big brother for her. I h-hate that she’s gone. I can’t t-take care of her when she’s… I can’t make sure she’s safe, and…” His words turn into muffled sobs as he breaks down entirely. “I-I’m sorry, sir- Mr. Ro- Ste- C-C-Cap,” he hiccups.

“Hey, hey, take it easy, Peter. It’s okay; you can cry. You don’t have to be sorry,” I murmur. “I’m sorry for taking Willa away from you. I don’t like that you’re not with her, either. I promise, I’m gonna do everything I can to get her back to you soon, okay? She needs you just as much as you need her.”

“I h-hate this,” Peter cries, the exhaustion and anger evident in his voice. From the boy who’s always so positive and bright, this shift in attitude is deeply concerning. “They took Clint and S-Sam and Wanda. Th-they took them and now- now they’re… I-I don’t even know, I just- I w-want everything to go back to normal,” he whimpers. “P-please, sir. Everything’s so messed up and- and I can’t take it.”

I swallow hard, wishing I could offer more to the boy than what I currently have. “I know, Pete. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, buddy. I want everything to go back to normal, too. More than anything. I hate it too.” Peter takes in a shaky breath and I sigh, hating myself for all the stress this is causing the poor kid. “I promise you, okay? Remember that, please. I promise you, this is all gonna be sorted out, and things will go back to normal. We’re gonna figure it out, Peter. I swear.”

“Please,” the boy pleads, fatigue building in his voice as he begs one last time. “C-can’t take this. Please sir, can’t take this anymore.”

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