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#helmut zemo x female reader
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Never Gonna Give You Up - Helmut Zemo X Female Reader
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Title: Never Gonna Give You Up
Helmut Zemo X Female Reader
Additional Characters: Bucky, Sam, Sharon (Mentioned), Steve (Mentioned), Helmut's Family (Mentioned), and other TFATWS characters (Mentioned)
Requested by @futuristicyouthvoid! (Thank you for requesting!!!)
WC: 932 (sorry if it's a bit short)
Warnings: Agent Reader, follows plot sort of, Zemo loves to dance, slight Bucky X Sam, anxiety, nervousness, german nicknames (my darling), mentions Helmut's loss of family and home, baby angst, and fluff
You entered the club of vibing people, dancing to upbeat house music. The lights were low in the nightclub, but you could tell that it was packed as all clubs tend to be. You weaved past dancers, and to the bar where you spotted Bucky and Sam, they were staring off at the dancing, as you made your way to stand beside them.
"Why'd you call me here?" You called out to Sam loudly over the music, "You know how expensive Madripoor tickets are? This better be something important because that was an eighteen-hour plane ride."
Sam shrugged, "I'll pay you back," He said. "And try to be quiet, will you? Don't want our cover blown."
You rolled your eyes, "What cover? Will you tell me why you so desperately wanted me here for then?" You asked, glancing at Bucky as he continued to stare down at the dancers. 
"We're trying to find out who has been recreating the Super Soldier serum," Sam spoke in your ear, before leaning away.
You furrowed your eyebrows, "That doesn't explain the club?" 
"It's Sharon's. She's helping." He answered and your jaw dropped slightly.
"Sharon? Steve's old fling? Jesus." You muttered under your breath and Bucky turned his head towards you. 
"She's going to help us with intel on Nagel." He spoke, before turning back to the dancers. You furrowed your eyebrows once more, turning to Sam.
"Why is Buck staring at the dance floor? If he so desperately wants a dance partner... Why aren’t you two dancing?" You asked Sam, gesturing between him and Bucky. 
Sam rolled his eyes, "Bucky doesn't want to dance. He's watching Zemo, so he doesn't get any ideas."
At his words, your eyes widened. Zemo? Your Zemo? Was here? You hadn't seen him since before the snap. You had visited him on multiple occasions before, but that was for SHIELD business. You had to interrogate the man, and it didn't help that Helmut was gorgeous. You didn't know it then but somehow you were able to melt his frozen heart, and that was saying something. Helmut had lost so much... His home, his family... He was distant towards you for so long. But, slowly, gradually, Helmut warmed up to you, and for the first time in years... He felt loved again.
And here you were, in a club, eyes wide as you stared at your Helmut from across the dance floor. He was dancing, rather... Adorably. You would've laughed if you weren't in so much shock. Sam stared at you, before placing a hand on your shoulder.
"You know him?" He asked and you ignored the man, rushing to maneuver and weave past dancers, desperate to get to Helmut as fast as you could.
Standing behind him as he fist-bumped the air, you let out a sigh. Slowly, with your bated breath, Zemo turned around and paused when his eyes locked with yours. You stared at one another, the loud music slipping away into nothingness as the world disappeared into only the two of you. Your gaze softened as you stared at Helmut, as did his. The two of you smiled, almost shyly as you gazed at each other.
Then, suddenly, Helmut was pulling you into his arms and into a deep kiss. The kiss felt like a dam had burst inside of you. You couldn't stop yourself anymore, wrapping both arms around Helmut's neck, clinging onto him desperately. Your fingers curled into his expensive shirt, tugging lightly on it as you kissed him passionately. Helmut pulled away after a moment, resting his forehead against yours as you both breathed heavily. You rested your hands on his chest, holding him tightly. You both looked at one another with soft smiles, before Helmut placed a small peck on your lips and stepped away. His cheeks reddened under the dim lights of the club, but his smile remained plastered on his face.
"Helmut... How did you get out?" You whispered gently, grabbing his hand to pull him closer.
He glanced away briefly, before looking back down at you. "James let me out."
"Bucky... Bucky let you out?" You asked skeptically, not believing this. Helmut nodded. You opened your mouth to speak but stopped yourself as Helmut spoke up.
"Not that I’m not elated to see you, my love, but why are you here?" He asked, wrapping his arms around you, holding you close to him, as the two of you swayed together on the dance floor.
"Sam called me." You mumbled into his shoulder, your grip tightening around him. He held you tighter. He knew you needed this. "He said he and Bucky needed help."
"Well," Helmut began, his hand running through your locks, "I am happy you're here. It's been a long time, meine Schatz."
You leaned away just enough to look him in the eye, "It has... And I am not letting them take you away from me again." You spoke determinedly.
His eyes flickered downwards, before looking back into your own eyes. "I know, my Schatz. I shall hope you never leave my side as well."
"I never could, Hel.” You muttered. "Now what trouble have they gotten you into?" You asked playfully as Helmut only smirked lightly, rolling his eyes. as he began to explain everything, you simply stared up at him, listening to his soft voice, hypnotic accent, and all, while holding the man you loved in your arms. You weren't going to let anyone take him away again, that was for sure.  And if they tried, you would fight them tooth and nail. For Helmut.
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hereticpriest · 1 month
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The Bath
MDNI
Rating: Explicit
Relationship: Baron Helmut Zemo x reader
Warnings: Cockwarming, mentions of previous violence between the two before their relationship began (he's a villain, they're ex-SHIELD guys c'mon), reference to a break-in.
Note: Liebling = darling, liebchen = sweetheart, bärchen = cute bear.
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There are no rose petals in your bath.
Early on, your love had tried his best to be romantic, creating a path with rose petals to a large claw-foot tub that was absolutely teeming with them. The water was lightly fragranced, and while it had been the perfect temperature, you were covered in petals afterwards, including in some places that petals truly did not belong. You hadn't complained - you'd never put your sweet Baron down for trying to do something romantic for you - but he had somehow known how much you disliked them.
No, today, your bath is fizzy and bubbly from bath bombs. The shimmery swirl of the water doesn't bother you in the same way as the petals, and steam gently drifts from the surface to show it's the perfect temperature. You sigh blissfully, letting your lover take your robe from you and press kisses along your shoulders while you kick your slippers off into the corner out of the way. Zemo hangs up your robe for you, then takes your hand to help you into the clawfoot tub, a smile overtaking his face as you sink into the water with a happy moan.
"Good?"
"Perfect." You correct him, "Or, near enough."
"I love you dearly, liebchen, but I do not enjoy boiling quite like you do." He retorts, bending to kiss your forehead, then leaning against the counter in his adorable little silk robe. You pout at him, and he pouts right back, mocking you playfully. Eventually, as the water cools to a normal, livable temperature, he approaches to nudge you forwards and slip in behind you. You're both clean - freshly showered, but needing some intimacy and relaxation after a long, long day. Once he's settled, he lifts you carefully, holding you steady above him as he runs the head of his cock through your folds, then pulls you down into his lap, impaling you upon him. You curl into Zemo's arms, leaning against his chest and letting your eyes close, satiated in your fullness. It's been a while since you've been able to do this. He's been gone for nearly two weeks on a mission he's been very hush-hush about, but he returned to you unharmed, and that's all you can ask for. The hours of running around town with him after picking him up at the airstrip at the crack of dawn because you couldn't help but want to be there with Oeznik when he landed had certainly taken it's toll on you.
"Will you read to me tonight?" You ask him, and he squeezes you closer, tracing his fingertip over one pert nipple, then cupping your breast in his hand.
"Have I ever said no?"
You smile.
"Shortly after we first met. It was very rude of you, bärchen."
Zemo rolls his eyes at you, but his smile is fond as he presses it to your temple.
"You were very rude, liebling. You punched me in the throat." He reminds you, and you grin to yourself, pressing your bottom back into his hips.
"You broke into my house - how was I to know you were with my friends? Anyways, you've long forgiven me. I hardly think you were even mad, my love, you were rock hard when you pinned me to the wall. In my own home. That you had just broken into." Your voice is playful, and Zemo groans against your shoulder, knowing he has lost. It had been rather rude of him.
"Little did I know that the little ex-SHIELD agent would bend over my counter for me the moment we were alone in Riga. Besides, Sam told me that they called you." His stubble rubs against your neck, and you sigh, letting him rock you ever so gently as you take comfort in his arms.
"Excuses, excuses."
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addict-rat · 3 months
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Night Ties
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Summary: You were a very famous hunter monsters, one day you decide to go after a famous vampier, but he was very aware of that and he change all your life.
Paring: Helmut Zemo Vampire x F!Reader Human
Words count: 3595 words
Warnings: +18 explicit, mention of blood, poor written smut, p in v, spanks, unprotected sex, bitting, ropes, bondage, desk sex, a little CNC, bondage. fingering, dominant/submissive.
Author’s note: Holas, I was writting this long ago, but I kinda forget when I get obsses with Ch.ai and all that, but here it is, I might be writting more of Zemo in the future. Please feel free to write me for any mistake I made or any suggestion.
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You had begun to make a name for yourself within the small towns that were frightened by all those over-natural beings. It was many of those people that lived dominated by supernatural beings, whether they were werewolves, witches, vampires, etc. However, among the people they were more feared and dominated by vampires and werewolves.
It was for that reason that you began to gain popularity, you were known as part of the good cause dedicated to killing or hunting such beings. Not only were you doing that, but they were very few, not many survived them, and for that very reason it was that very few wanted to take their lives to kill a few of them. The few people who did so had a reason to simply want to get rid of them.
You did it for revenge, your mother had been killed by one of them, all the people you lived in had been attacked by werewolves, but it was not them who killed your mother, you had managed to flee before they saw them. Deep in the woods when they thought the werewolves could no longer find them, they stayed for a moment near a river to grab strength and find safety, yet their mother heard noises in the distance, afraid that something might happen to you, I took her to a small cave near the river, told her to rest there and come out until there was sunlight. With the ingenuity of a child, he was obvious and did what I ask, when the light came out he called his mother without any answer from her, came out of the small cave, I looked for her by the gunmen until he found her pale and lifeless body.
She wasn’t looking to find the killers who killed her mother, because she knew she’d never find him, she knew it wasn’t human, what killed her, she knew it was what killed her, but again she wasn’t looking for her killer to never happen to anyone else. He was aware that he could not kill each of them, but with his perseverance and courage he could perhaps make more people unite and decide to end the dominance of these beings.
You had come to a small town where it was dominated by vampires, especially a special one. You knew how to deal with vampires, you’d learned from your group, they’d taught you their weaknesses especially. You could say that you were a little popular not only among humans but also within these "monsters", they had divided to hunt these vampires, it was expected that the majority lived in mansions or even castles, were arrogant and presumed most of them, but they were also intelligent, manipulative and persuasive.
You had decided to go ahead, you already had experience you did not believe that something could go wrong, so you had made a plan to get into that castle, which was simple, it was not like vampires had bodyguards or anything. They didn’t watch the whole castle, so you looked for a room that nobody had set foot in many years ago.
That’s how you ended up like this now, kneeling, your hands tied on a short chain that was stuck on the floor. You heard a few steps and saw a man dressed elegantly, his hair well-groomed. —What a foolish, hunter— he sneered, his voice echoing throughout the chamber. —I’m surprised you made it this far. You must be very brave or very dumb— You only stare at him as if you look could kill him. —Don't look at me like that, darling. Who are you to judge me? You are the one trespassing on my home. I could kill you right now for your insolence, if I so desired. But I feel... merciful— He say getting closer to him, in your position you have to look up to him, feeling like so insignificant in that position. —I don't know if you are brave or foolish, or just a bit of both— He was now very close to you, you feel his hand touching your cheek —You intrigue me.—
That took you for surprised other vampires they have just taken all your blood of your body and leave you completely drain. —How can I intrigue you? — Your voice sounds almost sarcastic, but there was confusion there. —Oh, little one, you’re so much more than “just a human”— He leans down and run a finger along your face, gently stroking your chin and jawline. —You have hunted my kind… Even I don’t really care about those ones, is really fascinating to see someone like you murdered that kind of vampires— He takes your chin tilting up so you can his eyes, his crimson red eyes, you could not deny that I cause you to send a chill in your spine. —But that doesn’t take the fact you’re very foolish to come to my home and try to kill me… You’re here not just by coincidence, I bring you here you alone… Ever since I found out about your existence, which wasn’t a year ago, I’ve been watching every step you take, every decision you make, piqued my curiosity, my dear… Of course I had to bring you here with me.—You feel his fingers caressing your chin as he doesn’t let you go, the two of them staring. —M-my friends… They know I’ll come here, they’ll get worried and they’ll come here to help me— Your voice trying sound convinced that they will come to rescue you. —Yes, they certainly would come here and try to rescue you… But let me ask you a question... Do you know how many hunters have entered my domain? How many have existed?… Like I told you, you’re here because I want you to be here alone, I know where your friends are, and I know who are with them, I can make your friends get killed right now, but I will not do that yet…—He says in a threatening voice —B-but there are a lot of people that know me… Th-they will get worried… And they know I’m here— You say with a desperation tone —Hmmm... I'm sure there are many that know you, yes. But what will they do about it, hmm? Come to my domain? The place where hunters never return from? I admire your courage, my love, but I do not think your "friends" are going to come rescue you... And talking about your friends, I know you love them because you see a family in them.— Your eyes get worried and surprised —What if we make a deal… You have two options, you can stay here and we both wait for your friends and I killed them one by one, slowly and painfully in front of you… Or you can save them by submitting to me and save them, but you have to behave or there will be punishments for you for your bad behavior… You’ll have to write a letter to your friends saying that you retired from vampire hunting, that you found love and now you’ll dedicate yourself to staying with him and pleasing him in all his spades… Now take your decision, but we don’t have all day, darling so you better hurry up— You couldn’t believe that not only he have trapped you, now you have to submit to him to save your friends, he’s using them to get you, and he’s achieved it. You don’t have any option. You regret coming alone and not waiting for others to accompany you.
He kneels before you, his head moves to your neck as you can feel his breath, he lift a trail of kiss on the side of your neck —Frist I want a little bite, I want to taste your sweet blood— his teeth and fangs brush in your neck, you can feel the sharp of his fangs on your neck, then you feel how his fangs they break through your skin, you bite your lip trying to not make any noise, you didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of the sound of your pain. He sucks your blood for a few minutes, you start looking dark circles as you feel more weak until you close your eyes and you remain unconscious.
When you wake up, you were laying on the ground, your hands remain tied, you tried to sit down but your body was so weak, you didn´t know how long you were there locked. You don’t have any other option, so you have to access his deal. He comes back after some time. —Did you take your decision?— He looks down at you, looking deep at your eyes, you only could nod —I’ll submit to you— Your eyes look down as you say that, he smiles at your choice, he kneels and take your chin looking at your eyes. —Good girl. I will untie you, I know you’re weak so you can’t attack me, even if you try you only have your hands to try it, darling.— He takes the handcuffs in your wrists, you don’t even try to do anything, he lifts you up in his shoulder, your tired eyes didn’t even look the way he is taking you, until you feel the soft mattress of the bed, after a few minutes you fall asleep.
You couldn’t believe after years of hunting and killing vampires you end up cleaning the castle of a vampire. You were walking in a corridor and open one of the rooms, you look around and see there were black curtains on the wall, that’s when you notice it wasn’t a wall is a window, you open the curtain and you realize it wasn’t evening yet, you calculated around 4 or 5 pm, that means the sun was still up. You haven’t noticed the time until right now, and after Zemo wasn’t around, you could escape you have a few hours before the sun sets.
You didn’t take too much to find a door that leads to the yard, and for your luck it wasn’t locked. You open the door and go out, you see your surroundings and walk through the yard, it didn’t take you long to arrive in the forest that surrounded the castle, you walk with joy to the forest, without noticing there were two deep eyes looking you walk in the forest.
One of Zemo’s butler have notified about your “escape”. —My Lord, the lady has run away to the forest alone, I think she’s trying to escape, but I don’t think she might go too far after the sun sets… I know the forest is very tricky for someone doesn’t know it— Of course Zemo knows the forest like the palm of his hand.
Zemo looks up at the butler with a sharp look. —Very good, I'll take care of it.— He says, as he stands up from his desk. —Thank you for the information.— Once the butler leaves, Zemo smiles slightly to himself. —Run away, have you, my love? So eager for danger, eh?— He thinks for himself looking at the window of his room.
When the sun went down, Zemo went out to look for you soon enough to find you, you were lost and your solution was to climb a tree to the top and see from above, which clearly did not work and only served to stay trapped in one of the branches, you couldn’t get off and you probably stayed there for a few minutes until I found you —Do you know what a stubborn and foolish creature you truly are, my love? — He gets close to you, but he did nothing to help you. —Can you help me please, sir? — You didn’t have any other option but plead for his help. His cold, dark eyes look down at you. —Why should I help you? You were so eager to leave. To run away. To defy me. And yet now, when you are caught, you beg me for help?— You weren’t in a position to act up and try to get the worst out of him —Don't worry dear, I already have an idea of what to do with you…– You watch him walk away, he didn't come back after some minutes, you were scared and cold, you couldn't see anything in the darkness of the night.—
Of course, he leave you in the damn tree for a few hours and then one of his servants brings you back to your room. You wake up in your bed, one of the servants enters after some minutes to your room, he was very nice to you, he serves you food and make sure you weren’t hurt last night. Until he mention that Zemo wanted to see you in his room after you have eaten, your face goes pale you know the reason why he wanted to see you.
You finish your food and get dressed before to go to Zemo’s room, with a soft knock at the door you make your presence noticeable to him, you heard him talk in the inside of the room, you open the door and Zemo look up to you to meet your gaze. –Do you want to see me, sir? – You asked when you enter into the room –Yes come here, darling– You obey and stand closer to him, he stands up from his chair behind the desk –So, darling… You have a bad behaviour last night, and you know the consequences of your bad behaviour– He moves behind you while he talks, you softly nod when he finishes, feeling his hands on your hips caressing slowly you feel your cheeks getting hot, you couldn't help but bite your lip when you feel his lips brushing your neck, leaving light kisses, You bite your lip as he moves closer to that sensitive spot on your neck, his kisses getting more longer as he was close to that sensitive spot, you almost moan when you know he was about to kiss you there but instead he pats your hips lightly and pull away slightly. –This is a punishment, my dear. I know you're enjoying this and maybe you get a little more if you behave after your punishment… Now bend over the desk. – He says in a commanding tone, you didn't hesitate and do it, one of his hands move to tease your legs, his fingers brushing your thighs lifting slowly the hem of your dress, your face now red for the situation, he saw the way you press your thighs together, his fingers move to pull down your panties slowly until the small fabric falls on the floor.
—Such a pretty thing… See how obedient you can be— You bite your lip when his hand starts to caress your ass cheek, in the unexpected moment he slaps your ass a little to hard to make you moan, Zemo smirk when he gets a reaction from you. You heard one of the drawers open, you couldn’t see what is going on, you just wait impatiently. Then you feel his hands covered in the gloves of leather caressing your thighs –Oh darling we gonna have so much fun– he leans closer to you in a soft whisper, his hot breath against your ear, as you feel his grown erection inside your ass —I want you to count this one, I want you to count 20 and then I’ll stop, but if you don't say it loudly and right I’m gonna start again. — He pulls away and his hand caresses your ass cheek with the glove leather then again he slaps your ass, the leather makes your soft skin sting —O-one… — a soft moan come out of your mouth.
The slaps get even harder when the number gets higher, making you more difficult to count right —I didn't hear you right, sweetheart he has to start again… — You were for the 17 slap after start over 3 times, his slaps get harder every time you make him repeat.
After several times, you finally reach to 20, you couldn’t believe how much your ass sting and hurt, you didn't have to look to see how red it was, as you couldn't believe how wet your inner thighs and folds were, you don't want to admit how turn it on you have get when he spanks you. Zemo look at you with satisfaction, he leans closer to you, a soft moan leaves your lips when you feel the rough fabric of leather caressing your inner thighs —Such a good girl… Already so wet for me, that was supposed to be a punishment not for you to enjoy— He chuckled softly, his hands moving to your wet folds, a soft moan leaves your lips as you feel his finger teasing your folds to your clit making slow circles, making you squirm under him, with a warning he push two of his fingers deep inside of you the leather glove makes his finger more thick, he moves his hands in a slow pace, he was enjoying the way you squirm under him, your little whimpers and moans. —You're so responsive— he murmurs, his voice dark and seductive. —I can feel every pulse, every quiver. You belong to me now, don't you? — His voice possessive close to your ear in a whisper —Y-yes, I’m yours… — You whine, you were so close to your orgasm. —That's what I want to hear— he says, pushing another digit inside you. —You're mine and you'll do as I say. — His fingers thrust into you in a faster pace, filling you up completely.
—You’ll cum when I say you can— With that he continues to finger you, his other hand moves closer to your clit, his fingers start rubbing that sensitive nub. Your walls squeezing his fingers as you were trying to not cum in his hand, not until he tells you that you can. You squirm and beg for him to let you come.
—Cum for me, sweetheart… Cum around my fingers. — And you did, you cum around his fingers with a loud cry, he continue milking your organs moving his fingers in and out while he continues rubbing your clit. He stops when you finally finish your orgasm, he withdraw his fingers slowly, a soft whine comes out of your mouth.
You close your eyes for a few seconds trying to get your breath –Don’t fall asleep already, sweetheart… I'm not close to finish with you. – You try to turn to look at him when you feel the tip of his cock on your swollen folds, he groaned, his hands gripping your hips tightly as he pushed into you, filling you up with his length. You only could moan loudly and squirm under him. Your tightness around him felt incredible as he began to thrust slowly, taking his time to stretch you out. —So tight and warm for me… — His lips curled into a smile as he felt your pussy clench around his cock. He increased his pace, thrusting harder and faster. The sounds of their bodies slapping together filled the room, punctuated by your moans and gasps of pleasure. You don't want to admit it, but he was making you feel the pleasure you never though you could get. Zemo moves to kiss your neck and shoulders as he continues thrusting in you in a rough pace, his grip on your hips was strong, that's gonna leave you bruises the next day. You cry louder when you feel his fangs break the skin in your shoulder, taking your blood. —So sweet and all mine— he whisper on your ear after take some blood of your body, his hand move to your clit, he moan when he feel your inner walls clenching around his cock, he pick more faster and rougher the pace, you can feel the tip of his cock hitting om your cervix, making you squirm under him, you didn't even think straight in that moment he was fucking you deep and senses that you only moan and whimper, you have lost the count of how many times he had make you cum.
Seeing you all ruin for the pleasure just arouse more Zemo, he grabs your face making you to face him and he takes you in a messy kiss, with a deep thrust his cum inside of you filling you up with his warm seed.
Zemo stays inside of you for a few seconds as he catches his breath, you were laying on his desk, blushing and panting, he pulls out of you, his seed come out of your swollen pussy, dripping on your thighs and floor, your red ass checks just give him the imagination of you that he wants —What a messy girl you are, What you're “fans” will think of you? Their little hunter here on my desk all marked by me, you don't want they find out the truth about you? That you enjoy being my little maid and warm my bed. Don't worry, my love that's not gonna happen, because you're mine and you will stay here by my side—
You try to run away a few more times, but the punishment gets even worse with the time that you start to get used to stay around him, you even start to crave for his touch and his sweet words, you fall in love with him, and now you were tied to him for the rest of your life.
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mariaxxxxx · 3 months
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Welcome a Masterlist of Masterlist
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Hello, I'm Maria E, She/They. Just a Brazilian girl who loves to write. I hope you enjoy my stories and forgive my bad English. My stories are for people of legal age (18+) Pay attention to warnings, please; Some themes can be sensitive and trigger triggers.🩷🩷
🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊
Namor/K'ul'ku'kan
🐍 Love under the sunset (in progress)
🐍 Underneath the waves (in progress)
🐍 Dragon fruit (completed)
🐍 Fantasize ( completed)
Baron Helmut Zemo
🫐Blueberry (shortly)
🟣 The love you offer me ( completed)
Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier
🔫Cherry (completed)
🔫 Boy, I want your attention (completed)
Steve Rogers/Capitain America
🗽 Blackberry (completed)
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violetmuses · 10 months
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Four Course - Bucky Barnes
TITLE: Four Course - Bucky Barnes (Restaurant AU)
FANDOM: Marvel’s “Falcon and The Winter Soldier” 
CHARACTER: James “Bucky” Barnes 
MAIN STORYLINE: As Bucky helps a restaurant succeed, you suddenly turn heads. 
Author’s Note: Hey! I couldn’t get away from one absolute brainrot. This project is also loosely inspired by “Burnt” and “The Bear.” Feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for reading my work as always. - V.  💜
Main Masterlist
___________
2024
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“You’re late, Sam. What the hell?” Clashing dishes and sizzled burners echoed all around while James continued working, already slammed. 
“Watch your mouth, I just clocked in. Had to drop AJ and Cass off at school this morning too.”  Sam quickly rolls his eyes. “Is Z here yet?” 
“Nope.” James immediately praises the ceiling, casted in fluorescent lights that sharpened too much now. 
“Thank God.” Sam pings that response, snatching one of many tickets and handing it to one server in record time. “I’m not trying to deal with his attitude yet.” 
“Neither am I.” James agrees. The last few years scorched like Hell. Zemo had finally traveled stateside and opened this restaurant. 
“Stop complaining. He can smell annoyance blocks away.” Joaquin warns, returning to the kitchen and still giving meal orders. 
“Obviously.” James shakes his head, cooking regardless with his bare right hand. 
____________
Helmut Zemo would’ve arrived during the first shift, but showing up fashionably late still made a difference in his own mind. 
His limousine pulls up towards that familiar curb and one young driver almost runs around New York traffic just to aid that exit. 
“Thank you.” Helmut whispers gratitude with accented English, but uses a separate door to enter the restaurant.
*****
“Shit, Come on. Zemo’s coming!” After running outside, Joaquin finds James  smoking a cigarette and finally snaps, sending himself into panic. 
“Where’s he now?” James stubs out the cigarette and brushes off his uniform, standing up in an effort to calm Joaquin down. 
“Kitchen. Get up.” Joaquin continues, no longer messing around. 
“I thought he didn't spook you anymore.” James chuckles without humor and still faces Joaquin. 
“Zemo doesn’t scare me, but we got a critic today. She’s hiding through our rush at this point.” Joaquin sends out even more alarm bells.
 James almost wants to choke him with his leftward metal arm. 
“Why didn’t you just say that?” James almost yells out loud, but is smart to walk back inside with Joaquin trailing behind him. 
___________
This restaurant leveled out in terms of quality placement, but wasn’t exactly known to be high-end. 
Ambitious owner Helmut Zemo founded the location eight years back, fusing Sokovian favorites right alongside other cuisine nowadays. 
The official review would be…something. Not that you would bum out this entire place, but everything felt rushed for plating. Each meal balanced onto your table without showing much love. 
You wouldn’t fault the cooks, at least not yet. 
***
“Is she nice?” Now, Joaquin mentions you, the critic, fighting an urge to cringe. Yet, he still helps out his coworkers. There’s no other choice. 
“So far.” Zemo clears his tone, clipping the response. 
“Quit chatting, you two. We gotta work and she wants dessert in the next few minutes.” Sam chimes, uniting with James as tickets keep moving in or out of the kitchen. 
“Sam?” Zemo arches one leftward brow and crosses his suited arms. James and Joaquin keep working, completely ignoring this quiet square up. 
“What? I’m not wrong.” Sam defends himself and silence then falls between both men. Zemo walks off. 
“James, come with me.” Zemo instructs. James can’t refuse, following both Zemo and Joaquin out towards the dining room. 
_________
“Here you go, Miss.” Smiling, Joaquin greets you once more and ends up gifting scrumptious cheesecake as dessert. “Hope this one makes you feel better.” 
“Thank you.” You grin back and chuckle at the moment, looking forward to enjoying this slice. 
James and Zemo stand at a fair distance as you turn your fork, cutting down this cake a bit more now. 
“Last bite.” After different meals, from appetizers to right here, Zemo whispers, hoping that you won’t actually step away and shut this restaurant down. 
Meanwhile, James’s heart races and drops all at once. In truth, he crafted every morsel that you’ve ordered. 
“How’s the cake?” Joaquin smiles back at you for the millionth time. 
“I need another slice.” You wipe your lips and rave, genuinely surprised. 
“Yes, Ma’am.” Joaquin nods, saying farewell as you finish eating the first cake slice alone. 
“Zemo?” You acknowledge Helmut at last, gesturing for this man to come closer despite this dinner rush. 
“Yes?” Helmut answers quietly, using his typical brand of charm to greet you. 
“Who covered my orders?” You question Zemo. 
At that moment, James’s blue eyes nearly widened. Still, you look right at him, knowing that he is the main “culprit.” 
“Fair enough.” James accepts that comment. You’re standing feet away from him now, privately standing outside and not viewed under Zemo’s watch. 
________
“Tonight wasn’t bad,” You tell James. “The main entree that you put out could’ve been a lot better, though.” 
“Glad you’re so understanding.” You nod, taking in your sight of an alleyway landscape. Horns blare from nearby traffic. 
“Good to see you again.” James clears his throat, slyly referring to the past. 
“Call me, Buck.” You lift your cell phone, use his nickname, and wink, heading elsewhere to leave him behind. 
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whowantsnachos · 1 year
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Strawberry Champagne
Pairing: Helmut Zemo x Original Fem!Character (or you can insert yourself if you want)
Summary: After Madripoor, Zemo thinks Lydia should stop drinking. This is the result. (set post episode 3 FATWS)
Warnings: Swearing
Word Count: 2.4k
A/N: Lydia, my character, has like this fire magic thing that HYDRA implanted in her. She has a lot of scars because of all of the experiments and the injections, but she covered them all after she got out with different tattoos. Another thing, her hair does this thing where streaks of it will turn into like a brighter red / ginger than her regular hair color [kinda like Tonks is a good way to describe it] when her body temperature goes up. The language that is occasionally spoken is Serbian, but it’s supposed to be Sokovian, and I heard they were similar. Anyways, feedback and stuff is always accepted, given this is the first thing I wrote officially. Enjoy!
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Lydia was sitting in bed, wearing an oversized Metallica hoodie with her knees close to her chest. Her dull, red hair was a mix of slightly messy and living hell. She thought about everything she had just witnessed in the past couple of hours with one arm wrapped around her legs and the other holding champagne. Lydia sat in the same position for about an hour or two, either thinking, spacing out or drinking. A sudden knock on her door made her jump in surprise.
“Yeah?”
“Can I come in?” she heard Zemo ask on the other end.
“Um, yeah, sure,” she said quietly.
He opened the door and stepped inside. He raised his eyebrows in slight shock seeing her so distraught.
“Are you alright?”
“Oh, I’m over the moon,” she said sarcastically.
“I apologize, I probably should have warned you ahead of time what we were getting into.”
“Yeah, you think? I can’t really blame you though, I should’ve expected all of that. I mean, it’s you, Sam, and Bucky, how could it have been any different? Anyway, it’s more my fault for agreeing to get into all of this shit again.”
“It’s not-”
“No, wait, that’s right! It's not my fault. It’s you three that dragged me back into this shitfest. Why am I blaming myself? I guess I agreed… regardless! Why am I the one to fix your guys’ messes, huh?”
“Ok, that’s enough champagne,” Zemo said as he grabbed the glass from her, sensing her getting mad.
“I wasn’t done with that yet,” she said sternly, reaching for the glass.
“Yes. You were.”
Lydia glared at him, and Zemo rolled his eyes out of annoyance, grabbing the champagne bottle from the side table next to her. He went into the bathroom and poured the rest of it into the sink.
“Why do you have to ruin my fun all of the time?” she asked, crossing her arms.
Zemo raised his eyebrow and said, “I’m not. I just think you would rather not have a hangover first thing in the morning.”
“How would you know? Tomorrow hasn’t happened yet,” Lydia cockily stated.
“Trust me, you wouldn’t.”
“Oh, you’re trustworthy now?”
Zemo gave her a death stare and Lydia looked down, realizing she might’ve hit a nerve.
“Sorry,” she murmured, playing with the edge of her sleeve.
Zemo softened his gaze a little and leaned on the doorway of the bathroom. He noticed the tattoos near her wrist, each one a different pattern or idea than the other.
“What are those for?”
Lydia quickly put her sleeve back down and said, “Nothing.”
Zemo titled his head to the side and narrowed his eyes at her but shrugged it off.
“Where did you find that champagne?” he asked.
“Um, I may or may not have stolen it from that club...”
Zemo’s face lit up in amusement, and he asked, “You stole two thousand dollar champagne?”
“Possibly,” Lydia said with a smirk.
“Impressive.”
“I can be spectacular sometimes.”
Zemo laughed breathly but didn’t say anything. Lydia wanted to thank him for helping her out when the shooting broke out, but she didn’t know if now would be the appropriate time or not.
Well, it couldn't hurt.
“Um, I wanted to thank you. For helping me out back there. It really means a lot to me, I mean, I know that I’m not your favorite person in the world, but-”
“What gives you that impression?” Zemo asked.
“You’re kidding me, right? You’ve shut down half of the ideas I had about how we were going to execute Madripoor, and look where we ended up!”
“I knew it better than you did.”
“Apparently not! We could’ve died, Helmut.”
“If we would have done it your way, that fate would have been met sooner.”
“You don’t know that.”
“And neither do you,” Zemo responded.
Lydia cocked her head and put her hands on her hips. Raising her eyebrows at Zemo, she went into the bathroom to grab something from under the sink. Lydia also noticed that some streaks of her hair lit up, but she hoped that he hadn’t noticed.
“What are you doing?” Zemo asked.
She answered him by holding up another bottle of champagne with a strained smile on her face as she was walking out of the bathroom. As she was about to open the bottle, Zemo grabbed it and put it on the bathroom counter. Lydia gave him a mock pouty look, and he rolled his eyes.
“You need to stop drinking, I’m serious. You giving me that look isn’t helping you,” he said.
“You sure?” she asked as she emphasized her look.
“Lydia. I’m serious.”
Her ears burned at the way that he had said her name, and she could only pray that her hair hadn’t betrayed her now. 
“And,” Zemo continued, “For the record, I don’t hate you or anything like that. To be honest, you’re the only one I can stand out of the ones I’ve met.”
Lydia raised her eyebrow slightly, and he quickly added, “Not that you’re the best of the worst, it’s just, how should I put this… I guess it’s more around the lines of ‘you’re smart and they’re not.’”
“Wow, harsh,” Lydia said with an amused look on her face.
“Well, it’s true,” Zemo said with a smirk on his face. 
“Well, if I’m so smart, then that means… my plan was the best.”
“Eh, I wouldn’t go that far.”
Lydia rolled her eyes playfully at him and walked back into the bathroom, but Zemo stopped her by closing the door halfway.
“Lydia,” he said with a warning tone.
Now, Lydia could see her hair quickly turn into a brighter red color, and she cursed herself in her head silently, hoping he didn’t notice, but she wouldn’t bet on it.
“Does your hair always do that?”
God damn it.
“Do what?”
“Change color like that when your name is said.”
“Um, no. Not to my knowledge, no,” 
Zemo narrowed her eyes at her while his attention seemed to turn to her hair. Lydia felt slightly embarrassed by his staring, but this only led to it turning brighter again. He smiled a little and said, “It’s a nice color; it suits you.”
She could feel her face burning mainly out of embarrassment and something else she couldn’t describe. Lydia jumped a little when she felt Zemo touch her arm. She felt her skin burn up, and he said, “I apologize, but I recognize this one.”
Zemo went to touch her arm again, but before he did, he asked, “May I?”
Lydia nodded, and he lifted her sleeve, intently scanning the dragon on her forearm. He carefully traced the outline of it, and Lydia felt her skin heat up with each trail he left. The way that he was looking at her tattoo sent shivers down her spine, but surprisingly, it was a nice feeling, considering she hasn’t felt anything cool in a long time.
“Змај,” (“Zmaj,”) Zemo whispered.
“What?”
“Змаj, correct?”
Lydia nodded, and Zemo hummed, “Yeah, I remember that story. My parents used to tell me that all the time.”
“My parents weren’t into the whole legend thing, they always said it was just a bunch of lies people tell to poison our minds, but I have heard it a few select times.”
“Your parents were quite the people, huh?” He laughed.
She laughed with him and said, “Yeah, they were definitely something, alright.”
“Well,” Zemo started as his hand traced bits and pieces of her tattoos before stopping at the palm of her hand, his fingers slowly intertwining with hers. “They raised well.”
Damn you.
She felt her skin heating up with every second, but she tried to contain it as much as she could. She looked over at the bathroom mirror that was mostly covered by the door, but she could see that dozens of streaks of her hair were lit up bright orange like crazy. He glanced back at her hair, and his smirk grew.
“Does it usually change when people touch you as well?”
“A-again, not to my knowledge, no.”
Zemo hummed again and began tracing the tattoos on her other arm before grabbing her other hand and running his thumb over her wrist. He carefully moved his hands up her forearms, tracing the shapes of her tattoos more fully this time, while pulling her closer to him. Lydia’s heart picked up even faster, not that she knew how that was possible. To her, it felt like they’d been spending an eternity standing in the doorway, but at the same time, it felt like no time had passed at all.
“Lydia?”
She took a breath in, and looked up at him, asking, “Yeah?”
It wasn’t until that moment that she realized how close they were to each other. Zemo’s breath lightly fanned her face, and his hands let go of her arms, slowly wrapping them around her waist instead. Lydia swallowed discreetly from his stare, and Zemo tilted his head to the left slightly and smirked at her.
“Do I make you nervous?”
“N-no, why would you? I could beat your ass into next year if I wanted to, what would I have to be nervous about?”
“I don’t know, you tell me. I’m sure your hair doesn’t light up around other people every time you stand next to them, or they talk to you.”
He pulled her closer and leaned his head down just enough so that he was only inches away from her face. 
“Unless… it’s something else that makes your hair light up whenever I'm around.”
After he said that, he backed up a little and looked at her hair. Several streaks of it were brightening up, lightly illuminating the aura around her head. He smiled and laughed lightly through his nose.
“If I remember correctly, ‘Miss Vesta’s abilities cause her physical appearance to change as well. Her hair will change into different shades if she has any sort of strong emotions, including, but not limited to: anger, stress, sadness, and attraction.’ Does that sound right?”
Lydia squinted at him in confusion, and Zemo chuckled, saying, “SHIELD’s not very good at hiding things like they think they are.”
Lydia sighed and looked to her right and then down at her feet.
“So, again, I must ask,” he started. “Lydia…”
He removed one hand from her waist and lifted her chin up to meet his gaze.
“Do I make you nervous?”
Lydia licked her lips and said, “...no.”
Zemo leaned in closer, guiding her face to his slowly. He stopped centimeters before her face, just like before, and she could smell his expensive cologne radiating off of him.
“Are you sure? Your skin is burning.”
‘Копиле.’ (‘Bastard.’)
“Maybe I shouldn’t-“
“Ох, забога.” (“Oh, for God’s sake.”)
Lydia put her hand in the back of his neck, pulled him down, and their lips met. Zemo’s grip on her waist tightened, and moved his hand from her chin to the side of her face, the extreme heat of her skin slightly burning his hand. He furrowed his brow and backed her up onto the doorway, allowing him to close any distance between them. The smell of strawberry champagne intoxicated his senses, and he couldn’t get enough of her. 
Lydia could feel every part of her body start on fire, whether she knew that’s what was actually happening to her or not. Her heart felt like it skipped ten beats at once, and heat filled her chest. She felt magnetized to him, and every break for a quick breath of air filled her with a sense of longing for more. Lydia thought her knees were going to collapse from underneath her, and she was grateful for the doorway behind her. She felt ripples of chills go up her spine for the second time that day, and the sensation of his thumb grazing her cheek only made it harsher. She felt her fingers become white hot, and she quickly retracted her hand to his shoulder, not wanting to burn him. She felt every bone and muscle in her body become the same temperature, and she felt the texture of the material of his shirt change. She removed his hand from her cheek and pulled away from him, catching her breath.
“I-I’m sorry. My skin… I can’t-”
Zemo shrugged and said, “To be honest, I never liked this shirt anyways.”
“No, you don’t understand, I don’t want to hurt you.”
Zemo tilted his head and raised his eyebrows quickly. He looked down and put his hands in his pockets, taking out the pair of gloves he was wearing earlier that day and putting them on. After he did that, he put his hands up and smiled at her.
Lydia lightly laughed and said, “I appreciate the gesture, but that’s not gonna do you much good. I’ll just burn-”
Zemo cut her off by saying, “I’ll take that chance.”
He kissed her gently, not wanting to make her skin burn back up again.
A sudden knock at her door caused Lydia to jump and separate from him, turning her head towards her door.
“Lydia? We need to discuss the plan for tomorrow. Have you seen Zemo anywhere?” Bucky asked through her door.
Lydia turned back towards him with a devilish look on her face. She whispered, “Play along,” and quickly pushed him away from her, a glare forming on her face.
“Yeah, he’s trying to steal my champagne.”
Bucky opened the door to the pair glaring at each other with murderous intent.
“You mean, I’m trying to take away the champagne that you stole from the club,” Zemo quickly countered, getting the message.
“Well, it’s mine now, isn’t it?”
“Alright! Look, she can keep the champagne, it doesn’t matter,” Bucky said.
“James, that was worth probably around two thou-“
“I don’t care,” Bucky said while giving Zemo a death stare before continuing. “We don’t have time for this anyway. We have to figure out the plan for tomorrow, come on.”
He left the room, and Lydia turned towards Zemo, raised her eyebrows, and dramatically put her hand out. He rolled his eyes and took the champagne bottle off of the counter and gave it to her.
“You’re only getting this because he likes you more than me.”
“And who’s fault was that?” Lydia retorted.
Zemo gave her an annoyed look as she laughed, and they both walked out of the room.
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Hunting Roses - Chapter 1
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AN: This is a yandere Helmut Zemo fic which means it will have dark elements as the story progresses. I do not condone relationships like this in real life. This fic takes place after Avengers: Age of Ultron and there are descriptions of canon typical violence. I'm not sure where this fic is going to go but I hope you enjoy the ride!
Helmut Zemo was not an ignorant man nor was he a greedy one.  From a young age, he knew that he had been born into wealth and as he grew older, he began to experience the obligations and expectations of being born into wealth.
In time, once he had completed his work in the Sokovian armed forces and as an EXO commander, one of these expectations was becoming Heike’s husband.  That led to his pride and joy, Carl Zemo being born.  Helmut and Heike both adored their son but as time grew, they realised that they had become different people.
While Helmut still cared about Heike a great deal, he knew that his feelings for her weren’t what they once were.  They agreed to stay together for Carl and to stop society’s tongues wagging.
Hearing whispers of an approaching battle and fearing for his family’s safety, Helmut moved them all to the country thinking that they’d be safe from harm.  A blast from one of the robotic sentries sent Helmut flying into one of the cottage’s walls and when he awoke, he found that the cottage had been reduced to nothing more than rubble around him.
Injured and weak, he staggered around the ruins of the cottage searching for any indication that his family had survived.  After two days of searching, he felt his strength leave him and he collapsed next to what was once the doorway.
A day later, Helmut awoke to see a face peering down at him.   His strength returned the instant that he learnt that his family had been rescued by SHIELD and taken to America.  Wasting no time, Helmut contacted Oeznik and they flew out of Sokovia that day.
For the first time in days (and under the watchful eye of Oeznik), Helmut ate and rested.  Once he felt he had sufficiently recovered, Helmut pushed himself to find out Sokovia’s fate.  He learnt that the battle had been started by an AI that Tony Stark had created, named Ultron. 
Helmut tempered his rage as he continued to study the battle, promising himself that Tony would pay for what he’d done.  Helmut watched the battle play out in the city, sneering at the Avengers’ efforts to save the people.
His curiosity peaked when an Avenger crouched before launching herself into the air and grabbing onto one of the sentry’s legs as it flew. The sentry tried to throw off its unwanted passenger but it was only successful in doing so after it had been badly damaged in mid-air. It crashed to the ground and the Avenger repeated the process three times before disappearing.
“How strange.” Helmut thought lacing his fingers together as Oeznik walked over to him with a tray of food.
Helmut rewound and paused the video just before the unknown Avenger disappeared, “Who is this Avenger Oeznik?”
Oeznik set the tray of food down gently, “This Avenger is known as Phantasm.  Reports state that there is more to her than meets the eye.  She also has a tendency to appear when needed.”
Helmut listened patiently knowing Oeznik wasn’t finished, “Many of the public only know her by her code name however if one is determined to dig deep enough, they would find that Phantasm’s real name is (Name) (Surname).  She appears to be close friends with Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton and if the rumours are to be believed, she was the one who saved your family.”
Helmut nodded and Oeznik returned to the cockpit.
It was too easy to land unnoticed in America.  Helmut’s diplomatic immunity ensured that and it was even easier to track down his family.  Helmut didn’t miss the unfamiliar distrustful look in Heike’s eyes as he inquired about SHIELD and Phantasm.  Sensing that any further questioning would cause Heike’s sudden distrust in him to grow, Helmut bid his family goodbye and as Helmut walked to the door with Heike and his father, Heike handed him a thick, yellow envelope.
“We can start again Helmut and choose who we want to be.” She said.
Helmut met his father’s stern gaze and watched as his father nodded once.
Pivoting on his heel, Helmut left the house and climbed into the car that Oeznik had brought him in.  His rage grew but then it gave way to his cunning as his brain reminded him that he was in the same place that the Avengers were in and he could have his revenge on Tony Stark.
Helmut shifted in his seat.  If he moved against Tony now, he ran the risk of you getting caught up in his plan.  Unless he broke apart the Avengers from the inside and ensured that you were protected as the Avengers imploded.
And with what they had done over the past few years, it would be too easy to sway the public into viewing the Avengers as threats.
“Old friend,” Oeznik’s familiar voice pulled Helmut from his planning, “There are reports of Wanda Maximoff damaging a building with her powers and killing several humanitarian officials from the state of Wakanda.”
Helmut crossed his ankles and leant forward as his mind whirred.  He pulled his phone out of his pocket and looked at it contemplatively, “Oeznik, I need you to arrange a car for me.  There’s someone I need to track down after Thaddeus Ross has repaid the debt he owes me.”
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free-for-all-fics · 1 year
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Helmut Zemo as a fashion designer/Suitkovia AU fic ideas and prompts! Some featuring Bucky. Idk why I love this AU so much but inspiration hit. Pls tag me if you use or get inspired by any of these! I’d love to read it! 💜
1. He’s sort of a mix between Miranda Priestly from Devil Wears Prada and Cruella De Vil from 101 Dalmatians (minus the make puppies into a coat thing). Zemo is either a widower or divorced with a son, Carl. Reader is the fresh new intern/second assistant who at first seems very naive, like a walking fashion faux pas and a total disaster. Everyone expects her to be fired soon, but Zemo keeps her on and as she transforms into a better version of herself and becomes his favorite intern/second assistant, she slowly breaks through that cold and cynical exterior of his and they fall in love.
2. Zemo’s upcoming designs were leaked then premiered by a rival designer of his through fault of reader’s relative. (“You had one job and you failed. Details of your incompetence do not interest me.”) This leak cost Zemo millions, so under threat of incarceration/a crippling lawsuit reader’s family can’t afford, reader’s first task is to come up with new designs within 30 days or some crazy deadline to make up for the ones that were leaked. She becomes an indentured employee and has to work for Zemo, and a fraction of what she would’ve earned for her work is deducted from her paychecks, in order to pay off the debt her family incurred from the design theft. But then uh oh what if they catch feelings? After all, it’d take months or years to pay off that debt.
3. Reader has an identical twin sister who works as the latest cover model for Zemo. Your sister respects him as her employer, but she can’t stand him as a person, believing him too narcissistic or too megalomaniacal. Something unexpected happens in your sister’s life that makes her ask (more like beg) you to switch places as Zemo’s cover model and pretend to be her just for a few weeks. Nobody will even notice and Zemo especially won’t since he’s so busy and traveling all the time, she assured you. But modeling is much harder than you thought it would be. You’re camera shy and awkward, and things get more tense when Zemo changes his schedule and ends up getting more involved during the shoots and run throughs, directing the photographers and acting as head stylist.
He just thinks your “behavior shift” is a new technique your sister’s using to give off the shy, coy flirtatious look and he loves it. He wants more of it. The longer you pretend to be your sister, the more you and Zemo bond and break down his walls as he opens up to you. You develop a friendship which may turn romantic. When it comes time for you and your sister to switch back before her trip abroad for Fashion Week, the situation becomes complicated as Zemo is left wondering why he’s suddenly getting the cold shoulder and strictly professional treatment as if nothing’s happened. Why won’t you let him hold your hand or kiss you? He thinks he’s in love with your sister, but it’s you. It’s always been you. And the woman in front of him now is not you. And he isn’t aware of what you and your sister had done.
4. You're a tailor, working with only the richest and most famous of clients. You're in the middle of measuring your latest client when you accidentally press your fingers along his shoulder in the wrong spot while using the measuring tape and his left arm falls off.
(Possible AU where Zemo is a world renowned high-end fashion designer and you’re his adult daughter who falls in love with hot shot A-list actor Bucky when he comes into the office/shop for a suit. The more he comes in for repairs or adjustments, you start to think he’s purposely damaging his clothes as an excuse to see you. Your father doesn’t want you to date him for any number of reasons but you go against his wishes and it’s a secret love affair. OR a love triangle/Poly story between Zemo, Bucky, and you, where you work for Zemo but both of these highly famous and wealthy men want you.)
5. Your parents left you a tailoring business when they passed. You discover your parents were the creators of the most iconic superhero costumes in the world. Super heroes exist. All your childhood heroes are alive and fighting crime. You are not a hero nor do you have powers. Except your ability to tailor and repair damaged hero uniforms. A frequent customer enters your shop for repairs and you've had enough. The hero's costume was terrible. The townspeople think so, their dog thinks so, their sidekick is embarrassed to be seen with them, the villain stops his attack to comment on their fashion sense, and even the news reporter says their costume is bad.
6. Fantasy/hitman AU: You have recently inherited an old and well made wardrobe, along with a personal tailor from a family will. This wardrobe always has the clothes it turns out you’d most need on any given day; A dress or suit for an impromptu business opportunity, etc. Today, however, a bulletproof vest hangs within. And this tailor comes with skills that are said to be incomparable to anyone else's. “Just because I'm a hitman doesn't mean I can't be a good tailor.”
7. Zemo, A fashion designer, hires Bucky, a con man, to help sell his new collection at an upcoming fashion show. "Do you want to milk your guests for all the money they have or do you want to leave a good memory?" Bucky asks.
"Can I do both?"
The con man laughs, "Absolutely, here is what you do….” Reader is either a model, designer, or intern who gets roped in. Possible poly relationship or chaotic partners in crime trio.
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8. Ghost AU: Being an aspiring fashion historian, you actively seek vintage clothing. You somehow managed to coax out a corset from a collector, however, as soon as you wear it, things start to go haywire, as the corset has a life of its own. Of course, it is harbouring a vengeful spirit! So When you first saw the ghost appear behind you in the mirror, you ran screaming. The second time, you were afraid, but you realised he didn't want to hurt you. Now you're both friends, and he often gives you helpful fashion advice. A horror movie where the only horror is the fashion choices.
9. Spy/Crime AU: You work for a cute little boutique as a seamstress. You are highly skilled, best known for your high-quality evening/formal wear and handbags. You typically cater to affluent businessmen and the like. Recently, an atypical customer stopped into your shop with a strange request and a LOT of money. How can you refuse? You're closing up the shop for the night when you see five men walk in through the front door and lock it behind them. You’re very surprised when one of the men go to an inconspicuous framed picture hanging on the wall. It’s just a picture of flowers or something generic, what’s so special— oh. He turns it counter-clockwise, revealing a secret passageway behind a one-way mirror.
After he performs the typical eye and hand scan, you’re ordered to follow. Turns out this “cute little boutique” has been a front for special operatives for many years. In their secret meeting place, they give you your new alias and the run down of your first assignment. You've been tasked with a special project: 12 poison-laced sweaters to go with a poison-laced dress. Later, You receive a knock at the door and an important looking man in a black tailored suit hands you a sealed envelope with your name on it. You open it to find a check written to your name for $65 million with the note, "Let's do this" in the memo.
10. Reader is the new PR intern/publicist for an anti-hero seamstress who specializes in making costumes for supervillains. What reader didn’t know is that the interview was actually a ruse to find the perfect doppelgänger. Reader is selected as the body double to get the seamstress out of an arranged marriage with her rival fashion designer and supervillain, Helmut Zemo. When you do finally meet him, you can’t help but think this guy's so boring. Too subtle. But your instincts as a journalist tell you something else is going on with him.
11. Bucky is the personal assistant and bodyguard of the reader, a famous fashion designer. The media knows that you have this intense long-standing rivalry against another fashion designer, Helmut Zemo. It means Bucky has done his job well since he’s secretly paid to hide the 'rivals’' secret dates and relationship from the public by perpetuating this false narrative of a never-ending animosity between you two.
12. Spy/Crime/Political Espinoage AU: You’re the Secret Service's Secret Seamstress. It’s your responsibility to protect the President from any possible wardrobe malfunction (ripped trousers, food stains, sweat marks, etc.) while in the public eye. You must take precautions before and during any large event. You unwittingly cross paths with Helmut Zemo, codename V. He’s a special kind of tailor, a man who not just fits clothes but also weapons for assassins and wet workers. He’s now getting ready to tailor the men who are about to start a revolution, the assassination of the world leaders. Other key players among this revolution are James “Bucky” Barnes, codename Winter and Sam Wilson, codename Falcon. And since you were in the wrong place at the wrong time and are now a witness, the only way these men keep you alive is if you become involved in the conspiracy and join their team. Perhaps they’ll fake your death and give you a new identity to go along with their newest round of aliases. You could be a sparrow, a secret agent trained in the act of seduction.
13. You work for Helmut Zemo and are the only person to not filter yourself around him. You’re not starstruck or intimidated by him in the slightest. He keeps you on because your brutal honesty is refreshing when he’s surrounded by fake smiles and major suck ups. The constant fawning and groveling gets old. You whip him back into shape whenever he’s being difficult. “Remind me again why I should feel bad for you? You got a supermodel wife that practically worships the ground you stand on, you have enough money to buy the whole country of New Zealand, and you live in the most expensive house on the planet! C’mon, man. You’re famous, handsome, and rich. So chop, chop, fix your hair and let’s get going.” God, he loves you. He hasn’t admitted it to you yet, but he’s been thinking of divorcing his trophy wife and marrying you instead. He might start an extramarital affair with you if he gets too impatient. It’s not like his wife is faithful to him anyway, their farce of a marriage is wide open.
14. Mean Girls inspired AU: You’re an aspiring fashion designer just like your famous and influential father, Helmut Zemo. But under his orders you’ve just been transferred from homeschooling to a prestigious private school for rich kids - with the most drab and boring wardrobe choices ever made. After your bodyguard, Bucky, drops you off at school, You fall in with a group of ‘mean girls’ on your first day. You, a self-proclaimed fashion guru, are dropped into a new world and challenge all your new peers’ questionable fashion choices - from hair to clothing, form and function. From there, you start to get into all kinds of teenage trouble: skipping school, partying, underage drinking, etc. Until one day you and your new girlfriends decide to ignore/stretch the limits of the school’s arbitrary dress code by redesigning the uniform and showing it off at school. Even if your transgressions land you detention or suspension and gets you in heaps of trouble with your dad, Bucky will back you up at least…You hope.
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15. Sort of Pretty Woman inspired Sugar Daddy AU: You finally see him, the head of the fashion police: Helmut Zemo. And he’s caught you red handed in the middle of the street. “Did you steal my old clothes from the dumpster?"
"Sorry if I can't walk into a boutique and ask the clerk 'Excuse me, do you happen to have this $4,500 designer luxury Louis Vutton dress in the next size up?’ or throw away a $3,000 Prada suit and briefcase like it’s nothing.”
“I could call the police on you— Wait. Turn around. Let me get a good look at you.” Great, you’ve just met the guy and he’s already ordering you around and inspecting you like a prize cow at auction. “Here’s my offer: If you can pretend to be my girlfriend for the week and attend a few events with me, I’ll let this go and buy you whatever you want. You can talk with my stylist. He might be able to give you something to wear so that I don’t need to burn my eyes out every time I look at you. Do we have a deal? It doesn’t hurt anyone to give just an ounce of effort, you know.” Ok so he’s kind of a classist asshole, but you’ll take it since he’s offered you $3,000 and a new wardrobe to start. How hard can it be to act like arm candy?
16. Zemo is interested in curves and designs clothes for plus sized women. His models have to be size 12 or up. Bucky, his first assistant, has recently scouted you, a little miss nobody from down the street for the new cover model job. Zemo goes through first and second assistants quickly, but Bucky has managed to stay on the longest, so Zemo trusts his judgment. His last 9 assistants were all disappointments, to say the least. But he ultimately has the final say. You’ve just been brought in to meet him face to face for the first time. He looks at you over the rim of his glasses.
“Who’s this? The new option for the cover campaign. I told you I wanted a new look. One that says beautiful but also intellectual. Have you finally brought me a muse that can think as well as they look?”
“This isn’t about being the skinniest model or the prettiest model. This is an intellectual shoot. I want it to be different. I don’t want-“ He lets out a short exasperated sigh. “Let’s just say if I wanted another pretty face, I would’ve chosen from the next, what, twenty models that are standing outside of my office hoping to get a job. You know that many would kill to be in your position?”
17. Twilight Zone After Hours/Evening Primrose inspired AU: Reader is Helmut Zemo’s daughter and has lived in a shopping mall with him and the rest of her “family” who all consist of living mannequins. Or inanimate mannequins by day, living humans by night. Night at the Museum logic.
Reader discovers a man on the run, Bucky Barnes, has broken in and taken refuge from the world by hiding out in a department store. The leader of the group is Helmut Zemo, Reader’s adoptive father. Zemo permits Bucky to stay after Reader takes responsibility for him, advocating that he’ll be useful and she’ll keep him in line. Zemo spares Bucky’s life but warns him against doing anything foolish. Wherever Bucky goes, someone will always be watching. even if it’s not Zemo and even if it’s daylight. Over time, Bucky becomes smitten with Reader during their nightly visits.
Reader has lived in the mall since she got lost and separated from her ‘other mother’ as a child. Her memory is foggy but she believes she was once human, resurrected by Zemo in a new body through the same Pygmalion-esque means as he and all the other living mannequins. She has since been taken in as Zemo’s daughter after he lost his previous family, created in what he describes as the ‘perfect image of the daughter he and his lost wife never had.’
Reader is unhappy and wants to leave for good, but is afraid of the ‘Dark Men’, people who live in a nearby mortuary and work for her father. They’re hardly ever seen, but their overarching presence is still felt. Like an omniscient shadow that looks over them. Should someone try to return to the outside world and risk revealing the group's existence, the Dark Men take them away and another mannequin appears in their place. Reader tries to tell Bucky about her life when she was human, before her transformation, but realizes that most of her memories from before have been replaced with fabricated childhood memories as Zemo’s daughter. Her past self is practically gone. Bucky comes up with a plan while playing cards with Zemo and other mannequins, and Reader finally decides to leave with him. Bucky is initially reluctant to leave his now-comfortable life, but then understands that he loves Reader more than most things and they plan to elope. If there’s a way to turn mannequins human for the night, surely there’s a way to turn the mannequins human permanently! But then Zemo and the others hear their plans, and they call the Dark Men, as Reader and Bucky try to escape.
18. Spy AU: Something major has been going on in the underground crime world, and you’re asked to intern under Agent Zemo and go undercover to find out what it is. You're a tailor, spy master and survivalist who has both designed and worn state of the art disguises/outfits that allow you to conceal microphones, cameras, weapons, and anything else you may need according to the mission. Zemo is your boss and senior agent/director by night, and his cover as a fashion designer by day works well. He provides you with only the latest and best in his fashion lines, both for everyday and espionage. The latest tasks of which is impersonating a celebrity/socialite and designing a dress to be worn by a female spy at the World Summit as a bugging device so they can get very important intel.
The trouble is, the intended agent can’t perform the job for whatever reason. And you’re the only other woman with a close enough resemblance. So it looks like it has to be you, or else the whole operation is a bust. The closer you seem to get to uncovering the truth, the weirder things get. Zemo begins acting very strangely, when he starts receiving threats from anonymous persons - Magazine cut out notes urging him to work faster, untraceable phone calls with modulated voices, dead flowers, etc. You and he begin to piece the mystery together, but will either of you live long enough to see it through?
19. Journalist AU: You’re a journalist who’s been tasked by your chief editor to get an interview with Helmut Zemo, the country’s hottest fashion designer on the market. Every time you think you have a good story, a competitor gets to it first, so your workplace has been on your ass about getting this exclusive interview. Too bad Zemo is a very elusive and private man who doesn’t do many interviews, autograph sessions, or anything like that. He keeps to himself, outright refusing and slipping away from any news outlets no matter how hard they try to corner him. Your boss pitches a new idea: Zemo has never met you, so he has no idea what you look like. If you can go undercover, gain his trust, and find out everything you can about his personal and business life, then you’ll be promoted. A man like him must have secrets. You’re very attractive and intelligent, so if anyone can do this, it’s you.
When you do meet him for the first time, it’s not at a big fancy runway event or a rich person’s house party, but rather a coffee shop, a dog park, or somewhere else that’s common. He’s disguised in basic casual clothes and eyeglasses. In this outfit, he’s the little gray man. He looks so forgettable that nobody even recognizes him. Huh. Guess the drab “Clark Kent” disguise actually works. You get to talking and he doesn’t tell you who he is, even though you already know. He only says that he works “In retail” when you ask what he does for a living. You don’t tell him where you work or what you do either. Only that you’re at a “desk job”. But then uh oh when you and Zemo catch feelings for each other and what started off as pretend becomes real. Uh oh when Zemo feels hurt and betrayed after he finds out the truth about why you got close to him and that your “fateful meeting” was actually all a set up for your exposé piece.
20. You're a thug-for-hire guarding a warehouse for your boss, Helmut Zemo. And good thing, too: a mild-mannered journalist just tried to break in, but you knocked them out before they could cause any trouble. You decide to search their pockets for loose change--and have just found their superhero uniform and ID. (Journalist could be Bucky or whoever you want)
21. Zemo’s business empire is completely centered around his cold and ruthless persona. You’re a journalist who took up a job at a local tabloid for a quick source of cash between jobs. You’ve caught him secretly doing something nice, and on top of that, he was being nice to children. The story is due to come out tomorrow, and will ruin Zemo financially if it does. He must stop you.
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SaiyanPrincessSwanie - Reading List Week 93
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Welcome to Week 93
Tumblr screwed up a lot on me this week so all my reblogs won’t have a comment. I’m gonna go back and comment separately. I have another help ticket in with Tumblr so hopefully this issue will be solved soon with my reblogs. 
As always these will be listed in no particular order. None of these stories are mine. I’m just signal boosting them. Author is listed next to title. My goal is to signal boost writers and spread positivity in the community.  💜💜
Click HERE to see what I will or won’t read. This is very important!
Click HERE for past reading lists
My Masterlist click HERE
Please make sure you are reading the warnings on every story. They range from dark to fluff. Do Not Read if you are under 18 years old. These stories are meant for adults only. You’re responsible for your own media consumption.
Page-break by @Page-break by @whimsicalrogers​​​​ & Header by @happygowriting​​​
If you can, please reblog these lists so they can reach more people on Tumblr.
I love you 3000 💜 Missy
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Solace - (Steve x Reader) - @saiyanprincessswanie
No Vacancy - (Stucky x Reader) - @cockslut-padalecki​
Fire and Rain - Part 19 - Part 20 - (Dean x Reader) - @writercole​
Miss Velvet - Chp 2 - (Bucky x Reader) - @missvelvetsstuff​
Riding Free: Seeing Red - (Frank x OFC) - @wiypt-writes​
Time to Listen - (Lee x Reader) - @sunshinebuckybarnes​
Desperate Girl - (Zemo x Reader) - @myfictionaldreams​
HTFBH (5) - (Andy x Reader, Steve x Reader) - @holylulusworld​
Sex Tape - Chp 6 - (Steve x Reader) - @fictional-affairs​
Nightshade - (Marc S x Reader) - @syntheticavenger​
Tap three times for absurdity - (Stucky x Reader) - @bonkywobble​
It’s You - Chp 1 - (Steve x Reader, Dean x Reader) - @princessofdarkwinter​
A Trip back Home - (Lee x Reader) - @the-witty-pen-name​
How Many - (Stucky x Reader) - @myfictionaldreams​
Boys in Bed with Books (14) - (Bucky x Reader) - @jobean12-blog​
Nothing Sweeter - (Bucky x Reader) - @angrythingstarlight​
Be Quiet for Me - (Zemo x Reader) - @myfictionaldreams​
Who's got their claws in you my friend - (Mr Freezy x Reader) - @the-iceni-bitch​
Steve’s first pair of jeans - @drabblewithfrannybarnes​
I really love being your friend - (7) - (Bucky x Reader, Foggy x Reader) - @tuiccim​
Fireflies - @spectre-posts​ @wiypt-writes​
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Free - Helmut Zemo X Female Reader
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Title: Free
Helmut Zemo X Female Reader
Additional Characters: Sam (Mentioned), Bucky (Mentioned), Fury (Mentioned), the Avengers (Mentioned), and Dora Milaje (Mentioned)
Requested by @freestarlight!
WC: 2,574
Warnings: Reader was an ex-SHIELD agent, blip mentioned, FATWS canon violence mentioned very briefly, slight angst, some good ol' flirting, crying, some kissing, confessions, nicknames, Reader is kind of a criminal now..., slight suggestiveness, and fluff
You never thought you'd ever fall in love. You were an agent for SHIELD who worked constantly and had no time for real personal matters or relationships. For years, you did your job. Going on small missions for Fury, filing paperwork, and even sometimes working undercover when needed, but all the while you did your job; and you did it well. You hardly ever thought about a life where you had a "normal" job. Yes, sometimes you daydreamed of a better apartment, maybe even a pet to keep you company on the days you were free from work. And, yes. You daydreamed when you were off work, dressed in sweats on your couch as you binge-watched some Netflix movie. You thought about a life with a sweet partner, a house with a white picket fence, and maybe a pet or two. But you knew with the life that you chose, that seemingly perfect dream wasn't possible.
You never thought you'd ever have a life outside of work, so when the snap happened. A lot of things had changed. SHIELD wasn't as... Alive, shall we say, and you were basically out of the job for five years. You had to think of something. So, when you had the chance, you got a job as a waitress. It paid alright, but not the best. You had to deal with rude customers and low wages, and sadly just working that job couldn't pay the bills. So, you had to take up another part-time job. You were able to get a job in an office building. And with your filing expertise, you went around five hours of the day filing papers, and files, and using the copier machine. Those five years were rough. You sort of missed your job at SHIELD.
You were overwhelmed when everyone came back. Only five years prior did you have to basically restart your life, and now, you had to do it again. New York had become a very stressful environment. The people there were not as trusting as they once were. But, you still kept your head down and your mouth shut and did as you always had done. You were going to survive this new life. You did it once, and you could do it again. And because life just loved to kick you while you were down, you got a phone call a couple of weeks after everyone came back. It was an unknown caller, but for some reason, you answered it. Your brain rationalized that it was a scammer or a wrong number. But, no. You knew that voice from your time at SHIELD. It was Sam Wilson. The Falcon. 
He was asking for your help. Yours! Like you could help him figure out who's been recreating the Super Soldier Serum, really? You were just a Level Two Agent. You didn't know all about the details; you only knew the basics. You wouldn't be a help to him at all. If anything, you wouldn't only get him killed. But Sam insisted you join him and Bucky and find out who was recreating the serum and stop them. You wanted to say no, you really, really did. But, something deep down inside you was nagging you to say yes. You couldn't explain it, not even now, but that feeling... It was like another force, pulling and pushing you. You said 'yes,' and suddenly you were in a plane headed toward Madripoor.
~~~
Again, you never thought you'd fall in love. But... When you saw him... Dancing to the loud, pulsing music of the dark club... He was tall, wearing a seemingly costly outfit, and he was just chilling; having a good time. You were smitten instantly. You wanted to go over to him and dance, too. But, your body froze in place. You had a job to do, sadly. You didn't have time to go over there. That's when you found Sam and Bucky, and they uttered the mysterious man's name. Helmut Zemo. You had heard that name before. With your Level Two clearance, sometimes you were allowed to review criminal files, and Zemo was one of them. You had read through his file probably more than ten times, almost invested in his saddening story. The loss of his home and family... Even though your mind tried to object, you couldn't help but feel sorry for him; understanding why he was so against the Avengers in the first place. You understood, to an extent, his pain.
For however long, you, Bucky, Sam, and Zemo stayed at his safe house in Latvian. It was lavish, to say the least. You knew Zemo was a Baron and all, but you were hypnotized by the lovely blue, red, yellow, and clear star-shaped glass that made up the four large windows. And during your time staying there, you had grown very close to the Baron. Zemo was sweet, compassionate, and even funny at times. He would subtly poke fun at Sam or Bucky, making you have to hide your grins. 
During one day in the Latvian home, Sam and Bucky had asked you to watch Zemo for the day while they went out for some research purposes. You were a bit hesitant, but that uncertainty washed away when Zemo offered to make you tea. It was calm, the time you had watching Zemo. Even though Sam and Bucky were very cautious of the man, you didn't think Zemo was an actual threat. He did what he had to do, he got his revenge. He was not a threat. He especially wasn't a threat when he walked out of that great bathroom of his in a blue robe, slippers, and chain around his neck. He even offered the bathroom to you next, allowing you to have a nice warm bath to relax and calm you. Of course, you took it.
You sat together, side by side. Just talking. The conversation was a bit awkward in the beginning, but you quickly relaxed in his presence. He was a very charming and soothing person, his accented voice was hypnotic, and the way he looked at you gave you butterflies in your stomach. You weren't used to men looking at you in such an affectionate or caring manner. But Zemo was different. You felt comfortable around him. The tension between you and him melted away after only a few minutes in his presence. He made you laugh, almost crying laughing, he was addicting. And on top of that, he was a good listener, he listened to you. You couldn't believe how close the two of you got in the span of three hours. From small glimpses into each other's pasts to full conversations about everything under the sun. You couldn't remember the last time you felt this... Content.
"So," You turned slightly in your seat on the couch to face Zemo, tucking your legs under you slightly. "Don't laugh but this question has been on my mind for a while."
Zemo gave you a small grin, his arm across the back of the couch, his hand almost grazing your shoulder. "Ask me whatever you want; I will not judge."
Your cheeks flushed, and you bit your lip slightly as you spoke, "What's your favorite color?" You blushed harder when you realized what you had just blurted out, and how silly the question was.
"Well," His green eyes sparkled as he smiled, his accent more prominent than usual, "My favorite color is purple." Your eyes winded slightly in surprise and Zemo chuckled as he continued, "Specifically Dark Orchid. And you?"
"Y/F/C." You spoke with a small laugh, tilting your head slightly as you stared at the man before you, "Why Dark Orchid specifically?"
"Yes, well..." Zemo started, licking his lips. "Dark Orchid, the color conveys a message of strength, mystery, and determination." He smirked, "Descriptors that I believe I possess." He spoke with such confidence in his words. It was adorable, how much confidence he carried in himself. "I find that to be fitting."
"Very," You smiled. "I completely agree, Mr. Baron. Very fitting indeed." Zemo laughed at the title you bestowed upon him. 
Zemo turned his gaze to you, his brown eyes soft and warm as he stared right into your orbs. "I'm glad you agree, meine Schatz. But, please..." The tips of his fingers grazed your shoulder, "Call me Helmut."
A flustered smile formed across your features and your heart began racing. How could you possibly deny this man? "Alright... Helmut."
Zemo had thought you were beautiful from the moment Sam and Bucky introduced you to him at the club. His eyes followed you wherever you went, admiring every inch of your being. Zemo's locked-away heart was rapidly beating in his chest, wanting to escape; and you had the key. At first, he tried to ignore these growing feelings. He hadn't felt this way in a long time; not since he met his late wife. This love, this longing for you, was unfamiliar and frightening. He didn't know if he could do it again, his mind racing with 'what ifs'. What if he did let himself fall for you and you mirrored those feelings? What if something bad happened and you got hurt? What if you didn't even return those feelings? What if you hated him? Would he be alone forever? He had accepted that a long time ago. All those thoughts swirled inside his mind, making him feel sick to his stomach.
But then, in the quiet moments, when you were both relaxing in his Latvian home, he realized that he had fallen for you. Hard.
~~~
After defeating the Flag-Smashers, stopping the serum, and the Dora Milaje wanted Zemo. You were scared when they first came to take him away, you stayed close to Helmut's side, thankful that they gave him more time. Those extra eight hours gave you and Helmut enough time to think of what to do. Without Bucky or Sam even suspecting anything, you and Helmut were able to escape. It was a hard task, but the two of you were able to ride off in one of Helmut's fancy cars, right off into the sunset. You almost felt bad for Sam and Bucky, after they had asked for your help, only for you to run off with the man who caused so much pain and mischief. But, when you turned to gaze at the man behind the wheel beside you, the wind blowing through your hair and the sun gently setting on the horizon behind the two of you, you didn't care anymore.
"They are going to take you away, Helmut." You stared desperately up at him, your fingers clenched around the sleeve of his expensive coat.
"It doesn't matter now, my Y/N." He said softly, taking your hands into his. "There is no point worrying about it. I can not stop them this time. I have to go with them."
You rapidly shook your head, "No, Hel, you don't. You deserve a second chance." You pledged, "I cannot allow them to take you away."
He pulled your hands into his, intertwining his fingers with yours, and leaned into your palm, staring lovingly into your eyes. "Please, Y/N, do not try to stop them. It won't be possible."
You frowned deeply, looking down at your shoes, pressed toe to toe with one another, you closed your eyes, tears threatening to spill as you tried to control your breathing. "We don't have to stop them if we leave, Helmut. We can escape and run away. We can restart our lives... You can be free."
He gently ran a finger under your chin, lifting your head up to look at him. He was smiling down at you sweetly, his eyes sparkling with adoration. "My sweet Y/N," He whispered. "They will hunt us down like animals. They will come for you. I can not let that happen."
You felt the tears fall down your cheeks, "I don't care." You cried, "Even if you don't believe it, you deserve a second chance. I know how much pain you have suffered and how much you have struggled. Please, Helmut, don't go."
His hand reached up and wiped a tear off your cheek, cupping your face tenderly. Leaning down, Helmut's eyes fluttered shut as his lips touched yours gently; brushing against you like a feather. He paused, his breathing shallow, and his lips hovering over yours, waiting for your response. You didn't waste another second, leaning up a little bit to press your lips against his, kissing him passionately, feeling his kiss returning your passion. His hands came to rest around your waist and you could feel yourself melt into his hold. His lips moved perfectly against your own as he deepened the kiss, pulling you closer to him until there was no space between you two. Your hands made their way around his shoulders, the fur of his coat tickling you slightly as your fingers raked through the hair on the nape of his neck.
After what seemed like an eternity, you broke apart slightly to catch your breath. Your hands still held onto him tightly as you looked him in the eyes. Your heart swelled as you gazed into his eyes filled with adoration, "Helmut..." You muttered breathlessly, your voice barely audible. 
His hand trailed its way up to your face once again, gently wiping the wetness from your cheeks with his thumb. He smiled softly down at you, placing a gentle kiss on your forehead. His nose brushed against yours lightly, as a faint smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. "We should leave soon, my love. We don't want to get caught."
You were free. For the first time in years, you finally felt happy. You felt truly happy.
~~~
You never thought you'd fall in love. You never thought you'd have that chance to find someone who loved you for you. You had accepted that fact and had lived your life that way, but, here you were; tangled in the silk sheets of a king-sized bed. The sun softly shone through the small opening in the curtain, casting warm rays upon your soft skin, making you feel sleepy. You turned over, wrapping your arms around a very familiar body. A body that belonged to the man you loved so dearly. You smiled as you kissed along his jawline, before closing your eyes and nuzzling your face into his warm neck. You could feel him smile, kissing your temple tenderly. "Good morning, meine Schatz," He mumbled in that raspy, husky voice. You smiled even wider.
"Morning, Hel." You sighed out softly, your fingers running up and down his spine, and he hummed contently. You snuggled closer, sighing contentedly; enjoying the peaceful atmosphere.
"What should we do today, my love?" He asked, his fingers slowly, soothingly, running up and down your arm, caressing your own skin. You smiled, pressing your lips against his throat.
"I don't know. I mean, it's Sunday, we could stay in bed all day..." You replied, trailing your fingers across the bare skin on his chest.
"I'm not opposed to that," He murmured. "If you wish it, we can stay here as long as you desire, my dove."
You giggled, burying your face deeper in his neck. "That sounds perfect, darling." You replied, letting out a sigh as you felt the warmth of his body surround you.
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duckybarnes1917 · 2 years
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Figure My Heart Out - Chapter 7
18+ only.
Bucky Barnes x Black Original Female Character
Chanel, Sam, Bucky, and Zemo are on their way to Madripoor. What can go wrong on a private jet?
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blackjackmagi83 · 2 years
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Criminal Behavior (7)
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Masterlist
WC: 3.8k
Pairing: Druglords Steve Rogers/Bucky Barnes X Detective Original Female Character
Summary: Rose Phillips, one of the best vice detectives in the game, was given a mission to catch the biggest drug lord in all of New York. James Buchanan Barnes. Framing as a lady of the night at a hidden gentlemen’s club, her mission being to do anything it takes to lure her target into her trap. Even if it means going through one of his accomplices to get there. Will the notorious criminals fall for her trap or will Rose fall for their criminal behavior?
Warnings: Lots of swearing, violence, and mild sexual content.
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Hope you enjoy the chapter! ♡
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Rose watched in silent excitement as Stark gripped the piece of paper. Eyes in disbelieving at the amount of names on the list in his hands. Most he recognized, sending a rush of panic and anger through him. He felt betrayed as he counted the names. He would have to take care of this mess himself.
"This is a great find, truly. I’m not doubting your skills but you're certain this was given to Rogers? I don’t want to be baited into unknown territory for nothing."
Rose shrugged, sipping at the bitter liquid swirling in the cup in her hand, "It was in his office, tucked away in a book. That’s a little sketchy. Plus when he dropped me off at my apartment he gave me a whole speech about going on a business trip for an uncertain amount of time and how much he’d miss me, sappy shit to cover up the real issue. Don't think it gets more certain than that." 
Stark nodded, placing the paper in a folder on top of his desk before tucking it into one of the many filing cabinets behind it, "I'll have someone check it out, snap some pictures. You know, the usual routine." 
Rose nodded again, drifting her eyes to her coffee, an unsettling amount of guilt burrowing her chest. She pounded the rest of her coffee down, needing the buzz of caffeine to distract her from thinking of the intrusive thoughts brewing at the back of her mind. 
This is her job. To catch criminals like him. Like them. No strings attached, just pure acting and faking it till she made it to her goal. She had to keep chanting it to make it stick, forcing the thoughts back into the dark.
Tony's concerned expression came into her view, distracting her train of thought, "You alright there sunshine? You’ve gone a bit pale if that’s possible."
Rose sighed, rubbing a hand over her face, "I think I need to get back on the road again, I feel caged being stuck around these guys. They’re draining and piss me off more. Let me investigate Rogers. That way I get myself out of Brooklyn for some time but still keep an eye on him at least. I doubt Barnes will go anywhere, not without trying to get to me first. Just let me do something, Chief. Please."
She knew Natasha would be pissed at her again, abandoning her word on coming back to her old schedule. She could deal with her pissy tantrum later, she wanted this small relief. Like a caged circus animal, once used to the wild, now begging to run on the grass, even for a mere few seconds.
Tony immediately shook his head, fingers anxiously scratching at the thin facial hair that lined his chin and upper lip, "Absolutely not, it's too dangerous.”
She gave him a deadpan stare, "How is this any different from what I've done in the past? I’ve gotten knocked out, broken bones, hell I even got shot a few times. Trust me I’m a big girl, I can handle a little shadowing without issue."
“That’s exactly my point, you’re better off here. You need to distance yourself from Rogers and get closer to Barnes. Give me something, anything with him because you’ve given me nothing but a distribution list and to be frank that’s nowhere near enough to prosecute shit.” Tony refused to look at her, hiding the true reason he wouldn’t let her go. This was too personal for him to give it to anyone but himself and he didn’t want to admit it was because he worried for her safety. He knew these men more than he was letting on. But she didn't know that. Not now, not ever if possible. 
Rose gritted her teeth at the insult to her ego, she wasn’t used to disappointing Stark while on a case as important as this one and certainly not with her level of experience, “I’m trying my best alright? Don’t forget I’m playing two different people here. I can’t be in two places at once. The minute either of them find out I’m the same person it’ll start a full on possession war between them and then what? Oh yeah, we’re fucked. Now give me the real reason you won’t let me investigate this and don't bullshit me on this. You've been fidgety and paranoid since I handed that list to you.”
Tony was almost to his limit with her bullshit, chewing at his bottom lip till he tasted the iron substance on his tongue, "Because I said no Rose. End of story." 
Rose was begging almost on her hands and knees at this point, "Chief pl-"
Tony threw the coffee mug he was holding against the back wall, coffee and glass splattering everywhere, "For once in your fucking life will you listen and do what you're told?" 
That shook Rose almost as far as her core. Stark had never acted out that way towards her or anyone for that matter before even with her constant annoyances. This side of him frightened her, her body shaking from the panic that rose from the archives of her body. Something that hasn’t been around since she was a child.
Rose sat there in stunned silence as Stark breathed heavily, head hung low in shame and boiling rage, “Just go Rose. Please.”
She gave a simple nod, trying not to let her body collapse beneath her as she walked out of the office. The commotion had echoed throughout the whole building, turning everyone’s eyes towards her hunched figure as she made it to the main floor. Their eyes burned holes in her, building scenarios that could've led to such an outrage from the composed chief. Especially towards his star detective.
Martin saw how she shrunk within herself, holding onto her arms anxiously as she walked by silently. He's only seen her like this when she first came into vice, shiny and untouched like a newly released action figure. Now that simply wouldn’t do for him though, he wanted to make her squirm.
“Awh did daddy yell at his babygirl? You gonna go cry to one of your boy toys about it? Maybe they’ll fuck you better if you ask nicely.”
Rose didn't say anything sarcastic back to his nasty remark. She didn’t say anything at all. Not even an eye in his direction. She breezed through him as if he was a leaf blowing in the wind beside her. Her mind reminiscing in the old emotions that began to pick at her, bringing back memories she wanted to keep locked up for the rest of eternity. 
"Don't look at me like that sweetheart you know you did wrong. You know you should've listened like a good fucking girl but what did you do? What the fuck did you do Rose?!"
Stark held the same anger as her dad did that day. The day she left the house without permission to go play with a new friend she had made at school that day. One of the few people who weren't aware of her home life and was allowed to play with her. But like the others, that didn't last long. No one wanted to play with the girl who was in a broken home with parents who cared more about their next fix than their child. Where violence was a form of love and the shattering of glass was music. Who would allow their child to be around that life. No one. 
Rose's senses dimmed from her emotional state, barely feeling the watchful eyes target her as she left the building, following her every step around the bustling city. She finally noticed something was off when she stopped at one of the crosswalks. The air had shifted to a heavy dread. She felt the culprit lurking quietly around every corner she turned, hidden in shadows and alleyways. If she wasn't used to being followed from past cases she'd be paranoid to the point of a breakdown by now. It was an expectation while in the field. What Rose didn't expect was to find Sam Wilson lounging on her couch with a glass of scotch when she entered her apartment.
She had her .38 revolver pointed towards the shadowed figure on the couch within seconds of hearing the ice clink. Her finger toyed with the trigger, hearing the satisfying click as she pushed the hammer down. The noise caught the figure’s attention as well, raising their glass in mock surrender.
"No need for the dramatics. Just came for a drink is all." 
The figure pulled at the cord of the lamp in the corner beside them, revealing Sam Wilson, eyes in a continuous blank stare as he inspected her.
She lowered the gun, placing it back in the holster under her blouse. She carried whenever the opportunity allowed it. Stark's orders rather than her own. She wasn't trained to fight only to rely on a piece of metal that misfired more than she could count on.  
Rose made herself a well deserved drink, nearly spilling the liquid all over the counter as her hands still shook from the incident with Stark. She sipped at the liquid for a moment, helping her nerves calm enough to try to assess the unexpected situation at hand now. If Sam was the one watching her then most likely he saw her come out of the station and tapped into her phone lines like Stark had predicted at the case briefing. God only knows what else he’s messed with in her apartment. Not to mention what he might have already told James.
Irritated at the thought of losing her only sense of privacy and lead in the case, she turned sharply, pounding the rest of the liquor down in a large gulp. Her hand slammed the glass on the counter top earning a less than impressed glance from the intruder, “Let’s cut to the chase, did James send you to spy on me?”
Sam ignored her question, eyes focused back on the amber liquid in the crystal container he held, “Enlighten me Rose, what is a young woman such as yourself doing with a weapon like that?”
She put on a neutral face as she held the urge to tap along the countertop, a clear sign of nervousness, “Protection.”
Sam shook his head, displeased with her response. He stood from his spot on the couch, glass still untouched, approaching her at the counter with a pointed finger, “Statistically, women tend to carry smaller weapons, like pocket knives, pepper spray, nothing lethal. Not unless trained that is. You see, I know a lot of things Rose, and I know for certain that only cops are allowed to carry those guns. So what are you doing with it?”
Rose visibly gulped involuntarily, the hole she had stepped in had gotten bigger beneath her, “It was originally my grandfather’s. He passed it down to me after he retired from the force.” 
She wasn’t fully lying, her grandfather did serve but not on the police force. He served in the military, becoming one of the first founders of shield from what she was told. But that’s as much as she was allowed to know. Her grandfather was a very private man, especially when it came to his past.
"That why you became a cop? Follow in his legendary footsteps?" His eyes locked on hers as he sipped on his drink.
Not fully. The real reason was her hatred for the drugs that took over her life. The people who deal it out like a pack of candy, not a care given on the consequences. She couldn't let people like that get away, living the rich life while their customers lost everything, "That's the reason why I never could become a cop, to become like him. That job was his life till he was on his deathbed. I don't want to live that way, no one should."
Sam gave another shake of his head, seeming to be having a mental struggle with himself. He wasn’t happy with the results he was getting from this conversation, he didn’t want to tiptoe anymore, “How do you know Natasha Romanoff? You two seem rather acquainted.” 
There was no point in covering that secret up, she knew he had listened to her conversation earlier, “She’s my boss.”
Sam’s brows raised, eyes glazing at the multiple possibilities of her position with the ex-spy, “For?”
Rose clenched her jaw, her fingers aching from her grip along the countertop, “I work at the club when she needs someone. Speaking of which, I need to get my afternoon nap in before it’s too late and I get no sleep for the next 8 hours so if this interrogation is over then you can get the fuck out of my apartment.”
A deep rumble released from Sam’s chest, the closest noise to a laugh she’d probably hear from him, “I see why he wants you so much now.”
“Because he’s a controlling asshole who can’t take no for an answer? Because he can’t accept the fact that someone is happy and he isn’t? The list I assure you goes on for a very long time.”
Sam released another attempt at a chuckle from the venomous sting you leave in your words, “In a way yes. You challenge him to the point it drives him crazy. That sort of feeling becomes addictive to someone like him. Better watch yourself."
"He'll learn to sober up."
Sam had finished his drink by now, delicately placing the glass besides yours on the counter. 
"I meant it when I said watch yourself Rose. James is a man you don't want to toy with. He doesn't discriminate against women, Natasha knows that from experience. You don't want to be next."
If that wasn't a threat then Rose didn't know what was, "It's not polite to threaten a woman Mr. Wilson."
"Then it's a good thing you're no ordinary woman."
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Rose could see Natasha was on edge when she found her inside the club dressing room, watching protectively from the doorway. It took the impossible to bother Natasha but something had scared her. Or someone. 
"He doesn't discriminate against women, Natasha knows that from experience."
Rose could only imagine what he could've done to cause such an effect on her. She struggled to pull away from the image of Natasha getting her face bashed in, blood pooling from her broken nose and eye socket. 
The hand on her, rubbed fondly against the top of her thigh as she rested in her companion's lap, enjoying a glass of champagne as she listened to him talk. His sokovian accented voice was pleasant to her ears, complimenting her whenever the chance was given.
"You seem so miserable here, let me take you away my darling. I can cherish you the way you deserve."
Helmut Zemo, a brilliant and very rich nobleman. Known for being the son of Heinrich Zemo, the man who aided the enemy of the war. He was one of Rose's first returning clients, gifting her with many beautiful pieces of jewelry whenever he paid a visit. One of the few she tolerated, dare even say was fond of.
"Oh don't tease me Zemo, it's too cruel." Rose patted a hand on his chest, shifting on his lap as his arm tightened on her. 
"You know I don't tease when I'm with you. I mean every word. Please, let me take care of you." Zemo's fingers danced along the sapphire necklace he bought that adorned Rose's neck as he gazed up at her. His eyes held truth and affection.
The offer was more than tempting if not for her morals. To live in a life of luxury and carefree moments filled with expensive drinks and clothes. But he was still a bad man, one who’s had his fair share of crimes and far from who Rose would ever become.
“Zemo-”
The bang of the main door opening startled her, shattering the glass onto the decorative carpet, and the men around her forced the room to go abruptly silent. Eyes followed each other to land on an angry James Barnes. Jaw tensed, fist white and bruised darkly along the knuckles. His face was lined with the same color, traveling from his eye to his cheek.
"What the fuck you all looking at?!" He growled, slamming a fist along the bar counter. 
Everyone's attention turned back to their company, not daring to take another glance at the ex super soldier. Rose however remained her eyes on him as he slowly became aware she was among the crowd but he didn't move from his seat. He just stared mindlessly at her. So Rose had an idea. A very dangerous one.
She turned back to Zemo who sat unamused by the angered display, her lips brushing his ear, "Tell me my love, if I agreed to go with you tonight, how would you spoil me?" 
She felt him shiver under her touch as she placed kisses along the curve of his neck down to his collarbone. The pulse of his vein quickened beneath her lips,
"First I'd take you back to Sokovia, show you around your new home." His voice was almost completely steady if the edge that laced it didn’t completely give away that he was internally unwinding at her touch.
Her eyes trailed back up to James over Zemo's shoulder as she kissed back up to his ear, "And then? I need a little more convincing than that." 
The mindless staring was morphing into possessive jealousy, his breathing had picked up again in an animalistic pant as he watched her challenge him. She was surprised that the glass in his hand hadn’t completely shattered beneath the death grip he held.
Zemo caught the bottom of her chin, pulling her face to line up with his, "And then I'll give you the world. Anything you want you shall have it. My life, my money and myself is yours, just say the words my darling." 
Rose was internally screaming. How come it's the bad ones that are so charming?
The sound of a gun clicking next to her head broke her out of the fogged daze that was beginning to consume her, "Over your dead body pal." 
There he was in all his glory, the rotten beast she was after. Rose internally smirked at the animalistic dominance he was radiating. His body ready to pounce what he viewed as the weaker link to the mate he desired to have. How calm he appeared but eyes screaming, daring for him to make an attempt at taking her. 
Zemo’s composure didn’t falter, calm and collected with a hint of polite sarcasm lacing his tone, "There's no need to be impolite, friend."
The glint of the metal shined out of the corner of her eye. The hand hidden besides her leg was locked and loaded, aimed for James's looming figure. This incident gave him an excuse to kill James Barnes right there. One of the leading men that aided in killing his father during the war. Steve Rogers was more so his main target but he was willing to be a step ahead and take one over nothing right then and there.
Not wanting a mess on everyone's hand, especially her own, she didn’t need another table full of reports to fill out on her hands. So, Rose placed a hand against Zemo's chest grabbing his attention with a soft smile, "It's alright Zemo, I'll see you when you get back from Sokovia."
Zemo nodded in understanding, placing a delicate kiss to the back of her hand as she stood from his lap, "Till then my darling." 
Her focus shifted to James, her eyes screaming angrily to follow her and for once he did it with no further complaint, not to her at least. Just a wave of his gun and a snippy comment in a language she wasn’t familiar with. Zemo sent back a hasty response earning only a snicker from James.
The remnants of her glass crunched beneath her heels, the sound tingled her senses, becoming more aware of the man following behind her. How he hovered over her protectively, hiding her from the eyes that dared to follow them. The vibranium hand rested along her back, the cold vibrations traveling up her spine to the back of her head causing a slight chatter on her teeth. How he could deal with the constant hum against him without issue baffled her. Must’ve taken a long time to grow used to.
Rose twirled around in her heels to face him. Never keep your back to a predator, stay calm and watch without eye contact. She held an irritable but playful smirk, noticing he never left more than a foot of room between them, his body towering over her’s, "So why all the fuss? Don't get me wrong, that little show was cute but very unnecessary. All you had to say was please." 
His hands dragged up her arms, nails gliding against her skin leaving goosebumps in their path, "It's like coming home from a bad day of work to find your wife fucking the pool boy. I don't like to share my toys."
The sensation brought that emotion she passionately hated back. The one she only had with him. It was desireful, dangerous and greedy. She wanted him to explore the crevices of her but beat the cocky smirk off his face at the same time. Watch him bleed like he did to Natasha, like he wanted to do to the real Rose. A sensational gory battle that she couldn’t win.
Her eyes dared to meet his, uncertainty caving in as her body was reacting to him against her wishes, "Thankfully I'm no toy, especially not yours Mr. Barnes ." 
He bit his lip as she rolled his name from her spiteful tongue. He wanted to nip at it till it bled, taste the iron as he devoured every part of her. The thought was both blissful and enraging, "See, that's where you're wrong doll."
He didn’t need to hold her in place as he nudged her nose with his lips, teasing her’s with a simple brush. He knew he had her. She could deny and hide behind a confident cover all she wanted to but he knew the truth. By the way she sensed his presence in the room without needing to look. How captivating he was to her despite his cocky demeanor. How her breath hitched as his teeth dug into her bottom lip while his eyes pierced into her, watching the barrier she built crumble in her hands. 
“You’ve been mine since you walked into the room that night and there’s not a single person who will tell me otherwise. You’re caving beneath my touch as we speak. You’ve lost. Now all you have to do is completely give in.”
Rose felt like she was slowly drowning. James’s hands pulling her further and further under the shimmering surface as all the air within her vanished, bubbling above her. Words barely formed as his nips trailed down her collarbone, his hand gripping possessively at her throat, gently squeezing at her quiet response, “Never.”
A dark chuckle left his lips, “But you already have.”
Part 8
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hereticpriest · 1 month
Text
Pyrrhic
Rating: Explicit
Relationship: Baron Helmut Zemo x Female Reader
Length: 14k+
Summary: Once, HYDRA sought to create an improved version of the super soldier through breeding the Winter Soldier with another super soldier they made for that express purpose.
Now, fourteen years after escaping HYDRA's clutches, Bucky Barnes comes to you for help with the rise of super soldiers under the title Flagsmashers. Unfortunately, Barnes' feelings drive you closer to Baron Helmut Zemo, and you find yourself hoping for a future for the first time in your life.
Warnings: Unrequited Bucky Barnes/Reader, Bucky Barnes is a bit controlling, Manipulative Helmut Zemo, HYDRA comes with it's own whole bucket of warnings, HYDRA had a secret super soldier breeding program, Reader is a kidnapping victim, Reader is 3/4 Sokovian, P in V sex, oral sex (f receiving), reference to potential purity kink, loss of virginity, reader is touch-adverse, reader is also touch-starved, shower sex, ambiguous ending, consent is discussed multiple times, enthusiastic consent, Helmut Zemo is a consent king. Let me know if I missed something!
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“Are you ever going to tell us about this person you’re insisting we need for this mission?” Sam asked as he stepped carefully through the thick brush of the forest around them. Bucky ducked under a large branch, shoulders tense as he practically stalked through the woods. His companions, reluctant as they may be, could tell that he didn’t want to answer the question - he was always evasive, but something about this person was making him especially tense. Sam was just happy that the Baron had kept his mouth shut so far. Considering his royal upbringing, one might think he would struggle on this mostly uphill hike through thick forest and untamed land, however Sam knew he’d been part of an elite Sokovian task force and that he had the strength and stamina to prove it.
“She was called Mat when I knew her, though she hated the title, so I wouldn’t recommend using it. Too fucking young for it anyways.” Bucky spat that last sentence, and Sam raised an eyebrow sceptically, not having the linguistic context to put two and two together. Zemo, however, huffed a breath laced with disdain and curiosity. Bucky shot him a dangerous look over his shoulder, and the Baron raised his hands placatingly, though Sam noticed him roll his eyes the moment Barnes looked away. The tension had been at a record high since Zemo was broken out of the German prison he’d been interred in, and Sam was starting to get sick of playing mediator between them.
“How did you know her?” Sam asked, and James paused mid-step, then turned to his two companions.
“She was held by an offshoot group of HYDRA scientists at a lab in the Czech Republic from the age of eight. They gave her a modified version of the super soldier serum used on the soldiers at the Siberian facility against her will, and they kept her locked in the facility until she escaped when she was eighteen.” Every word was said carefully, and while Sam took that as Bucky struggling to tell the girl’s story, Zemo observed him with open curiosity. He could tell that there was quite a bit that the former Winter Soldier wasn’t telling them.
“Modified how?” He asked, and Barnes scowled, but Sam’s equally curious gaze made him bite his cheek to stop from chewing the Baron out.
“She was… faster than any other super soldier I’ve ever seen. Not as strong physically, but her reaction time is far superior. She heals fast like the rest of us, but they did something to her pain responses. Dulled them, but didn’t remove them completely. She wasn’t as aggressive as the ones in Siberia were. The scientists made some hormonal changes as well.” Bucky shrugged, getting uncomfortable as he mentioned that last part, and Zemo tilted his head, studying his reactions.
“She didn’t want the serum, though? I mean, she was eight when they took her. How old was she when they gave it to her?” Sam asked, and Barnes closed his eyes briefly, his expression pained.
“They gave it to her shortly after she arrived at the facility. Maybe a month. She was just a kid. I could hear her screaming from the other side of the facility. They didn’t put her through the same brainwashing bullshit they did to me, but she wasn’t willing like the other soldiers, so they… they used to beat her until she started to learn to fight back like they wanted. She tried to escape, but they never let her out of the facility.” He replied, “So don’t start up your ‘I need to kill all super soldiers’ bullshit with her, Zemo. She never had a choice.”
The Baron considered his words, pursing his lips for a moment before softening ever so slightly.
“As you say, she was only a child.”
Bucky nodded, then continued his solemn march, cresting the top of the hill and sighing as a dark wood cabin came into view. Smoke trailed from the chimney, and there was a long driveway heading from the cabin to the road they’d abandoned nearly a mile back due to Bucky’s insistence that they approach on foot from the forest lest she know they were coming. An old, beat up pickup truck sat like a rusty silver beacon in the driveway with a large, newer-looking storage box hooked into the bed. There was a storage shed behind the cabin, and an old, large stump that appeared to be used as a woodcutter’s block considering the axe sunk deep into it. The firewood rack was full to the brim against the right wall of the cabin, and a full clothesline hung between the opposite side of the cabin and a sturdy nearby tree.
“You okay, man?” Sam asked, clapping Bucky on the shoulder when the other man didn’t move for over a minute, staring at the cabin trepidatiously. The hundred-and-six year old man was always tense, but his shoulders felt like iron under Sam’s hand.
“She might not be happy to see me.” Barnes admitted, and Sam hummed his acknowledgement, then started trudging down the small slope towards the house. This finally kicked Bucky into movement, and he followed swiftly, pausing only briefly when he spotted your tall frame exiting the shed behind the cabin. There was a Browning Citori against one shoulder, and blood had soaked into the dirty blue plaid shirt you wore. Your knees were muddy from kneeling in the woods. To the far left of the cabin in a clearing past a line of thick trees were two worn stones sticking out of the earth, and you approached calmly, dropping to kneel before them.
“Well, she looks real friendly.” Sam mused, clapping Bucky on the back, “Good luck.”
~
Five hours earlier, you had thumped a deer carcass down on the butcher table in your shed, then hung your trusty shotgun on the rack behind the door where it belonged. It had taken you a long time to perfect field dressing, and even longer to learn to get good at butchering your meat, but you had learned. You had no choice. Society and its shiny grocery stores full of pre-packaged food were far too dangerous for you. HYDRA still had a hold on the world when you first escaped, and there were still monstrous little tentacles everywhere who had escaped the punishment they deserved for what they had done. You knew how to hunt humans, so animals weren’t such a big stretch. Now, after fourteen years, you were an expert at surviving on your own. You went into town once a month at most, on a different day every time to avoid routine, to pick up the essentials you couldn’t scavenge for yourself.
With the deer butchered and packed away in your meat freezer, you made your way towards the two gravestones just out of view of your cabin. With a heavy sigh, you tucked the shotgun under your chin, sitting with it between your knees, and stared at the cold stones. Upon one, Rickard Stroud. On the other, Imogen Whitley.
“Thank you both. Thank you Imogen, for having mercy on a broken creature and freeing me from my shackles. I’m sorry that I couldn’t save you in return. I bet you’re sick of hearing it by now, but I will never forget what you sacrificed for me. Thank you Rickard, for leaving me everything I needed to survive. I wish I could have known you. I hope you wouldn’t be too mad at me for moving into your home, but I promise I’ve tried my best to maintain it with the care you clearly did.”
~
Bucky jerked forwards as he watched you point the shotgun at yourself, panic racing through his veins at the thought of losing you before he’d even gotten you back. Not that he’d ever had you in the first place - you were a name on his reparations list that he needed to cross off. He was responsible for what happened to you, regardless of whether he was in control of himself or not. The entire choice to upend and ruin your life was made because of him. The inability to make amends sparked every selfish fear response in his body.
“Wait-” The Baron’s gloved hand closed around Bucky’s metal bicep, not quite able to pull him back, but enough to pause his forward momentum, “Look closely, James. Her finger is not on the trigger. This is a ritual.”
Sam felt sympathy coil in his gut as he watched the woman kneel in the dirt, the cold metal against her skin as if it gave her peace. He inwardly acknowledged that if anyone might understand a grief ritual of this specific breed, it might be Zemo, though he didn’t want to give the man the credit. Bucky stared down at her, seeming to deflate before their very eyes, though his face showed some measure of relief. He shrugged Zemo’s hand off of his arm, then continued forwards at a slower pace, no longer panicking. Zemo watched for a moment before following them, noting the way the woman’s head tilted ever-so-slightly in their direction before straightening out again.
~
Three approached from the southwest. One stomped through the forest despite the ability to soften his steps, one walked with purpose but made a poor attempt to soften his steps, and the third walked leisurely but with an awareness to his gait. All soldiers of varying service, if you weren’t mistaken. One of them was, unfortunately, familiar.
You let out a long, laboured sigh as you laid your shotgun down in front of you, then pushed yourself up from your knees. The footsteps stopped, and you shed your plaid shirt, leaving yourself in only a black undershirt and your muddy sweatpants. If this was going to be a fight, you’d make sure it was one they regretted. You spun to face the trio with a raised eyebrow, biceps flexing, shoulders rolling as you prepared yourself.
“Soldat. Falcon. Ah, and the Baron as well, how curious. To what do I owe the pleasure?” You asked, noticing Bucky’s gaze fixed on your shotgun, “Relax, Soldat, I’m far too much of a coward.”
The former Winter Soldier scoffed, taking another step closer to you but freezing when you took a step back, “I’m not going to do anything, doll. I’m not… I’m not him anymore.”
The Falcon put his hand on Barnes’ shoulder as if to hold him back and steady him all in one shot while the former Winter Soldier processed your fear of him, guilt eating away at his guts. The Baron leaned against a tree nearby to observe, just out of the way to avoid getting in the middle of any conflict.
“I know what you are, Barnes. Better than most.” You replied, glancing from him to the Baron and taking the time to stare at him from top to bottom, curious, “You’re working with Zemo. I would assume that meant you were here to kill me, but you would have chosen an easier method, surely. Which means that there’s another super soldier or two running about, and you’ve decided to try and bring me along. Why?”
Bucky squirmed as your intense stare moved from the now slightly flushed Baron back to him, and he clenched his fists a few times to work through the nerves.
“I’ve known where you were for a while. Look, I don’t want to call you… that, so what name are you using these days? Your old name?” You don’t answer him right away, brow arched sceptically as you observe his expression. “You’re long overdue for an apology, and we need someone who can go toe-to-toe with super soldiers.”
You scoffed, turning your back on them.
“I don’t have- I’ve been going by Stroud, after the guy who owned this cabin before I found it. My old name is no one’s business but mine, Barnes. He certainly doesn’t need to know any more about me than he already does. I’d like to be offended that you brought a man to my doorstep who will no doubt want me dead, but I suppose that the greater good calls, doesn’t it?” You asked, gesturing towards Zemo, whose somewhat conflicted expression did nothing to quell your worry.
“I don’t want you dead, liebling. You did not choose your fate, and you’ve kept to yourself instead of enforcing your will on others.” The Baron said confidently, and you acknowledged him with a nod, then turned a twisted smirk towards Barnes.
“You didn’t tell them my whole story, clearly. Was that to protect me, James, or was it to protect yourself?” You asked, and both Sam and Zemo turned their concerned gazes to the former soldier. You picked up your shotgun lazily, marching towards the house.
“Why don’t we go inside and Barnes can tell you the whole story. From the beginning, since he remembers all of it. Take off your shoes - if you track mud through my house I’ll make you regret it.” You called over your shoulder, tapping off your boots on the porch then heading through the door. Once inside, you kicked them off and headed towards your bedroom to get changed. When you returned, the Baron was standing in your kitchen making tea while Barnes and Sam took up every inch of space on the small sofa. You claimed your armchair after scooting it at least a foot out of Bucky’s reach.
“Well, go ahead, James. Tell them my sordid tale. Or, at least, the parts you conveniently left out.” You encouraged him, accepting the tea that Zemo offered you with a soft ‘Danke’. He nodded, returning shortly after with a tray of tea and water for himself and the others. When he sat in the other armchair no more than a foot or two away from you, you didn’t scoot away, simply looked him up and down quickly as if assessing a threat. His demure smile did little to soothe you, but you weren’t scared of him in this situation - he was much more terrifying when he had the time and space to plan your demise.
“Stroud was eight when… when I was sent to kidnap her. She spent her summers and school breaks in Sokovia, but grew up in Canada, chosen because she had no genetic deficiencies or hereditary health issues. She was on vacation with her parents visiting her family in Sokovia when they sent me. I… I took her to the lab just outside of Prague, and HYDRA left me there for a couple of months while she settled in. They unfroze me up a couple times through the years to… to test her.” Bucky explained, watching Sam and Zemo’s faces to see their reactions.
“Your family is Sokovian?” The Baron asked, and you shrugged your shoulders but nodded.
“My father, and my mother’s maternal side. They were in Novigrad.” You explained, and he gave you a sympathetic nod, “Tell them the rest, James. I don’t believe the news will make my Baron want to kill me any more, now that he knows I’m one of his citizens.”
It was said teasingly, but from the way Zemo shifted in his seat and pursed his lips, you didn’t think you were far off. You could understand - he had lost his homeland, and you were a relic of that, using it against him to protect yourself shamelessly.
“The scientists chose her because… they liked her genetics. She didn’t have any concerning genes, hereditary health conditions, and none of her family suffered from any obvious addictions…” Bucky took a deep, steadying breath before continuing, “This was important to them because… because they wanted to… they theorised that breeding two super soldiers might create a stronger variant.”
Silence reigned, while you sipped your tea patiently, letting the men absorb that painful and disgusting truth. Sam got up from the sofa, clearly needing to pace, his hands resting on his hips as he thought it over. Bucky seemed to sink into the sofa on the other hand, as if he could hide from this somehow. Zemo rubbed his hand over his mouth, lost in thought, but it seemed that the most active of them all found his voice first.
“So they made you kidnap a child so they could turn her into your… what, baby mama?” Sam asked, his sneering face matching yours. He wasn’t mad at Bucky, obviously, but the entire concept of this was entirely antithetical to his worldview and moral structure.
“Does that seem so far out of the realm of possibility for the psychotic eugenic-freak nazis, Falcon?” You asked, and he shuddered visibly, “I wasn’t trained the same way as the Widows, or the other Soldiers. I didn’t need to be. I was just a broodmare, and the Winter Soldier was to be my eighteenth birthday present. Shame they didn’t put a bow on him.”
Zemo squeezed his eyes closed in your periphery, his jaw clenched tightly, and you took pity on the men who were clearly struggling with this reveal. Sam’s fury was evident, his whole being like an exposed nerve upon which his last remaining vestiges of control were barely a bandaid. The Baron, however, kept himself far more under wraps than the other two. There were signs, of course, to his discomfort, but he restrained himself in a way that Sam and Bucky both were incapable of.
“I’m still… God, pleasantly surprised sounds terrible, but it was a shock that they waited until you were eighteen. I… I still have nightmares about that day. And only partially because you tried to bite my throat out.” Bucky said, trying to sound playful on that last part despite the trauma you were all discussing. He didn’t quite achieve the tone he was trying to set, and you gave him a serious look, bordering on sympathy.
“Tried? James, I nearly got your jugular. You had to go into surgery immediately, that’s the only reason they stopped the whole thing.” You reminded him, and he shrugged, clearly thinking he deserved it, “Enough about me. Tell me what brings three of the four horsemen to my doorstep.”
Barnes huffed a breath through his nose at the reference, but Sam stepped in to show you the video from Torres and explain the Flagsmashers to you. You hummed along appropriately, considering his words as he described the truck fight to you, and explained who the hell John Walker was when he came up. When Sam was done, you turned your gaze to the man who’d kidnapped you so many years ago and narrowed your eyes, dubious rather than angry.
“You come to my home bringing death and destruction to my doorstep, Barnes. Why? You think you’re enough to bring me into the light? I have weathered much darker storms, Soldat. I have kept to myself while your so called Avengers ripped themselves and each other apart. Why do you think I will join you now to squash this little resistance? All that your friends have done is raise the bar for sinister minds. I am not like you, James, I never wanted this. I never wanted to be a soldier, or to save the world. I wanted to be a gardener. I had such… Lofty aspirations. As if my hands can do anything now but destroy.”
You stood as you finished your tirade, eerily calm as you walked towards the kitchen, giving the men space. For your safety and theirs. You placed a box of your favourite tea on the counter, examining your kitchen for anything you would want to bring with you if you decided to accept.
“The people who have this serum are dangerous, doll. We don’t know how many there are, what their plan is, and how bad things will get. I need backup. I need someone who can withstand a fight against them, or this might go south.” Barnes explained as best as he could, “You’re hiding here, barely living. I get it. But you deserve better. If you help us, we can back you up against whatever remnants of HYDRA are left if they come for you. You could live a better life.”
You scoffed, splaying your hands out on the countertop to brace yourself as you considered your choices.
In the end, you think it must’ve been inevitable. What else could you have done?
~
Music pounds in your ears as you walk through a crowd towards the bar, your arm delicately linked with that of the Baron. No one knew you here despite your brief stint while you were roaming the world aimlessly in an attempt at getting away from your past, and having you as backup that blended in rather than outwardly dressed as a soldier was the best choice, according to Zemo. You weren’t sure you’d be much help at all - after years in the quiet of the woods by yourself, the bar was overwhelming at best. But, Zemo had been confident when he presented you with a dress that you were certain despite knowing very little about dresses that must have cost a fortune, and told you your role. Tonight, you would be arm candy. It had taken ages to get yourself groomed enough to pass as anything but a wild woman, but you had to admit as you admired yourself in the mirror that you did clean up well.
Despite knowing he is more of a threat than he appears - evident in the bulge of his bicep against your arm if nothing else - the man is a comforting presence. His grip on your waist is possessively tight as he guides you in front of him at the bar, caging you in with his body. His nose bumps against your ear and you shiver as he whispers against it.
“What would you like to drink, schatz?”
“Whiskey, please, Baron.” You say back, louder than he had asked you, looking at the bartender through your lashes. He hums a response, greeting Sam and asking for his drink order while he pours a shot for Zemo. You watch over the rim of your glass as Sam struggles with his repulsive drink, distracted by the soft stroking of Zemo’s hand over your stomach, and his lips against your neck. Something about having constant, roving contact with him is making it easier to tune out every other overstimulating input in the bar. You wonder if he planned it this way, or if he’s simply putting on a show. You can feel Bucky glaring at him, but the Baron seems nonplussed by the Winter Soldier’s ire.
You aren't a huge fan of physical contact, but Zemo had quietly explained his plan to you on the plane ride to Madripoor, and cleared what he might have to do to enforce your role with you. It was far more than you expected from the man, but the consideration was worthwhile in making you trust him at least a little. You had a safe word, which had been a new concept to you that Zemo had surprisingly patiently explained while studiously ignoring the way that Barnes glared daggers at his back. You weren't entirely sure what James' problem was with Zemo and you specifically, but you were putting it down to either base male ego due to the fact that you were intended for him (a gross concept) or protective instinct (less gross, but unnecessary). Or both, perhaps. He was only human, after all. 
The Sokovian had done a good job of pretending that Barnes didn't exist, focused entirely on you as he explained that he may have to touch you quite intimately, and likely would have to kiss you. Selby was a woman who delighted in the obscene at times, and had a taste for pretty things. She might demand a show of perversion to prove you weren't a spy while simultaneously getting her rocks off. You gave him permission to do what he had to do, and promised that after the events were over, you would check in with him privately. You had to admit, you were impressed by his genuine show of concern, and the amount of effort he was putting into establishing consent and trust with you.
Even now, he kept his body between yours and anyone else's in a way that protected your personal space but seemed possessive to the outward eye. A man approaches Zemo from behind, telling him that the message from above is that he isn't welcome, and you splay your hands across his stomach to brace him, staring up into his eyes to see if he needs you. He speaks to the man calmly, and you slip your hand under his shirt to trace along his ribs, your gaze moving between your date for the night and the man ‘interrupting’ it like you were simply an impatient girl. The man leaves, and you listen as Zemo explains the power broker, pausing briefly and switching to Russian as a hand clasps around his shoulder.
"Winter Soldier. Attack."
The man is swiftly removed, and you watch around Zemo's shoulder as Barnes goes on the attack, your arms slipping around the Baron's waist in a way that he clearly approves of from the rumble he lets out, and the hand that covers yours to hold you in place. He’s smirking as he watches the fight, and you scoff as he pushes another body at Bucky before making a snarky comment to Sam about how little it took for him to fall back into form. Like it wasn’t his fault. You roll your eyes, pressing closer to the Baron as if trying to watch the fight, and using that closeness to whisper in his ear,
“Try to enjoy this a little less, Baron. You’re being too obvious. S’a flimsy basis for the wedge you’re trying to drive.”
You feel him shiver against you, and his honey eyes find yours over his shoulder, a small smirk tugging at his lips.
“Apologies, häschen.”
Soon enough, the violence ends and you are brought back to meet Selby, letting the Baron guide you into his lap as if you belonged there. A large, warm hand closes around the meat of your thigh, just under the hem of your dress, and you watch Selby's eyes track the movement with a hunger that makes you squirm against the man beneath you. Barnes and Sam watch with disapproval on their faces, though they snap back into character swiftly enough it goes unnoticed. The Baron gives you two squeezes, and you settle, draping yourself back against his chest with your head on his shoulder, face tucked demurely into his neck.
"She's a pretty thing, isn't she? New pet, Zemo? Last I heard you were in a German lockup. How'd you get out, and how'd you get a sweet little thing like that so quickly?" Selby asks, and Zemo laughs.
"People like us will always find a way." He remarks, "As for this little häschen... she hopped her way to me when she found out I was free, like a good little girl."
Selby's gaze digs into you, and you lift your head from Zemo's shoulder to trail kisses along his jaw, murmuring a quiet 'Hel, baby, I'm bored.' against his skin. You say it just loud enough to be heard, and you can see Selby out of the corner of your eye, her eyes glued to your thighs as if staring hard enough would make them open. You pointedly ignore the stirring you feel beneath you, knowing he’s only a man and at that, a man who’d been imprisoned for eight long years. It probably has nothing to do with you. The conversation continues around you as Zemo offers Selby the Winter Soldier in exchange for information about the super soldier serum, and you do your job well despite having no experience to draw on beyond the seconds the Winter Soldier had his hands on you before you nearly tore his throat out with your teeth. The Baron shivers as you kiss along his jugular, stopping briefly mid-sentence to squeeze your thigh with one hand while the other grips your hair and pulls you back.
“Häschen, I am working. You will wait.” He reprimands you gently, nipping your lower lip when you pout dramatically. Liquid fire floods your veins, and you have to clench your thighs to temporarily quell the burn even though you know he’ll feel it and probably know why.
“Give the girl a bone, Baron, she’s clearly gagging for it.” Selby commands, and you know from her tone that you’ve ignited her. Zemo glances at Selby briefly before sliding his hand further up under your dress, his fingertips skimming across your cunt. He gives you a startled look when he realises you’ve forgone wearing underwear, but masks it quickly before Selby could notice. You’re mortified to find that you’re soaked, and he can definitely feel it. He knows. The little hitch in his breath at the realisation makes your cunt throb.
“I’ve been trying to teach her patience, Selby. You know how easily a brat is born without a firm hand.” He reminds her somewhat playfully, and Selby smirks as she watches him spread your legs a little. It’s embarrassing to know she can see you, and she is shameless about tilting her head to take a long look, but you knew it was a possibility and you didn’t blame him for it. You try for an eager look instead of nervous, but yelp as Zemo’s hand slaps your cunt with a loud and worryingly wet-sounding smack, “She will get what she wants when she earns it.”
Something in that makes you sigh, and Zemo lets out a soft breath of a laugh, catching your lips in a kiss that sends fire through your veins. Your first kiss, somehow at 32, and it’s all a bit of a game. At least it’s a good one, the Baron’s soft lips moving gently against yours, guiding you to respond to him as his hand cups your jaw. His thumb traces over your cheek, tongue slipping past your lips to taste you, and you try desperately to make it seem like you aren’t as inexperienced as you are.
“Now that you’ve had your fun-” Selby begins as you part, leaving a string of saliva connecting you, only to be interrupted by the buzzing of Sam’s cellphone. You close your eyes, biting your cheek to restrain any noise of frustration, then shift in Zemo’s lap as if nothing is wrong at all while you survey the room for all aggressors and exits.
“Answer it. On speaker.”
Sam does, and you listen with a roll of your eyes as the man has a conversation with his sister. Strong hands hold you as the tension in the room mounts, until Sarah says her brother’s name, and the jig is up. Fortunately, Selby is swiftly assassinated. Unfortunately, Selby is now dead, and it appears as if it is your fault. Walking the streets of Madripoor’s Lowtown knowing that a bounty is likely already set on your head with the dings of phones all around you as the soundtrack of your departure is, you find, a great way to raise your blood pressure.
As all hell breaks loose, Zemo drags you in the opposite direction as Sam and Bucky, and you let him despite the obvious warning signals. You’re touched by how protective he acts, tucking you behind him when someone gets into your path. He efficiently takes out a man with a handgun, pilfering it from his body and leading you through several alleyways until you meet up with Sam and Bucky just as their pursuers are executed.
“You seem to have a guardian angel.” Zemo remarks to the two men, and you hum, keen ears picking up the crunch of boots just as Sharon Carter rounds into the alley with you all.
“Well this is too perfect.” She chimes, gun pointed directly at the Baron instead of Sam or Bucky. Instinct flares, and you move before you can rethink your actions, one hand clasping around her wrist to remove the gun while the other jabs sharply into her elbows to buckle her arms and stop her from being able to immediately retaliate. You turn the gun on her, grip confident as you step out of her reach.
“Who the fuck are you?” She asks, sneering as you place yourself between her and Zemo. She shifts as if trying to get an angle on him, and you mirror her effortlessly, eyebrow raised as you wait for her next move.
“You do not need to know.” You reply, tuning out the world to listen to her heart pound.
“What are you, Zemo’s new guard dog?”
You smirk. The Baron’s gaze sits heavy between your shoulders, and you wonder at his expression. Barnes and Wilson’s are less difficult to imagine.
“Woof.”
Sam and Bucky intervene to explain the situation, and you take the gun from Zemo before the others can demand it, surprised that he lets you so easily. His eyes burrow into you, and you tilt your head nearly in time with him, both of you attempting to understand each other as in the background, Sharon offers you all a place to stay in Hightown. As the boys negotiate with Sharon for her cooperation, you duck into the bathroom to clean up, pulling up the skirt of your dress. There are bruises on your thighs already, your healing factor taking you through the process faster than any human body could. More worrying to you is how wet you are. It’s not as if you don’t understand what is happening - you have a lack of experience, not knowledge - and it’s not as if you’ve never touched yourself. Unfortunately, your night isn’t over, and the cause of your apparent arousal was waiting in the other room. You’d pointed a gun at the proprietor of the house for him less than an hour prior. The instinct to protect was strong in you - it always has been, and apparently, you wanted to protect Zemo. Why? Because he had been kind to you?
You breathe out a heavy sigh, cleaning yourself up liberally before you head back into the other room, and you catch Zemo’s eyes darkening as he looks upon you. At first, you’re uncertain why, until you see his gaze flicker down to your pelvis and you remember that he’s the only one in the room aware that you aren’t wearing underwear. You bite your lip, hoping perhaps that he’ll forget or misunderstand how wet you were. You think you might die if he brings it up.
“Lay low, blend in, enjoy the party. Try to stay out of trouble and I’ll see what I can find.” Sharon says as she heads upstairs, and Zemo smirks as he shrugs, one hand open palmed in faux innocence while the other grips his tumbler of whiskey.
“Trouble?”
~
You have to give it to Sharon, she definitely knows how to throw a party.
You move through the crowd as the beat pounds in your ears, dodging drunken party goers with a supernatural alacrity gifted to you by the serum. The blue neons cast a surprisingly attractive light across the crowd, and you watch with growing amusement as Sam flirts with a girl while pretending to examine a gorgeous Monet. Bucky tries to get you to stay close to him, but you dip under his arm and continue on your path to the bar, ignoring the way he calls after you. A shot glass is slid into your hand moments after you smell him approaching. Warm and musky and delicious, with traces of leather and old books lingering on the edges of your awareness.
“We should talk.” The Baron murmurs, and you nod despite wanting to run, turning to him to find yourself once more caged between his body and the bar. You take a breath, clenching your thighs again as he examines your expression like he’s dissecting you.
“When the night is over, as promised, we will talk.” You reply, taking the shot easily after clinking it against his glass. He raises his glass to you, then takes the shot as if it isn't even alcohol, keeping his eyes on you. In this light, they’re more chocolate than honey, but no less expressive. You wonder if he’s getting drunk - your tolerance is better than any human’s, and you’re not sure how much it takes someone who isn’t a super soldier to begin to feel it - since he’s now on his third or fourth drink at the very least tonight.
“My room or yours?” Zemo asks, and you consider it before offering him a faint shrug.
“Yours will do. I can’t promise Buck won’t be trying to break my door down for an unnecessary heart-to-heart.”
The Baron smirks, and you lean up to kiss his cheek as you slip past him, feeling him lean into it but not letting yourself dwell on it, “Have some fun, Zemo. I’ll come find you in a little bit. Be safe.”
~
“Tell me you’re seeing what I’m seeing.” Sam mutters to you, and you hum, looking away from the painting Bucky is showing you to follow the other man’s gaze. It doesn’t take long for either super soldier to spot what has caught his attention, and you stifle a laugh, pushing at Sam’s shoulder playfully. Bucky’s snort and subsequent coughing on his drink makes your laughter break through, and you end up gripping Sam’s shirt for stability as you try to get a hold of yourself.
“He’s a rich boy, Sam, I’m sure you’d look much the same if you tried your hand at a slow waltz.” You tease, drawing a chuckle from Barnes. He leans closer to you, hand sweeping over your lower back in what you’re sure is probably a platonic way, but still gives you the heebie-jeebies as he reminds you that you don’t need to defend the Baron. His lips are too close to your ear, and he’s looking at you too intensely for you to handle despite his playful smile. You turn your back to Zemo to look at both Bucky and Sam, stepping out of the former Winter Soldier’s reach.
“So, who’s gonna go save him from himself and show him how to actually dance? Any takers? Consider it charity work if it makes you feel better.” You grin at them, your tone playful despite how tense you are, and Sam snorts.
“How d’you know how to dance? You’re basically a homeschool kid on steroids.”
That draws a genuine laugh from you, and you shrug your shoulders as you begin backing towards the Baron, decision made.
“I spent years roaming Europe and at least a month clubbing here in Madripoor, Sam. I may not have experience in a lot of things, but dancing is definitely not one of them. You keep Buck here unmolested by the masses, and I’ll handle our Baron.” You tease.
“Yeah, you’ll handle him alright. Gross.” Sam retorts mostly under his breath, only audible to you due to your enhanced hearing. You’re laughing as you approach Zemo, and you boldly slide an arm around his waist from behind as you press yourself up against his back, grinning as he startles. He twists to face you, and his smile is more open - genuine - as he takes you in. You’re not sure if he’s just decided he likes you, or if he’s a little tipsy.
“You’ve never danced like this before, Baron.” You state plainly, and he laughs, almost bashful but not quite as he shrugs his broad shoulders.
“Perhaps not, but I am enjoying myself.” He retorts, letting you guide him until his hips are pressing into yours, winding with the music in a way that can’t possibly be anything but intimate. You’re not sure why it’s so easy for you to touch and be touched by Zemo, when Bucky laying a hand on you sends shivers down your spine, but you don’t want to think on that too heavily right now under the blue neon lights and the pulsing of the music. As the crowd closes in around you, you move with them, all the while guiding Zemo through it. He’s observant, and he learns quickly, watching the rest of the crowd move until finally he feels confident. You grin as he presses against your back, his arm looping around your waist slowly enough that you could escape it if you so desired. His chin brushes your shoulder, and you’re tempted to look at him to see what he’s looking at, but you get distracted by a man who had been approaching you until he froze a couple feet away. You tilt your head curiously as he turns around and walks the other way, but Zemo’s mouth brushes against the back of your neck, and you scoff as you put two and two together.
“Protective or possessive, Baron?” You ask him boldly, and he smiles against your skin as if he isn’t surprised by the question at all.
“Oh, I believe both should cover it, schatzi.” he replies, guiding you towards the bar with a gentle hand on your back, “You don’t like when people touch you, even if you like them well enough. You flinched when Sharon touched your arm to apologise for her presumed insult, you shy away from Sam even though you laugh and smile with him often, and I don’t think I need to begin to touch on your avoidance of Barnes. I appear to be exempt from that, however I didn’t think he would be. I apologise if I was presumptuous.”
You order a drink for the both of you, as well as a shot each, laughing to yourself despite being a little touched by his observance.
“No, you’re not sorry. You know you were presumptuous, you’re just banking on the fact that you’re right. And now, when I tell you you are, it will reinforce your behaviour in the future.” You inform him, letting him cage you against the bar for the third time this night, “Fortunately, I’m okay with your presumptuousness, in this circumstance.”
Zemo clinks his shot against yours, and you both take them together, laughing when you spot an incredulous Sam and a frustrated Bucky staring directly at you. His metal arm is tense, hand fisted, and you’re glad he isn’t holding on to anything because it would most certainly be crushed by now. You give them a cheeky wave, and have to bite back your snicker when Zemo, seemingly noticing their attention, pulls you tighter to him so he can press his smug little smirk into the curve of your neck.
“You’re going to get yourself attacked soon, you know?” You ask in a sing-song voice, and he chuckles against your skin, collecting his drink and letting you lead him through the rows of stolen artwork. He lets you take his hand and squeezes gently, keeping no more than a step behind you the whole way.
“I’m certain I can handle it.” He retorts, and you laugh for what feels like the thousandth time tonight. You can’t remember the last time you laughed so much. You can’t remember the last time your life felt so full.
“Man, you really are trouble, aren’t you Baron?”
~
‘Interogating’ Nagel is a complete shitshow. You don’t blame Zemo for what he did, despite Sam and Bucky’s endless irritation. Nagel was smart enough to recreate and refine the super soldier serum, and he had to be stopped. He worked for HYDRA. You hadn’t had the chance to ask, but you were sure he easily could’ve been involved in the project that created you. He was the type who would never stop, no matter what got in his way - this was his life’s work. He was the type who would keep recreating it and refining it until he made even worse monsters than he already had.
You were just thankful that Zemo dragged you out with him before the second explosion, even if you would’ve been fine with the others. You didn’t have a gun, and a firefight would have been less than ideal, though you knew you could handle it. The Baron takes down several men while wearing a purple mask before you could even try to help him, and you roll your eyes as you follow him through the rows of shipping containers until he finds a car that makes his eyes light up. You can’t help a fond smile as he helps you into the passenger seat as if you need it, and you kick your feet up onto the dash. He offers you a surprisingly boyish grin, and you don’t feel any inclination to move away when his gloved hand closes around your thigh through your jeans, giving you a gentle squeeze that sears through you. You close your hand around his, and his gaze burns through you as he starts to drive, only looking away when he absolutely has to.
~
You’re going to die if he doesn’t tuck that stupid lock of hair out of his face.
Following the trail to Karli Morgenthau to Riga was simple with the use of Zemo’s jet, but you didn’t know the trials and tribulations that awaited you when you made it to his home in Latvia. While Bucky went on a walk to be sneaky, the Baron gave you and Sam a tour of his house, which you were kind of in love with. The style of the house was stunning, and you found yourself looking around excitedly for the next subtle detail that would catch your eye. Sam was quick to agree when Zemo offered you one of the three bedrooms to stay in by yourself, claiming the master as expected, and leaving the third to Sam and James. Then, he told you you could wear any clothing you found, that the second bathroom had a shower if you needed it, and departed into the master to clean up.
Sam gave you the honour first, and you tried to be efficient with your time, turning the water up just on the right side of too hot while you scrubbed yourself down. Once you were done, you dressed in a large purple dress shirt paired with a stolen pair of boxers that covered up enough of your thighs to be decent.
Now, sitting in the living room watching Zemo in his navy silk robe as he moved confidently around the kitchen, you wish you would’ve chosen anything else. When he first saw you, his eyes had burned into you. Now, you had three pairs of eyes on you for very different reasons, and you wanted to punch someone in the mouth. Sam’s gaze is a bit disdainful, since he detests Zemo and finds it incredibly uncomfortable that you don’t. Zemo looks equal parts smug and starving, which you wouldn’t mind so much if it weren’t for James glaring between the two of you like you’d both insulted him. His glare was softer on you, sure, but it was still uncomfortable when he had no right to be upset with you for wearing clean clothes. It wasn’t your fault that they’d rushed you out of your house when you agreed to help, and you’d only packed a couple of outfits.
As the boys discuss Karli, you find yourself lost in thought. What was your endgame, here? The Flagsmashers had attacked the GRC (who could all get fucked if you were being honest) instead of simply stealing from them, blowing up a building with several people still inside. There was a death toll now. That changed things. You could sympathise with Morgenthau, but you weren’t at all comfortable with her possession of the super soldier serum - both the vials of it, and that which ran through her and her companions' veins. At this point, she seemed to be escalating, and there was nothing worse than the escalation of a being with unnatural abilities. Power corrupts, and it was beginning to corrupt her if it hadn’t already warped her mind.
The Baron rants about the serum, and Karli, and you sigh as you hop up onto the counter. Sam wants to save Karli, you know it, and you’re sad for him. You know she won’t give up, no matter the cost. Nothing could outweigh her aspirations at this point. Hopefully, speaking to her at Danya’s funeral would help, but you were aware it was equally as likely to feed Karli’s anger as it was her compassion. Your eyes track the turkish delight that Zemo tosses to Sam and you have to restrain a grin at the way he says ‘Titi’.
“Zemo is right. Karli is dangerous. It’s worth trying to speak to her to see if she can be reasoned with, but you can’t hold out too much hope, Sam. It’ll break your heart when she fails you. And she will.”
Zemo gestures to you in agreement, and you hum as he plucks a turkish delight from the dish, reaching for it. To Sam and Bucky’s disgust, he unwraps it for you, and you open your mouth obediently for it even though you might’ve normally protested. Bugging Sam and James was beginning to become a sport.
“Come on, man.” Sam grumbles under his breath as you lick the sugar from the Baron’s fingertips, and you flip him off blindly, grinning around the sweet treat. Zemo’s eyes are all molten chocolate as he watches you chew.
“Okay, you know what? I’m starving. I’m getting food. Buck, c’mon. If she wants to spend her time with the Baron, we might as well let her keep an eye on him, and get ourselves some time without him.” Sam remarks, slapping Bucky’s arm, and the two depart while you shout over your shoulder for them to bring dinner home for you. Once they’re gone, Zemo raises an eyebrow at you.
“We didn’t get to talk.” He reminds you, and you nod, “I would like to. Have I made you uncomfortable?”
You shake your head, and he examines your expression for honesty before continuing, “I hoped Selby wouldn’t take an interest in you. I apologise for… groping you the way I did. I hope I did not cause you undue discomfort. Thank you, for disarming Miss Carter when she pointed the gun at me in Madripoor.”
Shrugging, you lean towards him a little, trying to read his face despite feeling as if you know what he wants.
“Her interest made her ask fewer questions. You don’t have to apologise for touching me - you asked permission before the mission, and I enjoyed it, as I’m sure you’re aware. I know that Sam and Barnes don’t trust you, but I trust what I know of you - you’ve gone out of your way to establish consent with me when you didn’t have to, you’ve protected me despite the serum that pumps through my veins, and I know you want to put an end to the Flagsmashers if only because they chose their fate. I don’t agree with everything you’ve done, Zemo, but I… I like who you are, and I can understand your choices even if I don’t approve of them.” You explain, rolling your lip over your teeth, and he moves a little closer to you.
“Helmut.” He murmurs, and you smile, watching as he drops a hand to your knee to see if you’ll protest, “I would like it if you would call me Helmut.”
“Not Hel?” You ask playfully, grinning as his grip tightens, pulling you to the edge of the counter as he steps between your legs.
“If you want to feel the softness of my bed while I reclaim my stolen clothes, by all means.” Zemo replies, and your pupils dilate as you consider the possibilities. The consequences. He’s so close, and you clench your knees around his hips, drawing a soft gasp from his lips. You swallow it, cupping his cheeks in your hands as your lips press against his. It takes very little effort for Zemo to lift you into his arms, and he carries you to the master bedroom, kicking the door closed behind him so he can drop you on his bed in privacy. He wouldn’t put it past Barnes or Sam to interrupt them on purpose.
“You weren’t kidding - this is way softer than the bed you gave me, Hel.” You tease, and he chuckles as he crawls over you, pressing you back into the sheets. He doesn’t hover over you like you might’ve thought he would. Instead, he lays mostly on top of you, hips against yours, and you feel smothered by him in the best way possible. He kisses you softly at first, but his passion grows as you respond fiercely, your hands gliding through his hair to get a good grip.
“Have you done this before, liebling?” He asks quietly, hushed with the intimacy of the closeness between you. You shake your head, locking your legs around his hips as you comb your fingers through his hair.
“When I was… before I escaped, they made the Winter Soldier pin me to my bed and… he was about to put it inside, so I leaned up and bit his neck as hard as I could. Since then, I haven’t had much desire. I danced a lot at clubs around Europe and in Madripoor when I was running from HYDRA before I found my cabin, to get used to people, but I never… I never indulged. You were my first kiss.” You admit, curling his hair around your fingers, and you can see the way his pupils dilate at that. He captures your lips again, and you feel the rumble of his moan against you, bringing a smile to your lips.
“Do you have a purity kink, Helmut?” You ask with a giggle, and he nips at your collarbone, grinding his hips into you.
“Perhaps. I hadn’t thought of it before,” He admits breathlessly, pausing to suck a dark mark into your neck, “I like the idea of being the only man to have you.”
Warm hands slowly unbutton the shirt you’re wearing, and you lay your head back with a gasp as your Baron’s lips trail kisses down over every inch of exposed skin. He smirks against your sternum, murmuring sweetness in Sokovian that has you sighing and tangling your fingers in his hair.
“I understand you, you know?” You whisper, and he blinks up at you as you’ve cut him off in the middle of waxing poetic about the size and shape of your breasts. He raises an eyebrow, tweaking your nipple between his fingers and biting down gently on the curve of your breast.
“I know, liebling. I can feel you tremble as you burn for me.”
You grab at his robe in retaliation, shoving it down over his shoulders insistently while he simultaneously tries to get his stolen boxers off of you. It doesn’t go very well for either of you, so he sits back out of reach to take off his robe for you, leaving himself in only a pair of boxers similar to the ones you’re wearing. Your fingertips rake through his chest hair as he crawls over you, and he sighs at the feeling, pulling your legs around him. In one easy movement, he pulls you up into his lap, one hand holding your lower back while the other strips his shirt from you. He kisses you slowly, sliding his hands into your boxers to grasp at your ass, squeezing as he pushes your hips together so you can feel how much he wants you.
“Have you ever touched yourself?” Zemo whispers against your lips, forcing himself to part from you despite how much he’d rather not. He kisses along your neck as he waits for you to answer, thumbs stroking over your nipples as he grinds against you.
“I’m inexperienced, Hel, I’m not dead.” You retort with a laugh, gripping his hair, “You feel bigger than the toys I’ve used though.”
That draws a hum from your Baron, and he lays you back on the bed, hooking his fingers in your boxers so he can drag them down your legs to toss them behind him. You look down at the tent in his boxers, wetting your lips and slowly spreading your legs for him, letting him take a good long look at what he has done to you. A low groan slips from his lips and he skims his hands up your thighs to soothe the tremble in them.
“I won’t hurt you, schatz.” He reminds you, gentle but serious, and you nod to say you know and understand. You glance at his boxers again, and he follows your gaze, quickly realising what you want. You watch as he shuffles out of the tight fabric, tossing it off the side of the bed and giving you a chance to stare at him. You’ve seen a cock before from a distance, but your only other close-up experience hadn’t put you in a position to see anything and while the Winter Soldier was being taken away by medical staff, you were unable to see anything, too busy with the taste of blood and flesh in your mouth. It didn’t help that one of the scientists took it upon himself to backhand you as punishment for your act of self-defence, sending you reeling.
Helmut Zemo is a gifted man. You can’t help but stare as he gives his cock a couple slow strokes to ease his discomfort, thumb stroking over the head to collect his precum to ease the glide. He’s bigger than you expected, thick enough that you aren’t sure how he’s going to fit, and long enough that you know he’s going to bump against your cervix with every thrust. You swallow hard, mentally trying to compare his cock to the toys you’ve used in the past, and trembling as you realise he’s easily twice as thick.
Sensing your panic, Zemo crawls onto the bed with you, covering you with his body again as he presses kisses to your lips. Your legs wrap almost instinctively around his waist, but he doesn’t try to take advantage of the position, focusing on intimacy instead of quick pleasures.
“Relax, liebling. I’m right here. I have you.” he murmurs as he nuzzles against your cheek, and you let out a breathy sigh, clutching at his back. He strokes his hands up and down over your sides until you relax under his touch, then begins a slow trail of kisses down your chest and stomach. You sigh as you realise what he’s doing, and your head falls back against the pillows before his lips even manage to make contact with the wet, aching heat of your cunt. His hands close around your thighs from below, pushing them up and apart as he plants a kiss against you, then swipes the flat of his tongue up through your cunt all the way up to flick across your clit. You shudder, and he holds you a little tighter, delving in with soft licks and sucking kisses that have you grabbing at the sheets beneath you.
Tangling your fingers in his hair, you whimper his name as he swirls his tongue around your clit then sucks it into his mouth, his eyes dark as night as he stares up at you to watch your face. Every move is calculated, running off of your reactions and looking to draw out more, desperate to feel you fall apart for him. It isn’t until his fingers gently prod at your entrance that you feel anything but pleasure. A small spike of fear, soothed by a gentle kiss to your tummy that feels unexpectedly sweet.
One finger, and then a second fill you, but you feel no pain. It’s about the same girth as the toy you’ve used, but no toy has ever been able to stroke across that spot inside of you with such surgical precision. His lips close around your clit, and you let out a cry as the dual sensations overwhelm you, trying your damnedest not to yank on his hair though you’re sure you fail since he grunts against you. There is nothing urgent or rushed about this - this is a slow, methodical dismantling of every rational thought, every worry, every fear you’ve ever had. This is a reconstruction on a spiritual level, replacing worries with pleasure, and fears with happiness, and thoughts with need.
You realise as you have the thought to tell Zemo how good he’s making you feel that there’s certainly no question about it. You didn’t even notice how much noise you were making, the soft whines and moans falling from your lips completely unrestrained, and it’s as if you zone back into your surroundings only to have them wiped away. A crook of your Baron’s fingers and a particularly hard suck on your clit have you tossing your head back against the pillows and shouting his name, “Baron!” and “Helmut!” in equal measure.
You return to yourself again to find yourself cradled in your Baron’s arms, his nose nuzzling gently against your cheekbone as he strokes your back, your thighs clenched around his hips as he presses you bodily into the mattress. You blink, and he smiles at the sight of you, dipping down for a gentle kiss that makes you tremble.
“Oh.” You whisper, and he laughs softly.
“Are you okay, schatz? Do you need a minute?” Helmut asks. You shake your head urgently, tangling your fingers in his hair so you can pull him into a kiss that has him moaning into your mouth. You chase the taste of yourself, tongue sliding across his, then part with a gasp.
“I need you.” You whisper, and he groans against your lips, grinding his hips into yours.
“You have me.” He promises, pushing himself up a little so he can take himself in hand and press the head of his cock against your desperate cunt.
“Now, Hel. Don’t make me wait.”
His groan reverberates through you as he pushes inside, inch by inch, carving his way through your insides. By the time he bottoms out, you’re panting for breath, clinging to his back as he presses his chest to yours. The closeness soothes you, and keeps you from digging in your nails.
“Fuck.” You moan, and he groans in response, nodding against your shoulder.
“You’re so tight, schatz, you’re strangling my cock.” He murmurs without a hint of complaint in his tone. You don’t think you’ll ever be ready when he finally starts to pull out, but his next thrust drives the breath from your lungs, and you sob, tears in your eyes from the pleasure. He kisses them away so gently that you nearly want to cry again, whispering to you about how beautiful you are, how perfect you feel around him, and how desperately he needs you to be his.
“I am!” You proclaim, and he groans his approval, catching your lips in a kiss that sends fire racing through your veins. His pace has been brutally slow so far, but he begins to move faster now, each thrust driving him in to the hilt. It feels like punishment. It feels like atoning. It feels like rebirth. It feels like a new beginning without the fear that’s kept you trapped in the woods all by yourself for so many years you felt like giving up. Blunt teeth clamp around your neck and you shudder, tilting your head back to bare more of it to him.
“Mine.” He mutters around your skin, and you nod frantically.
“Yours. And you’re mine, Helmut. My Baron. I won’t give you back.” You insist, and his laugh is broken by a groan. By the time he releases his hold on you, you’ve got a fresh bruise darkening on your throat.
“You may have to, schatz. Your friends don’t want me out of prison.” He reminds you softly even as he shatters you into pieces, each thrust breaking you apart and putting you back together again. You clutch him tighter to you like somehow, in the shattering and reassembling, he can become part of you. Pressure builds inside of you until you feel fit to explode.
“F-Fuck them.” You growl, and he reaches between you to stroke your clit, gritting his teeth. He groans - nearly growls - as he comes, filling you to the brim and fucking it in deeper with his next couple of thrusts. The heat sends you reeling, and you choke on a gasp as your orgasm breaks across you like a tsunami, washing you clean.
Laying together, panting for breath under your Baron’s sturdy weight, you realise the choice you’ve made for yourself. He’s gentle as he pulls out of you, stroking your legs to make sure you aren’t too stiff, and reaching for his towel to clean you up.
“Perhaps, showering after this might have been a wiser choice.” He murmurs, and you shake your head.
“No, clean was nice, I would’ve been self conscious otherwise. This was perfect. I’ll shower again if I have to.”
That draws a soft laugh from Zemo’s lips, and he curls around you, nuzzling his face into your neck, “Do you need anything from me?”
You contemplate his question for a moment, then hum softly to yourself, nodding.
“Just hold me a little longer. I promise I’ll get up soon.”
Helmut rolls his eyes, pressing kisses along the line of your shoulder as he strokes his hands down over your body.
“You’re in no rush, liebling. We have time.”
You sigh, because you know that you really don’t.
~
You’re reminded that Baron Helmut Zemo had a child before you as well as a wife when he interacts with the children in Riga. You overhear him speaking to them, and acknowledge them with a nod when he gestures to you and tells them you’re safe too. You know this will likely come back to bite you, but you let Zemo play his games. He’s got a plan, clearly, and you’re happy enough to go along with it. At least someone has one.
Ever since Sam and Bucky got back to the house, they’ve been giving you odd looks, and you can see the judgement in their eyes. You aren’t quite sure if they think you’re too stupid to know yourself and have just been wrapped up in Zemo’s sugary lies, or if they think you’ve switched sides somehow, but either way it’s beginning to get on your nerves. You aren’t a child, and you’re not stupid. You know when someone is lying to you, and you don’t sense mistruths or even manipulation from your Baron.
As Zemo leads you back into the house with Bucky and Sam, the argument starts up again. Sam believes in Karli’s goodness, while Bucky is being more practical. You roll your eyes as you sit beside Sam, and Zemo admits that he knows where the funeral for Donya will be.
“Keep talking.” Bucky snaps, and you breath out a heavy sigh. Like that’ll ever happen.
“Leaving you to turn on me once we get to Karli. Hmm. I prefer to keep my leverage.” Zemo replies simply. You watch as Bucky stands, grabbing Zemo’s glass and tossing it at the wall.
“You wanna see what someone can do with leverage?” He asks, and you plant your feet loudly, startling both men.
“Simmer down before I fucking make you.” You snap, while Sam gets up to stop Bucky.
“Take it easy. Don’t engage him. He’s just gonna extort you and do that stupid head tilt thing.” The leveller head says, drawing a snort from you, “Let me make a call.”
 You roll your eyes, holding your hand out for a cup.
“You need to stop antagonising them. I don’t want to have to hurt them, Helmut.”
~
The arrival of John Walker throws a wrench in things. The new Captain America with everything to prove is not a stable resource, and you want nothing to do with him. As he approaches, all ramped up to 11 like it's his new state of being, you put yourself between him and Zemo.
“This better be an unbelievable explanation-”
“Hey, take it easy before it gets weird.” Sam insists, his gaze flicking to you, and you tilt your head innocently as if you’ve no idea what he means.
“I know where Karli is.” Zemo explains, beginning to move past Walker. John puts a hand on Zemo’s chest, and you grab it before it can make contact, holding onto him tightly.
“Well whe-”
“Awww, ain’t this romantic?” You ask teasingly, giving him a gentle shove out of Zemo’s way. He scowls at you, and you let him go to slip by with your Baron.
“All we know is, it’s a memorial.” Sam continues behind you, and you ignore the argument as Walker tries to ‘reason’ with Sam. Thank God for Lemar, as he seems to be the only thing keeping Walker in line.
“We’ll deal with you later.” Walker states firmly, pointing first to Zemo, and then you.
“I’m sure it will all come to an agreeable conclusion. My associate is just up ahead.” Zemo replies, and you walk with him towards the little girl he’d been speaking to about Donya’s funeral. She leads you into a building, and you growl as Walker pushes Zemo, handcuffing him to a metal furnace door. Bucky hooks his arms under your armpits to stop you from fighting back, and you kick your legs out to smack against Walker’s stupid shield, running up his back and flipping over Barnes. He fights to get ahold of you, throwing you to the ground finally when you keep getting loose.
“Hey, you’ve got ten minutes-” Walker shouts after Sam.
“Really?” Zemo asks as he tests his handcuffs. His gaze finds you, checking you’re alright before looking back at John Walker.
“-then we’re going things my way.” The new Captain America finishes, making you roll your eyes.
“Aggressive.” Helmut comments, and you snort, “but I get it.”
You eye the handcuffs, but Zemo shakes his head, and you sigh.
“So, who the fuck is this?” John asks, and Bucky shakes his head.
“She’s none of your fucking business, Walker. Don’t look at her.”
Lemar and John both put their hands up, brows raised as they examine you, and you lean against the furnace door next to your Baron to keep an eye on the situation. Walker is clearly falling apart, staring at his shield like a psychopath, and you catch Lemar looking at you. You raise an eyebrow, then look at Walker and nod towards him. He follows your gaze, but doesn’t say anything.
“Uh-uh. No, no, no, this is a bad idea.” Walker starts, and you let Barnes field this one, knowing it won’t end well. You step closer to Zemo, watching the clearly unstable man with wariness in your eyes. You don’t want to have anything to do with him if you can avoid it. He goes after Sam, Lemar and Bucky at his back, and you rush to follow after giving Zemo a pointed look to take care of himself.
“You’re going to ruin it, Walker, give Sam a fucking chance. It’s like you want blood, you fucking maniac. What kind of Captain America doesn’t believe in peaceful conversation to avoid violence!?”
Your words fall on deaf ears, and you watch Karli run, Bucky close on her heels. You bolt off into the maze of the building, looking for where Karli could have gone, only to jump at a gunshot. You run in that direction, gunshots ringing in your ears, and you pray Zemo’s okay. You enter the room just moments after a shield collides with Zemo’s head, blue liquid and glass sprayed across the floor, and Karli nowhere to be found. You growl so deeply your chest feels like it’s about to come apart, and you’re across the room before you even know it.
“WALKER!”
Your fist nearly meets Walker’s spine, but Bucky grabs it, wrenching you back.
“NO! He could’ve killed him! You’re no Captain America, you fucking monster, I’ll tear you to pieces! Let me at him, Buck, I could kill him right here and solve all your problems. I’m already on the run, what’s one more stain on my name? Let me hurt him, please, come on, let me hurt him!” You shout, worming in Barnes’ grasp, but he’s stronger than you. All you’ve got on him is speed.
“Control your rabid dog.” Walker snaps, and you scream with frustration. Barnes drags you a few feet away, holding you tightly to him while you rage. Walker and Lemar leave, and only then does he let go of you, letting you sink to lift Zemo into your arms. You stand easily with his weight, your face permanently etched into a sneer as you stalk past Sam towards your Baron’s home. Sam follows you, watching as you lay Zemo down on the couch and get a cold towel for his head. When he wakes with a groan of pain, you bring him a drink, covering his eyes before he can open them.
“Are you okay?” He asks you, and you sigh.
“Barnes held me back. I was gonna break his spine.”
“Jesus Christ, kid, what the hell?” Sam asks, and you roll your eyes.
“He deserves worse. He’s a loose fucking cannon and you know it. The title is too much for him - it’s making him insane.” You spit as you stalk out of the room, “I need to wash up. If Walker shows him, tell him I’m going to rip his spine out and strangle him with it.”
Zemo laughs, but Sam scoffs, slamming down into an armchair with a muttered curse about excessive violence. 
~
“Shouldn’t have given him the shield.”
“I didn’t give him the shield.” 
“Well, Steve definitely didn’t.” You hear the tail end of Sam and Bucky’s argument as you exit the bathroom, tossing your bag down as the door slams open from Walker’s kick.
“Alright, that’s it, let’s go. I’m now ordering you to turn him over.” Walker orders as he stalks in with Lemar at his back.
“Hey, now, slow your roll. Shield or no shield, the only thing you’re running in here is your mouth.” Sam retorts calmly, “Now, I had Karli and you overstepped. He’s actually proven himself useful today, and we’ll need all hands on deck for whatever’s coming next.”
“How do you want the rest of this conversation to go, Sam, huh?” John asks, and you roll your eyes, moving forwards as Zemo circles the room towards you, “Should I put down the shield? Make it fair?”
You snort as he does just that, cracking your knuckles, only to be interrupted by the timely arrival of the Dora Milaje. Your shoulders relax, and Zemo gives you a quizzical look, but you don’t respond. They might be coming for Zemo, but Walker won’t be able to help himself. He’ll step right into their way, and get his ass kicked. You watch as exactly as predicted, Walker gets himself an asskicking, and you watch with a smile as you share a drink with your Baron. You’re not even slightly surprised when he grabs your hand and drags you into the bathroom behind him, closing and locking the door once you’ve grabbed your bag.
Together, you flee into the sewers, your hand gripping his as you race towards freedom. No matter how much you wanted to kick Walker’s ass, you know that the Dora Milaje will be able to do a better, and more demoralising job. And that’s what you’d prefer, honestly. You want John Walker broken down to his core as he realises that he never deserved the title of Captain America. Truthfully, he was just a placeholder while Sam figured his shit out.
~
The message you send to Barnes is simple.
‘If you take him from me, I will hunt you down to the ends of the Earth. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, James Buchanan Barnes.’
You discard the burner phone on a table outside of a cafe, running to catch up with Zemo where he waits in a nearby alley.
~
“They’ll come for me.” Helmut murmurs as he rubs his soapy hands across your stomach, up to cup your breasts, “I can only escape for so long.”
You snort, leaning back into his arms while your massage shampoo into his hair for him.
“They’ll certainly try. There are plenty of places we can hide.” You insist, sighing happily as he nuzzles against your neck. You dip under the running water to rinse yourself off, stealing a kiss from your Baron once the water runs clear. He swaps places with you and you run your hands over him slowly to rinse the soap away. Once the bubbles have been washed away, he presses you into the wall of the shower, and you gasp as he angles himself.
“Okay?” He asks, breathless, and you nod eagerly, spreading your legs a little wider. He pushes inside of you with a sigh, and you grasp at the tiles, eyes rolling back in your head.
“God, you feel so good around me, liebling. I did not… I did not expect this. I did not expect you.” He murmurs, grabbing your hips and rocking into you.
“I don’t know what you’ve done to me.” You whisper, letting him pull you back against him so he can steal a kiss, “I won’t lose you, Helmut. I won’t. If they come for you, I’ll destroy them.”
He sighs, holding you tighter, pressing soothing kisses to your neck, “You cannot, schatz. Do not sacrifice yourself for me.”
His next thrust makes you cry out, and he slips a hand between your thighs to stroke across your clit, driving you closer to the edge. It’s been barely any time at all, but you’ve been pent up with emotions, from aborted fights to nearly losing him. He holds you together as you tip over the edge in his arms, his thrusts quickening before you’ve even caught your breath. He strokes your clit firmly, and you find yourself caught in the drag of the tide, unexpectedly rising to your crest again so quickly you find yourself shaking in his arms.
“I can’t!” You gasp, and he chuckles against your neck.
“You can, and you will. Come for me, schatz. Let your Baron make you feel good.”
You claw at the tiles, pinned between the cold of them and the heat of his chest against your back, and your legs shake as he sends you spiralling over the edge into your end, shouting his name into the steam. He grunts against your neck, biting into your shoulder as he buries himself balls deep inside of you to fill you up. Gentle but strong hands clean you up, then guide you out of the shower and into a warm, plush robe. Your Baron guides you into the bedroom, and then into the bed, crawling in behind you to curl up around your back.
“Sleep, liebling. A nap will make things seem clearer when we wake.”
~
Together with Zemo, you decide to take your time together to hunt down the HYDRA lab you’d been kept in, and the scientists who may have worked there and escaped their due. Finding the lab was simple enough considering you’d escaped it fourteen years ago on foot. It wasn’t in any of HYDRA’s released records, which worries you. How many more facilities do they have hiding? Zemo watches with a smile on his face as you wrench open the door, breaking its seal as if the metal were molten. Not four steps in, you find the bloody bullet buried in the wall that took Imogen’s life, and you hear her screaming in your head for you to keep running as the blood drained rapidly from her body. There’s a stain on the floor, and it taunts you, outlining part of the shape of a body. You find her tucked into a security office only a few doors down, and Zemo has to lead you away, reading the security logs to discover what happened. Normally, she would have been discarded.
According to the logs, after you broke out, they went into a catastrophic failure, and the entire lab was purged with the loss of their only test subject. They didn’t think you’d make your way back to the lab so nothing was actually removed aside from personnel, but they didn’t need the facility so they closed it down and sealed it in case they needed it at a later date. You hunt through their files with your Baron, comparing them to the records of HYDRA operatives who’ve been found, until you find only one name that hasn’t been tagged.
Vanya Nikitin, one of the lead scientists behind your project. You remember him. He’s the one who hit you after you wounded their precious Winter Soldier. You stare at his picture, chest heaving as you find yourself lost in memories. How he used to touch your face and chest when you were strapped down and losing consciousness. How he stroked your stomach before he unleashed the Winter Soldier on you. How he promised you’d birth an army for them.
“Schatz.”
You jerk out of your spiral and glance at Helmut, letting him guide you over to look at the documents he’s digging through. He gestures to a paper and you muddle your way through it, your Russian rusty at best.
Fertility rates… show remarkable increase.
Your Baron’s hand strokes up and down your spine soothingly, and you crumple the page in your hand, “I can take the morning after pill.”
“You could.” Helmut agreed, sliding his arms around your waist, soothing you with his heat against your back, “For once, liebling, the choice is yours. I am happy to let you make this decision - I will support you if you want a child, and I will support you if you do not. You can have whatever you want.”
You nod, resting against him for a moment and letting yourself breathe. Something about being here with him is soothing. Like you’ve reclaimed the space from such evil, and it is once more just a simple laboratory instead of a place in which you were tormented.
“I can, can’t I? I mean, who the fuck is gonna stop me?”
Helmut smiles against your skin, and you only break away from him a few moments later to begin packing up the documents. Your phone dings, and you pull it out, looking at the screen with a raised eyebrow. You don’t know how the fuck you have reception in here, but it appears you do. The message makes you smile, and you show Helmut, stealing a kiss from him with happiness bubbling in your gut like champagne.
You’re emptying out a filing cabinet when you stumble across gold, pulling out Nikitin’s file and tossing it down on the desk in front of you, open to his personal information.
“Hey, Helmut, how do you feel about hunting for squid?”
“Whatever you like, schatz. I will give you whatever you like.”
~
“Breaking news. We’ve got a report from the Czech Republic - Two dead and thankfully none injured after an explosion at what appears to be a former HYDRA facility. Captain America Sam Wilson expresses his profound regret at the loss of Baron Helmut Zemo, former Sokovian royalty and the man who once tried to bring the Avengers to ruin. According to Wilson, the other deceased was a woman named Y/N Y/L/N, a victim of a HYDRA plot to create an army of super soldiers by way of forced impregnation of two victims of the super soldier serum. It appears that the two were attempting to destroy the facility in which she had been forcefully confined from the age of eight after she was kidnapped, and were caught when the detonation went off early.
James Buchanan Barnes and Sam Wilson will be holding a vigil for HYDRA victims in Y/L/N’s honour tonight outside of City Hall. A second vigil will be held at the Sokovian Memorial in three days time in honour of the late Baron and his family, to honour all the Sokovian lives lost, and those who no longer have a home.”
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Zemo and delightful
In honor of my pipes freezing on Christmas…
Helmut Zemo x Female Reader
Frozen fractals of ice crystallize their way across the window panes of your hideout as you try to hug the numbing cold out of your own torso, his stare from across the room doing little to warm you up.
“You’re shivering,” his voice reaches you before his feet do, his gloved fingers skillfully unbuttoning his jacket as he approaches.
“What?” You continue to rub your hands up and down your arms instinctively, failing to increase your warmth at all. “I’m fine.”
“Don’t be foolish, draga,” he opens his coat to you, revealing a thick purple turtleneck underneath. “Let us help each other.”
You stare at him in awe before the plummeting temperature prickles at your cheeks and rattles your bones, nearly forcing you to step into him with your arms still clung tightly around your body. You let him envelop you with his cloak like some sort of winged creature shielding you from the night, frigid and biting against your skin. His inherent tenderness surprises you as he draws you in close, the warmth of his body spreading into your chest as he deftly wraps his arms around you.
“Delightful, isn’t it? Our bodies keeping each other warm?” he whispers against your hair as you nestle into his shoulder, the soft fur of his collar gently brushing against your face.
“Maybe.” You want to at least put on some semblance of an act before you unclasp your arms and wrap them around his abdomen, squeezing him affectionately. “Just don’t tell Sam.”
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violetmuses · 11 months
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"Don't Be Kind" || Bucky Barnes (18+ MINORS DNI) ❤️🖤🦾
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OR
"Expensive" || Zemo (18+ MINORS DNI) 💜🖤💸
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mariaxxxxx · 2 months
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The love you offer me (Zemo x Female Reader One-Shot)
Summary: Short stories of how Helmut J. Zemo destroyed his heart.
Warnings: 18+ sex, anal sex, vaginal sex, pussy eating, anguish, depression, separation, unprotected sex, cream pie, pregnancy, loss of a child, manipulation, abusive relationship.
A/N: English is not my mother tongue. I apologize for any errors.
Work count: 9.352
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Helmut J. Zemo was like no one You had ever met before. Although he is a very vindictive man, he is actually the ultimate embodiment of manipulation, as he is able to carefully plan and execute every step necessary to accomplish his goals. Despite his intense behavior and capacity for extreme violence and destruction, Helmut possessed a more pleasant side to his personality. He was a family man, a loving companion, with a passion for collecting art and high-value cars, and even dancing in a nightclub.
Maybe it was his pleasant personality that led you to him in the first place. The charismatic, respectful and passionate Helmut Zemo who would never hurt You. Helmut is good, but not in the way everyone thinks. He's good at wooing you with expensive trips and gifts, good at making you scream his name on his private plane. He's good at taking you out of reality, destroying your mind when you're under him. He's good at making You beg to be ruined. He is good at adorning your neck and wrists with precious jewelry; he is good at kissing you and telling you how much he loves you. Zemo is everything.
Unfortunately, he was also good at breaking your heart into tiny pieces without any chance of concert. He was good, excellent and perfect in reducing You to nothing more than a broken doll.
(…)
You still remember the first time you saw him. You were a simple, new waitress at a nightclub in Madripoor. On your first day on the job, you were already cleaning tables, serving drinks and keeping the cash register full, even if it meant losing precious nights of sleep. You were more than grateful for that. Staying in Madripoor, in the upper city, was really expensive and after his father's death things really got difficult for his side. Unfortunately for him, his damned father had wiped out his bank accounts with gambling and drinking, leaving nothing but negative accounts. After burying them the bills arrived; rent electricity, food, and hospital and burial bills. You wouldn't be able to maintain everything with a simple part-time job and, to your delight, your colleague Nathan offered you the chance at employment.
It was a dangerous place indeed. With rude men, women of dubious reputation and corrupt foreigners, but the money at the end of the night made it all worth it. There was also protection exercised over site workers; it wasn't uncommon for a funny guy to try his luck by touching you under your skirt. You were a pretty and delicate little thing for the place and that attracted curious people as to why a pretty girl like You stopped in a place like that. Countless times Mark, the security guard, had to chase away mean men and jealous women to keep you alive.
One night, like any other, the most bizarre version of Charles' little angels you've ever seen appeared; the damned winter soldier, the smiling tiger and a man in a big fur coat. You thought it was fun. But confusion soon ensued at the scene when the Winter Soldier attacked some men, causing a general fight. You were hiding behind the counter when his gaze met yours. Maybe, if You weren't so enchanted by those damn eyes, you would have noticed the pain behind it. In an almost supernatural way, You struggled to keep your balance as he continued to stare in your direction.
The moment was interrupted with the departure of the three men and the news that the club would be closed for the rest of the night. The way home was strange, not to mention funny. His gaze never left your idle mind, sending shivers down your spine and contractions in your stomach. You remember finding him handsome and old, older than you, but that didn't matter after all he was beautiful. You slept that night with him in your head like a teenager discovering her first love.
A week later You found him while walking through the streets of the upper city carrying bags; You had received payment and decided to stock up on supplies at home by going to the market. You were distracted watching the ships parked at the pier that you didn't notice someone going in the same direction, they collided quickly and you didn't have time to stop it. You struggled to keep your balance, failing to fall to the floor with your bags. You opened your eyes, fighting the embarrassment, and saw some of your purchases scattered across the floor.
"Are you well?" A voice with a thick accent. You moved your head quickly ready to trash talk the man, but something stopped you.
There he was, the man from the nightclub, the one who would rip your heart out of your chest, at that time You didn't know. For some reason, you bit your tongue to avoid the curses and opened your mouth to show the most beautiful smile.
“I’m fine” You said as you stood up.
"He is sure? I am really sorry." He apologized again. You thought the attempt to alleviate all the embarrassment was cute.
With his help, you gathered up the fallen products on the floor, trying to ignore how his touch made your heart flutter as he handed you a can of peas. After making sure everything was collected, You turned on your heel about to leave. His hand held your forearm keeping you in place. The heat that came from his touch took you to heaven for a few brief minutes only to be replaced by a slight disappointment when he took it away.
You looked at him, trying to say something funny about the situation, anything that would make you seem less clumsy, but you couldn't. The brown eyes were looking at You. No, they were marking You. You couldn't move or speak.
"Everything is fine." You said after a long minute of silence. "Thank you for helping me."
“Let me do something to make up for this misfortune.” He said. “I can take her home. My car is parked right there.”
His cheeks heated at the tempting but dangerous proposition. Madripoor was a den of outlaws and fugitives. You wouldn't risk your safety with a stranger no matter how handsome he was.
“I prefer to walk.” You were definitely being petulant and he seemed amused by it.
“Stop being stubborn.” You didn't miss the authoritative tone in his voice. “You’re full of bags and you just got hurt. I just want to take care of You.”
“My parents taught me not to trust strangers.” You said amusingly. “But if it pleases you You can walk home with me.”
It wouldn't hurt to flirt a little; after all, you were young and single in front of a handsome man. Sometimes, you blamed your naivety for allowing yourself to be carried away so easily by him, being at the height of your youth and ready to experience all the good things in the world. You allowed yourself to be swept away with a simple bump into the curb. As you sunk into his smile, his hand brought you back to reality. A comforting touch on your arm and a friendly expression on your face.
"Let's go."
He walked you home and offered to even carry your bags. The path was filled with conversations.
“Are you from Madripoor?” You questioned.
"No." He said. “I'm here on business.”
“I saw you at the club the night the Winter Soldier showed up, but you looked different. You wore a funny coat.”
He let out a little laugh. Cute.
"Oh yeah." You rounded a corner. “I was helping an old friend.”
“You guys made a mess. We had to clean everything up the next morning.”
“Do you work at that place?” There was a hint of mockery in his voice and it bothered you briefly. It wasn't one of the best jobs in the world, but it was still a job and it paid all the bills.
"Yes." You said with a firm voice. “I work waiting tables, sometimes making drinks, sometimes cleaning and sometimes taking care of the cash register. I do everything."
“Do your parents allow you to work there?”
You looked at him, in disbelief to hear something so silly. You were young, but not too young to ask your parents for permission – if You still had them.
“My mother left when I was little and my father died.” You said. “But that doesn’t matter since I wouldn’t need their permission to work.”
"Of course not. You’re a big girl now and you can take care of yourself.”
If you were a little smarter at that time you would have been able to capture the tone of eroticism in his voice when he said those words, but at that moment you thought it was funny. The conversation was interrupted when you arrived at your residence. You stopped in front of your building and looked at it.
“Thanks for following along.”
“I must be grateful for allowing me to accompany you. It’s been so long since I’ve had a pretty girl by my side.” He winked and you smiled, feeling your cheeks heat up once again.
"You are very kind." His words came out as a whisper, even though it wasn't his intention.
He reached into his back pocket, took out a black cell phone and handed it to You.
“Write down your number.” He instructed. “I would like to talk to you more.”
You put your number on his cell phone, convincing yourself that this was all just a quick flirt with an older man. How wrong you were.
(...)
You underestimated how flirtatious and charming Helmut would be. You thought he would just take you to bed and disappear before dawn, but that wasn't what happened. You spent hours sharing text messages that would evolve into phone calls and, later, romantic dates. Days with him turned into weeks and, without warning, into months. He wasn't at all interested in fucking you and leaving, no, Helmut was different; he spoiled her with expensive dates and exorbitant gifts. Before you knew it, you were falling for him.
You had been dating for four months when he took you to bed for the first time. It was good, but clumsy and quick. Helmut made her cum that night, but he himself had finished quickly with just a few thrusts. You didn't mind finishing quickly since the man had brought a beautiful orgasm out of you with his fingers and tongue. In the eighth month, you and he made your relationship official. Helmut took you to a restaurant in the upper city. The food was good, the waiters were polite and the atmosphere was pleasant. He gave her a simple and delicate necklace; with a gold chain and a pendant with a design that resembled an H. You thought the H symbolized the initial of his name. He placed the necklace around your neck and stood in front of you to admire it. At that moment, you noticed emotions passing through your face, love, longing and sadness. He covered it up with a smile.
“Wear it always, my dear.” He said as he played with the pendant. “It would break my heart if You took it away.”
You wore that necklace without ever taking it off your neck. You were in love and would do anything to make him happy. What you didn't expect was to be fired from your job. When You demanded an explanation, your former boss just gave a disinterested shrug.
“Orders from above.”
Of course, the bastard wouldn't say anything more than that. In Madripoor, loudmouths didn't have happy endings. You returned home frustrated that night, wondering how you were going to support yourself now. You had no family or studies to guarantee you a good job, all that was left were part-time jobs and bars with a dubious reputation. Still, you needed to find something quickly, as the month would soon end and new bills would arrive.
When he got home, his cell phone beeped in his pocket with a new message from Helmut; the man who won a place in your heart in just a few weeks. The message only said that he would pick her up that night for a date. So authoritative You thought. Your current state didn't allow you to have fun, but you swallowed all your anguish to be with him. You might not have fallen in love so quickly if he was just attractive; a pretty European faces to look at on a sunny afternoon. Something superficial, like the designer handbags in the window that you wanted but would never have. Deep down, deep down, You knew there was something wrong with falling in love so quickly, but who could blame You? The man was simply perfect.
After reflecting for a moment, you walked to the bedroom to improve your swollen face from crying and look pretty for him. He showed up in his luxury car at the appointed time, Helmut was always so punctual. You sat down next to him and gave him a small peck.
"Where are we going?" You asked as you fastened your seatbelt.
"A surprise." He whispered with a false air of mystery.
Helmut took you to the pier that night where a huge white yacht was waiting for you.
“My god” You sighed as you came across the grandeur of the yacht. Helmut stood beside you, his hand on your waist guiding you inside.
“Come, I want to show you everything.”
He introduced you to the deck, the captain's cabin, the crew, the room you would share for the night. After the short tour You sat at a table set on the deck with exquisite dishes under the starlight.
“What a great surprise.” You said with a big smile. “I’ve never been on a boat before.”
“It saddens my heart. A girl like you deserves everything the world has to offer.”
When he tells you this your heart jumps out of your chest. After all, no one had ever loved you like this to the point of spoiling you with such beautiful things. The moment of joy was replaced with sudden distress as You, for the first time, realized the vast difference in social class between You. Helmut was a fit, cultured and rich man. You were just a young thing without a family, education or job.
“Helmut.” You started talking. “What will happen to us?”
“What do you mean, darling?” He asked with a slight tilt of his head.
“It’s just…” You took a deep breath. “...we've been dating for a few months and I...it's just...We're so different.”
“Oh, my dear I know I'm too old for You.”
You scolded yourself for not being good with words and causing that misunderstanding. You didn't want to hurt him, so you recanted as quickly as you could.
"It's not that." You said it too loudly. “It’s just that you’re so rich and I’m me. I don’t even have my job anymore.”
"I know." He raised the glass of white wine to his lips. “I asked them to fire you, I didn’t want you working in that dangerous place with men of ill repute.”
“Helmut!” You exclaimed indignantly. “I needed that job. How will I support myself?”
"I will take care of you." There was a wild gleam in his eyes as he said this.
Maybe it was passion speaking too loudly, but you didn't question him any further and just allowed yourself to be taken care of by him. You talk that night, there was no room for silence at that table. He told him his story; about Sokovia, the Avengers, the prison, about Sam and Bucky and how he was now an international fugitive. In normal situations, an abrupt reaction would be expected, but you didn't do it. At that point, You were sure that you loved this man and that he loved you to the point of trusting You so much to tell him all his problems. You comforted him as he told you about his family buried in the rubble of New Gadi after the Avengers battle and the killer robot, Ultron, created by them.
You smiled beside him as he recounted the antics of his son, Carl. You comforted him when he shared a close bond with his father. When he started talking about his late wife with so much love and devotion a spark lit in You because of the way he spoke; Helmut exercised such devotion over the woman that she could be his own private goddess. You saw the sadness, longing and love run through his eyes. You ignored the jealousy and resentment by convincing yourself that she was dead.
“So, you’re telling me to run away alongside you?” You ask in disbelief. You were sitting on the deck floor, your legs spread across his lap, his hands lightly brushing your skin.
"Yes." He says with a mischievous smile. “There is nothing for You here. Come with me and I will give you everything.”
You accepted the invitation as there was nothing for You in Madripoor.
You guys spent a week or two, you're not sure, on the yacht going from place to place across the ocean. You and him talked a lot, drank a lot and fucked a lot. To his surprise, Helmut took her to Germany. You disembarked from the yacht on a Sunday night. On the way to the hotel You tried not to show all your perplexity at being in a completely new place. You had never left Madripoor before. The biggest surprise was the hotel he chose. With a huge reception, golden pillars and employees who guided you to your hotel room.
"Did you like it?" Helmut asked.
You didn't make a point of answering right away, you were too busy, impressed by the large windows with a privileged view of the city.
“I loved it” You shouted while jumping up and down with joy. Helmut laughed behind You at your excitement.
“I’m going to draw a bath. Then let's get some sleep. Tomorrow we need to buy clothes for You.”
“Uhm.” You murmured, still impressed by the grandeur of that room.
With your crazy and sudden impulse to go after one of the most wanted men in the world You didn't have time to grab clothes. Helmut assured You that your belongings in the old apartment would be well taken care of and that the expenses left by You would be paid. Although you were sad to leave some gifts he gave you in his old apartment, he assured you that he would give you others. During the yacht trip, You didn't miss his clothes, preferring to wear his shirts; Helmut had a lot of fun with your lack of underwear and it allowed him to fuck you everywhere on that yacht.
“The bath is ready.” Helmut announced from the bathroom.
With a burst of joy, you went to the bathroom, which turned out to be even more elegant and sophisticated than the large windows. You liked it and quickly got used to that life.
(...)
The time with Helmut was funny, everything seemed to move so slowly. You stayed in Germany for a year and six months, settling in the city of Munich in a small village far from the big center surrounded by trees and stone roads. Helmut was kind to you and taught you to speak fluent German, to dance and differentiate between the different forks that were on the table. He instructed you to go back to studying, although it wasn't his wish, he enrolled you in a semester-long fine arts course at the University of Munich. You didn't hate art, but you didn't identify with it enough to study the subject.
In the end, despite yourself, you took the course and finished it with honors and letters of recommendation for internships in galleries. Helmut was proud and to congratulate you he presented you with a new wardrobe of haute couture clothes. Your stay in Germany ended with the authorities discovering your existence in the country. You and Helmut fled in the early hours of the morning, heading straight to the airport where his private jet was waiting for you.
“We’ll be fine, my dear.” He said while hugging You.
Leaving Germany was difficult, as you left behind a few friendships and opportunities for a bright future. But You consoled yourself by remembering that you were with him, by his side, and wherever Helmut took you You would be okay.
The next stop was in Spain, on one of the Balearic Islands, where a small but luxurious house was waiting for you. You settled in quickly and to your surprise Helmut introduced you to the Oeznik family butler, an old man with a great sense of humor and loyalty.
“We can have pizza today, Oeznik.” You said as you walked around the kitchen with bare feet carrying dishes from one place to another.
“You should eat something healthier, my lady. You young people love to eat junk.” Oeznik said, watching You walk from one side to the other. “You won’t like your choice.”
“He will like it.” You guaranteed it. “I’m going to order a pizza.”
Oeznik was right that Helmut wouldn't like the pizza.
“You don’t like that kind of thing.” Said Helmut with clear mockery in his voice as You placed the slice in front of him.
"I love pizza." You said, trying to hide your discomfort. “We eat a lot of that in Madripoor.”
“Well, I took you for pizza in Venice and you hated it.” Helmut said with nostalgia in his voice. “You said mixing tomato sauce and pasta was a crime against nature.”
It was the first time Helmut looked at You with dazed eyes. As if he was not seeing You, but seeing someone else.
“We never went to Italy, Helm.” You mutter.
Helmut blinks rapidly as if trying to get something out of his mind and smiles in your direction.
“Let’s eat the pizza, little dove.”
The nickname was new, You noticed. That night you ate the pizza reluctantly, because with each bite a bitter taste formed in your mouth.
In the following months, Helmut was a very generous man towards You. He gave you a luxury apartment in Ibiza, created a bank account with $3,000,000 so that You could have a good life in case he was arrested again and enrolled you, again, in another semester arts course. You took the course reluctantly, because you didn't identify with it, but it made you happy so you were happy, and you had the advantage of learning a new language; Helmut joked about how smart You were at learning new languages in such a short time. To his delight, the course ended in exactly four months. You and he celebrated with a candlelit dinner by the sea.
"Marry me?" Helmut asked with his knees on the floor and a diamond ring in his hand.
"Yes." You said in one breath.
“Baroness Zemo.” He said as he put the ring on her finger. “I will make you very happy, little dove.”
You hugged him, kissed him and swore your eternal love to him. After dinner he dragged you back home; you walked through the door holding each other without separating your lips from each other. One moment you were on the stairs and the next you were in the bedroom. In bed, with a shirtless Helmut on top of you. His clothes disappeared. His panties and bra were the only things covering his body. His hands were touching you, exploring his skin while his lips devoured yours. Helmut knew what he was doing. He was reducing you to dust.
His hand grabs your panties, his finger trailing down your covered slit. A wet spot made him smile proudly.
“Always so wet for me, my little dove.” He whispered in her ear. You tried not to think about how much that nickname bothered you, but to your delight his fingers began to trace circles around your clit. Erasing everything from your mind. “Do you like this, little dove? Do you like how I make you feel?”
The lack of response made him accelerate his movements. His head spun at the sensation. He was torturing You; The moisture in her panties increased, creating a slight discomfort with the contact between the wet fabric and the hot flesh.
"Answer me. Use the damn words, little dove.” His voice was deep, his accent stronger and more authoritative.
“Yes, Helmut.” You said. He kissed you, his tongue finding its way to his.
He pulled away, kissing his way down to her covered breasts where he nibbled on her right nipple through the lacy fabric. You moaned loudly at the stimulation. He bent down completely, with his head between his legs, freed himself from her completely soaked panties. He brought his face closer to her wet pussy, inhaling her scent. He traced a line between her folds, playing with her pussy. Lick after lick, Helmut placed his lips on her folds and began to suck her clit.
You screamed at the quick action and pleasure. His fingers teased your entrance, slowly massaging your arousal until he finally slipped one of them inside and then another. Helmut had deliciously large fingers, bigger than his own, and he reached the g-spot with flying colors. The way he moved them, with such agility, was breathtaking. The established rhythm was specular. His fingers pumped in and out of You while his tongue stimulated your clit, making You feel better than ever.
Suddenly, he lifted his face away from You, but his fingers kept moving inside. His lips glistened with a mixture of his own saliva and his arousal. That and the damn smile on his face made her belly tighten.
“Enjoy little dove.”
The tightness in his stomach intensified, a tingling started from the tips of his toes, went up his legs, going to his stomach causing an explosion of pure ecstasy. You felt his soul leave his body for a few seconds and return. You were stuck in your little world of satisfaction as Helmut got rid of his pants and underwear. He placed himself on top of you, both hands rested on the sides of his face. The feeling of his dick, dripping with pre-cum, made You look down.
Helmut had a dick that was large in length and thickness, half tilted to the right, white and with a reddish head with a drop of pre-cum leaking out. You reached out to his arm and touched him. His breath hitched as his palm closed around his member to stroke it. His thumb slipped on the tip, making his dick twitch in circles in his hand.
"Little Dove." He groaned,
Her hand trailed up and down, down and up, pumping him as he grew harder and wetter. It was gentle touches, but it was driving him crazy. After some more stimulation, Helmut moved his hand away and positioned himself at her entrance. He spread her legs, with his right hand guided his cock between her slit. A brief lapse of consciousness appeared in his brain as he remembered the lack of protection. You didn't use contraceptives, as Helmut thought they were a poison bomb, always preferring to use condoms.
“Helmut.” You said between moans. “The condom...”
“We don’t need her.” He said come in and cuddles.
You moaned loudly when you felt him inside you. The feeling of having him without the latex was simply sublime. With quick movements, the head of his dick reached her spongy spot. The sensation of it made your eyes roll back, electricity course through your body aware of what his cock was doing. His legs opened wider for him. You felt it everywhere. The deeper he went, the more pleasure you felt. His hands grab his hair, pulling it lightly into fists.
Like the popping of a bottle You have, once again, reached climax. You have never been so satisfied in your life. Helmut fucked you like there was no tomorrow. You felt him go faster, riding out his own release, and when he finally did, releasing all of his semen inside of You a name escaped his lips.
“Heike.” He said between whispers and moans.
Helmut pulled out of You and rolled onto his side, falling asleep. You remain in bed, rubbing your face with your hands, hurt from hearing him cry out for the dead woman as he spilled himself inside you. It was an unraveling feeling, as if strong waves flooded your heart with sadness and disappointment. You even tried to convince yourself that you heard wrong. It wasn't her name, You thought. Maybe, it was something in his mother tongue that resembled his name, maybe he just blurted it out in his frenzy, maybe he didn't love you that much and thought about his wife every time You shared a bed.
At that moment, You found yourself crying yourself to sleep at the possibility of Helmut thinking about his late wife every time he was with You.
(...)
Things were great for a while. Helmut spoiled you, your stay in Spain increased, the preparations for the wedding were almost ready and sex became constant. You memorized the things Helmut loved during sex. The way he moaned when You were on your knees with his dick in your mouth, massaging his balls. The way his eyebrows do when You ride him. You even noticed how quickly he finished when You let him eat his anus. So things were great, but there was still growing discomfort.
Helmut still moaned for Heike every time he came. You decide to pretend not to notice his late wife's name slip past his lips every time. You just hid in the bathroom, with the shower running and burst into tears. You never imagined that being by his side would have you competing for affection with a dead woman. After all, she was rotting underground, while You were there in the prime of your youth with all the love and affection to give. You just suppressed all those feelings and pretended everything was fine, pushing all those thoughts away and convincing yourself that he loved you. When you were convinced of this, you would take a long shower to hide your swollen face and leave the bathroom with a big smile.
The wedding took place in mid-July, the seventeenth to be exact. You exchanged your vows in a minimalist ceremony with the presence of Oeznik, a priest and a justice of the peace to establish the prenuptial agreements.
“I promise to love, respect you and make you happy for the rest of our lives.” Helmut recited the vows while placing the ring on her finger.
“I promise to love you, respect you and yours until death do us part.” You recited your vows when you put the ring on his finger.
“You can kiss the night.” Said the priest.
Helmut kissed you with so much passion that you truly believed again that he loved you. The party was held at home, a dinner between the two of you, just to celebrate the union of two souls. Due to his fugitive status, he was not allowed more than that.
Married life was easy. You instructed the servants how to take care of the house, you often went to the beauty salon to look beautiful and you had sex with your husband whenever asked. You could live like this for the rest of your life next to him if it weren't for Heike's growing presence in your lives. After being married for a while, being called Heike didn't just extend to bed, but to everyday life. The first time was during a walk through the streets of Barcelona.
“I love this coat.” You pointed to a window where a mannequin was dressed in a cloth coat with colorful abstract designs.
“It’s so messy.” He said. “I thought you liked more minimalist clothes.”
“Helmy.” You groaned. “I love messy clothes. What would our lives be without neon clothes and red boots?”
He laughed at your words and said something that would break your heart forever.
“You look so different, Heike.”
Your eyes burned into his dark ones, anger welled up inside You, ready to explode like a volcano. You let out a nervous sigh as you feel tears start to well up in your eyes. You try to swallow the solutions that reached your throat.
“I...” He starts to say, taking a step forward to take you in his arms, but you move away, shaking your head.
“No, don’t you dare apologize.”
You leave him standing on the sidewalk and run in the opposite direction, blending into the crowd. You spent the whole day on the streets trying to forget the humiliation and pain caused in your heart. After a long period of walking and reflection, you convince him that everything is fine and that he loved you for who you were. You came home at night and found him in the living room. Helmut walked up to You hoping to apologize.
"Everything is fine." You said.
You took one more look at him before going up to the bathroom and locking yourself in there. You turned on the shower and burst into tears and sobs. Deep down, you knew, you always knew. He didn't love you. He tried to turn You into his dead wife; with the art courses, the language classes, the new clothes, the strange nicknames. You were just a substitute, an object to replace what he had lost.
You took a long shower, got dressed in comfy pajamas, and did your nightly skin care routine. When going down the stairs that led to the room You found Helmut walking with a pizza box in his hand towards the stairs. He stopped and smiled when he saw you.
“I ordered pizza, my favorite.”
Oh! That nickname. It had been so long since he called you that.
"I like pizza." You whispered.
"I know." He responded equally in a whisper. “I want to spoil you tonight. I’ll start with the food.”
You smiled at his gesture. You sat by the fireplace where you ate pizza and wine, talked banal things and laughed at silly things. When they finished, Helmut took you to the bedroom where he mounted you and fucked you hard. When he came it was his name that left your lips, You were happy about that. It was his name he said and not hers, but his happiness was short-lived. For in his sleep Helmut cried out to her. By Heike.
You got up and walked to the bathroom where you cried through the night, returning to bed before sunrise. When the day started, You just went downstairs, smiled and shared breakfast next to him. He didn't bring it up and you pretended everything was fine. He still said her name at inopportune moments where you pretended not to hear. His trips to the bathroom at night were becoming more and more frequent.
(...)
You and Helmut migrated to another country. You didn't know the exact location, but according to Oeznik, you were close to what would have once been Sokovia. You have settled into an immense residence, with several bedrooms, bathrooms and living rooms worthy of the title of Baron. The property was large; surrounded by trees and high walls with large silver gates.
"It's so big!" You exclaimed as you got out of the car and came across the mansion. “I’ve never seen a house as big as this one.”
“It’s been in my family for generations.” Helmut said. “I had to rebuild it after the fall of Sokovia, but here we are. You need to see your new home, Baroness.”
Helmut guided you inside where a line of employees waited for you. He introduced you one by one and indicated their services.
“They are here to serve your Baroness.” He whispered in her ear. “I know you will be a great lady for this property.”
“Yes” You mumbled. “I’m going to be a good lady.”
You really were a good lady; The employees tolerated you and things went reasonably well. However, the comparisons with the old lady still echoed between the walls, although Oeznik tried to hold the servants' tongues, it was not uncommon. You heard whispers among them about how Mrs. Heike had more class, how Mrs. Heike knew the Baron's tastes, how Mrs. Heike was beautiful, just as Mrs. Heike had given birth to a healthy boy. You tried to persuade Helmut to fire them, but he disapproved saying how difficult it was to find trustworthy people with his current fugitive status, he said that the former employees were trustworthy and Sokovia's last legacy. You just accepted your situation by hiding in the bathroom every time you heard her name echo.
“What was she like?” You questioned Oeznik one day as you walked through the estate. You felt trapped inside the house and decided to walk a little, Oeznik offered to keep you company.
“Madam...” said the old man with a clear sign of reprimand.
“Everyone loved her.” A bitter taste formed in his mouth. “Please tell me about him.”
“She was pretty.” He started to say. “She had noble blood in her veins and class in her feet. Their marriage was arranged, like all Sokovian royal marriages, but it worked. The young Baron loved her as soon as he saw her.”
You felt your throat close and your stomach tighten with the jealousy that formed.
“Did Helmut love her?”
"Yes."
You felt her eyes burn. You didn't know why she felt this way now, You knew how important she had been, the most important in Helmut's life, and there You were, wallowing in her insecure questions. His body shuddered in the icy breeze.
“Do I look like her?”
You needed to sink even deeper with your damned questions, which you knew the answer to, but you needed to hear it from someone else to torture yourself even more.
“A little, ma’am.” Oeznik seemed hesitant to continue. “You have similar trajectories, I would say. The courses taken in Germany and Spain, the way he dresses and even the necklace around his neck, it was the same necklace that the young Baron of Heike wore when he made their courtship official. He also called her his little dove.”
You let out a nervous sigh, barely holding back the tears. You turn and walk quickly towards the house, leaving the old butler behind. You feel your heart slowly submerge under the waves of pain. Your nimble feet guide you to a familiar place, the bathroom. You pass through the long corridors and the employees who whisper about your deplorable state. Reaching the bathroom door was a relief, because as soon as you reached the door, tears fell from your eyes.
Your mind reflects on how, little by little, Helmut turned you into her. He instructed you to dress like her, to study like her, to be like her. You were just a clay doll in the hands of the skilled sculptor to be sculpted to his whim. You wanted to leave, get as far away from him as possible, but as you stood there, feeling your heart breaking, you realized you couldn't leave. The love you felt for him kept you together, even the mention of leaving him could open a wound in your soul that You were fighting to stop.
After the tears dried, You performed your usual ritual; shower, cleanse and go downstairs as if nothing was happening. As if your soul wasn't broken, your bones aching and your heart stabbed. You found Helmut in his office carrying papers back and forth. He smiled when he saw you and patted your thigh indicating for you to sit there. You sat up and snuggled in, placing your face in his neck, inhaling the scent of his expensive cologne.
“Helmut.” You mumbled. "You love me?"
“Of course I love dove.” He kissed her forehead and turned his attention back to the papers.
Little dove, little dove, little dove, little dove, little dove. That word echoed in your ears and you bit your tongue to avoid crying.
The days passed quickly when You established a routine. You alternated between instructing the employees and paying attention to Helmut. Comparisons with the former lady seemed to have diminished drastically; Helmut no longer cried out to her in his dream, and the servants no longer whispered. You knew that there was a finger of the old butler behind this, but you chose to believe that it wasn't that. You preferred to believe that you had finally achieved your rightful place in Helmut's heart and the full respect of the employees. His trips to the bathroom no longer existed, that is, more or less. You no longer went to the bathroom to cry, but you often went to the bathroom to vomit.
It happened on a Saturday morning. You woke up early and left Helmut sleeping in bed, you walked to the kitchen to eat something since your stomach demanded food. You found a loaf of bread on the counter, when you put it in your mouth a wave of nausea came and you ran to the bathroom. After that morning you vomited for any nonsense.
"Enough." Helmut exclaimed when he saw you kneeling on the toilet putting out all the dinner. “We’re going to the doctor now.”
"It is not necessary." You said. "I am..."
You were interrupted by another wave of nausea where you let it all out again. The next day, the doctor came and diagnosed you with severe food poisoning; He recommended drinking plenty of fluids, avoiding heavy foods and using lactobacilli. You followed all the recommendations, but the nausea continued and with it came other symptoms; her blood pressure plummeted with every movement, her breasts felt like they wanted to explode, her period didn't start, the cramps kicked her ass and the fatigue was constant.
You spent half the day sleeping and the other half vomiting. It wasn't uncommon for Helmut to find you dozing in some corner of the house; You once dozed off while eating dinner. Helmut called the doctor again, this time; he diagnosed you with a virus. You constantly took anti-flu medications, drank lots of water and ate foods rich in fiber and vitamins. But the symptoms didn't go away at all. Helmut was visibly irritated by the doctor's incompetence in curing you.
On a Monday morning, you were in the kitchen devouring bread filled with ketchup and peanut butter; You had woken up that morning with a strange desire and decided to fulfill it, the crazy mixture proved to be delicious. A maid, named Jenna, found you in the kitchen eating your strange food.
"Madam." Greeted Jenna. “Can I help you with something?”
"Don't worry." You said with your mouth full. “I just felt like eating bread with ketchup and peanut butter. I must be going crazy, but this feels so good.”
“Are you having cravings?” The maid asked.
"Yes. Cravings, nausea, sleepiness and sore nipples. The doctor said it has a virus, but nothing is helping.”
You took a generous bite of your bread as Jenna seemed to ponder something.
“Did you take a pregnancy test?”
Her throat closed and you choked on a piece of bread stuck in your throat. Jenna ran to help you. You coughed, watered, and sniffled as you choked on the piece of dough. After the feeling passed, you looked at the maid in disbelief that she would suggest something so absurd.
"Do not say silly things. I can’t be pregnant.”
"Why not? She is a married woman. I'm sure the Baroness has been fulfilling her duties as a wife.”
Sex in your marriage was one thing You couldn't complain about. Helmut fucked you often and always ejaculated inside you; the use of condoms was no longer necessary. It wasn't in her plans to be a mother one day, but the idea of carrying a part of her and Helmut in her womb caused good feelings.
“Jenna.” You started talking. “I could go into town and buy some pregnancy tests.”
“Of course, my lady.”
Jenna brought five pregnancy tests from different brands. You used them all and to her surprise, all five gave a positive signal. You look down, moved by what you see and convinced yourself that you wanted this. With the tests in hand, You want this more than you could ever imagine. Your smile is dulled by the tears that fall silently on your features, You needed to tell him.
He loved you, the life you built together and he loved children. The loss of his son broke a part of him that he could never get over. Now, You had the chance to make him happy again, rebuild a new family. For hours, trapped in the bathroom, you try to gather the courage to tell him. Every time the time approached, you found excuses not to leave. But his plans were thwarted by a knock on the door.
“Little dove, are you there?” It was Helmut's voice behind the door. “Are you sick again? I will call the doctor.”
"No." You screamed, feeling despair flood your senses.
You didn't want him to find out like this, it wasn't fair. You would prepare a space moment where the news would be given and celebrated with kisses. You hide the pregnancy tests in a drawer full of towels and open the door to find him.
"Everything is fine?" He questioned worriedly.
“It’s okay” You reassured him. “Only one got sick quickly.”
“Come on, let’s get something to eat.” You followed him, dinner went well with conversations and jokes between you.
Keeping the secret proved difficult since every time you saw him you wanted to shout from the rooftops about your pregnancy. With Oeznik's help, you prepared a special night for you, complete with typical Sokovian food. It would be simple, Helmut would arrive at home at night where you would have dinner and then you would tell him the news. You took the day to take care of yourself, wanting to look pretty for him, you prepared your hair, did your nails and wore a beautiful purple dress, Helmut's favorite color.
You turned around to admire your appearance in the mirror, it looked beautiful. Her hands caressed her still unchanging stomach, feeling a mix of emotions for generating life in her womb. A silly smile formed on his lips as he imagined how good it would be to have a little boy or girl running down these long corridors with black hair and brown eyes like Helmut's. The feeling was interrupted by knocking on the door.
“Madam, the Baron has already arrived and is in his office.” It was Jenna. “Should I serve dinner?”
"Yes. Serve dinner and release other employees. I want to be alone with my husband today.”
Jenna left leaving You alone in the room. One last look at your reflection, You left the room heading towards the stairs. Your intention was to go to the dining room, but somehow You ended up passing through a door. Behind her were pictures, books and a large Persian rug. Adornments that probably dated back to the medieval age. The house was big and even after so long You hadn't seen all the rooms, it was not uncommon to get lost between the different doors that led to uninhabitable rooms.
Before You have the chance to turn around, voices reach your ears. The nature of the noises was obvious and, from the sounds, they were both having a serious conversation. You recognized Oeznik's soft voice followed by Helmut's Eastern European accented voice. You tried to find the source of the voice and came across a false wall with a vast view of Helmut's office, he and Oeznik seemed immersed in conversation.
"This is not right." Oeznik exclaimed.
You froze in your spot. The old butler never got excited, he always kept a soft and friendly voice. You decided to listen to more of the conversation.
“She is my wife.” Helmut said. “I will do whatever I want.”
“Turn her into the late Mrs. Zemo? For God's sake Helmut. This isn’t doing her any good, the employees comment on her constant trips to the bathroom to cry.”
You wanted to leave, get as far away from them as possible. But as you lay there, holding a piece of your heart, You realized you couldn't move.
“She is not Heike. She never will be.”
Every word that came out of his mouth was meant to hurt you whether intentionally or not. You held firm as you wanted to see where this would lead. You hear Helmut sigh and the echoing words break you forever.
“You have no idea how many times I imagined it was Heike next to me. How many times have I called for her. I almost asked if I could call her that, but instead I did it without permission. I never wanted her, not really. I just thought I would have another chance and I actually did; They are so similar physically and it was easy to compel her to do things that pleased me.”
Helmut was cruel. Helmut never loved You. He played with your heart for his own benefit. Deep down, you always knew, preferring to deceive yourself with small gestures of apology and accepting to play the role of the dead woman. He molded her like a little doll so she wouldn't be alone. He never saw you as a companion, a mind or a human being. You were just a substitute and the child You carried in your womb would soon play the role of the lost son.
A sudden pain hit his chest; his heart was no longer in place. The other times he broke your heart were nothing compared to this. The more his words stuck in her mind, the more intense the pain became. Waves of shock and grief hit his chest as You tried to process what was happening.
His feet retreat, your shaky legs failing as you try to move. One wrong move causes you to fall against a dresser that falls to the floor, causing a loud noise. You hear a surprised gasp from Helmut and, unfortunately for You, he emerges through a false door. With all the strength you have left, you turn to see him.
“Baby” You heard him whisper.
His eyes connect; he knew You had heard every word. His expression reflected the one You had when you heard them. The shock, the surprise and the sadness. He saw the pain on his face, the way you held on to a piece of furniture to keep from collapsing. A flash of regret ran through his eyes when he saw how you grabbed the necklace around his neck. The necklace that belonged to her, the damned Heike. The necklace that, even though he knew what it meant, never left his neck so as not to hurt him.
You lost yourself over the years to make him happy. You allowed yourself to have your heart crushed multiple times just to satisfy you and receive nothing but disappointment in return. He never cared about you and he would never care about the child that was forming in your womb.
“Let’s talk.” You heard him beg. “Let’s order pizza and talk about it.”
You didn't let out a tear when you heard his apology. You also didn't cry when you ripped the necklace from your neck and threw it towards him. You didn't cry when you went upstairs and locked yourself in your room. You didn't cry when Helmut desperately banged on the door clamoring for your attention. You didn't cry, not even when you made the decision to leave, packing all your clothes, shoes and jewelry in your suitcases ready to leave forever; You no longer cried for Helmut J. Zemo. He could go fuck himself for everything he caused you.
(…)
Waking up the next day was relatively easy. You got up, brushed your teeth, skin care routine, passport, suitcases and handbag with intimate items. Everything was in its right place. You closed your bags and left them next to the door. A quick look at the clock you had on your dresser indicating that it was not long before you left that place and never came back. You opened the bedroom door and allowed two servants to enter who took your bags.
“Put them in the car, boys.” You instructed.
"Yes ma'am." They said together leaving the room with their bags.
One last look at the room, You walked out the door heading towards the stairs. You found the bastard at the foot of the stairs waiting for you. He had a swollen face, indicative of a bad night's sleep, with messy hair, something so unusual for him. A part of You liked seeing him so broken. Helmut was selfish and evil. You put an end to his selfishness and evil.
"Let me pass." You demanded the moment he stood in front of you, blocking your exit.
“Please let me...”
“Whatever You have to say, I don’t want to hear it. Get out of my way let me go, stop being such an idiot.”
His own words surprised him. You never had the strength to face him, not really, nor to release the anguish you felt for so long. Your words were met with silence, none of You dared to speak. His breathing became heavy, after a few minutes, Helmut finally gave in and broke the silence.
"Sorry." He whispers.
“That doesn’t solve anything.” You snort.
"I know." he says. "Where are you going?"
Maybe it would be better to just turn around and walk away, before the conversation gets worse. That would have been the right thing to do. Unfortunately, the sadness was not motivated by reason.
“You are a patient and persistent man, I know you will figure it out on your own.”
"Do not go, please." He begged. "Please, do not go. Do not leave me alone. Stay. I will improve how I treat myself and I will never hurt you again. I love you dear."
On a normal day you'd go back to him for a lot less. A few days ago, you would have given him everything, without a doubt. But now, the devotion You had for him was buried. A high wall was built around his heart and not even the warmest words could break it down.
"Stay." He begged again. “It will be different.”
Helmut's love was strange. He appeared to be generous, but he was destructive and cruel. He never had anything to give you other than scraps; it was easy to let yourself be fooled with good charisma. A part, deep in his head, begged you to come back to him. But it wasn't fair to You to allow yourself to live all of this once again and it wouldn't be fair to the child You were carrying. Helmut was not worthy of You, he was not worthy of his son, he was not worthy of anything. You had to save yourself, You had to save what little was left of your heart.
"No."
With the final word You left without looking back. Carrying with him a son that Zemo wouldn't live with, he didn't deserve this, he didn't deserve anything that came from You. One day, with persistence, he would discover the existence of a child conceived by you, but it wouldn't be You who would tell. As the car drives, you lean your head against the window, caress your stomach and allow yourself to dream of a day that would open your heart again.
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