[ the winter soldier carried out operations in every corner of the world. this is a matter of public record by now, but bucky doesn't need to read about his past to know the truth of it anymore. he's been on every inhabited continent for one reason or another, in and out of hundreds of cities without leaving so much as a footprint. the things he's seen, the places he's been -
nothing compares to this. nothing. not even the sunrise over brooklyn, the memories he cherishes most now that they're his to claim; absolutely nothing in the world can hold a candle to golden rays of light that shine down on wakanda.
it stills something inside of him, quiets the static noise of the darker thoughts that stalk around his mind. part of it is the princess' treatment, he knows this and there aren't enough words to express gratitude for everything they've done for him here - but much as she might declare it for herself, he can't give shuri all the credit.
it's in the land itself. something honest, solid and firm; something beautiful that sets his heart at ease. he spends most of his time alone out here, just sitting. he's not one for meditation or prayer or any of the things james buchanan barnes might've done given boundless freedom and an open sky. he just ... sits. watches. breathes.
and for the first time in a long time - possibly ever - he's at peace. god help him, but he could stay here forever even knowing every reason why he can't. who would ever choose to leave this golden utopia? #wakandaforever my dudes where can he sign the fuck up ]
killmonger had been defeated, and wakanda is returning back to normal, but the world is in a state of upheaval. wakanda is buzzing with electricity, with excitement, with trepediation, and even now, though t'challa knows he is making the right choice for his people, he knows that his people may not feel the same.
he is to reveal the secrets of this utopia to the world, and that . . . well. it's certainly a lot that's weighing on his shoulders, and definitely a bold first act, for a new king. but killmonger -- no, erik, n'jadaka, his cousin, had been right. in a way.
we must love one another, and support one another. they truly have nothing to lose but their chains.
but still, through all of nakia's reassurances, and shuri's boastful declaration that t'challa will be the most beloved king wakanda had ever seen, t'challa still has a lot on his mind, before he goes to the united nations. before he pulls back the curtain. and so he is taking a step outside, to breathe in the beauty of his home, to have a moment of peace before the whirlwind begins again, when he sees a familiar figure.
for a moment, t'challa considers leaving him be. there is still a certain . . . awkwardness, from the young king, for that whole sorry i tried to kill you error. but he decides leaving is an act of cowardice and foolishness, and besides -- this cliff belongs to him, now. he'll walk on it as he pleases. ]
It is rare to see you so close to the city. [ a voice from behind bucky, as t'challa steps forward, his normally quiet footsteps purposefully loud. he won't be responsible for triggering the winter soldier. ] Are you bored with the border, or did Shuri want to run more tests?
[ if it were any other person in any other place, tension would wind its way into his shoulders the moment they approached him in his reverie. but bucky knows the swift and silent steps of the black panther while he’s hunting, as well as the difference between him and the man beside him now. everything he has right now - his mind, his body, his freedom - was given to him by t’challa. bringing him here to wakanda, into his home that so few outsiders even know exists, is a kindness he can never repay.
there’s nothing else he could possibly want from the king, and he is most certainly not looking for an apology. bucky might not be the one that killed his father, but there are sons that will never stop grieving for the people taken by the winter soldier. it takes a better man to see past that and admit his own mistakes; no, t’challa owes him nothing and bucky owes him everything.
so he smiles openly to the king, inclining his head respectfully by way of greeting before looking back to the wonder of his kingdom before them. ]
I’ve been a lab rat for a lot of different people. Can’t really say I mind being hers - she always looks like she’s having fun.
[ his voice is fond, soft-spoken as he may always be. this place is good for him; these people are even better. ]
But she told me the true beauty of Wakanda isn’t just out there, it’s here in the city too. It’s orobably just a different kind of test, but -
[ he pauses, watching the movement of all the lives bustling through their days below them. even from this distance, he can see how vibrant and alive everything is. he looks back up to the king with another muted smile. ]
[ t'challa is quiet, as bucky speaks, and he eventually comes to stand beside him, to look out upon the city. it is always alive, rustling and talking and moving and constantly innovating itself into something wonderful. pure, boisterous, untouched. what could have been, for the rest of his people.
the city is something that has weighed on his mind heavily, for the last week or so. unveiling it is a huge risk, but a necessary one.
it is time for the rest of the world to know the wakanda he loves, too. ]
She only says that because she invented ninety percent of what you see before you. [ it's said lightly, but with much affection. t'challa adores his baby sister to the moon and back, however aggravating she can be. he slides his hands into the pockets of his pants, letting his eyes wander across the spires of the city center. ] But it is a beautiful city, full of life, and innovation. My father used to call it the hidden heart of Africa.
[ t'challa pauses, at that. ]
What do you see, when you see the city, Sergeant Barnes?
[ he corrects gently, habit more than anything at this point. he isn’t a soldier anymore, and the name barnes doesn’t belong to him yet, if it ever will again. but he ponders t’challa’s question for a moment, staring out into the distance with the foggy gaze of a man who has seen too much and not enough all at once. ]
Peace. [ he says finally, then shakes his head. ] But not the fairytale kind, y’know, the crap they sell people to make them believe the crimes we commit are worth it. This?
[ another pause as he considers his thoughts carefully. the hidden heart of africa. that seems apt. he thinks of new york’s dirty and crowded streets, of hong kong’s murky skies, of russia’s ice cold emptiness. everything mankind does is in search of something better than what they have now. the things they take from each other and themselves seem justified if they stay ignorant to the holes they leave behind.
wakanda is different. nature and technology coexist here, advancement without the exploitation of life and beauty. it’s unlike anywhere else on earth, and bucky honestly can’t blame them for hiding from the world for so long. he’s seen what men do when they want something, and how far they’ll go to get it. when he looks at this city, for the first time, he sees what life could be like if it wasn’t a fucking competition. ]
[ it's a quiet repetition, a correction, as t'challa commits that to memory. it is hard, sometimes, to forget title and all that. if he ever sees steve rogers again, it will be difficult to drop the whole 'captain' thing, though he's certain steve would rather he do so immediately.
royalty makes things difficult, sometimes. but what is not difficult is bucky's answer, and it warms t'challa's heart, in a way. because it is true -- peace is what t'challa feels, whenever he returns home from the chaotic landscape that is the outside world. hatefulness, anger, frustration . . . all of that brought his father to his death, and nearly dragged t'challa with it.
here? his heart beats with the land, and the sky, and the city, and the thrum of vibranium underneath his feet. peace is what he feels, because he feels alive, here. ]
War is not, has never, and will never be our way, though we descend from the hearts and minds of warriors. [ he says it with great purpose, as he sets himself down to sit on the rock, to draw his arms around his knees, to be comfortable and at ease next to bucky. ] Men stronger than I have been tempted by it, and I am sure I will be no different, when the time comes. This, I think is worth fighting for. To defend such peace, from those who seek to destroy it.
[ t'challa pauses, there, though, and his lips tug into a faint smile, his tone becoming wry. ]
Though I am not so willing to house the Avengers once Tony Stark runs out of rental property to detroy in America.
[ the queen mother will object, and t'challa doesn't argue with the women in his life. ]
[ bucky snorts in amusement and rubs at his left shoulder absentmindedly. tony stark. there’s a complication in his life that may never be straightened. grieving sons all around the world; it’s what one does with that grief that defines them. bucky hid in his, and would’ve been content to do so for the rest of his life before vienna.
yet here’s a man that’s ready to expose his grief to the world as kindness and charity. righting wrongs instead of making more of them. bucky’s only met one other man that made him see the world in a different light, a brighter one, and it gives him something like hope to find another beside him. ]
Think you’ll do just fine without ‘em. [ which reminds him, and he frowns slightly - ] I heard you had to fight for it recently, though. Dunno how much help I would’ve been gimping around like this, but I’m sorry I wasn’t here for it.
[ even if he isn’t a soldier, some things are worth fighting for, and bucky owes a lot to this country and its people. you have my axe, t’challa. ]
[ t'challa glances over at bucky, at his comment, his eyes flickering slightly as he looks bucky up and down before returning his gaze to wakanda. to his city. in the distance, you can see the scars in the land, of ross' spaceship creating gouges in the land. ]
It was a fight that I had to complete on my own.
[ finally, and t'challa's fingers fiddle with his grandfather's ring that rests on his hand. it was a family matter, and a family affair. n'jadaka needed to be defeated by t'challa, and no one else. anything else, or anyone else, would have been an insult, and would have driven his cousin's point home.
no, it had to be him, to drive the knife between his ribs. ]
I would have refused your help, had you offered it. But the sentiment is appreciated.
[ at that, bucky actually does laugh. it's not a mean thing; hell, it's such an odd sound to come from him that it almost forces its way out like a breath of fresh air. two good men, the only genuinely good men in the world as far as he's concerned, and they're so goddamn alike in their own ways. bucky thinks of a scrawny little punk crumpled on the ground, still muttering 'i can do this all day' with blood on his face.
he's seen enough bad things to know the good ones when they're presented to him. t'challa is honest, forthright, noble without naivety. it's hard to have ideals like that in a world that doesn't bend so easily, but ... maybe that's the point of holding on to them.
at least, he knows that's what steve would say. ]
You're a good man, T'Challa. Can't say I know a whole lot of kings - [ although he may have killed one or two; he sighs a little and nods his head towards the city. ] - but you'll probably be pretty good at that too.
[ he thinks so. he hopes so. for one so thoroughly rooted in the darkness, he wants to have faith that someone will be able to carry the light for everyone else. it's why he followed steve into every dumb fight, why he wouldn't mind following t'challa into the next one. ]
[ indeed, t'challa has really only known one king intimately well, and t'chaka was a good king. in his own way. but t'challa is different, and he wants to be different, but: ]
My father once told me that it is hard, for a good man to be king.
[ he doesn't acknowledge the compliment yet, though t'challa does hear it, and accepts it. he believes he is a good man, though he desperately wants to be better. he's made mistakes, but he likes to think that overall, t'challa is good. everyone else seems to think so; he will gauge their opinions over his own.
he glances over at bucky, a slight smile on his lips. ]
It has been a rough beginning to my reign, but I like to think it can only go up from here.
[ the black panther is typically a silent predator, but sometimes, the lithe cat gets caught off guard. it happens in this instance, on the streets of oakland. he hasn't let nakia know he is here, which was a mistake -- because these individuals have some type of new technology. something that shuri, angrily in his ear, told him do not let that touch you.
unfortunately for t'challa, it touched him. it negated some aspect of the armor. and as a result, he's far more battered and bruised than usual. the black panther slinks away, after removing the technology from their hands and destroying it (much to shuri's bemoaning), to recover. he knows where he is, vaguely, and soon, nakia hears a rattle of a fire escape.
it's been, maybe, a month since they've seen each other. an impossibly long time. but soon, in the early hours of the morning, nakia hears a light tapping against the window. claws that graze the glass, finding the locking mechanism that only t'challa would know, given the technology used to keep nakia safe. and soon, the window opens, and the black panther slips inside, the window closing behind him.
[ he is lucky that she heard the rattling of the fire escape, and therefore had the warning and preparation to pull herself from her bed and find her spear, hidden expertly near the side of her bed. there is a distant part of her that is thrilled by the idea that someone would be daft enough to try and sneak in her home, and that same part of her is entertained by what will come of this poor thief.
but then a much closer, much more specific part reminds her that they had to get through her security, to know how to disarm the mechanics of it and enter her home. she moves silently from her bedroom down the hall, listening to each creak of the glass, each soft, careful step.
she is prepared, slinking around just behind the intruder, the room still dark and therefore still unsure of who it is until she hears her name. ]
T'challa?
[ she would recognize that voice anywhere, and it is the only reason she lowers her spear, mere seconds away from driving its tip directly through his gut. the shock of the moment is the only reason behind her second's worth of shock, before she is setting the spear against the wall and stepping over to him, frustration clear in her tone. ]
You did not tell me you were coming to America. Why are you here? What's going on?
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
timeasmymeasure
hello darkness my old friend
Date: 2018-02-22 02:22 am (UTC)nothing compares to this. nothing. not even the sunrise over brooklyn, the memories he cherishes most now that they're his to claim; absolutely nothing in the world can hold a candle to golden rays of light that shine down on wakanda.
it stills something inside of him, quiets the static noise of the darker thoughts that stalk around his mind. part of it is the princess' treatment, he knows this and there aren't enough words to express gratitude for everything they've done for him here - but much as she might declare it for herself, he can't give shuri all the credit.
it's in the land itself. something honest, solid and firm; something beautiful that sets his heart at ease. he spends most of his time alone out here, just sitting. he's not one for meditation or prayer or any of the things james buchanan barnes might've done given boundless freedom and an open sky. he just ... sits. watches. breathes.
and for the first time in a long time - possibly ever - he's at peace. god help him, but he could stay here forever even knowing every reason why he can't. who would ever choose to leave this golden utopia? #wakandaforever my dudes where can he sign the fuck up ]
yells!!!!
Date: 2018-02-22 03:53 am (UTC)killmonger had been defeated, and wakanda is returning back to normal, but the world is in a state of upheaval. wakanda is buzzing with electricity, with excitement, with trepediation, and even now, though t'challa knows he is making the right choice for his people, he knows that his people may not feel the same.
he is to reveal the secrets of this utopia to the world, and that . . . well. it's certainly a lot that's weighing on his shoulders, and definitely a bold first act, for a new king. but killmonger -- no, erik, n'jadaka, his cousin, had been right. in a way.
we must love one another, and support one another. they truly have nothing to lose but their chains.
but still, through all of nakia's reassurances, and shuri's boastful declaration that t'challa will be the most beloved king wakanda had ever seen, t'challa still has a lot on his mind, before he goes to the united nations. before he pulls back the curtain. and so he is taking a step outside, to breathe in the beauty of his home, to have a moment of peace before the whirlwind begins again, when he sees a familiar figure.
for a moment, t'challa considers leaving him be. there is still a certain . . . awkwardness, from the young king, for that whole sorry i tried to kill you error. but he decides leaving is an act of cowardice and foolishness, and besides -- this cliff belongs to him, now. he'll walk on it as he pleases. ]
It is rare to see you so close to the city. [ a voice from behind bucky, as t'challa steps forward, his normally quiet footsteps purposefully loud. he won't be responsible for triggering the winter soldier. ] Are you bored with the border, or did Shuri want to run more tests?
no subject
Date: 2018-02-22 04:33 am (UTC)there’s nothing else he could possibly want from the king, and he is most certainly not looking for an apology. bucky might not be the one that killed his father, but there are sons that will never stop grieving for the people taken by the winter soldier. it takes a better man to see past that and admit his own mistakes; no, t’challa owes him nothing and bucky owes him everything.
so he smiles openly to the king, inclining his head respectfully by way of greeting before looking back to the wonder of his kingdom before them. ]
I’ve been a lab rat for a lot of different people. Can’t really say I mind being hers - she always looks like she’s having fun.
[ his voice is fond, soft-spoken as he may always be. this place is good for him; these people are even better. ]
But she told me the true beauty of Wakanda isn’t just out there, it’s here in the city too. It’s orobably just a different kind of test, but -
[ he pauses, watching the movement of all the lives bustling through their days below them. even from this distance, he can see how vibrant and alive everything is. he looks back up to the king with another muted smile. ]
- I think I get it.
no subject
Date: 2018-02-22 04:39 am (UTC)the city is something that has weighed on his mind heavily, for the last week or so. unveiling it is a huge risk, but a necessary one.
it is time for the rest of the world to know the wakanda he loves, too. ]
She only says that because she invented ninety percent of what you see before you. [ it's said lightly, but with much affection. t'challa adores his baby sister to the moon and back, however aggravating she can be. he slides his hands into the pockets of his pants, letting his eyes wander across the spires of the city center. ] But it is a beautiful city, full of life, and innovation. My father used to call it the hidden heart of Africa.
[ t'challa pauses, at that. ]
What do you see, when you see the city, Sergeant Barnes?
no subject
Date: 2018-02-22 05:11 am (UTC)[ he corrects gently, habit more than anything at this point. he isn’t a soldier anymore, and the name barnes doesn’t belong to him yet, if it ever will again. but he ponders t’challa’s question for a moment, staring out into the distance with the foggy gaze of a man who has seen too much and not enough all at once. ]
Peace. [ he says finally, then shakes his head. ] But not the fairytale kind, y’know, the crap they sell people to make them believe the crimes we commit are worth it. This?
[ another pause as he considers his thoughts carefully. the hidden heart of africa. that seems apt. he thinks of new york’s dirty and crowded streets, of hong kong’s murky skies, of russia’s ice cold emptiness. everything mankind does is in search of something better than what they have now. the things they take from each other and themselves seem justified if they stay ignorant to the holes they leave behind.
wakanda is different. nature and technology coexist here, advancement without the exploitation of life and beauty. it’s unlike anywhere else on earth, and bucky honestly can’t blame them for hiding from the world for so long. he’s seen what men do when they want something, and how far they’ll go to get it. when he looks at this city, for the first time, he sees what life could be like if it wasn’t a fucking competition. ]
Yeah. This is what it’s supposed to be like.
no subject
Date: 2018-02-22 05:18 am (UTC)[ it's a quiet repetition, a correction, as t'challa commits that to memory. it is hard, sometimes, to forget title and all that. if he ever sees steve rogers again, it will be difficult to drop the whole 'captain' thing, though he's certain steve would rather he do so immediately.
royalty makes things difficult, sometimes. but what is not difficult is bucky's answer, and it warms t'challa's heart, in a way. because it is true -- peace is what t'challa feels, whenever he returns home from the chaotic landscape that is the outside world. hatefulness, anger, frustration . . . all of that brought his father to his death, and nearly dragged t'challa with it.
here? his heart beats with the land, and the sky, and the city, and the thrum of vibranium underneath his feet. peace is what he feels, because he feels alive, here. ]
War is not, has never, and will never be our way, though we descend from the hearts and minds of warriors. [ he says it with great purpose, as he sets himself down to sit on the rock, to draw his arms around his knees, to be comfortable and at ease next to bucky. ] Men stronger than I have been tempted by it, and I am sure I will be no different, when the time comes. This, I think is worth fighting for. To defend such peace, from those who seek to destroy it.
[ t'challa pauses, there, though, and his lips tug into a faint smile, his tone becoming wry. ]
Though I am not so willing to house the Avengers once Tony Stark runs out of rental property to detroy in America.
[ the queen mother will object, and t'challa doesn't argue with the women in his life. ]
no subject
Date: 2018-02-22 05:59 am (UTC)yet here’s a man that’s ready to expose his grief to the world as kindness and charity. righting wrongs instead of making more of them. bucky’s only met one other man that made him see the world in a different light, a brighter one, and it gives him something like hope to find another beside him. ]
Think you’ll do just fine without ‘em. [ which reminds him, and he frowns slightly - ] I heard you had to fight for it recently, though. Dunno how much help I would’ve been gimping around like this, but I’m sorry I wasn’t here for it.
[ even if he isn’t a soldier, some things are worth fighting for, and bucky owes a lot to this country and its people. you have my axe, t’challa. ]
no subject
Date: 2018-02-22 09:38 pm (UTC)It was a fight that I had to complete on my own.
[ finally, and t'challa's fingers fiddle with his grandfather's ring that rests on his hand. it was a family matter, and a family affair. n'jadaka needed to be defeated by t'challa, and no one else. anything else, or anyone else, would have been an insult, and would have driven his cousin's point home.
no, it had to be him, to drive the knife between his ribs. ]
I would have refused your help, had you offered it. But the sentiment is appreciated.
no subject
Date: 2018-02-22 10:01 pm (UTC)he's seen enough bad things to know the good ones when they're presented to him. t'challa is honest, forthright, noble without naivety. it's hard to have ideals like that in a world that doesn't bend so easily, but ... maybe that's the point of holding on to them.
at least, he knows that's what steve would say. ]
You're a good man, T'Challa. Can't say I know a whole lot of kings - [ although he may have killed one or two; he sighs a little and nods his head towards the city. ] - but you'll probably be pretty good at that too.
[ he thinks so. he hopes so. for one so thoroughly rooted in the darkness, he wants to have faith that someone will be able to carry the light for everyone else. it's why he followed steve into every dumb fight, why he wouldn't mind following t'challa into the next one. ]
no subject
Date: 2018-02-22 11:18 pm (UTC)My father once told me that it is hard, for a good man to be king.
[ he doesn't acknowledge the compliment yet, though t'challa does hear it, and accepts it. he believes he is a good man, though he desperately wants to be better. he's made mistakes, but he likes to think that overall, t'challa is good. everyone else seems to think so; he will gauge their opinions over his own.
he glances over at bucky, a slight smile on his lips. ]
It has been a rough beginning to my reign, but I like to think it can only go up from here.
no subject
Date: 2018-02-27 02:12 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2018-02-27 03:15 am (UTC)unfortunately for t'challa, it touched him. it negated some aspect of the armor. and as a result, he's far more battered and bruised than usual. the black panther slinks away, after removing the technology from their hands and destroying it (much to shuri's bemoaning), to recover. he knows where he is, vaguely, and soon, nakia hears a rattle of a fire escape.
it's been, maybe, a month since they've seen each other. an impossibly long time. but soon, in the early hours of the morning, nakia hears a light tapping against the window. claws that graze the glass, finding the locking mechanism that only t'challa would know, given the technology used to keep nakia safe. and soon, the window opens, and the black panther slips inside, the window closing behind him.
and, before nakia can attack, if she is awake: ]
Nakia?
[ it's quiet. ]
no subject
Date: 2018-09-22 01:12 pm (UTC)but then a much closer, much more specific part reminds her that they had to get through her security, to know how to disarm the mechanics of it and enter her home. she moves silently from her bedroom down the hall, listening to each creak of the glass, each soft, careful step.
she is prepared, slinking around just behind the intruder, the room still dark and therefore still unsure of who it is until she hears her name. ]
T'challa?
[ she would recognize that voice anywhere, and it is the only reason she lowers her spear, mere seconds away from driving its tip directly through his gut. the shock of the moment is the only reason behind her second's worth of shock, before she is setting the spear against the wall and stepping over to him, frustration clear in her tone. ]
You did not tell me you were coming to America. Why are you here? What's going on?