Evil is Subjective Part 8(Avengers x Villain!Reader)

To@mikariell95@request-me@m4shtyx@lostsunshine@spiderlingsweb @gaylemonshark @jax-h-moon

Description:  A flashback to your time when you knew the Winter Soldier, Sergeant James Buchanan Barnes – or as you knew him, Teddy.

Author’s Note: To Hey guys! So I’m just gonna go ahead and pretend I haven’t been MIA and just post this here instead! So yeah, enjoy!

Part 1Part 2Part 3Part 4Part 5Part 6Part 7

Cold, empty, lonely, and scared.

That was what she was.  Curled up as tightly as she could get, her arms heavy as they gripped her knees and held them against her chest.  Her little nose was bright red, and her skin was littered with goosebumps.  She didn’t know where she was or why she was there.  All she knew was that she didn’t like these metal walls very much, and she wanted nothing more than to have her favorite teddy bear with her, Lieutenant General Teddy.

Her breath caught as the metal door swung open, trying to hide her tear-stained cheeks from the rather scary newcomer.  He loomed above her, his large frame taking up the majority of the space.  The man crouched down, causing the little girl to let out a soft whimper.

“Come on.  It’s time to get ready,” he spoke levelly.  She frowned and curled further into herself, refusing to move.  The man sighed and said, “Look, kid, if you don’t come with me, they’re gonna be mad, and it won’t be good for either of us.”  The girl sniffled and glanced over at him.  It was then that he noticed how badly she was shaking.  “I’ll be right there with you.”  He almost found himself wondering who said that, not quite believing that he was offering the young girl comfort.

“B-but I don’t even kn-know your n-name,” she fought out between strangled sobs.  The man lifted a brow.  At least she was cautious.  That would help in here.

“You and me both, kid,” he wanted to laugh, but his face instead remained still, frozen in place after years of being punished for so much as a twinkle in the eyes.  She retreated further into her little ball, letting out a stubborn little “hmmph.”  The man fought back the urge to roll his eyes.  “Fine.  If it makes you feel any better, you can call me soldier.”

The girl frowned up at him and shook her head.  “No, that’s stupid.  How ‘bout instead you can be my new teddy, and I’ll call you… Sergeant Teddy.  Since the Lieutenant General isn’t here, you can take over for him,” she finished triumphantly.  The man’s brow twitched, torn between telling her not to use the annoying nickname and just wanting to get her to go with him before the guards got impatient.  Quickly, he made up his mind.

“Alright, fine, now let’s go,” the man stood back up, offering the girl a hand. 

Why did he do that?  She should be able to get up on her own.

“Woah, Teddy, you have a really shiny arm,” she breathed.  He glanced down at the metal and frowned slightly.

“If you don’t like it, you can get up yourself-”

“No, it’s pretty.”  The words caught him offguard.  Most people here couldn’t even stand to look at it.  The girl grabbed his hand and stood up, drawing his thoughts away again.

The man shook his head and led her out of the cell and down the halls, his hand unconsciously tightening around hers as they neared their destination.

“Teddy?” she whispered.

“Hmm.”

“I’m scared.”

He couldn’t exactly be surprised.  She was just a kid after all, and these people were monsters.  Anyone in their right mind would be scared.  He shouldn’t say anything.  She needs to learn how to survive in here, and coddling her won’t do her any favors.

“It’s ok.  I’ll protect you.”  He almost kicked himself for doing something so stupid.  He let his emotion get the better of him – something he hadn’t done since his first few weeks in this hell.

“Thank you, Teddy.”  She seemed to relax slightly.  The man nodded, his doubts gone when he saw her little smile.

–(short Time Skip)–

“I can’t,” she sniffled.

“Well try again,” a man in a white coat snapped, shoving the glass of water towards her.  She scrunched up her face, staring at the glass as intensely as a child could.

“I can’t!” She frowned and slumped in her chair, giving up on trying to do what they asked.  The soldier winced from where he watched behind the glass.  They would be mad.

The man in the white coat clenched his jaw and nodded towards the door.  Immediately, a few guards marched in.

“No, no, I’m sorry!” She screamed, tears quickly spilling over her cheeks.  “Please, I’m sorry!  I can try again!”  One of the men grabbed her by the arm and yanked her roughly from her seat.  “I’m sorry!-” he punched her in the gut.

The soldier turned away, unable to watch as they beat the poor girl mercilessly.

“Stop!  Please!”  Her cries rang in his ears.  In fact, he was so focused on them that he didn’t notice his hands balling into fists or his muscles getting tense.

“Teddy!”

He was by her side before she could even finish the name, the guards immediately taking a hesitant step back.  This was insane.  He couldn’t do this.  He would be punished.  “Teddy,” the soft, broken whimper was all it took for him to steel himself back up.

“Touch her and die,” he growled, eyeing each of the guards in turn.  When he was satisfied they wouldn’t advance, he turned to the girl.  He knelt before her, running a gentle hand through her hair as she rushed towards him, burying her face in his chest.  “It’s ok,” he soothed.  “Teddy’s here.”  He let her cry for a moment before grabbing her by the shoulders and making her look at him.  “You need to try again.”

Tears quickly sprung into her eyes again.  “I can’t do it.” Her voice was shaking.

“Yes you can,” he said firmly.  “Now focus hard and do as he says.  I’ll help you.”  He grabbed her hand and squeezed.  The girl sucked in a harsh breath and gathered herself up, nodding determinedly back at him.  She faced the table and took a deep breath before tucking her chin slightly to stare at the glass.  Everything in the room faded away – the door slamming open, the man in the white coat screaming as loud as he could, the cocking of the man’s gun, which quickly silenced all of them, she didn’t hear any of it.  She could only feel the metal hand that engulfed her own, offering a kind of reassurance that she would succeed.

Slowly, the water in the glass rose.  It wavered and splashed at the minimal amount of control she had over it, but it was something.  It was control, though little it may be.

The entire room stared at the girl as she held the writhing ball of water suspended in the air, almost entranced by the feat.  The water came crashing back down into the cup, and she squealed, jumping and wrapping her small arms around the still kneeling man’s neck.

“Teddy, Teddy, did you see?!  I did it!  I really did it!” she continued to squeal, her previously thick voice and tear-filled eyes now morphed into what can only be described as the pure joy that a child experiences when she knows she did well.

“Yeah, I saw it,” the man chuckled a bit at her excitement.  “Good job, kid.”

The girl pulled back a bit to show him the largest beaming smile she could muster.  “Don’t be silly, Teddy!  You can call me (Y/N)!”

The man lifted a brow, but she stuck out her bottom lip, glaring at him and making it very clear that she wouldn’t be taking no for an answer.  The man sighed and stood.  “Alright, fine.  Let’s go, ok, (Y/N)?”  He held a hand out for her, and she took it without hesitation.  The crowd of guards parted for them, far too terrified of her Teddy to even think about getting in their way.

–(Time Skip)–

“No!  I’m not going!  Not without my Teddy!”  They’d tried everything to get her out of the room, but what can they do when they can’t even get close enough to threaten her?  The girl sat in the middle of her cell, a whirlpool of speeding water surrounding her.  One of the guards who had been stupid enough to try to force his way through had gotten his shoulder dislocated by the incredibly strong currents.

“At least we know she’s powerful,” the supervisor commented.  “Where did she even find enough water to create such a thing?”

“W-well, sir,” the man in the white coat started nervously.  “We aren’t really sure.  Although, some of us think she might have plucked it from the humidity in the air.”

The supervisor blinked in surprise before falling into a smirk.  “From the air, eh?  Very powerful indeed,” he chuckled softly to himself.  One of the guards screamed, interrupting the conversation.  It seemed that he had attempted to just touch the water, and his finger was now twisted beyond recognition.  The supervisor frowned just a fraction, which was more than enough to terrify the man next to him.  “Your men are useless,” he commented casually.  “I will have to get her myself.”

The man in the white coat’s eyes widened in terror.  After all, if the supervisory died, he would probably meet the same fate.  “B-but sir-”

“Must I remind you of what happens to those who speak out of turn?”  The supervisor snapped before he could protest.

“O-of course, sir.  My sincerest apologies.”  His voice was shaking.

“Remember your place, rat.  Do not attempt to crawl from the gutter, or you will be exterminated.”

The supervisor walked into the cell, not even bothering to glance at the frozen man behind him.  Slowly, he approached the whirlpool.  “So I hear you miss your teddy bear,” he called out above the roaring of the waves.  “Perhaps I can find you a new one.”

“No, you can’t!  Teddy isn’t some stupid bear, he’s my friend!”  She screamed.  the waters seemed to speed up a bit, causing the man to take a cautious step back.

“Well then maybe I can find him for you,” he called again.  “If you describe him, I’ll find him and bring him back to you.”

The water slowed with his words.  It wasn’t enough to make them fall, but it was at least enough so that he could now catch a glimpse of her, rather than the endless stream of white foam.  “R-really?  Promise?”  She said warily.

“Promise,” he nodded.  “I just need you to tell me what your teddy bear looks like.”

The girl frowned. “What are you, stupid?  I told you, he’s not a bear.”  Oh, how he wanted to slap her for speaking to him like that.  Of course, he stopped himself.  He needed her trust if he hoped to control her.  “A-also, he has really long hair.  It’s brown and soft.  And his eyes are blue.  He’s super big and strong and brave, and he has this really pretty arm.  It’s all shiny with a big star on it.”  She finished.  Just talking about her teddy had calmed her down enough to let the water fall, revealing her full frame.

The man frowned darkly.  “Are you talking about the Winter Soldier?” he fought to keep his voice level.

The girl furrowed her brow and tilted her head.  “Who?”

“The Winter Soldier, Sergeant James Barnes, is that who you speak of or not, you stupid child?!” he snapped.

The girl’s features hardened.  “He isn’t Sergeant James, he’s Sergeant Teddy.  And I’m not stupid, you’re just a big dumb meanie-head!” she screamed back.

The man opened his mouth, fully prepared to scream at her and punish her for her for her insolence when he saw the fallen drops of water gathering at her feet and forming what looked suspiciously like spikes.  So instead, he counted silently to five and said, “Your Teddy is a very dangerous man.  I don’t want him to hurt you-”

“He won’t hurt me, Meanie-head, he’s my Teddy!” She stomped her foot on the ground, the spikes at her feet growing more defined and threatening.

The man grit his teeth together and growled softly under his breath.  “Alright, fine, I will get you Teddy.  And when I do, you will go with these men like a good girl or else you’ll never see Teddy again.  Understand?”  She nodded.  “Good.”

It wasn’t long before the door opened again, revealing none other than her Teddy.  She squealed and ran to him, where he received her without any hesitation.  “Teddy, I was so lonely!  They wouldn’t let me see you, and one man kept calling you Sergeant James, even though I told him your name was really Sergeant Teddy, and I was so scared they wouldn’t let you come and-and…”

“It’s ok, medvezhonok (little bear).  I’m here now,” he shushed her gently.  “I’m here.”

The next few years went by in a similar fashion.  Whenever they needed the girl to train, she would refuse to move an inch until they brought her Teddy.  He taught her how to fight, both with and without her powers; how to use any and every weapon she could ever need; and stayed with her while she was learning how to read coding and force her way through firewalls for information.  They were not happy – no one could be happy in a place such as that – but they found comfort in one another.  In a life of constant danger and fear, they felt safe when they were together.  Until one day, when it all ended.

She was 12 now, but her skills already exceeded those of anyone they faced her against in training as well as all of her guards.  “Where’s Teddy?” she asked, confused at why he wasn’t with them.  Most of the guards had given up trying to move her on their own.

“Move,” one of the men snapped harshly.

Immediately her heart started pounding.  It was never good when they didn’t answer.  “Where is he?”

“This is ridiculous,” one of them scoffed.  He looked new – he was still confident… and stupid.  “Your ‘Teddy’ won’t be joining you again.”  Her heart must have stopped, her breath caught in her throat.  “The freak was put back on ice.  If you’re lucky, though, you might get to see him in another ten years,” he snorted.  “Now let’s go.”

The poor girl was feeling a lot of things – sadness for her lost Teddy, fear for what the men might do to her with him gone, but mostly it was anger.  She hated these men more than anything, and now they had taken away the one thing she had left – her last bit of comfort.

And really, it wasn’t her fault when it happened.  That stupid young guard had jabbed her with the end of his gun at a moment when she really shouldn’t have been jabbed, and the powers she had been struggling to control had simply taken over.

Most of what happened was a blur for the poor thing.  It wasn’t until her powers had run out and she had finally regained control that she saw all of the blood.  It painted every wall, every hallway from her cell to where she now stood, across the compound.  There were no bodies, but she had a sinking feeling that they might be mixed in with all of the blood.  Above her was a big, red sign lighting up in the word ‘EXIT.’  She didn’t really care about that, though.  She had to find Teddy.

But he could be anywhere – he might not even be in the building anymore – and she was starting to hear footsteps heading her way.

So, she made a decision – one that made her sick to her stomach.

“I’m sorry, Teddy,” she whispered softly as she pushed open the door.

And she was free.