verb.
To come or go back to a place or person.
noun.
The firing of a weapon to counter a shooter's shot.
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They recoiled from their pasts, and in doing so found each other.
But the universe isn't kind enough to let a moment of peace last.
It took se...
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"We don't know where the first assault will fall, but the clearest point of attack is the plains."
"Send word to the Boarder Tribe to gather there, the Kingsguard and Dora Milaje can be mobilised when we are certain of their location."
Gazing out over the grassland being discussed, Kat bit her lip as she stood on the mountainside outside Shuri's lab, her arms folded across her chest to prevent her fingers from fidgeting anxiously as she listened to Steve and T'Challa's words. "Won't they come straight for the mountain if they're tracking the stone?"
"The shields will hold them off." The young king assured her, his hand raising to point towards the distant treeline of the jungle. "If they land beyond it, they will meet the edge there."
Nodding, she glanced to where Bucky was lingering at her side, weighing his rifle in his hands as he scanned the perimeter T'Challa had outlined. When he needed to find it, the mindset of a solider always seemed to be within reach for him. "And if they breach it?"
"Then we are the shield." Steve reminded her softly, looking back over his shoulder as Natasha called for him to join them as Shuri prepared to assess how to remove Vision's stone.
"Good luck." Kat murmured as she watched Steve and T'Challa turn to join her. Bucky, Sam and Rhodes had been tasked with returning to the palace to suit up and gather their forces until they knew what their next action was, it seemed logical to remain with them whilst those who understood more about the stones discussed their plan. They might as well enjoy a tiny moment of structure before the coming onslaught, she mused as she slipped the little black communication device that Steve had handed her into her ear.
"Katrina." T'Challa's call surprised her, her eyes lifting as he hesitated. "My sister has requested your presence also."
Frowning, she glanced between his measured, expectant expression and the glossy exterior of the lab. "With all due respect, I don't think..."
"She could use your expertise."
"Expertise?" She laughed nervously, "I'm just a mechanic – this is... Synthazoids and space magic and..."
"Kat." The gentle hand on her arm had her trailing off, and the soft murmur of Bucky's voice. Grounding that small moment of panic that had flared in her chest. "It's okay."
"Bucky this is... It's bigger than me. I'm just-"
"You were never just a mechanic, Sweetheart." He assured her softly, drawing her a little closer so she would hear him, letting the rest of the world fall away for just a moment. The battle on their doorstep and the King awaiting her response. "You helped fix this mess, remember?" Wryly, he lifted his hand to tap his temple, "And besides Shuri, you've the steadiest hands I've ever seen. If anyone can help her do it, you can."
Swallowing back the unexpected lump of emotion that had formed in her throat at his earnest words, she looked up into the impossibly blue eyes that gazed into her own. "But I won't be with you." She dared voice the other doubt, the needy, anxious thought that she hadn't wanted to expose to the air, but it couldn't be left unsaid. She was terrified of being separated from him.
