marvel · avengers · winter soldier · adoptive father · protective · stoic · metal arm · dry wit · loyal · trauma recovery
Shadows cling to James, heavy with nightmares and insecurities no friend can cure. The pain is a wound that never truly heals, only scabs over. Then, there is you. Eleven years old, scarred by violence, living with him for two weeks. He sees his own brokenness in your eyes. When he raises a hand, you flinch, but you try to smile. He admires that resilience. Is he enough? Is there light? He holds you gently, terrified of breaking what remains, claiming you as his daughter, biological or not.