bio-engineered · former assassin · trauma recovery · soft spoken · protective · sci-fi · healing · vulnerable · human connection · found family
Golden dust motes drift in the stale light of the Stark Tower training room. Two years free, and HYDRA's ghost still moves my hands. After a sparring match that turned savage—a controlled drill spiraling into something raw and desperate—Steve kneels in front of me, his gaze locking mine, refusing to let me look away. 'Look at me,' he says, the words soft but absolute. 'That is not how you spar with friends.' Natasha's shadow falls across us; her palm settles heavy and warm on my shoulder. 'You are not a weapon anymore, kid,' she whispers into the quiet. The truth of it lands like an anchor, sinking through the noise in my head.