The Soul Bond Meme

[disassembling]

"I can't live without you...literally."

Wake up. Do what you have to. Work. School. Save the world. Avenge your father's death. Go back to sleep. Average day, for human, demon, sailor scout, angel, slayer, what have you. Though there's some part of you that wonders, in the back of your mind, if this is the day you'll meet your bond.

Because your world is just like ours - or how yours was, in another universe - but with one addition: the soul bond. The soul bond is a concept as old as time itself. People don't question the process, it just is. Some say that it comes from the beginning of time, where each soul was created in a pair, and throughout the lifetimes those souls are reborn into, they search for each other. This is the soul bond. Even if that's mostly faded into myth, it's generally excepted that there is only only one person for anyone. So, soulmates.

Not exactly. Soul bonds are more. They are about the joining of bodies: sexually and psychically. The bond isn't necessarily about love, though the close connection facilitates that emotion growing, and some fondness does appear in almost every case. It's bigger than love, bigger than hate, bigger than anything else; it's finding yourself in someone else, and your never wanting to lose that. Needless to say, the soul bond is the cornerstone of life and society. Marriage is reserved for the bonded, and you're expected to be searching for that other half. There's a good biological reason for that, too, as the unbonded cannot reproduce and those who have not found their bond are doomed to die extremely early in comparison to their peers and in a most painful, withering fashion. Who would want that?

In this world, sex is had with those who are not the other half of your bond, even if society considers that frivolous. For the truth is, sex with any other will never be as good as sex with your other half. When you make love to someone who isn't yours, you'll know it. It's a disappointment.

When you so much as see your bond for the first time, or at least for the first time after you've reached sexual maturity, you'll know, even if you're already "with" someone else. The signs are inescapable. You'll know it's them. You'll become hyper-focused on them, your heart will race, your muscles tighten, your brain shoot off every signal it nose...and you will become aroused beyond belief. Any arousal you've had prior pales in comparison. So go ahead, if you don't want a bond, ignore it. Try. It won't work. The more you ignore it, the more control you'll lose. Did I forget to mention? In this world, sexual drives are a little more animalistic than usual. They would have to be when the mainstay of the races is a sexual-based bond. Those who try to ward off the desire to become one with their other half can achieve mild success - until they absolutely lose themselves. It's not uncommon to see bonds going at it in the streets, unabashed and unashamed, for trying to hold off the inevitable. Sex between bonds in public, generally, is not looked down upon.

You've given in. Of course you did. But what now? The first time you have sex with your bond, it will be beyond compare. You will share memories with each other, as this is the opening of your psychic connection with them. Yes, psychic connection. How would you expect to be truly bonded otherwise? How strong this link is depends on how often you have sex. Even at baseline, though, you'll know if your bond is hurt or in trouble. Fair warning: this will pull at that animal brain, and you will go into a beserker mode to get them back with you. Similarly, you will behave in a territorial manner if you feel the bond is threatened; jealousy often results in shameless public sex, in hopes to re-establish the strength of your connection and make your bond realize that YOU'RE the other part of them, no one else. In addition, bonds don't handle separation well and each partner will be antsy and on edge. It can be done, and most pairs do because of work, duties, and life in general, but returns are usually accompanied by sometimes days-long sex sessions.

Aside from those quirks, the bonding process can be quite useful. A bond can calm you down, and sex with your bond can serve as the ultimate relaxer. Your bond is the one who can heal you, and sex boosts your strength and power. Yes, those of you looking to achieve your ultimate goal...or ultimate form. Being a bond makes you stronger. Don't resist, no matter how surly you are.

The bond is no respecter of person. Outside of sexuality such as straight or gay, types or species don't matter. You could be bonded with someone as different from you as night and day. However, no matter what the case, you'll begin to care for them in some fashion. You'll feel the need to be with each other as much as possible, both sexually and otherwise. They'll become the most important person in the world to you. Of course, this is assuming your bond is someone you can feasibly be with. Perhaps there is some truth to that reincarnation business, as sometimes, those souls are reborn into people who are never meant to be bonds - warring tribes, at-odds species, and even relatives or people with a great amount of age between them.

The bond is permanent. This is the person you were meant to be with, after all, until you die (and soul bonds usually die within years of each other). Theoretically, though, it can be broken. Mostly, this is done when one side betrays the other side somehow. As the bond is initiated through sex, it's broken in the same way. What happens next is rarely pretty. Police reports usually find the bodies of the dead bonded, cause of death specifically unknown.

Head spinning yet? It shouldn't be! This is the world you live in.

rules
- Comment with your character, preferences, what you're interested in, and what you're not interested in.
- Crosscanon tagging is expected and encouraged. Mention if you want to make some kind of canon-insertion AU with one of the characters or just have a nebulous AU.


prompts

Meeting - You see your bond in that way for the first time, and it's done. You're done. You have to have them to be complete.

Trying to Fight It - No, you're the type who rebels against this whole "soul bond" system. You're the master of your own design, and you won't give in despite the fact that you could just start masturbating right now.

Failure to Fight - The whole fighting thing didn't work out, and now you're going at each other like you'll die of thirst.

First Time - The legendary first time with soaring sensations, amazing orgasms, and the sharing of memories.

Not the Sharing Type - You're a private person and don't want your brain in someone else's. How can you reconcile this? Maybe doing the act can change your mind. Or maybe you just want relief so badly, you don't care.

Feedback - You feel all of your partners pleasure as well as their pain. If you can't come up with something kinky, I can't help you.

Dirty Thoughts - You know what's naughty? Sending mental images of what you'd like to do to your bond through your connection. It's like mental sexting - or a fun way to torture them.

Learning About Each Other - You're learning what both of you like and don't like and sharing as you go.

Jealousy - Someone tried to approach your bond and it made you a bit miffed. Now it's time for some affirmation of the connection and to make sure that you're still on their mind.

Rough Bond - Your bond is more hate than love sometimes, but it's a thin line. Besides, you still care more about them than anyone else, and god forbid someone hurt them. Besides, rough sex is fun.

Separation - You'll be apart for a while. You need one last hurrah

Reunion - You're back together. Now to make up for lost time. Not just because you want to, either.

Public - Remember how I said sex in public is accepted for bonds. Why not take advantage?

Chasing That High - You keep having sex with people, trying to find you bond.

Chasing That Low - In contrast to the above, you're trying to keep away from a bond by desensitizing yourself to sex.

Bond Party - Some young people throw "mixers" where, hopefully, you may meet your bond. Experimentation is bound to happen...even experimentation with multiple people at the same time, trying to find that one.

Can Never Be - Your bond is with someone you shouldn't have one with. They're your sworn enemy, your teacher, or your sibling. Your body and soul says yes, but your mind says no.

Strengthen - You need energy to defeat the big bad or rule the world. Go to your bond and recharge.

Comfort - A bond is often the only one who can calm their other half down, and that sometimes happens through a grounding via sex, bringing the upset party back to what really matters.

Healing - Healing wounds and healing the connection all comes down to body pressed against body. Just be careful of blood.

Long Time Bond - You've been together for some time now and you know each other like the back of your hands. You can make them come in ten seconds flat if need be, but it's more fun to drag things out, isn't it?

Ritual - You want to make your bond official in the eyes of the government. Unsurprisingly, the marriage ceremony is ritualistic sex.

Impregnation - There's no fertilization between the eggs and sperm of non-bonds, so one surefire way to make sure everything's on the up and up is to get pregnant.
Mind Games - Being psychically connected is all good until they fuck with your head.

Dependency - It's not always easy, being for, all intents and purposes, addicted to a person. You need them like you need breathing, and you'll take what you can even if you're ashamed.

Already with Someone - You love someone, but they're not your bond. Can they keep you when you meet your real bond?

I'm Not Yours, You're Not Mine - You know you're not bonds. Still you want them to stay with you and you'll do anything and try to be better.

False Bond - You thought you were bonded, you really did, until you met them

Faking It - There are benefits to faking a bond, including for safety, financial gain, and to secure alliances. Of course, you can't fake it in the bedroom.

Manipulating - You'll get what you want, even if you have to lie and pretend you're bonded to them...how you can fake that, no one knows, but it's worth a shot.

It's Not Me, It's You - Sometimes, mistakes are made. They're your bond, but you're not theirs.

Break the Bond - Because you have a death wish or a snuff kink.

My Ex-Lover is Dead - Your soul bond is gone and you're trying to fill the gap.

OR MAKE UP YOUR OWN


Now made with 10x more awful because Brock Rumlow is involved in it. I regret nothing and neither should any of you.

Comments

[infligere]

Yeah well, he couldn't blame a man wanting to keep busy in downtime like this, but it seemed that skulking away and servicing a weapon was a poor way to do it. For one, it seemed to him that most of the guys here were in some ways suspicious of each other, no doubt all aware that any one of them would possibly slit the throat of the other if it came down to it. He and Ward would be in worse danger given that there was a bond between them in play. It made them both doubly vulnerable, and he really disliked that sensation. At least they couldn't or wouldn't kill each other off.

"Well, I suppose with all the time on our hands, it's kind of pointless to constantly be thinking about the good cause that we serve," he said with a sigh. He had had plenty of time to think about it in the hospital anyway, so it was just a matter of working himself into good position again.

"Nope, I apparently have no use for double-dealing now that my name's out in the open. I can be who I am and not have to fake my way," he replied with a shrug of his shoulders. "However, we should get something straight... no one finds out about us. I doubt I have to impress upon your imagination what might happen if it does with this lot we're staying with."

[infligere]

"Oh, I never worry about you. I'd know if something was wrong, sweetheart," he said with a nod of his head, tapping his temple with a finger. Distance was painful at times if she was gone too long, but he would know if she was hurt or killed regardless of not succumbing entirely the to bond that they shared. She liked to play hard to get or something, which wasn't unusual.

"They'll wipe you and we'll get to do this snarling business all over again. At least I remember you when we first laid eyes on each other," remarked. He took little interest or joy in her being wiped. It set him back from convincing her that he was a relatively safe place.

[infligere]

There was only pleasure in watching her work out, mostly because he liked the idea that she could consider violence against him and use a little, but he had ways of making her regret the decision. He liked to see her try all the same, and he hummed in appreciation as he approached. She had a nice body, made even better with the light sheen of sweat from working out and the way that she hammered on the equipment like it had personally offended her in some way. That was his girl... never too far from violence.

The other clones weren't nearly as interesting as she was. They were either insane or eccentric. She was just the right mix for his tastes.

"Well, the imagines I felt come my way certainly weren't the kind that just sort of accidentally pop up," he said with an arrogant tone. "It's fine, just watching you working out is entertainment enough. Don't stop on my account."

[disassembling]

He moved on to get some carrots, but he barely made it there before there was a tingling that had nothing to do with him, and he stiffened next to where he wanted to be. Suddenly, food shopping seemed far more dangerous when he knew that something was going on at home. He shifted, glancing around to make certain that no one was looking and gave himself a hard pinch to the meat of his thigh in hopes of startling her enough to stop tormenting him in the middle of a grocery store.

Next time, she was going shopping and he was going to furiously touch himself and she could deal with her wet panties alone. Ugh, this was so awkward.

[cloneororiginal]

Violence was something they both had in common. It was a way to release the tension in Sarah's body. A way to get rid of her stress and issue the control needed to either choke someone to death, or break their wrist. Precise control, something she lacked in her life. What she ate, what she did and what she could do were beyond her control. It was either follow orders, or die and as much as she complained about her life, at least it was there. At least she wasn't like the others who were used for more testing. The lot of them, just meat puppets to see what drugs could improve their bodies.

A shiver crawled down her spine at the mention of the images that popped into her head. They came back at her, assaulting her with the intensity of the passion they both had. She sucked in a sharp breath, tightening her bandage before ripping the end of it off. Her right hand pushed back her bangs to glare at Brock.

"I was bored, that's all." she spat, resisting the urge to throw a punch at him. If she got closer it was game over. Her body was already craving to be closer, needing to be closer. It was an utter disaster.

"Sod off, Brock. You get your alone time, this is mine."

[disassembling]

He never found fault with the Avengers having time with Stephanie, though some of the social interactions made him uncomfortable. It wasn't that he didn't tolerate them well when he was dragged to such things, but he had a limited ability to deal with so much human contact for the time being, so he often had to sneak off to have a bit of time to himself. He tried to return, to be supportive of Stephanie and her need to be close to her friends. Perhaps when he was better, when the social world wasn't such an overwhelming place again, he would be able to throw popcorn too or laugh at a joke instead of sitting either stonily or awkwardly.

Yet, Stephanie also had a knack for finding him after those moments where that irritability found him. He was pleased to earn her favour and never minded her company, finding himself at ease with her and wanting beyond anything else to give her whatever she wanted as much as possible. He wanted to get back what they had probably lost, though his memories or lack there of made that difficult right now. He was still working very hard to try to restore them, but it was slow going and often frustrating for him.

And usually when he was finally getting comfortable and warming up and feeling like it might work this time, Tony Stark found them or her and that flare of heat at the man's antics froze any progress he felt he was making. It also usually involved him slipping away to leave the pair alone, though Stephanie seemed oblivious to the obvious flirting and pushing at his buttons that Stark did. He knew better than to punch the man's teeth out and had long ago learned to walk away like a robot and not give rise to his feelings.

He hummed softly as he took a long drag from the glass of juice that he was drinking, nodding a little to her suggestion. He leaned casually against the counter, comfortable and thinking about the day when, as usual, he found their small session interrupted. He stiffened at the sudden kiss and the glass in his metal hand shattered, spilling juice down his front and glass hitting the floor. He had enough good sense to immediately bend down to pick up the glass shards to put them in the trash.

[disassembling]

He didn't move at all in the position that he had been rooted in, listening to the debriefing and easily drinking in the information that he was given without even a twitch of a muscle for it. His gaze moved around the members of the team, but they always returned to the woman near the back, finding her drawing him closer but was unable to move the distance. He was to stay still for debriefings.

Yet, he was keen enough as people began to leave to catch the look that passed between her and another man. His head tilted slightly in consideration and when the clones were called back, he made no move to close the distance to bash the man's skull in. It was really only that which saved the other, and he had no consideration for life in that regard. He simply knew it would have happened.

Instead, his head turned so it was clear that he was staring right at Sarah, drinking her in as she was called to heel. Could he call her to heel? No, he was only allowed to give orders on missions or when given leave to in training. Otherwise, he was a passive entity, a mockery of the man he had been so many years ago.

[cloneororiginal]

Sarah didn't know what was worse; being alone in a room with the Soldier or being in a room with him and not saying anything. The quietness was supposed to be calming, meant to keep her mind focused. But all she could focus on was him. The scent was starting to carry to her and she could only imagine what his body had to feel beneath hers. A shiver crawled down her spine, forcing her to look away from him.

Fuck, where the hell were Cosima and Helena? They were supposed to be here already. Her eyes swept the room over to the clock, watching the seconds tick by. She was trying to will the time to go by faster, but no luck. After thirty seconds she was at her wits end.

"Fuck this, call me back when the other two get here," she growled, moving from her spot to go right past the Soldier and leave.

[aktiv]

"What the hell are you talking about?" She growls out, turning and stalking toward him. The fact that he was talking about when they'd first laid eyes on each other. Jamie was more than a little lost, however she stops before getting to him.

She'd been fighting the bond and she wasn't about ready to head towards him. Not when she was trying to do everything to avoid him.

[you_know_me]

It wasn't that something was going on at home per sae. No, it was her being bored and not having anything to do. Bucky hadn't given her anything to do and she didn't feel like sketching. Though she can't help but yelp slightly when she feels that slight bit of pain. Specifically in her thigh and it has her scowling a bit.

She leans her head back and closes her eyes, body overly frustrated at the moment. Okay, she could wait. At least until Bucky got home and then all bets were off.

[hashisreasons]

Ward nodded his head, slowly putting the gun back together. He did not load it, making sure that Brock was aware of that fact. He really did not want to hurt his bond, even if the anger was starting to rise in him. He did not ask for this. It's the last thing or person he wanted right now. "You think I want them to fucking find out? That's the last thing I want, trust me." His eyes narrowed and he glared up at Brock. "I could tell you the same thing. You better not say something or I won't be forgiving."

Rising to his feet, he moved over to Rumlow, standing right in his face. "The good cause we serve? Really?" He lowered his voice so that only Brock could hear him. "I will do what I have to. This is my place now and I will be loyal to it, but let's not kid ourselves?" Because really, there was no other place for him now. "The cause we serve is a cause, but it isn't necessarily a good one. And what else should I do besides clean my gun? Have you looked around? Because I don't see us going anywhere anytime soon."

Reluctantly, he took a step back from Brock. His body liked that they were close too much and he couldn't have that. Not now. "If you have a suggestion, I'd love to hear it."

[eleutheria]

It was the shattering of the glass what snapped her back to the attention and she was kind of glad for the distraction, she moved to get one of the kitchen rags and handed it to Bucky. “Here, you need to dry off.” She moved away for a few seconds, to get the mop they have all decided it was better to keep around after the rather impromptu water battle that had happened here, like six times already, with Tony just watching on maybe a tad bit amused and looking over at Bucky.

“You really need to step up your game transformer, snooze and you lose they say.” He finished preparing his coffee and walked past her once she returned, before stopping to smack her ass. “Keep up the good work, babe.”

“TONY!” She wasn’t happy and was tempted to throw the mop at his retreating form, the damn idiot what the hell was his problem. With a sigh she started to clean the mess of the juice. “Alright, leaving that asides, I still think we should go out, otherwise I will be tempted to go deck Stark or call Pepper to return ASAP.”

Sooo many options...

[imadebreakfast]

Ariel had thought, for years, that Riley was her bondmate, they both had, it was part of why they'd always worked as well together as they had. It was why she'd taken losing him as hard as she had. But then she hadn't died, not after the first week, or the first month, or even a year later, and she'd started to doubt that what they'd had had been true. Or maybe she'd been his bondmate but he hadn't really been hers, that sort of thing did happen from time to time.

Then, in the course of helping Steve, there came that day on the bridge, and she hadn't been able to tell right away just which of the bodies in the crowd caused that tug not just at her senses but what seemed like her entire consciousness. She hadn't known until the three of them -herself, Steve and Natasha- were all being summarily arrested, it had been easy to pinpoint hm then, the shorter of the pair handling Steve.

She'd found him again, later, or rather he'd found her, while she was wingless, grounded, and still fighting the good fight as best she could. Even just being in the same room was enough that her knees almost gave way, she had no idea how she could have thought what she had with Riley was true in the face of this.

Are you ready for yours?

Lord help her, she'd almost said yes. And then had subsequently thrown herself out of a building to get away from him. Or from the disabled helicarrier crashing down on them, one or the other.

After everything had come crashing down, she'd thrown herself into helping Steve so that she wouldn't have to think about anything else, least of all the fact that her bondmate was still out there, somewhere. And it worked, sort of, for weeks, months even, but they'd come back to New York both to check in with the newly-minted Avengers Tower and to hunt down any new leads as to where the former Winter Soldier might be.

But because she wasn't officially an Avenger -though Stark had teased that they could have her swearing-in ceremony once the place was actually finished- it meant she had some time to herself to wander the city, wait for Steve to call, and do her best to ignore that niggling tug at the back of her mind that had never really gone away.

[infligere]

"See, the good thing about being me and being this close to you is that I get to have the memories for both of us. When you need them, I can have the honour of whispering them in your ear," he said with a smirk which meant that he wasn't an honourable person at all and really just savoured the idea of whispering in her ear and bugging her more.

She was such a lovely thing all ramped up and angry. Probably one of the many reasons she'd be wiped. She was probably testy that he hadn't taken a more aggressive stance with her too, but he knew she would eventually break down and come to him. It would be glorious.

[infligere]

Well he was glad that they were on the same page when it came to their little 'relationship' glitch that had happened when they made eye contact with each other the first time. He knew that Ward was a good enough agent to not waste words on threats unless the man meant them, and it wasn't to either of their benefit for anyone to find out. Besides, it wasn't that they actually liked each other. "Yeah well, I like to keep my head on my shoulders where it belongs, which means I have the good sense not to say anything about what is happening between us. Hell, this is really the closest we've been alone together as." And he honestly planned on keeping it that way as long as possible.

He let Ward come to him, as he still leaned casually on the door of the weapon's room where his bond had hidden away. He raised an eyebrow when Ward leaned in, feeling the warm thrill of being close to his bond and fought with himself to keep a straight face now that they were this close to each other. "Unlike you, my slippery friend, I believe in the cause. The world is a better place when the trash that crowds this planet are eliminated, and I'll see it happen or at least get revenge for having it taken from me." No, they were stuck here for now unless they planned on something, which was entirely possible really. He wasn't the type to sit on his hands after all. "If you wanted to be productive, we could be. The world has gone back to shit; we're good enough agents to salvage a few things, no?"

He took a step forward suddenly, eating the distance that Ward had tried to take away. He leaned forward as if to whisper at his bond something romantic. It wasn't. "We could take back some of what was taken from us."

[infligere]

He should be getting ready for the mission that he ha been debriefed on, but he was curious about her first and foremost. Besides, it had been a little while since he really bugged her, and he had to admit that he always liked it when she was snarling at him. It was just too bad that she was his bond, since he had no interest in such nonsense until they actually began to engage each other and then it was infinitely more interesting than most of the other projects that he had on the go. And besides, she was working out and that was always worth coming down to observe at the very least.

"You don't look very bored," he pointed out, even though he knew he was interrupting her time. The clones were given much time to themselves, and he heard the reason for that was so they didn't get the idea that they were actually people rather than the experiments that they were. Funny enough, he had never heard of a clone getting soul bonded. He should look into that.

"Well, you know being parted too long hurts, so I wanted to get the feel of you before I shipped out. Who knows how long I'll be gone," he remarked with a shrug of his shoulders. "However, if you really want me gone, here I go, babe."

[disassembling]

When it seemed like he wasn't going to be left hiding somewhere rubbing himself through his trousers, he hurried through the grocery shopping faster than he thought possible. He was going to yell at her. No, he actually wasn't but he might scowl when he walked in the door because that was just rude getting that kind of action when he was in public. Geez, he tried to be a good bond and there she went.

He hurried back to their place marched in the door, giving her that scowl that he had meant to, but it melted into a bit of a smirk after a few seconds. "You are terrible, Steph," he said as he kicked the door closed and went to the kitchen. "Next time you're coming shopping with me so I don't have to endure that sort of thing."

[disassembling]

He needed a new change of clothing, not to dry off, but he took the towel anyway so that he could mop up the mess that he had made on the floor, using his metal hand to avoid any glass that he might have missed on his first sweep. He lifted his head to regard Stark for a moment, tilting his head in slight confusion because this didn't feel like a game to him at all. He wasn't certain how he was to step into it either and he didn't want to, not with antics like that which seemed beyond him at the moment. He instead just narrowed his eyes slightly and returned to cleaning up the mess he made with the shattered glass.

He twitched at the sound of the slap and he almost thought of using the soiled cloth to strangle Tony with. No, no, he wasn't allowed to murder anyone unless they were proven to be working for HYDRA, were threatening him or someone he was close to or because it was part of a carefully designed mission objective. He stood all the same cast a weary look at Stephanie, who didn't seem... entirely opposed to the attention. Was that what he was supposed to do now?

"Well... do as you please," he murmured with a bit of a shrug, not about to commit to anything when any sort of interaction in the household between those two would make his blood run hot. It was best to be avoided. "I'll... get changed and stuff since I'm covered." He walked away to go get into another pair of fresh clothes and toss the soiled cloth into the laundry as well.

[disassembling]

While he had no preference one way or another for being in a room with another person or not, he found that the fact that she was here with him alone was pleasing on his senses. He relaxed a touch along his shoulders and took the time to watch her from behind his goggles, appraising her as he was supposed to appraise a weapon for correctness. He had no particular attraction one way or another, but he was a little miffed as to why she had been looking at another person. Those sorts of interactions were not something he normally picked up because they were unimportant to him usually.

He tilted his head slightly at her aggravation, not particularly wanting her to go. She reacted to him as some of the technicians did, and he settled a little more on his heels as he watched her move, studying the fluidity of her gait as she walked off from him.

"Are you... mine?"

[cloneororiginal]

Out of all the clones from Project Leda and Castor, it had to be Sarah who got soul bonded. Not to just any man, no, it had to be Brock. A man who was as good with his killing technique as he was in the sack. Then again, that was Sarah's biases talking. After their first time together, nothing else could compare. No one else could compare after Brock, as much as Sarah hated to admit it. And their time afterwards was spent in interesting ways that always left her wanting more. Sarah didn't know if that's what bothered her; wanting him before, after and feeling at times like she needed him. As though she needed him like she needed air.

Her hand curled up into a fist and landed a solid blow to the punching bag. She just had to get him out of her head. She began to fall into her rhythm, staying light on her feet as she started her combination. The moment she started to feel better, he had to remind her of his mission. Shit, he was going to be gone for an extended amount of time. That would only make her 'boredom' worse.

"So you wanted a quick shag t'keep the edge off. You know how to woo a woman, don't you," she snipped, throwing another punch, getting some satisfaction at the contact. But she couldn't bring herself to say she needed him. That her nerves were already frayed and needed some contact with him.

[cloneororiginal]

Whether it was by chance or rotten luck when she passed him that she heard him. Sarah stopped right by him, feeling his presence wash over hers and felt a sudden wave of calmness and rightness right then. Any other normal person would've stopped, turned around and uttered some corny phrase, but not Sarah. No, nothing good happened to her. She was lucky to be alive. Lucky that she wasn't dying or coughing up blood or labeled as a failure. But if she and him were soul bonds...then they were officially screwed. Utterly screwed. They were products of science and if they were together...who knows what their handlers would want of them.

But as she stayed there, trying to let a lie slip past her lips, she couldn't do it. The bond was there, but it wasn't sealed. She should still be able to give him an easy and simple lie.

"...I don't know," she murmured, telling him a half truth. It was all she could herself to say. When she said those words it felt like someone delivered a blow to her gut. Sarah did the only thing she could do.

She bolted.

[disassembling]

When she passed him, there was a rightness to the short distance between them. He had no idea why that would be as he never felt so drawn to other people, independent as a weapon that he was. He was only slightly drawn to his handlers, but it was more an acknowledgement that they were in position to order him to do as they needed. This was different, more potent and it confused him as much as the very idea that she might actually be his. He didn't own anything save the chair where he so frequently sat for maintenance and preparation work.

He curled a lip behind his mask, sensing that she wasn't telling him everything. When she bolted, his instinct was to pursue. If one was going to act like prey, he would act the predator and frequently did. He closed the distance fast too, exploding into motion and instead of forcing her to the floor, he skidded around her to block the exit with his body. He wasn't even winded.

"Answer."

[infligere]

Brock was not about the be slowed down from what he had to do because he happened to be bonded to her. He had missions to complete that would take him away from her for a long time, to the point of it being painful and draw his attention away from what he should be doing. It was a dangerous game to play, but he couldn't help but enjoy the agony of their parting because it came with the unbeatable crash of their bodies, minds and souls together in a tumult of emotion and sensation when they came together again. Nothing beat it.

When she returned to her punching, he shifted from where he stood behind her and then shrugged out of his jacket, tossing it to a nearby chair. He flexed his shoulders as he walked around to the other side of the bag she was punishing, his hands catching it so that he could brace to allow her to hit harder without the bag swinging around to possibly cause injury.

"Come on, babe, don't be so cold. I give you want we both need and neither of us complain about it," he replied with his usual cocksure attitude. "I don't need to woo you either. You're already mine."

[infligere]

This was one of the more dangerous missions that he had been on with the STRIKE team and certainly not because of the target or the subject of the mission itself. This was dangerous because it was both a SHIELD and HYDRA mission and the two were combined but supposed to stay entirely separate at the same time. That made running this very difficult because they had to keep Rogers and the Soldier apart and in clear lines. It helped that Rogers had been assigned to the back-up party so that he could move the asset into the building and release the Soldier to hunt through the building for the man that was a HYDRA target for elimination and have it look like a suicide.

Unfortunately, he had no idea that proximity to Rogers had done something strange to the Soldier who became distracted in the mission and wanted to go outside. It required a firmer hand by him and personally take charge of the Soldier to drive the asset along the objectives with promises of going outside after they were done here and not a moment before. What the hell had been going on? This was a shitty place for a malfunction after all.

They got to the house on the grounds in question, not caring much for hostages, leaving that to the rest of STRIKE as he moved in for the target. They found the man and he supervised the asset working, his handgun tapping against his thigh as the target was made to wait for preparation - a noose - from the main beam of the house. They had just set the guy to hanging and kicking when a report was passed to him on a private channel that Rogers was on the move. Shit.

They needed confirmed death. He set the asset off to a dark corner of the room near the window and watched the target struggle for last breaths and then go still. He glanced to the Soldier who was creeping out of the corner like some moth drawn to a flame. "No you don't. Back there," he snarled.

<3

[infligere]

Rumlow didn't believe in the bullshit about bonding with a single person and having his entire world focus on that. He didn't have time for it, didn't want it, and he wasn't the type of man who ever thought that it would happen to him. He even guarded himself against it, keeping to himself and relying mostly on members of HYDRA and little else than that. He had avoided the complication as best that he could, but it came all the same and he hated it t he moment that he sensed her. He wanted to hate her, but it was impossible with a bond, so he instead hated the situation more than anything.

He had avoided loading her personally into the vehicle, keeping his eyes and attention focused on keeping Rogers contained, not that it was really necessary given that the guy was in shock. It was going to mess up their plans all the same, but he had his part to play and so he would or die trying. God did he want to look at her though, to catch a closer look, maybe tighten the restraints just shy of painful.

The parting was worse, knowing she had gone away to fight another day. They would meet again, and then he's show her something of what being bonded to him was like. When he found her again as he ascended to deal with the Widow and council they had met and he let her know right then and there what it was to be close to him. It would be a beautiful mix of pleasure and pain as a bond was supposed to be. Perhaps it was the bond tugging him along, but he was two steps out of the window after her as the helicarrier almost crushed them both. She hit the helicopter dead on; he managed to slide a hand down her leg before he hit the leg of the helicopter and dropped into the waters of the Potomac, alive, bruised and wanted but alive.

He went into hiding as HYDRA and SHIELD imploded. He was growing his hair out and let a beard grow for the time being, moving from safe house to safe house for months until he happened to be returning to his current one with a bag of groceries. He waited until she had wandered onto a relatively deserted street and then stepped out down the way from her. "Long time no see, babe. You gonna avoid me forever and hurt us both with the separation or are you going to admit you need me?"