ALL SCENES TAKE PLACE AFTER ENDGAME
NOT IN ANY PARTICULAR ORDER

I. THE RULE

"My brother and I," Phobos began, nervously rubbing his palms together as he leaned forward on his knees, sitting on one of his plush couches in his temple. Beside him was Bucky, sporting a black himation with gold detailing that matched his own. "We have this rule—a rule that everyone here knows and follows—whenever we're...emotional."

Leaning back while watching a Phobos began to chew on his bottom lip, Bucky frowned in contemplation.

"What is it?" He asked, wondering why this bothered the god so much.

"Our powers, fear and terror, go hand in hand," Phobos explained, releasing his bottom lip from the confines of his teeth. "It's a destructive thing. Despite my brother and I not being part of the Olympic council—consisting of the twelve 'main' gods—our domain is a lot vaster than a majority of theirs. Because no one is invincible to fear, nor terror. Mortals, immortals...even Deimos and I experience it. And it makes us dangerous."

"Yeah? So what's the rule?"

"Let me explain this first," Phobos frowned. "Whenever my brother and I begin to experience fear and terror ourselves, we are unable to control our powers to manipulate others' fear and terror. The lack of control over our own emotions make it difficult to hold back others'. You understand?

"That lack of control...it makes us ticking time bombs. When we're in control, our powers manifest in a form of smoke," he demonstrated this by lifting up a hand and letting a small amount of it dance between his slender fingers, "and we can manipulate its direction; we can contain it and focus well enough to let it only come out of our hands. But when that control disappears..." He clenched his fist and allowed the smoke to dissipate. "It's like fear is being released out of every pore in our body.

"We begin to radiate fear. Most people avoid it by moving away. But when someone touches our skin..."

"That's what happened to Adi, wasn't it?" Bucky wondered, recalling the time Phobos told him of the incident that occurred right after the Blip. When Phobos was recovering, and emotions began to spill, Adrestia made the mistake of touching her brother's skin, and promptly crumpled to the ground in agony. "That's your rule?"

"Never touch us when we're emotional," Phobos couldn't help but scoff at himself. "Pathetic, really. But that's why I want you to promise me," he leaned back and finally made eye contact with Bucky's ocean eyes, "that you won't try and touch me again when you know I'm not stable, that I look unstable."

Bucky pursed his lips slightly before nodding, his brows furrowing further.

He thought back to the reason they were having this conversation in the first place.

It wasn't unusual for him to be having nightmares; it was inescapable given all that's happened to him for the past decades. But his nightmare was of something that happened recently, something that didn't have to happen in the first place.

He was having a nightmare about his best friend. Steve Rogers.

The blond will always be considered his brother in everything but blood. And he wanted nothing more for Steve to be happy in life, especially since the man had gone through so much, just like he had. But watching Steve leave his timeline—leave him—was heart wrenching.

Bucky was happy for him, of course, knowing that in many ways, Steve deserved to live the life he always wanted. But he never realized that the choice was between him and Peggy; and he never realized just how painful it was to know that Steve Rogers, the man he grew up with, chose a life with someone he barely even knew; someone he knew less than Bucky.

It wasn't like Bucky held any romantic feelings for Steve, but he loved him. Loved him so much that he broke out of whatever conditioning he underwent with HYDRA just so he wouldn't go through with his mission of killing him. Of course, Phobos helped, but it was really his love for the lanky boy from Brooklyn that truly broke him out.

All the bottled-up emotions—especially from the exact moment he realized that Steve wasn't coming back—was the trigger for the hellish nightmare. In his dreams, Steve was taunting him, telling him he wasn't good enough, that he'll never be the Bucky he once was, which is why he left. And that hurt. He woke up with a shout, woke up Phobos in the process.

And after explaining the dream, Phobos visibly began to shake, and black vapor began to erupt from his naked skin. Bucky tried to calm him down, saying it was just a dream, but the god only shook his head and got up from his bed. Naked as the day he was born, Phobos took several deep breaths, eyes completely black. His jaw was clenched, before he used his abilities to automatically dress himself up and step out of the bedroom.

Bucky quickly followed him out, grabbing his himation in a rush and putting it on. He couldn't help himself from wanting to reach out and pull his lover into his caring arms. He wanted to reassure Phobos that he was okay, even when he really wasn't. But the god refused.

The once-assassin wanted to argue, argue until his lungs gave out that he wanted to help and that holding Phobos was the only way he could. But he was met with a blank stare that eventually faded out to an expression that chaotically mixed anger and trepidation.

Then he understood.

"I..." He began, licking his now-dried lips, frowning deeply. "I get it."

"I'm sorry," Phobos quickly offered. "I try not to be unstable, because I understand more than anyone that my powers should never be unstable. But emotions aren't something I have a...tight lid on, considering my heritage. It's always either I have too much," he referred to his mother, "or I have too little," referring to his father. "But know that I'm trying. And I wouldn't be trying if it weren't for you."

Bucky's expression completely softened, the frown etched on his face dissipating to nothing as he made eye contact with the love of his life. Eyes a swirling maelstrom of blue and gray, he leaned forward and captured Phobos' lips with his.

A guttural moan escaped Phobos' throat the second their lips met, and all the tension in his body faded away as he reached a hand up to cup Bucky's jaw. His eyes slowly fluttered close, mirroring the way Bucky's did.

It was a simple kiss, but the emotions were true. Their lips stayed still as they enveloped each other, but the love was there; it was obvious, and it was real. So real that it made Bucky's head spin, enough to make him pull away with a smile on his face.

"I love you," he whispered, his words like a sacred prayer to Phobos' ears, eyes still closed.

"I love you too."

II. MEET THE FAMILY...FORMALLY

Bucky had been through a lot in his long—too long, if you asked him—life. He's faced many things most men have the pleasure of never encountering. He's been subjected to torture, mind-control, and have been head to head with some of the worst that humanity had to offer. But in his head, none of that can compare to what he was about to face.

Dressed in matching white himation this time, the lovers were invited to another one of Dionysus' parties. It was Bucky's first, and he was practically walking into the main temple of Mount Olympus with trembling knees. He's met the Olympians, of course, but that was during a battle; not exactly enough time to get to know each of them and mingle.

But this was his chance. So, as the two walked up the stairs hand in hand, Phobos was quietly whispering what each of his family was like.

"Well, this is Dionysus' party, assume he's already drunk," the dark eyed man whispered. "I wouldn't be surprised if Hermes was right behind him on the drunk scale. Apollo would also be, most likely, in his third glass, and flirting with the other minor gods and making them haikus on the spot..."

Much to Bucky's surprise, his lover wasn't that far off. Dionysus, in purple, was magicking glasses of wine and handing them to everyone who wanted to join in on the party. Which included them.

Dionysus gasped dramatically, his face flushed from the alcohol. "You're him! You're the man our Phobos has been pining for! Oh, I can't believe this. Look at you, you're so handsome!"

The man in purple handed the rest of the glasses he had in his hands off to a random man who had walked past him and leaned towards Bucky, hands cupping the assassin's face and eyes scanning his every feature.

"Ah, now I understand why Phobos is crazy for you."

"Alright, that's enough," Phobos frowned—though Bucky swears there was a bit of a pout there—as he pulled the two of them away from the drunk god who only laughed and made more wine appear. Bucky snorted, finally lifting up the glass in his hand to taste the wine he was given.

"Woah," he laughed. "This is good. I understand why they call him the god of wine."

"Yeah, yeah. He's also the god of madness, so tread carefully," Phobos slightly snarked.

Bucky grinned, eyes lifting to scan the inside of the famed temple. It was unsurprisingly gorgeous, similarly styled to Phobos' but definitely a lot brighter and more inviting. And larger. There were grape vines that trailed up each of the columns that he assumes was Dionysus' doing, possibly just a decoration for today's event. Weirdly enough, when he tilted his head higher, he ended up making eye contact with Hermes.

"There you two are, the stars of the show!" Hermes grinned, now flying upside down, starting Bucky when they were suddenly face to face. "Bucky Barnes, the man who Phobos broke ancient rules for!"

"Hermes," Phobos warned.

"I'm just saying!" He then flipped himself right-side up and landed on his two feet, the wings of his talaria fluttering before coming to a stop. "You, my boy, should feel lucky." He was still uncomfortably close to Bucky, enough for the man to smell alcohol on his breath. "No mortal has stepped on Mount Olympus since...actually, no mortal has ever been to Olympus! The closest 'mortals' were demigods, and those don't count!"

"Wait," Bucky frowned. "Seriously?"

"Mhmm," Hermes frowned, beginning to walk away rather unstably. "Zeus usually smites any mortal who tries!"

Turning to Phobos, he gaped. "Is he--"

"He's not wrong," Phobos shrugged. "But you're welcome here! I mean, you're still alive. That's a good sign."

"Phobos!" Another voice called out, and it was none other than the golden boy himself. Apollo. Bucky had to squint a little as the man approached, because of how...bright the man was. The blond man situated himself between the two and flashed them a large grin. "How are things?"

"Things are well, unlike you," Phobos replied.

Apollo rolled his eyes and gave Bucky a look. "I don't know how you handle him. He's so...dark."

Bucky shrugged. "I'm just as bad."

"I suppose you two are meant to be!" Apollo laughed. "Phobos is lonely, really needs your company, so give him your di--"

"Apollo!" Phobos leaned forward and slapped the back of the sun god's head, frowning as he tried to fight the blush that was creeping up his neck. He quickly dragged Bucky away again, towards where his siblings were standing.

Adrestia was beautiful as ever, while Deimos, Phobos' twin, sported a new haircut. He used to have a similar hairstyle—including facial hair—with Phobos, but now he seemed a lot more...soft. Gone was his facial hair, because now he sported a near clean-shaven look, and his hair seemed longer. While Phobos' hair just about reached his nape, Deimos' was long enough to tie into a man-bun, which he was currently sporting.

"Nice," Phobos immediately approved. "You look like father, but without the facial hair."

"There's still some stubble," Deimos shrugged.

"At least I know I'll look good if I try that out."

"Ditto."

"You two are so vain," Adrestia rolled her eyes before shifting her attention to Bucky who was smiling at them. "How have you been, Bucky? Has everyone been treating you well?"

"Well enough," he joked. "But I really was not prepared for Lord Apollo's haiku."

"Oh gods, what did he say?"

"He said to give my di--"

"Stop," Phobos groaned like a child. "I refuse."

"Said something dirty, didn't he?" Deimos laughed. At Phobos' glare, he laughed harder. "Hey, you're the only one here—that we know of, anyway—with a mortal lover. A mortal lover that's been allowed into Mount Olympus. Of course you're going to be subjected to all the teasing!"

"On another note," Adrestia butt in. "Mother and father are looking for you, the both of you," she gave Bucky a pointed look, "and they're with Lord Zeus."

Phobos tilted his head at the information and nodded slowly. "Alright," he said. "Where exactly are they?"

"In the council room."

He frowned, trying to figure out why the three Olympians wanted to talk to them outside of the lavish party that has been set up. Many thoughts ran through his head, wondering if it was a good thing or a bad thing. But rather than dwell, he decided to go head first.

He turned to Bucky with a small smirk. "Let's go."

Along the way, the two encountered even more gods and goddesses of all levels. It was a treat to see them interact with Phobos, at least in Bucky's opinion. Some of them were clearly considered friends by the famed God of Fear, some were in awe of the man, but some weren't friendly at all. Which, surprisingly, was the once-mortal Greek hero, Heracles.

However, he did introduce himself as Hercules, before sending a rather smug and equally irritating glance at Phobos, who immediately gave him a stone-cold look.

"Hello, dear Phobos," Hercules greeted in a not-so-friendly tone. "Break any of father's rules lately?"

Phobos scoffed. "Like you're one to talk, Heracles." He grinned at Hercules' glower, annoyed at the use of his Greek name that he resented due to its clear connection to Hera. "How about you? How's Greece?"

Hercules' jaw clenched. "At least I'm connected to my roots. Unlike you who's clearly friendly with mortals."

"Mortals who saved the universe," Phobos corrected. "At least they did something meaningful in their mortal lives. What was it you were doing when you were mortal again? Following Hera's orders?"

Bucky could only frown at their interactions, eyes going back and forth between them, before his eyes followed Hercules' figure when the man walked away.

"What was that about?" He wondered, eyes still on Hercules' back as he directed his question at Phobos who only shook his head.

"You don't want to know."

Finally, they made it to the council room. It was a large room, a room that looked as if it could accommodate giants. This thought was cemented when Bucky realized that the large structures he thought were mere pillars were actually the legs of throne-like seats, all facing towards the center of the room. The twelve seats were placed in a shape of a 'U'.

"Uhh, are those...chairs?"

"Gods' true forms," Phobos told him. "We get big." He laughed at Bucky's expression, just as he spotted his parents with Zeus in the other side of the room. "I found 'em."

The Winter Soldier was visibly nervous during the approach to the three gods, but having Phobos beside him—holding his hand firmly and assuredly—lessened the weight of his nerves. He let out a breath, mentally preparing himself to greet them in the most respectful way possible, when Aphrodite suddenly gave him a dazzling smile that rendered him speechless.

"James Barnes," Aphrodite beamed, walking forward to give the man a hug. "My future son-in-law!"

Bucky cleared his throat and hugged her back, giving Phobos a wide-eyed look. "Ma'am-- uh, Lady--"

"No need for that, just call me Aphrodite," she told him, pulling away to gesture towards Ares. "This is Ares."

Arguably, Ares was the most intimidating man Bucky had ever faced. Despite Zeus standing just beside him, Ares—with his brooding self towering over all of them except for Phobos who seemed to stand at the same height—was exuding extreme 'don't-fuck-with-me' vibes. Clearly having the same penchant for well-tailored suits like his twin sons, the God of War looked like an assassin.

Dark eyes scrutinized his form, and Bucky couldn't help himself from bracing his form for any attack. But it never came.

"You look formidable," Ares commented. "More so than the last time I saw you."

"Phobos helped, Lord Ares," Bucky admitted.

"I expect that for him, he is my son after all."

Zeus then cleared his throat, and all the attention turned to him. Though he was about Bucky's height, there was an undeniable power radiating off him, to the point that all the hair on Bucky's body was standing on end. Being so close to him as a mortal, it made the man feel like he was about to get hit by lightning.

"Since we're all here, might as well talk about the...elephant, or should I say mortal in the room," he spoke.

Phobos frowned. "What do you mean?"

"What you think I mean, Phobos," Zeus sighed. "Bucky is first and foremost a mortal. Regardless of who he is, what he's done—good or bad—he is not supposed to be on Olympus--" he lifted up a hand as soon as he saw Phobos open his mouth to protest, "--hence why we...have been talking."

"About what?"

"The Olympian Council has decided that if Bucky Barnes truly wants to be in our world, in yours, he needs to prove himself worthy to be in our presence," the God of the Sky explained. "He may be a formidable man, he is still just a man. Not a god, not even a demigod."

"So, what do you propose?" Phobos frowned, taking a quick glance at Bucky's surprisingly unemotional face. Although it was obvious his jaw was clenched; for what, he doesn't know.

"Should you two pursue a more...permanent relationship," Aphrodite began, "Bucky must become one of us."

"Excuse me, what?" Bucky couldn't help but cut in. "I'm sorry for cutting in, but...like, a god? I can become like you?"

"If you prove yourself, yes," Ares answered.

Phobos looked at each of the three Olympians one by one, before finally asking, "What does he have to do?"

It was Zeus who gave the final answer. "For me to bestow upon him the title of a god, he must first become prove himself by stealing a golden apple from the garden of the Hesperides."

III. TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS

Phobos was unable to help his lover on the quest to retrieve a golden apple. This fact ate at him from the inside. Bucky may have been a super soldier in his own right, but he was not a 'super' in the mystical world.

But Zeus, for once in his life, played fair. He knew the task was an impossible one for mortal men, so he allowed Ares to bless Bucky with strength and durability that rivaled a demigod's, allowed Phobos to continuously keep in touch with his lover through a mind link, allowed Athena to grant him clear sight, and finally, he personally asked Hephaestus to provide the soldier with appropriate armor and weapon.

Hephaestus got a little carried away, however, when he gifted Bucky with modern equipment.

Alas, Zeus couldn't say no as it was still his fault for not specifying.

Still, the entire Olympic council wished Bucky good luck, before letting him go.

It was a torturous month for Phobos. He knew Bucky was alive, at least, but he never knew whether Bucky was safe or not. With the added weight of fighting Greek monsters along with trying to figure out how to get to the garden—this, Bucky had to figure out on his own—he knew without a doubt that the man he loved was struggling.

At first, he wasn't even sure Bucky was willing to take on the challenge. There was no doubt that Bucky loved him and vice versa, but taking this challenge was equal to accepting a marriage proposal in the eyes of Zeus. When he voice this to Bucky, he surprised him by saying he knew.

"It wasn't that hard to figure out, love," Bucky had admitted, the pet name slipping through his lips unexpectedly, as much of his focus was on the task at hand: packing up for what seemed to be an impossible mission. "But I'm doing this."

Phobos stared at him for several moments. He was speechless; no one had ever done this much for him. And in his long life, he can't remember an actual mortal—non-demigod—who has ever taken on this big of a challenge for the gods. For a god; much less a simple, minor god like him.

"I..." Phobos pursed his lips. "I'll do everything in my power to help you. Damn everyone else; I want you back to me alive."

"Yes sir."

IV. A NEW GOD

James Buchanan Barnes, born in Brooklyn, New York in the year 1917 to parents George and Winnifred, was once as normal as can be. He had younger siblings, he had dreams, he had hopes, he had a best friend.

But everything went to shit when World War II swept through everyone's lives.

He enlisted, marching with the rest of the able-bodied men and women and joining the fight against oppressive rivals. He left his family, his home, in hopes of finding peace and making sure all his loved ones are safe and sound.

Right when he and his unit, the Howling Commandos, were on the precipice of completing their mission, he had fallen off the train. Everyone believed him to be dead, but whatever Arnim Zola had done to him saved his life; but his torture didn't end there.

James Buchanan Barnes—or Bucky, as he preferred to be called—died, and was replaced by the Winter Soldier. The most elite assassin of HYDRA, the Nazi terrorist organization, he carried out missions that started and ended quicker than anyone could react. He was their prized asset, and was clinging on to him as best as they could.

Then Steve Rogers brought Bucky Barnes back to life.

By then, among all the deaths, the threats, the struggles, literally being dusted, he thought that everyone would go back to 'normal'. But he had to fall in love with the literal personification of fear; the Greek god, the son of Aphrodite and Ares, the powerful and unpredictable...Phobos.

Falling in love with him was easy, but Bucky didn't expect that staying together required an actual suicide mission.

A suicide mission that, by some miracle, he completed.

And after all that he's been through, Bucky Barnes believes that everything has been leading up to this. With him standing in the center of a large room, surrounded by Olympian gods—even minor gods—as his audience. Zeus, the king of the gods and the God of the Skies, standing on his left, while his lover, Phobos, the God of Fear, stood on his right.

"Bucky Barnes has achieved the impossible," Zeus began, the room immediately silencing. "Not only did he—in his long life as a mortal, regular man—survived all the war, imprisonment, and everything in between and beyond, but he had also achieved something that even demigods struggle to do." He lifted his right hand up and showcased a golden apple. "In my hand is the golden apple he had successfully retrieved from my wife's orchard. He was able to speak with the Hesperides, and overpower the mighty Ladon, just for this apple.

"It is now a simple of his love for Phobos, as well as the symbol of his journey from mortal to immortal. Because once he consumes this apple, he will not only live for eternity, but live eternity as a god among us. Bucky Barnes," Zeus directly turned to Bucky. "Do you accept this apple?"

"I do," Bucky nodded firmly.

"Do you accept whatever duty you may be given once you've consumed it?"

"I do."

"Do you promise your life beside us gods, and beside Phobos?"

"I do."

"Then, if you will."

In Phobos' eyes, everything felt like it was in slow motion. Watching Bucky take the apple from Zeus' hand and bring it towards his lips...it seemed like he was the only one nervous; probably even more nervous than his lover was. And as Bucky took his first bite, the room was immediately engulfed in a bright light.

"Introducing, James Buchanan Barnes...the God of Redemption, Salvation, and Penance. A warrior of Ares, a prodigy of Athena, and the betrothed of Phobos."