❨ 𝐈𝐌𝐀𝐆𝐈𝐍𝐄           . . .             𝑏𝘰𝘰𝑘 𝑖 ❩
﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌
━━━ 𝙱𝚄𝙲𝙺𝚈 𝙱𝙰𝚁𝙽𝙴𝚂/ ❛ 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗂𝗌 𝖺
𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲, 𝖿𝖾𝖾𝗅 𝗅𝗂𝗄𝖾 𝗐𝖾 𝗇𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗋
𝒂𝒄𝒕 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗀𝗎𝗅𝖺𝗋. ❜

𝙸𝙼𝙰𝙶𝙸𝙽𝙴,               ┊                  001
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ∘♡⋅°
𝐎𝐍𝐄                   𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒆

━━━━━━━━  "𝓣here." Natasha announced shoving her iPhone into her leather coat pocket continuing her drive down the streets of Washington. She glanced over to the brunette next to her who ran her fingers through her long hair, smoothing it out. "You good?" She questioned glancing back to the road.

"Oh, yes." Melody smiled brightly, as her eyes darted around her surroundings in awe.

"Still getting used to everything?" Natasha asked with a small smile to the sea nymph, earning a nod from the dazed girl, she continued. "Don't worry about it, you and Steve will adjust in no time." She reassured her.

"I hope so." Melody frowned turning to the red head, "I am still unfamiliar with the way people speak here on land. Tony had sent me something on that wonderful device and he had written . . ." She trailed off pulling out her silver iPhone, slowly taping the screen. "L-o-l. I am not quite sure what that means." She murmured looking down at the text message with a head tilt.

Natasha smiled shaking her head, "It's a term meaning 'Laugh out loud.' You say it when you find something funny, instead of, 'Haha.' Which in my opinion makes you sound like a robot." She explained making gestures with her right hand.

"Strange." Melody mumbled looking down at her phone as the two pulled up to the curb seeing Steve speaking to another man.

"Hey fellas. You know where the Smithsonian is? We're here to pick up a fossil." Natasha announced with a smirk alerting the two men.

"L-O-L!" Melody exclaimed.

Steve and Sam looked to one another in amusement as they watched the ecstatic brunette turn to Natasha who nodded her head in approval.

"Hilarious." Steve sarcastically replied before taking Melody's passenger seat, who now sat in the back her head shoved in between Natasha and Steve himself. "Can't run everywhere." He smiled to Sam who smiled nodding his head in agreement watching the car take off.

"What does 'Th-i-cc' mean?" Melody inquired after a few minutes of driving in silence.

"Nothing good." Steve shook his head, where as Natasha rolled her eyes at the former soldier.

・꣑୧・┈・┈・꣑୧・

𝓜elody, Steve, and Natasha observed the screen before them in the Quinjet. She rocked on the heels of her boots glancing around the metal container they were currently in. She chewed on her lip not liking the confined room when she could easily be out in the water listening to their orders. Steve had explained how she had to pay attention in order to know what and where to go, seeing as one wrong move could ruin everything.

As well as he didn't want her getting hurt alongside any one else on the mission.

"Pirates?" Natasha questioned pulling Melody out of her trance, "Sounds like a job for The Little Mermaid herself." She rose a brow to the brunette as the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents turned to the brunette who played with the ends of her hair in boredom.

"Huh?" She froze in her spot looking up at the group ahead of her.

"We all have to do this." Rumlow denied shaking his head averting his attention from the youngest Agent they had, "There's about twenty five of them and they're run by this guy." Rumlow pointed to the screen where a photo of a man appeared, "Georges Batroc. Ex-DGSE, Action Division. He's at the top of Interpol's Red Notice. Before the French demobilized him, he had thirty six kill missions. This guy's got a rep for maximum casualties."

"Hostages?" Steve asked.

"Mostly techs. One officer. Jasper Sitwell." Rumlow showed another photo of a man in glasses. "They're in the galley."

"All right, Mel will play distraction on the right side. Then I'll sweep the deck to the left and find Batroc. Nat, you kill the engines and wait for instructions." Steve announced before turning to the other agent before them, "Rumlow, you sweep aft, find the hostages, get them to the life-pods, get them out. Let's move."

Melody let out a breath as she made her way towards the jet's opening. She leant against the cold wall waiting for Natasha and Steve who approached her.

"Well, all the guys from my barbershop quartet are dead, so not really." Melody overhead the tall blonde explain to the red head who frowned slightly. "Why?"

"She thinks you need a girlfriend." Melody blurted out. Steve's eyes widened as Natasha rose a brow at the brunette, "Sorry, I'm working on it." She apologized with a frown; referring to her mind reading ability. Something she tended to have trouble with controlling.

"No invading people's thoughts, remember?" Steve rose a brow earning a stern nod from the brunette. "Good girl."

Melody huffed.

"Coming up on the drop zone, Cap." The pilot's voice rang through their ear pieces.

"If you ask Kristin out, from Statistics, she'd probably say yes." Natasha hinted.

Melody cringed at the thought of the busty woman she had met her second day as a S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent.

"That's why I don't ask." Steve shouted over the wind. The door to the Quintet had opened showcasing the dark night sky.

"Too shy, or too scared?"

"Both." "Too busy." Melody and Steve announced simultaneously the two looked to one another.

"I'm sorry." Melody apologized as she realized she had read the man's mind once again.

"Mel-" Steve sighed his cheeks tinted a light pink.

"Oh look, I'm up." Melody perked up before jumping out the jet diving into the ocean.

"Baby steps." Natasha hummed placing her hand on Steve's shoulder as they watched her.

Melody's head popped up from the water, approaching the boat she reached the edge before hopping over the ledge. Her doe eyes scanned her area before seeing two men down the hallway.

Tilting her head she began humming softly. Her voice slowly but surely echoed through their ears halting their movements as they turned around mindlessly facing towards her.

Raising her hands the two handed over their guns just as she used the butt of the weapons smacking it in their faces knocking them out instantly.

"Hey!" A voice called out from down the hall. Melody turned around before dropping the guns to her sides, "You lost little girl?" One of the men taunted.

"No, they said for me to be on this side of the boat. Unless Steve had changed my whereabouts last minute." Melody's brows furrowed.

The men eyed the girl in confusion before raising their guns towards her.

Sprinting, she slid across the wooden floor beneath the large men before spinning around and kicking them both from under their feet. Grabbing their heads, she banged them off the floor boards. Standing to her feet she rolled her neck, a sigh left her lips.

Hearing foot steps behind her she halted her movements.

"Don't move."

"Okay." She answered before fluttered her eyes shut, the winds picked up around them as did the currents. A small yet forceful tornado appeared next to them engulfing the three men off the boat and into the ocean. "Right side is cleared." She chirped removing her finger from her ear piece.

"Coming up behind you, Mel." Steve announced rounding the corner with a few agents who rushed down a separate hall. Steve met with Melody who walked next to him side by side.

"You're blushing." Melody noted her eyes glued ahead of them.

"It's cold out." Steve denied.

"Blushing." She corrected before hiding behind a wall looking up to the windows where more enemies were inside.

Steve ignored her comment, following her movements.

"Targets acquired." A voice announced over the mic.

"STRIKE in position." Rumlow followed up from his location.

"Natasha, what's your status?" Steve brought his wrist up to his mouth speaking into his mic. "Status, Natasha?" He repeated not hearing the woman's voice.

"Hang on!" Natasha shouted back. Steve glanced to Melody whose eyes were filled with worry, her lips formed a frown. "Engine room secured." She breathed out.

"On my mark, three, two, one." Steve announced as STRIKE entered their sectioned area rescuing the hostages. "Ready?" He looked to Melody whose eyes glared towards the large windows across them, a curt nod was sent his way.

"Hello? Batroc, the line is dead. I lost contact with them-" The pirate began only to be cut off as Steve smashed through the window using his shield as Melody knocked him out. Her head whipped around not seeing any sign of Batroc.

"He's gone." She voiced up.

"Come on." Steve nodded placing his hand on her back escorting her out of the room quickly and after the pirate.

"Hostages on route to extraction. Romanoff missed the rendezvous point, Cap. Hostiles are still in play." Rumlow announced.

"Natasha, Batroc's on the move. Circle back to Rumlow and protect the hostages." Steve ordered Natasha who didn't respond back to the former soldier. "Natasha!"

"What do we do?" Melody's worried tone met with Steve's ears.

"I'll go after both of them, you go with Rumlow make sure everyone's safe."

"But-"

"Go." Steve demanded, "That's an order."

Reluctantly Melody ran away from Steve and where the STRIKE agents were with the hostages.

Approaching the group she assisted the men and women onto the jet to safety. Her doe eyes darted around waiting for her two friends who were late, and no where in sight.

After ten minutes she sighed in relief seeing the two.

Steve's features radiated anger as Natasha wore a small frown looking to the blonde man in his suit. She watched as the two walked past her and into the jet.

"Bisa vys iksis strange." Melody mumbled to herself before entering the jet and taking a seat next to Natasha. "Seaweed?" She asked pulling out the green plant from her knapsack she had left on the jet.

Natasha sighed shaking her head.

With a shrug Melody chomped on the food swinging her feet back and forth.

・꣑୧・┈・┈・꣑୧・

     𝓜elody walked next to Steve through the Smithsonian Museum which had a section dedicated to non other than the Captain himself. Since returning from their mission she had noticed his mood change significantly especially towards Natasha.

Steve would often visit the museum every once and a while as did Melody.

She'd join the man knowing he needed a friend seeing as how he'd often stop in front of two specific photos of people he once knew and had been significantly close with. The two were; Peggy Carter, and James Buchanan Barnes.

She didn't have to have the ability to read people's minds to know how heartbroken the man next to her truly was without the two in his life anymore.

As for Melody she found it as a way to not only learn about history of the human species but also about her new friend. She enjoyed listening to Steve speak about life back in the forty's and how different it was compared to the twenty first century. As well as Natasha, the red head often would tell her stories about her past knowing she could trust the brunette with anything and she would never utter a word to a single soul.

Something they respected about Melody Lockhart was her loyalty.

"A symbol to the nation. A hero to the world. The story of Captain America is one of honour, bravery and sacrifice." The narrator announced as kids and adults walked around the exhibit in awe.

"You're upset." Melody noted with a frown, she adjusted her baseball cap to her head, her long brown wavy locks cascaded down her back as she adjusted her jacket trying to keep a low profile. For some odd reason that she did not know of, Steve thought wearing a simple hat would some how shield their identities; no pun intended.

"Denied enlistment due to poor health, Steven Rogers was chosen for a program unique in the annals of American warfare. One that would transform him into the world's first super soldier."

"I'm not upset." Steve mumbled his blue irises glanced from photo to photo. "Just, thinking . . ."

"You're always thinking." Melody mumbled, "You never stop." Steve smiled faintly at her words knowing she often found it frustrating when she would accidentally read someone's mind and they had numerous thoughts going through their minds and she didn't know which one to help them with first.

A boy no older then eight stops and stares at the duo before him. Steve smiles and puts his finger against his lips to indicate for the boy to keep quiet. To which the child simply nods in starstruck watching as Melody waved at the boy happily before walking away with Steve.

"Battle tested, Captain America and his Howling Commandos quickly earned their stripes. Their mission, taking down HYDRA, the Nazi rogue science division." The narrator continued as the two observed different sections of the exhibit.

"Best friends since childhood, Bucky Barnes and Steven Rogers were inseparable on both schoolyard and battlefield. Barnes is the only Howling Commando to give his life in service of his country."

"You miss him deeply." Melody voiced up watching the photo of the handsome man appear before their eyes, "I don't know what I would do without Kai." She admitted with a sad look in her eyes.

"Yeah." Steve nodded with a frown, "Well, I hope that never happens to you."

"I do too." She answered with a nod, "I also hope I never lose you." She smiled softly looking up at him, "Or Natasha, Tony, Fury, the team. Anyone who has been helping me since coming here. I appreciate you all so very much."

Steve's lips twitched upwards at her words, "I hope I don't lose you either, Mel." He placed his hand on her shoulder before they visited an all to familiar room, where Peggy Carter's interview had been showcased in.

"That was a difficult winter. A blizzard had trapped half our battalion behind the German line. Steve . . . Captain Rogers, he fought his way through a HYDRA blockade that had pinned our allies down for months. He saved over a thousand men, including the man who would . . . Who would become my husband as it turned out. Even after he died, Steve was still changing my life."

"You won't be sad forever, Steve." Melody whispered placing her hand over his own before standing to her feet allowing him a moment to himself.

𝙽𝙾𝚃𝙴 • BY VAAINE ━━︎━━︎━ written in : 𝟤𝟢𝟣𝟫)

here's something so you get the idea of melody and her time of being on land. she's been there as long as steve has been back so that's why they have a strong bond in such a small amount of time.

they're platonic don't worry. he's like a big brother to her, a guardian in a sense. he wants to protect her, he promised her grandfather he would (more on that later) so that's why they're so close as they are. idk i feel like steve h2g needs someone by his side who understands his mind set and melody is the type to understand both sides to a story and not just one.

𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗦𝗟𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 :
bisa vys iksis strange : this world is strange

© VAAINE