"catching stars" - 1x1.

[lavender moon]

She looked at him for a bit, listening carefully to each word as if they’re was some code that she had to decipher. A guilty feeling suddenly flowed over her. He felt like he owed her and that was why he was helping her. He felt like he owed her for bringing her into the situation when she knew things like this would happen when she left the Camp. That’s just what happened when you were a prisoner, a slave. It wasn’t a surprise to her when Rodgers showed up. It was annoying and agrivating, but she had prepared for things like that. “You don’t owe me anything. I knew that at some point someone would come after me.” She sighed deeply, closing her eyes for a moment and taking in the sounds and smell of the rich earth and the forest around it. It was so peaceful, and she was grateful for that. Luka was still bouncing around but had come over for a moment to check on the two. He licked Rodger’s face and made sure that Charity gave him a good scratch behind the ear before disappearing into the grass again. Her lips slowly formed a smile and she let out the smallest ‘hmph’ of laughter at his words. She shook her head slightly, her hair swaying around her face. “Life gets boring if you follow the rules for too long.” She said, laying back again, watching as a shooting star flew past. The moon glowed brightly, a full moon. The face of the moon seemed to be smiling down on her, watching over the two of them in the meadow and protecting them. “Thanks for... everything.” She said, looking over to him for a moment before closing her eyes. A breeze travelled through the field as a silence fell over the two of them. “At this point, I owe you. After all, I did hit you with a staff and just about let Luka attack you.” She said. Luka heard his name and dutifully bound over. He knocked Steve down before laying on top of him, licking his face happily. Dawn sat up and pulled Luka away from him. “Luka! Leave it!” She said, trying to be commanding while laughing. “I’m sorry for basically wrecking your life. You were just doing your job...”

[ethium]

as luka bounded over and pounced atop the captain, steve let out a fit of laughter and blocked his face as the dog berated him with laps from his tongue. fighting the canine through fits of laughter. "you didn't wreck my life at all honestly you helped me see how much of a bully my superior was. Thanks." he added pulling himself up from where the German Shepherd had slammed him down into the grass. "you two are made for one another." he added watching fondly as the canine bounded off like a newborn fawn into the tall grass, crushing it beneath his ginormous paws. "so, what to you like? have any favorite foods? restaurants? anything at all. I'm heading into town tomorrow, so maybe i could pick up something you like while im there? Unless you'd like to come with me? You'd need to ride on samuel with me because the cars stolen. but i'm sure you could get the hang of riding samuel quicker than you'd think. Luka could come along or stay here to guard the farm?" he suggested raising his eyebrows as he looked at charity with a small smile. Life would go on. He would make life go on, it wouldn't freeze while they were in hiding. Of course, he'd need to be a bit more cautious when it came to running around town. But so long as he was careful he'd be fine. He could relax and begin to try and start a normal life, maybe he could even try to farm, make a bit of money off of that. For now he was running off of saved up funds, but eventually those would run out. Especially after the fact that he had just purchased a home out-of-pocket. Granted the home itself hadn't been that much, since nobody wanted the home in the middle of nowhere with no internet and no way to contact anyone. But it was perfect for the two hideaways who were on the run from practically the government. Rogers sighed and laid down letting his gaze scan the skies.

[lavender moon]

She laughed once more as Luka attacked Steve before bounding off into the grass again like nothing had happened. His fur visible if you looked closely through the strands of grass, which were now waving in the breeze that was flowing steadily across the meadow, lapping at the tree’s branches and leaves, at the flowers and the grass. She sighed and looked over to Steve as he asked the question. Her face suddenly flushed, going white as all of the color drained from her face, meanwhile heat rushed up to her cheeks as they turned a shade of red. She paused before deciding on answering the question honestly, she absentmindedly picked at the grass and watched it as she opened her lips to speak. “I didn’t have much time to think about those things. It’s not safe for me to be in the public eye for longer than just a few minutes, maybe up to an hour. Camp has eyes and ears everywhere.” She told him, sighing softly before continuing. “I do like apples though. Honey crisps are my favorite.” She told him. “At least that’s what I think they’re called.” She paused, thinking that over for a few moments before deciding that Honeycrisp was the right name and moving on to his next question. Her mind travelled back to the beautiful horse whom had terrified her just earlier that day, well, the day before at that point. She wasn’t afraid of it anymore, if Steve trusted it she knew she could as well. Still, riding into town would only cause issues in their lives and, sadly, she knew that all too wel “No, Luka and I will stay here and watch over the farm. I want to look through the house, maybe find a cookbook and practice cooking or clean up a bit.” She told him before meeting his blue eyes with her stormy grey ones. That storm had brewed there every since she was taken captive, and it remained there. It was simply brewing, biding it’s time, always ready to strike but never doing so until her powers came out to play. “It’s not safe for us to be seen together. If an agent from Camp spots me with you, they’ll hunt you down and kill you. I don’t want to throw that on you.” She told him, standing up and snapping her fingers so Luka would follow her as she turned to walk back into the house, not wanting to speak anymore, just wanting to be left alone. Or, that’s what she thought anyhow. She really did like Rodgers. Maybe even loved him, but she was too scared to get close to him in fear of causing him pain or suffering. “I’m sorry, Rodgers.” She whimpered over her shoulder before straightening up and walking towards the house like an agent on a mission from Camp.

[ethium]

as the discussion took a turn for the worse rogers turned his gaze away suddenly feeling anxious and antsy. he needed to move, and as she whispered she was sorry and turned away he felt his words caught in his throat and let her leave without saying anything. he exhaled and pulled his knees to his chest letting his head fall to his hands. He needed to move, to get some air. With that rogers stood and walked, with no clear destination in mind he headed through the tall grass the brushed his hip. He ran his fingers through it absentmindedly his mind in some far off place. He needed the silence, the feeling of being alone encasing him in a cocoon. It was comforting to have a familiar feeling. Though it was a rather depressing familiar feeling, it was something he couldn't help but feel when your best friend had fallen off a train during WWII and your living in a completely different time period than when you went into the ice. He sighed. It had been easy to forget that life was different when he had surrounded himself with work and distractions, but here out on the farm and the past few days had finally gotten to him. Had finally let himself feel what he was always feeling. alone. The girl was special and unique, and though part of her had filled his void in some long forgotten way. He still felt distanced from her, and everyone else. However drawn he was to everyone it never seemed to matter to his mind. He was alone. and his brain wouldn't ever let him forget it. As he walked through the fields and the trees here and there, he felt almost peace as he came to accept his emotions. Coming to rest under a lone tree he sighed and let his gaze scan the horizon. the night would fade out soon enough and he'd be left tired by dawn. But he'd push through that sense of dread and head into town as he promised. He'd pick up those honeycrisp apples and he'd build himself a home. He'd provide for this girl until she decided to leave, if she ever did want to leave in the first place. He made a plan then, a pact in his brain. He'd provide and accept these feelings as his own. He would build a life for himself. That much rogers was certain.

[lavender moon]

She walked back into the house, letting Luka in first. His fur brushed against her leg as he pranced in before catching the sense that something was wrong and feeling that Dawn wasn’t in the right kind in that moment. He barked softly, making a “Bork” sound as she walked in after him. She sunk to the floor and stayed there for a moment. Why was she doing this to herself? Why was she doing the to Rodgers? The only foreseeable outcome was pain. For both of them. She didn’t want that. And so, she decided, she would stay with rodgers until she could find somewhere ese to go, but she wouldn’t grow close to him. She had to cut herself off from him and to cut him from her. The only way to keep them both safe was to put up a wall between them. Luckily for them, Charity was amazing at building walls between herself and others. It was another “gift” to Camp. She slowly dragged herself up from the floor, gripping the itches counter for support, her knuckles turning white as she steadied herself. There was no way on earth that she would be able to sleep. No, there wasn’t a possibility of sleep for at least an hour. So, she did the one thing she knew would clear her mind to help her think and calm down. Cleaning, and exploring. She started with the kitchen, using cleaning supplies from below the sink she wiped the counters clean before doing the same to all the tables in the house. She removed dusty blankets and put them in the wash, she washed all of the dishes, just to detoxify them. She made and remade beds and fixed the couches and the like. This entire time she had her fuzzy companion behind her, trailing after her with a lazily wagginging Gail as she cleaned up the house until she couldn’t possibly clean anymore. And then she walked out of the house, Luka still following as the door slammed shut behind them. Her footsteps travelled from the door to the barn where she began sweeping with an old fashioned broom. The breeze whistles and blew through her hair as she softly began to sing one of the few songs she’d heard while in New York. She breathed deeply before beginning to sing, “I'll use you as a warning sign. That if you talk enough sense then you'll lose your mind. And I'll use you as a focal point. So I don't lose sight of what I want. And I've moved further than I thought I could, but I missed you more than I thought I would...And I'll use you as a warning sign.. That if you talk enough sense then you'll lose your mind” She sung softly like a mother to a newborn whom was fast asleep.

[ethium]

steve sighed, ran a hand over his face again and stood. Striding back towards the house, though he took his time pausing every now and then to watch the fireflies or the stars and take in the night air. As the farmhouse came into view he entered the back door, quietly shutting it behind him. His mind was on sleep, a little bit of sleep would likely sooth his aching mind. and so he traveled to the place he had slept before on the floor and laid down, the two hound dogs at his feet laying watch like guardians who would keep his dreams from turning to nightmares. They were loyal and dutiful, and though they didn't fully trust charity yet. Nor did they like the german shepherd, they would do as rogers commanded and remained silent at his feet, keeping their watchful gazes on the door ready to alert him of any threats to their presence. It took a few moments for rogers to finally doze off, his mind still fluttering with unexplored thought streams. but eventually it settled and he fell into a light dreamless sleep, staring off into a black abyss that he would never explore or comprehend. Eventually his dreams turned deep and his mind switched to the future, combining fantasy and memories and mushing them together. His limbs wanted to twitch, and his throat was dry as he cried for a falling bucky. Fingers entwined with book upon book, the feeling of diving into an icy bath that would later spell his doom. His body went ridged as more recent memories crept their way into his dreams. The girl running down the alleyway, the german shepherd on her heels. How she had been light under the moonlight, her hair bouncing in waves curling and framing her pale complexion. Finally, the captain lurched up in taking one breath the dogs shot to attention their eyes finding their leader dutifully eager to please. Rogers scratched behind their ears silently as he stared off into the distance, the nature of his dreams were a mystery. Most of the time they were merely memories mixed with things that had never happened. Dreams were never pleasant for the captain, war, fighting and loosing everyone you had ever cared about did that to you.

[lavender moon]

The sound of hay scraping against the concrete ground and the soft tapping of Luka’s claws against the ground was all that could be heard as she fell silent. Her hair was swinging gently around her face as she moved about the floor, getting lost in the silence and background noise of crickets and the soft light of the moon washing the floor around her. Luka had then laid down and stretched out across the cold floor as he watched his human clean. After she had swept a large majority of the dust away she placed the broom against the wall of the closet of the barn. A small slapping noise sounded as she hit her hands against each other to get the dirt and dust off before pulling her hair into a messy bun in attempts to keep it out of her face. Luka’s eyes brightened as she snapped her fingers, clearly ready to leave. He yawned, stretching his jaws wide as he stood and stretched his other sore muscles. She smiled softly as he got up as if he was an old dog even though he was only about 3 years old as far as she knew. There was no way to be positive as she didn’t remember meeting him in Camp as her memory had been erased. In all reality, she had been partnered with Luka two years before escaping camp. He had been about 7 months old when she was 17. She had escaped at the age of 19 and had been on the run for almost a year. Of course, she didn’t know what her true birthdate was. They had no need to celebrate that in Camp. Only the highest ranking officers knew the birthdates for research purposes and the like. She huffed and slowly made her way through the meadow. A path had been worn away by many, many footsteps before her. It had been grown over but it was revealing itself again as she and Steve used it. Luka followed as she went to open the door to the barn house. She opened it and allowed Luka in before her, staying silent as she expected Rodgers to be asleep. She walked in after him and turned to close the door softly. A soft click sounded as she locked it and continued into the living area where she and Rodgers had been sleeping. She jumped a bit when she walked into Rodgers sitting upright. That storm innher eyes seemed to be on the brink of breaking out. That wall seemed to be getting stronger by the minute. “Not able to sleep?” She asked, her voice deprived of all emotion.

[ethium]

"war and fighting will do that to you." he replied thickly, noting her shift in attitude and voice. she was once again closing herself off from the world. Something his friends did frequently, so it wasn't as unusual to draw suspicion from the captain. "im just not used to being left alone in silence. It lets my inner thoughts creep out. Makes me restless. at least in the city I had distractions throughout the night, or had work to do that prevented sleeping." he muttered his gaze far off. It was almost as if he had never registered charity coming in. Suddenly he seemed to snap to attention, to realize who he was talking to and to realize all that had happened throughout the night. "if you need to rest i'll leave, my old bedroom from when i stayed here is down the hall. I wouldn't mind taking residence there once again." he stated glancing at the girl whose eyes remained locked on rogers. No emotion, or expression could be determined and from her stance she wasn't into a pep talk now. "if you need anything let me know, or i guess you could just find it yourself." he added, standing and picking up his pillow from the floor, the two coon dogs following close behind him as he brushed past her silently tromping down the hall without really waiting for a reply. She wasn't in the mood to open up, so he wouldn't be in the mood either. No matter how childish it might have sounded, rogers wasn't going to be patient. It was more he wasn't in the mood, this late at night all he wanted to do was hit his pillow and yell in frustration. Since that wasn't an option he'd need to resort to removing himself from the situation until he could gain a better grasp on his fluctuating emotions.

[lavender moon]

The female looked forward as he past, looking over her shoulder to watch him walk away. Once he was out of sight and gone she sighed deeply. She wanted to love. She wanted to accepted love and be loved. She wanted settle down and care for others and maybe start a family. But she was only nineteen and those dreams were buried and battered, some piles of rumble and ash. They had been torn from her and destroyed by Camp. It wasn’t be any means her fault that she was this way. This was quite simply the only way she knew and she would need some pushing to change. She fell to her knees on the floor and pressed her forehead onto the old carpet. Her eyes were squeezed tightly shut. She felt herself slipping back into that cold, white cell. She shook her head, shaking the memory away. “No... not again... please.” She whimpered. This time, they did. The images left her, but the feeling didn’t. The cold, crisp air of the cell was still hanging around her as she shakily stood and moved over to the couch. She fell limp onto it as she passed out, her wake hand burning the leather of the couch and her left hand frosting the leather. Luka whined before going off the find Rodgers. She didn’t like to be around Charity when her powers started to malfunction. The furry animal followed the scent of Rodgers through the house to the coons and Rodgers. He sniffed at one of the coons, trying not to act threatening. He didn’t want to frightened the small, younger dogs. He carefully stepped around them and waltzed up to Rodgers. He nudged his way under Steve’s hand, looking up at him with big puppy dog eyes. This was something that would be unusual to Rodgers since Luka rarely left Charity’s side. The doggo barked softly before folding his legs underneath himself and drifting off to sleep as Charity did the same. This was the only time the two had ever slept at the same time, and it would be one of the last for sure. Meanwhile, Charity was shaking and groaning in pain as she tried to escape the world of nightmares she was once again trapped in.

[ethium]

opening the door to his old bedroom he felt the breath escape him as memories began to berate him. of all the times he had spent in this room, not once was it as painful or sorrow filled as the moment he trudged through the door at that moment. sometimes life sucked, he knew that better than others. but as he stood there in the musty room breathing in the dust that once might have given him an asthma attack, he couldn't bring his mind to comprehend that this was the place he had spent months of his life. the old woman returned to rogers's mind and he felt tears edging at his eyes, in some small way he had thought of her as a grandmother, even if they hadn't had been related, Nearly everyone rogers was related to was dead, and the old lady had been kinder to him than most in a time where nobody would help anyone. Let alone allow a stranger a room in your home without rent or notice beforehand. The lady had been here when rogers needed her, and out of the way when he didn't. She didn't push, nor did she pry. She was a voice of reason, and he had often found himself going to her for advice. Steve sighed, and let the tears come. He didn't have the patience to stop them anyway. He seated himself on the dusty old bed, still fitted with the sheets he had changed the bed too the last time he had come over. He had mentioned to the lady that they were his favorites. She had merely smiled as she finished up baking something sweet in the oven. Only two stray tears rushed down his face, steve rogers was not known to be a crier, so the ordeal wasn't messy. He merely pouted on the bed his lip trembling as the coon dogs wiggled up on the bed with him shoving their noses up in his face and licking his hands and nose. He couldn't keep the small, reminiscent grin as he gently pushed them away. They settled themselves on opposite sides of him, and it was then that luka padded in his large oak eyes beading up at him. Rogers watched the canine for a moment, taken aback by the sudden trust from the canine. He was alone, without charity. Which was unusual in itself. Finally this caused rogers to question why the Shepherd had taken residence with him as opposed to the girl. Rising from the bed, rogers made his way down the hall peering out from behind the corner he noticed the restless charity struggling once again in her dream world. The answer to his question right in front of him as he noticed her abilities creeping across the leather sofa. He sighed softly, but didn't want to wake her. If the shepherd had wanted to get away so badly he would follow the canine's example and leave her be.