Nobody seems to get that there hadn't been any bravery involved, no clarity or goodness of character that made him self sacrificing. There had only been terror and exhaustion and an opportunity. He cut his hand off because even failing and bleeding out was preferable to another day of torture, it was dumb luck that he managed to get the others out as well, and fluke that they all somehow made it back to base.
He hated the word even more after the army were finally done with him. They threw that word around like it was their license to print dollars. They wanted to publicise his story; a young man making a sacrifice for his brothers in arms, it would sell, it would get the public sympathy behind the military and make them support where Uncle Sam said. The only reason it hadn't turned into a media circus was because they couldn't rely on Bucky to be a good little soldier and say what he was supposed to, he would have been just as likely to cuss out any reporters that got near him. So instead they gave him a purple heart, a worthless medal to gather dust, a thank you, and a pension. Goodbye and get out.
No, he wasn't a damn hero.
He scowled over at Steve, but getting into an argument over semantics wouldn't help anyone; especially because whenever he protested that title with anyone else, they thought he was being modest and it all got more irritating from there. So he'll just answer the actual question asked, skating over the rest of it.
"Sometimes. I have meds that I'm meant to take, and physio classes to go to, check ups, all that stuff."
Not that he does most of it.
"It's pretty much healed up now, it just looks ugly as hell when I don't have a shirt on. But I've got the prosthetic, so most people never notice."
no subject
Nobody seems to get that there hadn't been any bravery involved, no clarity or goodness of character that made him self sacrificing. There had only been terror and exhaustion and an opportunity. He cut his hand off because even failing and bleeding out was preferable to another day of torture, it was dumb luck that he managed to get the others out as well, and fluke that they all somehow made it back to base.
He hated the word even more after the army were finally done with him. They threw that word around like it was their license to print dollars. They wanted to publicise his story; a young man making a sacrifice for his brothers in arms, it would sell, it would get the public sympathy behind the military and make them support where Uncle Sam said. The only reason it hadn't turned into a media circus was because they couldn't rely on Bucky to be a good little soldier and say what he was supposed to, he would have been just as likely to cuss out any reporters that got near him. So instead they gave him a purple heart, a worthless medal to gather dust, a thank you, and a pension. Goodbye and get out.
No, he wasn't a damn hero.
He scowled over at Steve, but getting into an argument over semantics wouldn't help anyone; especially because whenever he protested that title with anyone else, they thought he was being modest and it all got more irritating from there. So he'll just answer the actual question asked, skating over the rest of it.
"Sometimes. I have meds that I'm meant to take, and physio classes to go to, check ups, all that stuff."
Not that he does most of it.
"It's pretty much healed up now, it just looks ugly as hell when I don't have a shirt on. But I've got the prosthetic, so most people never notice."