bakerstreet | Sworn to you

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Sworn to you

The Swear Myself to You Meme

It's been like this your entire life. Or perhaps it just seems that way, since it's been this way so long. Or it could hasn't been that long, and you remember what things were like before - worthless, fruitless, purposeless. Now, though, all is different. You've sworn your life to someone...or had your life sworn to them by someone else, back when you were young or powerless enough to not control your life. It doesn't matter if this swearing is an expected part of your society or an oddity in a modern age, here you are, and you know what you're here for. This isn't servitude, not in a fashion, as there's theoretically an honor here in your absolute loyalty. You are essentially on your "sworn duty's" level, you've just, well, chosen to dedicate your life to them. So if you're their best or brainwashed into being their right hand, all of it comes from a place of admiration!

Hopefully!

Theoretically.

Your position, of course, means you're a tool to be used, and every job needs a different tool. What's your job? Were you raised from an infant be be a constant companion for the one you're sworn to, who you grew up with? Instead, you could be a bodyguard or a first line of defense. In some cultures, there's an expectation that people be good in bed for future spouses; you could be there to train the one you're sworn to in the art of lovemaking. Of course, how well you're able to do your job depends on how your relationship is with your most important person. Are they kind? Cruel? What if they don't want you? It will be incredibly awkward if neither of you want to be in this position.

One certainty is this, however: romance and sexuality, unless heavily controlled, is forbidden. After all, how can you effectively dedicate yourself to them if some part of you wants them to dedicate themself to you?

How to Play

Comment with your character, your preferences, and what side of the equation you'd prefer to play - the being sworn to or the one doing said swearing. There are also three settings available: old fashion, modern, and future. You may want to specify which one of those you'd like, if you have a strong opinion.
Reply to others.
Use the RNG to determine your scenario.

Setting

Old Fashion: In the days of yore, be it ancient, medieval, or pseudo-Victorian - or altogether fantastical.
Modern: The here and now, where swearing to someone is pretty rare.
Future: Years from now, who knows what strange alien cultures and technologies we'll have to abide by?

Prompts

From Birth: You two were raised together, as one of you was given as a baby. There's no one who knows the other better than you.
BFFs: You are intended to be their lifetime companion...platonically, of course.
Repayment: You owe your life to them in one way or another. Devotion is the least you can do.
Out of Love: The reason you swore yourself to them is because you love them and this is the best way to be close to them, even if you have to sacrifice other things.
Unwilling Charge: Can you swear yourself to someone who doesn't want you?
Spoils of War: Being here and swearing allegiance isn't your idea, but when you or your people are defeated in battle, there's not much else you can do.
Ward: Perhaps you weren't there as an infant, but you did grow up in the family from a young age. They may be like a sibling to you. Would you be able to view them in any other way?
Marriage: ...a marriage is sort of a swearing, isn't it?
Mind Control: You need to be more pliable and loyal to be any good, servant.
Familiar: You were created through magic just for them.
Guard: Focus. You have to protect them, and you can't if you're distracted.
Eunuch: You're supposed to be completely chaste and celibate, or at least that's what they and those around them think.
To Teach: Your charge is going to be married, and you have to teach them how to please a future spouse.
Jealousy: You know you're not supposed to be
More than One: Someone else has sworn themselves to your charge...you were here first!
More than This: You want to be more to them than just a glorified servant.
Unwilling Charge: They don't want you, but you have to serve them.
Redemption: This is your way to make up for the sins of your past.
...what?: How to you get someone sworn to you again?
Utter Devotion: There isn't anything you wouldn't do for them. Anything.
Forbidden: Being with them sexually is a punishable offense for you, but neither of you care.
Equals: In society, you two are on different levels. In private, you see more eye to eye.
Not Too Serious: The more crack-y option. They saved you...but it was from something like stubbing your toe. Obviously, you owe yourself to them. Or something.
FREESTYLE

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Lenore is probably the one being sworn to!]

[either way, but more likely the one swearing]

( more than likely the one swearing his life, but open to either; plot with me! c: )

( i rolled 20 (hah) but like, anything you're into if anything?? )

( lol honestly they would both roll a nat20 in that since it's canon anyway. a lot of these already fit them, so i'm game to try a new spin if you'd like? i'm open to anything with them since they've got plenty of history. which one interests you most? )

( i'm for real down for anything but mind control (unless it's some sort of telepathy au where they can both get in and out of each other's heads whenever they want, and it's less controly and more generically always there/around). that being said, i'm most drawn to equals, marriage, forbidden, and mmaaaybe spoils of war? to shoot for off the beaten path of their normal pattern anyway. )

( maybe some combo of forbidden equals? bonus spoils of war if we can fit that in too. can easily be a modern royalty setup i think, where one of them is assigned to be subservient to the other. thoughts? )

( that sounds interesting! off the top of my head, i’m thinking one of them could be held at court amidst warring nations while treaties are negotiated? especially if it’s pretty obvious they’re not leaving/the war’s one-sided. might tie all the ideas together? )

( yeah, that works. they're both bullheaded enough to push even hard for negotiations, and the other probably has issues getting in the room due to status or it could be the subservient one is employed as aide/bodyguard too. you have a pref on who's the royal? )

( i can see it being an issue of status! noble enough for leverage to keep at court but not high enough to have a real say-so. and could probably be sworn in as a keep-your-enemies-close thing. i’m chill with either role tbh. i like both sides of the trope.

and i can def set up a starter post-work too, if it all sounds good to you. )

( yeah that could be the punishable offense aspect of it too. aren't supposed mix high court with middle or lower or sth. if you're fine with either, then maybe buck as the subservient one. steve is more level-headed so he would be better at negotiating peace. bucky would probably just get mad a lot and call people idiots when he thinks the mic is off. :')

works for me! )

Edited 2021-11-23 02:42 (UTC)

( for as long as steve can remember, people have been buzzing around him — following him, tasting his food, arranging his daily tasks, or photographing him whenever he leaves the grounds. that’s his normal. you get as used to eyes and ears hovering around you as you can, which is to say that he’s learned to tolerate it. ( he’s also learned every nook and cranny in the mansion, some from the housekeeping staff and some from his own late-night explorations as a boy. ) it doesn’t mean he’s any more a fan of having what little privacy he holds in an iron fist taken away from him. knowing the why doesn’t make him less begrudging when james buchanan barnes gets charged to him as a guard—a punishment designed for him as much as bucky, he’s sure.

for the last two weeks, steve hasn’t been unaccounted for because he has a shadow. a shadow that ( yes, even in this modern day and age ) insists on keeping him out of trouble because he may or may not be a pawn in a pending marriage, if necessary to pursue peace between two war-torn countries. the only time they’re separated for long is when he’s raising arguments before his family and their trusted council, vehemently insisting that they can resolve the conflict without more bloodshed.

( and that when they come to terms, no harm comes to james. he’s free to stay or go as he pleases. )

it’s worth noting that what started as endless irritation has transformed into something else. he won't name it because it isn't that complicated. he goes from snapping you don't have to be everywhere i am and do every thing i do to seeking bucky out and asking what are we getting into today? with far too much curiosity and excitement, and not nearly enough caution for a prince. the shift puts them in some kind of friendship, steve imagines, although he hasn't had many of those to compare the situation with. probably wishful thinking on his part.

the secret? he doesn't really care. so what if they're not supposed to have something resembling camaraderie? he enjoys bucky's company and maybe he's projecting that it's mutual here, but it's not like he has the self-preservation to stop gambling with his life. because, you know, there's a passageway between wings ( that servants used to access when they still called them servants ) that steve navigates by the light of his phone to sneak into bucky's room. whether he's immediately present or waiting outside of steve's room, he's either in a chair with a sketchbook or crossing his arms and leaning into the wall to derisively observe, like he's practiced: ) Some bodyguard you are.

( the tiny grin he fails to conceal softens his tone though. )

Edited (and also don't feel the need to tl;dr, i'm long-winded when settin a scene) 2021-11-23 07:47 (UTC)

( the barnes have always been in service to the crown, and so it was his own duty to serve, regardless of whoever they determined he would give his life for. years of training and subjugation teach him to remain voiceless, so when the prince then begins asking him what he would like to do, bucky is both honored and wary of what this means.

prince steve finds his way into bucky's bedchambers again, thankfully not getting lost like he had the first time and almost waking up the matron in the process. after the first week, bucky had offered his personal name to his sworn sovereign, in hopes that their burgeoning friendship might prevent any later retribution, but even now, the soldier can't help but wonder where the change came from, and if he's really just a means of safe entertainment to the overly well-guarded prince.

either way, when he returns from delivering his daily report to the head of security, there steve is, sitting in bucky's desk chair and drawing something or another. the remark drags a smile onto his face. )

You sneak. ( he walks toward his bed, undoing the top button of his uniform collar. ) Your father will have my hide, one of these days.

( but for however much it should instill fear in him, bucky lets it slide, the comfort of knowing the prince favors his company winning out on whatever punishment they might incur. it's usually never too bad as long as steve is involved. and anyway steve is the one who found his way into the servants corrider in the first place. )

What're you drawing? ( the soldier tugs his tie free before leaning over to take a peek. )

Yeah, that’s not exactly on the table. ( he shoots back with confident dismissal, positive in his ability to keep bucky from being harmed. it’s naivety dashed with uttermost grasp of himself and what he’d do to prevent something like that from happening altogether. tanked, maybe. he could see being fired in his future. steve’s made that happen plenty of times when he doesn’t trust the people allowed into his inner circle. not many people say no to a king and live an untarnished life afterwards. he happens to not be just anyone and he’ll use that when necessary, regardless of his generally humble nature. ) You’ll have to find some other way to get your kicks.

( ever the image of proprietary, this one. he lifts his pencil from the page briefly, cradling it between his fingers when he glances up at bucky the best he can while seated with him hovering over his shoulder. he smells good and it’s a thought that steve is grateful doesn’t come tumbling out to sabotage him. he clocks the loose collar, the tie in bucky’s hand and dips his head to brush his hand over the drawing, disturbing some of the stray specks of lead. )

There’s a river not too far from here near the mountains. Around this time of year, people will visit to reflect on the hopes they put out into the world on lanterns during the first month. They skip stones they’ve painted words on or burn notes in the fire. It's sort of outdated, but. ( he admits knowingly, figuring that's what bucky's thinking when they have other ways of communicating and connecting. that's his explanation that comes with a timid shrug. he's not embarrassed by his art, he thinks he's decent, it's that the pages in his sketchbook are one of the few places where he can express himself. steve's drawn a nondescript man from behind, skipping a stone into a lake circled by trees at the far bank and mountains in the background.

he tucks the pencil into the binding and closes what's basically a journal for him, finally turning in his chair to prop his arm over the backside. the last thing he needs is bucky snatching it and thumbing through the rest of the pages, so he rests his other forearm atop it, pinning it down. casually, sure, not secretively. )

I don't know, ( he continues, ) I like the tradition. Do you have any celebrations like that?

Edited 2021-11-23 20:47 (UTC)

[canonically the sworn; groomed to be devoted to a fault, whether he likes it or not; if interested in romance or sex, m/m only please.

especially open to 4, 5, 9, 10, 14, 17, 20; happy to combine. warnings are here, feel free to reach out if you have questions/want to plot something before diving in]