#also as someone who only read agent of asgard and some of the jane has cancer and ALSO she's thor stuff (i.e. love and thunder)

[the-irish-mayhem]

One of the mods shows up 15 minutes late with Starbucks. This week has been insane, BUT never fear! The stuff WILL get posed. This is for Fosterson Week Day 5: Throwback Thorsday. We’re fudging the timeline a little bit--imagine that the Thor movie took place around the same time/a bit after the first Iron Man movie in 2008. More of a sketch, a collection of moments than a true fic. (but there is something resembling plot here)

Loki never sends the Destroyer to Midgard.

Read on AO3.

destiny, disrupted

Here is a truth: Loki loves Thor.

Here is another truth: Loki also hates Thor.

Here is the most relevant truth: Loki loves his mother and respects her counsel above all others.

At the end of the day, this is what matters most. Odin sleeps on, Frigga advises her son how to rule, and Loki (mostly) listens.

Thor remains on Midgard. Mjolnir lays dormant in the desert, the magic patient and steadfast. The Destroyer remains in the Vault where it belongs, and the Warriors Three grudgingly accept Thor’s banishment; after all, Loki seems to be (mostly) listening to Frigga, and they are loyal to the throne. Heimdall watches carefully.

The realms continue to turn, Yggdrasil’s branches trembling in the galactic ballet.

Something is drawing near--but not yet.

Years later, he marries Jane in the desert where they met. The marks of the Bifrost have long since blown away by the sharp winds, but it still feels as close to his first home as he can get. It’s a small wedding, made up of the few friends they have plus Jane’s mom and officiated by a local Native American minister.

She throws her arms around his neck when they are proclaimed man and wife, she kisses him like he is her anchor, and he wonders how he ever thought he’d been in love before. He dips her dramatically, and she giggles against his lips. Their small audience applauds, Darcy wolf whistles, and Thor would never have thought he could ever be satisfied, could be happy, with something so small and humble, but it’s perfect, it’s wonderful, and he gets to call Jane Foster his wife.

He takes her last name--she never asked him to, but it seems apt, to Thor, to do it. He is no longer Thor Odinson. The name no longer fits him. His father is gone; his last action had been to cast his son out. It seemed almost appropriate, honorable even, to respect that last ruling by giving up his name. On Midgard, he is someone new. He isn’t the crown prince, he is simply a man. (A man who loves a woman more than life itself.) A new identity, a new life, a new beginning.

And so they begin life as Mr. and Dr. Thor and Jane Foster.

(Distantly, Thor hopes Heimdall has told his mother that her son has happily wed.)

(Distantly, Thor hopes his father would’ve been proud of the small life he is building.)

(And a small life--)

(It doesn’t seem so bad now.)

THEN

SHIELD had left several months after Thor’s arrival. Packed up the facility after it became clear nothing was going to move Mjolnir, and no new data would be gathered from it. Coulson left them a business card, which Thor talked Jane out of throwing away outright. (He knows that having SHIELD on their side might prove useful in the future, even if Jane continues to grumble about jack-booted stormtroopers stealing her life’s work.)

After almost a year, the agent following them finally left too.

Jane rebuilt, Thor helping where he was able, happy to simply be around her. Her energy was unlike anyone he’s ever known, vibrant and frenetic and with an unbridled intelligence that he thought his brother would’ve liked.

Their first kiss was on the roof, late at night with a fire in front of them, Thor pointing out where his planet would be.

“The light from my sun hasn’t reached us yet,” he had said.

“It might in about two thousand more years, if my estimates were right about distance,” Jane had replied.

She’d been looking up, using her hand like a galactic wayfinder of old to measure the stars. The fire glowed orange on her skin, illuminating her eyes like coals. She’s a supernova of her own making, and he’d always known there was something special about her, but in that moment, he’d been struck not just by her beauty in the gentle slope of her nose and cheekbones, but the effortless way she’d folded him into her life, the way she accepted his story--she’d run an estimate on distance because he’d asked her to in a fierce bout of homesickness. (And even if the answer wasn’t great, it was an answer, and then she’d reached out and held his hand and asked him to tell her about Asgard.)

When he kissed her on the rooftop, she didn’t seem surprised--she just leaned into him and let the embers between them spark into flames.

NOW

“It’s a letter from SHIELD.”

“Oh?”

“They want you to advise on a quote ‘top secret project of high scientific importance’ unquote.”

Jane snorts. “They can eat my shorts. It set my research back months to rebuild all my equipment they stole.”

“Maybe you should read the letter,” Thor offers.

Jane waves him off, returning to the small piece of equipment she’s slowly soldering together. “Don’t need to.”

“Shouldn’t you be wearing a mask?” he asks, concerned. “Those fumes can’t be good for the baby.”

She sits up a bit. “It’s only a bit of copper. But I’ll wear one if it makes you feel better.”

“It will.”

Jane gives him a small smirk and a wink as she stands from her station. She’s not showing much yet--she’s just barely out of the first trimester, but Thor can’t help but glance at her belly, at their little miracle.

He looks back to the letter. When Jane returns, mask in place, he says, “How much did you say the university was paying you for your research position?”

Her snort is even more incredulous than before. “Not enough.”

Thor glances down at the letter in his hand, and counts out the zeros after SHIELD’s base salary for the offered ‘long term advisory and research position.’

“I do think you should read this.”

She sighs, and holds out her free hand without looking up.

He can tell exactly when she reaches the “we hope this to be fair and adequate compensation for the services you will provide” portion of the letter based on her eyebrows jumping straight up and the soft “Holy shit,” falling out of her mouth.

“We did need to get out of the one bedroom before the little one makes an appearance,” Thor offers.

“Shit,” Jane says again. “We could forget that shitty two bedroom place we were looking at in Santa Fe.” It’s a soft comment, more of an idle observation than a commitment.

“So you’ll call them?”

“I’ll think about it.”

(She calls them that night, and is on a plane for an interview within 36 hours.)

THEN

In the early days of their courtship, he’d tried every job available to him. He’d worked construction, waited tables at Izzy’s, bartended, answered phones at the sheriff’s office, and sold secondhand furniture. In truth, he did not particularly hate any of these jobs--they just hardly seemed worthwhile to do for the rest of his life.

He’d been used to being significant in a way that being a human man couldn’t quite match. Going from galactically known prince and military leader of a planetary superpower to a small town bartender was a jarring transition, to say the least.

The only place he’d found where that feeling of insignificance faded was at Jane’s side. He’d never had an eye for the technicalities of magic, but he remembered enough from his schooling to be able to help her interpret some of what she was looking at; she was certainly clever enough to fill any gaps in his own knowledge.

“I could use another intern,” Jane had mused one day. Darcy had gone back to Culver after her semester with Jane had finished with six college credits under her belt and a promise to stay in touch.

(“How do you feel about student-teacher relationships?” he’d asked cheekily later on.)

(She’d slapped his shoulder, but given her lips on his not a moment later, he supposed that was his answer.)

NOW

Their new home is lovely. Jane had been added to SHIELD’s payroll two months ago, and they’d collected enough savings to put down a sizable down payment on a nice three bedroom house about a twenty minute drive from SHIELD’s base.

She still hasn’t managed to talk SHIELD into letting her bring him with her.

“They’re fishing for information about you, I know they are. They keep saying shit like ‘oh, your research assistant hasn’t cleared our background checks, but if you help us fill in the gaps, we can do something for you.’ Pffft. Like I’m going to fall for that.”

“And I’m only the research assistant?” he asks from his place by the stove, tossing his chopped bell peppers into the frying pan with the onions.

Jane rolls her eyes and plops down at the kitchen table. “Right? It’s not like they don’t know we’re married.”

“They literally helped me get my driver’s license that lists my name.”

She gives him a helpless shrug. “They have a lot of questions about where you come from.”

“Perhaps we tell them everything. Phil Coulson isn’t so bad, despite what you think.”

Jane growls. “Why you insist on being friends with him I’ll never understand.”

Thor shrugs and bends to check his roast in the oven. “He is a nice fellow.”

“A nice fellow who stole all my research.”

Their doorbell rings. Thor moves to answer it, but Jane flaps a hand at him. “No, no, I’ve got it. You’ve got dinner going.” She slides up behind him and hugs him around the waist, kissing his shoulder blade before stepping away. “Love you. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” he answers as she leaves the kitchen. He takes two plates from the cupboard and wonders who could be at their door. He has invited Coulson for dinner in the past (hoping that his wife would bury the hatchet once she got to know him), but he hardly seems like the type to show up if he hasn’t informed the hosts of his arrival.

He’s in the midst of carrying the plates to the table when Fandral, Sif, Hogun and Volstagg walk into his kitchen.

The plates slip right out of his fingers and smash against the tile floor.

(Once the fragments are cleaned up, his friends tell him what has transpired on Asgard in his years of absence. Loki lied, his father was never dead, and a few months ago emerged from the Odinsleep. Loki disappeared soon after, and they’ve heard disturbing rumblings about Loki partnering with the Mad Titan.)

(“We have reliable sources saying he’s hunting for something called the Tesseract,” Sif says.)

(“This Tesseract,” Jane says, “wouldn’t happen to be like… a small-ish, blue, glowing cube would it?”)

(“Yes, that exactly,” Sif says, surprised.)

(Jane winces. “I think I know where you can find it.”)

THEN

Jane liked to cuddle. Especially when she was sated and sleepy, her limbs would tangle around him like an affectionate octopus. It was one of those nights when she asked him, “Would you go back?”

“Hm?” he asked, mind addled by sex and the late hour.

“If you got the chance to go back to Asgard, be who you used to be. Would you take it?”

“I doubt I’ll ever get that chance.”

“Humor me,” she said, insistent in a way that tells him this is far more important to her than she’s willing to explicitly vocalize.

He stared at the ceiling in silence for a long moment, considering his answer, because she deserves a fully honest one.

“I don’t know,” he finally said. “I don’t think I could ever be who I used to be. I haven’t used magic in so many years, I feel like I can’t properly imagine it anymore.” He shifted to look at her. Her head was on his chest, and she steadily met his gaze, brown eyes wide and accepting. “The only way I can imagine going back is if I go back with you,” he said.

(Not long after that, they said I love you for the first time.)

(A half a year after that, Thor asked her to become his wife.)

(Inscribed on the inside of their wedding bands is the phrase Home is wherever you are.)

BREAK

When Jane shows up to the SHIELD base with her husband plus four honest-to-goodness Viking warriors at her back and requests to speak with Agent Coulson the agent on gate duty scrambles to fulfill her request.

While Jane handles the particulars of getting several guests in past security, his friends encircle him, staring at him like he’s a headless banshee. “What?” he asks.

“You’re married,” Hogan states, as though it’s obvious.

“I am.”

“And you’re expecting a child,” Sif says.

“Is there a point to stating the obvious?”

They all look at each other, and then back at him as though he is missing the obvious.

“The only one who was less likely to settle down was me,” Fandral says, an emphatic hand placed over his chest.

Thor shrugs. “I’ve changed.” He looks past them, to where Jane is emphatically gesturing at the agent who is clearly not moving fast enough in getting her what she wants and smiles. “She is everything I never knew I needed in a package I never expected.”

“I think it’s a good change,” Volstagg says proudly. “Becoming a father does tend to mature someone quite rapidly.” He steps forward to give Thor a hearty slap on the shoulder. Forgetting that his friend is no longer Aesir, the gesture nearly dislocates the joint and Thor struggles to stay on his feet.

“This new Thor, I like him!” Volstagg crows.

(The other three don’t look entirely convinced yet, but seem more or less willing to accept him as he is now.)

(Thor loves his friends--he knows them as well as anyone, and thinks that they will come to understand his new life.)

(He knows they want to ask if he will come home.)

(He knows what he will answer.)

THEN

“You don’t have any strong feeling about flower arrangements for the wedding, do you?” Thor asked.

Jane looked up from the book she was reading with a quizzical look on her face. “Uh, no? We’re getting married out in the middle of the desert.” She pauses. “Why? Do you?”

Thor had been idly browsing online and-- “This flower,” he had turned the screen to Jane and she leaned forward. “What is it called?”

“I think it’s a calla lily?” She squinted a little. “Definitely calla lily. They’re a pretty popular wedding flower.”

Thor hummed softly in contemplation. “Do you like them?” he asked.

“They’re pretty and they smell nice, so I guess.”

Thor went quiet for a moment, his eyes unseeing, and Jane bookmarked her book and set it aside. She scooted into his side on the couch and seemed to wake him from whatever spell he’d been under.

“Where did you go?” she asked.

“Just remembering,” he answered. “My mother liked to raise flowers. The palace gardens were almost entirely her handiwork. She was a talented sorceress, so she could’ve easily used her magic to make her garden as beautiful as it was, but she never did. She told me that sometimes the easiest thing isn’t the right thing.” He chuckled a bit at that. “She had lots of gardening life wisdom for us.

“Anyway, her favorite flower was the Queth Blossom. They look almost just like these,” he said.

“Then let’s get them for the wedding--I changed my mind, I have a very strong opinion about flower arrangements and I think they should be calla lilies.” Jane had said; he still remembers the way his heart leapt, and then melted, at her simple declaration. The way she simply said of course to something to remember his mother by. The way she could make him happy by just existing, by just being who she is.

(Jane would eventually tell everyone at the wedding who would listen that the flower arrangements were done in memory of his mother.)

(He loves her.)

NOW

The Tesseract is underwhelming at first, a shiny bauble like millions of others across the universe. Then it opens a portal and Loki emerges from the other side.

Underwhelmed is suddenly the least of Thor’s emotions.

Before Loki can stand and take in the room, Thor shoves Jane under a desk, praying to any deity that will listen that he doesn’t notice her. He can’t bring himself to hide with her. He has to speak to his brother, he has to know what--

“Loki!” Sif shouts.

Loki looks surprised, his attention pulled towards where the Warriors stand in formation with the SHIELD agents who approached the portal.

“Sir, please put down the spear,” calls out Fury.

A blast from the weapon takes down three agents before Thor can say anything.

“Loki! Stop!” Thor shouts, running from his meager cover behind the desk.

Loki knocks back the last of his opponents, downing even Sif and the Warriors with a power that is absolutely beyond anything he knew Loki possessed.

Loki’s eyes find Thor, and Thor barely recognizes the unhinged look in his eye.

“What happened to you?” Thor asks, a soft and genuine query because his brother looks unwell; gaunt, tired, and plain rabid.

Loki doesn’t answer immediately, just stalks forward like a predator.

“I started to see clearly for the first time in my life.”

There are other words, calmly spoken about a world made free from freedom, then Loki drops the visage Thor knows, his skin goes blue and his eyes go red and oh.

(Oh, Loki.)

Thor refuses to falter under the weight of this new truth that he can feel in his bones. He is not mine in blood, but he is my brother. “We were raised together, we played together, we fought together. Do you remember none of that?” Thor asks.

“I remember a shadow,” Loki says softly, stepping closer, skin still blue. “Living in the shade of your greatness.” He laughs. “And who could blame anyone for treating the Frost Giant like an invader who does not belong in his own home?

“And now you are but a man.” He snorts. “A pathetic, human man who can be killed just as easily as everyone else in this room.”

“Spare them,” Thor says. “If you want to take my life as recompense, then--”

(Just his small life. Just his small life with his wife, who he loves, and his unborn child, who he would do anything for. Just his one small life as Thor Foster seems--it seems too big to give up. His heart screams at the unfairness of it all.)

(It is too much to give, it is too much to lose.)

(But if he doesn’t offer to lose it, then everyone will die. He knows that.)

(There’s no such thing as just a small life, Thor knows in that moment. No life in this room is any smaller or bigger than his.)

(He feels like he wants to cry, but he will do it.)

Loki says, “Oh, but I could do that anyway. Besides,” a poisonous grin seeps over his face as he glances over Thor’s shoulder. “It looks like your wife is trying to make trouble for me.”

The floor drops out from under Thor as he looks back to see Jane typing furiously on the control unit that directly affects the Tesseract’s behavior. It’s sparking, just like it did when it opened to bring Loki here, and his brilliant wife is this close to being able to send him away--

Loki sends Thor into a wall with a flick of his fingers. Dazed, possibly concussed, but otherwise unhurt, Thor tries to stand, feels a scream inching out of his throat as he watches Loki magically drag Jane from behind the station.

Thor has never understood what made him worthy of Mjolnir in the first place.

He’d first picked it up in his youth, when he’d been emotional and his magic had been out of control-- Mjolnir had been a focusing point, something to channel himself through, something that felt like an extension of his connection to a storm. He’d been so busy trying to be the best warrior Asgard had ever seen, he’d never stopped to really think about what being worthy meant.

He learns what worthiness means in the space of a heartbeat.

He learns what it means the instant Loki turns his sight on Jane.

He reaches out, instinct, need, his magic reawakening, he does not know.

Mjolnir answers.

The hammer rips through the domed ceiling above them, and flies straight to his hand. The storm fills him once more and it’s only now that he has it back that he can feel the ache of its absence.

Loki, for the first time since he stepped into the room, looks scared.

Jane just grins.

(Later, when she gets the chance to examine the armor up close, she asks, “Is this how you normally looked?”)

(He answers, “More or less.”)

(She smiles like a woman who is absolutely going to ask him to wear his armor in bed later.)

(“It’s a good look.)

#fostersonweek #fostersonweek2019 #fosterson #jane foster #thor #fosterson fic #my fic #ooops? #did i mention i have two other small fics coming? #i've actually genuinely written so much! #is it all great? fuck no!!! but it's at least decent!!!

[brightsun-and-darkmidnight]

Heartbeat: A Fragile Reminder

TITLE: Heartbeat: A Fragile Reminder

CHAPTER NO./ONE SHOT: Chapter 1 / ?

AUTHOR: brightsun-and-darkmidnight

ORIGINAL IMAGINE: Imagine Loki falling in love with a Midgardian and his words to Thor about Jane during Dark World coming back to haunt him. “It would be a heartbeat. You would never be ready.”

RATING:  M for Mature

NOTES/WARNINGS: ~▪︎~FOR THE WHOLE STORY~▪︎~

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Check Masterlist. It's going to be a long read. I try to keep each chapter around 3,000 words.

My Ao3: brightsun_and_darkmidnight

!-!TRIGGER WARNING(S)!-!

So many triggers, read ALL of them!

Swearing. Angst. Death. Depression. Violence. Self-harm. Regret. Carelessness for safety. Doubts. Torture. NSFW. Smut. Fluff. And Of Course- Mischief.

Summary: Alicia backstory and the meeting

 ~ ~ ENJOY  ~ ~

Alicia was so tired. The last rescue mission was too much. She had almost been killed, but that was all part of being a part of SHIELD. She was used as backup, and capturing individuals. It wasn't like she was untrained. She worked out every other day for about 1 hour, give or take with rests. Everyday she used magic and practiced drawing. 

She also went to the base and trained with her father one week per month on refining moves and training in new fields of defense. Most of the time she knew in advance about missions. Alicia allowed herself to sigh heavily. Intense training basically started when her mother, Angela, was killed by one of her father's enemies. He had many from being an agent of SHIELD, thus resulting in Alicia, her sister, and mother becoming targets. Which resulted in always being under surveillance. Her mother was trained to fight but not at the level of her father. Alicia was trained since her magic surfaced at age five. She was a witch. Able to draw pivotal moments of the future. Her visions hit her suddenly but sometimes she could put off having them to a more appropriate time. When Alicia was twelve she drew a man going after Alicia's sister, Marcibeth. It alarmed her father because it was the brother of someone that he had killed a while back. A few days later, the man got past the guards and security system of their house and her father was not home. Alicia’s eyes closed tightly at the memory. A blast of magic from her mother to knock the attacker back. The dark clothed figure was on his feet as fast as he was knocked down. Flashes of a knife. A scream of pain. Blood. Her mother screaming at Alicia to grab her sister, Marcibeth, and to run. Alicia frozen in the spot she stood. The man approaching her swiftly. Sharp and dark color eyes that held anger. Dark hair with a light amount of facial fair. Big ears. 

Alicia had never been in a serious dangerous situation before. She tried to calm herself. Focused energy into her hand and sent it towards the man. He dogged it barely. It grazed his cheek and blood spilt from it. His hand went to his new injury. He glared with an intensity that it sent all of her confidence out the window.

Marcibeth appeared in front of Alicia and yelled for the guards. Marcibeth had fallen ill a few days ago from overworking… Stubbornness to stop working ran in the family. Although she was weakened she was able to hold off the man.

The heavy steps of the guards running up the stairs. The man threw a candle on the floor before jumping out the window. Promising to see them again. Running to her mother and seeing the blood. 

“You did good sweetie. Dad will be so proud.”

“Mom stay with me. Mom, please?” Alicia had just started to learn healing magic. She tried to heal her mother but she didn't see results.

“Sweetie. I'm proud of you, you did a good job. Alicia stop.” 

Angela's hands were on Alicia's to pull her hands away.

“I love you all so much.” Her voice was so weak and her eyelids were heavy.

“I love you too, Mom.” Alicia sobbed.

Alicia watched as her bright blue, almost white, eyes closed. 

Her face peaceful. The absolute fear coursing through her body… Marcibeth dragging her out of the house. Her mother's lifeless body being carried by the guards. Alicia staring in fear at her house being consumed by flames. And realizing just how hot it was in there when she was out exposed to the cool summer night. 

The guards were trying to put the fire out as Alicia was pleading for someone to help her mother. Marcibeth was trying to tell Alicia that their mother was gone.

A horn screamed desperately for attention.... Alicia forced her eyes open then threw her weight to the side of her bike to take a sharp turn, avoiding a head on collision. She kept her eyes open to prevent the history from taking hold of her again. Her body shaking. She was only a few minutes away from her destination. She saw the sign for her slightly temporary escape from her agent life. Her normal life as she and Marcibeth referred to it. "Mind and Body." It was a 24 hour library, cafe, and gym. In the library floors; the ground, first and second floors, had chairs among the books but also had the option for private rooms. The cafe was on the ground floor as well as the gym. The building also had a few apartments available as well on the top two floors. Alicia and Marcibeth had one of those apartments, their father insisting that Marcibeth stay with her. Alicia was determined to get there quickly to shower and relax. She parked her sports bike in her area of the parking. She breathed. She forced herself to relax. She knew there would be small talk to have on her journey to her home. Alicia swung her leg over the bike with a heavy sigh. She took her helmet off and her bangs came loose from her braided hair. Alicia steadied her breathing and began her walk. Adjusting the straps of her large thigh bags as she walked into lobby. The black leather protesting on her bags and jacket. Alicia planned on walking past the lobby desk but saw her sister at the desk and heard a lovely deep voice. "Surely there has to be another option." Alicia heard her sister apologizing, "I'm sorry all of the private rooms are reserved for a whole week." Alicia looked up to see her sister, Marcibeth having a talk with some tall dark haired man. Alicia had to admit the man's voice was deep and dreamy. His backside was a sight in that dark suit. Strong stance. Alicia tried not to stare as she got closer. Marcibeth noticed though, smiled and greeted her with a knowing smile, “hello, Ali.” “Hello Marci" Alicia smiled. Chanced a glance at the man. Shit. It was Loki. He was the God of mischief and lies. He was trouble… he caused the huge fuss in SHIELD about needing to operate full time to discover new weapons and protection. Though…. She also believed Thor's genuine seeming announcement that Loki was mind controlled by the infinity stone during his attack on Earth. Many people were weary about having all the Asgardians living on Earth after their own planet was no more. After Ragnarok. Thor, the King of Asgard, explained everything. Alicia thought, who would be better than Thor to explain the Asgardians situation. To speak on behalf of Loki? 

Alicia smiled. And turned back to her sister, “What is the problem?”

“He wants a private room but they are all booked. The first opening is not for the next week.” Marci got that suggestive grin, “I mean you could take him to our apartment.”

Alicia rolled her eyes immediately after Marcibeth winked. 

“Dad wanted me relay the message for you to, “fucking behave.” He noticed you left early.” Alicia assumed Marcibeth knew she would have been missed in their family training session. 

“I figured he would. It’s mostly why I did.”

Alicia laughed her sister’s name, “Marcibeth. He was so angry.” 

Loki was watching these Midgardians talk. The woman behind the desk had green eyes and short layered dark hair. She also had porcelain skin. This Marcibeth was healthy looking but only had the required muscles for daily living.

Though, this Ali, she was toned and it was easy to see due to her form fitting clothes. Her skin had more warm color but it was still light in tone. Her light golden blonde hair was to her waist pulled back in a braid but her long bangs framed her face. Then her icy blue eyes popped among the dark eye makeup. Her lips were glossed but were a pale pink color. She had the best smile.

"Loki" Alicia asked. She realized he wasn't looking at her eyes when they flickered and he was looking directly in them. "You can come to my room if you want. So long as you don't mind a little noise." Loki’s grinned, "Anything for you, Darling." Alicia felt heat rise through her face and hoped her makeup hid it well. She looked at Marcibeth, "I'll see you later," and Marcibeth winked. Alicia rolled her eyes and started walking, "Come on Loki."

Alicia lead Loki to the elevator down the decorated and fancy trimmed walls.

"It's not much but it is home. I share the apartment with my sister, Marcibeth, the woman at the desk. I'm sure you are used to much more.... elegant things growing up in a castle and all that stuff." Alicia looked to Loki and smiled, "It is more private than the common area though."

The elevator door opened and Alicia walked out, leading the way. She walked to the second to last door. Got her key from her hip pocket, all while holding her motorcycle helmet. “If it is a mess in here I apologize. I have been away for a while for work.” 

The hallway was clean, well lit and the bright tan walls aided in making it brighter.

Loki stepped in after she walked in and turned on the lights. 

The place was clean.The walls inside were a cream and tan color. The furniture was dark brown, maybe even black. The cushions of the chairs were lighter in color but darker than the walls by a few shades.

The kitchen was a decent size for a person to move around comfortably. The counter pushed away from the wall and turned into a bar with only enough room for two stools. Behind the stools was the living area. A medium sectional couch was positioned so the back was towards the bar stools. Actually just giving people enough room to walk between the seats a door on that wall between the seats leading to her sister’s side of the apartment. The couch ended at the wall, where there was a large window. There was a door closed to the left, across from her sister’s door, it was Alicia’s bathroom and bedroom. A medium sized TV with large bookshelves filled with books and varying random figures. There were frames on the walls behind the couch. 

Alicia nibbled on her lip as Loki inspected those pictures. Maybe she shouldn't display her art for everyone to see. The images weren't drawn using magic so they were just plain practice drawings. She undid her hip and thigh bags. Alicia got her drawing tablet out of the bag, set it on the coffee table. She held the bag in her hand and grabbed her helmet, going to the other half of her small home. She called for Loki, "The bathroom is this way.”

Loki walked through the door she pointed and Alicia walked into another room. The room Loki went to was the bathroom, large enough for a; basic tub and shower combination, a toilet, sink and counter with mirror, as well as a washer and dryer on top of that. 

She had taken off her leather jacket and hung it in the walk in closet. Put away her helmet, boots and bags. She was setting clothes on the bed. Black lacy underwear and matching bra. A t-shirt and comfortable looking pants. She threw a pair of socks on the bed as well. Placing her hands on her hips she demanded, "Well? Are you going to read or invade my privacy?" "Do I have options?" "Yeah. To go sit on the couch, read and stay there." Loki took the steps to her, "And the other option?" Alicia sent an unruffled look at him. "Go to the common area in the library." She pushed him out so she could lock him in the kitchen and living space.

Alicia went to the bathroom; stripped her clothes off, turned the shower on, got in and washed quickly. She did not let the water massage her neck and shoulders. She hurried to wash the stickiness from the accumulation of sweat. Once done she reapplied concealer and mascara as well as light natural colors of eyeshadow. A very different look that what Loki just saw. To apply make-up was her time to prepare to be what she wanted. To show people the mask of what she wanted them to see. She couldn't let anyone see her bare. Without makeup, she was exposed. Make-up gave her confidence in the things she did. It hid the redness in her face when she was flustered. Kept the tears behind her eyes. 

Alicia gripped the towel around her and took cautious steps to her bedroom. Even checked the walk in closet before removing the towles from her body and hair. She dressed and brushed her hair till there were no tangles for the time being.

She applied deodorant, perfume, and lotion to herself to have a more appealing smell than just showered smell. She walked into the common area and saw him reading one of her books. His eyes looked at her briefly and she continued her walk to the kitchen. 

Alicia's stomach gurgled and she caught a glimpse of the time. 11:35 PM. She hadn't eaten since her late lunch at 2PM. No wonder she was hungry. She called out, "Hey Loki." "Yes, Darling?" That damn voice Alicia cursed internally. "Want something to eat?" Alicia heard Loki shut his book and watched him advance. He walked in a controlled manner, like a cat. "What do you have in mind, Darling?" He asked setting his book to the side as he eyed her up and down. Alicia watched as his eyes scanned her body quickly. She was used to catching attention because of her eyes. People always stared. But they looked away when caught. Loki looked as if he was proud to be caught and dared her to do something. His eyes locked with hers. She rolled her eyes. She's probably just some pretty face everyone else sees her as. She wanted to be seen as; smart, hard working, and determined. Confident because of those qualities. Not seen as confident because she had physical qualities that most deemed unusual and attractive. "I am offering digestible food." Alicia spoke and went to rummage through the cabinets. She looked in the fridge. "How about grilled cheese and tomato soup?" "Never had it." Alicia faced him and saw him turning the page with one hand. Backside leaning against the counter. Ankles crossed. Everything about his posture screaming "bored." "Seriously?" Alicia asked incredulously. Loki looked up at her. His face was stoic, "Seriously." "Time to get off your high horse then." Alicia muttered quietly. Alicia saw his eyebrows knit together then relax as just one lifted. His lips pressed in a line. 

She had been heard. She couldn't stop the giggle that erupted from her. She set some relaxing music on her blue tooth speaker and quickly got to work, smile on her face the entire time. She was fully prepared for something, anything other than a simple eyebrow movement. Maybe Loki had changed, well, wasn't being mind controlled at least. Maybe she could do as Thor pleaded and, “give Loki a chance.”

Alicia pondered over the idea as she prepared and made the grilled cheese and tomato soup.

Would it be so bad to give him a chance? He had so many chances to do wrong on the way here from the Avengers tower. The Avengers would be after him. Did he know her abilities? Did he know she was an agent?

The food was done.

Alicia relaxed herself and decided to play the simple civilian until her abilities were brought up.

Alicia set the plate and bowl in front of him with a sheepish smile, "It doesn't look the best but it tastes pretty good." She cut the messy sandwich with a knife and fork. Dipped a piece in the light red liquid and ate it. "Try it." Alicia said gesturing towards the food. Then cut another piece and ate it. Loki copied her with some skepticism. She was watching him intently. He said, "It is not bad,” and took another bite. "I'll take it as a compliment." Alicia took a bite and turned to do the dishes. It was silent except for the sound of the dishes being done, the quiet question if he was done once his plate was empty and the relaxing music.

Loki did not know Midgard was capable of such...tranquility. He has only ever experienced terrible things such as stares, whispering, and verbal jabs by those brave enough to evoke a challenge. Too often he was left frustrated and took it out on his environment, as well as returning the verbal jabs and possibly threats. 

Here. With this midgardian that was foolish or brave to let him of all people in her home. He felt a peace he hasn't felt in a long time. Wanting to stay in this state a little longer, Loki turned the pages with care to not disturb the peace.

Loki attempted to read his book but... He kept finding her in his vision. He cursed himself each time he had to pry his eyes away from her form. From her; teeth exposed by her grin, that tongue that would swipe over those lips, hands that moved with fluid movements holding purpose, the sway in her hips as she danced absentmindedly. Loki reminded himself to calm down. The last thing he needed was to have a one night stand with some Midgardian and ruin his chance at privacy for the next week. However, it had been so long since he had someone under him, calling out his name. His growing problem was becoming uncomfortable in these tight pants. He made a mental note to reserve one of the rooms indefinitely on his way out. He had the money due to him becoming an Avenger per Thor's demand. Thor's great plan was so that Loki would win over the hearts of Midgard easier through his heroics. Loki felt rage. He wasn't popular with the Midgardians, all with reason. His own people probably despised him more, again, with good reason. Winning their favor was a lost cause. Loki stopped. Why was this Midgardian treating him with.... Kindness?

Alicia stretched with a groan. She looked at Loki staring at the book. He seemed deep in thought. She left him to think as she went to her favorite spot on the couch, the corner.  Grabbing her tablet off the table she threw the blanket over herself and leaned back with a sigh of bliss. She could easily lounge back and loved the comfort of feeling encased. She noticed Loki hasn't moved. "It's way more comfortable on the couch." She heard him chuckle. Watched him stand fully and walk to the couch. He sat down by the large window, but he still looked... alert, tense. "Want a blanket, Loki?" "No. Thank you." Loki paused, "You know who I am?" Alicia laughed briefly, "I do have a TV and I live in New York. I know of you and your actions." Alicia gliding her pencil at her drawing tablet placing lines on the canvas. "I wouldn't mind getting to know you as you are, though. Thor seems hell bent on staying here and obviously wants you to, too. It must be stressful for you to be back here….Everyone needs breaks and I figured you were no different." Alicia grinned at him, "obviously you are sneaking out like some teen to get away from prying parents." Loki chuckled, "You amuse me Darling. Are you an artist?" She hummed. She couldn't lie because he could probably easily tell, but also couldn't tell him she drew the future and shared those images with SHIELD. "Something like that. My art is only seen there," she pointed at the wall, "here," she waved at her tablet, "and at my work. I signed a contract to only sell my artwork to my collector." "It's a shame. They should be seen by more people." "Thanks." Alicia kept her eyes trained on her tablet as she practised perfecting her drawing skills. The area became peaceful. The relaxing music playing softly. The warmth under the blanket. The serenity of drawing without pressure. Alicia glanced at Loki and she laughed, thus catching his attention. His eyebrow rose. "Are you always so..... Alert? You need to relax." Alicia got a blanket and threw it at him. He caught it without looking. She noted his clothes. His dark suit. "Bring comfy clothes next time." She noticed the mischievous smile and the brightness to his eyes. "Will there be a next time?" "Are we going to get to know each other?" Alicia asked. She was containing her grin to a smirk and glanced at him from the corner of her eye. Loki's mouth parted and he looked to the side. He was not expecting that. Smiling widely locking his eyes with hers, "Yes. Of course." He draped the blanket over his lap and relaxed more. Not totally relaxed but more. "Better," Alicia commented then started to draw again. The comfortable peace was restored. "Darling, What time is it?" "4:30 AM." "I am terribly sorry. I've kept you up all night." Alicia laughed as he got up. "It's ok. I have an unbelievably hard time falling asleep." "Well I certainly didn't help." "I wasn't planning on trying to sleep. You are ok," Alicia laughed. "Let me see your phone."

Loki looked at her confused. "What for?" "So I can put my number in it. -So you can let me know when you are coming? So I can meet you in the lobby when you get here?" Alicia's explanation became more and more confused sounding as she continued. "Please tell me you have a phone." "I do,” Loki grinned. Alicia held out her hand and Loki placed a phone in her hand. Alicia typed her name and number. She went for her own phone and entered his name and number on hers. Handed him his. She sent a text to him. Loki's phone went off and he looked at it. A new message from Alicia Mae. It was a new name. He gave her an amused look before opening it. Alicia Mae. 4:41 AM. "Have a good day!" Loki grinned. And typed back. Alicia's phone went off and she laughed checking her phone. Loki. 4:42 AM. "You as well, Darling. Till next time." Alicia stared and he was looking back. "I look forward to knowing you" Alicia said with a beaming smile. Loki grinned. "Same. But I do need to go." Alicia tapped on his phone that was still in his hand, "Text me." "I will." Loki stepped backwards, "See you soon." He opened the door and gave her one last look. "Bye" She called out before the door closed.

Alicia turned and saw the book he chose. It was one of her favorite poem books. Alicia's heart fluttered when she realized she was alone. That was a million times better than what she expected. She was also able to keep her normal and agent life mostly separated. Well besides she was an agent and he was a war criminal.. No one had to tell her that her agent life always played a major role in her life. Took up more than 90 % of her life. She wondered how long she would be able to keep it away from Loki. Alicia wondered if he already knew. Alicia bundled herself in a blanket and watched the sun rise. Once the vivid colors went away she started to make breakfast. Leaving some for Marcibeth's when she got off of her library job. She dressed for a work out and went to train. She chatted with a few people. The conversations were bland and held no depth. About protein and about how much they can lift. "Back off dude. She's got a man." "Marci!" Alicia hissed, obviously embarrassed. The boring man walked away. "Thank you. -But seriously?" Alicia quickly walked away from her. Getting on a treadmill. Marcibeth stood in front of the treadmill, arms raised, "Come on. Don't tell me nothing happened?!" Alicia hushed her sharply. "He is hot as hell!" Marcibeth pointed her finger at Alicia, "I saw you two eyeing each other." Marcibeth threw her hands in the air when Alicia did nothing.

“You know who that was right?” Alicia asked.

“Yeah… So when you get to him, let me have his brother.” Marcibeth winked. “So seriously… nothing happened?” Alicia let the silence linger for a while. "I got his number." "Well give it to me." Alicia crackled in laughter. The grin was evident in Marcibeth's voice, "Is he different from the attack?" Alicia thought back to the last few hours, "I really believe so."

#Heartbeat: A Fragile Reminder #brightsun-and-darkmidnight #check triggers #check description #chapter 1 #loki

[dexi-green]

Avengers:Endgame References/Easter Eggs/Connections SPOILERS!

SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS!

I knew there had to be at least one connection to each MCU film so I decided to write down what I saw. Some might be very vague or be reaching a bit, but there are some solid ones I think. SPOILERS OF COURSE! I’ve included lines, cameos I thought were significant, shot parallels, etc. Plus some extra stuff at the bottom that deal with comic, actor/write cameos, etc. Enjoy! Please let me know if there is anything wrong or missing! It’s a long post. I’ll put it under a cut if someone wants me to. I tagged everything I could think of.

Iron Man 

 “I am Iron Man”

The sound at the end of the credits is of Tony making his first Iron Man Suit.

Morgan wanting Cheeseburgers and Happy’s response references how Tony wanted an “American Cheeseburger” after he was kidnapped and rescued.

Tony walking out of The Benatar is similar to him walking off the plane after he gets rescued.

”Don’t post this on social media”

”I just want peace” Tony does a peace sign like the soldier at the beginning of Iron Man.

Tony leaves a message for Morgan like his father, Howard did for him.

The “Proof That Tony Stark Has A Heart” Arc reactor display that Pepper made for Tony with the first small arc reactor he made to keep shrapnel out of his heart, is sent off on the lake during his funeral

The Incredible Hulk 

 When Steve asks Hulk how he knows he would survive using all the infinity stones he says, “We don’t. But the radiation is mostly Gamma. It’s like I was made for this”.

Iron Man 2 

“It’s always you” was the line Tony said to Pepper when making her CEO of Stark Industries

Thor 

Erik Selvig shows up among the dusted.

New Asgard is in Tønsberg, Norway, which is where Odin led the war against the Frost Giants.

Captain America: The First Avenger 

Steve and Peggy’s dance that they he promised her before going into the ice is finally fulfilled.

The compass with Peggy’s picture Steve has is the same from TFA.

“I can do this all day”

“Don’t do anything stupid?” “How can I? You’re taking all the stupid with you”

”I went in the ice in ‘45 right after I met the love of my life. Woke up 70 years later.”

After their plan to get the tesseract from New York failed, they went to Camp Lehigh which is where Steve trained before having the Super Soldier Serum injection.

In Peggy’s office there is a picture of young, pre-serum, ‘skinny’ Steve from his training at Camp Lehigh before he got the serum injection, on her desk. This is the same picture that was in the records she was reading after he went in the ice at the end of TFA.

New Asgard is actually Tønsberg, Norway, which is where The Red Skull got the Tesseract from in the beginning of TFA

When returning Steve the shield, Tony says, “He made it for you”. Howard made the Shield for Steve after he saved the soldiers in TFA.

The jacket that Steve is wearing when he returns as an old man is the same jacket he wore at before he met Abraham Erskine.

The Avengers 

During the events of this movie is the time they go back to to get the Space, Power, and Time Stone (from the Tesseract, Scepter, and Eye of Agamotto respectfully).

Agent Sitwell appeared briefly in Avengers and Winter Soldier.

“We do our best work after the fact, we’re the Avengers”

Steve’s eye when they first go to fight Thanos at the beginning, seeing outer space for the first time, mirrors when Tony went through the portal during the Battle of New York, and saw outer space for the first time.

”We’re a long way from Budapest”.

When Scott, Natasha, and Steve visit Tony asking for help he says, ”The table’s set for six” which could be a reference to the six original avengers.

”You pulled this off. I remember a time when that seemed pretty impossible too.” Natasha referring to when the Hulk was more out of control.

Steve uses the scepter on Avenger’s Era Cap similar to how Loki used it on Clint and Erik Selvig.

When they go back to right after the Battle of New York, Tony and Thor tell Alexander Pierce they are headed to lunch, referencing the iconic Shawarma post credit scene

Steve tells Tony that he isn’t the, ”guy to make the sacrifice play. Lay down on the wire and let the other guy crawl over you”. Tony ultimately sacrifices himself for everyone.

Iron Man 3  

Harley Keener, the little boy who helps Tony in Iron Man 3, is the teenager standing alone at Tony’s funeral.

Pepper wears the armor Tony made for her which was hinted at in IM3 when she wears pieces of Tony’s armor to save Tony.

Thor: The Dark World 

Thor basically explains the events of the movie when talking about The Reality Stone/Aether.

During the events of this movie is the time they go back to to get the Reality Stone.

Frigga

Thor says “I like this one” to Carol like Loki’s “I like her” to Jane.

Loki uses his magic to make fun of Cap similar to how he does in TDW, and when Avenger’s Era Cap sees Steve he even thinks that it is Loki.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier 

“On your left”.

Natasha wears the same arrow necklace she did throughout WS.

Steve hosts a support group for survivors of the Snap/Decimation like Sam did for Veterans.

”You here to do your laundry?”

Alexander Pierce

The scene where Steve has to get the scepter is almost shot for shot the same elevator scene from Winter Soldier, he also uses the knowledge from that movie that HYDRA had infiltrated SHIELD to get the scepter.

After their plan to get the Tesseract from New York failed, they went to the same bunker in Camp Lehigh that was a SHIELD base, where Natasha and Steve confront the A.I. Zola.

While at the SHIELD base in Camp Lehigh, when Tony is getting the Tesseract, Howard shows up calling for Arnim, this is Dr. Arnim Zola.

Steve still thinks a hat is a disguise.

Steve tells Avengers Era Cap that Bucky is still alive to break his focus.

The song Steve and Peggy have their dance to at the end is “It’s Been A Long Time” by Harry James, a song that was popular at the end of World War II. This is the same song that Nick Fury is listening to when Steve finds him in his apartment. It could also be a reference to Peggy’s line, “It’s been so long”.

Guardian’s of The Galaxy 

During the events of this movie is the time they go back to to get the Power Stone.

The opening is used when Quill is dancing.

Nebula and Gamora from the time period of GOTG appear.

Nebula and Rocket mourn losses similar to how Rocket and Drax do at the end of GOTG.

Natasha kicks an Orloni (the rat like creature) on Morag like Quill does.

Howard The Duck appears in the final battle with a gun behind Wasp.

Rocket recreates his pose with a gun on Groot’s shoulder, just on War Machine’s shoulder.

Avengers: Age of Ultron 

“That up there...that’s the Endgame”.

“We’ll do that [lose] together too”.

Mention of the original idea behind Ultron.

”I saw this a few years back. I had a vision I didn’t want to believe it...What we needed was a suit of armor around the world.”

When testing the time travel devices Clint goes back to his farm, and starts out the film there with his family.

Clint’s Family (including Nathaniel Pietro Barton).

Tony gets a lake house, out of the city, similar to Clint’s farm.

Steve is able to pick up Mjolnir, and when he does Thor says “I knew it!”. During the party scene in AOU Steve tries to pick up Mjölnir and it budges a little but he ultimately can’t, however Thor’s line hints that Steve realized he could pick it up but decided to pretend like he couldn’t.

In the Final Battle against Thanos, Thanos breaks Steve’s shield and it looks similar to it’s broken appearance in Tony’s Vision.

When Peter uses his web to grab onto Mjölnir, it’s similar to when Pietro grabs onto Mjölnir and is pulled away.

On Natasha’s desk is an old pair of ballet pointe shoes, ballet was the cover for her assassin training as seen in her vision.

In Tony’s vision, he see’s all the other Avenger’s dead, when talking to Fury about it they say the worst part was that Tony was the only one in the vision that didn’t die. At the end of Endgame, Tony and Natasha are the only original avengers who died.

When Bruce asks Thor if he knows who helped him during a tough spot, Thor asks if it was Natasha, referencing their romantic storyline.

Ant-Man 

 In the SHIELD base in Camp Lehigh, Steve is looking for more Pym particles, there is some ants in an ant farm and an older looking Ant Man helmet.

Captain America: Civil War 

Aunt May is at Tony’s funeral.

Tony returns Steve his shield after telling him to leave it in CW.

”This is Scott Lang. We met a few years ago? At the Airport? In Germany? I was the guy who got really big…”

”Whats up regular sized man.”

Nebula comments to Rhodey “I wasn’t always like this” and he replies “Me either” referring to the mechanical crutches on his legs that Tony made to help him walk after his fall in CW.

T’Challa says, “Clint, give it to me” when they are passing around the Gauntlet. In CW when Clint introduces himself, T’Challa says “I don’t care”.

Steve calls Peter ‘Queens’ referring to their small exchange in CW.

When Tony is using his B.A.R.F. technology to play out a memory he says that he wishes he told his dad, “I love you...I know you did the best you could”. When Tony and Steve go back to 1970 to Camp Lehigh he is finally able to tell him.

Doctor Strange   

The Ancient One

The Ancient One uses similar magic on Bruce that she did on Dr. Strange

”Strange is meant to be the best of us”

Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 2  

The Benatar ship

“Thanos spent a long time trying to perfect me” Nebula talks about how Thanos replaced parts of her to get her to be stronger.

The jump points they go through to get to ‘The Garden’ at the beginning look exactly like how they look in GOTG (not really a reference, just nice consistency).

Spider-Man: Homecoming 

Ned Leeds

The photo Tony has in his house of him and Peter is them holding a certificate for Peter’s Stark Internship.

Peter gets his real hug from Tony.

”Activate Instant Kill”

Peter grabs onto Mjölnir, In SM:H he did an impression of Thor holding Mjölnir.

Thor: Ragnarok 

 Korg, Miek, and Valkyrie/Brunhilde

At the end of Ragnarok Thor says they will settle the Asgardians on Earth, which they show he does, making New Asgard in Tønsberg, Norway.

Black Panther 

Shuri and T’Challa show up amongst the dusted, and in the final battle.

Queen Ramonda

In the Final Battle, Shuri wears her battle armor and hand cannons from the final battle in BP.

Avengers: Infinity War  

Mention of Vision’s death

“We’re in the Endgame now”

Tony and Pepper’s kid is named Morgan. Tony mentions a dream of having a kid and naming the kid Morgan after Pepper’s eccentric uncle.

Peter talks about the Snap from his point of view,

 “I lost the kid”

 “He wiped my face with a planet while the Bleecker Street magician gave away the stone”

“The Garden” Where Thanos retired to after the Snap

Thanos’ scarred arm and face from using the Infinity Gauntlet and all the stones at once.

Thor chops off Thanos’ head and says, “I went for the head”.

Bruce continues to use the Hulkbuster armor again instead of becoming Hulk in the first part of the film.

When they are talking about where and when to go back to to get the Infinity Stones Bruce is seen eating Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, ‘Hulk-A Hulk-A Burning Fudge’.

San Francisco has erected monuments to all the “Vanished” from the Snap/Decimation.

Bruce is in the same position, laying on his back looking up at the sky, as he was when crashed into the Sanctum Sanctorum. In both cases he was also the first person in that setting to know that Thanos was coming (in Infinity War he was sent down to warn everyone, in Endgame he is looking up at Thanos’ ship).

Wanda crushes Thanos with his own armor, similar to how Thanos crushed Rhodey in his War Machine suit.

Carol held onto The Gauntlet when Thanos was wearing it to stop him, similar to how Cap did in IW, drawing a parallel between the Captain’s and the Final Battles of each film.

When the Asgardian’s are chasing Rocket away they yell “Get that rabbit!” Like how Thor referred to Rocket as a Rabbit

Tony’s final moments with Peter, mirror Peter’s final moments in Infinity War with Tony.

Ant-Man and the Wasp

 Luis’ X-Con Van with the Quantum Tunnel in the back.

Ant-Man has been trapped in the Quantum Realm since the end of AMATW.

The suits they wear to go through the Quantum Realm are Red and White like Hank Pym’s Quantum suit, and have the same helmets the Ant-Man suit does.

Captain Marvel  

Carol lingers on a picture of Nick Fury when he shows up among the dusted hinting at their friendship that was formed in CM

“Where have you been all this time?” ”There are a lot of other planets in the universe..”

Extra 

Cameos

Stan Lee’s cameo is when Tony and Steve go back to Camp Lehigh, he is the man in the car who says, “Make Love Not War” He also has a bumper sticker that says “Nuff’ Said” one of Stan’s catchphrases.

James D’Arcy makes an appearance as Edwin Jarvis who he played in the Agent Carter show.

Ken Jeong and Yvette Nicole Brown cameo. The Russo brothers worked on the show Community and gave some of the cast members cameos in their MCU films.

Jim Starlin, the writer of the Infinity Gauntlet and the man credited for making Thanos, cameos in the support group scene.

Joe Russo, one of the directors of the film and other MCU films, cameos in the support group scene as the man who cried on a date.

Comics

Carol’s haircut after the Five Year jump is like Carol’s iconic short hair in the comics.

Thanos’ armor as a scarecrow the same way it is in the Infinity Gauntlet comics.

When they go back to 1970, Steve’s disguise has the name Roscoe on it. Roscoe Simons replaced Steve as Captain America in the comics at one point.

During the remake of the Elevator Scene from Winter Soldier, Steve uses the knowledge from Winter Solider of HYDRA having infiltrated SHIELD, and whispers “Hail Hydra” to Agent Sitwell. This is a reference to the Secret Empire story where Hydra made a clone of Steve.

In the SHIELD base in Camp Lehigh, Steve is looking for more Pym particles, there is an older looking Ant Man helmet, which looks exactly like the old Ant Man helmet from the comics.

Okoye mentions a seismic incident on the ocean floor, this could be a reference to Namor, The Sub-Mariner, one of the original characters, debuting in Marvel Comics #1 published by Timely Comics (which later became Marvel).

There is a comic series called “Asgardians of The Galaxy”.

Morgan Stark is the name of Tony’s evil cousin in the comics.

Captain America standing alone against Thanos is similar to a scene from the Infinity Gauntlet comic.

The first time ‘Avengers Assemble’ is (finally) spoken in the films. The first time it was spoken was by Thor in Avengers #10.

Ant-Man’s van is in lockup 616, Earth-616 is the main universe for the comics.

Clint calls his daughter by his alias, Hawkeye. The female Hawkeye in the comics is Kate Bishop, not his daughter, but she does train under Clint.

A middle ground Hulk/Bruce is called ‘Professor Hulk’ in the comics.

In The Mighty Thor #390 Captain America picks up Mjolnir and hands it to Thor.

MCU/Marvel Films

During his message to Pepper he says “It’s day 21? No 22”. Endgame is the 22nd film in the MCU.

”The table’s set for six” could be a reference to six original avengers. Or Tony, Pepper, Morgan, Happy, Peter, and Rhodey.

Rhodey suggests killing Thanos when he was a baby. Similar to the baby Hitler scene in Deadpool 2.

Wakandans, Asgardians, Ravagers, and Master of The Mystic Arts’ all show up in the final battle against Thanos, making up the larger groups outside of the individual heroes. Chitauri and Outriders make up the bulk of Thanos’ army.

From this movie it looks like the official deaths from Infinity War and Endgame are; Heimdall, Loki, Vision, Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, and Tony Stark/Iron Man. Gamora was brought from the past to the future by Thanos, and fought in the final battle against him, but seems to be missing by the end of the film.

Within The Film

When Tony and Pepper are discussing whether he should use time travel and help the Avengers she asks,”But would you be able to rest?” When he is dying at the end she says, ”You can rest now”.

Steve tells Natasha “I think we both need to get a life” Natasha says, “You first”. Later Tony tells Steve he needs to get a life. At the end of the film, when Steve comes back older he says he “tried one of those lives Tony was talking about”.

When Tony agrees to help, he says to Steve that he wants to ”Maybe not die trying”.

Before Hulk uses the gauntlet Tony made to Snap everyone back into existence, he says “none of you would survive”. Tony dies after he snaps Thanos and his army away.

One of the last people we (sorta) see get dusted is Clint’s wife Laura, after Hulk snaps everyone back, the first person we get indication of being back is Laura when she calls Clint’s phone.

The newest character/hero we see in the film is Pepper Potts in her Rescue armor.

TV/Books/Media

’Time Heist’ is Scott’s suggested name for their plan. It is also the name of a Doctor Who, a show about time travel, episode from 2014. Karen Gillan who plays Nebula, played Amy Pond in Doctor Who one of the Doctor’s companions.

Several Time Travel films/shows are mentioned by name, “Back to The Future” “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure” “Star Trek” “Terminator” “Time After Time” “Time Cop” “Quantum Leap” “A Wrinkle In Time” “Somewhere In Time” “Hot Tub Time Machine”

Sebastian Stan plays an antagonist character, Blaine, in Hot Tub Time Machine which is mentioned by Scott and Rhodey.

Jeff Bridges plays Obadiah Stane in Iron Man and also The Dude in the Big Lebowski. Several characters call Thor ‘The Dude’ or ‘Lebowski’ and he just does actually look like him in Endgame with the robe and sunglasses

Tony calls Rocket “Ratchet” like Ratchet and Clank, where the Ratchet character is feline like, kinda raccoon-ish, who is a mechanic like Rocket.

”This is the part when spikes come out with skeletons on the end of them and everything. When you enter a place called the Temple of the Power stone there’s gonna be a bunch of booby traps”. Rhodey referencing movies like Indiana Jones.

Ken Jeong’s cameo character reads a book called The Terminal Beach by J.G. Ballard which includes a short story called “End-Game”

A-113 shows up behind Bruce when they are testing Tony’s time travel devices. A-113 is a common easter egg, referencing a room number at Cal-Arts, hidden in many Pixar and Disney films.

#spoilers #endgame spoilers #avengers spoilers #avengers endgame #marvel #easter eggs #cameos #references #connections #film spoilers #marvel spoilers #mcu spoilers #mcu #tony stark #steve rogers #comics #captain america #stan lee #natasha romanoff #black widow #clint barton #ronin #hawkeye #james rhodes #rhodey #war machine #carol danvers #captain marvel #gamora #nebula

[agent-shield-blog]

Books and Boys

Valentines day is always more enjoyable when you can spend it in a place you love, with someone you care about.

Pairing: Reader X Loki Featuring: Reader X Loki X Steve X Tony Warnings: None

From the ages of eight through eighteen, you would never find me sitting somewhere reading a book. It was not if I had a hatred for them, it just seemed that I had no use for them. At those ages, I thought I was the most fantastic thing to be seen and was above the simple act of reading. However once I had settled into my powers and adjusted into my new home at the Avengers facility, I had found something lacking in my life. And the answer had been as clear as rain. Books.

The less I gravitated away from my once normal life, the more I needed something to give me an escape. Something that could take me away from the loud moments of reality, which could often be too overwhelming, and bring me to a world, where the path was clearly written out, and nothing in my power would alter the road ahead.

But as much as I loved books, there was someone else in the tower who had the utmost respect and adoration for the stories that laid within his bookshelves. Loki was an advent reader, and almost always was caught with a book in hand, no matter where the location. At first, I thought it odd, but the more I came to find the love of books, the more I realized why Loki was so drawn to them, especially after the life he had lived.

Loki and I became good friends after a while. We quite enjoyed each others company in which we could discuss literature and authors. I was even lucky enough for him to show me some of the writers from across the nine realms, and even a few pieces from light years away.

It was a cold day in New York but it being February that was no surprise. The cold would linger for a few more weeks until spring would appear, but until then I would embrace the cold with open arms seeing as I had no one to warm me with the offer of their coat or someone to lean in close to share their warmth. Everyone in the tower seemed to have someone there romantically. Tony had Pepper, Natasha and Bruce, Clint had Laura, heck Peter was even seeing some girl from school. But there was one person I could count on for this Valentine's day to be just about as lonely as me, and that was Loki.

Now I had nothing against Valentine's day, in fact, I took pleasure in the idea that somehow one day could influence so much emotion. Although I didn't like the fact that some people put all their effort into one day, instead of the whole year. But this Valentine's day I was going to make it enjoyable, and my grand plan involved making someone else's day too.

“Loki?” I entered the library with the fullest of confidence that Loki would be perched somewhere with another new novel in hand. Hopefully, the one I had recommended to him, although I was. A bit nervous that he was going to tear it apart, like so many of my other favorite books that I had recommended to him.

“Over here.” His monotoned voice always carried well within the library. With a few swift turns, I found Loki sat in front of one of the windows, with his feet perched up on the ledge. I sat down and grabbed the book out of his hands, careful to mark the page with his bookmark before closing it shut. Loki brought down his feet as he knew I was about to chew his ear off about something, and his relaxed state was to soon be no more.

“I have an extraordinary surprise for you, and it involves our love for a certain common interest of ours.”

“Oh? And what would that be?” I stood up from my seat and motioned for Loki to do the same. Slowly Loki stood from his chair, giving himself a moment to stretch out, before following me through the rows of books.

“Well if you don't know by now I guess you’ll just have to wait and see.”

“Seems only fair. But may I ask of what is the occasion of this surprise.” I smiled at him as I stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the main lobby. I could tell by the confused look on Lokis face, that for once he had no idea of the future events to happen ahead. Which was something I thoroughly enjoyed.

“I’ve never been below the tenth floor before. Why are we heading to the lobby?”

“Now what's the fun in a surprise if I tell you?” The doors smoothly opened and in the lobby stood Tony and Steve, anxious to get on with the day so they could get ready for the dates that they had planned for the evening. I took a look back at Loki who was still more confused than ever, but he still followed me forward closer to the pair.

“Alright reindeer games, I will say this once, and only once because I am kind of in a hurry here, I can't be late for a date with Pepper again. We are giving you the special one time opportunity to go with (y/n) out into the city. But understand there are many rules and many more consequences if you break these rules.” Steve took a step forward and reached for Lokis hand. He drew back Lokis sleeve and put on a tracking bracelet, making sure to fastly secure it into place before taking a step back.

“I’ve just put a tracking device on you, so don’t think about getting any ideas. (y/n) has found to do this wildly nice thing out of the kindness of her own heart, so understand that if you betray her trust, you are going to be sorry that you ever arrived on this planet. (y/n) Is your chaperone for this evening so what she says goes. With the push of a button, we all get a call that will include us with your location so you won't get far. Also Tony has programmed this tracker that if it goes a certain distance away from (y/n), it will set off an alarm, and again we all get calls giving us your location.”

“So, you know the rules, now do your best to not disrupt Miss Potts, and I’s evening. Because not only will you disrupt our night, but everyone else's too.” Tony picked up our coats and was quick to hand them to us and send us off through the door. Tony had a reputation for being late on dates, and since he was late last Valentines day, it seemed like he was going to do everything in his power to be on time this year.

Loki followed me to the town car where our shield agent slash chauffeur was waiting. I waved my hand to get Loki to get in first, and I soon followed. For once it hadn't taken much convincing to make this trip happen. Of course I was nervous that Loki was going to try something as he always did, but this excursion was really going to be a treat that would hopefully occupy Lokis thoughts long enough, to not give him any ideas about escaping out into the city, and by reaction causing the others to have to leave their dates.

I could tell by the curiosity in Lokis eye that he had no clue about where he was going. He had only seen NYC once before, and those were under very different circumstances. Now with nothing but a gorgeous blush pink sunset, and couples flocking the streets, I could tell Loki was finding some enjoyment in the city he once tried to destroy.

Finally, when we arrived at the front of the building, I could feel my heart begin to race. Although Loki and I were just friends, I couldn't be more excited to give him this gift for Valentine's day.

“Loki I would like to welcome you to the main branch of the New York Public Library.” I was fast to grab Lokis wrist, and we exited the car together. Although I wouldn't call it a smile, I swore I could see Lokis lips curl just a tad, not wanting to give away the excitement he honestly felt.

“I have read and heard about this library, but I didn't think that today I would have the pleasure of getting to see it, especially with you.”

“Well I figure it was the one place that you were bound to love in this city, I mean come on its a beautiful place filled with beautiful books.” We continued up the stairs to the library entrance where our tour guide was waiting to greet us. It had taken Tony some extra work to vet a tour guide that would be appropriate for touring an alien who tried to demolish the city only so many years ago, but once Tony contacted them, they didn't mind at all, of course seeing that there were a few security details not far behind. We of course agreed and had gotten a shield agent stationed at every point of the tour, leaving myself and the tour guide a little less to worry about.

After the quick greeting, the guide showed us around the public areas of the library giving us all the historical information about the building, and a few pieces about the books that it held. Of course, what I knew I was looking most forward to was the restricted areas. I had always wanted to go into them but never had the opportunity to find the time or the people to convince. But of course, with one call from Tony Stark, dreams could turn into reality with the snap of a finger.

As we continued into the restricted area, I watched Lokis eyes grow as we passed through all the books. As much as he loved to brag about his personal collection that rested back in his room on Asgard, he would have to admit that the number of books that we had passed, had far exceed his collection. After all, some of the books we were now seeing were the only copies of some transcripts and novels, per the writer's wishes. We each had the opportunity to take a look at some of the exclusive material, and although we didn't have long to read. Every paragraph that flowed through my mind left me with more love for words and the art it could transform into.

As we got to the end of the tour, we were allowed access to one of the smaller sections of the library, that was closed for the night to the general public, except for us. Loki and I split off as we wandered the shelves looking for something to peruse during our last hour at the library. I chose some Hemingway because I was always a sucker for him. I slumped down in one of the seats, and before I opened my book, I took careful note to Loki as he carefully brushed his fingers against the books before stopping at a Jane Austin novel. I was quite surprised as he often told me that she was far too overrated and that her work was merely nothing more than child's play. But as he slowly brought back Pride and Prejudice from the shelf, I was quick to turn open my book, not wanting Loki to become annoyed and put the book back.

Loki meandered for a bit more before taking a seat next to me and opening his book. We probably stayed silent for a good thirty minutes before I partially closed my book and turned my body towards him.

“So how are you enjoying the book so far.” Without looking up, Loki mumbled out a response,

“It’s better then I thought it would be I must say.” I smirked to myself as I reopened my book.

When the time finally came, I walked back to where I had found my Hemingway, and carefully slipped it back into its home. When I walked back over to where Loki was, I saw him quickly finish the chapter before he too returned the book back to its original spot.

“Ready to head back to the tower?”

“Never.” Loki scoffed to himself as he looked at his feet. I knew this had to be hard. I had just given him a taste of freedom, but now he was stuck going back to the tower. Although it had a lot to offer, it couldn't beat the streets of New York. And the only other taste of freedom would be on our next scheduled trip to the upstate compound in late June.

“It took a little bit of work, but I’m sure we could come here again sometime.” Lokis head lifted suddenly, a smile peeking across his face.

“I know I’m the god of tricks, but if you are deceiving me, I won't be happy.”

“I promise you I would never use books to tease you.” Loki took a step forward closing the gap in between us. Before I could take another breath, Loki swooped into pressing his lips deeply into mine. He brought his hand up to hold the back of my neck in place. When he finally let up, I took a second to catch my breath.

“Wow.”

“I’m good for more than just reading and talking you know (y/n)?”

“I just gathered that.” I said, feeling the blood rush to my cheeks. Loki grabbed my hand and held it gently to his chest.

“I actually had done a little research about this day before you asked me to come here. I appreciate you taking the time to show me this place. And for getting me out of the tower for the first time. In appreciation for the trip and to showing me such kindness, I say this in the utmost gratitude, and I will deny this if you tell anyone I said this but, (y/n) (y/l/n), will you be my valentine?” I giggled lightly under my breath. Things had taken a pleasant unexpected turn today. I looked up at Loki and smiled, before placing a kiss on his lips, barely touching just to tease him a bit, before drawing back.

“Loki I would be honored to be your valentine.”

#avengers imagine #avengers imagines #marvel fanfiction #marvel imagine #loki imagine #loki fanfic #avengers fanfiction #avenger fanfiction

[rose-gold-romantic]

Whatever It Takes: Chapter Nine

A Loki x Reader based in the Tesseract fic universe! Avengers: Infinity War follow-up fic. Next in the Tesseract fic series. Links to Tesseract, Lokasenna, What Heroes Do, and Fidelity. Also to my AU Feel You.

I WOULD LOVE FEEDBACK! Want to be tagged in updates? Let me know!

@malignentmac @fandomsfanman @i-am-supermerwholoked221b @markusstrayya @sincereleygmg @pandaqua​ @person-born-winchester

Just a forewarning, this one has a major POV shift from the past entries, since Reader was Dusted at the end of Fidelity! Keeping with my recent trend in fic titles, it’s named after a track on the official soundtrack. I also constantly watch this Video, and recommend it to hype you up!

When we arrived back at the Avengers Compound, Tony was already hard at work assembling the Quantum Tunnel that we would need for our “Time Heist”. Bruce and Rocket quickly went to work helping, and its assembly did not take long after they had began.

Thor and I came to take a look at it, and Tony was dragging a cart full of material through the room to the Tunnel.

“Drifting left.” Tony warned, walking around Thor and I. “On the side there, Lebowski. How’s it going, Ratchet?”

“It’s Rocket.” The raccoon insisted as he tightened down some bolts. “Take it easy, you’re only a genius on Earth, pal.”

“Well we’re trying to test this sucker out today, so I want to finish.” Tony prodded in return. “You almost done?”

“Yeah.” Rocket sighed. “Woulda been done earlier if jolly green giant hadn’t ditched to go work on ant-guy’s suit.”

“I hope this works.” I mumbled, not intending anyone to hear me.

“Me too.” Tony agreed.

A few hours later, Barton walked onto the Tunnel’s platform in his Quantum Suit. Most of us had gathered around to watch, but Thor had chosen to remain uninvolved for the time being.

“Clint, now you’re gonna feel a little discombobulated from the chronoshift.” Bruce warned, prepping the tunnel to activate. “Don’t worry about it.”

Clint nodded, taking his place.

“Alright, Clint.” Bruce said, “We’re going in three… two… one!”

A helmet that resembled Scott’s popped into place on Clint’s head, and he promptly disappeared through the tunnel. In a matter of seconds, Clint rematerialized on the glass platform, breathing heavily and laying face down.

“Hey, hey, look at me.” Natasha said as she ran to him, assisting him in sitting up. “You okay?”

Barten held up a baseball glove with a small smile. “Yea, it worked. It worked.”

“Now all that’s left is to figure out where and when to get the stones.” Tony laughed.

“Let’s figure that out now.” Steve said, “Everyone, to the conference room.”

We all made our way to the conference room, my brother included. We all took our seats, and the screens above the table showed the images and information that they had about each of the infinity stones. Tony, Steve, and Bruce stood at the front of the table, taking the lead in organizing and planning.

“Okay, so the ‘how’ works. Now we gotta figure out the when and the where.” Steve said. “Almost all of us have had an encounter with at least one of the six infinity stones.”

“Well I’d substitute the word encounter for damn well near been killed by one of the six infinity stones.” Tony proposed sarcastically.

“I haven’t!” Scott pointed out, “I don’t even know what the hell you’re all talking about!”

“Regardless, we only have enough Pym Particles for one round trip each, and these stones have been in a lot of different places throughout history.” Bruce said, gesturing to the images of the stones.

“Our history.” Tony clarified. “So, not a lot of convenient spots to just drop in.”

“Which means we have to pick our targets.” Clint added.

“Correct.” Tony confirmed.

“Let’s start with the Aether.” Steve said. “Thor, Loki, what do you know?”

Thor did not rise from his spot in the corner, sunglasses shading his closed eyes.

“Is he asleep?” Natasha asked.

“No.” Rhodey said rolling his eyes. “I’m pretty sure he’s dead.”

I groaned, nudging Thor to wake him, and reminded him of what we had to do.

“Where to start? Umm... The Aether, first, is not a stone, someone called it a stone before. It's more of a... and angry sludge thing, so... someones gonna need to amend that. Here's an interesting story though, many years ago...My grandfather had to hide the stones from the Dark Elves…” Thor wiggled his hands around, and I audibly sighed, closing my eyes. “Wooooh, scary beings. So Jane,” He gestured to the screen as her photo appeared, “Oh, there she is. That's Jane... She's... an old flame of mine... She... she stuck her hand inside a rock this one time... and then the Aether stuck itself inside her... And, she became very, very sick. So I had to take her to Asgard, which is where I'm from. And we had to try and fix her. We were dating at the time, you see. I got to introduce her to my Mother... who's dead…” Thor trailed off, his broken emotions pushing their way through again, “and oh you know, Jane and I aren't even dating anymore, these things happen though you know, nothing last forever,” Tony and I attempted to direct him back to his chair, and he brushed us both off, insisting that he finish his ranting. “I'm not done yet, the only thing permanent in life is impermanence.”

Tony and I finally managed to stop Thor’s continued rambling, Tony suggesting some breakfast for him.

“Awesome.” Tony said, “Eggs?”

“No, I’d like a Bloody Mary, thank you.” Thor grinned, causing me to roll my eyes.

“What I believe my brother meant to say is that the Aether is a volatile stone. It is not always in stone form, as he sort of explained, and in 2013 during my captivity in Odin’s dungeons, his girlfriend Jane Foster became the Aether’s host body, similar to the way that (Y/N) and Danvers host the Space Stone’s power. Jane was kept in Asgard to help her during that time, so it would be best to retrieve the Aether from that time and place since Jane poses no great threat.”

“Perfect.” Tony said, “Thor, Rocket, you guys can get on that. What about the purple one?”

“Can we move into the lounge?” Thor mumbled, “These chairs aren’t very comfortable.”

“Quill said he stole the power stone from Morag.” Rocket said as we all moved to the sofas and chairs.

“Is that a person?” Scott asked, beginning to eat the take-out that Natasha had ordered.

“Morag’s a planet.” Rocket clarified. “Quill was a person.”

“A planet?” Scott asked, excited. “Like in outer space?”

“Oh, look. It’s like a little puppy, all happy and everything.” Rocket said, mocking Lang. “Do you wanna go to space? You wanna go to space, puppy? I’ll take you to space.”

After the meal had been finished, Natasha began writing down notes for our plan.

“Thanos found the Soul Stone on Vormir.” Nebula said.

“What is Vormir?” Natasha asked, writing on her notepad.

“A dominion of death, at the very center of Celestial existence.” Nebula continued. “It’s where… Thanos murdered my sister.”

Natasha wrote down what Nebula had said, and the room remained quiet for a moment.

“Not it.” Scott said, intimidated by Nebula’s description.

“What about the other three?” Steve asked. “When is the best point to grab those?”

“Are we even going to be able to get the Time stone?” Tony asked, “It took a lot to get Strange to give it up five years ago, and that was when people were being attacked right in front of him.”

“I’m not sure.” Steve trailed off.

One by one, people left to get some sleep. Eventually, only Tony, Natasha, Bruce, and myself remained to brainstorm.

“That Time Stone guy…” Natasha began.

“Doctor Strange.” Bruce answered.

“Yeah, what kind of doctor was he?” She asked.

“Neurostuff meets rabbit from a hat.” Tony replied. “Nice place in the village, though.”

“Yeah. Sullivan Street.” Bruce said, “Hmm… Bleeker.”

“Wait, Strange lived in New York?” I asked, sitting upright.

“No, he lived in Toronto.” Tony quipped.

“If we pick the right year, there are three stones in New York.” I said, “Two of them in my posession.”

“Shut the front door!” Bruce exclaimed, sitting up.

“But who goes to get which ones?” Tony asaked, “How do we divvy up the teams?”

“Bruce, you should get the time stone.” I said, “You’ll have the easiest time getting across New York during the battle. Tony and Scott should retrieve the Tesseract. Steve can grab the scepter from the shield agents, and I’ll help him with that if needed. If it turns out that he doesn’t need me, I’ll come assist you and Scott.”

“Do we really have it all planned out now?” Natasha asked, smiling. “We can do this in the morning?”

“It would appear so.” I said, allowing myself a smile.

“Rest up, guys.” Tony said, walking to his room in the Compound. “We’ve got a big day coming up.”

As I walked to my room that night, I couldn’t help smiling. We were so close, so ready to reach out and take what we had been working so hard to achieve. In the morning we would be able to rectify and resolve the past five years of struggle.

My dreams intensified my joy, for the first time in years they might be a possibility. Even in the five years since the snap, my mind had never lost a bit of (Y/N). I could envision her perfectly, from the way her hair fell in her face when she was reading, to the way she would smirk before giving a smart remark. I dreamed of reuniting with her, and for the first time in years, I slept soundly.

In the morning, we all gathered and prepared to complete our mission. We all dressed in our Quantum suits, walking up to the Tunnel platform.

“Alright. We have a plan. Six stones, three teams. One shot.” Steve said as Bruce finished prepping the Tunnel for our trip. “Five years ago, we lost. All of us. We lost friends… We lost family… We lost a part of ourselves. Today, we have a chance to take it all back. You know your teams, you know your missions. Get the stones, get them back. One round trip each. No mistakes, no do-overs. Most of us are going somewhere we know, but it doesn't mean we should know what to expect. Be careful. Look out for each other. This is the fight of our lives. And we’re gonna win.”

Tony shot Steve a knowing look, smiling.

“Whatever it takes.” Steve continued. “Good luck.”

“He’s pretty good at that.” Rocket observed.

“Right?” Scott agreed, smiling.

“All right. You heard the man.” Tony said. “Stroke those keys, jolly green.”

“Tractors engaged.” Bruce said.

Rocket gestured to the shrunk Benatar that rested in Clint’s hand. “You promise to bring that back in one piece, right?”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.” Clint nodded, “Ok. I’ll do my best.”

“As far as promises go, that was pretty lame.” Rocket grumbled.

Natasha smiled to each of us as we stood in our positions. “See you in a minute.”

The countdown began, and we were all sucked into the Quantum tunnel.

#loki #loki x reader #endgame #fanficiton #marvel #whatever it takes #rose gold romantic

[taekwondorkjosh]

Avengers: Endgame - Lets make some sense of That Ending

okay, so this is OBVIOUSLY gonna be so fucking full of spoilers lol. I’m tagging it AND putting my discussion under the cut. I’m going to pad this out though, that way any links to this post on discord don’t show any spoilers of any kind. So uh... hopefully this is enough hahaha. Okay so, seriously, spoilers ahead, read at your own risk, yada yada.

Okay, so this is mostly an analysis of how the time travel used to save the universe works in Avengers: Endgame, and a discussion of my various headcanons and interpretations of what that means for the universe(s).

I’m not a fan of time travel. I’m often angered by its use in ways that make no sense. Time travel stories will break their own rules or not lay out enough of them for the narrative to make sense or have any tension. So, first, lets look at the rules we’re given and why they work for me. 

Banner spells out why they can’t just... go back in time and make things alright, in an inspired way. Since I can’t exactly get the quote, ill try and reiterate it here: You have a past. You travel through time and arrive in your own past. Now, everything between the moment you traveled to and the moment you left becomes your future. You cannot change your future and your past with the same action. You cannot alter your own past. 

So, because their current situation relies on Thanos performing the snap, nothing they do can change that. If they go back in time and try to kill Thanos, they must fail. Otherwise, why go back in time? It would be a waste of time and energy, because it must have failed: you already know it did. In short, anything you try to do has already happened in your timeline, or it created a branch to another timeline. Either way, you wouldn’t know you’d changed anything.

At first, this seems like it doesn’t work, and a lot of time travel stories don’t recognize this. They either point it out and break the rule, or they point it out and don’t break it, or they don’t point it out and don’t break it. In the first case, they’re breaking their own rules. In the second two cases, it often makes the entire film or story pointless outside of the enjoyment the audience got out of watching it happen. Either of the first two cases could have been what happened in Endgame, but instead, they give us more information during Banner’s conversation with the Sorcerer Supreme. 

This conversation with the Supreme makes it explicitly clear what happens when someone travels back in time and changes something: They create an alternate timeline. More importantly, the alternate timeline HAS NO EFFECT ON THEIR OWN TIMELINE. So, if they went back in time and killed Thanos, there would be a new reality where Thanos was mysteriously killed by people that appeared from nowhere and then disappeared. When they return to their own timeline, or should I say, their own reality, they would find no changes. All they did was create a branch, a new universe. 

So, now we have the rules. Anything they mess up changes nothing in their own reality, and in fact a lot of it would prevent Thanos from succeeding in the realities they leave behind. Win-win! However, they do promise to return the stones, so those handful of situations end up not happening. So now lets look at what did happen. 

Lets establish some language. The Prime Reality is the reality portrayed in the films and TV shows so far. More importantly, we’re going to assume that things occur as closely to the events portrayed in the Prime Reality media as possible, unless they are prevented from doing so by something related to time travel. Prime Steve is the captain america from this reality, the one who travels through time to return the stones to where they go. Now, what happened? 

First, chronologically, Prime Steve must choose between returning to Peggy in the 1940s, or returning to the Prime Reality when he was supposed to. He chose to stay in 1940, reuniting with Peggy and living an exceptionally long time. This creates a new reality, which we will call the Steggy Reality. 

Next up in the prime reality is the 1970 situation. Prime Steve stole four cases of pymm particles and Stark stole the Tesseract. Then, presumably almost immediately, Prime Steve returned and put the Tesseract back, fixed the crate it was in, and replaced the four pymm particles. Now, we run into a bit of an issue here, but since it is a problem that shows up later, we’ll address it there. Anyway, nothing was really altered so we don’t get another reality.

However, Tony’s interaction with Howard Stark exists in the Prime Reality. They imply this by Tony mentioning he remembers, more or less, something about that specific time and place. Its also implied that Tony is the one that counseled his father on thinking of a different name for his son, and also gave him that pearl of wisdom about money and time. This could potentially break some of their rules. However, Tony did not know that he would run into his father in the base. He did not know that he was the one who gave his father that little phrase. He might not have even realized that he was doing it. 

So this odd hiccup fits with the rules established. Tony did NOT change anything. His influence was already in effect in his own timeline, which was the only other possibility mentioned above. So, in the Prime Reality, Tony showed up suddenly and gave his dad some advice. Cool, moving on. 

So its 2012, New York. Scott, Steve, Tony, and Bruce are in NY during the events of the Chitauri invasion. Bruce goes and gets the time stone from the Sorcerer Supreme, and as soon as he leaves Prime Steve shows up and hands it back. However, this year is the biggest problem area. 

I mentioned a problem with the Tesseract, and it becomes a problem here for the mind stone as well. The mind stone, the Tesseract, and the power stone all had special containment units that are not pictured in the case Prime Steve took with him. So... what happens? Well, one way to handle this problem is for Prme Steve to go figure out how to make the Tesseract, the Scepter, and the power stone sphere thing as part of his journey through time. Another possibility is a retcon where he took those appropriate containers with him. Another one is to use the time stone to reverse time locally around the individual stones, with the help of the sorcerer supreme, to recreate them. That is the second easiest option, and is most likely considering Prime Steve as a character. 

So, lets get back into it. Lets assume that Prime Steve has all the appropriate containment devices, and he’s in 2012. He’s gotta get the mind stone scepter back to Hydra unfortunately. Well, he knows that Loki escaped with the Tesseract in this timeline. That’s not his problem, he can’t fix that. Its a new reality that they’ll just have to deal with somehow. We’ll call this reality Loki Runs Amok. 

So, how does he get the scepter back into the hands of Hydra without them thinking Captain America is an actual hydra agent? Well, I particularly like the idea of him disguising himself as Loki using the reality stone, nanotech, or help from the Sorcerer Supreme. People attack him, they think he disguised himself as Captain America to get the scepter, and lets them ‘beat him’ just enough so that he drops the scepter. So the mind stone is back where it goes. Now, this reality is fun, cuz Loki is TOTALLY going to figure out that someone used him as a scapegoat to drop off the scepter. he didn’t fight Captain America and tell a lie about Bucky being alive or tell Hydra agents he was one of them. So that’ll be fun. 

2013 Asgard is next chronologically. Prime Steve shows up and, almost immediately after Rocket sucks the reality stone out of Jane, he sticks her again. Any memory of Captain America is waived off as a hallucination. Cool. 

Now, Prime Steve heads to 2014 and drops off the power stone. Quill likely wakes up and is like ‘man I must have hit my head pretty hard.’ There’s no reason to believe that this would change too much, not really. So we don’t get a new reality where Quill never gets the power stone off Morag. 

Okay so, Prime Steve then goes to Vormir and replaces the Soul Stone. I don’t see any reason why he can’t just.... do that. I really like this cuz like, he gets to talk to the Red Skull again. How cool is that??? Now, that’s all the stones! they’re back where they go and Prime Steve leaves 2014 for the 1940s to create Steggy Reality. 

Something else happens here that is super cool though. In 2014, the entirety of Thanos’ army, Gamorra, Nebula, all of it, just disappears into Prime Reality and is Snapped out of existence. That’s one interesting reality. So the Sans Thanos Reality is born. This is the only one where Thanos failing is guaranteed. Cool. 

And that brings us to the present. Prime Steve did not show up when and where he was supposed to. I’m going to assume that Prime Steve didn’t exist in the Prime Reality as an old man. Its made explicitly clear, again and again, that Peggy waited as long as she could, married someone else, etc. The world would not have progressed the way it did if Captain America had been in it. So I refuse to believe that Prime Steve got back to that moment anyway but the way he was supposed: he put on his time travel dohickey and pushed the button at the ripe old age of Fucking Old. It wasn’t meant to keep him out there as long as it did, or maybe it was damaged, and instead of appearing on the platform he appeared off to the side, or he appeared a little early. I particularly like the idea of him appearing on the original quantum tunnel and just being like “aw beans” and walking out of the avengers base while everyone else is doing their own thing. He got to a safe distance and waited for things to settle, for himself to leave, and then met up with everyone as he did in the film. Either that, or he asked Doctor Strange to send him there. 

Alright, so there’s that! I hope my ramblings made sense! I’m probably going to write some more stuff on ideas I have about the individual realities. This was fun! 

#avengers #endgame #endgame spoilers #endgame spoiler #avengers spoilers #mcu #mcu spoilers #spoiler #spoilers #my thoughts #headcanon #long post

[octoberwren]

Prompt: Steve x Darcy: Is it too late? (My Dear)

So I have lowkey shipped this couple for years, not because I was ashamed or anything, but because there were so much amazing fanfiction out there for them already, and I was slightly (a lot) intimidated by it. So I didn’t think I’d be able to get their voices right or do it justice. But I decided recently to broaden my horizons as some you who follow me might know already. And the wonderful human who runs @shieldshockfanfic​ gave me some prompts to run with and I decided on this one, it just hit all the right angsty notes with me. So I just wanted to say THANK YOU to @shieldshockfanfic for the heartwarming encouragement to help me be brave. Much Love to you!

Hope you enjoy the read.

You can also read it on Ao3 for your convenience.

Summary:  First there's a kidnapping. Then a bullet. And all Darcy really knows is that she despises portals.

 As far as kidnappings went Darcy's one was pretty creative, she'd have to admit, albeit grudgingly and Tony would have to finally give up the good alcohol, for her to ever reveal that little truth nugget.

 Portals weren't an unusual thing in the science labs, no matter how many times she had threatened the genius/deranged people she called her friends, that portals were a bad time waiting to happen.

 She was right. Darcy was always right, which was why it was super annoying that no one ever, ya' know, listened to her.

 But the portal that had Darcy immediately glaring at, with all of her only-one-cup-of-coffee-today fury didn't actually come from Jane or more shockingly, Tony. It came from some brightly dressed assholes in yellow hazmat suits.

 Joy.

 Of course, she threw her cup at one of the idiots head and of course when they started making grabby hands, she shoved Jane into one of the rooms made for a very specific reason; keeping The Hulk from squishing people. She slammed her hand on the red button that everyone said not to touch, and locked the furious and cussing scientist/future Queen of Asgard inside.

 She never claimed to have superb self-preservation skills, but she's sure someone would be totally proud of how she took a swing at another henchman, knocking him on his ass.

 It's her, she's the one proud of knocking him on his ass. She didn't even have the training for that move! And they said movies can't teach you things.

She's was still grinning manically, even when the blood dripped from her mouth from their retaliation on her.

 The alarms were still going mad and Jane was still cussing a blue streak when they shoved her none too gently inside the portal. Real creative, who knew A.I.M had the balls to even try that.

 And now she's currently tied to a chair in an empty room, which was more clichéd, so they're not exactly batting a thousand in her humble opinion.

 An opinion she voiced much to the displeasure of Squirrely Eyes whose scowl would make small children cry, luckily for Darcy she's witnessed Steve's Disappointed In You patented face, she's been through way worse.

 Just thinking of the man, that she has an adolescence crush from hell for, gives her the backbone to not give up. Because despite her bravado, she is absolutely fucking terrified, the hands behind her back are shaking and she can feel the tremor in her legs.

 But Steve, amazing man that he is, wouldn't back down, he'd fight, even if the whole world was telling him to back off, to move on, he wouldn't. He didn't. He stood up and he fought back with everything he had and then some.

 He helped Tony and Bucky in the best way he could, he made them a team again, it took a lot of time and so much shouting, she had to rush to her room, before she did something stupid, like cry in front of them.

 Or worse, punch them in the face.

 With Steve's pure stubbornness, they mended their relationship, the team started to fight the good fight again. The movie nights returned, and Darcy tried to help in any way she could.

 She made food for when they returned home bloody, she spoke to Bucky when late at night he'd wander the halls. She helped Tony get off his ass and talk to Pepper.

 She mostly avoided Steve, not that she didn't desperately want to talk to him, hug him, feed him hot cocoa. (Watching him beat the crap out of his punching bag was her favorite past time) But when they had first come back before she had even a chance to speak to him, Darcy had overheard Sam tease him about a kiss and then the name Sharon Carter had come up and she got her ass out of dodge.

 Afterward, she tried and spectacularly failed to notice his frown every time she sat on the opposite side of the lounge at movie night or made up some excuse when he entered the room. She was a big girl and Darcy knew that the only way this could possibly hurt this much, was a fact she wanted to bury, that she didn't have a crush on him, it was something, much, much worse.

 She didn't even hate Sharon, the woman was badass, of course Steve had gone for her, he deserved that after all he'd been through, something truly amazing.

 Darcy wasn't a hero, she wasn't a beautiful agent with scary skills.

 She was just Darcy, a woman who swore when she breathed, had sarcasm running through her veins and a scary addiction to caffeine. She was a college dropout turned lab assistant to her best friend, she'd never be good enough for a man like Steve, a war hero, a bonafide superhero and the bravest man she had ever known.

 But right now she was regretting every single step away from him, she was probably going to die by these bumblebees and he'd never know how much she-

 The crack against her cheek snapped her back into painful reality and Darcy groaned then glared when she tasted the metallic taste of blood. "What the actual fuck dude?!"

 Another slap and Darcy was getting real tired of this shit, "You weren't paying attention." He condescendingly told her, with a skeevy smile.

 "To what, your evil monologue?" Darcy took every reserve of anger she had left, which was a lot actually, and spat blood on his shiny black shoes.

 She smiled brightly at his disgust, "In case you haven't noticed, you took the wrong girl, I thought A.I.M was supposed to be the smart villains. I might be brunette, but I'm no Jane Foster."

 She gave him a ‘so there' look which he promptly ignored, the bastard.

 Squirrely Eyes leaned into her personal space and Darcy barely held in the gag at his overwhelming cologne, "And what makes you think you're not the girl we were after Darcy Lewis?"

 "First off, it's woman, thank you very much, I grew these boobs at thirteen and went through enough jackasses teasing me to deserve the title. Also, whaaaat?" she regretted mentioning the word boobs as soon as she said it, because now the only thing the creep was staring at was the girls, which, gross.

 Still talking to her boobs, The Pervert said, "There's someone very important who loves you, oh so much. A moron would be able to see it. And I'd bet he'd be willing to do anything to get you back. Like giving up a sample of his blood."

 Despite the situation, despite everything telling her, lies, lies, lies, her stupid heart was thumping with erratic speed, not in fear, but with something that felt suspiciously like hope. The traitor.

 "Thor?" She squeezed out because come on! He couldn't mean-

 Pervy Mcpervasin laughed in her face and Darcy scrunched up her nose because, hello no personal space, thy name is asshole.

 "I would have thought The Captain would have chosen a smarter woman, someone like Sharon Carter."

 She would have winced at his words, if she hadn't been too busy breaking his nose with her forehead. 

 Wow… where did that hot white anger come from? It's like she blacked out in a rage and woke up to his piggish squealing.

 He was holding his bloody nose with one hand, while she just blinked at him, "That'll teach you to respect personal space, numbnuts."

 "Ooo bish." How he slurred the words was still funny, even as he swung his hand for another strike to her face, only to be interrupted by an explosion that had the building rocking from the force.

 Her captor swung around to stare at the still closed door, Darcy let out a chuckle at his surprised action, "Oooh you're in trouble." She sing songed at his back.

 He turned to glare at her, "Ut up"

 "Seriously," Darcy continued, heedless of his garbled warning, "What kind of dumbass pokes that bear? Don't get me wrong, your plan was super-duper good, if not totally clichéd," She wasn't letting that go, it started off so well, "But… and this is a big, huge, don't-fuck-with-Captain-America kind of mistake. Your plan worked. He's here. So ya' know. Have fun with that, dead man walking."

 He was purple by the time she finished and with all that anger being directed at her, he reached out and grabbed her hair so hard her scalp burned, "I will ki-"

 The door burst in and a seething Steve, in all his Captain America glory, stepped into the room, "Let. Her. Go. Now." He clipped out of clenched teeth, the menace and screaming danger pouring off of him in waves. It would have been terrifying, if it didn't turn her on so much.

 Which was super awkward given the situation.

 "Told you so." Darcy snarked to the idiot still holding onto her head, Steve's gaze connected with her own and her breath snagged against her lungs at the intensity of his eyes.

 Maybe he did care about her? In a non platonic kind of way.

 But when he trailed those eyes over her face, (by the pain she was in, Darcy knew she looked like a bloody mess,) his blue eyes went savage in fury.

 "You have one second to take your filthy tainted hands off of her, before I tell the guy with a gun to put a bullet in you." Steve growled out taking a threatening step forward to reveal Bucky at his back and 0.1 milliseconds later, the -for once smart- man, practically tripped away with his arms up.

 "Smart move." He said before swinging his shield into an arch and knocking the portal hopping jackass unconscious and crumbling to the floor.

 Steve was at her side in a second flipping open a knife to cut the zip ties locking her in place, when her hands were free, she rubbed at the raw skin. That would take a couple days to feel not so crappy.

 She barely had a chance to get up on her own power before Steve was hauling her up and checking her face over, "Are you okay? Of course, you're not okay, stupid question. Tell me where else it hurts, does anything else hurt, Sweetheart?" He was so frantic, that thankfully he missed the blush staining her cheeks and the popping of her eyeballs.

 Sweetheart?

 Darcy looked at Bucky who was still hovering in the doorway, to check if she was as slack-jawed as she felt.

 He only made it worse my smirking and winking at her, the asshole.

 "Doll? Are you hurt anywhere else, we need to get you to medical anyway, but I want to know." She snapped her attention to Steve's stupidly handsome face and those baby blues that screamed concerned and Darcy could feel her broken heart melting.

 "What, this?" She choked out, but when he looked more anxious and on the verge of carrying her out, by just her voice, Darcy made sure her next words were light and teasing, anything to get that look off his face.

 "It was just a love tap. Dude could take some lessons from me, I knocked his buddy out with one hit." She was still proud of that damnit, and it seemed so was Steve as the first smile she had seen from him yet graced his soft lips.

 "I know," He whispered, while stroking her cheekbone with his thumb, "I saw, you have one hell of a right hook, Sweetheart."

 Her breath hitched for the second time in a matter of minutes, not just because of the pet name (seriously? Did the man forget she had a name?) but by the tender (almost adoring?) way he was looking at her.

 She opened her mouth to say, something, she had no idea, but a cough from Bucky had Steve snatching his hands away from her face. Darcy ducked her head down, her hair falling like a curtain to cut off her hurt from him.

 What did she expect really?

 "We should head back." The former assassin said, she caught Steve's terse nod as she looked up, he motioned for her to go in front of him, presumably so she'd be safe between the both of them.

 Darcy, for life of her, would never know what exactly made her turn before the super soldiers, it might have been a shift in the air, an out of place noise, a feeling maybe. The obvious point is, she did turn before them so she was the first to notice, the not so unconscious man lift a gun to Steve's back.

 Probably the second more obvious soul wrecking point, was the split second she tried to push Steve out of the way, he noticed as well and turned back to shove her behind him, so Darcy got a wall of muscle for protection and Steve...

 God Steve, no, not him, not him.  

 The first bullet ripped through his chest, the second came from Bucky as he put one square between that fuckers eyes. But Darcy didn't care about that, all she cared about was that the love of her life was falling to his knees, with blood spreading over his beloved uniform.

 "Nonononononono," Darcy hit the ground hard as she crawled over to him, but she didn't care about her pain, "Steve, come on, open those baby blues I adore. Open them, Steve. Please?"

 But he wasn't opening them, and with a trembling hand she felt his pulse and gasped out an agonized sob.

 Bucky was white noise behind her, something about Tony and medic, but Darcy was ripping off her top, scrunching it up and and and,

 Her hands were red. Blood red. Steve's blood, oh fuck this wasn't happening.

 "I tried to move on just to see you happy, you can't be happy if you're dead Steve. You're not dead. You're not. Open your fucking eyes, Steve. I need you to be happy," She was rambling, she thinks this is what people like Jane would call hysteria or was it going into shock?

 His face was pale, snow like, he was…she wouldn't be able to survive this, she knew her limits, her capabilities and this was not one of them.

 Darcy could already feel the black void of nothingness stretching open her heart and it was frightening and cold and so very lonely without him.

 His chest wasn't moving, even as she tried to pump air into lungs with her hands and breathe life into his red stained lips. This was not the kiss she always dreamt of and gave up on, this tasted like death and desolation.

 "Steve, Steve, I love you, okay, I love you. So, S-so come on, don't l-leave me, I need you, I need your smile, and your old timey speak and your optimism to brighten my day. A-and I-I don't care if you don't love me b-back. I just need you to be alive. Please, please, Steve. Please be alive." Her head was over his heart, and she heard nothing, nothing.

 Nothing but her hyperventilation. There was no air, none. Oh, God.

 "I'll stop avoiding you."She whispered into his chest and clutched the material of both their clothing, "Please come back to me."

 "Kid!" It was a disjointed voice, like something you'd hear from the bottom of deep water, she ignored it.

 Because if she stayed right here, if she kept talking, if she kept her head right here, over the heart she always wanted to keep safe, he'd wake up.

 He'd wake up.

 He had too.

 Steve was invincible, larger than life, the man with a plan.

 He had a plan right? Did anyone? Did she?

 "Please."

 "Kid you have to let go, we have to-"

 "Get the fuck off me! No, don't leave him! He has a plan! Let go!"

 "Sorry, Darcy."Such soft words and a small needle.

 "Don't leave me, Steve." a whimper, then Darcy went limp like a rag doll, "It should have been me."

   Darcy gasped in oxygen and shot upright from a deep sleep. 

 Waking up was never a joyous occasion for her, she'd beg and plead to the Gods above to shut off her alarm and bargain with her soul just to have a few more minutes.

 But this was different.

 Darcy blinked trying to figure out just what was-

 Oh.

 She really had been hysterical if Bucky had to inject something to make her go to dreamland.

 Steve.

 Steve was dead, wasn't he? It wasn't an awful nightmare if the blood under her fingernails were any kind of morbid proof enough.

 Before she knew it her hands were under the tap and her skin was raw from scrubbing, ripping off her pants, where was her other shirt? Right, she basically gave Bucky a free showing when she tore it off her body.

 An amused chuckle left her, that slowly turned into a full blown belly laugh until tears streamed down her face, just picturing his face as she basically straddled Steve in only her bra, had her in hysterical giggles.

 Or maybe it was just hysteria, because she wasn't laughing anymore, the tears were streaming down her face when she opened the shower door and put the water to just the point of boiling, over her clammy skin.

 Maybe she should go find The Winter Soldier and ask for the really good stuff, because she had a feeling she wouldn't be sleeping or stopping the bone crushing sobs anytime soon.

 She was numb and in agonizing pain all at once, Darcy had never ever felt this lost and broken before, she felt fragile, like porcelain as she slid down the tiles and hugged her knees to her chest, the water beating against her skin.

  She tried to focus on one spot and not think of him, or how he always made her coffee when she was feeling down, or once ran in the rain to save her from a bad date, how he managed to make her a little less cynical by just being him.

 She tried to forget how stupidly in love with him she was, how she knew that she'd always be in love with him.

 Even now that he was gone.

 He was gone.

 Her head fell against her kneecaps, and long after the water had gone cold, she still couldn't stop thinking about him.

 How Steve died because of her, because of her stupidity. How could she let herself get captured? He always wanted her to get some training, but Darcy blew it off, no one was coming to get her after all.

 "Oh, Darcy." the soft whimsical voice of her best friend floated to her from inside the shower.

 She was wrapped up in Jane's arms before she could blink, her whispers of, "It's okay, it's okay." the only noise besides the streaming water.

 "It's not Jane, Steve's-" She couldn't even say it, saying it made it real and Darcy was far from ready to face her new reality.

 "Hey, it's alright," Jane, sweet Jane, swept away her wet hair and tucked it behind Darcy's ear, "He's alive."

 Her words were spoken in English, but Jane might as well been talking a language from another planet, for all the good it did Darcy’s sluggish mind.

 "...What?"

 "He's alive."

 Darcy shoved up to standing and turned off the shower, while Jane stepped outside and grabbed a towel to hand to her, Darcy robotically took it with numb hands and wrapped it around her shivering body.

 She shook her head slowly, not comprehending, "No, Jane. I saw him, he didn't have a pulse."

 She would have felt that? Wouldn't she have?

 Jane shrugged, "Apparently it's a super soldier thing, his heart rate slowed, just like when he was frozen for years, it allowed Helen Cho to work her magic. She explained it to me but I'm not that kind of doctor. He's only now regained consciousness. I was checking up on him for you, seeing as you were so…out of it when you got here."

 Darcy sucked in a breath, the relief hitting her in full force that her knees almost buckled under her,  Jane quickly led her back to her bed, where she collapsed against the mattress.

 "He's alive." she breathed, testing the words in her mouth, trying to make it tangible.

 "He is, I thought maybe you'd want to go get dressed and see him?" Jane had always known about her feelings towards Steve and she had always wanted Darcy to tell him outright, she thought Steve felt the same.

 But nothing had really changed had it? He was still dating Sharon, and now Darcy had almost killed him.

 Aside from her love confession to him while he was bleeding out, everything was back to normal, except now Bucky knew, which was disturbing to think about actually.

 "Darcy?"

 "No, not today, I can't today Jane." She was liable to do something stupid, like spill her guts again.

 Her friend opened her mouth, probably to go on a rant but the look in her eyes made Jane snap it shut, and nod tightly. "Fine, you get today but tomorrow you're seeing him."

 Yep, tomorrow she’ll say thanks for saving my life man, and sorry I almost ended yours. But that could wait.

 She just needed today.

Okay, so it had already been two days, fine three. But who was counting?

 Apparently, Bucky was, because every time she ran from Steve, his best pal was waiting in the shadows, lifting up a digit on his finger to show the exact amount of days, she had been sneaking around the tower.

 Fine, avoidance was her name and avoiding was her game, it didn't help that Tony, Natasha, and Clint kept giving her the damn side eye as well. Apparently, Bucky wasn't the only one to witness her breakdown.

 And now because the team was all honesty, all the time, she was forced to deal with all of the disappointment in their faces.

 Not Coolio dudes.

 Even Tony. Tony. Mr-conceal-don't-feel himself, gave a shake of his head.

 Well fuck that noise, by the time the fourth day came around and one more soft (but not that soft Bucky!) whispered ‘idiot' and she locked herself in her room with wine and ice cream.

 The perfect break up combo. Except she hadn't broken up with him. She scoffed in derision at herself, yep, she needed this.

 The knock on her door had her slamming down her- just poured- glass of wine, and stomping to the door in agitation. She swung open the door to give Tom, Dick or Harry a verbal beat down.

 Only it was Steve, and he was mighty pissed by the dark frown plastered to his face.

 Her knee jerk reaction was to slam the door in his face, only Steve was one step ahead of her, as he gripped the side of the door so hard his knuckles turned white and she feared for the metals safety.

 "Don't." He gritted out, while pushing himself through the door and effectively making her take a couple of steps back.

 The slam of the closing door made her jump and Darcy cursed at herself, she wasn't afraid of Steve, she would never be afraid of him.

 But nervous? Yeah, she could be that, especially since that too tight t-shirt and jeans made her want to climb him like a tree.

 And he smelled so delicious that she wanted to lick and bite at the skin that tease of a shirt gave away…wait when did he get so close?

 "You said you wouldn't avoid me anymore" Steve moved closer, his lips pulled into a thin line, "You're a lot of things Darce, but I never took you for a liar."

 "Huh?" She was beyond confused, not because he knew she was avoiding him, Steve was intelligent, Darcy figured he would put two and two together, sooner or later. She just thought she would have screwed up her courage by then.

 No, she was confused because he said she told him that, which was impossible because she never said anything about…oh, shity, shit, shit.

 It was like the proverbial light switch clicked on; He heard her.

 Which also meant he heard… "Oh, fuck." She breathed out, her anxiousness racked up to about a thousand and she was backing away so fast and looking for the damn exit sign.

 "So what is it Doll?" Her heart skipped at that, and at the intense way he was tracking her with his blue eyes "You have the courage to tell me while I'm bleeding under your hands, but not when I'm standing right here in front of you?"

 "Uhm…" Darcy's back hit the wall and Steve was suddenly right in front of her, so very, very close.

 Between a rock and hard place, she had the insane urge to giggle but stopped at the blaze in his eyes.

 "You love me." There might have been a fire in his eyes, but his words were so gentle, whispered like an intimacy they only shared.

 Those three quietly spoken words were about as subtle as a bomb going off in her silent apartment, loud, deafening and the inevitable wreckage would be irreparable.

 "You're dating Sharon." Darcy gasped out as his hand landed on her shoulder, his calloused palm making her shiver.

 "I'm not." He said but when Darcy arched an-are you shitting me-eyebrow, Steve shook his head. "I'm not, it was never like that between her and I."

 "But Sam said you kissed her." Why did she sound like a whiny teenager?

 "Was that why you refused to even look me in the eye, when I came back?" When Darcy said nothing, he let out a deep sigh of frustration, "It didn't mean anything, I tried to make it mean something at first, but I knew as soon as it happened that it was a mistake. I was going through a lot and well, I'm not proud of it, but I-"

 "Wanted to have something, just in case?" Darcy asked because she honestly got it, with Peggy and then Bucky, and to top it all off, the catastrophe that ended with Tony.

 Fighting against his teammates, it was a shitty time for him and he thought he might not make it back, she couldn't blame him, she never did.

 He didn't owe her anything, they weren't together, they were friends who occasionally binge-watched shows and sat talking for hours together.

 Even though she tried to hide it, he must have seen the pain flicker on her face because he was cupping her face in his large hands, "It was something like that, but I did come home, and when everything settled, I couldn't stop thinking of a mouthy brunette."

 "Tony?" She said just to sass him, he huffed out a laugh, staring at her with something that looked a lot like adoration.

 "No, babydoll, I couldn't stop thinking about you." Darcy couldn't look away now, even if she wanted to, " and when I realized that, I spoke to Sharon and she agreed that we were better off as friends. It was better that way. So that’s when I came to the tower hoping to talk to you, but you were doing everything in your power to be in the exact opposite place that I was."

 "Steve…"

 "So I thought, ‘She must not feel the same way I do' and it tore at me Darcy, but If you wanted space, I'd give it to you. I'd give you anything you wanted or needed." Steve pushed the hair out of her eyes, and tilted her chin so she was staring right into his deep and tender gaze. 

 He gave a sad sort of smile to her, "Even if that meant what you wanted wasn't me."

 Darcy knew she had to put it all on the line now and yes, she was scared shitless but, if this brave man could trust her with all of his feelings, then she could grow some balls and tell him some home truths as well.

 "I know I'm awesome. I know that." She had to be clear on that, because she knew she was kickass but, "You just always seemed so far out of my league, another dimension really."

 Steve got that look of anger again, the one she saw just as she opened the door, "What the hell are you talking about Babydoll?"

 "Look, just listen alright?" The nicknames weren't helping either, they were very distracting, in the best kind of way.

 Steve nodded once, tightly, so she rushed to continue before he could rant, which looked like he was on the verge of doing.

 "I'm not talking about the Superhero thing, although that's some of it, I'll never be an agent or a hero. I don't think I'll ever be able to really know about The Captain's world, because I don't go out and fight like you guys do. And that's fine, I can live with that, I help in the ways that I can. I accepted that a long time ago, what I really struggle with is this," Darcy reached over to lay her hand over his beating heart.

 The very thing she thought had died days ago, and just feeling it thump against her palm was memorizing.

 "This is Steve Rogers, the man that makes Captain America who he is. This heart has always been so pure and so good, that I don't think mine will ever measure up. I swear more than I breathe, I don't like a lot of people and I get pissy when the coffee machine breaks. I'm just Darcy and because of me this wonderful heart almost stopped beating."

 The absolute quiet when she stopped talking was tense and suffocating so much so, that she wished Jane would walk in to drag her to work, just so she would be saved from herself.

 Steve's arms slammed against the wall beside her head caging her in and she let out a gasp at the several emotions mixing in his tortured eyes, "Just Darcy,? You say that like that hasn't always been perfection to me. Just Darcy, always made me feel like I wasn't alone in this world when everything else had been taken from me. Just Darcy, spoke to Bucky like a human being instead of the monster he thought he was. Just Darcy, drank with a broken Tony when he needed it at sent him after Pepper when he thought he didn't deserve it."

 "She threw Jane out of danger, made sure her best friend was safe before slugging an asshole who should never have put his hands on her, then faced a dozen armed men with a grin on her face." Steve wiped the tears that were falling from her eyes and then leant down to rest his forehead against her own,

 "You scared the living hell out of me when I found out that they had taken you, all I could think was that I was too late, I'd never see you again and that I wouldn't be able to tell you...then when I got there, you were taunting that son of a bitch, and I didn't know whether I wanted to strangle you or kiss you until you were too dazed to do anything else."

 For once in her life, Darcy was speechless, she had no witty reply or inappropriate response, she was stunned that Steve, gorgeous, wonderful Steve felt that strongly for her, she wanted to do a dance, she wanted to cry, she really wanted that kiss he brought up because it sounded…it actually sounded like…

 "Also, don't for one second blame yourself for that bullet," And there went her happy glow, her stomach plummeted and she felt nauseous just remembering that mess of a day.

 "Hey," Steve whispered trying to get her to look at him, when that didn't work he cupped her face again, which was becoming a habit of his, not that she was complaining. "I would do it again in a second. That might not be what you want to hear, but you'll always come first to me Darcy. You'll always be my top priority, so maybe it's a good thing you don't fight with us because I wouldn't be able to do my job otherwise. And yes it was touch and go there for a bit, but do you know what brought me back?"

 She had a feeling but you know what they say about assuming, so she shook her head, and prayed that the hope that was spreading through her body like liquid sun, bright and dazzling, wouldn't be crushed with his next words.

 "It was you, I heard your voice Darce, I heard you say ‘I love you' and I knew I had to fight my way back so I could tell you something as well," He leant down to kiss her jaw then her cheek, and finally her forehead.

 Only to lean back again to stare into her eyes, his lips breaking into a dazzling smile that set her heart on fire, "I love you, Just Darcy, I have for a very long time now and I'm hoping you'll say you love me too, because I'm wide awake now and I desperately want you to be my girl."

 When she stared wide eyed at him, because yes, this is exactly what she wanted but she didn't actually think it would happen, Steve for the first time that night, got a nervous look in his eyes as he searched her face.

 "Unless you're afraid of something else or?"

 She looked up at him and now that he mentioned it, "You're way too tall, and I'm super short Steve, things like that could be deal breakers." Her shit eating grin was instantly wiped off her face and she let out an embarrassed squeaking sound, when he very suddenly dropped his hands to her thighs and hauled her up against his firm body.

 Darcy wrapped her legs around his hips on reflex, her hands curling around his neck wasn't that, but it was on her bucket list, so.

 "There are ways around it." Steve growled out in his deep voice and holy shit if he didn't kiss her like right the fuck no-

 Oh that was much better.. His lips were smooth against her own, but his tongue was scorching hot as he licked his way into her mouth, and Darcy was surprised she hadn't spontaneously combusted yet, it was a kiss made for the silver screen. Or a porno. Especially when he moved his hips and she got hit with some mind blowing friction, enough to let out a wanton moan at the contact.

 Steve nipped at her lip in response to that moan and tangled his hand through Darcy’s hair, sending the best shiver racing up her spine, "Say it." He groaned against her mouth, his other hand grabbing a handful of her ass and squeezing it possessively, pushing her closer to him, like he wanted absolutely no space between them.  

 "God, you're beautiful Darcy. Made for me, Doll." Steve moved to her neck, licking a spot that made her legs tighten and instinctively thrust up against him, which made him groan and push her harder up against the wall.

 "Darcy," His voice was wrecked, a breathless growl, "say it."

 "Uhnmmg." That honestly was the best she could come up with, as his very talented mouth continued its assault on her neck and turned her brain into mush.

 But when he leant back, her whine of displeasure followed him. She blinked up at him, opening her eyes to his, only to wish she kept them closed because she was sure she was going to melt into a puddle just staring at him.

 Steve's hair was disheveled, his chest was heaving in breaths, but it was his eyes that had her almost undone. They looked almost feral, his pupils were blown wide in lust, Darcy's hand clenched his hair in response to that look, if this was only from a kiss, then how the hell would they survive the sex?

 "Darcy, I need you to say it, I need to hear it. Please." The hoarse way he asked made her finally pay attention to the question.

 Oh. Whoops. Well he couldn't blame her, she had been thinking about this moment for years,

 "Steve," She made sure she looked straight into his eyes, she carded her her hands through his hair and whispered, "I'm in love with you, I loved you when it almost killed us both, and I'll love you forever if you let me."

 "Always." He said instantaneously, kissing her nose, "So, does this mean you'll be my girl?"

 "Well, I don't know," She knew the way she said it was dripping in tease and trouble, he knew it too by the arch of his eyebrow, "You know how they say to always test drive the car before making a lifetime commitment?"

 Darcy couldn't help waggling her eyebrows, even when he snorted in amusement at her, "I wanted to take you on date first, Babydoll."

 Him nipping at her ear kind of ruined the absolute sweetness of his words, "Screw the date Steve, I want to start living our lives together, now."

 "Yeah," He said already walking to the bedroom with her in his arms, "Now sounds good Darce, real good."

 And it was good, amazing, perfect; their lives together. The sex was pretty fan-fucking-tastic as well.

That’s it my Darlings, thank you so much for reading! You have no idea how much I appreciate that ; ) Much Love.

#shieldshock fanfiction #my fics #prompts #darcy x steve #darcy lewis x steve rogers #darcy x steve fanfic #my prompts

[veliseraptor]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you’ve written, then pass on to at least five other writers.

I was tagged by @distracteddream.

okay, I’m gonna go with some of my maybe less read fics? because if you’re here you probably know about Remember This Cold and Life in Reverse and the like, so I decided to go with some of the fics I see as “lesser read.”

I always feel egotistical being like “it’s hard to pick five” but you know, I do have over 300 works archived on AO3 so maybe that makes it better? idk. anyway though

Stjarnasdóttir. The one where Jane Foster tries to rescue a Dark Elf, and mostly it’s about the problem of an entire species being casually wiped out, the dissonance between Thor’s understanding of the world and Jane’s, and Jane being a compassionate delight. I ended up really proud of it. It was going to be a lot more goofy fun time than it ended up being, but I think it’s better this way.

She waited until Thor disappeared into the sky, and then slumped and headed back inside. She felt heavy and tired. Darcy looked at her worriedly. “Where’s Hammer Boy?”

“I told him to go,” she said, and sat down on the coffee table. The Dark Elf was asleep again, or at least pretending it.

“Whoa,” Darcy said. “You’re serious about this.”

“Yeah,” Jane said. “I am.” She was a scientist. Not a superhero or a fighter. She wasn’t here to end worlds and kill aliens. That was never what she’d wanted to do.

All she’d wanted to do was see the stars.

what little girls are made of. This one is mostly Natasha being really bad at making friends the normal way, with Natasha circling Sharon after Winter Soldier and eventually ending with a team up on the horizon that I didn’t write. 

“Is that how you usually make friends?” she asked. Natasha cocked her head to the side like she was thinking.

“I made one of them by pretending to be someone else so she’d hire me,” she said. “That’s different.” It sounded like a joke. Sharon suspected it was also serious. “Then there’s Maria – I was a hundred-ten pounds of pissed off at the world when I met her. The other ones…one I met through an alien invasion and one was trying to kill me. Then there’s Wilson – I did knock on his door first.” Sharon stared at her. Romanoff smiled, a little – still sharp but maybe a little brittle. “I don’t really do usual, Agent Carter.”

The Children of the War. The Nebula/Loki one that’s really fucking dysfunctional, but was also a lot of fun to write. And also made me think a Lot about Nebula and seriously, I love Nebula a lot, you guys. People who are very much not good for each other, but are definitely good for me: these two. 

“Thanos wants something from you,” Nebula corrected. “I will see that he gets it.”

“But you do not know what it is.” The creature leaned back against a rock, half-lidded eyes on her. Nebula took a step toward it but it did not flinch back. “You’re little more than Thanos’ dog, aren’t you? Licking after his scraps, fawning for his attention. You bite on his command.” Its lips curled up at the corners. “I know what that’s like.”

She hauled it up by the front of its leather garb without thinking and struck it across the face. Its lip split and it laughed and grinned at her.

“I am a daughter of Thanos,” she hissed.

“And I am a son of Odin,” it said, and she did not know why it laughed, blood on its teeth. She dropped it.

Abyss (follow up to Monstrosity, but I like this one better). In the first fic, I wrote an awful “drugs/evil minions made them do it” version of Clint/Loki that was the opposite of sexy, and then in this fic I wrote about Clint remembering the things Loki made him forget. It’s a dark and kind of nasty little fic and I’m inordinately fond of it.

He had these dreams, sometimes; beautiful, sweet dreams right up until he woke up with a feeling of panic fluttering in his chest (and yearning, just underneath). Those were the dreams where Loki took him back, or sometimes just spoke simple praise, you did well. He remembered the feeling he’d had when he’d gotten that sort of praise, the way his heart swelled and all he wanted was to hear more of it, again, to know that he’d pleased.

Early on, most of the dreams had been nasty ones, dark and awful where he’d woken up to Natasha lying dead at his feet or similar, where Loki had dragged him struggling back into his thrall and Clint had felt his mind subsumed, his desires pushed out, everything that was him sinking into the wave of heavy, oppressive peace.

He didn’t have those so much anymore. Now it was the quieter kind, the kind where he woke up feeling joy twisting his heart and hated that poison more than the painful kind, because it felt like it could seep into him even easier. The ones where Loki just talked and it was perfectly reasonable and little by little all his objections slid into insignificance.

Those were worse.

fade far away, dissolve, and quite forget. I love writing fic where Loki is gradually losing touch with reality blended with a touch of identity porn. Which is basically all that this one is. 

“Why did you not stay dead,” Thor asks.

“Don’t ask me,” Loki says, and spits. “It wasn’t - my idea.” He laughs, and it sounds like a dog coughing. He sways. “For Asgard,” he says. “For Asgard.”

“You only want to save yourself,” Thor accuses. Maybe that was true once, Loki thinks. He’s no longer certain he knows what that would mean. Does he have a self left to save? When he is no longer playing Odin’s role, what is left? He has played out all his other selves: brother, villain, sacrifice. He does not want to wear any of them again.

“What would you have me do,” Loki asks, turning on the water to wash away his mess and slumping to the floor. He looks at the Allfather’s hands (his hands).

Thor makes no answer. Perhaps he does not know either. Frigga reaches out to comfort him and he flinches back; he has not earned it.

I tag... @thelightofthingshopedfor, @mostfacinorous, @theotherodinson, @jaggedcliffs and @pro-antagonist.

#confessions of a frustrated writer #fic rec #jane foster defense squad #loki's a goddamn mess #natasha romanova is better than you #it's mutually assured destruction

[mattymattymerduck]

Into Infinity (Pt. 2)

Summary: Imagine randomly being pulled through a portal. When you awake, you find yourself in the Marvel Universe. More specifically, Tony Stark's lab. Guess this is what happens when Tony Stark 'examines' an Infinity Stone.

Part 1

Warnings: None

Word count: 1800

A/N: There’s not a lot in this one, but I hope you guys like it regardless! The next chapter has a bit more plot to it, and things’re gonna ramp up from there :D

"I'm sorry, the last time you fooled around with alien technology you created a blood-thirsty robot, and you didn't learn anything from that?" This scene was looking terribly familiar to you, except there were so many more people in the room than when Tony announced his plan to create Vision, and this time you were actually in the room with them. It was ultimately nerve-racking, having all these superheroes you daydreamed about glaring at you like some sort of alien pathogen ready to infect their society. You couldn't help but nervously raise your hand - there was no way you were gonna be a smartass under this pressure without permission.

"What?" Bruce asked, distrust and wariness edging his normally soft tone. You slowly brought your hand down and glanced around the room.

"Well it's just that, in all fairness, Tony also made Vision - more or less - and he turned out pretty worthy. Also, Ultron was a genius, the only flaw there was that he had his own identity. If he hadn't gone rogue because of his individual thoughts you all would have seen peace in your time. Like, just imagine what he could have done if you implanted say, Steve's moral code." You wanted to continue, but their glares weren't getting any softer and you just accidental diluted your first point by siding with a villain. Oops.

"The point is, we don't know who she is or what she's capable of. And you just teleported her straight to us?" Steve clarified, staring hard at Tony and making you pray Civil War wasn't about to unravel right before your eyes.

"Technically, no. It was the Infinity Stone, while I was out of the Tower, and we don't think it was a teleportation device, she's from a completely different universe."

"Or so she'll have us believe." Natasha's eyes never left you for a second; her voice just as distrusting as her gaze.

"I'm sure I can prove it." You blurted out before you had the chance to think about what you were saying. Every pair of eyes fell on you again and you regretted opening your mouth to begin with.

"I mean, in my universe or whatever, all of this is fictional. Like, comics and movies and whatever. I can tell you guys all about every moment of screen time you've had - mostly Steve and Thor and Tony though. Bruce maybe a little bit, but they recast you for the Avengers so it's a little iffy. We're still waiting for the Black Widow movie to be put in production, the Russo brothers said they'd love to make it but Marvel's not really on board yet so..." You trailed off again when all you were getting back was raised or furrowed brows and disbelieving gawks. You turned to Steve, knowing it could prove something if you could recount all his misadventures from the 1900's.

"Ask me something about you before you were frozen. If it was in the movie I should be able to answer, but choose something that wasn't recorded in the Smithsonian or somewhere where I'd be able to find it if I were from here." Even if Steve didn't quite trust you, he couldn't say no to your pleading eyes. He took a moment to dream up a question you shouldn't have been able to answer.

"Where did I first meet Howard Stark?" He felt a little intimidated when a broad smile cracked across your face.

"Well the first time you really met him was when you were getting injected with the serum, but the first time you saw him was the hovering car exhibition with Bucky and those two girls the night before he was shipped out. That was the same night you got recruited by Dr. Erskine I think." Steve's jaw dropped open and Tony stuck his arms out to you in a gesture that screamed, see?

"That was easy, someone give me something harder." It was like playing a trivia game, and suddenly you were having fun instead of being intimidated and starstruck.

"My brother, is he in these movies of yours?" Thor boomed effortlessly and you spun around to meet his blue curiosity.

"Loki? Oh yeah, he plays a bigger part than Odin or Jane."

"Then tell me where he is right now." Your mouth went dry. Of course you knew that he was impersonating Odin on the throne in Asgard, but Thor thought he was dead. You didn't know how telling him that would affect this world, but you could guess altering the timeline wouldn't be good.

"Well, I-uh," You were struggling to word it in a way that wouldn't allude to Loki being healthy and whole.

"She has no idea. This is ridiculous Tony, she'd just some crazy history buff."

"That's not true, I can answer it's just, well, spoilers." They weren't catching on though, so you huffed and said what you knew Thor knew.

"You think Loki's dead. There was a bunch of fake betrayal where he pushed you down a hill and pretended to cut off your hand, Jane was super confused and he ended up sacrificing himself for you. The last words you said to him were about telling Odin about it but he said it wasn't for him and then he died in your arms. His body's still there somewhere." It wasn't actually, but you weren't about to go meddling in matters that you had no part in.

"What about the rest of us then?" Natasha spoke up again, still not entirely convinced that you weren't a really well informed Hydra agent.

"I can tell you that when Wanda used her magic on you you saw the Red Room, dancing and going through 'initiation'." You frowned a wordless apology and turned to the others.

"Steve saw Peggy and all the other soldiers he fought with. Thor was back in Asgard with Hiemdall telling him he doomed them all. Tony saw all of you dead because of him,  and Clint wasn't touched by it. Nice job by the way, that was an awesome scene."

Bruce sighed because this was insane, but you had an answer for every question and there just wasn't any other possibility. The other members of the team shared a glance and seemed to unanimously agree to believe you. That didn't mean they had to trust you though.

"So where you're from, we don't even exist?" Tony clarified, still trying to wrap his head around that thought.

"Well, your actors do. and your characters, but no, not they way that you exist here. Do you think our worlds have the same timeline? Like, I've already been here for four hours, have I been gone from my world for four hours or do you think everything paused and it'll just pick up where it left off when I get back?" The worst thing about all this was that it was literally all grey area. The most you knew about dimensions, alternate universes, and time travel were from the various movies, shows, and books you'd read. There was no actual science to back any of it up, so in a way you were in uncharted territory.

"You know about as much as I do at this point, but I'm sure JARVIS and I can crack this whole thing open with a bit of time." Tony shrugged and you felt your stomach drop a little, like there were a bunch of wires suspending it and one of them spontaneously snapped.

"Okay. I guess I should find somewhere to bunk until then. How hard do you assume it'll be to get a job when I haven't technically existed for more than a few hours?" You ran a hand through your hair a zoomed through all the things you'd need to do if you were going to be around for a while.

"You want to get a job? What for?" Steve asked, clearly not trying to hold back his confusion.

"Well yeah, I'll need to be able to pay the hotel I crash at. Plus, I only have one pair of clothes and food isn't free. If I'm gonna be here longer than a day I'll need a couple bucks to my name."

"There's tons of room here, you're welcome to hole up on one of the billion floors if you want." Tony offered and for once, you were the one sporting a confused look.

"Really? But I'm a stranger. What happened to not spreading my crazy germs around your Tower?" Obviously there was nothing you wanted more than to get settled in the same building as all the Avengers, but you didn't want to impose, and you could only begin to comprehend how weird it must be for all of them, having a living wiki page walking around, knowing a great deal of their past and their secrets. Then again, maybe that's why they didn't want you wandering the streets.

"It's not all that crazy anymore. I mean, it is, but now you're an anomaly instead of a genderbent Norman Bates. And it'll be easier to run tests if you're only an elevator ride away."

"Makes sense I guess. But only if you're all okay with it." You looked around the room and saw nothing but nods and shrugs.

"Looks like you're in kid, just don't try to cut any throats while we sleep, you won't make it to morning if you do." Clint was entirely serious in his threat and you laughed nervously under his heavy stare.

"I don't think you have anything to worry about, but I got it. I promise I won't try to assassinate you."

"Okay, now that the threats are over with, I'll have Pepper get you settled." You slapped a hand over your mouth to keep in an excited squeal.

"Pepper Potts? I get to meet The Pepper Potts?" You were practically bouncing and it made Steve laugh seeing someone so utterly happy.

"Yeah? Maybe I'm getting the wrong message here but you seem more excited about meeting her than you were to meet us." Tony mentioned incredulously and watched you bite your lip in anticipation.

"Yeah, I mean I love you guys but Pepper is like, your whole world! She's amazing, and she's perfect for you. Like sure, Darcy's a good match too, and I've seen so much FrostIron it makes my head spin, but Pepper's a whole other level. She tops Stony a million times over."

"FrostIron...?"

"Stony?"

"You really don't want to know; believe me." You chose to ignore the strange look both Thor and Tony were giving you and stuffed your hands into your pockets anxiously. "So, Pepper, can we do that now?" There was too much raw hope in your eyes for anyone to deny you, so Tony called his girlfriend up and sent you on your way.

"Oh, one last thing." You called down the hall before getting into the elevator. Tony spun around on his heel to see your raised eyebrow.

"When are you gonna tell Fury about this?"

Tags: @wellfuckbuck @thiscuriouslymiss @bootsthemonkeykat @borderline-person @ultimatefandom-imagines @hownottodie101 @thesalsafic @captainninjabunny @ishipmybed @scaly-manfish @avengerofyourheart @stephie-senpai @violentlyfarts @pleasecallmecaptain @waitingfortherightpartner @officialcaptain-marvel @procrastinatingvirgo @buchananbarnestrash @hijikira @wydari @generation-hated @kinqshley @march-mallow @price-devant-la-cage @neverenough24 @beccaanne814-blog @tatortot2701 @heismyhunter

#reader insert #avengers imagine #avengers x reader #marvel imagine #shameless self-insertion #into infinity

[elrondsscribe]

The Seventh Avenger: Chapter 6

All rights belong to the Tolkien Estate and to Marvel Studios.

Thor's gaze followed the two science men as they left, after which he turned back to look at Glorfindel with interest. "What are you, exactly?" he asked. "You are no Asgardian, and you are not human, yet you resemble both more than any other species I know."

Glorfindel smiled blithely up at the Asgardian. "I am an Elf, or a Quende, technically."

Thor's eyebrows went up. "So the tales brought back from Earth of the immortal peoples with fair faces and voices are true after all," he said curiously.

Fury, who had gone back to his post at the central platform, looked from Glorfindel to Thor. "So you've heard of each other but you haven't met?" he asked.

"So it would appear," said Glorfindel. "Unless perhaps you happen to be Maiar in disguise -?" He looked quizzically back at Thor. Though Maiar usually sneak up on me disguised as Mortals. . .

"Maiar?" Thor blinked in honest confusion.

"I suppose not," Glorfindel shrugged. I really didn't think so. "Never mind."

"And you're no relation to the Dark-Elves of Svartalfheim?" inquired Thor mildly enough, though Glorfindel had the idea that some critical impression was riding on his answer. I also somehow don't think he's talking about the - well, the Moriquendi.

"I don't think so," he said. "I don't know any Svartalfheim, anyway."

"Alfeneel, then?" Thor pressed. "Harudheeniksel? Lovers of the Darkness-Before-the-Universe, enemies of Asgard -? No?"

Is he asking me if he needs to slay me speedily? "Ah, no." Glorfindel shook his head emphatically.

"Maybe the name 'Eldar' might also help," interjected Natasha Romanoff. She had been watching the interplay with somewhat more interest than she had earlier displayed. "Means People of the Stars. 'Quendi' just means 'speaking people.' What?" she added at Glorfindel's curious look. "I did some research myself. The name was originally used by Orome to describe all Elves. It only started to be specific to the Elves who followed him after the initial split."

That's a . . . concise way of putting a very long and complicated linguistic explanation of what we call ourselves.

Thor seemed to be satisfied that whatever Glorfindel was, he was not a "Dark-Elf" (and I've got to stop calling the Sindar, Nandor, Green-Elves, Silvans, and Avari tribes 'Dark-Elves', especially if I'm going to go public) and therefore not an immediate enemy. "I see."

"What exactly does Loki want?" asked Glorfindel, frowning. "You say he wants to use the Tesseract to open a portal for this army of his, the Chitauri. And once the Chitauri conquer Earth for him, he gets to keep the Tesseract. What does he ultimately want with it? Power?"

Thor sighed, and stared glumly into space. "I don't think it's just for the Tesseract that Loki wants to conquer and rule the Earth. It's not mere power he craves. He wants to flaunt his victory before me, and make me feel the betrayal he imagines he has suffered. He wants vengeance - upon me."

Steve blinked incredulously. "Whatdja do to offend him?"

Thor didn't answer.

Fury tilted his head and looked closely at the Asgardian. "You think he can tell us where the Cube is?"

"I don't know," said Thor bleakly. "And even if he could, I don't know if I could wring it from him. His mind is far afield." He frowned again. He was quite obviously burdened with sorrow for his (adopted) brother. And he was worried - for Erik Selvig, his friend, and for someone else too, if Glorfindel wasn't mistaken. And - perhaps most obviously - Thor seemed to imagine that the whole sorry affair was in part his own fault.

"I don't know what's between you and your brother," said Glorfindel firmly. "But blaming yourself for his current misdeeds solves nothing. He must be answerable for his own crimes."

Thor started, and threw the Elf a look of unease and suspicion.

"I'm sure you don't want him to suffer," Glorfindel pressed. "But a little encouragement regarding the finding of the Tesseract may be in order."

Thor's face darkened further. "Even if I were willing to help you torture Loki, it would avail you nothing. There's no pain that would prize his need from him."

"A lot of guys think that," interjected Fury. "Until the pain actually starts."

Thor looked between the stone-faced Director, the uncomfortably penetrating gaze of the Elf, the unreadable Agent Romanoff, and the questioning eyes of the Captain. He seemed to falter. "What are you asking me to do?"

Fury's single eye gleamed. "I'm asking what are you prepared to do?"

"Loki is a prisoner," said Thor.

"Prisoner!" snorted Glorfindel. "Don't make me laugh!"

Thor turned and glared balefully at the Elf.

"Thor, c'mon," said Steve spreading his hands. "Rolling over and playing dead in Germany, sitting up on the side of a cliff watching you and Stark were beat each other up - please! Loki's the only one on this boat, or Helicarrier or whatever, who wants to be here." He got up and walked off, passing Agent Coulson who was just coming in as he went.

Thor caught sight of Coulson, and looked half hopeful and half afraid. Coulson smiled. "Don't worry," he said reassuringly. "She's fine."

I knew there was a 'she' in it somewhere.

Thor sagged with relief as Coulson went to a nearby monitor, set down a folder he was carrying, and with a few touches brought up a picture of a young, petite, attractive brunette woman. The caption next to the picture listed the various and (to Glorfindel's admittedly ignorant eye) impressive accomplishments of astrophysicist Dr. Jane Foster.

"As soon as Loki took Dr. Selvig we moved Jane Foster," Coulson went on as Thor gazed at the image. "We've got an excellent observatory in Traunsee. She was asked to consult there very suddenly yesterday - handsome fee, private plane, very remote. She'll be safe."

"Thank you," said Thor sincerely. "It's no accident, Loki taking Erik Selvig. I dread what he plans for him once he's done. Erik is a good man."

"He talked about you a lot," Coulson smiled. "You changed his life. Changed everything around here."

Glorfindel raised his eyebrows. "This wouldn't have anything to do with what happened in New Mexico last year?"

There had been pictures and stories all over the internet of the weird, seemingly indestructible metal creature that had been fought by four (now undoubtedly Asgardian) warriors and defeated by none other than Thor himself. Both Selvig and Foster had allegedly been involved (along with their much more social media savvy assistant, a pretty brunette by the name of Darcy Lewis who was all over Instagram).

"Sure does," said Coulson. He picked up the folder, came up to the table, slid the folder across to Glorfindel. "Figured you'd want some extra details," he added.

"Thanks," said Glorfindel, opening the folder. The pictures inside were almost more interesting than the reports, including aerial photographs of the atmospheric disturbances and the strange not-thunderstorm, the remarkable hammer (Mjolnir by name, according to Thor) the fire-spitting half-sentient machine (apparently called the 'Destroyer'), and the four strangely armed warriors whose faces Glorfindel had already seen.

Looks like Loki involved in this too.

"You know, we like to pretend on Asgard that we're more advanced," Thor was saying. "but we come to Earth battling like bilgesnipe."

"Like what?" inquired Coulson curiously, and Glorfindel looked up.

"Bilgesnipe," said Thor. "You know - huge, scaly, big antlers -" he curled his hands on his forehead in an imitation of the latter. "You don't have those?"

Glorfindel and Coulson looked at each other, then back at Thor. "I don't think so," said Glorfindel.

"Then you are the more fortunate," said Thor. "For they are repulsive, and they trample everything in their path." He went to the railing at the edge of the upper level of the central chamber and leaned against it, staring pensively into the distance. "When I first came to Earth, Loki's rage followed me here, and your people paid the price - and now again." He sighed. "In my youth I courted war."

"You are still very young," said Glorfindel not unkindly. "And the war may never begin, if Banner and Stark find the Tesseract in time. May I keep this?" he added, raising the folder.

"Sure," said Coulson, and Glorfindel got up and left the room.

He had intended to head down to his locker but on the way down decided to check in on Tony and Bruce. He poked his head into the lab, and Bruce, who was standing nearest the door about to scan the Chitauri spear, looked up. "Oh, hey," he said. "Can we help you with anything?"

"Not really," said Glorfindel. "If you're terribly busy, that is."

"Sure we're busy," said Tony, who seemed to be working on three different equations at once. "Step in for a minute."

Glorfindel entered the laboratory, which seemed to be full of top-notch equipment and the very latest technology. He watched as Bruce scanned the spear, probably for gamma radiation. "Hey, Tony?" he said. "The gamma readings are consistent with Selvig's reports on the Tesseract. But it's going to take weeks to process."

"If we bypass their mainframe and direct a reroute to the Homer cluster," Tony proposed. "We can clock this around six hundred teraflops."

Bruce chuckled ruefully. "All I packed was a toothbrush."

Tony crossed the floor, passing Glorfindel to get on Bruce's other side. "By the way, I forgot to ask you earlier," he said to Glorfindel over his shoulder. "The glow's all natural, right? I mean, obviously it's supernatural, but it is actually, you know, natural?"

Glorfindel arched his eyebrows. "Why, do you want to scan me for radiation?"

Tony eyed Glorfindel with undisguised eagerness. "Maybe - would you mind?"

Bruce snorted quietly, but watched just as curiously out of the corner of his eye.

Glorfindel rolled his eyes. "Go ahead, I won't bite."

Tony grinned, picked up the scanner Bruce had just put down, and brought it over to the Elf. He re-calibrated it and waved it in front of Glorfindel's shoulders. The device began beeping madly, and Tony pulled it back while Bruce swiped an icon on his screen. "Whoa!" he said. "We're definitely looking at something unique here - the pattern's totally unlike anything I've ever encountered."

Tony went over to look at the screen Bruce was studying. "Would ya look at that?" he said. "After we find the Cube I'm going to have to take a closer look at this. The equipment here's nice, but we could really do this faster if it was better."

"Looks pretty state-of-the-art to me," said Bruce in amusement.

"That's because you're deprived," said Tony. "You know, you should really come by Stark Tower sometime," he said. "Top ten floors, all R and D. You'd love it, it's candyland."

"Thanks," Bruce grimaced. "But the last time I was in New York I kind of . . . broke Harlem."

"I think the Abomination actually broke Harlem, and you broke him," suggested Glorfindel.

"That's one way of looking at it," Bruce conceded, scrunching his nose under his glasses.

"So how about this," Tony proposed as he stepped around behind his new colleague. "A stress free environment - no tensions or surprises."

And then he jabbed Bruce in the ribs with a very small prod.

"Ow!" cried the startled Bruce.

"Oi!" protested Glorfindel. "What's he ever done to you?!"

"Hey! Are you nuts?!" Steve Rogers came storming imposingly into the laboratory, glaring at the billionaire. Glorfindel blinked down at the costumed Man.

"Nothing?" asked Tony curiously, ignoring both Steve and Glorfindel. He'd been peering closely into the unfortunate Bruce's eyes. "You really have got a lid on it, haven't you? What's your secret - mellow jazz? Bongo drums? Huge bag of weed?"

"Tony," said Glorfindel. "Did it occur to you that you might have just threatened the safety of everyone on this Helicarrier, to say nothing of offending the man?"

"No offense, Dr. Banner," added Steve.

"Nah, it's okay," said the equitable physicist. "I wouldn't have come aboard if I couldn't handle pointy things."

"See, he's working," Steve pointed at Bruce. "He's focused on the problem at hand, like you should be, Mr. Stark."

"Oh, you think I'm not?" Tony swung round to look at Steve, looking disconcertingly serious. "So riddle me this, Captain - why did Fury call us, and why now? What's he not telling us? I can't do the equation unless I have all the variables."

"You think Fury's hiding something?" asked Steve, as if this were some shocking idea.

Glorfindel raised his eyebrows to cover his rising misgivings. "He's the Director of SHIELD. Keeping things from people who keep things from other people is his business."

"See?" Tony held out his hand. "You've had this run-around before, and it's bugging you too. Probably Banner as well, isn't it, doc?"

The aforementioned scientist hemmed and hawed. "Uh, I just wanna finish my work here . . ."

Steve turned on Bruce. "Doctor?" he asked sharply.

Bruce pursed his lips. "'A warm light for all mankind to share' - Loki's jab at Fury about the Cube," he began.

"Yes, I heard it," said Steve.

"We all did," said Glorfindel. "Go on, Doctor."

"Well," said Bruce. "I think that was meant for you." And he pointed at the famous man.

"What do you mean?" inquired Steve.

But Glorfindel snapped his fingers. "Isn't Stark Tower supposed to have just started its Arc Reactor test run?"

"Stark Tower?" asked Steve. "That big ugly -"

Tony turned a justifiably miffed look on him.

"- building in New York?" finished Steve with only a trace more respect.

You Americans, honestly. I'm not sure why I expected better manners from you, Captain.

Bruce decided to ignore the obvious brewing ego conflict. "That building will run itself for, what, a year?"

"And that's just the prototype," said Tony. "I'm kind of the only name in clean energy right now."

"So why didn't SHIELD bring him -" Bruce pointed to Tony again. "- in on the Tesseract project? I mean, what are they even doing in the energy business in the first place?"

"I should probably look into that," said Tony casually. "once my decryption program has finished breaking into SHIELD's secure files."

Glorfindel's jaw swung, and Steve whirled on Tony. "I'm sorry," he snapped. "Did you say -"

"JARVIS has been running it since I hit the bridge," said Tony rather smugly, pulling a few granola bars from his pocket and tearing into one. "In a few hours I'll know every dirty secret SHIELD has ever tried to hide." He held out the other bars to Glorfindel and Steve. "Blueberry?"

Glorfindel automatically took a bar of granola. Steve ignored the snack. "Yet you're confused about why they didn't want you around," he said, folding his arms.

"An intelligence organization that fears intelligence?" Tony munched on his granola. "Historically not awesome."

"Intelligence organizations generally don't like being hacked," said Glorfindel. "And who's to say they won't catch you?"

"I'm the best at this stuff," said Tony. "I don't get caught."

"Look, I think Loki's trying to wind us up," said Steve sternly. "This is a man who means to start a war, and if we don't stay focused he'll succeed. We have orders, we should follow them."

"Because following orders always works out so well for you, Steve," snapped Glorfindel, who was getting tired of Steve's moral posturing - for all Tony's cocky recklessness, at least he wasn't self-righteous. "And speaking of wars, I'd say something's certainly got you wound up like a clock. Is it all that nervous energy from sitting still instead of bashing people's heads in? Or do you treat everyone you encounter these days like your damned subordinate?"

And then Steve turned on Glorfindel a smile for which the Elf could have wrung his neck. "And you wouldn't know a thing about soldiers breaking trust, would you, Lord of Gondolin?"

Glorfindel drew himself up, nostrils flaring. "I think, Captain," he said icily. "that Loki hardly needs to start a war here as long as you're around." And he strode from the lab.

As he left he heard Steve say "Look, just find the Cube," and come running after him. "Glorfindel?" he called. "Hey! Glorfindel!"

Glorfindel huffed in annoyance and walked faster.

"Could you stop for just one minute?" asked Steve in exasperation.

Glorfindel neither broke his stride or looked around. "You know, for someone who's supposed to be the model soldier you seem a lot better at giving orders than actually taking them."

That seemed to have hit a nerve, for Steve's heavy boots stopped thumping after him and he was left to storm off in peace.

Important reminder: The Light-Elves of Vanaheim exist only in Marvel Comics. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Vanaheim is populated by the Vanir, who are very similar to the Asgardians (Hogun the Grim is a Vanir). Remember that this story is strictly movie-verse Marvel.

#the seventh avenger #elrondsscribe #fanfic #fanfiction #fanfiction on tumblr #tumblr fanfic #lotr #lord of the rings #avengers #crossover #au #glorfindel the avenger

[valeriebielbooks]

August Writers’ Forum

In my journey through the steps of independent publishing, refining my writing skills, and most recently completing a successful agent search, I’ve come across some excellent information, tips, tools, and shortcuts that I think would be beneficial to any writer. Once a month, I’ll share the “best of” information and news from the publishing industry as well as feature other authors and writing instructors with tips to share. I am incredibly thankful for the assistance and advice given to me from writing and publishing professionals and am happy pay that forward. On a professional level, I also use my publicity and editorial skills to aid other authors through my company Lost Lake Press. Some purchase links for books I'm recommending are affiliate links which pay me a small fee.  

  New(ish) Books

Historical Fiction writer, Terri Karsten, is newly retired from teaching and has tackled a new project with a historical blog entitled Bric-A-Brac “Thoughts on writing, reading, and exploring the past. At the beginning of the summer she released a new historical fiction title for middle-grade readers. When Luck Runs Out purchase link

ABOUT THE BOOK: New York City is full of homeless orphans following the Civil War. Two of them, Meg Kelly and her little brother, Mole, take a chance on a better life. They travel Weston on an orphan train. Will they ever find a place to call home?

Midwest authors with lovely romantic and funny new releases included Angie Stanton with If Ever and Ellie Cahill with I Temporarily Do.  I recommend them both! Look for an upcoming interview with Liz and a review of this latest title.

Bookish Events

September has a full slate of wonderful events to attend from Madison to Milwaukee. Here’s a few at the top of my list:

Mystery to Me Bookstore, 1863 Monroe Street, Madison (Full Event Details Here)

September 10 at  2 pm – Kevin Henkes and Laura Dronzek will celebrate their newest picture book collaboration In the Middle of Fall.

September 12 at 7 pm – Robert Madrygan will discuss his novel The Solace of Trees.

September 23 at 2 pm – Jim Thompson will give a talk about Peanut of Blind Faith Farm.

September 28 at 6 pm – Kathleen Ernst will launch her newest Chloe Ellefson mystery title Mining for Justice.

A Room of One’s Own, 315 W. Gorham Street, Madison (Full Event Details Here)

September 19 at 6:00 pm – Denise Dubois will discuss Self-Made Woman.

September 22 at 6:00 pm – Paul Buhl will launch his book Johnny Appleseed.

Books & Company of Oconomowoc is co-hosting an event with Michael Perry at the Pewaukee Public Library on September 22 at 5:30 pm. (Full Event Details Here)

Boswell Books of Milwaukee has a number of excellent ticketed events coming up in October. I’m posting these a month in advance as they tend to sell out. (Please note these are often in bigger event venues in the Milwaukee area.) (Full Event Details Here)

October 23 at 7 pm  - Scott Kelly, author of Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery

October 8  at 4 pm – Rick Riordan, author of Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard #3: The Ship of the Dead (and so much more.)

October 29 at 2 pm – Kate DiCamillo, author of La La La: A Story of Hope (and Tales of Despereaux and Because of Winn Dixie.) This event is co-hosted with Books & Company of Oconomowoc.

And . . . BANNED BOOKS WEEK begins September 24

I challenge everyone to read at least one book that has made this list through the years during the month of September. Report back here with what you read and what you thought of it. Inquiring minds want to know. This is a serious assignment!!  (If September is too busy for you, see if any of the books you’ve previously read have made this list. You might be surprised.) Here’s list of the 100 most frequently challenged and banned books by decade.

I feel like if someone tells me something is banned, it makes me want to read it even more. Right!!??

Please let me know of any upcoming book releases or events that you’d like featured in the Writers’ Forum!

Featured Subject

Several Ideas to Face the Daily Challenge

I read Terry Whalin’s article about making time for it all at just the right time. I have a number of projects in progress, a few speaking events to prepare for, regular work, and family obligations to fit into each day and week. I’m sure I sound a lot like you.

I appreciated his acknowledgement that somehow made me feel like I’m not the only one who feels like they run from thing to thing all day long. His questions are pertinent and made me reassess how I truly use my time. He talks about balance, using technology, and admitting that not everything gets done.

His approach made me feel a lot better about my to-do list. See if you agree when you read the whole article here.

Pre-Publication Information

He Said/She Said – The Dos and Don’ts of Dialogue Tags

I loved this article by Katie McCoach on the KM Editorial blog. She gets beyond the said and asked and shows us good and bad examples. “I compare adverbs and alternate dialogue tags to a strong spice. Some is nice, but too much will spoil the batch.” This is a great tutorial that is helpful even if you are ‘seasoned’ author.

Preferences vs. Rules

On another grammar topic, Louise Harnby of the Proofreader’s Parlor discusses grammar rules versus preferences. You might be surprised that things you were taught in school as rules can be bent a bit. I think this will be a fun article to share with my critique group as we often have discussions just like this.

What You Need to Know Before You Judge the Self-Published Author

As a self-published or indie author, I have felt the sting of judgement from those in the traditional publishing world. I know that any other indie authors reading this have felt this disdain as well. What I find most interesting is how many authors now toggle between the two worlds, indie publishing some titles while traditionally publishing others. While some people may lament the indie publishing boom, I think the technology and systems that have made it possible for the indie author to reach larger audiences are a godsend. The Liminal Pages article on indie publishing is a must read for anyone in this industry no matter HOW you publish.

After all, “Diversity in the arts is strength.”

The next three articles toggle between pre- and post-publication. Decisions about formatting and distribution take place (technically) before publication, but after the book is essentially complete.

The Hard Facts on Hardcovers

Kathy Rowe on Indies Unlimited writes a thorough article about creating a hardcover book as an indie published author. Previously, most print-on-demand technologies only allowed for soft cover books, but for children’s book authors—particularly picture book authors—the hardcover has always been seen as a necessity but unavailable. But things change!! This article gives a thorough review of where you can get your beloved hardcovers and compares pricing from platform to platform.

Getting Your Self-Published Book into Libraries

You must have a thorough understanding of how to get your book into libraries before you make decisions that might impact your ability to do this. So well before you hit the ‘publish’ button read this excellent article by Jane Friedman – How to Get Your Book Distributed: What Self-Published Authors Need to Know.  Further your education with a more detailed look at e-book distribution to libraries with the Digital Publishing 101 article on library distribution.

Post-Publication

The Coveted Book Table: How Those Books Get There

How does a book get plucked from the shelves of obscurity to lay flat in all its loveliness for the casual browser at a bookstore? Amy Collins on the Bookworks blog tell us all about this slightly insane process here.

Amazon Ads How To

Have you tried an Amazon ad yet? I haven’t, but I’m stockpiling information because I definitely need to give this a try to boost my sales. Luckily, many authors have come before us and written very nice tutorials about how this is done. Frances Caballo gives us the basics, including Amazon specifics like rules and word counts. And Deanna Cabinian gives a very thorough breakdown of her Amazon ad experience in promoting her young adult novel as a guest author on Jane Friedman’s blog. It’s very helpful to walk through Cabinian’s trial ads and the statistics for sales each generated. Now we have no excuses not to try this ourselves.

Just when you think you understand social media they change things around . . .

One of my favorite bloggers (can’t you tell), Frances Caballo, has written a two-part series on changes that have been made to the most popular social media platforms. You probably have noticed some of these already and adapted to them without much thought. You can find these on the Social Media Just for Authors Blog under these headlines: Have You Seen These Changes on Facebook and Twitter? Part 1 and Have You Seen These Social Media Changes? Part 2

I hope that these articles helped you on your writing and publishing journey!

Happy Reading & Writing, Valerie  

#writing advice #writing #writing tips #writingtips #booksigning #book event #wisconsin #midwest #writers #amwriting #social media tips #book promo