#and now the Hulk is waking up after the villains knocked them all out with an explosion | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lovelybarnes · 3 years

Text

god- l. laufeyson (part 2)

pairings: loki laufeyson x reader, platonic!tony stark x reader, mentions of nick fury warnings: language and minor angst about: part 2 to god a/n: i apologize for taking so long to post it, i was having trouble coming up with the little details and honestly just writing overall but it’s up!! and another bucky fic will be up tomorrow or saturday!!

loki is suspicious after you leave. in the- admittedly short- time he’s been shoved away and locked in a cage to rot, he had seen you all of two times, and he was enthralled. flabbergasted, too, surprised that a simple mortal managed to stay hidden in the deep parts of his brain and refuse to leave. you were… interesting, just as you had described him: not as a villain, or evil, or horrendous, but captivating; unbelieving that he would do anything for no good reason.

whether that was true or not was still up for debate, so he had yet to decide if you were incredibly intelligent or the simple, stupid mortal he thought you all to be. nevertheless, he found himself slightly disappointed when you left, waving goodbye to him and tucking your book under your arm. while he tried to dissolve the sensation, tony stark came bounding in, standing as close as he could to the glass barrier. stark barked words that loki didn’t care much for, ignoring the man. he could see you wince from inside the elevator, a sliver of your face still available from the closing doors.

“hey, hey!” stark barked, snapping his fingers at loki. the god tilted his head at him, “yes?” he asks, voice dripped in more annoyance than usual. “that girl who just came out of here?” stark started, while loki took a minute to examine his words, “girl,” was she not an accomplished avenger? he thought tony of all people would show the respect that loki thought none of them deserved. “if you even think about doing anything to her, i will bring in the big guy to slam you around some more. you remember him? or do you need a refresher?”

loki nearly scowls at the mention of hulk, body reminding the strange ache that was left after the oaf slammed him into the floor. he only chuckles lowly, though, “how much do you distrust a fellow avenger to believe they cannot handle themselves?” loki muses. tony scoffs, shaking his head, “i really don’t think you’re in a position to question me.”

“i’m a god. i am always in the position i wish to be in,” loki reminds, making tony roll his eyes, “you’ll never see her again if i can help it. and i can,” he says. “oh, but i like her!” loki rebuts, riling tony up, “so sweet, don’t you think?” tony freezes, abruptly turning around and slamming a hand against the glass, “you will not lay a hand on her. i’ll make sure of it.”

“i seem to remember midgardians can usually do as they please,” loki replies smoothly. “and you really think she’ll want to spend time with a monster?” tony questions. loki smirks, “i suppose i simply have a feeling.”

tony is seething when he comes to your lab, having switched with steve to come talk to you. you’re humming along to a song he doesn’t bother to recognize. “you’re in a good mood,” tony observes. at the sound of his voice, you turn, taking your earbuds out and grinning at him. you press what he assumes is the pause button on your phone, “tony! i’ve actually been meaning to ask you something,” you begin. tony raises an eyebrow to tell you to continue. “it’s about loki,” you continue, anxious about his reaction. the man pauses, exhaling softly, “oh. i know what you want to- i’m so sorry for doing that to you, y/n. i promised that i wouldn’t put you with him and we should’ve been more prepared. it won’t happen again.”

the confusion is clear on your face, vocally affirming it with a “huh?”

“that’s what you wanted to talk about, right? babysitting loki?”

“well, yes, but no, it actually wasn’t bad, i wanted to bring up the idea of maybe allowing him books? or maybe music or something, i can’t imagine going from having any book at your fingertips to none at all. also, he’s not getting enough food and i wanted to talk to you abou-” tony stops you with a raised hand, “what?” you recognize the conversation won’t end too well, so you try to phrase your words in a way that tony won’t get too angry at. “i just- when i was watching him, i thought we could be a little less… cruel.”

“with the guy who tried to take over earth?” tony retorts, you sigh softly, already beginning to feel resigned. “he still deserves to eat,” you defend weakly, “come on, tony, please? i’ll watch over him myself when he’s listening to music or reading or eating and i’ll take it back when i have to leave.” tony shakes his head, “someone will always be watching, and it won’t be you.” you frown, “why? don’t you trust me? i’m an avenger, tony. i’m not weak or useless, it’s just watching over someone who is literally in a cage. he can’t even escape.” tony’s about to say no again, so you press, “how come nick fury- man who doesn’t trust- trusts me enough to do that but you don’t?”

tony’s fingers squeeze the space between his eyebrows, eyes closed. he contemplates the effects if he refuses, no doubt ending in the thinning-by-the-minute thread that is your trust in him completely snapping.

“fine,” he finally agrees, and your frustrated frown melts back into a relieved small smile, “but everything you give him has to go through someone else first. i don’t care if it’s fury or hill or romanoff or me, but it has to be approved.” you nod quickly, “yes, of course.” tony raises a finger, “and, you will watch him the whole time. you got yourself into this, kid. i trust you can protect yourself from him if you ever need to.” you agree, “absolutely, and, uh-” you reach into your bag, pulling out the book finnegan’s wake, and your old ipod, equipped with a single downloaded song and earbuds plugged in. “i actually have already chosen a book and a song that i think he would appreciate during the time he tells me himself what he would like and while it gets approved, and um,” you push the objects toward tony, a surprised look lining his features, “since you have time now… the ipod has only that one song and i doubt he can do anything with either of the items, although i’ll be here if he does.”

“you picked these out for him?” tony questions, and you nod again, “i don’t really know him, i doubt anybody does, but i thought james joyce was a good guess considering.” tony looks from the objects in your hand back to you, before sighing and grabbing them. “i want to break free?” he asks, holding up the ipod. you feel your cheeks heat, “music is hard, i went for the obvious.”

tony exhales, looking down at the book, “fine, both are approved.”

“what, you’re not gonna check to see if i carved out a hole into the book and put the tesseract in there so he could escape?” you ask sarcastically, taking back the items while he rolls his eyes. “no, i trust you.” you grin, “you better. there’s no reason for you to not,” tony agrees with you softly, genuinely feeling bad while he kisses your cheek in goodbye. “steve was just called on a mission and needs a replacement, so you better get down there. bowser isn’t in a good mood today.”

you huff out a light laugh at the nickname, cradling your dear books and tangling your fingers in the cords of the earbuds while you walk to the elevator. you catch your bottom lip between your teeth while you watch the numbers blink above the elevator doors, nerves from your choices finally making a home in the pit of your stomach and making your grip tighten on the items. you really don’t know him, and one of the few things that you do know about him is that he isn’t the nicest- although you think it probable that it was warranted- which begins the inkling of regret of your carefully-picked choice to form. you try your best to push past it though, attempting to reassure yourself through the fact that loki’s reading options are limited, and as evil as everyone (including him) claims he is, you suspect (hope) that there is something in him that can’t simply disregard kind gestures. you suppose that theory is from what thor has told you about frigga. you hope it’s correct.

the elevator dings, knocking your thoughts off their destructive railroad and your attention to the shield guard wearily eyeing you and what you carry. “hey, wally,” you greet, shooting him a smile as you walk over to him, pulling your id card from your pocket. “what’cha got there?” he asks, sitting up straighter in his chair to look closer at you. “a- already approved by tony stark- book and song for loki. you know how much he had access to in asgard?” you question. he shakes his head, and you sigh, “me neither. but i imagine it’s a lot, and i don’t think he’s been introduced to our books yet.”

wally stares at you for a few seconds, before pursing his lips, “already approved by stark?” he checks, “already approved by tony,” you repeat. “just no ear things. don’t want him to choke somebody,” he instructs, holding out his hand. you oh quietly, hurriedly pulling off the headphones and putting them in his hand. wally only nods then, trusting you enough to not ask for any more reassurance, and pressing a button next to him to allow you into another elevator. the ride is much shorter, and you bounce on your heels, fidgeting with the edge of the book.

you barely recognize when the doors part, the slick-haired god already examining you. “in asgard, it is strongly discouraged to damage books like you are doing,” loki states. you stop your picking, dropping your hand and walking inside. “hello to you too, loki.” the god ignores you, instead focused on what is in your arms. “i thought any pleasantries for you weren’t allowed down here,” he says, eyes focused on your ipod. “ah, not if you ask nicely,” you reply, standing next to the chair, “and, these aren’t for me.”

you set your own book down on the floor- a very cliche wuthering heights, but it was either that or romeo and juliet, and you’d prefer not get caught reading about a forbidden romance while watching a villain- and hold up the one for him, grinning. “so i don’t know much about asgard or its books because thor hasn’t budged yet on taking me, but from what i can gather, you have little to no media from here, right?” loki ducks his chin suspiciously in response. “so i can imagine you haven’t read shakespeare, or james joyce, which reminds me a lot of you, so…”

you offer no more explanation, putting the book on your chair and showing him the ipod, walking closer to the glass. “this is an ipod. it’s used to play songs offline, and i picked one out for you. i don’t know if you’ll like it because i don’t really know what type of music you like or if you like it at all-” you pause, finally recognizing how long it had been since he’d talked. “but, uh, i hope you do.”

you look up at him then, unsurprised to find him already staring back at you. “you did this for me… why?” he queries skeptically. “i told you before; i imagine it’s difficult to go from everything to nothing in a day. and i think it must be boring to be trapped in there all day with nothing to do.”

loki still looks distrustful, but you grab the book, pulling out the key card to open his food slot. “i can’t leave these in here after i leave, but i’ll stay until you finish both,” you assure, pushing the book through the small gap. your ipod is still in your hands as you walk back near him. he looks at you for a few moments longer before his eyes flick to the book. “and there are no… explosives? poison of some kind in that?”

you shake your head, “no, of course not.”

loki narrows his eyes at the paperback anyways, walking towards it apprehensively. “when you want me to, i can teach you how the ipod works and you can listen to the song. it’s by a rock band called queen,” you babble, watching as he slowly observes the book before picking it up at an even more leisurely pace.

“i’m going to go sit over there now. just let me know if you need something,” you can’t seem to stop talking, so you focus instead on your legs moving you back to your seat, picking up your novel before sitting. you’re about to ramble on about something else again, until you notice the publication in loki’s hands, slightly panicking at the immediate rush of satisfaction and happiness it gives you when he opens the first page.

you try to avoid the sound of turning pages when you stay stuck on the same sentence, too concerned about why your neck decided to warm when the god accepted your favor.

“you can play it,” loki voices suddenly, almost as if reading the loud thoughts about your decision on the song. he looks up at you, “reading is usually accompanied by light music, but i suppose i could listen to rock.”

you nod, pressing a button on the small device that makes the beginning notes bounce off the walls of the room. your fingers gently tap along to the beat on the edge of your page without your noticing, too used to the melody to not react. you try not to look too hard at loki to watch for his reaction, too interested if he’ll like it or not.

after the first minute passes by and he doesn’t object to the sound, you count this as a win, allowing yourself to relax into your chair and actually read the words lined on the page, discovering them to make a lovely combination. you only notice when the song ends when loki speaks up, “it is okay,” he compliments, “i enjoyed it. i think i’d enjoy your so called queen.” you chuckle softly, “i thought you would. do you have any favorites here so i can add them for next time?”

“no,” loki responds, not taking his eyes off the page. “i’ll find some for you, then,” you promise, then press play on the ipod again, not missing the tiny quirk of loki’s lips, making you way too giddy than you should be.

after it has been over six hours and loki has barely finished finnegans wake, you’re completely sure he took extra time to read it; whether it be to absorb it better or simply have more time with it in his hands, you don’t care, pride swelling up in your chest because you did something right for him. he hadn’t complained about the repeated song, and you can’t blame him. the sounds are a lot more entertaining than the cold silence that usually occupies the space where he resides.

you ask loki more about what he thought, attempting to coerce him into telling you his preferences, until tony is calling you up.

you’re about to leave, both books and ipod in hand when you pause.

“y/n,” loki starts, and you realize it is the first time you’d hear your name out of his mouth. you decide you like how it sounds in his voice, not disregarding how you shouldn’t. “yes?” you answer instead, meeting his eyes. “thank you.”

you swallow, surprised at the genuinity in his voice while you nod, “it was no problem.”

loki finds it disturbing how much he dislikes seeing you walk away.

#loki laufeyson #loki friggason #mcu loki #reader x loki #loki x reader #loki x you #loki x y/n #mcu loki x reader #mcu loki x you #loki laufeyson imagine #loki layfeyson x reader #loki layfeyson imagine #loki laufeyson x you #tony stark #avengers x reader #avengers #avenger!reader

193 notes · View notes

sugarmaplewings-fics · 3 years

Text

Moments

Pairing: Kirishima x reader x Kaminari

Warnings: Near-death experience, mentions of blood and bleeding, general character distress, Y/N is in a hospital, happy ending, polyandry, me not knowing how to end things also i’m sorry the first two paragraphs are atrocious hhshdjc

Author’s Note:

Here’s the final request from this batch! Sorry for the wait but thanks for requesting! I hope this’ll do it for ya <3

-Sugar

⊱ ──── 《∘◦∘》 ──── ⊰

Life is made up of moments, each one simple and brief. Some events may feel as though they are building, tragedy looming on a distant horizon. Others happen in a mere instant, only to turn everything upside down.

In a moment, you’d seen the elderly civilian man standing just a bit too close to the battle ground for comfort. Another second; your boyfriend, Kirishima, threw a punch to the villain, knocking him off balance. You saw it, the beam of light shooting straight towards the man. You knew you still had time to move.

Rushing over, you took the hit.

It hurt. Everything hurt. Your eyes rolled back and a shriek escaped your lips, body seizing with the foreign throes of agony. You must have blacked out for a moment, because suddenly you felt yourself being held in a pair of arms.

“She’s bleeding!” a voice said above you, but they sounded miles away.

In a tremendous show of effort, you forced your eyes open. Light from the afternoon sun only brought more pain, but you just had to get a glimpse of him one last time.

Yes, there he was, in all his heroic glory. Your Eijirou. But he wasn’t looking at you. He must have been calling out for someone else. Perhaps it was your mutual lover. Either way, the pain was growing to be too much to bear. You slumped further into his chest, letting your eyes close once more.

Denki. If only you’d been able to see him again one last time….

…

Kaminari was not having a good day. Although, to be fair, it’s hard to ‘have a good day’ when your girlfriend is rapidly bleeding to death in front of you.

Everything seemed to happen so quickly. One moment, you, Eijirou and him were all out on patrol and the next, you were being attacked by some guy with a crazy force quirk. And then you were hurt.

He honestly thought you guys had won, as he secured the final blow on the villain with a shock of energy. Once the guy was effectively fried, Denki was ready to celebrate. Except, neither of his partners were there by his side.

He turned—confused, searching—until his eyes finally fell upon the hulking form of Red Riot kneeling on the ground a few paces away.

“. . . (Y/N)?” Kaminari tried, his voice barely above a whisper. He felt frozen to his spot, unable to move his feet forward nor back.

“She’s bleeding!” Kirishima called over his shoulder, and somehow that was what Kaminari needed to snap him out of it.

It felt as though he was trudging through molasses on his way to get to you—slow, difficult, unwilling to accept the fact that you could be hurt.

But you were. And you weren’t looking good either. You were slumped unconscious against Kirishima’s bare chest, face somehow peaceful amidst all the chaos around your unknowing body. Blood seeped out of a large gash on your stomach, and it looked bad. Kaminari tried to hold back a low moan of distress at the sight of it.

He sunk to his knees, taking off his black hero jacket and pressing it to your midsection in an attempt to slow the flow of blood. It was hard to see the stain on the dark material of the clothing article, but Denki somehow knew it would only be a matter of time before it was soaked through in its entirety.

A small crowd of civilians had gathered to watch the battle, and were now anxiously trying to see if you were going to be okay.

“The police should be here any minute,” a woman informed the two heroes somewhere above their heads.

“Did you call an ambulance?” Kirishima asked.

Denki glanced up to see the woman nod, pulling her phone back from her ear.

“You’re going to be alright,” Eijirou whispered to you, cradling your head and damaged body closer into his own. “Just stay with us, baby, please.”

…

Your eyes cracked open, slow and feeble. Blinding fluorescent light pierced between your lids, making you wince and shut them again. Where were you? And why did it smell . . . strange?

You tried opening your eyes again, your vision blurry and swimming until you were finally able to make out a white-tiled ceiling. Turning your head, you saw a table next to your bed, with a vase of pretty flowers resting at its center. You also noticed an IV drip leading into your arm.

So you were in a hospital. Made sense.

You racked your memory, trying to think of what might have landed you here. Ah, yes, the villain and the old man, that must have been it.

You turned your head again, this time to your left, and it was then that you saw them.

Denki laid slumped over the arm of a chair, supported by Eijirou’s chest. Kirishima's head laid against the sill of a window, which you had to figure couldn’t have been all that comfortable. Both men were fast asleep, quiet snores emitting from the redhead’s chest while Denki left a small puddle of drool on the man’s shirt.

You couldn’t be more in love.

A few minutes passed; just enough to make you aware of the white bandages wrapped around your midsection. A nurse stepped in, looking over his clipboard before he noticed your conscious state.

“Ah, (H/N), you’re finally awake,” he acknowledged with a smile.

“They aren’t,” you snickered hoarsely, gesturing to your partners.

The nurse laughed brightly, which was just enough of a disturbance to rouse Kirishima.

“(Y/N)!” the redhead shouted as soon as he saw you, jumping up out of his chair.

Denki nearly fell forward out of his own seat, waking with a start and a pop of static. “(Y/N)?”

Eijirou hurried to your bedside, kneeling down and taking your hand in his. “We were so worried about you!”

Denki nodded in agreement, settling in next to Eijirou and leaning against his shoulder. “You almost died!”

“Well . . . I guess I didn’t,” you said, unsure of how to respond.

“You were lucky,” the nurse pointed out. “Too much longer and you probably wouldn’t have made it.”

You swallowed, the repercussions of your actions beginning to weigh on you.

“No need to fret,” he reassured you. “We have some of the best healers in all of Japan here. I’m positive you’ll make a full recovery.”

Your boyfriends stepped out of the room so the nurse could finish running his tests; checking your vitals and asking you a few questions.

“She’s all yours,” he said, opening the door and letting the two pro heroes step back into your room before ducking out himself.

“The guy you saved came in here earlier to visit you,” Denki informed you once he was back at your bedside. “He was so grateful.”

You smiled. “I’m glad it turned out okay for everyone.”

“But we almost lost you,” Kirishima said, taking your hand again and pressing a kiss to your knuckles. “Please don’t be reckless like that.”

Your face morphed into a slight frown. “What was I supposed to do, then? Let him die? You should know better than anyone that I couldn’t do that.”

Kirishima cast his eyes to the floor, torn.

Kaminari put a hand on the redhead’s shoulder. “You scared us both, (Y/N). You got hurt really bad, and there was so much blood . . . . You’ve been out for two days, and Eijirou and I . . . we couldn’t help but worry that you’d never wake up again.”

Sighing, your thumb began to stroke the side of Kirishima’s hand. “I’m sorry. I know how scary that is. I can’t imagine losing one of you guys.”

“I just want you to be safe,” Eijirou said.

“Of course.” You moved your hand so you could cup his cheek. “But the important thing is that I’m alright. You’re not getting rid of me that easily.”

Eijirou leaned forward so he could kiss your forehead, then moved back so Denki could do the same to your cheek.

“I can go get us some stuff to do together,” Denki offered. “Being in the hospital is boring, trust me.”

You and Kirishima laughed. The blond always had your backs no matter what.

And even after a moment of disaster, you were proud to say you could all bounce back. As long as the three of you stuck together, you could get through anything.

⊱ ──── 《∘◦∘》 ──── ⊰

Taglist: @aahilovetheatre @basicaegyo @hyunmin-1404 @iiminibattlehero @katsugay @nabo39 @pyrofanatic @rainy-skys-and-bright-stars @sendhelpimstupid @sxngwoos-ash-box @xoxopam4

#kirishima eijirou #kirishima x reader #eijirou kirishima x reader #kirishima eijirou x reader #denki kaminari #kaminari denki #denki x reader #kaminari x reader #denki kaminari x reader #kaminari denki x reader #kirikami x reader #poly bnha x reader #bnha x reader #mha x reader #reader insert #request fulfilled!#sugar fics

220 notes · View notes

ben-c-group-therapy · 3 years

Text

Benedict Cumberbatch Fluff

You’ll find all of my Ben C Fluff here

“Lost In A Daydream” Benedict finds out you (his assistant) writes about him and your secret feelings. Figuring there is no chance he’d ever have feelings for you, you opted to stay quiet. Will he figure it out?

“Some Guidance” Benedict knows what's best for you while you are stressing over exams. “A Dance” Benedict is in a cheerful mood tonight after work that he decides to have a dance. “The Straw That Broke The Camel’s Back” After a crappy week, this day is the last straw…thank god for Benedict. “Happy Birthday Ocean" A wonderful Birthday from Benedict. “The Cramps” Ben is a lot better at taking care of you than Sherlock is. “Mum, Dad, Meet My Fiancée” Ben gets the chance to introduce you to his parents for the first time. “It’s Okay to Cry" After the lost of your mother Ben tries to comfort you. “A Magical Day with Benedict" Being the wife a celebrity isn’t that bad, especially when you can have a private tour of Disneyland! “The Camping Trip" After a few scary stories around the campfire you have a hard time getting to sleep. “Who Are You?“ A journey from not remembering anything to finally remembering enough. “An Emergency” You are very scared when you are hit with a massive pain. Ben reassures you that you will be okay and he will be right with you. “The News" Some bad news at the doctor has you very upset, Ben comforts you the best way he knows how. "I’m Just Trying to Protect You” Ben is being very protective of you and it gets a bit old. “Maybe…Perhaps…” Ben has a hard time confessing his feelings for a coworker. “Dinner?” A AU Ben fic where he asks his coworker Lucy Lui out on a date. “The Workout” Upset with your weight you start training a bit to much and end up in trouble. “Maybe I Need Help” A follow-up to “The Workout” You’re struggling with your self image and Ben finds out about your dangerous ways to lose weight. “My Story” After heart surgery your are insecure of your scar and Ben comforts you. “My Love, My Heart” After surgery Benedict remains at your bedside until you wake up. “A Lesson in French" Juliette speaks with a heavy French accent, she doesn’t like it but Benedict loves it. "Sometimes, All You Need Is A Hug" After a stressful few days of work and caring for the family things come to a crashing halt and Benedict is left to pick up the pieces. "Homesick” After moving to London on a whim several months ago you start to become homesick so your wonderful boyfriend Ben arranges a surprise for you. “Lonely Nights" After a romantic weekend in Paris Ben returns home but has to leave again for work. Lonely Nights part 2”A follow-up to Lonely Nights. "The Heavens Opened” This fic adds some back story to a fic Cumberbanon wrote for me. You are caught up in a rain storm without an umbrella, thankfully Benedict is walking your way and notices and offers to share his umbrella and takes you back to his flat for some tea. “Ben! I’m Pregnant!" A journey from conception to birth. "I’m Not Jealous” Ben has work to do at home but instead he attends your office party with you, when you run into an old co-worker Ben gets a little jealous “Every Day, Every Hour…” It is date night again for you and Benedict, he proclaims his love for you over a romantic dinner. “Poor Benedict” Ben is really sick and stuck in bed, it is up to you to make him feel better. “The Sultry Villain” You land a guest star spot on Sherlock along side your boyfriend Benedict. “Is This The End?” Facing a difficult breakup you and Ben get into a heated argument. (this one has a happy ending) “The Surprise” Ben has been away for five weeks now, four weeks to long for you. “A Spring Day” Ben has a surprise for you on this beautiful spring day in London “The Morning After” A fluffy follow-up to the smutty “Lesson Learned?” “The Café in Copenhagen” Ben meets and falls in love with a Danish Girl. A fluff for benedictcumberbatchsdanishwife “The Motorbike” You hate when Benedict rides his motorbike around the busy streets of London. “Does He Remember Me?” Ben falls for one of his Australian fans “A Misunderstanding” Ben is interested in you and you are him but thanks to miss messages things turn sour but all ends well.(smutish…no actual act) “Awkward Fangirl at Oz Comic Con” A revamp of “Does He Remember Me?” “The Starry Night” A little surprise for Ben on your anniversary. “The Quiz Night” After a chat with another man at the bar during a quiz night Ben becomes very jealous. “My New London Life” You enlist your old friend Benedict’s help in finding a flat in London. “The Cabin” A strong snowstorm catches a hiker off guard, lucky for them you’re spending a few weeks in a small remote cabin in the mountains. “You Are the Worst Patient!” A fluffy about you taking care of Benedict as his friend, nothing more. Yet. “The Restless Night” You have a hard time getting to sleep, thankfully Ben can help with that. “Old Flames” Running into Ben at a party lights old flames inside of you. “The Nurse and Her Patient” Ben’s in the hospital and under your care as his nurse. Who know what will happen. “A Magical London Day” Ben leads you around London on a scavenger hunt with a little help from his family and friends. “The Audition” You are a great actor, but when you come face to face with Benedict at an audition you flub up! “You Make Me Feel Safe” Just some awesome fluffy Benedict that holds you and makes you feel happy after a long day. “Ben, the Worry Wart” You’ve gotten one of the lead rolls in an upcoming movie with Benedict, while you are off for a month you head back to New York to continue your studies but Ben is persistent on keeping fans from bothering you. “Secret Places” You’ve started a flame between you and Ben on a recent trip to London, now that you’re home a flirty text-a-thon ensues. “Benedict The Hulk” Ben had a rough day and when he gets home an argument gets a little heated. “Ladies?” You and Ben’s ex have a run in at a celebrity event. “The Farmers Market” Your niece gets lost at the farmers market, thankfully a nice British gentleman finds her and reunites you both. “Mummy Doesn’t Always Know Best” Ben’s mother isn’t so keen on you at first, how will things turn out. “Get Motivated” You are having a particular rough day, Ben helps motivate you to accomplish your goals. “Let it Be” A cute fluff about Ben asking your parents for your hand in marriage “I Promise” You wake up in a hospital bed with Benedict Cumberbatch sitting beside you and holding your hand, but why?!? “Fight or Flee” You and Ben have been great friends but what has he been hiding and how will it come out? “Stop Ignoring Me” Working very hard on the set of Sherlock keeps you busy and unable to chat with Ben, he keeps after you but you keep working. Turns into a little game of hard to get. “The Surry Farm” A farm out in Surry shared with Ben. “Sorry That Was Corny” A handsome man approaches you at a local pub and begins to flirt “A Needed Break” Ben has be really working hard lately so while in NY you treat him to a nice getaway. “Dopy Benedict” Ben goes under the knife and the medicines make him a little goofy when he wakes up. “The Competition” Two hot actors vying for your attention? Sounds perfect! “The Wedding Song” While celebrating Benedict’s parents anniversary Ben takes you for a spin to his parents wedding song. “The Tree” Ben is leaving for a very long time. “Grocery Shopping” A sweet little fic. Ben and you go food shopping together and fun ensues “Breakdown” A really stressful week leads to a huge meltdown in front of Benedict “Time For A Baby?” As you babysit your nieces you and Ben have such a wonderful time that you two begin to think it may be time for your own child. “It’s All Very Funny” You are cooking dinner for Ben’s parents as they are coming over to meet you for the first time. You head upstairs to take a shower while Ben waits for them…embarrassing moments ensue. “They Aren’t True Fans” After coming out publicly as a couple, you get egged on your way home from work. “The Misquote” Ben slips some things during an interview that could lead the public to believe your marriage is on the rocks. “The Puppy” After rescuing a box of two puppies you try to help them and then convince Ben to keep them. “To Church” Ben and you head off to church. “The Return of Napkinbatch” Ben loves making you laugh. “The Press” Ben does a little press conference about Hamlet but somehow it gets turned into a meeting about your relationship together. “The Letter” You come across a letter from Ben to his pen pal Greg and you try to sneak a peek. “Parent Teacher Meets” Its the night of the first parent teacher meets and one of your students has a very special guest along. “The Undercover Star” Benedict is on a hidden camera reality show and you happen to be his target. “The Lights Went Out.” You’re afraid of storms and to make matters worse when a particularly strong one comes up and knocks the power out, you’re also afraid of the dark. “Love Knows No Age” Age is not a matter for two people truly in love. “Benedict and the Stars” Ben is a romantic, with you having a PhD in Astronomy Ben has the stars to woo you. “A Babybatch in the Oven” It’s time to share the big news with Ben’s parents! “The First Kiss” Wonderful evening leads to a wonderful goodbye. “We’re Going to be Alright” Going through some difficult depression episodes I was sent this prompt and I decided to use it as a therapy for myself. “The Unexpected Miracle” You and Ben learn that due to some health problems you aren’t able to conceive. “My Heart Is On Fire For You” Ben finds a sweet way to propose to you. “Face to Face” This is for my dear friend “Sister” Emily. Ben sets up a meeting for her and I to finally meet in person! “We Miss You” Ben is stuck in L.A. filming for months, he misses you and your little girl so much and you miss him also so in a last minute decision you take Jenna and pack up to head for L.A. for a impromptu visit. “Benedict’s Bad Day” Ben has a rough day at work, it’s up to you to make him feel better. “The Corinthia Ball” A charity ball is occurring at the Corinthia Hotel in the heart of London tonight and Ben has something special planned for later. “The Nomination” - A little way to celebrate Benedict’s and the Sherlock team’s Emmy nominations. “Benedict Cumberbatch in ‘The Emmy Winner’” Ben and you watch the Emmy’s from home and celebrate when he’s announced the winner. “The Gala and Napkinbatch” You and Ben have fun in New York “Missing You” Ben is finally arriving home after a trip to Toronto. “Sunday Mornings" No one likes to wake up on a Sunday morning but this one isn’t so bad for Ben and you. "Always Beautiful to Me” Having a fat day, Ben cheers you up. “A Fire Inside” Letting off a little steam in a bar you meet a dashing man. “Hands” “Shh Sleep” “Celebrate Tonight” “The Return of Napkinbatch” “I Have To Tell You Something” “Sunday Mornings” “Something Better” After hearing your celebrity crush (Chris Evans) had been spotted with a girl in L.A. you had an unexpected meeting Ben for the first time.

Fluff/Smut

“One More Chance" Makeup sex is the best… "Ben! I’m Pregnant!" A journey from conception to birth. "My Plans” Celebrating a wonderful anniversary with Benedict over dinner but dinner isn’t the only plans he has for you. “The Interview” Ben says some really lovely things at an interview and when he gets home and you ask him about it, a simple kiss gets heated. “The Rose” You attend the Hay Festival with Benedict and try to wake him up after a very tiring day.

#benedict cumberbatch #benedict cumberbatch fluff #fluff #fluffy #soft #ben c fanfic #benedict cumberbatch fanfic #fanfiction #benedict cumberbatch fanfiction #fanfic writer

61 notes · View notes

sassycassie-s-writing · 3 years

Text

Under the Moon

By: SassyShoulderAngel319

Fandom/Character(s): Avengers - Peter Parker/Spider-Man

Rating: PG/K+

Original Idea: I’ve been in a mood recently.

Notes: (Masterlist)(By Character)(About Me) I actually put forth a decent effort this time to make it as gender-neutral as possible. It’s probably not perfect but I tried.

^^^^^

A twinge in the muscles of my back jarred me from my sleep.

$#!+ did I forget again? I thought. Another spasm arched me off my mat. I fumbled through my bag for my phone. No service. Of course not. With shaking fingers, somehow I managed to unlock it. Moon Tracker was waiting for me on my home page. It launched and actually loaded, despite the lack of service.

Tonight’s Moon: Full read the screen.

I swore aloud. MJ didn’t wake.

Scrambling out of the tent, I stumbled through the dark to the tent next to ours. “Peter!” I hissed, knocking a knuckle against the tent pole. “Pete!”

I heard a groan. “What?” Peter complained.

“I need your help. I need you to come with me. Now.”

The tent he shared with Ned zipped open. Ned was curled up in a corner and clearly Peter had been sprawled out. Peter slipped out, barely managing to get into his sneakers, and zipped the tent shut behind him. “What’s goin’ on?” He yawned.

I recoiled as pain wracked through me. “We need to get away from camp—and I need you to web me to a tree,” I replied.

“What?”

“Now!”

My tone scared him into movement. He grabbed my hand and we ran from the campsite. I stumbled more than anything. My control over my own body was slipping. I moaned in pain. Peter looked back at me.

“What’s happening to your eyes?”

“No time to explain. Keep moving,” I panted.

We blindly wove through the woods until we were over a mile away. I found a sturdy tree and backed against it.

“Web me here,” I said. “Just cover me.”

“Why?”

I looked up. The moon was starting to peek above the hills, casting its light through the woods. “Just do it!” I cried out—stifling the sound as much as I could—and slammed into the tree. “Now!”

Peter’s webshooters activated and he spewed webs at me. I gave him a small smile.

Then I thrashed in pain—

And everything went black.

—

Peter stared as his friend’s body began to change. Claws broke through fingers. Fangs replaced teeth. A snout elongated from the face. Thick, brown-and-black hair sprouted. Pajamas started to disappear under the hair.

Until, instead of a human, Peter was staring at a wolf.

An enormous wolf. Easily twice the size of a regular wolf—and he’d found out that wolves were twice as big as he’d thought not too long ago—and covered in grey fur. The beast’s paws were wide and ended in long dark claws sharp enough to tear flesh like cotton candy. Thankfully they were positioned too awkwardly to reach the webs holding it.

“Gah! What the he—” He cut himself off as the wolf snarled at him, writhing against the webs. He applied another layer just to be safe. “Since—since—since when could you do—” The moonlight shone brighter, catching his attention. He peered up.

The moon was a massive disc—full and shining silver-white down against the tree trunk.

The wolf in front of him seemed transfixed by it, staring up with a melancholy whine softly escaping its throat. It tried again to escape the webs, but only half-heartedly.

Peter whooshed out a breath as realization struck him like a blow from the Hulk. “You’re a werewolf,” he whispered.

The wolf whimpered and then growled. Peter stepped back.

“I’m not sleeping tonight, am I?” He asked.

The wolf didn’t reply.

Which was probably a good thing, because if it did he probably would have screamed loud enough to wake up their friends over a mile away—and every big nasty in the forest. And he doubted his werewolf friend would protect him.

The wolf’s amber eyes were watching him suspiciously. But Peter just sat down and yawned again. “You and I have known each other for like ten years now. You’re in on my secret. Why didn’t you ever tell me yours?” He stared at the wolf, who was still seething at being trapped, but not fighting against the webs. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Again, the wolf made no reply. Just turned those amber eyes up to the moon. Peter looked up at it too. “Yeah. It’s beautiful. Especially on nights like tonight. When there aren’t any clouds.”

The wolf whined like a puppy—and Peter had to remind himself to not tear off the webs to cuddle into that thick, soft-looking fur. That werewolves probably didn’t have any human memories when they were in their wolf form. He leaned back on his hands. “You’re probably not gonna remember this, so I may as well tell you: I’ve actually had a crush on you since like seventh grade. I know we’ve been friends for longer than that but…” He shrugged. The wolf kept staring at the moon. “I don’t know. Something changed that year. I saw you in the gym with the ballroom dance club, teaching some poor dude how to waltz when I stayed late for robotics, and it was like this… like a lightbulb went off in my head. You know? Suddenly it was like I was really seeing you for the first time. Like I caught a glimpse of the best pieces of your soul.

“And I’ve never been the same since. Never looked at you the same way. I notice the grace you use when you move. Even if you’re clumsy sometimes. But I see your compassion too. Your care. Like once I started looking, I couldn’t stop.”

The wolf didn’t even react to him at all.

Peter sighed. “I’ll keep an eye on you tonight. I promise. You won’t be able to get out or hurt anything. It’ll be okay. I promise.”

—

I came to under the pale orange light of dawn. The last dregs of dissolving web fluid clung to my pajamas. I felt drained. Like I always did the morning after a full moon.

“Hey, you’re up!” Peter said happily. I turned. He was sitting on the forest floor a few feet away, using a Bunsen burner camping “stove” to heat a small pot of water. Two paper cups were sitting near him, plastic spoons poking out of the top. I slumped against the tree trunk. “I’m making some cocoa. Want some?”

I watched him pour the water in the cups, adding packets of cocoa mix and stirring carefully. I didn’t have the energy to actually reply.

He handed me one of the cups. “This should warm you up. It’s a little chilly.”

“Did you get any sleep?” I croaked.

“I did, actually. See, the thing is, my webs dissolve in two hours. On average, it takes fourteen minutes for a person to fall asleep, and a single sleep cycle is ninety minutes—hour and a half. So I used my webshooters to set timers. An almost-two-hour one to know when to replace the webs around you, and another to wake me up roughly an hour and forty-four minutes after I set it. So I slept between replacing your webs and I actually feel alright. Probably better than you anyway.”

I grunted agreement at that. I felt like I’d been trampled by a herd of elephants.

I tried a sip of the cocoa. Not too hot, but enough to warm my core. I sighed, content with the taste and warmth.

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?” Peter asked quietly. I met his eyes. He had the expression of a sad puppy on his face.

I huffed a little, stirring my cocoa. “My secret isn’t like yours, Peter,” I said. “You keep your secret to keep the people you care about safe. I do too, but mine—mine is different. You’re keeping the people you love safe from villains who want to hurt you by hurting them. I’m keeping the people I care about safe from me. Because I’m… we’re classified as monsters, Peter. Werewolves, vampires—we’re referred to as monsters the same way humans are mammals. I never told you because what I can do… it’s worse than what you can do. You’re a superhero. I’m a lycanthrope. Yours is a mutation of your DNA. Mine is literally a curse. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you looking at me like I’m…”

“A monster?” Peter finished gently.

I almost growled at the word. “Yeah,” I admitted begrudgingly, taking a sip of my cocoa. “You have no idea how hard it is for someone like me to make or keep friends. I’ve spent most of my life super lonely. Then I met you and Ned and MJ and I felt like… like finally I could have some friends. I was turned into a werewolf when I was four-years-old, Peter. Thirteen years, I’ve suffered with this alone. My parents know but they don’t talk about it. They pretend like my curse doesn’t exist. Then I make friends for the first time in my life and still know, deep down, that I’ll never belong with them. Not really. Even when you told me about you, I knew I still wasn’t like you. I never would be. So I hoped I could just be friends as long as I could with you guys and… find a way to live with it when you all eventually left me.”

I downed the rest of my cup and stood. My joints ached.

“We should go back to camp before Ned and MJ wonder where we’ve gone,” I said.

Not waiting for Peter, I headed back the way we’d come, following my own scent through the trees, several hours old now, but doubly punctuated by Peter’s as he’d gone back to get the burner and the cocoa.

He caught up to me, jogging a little. “For the record, even though you scared the pants off of me last night when I saw you turn, I don’t think you’re a monster,” he said.

I managed a small smile. “Thanks,” I replied.

“And, also, I’m not going to leave you. You’re still my friend and I’m not scared. I can lift… like, a hundred times more than my body weight. I think I can handle you as a wolf. You’re not gonna hurt me and I’m not going anywhere.”

“That’s… that’s a relief to hear,” I admitted. We kept hiking back. “Do I remember you saying you’ve had a crush on me since we were in seventh grade? Or did I dream that up?”

Peter swore under his breath. A normal person wouldn’t have heard it, but I did. Wolf’s hearing. “Uh… I think you dreamt that up,” he said.

Liar. But if he wasn’t ready to tell me human-face-to-human-face, I’d give him time. He’d taken my secret better than I could have asked for or anticipated. I could let him admit his feelings whenever he was ready. I owed him that much.

When we got back to camp, MJ was sitting on a tree stump, munching on some dry cereal. “Where have you two been all night?” she asked.

#Under the Moon #Spider-Man #spider-man imagine #spider-man fanfiction #spiderman #spiderman fanfiction #spiderman imagine #Spider Man #Spider Man Imagine #spider man fanfiction #Peter Parker #peter parker imagine #peter parker fanfiction #Avengers #avengers imagine #avengers fanfiction #marvel #marvel imagine #marvel fanfiction

19 notes · View notes

davids-cartoon-corkboard · 4 years

Text

I have said a Lot about the “Raph is a system” theory over the past several months, so this is something of a compilation post. It’s got some new stuff, it’s got some old stuff. (You’re reading Part 1) (Part 2 is here) (Part 3 is here)

---

Firstly, “system” is the term for someone with Dissociative Identity Disorder, or DID. (The term can also apply to some folks with OSDD.) Someone might develop DID after experiencing long-term trauma at an early age- roughly five or six years old. To paraphrase the DSM-V:

1. We’ve seen three (possibly four) distinct personality states who speak, act, and perceive others differently.

2. The personality states, or “alters”, don’t necessarily share memory, and Donnie insinuated in “The Clothes Don’t Make the Turtle” that Raph has a bad memory in general.

3. Problems arise when alters don’t get along or aren’t on the same page. That none of them seem to be quite aware they’re a system doesn’t help either; it’s hard to work on communication and cooperation when you don’t know they need to be worked on!

4. This whole situation isn’t a normal part of a broadly accepted cultural or religious practice, or just Raph playing make-believe. (Though I wonder if he had “imaginary friends” when he was younger...)

5. It’s also not because Raph’s been smoking the devil’s lettuce or whatever. “Pizza Puffs” was one long weed joke and he was the only one “sober” (not poisoned) throughout! We don’t see this happen to other mutants, so it’s not a bizarre side effect of mutagen either.

(I’ve seen a few people joke that Mikey has “multiple personalities”, but that’s a tad yikesy and also just plain incorrect. His “doctor” personas are something he does deliberately, and youngest siblings are just Like That.)

So yeah, Raph is pretty heavily DID-coded. We’ve seen four alters so far:

“Host” Raph (HR): He’s our everyday Raph. A “host” is an alter who fronts most of the time and takes care of “business as usual” situations. They are often unaware of past traumatic events, such that they can appear “normal”. (Ex: the host of a child who lives with an abusive parent could be unaware of the abuse. Otherwise, they might cry or be uncooperative whenever the parent is near, further invoking their wrath. This unawareness allows them to be a “good child”, and stay under the parent’s radar sometimes.) Some systems have more than one host, but that the others have shown up so rarely in this story suggests HR is the only host (for now?).

Savage Raph (SR): Debuting in “Man vs. Sewer”, he’s a survival-oriented alter. HR probably could have defeated the Sando Brothers on his own under normal circumstances, but being in the middle of a breakdown doesn’t do much for your fighting skills. SR got pulled to the front to deal with them instead.

“Red” Raph (RR): “Red” is just a placeholder since we don’t actually know his name yet (or even if he has one, not all alters do), though I’ve also heard folks call him “Angel”. He’s got a “tough love” approach to problem-solving, which was probably a helpful thing in the past. LDM were no doubt rowdy children! We were (officially) introduced to him in “Pizza Puffs”.

Mind Raph (MR): MR could just be a manifestation of HR's thought process via Cartoon Goofery, but that possibility doesn’t give me anything to work with so I’m ignoring it. He’s pretty similar to HR, maybe a tad more upbeat. We (officially) met him in “Raph’s Ride-Along”.

When “Pizza Puffs” first aired, I was like “ah yes, this is the alter who has the cranky edgelord tendencies we’ve seen in previous iterations of Raph. He probably broods on rooftops in the rain when he’s in a bad mood.” Combining that with the whole “Red Angel” thing gives off some Batman vibes. And, of course, SR is similar to the Hulk. Those two heroes are pretty different, but they do have one major thing in common...

A sudden, violent loss. Given how prevalent rushing water is throughout “Man vs. Sewer”, I’m thinking a flood came through and separated Raph from his family. (You could probably argue that turbulent water symbolizes a turbulent subconscious? 🤷) Again, DID stems from long-term trauma, so Raph must have been gone for... a while. A couple of months, maybe more? It’s hard to say exactly; we have a little wiggle room when applying human developmental psychology to a human/turtle mutant. Since Splinter still needed to care for the other three, he wouldn’t have been able to devote much time to searching for Raph, and the New York City sewers go on for miles and miles. The longer Raph was alone, the more convinced he would have been that the others had drowned and he was the only survivor.

How old would he have been? I know the turtles are “different ages”, but they were all mutated at the same time so I’m pretty sure Splinter was just like “the littlest one is the youngest, the biggest one is the oldest, and the medium-sized ones are the middle children.” They’re all probably fourteenish by “Finale”. Back in “MvS”, Leo said, “You know how savage Raph gets when he’s alone”. He didn’t say anything like, “You know how savage Raph gets when he’s alone ever since such-and-such an incident happened”. This suggests that LDM straight-up don’t know something traumatic happened to Raph; they were too little to retain concrete memories of that time. In their minds, Raph has always been like this. Draxum isn’t known for his patience, so even though he wasn’t able to immerse the hatchlings in mutagen for long, they probably mature a bit faster than humans. And since humans usually can’t remember anything from before four years of age, three sounds about right for the turtles, though they would have been stronger and steadier on their feet than any human toddler. I doubt Raph would have survived otherwise.

I think he’s sort of... “stuck” back in that trauma. Catching food, building a fire, making a weapon, and getting camouflage aren’t the behaviors of someone who’s only been gone for a few minutes.

When SR called for help, I don’t think he was expecting anyone to answer.

But Raph did manage to hang onto something as he was swept away! It wasn’t much, but that little ragdoll gave him comfort while he was scared and alone.

(The rabbit design on Bruce’s pajamas is probably a coincidence, but...)

Raph seems the type to have sympathy for odd-looking toys. His knockoff Mrs. Cuddles plushie was the emotional crutch he needed back then.

And then he was separated from that as well. Lowkey associating Mrs. Cuddles with this traumatic event would explain why HR was so scared of her. That he doesn’t remember the trauma means he has no context for this fear, making it seem silly and baseless to him (and to the rest of his family), which is why he denied being scared at all in the first part of the “Mrs. Cuddles” episode. It would also explain why he collects teddy bears instead these days, they are a “safe” toy. (The moral of the story is to not make fun of triggers that seem silly.)

(I wonder what would happen if Mrs. Cuddles encountered Savage Raph? Perhaps he’d be quite sympathetic towards such a lonely little raggedy thing! Timestuck as he is, he probably wouldn’t question why a stuffed animal can talk... and it wouldn't be hard for her to persuade her “new bestest fwiend” to get rid of some “mean ol’ nasty sewew monstews” for her.)

That whole “sewer monsters” thing suggests Raph ran into... something while he was wandering alone. Y’all have heard those rumors about alligators living in the New York City sewers, right? Encountering Leatherhead could trigger a flashback.

It would be pretty easy to introduce Leatherhead into the narrative. One of the episodes the Rise crew had planned was titled “The Island of Dr. Noe”, and alligators have very impressive teeth. The Mirage comics had a story where Leatherhead and several cryptids were brought to an island to be hunted for sport.

Noe seems to have quite a few cronies/friends/rivals he could entertain this way. Since he’s got that obsession with Raph, Noe captures him as well, knocking him out with those darts so he can’t waste his energy trying to escape too soon. (Let’s just assume everyone’s powers are glitchy because they all hit another wave of puberty, meaning they can’t just curbstomp the lower-level villains lol.)

HR wakes up on the island and, of course, starts to panic because he’s lost and alone. While wandering, he runs into Leatherhead, which would trigger a flashback to getting attacked by that alligator all those years ago. But Leatherhead doesn’t want to fight! He’s just as scared and confused as HR is, and could really use a partner to help him survive this island.

HR and SR come into conflict because Leatherhead is/isn’t/is/isn’t/is/isn’t a threat. HR eventually wins out, reasoning that even if Leatherhead is that alligator, it wouldn’t be fair to judge him for what he did back when he was an animal.

But time and dissociation can make memories unclear. That our first look at Leatherhead was in Draxum’s “bluh bluh I’m gonna mutate all the humans” bit in “Bug Busters” means he’s a human-base mutant. He wasn’t the alligator back then, but the hunter tracking it. Leatherhead isn’t one of Noe’s targets, he is one of Noe’s guests! And he wants no one to interfere with his quarry, so he’ll play nice long enough for him and the snapper to take out the rest of the hunters and the freaks. Then the two of them will have the island all to themselves...

Years and years ago, Jack Marlin was a big game hunter prowling the New York City sewers in search of an alligator. He did manage to find and kill one, only to realize it had also been hunting! He had inadvertently saved the strangest little turtle creature.

Marlin had become too skilled at this point, the hunt held no challenge for him. This turtle sounded very young, and he was quite big and strong already. An adult could be tough and intelligent enough to entertain him. Marlin tried to get Raph to lead him back to “the others”. But Raph had been lost for some time, and as far as he knew, his family was dead. Hearing that put Marlin in quite the sour mood. A little mutant snapper is a better catch than none at all, so Marlin tried to haul Raph off. Raph fought back and bit off Marlin’s hand. He escaped, but lost his rabbit in the scuffle. Marlin retreated as well, taking some time to recover, scheme, and hunt other game. (And to pocket that rabbit. The blood loss had made him woozy, and he wanted to have some kind of proof he hadn’t just hallucinated the snapper.) Perhaps he turned that alligator’s hide into a vest, which provided the genetic material for his mutation when he eventually got bit by an oozesquito. Like his Mirage counterpart, Marlin didn’t take losing a limb as a sign he should retire, and instead got a tricked-out prosthetic. Who knows what he could do with it in such a mystic setting as Rise.

Raph eventually reunited with his family, but those distrustful, high-strung survivalist traits he had picked up weren’t helpful anymore. He once again had to be the good and patient big brother who didn’t bite when someone play-tackled him or shook him awake at three in the morning because they’d had a nightmare. Those two states gradually got partitioned off more and more, and now they know little, if anything, about each other.

So Leatherhead and HR are chasing away some mothmen or whatever, and things are going pretty well... until one of them knocks Leatherhead over and a familiar ragdoll rabbit falls out of his pocket. SR realizes that Leatherhead is Marlin and switches in to fight him off again. They’re evenly matched, or perhaps SR is even in danger of losing, when LDM arrive to provide support. Leatherhead is enough of a tactician to know that he should retreat. Donnie and Mikey pursue him while Leo stays behind, placing the rabbit in his stunned brother’s hands. “Remember when Pops made this for you? You were always really gentle with it, ‘cause he wasn’t good at sewing back then...”

(This thing really needs patching up, he’s got sewing stuff for whenever he needs to fix his bears/Blue isn’t a threat on his own/Wasn’t he just back at the lair?/Blue gave back the rabbit/Why does he feel like he got hit by a train?/Blue doesn’t want to fight?/ ...Leo?) And that’s enough for HR to switch back in. He’s probably missing memory from his whole time on the island, so while Leo does his best to tell him what happened, they don’t have enough puzzle pieces between them to truly figure out what's going on.

They defeat the bad guys, release the cryptids, save the day, etc. (Leatherhead managed to lose Donnie and Mikey in the woods. A battle for another day.) Once they return to the lair, HR gets help from Draxum to modify the memory spell from “E-Turtle Sunshine” so he can try to fill in the gaps. Surely he wouldn’t get rejected by his own subconscious... right?

Cue part three in the saga of Raph Punches Himself In The Face. SR isn’t happy that HR is essentially trying to poke at an improperly-healed wound, and attempts to chase him off. HR assumes that SR is just a psychic white blood cell like the Lou Jitsu constructs in Splinter’s mind, and retaliates.

But, of course, fighting is not the answer here. All that accomplishes is giving the body bruises. Eventually HR realizes “stay away” and “back off” are a little different than “get out”, and that SR is just scared. So HR tries another tactic. Over the following days and weeks, he tunes in to calmer memories and just sort of... talks. About what happened yesterday, about his teddy bear collection, about how he finally managed to get a good picture of that pizza pigeon. It takes a while to establish a connection, and even then, it’s spotty at best. Using the spell too much can cause headaches and nightmares. There are days when SR is nearby, and days when he’s not there at all. But he shows up when he can.

And then there’s awkward, stilted conversation and questions neither of them know how to answer and questions neither of them want to answer and more scrapes and bruises and strained silences and apologies, but they finally, finally reach a compromise. SR still doesn’t let HR near those memories, but he tells HR what happened as best he can. (The audience would see those memories, with SR as a voiceover.) Afterwards, HR still visits the mindscape that’s starting to become more solid. They talk some more, they watch light and shadow flow around them, they listen to half-forgotten lullabies on scratchy old cassette tapes. Eventually, HR doesn’t even need to use the memory spell, meditation is enough.

They’ll never get along all the time. But it’s a start.

(SR is going to be so clingy when it finally clicks for him when he finally lets himself believe that his family is alive.)

---

This took eight million years lmao. Parts 2 and 3 will come out eventually, they’ll focus more on MR and RR. Let me know if I need to tag this stuff as anything.

The usual disclaimer applies, I am not a system or a mental health professional so if you’re one or both of those things then feel free to give me some of that good good constructive criticism.

#you called for help... but nobody came.#rottmnt #rottmnt theory #the 'raph is a system' theory #rottmnt raph #savage raph #mrs. cuddles #leatherhead #jack marlin #plot bunnies free to a good home lmao #long post

302 notes · View notes

allcrncthing · 3 years

Photo

TITLE :: WHAT?

DESCRIPTION :: Flynn gets an unlikely visitor early one morning.

TIME PERIOD :: July, 2012

CHARACTER(S) :: Flynn Aspen, Nick Fury

WORD COUNT :: 1.7k

WARNINGS :: Swearing

NOTE :: This is part one of two in the DON’T RUIN HER mini-series!

It was seven in the morning when knuckles thumped against her apartment door. Flynn shuffled out of her room, rubbing her eyes as she went. God, I hope it’s not Mrs. Baust complaining again. Mrs. Baust was Flynn’s elderly neighbor located on her right. For whatever reason, she didn’t like the redhead; always complaining about stupid shit and trying to her the landlord to kick Flynn out.

She opened the door then nearly slammed it shut. Standing before her was Nick Fury, director of SHIELD. “Can I help you?”

With his one good eye, he looked her up and down. “You know why I’m here. Get important shit and meet me on the roof.”

“Mister, you must be confused.”

Fury scoffed. “Me? Confused? Hurry up and grab your shit, I’ll see you on the roof.” He closed the door for her, leaving a dumbfounded Flynn in his wake.

She pressed her forehead against the cool wood of the door. “How the hell did he find out?” She groaned, agitated. “Christ Flynn, he’s Nick Fury, he always finds out.”

Around three months ago Flynn found out she had powers. She gained them after a chunk of alien tech fell from the sky. Crazy, right? The tech--which was a good sized piece of metal if she was being honest--slammed into the back of her neck, embedding itself in her skin. Flynn could still feel it back there, sometimes rubbing her finger over the weird bump when she was nervous or bored. It must have been from a far-off society that thrived off radiation or something, because these new powers were seemingly radiation based. It was all still very new to Flynn, so she wasn’t 100% sure of anything regarding her abilities.

She trudged back to her room, shrugged off her lavender old lady nightgown, and stepped into bleach-stained grey sweatpants and an oversized I HEART NYC shirt. It was left over from her parents’ visit a while back. Hey, she wasn’t going to get all dolled up for a stranger who told her to “pack up her shit” at seven something in the morning.

Flynn grabbed a duffle bag and filled it with the basics; toiletries, a few pairs of clothes, and chargers for her devices. She hopped whatever Fury wanted with her was quick and easy. Trying to explain her disappearance at work would be a bitch.

Minutes later she appeared on the rooftop, seeing Fury standing off at the ledge, looking off into the distance. “Seen Fallen Soldier recently?”

Her blood ran cold.

Flynn licked her lips, “No.”

“Not after your skirmish in the alley?” He pressed, turning to face her.

Flynn shook her head.

Fallen Soldier was one of HYDRA’s goons. He was a fallen World War I soldier by the name of Dennis Van Dyke. According to what Flynn had read--which may or may not have been on the dark web. . .--HYDRA recently reanimated his once frozen corpse to snuff out anyone with powers. His supposed mission was to kill his target before dragging their body to a local HYDRA lab for testing.

It just so happened that he went after Flynn. Three nights ago while walking home from her shift at work, the corpse struck. He came at her with stinking, peeling flesh and the sharpest bayonet she had ever seen. While he moved at a slow pace, every time he made contact with Flynn she would get knocked over by his force. The fight was her first real power test-run. Flynn discovered she could fly and somehow create fireballs among other things. Going against Fallen Soldier was tiring. So much so she lit him on fire then proceeded to pass out on a nearby rooftop. Flynn was lucky he didn’t find her and kill her in her sleep.

Fury turned back around, facing the sun once more. From his coat pocket he drew a remote. In the sea of buttons he pressed a white one off to the left.

Hundreds of feet in the air floated the SHIELD Helicarrier. Flynn had never seen the beast of an air ship in person before. She only saw pictures of it from the battle in New York.

“Wow,” she breathed, nearly dropping the duffle bag.

“Welcome to your new home.” Fury said, watching as a ramp came down from the helicarrier’s underbelly.

Her brows immediately furred together. “My what?”

“New home! Can’t let you stay down here with that undead bastard looking high-and-low for you.”

Fury walked towards the ramp, taking quick strides. “Hurry up so we can get started on paperwork.”

She scampered after him like a puppy. “Why?”

“You’re just full of questions.”

“Oh no, how dare I question the man who told me to pack up my stuff and follow him.” Flynn groaned.

A look flashed over his face, like she did have a point. “I watched your fight with Fallen Soldier and I liked what I saw. Had to get to you before HYDRA.” Fury pressed another button, opening a door on the carrier’s side.

“Is this a temporary thing?”

“Temporary?” He howled. “Does Tony Stark shop at Walmart?”

“No. . .”

“Well, you have your answer.”

The inside of the helicarrier was bustling with life. Scientists in crisp white lab coats drifted around while armed security members marched from corridor to corridor, looking for any threats. Standing in the middle of that mess was Maria Hill.

The brunette had her arms crossed, eyes focused on Flynn. “How the hell did you get her onboard so quickly?”

Fury chuckled, “I have my ways, Hill.”

Maria rolled her eyes. “Welcome aboard, Aspen.” She held out a hand for a quick shake. “Come with me and I’ll take you for testing. It’s just to make sure your physical health is decent. If not, we have world-class doctors on board.”

“Don’t forget about that paperwork,” hollered Fury, walking away from the two women.

The ladies made eye contact. “The paperwork isn’t much, don’t worry. Most of it’s just new stuff the council requires.” Maria explained, easing Flynn’s mind just a little.

They walked down the hall, heading towards the lab wing.

Walking through the helicarrier was just mind boggling. Each part of the air ship held a certain meaning, and all of them served it well. She passed by a holding cell of lower-level, petty villains sitting inside. Many of which were whining about calling their lawyers. Another section was dedicated to the testing out of weapons. A tall ginger dressed in precautionary armor threw a small, onyx colored orb at a rubber dummy (akin to the ones found in dojos). Upon making contact with the dummy, the circle exploded, wrapping it in two thin but sturdy pieces of white rope. The tester let out an impressed noise and went to scribble something down on the clipboard next to her.

Now, they were in the lab wing. Each scientist aboard the helicarrier had their own designated lab, Maria explained. The one they were heading to belonged to their lead medical examiner, the one they sent all of the new recruits to, Doctor Sierra Warner.

Dr. Warner was a tall black woman with thick dreads dyed light brown almost blonde, pulled into a ponytail atop her head. She greeted the two with a smile, motioning for Flynn to take a seat on the examination table. “Welcome,” she said, voice as sweet as her smile.

“Thank you,” Flynn replied as she hopped onto the table.

“Fury’s newest recruit?” She inquired, eye flitting between Maria and Flynn.

Maria nodded, “Yup.”

The following minutes were taken up by basic tests; ones where Dr. Warner would check Flynn’s reflexes and her eyesight. Pretty standard stuff. Then she kind of went off track. “Fury showed me footage of your. . .fight with David Van Dyke--”

Flynn’s eyes nearly popped out of her head. He has footage of that? “How the hell did he get footage of that?”

Dr. Warner chuckled, “SHIELD has cameras all over New York.”

“God, you guys are like big brother.”

“I like to think we have flashier stuff here,” said Warner. “But as I was saying, Fury showed me your video and I thought it would be smart to use a dosimeter on you; just to check your radiation levels.”

“But why?”

The doctor shrugged, “I just have this gut feeling. Here at SHIELD we developed our own version. Instead of having you hold it, you’ll breathe into it like a breathalyzer. The results come back much faster and more accurately. For whatever reason.” Dr. Warner reached into a desk, and pulled out the SHIELD dosimeter, which did look a lot like a breathalyzer. “You can tell that I didn’t help in the development of this.”

“Who did?” Flynn inquired, grabbing the dosimeter. She brought the tube to her lips, sending a steady stream of air into the piece of tech.

“Dr. Celeste Flores-Rivero.” Warner replied, pulling the dosimeter from her mouth after it beeped, allowing her to know it was done processing the sample it had received. “Before she dropped off the map,” she muttered, observing the data displayed on the dosimeter’s digital screen.

“I’ll tell you later,” Maria whispered, giving Flynn’s shoulder a pat.

Dr. Warner chewed on her bottom lip, eyes flitting from Flynn to the dosimeter. “Flynn, I’ve never seen numbers like this before.” She rubbed at her chin, face full of uncertainty. “You’re as radioactive as Chernobyl. Hell, I didn’t even know that was possible.”

“Me?” She pressed the tip of her finger right in the middle of her chest. “Me? Flynn Aspen me?”

She nodded, “Yes.”

Flynn’s fingers went right to the back of her neck, feeling the foreign object just below her skin. “What will happen then?” God, I should’ve just stayed in my fucking room.

Dr. Warner wheeled her chair over to Flynn, resting two gloved hands on her knee caps. “We’ll figure something out. We’ve dealt with the Hulk, we can deal with some radiation. For the moment we’ll keep doing tests and then figure out what our next steps are. Some of the most brilliant minds are here, we’ll find a way to help you cope.”

She let out a heavy sigh, deflating a little bit. “Okay, yeah, that’ll work.”

#marvel oc #marvel original character #marvel #marvel x you #marvel x reader #marvel x oc #avengers original character #avengers x reader #avengers #avengers x you #avengers oc #avengers x oc #nick fury #maria hill #mcu #original characters #*/ ✧ development ✧ */ ✧ flynn aspen ✧

21 notes · View notes

darkarfs · 3 years

Text

the worst movie tie-ins in the history of wrestling

Wrestling is stupid, and will show its ass at the mere mention of cross-promotion, especially when it comes to movies, which is it's cooler older brother that can get away with a lot more. Hell, the 2nd ever SummerSlam's main event, in 1989, was Hulk Hogan facing the main villain, Tiny Lister as Zeus (RIP), from the film they were both in, No Holds Barred. So wrestling's always wanted a piece of that. So... - Army of the Dead Let's just get this one out of the way. Here's the thing; I thought the WrestleMania Backlash's card was fucking perfect...except for this weird business. WMB MIGHT've been the best show of the pandemic (hot take) were it not for making sure we sell Big Dave's big zombie heist movie. If they had just kept some of the guys in zombie makeup on the Thunderdome's webcam footage, that would have been borderline charming. But instead, the Miz (who was WWE champion 3 months ago, don't forget) and Damien Priest (who they're making WWE's pop-culture liaison so far on the main roster, for some reason) had to sell for zombies in a lumberjack match. If this was the first ever wrestling show you watched with a loved one who had never watched wrestling or hadn't since like, the end of the Attitude Era, would you for a second want them to stick around after Miz and Morrison get, for all intents and purposes, kayfabe killed and eaten, and then watch Damien Priest shoot the logo at the ceiling? My money's on "no." - Shaft Speaking of the Attitude Era, anytime someone tells you that wrestling was cooler in that 3-year time frame, point them to the June 15th of 2000 episode of SmackDown, where a storyline that ran throughout the show followed Patterson and Briscoe through New York City to find Crash Holly and his Hardcore Title. Now, I admit parts of this are kinda funny, like Briscoe just wanting to give up and find a "gen-yoo-WINE New York hot dawg!" That's fun! And who does Crash Holly run into but none other than Shaft, and his woman, the only one who understands this complicated man, John Shaft. So, we have real Samuel L. Jackson, playing fake John Shaft, talking to real/fictional Crash Holly, and man is it weird. Anyway, Shaft agrees to be Crash's bodyguard for the night, and he slaps around Patterson and Briscoe in a nightclub. After all, what better way to get across how cool and badass a character is than having him knock around the fucking Stooges? - The Wrestler Well, this is complicated. The Wrestler, starring ancient wooden lion Mickey Rourke, is a somber tale about an industry that, in its heyday, left people physically spent, washed-up and addicted to adrenaline at best, and dead at worst. It famously moved Roddy Piper to tears because he recognized what destruction and brokenness the industry once left in its wake. Which is why it's super-weird that WWE jumped at the chance to promote maybe the bleakest possible look at their world in 2009, and did so by having Chris Jericho smack the shit out of three old wrestlers at WrestleMania 25, including Roddy Piper. And then have Rourke jump into the ring, wearing his "do you want to take peyote in the desert?" starter kit and bring out his amateur boxing chops. Tonally, it's just really bleak. Like if the creator of Super Size Me screened the premiere at the world's biggest McDonald's. - Bride of Chucky Poor Rick Steiner. You didn't deserve this. You're the sane Steiner. They shouldn't have made you talk to the puppet. So, WCW was heading into Halloween Havoc 1998, and after years of stomping all over the WWF in the ratings, the wheels had come off, and dramatically. Like, all at once. Like the car in the Blues Brothers. To boost PPV buys, they spent a fortune bringing in the Ultimate Warrior to rekindle a feud with Hulk Hogan, mostly by hiding in his fucking mirror. And the Steiner Brothers, one of the best teams of the early 90s, had been feuding with one another since Scott turned on his at SuperBrawl. What was the best way to build hype around this match at Halloween Havoc? Why, to have Rick get into a war of words - and lose - to Chucky. Yes.

Serial killer doll voiced by Brad Dourif, and it's so sad. Chucky cusses Rick out while Rick challenges the fucking doll to a fight, which is promptly ignored (Chucky's video segment is pre-recorded, and you can tell because he starts talking about 3 times in 3 minutes while Rick's mid-promo and missing his cues to stop) and then is made fun of. And all the while, people were probably wondering "what's going on on Vince's show?" and the answer is...that was the episode of Raw where Austin fills Vince's Corvette with cement, which is slightly more badass than being teased by a puppet. - The Goods Here's the thing: Raw is, right now, a bad show. It is bad TV. It's been bad for a while now. And as bad as it is right now, it's still not as fuck-awful as it was in 2009, aka the Age of the Guest Hosts (which, in kayfabe, was given to us by Donald J. Trump, so blame that ambulatory Nazi scrotum for one more thing, he's certainly earned it). For those of you fortunate enough to not be watching what was objectively unwatchable at the time - and hell, I sure as shit wasn't checking in very often - from mid-2009 to around mid-2010, a celebrity would be the special guest host of Monday Night Raw, often to promote a TV show or movie, and it was nearly all horribly-written, cheesy wank. Imagine if every week was the week of the zombie attack at Backlash. That's what it was like. Bob Barker was funny. The Muppets were good. And THAT'S the end of the list. MacGruber coming out to blow up R-Truth made me want to fall on a knife. The A-Team coming out to beat up Virgil was fucking awful. Go straight to fucking HELL, the Three Stooges, Dennis Miller, the reverend Al Sharpton, the 2010 Pittsburgh Steelers, Don Johnson and Jon Heder, the poor entire cast of Hot Tub Time Machine...and then there's Piven. Jeremy Piven. He showed up with Ken Jeong to promote a movie no one remembers...called the Goods. He stunk up several segments, infamously called SummerSlam "the Summer Fest" and then got roughed up by John Cena. Wrestling's the worst. Stop watching. And many did. For a looooooong time. - Robocop 2 This one's infamous, so I'll keep it brief. Robocop 2 came out in 1990, and goddamn, I don't know how much money the producers threw at WCW, but it was enough for them to rebrand an entire PPV "Capitol Combat: the Return of Robocop" and marketed the entire thing around the fancy metallic gentleman. The branding really made it seem like Robert Cop was old friends with the promotion, and indeed, old friends with Sting. Makes sense; two big, heroic idiots running on BASIC. He had been feuding with the Four Horsemen, who locked him in a cage at ringside. Out comes Robocop, called completely straight by Jim Ross, who rips the cage door off his hinges, and then leaves. An accumulated 85 seconds of screen time. Totally worth being the centerpiece of this PPV! But a little context as to why WCW fans hated it so much: 1989, the year before, was regarded by WCW fans as one of the best in company history. The era that gave us stuff like Chi-Town Rumble and the still-very-much-lauded peak of the Steamboat/Flair feud. To go from that to Robocop was seen as a bit of a slap in the face, because WCW was always seen as the more traditional "wrasslin'" company and was never into cheesy pop-culture crossovers, which is why the last one...is all the funnier.

- Ready To Rumble First of all, those dumbasses at Turner had to give Michael Buffer - who they still had on retainer - around $350,000 just to use that title, because he owns the trademark to that phrase. Strike 127 million, capitalism, that a guy gets to own a phrase and gets paid an obscene amount when he or anyone else uses it. Secondly, I initially wasn't going to do movies where the promotion itself is producing the movie, or oh holy HELL would See No Evil and the infamous May 19 shit be on here. But unlike See No Evil, this had a hand in killing a decades-old wrestling promotion, so it feels weird to not include it. On April 7th, 2000, bad movie Ready To Rumble was released, a film about two hapless dorks trying to help Oilver Platt, aka the lawyer from the West Wing, become WCW World Heavyweight Champion. Two weeks later, to promote the movie, they made David Arquette, the lead actor in the movie, the WCW World Heavyweight Champion. He pinned Eric Bischoff, who wasn't the champion, of course, in a match where he was teamed with Diamond Dallas Page, his best pal and the company's top babyface at the time, but who is also one of the villains in the film to make it extra confusing for the mainstream casual audience the movie was made to attract. And, to be fair, Arquette didn't want to do it, NO ONE really wanted to do it, and it tanked viewership for WCW once and for all. At the very least, David took his payday from the wrestling appearances and the film and gave it to the families of Owen Hart, Brian Pillman and to Darren Drozdov, who had been paralyzed from the neck down in a wrestling match the previous year.

7 notes · View notes

eternallyyoungjustice · 3 years

Text

Wherever the Winds Take You: Chapter 13

A/N: Okay, not gonna lie, didn’t really edit this one much. It’s super duper short, sticks pretty close to the episode, and it’s just been a week. So I apologize for any spelling errors or awkward phrasing. But otherwise, I hope you all like it! Thank you so much for your continued support of my shameless guilty pleasure.

Santa Prisca July 22 21:10

The tunnel remained dark and cold for a few minutes, the only sounds being the ragged breaths of six young heroes and the shuffle of feet against stone. All members collectively could hear their own heartbeat in their ears, and felt the adrenaline pumping through their veins.

Finally, a loud crack broke the silence and an eerie red glow emitted from the glowstick that Aqualad held and promptly tossed to the ground. Every member of the team stood there; Kid Flash and Zephyr showing the most wear, as the non-humans held good composure and Robin stood silently, staring at the barricade of rock and debris that separated the team from the way they came.

After a moment, however, Robin finally broke the silence.

“How could my first mission as leader go so wrong?”

“You do have the most experience, but perhaps that is exactly what has left you unprepared.” Aqualad spoke. “Fighting alongside Batman, your roles are defined. You two do not need to talk. But this team is new, and a leader must be clear, explicit. He cannot vanish and expect others to play parts in an unknown plan.”

Robin whirled around, snarled and poison-tongued. “Oh, so I’m supposed to hold everyone’s hands?!” The boy let out a growl of frustration and glared down at the ground. But then, after a moment, the tension in his shoulders released and his form slumped slightly. “Oh, who am I kidding? You should lead us, Kaldur. You’re the only one who can.”

“Please! I can run circles-” Kid Flash’s outburst was cut off by Robin’s now much calmer tone. “Wally, come on. You know he’s the one.” The young boy’s eyes lifted to meet his elder’s. “We all do.”

“Hello, Megan! It’s so obvious!” M’gann chirped.

“Could’a told you.” Superboy shrugged.

Kaldur’s eyes met Lina’s knowing gaze. “You know you have my vote.”

Everyone turned to Wally, who stood awkwardly for a moment before sighing in resignation. “Okay!”

“Then I accept the burden,” Kaldur nodded, stepping towards Robin and placing a hand on the younger boy’s shoulder, “until you are ready to lift it from my shoulders. You were born to lead this team, maybe not now, but soon.” Robin nodded, his normal smile returning to his face.

Kaldur turned back to speak to the team as a whole. “Alright, our first priority is preventing that shipment from leaving this island.”

“Funny,” Robin smirked, “I had the same thought.”

As the group began to dash down the tunnel’s length, they began to compare notes.

“Robin and I discovered data about the new shipments on a computer in the warehouse.” Kid Flash spoke up. “It looks like Kobra has combined Venom and the Blockbuster formula from Cadmus, making Venom three times as strong and permanent.”

“So obviously Kobra attacked Bane’s Satna Prisca to have an unlimited supply of the Venom formula, making it able to create the new superformula.” Robin explained. “Which explains how normal supply chains have been cut off if--it’s for a whole new product. But it doesn’t explain how Kobra got his hands on Dr. Desmond’s formula.”

“We discovered that the supplier arriving today was the villain, Sportsmaster.” Aqualad nodded.

Robin pulled up his holo-computer. “Okay, so that must mean Sportsmaster is the supplier and buyer...but it still doesn’t track. He’s a gun for hire, he doesn’t have the power to acquire the blockbuster formula or to get Kobra to do his dirty work.”

“And neither of them have the chops to bond blockbuster with venom. That took some major nerdage.” Kid Flash chimed in.

“I believe the expression is…” As the team arrived at the mouth of the entrance, they were met with the sight of Bane standing there, finishing pumping himself with his normal venom serum which connected from a tube from his arm to the base of his skull, and seemed to enhance his muscle to an inhuman amount. With a sigh of relief, the masked villain dropped the vial formerly containing venom and gazed down at the team of young heroes with a crazed look in his eyes. “‘tip of the iceberg’.”

“Halt, ninos.” Bane growled and revealed a handheld trigger in his grasp. “I’m feeling...explosive.” Simultaneous beeping alerted the team to gaze up, revealing a large number of charged explosives around the mouth of the tunnel.

“You betrayed us, why?” Aqualad spoke, in a tone that-to anyone that knew him-sounded very fake. Bane, however, didn’t seem to notice the falseness. While Bane was distracted, the Atlantean reached out via the telepathic link. “Kid, you’ll need a running start.”

“I want my factory back!” Bane began to monologue. “So I forced you into a situation where you would either take down my enemies for me, or die trying. If the latter, the Justice League would certainly have come to avenge their sidekicks. And when the smoke cleared, Santa Prisca would be mine once more...blowing the tunnel with you inside, should have the same effects.”

Caught in his own monologue, Bane didn’t see the dark blue that flew by him.

“With what?” Kid Flash suddenly asked, now suddenly behind the hulking man and holding the hand-held trigger that had just been in Bane’s grasp. “This trigger thingy?”

Bane let out a loud growl and pulled back to land a strong punch to the speedster, but promptly found himself being lifted off his feet by an invisible force. Being slowly turned around, Bane saw a smiling Miss Martain standing under him, lifting him telekinetically with a raised hand.

“Finally,” Superboy smirked as he stepped forward, and cracked his knuckles. “Drop him.”

Santa Prisca July 22 21:31

Back outside the warehouse, at its helipad, we watched patiently until Sportsmaster and Kobra bid goodbye to one another. Sportsmaster was a tall, hulking man that was essentially all muscle, who wore a signature goalie mask over his face, but otherwise had no notable physical traits. Kobra, on the other hand, has an almost just as tall figure with an equally as strong build, although his muscles were not nearly as hulking as his compatriots’ and hid his figure under a dark crimson cloak. His pale skin was almost anemic and seemed to glow under the light of the moon, but somehow didn’t make him look sickly. Overall, the aura around him made Zephyr’s spine tingle uncomfortably.

“This Kobra man…” Zephyr whispered from her spot in the shadows next to Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad. “I do not like his vibe.”

Robin snickered quietly. “Have you liked any villains’ ‘vibe’ before?”

The young girl thought for a moment. “Poison Ivy.” She whispered, thinking deeply. “She is, uh, qu'est-ce que...fine as hell, tres tres bonne. Robin, why are most of your famous villains so good-looking, hm? Seems very unfair.”

This made both Robin and Kid Flash snort with laughter to the point where they had to muffle themselves.

“Do you want to trade cities Zeph’?” Robin asked, eyebrows cocked in amusement.

The young women paled, recalling the patrol she and Aqualad had done the other night. “Fair enough! No thank you!”

This made Robin chuckle a little more.

Sportsmaster began to make his way towards the helicopter, causing Aqualad to give Kid Flash his signal, and the young ginger ran off at lightning speed, knocking down cultists and pulling gunfire in his wake.

“Protect the shipment!” A cult member exclaimed. Just in time for Superboy to jump and land in front of Mammoth, who stood next to Kobra.

“Go again?” The clone yelled at the hulking beast, causing it to roar and attack. However, it was promptly forced off-course by a sudden continuous force of water, controlled by Aqualad, sending him right into nearby trees. “Sorry, not the plan.”

As Mammoth roared fiercely and began to fight back against being sprayed, Zephyr flew over him, moving her arms and collecting as many of the coldest Winds she could find. The girl reached high up into the atmosphere to find the ones to complete her task and sent them crashing down onto the blast of water and onto Mammoth, freezing the water around him until slowly but eventually, he was encased in thick, frigid, ice.

At being controlled so forcefully, the Winds carrying Zephyr faltered and the girl landed on the ground in a crouching stance. “I am going to be honest with you,” She called to her new team leader as she dodged a cultist’s fire. “I did not know if that would work!” She managed to grab hold of the cultist’s gun and bashed him in the head with it, before chucking it at another cultist’s head, successfully rendering both unconscious.

“Be thankful it did then!” Aqualad yelled back as he fought his own share of cultists.

Not a moment later, the helicopter filled with products began to take off with Sportsmaster inside. Zephyr turned and prepared her Winds to go after it, just in case, but was relieved when it exploded into flames mid-air, causing it to plummet down towards the factory. Off in the distance, the figure of Sportsmaster leaping out and deploying a parachute could be seen.

As the burning helicopter dropped into the factory, it only took a moment before a deep, rumbling ‘boom’ seemed to shake the island as a whole, and flames erected from the giant metal structures. As the fire began to swallow up the entirety of the warehouses, the cultists-those who remained conscious enough to stand-began to flee from the helipad and into the forest, causing the team to turn its attention to Kobra, who stood (no longer wearing his cloak) over Robin, with a single foot pinning the boy to the ground. The cult leader seemed to scan the six teenagers carefully as if weighing his chances of success, but ultimately began to move away, removing his foot from Robin’s chest and slinking away into the shadows of the trees with a low, grumbling “another time then…”

Robin stood, and immediately darted into where Kobra had disappeared, but alas, he was gone without a trace. Slowly walking back to his team, Robin gazed up at the sizzling remains of the factory and watched the flames like at the metal for a moment, before looking back down at his comrades.

“We picked the right guy to lead.” Robin nodded with a smile at Aqualad. “...automatically making you the right guy to explain this mess to Batman!” Robin walked away, laughing, and Kaldur’s face seemed to immediately drain of any blood as fear entered his eyes.

“Don’t worry Aqualad.” M’gann piped up, floating close to her leader. “We won’t let Batman chew you out too much! Besides, I was technically the one who made the helicopter explode.”

“Yeah, don’t sweat it too much.” Wally smiled. “We’re a team now, which means we’re all gonna be killed by Bats equally!” This earned him looks from all the remaining members.

“Your bedside manner definitely could use some improvements, my friend.” Lina shook her head, but she quickly offered a supportive smile to her best friend-now leader.

Mount Justice July 23 10:01

“A simple recon mission! Observe and report!” Batman growled loudly, his tone so uniquely terrifying that it could possibly strike fear into every living creature on the planet. Or at least that’s what it felt like. “You will each receive a written evaluation detailing your many mistakes. But until then…”

The main open room of the cave seemed to ring with anticipated breath as the co-leader of the Justice League paused.

“Good job.”

This shocked every member of the team with surprise, causing them to all whirl their heads to look at Batman with bewildered looks.

“No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy. How you adjust to the unforeseen is what determines success. And how you choose who leads determines character.” Batman turned and began walking away. “You’re all dismissed.”

“Did…” Wally spoke, a small smile itching at his lips. “Did we just get verbally patted on the back by the Batman? For blowing up a factory?”

“I...I think we did!” Robin chuckled, running a stunned hand through his spiky black hair.

“We just finished our first actual mission together, right?” M’gann perked up. “I believe that’s cause for celebration! What do you guys think?” All the members of the team looked to one another, and then looked to Kaldur.

“Well...leader gives the orders.” Robin smirked.

Kaldur smiled and nodded. “Celebration is well-deserved, I think.”

The team all cheered, or in Superboy’s case silently smiled, and began making their way towards the exit to the cave.

“I’m thinking...pizza, Chinese food, snacks and a movie marathon...with possibly dessert provided by the lovely M’gann?” Wally asked, shooting finger guns at the martian herself.

“You...want me to make dessert? After my batch of cookies went so wrong?” M’gann asked, seemingly delighted and flattered.

“I will give you some help in the kitchen M’gann, don’t worry,” Lina said, locking her arm with the younger girl’s. “We’re going to need two sets of hands in the kitchen if we need to feed Kid Mouth and everyone else anyway.”

“Oh, this is going to be sweet!!” Wally exclaimed.

As the gang began to loudly plan their big party, Lina leaned away from the conversation slightly, pulling her phone out of the pocket of her jean jacket. Unlocking the device, she quickly found her and Roy’s texting conversation. Smiling to herself, she quickly types out her message.

Call me when you get home from patrol tonight! You’re going to want to hear about our first mission! Guess who our new leader is…. :D -L

4 notes · View notes

tilltheendwilliwrite · 4 years

Text

Not Another Mummy!

Chapter One

First Chapter will be on Tumblr only until more can be written. Story originated thanks to this thread. One hundred percent @magellan-88 ‘s fault.

Pairing: Stucky | Word Count: 2001

Warnings: Language, mild angst, takes place after CA:TWS

Rick O'Connell was a mummy hunter.

It hadn't always been his job, but he fell into it rather naturally. Well, Evie fell into it by way of raising Imhotep from the dead, damn near dying as the sacrifice to return his dead lover Anck-su-namun to the living, and then banishing him to the underworld.

Twice.

As he was the (often) put upon hothead Yank to her more stoic (stiff upper lip, Chaps) British ways, her colleagues rolled their eyes at her but always out of Rick's line of sight. Still, there was no one better when it came to weird, ancient woo-woo crap.

So when a telegram came from a woman named Pegs, Evie had dropped everything to run to her side.

It didn't matter they were crossing warzones or dragging their seventeen-year-old son with them to occupied France, Evie was going.

That was how Rick O'Connell met Steve Rogers, the Captain America, and his best friend, Bucky Barnes, and learned there was such a thing as kindred spirits.

Because Steven Grant Rogers was a punk with balls the size of Texas and no sense of self-preservation, and while Rick would never comment on the size of Evie's metaphorical brass bangers, the first time Bucky Barnes groaned with all the dramatics of a putout housewife and screamed, "Steven Grant Rogers! What the hell are you doing? Get down from there; you shit little punk!" Rick knew he'd finally met someone with his own Evie.

For Barnes, Rogers was a bit like watching Evie, Alex, and Jonathan all rolled into one, but he at least had Peggy and the Howling Commandos as backup. Rick only had himself - and occasionally Ardeth Bay - to keep his troop of walking disasters from falling into pits, and waking the undead.

In France, the Howlies helped them clear out the spookables in the castle where Pegs had found the books she knew Evie would want to preserve, and the O'Connells and Howling Commandos had parted ways.

Over the next few years, they occasionally crossed paths, and Rick developed a lasting friendship with Bucky Barnes built on saving their idiots and loving them with their whole hearts.

So when the news came that Barnes had died, Rick took it hard. He tried to find Steve, but the war was too hot, and any commiseration of grief would have to wait.

Still, he drowned himself in liquor for a week straight, and Evie, lovely, wonderful Evie, his very own Steve Rogers, poured him repeatedly into bed, where if Rick cried out his grief against her, she never told a soul.

Then, with the news about Steve, Rick was both saddened and a little at peace. At least they were together. They could spend their afterlife as they had their life. Together. Best friends and, if Rick wasn't mistaken, something a little closer to what he had with Evie than either man shared publicly.

Rick didn't mind. He'd seen them together. Love like that, what did gender matter?

Decades later, when the news splashed across the screen that Steve Rogers was alive, Rick again cried for Bucky Barnes. Seventy years apart. How cruel was this world?

Things had changed by then, some for the better, some worse, but when Steve Rogers once again took up his shield and defeated the enemy falling out of the sky, Rick knew the world hadn't lost both heroes. Steve was still there, still fighting, still a symbol of hope to a nation desperately in need of it.

When the giant of a man showed up at Rick's door, after the Battle for New York, Rick was one hundred and ten years old. The look of surprise on Steve's face made Rick chuckle, even as he welcomed him inside and shuffled back to his recliner.

They didn't talk about Bucky, though they did chat about Peggy, and Steve asked after Evie, gone now almost thirty years. A long time to be without his soulmate. They'd lost Jonathon before Evie, surprisingly to something as benign as a heart attack, not the loan sharks Rick always figured would do him in. Alex was eighty-six, but that hadn't stopped him from continuing the family business, hunting down artifacts and saving them and humanity when such was required.

Steve smiled softly before saying, "Thank you. People always know what I do or what I've done. They see me as a hero, but you and Evelyn, Alex and Jonathon? You saved the world a couple of times yourselves, but no one knows."

Rick shrugged. "I didn't do it for the world."

Two years later, though Steve didn't visit much, he kept in touch via email or text, which both surprised and touched Rick. He'd moved back to the States after Evie's death, mostly because he couldn't stand to be where she wasn't and had made a life there with Alex hovering.

Then one night, Steve showed up on his doorstep in the pouring rain, still healing from the bruises and broken ribs.

"He's alive."

Rick didn't need to ask who. Just led Steve into the house where the man fell to his knees beside Rick's chair and cried against his thigh like his soul had broken.

Or maybe it was like the broken bits were slowly forging back together, a beautiful work of Kintsugi, his fractured soul now filling with golden lines of hope.

When Steve left, it was with determination and purpose Rick hadn't seen on him since the forties. It was like he became a man possessed, determined to find what he'd lost, and Rick wished him every bit of luck. If Rick had the chance to get Evie back, there would be no stopping him.

Two more years passed, Rick aged a little more, and finally, a knock came at his door. He was one hundred and fourteen when he saw Bucky again. One hundred and fourteen, when he opened the door to a man haunted by trauma Rick couldn't even fathom.

Still, he opened the door to a grinning Steve, but it was the scowling Barnes he looked at.

"Jesus fuck you got old," Barnes muttered.

"Bucky!" Steve gasped.

Rick laughed so hard he made himself wheeze and waved them in. They joined him in his living room, where he sat, unable to stop smiling. "Good to see you haven't lost your sense of humour."

"Lost some good chunks of memory, but some nice people helped stuff them back in."

The harsh, cold blue eyes weren't the ones he remembered, but Rick could see him in there. He knew the stories, had heard all the reports. Longest living POW. Assassin. Killed JFK. Some said, war hero. Others cried, villain.

Rick knew it was likely a little of both in Barnes' mind.

But Steve still looked at Bucky like he hung the moon, and Bucky occasionally linked his pinky finger through Steve's when he thought Rick wouldn't notice.

"It's nice to see you boys back together." He jerked his chin at Steve. "That one mopes around something fierce."

"We're figuring it out," Steve said, enough force in the sentence to make it clear he was tired of Bucky running. It had taken two years to get the man to stop. "We've worked things out with Stark. Tony's a hothead, he's angry, but he gets Bucky wasn't in control as the soldier."

Rick watched Barnes' flinch. "No, but it was still your hands, right, Buck?"

Blue eyes darted to his and then away. "How the hell are you still alive?"

"Jeez, Buck!" Steve growled.

Rick chuckled, enjoying the role reversal. "Clean living."

They both snorted.

"Clean my ass. I've never seen anyone out drink Dum Dum before. What gives, O'Connell?" Barnes muttered.

Rick glanced at Steve. There was a pink flush to the man's cheeks, a clear indication this was something they'd talked about, but Steve had never asked. Rick had always wondered if it was out of self-preservation. Maybe he thought asking would jinx whatever link Steve had left to his past.

"Alex?" he called out. "Could you come in here?"

"You sure, Dad?"

Steve and Bucky both stiffened and exchanged a look, likely surprised they hadn't known Alex was there.

"I thought you said Alex was still in London?" Steve frowned.

"I lied," Rick smirked. "Yeah, boy. Get your arse in here."

He trotted down the hall and into the living room. "Highya, fellas!"

Bucky and Steve stared, gaping from Alex to Rick and back.

"Shit," Bucky hissed. "They got you too? How come no one knows?"

Alex leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, grin wide, his face as smooth and unwrinkled as it had been at twenty-five, the year he stopped ageing. The bright, burnished blond of his mop of unruly curls, something he'd inherited from Evie and only recently allowed to grow out, fell over his forehead and into his eyes.

"He's not a super-soldier," Rick explained before either man could have kittens. "Seems there was a side effect to the Bracelet of Anubis no one knew about."

Alex spread his arms and gave a cheeky grin. "Looks like I'm immortal."

Rick slapped a hand to his face. "Unageing is not immortal. You can still die, dumbass!"

"That explains him, but what about you?" Steve asked.

"Something to do with the temple." Rick shrugged. "I went through the door with him. Some of the power rubbed off. I age, just… slower."

"Hence the reason you look a spry eighty?" Barnes mumbled.

Rick chuckled, reached up, and pulled the prosthetics from his face. "More like a spry fifty."

"Jesus!" Steve's eyes went wide. "I never even guessed!"

"Alex is good with the face paint. We've had to be. And that's another reason we moved back here. People were starting to remark on the uncanny resemblance of my grandson to my son."

Steve and Bucky exchanged a look.

"What?" Rick murmured. "Surely, this isn't too much after witches, aliens, and giant green Hulks?"

"No. No, it's not that," Steve said, quick to reassure them. "It's just…"

"Punk had a second reason for coming today. The Avengers found some woo-woo shit. He wanted you to take a look at it. Stark's fancy AI can tell us lots, but she ain't you."

Rick leaned forward, his back cracking, thankful to be straightened. "I'm no Evie, but squirt over there took after her for smarts. She was always the brain. I was just the muscle."

"Come on, Dad." Alex sauntered in and nudged him. "You learned loads from Mum. Plus, that Warrior for God thing comes in handy on occasion."

"Warrior for God?" Bucky asked.

Rick worked the cuff off his right arm, showing them the tattoo hidden beneath it. "Sorry, fellas. Didn't tell you everything that happened with the Scorpion King."

"Yeah. Like how we used the Book of the Dead to bring Mum back to life," Alex grinned.

"I'm sorry. You did what now?" Steve asked.

Rick laughed and shook his head. "All in good time. Alex, get the whiskey. Let's see what you've got."

Steve rose and returned to the door where he'd left a backpack, while Alex grabbed four glasses and a bottle and dumped an unhealthy amount into each one. The bag clanked when Steve set it on the floor between his feet, and Rick arched a brow.

"This is what we found." He placed the golden box on the coffee table.

Rick gave a low whistle. "Jonathon would have liked the look of that."

"It's really brilliant, isn't it?" Alex mumbled as he crouched to take a closer look. "Look at the way the rubies are inlaid. It's like someone wanted it to appear as if it were dripping blood." He spun it slowly, taking in the images and raised glyphs. "Shite, Dad! Do you know what this is?"

Rick didn't get a chance to answer no as Alex was already running out of the room.

"So, is he as reckless as Evie?" Bucky asked, the first semblance of a smirk since his arrival twitching the man's lips.

"Worse. He's got a nose for treasure like Jonathon and my stubbornness," Rick chuckled. "Then, there's his mouth."

"Which he definitely got from you," Steve chuckled.

Rick didn't dispute it.

Alex returned and dropped a book as thick as Steve's arm on the table, causing it to jump, the chest to skitter across it, and only the reflexes of two super-soldiers to keep everything from going sideways.

"Alex! Calm your enthusiasm!" Rick barked.

"No! No, calming!" The manic gleam in his eyes never boded well for any expedition. "Look!"

He wrenched the book open, sending dust and the scent of musty pages spinning, but it opened on an illustrated page of a female warrior standing over the bodies of the slain.

"Ah, no," Rick groaned. "Not another mummy!"

#the mummy #the avengers #crossover #coming soonish

127 notes · View notes

jinmukangwrites · 4 years

Text

Whumptober Day 25

Blurred Vision | Ringing Ears

Ao3

Summary: Early into Damian's run as Robin, he finds himself in the aftermath of a warehouse explosion.

-o-o-o-o-

Damian's ears are ringing. That's the first thing he's aware of. The high pitched chiming that's almost as grating as the bells sewn into the tips of Christmas hats. The next thing he becomes aware of is just… pain. Biting close to agony. He shifts, tries to cringe away from the pain, but all it does is tug at something crushingly heavy that lays over his body.

It's a task and a half just to pry his own eyes open. They're crusted, with blood or just normal gunk he's not sure. All he knows is that when his eyes finally open, the only thing there is to see are blurry blobs of orange shooting up towards a black abyss. It's then when he realizes just how hot he is.

Desperate to figure out what's going on and where he is, he brings his hands to the heavy pressure laying over his chest. It doesn't go anywhere when he pushes, but he really doesn't feel that strong, and he’s not sure he’d be able to push against the pressure even if he understood what was going on. He blinks his blurry eyes and licks his chapped lips, but nothing happens besides him being made aware of a pounding ache at the side of his head.

He tries to relax his body now, maybe lay there and let himself calm down from the confusion of waking up disoriented, but the moment he lets his muscles go limp, he catches sight of a big, hulking figure approaching quickly through the orange blobs.

Immediately, Damian's in fight mode. The figure stops before him, towering like a dark demon, before it kneels down. The second it's within shot, Damian lashes out, throwing out a fist to try and hit… hit somewhere.

It's useless as his small wrist is easily caught in shadows. The fingers wrapped around his wrists feel tight enough to bruise.

Something booms through the ringing in his ears. Something that sounds like the muffled sounds of voices on the other side of a thick wall. Damian tries to focus. Tries to tug his wrist. Tries to at least listen to the deep voice that almost sounds familiar… he just can't place why. He knows it. He can’t place anything at all.

"-eve it or not, I'm trying to help-"

And then Damian can't focus anymore, not as the figure leans over him and shoves off whatever is pinning Damian down. His entire world becomes one of vertigo as the strange person hefts him up and over his shoulders in a fireman's carry. Damian's ribs scream in protest, and it's all he can do at least try to struggle. However, a strong arm wraps around his kicking legs with laughable ease. Damian's soon rendered helpless, hanging from the person's broad shoulders, his hands able to do nothing but weakly hit their leather jacket clad back.

His vision sways. He's pretty sure he might be bleeding from his ears. And the pain only intensifies as he's carried.

Damian almost wants to cry in frustration. He has no idea who this person is… or what they want with him. What if they were the one who hurt him? What if it's them who caused Damian to wake up here?

What if this was an enemy, and Damian couldn't even struggle.

Pathetic.

"-ot you- I got-"

Damian blinks, or maybe falls asleep, and when he opens his eyes the world is speeding past him and his head feels heavy with a biker's helmet that doesn't belong to him. There's a large body pressed against his chest, and his arms are wrapped around their torso and somehow tied to stay there.

The world tilts, and Damian loses consciousness again... which is better than throwing up like he almost does.

-o-o-o-o-

Waking up is even worse the second time. Mostly because Damian is more aware to feel just how much pain he’s in.

He groans and tries to shift, but once again he’s stopped.

Only, this time it’s because his hands are zip-tied together and attached to his belt. His eyes fly open with a shot of adrenaline. He reaches into his utility belt and tries to find something to free himself with, but he quickly finds that there’s nothing there. His belt has been completely disarmed.

“Stop moving around so much,” a voice suddenly growls, but it’s muffled. Like Damian has cotton stuffed in his ears. He’s now awfully aware of a persistent and sharp ringing right behind his eardrums. “I worked hard on your stitches.”

Damian opens his eyes and while nothing goes into focus, he’s still able to direct his eyes over to who he least expected to come to his rescue, but who he supposes he’s now the captive of.

Jason Todd. His big, muscled form sits across whatever small room Damian’s in with his hands across his chest. His helmet is nowhere to be seen, but the vague outline of red over his eyes suggests he’s wearing a mask. Damian forces his body to relax and compose itself as he does his best to study his surroundings. All he can really make out is the vague walls of the room—painted a distasteful brown—and the bare, hard as a rock mattress he lays on top of. He tries to shift into a better position, to not look as vulnerable in front of the enemy, but he’s quickly stopped by two different things.

One is the plastic bindings around his ankles. The other is that the movement makes him very aware of those stitches Todd was talking about.

Instead of risking making a fool of himself by wriggling like a caterpillar, nor risking tearing his stitches, Damian glares at Todd through the haze of blurriness.

“What-” Damian starts, but he’s cut off as his chest explodes into fire. His chest hurts.

Todd stands up as Damian desperately tries to get a hold of himself. He tenses as the villain gets too close and reaches to the side to grab something blurry.

Damian tenses as Todd holds out whatever he’s holding out to Damian’s face. Damian cringes back, but Todd has none of it. He grabs Damian by the shoulder and hefts him up so he’s sitting, his body haunches over slightly as his hands remain trapped just under his belly button. He hisses at the smarting the movement causes and blinks spots from his eyes.

Todd lets go Damian, unfortunately, has to catch his breath as a seed of confusion settles at the back of his skull. Even though being lifted like this hurt… Todd was shockingly gentle.

Before he can even try to consider what that could mean and how that ties into whatever crazy plan Todd had up his sleeves, the thing held out to him earlier is once again shoved under his nose. Sitting up may have rubbed every single one of his injuries the wrong way, but it’s also somewhat cleared his head; enough so that he can tell that the item held to his mouth is…

An opened bottle of water.

Damian scowls. “How do I know it’s not drugged,” he growls. Or gurgles. It feels like someone took a blade to his mouth and carved the inside of his esophagus apart.

“Because,” Todd says, sounding insultingly amused, “I have a syringe filled with actual sedatives that I’ll give ya if you keep being difficult. Drink.”

Damian is almost tempted to turn down the water out of spite. But his chest… feels like it’s on fire. Even the thought of speaking another word gives him the feeling that something red hot and unpleasant is dripping down his throat. Instead of saying anything, he opens his mouth and shoves any embarrassment he would normally have somewhere else in his mind. Todd rather… carefully… pours the water into Damian’s mouth. At first, the liquid stings, but soon enough Damian doesn’t even care about how undignified it is to be given water like this. It feels cold and refreshing going down his throat. Soothing. He tells himself that it’s just him accepting help. Grayson says accepting help is never shameful.

Granted, Todd is the one who has tied him up and made him helpless to quench his own thirst.

But he’ll worry about the details later.

Once the plastic bottle is empty, Todd puts the cap back on and then begins to crush the plastic between his hands, twisting it at the middle mindlessly as he regards Damian. Damian regards him as well as he tries to figure out what exactly is going on and what will happen from this point forward.

He clears his throat. “Why am I here?”

“Cuz you almost got yourself blown up in a warehouse,” Todd says back, his voice sharp.

Ah. Damian remembers now. He snuck off away from Grayson during patrol after they had an argument about Grason not trusting Damian to go off on his own. He found… some sort of shady deal going on by the docks and… while the rest of the details are a bit harder to recall, he still knows that it quite literally ended with a bang. Todd must have been close by.

It doesn’t explain why he helped Damian though. Nor why he took Damian back here.

Instead, he glares at the fuzzy outline of Jason Todd. “What do you want from me?”

Todd shrugs. Leans back, twists the annoying bottle in his hands some more. “Nothing. I’m just waiting for the sedative to kick in.”

Damian freezes. Then glares. Of course. Of course he’s drugged Damian anyways.

Almost immediately after that, he feels a wave of dizziness take over. Damian sways against his will, but before he can completely fall over, Todd grabs him by the shoulders and lowers him back onto the mattress.

“Don’t take it personal, squirt,” Todd mumbles, his voice becoming very far away. Damian’s blurry vision begins to swim. “It’s just gonna be easier to deal with big bird while you’re knocked out. And you can’t try and fight me if you’re asleep.”

Damian blinks hard and tries to make sense of the swirling world above him. “Wh… what…”

“Just wait, next time you wake up, you’re gonna be back home with everyone worrying bout’cha.’

The end of Todd’s sentence becomes nothing but words bouncing around uselessly around Damain’s skull. Before he knows it, his eyelids are unwillingly closing and everything becomes silent.

-o-o-o-o-

Todd is right. The next time Damian wakes up, he’s in his bedroom, Grayson immediately perking up to attack him with... unwanted?... cuddles and worries. Time has definitely passed, and he’s painfully aware of every stitch, bruised rib, and burn on his body. He explains to Grayson once his stomach is no longer rolling that Todd hasn’t done anything to hurt him besides drugging him.

Grayson then explains that he got a note from Todd to meet him to pick Damian up and then didn’t get a single explanation as to what Todd’s intentions or plans were once he got there. Apparently, Damian was handed over willingly and without much tussle besides some sass. Todd left before Grayson even got Damian to the car, saying to forget about the safehouse they were at because he’s not going to be using it again.

Damian can tell Grayson is trying to find reason in Todd’s recent actions; it’s like he’s trying to convince himself that Todd is still some version of a boy he knew long ago, before he went off the deep end and started killing anyone he saw problematic.

Damian doesn’t tell Grayson of Todd’s shocking gentleness. He doesn’t want to give his hopes up.

Because while Damian, too, finds Todd’s behavior odd tonight, he also knows that perhaps seeing Robin go into an exploding warehouse brought up specific memories for the man. Damian is aware of the circumstances of his demise. He probably just didn’t want to see someone go out the same way he did with the same colors and name.

One thing is for sure, Damian will continue to treat Todd like an enemy until he can prove himself to be trustworthy.

Until he can prove that gentleness isn’t reserved for accidental kidnappings and ransoms.

Weeks pass, and Damian is reluctantly cleared by Pennyworth to rejoin Grayson into the city for patrol. They run into Todd then, and if Todd happens to not hit as hard as he normally does… well… Damian keeps that to himself.

For now, at least, they’re enemies. But Damian has known Grayson long enough to know that nothing is set in stone, even a bloody warpath.

#damian wayne #jason todd #dick grayson #robin #red hood #nightwing #dick grayson is batman #dc #dc comics #batman comics #jin writes #fic #fanfiction #whumptober2020 #no.25 #blurred vision #ringing ears #kidnapping tw #noncon drugging

17 notes · View notes

quicksiilver · 3 years

Text

In My Fathers Eyes

All Parts: Here

Also on AO3: Here

Part Six: No Distractions

Word Count: 6.2k

Chapter Summary: The next day begins with breakfast with the team, which follows with a training session with Natasha. Just when Rachel thought she’d get along with Tony something turns it sour once more. While training Rachel meets two new faces, and one who may turn out to be another great friend.

A/N: This part is a little longer than ones I’ve been posting, but I needed to fit this all into one!

The alarm on my phone woke me up at nine thirty. Buried in the pillows I slid my hand all over the mattress beside me to find my phone and shut it off. In doing so I found a few messages from Shaun, and realized I never said goodnight to him.

S: Hope everything is still good with Spidey boy

S: Today is the longest you’ve gone in between texting me I don’t know if I liiiike this Rach!!

S: I’m jk-ing. You’re living a life right now and I’m happy for you and not jealous at all!!

S: That was a lie I’m totally jealous

S: Love you and goodnight!!

Rubbing my eyes I tapped a few words out for him and hit send then laid back down. I stared at the ceiling letting my thoughts from yesterday come in slow which was a technique taught to me by Shaun’s mom. She’s been a psychiatrist for years and she helped me through my mom's passing. I’ve learned that thinking of everything all at one time would cause more anxiety than needed, so I think of one thing at a time and talk it out with myself. I haven’t had to use the technique in a while actually, but thanks to yesterday that streak broke.

“I have a dad,” I spoke quietly admiring the plain ceiling, “And he’s a bad guy to these people.” I took in a long deep breath closing my eyes, expanding my chest to its max before letting the air out slow.

“I don’t want to judge him yet. I need to meet him, talk to him, and then I can make judgments,” I said, “It’s cool that he can do... some kind of magic. Thor told me I could learn to use it.” My eyes popped open and I felt a small tinge of excitement spark inside of me.

“I could learn magic,” I giggled flipping onto my stomach face first into a squishy pillow, “This is madness!” I said louder, muffled by the cushion. Composing myself I rolled again onto my back not even worried about falling off an edge, the bed was far too big for that to happen.

“I met some Avengers who all seem to want to help me,” I continued the list of yesterday, “They need me to help them. I could be a part of a mission with these people. The Hulk and Tony Stark read my freaking mind...” My excitement toned down and was swapped for a different feeling. A sixth grade and high school kind of feeling. The forget to eat, trip over your feet feeling.

“I met a boy,” My voice was quiet again, “Called Peter-“

“Calling Peter,” Friday's voice said from the beyond. My heart shot out of my chest, and I’d never gotten out of bed faster.

“No! Friday! No don’t call Peter,” I spoke frantically and tried to keep my voice low. I was waving my hands at the ceiling still having no idea where Friday even comes from. There was a knock at my door. I spun around and stared for a second. There was no time to feel anxious, at this point I was just feeling stupid. A few more knocks came from the other side of the door so I took that as my cue to answer it.

Pulling the handle I opened it a few inches and peeked outside. Sure enough Peter was there in a t-shirt and sweatpants rubbing one of his eyes. His hair was a little messy, and even though he still had sleep on him I almost preferred him like this.

“Hey,” His voice was a bit deeper than usual, “Are you okay?” He asked, looking at me with heavy eyes.

“I’m so sorry,” I said sincerely, “Friday... is in here I think and she... she called you. I told her to stop. I didn’t mean to wake you up, I really am sorry.” He smirked at my rambling and shook his head.

“Don’t worry about it, Mr. Stark tells me I need to wake up earlier anyway. If anything, you saved me another lecture,” He rolled his eyes and we both smiled as he turned away to go back into his room. I was about to shut my door when he paused and turned back around to me.

“Why did she call me?” He questioned, finding it funny. I just shrugged and hoped Friday wouldn’t give me up. If I had known she was listening that entire time I wouldn’t have said anything out loud.

“Miss Rachel said ‘Call Peter’, Peter,” Friday came out into the hallway. Pressing my eyes shut I sighed heavily. I was cool with this girl last night, but now she was testing me.

“I did not say that,” I said.

“Miss Rachel said to call you Peter,” Friday said, her tone staying the same.

“Girl!” I looked toward the ceiling.

“I have the proof if she doesn’t believe me, Peter,” Friday spoke again, and the next thing out of her was my voice.

“Called Peter,” Was all it said. Looking at him he was watching me with a faint grin. I pressed my lips together tight and honestly didn’t know what else to say.

“Friday she didn’t say to call me,” Peter said and Friday answered with an apology, “It’s okay, but maybe let her have a moment to herself. I told you to look after her, not smother her.” Our eyes met again, his looking a little uneasy as if he was waiting for a reaction from me. Friday apologized again and said she would no longer come into my room unless there was an emergency.

“I guess we’re both sorry now,” He said guiltily, making me laugh.

“Thanks,” I said quietly referring to his gesture with Friday. He nodded and shrugged looking down to his feet for a second.

“Who were you talking to?” He asked, speaking as quiet as I was, nodding at my room.

“Children?” Tony’s voice came from the elevator that opened without Peter or I noticing. We both snapped our necks toward him, and I thanked him internally for saving me from answering Peter’s question. Behind Tony walked Natasha who was eyeing Peter and I curiously. Tony was dressed in a suit, for the royal wedding apparently, and Natasha wore a similar outfit to the one from yesterday.

“Wow, up before ten?” Tony asked Peter sarcastically, who shot me a quick deadpan look that made me have to suppress a laugh, “Maybe you’ll actually eat some kind of breakfast today and not straight junk.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Peter looked down trying to brush him off, “Sure.” His tone was flat.

“I’m serious Parker,” Tony said.

“Alright!” Peter snapped back looking at him annoyed. Tony went to speak again but Natasha cut him off and got him back on track. She looked to me with a smile.

“There’s food in the kitchen,” She spoke sweetly, “Have as much as you’d like, and make yourself at home. We want you to be comfortable here.” Her voice was smooth and soft, like the blankets in my room if I had to visualize it. I couldn’t believe that Natasha was the Black Widow. The badass, villain killing woman that every girl wanted to be.

“After that you’re training with her,” Tony said to me and put a hand on Natashas shoulder, “We need to get you into shape and there’s no better person to do that than Nat.” She shrugged, still smiling, still looking at me. Tony commented on Peter's appearance making Peter throw his head back in frustration and then he went off for the elevator. Natasha leaned in coming closer to Peter and I.

“He forgets what it’s like to be young,” She joked, “He wasn’t always like this. Promise.” She poked Peter on the chest and turned away joining Tony in the elevator. Right before the doors closed she gave Peter a wink. He instantly looked away flustered and my mind quickly took a turn.

“Does she like you?” I asked without hesitation. His jaw fell open and he laughed out loud.

“No,” He said firmly, “She teases me like a freaking big sister. You think Friday is a helicopter? Nat is ten times worse.” I felt relief from the pit in my stomach that started to grow. If there was a chance she liked him I’d be dead, and he’d be lucky because she’s a knockout.

“She’s a little too old for me, too,” He smiled.

“Right, sorry,” I said.

“Want to go eat?” He asked, raising his eyebrows. My rumbling stomach answered for me and we laughed.

“I’m gonna get ready,” He said, backing up to his door, “I’ll meet you back out here. I’ll wait for you so you know where you’re going.”

“I can help,” Friday chimed in.

“No!” Peter held up a hand and I grinned. He watched me, amused, as I shut my door.

The elevator took Tony and Natasha to the floor Peter and I were on last night. Steve, Thor, Bucky and Bruce were there waiting for them all sitting around one of the long tables. Steve was sipping coffee from a mug talking quietly with Bucky while Thor and Bruce were looking through a pile of photographs.

“Gentlemen,” Natasha said affirmatively as she and Tony joined them. She said hello to Bucky in russian. He just smiled, shaking his head.

“The girl’s awake,” Tony said as he sat beside Bruce. Steve rolled his eyes, setting his mug on the glass.

“The girl's name is Rachel,” He said glaring toward Stark.

“Right, what I said,” Tony retorted.

“Come on boys,” Natasha sang. She’d been around them for too many years to know that their bickering would never stop.

“She’s up, so is Peter. She’ll be training with Natasha today for the most part,” Tony explained. Thor raised a hand and Tony sighed, disappointed.

“Yes, Thor,” He cooed sarcastically, Thor, again, not catching onto the mannerisms.

“Will I get some time with Rachel? I have some things I need to speak with her about,” He said squeezing a fist. Tony eyed it and nodded.

“Yeah, she’s gonna need to know,” He told him, “Especially if she happens to be one, too.”

“You may have to fight Parker for her,” Natasha teased. Tony turned to her suddenly, eyebrows in a twist. She smirked down at him. Tony shook his head, and Natasha nodded hers back. They did this two more times before Tony broke away. He took off his glasses and placed a hand to his forehead.

“I win, again,” Nat smized and Tony shot her back with some uncomfortable noises.

“She does always win,” Bucky said quietly from across the table.

“Shut up, Ted Bundy,” Tony shot at him, and you’d think he actually shot him with the way Steve stood up angrily. Bucky ignored Tony. He reached for Steve's arm and pulled on him to get him to sit back down.

“Yeah, cool it, Capsicle,” Tony said, “Wait. I’m sorry. You already did.” Steve rolled his eyes and sat back, looking to Bucky who just smiled at him.

“Does Peter like her then?” Bruce spoke up waiting for Natasha to explain. He and Thor listened eagerly, leaning forward like it was ground breaking news.

“He might. The way he looks at her... I’ve seen it before,” She looked at Bruce and gave him a gentle smile. Tony fake threw up making Natasha smack the back of his head, her face expressionless.

“That,” Tony pointed at her looking around at the guys, “Why are science guys into girls like that?”

“You’re going to want to put your finger down, Stark,” Natasha warned. Tony glanced to her and slowly lowered his hand, “You have been more of an ass than usual recently. Anyone else seeing what I’m seeing?” Everyone at the table nodded their heads, even Bruce which surprised Tony.

“We can take the usual... but what’s going on?” Steve asked, “We can fight Tony but why are you picking one with everybody over everything?” Tony slid his glasses back on his nose and sat back with a deep breath.

“You’ve been anxious again?” Natasha asked, resting a hand on his shoulder.

“Yeah,” Tony said quickly and nodded.

“Tone, you know you can talk about that with us,” Steve said looking between him and Natasha.

“Pepper’s pregnant,” He spoke faster than before, eyes glued to the table in front of him. The room was quiet for only a second until the group broke out in happy sounds.

“Tony, congratulations!” Natasha said, wrapping an around him to give him a hug where he sat beside her.

“Yeah, man,” Steve nodded with a grin, “That’s awesome.” Tonys expression didn’t change.

“How far along is she?” Thor asked. The group looked to Tony excitedly. He took a long deep breath before he answered.

“Four months,” He said, “She’s been going through it, I haven’t been sleeping at all. You guys know me, I don’t sleep. Every now and then I do, but now instead of sleeping I’m helping Pepper,” He placed a hand back to his forehead, “It’s great. Shit, I’m excited as hell to be a dad. Now knowing that we’re about to face total destruction of the planet... again! I’m... afraid.” Natasha rubbed his shoulder.

“We’re prepared this time Tony,” She said softly.

“What... with the powerless daughter of the antichrist upstairs?” Tony snapped. If he didn’t just tell all of them his recent news, Thor would’ve been ready to swing his hammer around at the snide comment about his brother. Nat looked to Thor with eyes that could kill, letting him know that if he reacted he’d be doing the worst right now.

“She’s going to learn,” She reassured Tony, “Trust me. Even if she can’t learn the magic, I’ll get her as close to me as I can in the time that we have.”

“Yeah and how much time is that exactly?” Bruce asked Thor. The god sighed and shook his head.

“Heimdall hasn’t given me a sign,” He said, “I’ve asked for one when he knows of the Jotun’s plans from my father.”

“The Yo-ton’s are going to tell your father their plan to attack,” Steve said seriously, “There’s no way.”

“There is,” Thor grinned and pointed Mjolnir at Steve.

“Loki,” Natasha said calmly and Thor turned to her with a wicked smile.

“Yes! See I told you Friday makes them every Monday,” Peter said to me as we stepped into the kitchen. He snatched two plates that were set out on the counter and handed one to me. The counter was covered with plates of pancakes, but Peter told me these weren’t regular pancakes. They were pancakes made by Friday. That was the explanation I was given, so I didn’t ask further questions. Popping two on my plate I put some syrup over top of them and looked to Peter who was turned around, his face reading surprised.

“What?” I asked and turned and gasped, alarmed. The entire team was sitting at one of the tables.

“Who’s scaring who now?” Tony raised his eyebrows at me.

“We totally didn’t see you guys when we came in,” Peter said walking towards them, I followed right behind him.

“Why would you?” Natasha started to smile, her eyes looking between Peter and I. When I wasn’t looking he shot her a dirty look.

“Oh,” Steve said from somewhere in the back, then laughed under his breath watching the two of them, “I get it.” Natasha looked to him with sarcastic awe.

“Come sit, eat, and get comfy,” Nat said, gesturing to empty chairs beside her. I slipped in beside Natasha and Peter beside me.

“What were you guys doing?” Steve asked, his eyes waiting for a good answer. Peter and I looked at one another, confused, then back to Steve.

“Just getting ready,” I said quietly, my eyes drawing to the man who sat beside him. A man with blue eyes, long brown hair and a metal left arm, “Bucky,” I said without even realizing I was going to say it, it just came out of me.

“Rachel,” He spoke as quietly as I did, and he smiled.

“Sorry,” I shook my head and laughed, “I heard all about you guys yesterday.” I looked around at everyone there. Thor was grinning something fierce toward me.

“Hi,” I said, smiling back.

“Good morning,” He nodded.

“So?” Steve began to ask, “What have you heard about us?” Peter glanced at me, subtly proud, awaiting my answer. They were all waiting, actually. Each one of them looked at me closely.

“Oh... well,” I sat my fork down and let my eyes move around them, “I learned about you two and your past,” I motioned to Bucky and Steve who both looked to their laps with a small smile before composing themselves and sharing a glance, “Bruce... I know, yanno, you’re... green,” I spoke carefully not really knowing what to say. Peter told me Bruce could be sensitive about Hulk. He bobbed his head up and down seeming not to care.

“Thor, I heard about Jane,” I lowered my voice. Everyone looked at him and snickered a bit. My uncle shook his head, shutting his eyes.

“She was fantastic,” He sighed letting his eyes gaze behind us all.

“Natasha,” I looked to the red head beside me who eyed me cautiously, as if she was not going to be ready to hear what I had to say, “You’ve traveled everywhere... Saving so many people, and you need to be more recognized for that. These guys are all fancy with their tricks and shit,” I twirled my hands around watching Natasha start to smile, “But you, you do it yourself.” She tossed an arm around my shoulder and pulled me in giving me a shake.

“I like you,” She scrunched her nose happily as the guys tried to debate with what I had said about them, “Uh uh,” Nat held up a finger, “The girls are speaking.”

“What about me?” Tony asked confidently. He and I hadn’t gotten off on the best foot yesterday. I heard plenty about him from Peter, because Stark is one of his favorite topics to talk about apparently. I watched him and tapped on my chest over my heart.

“I heard about this story,” I said just a little louder than a whisper. The table fell silent. Tony kept his eyes on me.

“How you pushed a nuclear bomb into space. What you’ve done to keep this and these people going. Harley. Pepper, which congratulations by the way,” I smiled and then let it fall once I saw everyone's faces twist with confusion, “The wedding you’re planning? With Pepper?” I asked hoping someone would catch on.

“What?” Bruce said in shock.

“Oh no,” Peter mumbled from beside me. My head turned to him, and then back to Tony, and then back to Peter.

“Parker,” Tony said sternly.

“I’m sorry Mr. Stark, I didn’t think she’d say anything,” Peter defended.

“Tony, this is so huge for you. Now we really know why you’ve been on edge,” Bruce said tapping his arm.

“Yes,” Thor chimed in, “First a baby, now a wedding? You’ve been a busy man!” He cheered.

“A what?” Peter asked quietly. Tony’s eyes slowly left Thor and found Peter who was looking to Tony with furrowed brows.

“Oh no,” Thor copied Peter's words from before.

“A baby?” Peter asked innocently, “You’re getting... having? A baby?” Natasha turned her head away as did Steve and Bucky. I watched Peter, whose emotion changed from confused to disappointed. Thor sat back in his chair while Bruce hung his head, but kept his eyes on the conversation. Tony glanced all around the room, stumped. For the first time I believe I was witnessing Tony Stark not know what to say.

“Peter, we can talk about this later,” He finally said after a moment of complete silence. Peter lowered his head and tangled his hands together. He took a shallow breath before he stood up calmly, avoiding eye contact with everyone, and took himself out of the room.

“What’s wrong?” I whispered turning to Nat. I started to stand up to follow Peter, but she took hold of my arm gently and shook her head.

“Let him go,” She whispered back to me, “He’ll be okay.” Tony was staring at the table with his arms folded across his chest. He didn’t even react to Peter walking away. Resting my elbows on the table I narrowed my eyes at him waiting to see if he’d stop him, or go after him, or say anything to him. Peter was clearly hurt, and after hearing all about how great their relationship is last night I was feeling a little hurt as well. More like taken back by Tony letting his prodigy walk away from him upset.

“Are you going to just let him go?” I said. Tony's eyes flickered to me. He was giving me the same look I was giving him.

“Don’t speak about things you don’t know,” He warned.

“I know that he looks up to you and admires you,” I said, “He said himself yesterday that he’d give his life if it meant saving yours.” Tony didn’t crack. Steve was watching me in awe at how I was speaking to him.

“You think I don’t know that?” Tony fired back sitting forward, “Do not think for one second you can come in here and tell me how a boy I’ve been raising for five years feels about me.” His voice was sharp, loud. I stood my ground, not letting my expression falter once even if I suddenly felt small, my confidence plummeting. He may have just put me in my place, but I was not going to let him know that.

“You’re just like your father,” He spat, standing to his feet. Thor sat up straight, and Bruce was ready to calm him down.

“You have no respect. I invite you into my home, my family, and you have the nerve to step in and interfere with the way things are. I run the show here, sweetheart. Don’t think for a second I’ll let you screw it up,” His hands were open flat facing behind him, “You have his blood, so be ready for me to treat you like him if you try anything.”

“That’s it,” Thor shouted jumping up, his chair tipping over behind him. He raised his hammer and began to aim it toward Tony, but Stark was quick to summon two red and gold blasters from the back. They flew through the air from somewhere and latched to his hands. He pointed them to my uncle, a high pitched buzzing sound coming from them which I could only assume was him preparing them for a shot. They both froze, glaring. I reached an arm to my right to hold onto one of Natasha’s. Something I would’ve been nervous to do any other time. She put a hand on top of mine giving it a pat.

“Come on,” She said gently. She stood up taking me with her, her hand still holding mine. When we reached the elevator and stepped inside I turned to find Steve now on his feet talking to the two of them calmly. Words I couldn’t hear from across the room.

“I didn’t mean to start a fight,” I said to Natasha as we walked through the first floor to the backyard Thor took me to yesterday. She held the door open for me and insisted I walk out first.

“They’ll get over it,” She sighed, “I’m usually the one to break up the weekly fight.” She smiled lightly giving me a glance.

“This happens a lot?” I asked, smiling with her.

“Oh god, yeah it does,” She said, guiding me towards another building across the field. A group of men and women dressed in identical clothing came jogging by us in formation. I turned around myself in a circle as I walked to watch them.

“I was the only woman for years before we found Wanda,” Natasha said, “You think with all that testosterone there wouldn’t be any fights?” I laughed and she smiled at me, bigger this time.

We reached the building that was only a story high. After we climbed up the three steps to the door, Natasha held it open for me again. Inside there was gym equipment everywhere. A boxing ring, punching bags hanging from the ceiling and some insane jungle gym looking thing. And not close to the ones you’d see in a school yard. It was tall, fitting just below the high ceiling, with wooden pillars that I could assume one would train to jump across. I looked around the place with wide eyes, impressed with the intensity of these machines yet kind of scared that I wouldn’t be able to handle this. The only heavy lifting I’ve done is canvases and easels, and the only exercise I’ve done was involuntarily in high school gym class.

There were two other people in here with us, a girl with light brown hair pulled into a ponytail and a man, I presumed, that looked to be all red all over. They were in the boxing ring, the man calling out things for the woman to try on him. Natasha and I came up to the edge to watch them.

The woman exercising kicks was beautiful. She had delicate features and big round eyes. Looking to the man I tried to make out what he was exactly. He was red everywhere except where he’d be wearing clothes, that part was a dark blue. Something was on the center of his forehead. It was yellow, and bright. It shone whenever light hit it in the right way. He was the one to notice Nat and I.

“Natasha,” He said. The woman stopped what she was doing and turned around, her breath heavy.

“Oh, hi,” She smiled her eyes on me, “How long have you been there?” She asked with a small laugh to Natasha, a hint of a Russian accent in her voice.

“We just came in,” Natasha said, “This is Rachel.” She looked to me, then back to them. They both gave me a wave.

“How are you?” The man asked, his english accent very prominent, “I’m Vision. It’s lovely to finally meet you.”

“I’m Wanda,” The woman said, coming close to us, grabbing a water bottle that was in the corner of the ring. Shaun had mentioned them both at one point I was sure of it, but Peter gave me the run down on them last night.

Wanda was the Scarlet Witch, her powers given to her by the same people that created the Winter Soldier. She and her twin brother, Pietro, were Russian and were sent to destroy the Avengers, both of them having a grudge against Tony. They all met in Russia, the Avengers battling Ultron and the twins at once. It wasn’t until Wanda used her gift to discover Ultron’s true plan that she and her brother turned on him and joined the Avengers. Unfortunately Pietro didn’t make it out of Russia, but he gave his life to save a member of the team, Hawkeye, and a child civilian. Vision came from Ultron as well. His entire being consisted of Tony and Bruce’s mind, Jarvis who was one of Tony’s old AI’s, and a piece of Ultron. While I knew that Vision wasn’t born the traditional way, I had no idea he wasn’t some sort of human, and there was no mention of the stunning stone on his forehead.

“It’s nice to meet you guys,” I said nodding my head.

“Have you settled in alright?” Vision asked me walking closer, “Those men being nice to you inside?” Instead of slipping between the wires around the rink to come out, Vision levitated up and brought himself down beside me. My jaw dropping made him smile.

“Uh, yeah, I guess they’re being nice,” I said quietly, stunned by what he was just able to do.

“Miss Rachel I can assure you that this won’t be the strangest thing you will see here,” Vision told me.

“You haven’t seen anyone do anything yet have you?” Natasha asked me, knowing the answer herself, “I think today we can change that, but for now we need to get to work and I need to set up a schedule with you.”

“Ooo,” Wanda sounded excited, “Are we training?” Natasha nodded to her, and slipped between the wires unfortunately unable to fly like Vision. I stood patiently watching the two women talk with one another like lifelong friends.

Earlier when the team asked me what I’ve heard about their story, I was hesitant to talk about Natasha. I gave her an honest answer, but it wasn’t my first choice. I learned of her past. Training in Russia, becoming a spy and essentially an assassin for the group she was a part of. While she may seem calm and collected now, Peter told me he heard that there was a period of transition for her to get over the trauma she endured, and for her to come to terms with the lives she’s taken.

For a long time she wasn’t welcomed anywhere, but when Nick Fury, the creator of the Avengers, found her and brought her in for work she was finally at home.

Seeing her and Wanda together now I felt happy for them. They both almost had similar stories with being from Russia, and created and trained to kill.

“You coming up, Rach?” Natasha asked me. Taking a deep breath I nodded and got myself up there next to her. Nerves erupted inside of me as I stood beside these powerful women. I could feel my hands about to shake so I crossed my arms over my chest to keep my composure I didn’t want them to know I was losing.

“I don’t want you to be uncomfortable,” Natasha said calmly. Wanda smiled at us both and walked to the edge of the ring where she sat with her bottle of water taking sips from it. My heart beat got faster as Natasha took a few steps away from me slowly. Something was coming, and I should probably ask what that was, but my stubbornness to appear confident was far too strong. I dropped my arms by my side and narrowed my eyes on her as she fell silent. Suddenly in a matter of seconds she lunged at me with a fist that I dodged and a kick that I squatted down to avoid. Wanda cheered me on from the corner.

“Okay,” Natasha approved. I could see her making mental notes.

“I didn’t hit you. That’s better than Peter on his first go with me,” She said and I laughed out loud with Wanda at the thought of Peter training with Nat and her beating him. I then was brought back to not even an hour ago when Peter left the table obviously torn up by Tony.

Natasha kicked at me again and hit my shoulder sending me tumbling backward. It didn’t hurt, but it didn’t feel good either. Bringing up a hand to hold where she kicked I stood up and looked to see her smiling smugly.

“Tip number one,” She said, “Don’t get distracted.” Pressing my lips together I felt vaguely embarrassed. She had brought his name up on purpose.

“You can swing back, don’t be shy,” She grinned, “I can take it, and I need to see what we really need to work on.” I had no clue what to do, but I wanted to at least try to make a good first impression. Making a fist I hurried towards her, she didn’t move. I got as close as I could and I swung for her arm, but she quickly and swiftly slid on the floor under me. Tripping out of fear that I’d step on her I spun around to see if I could swing at her again, but she was quick to grab me around the neck before I could even turn. She wasn’t squeezing, but I was against her tight with my arms pinned at my sides. Wanda said something to Natasha, and Nat answered but I wasn’t going to let her distract me. I followed tip number one. Trying to free myself from her hold was pointless. She was so much stronger than me. I didn’t expect her to let me go, this was a test, and I knew she was only doing it to see what I could do.

Closing my eyes trying to think of something fast, my mind took me back to fifth grade on the playground where a boy would pick on me everyday. He’d push me over, call me names and sometimes pin me on the ground by my wrists and hover over me. One day when he was laughing over my face I had had enough, so I pulled my legs in and used all of my strength to kick him hard in his stomach. Sure enough he was sent flying behind me. Some of the other kids witnessed this, and I wasn’t bullied again from there on out.

Opening my eyes now I took a deep breath and pulled my knees in, my feet lifting from the ground. Natasha’s grip was tight enough for her to hold me up here. Using all of the strength I had in me today I lifted my legs and kicked them behind me getting her just above the knees. I had caught her off guard to my surprise and she let me go. Now I was able to turn around and I readied my fists in case she was coming back at me.

“Nice,” Was all she said, “Handle this.” She came at me with two fists flying one after the other. I ducked in front of her legs and just as she was about to use them to get me I jumped up punching her right in the stomach. It wasn’t a powerful punch but it was enough for her to praise me.

“When you concentrate you really know how to dodge a hit,” She smirked. I kept the straight, concentrated look on my face, but I could feel it start to turn to a smile as Natasha and I went on. We went back and forth with different tactics for about an hour. She talked me through about half of it, but let me go on my own for the rest. I didn’t think I was impressive, but Natasha assured me I was better than she thought I’d be.

“You’re not bad,” Wanda said, seeming impressed as she gave me a bottle of water. I thanked her and sat next to her on the floor drinking from my bottle generously.

“When I first... started,” She began to explain, “I was terrible.”

“At fighting?” I asked, still catching my breath. I was sweating like mad, my body not used to this type of exertion. Wanda nodded her head and slowly smiled.

“At all of it,” She said, “The powers I have are so strong. I was intimidated by the strength I was given, I was out of control. I didn’t know how to fight, I had never done it before.” The inside of my body was relieved to hear this, I could feel the instant release of every anxious muscle in me. I listened to her happily, watching her porcelain complexion tell me this with intent.

“I started with Natasha after Ultron,” Wanda gestured to Nat who was out of the ring now walking towards the door, “Then once I moved on to train with others I found a great partner with Vision. He gets me.” Pushing my eyebrows together I glanced around the room realizing I never saw him leave.

“Don’t worry he’s always off somewhere,” Wanda giggled, “He’s also not into doors, so beware of the walls.” Her eyes went wide and we both shared a laugh. It was nice to hear that one of the strongest members on the team struggled when she first joined. It gave me hope that one day I’d be able to be like her and Natasha.

“So how’d we do?” Steve's voice called out, catching Wanda and I’s attention. He and Natasha were coming towards us.

“Pretty good for day one,” Wanda reached an arm around me. Steve smiled at me and I couldn’t help but smile back.

“I love to hear that,” He said, “You’re in good hands here, especially with this one around.” He pointed to Wanda and Nat agreed with him.

“It felt good to move like that,” I admitted. Steve was about to say something back to me, but Natasha whispered something to him taking his attention.

“Right,” He said to her, “I was told to come here to tell you that your... Thor wants to spend lunch with you when you’re ready.” I laughed at his avoidance of using the term uncle and thanked him for telling me.

“Come on,” Wanda said standing up. She held out a hand for me to grab and helped me to my feet with a single pull.

“Let’s get you showered,” She said and I followed her out of the ring and out of the building.

6 notes · View notes

static-fanatic-1 · 3 years

Text

Before We Begin

-| Stuck at a StandStill |-

StandStill: Prologue

Word Count: 3.5k

Warnings: Mentions of blood and broken bones, Bullying, Anxiety attacks, Creepy behavior.

A girl covered in blood and dirt howled, scrapping at the concrete slab that had fallen on her leg with cracked nails. Fat tears streamed down her rosy cheeks when it seemed as if no one was coming for her, her once silvery eyes now blood shot from crying. "Papa!" The little girl hyperventilated when she was given no reply, hand shaking as blood pooled underneath the fallen debris, is this how she dies? Barely even ten and crushed by debris caused by a villain? "Momma! Daddy!"

Thousands of questions ran inside her head, shaking her body to the core with the unrelenting fear of death. The small girl croaked out a long cry, tears and snot making her look all the more pathetic as she flutily clawed at the concrete. "Papa! Papa-!" Loud shifting resonated from above, the fallen walls of the large building she was in moving aside to make way for a hulking figure. Whoever it was was framed in an ethereal, golden glow from the setting sun, like an angel sent from heaven to save the ten-year-old.

The bulky figure swiftly tossed away the fallen wall and jumped down into the cavern, flinging the concrete slab like it was a leaf and wrapping the child in his large arms. His muscles tensed at the loud booms above, the villain clearly ruining more of the city, but that did nothing to deter the figure's bright smile when he looked down. "What's your name, kid?" His voice will be forever engrained in her memory as an enthusiastic theatrical of hope.

"Aiko." The little girl meekly replied, curling into his muscular arms for some form of comfort.

"Well Aiko Shonen, everything will be fine. Why? Because I am here, All Might!" The bunny like hairs on his head waved as his smile only grew. Aiko only ever felt so safe around her papa, and this All Might figure made her feel just as safe as she would feel in her papa's arms.

A deep rumble echoed through the cavern, the hero's smile faltering the slightest bit, but quickly returned when he crouched down and jumped out of the cavern. Wind rushed through her long white drapes, her doe like eyes glowing from the immense strength the blond possessed. An old man dressed in hero's wear sped past All Might, the little girl following the yellow blur to what was happening behind her.

That was a mistake.

A deep feeling of dread washed over the entirety of Aiko small frame and made her feel utterly sick. A man clad in a crisp black suit loomed above all else. Red lightning like sparks shooting through the sky as his bulky frame floated above the toppled buildings and skyscrapers. Just how many bodies were under those buildings? And that mask, that terrifying, black, skull-like mask would forever be burned into her memory like a horribly large scar. Under his pristine black shoes were villains and heroes alike, bloodied and broken and dying.

A large hand turned her facing the sunset, a beautiful display of deep purples and bloody reds littered with fluffy stained clouds. "Don't worry, Aiko Shonen... you are safe now." All Might's bright, toothy grin brought her only more discomfort, it felt strained and off, as if he didn't believe his own words.

A certain yellow blur knocked Aiko and All Might out of the sky and into the debris of a near by building, a loud boom and an intense vacuum of air brushing past. The larger than life blond shielded her from the fall, sliding down and holding her close to his heaving chest. "Toshinori, watch out! Don't look away for one second or you'll give him the advantage!" Scolded the older man, not realizing All Might was carrying a small child in his arms.

"Perfect timing Gran Torino, take Aiko Shonen and get her out of here!" He handed her off to the elder, leaving nothing but dust in his wake as he jumped back into the fight. "Have Nighteye take her somewhere safer!"

Gran Torino swiftly pulled her into his arms and dashed away from the villain. The two made it safely out of the danger zone, a new, slim figure running to Torino. "Take her, T-All Might needs my help against All For One." His gruff voice reverberated off the fallen walls of what used to be a wealthy district. Once again, she was thrust into the hold of another hero, wincing at her broken leg.

Sir. Nighteye dashed across the debris ridden streets, blood and bodies littering them like trash. Aiko whimpered and curled in on herself, each and every detail of the villain attack being engraved into her brain. Not even a moment later she was given to a random citizen, probably a nurse or doctor from a nearby hospital. The citizen took her somewhere safer, away from the villains and heroes.

Aiko looked back one more time, All For One and All Might clashing against each other like titans or gods fighting for the mortal realm. Maybe that's what the fight is about, two titans fighting for power over the weak. That's what it looked like at least, wind pressure from their attacks brought more walls toppling down. She bit her bottom lip, being carried away from the carnage of the clashing gods.

~~~

White hair rushed through the small bedroom, scrambling to find her favorite pencil she must have dropped last night. She ducked under her bedframe, no not there, what about under her desk? Not there either. "Come on!" She whined, shuffling through sketchbooks and notebooks for the fifth time just to find her favorite mechanical pencil. "Oh, thank god!" She exclaimed, grabbing the old pencil, and stuffing it into her bag.

Quickly she collected the rest of her things and rushers out of her room. "Aiko! Hurry up you're going to be late!" Yelled her mother, a woman with a thin yet pear shaped frame and deep bags under her dull violet eyes. A messy bun made of curly turquoise hair rest upon her head. Her shrill voice echoed through the halls and into her room, drenching the little girl with a new sense of urgency.

"I'm leaving!" She reaffirmed. She dashed through the house to the front door. Slipping off her house shoes she quickly put on her outside shoes before opening the door.

"Oi! Aiko, where's my goodbye kiss?" Snarled a new figure, large and muscular with deep brown hair and yellow eyes. He tapped a thick finger against his cheek as he leaned closer to his adopted daughter's form.

Quickly she slipped off her outside shoes, she had quickly learned to never wear them on the floor, and leaned to kiss the man on the cheek. She returned to the front and waved a goodbye as she scurried out of the small house.

The young girl brushed her white hair out of her face, her roller blades now clipped onto the bottom of her shoes. Slinging her backpack securely on her back, she dipped out of the front yard and skated her way to public school.

Wind rushed through long locks of hair, her curly bangs framing her face as she sped through the busy sidewalks. Wide, hopeful, doe-like eyes watched the trees blur past. People and faces smudged by her speed, a grumpy pedestrian yelling at her to slow down. "Sorry sir!" She yelled back.

Aiko sighed at the sight of pink Sakura trees in the distance, indicating how close she was to her school. Skating past the iron gates and into the school, she threw her shoes into her locker and rushed into her homeroom class with only a few seconds to spare.

The skinny teacher glared at her. "You were almost late, again." His hands fell to his hips in a relaxed pose, eyes boring into the much smaller figure. If you moved his impossibly long blond bangs you would be able to see the orange, slitted eyes he had.

"Sorry Hagake Sensei, I woke up late again." She scratched the back of her neck and waved an apology.

"You can't be late if you want to be a hero, Aiko." He scolded, the thin tail and small cat ears waving disapprovingly. "Anyway, everyone here wants to be a hero so I'll go ahead and give you all the course selections." The cat-quirk teacher stalked through the desks, handing out papers that would change everyone's lives.

"Komori, you were going for UA right? Aiko, you too?" She sheepishly nodded when the orange eyes glanced into her own, taking thick strands of her hair and covering her mouth and cheeks with it. A habit she had developed after the incident. Her ice blue eyes looked over to the other name called, a young yet surprisingly fit boy with an impressive quirk.

Komori, a young man with a bat quirk and the physic to make it powerful. He was tall for his age, with a slim yet strong build, the only thing that wasn't conventionally attractive were the thick glasses on his button nose. But even then he made them look good. He had large ears, long fangs, a thin tail and huge wings draped behind his back. Pale, almost grey skin, with sharp purplish-red eyes complimented his short, yet messy, black hair.

————————————————

Name: Komori Suzuki

Quirk: Bat Mix

Quirk Details: Komori's quirk is pretty self-explanatory, he is a bat. Wings, tail, ears and fangs, he has both White-Winged Flying Fox (Mother—Kistune Suzuki) and Common Vampire Bat (Father—Kyūkestuki Suzuki). He has the best of both bats at his disposal.

————————————————

He cackled. "Ha! Really? That coward can't become a hero! Look at her, and her quirk is useless for hero work. The only thing she's good at is being a housewife!" Waving his leathery wings and kicking his feet up on the desk he continued to laugh at her flustered expression.

Komori could only be described as a misogynistic bastard. Aiko and him used to be friends, but when he was young he started all misogynistic towards her, typically using the housewife card against her. Still, throughout the years the two of them stuck around each other. Maybe it was a sense of familiarity between the two of them?

The girl shrunk into her chair, pulling her hair closer to her face. "I can be a hero...." Her soft tone drifted off until nothing but a pen dropping could be heard.

"Eh? What was that? You want to be a hero to avenge your old man?" He jumped on the desk and leaned down, the pearly fangs flashing dangerously. "There's no way you'd be able to do that, you can't to anything for yourself! You're just a damn damsel in distress, so give up."

The teacher glared at him and smacked a clawed hand on the back of his neck. "Shut it Komori! You'll never be a hero with that attitude!" Sensei growled and handed the both of you your papers. "It won't hurt to try, Aiko." He reassured with a pat on the girl's shoulder.

"R-right." Komori got up from the floor and glared at the teacher comforting the smaller girl. He scoffed and returned to his desk, there was no reason for him to be so mean to her, but he did anyway. Maybe he took a sadistic pleasure in messing with her.

"Anyway, this is due tomorrow," waved the teacher as he sauntered back up to the front of the rowdy class. "I forgot to give it to you guys on Monday so don't forget. If you guys don't turn it in tomorrow you won't be going to a hero school." He waited for an answer, his eye twitching when he didn't get one. "Am I clear?"

"Yes sir!" Yelled the class.

~~~

Aiko leaned on her tippy toes to grab her outside shoes and clip-on roller blades, jumping when a clawed hand slammed beside her locker. She squealed and whipped around, coming face to face with collared shirt. "Wh-What do you want, Komori?"

Glazed over plum eyes glared through thick lenses. "Why do you even want to be a hero? It's not like you'll be able to fix what the villain did so you should just give up." His throat rumbled a growl. "Seriously, you should just leave it to me, I'll get the job done unlike you." The violent eyes hardened slightly at her scared expression. "Seriously, Sweetheart, you'll get your weak-ass self hurt."

The white haired girl glanced up and shriveled into the locker. "I-I'm still going to try... Sensei said I should."

Komori opened his mouth as if he was about to say something but was interrupted by a few other delinquents. He scoffed when she dipped past his arms and wings and ran out of the school, struggling to run and clip on her skates. "When are you gonna kiss her Komori? Seriously you've been closing in on her from the beginning." Chattered one friend.

"Oh fuck off, she's just going to get herself killed." The aspiring bat hero puffed his chest and flared his wings. "And what type of hero would I be if I didn't try to save a lady-in-waiting, huh?"

Aiko stumbled past the school gates, recommendation paper in hand. Once she made it far enough she dipped into a dark alleyway and curled onto the ground. Fat yet silent tears streamed down her cheeks as she did her best to calm her anxiety. The girl tightly gripped her hair and shoved it in her face trying to calm herself. "Breathe... breathe... breathe...." She chanted.

Slowly but surely her anxiety levels died down with her calming strategy. She wiped away her tears and sipped on the last of her left over water. "Brrreeeeaaaaatttthhhhheeee...." She tensed at the buzz in her pocket, pulling out her small flip phone to see who texted her.

[Mr. Takahashi] 'Get some Tokoyaki on the way home.'

[Aiko] 'Yes Sir.'

She bit her bottom lip and furrowed her brows, waiting for a reply, luckily there was none so she relaxed. Taking her leave out of the alleyway, the small girl made her way over to the best Tokoyaki shop nearby.

A loud boom erupted out of the same street the shop was on, Aiko worriedly rushing over to the sound. Smoke covered the skies as more explosions went off. A chattery crowd formed at the street entrance, but Aiko wasn't worried about what was happening. She quickly pulled out her phone and started texting.

[Aiko] 'I'm sorry, I'm going to be late. The shopping district is under attack by a villain.'

She worriedly waited for a reply, doing her best to shuffle through the crowd to get a good look at the commotion. A blond, skeleton of a man coughed his way next to you, leaning on a lamppost and looking above the crowd. "Sir? What-what is going on?"

The blond slightly jumped in surprise at the delicate voice, looking down and taking in the little girl standing before him. Something about her seemed familiar, though he couldn't exactly place it. "A villain, nothing to worry about the heroes will take care of it." In all honesty, he couldn't exactly see everything that was going on. Between the explosions and smoke, all he could see was the sludge villain he failed to detain.

His deep, sultry voice calmed her, but the intense expression he wore had the opposite effect. Biting her bottom lip, she shuffled her way to the front of the crowd. Pedestrians around her worriedly talking to themselves, every time another explosion went off they would flinch. She would too.

Finally squeezing to the front of the crowd she saw what was happening. An ash-blond, about her age, writhed inside the sludge monster, gasping every time he could get some air. He screamed when his mouth was free, a violent cry for help that no hero seemed to be answering.

Aiko took a step closer, the water hero yelling at her to stay back. "He-He needs help! He'll die if no one helps him!" She screamed back, staring at the hero with a pleading expression. "You guys need to save him!"

"We can't, no one here can stop that villain. We are holding off until someone more prepared saves him!"

'He can't wait that long', she thought, looking at the frustrated features of the blond middle schooler. But she waited, too afraid to mess up and make things worse. Her quirk would only make things worse.

Anxiously she held her hair to her face, waiting for someone more adapt to the villain to save whoever was trapped. People happily cheered a new hero, Mt. Lady running to the scene. She stopped however, obviously she wouldn't be able to help with her quirk.

The small female was pushed to the side, another middle schooler, this time with fluffy dark green hair, stared at the scene in front of him. His freckles face contorted to a look of pure horror, a strained voice quietly calling out a name. "Kacchan!"

She watched as his feet controlled his body, taking him into the smoke ridden streets to the sludge monster. She gasped and lunged forward to grab him but missed, the small boy slipping through her fingers.

"Kacchan!" He yelled, tossing his backpack into the villain's face.

Aiko watched with admiration for the obviously weaker boy who ran in like a true hero. The ash blond also thrashing with strength and aggression she would never have. Unlike Aiko, they looked like they would be fine heroes.

She is a coward, too afraid to even try in fear of ruining everything. It reminded her of what happened six years ago, how helpless she was when all hell broke loose, how she was saved by All Might before loosing everything. She was frustrated, small tears dripping down her face at her pathetic display of bravery.

Wind smacked her long hair in her face, bringing her back to the present. It was him, All Might! The best hero to ever exist rushing to stop the bad guy and save the kids.

With a single punch, her hero saved the day. The once blue skies turning a dark grey and drenching the debris covered streets. Her tears replaced by cold rain as the crowd waited for All Might to make a move.

He raised his fist high, stumbling only Aiko seemed to notice, but remained victorious none the less. The once silent crowd burst into cheers, praises and hallelujahs for the savior of the two middle schoolers.

A ping from her pocket took her away from the heroic sight. With a heavy hand the little girl looked at the messages flooding her texts.

[Mr. Takahashi] 'Hurry up.'

Quickly she replied back.

[Aiko] 'Yes Sir.'

She would have to appreciate All Might and the middle schoolers online once she got back home. Swiftly Aiko squeezed past the crowd and skated over to the nearest Tokoyaki stall.

~~~

Unlocking the front door and balancing the packaged Tokoyaki drained the last of Aiko's energy. She took off her shoes and plopped the food onto the kitchen counter.

Mrs. Takahashi undid the wrapping, disregarding the younger girl and the paper in her hands. "Go do your homework, Aiko."

"You have to sign this. It's for the hero courses I want to sign up for." A small hand calmly pushed the paper in front of her adopted mother, a delicate smile upon her features.

"Fine, here." The azure haired woman signed the paper, the man of the household walking up behind the two.

"Hero courses huh? You better sign up for UA and get in, you'd be able to pay for our retirement!" The brown haired man bellowed, taking some of the food Aiko brought home and stuffing it into his mouth. "Seriously, you better get into UA." He scolded through chewing.

"Yes sir, I was planning on doing that." Thinking about All Might, the middle schoolers and all the reasons she want to be a hero to begin with, if she had the opportunity she would take it. This was her opportunity and no one would change her mind.

She took her food and went to her room, finishing up her homework and taking a shower. Now with her sleepwear on, all her homework finished, she plopped into her bed.

Aiko's light blue eyes glanced over to a treasured photo, the moonlight seeping from the closed blinds providing just enough light to illuminate the three of the six figures. She was very young when her family took the picture, her host mother and host father's smiles bringing a pang of joy through her heart. Her host mother had long, pink hair and a curvaceous body, while her host father was a muscular lean figure with pitch black skin and sharp teeth.

The fifteen year old decided to wear a yellow sundress that day, a big smile knowing her family was standing behind her. She wished they were still here and she wasn't with Mr. and Mrs. Takahashi... but that was too much to wish for.

She curled in on herself under the thick covers, letting the sweet memories of her past lull her into a dreamless slumber.

#my hero academia #my hero academia Oc #fanfiction #fan fiction #Aiko Takahashi #Komori Suzuki #mha #bnha #mha fan character #mha fanfiction #mha Oc #prolouge #StandStill #There’s actually plot #fluff is later #angst too #staticfanatic

6 notes · View notes

elcorhamletlive · 5 years

Link

fandom: MCU (Post-Civil War) ship: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark tags: Angst with a Happy Ending, Pining, POV Tony Stark summary: Steve is trapped in a dream machine, programmed to make him believe he's living his happiest fantasy.

Tony goes inside to wake him up, but what he finds is a lot more complicated than he expected.

If somebody asked Tony what would happen the next time he and Steve saw each other, he’d say they would fight.

He wouldn’t say it out of pettiness. It was just—well, what seemed likely. Even right now, two years after their fight, while Steve and the other rogue avengers are in the middle of renegotiating the Accords with T’Challa’s help, Tony doesn’t think that would make a different between the two of them, when they were in the same room again.

He’s not even angry anymore. Well, most of the time, at least. It’s just. That’s just how he and Steve work, apparently. It’s foolish to hope for anything else.

(Sometimes Tony gets those dreams – dreams of Steve stepping inside the lab. Steve walking straight to Tony and taking him in his arms, his smell a sweet, musky scent flooding Tony’s senses, whispering things in his ears. Sometimes he whispers I’m sorry, other times he says I missed you, and sometimes—

Doesn’t matter.)

When Tony received Natasha’s call, he—well, he thought she was wrong, for starters. Natasha’s track record stands against that, of course, but Tony just couldn’t help but think what she’s saying – Steve being attacked, Steve being kidnapped, Steve not answering any communications – just didn’t jive well with reality. It couldn’t happen. It just couldn’t.

He wants to punch something.

To be honest, he just did a fair amount of punching, taking down a bunch of goons in this base that could easily be in a picture right next to a dictionary’s definition of villain lair. All of Ross’ men are laying on the floor, some knocked out, others tied up, waiting for the arrival of the CIA agents who are supposed to clean this mess up. And what a mess it is – Ross had apparently taken chasing Steve’s team to chasing the Hulk levels of obsession, to such a point he was not happy with the idea that they could get a pardon through a diplomatic negotiation. He had decided to take matters on his own hands, and Tony can only imagine the paperwork that’s gonna come out of this.

His men are neutralized now, though. Tony leaves the task of watching over them to Vision and Rhodey, flying out of the main chamber and into a hallway.

He’s headed for the last room, from where Natasha sent him a signal when she confirmed that was, indeed, the place they were looking for. As he rushes towards it, FRIDAY shares some readings of tech waves and signals she picks up, but Tony doesn’t hear it. He can’t hear anything right now.

When he gets to the room, he punches the door open.

He looks around, vaguely acknowledging Natasha’s presence along with many panels showing a flood of data. His gaze darts around the room, and he stops in his tracks when he finds what he’s looking for.

Steve Rogers, handcuffed to a chair not unlike a torture device, face pale and eyes closed as if he’s—

Asleep, Tony quickly completes. His stomach turns, but he tries to ignore it. He looks asleep, which is exactly what he is.

It’s still not any easier to watch. Steve is restrained on the table, and if he were anyone else, Tony would guess they had arrived too late, just from how pale he looks.

Tony controls his mind and stops himself from going down this road. Some sort of comma, Natasha had said. He turns towards her. She’s typing commands on Ross’ computers, no doubt trying to get all the data she can find.

He opens his mouth to speak, but she’s faster than him: “It’s a mind controlling device.”

Tony raises his eyebrows, turning back towards the chair. There’s nothing on Steve’s face or body other than the restraints, no cables connecting him anywhere. “A wireless signal?” He comes closer, thinking a loud. “Of course not, why would it affect only him? But if it isn’t…” he trails off, a bitter taste filling his mouth. He turns towards the panels, watching the data flow, a feeling of bile rising up to his throat. “Nanites,” he says finally.

Natasha nods.

Tony clenches his fists so tight his hands hurt.

“Clint’s got Ross in the other room,” Natasha says. “He’s not being very talkative, but that’ll definitely change when the CIA gets here. For what it’s worth, we think Steve was supposed to work as a test subject. I think Ross only wanted to neutralize him, but whoever he partnered with had other ideas, possibly of applying the device to others. They had your research on nanotech as a first step, and then if they wanted to expand, to be able to control other people… I imagine the logic was that if it worked on a supersoldier, it would work on anyone.”

“How do we get him out?” Tony interrupts. It vaguely occurs to him Ross must have partnered with a tech company, definitely a Stark Industries rival. He feels no curiosity over who it was, though, not now, when the only thing he can see is Steve’s pale face and the only thing he can think is my tech; my tech did this.

There’s a small pause that makes Tony want to puke.

“Ross claims it’s impossible,” Natasha says, her voice just the slightest amount quieter.

Tony would deny it to his final breath, but he’s shaking as he approaches Steve’s body, so unbearably still in that fucking chair, and starts undoing his restraints. “We’ll fucking see about that.”

Read the rest on ao3!

#stony #stevetony #superhusbands #stony fic #stevetony fic #my fics #reblogs are not obligatory but are highly appreciated #hello friends i am still alive

347 notes · View notes

jupitermelichios · 5 years

Text

Ragnarok Remix

So a lot of you will probably already know that I really don’t like Ragnarok as a movie, and I thought it would be an interesting exercise to try and rewrite the plot to see if I could come up with something I’m happier with. I did the same thing for Star Wars Episode 1 a couple of years ago and it was a lot of fun.

I’ve kept most of the shape of the story, since the structure is really good, and a lot of the scenes. The main change is swapping out Hella for a different villain because that character isn’t Hella in any recognisable way, and using that name added nothing to the character and hobbled them in terms of what stories they could tell in the future, as well as cutting off the entire Tenth Realm stuff and the associated characters. I’ve also swapped a lot of Odin’s scenes with Frigga, because frankly Odin doesn’t deserve the Morgan Freeman treatment they gave him. The final big change was to Loki’s timeline. Given the nature of NDAs at Disney, they may well not have known that Loki was due to be killed off, and since we do know that now, I wanted to give him more character beats so that he was in a place where killing him off made more sense, and we therefore could do kid!Loki in the future rather than just bringing back Hiddles from the dead for the fourth time.

Anyway, this is mostly just a writing exercise. Hopefully even if you like Ragnarok, you might find it interesting.

So Thor still goes to Muspelheim, and everything plays out the same except for a throwaway mention of Thor being Odin’s second born child from Surtr. (I would also change the thing where Thor doesn’t know Surtr exists, because honestly not knowing who rules one of Asgard’s client kingdoms is exactly the kind of shit Thor was supposed to have grown out of in Dark World).

He goes home, finds Loki pretending to be Odin and reveals his disguise. They go to earth to find Odin, but when they get to the nursing home he’s not there. The nonsense with Strange happens, because a lot of people didn’t bother to see his solo movie so he’s got to be here as well so that audiences know who he is before IW, but instead of sending them to Norway, they get sent to Monte-Carlo.

Thor tries to get Loki to apologise to Odin, but Odin seems largely disinterested and when they try and persuade him to come home, he says he feels like seeing the world instead and one of them can be king in his place. Odin’s whole manner is shifty, and the audience is left with the impression that he knows something he’s not telling.

The siblings start to fight over which of them will be the one to rule, while Thor also keeps trying to persuade his father to return, when they’re suddenly picked up by the rainbow bridge and whisked back to Asgard but a visibly frightened Skurge.

They find Hogun in the bridge chamber, seriously injured. He tells them that he was leading a scouting party to investigate rumours of a monster being seen on the outskirts of Asgard. Through a mix of exposition and flashback we learn that the rumours were true and the whole party were wiped out except him, who managed to escape by calling the Rainbow bridge, however he lost a leg in the transport as it was hurried and Skurge doesn’t have Heimdall’s eyes. This allows us to establish the ‘don’t leave the bridge while it’s moving’ thing.

Hogun dies in Thor’s arms, and Thor swears revenge. Dragging Loki with him, he gathers Sif and the remaining warriors Three and gets Skurge to transport them to somewhere close to the site of the last sighting, but not so close that we don’t have time for a couple of quick character beats to remind the audience who the three are and get them invested.

They find the monster and try to fight it but it’s crazy strong. Thor tries to send Sif home to rally the troops there but she refuses, so Volstagg goes, promising to send help. They continue trying to fight and Fandrall is killed. When Mangog destroys Mjolnir, Sif realises there’s no hope and calls for a rainbow bridge. Thor tries to pull her in with them but she refuses to go and he looses an arm in the beam (if we’re doing King Thor, we’re committing to full King Thor). The Mangog reaches into the beam and tries again to kill them. Sif distracts it, saving their lives, but Thor is knocked out and he and Loki are both pushed out of the beam.

While he’s unconscious, Thor has a vision of his mother. She’s in her chambers in Asgard weaving a tapestry. When he asks her how he can be seeing her when she’s dead, she just reminds him that she’s a goddess. Thor tells her what’s happened, and she names the Mangog for the first time. She tells him that while mortals answer to gods, gods answer to the mangog, who exists to punish their sins. When Thor asks what sins Asgard as committed, Frigga asks him whether he thought the conquest of the other nine realms was achieved bloodlessly, but doesn’t elaborate further. Before wakes up, Thor sees that the tapestry she’s weaving shows Frigga and Odin with not two but three children, himself and Loki, plus a redheaded girl. When he touches the figure of the girl, she fades out of the picture.

Thor wakes up on Sakaar, and gets picked up by Valkyrie who takes him to see the Grandmaster. Unlike in the original, the Grandmaster seems to know who he is, although when Thor says he’s from the nine realms the Grandmaster keeps trying to correct him, insisting there’s ten realms not nine. He’s also accompanied by a dark-haired woman who Thor is convinced is Loki, but who refuses to acknowledge him. We see Thor being prepared for battle, but rather than a haircut, it’s getting a metal cap put over the stump of his missing arm. He realises Valkyrie is a Valkyrie (but based on her tattoos rather than her sword this time) and tries to persuade her to fight for Asgard but she refuses.

We cut back to Asgard, where Volstagg has assembled an army to try and slow down the Mangog. We see him saying goodbye to his wife and their many children. We discover that Sif survived and made it home, but is badly wounded. She tries to argue that she should accompany the army, but Volstagg refuses, saying that Thor would want her to be regent in his absence, since there’s no one else he trusts more than her.

In the gladiator tunnels on Sakaar Thor meets Korg and Miek, since they were the best bit of that film, but we also get a cameo for Raava the Unskrulled. (If you haven’t read Black Bolt, she’s a female-identifying Skrull space-pirate who is one of my favourite characters in Marvel, and would fit very well into this movie).

We get the big set-piece fight with the Hulk in the arena largely unchanged. The only real difference is that the Grandmaster’s box and the crowd contain a lot more recognisable Marvel alien species, including Khymelians and Shi’ar (technically Fox probably owned them back them but it’s not like they were using them), Skrulls, Kree and the Sisterhood of the Badoon. This is our chance to establish Skrulls existing prior to Cap Marvel, even if it’s only as a tiny background Easter-egg.

While Thor’s unconscious after the fight, he once again sees his mother and a tapestry. This time it shows the world-tree but there are ten realms instead of nine. When Thor asks her about the tenth realm and the disappearing girl, she tells him that once there had been ten realms, and Odin had used the inhabitants of the tenth realm, who call themselves Angels, as mercenaries in subduing the other realms. The battles grew bloodier and bloodier and Odin was never satisfied with what he had conquered. She says that he had destroyed realms, and when Thor protests that all the realms are still there, she tells him that what makes a realm is the people rather than the land. Eventually the price the Angels demanded grew so high that even Odin couldn’t pay it, and so as payment they took Odin’s firstborn, a girl called Aldriff. Thor wakes up as he’s trying to ask his mother what happened to the tenth realm.

Thor wakes up in Hulk’s apartments on Sakaar and Hulk mocks him for calling for his mother in his sleep. Thor realises that if Hulk is strong enough to defeat him then maybe he’s strong enough to fight Mangog. He tries to persuade Hulk to help, but Hulk refuses. Realising that he’d have a much better job persuading Banner to save innocent people, he asks Hulk to change back, and Hulk again refuses. Thor then asks him to help him leave the planet, and that Hulk agrees to, on the understanding that Hulk will stay behind.

Hulk calls Valkyrie to his room and Thor jumps her. During the fight he wonders aloud why there are so many Asgardians on Sakaar, saying it’s a conincidence that he and Loki ended up in the same place as Valkyrie. The mention of Loki’s name seems to distract her enough that Thor’s able to get the upper hand and overpower her. They take Valkyrie’s control device to remove Thor’s electric collar, and find the quinjet. Thor manages to activate it enough to shut the door, intending to go back on his word and take Hulk with him. Hulk goes mad trying to escape, but in his anger accidentally triggers the final message the jet recieved from Natasha as he left, causing him to turn back into Bruce. However the quinjet is now too badly damaged to be used.

Valkyrie is searching the palace for the two of them. During her search she goes into a room below the slave quarters were a huge cage holds a giant wolf. Loki is there, talking affectionately to it, as though it were a toddler. It’s initially calm, but goes wild when Valkyrie enters, trying to get to her to eat her. As Valkyrie enters it looks as though Loki is about to open the cage, but she stops when she sees Valkyrie watching her. Valkyrie confronts Loki, demanding to know if it’s true that she’s Loki. Loki admits that it is, and explains that although there was only a few minutes between her and Thor leaving the rainbow bridge, the nature of Einstein-rosen bridges means that she’s been on Sakaar for decades of mortal time. She disguised herself because Loki is known to be an agent of Thanos and even though she’s no longer affiliated with him, most planets wouldn’t wait long enough to let her explain before they executed her. Valkyrie asks if the wolf is Loki’s son and Loki admits that he is. Valkyrie says that that must mean that he’s Fenris Wolf, and goes to kill him but Loki stops her, saying that even if he’s the herald of Ragnarok and a monster, he’s still her son and she would burn worlds to protect him, and then adds that there’s nothing they could do to hurt him anyway, since he’s the child of a god and an Eternal (no further explanation than this as to his parentage is offered). Valkyrie leaves to find Thor, and Loki tells Fenris that she wishes that she could just let Thor die for a change, but she can’t bring herself to. She turns back into her male form and goes searching for Thor.

Thor and Banner try to regroup and come up with a new plan, and Banner tells Thor that if he even turns into the Hulk again he doesn’t think he’ll turn back. We get the impression that Thor would prepared to risk that if it would save Asgard.

Back on Asgard, Volstagg tries to call for the bifrost to take away civilians who have got caught in the battle, but Skurge is so afraid of the Mangog he deserts his post. We cut to Siff exploring the the Allfather’s vault looking for weapons, and we see the eternal flame there as well as various other little cameos. Then she finds Heimdall, locked up in a cell inside the vault. She releases him (she’s holding the infinity gauntlet we saw in Thor 1, and asks him “is this…” and he tells her it’s a fake before saying that they need to hurry to the gate.) They arrive at the bifrost just in time to pull out the civilians before they’re killed. Siff asks Heimdall how the battle is going, and asks whether Odin or Thor is coming to save them, and he just tells her to ready the city’s last defences.

On Sakaar, Loki finds Thor and warns him that the Valkyrie is looking for him, and tells him he should take one of the Grandmaster’s ships. When Thor asks why he’s helping him, Loki says that their mother appeared to him in a dream and asked him to watch out for his brother.

Valkyrie finds them just as they’re stealing a ship and Loki shows her a vision of the death of the Valkyries in the battle to retrieve Princess Aldriff to slow her down. She knocks him out, but the memory of her fallen comrades is enough to persuade her to help Thor. She uses a wall pannel to unlock the slave quarters, and Korg suddenly finds that the looping tunnel doesn’t loop anymore and he’s able to leave. They begin an uprising.

Thor wants to leave Loki behind, but Valkyrie wants to get him as far away from Fenris as possible, worried that he’ll unlock the cage, and insists they bring his unconscious body with them. They’re initially planning to aim for the portal Thor had come through, but Heimdall appears before him to tell him to take the Devil’s Anus portal.

They take the ship through the Devil’s Anus, pursued by guards. However, Fenris senses his mother leaving and goes wild, managing to smash apart the bars of his cage. His violent actions begin the total collapse of the palace, as he was in the foundations of the building. He manages to follow them by jumping from guard ship to guard ship, eventually diving through the portal after them. During this sequence, Loki comes too. His skin as been turning gradually more and blue until eventually the collar freezes and snaps. As soon as he wakes up he reverts to his Asgardian form. Banner reiterates that he can’t become the Hulk, and we see that Thor has finally learned his lesson when he tells Banner than he won’t ask that of him.

The Mangog arrives in Asgard, announcing his presence by throwing Volstagg’s body onto the steps of the palace where Siff and the last remaining soldiers are rallied to meet him. As they raise their swords to attack, Thor’s ship arrives and Thor confronts the Mangog. Meanwhile Volstagg’s wife is trying to get the civilians out via the bifrost. Valkyrie and Banner go to help. Hildegun recognises Valkyrie and explains that she was a Valkyrie herself once, but retired before the massacre to get married. She produces a dragonfang blade out of her pack, and gives it to Valkyrie to use in the battle.

Thor’s battle against the Mangog is not going well, even with the support of Siff and the soldiers. It manages to get Thor pinned and puts out one of his eyes, and he passes out from the pain.

For a third time, he sees his mother. He tells her he can’t fight the Mangog, that he can’t do anything without his hammer and he’s not as strong as her and Odin. She tells him that he’s better than either of them ever were, and he asks her again about the tenth realm. She tells him that as punishment for taking her child, she wiped them from existence, and that’s why she says that Thor is a better person than his parents. Thor says that being a good person isn’t what he needs, he needs power, and she tells him that the power is within him - the hammer was just a conduit.

Seeing what’s happening, Heimdall uses the Bifrost to send a vision of himself to Odin, to tell him that he’s needed. When Odin refuses, and calls Heimdall a traitor for not reporting Loki, Heimdall tells him that he had to watch the slaughter Odin ordered on the Nine worlds, and listen to the screams, and keep the secret of the tenth realm, but he’s damned if he’s going to passively watch all of Asgard burn for Odin and Frigga’s sins. Odin refuses again, but before Heimdall can do anything else he’s distracted by events on Asgard and disappears. We get a beat of Odin just sitting, obviously considering Heimdall’s words before we cut back to the bifrost.

The civilians on the bridge are nearly at the bifrost control when Fenris arrives. Bruce asks what it wants, and Loki appears out of the crowd and says that Fenris wants to eat the world. Valkyrie says that they have to fight it, and Loki says that he can’t kill his own child. Realising that there’s no other choice, despite Valkyrie’s reminder that he doesn’t have to, Bruce Hulks to fight Fenris. When Valkyrie tries to ask Loki to get the civilians to the Bifrost, he’s disappeared. Before she can do anything, the Mangog appears between her and the Bifrost. Heimdall is forced to leave his post and fight.

In Asgard, Thor wakes up to find Loki with him. He tells Loki that Mangog is here to punish Asgard for their parents’ sins (to which Loki says that he knows, Frigga had told him as well) but there might be a way to save the bit of Asgard that matters - the people.

Thor arrives to join the battle on the bridge, now able to use his lightning powers without a conduit.

Skurge turns out to have been hiding inside the Bifrost hall. He hears Odin’s call and activates the bridge to bring him through to join the fight at the same time as Loki reappears. They end up fighting back to back, and Loki blames him for what’s happening. Mangog hits Loki especially hard and he looses control of his shape, reverting to his Jotun form. He says that he must have made a pretty poor replacement for the baby that the Angels stole, and Odin says that he didn’t steal him to be a replacement, and there’s never been a day when he regretted taking Loki in, even when Loki was lost to them.

Surtr emerges from the palace and begins burning everything, and then the Mangog destroys the bifrost controls just he begins burning, trapping the remaining Asgardians on a burning planet.

Korg’s ship appears above the fight. He seems fairly bemused to have gone from a collapsing palace to another collapsing palace, but agrees to take the civilians when Hildegund asks and between her and Skurge they manage to get the civilians onto the ship.

Realising that there’s no hope, Odin tells Hulk and Valkyrie to get to the ship. Valkyrie isn’t happy about taking orders from the man who got her entire unit killed but Thor persuades her. Loki wants to stay because of Fenris, but Odin tells him that even though he’s a better parent than Odin even managed to be, there’s nothing to be gained from staying here. Loki tries to say goodbye to Fenris, but Fenris is so consumed by hunger that he attacks him, and Loki admits there’s nothing to be done.

Thor tells Odin that he’s going to stay and help him hold off Mangog long enough, but Odin tells him that Asgard in exile will need a king, knocks him out and gives him to Loki to drag to the ship. As it pulls away, Fenris leaps for it, nearly bringing it down and Skurge leaps from the ship, sacrificing himself in order to distract Fenris.

Once the ship is gone, Odin is struck down by Mangog. As he’s dying he sees a vision of Frigga reaching for him. He says that he can’t go, he’s a monster and should stay and burn with the monsters, and Frigga tells him that she’s a monster too but at least they taught their children to do better than them, and they walk into the darkness of death as Asgard burns behind them.

On the ship, Thor tries to appoint Loki as king, but he’s too caught up in grief over Fenris, and then Sif, since she had been the regent, but she refuses and names him King Thor. The last shot of the movie (that isn’t a post credits scene) is of a bearded, one-eyed, one-armed Thor seated on his throne surrounded by the survivors of Asgard.

#iw spoilers #endgame spoiler warning #thor #loki #ragnarok #rewrite #i love the mythology of 616 fenris #and we need lady loki in a movie #sif got more screentime and character in AOS than in the Thor movies combined and that's a crime #the screenplay was cowritten by christopher yost #who wrote some of my favourite comics #i don't know what went wrong #I'm guessing he mostly wrote the jokes?#I'm sort of tempted to turn this into a fic #but i don't have the time #and no one would read it

11 notes · View notes