#honeypot mission fics

[jule1122]

Malex Fic - Thanks that was fun

I decided to try the 2023 Year of the OTP Event and of course I am late on the first month.  In my defense this is the longest Malex fic I’ve written.  For January, I choose the mission fic prompt. 

This is canon divergent fic that takes place at the same time as S1. Alex and Michael were never together in high school.  Michael didn't take the blame for the murders so while the cover up still happened, Isobel believes she killed Rosa, Kate and Jasmine.  She isn't married to Noah and is just starting to date him.  There are reference to canon genocide and past Miluca (although it happens before Malex in this universe).

The mission is a honeypot mission where Michael is sent in to find out what Alex knows about his father.  Guess who falls in love?

Title is from the Barenaked Ladies song of the same name.

Thanks that was fun on AO3

“Alex Manes is back in town,” Isobel corners Michael between the bathrooms at the Wild Pony.

“I know,” he replies with a roll of his eyes.  “It was kind of hard to miss with the whole parade and all.”

“I found out he’s looking for someone to do some maintenance around his house, and you need to get the job.”

“Why? I’m not that hard up for cash.”  He kind of is, but he doesn’t want to admit that to Isobel.  Also, seeing Alex for the first time since graduation brought back memories of the crush he’d had on him in high school.  He tried flirting a few times back then, but Alex never responded.  When Alex enlisted the spring before graduation, Michael had backed off.  Then everything happened with Isobel, and staging an accident to cover up the murders and helping Isobel deal with what she had done had driven any thoughts of Alex right out of his head.  It wasn’t a time he wanted to remember.

“Look, we all know his father’s up to something,” Isobel reminds him.

Michael nods because Jesse Manes is suspicious as hell-his career in the Air Force which somehow never takes him out of Roswell, the strange way he speaks about the rumors surrounding the 1947 crash and the way he throws his weight around raises a lot of red flags.  He’s been worse the last few years, lurking around and asking questions.

“Well, he and Alex weren’t exactly buddy-buddy during the whole planning process and parade, but there was some weird tension between them.  I think Alex knows what his father’s up to, and this is our best chance to find out.  You,” Isobel points to him and smiles in a way that makes Michael very nervous, “are going to our honeypot.”

“Come on, Iz, you can’t be serious,” Michael groans.

“Well, it can’t be me,” Isobel waves a hand up and down her body.  “I am definitely not his type.  And Max is too uptight to explore his options so that leaves you, my ruggedly handsome, bisexual brother.”

“What makes you think Alex Manes is my type?” Michael protests, grasping at straws.

“Please,” Isobel snorts.  “I saw the way you stared at his ass in high school, trust me it’s only gotten better with age.”

“It’s still a bad idea.  Can’t you just see what he knows,” Michael gestures to Isobel’s head.  Her face falls, and he immediately feels like an dick.

“You know I don’t do that anymore,” Isobel whispers, looking away from Michael.

“I know,” Michael takes her hand and squeezes it in reassurance.  Isobel used to use her powers for silly, harmless things-getting an A on paper she never turned in, making her parents forget she was grounded.  But as the years went on and Max still haunted the Crashdown, hoping Liz would come visit, the guilt of sending Liz away became a heavier and heavier burden.

And finding out someone’s secrets isn’t as easy as pushing them into doing something.  Isobel wouldn’t be able to just persuade them to tell her what she wants to know, she’d have to take them into the mindscape.  They might not be able to lie, but she would be just as vulnerable.  It’s why they agreed she would never try it on Jesse Manes. 

“Last resort, okay,” Isobel squeezes his hand back before dropping it.  “Let’s try it the human way first.”

“Fine, but I am warning you ahead of time this plan is doomed to failure.  Alex Manes is not going to fall for me and confess all his father’s deep dark secrets.”

“You're not a nerdy teenager who doesn’t know how to flirt anymore, Michael.  Everyone wants a piece of the sexy handyman in the cowboy hat.  Just wear your jeans low, bend over a lot and find excuses to take off your shirt.  Like this,” Isobel plucks the beer bottles from Michael’s hand and slowly rolls it across her forehead and fans herself.  “Sure is hot in here,” she says in a falsely deep voice.  She tilts her head back and takes a slow sip from the bottle.  She lets a little beer trickle from her mouth and chases it slowly with her tongue before winking at Michael.

“Never do that again.  I’m scarred for life,” Michael grabs his beer back and immediately throws it away.

“Don’t pretend you haven’t seen those same pornos.  Alex will be putty in your hands.  Dammit,” Isobel looks at her watch, then quickly smooths her hair and straightens her clothes.  “I’ve got to run, or I’ll be late for my date.”

“Be safe,” Michael calls out as she hurries away.

Isobel blows him a kiss, “Love you, too.”

Michael sighs and shakes his head.  Isobel isn’t going to let this go so he might as well get started.  He walks out of the hallway to the bar and catches Maria’s eye.  It’s a quiet night so it’s not long before she comes over, his favorite beer already in her hand.

“Hey, DeLuca,” he stops her before she can walk away.

She eyes him warily, and he doesn’t blame her.  They had a thing a few years ago and while it didn’t end badly, they never quite found their footing with each other-settling for less than friends but more than exes. 

“Guerin,” she takes a step back in his direction.

“You’re still friends with Alex Manes, right,” he asks as casually as he can.

“Why,” Maria crosses her arms and stares at him.

“Stop trying to read me, it’s nothing bad,” he gives his best innocent smile.  “I heard he was looking for someone to do some work around his house, and I was hoping you’d put in a good word for me.”

“Give me one good reason.”

He drops the innocent act, knowing he can be honest with Maria about this even if he wasn’t with Isobel. “Business has been slow at Sanders so I could really use the money.  You know I’ll do a good job.”

“Fine,” she softens her stance slightly.  “But,” she leans across the bar so they are face to face, “if you screw him over, I’ll mount your balls above the bar for everyone to see.”

“Fair,” Michael swallows audibly knowing it’s not an idle threat.

“He’ll be here tomorrow night so come early because he’ll leave before it gets crowded.  I’ll let him know you’re interested.”

“Thanks, Maria, really,” Michael stands up to leave.

“Don’t make me regret this, Guerin,” Maria turns to another customer before he can respond.

Michael waits until he catches her eye, nodding and tipping his hat, before heading out, heart heavy.  He hopes whatever he gets from Alex is worth it because if this goes the way he thinks it will, Maria will never speak to him again.

Michael shows up at the Pony the next night in his cleanest jeans and with his shirt buttoned most of the way up.  He keeps the hat because this isn’t actually a job interview.  Alex Manes is easy to spot-he’s sitting at a table not far from the bar, turning a beer bottle in his hands.

He’s alone, and Michael takes a deep breath before approaching him.  “Manes,” he says, stopping to stand in front of the table.

Alex looks up from the bottle. “Guerin,” he replies, almost a question.

Michael hadn’t really thought this through.  It’s not like they were friends, he doesn’t have a real reason to approach Alex.  Not sure what to say, he just stands there awkwardly watching Alex.

Alex’s mouth twists in annoyance.  “If you’re going to thank me for my service, don’t.”

“Fuck, no,” Michael can’t hold back a brief laugh.  That’s the last thing he would ever do.

Instead of being offended, Alex seems to relax a bit at Michael’s reaction.  “So what do you want?”

Alex’s eyes flick up and down as he looks Michael over, and maybe Isobel knew what she was talking about when she picked Michael to be the honeypot.  He’s tempted to look back, flirt just enough to get Alex to follow him into the bathroom, but that won’t accomplish anything except scratching an itch.  

Michael takes a step back and squares his shoulders.  “Heard you were looking for a handyman.  Thought I’d throw my hat in the ring, metaphorically of course.” Michael runs his hand along the rim of his hat and winks at Alex.  A little flirting can’t hurt.

Alex looks toward the bar where Maria is watching them.  “Maria told me you’ve done some of the repairs at the bar.  Said you do good work.”

Michael shrugs and sends Maria a little wave.  He wasn’t sure she would follow through on recommending him to Alex.  Maria rolls her eyes at Michael and goes back to drying glasses.

“Give me your email,” Alex pulls Michael’s attention back.  “I’ll send you the list of what I need done, and you can give me a quote.”

Michael gives Alex his information then excuses himself, figuring it’s best not to push just yet.  He heads to the bar for his own drink.  Maria’s in the back so he chats with the bartender for a while, and when he looks back Alex is gone.

The email is waiting in his inbox when he gets up the next morning.  It looks like Alex sent it around 3 am so he’s either way more of a partier than Michael thought or an insomniac.  He reads over the list between cars at Sanders.  He can easily do everything on the list, and there is enough there to keep him busy for a good month.  If Michael bid the way he wanted to, the job would be nice money, enough to carry him through the winter.

But the goal isn’t to make money, it’s to make sure Alex hires him so he sends it back with a ridiculously low price.  It will cover materials, barely, but he won’t make any money and if anything goes wrong, he might end up in the red when it’s all done.

Michael waits until the end of the day to check his email.  Alex’s response isn’t at all what he was expecting.

“I don’t need you pity.  I can afford to pay for the work.  Send me a real quote so you are paid fairly instead of losing money.  If you can’t do that, I’m hiring Simmons and Sons.”

Michael makes a face.  Simmons and Sons are complete assholes who overcharge for substandard work.  But they’re big names in Roswell so they get all the city contracts and no one is willing to complain about them.  Old man Simmons was good friends with Jim Valenti, is still close with the mayor, the Longs and probably Alex’s dad.  He never hesitates to abuse those connections.  His sons are a little older than Michael, and he remembers how Jim Valenti always looked the other way when they were caught speeding through town drunk or selling weed.  Michelle’s not as soft, but the major still bails them out any trouble they find themselves in.   Even if Michael didn’t have an ulterior motive, he wouldn’t want to subject Alex to them.

It doesn't take long to come up with a realistic bid, one that will give him some financial breathing room as well as getting him closer to Alex.  Before he calls it a night Alex accepts his bid.  He reluctantly texts Isobel to let her know their plan is in motion.  He already feels guilty for taking advantage of Alex like this, but he knows their safety has to be his priority.  They can’t protect themselves if they don’t know how much of a threat Jesse Mane-and possibly his son-are.

Michael and Alex spend the next few days emailing back and forth to work out the details.  Alex will provide any materials related to the accessibility upgrades, and Michael will purchase everything else.  Alex sends him several documents outlining exactly what needs to be done in terms of accessibility-primarily to the bathrooms and entryways.  Alex also lets him know what tools he has at the house so Michael knows what he needs to bring with him. They also decide on a work schedule-Michael will work a few evenings a week once he’s done at the junkyard and Saturday afternoons. Although Alex assures him he can change that if needed since Alex works from home.

A few days before he is planning to start, the money needed for the initial supplies is deposited into his back account.  Michael knows Iz would be pissed if she knew Alex had his bank account information, but it’s not like he uses an “extraterrestrials only” branch of Roswell’s First Federated Credit Union.  He notices Alex also pays him the first half of his labor charges which is ahead of the schedule they set up.

Michael’s nervous when he finally knocks on Alex’s door.  He lives in a quiet neighborhood, not as fancy as the Evans, but nicer than anywhere Michael can imagine ending up.  Alex opens the door and waves him in.  He doesn’t say much beyond an initial hello, and Michael finds himself standing awkwardly in the living room when Alex sits back down in front of a laptop.

“So I thought I’d start in the second bath, get that up and running before I start the demo on the master,” Michael says, hoping for some directions from Alex as to what he wants.

“That’s fine,” Alex looks up with a frown, like he’s surprised Michael is asking.  “Whatever you think is best.  The bars are in the bathroom if that’s what you want to do first.”

“Well since your new shower installation isn’t here yet, and it will probably take a few weeks to get the master bath done once I start on it, I thought you’d appreciate having a functionally accessible bathroom in the meantime.”

“Sure,” Alex shrugged before turning his attention to the computer.  “Whatever you think.”

“Whatever I think,” Michael mumbles under his breath as he makes his way to the bathroom.  He’s more used to people micromanaging him, and following him around to make sure he doesn’t steal anything rather than basically telling him to do what he wants.  For some reason, he feels dismissed rather than trusted.

It takes a few hours to get the bars mounted.  The ones for the toilet are easy, but since this is a small bathroom, the shower is a small corner unit and getting the grab bars in the recommended formation proves to be a bit of a challenge.

When he’s done, he finds Alex right where he left him.  “Hey, you want to check out the bathroom before I go?”

“Is something wrong?” Alex doesn’t look up from what he’s typing.

“No,” Michael replies, bristling slightly.  “I followed the schematics you gave me, but I want to make sure the height and spacing work for you before I go.  That way I can adjust it now if you need me to.”

When Alex gets up, Michael notices he’s using a metal crutch that fits near his elbow.  It’s the first physical reminder he’s seen that there’s a reason Alex needs grab bars in his bathroom.  Alex walks away without a word.  Michael doesn’t follow him, he thinks they would both be uncomfortable watching Alex check the placement of the bars.

Michael knows he made the right call when Alex comes back and thanks him without meeting his eyes.  “Everything’s perfect, you did a good job.”

“I aim to please,” Michael tips his hat just to make Alex relax and smile.  “See you tomorrow.” When Alex nods, he gives a quick wave and heads out.

He’s almost back to the airstream when Isobel calls.

“Wel, how did it go?” she asks impatiently.

“He hasn’t fired me yet”

“Michael be serious,” she scolds him.  “Did you find anything out?”

“Iz, I was only there for a few hours.  Did you think he would confess his father’s a serial killer because I unclogged his drain?”

“A girl can dream,” Isobel sighs.  “Just be charming or at least sexy.  Pants too tight, shirt unbuttoned or, even better, shirt off.”

“Goodbye, Isobel,” Michael hangs up the phone before she can say anything else.

Alex doesn’t exactly give him a chance to show off.  He doesn’t even open the door for Michael the next day, just yells for him to come in.  He never budges from his computer the whole time Michael is there, and gives him an absent minded thanks when Michael leaves.

Michael spends Saturday working in the kitchen replacing the oven and range top.  It’s not difficult work, but it’s time consuming and awkward.  Once he’s wrangled the oven into place and hooked it up, he heads to the garage to bring in the new range top.  

“You want a beer?” Alex asks when he comes back into the kitchen.

“Uh, sure,” Michael tries not to act surprised.  He opens the fridge, gets a beer for himself and hands Alex one as well.

“Thanks,” Alex accepts the bottle with a small smile.  “Maria told me to be nice to you.”

Michael laughs because that sounds like Maria. “So you and Maria?” he asks, hoping to get Alex talking.

Alex raises a brow at him, “Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”

“She told you about me?” Michael preens a little.  “We had a good thing for a while, then we didn’t.  No harm no foul, we just wanted different things.”

“What did you want?” Alex asks with a slight edge to his voice.

“Someone to come home to, a picket fence, maybe a dog or two,” Michael shrugs.  “And Maria. . .”

“Maria’s too independent for that,” Alex fills in.

“Too independent, the bar and her mom need her too much for her to put that kind of energy into a relationship.  Timing was off for us, but that happens.”

“And here I thought you were the love them and leave them type.”

Michael groans because some rumors insist on following him.  “It’s all consensual and everyone knows the deal up front.  There’s nothing wrong with two adults having a good time together.  Just because I’m looking for my soulmate doesn’t mean I can’t have fun along the way.”

“Soulmate, seriously,” Alex snorts.

“Yeah,” Michael can’t help being a romantic at heart.  “You know the person the cosmos designed for you, the perfect fit, the one destined to be in your life.  I know it’s unlikely, but I can hope.  I take it you don’t believe in soulmates?”

“I’d feel sorry for anyone stuck with me,” Alex looks down at his bottle and frowns.

Michael takes a drink and tries to decide how to redirect the conversation.  “What about Liz Ortecho, you still talk to her much?”

Alex shakes his head.  Michael names a few other classmates, but gets the same response.

“I pretty much cut off all ties with Roswell once I left for basic,” Alex explains.  “I sent Maria a few postcards, but that was it.  We hadn’t really talked in years until she found out I was hurt and showed up at the rehab center.  Then she basically demanded I stay in touch,” Alex smiles at the memory.

“She’s a force of nature when she wants to be,” Michael says fondly.  He tosses his empty beer bottle in the recycling and decides it best to end this on a good night.  “Well, I should get back to it, thanks for the beer.”

Alex nods and turns back to his computer.

The next few times he’s there, Alex offers Michael a beer before he leaves.  Michael keeps the conversations light and short so he doesn’t raise Alex’s suspicions.  He finds he likes talking to Alex.  Once he understands Alex’s sense of humor he realizes what a sarcastic asshole he is, and Michael loves that.  He’s also smart-smart enough to keep up with Michael when he goes off on a tangent.  But Isobel has been bugging him about making progress so he carefully broaches the topic of Jesse Manes.

“Kind of surprised I haven’t seen your family around now that you’re back in town,” Michael says casually, not looking directly at Alex,

“My brothers are all still active military.  None of them are stationed nearby,” Alex explains.

“What about your dad? He still lives in Roswell.”

“My father’s the last person you’ll ever see here,” Alex snorts.  “Taking a medical discharge confirmed once and for all that I’m a coward and not worth his time.”

“I’m sorry,” it comes out almost like a question because Alex doesn’t seem at all bothered.

“I’m not,” Alex dismissed his concern.  “I would be happy to never see him again.”

Michael fiddles with his beer bottle, not sure where to go from there.  He remembers Jesse acting like a proud father at the parade and what Isobel said about their being tension between him and Alex.  Maybe all that pride was an act.

“Sorry,” Alex grimaces when the silence drags on.  “Didn’t mean to be a downer.”

“Probably my fault,” Michael shrugs.  “Isobel always says I’m terrible at conversation.”

“Isobel Evans?”  Alex looks up sharply.  “You’re still close with her, and Max too?”

“Yeah,” Michael rubs the back of his neck.  Normally he’d make a crude joke, lean into the assumption that he’s slept with Isobel or Max or both of them.  But if he wants Alex to open up to him, he’s going to have to show he trusts him.  “They’re my family, or at least as close as I get to one.  Not a lot of people know this, but we were found together in the desert as kids, lived in a group home together until they were adopted.  Then we lost touch for a long time.”

“I’m sorry you were separated.”

“It sucked,” Michael admits.  “But we found our way back to each other.  And I’m glad they had a family growing up, that they had it easier than I did.”

Alex nods, and Michael decides he’s had enough honesty for one night.  “Anyway, now I’m the one dragging us down.  It’s late so I’m going to head out.  See you tomorrow.”

The next day, Michael brings a six pack in with him.  Alex gives him a puzzled look when he passes him on his way to the kitchen.

“Can’t mooch off you forever,” Michael explains as he puts the beer in the fridge.  “Should be cold by the time I’m done.”

He spends the next few hours working on the master bath.  The shower won’t be in for a few weeks, but he needs to update the plumping and replace the tile.  When he reaches a good stopping point, he grabs two beers and joins Alex at the table.  Michael rocks back in his chair while Alex shuts down his lap top.

“So if your not here for your family,”

“Definitely not,” Alex interjects.

“Why did you come back?”

“What do you mean?”  Alex asks.

“No one comes back to Roswell voluntarily.  There has to be a reason you're here.”  When Alex doesn’t respond, Michael narrows his eyes and hums.  “So the first choice is usually to repair a broken relationship with a parent or sibling, but you ruled that out.  How about wealthy relative you never met left you a huge inheritance on the condition you live in Roswell for a year and marry.”

Alex just shakes his head.

Michael sighs dramatically.  “Then it must be for love.  You found out your ex is getting married and you want to win them back.  You always regretted the breakup so you’ve come to sweep them off their feet.”

Alex looks at Michael like he’s lost his mind.  “I was the gay, emo kid in a cowboy town.  How many exes do you think I have?”  Alex holds up his hand before Michael can respond.  “And if you say Kyle Valenti, you’re fired.”

“God, no,” Michael laughs.  “Not that douche.  Can you believe he’s a doctor?”

“Kyle always wanted to be the best at everything,” Alex says, looking a little wistful.

Michael remembers that Alex and Valenti used to be friends before Valenti became a raging dick.  His chest hurts remembering how Valenti had taunted Alex at Prom, how he pushed him around at school.  “You weren’t the only one,” Michael says, hoping it will be some kind of comfort.  “The only queer kid in Roswell, I mean.  Bisexual,” he points to himself.  “And Emily Rathburn fell in love with some girl in college.  They got married last year.”

“That’s nice, I guess,” Alex frowns a little.  “I still felt like the only one then, still felt alone.”

Michael nods, because he gets it.  Even after he found Isobel and Max, he felt alone.  All three of them were aliens, but they had a place here that Michael didn’t.  He was the one who longed to go home, wherever that was.  “Well,” he says, deciding to change the subject.  “Since you shot down all my rom com reasons for you to be in Roswell, why did you come back?”

“Had some loose ends to tie up.  There’s a company nearby that hires a lot of veterans with my skill set so being here is a way to get my foot in the door.”

There’s a weight to his words that makes Michael nervous, reminds of why he’s here.  But he decides not to push tonight.  “Hope it works out for you,” he says as he makes his way to the door.

The next time Michael walks into Alex’s, the house is quiet.  Alex isn’t at the table, his lap is closed and most of the lights are off.  “Alex?” he calls.  The door was unlocked so he assumes Alex is home, but Michael has never had to look for him.

“In here,” Alex calls.

Michael follows his voice to the living room where he finds Alex slumped in the corner of the couch.  He looks-Michael can’t actually say he looks bad, he’s too handsome for that-but he’s pale and drawn.  It’s also the first time he’s seen Alex without his prosthetic.  Alex always wears jeans when Michael is here so it’s easy to forget what happened to him.  But now Michael can see where the sweatpants he’s wearing are tied off-highlighting the empty space where the remainder of his right leg used to be.

“Are you ok?” Michael asks as he comes to stand in front of the couch.  Up close he can see lines of tension on Alex’s face.

“Rough PT session,” Alex waves away his concern.  “I’ll be fine.”

“You want a beer?”  Michael asks, already walking toward the kitchen.

“Thanks, but I can’t with the meds I took.”

Michael nods even though he’s out of Alex’s line of sight.  He rummages through the cupboards and doesn’t find any tea, but he does find a crumpled packet of hot chocolate.  He makes it with warm milk so it will hopefully taste better than the watery versions they used to serve at school functions.  When he goes back to the living room, Alex has his head tipped back against the couch and his eyes closed.  Michael sets the mug down gently on the table, not wanting to disturb Alex if he’s asleep.

But Alex cracks an eye open.  When he spots Michael, he picks up the mug, smiling when he smells what’s in it.  “Thanks, I haven’t had hot chocolate since I was a kid.”

“Thought you could use something warm.” Michael was going to say comforting, but that sounded too personal.  “I better leave you to it and get to work.”

Michael planned to work on the patio, but he’s reluctant to leave Alex alone so he decides to paint the spare room instead.  Painting is quiet work and it makes the silence in the house all the more noticeable.  When Michael’s working inside, he’s usually close enough to Alex that he can usually hear him typing on his laptop or at least hear the quiet music Alex always has playing in the background.  He barely manages to get the primer on before he gives in and goes out to check on Alex.

He finds Alex sprawled out on the couch, sleeping.  He doesn’t look particularly comfortable,and there’s a part of him that wants to carry him to bed.  Instead, Michael settles for gently moving his left leg which was dangling toward the floor back on to the couch.  Alex doesn’t stir or react at all to Michael’s touch, just keeps sleeping.

Michael’s debating if he should get Alex a blanket when a text from Isobel comes in.  Suddenly he remembers why he’s there.  It’s not to fuss over Alex, but to find out what his father is up to and if Alex is involved.  With Alex as deeply asleep as he is, it’s Michael's best chance to look for evidence.  He forces himself to walk away, ignoring the pang of regret he feels when he sees the mug of hot chocolate is empty.

Two hours later, Michael’s had enough.  He knows what brand of underwear Alex likes, that he has surprisingly expensive taste in shower gel and his homeowner’s insurance is due in two weeks.  Michael also knows how many medals and commendations he has from the Air Force, he knows Alex has exactly one picture of his mother, and if he dies, Maria DeLuca gets his pension and the rest of his assets are to be sold or liquidated and divided between four different charities.

Michael shouldn’t know any of these things, and he wishes he could erase them from his memory.  He stops on his way out to put Alex’s empty mug in the dishwasher.  Even though it feels wrong after what he’s just done, he covers Alex with the blanket from the armchair, whispering “sorry” before he leaves.

Guilt sits heavy in his stomach as he drives to the Wild Pony to meet Max and Isobel.  “So I searched Alex Manes house tonight,” he begins as soon as they sit down.

“Breaking and entering,” Max says in an angry whisper.  “Are you kidding me.”

“I was there to work on his house so no breaking involved.” Michael throws his hands up, not sure why Max is questioning him.

He sees Max wince and knows Isobel probably kicked him under the table.

“Sorry,” Max says sheepishly.  “I forgot about that.”

“Seriously?” Michael rolls his eyes.  “No wonder Iz picked me.”

“Boys, enough,” Isobel scolds them before turning to Michael. “What did you find?”

“Not a damn thing,” Michael replied.  He doesn’t tell them about the replica of Roswell’s gazebo packed away carefully in a box he found on the top shelf of Alex’s closet or the journals filled with song lyrics he couldn’t bring himself to read.  “Alex keeps saying he and Jesse hate each other, and I guess it’s true.  There isn’t a single thing in the house that mentions him or anything about aliens either.”

“He’s not going to leave that kind of stuff out in the open.  Are you sure you looked hard enough?” Isobel questions.

“Personal lockpick, remember,” Michael points to his head.  “I went through every drawer, every safe, the garage and his car.  Nothing,” he repeats.

“So now what?” Isobel slumps back against the booth.

“I finish the job, make some money and you find some other way to figure out what Jesse Manes is up to.”

“So helpful, Michael,” Isobel complains.

“Hey, I did my part.  It’s not my fault Alex doesn't know anything,” Michael protests.  Part of him feels like the words are untrue, just because it looks like Alex isn’t involved, he could still know something.  But everything he did tonight feels like a betrayal, and he’s ready to be done.

They argue a bit longer about the best way to spy on Jesse Manes without getting caught.  By the time Michael leaves, they still haven’t come up with any real options.

A little before noon the next day, Michael yells to Sanders that he is taking a break.  He swings by the Crashdown before making his way to Alex’s house.  Michael knocks on the door, something he hasn’t done in weeks, but Alex isn’t expecting him.

When Alex opens the door, he thrusts the bag at him.  “I brought you lunch,” he explains.  “I wanted to make sure you were alright.”

“Yeah, I’m good,” Alex ducks his head.  “Come in.”

Michael follows him into the house.  Alex sets the bag on the table before turning back to Michael.  “Thanks.”  He steps closer, frames Michael’s face with his hands and kisses him softly.  “Thank you for lunch and last night.  It’s been a long time since someone took care of me.”  When Michael doesn’t pull away, he kisses him again, deeper this time, tongue teasing Michael’s mouth open.

The look in Alex’s eyes when they pull apart fills Michael with equal parts hope and guilt so he does his best to deflect.  “You thank all your friends,” he almost says ‘employees’ but he knows that wouldn’t  be accurate when talking about what they are doing now, “this way?”

“Only the ones I want to fuck,” Alex says with a wicked smile.

“That what we’re doing here, Alex?”  Michael asks.

“I’m not your soulmate, Michael.  I know the deal.  Just two adults having fun, right.”

It’s less than Michael wants, but more than he deserves so he’ll take it.  Michael surges forward, taking control of the kiss and backing Alex up against the wall.  Once he has Alex pinned, Michael drops to his knees.  He makes quick work of Alex’s pants, pushing them down to mid thigh.

Alex is already starting to get hard, and Michael smiles, licking his lips in anticipation.  He grabs Alex’s ass to pull him closer.  “God, your ass,” he groans when his fingers dig into the muscles there.  Michael is tempted to spin Alex around, worship his ass with his eyes and mouth, but Alex’s dick is right here.

Michael takes him in his mouth, loving the way Alex immediately starts to get harder.  He doesn’t bother with finesse, just takes Alex as deep as he can. It’s sloppy and fast and Michael loves it, not bothering to wipe away the mix of spit and precome that slips out of his mouth.  Alex buries his hands in Michael’s hair, tugging just hard enough to sting as he thrusts into Michael’s mouth.  

When Michael strokes his fingers down the crease of Alex’s ass, he comes with a muffled shout.  His fingers tighten even more in Michael’s hair, and Michael’s cock throbs in response.  He lets Alex’s cock slide out of his mouth.  Michael rocks back on his heels and licks Alex clean until Alex whimpers and pushes his head away.  Before he stands, he pulls Alex’s pants back up, because no one likes to stand around with their pants down once they’re soft and spent, but doesn’t bother to fasten them.

Alex reaches for him, pressing his thumb against Michael’s swollen lips.  When his cock brushes against Alex’s leg, he can’t help but whine.

“I can’t” Alex gestures between the floor and his leg.

“Don’t care,” Michael mumbles.  “Your hand is more than enough.”

Alex looks at him for a moment before nodding.  He licks his palm while holding Michael’s gaze then sucks each finger slowly into his mouth.  It’s a little mean and a lot sexy, and Michael knows he’s screwed in more ways than one.

Michael has his pants down before Alex gets to his thumb.  Alex’s hand is cool in contrast to the heated skin of his dick, and he moans loudly when Alex wraps his hand around him.  He doesn’t tease, and Michael’s grateful as Alex jerks him off, strokes sure and steady.  It’s over quicker than he’d like, but Alex doesn’t seem to mind, kissing him deeply before he’s even caught his breath.

Michael licks the come off Alex’s palm, repeating Alex’s earlier action.  Alex’s eye’s darken, and Michael can’t help preening a little under the intensity of his attention.  “I should probably get back before Sanders starts to miss me,’ Michael says reluctantly, cleaning himself up as best he can with his shirttails before refastening his pants.

Alex doesn’t respond, just slumps against the wall and watches him leave.

“See you tomorrow,” Michael calls on his way out, getting a lazy wave from Alex in response.

Michael’s not sure what to expect when he shows up the next day.  Alex gives him a quiet “hey” when he walks by, but never looks up from his laptop screen.   Michael tips his hat in acknowledgement and heads straight to the patio.

Maybe he wasn’t expecting Alex to greet him with a kiss, but he was hoping to get some indication from Alex as to where they stand.  If that was it, if Alex just wants to pretend nothing happened, Michael won’t be the one to bring it up.

He spends the next few hours outside, taking his frustration and confusion out on the last of the concrete that needs torn out.  The work is physical enough to keep him focused so can’t think about how Alex felt in his mouth and how much he wants to feel that again and again.

The sun has set by the time he’s done, and once he stops working the night air makes him shiver when it hits him.  He heads into the house-sweaty, dirty and exhausted.  He hopes to get out without attracting Alex’s attention. All Michael wants to do is go home, shower and sleep.  He can’t face awkward small talk with Alex over beers tonight.

He’s washing his hands at the sink in the kitchen when Alex comes up behind him.  Michael feels Alex breath on his neck before his lips find the spot beneath his ear.  Michael shudders and tries to shrug Alex away.  “I’m sweaty and gross,” he explains.

“Don’t care,” Alex says as he continues licks a line along the side of Michael’s neck.  “I like the way you smell.  Like the ground after it rains.  It’s sexy.”

“You think so?”  Michael turns in Alex’s arms, shaking his hands dry as best he can.  

Alex takes his hat off and sets it on the counter.  He twirls one of the curls he freed on his finger and tugs Michael closer.  “Let me show you.”

He leads Michael into the living room, pushing him gently onto the couch.  Alex shoves Michael’s shirt up to his armpits, leaving Michael to struggle out of it while he nuzzles and mouths at Michael’s chest.  It’s all teeth and tongue, and Michael’s hips buck up when Alex bites one of his nipples.

“Pants,” Alex demands.

Michael kicks his shoes off and tries to concentrate, but Alex is licking and sucking along his collarbone and that’s all he can focus on.  He gets as far as unbuckling his belt before Alex takes over, pulling his pants off and tossing them aside.

As Alex makes his way down his body, Michael spreads his legs as wide as he can, dropping one leg off the couch, to give Alex more room.  Michael sighs in anticipation when Alex pushes him further up the couch and settles between his legs.

Alex rests his head on Michael’s thigh, pressing his face into the crease of his groin.  For a moment he just stays there, breathing into Michael’s skin.  Then he turns his attention to Michael’s balls, licking around them and sucking on them while one his hands plays with the wiry curls above Michael’s dick.

“Come on, man,” Michael pleads.

Alex looks up and smiles.  “You want something?”

“Your mouth on my dick would be ideal right now.”

Alex shrugs like it’s no big deal then sucks Michael down almost to the root.  Michael can’t help but thrust up, harder than he means to.  But Alex doesn’t hold him still, just rides it out.  Then he slides his hand under Michael’s ass, encouraging him to set the pace.

Michael likes to think he gives a good blowjob, but Alex is on another level.  Once again it's over quicker than he’s like it to be.  But once he’s done, he barely gets a hand on Alex’s dick before Alex is coming all over his stomach so Michael calls it even.

Alex watches from the couch while Michael gathers his clothes.  His jeans are already pulled up and zipped although the button is undone, and Michael still hasn’t found his own pants.  “I really need to get you naked,” he says without thinking.

“Next time,” Alex answers with a smirk.

His hand is on the door when Alex calls him back.

“Hey, you forgot this,” he walks out of the kitchen holding Michael’s hat.  When he gets to Michael, he plops it on his head before kissing him.  Before Michael can respond, he reaches around Michael to open the door and nudges him out.

They settle into a routine after that.  Michael shows and does whatever work he has scheduled for the day, and then they fuck.  It’s been a long time since Michael had sex with the same person more than once, and he forgot how fun it can be.  They get off grinding against each other on the couch like teenagers one night, and the next day Michael jerks Alex off while fucking his thighs.  There’s an enthusiastic, but perhaps ill advised round of sixty-nine in Alex’s bed.  Somehow Michael almost gets hit in the head by Alex’s prosthetic, but when he comes seeing stars, it’s from Alex’s mouth not a concussion so he’s not complaining.  

Michael knows they have an expiration date.  There’s not much left to do at the house, and once he doesn’t have an excuse to be at Alex’s house, they’ll go their separate ways.  Alex has given no indication he’d make an effort to see Michael and considering Michael, Max and Isobel are still trying to figure out what Alex’s father is up to, ending this before that happens is a good idea.

Still coming home, smiling and satisfied after Alex fucked him against the kitchen table, he’s unprepared for Isobel to blow the whole thing up.  She’s pacing outside his airstream when he pulls up.

“Liz Ortecho is back in town,” she says as soon as he’s out of the truck and close enough to hear her.

It’s an eerily familiar way to start a conversion, but he’s pretty sure she isn’t going to ask him to honeypot Liz Ortecho.  “So,” he replies.

“Max was with her at the Crashdown last week when Wyatt Long and his pals shot it up.  They hit Liz, and Max saved her.”

“He what!” Michael shouts. “Last week?  Why am I just finding out now?”

“He just told me.”

“I assume she knows.”

“Kind of hard to hide the sparkly, glowing handprint.”  Isobel holds up her own hand as if Michael doesn’t know what she means.

“That’s just great,” Michael throws up his hands.  “All these years of telling us to be careful, and as soon as Liz waltzes back into town, Max throws it all away.”

“It’s worse than that,” Isobel winces.

“He didn’t tell her about Rosa, did he?”  Now Michael is pacing.  “Wouldn’t that be the icing on the fucking cake.  After everything we did to protect you, Max tells Liz not only did we kill her sister, we framed her for Kate and Jasmine’s deaths.”

“No, he didn’t tell her about that,” Isobel rushes to assure him.  “But the reason he finally told me about Liz is that Jesse Manes showed up at the station today.  He was asking the Sheriff about where Jim Valenti’s old files were stored.  Said he needed them to clear up some Air Force case.”

“Shit,” Michael swears.

“I followed him from the station, and he met up with Kyle Valenti.  I couldn’t hear everything they were saying, but I definitely heard ‘handprint’ and ‘Alex.’”

“You don’t know,” Michael starts.

“Alex knows something, Michael.  Something big or at least more than we know.  I have to find out what it is,” Isobel squares her shoulders.

“No,” Michael objects too fast.  “I’ll get him to tell me.  You don’t need to get into his head.”

Isobel narrows her eyes and stares at him.  “Oh my god, you slept with him.”

“Wasn’t that kind of the point,” Michael says defensively.

“Not now, not after you said he was a dead end.  If you’re sleeping with him now,” Isobel cocks her head.  “Oh, Michael, you’re in love with him, aren’t you?”

Michael shuffles his feet and looks away.  “Doesn’t matter.  It’s over as soon as I finish his house so we might as well get something out of it.”

“It does matter,” Isobel looks at him with something too close to pity.  “You don’t have to do this.  If there’s a chance for you and Alex,”

“There isn’t,” he cuts her off.  “And even if there were, this is more important.  Protecting our secret, protecting our family is always going to be the first priority.  I won’t risk that for Alex Manes, no matter how good the sex is.”

“So the sex is good, huh,” Isobel teases, willingly going along with his need to change the topic from his impending broken heart..

“It’s fucking epic,” Michael gloats just a bit.

“I’m sorry you have to do this, but you’re not alone.”  Isobel stands up straighter.  “I’m going to cozy up to Kyle Valenti, see if I can figure out what he knows.”

“Eww,” Michael makes a face.  “What about the lawyer you’ve been seeing?”

“No real sparks there.  I’ll just throw the lawyer over for a doctor.  Mom will still be thrilled.”

“Just promise me you’ll be careful,” Michael says, resigned to Isobel doing what she wants.

“I will,” she promises, giving him a hug before leaving.

The next time Michael is at Alex’s he finishes the shower, the last of the renovations to the master bath..  It’s good work, something to be proud of.  It’s also the last big project he has at the house.  There’s a few days of work left in finishing up the patio, but that’s it.  Time is ticking on both his time with Alex and his opportunity to get answers.

Once the bathroom’s clean, he heads to the kitchen to find Alex.  “Shower’s done.  You should try it out,” he suggests.

“You going to join me?” Alex asks as he stands up from the table.

“Thought you liked me all sweaty?” Michael asks.

“I do,” Alex looks him up and down, leering just a bit.  “Just don’t leave, ok?” he reaches out and grips Michael’s wrist.

“I won’t,” Michael promises.  Then to change the mood, he adds with a wink, “Want to see how much you enjoy all my hard work.”

Alex rolls his eyes, but lets go of Michael and disappears into the bedroom.  Once he hears the water running, he strips and waits for Alex in his bed.  When Alex comes out of the bathroom, he looks like one of Michael’s fantasies come to life.  Steam billows around him, his skin is flushed and slightly damp, his hair slicked back from his forehead.

Once he makes his way to the bed, Alex sets his crutches aside and kisses Michael.  “The shower head is a little fancier than I remember.”

“Thought you deserved an upgrade,” Michael shrugs.  “You like it?”

“The massage setting was amazing,” Alex tells him, stretching out next to him and kissing his neck.

“I may have also adjusted your water pressure,” Michael admits.

“Thank you,” Alex whispers into his skin.  “I think you deserve a reward.”

Michael’s not going to pass that up so he thinks about what he wants.  “Turn over for me,” he finally tells Alex.

Alex looks up at Michael and studies his face, trying to determine how serious he is.  When Michael holds his gaze, he smiles and turns over.

Once Alex is on his stomach, Michael moves to sit between his legs and pushes a pillow under his hips.  He takes a moment to just look because Alex’s ass is as magnificent as he always thought it would be.  He settles into a more comfortable position and parts Alex’s cheeks.  “Can I?” he asks, making sure his breath hits Alex’s hole so Alex knows what he wants.

“Please,” Alex replies, already shifting to get closer to Michael.

Michael doesn’t hesitate, just presses his tongue against Alex’s hole.  When Alex shudders and moans, he licks a stripe along the crease of his ass before returning to push inside him.  They’ve never done this before, and Michael wishes they had, wishes they’d done this everyday because Alex loves it.

Alex is never still, he alternates between grinding against the pillow and pushing his ass closer to Michael’s face.  And the noises he makes are indescribable.

“God, you were made for this,” Michael says in awe when he takes a break.  

Alex whines at the loss of his tongue, and Michael gives his ass a playful smack before diving back in.  Michael drags it out as long as he can, but sooner than he’d like Alex is coming into his own fist with Michael’s tongue buried as deep as he can get it in Alex’s hole.

It’s tempting when Alex’s is spent, sprawled face down on the mattress to fuck him right then while he’s still slick and open.  But he wants to take his time, wants to make Alex come again so he eases the pillow from under Alex’s hips and tosses it on the floor before urging Alex to turn over.

Alex stretches and gives Michael a blissed out smile before reaching lazily towards Michael’s cock.  “Want some help with that?”

“Not yet,” Michael swats his hand away because if Alex touches him it will be over before it starts.  “Going to get you hard again first.”

“Ambitious,” Alex teases.

“Just watch me,” Michael promises, then proceeds to devote himself to Alex’s pleasure.  He uses everything he’s learned about Alex’s body over the last few weeks-the places he likes to be kissed and stroked, the  places he wants Michael to use his teeth and press deep into his skin.  Michael knows how to make Alex bite his lip and shiver, how to make him arch his back and buck his hips.  He makes him moan and curse, plead and demand, and that’s just the beginning.

When Alex is hard and weeping again, he uses his fingers to stretch him, getting him more open then he already was.  He ignores Alex’s insistence that he’s ready as long as he can and when Michael finally pushes inside, it’s overwhelming.

Michael fucks him slowly, almost slower than he can stand.  But it’s worth it to watch Alex come apart beneath him, to watch the sweat bead on his body, to watch him become more restless the closer he gets until he grabs his own dick and strokes himself to orgasm in time with Michael’s thrusts.

Watching Alex, feeling him tighten around him, pushes Michael over the edge.  His own release washes over him, his rhythm stutters until he finally stills inside Alex.  Michael collapses next to Alex on the bed, pulling out of him reluctantly.  Alex gives him a sloppy, uncoordinated kiss before closing his eyes.

By the time Michael gets back from the bathroom with a washcloth, Alex is asleep.  He cleans him gently before returning to bed.  It’s tempting to fall asleep as well, but Michael doesn’t want to waste the time he has left with Alex.  He settles close to him and watches him, pretending while he can that this is something he can have.

When Alex starts to stir, Michael watches the way his eyes flutter before finally opening.  He turns toward Michael smiling when he sees him still there.  “It’s nice waking up to you,” he says in a way that lets Michael know he isn’t quite awake enough to filter what he says.

Michael’s heart shatters because he knows this is the time to ask.  He brushes the hair off Alex’s forehead and kisses him softly before going in for the kill.  “If you hate your father so much, why did you follow in his footsteps?”  Michael aims for casual and misses badly.

“Is that what you think I did?”  Alex laughs harshly and pushes the heels of hands into his eyes.  Then he turns to face Michael, all the softness, all the sleepy haziness is gone from his eyes.  “My father has secrets, Michael, dangerous ones.  Joining the Air Force was the best way to find out what they were.”

Michael makes a noise of inquiry, hoping Alex will keep talking.

“Being a legacy recruit in the Air Force, especially with a family like mine, opens doors.  People talk, around you, to you, assuming you joined for the same reason they did, to carry on your family’s legacy.  I took advantage of every opportunity the Air Force gave me, for the exact opposite reason, to destroy my family’s legacy.”

“Did you find what you were looking for?”

“Some of it, most of it.  Got closer enough for this,” Alex gestures at his leg.

Michael stiffens at the insinuation.  “You think your father,” he can’t even finish the thought.

“I can’t prove it. Yet,” Alex amends.  “Friendly fire happens, more often than people think, but this wasn’t a normal accident.  And he did a piss poor job at hiding how disappointed he was that I survived.”

“Jesus,” Michael swears under his breath.  If Jesse Manes was willing to kill his own kid, he’s way more dangerous than they thought.

“When I left the Air Force, he wrote me off as a coward.  He thinks he scared me off, that I came home to hide out and lick my wounds.”

“So why are you here,” Michael asks, echoing his question from weeks ago.

“To finish what I started,” Alex answers.  He leans back, putting space between them that wasn’t there before. “Any other questions?”

Michael swallows hard because this isn’t his lover asking, this is the Air Force captain Michael likes to pretend Alex never was.  He should push, find out just how much Alex is willing to tell him, but he sees the betrayal hiding behind the hardness in Alex’s eyes, and he can’t.  “I should get going,” he says instead.

Alex nods and shifts so he is sitting against the headboard no longer touching Michael at all.  He watches Micheal get dressed, watches as he walks out, without saying another word.

When Michael gets back to his truck, he pounds his fists against the steering wheel before taking a deep breath and driving away.  He knows he hurt Alex, knows he ruined any slim chance they had at being something, and he still doesn’t have solid answers because he was too chicken shit twist the knife in Alex’s back.  Michael’s tempted to drive straight to the Wild Pony and hand his balls over to Maria right then.

The next time he goes to Alex’s, the door is open, but Alex isn’t waiting for him.  Instead he finds a note on the table explaining that Alex had some errands to run, and Michael should lock up when he’s done.

“Errands,” Michael snorts.  He can’t blame Alex for wanting to avoid him.

After a few hours working on the patio, Michael’s ready to call it a night.  There’s almost nothing left to do, and being here without Alex is uncomfortable.  

Alex is missing again the next night, not even bothering to with a note this time.  Michael drags out what little he has to finish, hoping Alex will show up before he’s done. He’s making some final adjustments to the gate when Isobel calls.

“Why is Alex Manes at the Wild Pony getting drunk and looking like he plans to stay that way?”

“Cause I fucked up Iz,” Michael sighs.  “He knows I want something from him, something to do with his father.”

“Did he tell you?” Isobel asks, a hint of hope in her voice.

“No, and why would he?  He doesn’t trust me, but he knows.  He’s not involved.” Michael hastens to add.  “I think he’s been investigating his father for a long time.  So whatever Jesse’s up to, Alex knows what it is.”

“So I guess it’s my turn,” Isobel signs, hope turned to resignation.

“Not tonight,” Michael interjects.  “Not when he’s been drinking.”  He doesn’t want to think about what it means that he’s as worried about Alex as he is Isobel when he thinks about Isobel forcing him into a mindscape.

“Not tonight, but soon,” Isobel warns. “Now that Liz knows, we have to figure out who our enemies are before she turns on us.”

Michael hopes that won’t happen, that somehow Max can keep Liz on their side, but he knows Isobel is right.  “Just give me a day or two to say goodbye.”

“Michael,” Isobel says sadly. “I’m sorry I made you do this.”

Even though she can’t see him, Michael shrugs.  What’s done is done.  “So how’s it going with Valenti?” he asks, ready to change the subject.

“Pointless,” Isobel huffs out a frustrated breath.  “He’s as hopelessly hung up on Liz Ortecho as Max.  I don’t know what they see in her.  She’s.”

“Brilliant and gorgeous,” Michael interrupts.  

“A self-righteous know-it-all,” Isobel continues as if Michael hadn’t spoken.  “Looks like my date is here.  Talk to you later.”

“Bye Iz, be careful,” Michael reminds her before hanging up.

Now that he knows Alex won’t be coming home, Michael quickly finishes the rest of his work.  When he’s done, he’s tempted to leave Alex a note.  Instead he leaves a copy of the itemized job list Alex originally sent him-with every item checked off-on the table.  He locks up when he leaves, the click of the lock audible in the silence around him.

When Michael wakes up the next morning, there is a notification of a deposit in his bank account-almost twice what they agreed on.  Michael tosses his phone aside with a sigh, it’s not like Alex can’t afford it, which is something Michael shouldn’t know, but he’s seen Alex’s bank statements.  He’ll deal with it later.

It’s dark by the time Michael works up the courage to go to Alex’s.  He rings the doorbell for the first time since this all started.  When Alex opens the door on crutches, prosthetic off, guilt twists in Michael’s stomach.  He shouldn’t get to see Alex like this-relaxed and vulnerable-anymore.  

“I have something for you.  Can you meet me out back?” Michael asks.

Alex just nods and shuts the door.  By the time Michael stops by the truck and makes it to the patio, Alex is waiting for him.   

Michael sets the firepit in the middle of the brick he laid.  “I made that for you,” he says awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck.  “Thought it would look nice out here.”

“Thanks,” Alex sounds confused by the gesture.  But he smiles as he studies the polished metal and the constellations Michael had punched out.  

“You overpaid me,” Michael blurts out.

“You did good work, and it’s still less than I would have paid Simmons,”  Alex explains.

“Yeah, well thanks.”  Michael turns to go.

“Michael,” Alex’s voice stops him.  “Did you get what you wanted out of this?”

“A paycheck and a good fuck? Yeah no complaints on either one.”  Not prepared to be put on the spot, Michael reverts to sarcasm.

Alex looks frustrated, and for a moment Michael thinks he’s going to let him walk away.  

“That’s not why you took this job.”

“What makes you say that?” Michael stays on the defensive.

“Maybe the third time you asked about my father.  Or maybe it was when you searched my house.”  Now Alex is the one relying on sarcasm.

Michael doesn’t say anything.  He should have had an excuse ready, should have been prepared, but he never expected Alex to confront him.

“I know who you are Michael,” Alex continues.  “Or should I say I know what you are.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Michael denies, but he knows his panic is showing.

“Come on,” Alex opens the french doors-the ones Michael installed-and gestures for Michael to follow.  “We should have this conversation inside.”

Michael wants to run, wants to get in his truck and drive as far away from Roswell as he can.  But if Alex really knows the truth, running won’t help.  He needs to find out exactly what Alex knows.

“Can you grab a few beers from the fridge,” Alex calls out from the living room.

“Sure,” Michael says faintly.  He takes it as a good sign.  Alex wouldn’t offer him a beer if he was planning to ship him off somewhere to be experimented on.

Once they are both seated,-Alex on the couch, Michael on the chair closest to the door-Alex looks at him and sighs.  “I know you and Max and Isobel Evans are aliens.  I’ve known since high school.”

“How,” Michael breathes, too shocked to hear someone-Alex-say it out loud to deny it.

“It’s a long story,” Alex picks up his beer bottle, fiddles with it then sets it back down.  “Before my mom left, she used to take us to the Reservation every weekend. She would go see this woman named Louise.  She was old, seemed ancient to me, was in a wheelchair and didn’t speak.  But she was a healer.  My brothers were always running around, playing with the other kids, but I wanted to stay with my mom so I spent a lot of time with Louise. She used to tell me stories, in my head.”

“In your head?” Michael says skeptically.

“Like I said she didn’t talk.  I asked my mom how she could do that and how she could help people because she wasn’t Native.  My mother told me her powers were special, that they didn’t come from the earth.”

“You think she was an alien?”  Michael tries to sound more skeptical than hopeful.

“Not then, but yes I believe she was an alien. The stories she told me were all about another planet, a war and people fleeing.  I used to think she was just telling her own version of Star Wars, but now,” Alex shrugs.

Michael wants to ask for detail, wants to know everything she told Alex in hopes of finding himself in the stories.  But he knows this isn’t the time so he remains silent.

“One day my mom was on the phone and she said ‘the children have come’ and then she told me Louise had died.  One story Louise told me more than once was about the three sleeping children who were destined to save her world and how her job was to be their guardian until they woke up.”

Shivers run down Michael’s spine.  It seems like too much to believe, but she had to have been talking about the three of them.

“My mom left soon after that, and I forgot about Louise and her stories.  My main focus was avoiding my father.  He was always cruel, but once he figured out I was gay he became more and more violent.  I used to hide out in this shed behind the house that my grandfather built.  When I was about fourteen or fifteen, I was looking for a place to hide stuff from my dad.  I pulled up one of the floorboards and found a skeleton.”

“There was a body buried under your family shed?”  Michael doesn’t understand what this has to do with him.

“It was my father’s uncle, Tripp.  My father always talked about what a hero he was, how he died fighting for his country.  But it turns out my grandfather killed him because he was in love with an alien.”

“Louise?”

“No, another woman named Nora.  There was a journal buried with them.  It said Tripp and my grandfather were at the original crash in 1947.  Tripp helped Nora and Louise escape along with three children held in some sort of stasis pods.  They hid in Roswell for a year, and Tripp and Nora fell in love.  They were going to take the children and run, but my grandfather found out and raided the farm they were staying on.  He captured Nora and shot Louise.  Tripp got Louise to the Reservation, but he couldn’t save Nora.”

“What happened to her?”  Michael was almost afraid to find out.  

“There was a prison built by the military after the crash for the survivors.  My grandfather ran it along with the Valentis.  She was taken there.  My grandfather suspected Tripp wasn’t loyal so he kept him away.  Because he and my father were close, Tripp tried to get him on his side before my grandfather corrupted him. Tripp was trying to convince my father that the aliens weren’t a threat and get his help in freeing Nora and the other prisoners.  My grandfather found out, and I assume that’s when he killed him.”

“I didn’t find the journal when I,” Michael gestures to the room.  He’s not sure he believes Alex.

“I don’t keep it in Roswell.  I have a safety deposit box my father can’t find.”

“Even if all that is true and great uncle Tripp wasn’t some sort of Grant Green crackpot, it doesn’t have anything to do with me.”

“Tripp said if they didn’t take the children out of the pods, they would open in fifty years.  Louise died fifty years after the crash.  It wasn’t hard to put the pieces together.”

“And the pieces led you to me?”  Michael’s have a hard enough time connecting the dots in Alex’s story.  He can’t see how Alex figured out the truth on his own.

“Not a first,” Alex shakes his head.  “You know I don’t think I even knew Max and Isobel were adopted.  But once I started investigating and found the article about the children found in the desert I recognized them.”

“So being adopted makes them aliens,” Michael snaps, crossing his arms.  His instinct is always to protect Max and Isobel.

Alex gives him a look that lets him know he realizes Michael is deflecting.  “Once I started paying attention, I saw how the lights flickered around Max, how Isobel always got her way.  You were a bit harder.  But I remembered you were in foster care, and I saw how close you were to Max and Isobel so I figured you might be the third child.  I followed you around for a while and saw you moving things without touching them.”

Michael’s breath speeds up as he realizes how easy it was for Alex to discover their secret.  The illusion of safety they’d clung to all these years was fading.  “Did you, did you tell anyone?”

“No, never” Alex reaches across the distance between them and briefly touches his hand.  “And once I figured out what my father was doing, I altered all the records on the three of you.  It would be virtually impossible to connect any of you to the three kids found in the desert.”

“So why did you hire me?  Why bring me into your house believing all this?”  Maybe Michael wasn’t the only one with an agenda.  What if Alex’s job was a trap all along?

“You may find this hard to believe, but you being an alien isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when I see you.  Maybe I’ve known long enough to forget most of the time,” Alex seemed unconcerned.  “Maria recommended you, and I figured if she trusted you, so could I.”

Michael shifts uncomfortably when Alex mentions trust.

“And like I said outside,” Alex continues, “I didn’t realize right away that you had other reasons for wanting this job.”

Michael realizes it’s his turn to explain.  “We’ve thought your father might know about us for a while, but we didn’t know how to find out without tipping him off.  When you came back to town, Isobel saw an opportunity.  It seemed safer to try and get information from you rather than your father.  Then she found out you needed someone to work on the house, and asked me to do it.”

“She asked you to seduce me,” Alex says flatly.

“Not like that,” Michael tells him hastily.  He doesn’t want Alex to think sex was part of the plan, but he knows how it must look.  “She just wanted me to get close to you, try and figure out what you knew.”

“And what did you find out,” Alex’s tone is cold.  Michael can feel him pulling away, can feel the doubts about every interaction creeping in.

“Nothing more than you told me,” Michael admits.  

He can see Alex running through their conversations in his head.  He looks at Michael then sighs, “I wasn’t joking when I told you my father’s secrets were dangerous.  But if anyone deserves to know them, it’s you.”

“Are you sure?”  Michael shouldn’t ask, getting Alex to tell him the truth about Jesse has always been the goal, but he can’t help but want Alex to have a choice.

“The prison I mentioned earlier became a family project,” Alex continues, ignoring Michael’s question.  “My father took it over from my grandfather.  It was as horrible as you can imagine-experiments, torture, isolation.  It’s a miracle any of the aliens survived at all let alone for as long as they did.  Working there was its own kind of evil.  It turned my father into the worst kind of zealot-one who truly believes what he’s doing is right, that he is standing between humanity and our destruction.  That prison consumed him.”

“Is it still there?” Michael’s afraid of the answer.  He longs to discover more of his species, but not if it means they’re still being imprisoned and tortured..

Alex shakes his head.  “Several years ago, the Air Force pulled the funding and told my father to end the project.  He didn’t, instead he funded it with his own money.  But eventually he was caught.  He should have been court martialed but the Air Force couldn’t risk a trial.  Instead they destroyed the prison with all the remaining prisoners, all records and research inside of it.”

Michael can feel the blood drain from his face.  It’s a horrible end to a horrible fate, and his last hopes of finding a family are destroyed with it.  “Are you sure?” he can’t help but ask.

“I've seen the footage.  When I got back to Roswell, I visited the site.  There were no survivors.  I’m sorry.”

Michael nods, lips pressed tightly together.  There is nothing left to say.

“They made my father watch, but they should have left him in the prison to burn along with it.  Let that be the legacy he always dreamed of,” Alex says bitterly.

Michael can’t help but laugh although it’s humorless.  

“So that’s it?”  Michael says.  One stroke of a bureaucrats pen, and his whole species is gone. The secret they uncovered is nothing more than a story now, all the players dead.  Michael wished he’d told Isobel no, that he’d never learned this truth.

“It should have been.  I think my father would have given up after everything was destroyed, but he knows there are other aliens in Roswell.”

“You said,” Michael stands up, fear propelling him to his feet.

“Not you, not Max or Isobel,” Alex reassures him, holding up his hand to keep Michael there.

“How?”  Michael asks, sitting back down.  “If there was another alien, wouldn’t we know?”

“I don’t know,” Alex admits.  “Nothing in all the records I’ve hacked indicated there were other survivors or how they could still be alive.  But no one knew about Louise either.  What I do know is over the last few years over a dozen people have been murdered-homeless people, vagrants, prostitutes.   All the bodies have a glowing handprint on them.”

“Shit,” Michael buries his face in his hands. “If you know there is an alien murderer out there, why risk letting me get close to you?”

“The handprint is too big to be yours or Isobel’s, and it doesn’t match Max’s,” Alex says matter of factly.  “My father and Jim Valenti covered up the murders for years.  Now he has my brother Flint helping, insisting the murders are part of a military investigation and claiming the bodies.  He won’t stop until he figures out who it is.”

“Liz Ortecho knows,” Michael blurts out.  “At least about Max which means she knows about Isobel, I don’t know how much he’s actually told her.  But she may have told Kyle Valenti who has been talking to your father.”

Alex’s face goes blank for a second.  “Well, that changes things. My plan was to find out who this alien is before my father does and figure out how to stop them without resorting to genocidal prisons.  But if he suspects any of you are aliens, he’ll assume you are involved in the murders, and I don’t know how quickly he will act.”

The theoretical danger of discovery Michael always feared was becoming very real.  “I can’t let him hurt Max or Isobel.”

“He won’t,” Alex says with certainty.  “I know what kind of monster my father is and exactly what he is capable of.  I won’t let him hurt anyone else, including you.”

“You can’t promise that,” Michael shakes his head.

“This is what I’ve been working toward for years. It’s why I joined the Air Force.  Not because I ever wanted to be in the military, but because I wanted to learn how to defeat him, how to take everything from him without him ever seeing me coming.  I’ve kept your identity from him for years, that’s not going to change.”

“I can’t ask that of you.”  Michael won’t trust his family’s safety to anyone else.  He’s been alone his whole life, he doesn't know how to rely on someone else to watch out for him.  

“You’re not asking.  I’m doing this for me.  I’m going to take my father down, and I’ll protect your secret while I do it.  You don’t owe me anything.  You don’t need to pretend,” Alex gestures between them.

“Alex,” Michael gets up and moves to sit next to him on the couch.  Alex flinches, but waves Michael to the cushion next to him.  “What happened between us wasn’t part of any plan.  I wanted everything we did together, I wanted you.”

“And now?” Alex asks cautiously.

“I don’t know,” Michael looks down at his hands.  “Even though what I felt was-is-real, it was built on a lie.  I came here under false pretenses, I tried to manipulate you.  I searched your house,” Michael forces himself to look back up.  “And because of that, I know things about you-things that helped me fall in love with you-that aren’t mine to know.  Maybe things you would never want me to know, but I do.  How do we move past that?”

“I’ve been hiding my whole life,” Alex says quietly.  “From my father, my brothers, my friends, everyone I ever served with.  When enough of the people who are supposed to love and support you turn away, you have to believe the problem is you.”

“Alex,” Michael can’t help but interrupt, taking his hand.  He knows that kind of pain and doubt.  It had taken years of Max and Isobel refusing to be pushed away, and building relationships with people like Sanders and Maria for Michael to realize he could be loved.  “It’s not you.”

“Maybe not, but that’s how I’ve lived my life.  Keeping anything I valued, anything that made me different hidden.  I’d like to think I would have learned to share those parts of me with you, but I don’t know how long it would have taken.  It’s comforting to realize you know most of my secrets, and you haven’t run away.  I’ve always been too afraid of letting someone know me to have a relationship.  But I’m not afraid to be with you.”

Michael lets out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.  He was prepared for anger, for Alex to say the betrayal was too big to come back from.  Alex’s acceptance feels unearned, but Michael is grateful they still have a chance.

Because Alex still looks nervous and uncertain, Michael squeezes his hand and leans forward for a kiss.  Alex meets his lips eagerly, his free hand coming up to tangle in Michael’s hair.  It’s easy to get lost in the kiss, to push forward for more.  But Alex pulls back, stroking Michael’s hair a few times before dropping his hand.

“You’re not the only one with an advantage,” Alex says.  When Michael just looks at him, he continues.  “Have you ever told anyone that you are an alien?”

“No,”  Michael’s blood runs cold just thinking about it.  It’s the number one rule drilled into his head-by Max, by his own fear of the consequences-no one can know.  No matter how much he’d cared about Maria, he never considered telling her, never wanted to.

“I didn’t think so.  And you didn’t choose to tell me either.  And I can tell you again and again that you can trust me with this secret, that I won’t use it against you, but you are the one who has to be willing to believe me.”

Michael should be scared, but he’s not.  Alex has known for over a decade.  If Alex wanted to turn him in or hurt him, he’d had years to do it.  But that brings up other questions.  “Is that why you’re with me?”

“I don’t have ‘fuck an alien’ on my bucket list if that is what you are asking.”  They both laugh.  

“I don’t know what I’m asking,” Michael admits.  “I’ve never been with anyone who knows what I am so I guess I’m wondering how it affects your feelings for me.”

“I don’t think it does.  I won’t say it doesn’t matter because it’s part of who you are, and you matter.  You being an alien isn’t something we can just ignore, but it’s not what I think of first when I think of you.  It matters in that it’s one of the things that makes you the man I’m attracted to, the man I’m falling in love with.”

“I like the sound of that,” Michael admits.  “You falling in love with me.”

This time it’s Alex who makes the first move, pulling Michael into the circle of his arms.  He kisses Michael’s forehead and wraps his arm around him.  Michael turns to nuzzle into his neck then surprises them both by yawning.

“Sorry,” Michael apologizes and rubs his eyes.  “Now what?”

Alex looks at the table where their untouched beers are sweating into the coasters beneath them.  “How about we get some fresh beers and sit by the firepit you built me.  We can forget all this serious stuff for the night and talk about normal things.”

“Normal things?”  Michael asks with a laugh.

“I don’t know,” Alex shrugs.  “Music, movies, work.  I’m sure you have a million questions about what I told you, and I have questions to, but”

“We aren’t going to solve the problem of your father or how whatever Liz and Kyle might know complicates that in one night,” Michael finishes.

“And we deserve a night to be together without secrets or hidden agendas.  To start figuring out who we are together,” Alex adds.

“That sounds nice,” Michael admits.  “But I don’t know how much I have in me.”  He yawns again.

“So we’ll talk for a bit then see if that fancy shower you built me really is big enough for two, and you can stay here if you want.”

Michael definitely wants, and the way he kisses Alex leaves no doubt to his interest.  “And tomorrow?” he asks almost breathlessly once the kiss ends.

“Tomorrow, we figure out how to destroy my father,” Alex holds out his hand, “together.”

Michael laces their fingers together.  “Together sounds perfect.”

#malex fic #rnm fic #my fic #yotp 2023 #honeypot mission #falling in love #happy ending #Michael and Alex will always fall in love #angst with a happy ending #secrets #maria deluca friendly

[ltlthetrifecta]

tell me no lies

linked above

word count: 2,900

relationship: ladybug x tangerine/tangbug; M/M

summary:

Tangerine really has no one to blame but himself.

Where Ladybug and Tangerine have to kiss in order to not get caught. Feelings ensue.

more coming soon.

#requests are open #tanbug #tangbug #tangbug fic #ladybug x tangerine #honeypot mission #mission fic #one shot #more to come :) #ltltrifecta

[littlebugg13]

Looking for a prompt/fic where danny accidentally ends up getting stuck in dcu and the batfam thinks he's some up and coming villain. Also, dick ended up doing a honeypot mission, and Tim was basically adopted by Danny.

#dp x dc #danny phantom #danny fenton #dc x dp #dpxdc #dp x dc crossover #dp x dc prompt #dick grayson #dcxdp #tim drake

[halfmoth-halfman]

may i interest you in some more fic recs????😉

the second half of my may fic rec list!! if you wanna see more more of my fic recs and favs, i have em all on my recs blog, here!! please note the navi page is still under construction!!

and of course, if you have any fic recs of your own, feel free to send em my way here or on my sideblog - i love finding new fics and writers!! 💜

may fic recs pt. 1

John Price

missed you - @thanksbutno98

✧ everything i wanted and more omg this is the treatment price deserves tbh. man deserves to relax and be pampered like a princess. such a cute fic that filled my need for fluff perfectly!!

bloodstained honesty || part two - @a-world-with0ut-dr34ms

✧ had me on the edge of my damn seat good lord. saw this line “Price?” and had to stop reading to do a lap around my living room, this fic had me stressing tf out but in the best way possible.

puppy love || five | six | seven | eight - @writeforfandoms

✧ price. puppies. perfection. am i sad to see this series come to an end? yes. but it was fantastic from start to finish and i know i will absolutely being coming back to read this again and again.

languish - @moriflos

✧ you ever read something once and then decide that once isn't enough and just spend an hour reading it over and over and over? that was me with this fic. idk how to describe the way you write, i was so drawn in, craving more. "But for now, he can only watch as his heart returns to him in ashes-" just uuuggghhh i love it.

rise and fall of tides - @queenquazar

✧ moon/moonlight is such a cute callsign, i was already hooked before i started reading. and when i got to the actual fic?? stunned. the entire dancing scene had me smiling and blushing, i love the way you write price and moon and their relationship

ode to a conversation stuck in your throat - @yeyinde

✧ i don't think there will ever come a day where i'm not left in absolute awe by one of lev's fics. everything is literal poetry and this is fic is no exception. i can't describe the way it makes me feel, like i've been given the christmas present i've been waiting all year for

sad girl - @guyfieriii

✧ new price fic from the writer who inspired me to start my mob!au???? say less. the way you write price is so just aslkdakljs the way you write in general is just alsdkjal. i literally do not have words for how much i love this

karma - @stormiwaves

✧ honeypot mission!!! we love to see it!!!! "The dress was karma, filthy karma that Price deserved." yes girl, get it!! jealous!price isn't something i see often, but i loved the way your wrote it here and that ending?? 👀🔥

untitled - @ghostaholics

✧ i👏🏼love👏🏼soulmate👏🏼au's👏🏼 and this has me going absolutely feral. the phantom pain for his injuries, the journal, the angst, the panic, that ending??? if there is ever a full version, please know that i will lose my mind, it will be an immediate fave just like this is.

choices and consequences - @ghostandsoap

✧ this one hurt real good. the talks about guilt, the choices you have to make, the job, all of it was done so well. this was so wonderful and heart-clenching, i loved every bit of it.

our remains - @halcyone-of-the-sea

✧ i just- i mean- what else is there to say but

handsome stranger || part 8 - @alittleposhtoad

✧ not only did this fic make me hungry for soup, it made me kick my feet and twirl my hair. so much fluff and right up my ally, i binged this series and loved every single bit of it.

fair game - @guyfieriii

✧ got me blushing and sweating like a sinner in church and staring at my phone like

turn me to ashes - @guyfieriii

✧ when you said angsty little piece, i was not expecting to have my heart ripped out be left with a gaping void in my chest. i know i love a good angst fic but god damn if that didn't reach into the pits of my soul and destroy any feeling of happiness i had when i started reading. 10/10

price headcanons - @soapskneebrace

✧ the perfect piece of softness to make me feel better after the absolute heartbreak of the previous fic. the characterization is 100% on point here, one of the best i've read and so so so sweet.

price holding his first-born child - @daisies-daydreams

✧ big tough military men holding and being weak over little babies is my jam. it's the fluff, the sweetness, the soft domesticity of it all. the way he reads the book to her, i'm so weak for this fic.

a drink from her cup - @lunarvicar

✧ that post that inspired this has lived rent free in my mind for so long, and i was ecstatic to see you write something for it. i'm so down bad for this man and for your writing and the way you write him.

gem amra kheli - @guyfieriii

✧ i don't think i've ever talked about how much i adore the way you write banter, the little back and forths and comments between price and reader. everything just feels so real, so grounded and i'm completely obsessed

Kyle "Gaz" Garrick

cult of vagabonds || ch. 3 - banshee bluethroat | ch. 4 - finch's frenzy - @halcyone-of-the-sea

✧ i'm screaming. vomiting. scromiting profusely.

"I hate you."

"I know."

how dare you do this to me.

reveries of a lost lamb - @halcyone-of-the-sea

✧ what's it like to be able to be one of the best writers on earth? i seriously cannot comprehend the sheer amount of talent and ability you have at writing the most captivating and emotion evoking fics i've ever read.

A golden sunrise, tangled fingers; gentle lips.

“I think I love you.” 

i'm deceased.

aiaigasa (相合傘) - @captainpriceslover

✧ i read "Your part of London smelled like wet pennies that evening." and was instantly sold. the rest of the fic was so fantastic, the perfect dose of sweetness i needed, i love gaz and the way you write him so much!!

white flag - @writeforfandoms

✧ you cannot stress me out like this!! but also please continue to stress me out like this!! also the little nicknames for price and gaz had me laughing so hard, esp price.

it's over - @itsohh

✧ i really loved this, i don't think i've seen a lot of fics with gaz that really talk about what he's gone through and how missions affect him and this one does it incredibly well. serious, yet heartwarming, i adore it.

Multiple

dead disco || chapter 4 | chapter 5 | combat baby - @peachesofteal

✧ never before have a i read a series that has captured my attention so much that willingly skipped out on lunch to read it. i couldn't stop, i am in love with this fic, the writing, the characterization, everything about it. there isn't a single flaw to be found here.

how they wake you up in the mornings - @nia-writes

✧ this was so cute, and the addition of the different scenarios for how the characters would wake you made it all the more better. i was blushing, laughing, anxious, constantly giggling about FOAP. such a fun read!!

soulmate au - @itsohh

✧ i've said it once and i will say it again, i love soulmate!aus!! and god the angst in these just raked me over the coals. angst is something i love seeing in soulmate fics and this was so expertly done, my heart still hurts when i think about it

touching their cheek for the first time - @runicarbiter02

✧ absolute cuteness all around, like a cuteness overload. each one fit so well, but i'm gonna take a second to really talk about the love of my life, Roach, being included in this and how this has become an automatic fav just for that.

physical touch - @siilvan

✧ tbh i came to this for the gaz hcs but it was so good that i immediately read the rest and damn near screamed when i saw roach on there. so cute, and adorable, and absolutely perfect i loved every bit of this!!

kiss headcanons - @mangowafflesss

✧ such a cute idea that you did amazing on!! i love kisses and kiss fics and i think you absolutely nailed it here. honestly me and reader are the same because i too would just like to smooch the 141 boys all over.

getting into an accident and being hospitalised while the team is deployed - @daisies-daydreams

✧ slipping while getting out of the shower and needing to have your jaw hinged shut?? reader's just like me fr. this was very sweet, a lovely little dose of fluff with a sprinkle of angst

Simon "Ghost" Riley

silk series || silk ties - @uselsshuman

✧ i screamed. shrieked. went through a rollercoaster of emotions when this series updated. it was everything i wanted, more than everything i wanted, just so unbelievably beyond expectations!! and this:

“Stay with me for now then.”

stay with me forever wtf

no more || chapter 6 - hypnosis - @lethalchiralium

✧ we love a man who wants to apologize but man we gotta get ghost into therapy or st 😂seriously though, this was fun and the little back and forth about having a dad had me giggling

a bath - @blackssuunn

✧ i can't- i literally can't- this is too fluffy, too sweet, too perfect. i'm in awe of your writing "His eyes burn a little. Not a single drop of soap entered them." i'm speechless.

pomp - @bits-and-babs

✧ we stan anti-monarchy simon LOL so great and thos poor guards stuck at the doors. i went from blushing to cackling in like two seconds

tones - @blackssuunn

✧ soft lovely dovey simon is my favorite and you write him so incredibly well. the way this man is absolutely whipped for his partner, i adore it and i adore you for writing this

between dreams and sugar - @halcyone-of-the-sea

✧ i think i'm addicted to your angst, i keep happily going into these angst fics like i don't know i'm about to have my heart shredded into a million pieces. was there a happy ending here? yes. but it still hurt and i still loved it!!

feverish simon confesses to you - @angelltheninth

✧ this is such a cute trope that i don't read that much of, but i loved every bit of this! so much cuteness and let's be real, ghost is def the type of guy who would try and wait out an illness even if it was life-threatening 😂

footprints in the snow - @bittersw33t-lotus

✧ hello??? this was one of the sweetest things i've ever read??? i'm such a sucker for soft!simon esp when he's still a little shit and you've written that so perfectly

happiness series || you belong with me - @lethalchiralium

✧ i swear i'm totally normal about this series i'm not i totally don't immediately go feral every time it updates i do and i totally and definitely don't drop and ignore everything to reread the entire series with every new chapter i won't apologize

untitled - @lunarvicar

✧ the way you write simon and the way he shows love and how he cares has me so weak and how he teases is so aldkasjdkljk he's an asshole and i love him and i can never get enough of the way you write him

simon & rain little headcanons - @mvtthewmurdvck

✧ aaaahhhh simon and rain!!! i've missed these two and when i tell you i sprinted to read this!! i love the way your write their dynamic/relationship and just how real and fun it feels!! you're literally so good at writing ghost, i can't even deal with

sassy series || ch. 3 excerpt - @peachesofteal

✧ i have never wanted to read a full chapter so bad in my entire life. this excerpt is like a the most delicious little appetizers and i'm vibrating with excitement for the full meal!!

Valeria Garza

oh to be consumed by you - @sleepiexx

✧ i want to be consumed by valeria omg. i didn't even know vampire!val was something that i wanted-no, something that i needed-and this fic just came out of nowhere and hit me over the head in the best way possible.

#moth fic recs #fave fics #monthly fic recs

[uh-oh-its-bird]

Short snippet from my fic 'one step three steps' under the cut. Ft. Shinobi politics and Hatake clan lore via gossiping at the bar about what happens when a clan drops off the map

No context needed, can be read as standalone, I just thought it was neat enough to post on its own.

"What are the odds there are— or were," Izumo grimaced. "Some offshoot branch of the Hatake family out there?" 

"Not impossible, I think? They were a real clan once, right?" 

Kotetsu blinked. "Were they? I kind of thought they used to be civilians or something, before the White Fang." 

"No way, the Hatake's were huge once." 

"No shit?" 

"Yeah, they were— fuck," Genma squinted into his cup, now well and truly flushed from his drink. For a guy sent on so many honeypot and information gathering missions he was a bit of a lightweight, huh? 

"6th? Is that right? 6th-ish clan to come to Konoha, way back when. It's not really taught anymore since they died off so fast and lost relevancy, but they were decently important, wayyy back in the day. Had some sort of deal with the Senju." 

"Nerd." Kurenai snorted, but she looked thoughtful. 

"Hey, this sort of thing is important!" Genma pointed at her. "This kind of history gets buried so fast, it's crazy." 

"But why though?" Kotetsu asked. 

"I mean," Genma frowned. "It's kind of complicated. It's a whole politics thing, you know? Every few years they get together and talk about what gets taught in school. All the clans have say and all the big ones wanna make sure that everyone remembers who was there first so there's a lot of pushing on how to split the importance among them. So when a whole clan up and falls off a cliff . . ."

"There's no one left to advocate for them getting taught about." Izumo finished, looking unsettled.

"Damn." 

Genma shrugged. "That's just how it is, really. Happened to the Uzumaki's, happened to the Hatake's; Would have happened to the Senju too, if the Hokage was any less sentimental about it." 

"And it's not like they teach a lot about history in the first place, do they?" Pointed out Kurenai with a sigh. "Most kids learn that stuff at home, if they're clan brats." 

"Pour one out for all the civilian losers with the disadvantage once again." Izumo sighed, and he clinked glasses with a cheering Kotetsu and Kurenai as Genma, the only clan brat among them, snorted into his cup.

Read the full chapter here ->

#birds fic talk #one step three steps #naruto #genma shiranui #kurenai yuhi #kotetsu hagane #izumo kamizuki #kurenai #genma #kotetsu #izumo #shinobi politics #naruto politics #hatake #hatake clan #hatake clan lore #kakashi hatake #writing #fanfiction #kakashi

[p3ski]

#a lot of these have more to them #so feel free to ask questions #theres only so much text i can fit in the poll options #im doing a thing right now where i have too many ideas and i cant pick one #voting myself so i can see what is winning #dbh fic

[bottomjasontoddweek]

~✨PROMPTS✨~

Here are the prompts for BJTW2023! The event will run from 14th of August to 20th, with a Free Day on the 16th in celebration of our collective son's birthday.

As always, BJTW prompts contain adult and dark content, so engage at your own risk.

Press J to skip! Or scroll real fast if you're on mobile.

14th of August: Competence Kink | Age Difference | Star Sapphire Jason | Soulmates AU

15th of August: Accidental Kink Discovery | "Make me." | Catlad/Stray Jason | Kemonomimi/Animal Traits/Wing Fic/Merfolk

16th of August: Free Day!

17th of August: Asshole/Pussy Spanking | Public Sex | Poison Ivy Jason | Honeypot Mission

18th of August: Fighting to Fucking | 'A Death in the Family' Canon Divergence AU | Identity Porn | Rare Pair

19th of August: Gentle Rape/Nonviolent Noncon | Sex Pollen/Fuck or Die | Possessive/Obsessive Behaviour | Jason is the Youngest AU

20th of August: Incest Kink | Surprise Pussy | Earth 3 AU | Wife Jason

#BJTW2023 #bottom Jason Todd #Jason Todd

[justabigoldnerd]

A Guide to Works by JustABigOldNerd

I saw @hypnostheory do this and I have 38 (holy shit!) works in the TMFU Fandom on Ao3, so I wanted to as well!

"I wanna read somethings soft and sweet" Okay! I don't have a lot, but:

Kintsukuroi - Set in the Winged Spies universe, Solo catches up with an old friend

I'm Going to the Stars Tonight - Playful (and drunk) winged spies

In Summer We Can Taste The Rain - Solo catches a winged Illya preening in the rain

Ravens Love The Snow - A winged Solo can't resist the call of the snow

A Christmas Peril - A Christmas fic!

Surrender Yourself - a funny little pre-slash ficlet based on a writing prompt found here

I Want To Fade Away With You - Modern-ish AU company paintball tournament goes (hilariously) wrong

In The Moonlight, We Let It Go - Poolside confessions

"I'd like some light angst, nothing too serious, please" Gotcha covered:

One More or One Less (Nobody's Worried) - Winged Spies canon rewrite

The Toil of Expectations - Medieval AU with a happy ending and a couple of explicit smut scenes

"Q" Is For Kid - the trio accidentally acquire a child on their mission to stop a Nazi faction from developing a nerve gas

To Grow Old In Simplicity - this is mostly happy, the angst comes from the fear of outliving your partners and the struggles that come with being an aging (former) spy

The Moment I Knew I'd No Choice But To Love You - the agnst in this one is more memory related

Is That The Kinda Way To Face The Burning Heat? - porn with a little bit of angsty backstory

Nothin' But The Water And The Sunrise Now - light angsty backstory with some fun NOS-induced moments and a happy ending

All Eyes On Me (Your Eyes On Me) - this one's a bit heavier, but the angst is just internalized homophobia and Illya not wanting to be a honeypot but needing to. Has masturbation and explicit smut

I Am Scared Of Nothing - religious trauma

A Rather Frightening Thing - religious trauma

As Sharp And Serious As A Pistol In The Eye - canon rewrite (explicit smut)

It Takes Three To Tango - post-canon

"Alright, now I want the heavy stuff. Gimme the angst!" Coming right up, my friend!!

Emotional Angst:

You Had To Be A Big Shot, Didn't You (You Had To Open Up Your Mouth) - Winged Solo backstory

My Wings Have Been So Denied - Winged Illya as a child

She'll Tell You She's an Orphan After You Meet Her Family - Winged Gaby grieving (explicit smut)

You Take Me In Your Arms When Walls Are Closing In - Body Horror in (false)memory

Pretty Piece of Flesh - sexual trauma (explicit sexual content)

The Awful Things We Do To Make The Head Go Quiet - near suicide attempt

Lost On You - internalized homophobia and period typical homophobia

Physical Harm:

Quietly, It Slips Through Your Fingers, Love (Falling From You Drop By Drop) - Alternative ending where Illya shoots Solo (he lives)

Let Me Be Your Own Icarian Carrion - Winged Spies, Illya goes down in the water

One Deep Breath Out From The Sky - Missing scene fic after the motorcycle crash

Whumptober 2023 - "The Man From Uncle (2015)" - I mean. This is Whumptober. So.

Will You Remember All The Danger We Came From? - Vampire Illya prequel. Body Horror.

All My Love And Terror Balanced There - Illya wakes up as a Vampire. (Explicit smut)

I'd Block The Sun (If You Want It Done) - the trio's plane goes down in the middle of the ocean and they have to survive on a deserted island

Grounded And Giving And Darkening Scorn - Illya's past comes back to haunt him

The Injury of Finally Knowing You - 5+1 Times fic

Major Character Death (temporary):

The End Is All I Can See (And It Scares The Hell Out Of Me) - time loop

"I want that one restaurant critic AU that will be updates eventually but hasn't for a while!" Uh, oddly specific, and thank you for wanting to read this unfinished fic, and I WILL finish it eventually, but, uh, here ya go!:

Michelin Star Spy - Illya is a food critic swept up in spydom.

#tmfu #the man from uncle #illya kuryakin #napoleon solo #gaby teller #tmfu movie #napollya #gallya #illya x napoleon x gaby #fanfiction #fanfic #ao3

[omegajasontoddweek]

✨OJTW2023 PROMPTS✨

Thank you to everyone who voted! Here are our prompts for OJT2023 (prompts feature adult and dark content)

April 24th: “He’s not yours. He’s mine.” | Impregnation/breeding | Kemonomimi/animal features/wing fic/animal hybrids | Single parent Jason | Courting

April 25th: Lactation kink | Unplanned/triggered heat/rut | Catlad/Stray Jason Todd | Alphas fight each other to breed Jason | Omegas are a rare dynamic

April 26th: Collars | Forced bonding/mating/marriage | Jason accidentally seduces his family’s teammate/s | Overprotective/obsessive partner | Non-traditional omegaverse dynamics

April 27th: Death Day, Free Day

April 28th: Competency kink | Honeypot mission | Jason is Damian’s biological parent | Nesting | Feral Jason Todd/omegas

April 29th: Size queen Jason Todd | Soulmates AU | Accidental child acquisition | Omegas need strong pack bonds to be healthy | Late presentation

April 30th: “You didn’t deserve him then, you don’t deserve him now, and you never will.” | First heat | Paparazzi get photos of the Wayne omega that go viral | Everyone wants Jason | Jason doesn’t know what a knot is

#ojtw2023 #omega jason todd week #jason todd #omega jason todd

[aphroditestummyrolls]

Hi hello.

✨it is time… for a WIP game✨

The WIPs:

Time for a Spare Prayer

Wylan’s name has become a target on his back, but his crows are there to protect him. Until things go wrong and Wylan is alone. Suddenly, Colm Fahey is the only witness to an attempt on Wylan’s life, and becomes a target himself.

Between Hope and Desperation

Wylan and Jesper are kidnapped when Wylan Van Eck's past bursts in on Wylan Hendriks's fragile present. Secrets are revealed, blood is spilled, and trust is required.

Engagement Series (here, here, and here)

post canon series of loosely linked stories following Jesper and Wylan as they settle into the Geldstraat and start their future together! From fluff to angst and back again! Currently working on the proposal fic itself, and a funny little mercher council oneshot featuring Mikhail and Karl.

The Jesper Whump Oneshot (CW for date rape drugs and non-graphic sexual assault)

Jesper ends up narrowly escaping a honeypot mission gone wrong. And, of course, as he’s sleeping off the drug in his and Wylan’s room, a stranger comes to call. The constabulary pointed him in the direction of the Crow Club— he’s looking for his son, Jesper? Cue a lot of very anxious crows.

Wytthias Spare Prayer deleted scene

A missing scene that was supposed to be at the end of chapter four of Spare Prayer. Just some wytthias friendship and introspection.

Yeehaw! Help me keep my brain busy and my productivity going!

#six of crows #grishaverse #shadow and bone #wesper #jesper fahey #wylan van eck #colm fahey #resident Colm Fahey enjoyer here #yeeeehawwwww

[chippuyon]

What kinda cons does Kazuki pull to get money on the street? Would he incorporate Rei and Miri

Oh he'd be as big a menace as possible. Canon!kazuki uses his charms on honeypot missions kid!kazuki uses the same charm on unsuspecting old rich people. Oongist had this one line in their fic about kazuki smiling at vendors to give him free food and I really liked that lol. He'd probably milk miris cute baby potential to snag free stuff or get peoples guards down and steal from them. Maybe place her in the middle of the sidewalk and while they're distracted he nabs their wallet. And if anything went wrong rei would just whack them with his gun case and they'd run away lmfao.

#buddy daddies #kiddie daddies #chip chips

[emptysurface]

Hi it might be spoilers or maybe even rude to ask and feel free to ignore this, but why is it so important to konoha that kyo goes through seduction training so young? Are they specifically hoping to recreate an agent with a similar profile to her mother? Within the anbu/assassination/seduction mission category, she certainly has desirable skill. Are they planing for genma to follow the blueprint when he becomes a ninja? Also why didn’t katsuro or kou like, protest the seduction training, especially at such a young age, or did they not have the power or what? Is it because she is a jounin and anbu? Could kyo reasonably refuse future seduction missions without consequences? Just seems odd that the girl that can’t be on birth control has to be the one doing seduction, unless it was a honeypot mission… and also i know it isn’t a bloodlimit, but wouldn’t konoha rather have kyo put her energy into stabilizing her clan??? Like she already is but you know, clan culture, knowledge, all that. Kinda also thinking about how kyo is in part parentified, helping raise genma, since she was eight years old and she is also solely responsible for teaching him poisons, while he gets a childhood, while she missed hers? Anyways love the fic, i’m always so heartbroken for kyo, she goes through such turmoil, and i feel like she doesnt need to deal with 90% of the drama that shows up in her life, but atleast there are always people she can hug to feel better. <3

I think this is based in a misunderstand about how I write seduction, tbh. I'm not aiming this solely at you, Anon, btw, but I do get quite a lot of comments similar to this, so it's been on my mind a lot.

Kyo isn't getting seduction training to become the next Spider/Utako. Kyo is never going to be a seduction specialist, she's not going to be sent out of the village to "seduce the enemy" so to speak.... I've also established that those kinds of missions are pretty rare to begin with.

Kyo is at her base an assassin. She's also a kunoichi. Kou and Katsurou both acknowledge, even if it's only silently, that there are aspects of their profession Kyo won't be able to escape. In the last while of HtS, we've seen Spider primarily use her seduction skills to... gather intel.

So what it comes down to is that Konoha (and, to some extent, the people responsible for Kyo) want her to get this training not so they can fling her at people to have sex with, but so that she can use these skills if it's ever needed in the field, to gather information, carry out an assassination, or to simply survive a terrible situation.

Her rank and her being ANBU are definitely a contributing factor, in a way, bc they influence what kinds of missions she's sent on etc.

So at the end of the day, I guess you could say Konoha isn't super invested in Kyo getting seduction training the way I think you meant it? But Kyo is an asset, and seduction training makes her more prepared to deal with hazards and obstacles in her profession, as well as makes her more vercatile when unexpected components pop up on mission.

And the truth of the society I am writing is that, frankly, it doesn't really matter if Kyo gets seduction training or not, to a lot of people, because just the simple fact that she is a kunoichi, most people will assume she has it.

so like she says in the story, she'd rather have the tools if she ever need them than the other way around.

I hope this answers your question in regards to the seduction, Anon!

Genma's career depends a lot on how he does once he graduates, his personal skills and talents, but yes, seduction training is highly likely to be in his future, too, tbh.

I don't know if I missed any questions, but. I'm glad you like my story? :) It's always nice to get to talk about it, hope you're having a good day, Anon!

#HtS #HtS ask

[shadowstarion]

strangers • pregame shadowstarion

i am a sucker for the “we met once and had an impact on one another but neither of us remembered it” trope and i need them crossing paths at least once. this is just some thoughts/concepts for a fic featuring baby sharran shadowheart and rookie vamp spawn astarion

++ warning for mentions of trauma & abuse

Novice Shadowheart being the honeypot piece for an investigation on disappearances near her House. She’s sheltered and awkward, not yet confident in herself, and the idea of going to seedier hangouts in town makes her very uncomfortable, which is 75% of the reason this task gets assigned to her. Her sitting nervously in a tavern bar, feeling overexposed in that leather getup and nursing a drink.

Astarion approaches her and she’s smitten in an instant— there’s no way that this is the creep her superiors are after, right? He’d walked right up to her in plain view, his flirtation is polite and respectful even. All of his words and touches are sweet ones, compliments and chaste caresses. She realizes it feels nice to be just a girl in a bar, batting her eyelashes and enjoying the attention of a stranger. No obligations, no pressure to be perfect, no standards for her to meet other than simply existing as she is.

There’s no moment of “she’s the love of my life i must spare her from certain death” where Astarion consciously refuses to lure her home, he just… doesn’t. They end their night together with an almost-kiss after she’d insisted on bidding him farewell, sounding almost pained. He’d leaned in for it, to give her that mesmerizing kiss that would linger in her mind and draw her back here some other night, but she’d winced and flinched away at the last second before hastily leaving. And Astarion would let it happen. With his skill set and the clientele of the tavern, he’ll have plenty more options to bring home for his master’s dinner. Maybe some part of him just wanted to be an interested suitor chatting up a shy but beautiful maiden, not a hunter in pursuit of prey.

The whole time they’re talking, Shadowheart is growing more convinced that this stranger was not the one she was meant to seduce and interrogate, but she just can’t tear herself away from him. Shar is punishing her for it, her brand flaring up once or twice throughout. Of course her patron would protest at this, her wasting her time flirting around instead of pursuing the objective, the way her smiles and laughs are growing much too genuine. So she rushes back to the cloister, repents for her failures, and has the mission wiped entirely from her memories.

Astarion forgets because he hadn’t been able to bring home supper that night. Entertaining that pretty girl at the bar bleeds into a tick in the endless tally of tortures, no different from any other evening he’d come home to a punishment. Faces and names are hard to recall, everything stained by Cazador’s cruelty.

When they meet again, neither of them have any idea they’d ever met before. That entire day’s worth of time was erased from her mind, she couldn’t possibly remember him. Even if Astarion might have remembered Girl At The Tavern #147 for some reason, he wouldn’t recognize her immediately— her hair is much longer now, she’s slimmed down a bit, and her personality is forcibly cold and prickly.

Regardless of how their story ends, I don’t think they’d ever even know. If Shadowheart did recognize him via Selune returning her memories, she wouldn’t tell him. Knowing she’d been one of his failed targets in that time would only make him feel terrible, and what’s the use in dredging up old wounds now when they’re finally free from abuse? She’ll just keep how he made her feel close to her chest as a cherished memory.

#shadowstarion #astarion #shadowheart #shadowstar #writing ideas #bg3 #bg3 astarion #bg3 shadowheart #shadowstar bg3 #bg3 writing #bg3 headcanons #pregame bg3

[goddesspharo]

fic: a fraudulent zodiac Top Gun: Maverick "Should I be offended by how game you are to volunteer me for these honeypot missions?" No one questions who he had to give up to stay alive. (Or: the one where they're all spies. Agent Bradley Bradshaw returns after being presumed dead for five years, but the only person who seems to doubt his allegiances is Jake Seresin, a man with his own share of baggage.)

CHAPTER ONE: the pledge The magician shows you something ordinary: a deck of cards, a bird, or a man. He shows you this object. Perhaps he asks you to inspect it to see if it is indeed real, unaltered, normal. But of course…it probably isn't.

#SPY!AU HAS TAKEN A LIFE OF ITS OWN #population of one on this island of extremely niche interests #i heart spies #top gun #* #hannix #fic

[ikeepwatchinghelicopters]

Ignoring that homophobia exists (because it's all bullshit), let's imagine that Napoleon and Illya met a long time ago (maybe during the war, or, perhaps more realistically, during one of Napoleon's first missions for the CIA). They were young and in love and they got married in secret (now, when I'm thinking more about this, I realised that they could have met during the war and fell in love, but they didn't have enough time to develop a relationship, but then they met druing one of Napoleon's first CIA missions again and that's when they got married in some small, random European town). They planned to run away together, but with the Cold War and CIA and KGB in the way, they didn't manage to do it. Maybe they had to cease all contact for a few months to ease suspicions and make sure they wouldn't be discovered (just imagine all the angst and longing). Over the years, they maintained a long-distance relationship where they tried to communicate and meet as much as possible without arousing any suspicions. They were very good at it and the KGB and the CIA never had even the slightest idea.

And then the events in the movie happen. I think the espace from East Berlin would play out pretty much the same way it did in the movie. Them being married kind of gives Napoleon's line: "Somehow it just doesn't seem like the right thing to do," new context. I think that would 100% be his reaction when someone asks him if he doesn't want to shoot his secret husband. Also, imagine how much of self-control poor Illya had to exert to keep a poker face while he was being briefed about Napoleon by the KGB. I bet he really wanted to be like: "Please, can I have some of these photos of young Napoleon? For nostalgia's sake. He was so adorable." Also, also, Napoleon would feel pretty bad for dropping Illya in the minefield, but Illya forgives him after Napoleon bakes him a few cakes, satisfying Illya's sweet tooth.

And during their fight in the bathroom, they totally snuck in some kisses when Oleg and Sanders weren't paying too much attention. And their little exchange about who picks which lock ("I take top." "I'll take the bottom.") was definitely followed by a dirty joke from Napoleon. Also, Illya had to be so jealous and hurt when he heard Napoleon and Victoria together. Like, he rationally knows that Napoleon does honeypot missions and that he also has to keep up his womanizer persona, and it's not like he doubts Napoleon's love for him. He just never had to witness it so closely and it's painful. And this scenario also opens up the opportunity for lots of comforting after Napoleon gets rescued from Rudi, because he doesn't have to act like a tough spy, but he can be a bit vulnerable in front of his husband and let Illya fret over him (at least for bit; they still have a mission to complete afterall). I also imagine that Waverly acts like he is absolutely clueless about Illya and Napoleon's marriage, but in reality he knows about it, because he managed to find out when he was doing a background check on them before he hired them for UNCLE.

Now I really want to read a fic which is a rewrite of canon where Illya and Napoleon are secretly married.

#tmfu #napoleon solo #illya kuryakin #napollya #alexander waverly #fic idea #feel free to write the fic #i probably never will

[tinkertoysdamn]

Guardians of the Galaxy Fic Master List

The Legendary Star-Lord Will Return Series

I Read It In the Papers

The first in the The Legendary Star-Lord Will Return series. A character study of Peter Quill's Grandfather and of Peter once he returns to Earth.

Track #4: In the Meantime

The second story in the series aka the one where Mantis accidentally starts a cult.

The King of Wishful Thinking

The third in the series. Peter Quill goes on a heist adventure with Gamora and Thor, romance and hilarity ensue.

It's a Dirty Job (But Someone's Gotta Do It)

The fourth in the series. Peter Quill is the new liaison between the Avengers and S.W.O.R.D. He gets roasted for it.

It's Not Time to Make a Change

The fifth in the series. The elder Quills visit Knowhere.

Systematic Drug (Collectively, Unconsciously Composed)

The sixth in the series. Peter Quill must testify before Ashirem the Judge over the worth of humanity. A crossover with The Eternals.

The Weight of Living

The Seventh in the series. Peter has to deal with the fallout from Arishem's Judgement. Good thing he's not alone.

You Stick Around, I'll Make It Worth Your While

The Eighth in the series. Nick Fury recruits Peter to clean up the aftermath of Dar-Benn's rampage with the help of some new and old friends.

Other GotG Stories

Saturday Night's Alright For Fightin'

The Contest of Champions AU based on The Grandmaster's plan in KOWT. Starring a disapproving Beta Ray Bill. OT3 fic.

Nice Day for a White Wedding

The one rated M fic based on the Disney XD continuity. Loki kidnaps Peter with a "proposal" and Peter tries to squirm out of it with legalese. Badly. He is so terrible at this.

The Tragedy of Uncle Taserface

A character study of a minor villain. (could be read as part of TLSLWR series)

She's a Little Bit Dangerous

A Five Times fic. Five Times Gamora was intrigued by Peter Quill and one time it happened in We Built This City 'verse

Oh Brother, Brother I Can't Get Through

A Mantis and Peter sibling short fic

You Know They're Bragging About Your Sugar

Starmora, set after What If...? S2E4

When The Rain Washes You Clean You'll Know

A Five Times fic...for Ego the Living Planet. A villain POV fic.

Listen to the Wind Blow, Down Comes the Night

Mourning comes in many forms. A Rocket and Peter friendship fic.

But a Beast Is In the Heart

Starmora. Sometimes, Gamora feels like a monster.

We Built This City 'verse:

We Built This City

A Rule 63 'verse story. 2014!Gamori needs to work with the GotG to rescue the daughter he didn't know he had, which means working with the woman his other self left behind.

And I'm Feeling Good

The second We Built This City story. Brandy Quill is doing a honeypot operation and Gamori's stopped talking to her. They are both dumb about this feelings thing.

Texarkana

The third We Built This City story. An alternate Thanos misses his family after his victory in Infinity War. Unfortunately for Brandy Quill, he has his eyes set on hers.

Escape (oh god, not this song)

Thorquill, crossover with the Loki TV series, fits into no continuity. XD Pairs with We Built This City

Loki needs a variant Thor to help him on a mission and immediately regrets the one he finds.

Stereo Hearts

Thorquill, crossover with the Loki TV series. Sequel to Escape and We Built This City.

Ramble On

Thorquill, the course of true love never did run smooth, not even for the Goddess of Thunder.

Tumblr Only:

The Favor - Thorquill short

Silly and short about stealing a kiss or "favor."

Untitled Starmora Short

Inspired by the prompt "too many beds." Short and sad.

Edit: Updated as of 5/28

Smut will not be directly linked to from this blog but....it does exist

#gotg fic #guardians of the galaxy #peter quill #tinker self promotion #starmora #thorquill #Peter quill x gamora x Thor #fanfic masterlist #peter quill x loki #taserface #thorquillmora